“Mother.” I storm into her office and she looks up, startled at my sudden appearance.
“Bash, what are you doing here? You and Elina are supposed to be presented to Marcus in—” she looks at the wall clock “—15 minutes. Where’s Elina?”
“That's why I’m here.” I can hear the terror in my own voice. My mother’s eyes immediately narrow and she waits for what I am about to say. “She’s gone.” My voice breaks and my breath heaves like I am having a panic attack. Vampires don’t have panic attacks.What the hell is happening to me?
Maybe I am dying.
Standing up, she looks at me. “What do you mean ‘gone’? She can’t go anywhere. The city is closed. She is here.”
“‘Gone’ like someone took her.” Collapsing to my knees on her carpet, I cover my face with my hands. Mother kneels in front of me, removes my hands from my face, and slaps me—hard—across the cheek.
“For God’s sake, Sebastien. Get up!” Her eyes are cold,calculating. “I need you to tell me what happened. Stop falling apart.”
“She wasn’t home when I arose and I knew we had the thing with Marcus.” I wave my hand in the direction of the church. “I went to the Velvet Tomb and she wasn’t there. I went to her house and she had been there but she wasn’t there anymore.” I suck in a ragged breath. “I followed her scent to the park and I found strangers wrapped around her essence, 3 or 4 of them. And it didn’t go anywhere else. So I came here.” I choke back a sob. “Someone took her.”
“Sebastien, you are nearly500years old. Act like it. I know you’re upset, but you need to get it together so we can figure out what is happening. Do you think you can help Elina like this? Do you?”
She’s right.
I stand up, pulling my shoulders back, and take a few breaths to compose myself. I close my eyes and Elina’s blue eyes are there.
I’m trying.
“Now, let’s go talk to Marcus,” she says before sweeping from the room.
“What do you meanmissing?” Marcus questions my mother as we stand in front of him, sitting comfortably in his golden chair. She recounts what I told her in her office as I look around the vestibule. I take stock of who is and is not in attendance.
He drums his fingers once, twice, on the arm of his chair.
Everyone knew that we were supposed to present hertoday. All 12 members of the council are here. Amongst their faces I see concern, disbelief, uncertainty, empathy, apathy, and, on one face, disdain. Talia. She watches me closely the way I watch everyone else. I stand tall, not letting the tightness in my chest, the fury below the surface, thedevastation,show on my face.
“What do you want us to do, Sebastien?” Marcus uses his Re voice.
I look at him and bow my head. “I want permission to use whatever resources are available and necessary to find her. She is the futureprincipessaand she is important.”
“She is notprincipessayet, she has not been presented. She is a human, Sebastien. Onemortalwoman. I can not risk soldiers for sentiment.” He answers me dismissively like my entire world is not on the brink of collapse.
“I will find her and I will take the sirelings with me. You don’t like it? Stop me, Uncle.” I look at him challengingly. Turning to the gathered council, “Any who have sirelings they would volunteer, let me know. I will find her and I won’t forget those who help me.” I look directly at Talia. “And those who don’t.”
“Marcus, please, this is going to divide the family. He’s your heir, yournipote.” My cousins file into the room, as my mother finishes her plea.
Alessandra, Filomena, Gianna, and Aurora line up behind me, clearly declaring their side. My uncles, Darius and Victor—their fathers—look at them, slack-jawed. Surprised by this show of solidarity, I believe. They shouldn’t be. I have been close to them all since they were born. They are my blood, my family.
The mood in the hall subtly shifts, vampires move around each other in a slow, quiet dance, those who are clearly with Marcus moving his way. Those who are clearlywith me, moving mine. Those who are torn, loiter in the middle.
The silence is deafening.
I sketch an almost mocking bow, and I turn on my heel to leave.
With my supporters in my wake, I see that we have split the court, almost evenly.
Entering an empty office, I lean against the desk while everyone files in. My mother comes in last.
“First steps,” I begin as soon as everyone is in and the door shut. “Does everyone know what Elina looks and smells like?” I open my wallet and remove the photo from her visit to the archives all those months ago, before she changed my life. I set it on the desk for reference, sadness permeating the air.
“We can smell her on you.” Michael says and I hiss at him. He puts his hands up in a placating gesture. “Sorry, but it’s true”.
“Bash, it’s too early to already be alienating your allies. You’ll need all the support you can get,” my mother scolds me.
