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Speaking of Lannan, I realized he was leaning over my shoulder, his lips precariously near my ear. "See anything you like?"
I forced myself to get a grip. "It's all very interesting. So this is where you perform your . . ."
"This is our equivalent of a costume dinner party," he said, laughing low. "You might come across a reference to feeding frenzies . . . as you can see, we aren't sharks, ripping our victims to pieces. We prefer to give pleasure where we take it.">A chill went down my back. "What kind of punishment?"
He stared at me. "Whatever punishment I choose."
"No blood," Rhiannon said. "You will not take blood from her. And you can't maim her."
Regina gave Lannan a long look and a veiled smile crossed her face. "Lannan would never maim such a lovely young woman."
"Wait." I caught my breath, feeling the world hedge in around me just a little bit more. The only way to avoid accepting their deal would be to leave town, but even then, they'd hunt me down. As she reached for the papers, I pulled them away from her.
"The part about helping us with my aunt--it's not in the contract. I ask again: Can you help us rescue my aunt and our friend Peyton? If I'm going to sign something that puts my life in danger, I have to make more than a couple grand a month for it."
Regina and Lannan looked at each other, then at Geoffrey. I had the distinct feeling they were conferring without us hearing a word.
After a moment, Lannan looked directly at me. I struggled to keep my composure and realized that if I looked away, they'd say no.
"You seek to up the ante, then you'll up the service to blood."
I started to protest but Lannan held up his hand.
"Once per month, I drink from you," he said. "I won't force you to drink from me, and I promise to avoid enthralling you, at least on a permanent basis. I won't make you my bloodwhore, although I think I'd fancy that. Yes, I would. But you will remember who your master is. You may be of the magic-born, but you are still but a step away from human and we have not been anything near to human for thousands of years."
Shit. If Grieve smelled Lannan's scent on me, he'd freak. "Won't that tip off Grieve that I'm hanging out with you?" Anything, anything to stave off being a living juice box.
"That remains your problem to deal with as you see fit." Lannan shrugged. He waited, tapping his foot lightly on the floor.
Watching my future narrow bleakly, I shrugged. What choice did I have at this point? And if it helped save Heather and Peyton . . .
"I'll do it," I said grimly. "Just make sure you don't take enough to leave me weak, nor turn me into a bloodwhore. If you'll honor bind yourself to that, we have a deal."
"You know, we don't have to offer you any of this," Geoffrey said. "But we do so out of our respect for your aunt, and for Marta, who we firmly believe was killed by the Indigo Court. That's another possibility . . ."
"What?"
"Perhaps we should have you check in to her death. The police certainly won't. And Anadey has her hands full. You might be able to confirm what we know. Truly, it remains easier to attract flies to honey instead of vinegar."
"And I'm your honey," I whispered, as Lannan took the contracts out of the room to be changed.
Regina smiled and walked over to me. I was still standing, so preoccupied in thought that I didn't even think to curtsey. She stepped so close that I could feel the crackle of energy sparkling around her.
"My brother enjoys his toys. He may play with you all he likes, and I grant you permission to enjoy it--he's a very good playmate. But remember: You are never, ever to believe that you can lure him away from me. We are a mated pair. You will not interfere or attempt to play one of us off the other. On the other hand, if you choose to play with both of us . . . I won't object in the least."
And then, she leaned forward and gave me a long kiss on the lips, and her taste and smell were so intoxicating that I didn't even flinch.
Chapter 12
With Regina's words echoing through my head, I stumbled back. She winked at me but the effect creeped me out--with her haunting obsidian eyes.
"Trust me, I have no intention of coming between the two of you, and I don't have any designs on your brother," I said, my knees buckling. Fucking hell, I'd agreed to give it up to her brother once a month, and I wasn't talking sex. Even that would have been better than bloodletting, I thought. Then again, remembering his reputation, maybe not.
"Good. Then as soon as you sign the contracts, you'll be free to leave. You're welcome to stay and join the party, if you think you can stomach it." Her voice was cool and I couldn't help it: I locked her gaze.
A challenge. She was issuing me a challenge. Seeing if I had the guts to deal with their world. I turned to Leo and Rhiannon, forcing myself to steady my voice. "You can go home, but I'll stay for a while."
I didn't dare show fear, even if they could smell it on me. Vampires were predators, they'd respect me if I held my ground. Well, as much as they'd respect anyone who wasn't part of their world.
