“Falcon, I know you think you’re cool with your newfound ability to hear and all, but it doesn't give you telepathy. So chill. Blade and I are just getting to know each other.” I stood up, too.

“That's the problem, Your Majesty.” He appeared in front of me, blocking my path. “It’s his job to protect you—not know you.”

“Yeah?” I looked over at Blade, then folded my arms across my chest. “And that’s the same as you—except you seem to think it’s all right to make assumptions about my intentions.”

“No,” he said smugly, “I don't assume. I know. And it is more than appropriate for me to make those assumptions, Majesty, because it is my job to protect you, and that includes from yourself.”

“Er!” I scoffed, turning away. “You're starting to sound like Mike.”

“Good.” Falcon stopped behind me. “I’d be proud to be only half the man he is.”

“Yeah. Well, he may be a good man, but when it comes to what’s best for me, he’s getting his clues from the wrong side of the line.”

Falcon appeared beside me, gently grabbing my arm. “Or maybe you’re just too immature and too naïve to know any better. Maybe it takes a man who is willing to step outside that line to tell you what you need to do.”

“Falcon.” I pushed his hand off. “Now you are being inappropriate.”

“I know.” He stepped back. “But I’ve had to watch Mike fight with you, day after day, worry over the simplest things, because you refuse to listen.” He leaned forward and spoke quieter, “Do you have any idea what you put that guy through?”

“It’s none of your business.”

He leaned back and folded his arms. “Yeah, well, I got news for ya, Princess, it is my business. Everything you do, think, feel or say is my business—and I am not going to let anything bad happen to you.”

“Bad? By talking to Blade?”

“By crossing boundaries with him.”

“So, now I can't have friends?”

“Not if they’re in your Guard. It’s against the rules—a dischargeable offence. Blade knows that.” Falcon pointed toward the fire. “He shouldn’t be talking to you that way.”

I looked at Blade, who looked down at his feet. “Would Mike really kick him out?”

“He’s already been warned.”

Without looking back at Falcon, I nodded. “Okay. Fine. I won’t talk to him anymore.”

“You can talk to him, just…keep it light. No first names.” He smiled at me as he trudged past.

“You heard all that?” My arms dropped, and I followed him, hearing only a soft laugh from ahead.

Chapter Seven

The early morning sun shone down on the colours in the dome above my bed, making the eyes of what I’d recently concluded was Drake, and the greens of the gardens around Little Lili rich and bright. I twisted my wedding ring around on my finger, imagining David beside me, talking about the strokes and textures that made up the roses and grasses in the stained glass. We had many pretend conversations like this. Somehow, talking to him in my mind helped ease the troubles in my soul. It was like I could predict his answers, then get advice from him about stuff I could never tell him, all while he wasn't even in the same room.

“Knock, knock,” Mike said as he opened my door. “Hey, baby. Brought you coffee and toast.”

I pushed my hands into the mattress to sit up. “No garlic today?

“Garlic?” he said.

“Never mind.” I shook my head; he clearly didn't know about David's visits.

“You okay?” he asked, setting a tray down beside my leg.

“Mm-hm.”

“How’s your throat?”

I touched my fingertips to my neck, lifting my chin slightly. “It stopped burning a few hours ago. How are the knights?”

“Fine. They’re starting to notice changes—small things, like their hearing.”

“Have the bite marks healed?”

“Blade’s has.”

I grabbed a coffee cup off the tray and sipped the brown liquid casually. “I think I had my teeth in his flesh longer than the others.”

“You did?” He sat beside me and grabbed a cup, too. “Why’s that?”

“I…I don't know.” I looked down at my fingertips, wrapped around the warmth of my mug, while my mind flipped to the darkness of last night. The fire had burned down to embers, and the only remaining knights were the ones who were still human—the ones I had to change, aside from Mike and Falcon, who stayed to watch over us, since they were the only sober men at Loslilian. There was so much anticipation in the air, a kind I understood, because once, I had been human, and once, I had wanted David to change me.

As it got later, Blade took my hand and led me through the trees until we could no longer hear Mike and the boys talking. I remembered my heart skipping in my chest as he turned to face me, taking both my hands in his and gently helping me to the forest floor. I knelt in front of him, breath responding to my panic, and he so sweetly brushed my hair over my shoulder and planted a very soft kiss to my cheek. I felt each sharp rise of bark under my bare knees, down the length of my shins and my ankles, but the fear of what I had to do consumed more of me.

“You're so scared,” he whispered, cupping my face.

