“I wouldn’t blame her.”
“Yet you are here.” I showed him my fangs.
“Stop it.” He waved dismissively. “You know they don’t frighten me anymore. Irene must start developing her powers. She must kill a man soon, or her power will dwindle, and she’ll die. No time to waste. You must talk to her.”
“Right.” I pressed two fingers to my temples, scoffing as another book flew too close to my nose.
Irene had brought back memories and emotions of who I’d been before becoming Ravenhill, when I’d been human and my life, albeit miserable, had been simple. I hadn’t had to fight the thirst or worry if I was going to lose control and kill someone.
Darius ate another bonbon. “I haven’t finished the chapter on vampires?—”
“How is that possible?” I couldn’t remove the frustration in my voice. “Burke’s Peerage has twenty times more pages than that thin book. You’ve been reading it for years. I don’t understand.”
He glowered. “That’s the right word. Understand.De Mirabilibus Mundiis extremely difficult to read, and only anexceptionally powerful mage like me can read it without going mad.”
“Are you sure about the latter?”
He shot his gaze towards the ceiling. “A legend says that four hundred years ago, a man became a vampire after selling his soul to the devil to save the life of his beloved wife. But the devil tricked him.”
“How surprising.”
“Oh, shush. His wife died, but she reincarnated. In fact, she gets a new life every time she dies, and he’s roaming the Earth searching for her, desperate to be reunited with her. If he finds her, she will live with him forever.” He clicked his tongue. “Four hundred years of longing.”
I waited for him to add something else. “And? How’s this story important to me?”
“I think it’s sad and romantic.”
“Sad and romantic?” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I don’t care about sad and romantic stories. I need useful information to keep Graves’s werewolves quiet, to stop the fairies from nagging me, and to understand why Myrtha’s power is vanishing.”
He didn’t seem to care. “It’s an interesting story.”
“What you will find interesting is the latest bill proposal from the Fair Court.” I waved the document that the Duchess of the Fair Court had sent to me. “Her Grace Esmeralda wants me to approve a restriction on magic.”
“What?” He perked up.
“She wrote…” I read from the document. “Any recreational use of magic should be banned. If I sign this, it’ll be illegal for you to use magic to get dressed, heat your tea at exactly the temperature you like, or keep your hair impeccably styled even in a storm.”
His expression was horrified. “Don’t you dare sign it.”
“I’m tempted to, only to annoy you. Esmeralda thinks that restrictions will make the world safer for humans.”
He opened his hand towards me in a menacing gesture as if he were casting a spell. “I’m serious. Don’t sign it. Or I’ll cast a spell on your tongue, and every type of blood you’re going to drink will taste of rotten fish.”
I exhaled. “You’re the kind of person who would wake me up to tell me you’re going to bed.”
He put on a pensive expression. “I think I did that once.”
I scraped my chair backwards and rose. “I’m going to see Irene.”
“Don’t frighten her. That rarely works.”
No, it worked better than he thought.
“Don’t be aggressive,” he added. “Don’t lose your temper. In short, don’t be yourself.”
“I have more important things to do than ignore you.” I paused, feeling a tingling sensation on my neck. “What did you say the name of the ancient vampire count was?”
“I never said he was a count.” He bolted upright. “Do you know something I don’t? It sounds impossible.”
