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She wouldnotbe totally inconsequential to him.
Sherefusedto be.
“I have to go to the bathroom,” she said feeling her heart turn to steel.
In the huge, white marble bathroom, Saber fumbled in her clutch to find the tiny knife she’d brought. It was from the little outdoor clothing and equipment store downtown, a folding knife two inches long with a bone-white handle. She sat briefly on the closed toilet, pulled up her dress, and pressed the knife blade against the white of her left inner thigh.
“Ok, ok, ok,” she breathed.
She could not bring herself to cut.
“One, two, three,” she whispered, and closed her eyes.
Pressing her thumb to the back of the blade, she pushed it into her flesh.
It didn’t hurt until she looked at it, bright red blood against her pale white thigh. It throbbed for a moment, and she pressed her fingers to it and smeared a drop of her own blood behind her ears on her pulse points. By the time she stood and pulled down her dress, the pain was dull. The adrenaline pumping through her would make any pain seem minor. She felt her hands trembling but willed herself to stay calm. Summoning every ounce of courage she had, she slipped back into the room with Ansel.
26
When she came back out, Ansel had taken her place at the window, but he was turned toward the city skyline.
“This all appeared in the blink of an eye.”
“It’s beautiful,” she said, and he nodded, distracted.
“What are we going to do with you?”
His voice was quiet. His hands were in his pockets. His mouth, his beautiful lips, barely moved as he spoke.
“Does he know who else was involved?” Saber asked, anxious about her friend’s safety.
“Who?”
“Derek.”
“Derek is the least of your problems, Saber.”
“Does he know who else?”
“No, apparently he didn’t recognize anyone else’s scent. But he knows about your friend.”
“How doyouknow about it?”
“Ysidra Dal visited me. She’s an old acquaintance of mine, from New York. She was very annoyed that their new changeling was executed, and when she found out I knew you, she paid a visit.”
He glanced at her then, and his eyes were aglow.
“You look very beautiful tonight, by the way.”
“I wanted you to think so,” she admitted. “I imagined you seeing me in this dress.”
“You stunned me when I walked in.”
“I somehow doubt anyone could stun you. You aren’t jaded to human beauty by now?”
“No,” he said, laughing his quiet laugh again. “In that way vampires are like teenagers. I’ll always love the sight of a beautiful woman. Maybe more so now that my… enjoyment of them is deeper and more intense.”
She moved closer to him, and she saw him glance at the exposed flesh of her neck and chest. She saw his nostrils flare delicately.
