Page 29 of Dhampira

I sat up and let my gaze wander around the room. After a minute, I flopped backward into the pillows again. If another Noctan servant was present, they were well hidden. And I really needed to sleep. But the events of the day paraded through my head, each one bristling with questions I couldn’t answer. Rasimir was feared throughout Ghedda, but he’d treated me like a long-lost daughter. My mother claimed he would use me. But Rasimir had called me his heir.

You are precious to me.

He’d stripped Lorcan of his crown and made him a prince. On the other hand, he’d allowed Lorcan to live. How many kings permitted their former rivals to eat cake in their castle? Lorcan seemed content enough…except when he looked at me.

Moonlight poured through the windows, which were the same height and shape as the double doors that had led to the balcony where Rasimir and I spoke. On a hunch, I slipped from the bed and padded across the carpet. Sure enough, the windows were doors. With a flick of a small, golden latch, I stepped onto a wide balcony with a stone railing.

And as before, I caught my breath at the scenery below. My chamber faced what appeared to be a large inner courtyard. More statues lined the perimeter of a sprawling maze of hedges taller than Timmon the bridge troll.

The sound of splashing water echoed in the air. A break in the greenery revealed an enormous fountain with a stone merman rising from the center. He held a trident in one hand and a shield in the other. A crown nestled among waves that fell to his waist. Water spurted from his mouth and cascaded to the bowl below. His face was so lifelike, it took me a moment to be certain it was made of stone.

Movement drew my gaze from the statue, and I gripped the railing as Vander strode from behind a hedge. He stopped, looked left and right, and then went to the base of the fountain. A second later, Lorcan appeared, a long, black cloak snapping around his ankles as he crossed to Vander. Judging from the look on Vander’s face, he was clearly expecting the prince—but he wasn’t happy about it.

Neither man looked happy as they faced off before the fountain. Their expressions were hard, their jaws tight. The stiff subservience Vander displayed earlier was nowhere to be seen. Now he practically vibrated with obvious anger as he loomed over the prince. If Lorcan was intimidated, he didn’t show it. His dark hair glinted in the moonlight as he spoke, his lean body radiating tension. Vander’s silver eyes flashed, and he stabbed a finger toward Lorcan’s chest.

My heart sped up. I leaned forward as I strained to hear the men, but it was useless. The water drowned out their voices. And anyway, I was probably too high up to hear anything.

But I didn’t need words to know the men were arguing. Lorcan slashed a hand through the air, his lips moving faster. Vander gestured more wildly and then scowled when Lorcan appeared to hush him. After another minute, Vander spun like he meant to stalk off, but Lorcan grabbed his arm and forced him back around.

Vander shoved Lorcan, and I clamped a hand over my mouth to muffle my shock. Lorcan stared up at Vander, his lips moving. A second later, Vander gripped the prince’s cloak and hauled him close. They continued arguing, but now their lips almost…touched.

Blood rushed in my ears as I tried to make sense of what I was seeing.

Were they going to…? No, surely not.

Lorcan stumbled backward, and I couldn’t tell if he’d freed himself or if Vander had released him. With a final, scathing look, the prince turned and stalked into the night. Vander stared after him, his shoulders heaving. Slowly, the anger faded from his expression, leaving his eyes…stricken.

I lowered my hand from my mouth.

Vander stiffened. Without warning, he looked at the balcony.

Directly at me.

With a gasp, I stepped back. But it was too late. He’d seen me.

Heart racing, I stood in the shadows and waited. For what, I didn’t know. Vander’s gaze reached through the darkness and pinned me in place. For a moment, he looked like he might speak.

Then he turned on his heel and left the courtyard.

I stood frozen, my thoughts spinning. What was that? Whatever it was, I wasn’t supposed to have seen it. Vander and Lorcan had been formal with each other during my meeting with Rasimir. They’d been borderline hostile. But the way they’d interacted just now was…

Well, it was decidedly informal. And it was another uncertainty added to a growing pile of them. My new “title.” My role in Rasimir’s court. Mama’s version of the past. She’d kept my father’s identity from me. Why would she do that? And now I was stuck in Nocta, with no way to reach her—not unless I was willing to flee the castle and brave the perils of the road and the Wendlewood.

The wind picked up, and I moved back to the balcony railing. The courtyard was still, the only sound the splash of the merman’s fountain. The hedge maze unfolded behind it, the rows of greenery so vast they narrowed to a point in the distance. Moonlight coated everything in silver.

My throat thickened, and I swallowed hard as my mother’s voice ran through my head.

…the vampires value power above everything. If you cross the Feyline, they’ll find you and use your gift to their benefit.

She’d meant daywalking. But Rasimir had no use for it here. So why did he want me? Had he sought me all this time?

The questions spun faster, but exhaustion followed just as quickly. I left the balcony, my steps dragging as I went to the bed and climbed in. As fatigue tugged at my eyelids, Mama’s face floated in my mind. Just before sleep claimed me, my worries coalesced into a single, burning question:

Why did she lie?

7

Iwoke to the sound of birdsong. Beautiful but loud, it trilled through the balcony doors and straight into my brain. Groaning, I grabbed a pillow and pressed it over my head.