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I nodded. I’d suspected for weeks now that Sassy and Erin liked each other in more than a friendly way. The idea of them hooking up didn’t bother me, but I was worried Erin wasn’t ready to handle a relationship. Coming out of the grave was harder than coming out of the closet. Stick both in the works at once, and you were asking for trouble.
“Just so long as you don’t send her into overload. Erin has a lot to learn about her new life, and I’d hate to see her lose direction because she was focused on a relationship instead of gaining control over her growing abilities. I have Dredge’s blood in me, and he was very powerful. Probably one of the most powerful vampires who ever walked the worlds. And my bloodline is half-Fae, so Erin’s going to have some interesting fallout from her lineage.” I sighed. “How far has it gone? I know that sounds nosy, but—”
Sassy inclined her head gracefully. “Being her sire, you have every right to ask. We haven’t . . . done anything. We talk a lot. I’ll abide by whatever you wish, but if you want me to keep things on a platonic basis forever, then I have to ask you to find her another place to live. I know that’s not fair—”
I laughed. “Not fair? You opened your house to her and took her in. You’ve given your time and energy to helping her. How many other vampires would have done the same for me? No, Sassy, I’m in your debt. I think, though, if you can just keep things on a platonic level for another year, it would be best. I’m not saying don’t talk or hold hands but . . . leave it at that for now?”
Sassy nodded. “I promise. Erin will remain here, we’ll be good, and you won’t be disappointed.” She gave me a subtle wink. “And you—how is the lovely young Were you’re dating?”
If I could have blushed, I would have. I didn’t broadcast my love life like Camille. It wasn’t that I was uncomfortable with my sexual choices or shy. It was just that they were a private part of my life—like when I fed.
“We’re taking an enforced break, but not because we want to. Her Pride has decided she should run for the City Council seat that Zachary was vying for. He still has a long way to go toward healing and needs to focus on regaining his strength.” I leaned back and stared at the ceiling. An intricate chandelier illuminated the room, a vision of dragonflies in stained glass. “Tiffany?”
She nodded. “With the production stamp included. My late husband’s mother owned it, and she gave it to us as a wedding present because I admired it. She was a formidable woman, but fair.” She paused, her voice catching. After a moment, she shrugged. “Margaret was a good mother-in-law. She never chided us for choosing not to have more children after our daughter drowned.”
I’d never asked Sassy about her daughter, not wanting to pry, but the older woman seemed to want to talk. “What was her name?”
Sassy looked up at me, surprise washing across her face. “I’ve never told you much about her, have I?”
I shook my head. “No, and I never felt right about asking.”
Janet entered the room then, with two goblets filled with blood. I didn’t ask Sassy where she got her bottled blood—it just didn’t seem appropriate. I accepted one of the flutes and nodded gravely to the older woman. Janet refused to be treated like a friend by Sassy’s buddies. She had a strong sense of propriety and showed no interest in joining the conversation.
“Thank you, Janet. If you’ll adjust the curtains, then you can attend to whatever you like for an hour or two. Just be back around four.” Sassy spoke affectionately to her. If it bothered Janet that Sassy was a vampire, she didn’t show it. After the housekeeper left, Sassy turned back to me.
“She’s seen you through most of your life, hasn’t she?” I swirled the drink. It wasn’t animal blood, that was for sure.
Sassy ducked her head, smiling. “Yes, she has. I never, ever tried to put the bite on her, even when I was hungry. I hate to think about the day she passes. I’m so very much going to want to bring her over to our side, but I refuse to do so. I’ve already told her that I won’t do it, but I’ll be by her side till the end. Janet has cancer, you see. A slow, progressive brain tumor. She’s dying, Menolly, and in about a year, I’ll lose her.” Bloody tears welled up in her eyes. “She’s been closer to me than anybody—my family, my friends, even my late husband. Janet’s . . . a part of me.”
“But you won’t bring her over,” I said.
I wondered how she’d feel when Janet was slipping away. I’d sworn never to sire another vampire until I was faced with Erin’s imminent death and her pleas to live. I’d broken down, turned her, and now, here we were. But I kept my mouth shut. Sassy would have to face her conscience at the end and then live with whatever choice she made.
“No.” Sassy took a sip of the blood and daintily wiped her mouth with a crimson napkin. “Menolly, I miss hunting. For the past six months I’ve bought my blood from the blood bank. There’s a new one, you know, downtown. They’re paying street kids for blood and selling it to vamps. Gives the kids a little money, and they keep a record so nobody gets depleted. Wade’s responsible for that little enterprise.”
I stared at the goblet of crimson fire. “Why haven’t you gone hunting?”
Sassy cleared her throat. I looked up at her. She held my gaze.
“I’ve started to enjoy it too much. I’m slipping. Just a little, Menolly, but it scares me silly. That’s why Erin’s good for me. She reminds me of how important training is. Helping her, helps me.” She hesitated, then continued. “I want you to promise me something. I don’t have any family, so consider it payment for helping Erin. Down the line.”
I knew what she was going to ask, because I’d made Camille promise me the same thing. “If the time comes, I promise you. I’ll be quick. You won’t suffer, and you won’t make anybody else suffer.”
With a nod, Sassy relaxed and leaned back in her chair. “Thank you. That sets my mind at ease. Now, about my daughter. She was beautiful. Her hair was the same golden blonde as Delilah’s. And she was so tiny and yet so strong. Abby had the kind of self-confidence that comes naturally, and there wasn’t a mean bone in her body. Abigail was my saving grace. She gave me a reason to bury myself under customs and mores. I loved her more than anything, Menolly. I would have died for her.” She hung her head and once again, a catch entered her voice.
“When she was five, we went to Ocean Shores on vacation. We were walking on the beach—Janet and Abby and I. Johan was off in a meeting somewhere. He had a conference call or something. Anyway, I decided to catch some sun, and I fell asleep on the blanket. The next thing I knew, Janet was screaming. I woke up to see her racing into the water. Abby had gone to play at the edge of the waves when the tide started to come in. The waves caught her.”
I squeezed my eyes shut to give her privacy in her pain.
“Abby was pulled into a riptide, and before Janet could reach her, she was gone. Just like that. The lifeguards were on the scene within minutes, but we didn’t find her body till the next day when she washed back up onshore.”
Sassy let out a long, measured sigh, and I knew she was practicing the exercises I’d taught her. Sometimes, when the emotion grew too intense, it helped to force the lungs to move, to take a breath even though the oxygen was unneeded. To hold it, count away the panic or fear or anger, then let it go slowly.
“What happened?”
“The light of my life died that day. Johan and I managed to get through it. Janet was terribly broken up and blamed herself, but it wasn’t her fault. I should have been awake. I should have been watching my daughter.” Crimson tears began to streak down her cheeks. “I spent the rest of my life avoiding the memories. And I’ve spent the years since my death trying to make up for it by helping others.”
There wasn’t anything I could say to help. Sassy dashed at her cheeks with a brilliant red handkerchief. After a moment, she composed herself. “On to other things. Why did you come tonight? There’s something else, isn’t there?”
