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I set my teeth. “Come in,” I ground out and kept going into the bedroom, where I dragged on a pair of jeans and a worn black linen shirt, leaving it unbuttoned.
Back in the parlor, a tray piled high with food—a baguette, cold chicken, foie gras, a trio of fancy French cheeses, a bowl of strawberries, a pot of cream—was on the coffee table.
Twilight was still next to the bookshelf. Cain’s gaze flicked from her to me. “Can I talk to you?”
“What’s up?”
He tipped his head at the door. “In the hall.”
I nodded. Cain wouldn’t bother me if it wasn’t important.
“Eat,” I told Twilight and followed him out the door.
The chateau’s basement had been built to withstand a vampire attack, with thick walls and heavy wood doors. I pulled the door closed so Twilight couldn’t overhear us.
Talon opened his door, curly hair damp from a shower. “Why don’t you guys come in here?” he asked with a glance at the guard a few yards away.
As soon as we were alone, I folded my arms over my chest. “Let me guess. This is about the woman.”
My friends exchanged a look. Then, as usual, Cain spoke first. “What the fuck, Bri? Since when do you buy blood slaves?
“I couldn’t leave her there. Not with Nazaire bidding on her.”
Nazaire—he went by one name—was a sadistic SOB. Enslaving his thralls was only the tip of the iceberg. He kept it on the down-low, but before we’d come to Quebec, Cain had done a deep web search on the Quebec City Syndicate hierarchy. When negotiating, the more intel you have, the better.
The QCS was old-school, treating their human servants more like slaves. They got away with it because most of the city’s politicians were in their pocket. And Nazaire was the worst of the sorry bunch.
“So you’re going to release her?” Cain asked.
“That’s between me and her.”
He blinked. This wasn’t like me, and we all knew it.
“Think, Brien,” said Talon. “What if SI finds out you bought a slave? They could use it as an excuse to put a contract out on you.”
“Fuck SI. How would they find out, anyway? As soon as we’re done here, I’ll take her back to the island. We won’t allow her access to a phone or the internet. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, she’s a new thrall.”
“Holy Dark Lady.” Cain’s eyes narrowed. “She’s that woman, isn’t she? The one you’ve been looking for—Lainey Q.”
My jaw tightened. A primitive part of me wanted to hide her, even from my best friends.
“Yeah. But we’re calling her Twilight now.”
“I thought she looked familiar,” said Talon.
“Well, damn.” Cain scratched his cheek. “Guess you have the bitch right where you want her, don’t you? A goddamn slayer.”
Talon shook his head. “I don’t know about this.”
“I think it could work in Brien’s favor,” Cain said. “We admit nothing, but if a rumor spreads that he’s keeping a slave, we let it stand. It will impress those old assholes who say he’s not enough of a bastard to become primus.”
“Exactly.” My smile would’ve made those ruthless old vampires sweat—if a vampire could sweat, that is. “But only the three of us can know she’s a former slayer. I don’t want the syndicate wondering why I’m showing a slayer mercy.”
“That tattoo on her spine should do it,” said Cain. “No slayer would deliberately get one, especially a tat that large. It makes her too easy to identify.”
Talon pursed his lips. “Something about this doesn’t pass the smell test. She could’ve gotten the tat to make us think she’s left SI for good.”
“Maybe so,” I said, “but she’ll be in my territory. What can she do with no phone or weapons? But this isn’t up for discussion—I’ve made up my mind. She stays.”