I closed my eyes and rolled my cheek into his warm, human hand. Each time his heart beat, his blood pulsed, making his flesh rise like ribs with a breath. I listened to the sound, heard his blood, thick and rushing, move through his veins. With a deep breath, I pinpointed where it pulsed closer to the surface—the place I needed to bite. I knew what I had to do, but wasn't really sure how. When I had bitten Mike, just a small nick in his skin was enough to change him, but it took him weeks to transform. When I bit Falcon after electrocuting him, I left my teeth in him until his heart started again, and he was fully transformed within a few days. I weighed up the two options in my mind.

“Would you like me to take your mind off it?” Blade said, pushing the shoestring strap of my top down my shoulder. “I can make you think of other things.”

I shook my head, and he slid my strap back in place, taking his long, warm fingers up my neck, around the base of my jaw and over my chest, right between my breasts. I felt myself go hot—hotter than I should for another man’s touch—and quickly dismissed it as fear.

“You are so lovely and warm.” He pressed his hand more firmly to my chest. “I can feel your heart beating. It feels too fast.”

“It is.” I swallowed, looking at his neck—at the pulsing vein.

“Are you afraid of the pain—the burning?”

I nodded.

“Then hurt me.” He grabbed my hand and positioned it around his throat. “Hurt me while I hurt you—make me feel your pain.”

With a deep, shaky breath, I closed my eyes and wet my lips. One bite, that's all, just one and it will be over.

“Wait?” Blade pulled back. “Not there. If you bite me on the neck, you have to do that with the others—it’s too intimate.”

“You're right. I didn’t even think of that.”

“You can bite me here.” Blade studied my lips carefully, his breath coming through his own with the hope of touching mine, I could feel it, and he slowly pressed his wrist to my mouth…

“So? What do you think?” Mike asked.

“Oh. I, uh—” I blinked a few times and set my coffee cup down.

“Ara? Were you even listening to me?”

“Sorry, Mike. I kind of got a little lost.”

He shook his head and groaned. “Not much has changed, really, has it?”

I shrank into myself, smiling sheepishly.

“In a strange way, though, baby, that’s kind of comforting to know.” He winked and handed me a plate of toast. “What I was saying is, I thought I might film the coronation for David—that way he won’t miss out.”

“Really? That's a great idea, Mike.”

“I know.” He winked at me. “So? You nervous yet?”

“Nope.”

“Liar.” He grinned and sipped his coffee.

“Chief!”

I jumped out of my skin when Ryder burst through my bedroom door.

“Ryder, what’s up?” Mike dumped his cup on my nightstand as he stood.

“Orion detected a vampire—“ Blade said, charging straight to the window. “Somewhere on the border of the manor.”

“Falcon was on it though, Chief.” Ryder came back in from my bathroom and started checking behind my curtains, then dropped to his knees to look under my bed. “He ran before the alarm even sounded.”

“What, he knew?” Mike turned to face Ryder, who stood, satisfied there were no Bogey Men under my bed.

“Dunno, Chief. He just started running. Didn't have time to ask.”

Mike pulled the curtain across with his fingertip and peered outside. “Right. Come on.”

Ryder and Mike fled my chambers, leaving me, half frozen with shock, alone with Blade.

“It’s okay, Your Majesty. They’ll catch him.” Blade stood by my bed and looked down at me, a lustful grin shifting the concern from his eyes.

My mouth dropped open a little, a silent huff carrying my insult; I covered my slinky summer nightdress with my sheet and scowled at him. Somewhere outside, an alarm was ringing, pulsing and howling for all to exercise caution; I could hear the chaos and confusion of the House and guests all over the manor. But in my room it was calm; just Blade and I, and my barely-covered body. “Do you think it’s an attack?”

Blade shook his head and sat down on the bed next to me. “Doubt it.”

“Well, what will they do to the vampire if they catch him?”

“Depends what he's doing here. If he’s here to kill you, they’ll rip him apart—if not, they’ll just smash him up good and bring him to you for questioning.” He laughed. “Let’s hope it’s no one we know, or they’ll get a bit of a bloody greeting.”

I covered my mouth, suddenly realising the vampire sneaking onto the property could be David.

“Stop worrying.” Blade patted my leg. “I’ll stay here—protect you.”

“Not sitting there, you won't.” Mike waltzed in and closed the door.

Blade stood tall, his arms by his sides.

“Mike?” I threw my covers back, happy Blade had distanced himself, and ran over to Mike. “Did they catch him—the vampire?”

He grinned. “Yeah. They got him. No time wasted with my knights, Ara. Got him good, too. Heard he’s lookin’ pretty bad.”

“Mike?” My eyes met his. I needed him to read my mind right now. If that vampire was David, we had a conspiracy to cover up. “It wasn't…?” But I couldn’t say it. Not with Blade in the room.

“What?” Mike looked at me, totally confused.

Erg! So much for higher intelligence. He could practically read my mind any other time, why not now? “It wasn't my old weapons instructor, was it?”

It took him a moment, but then his eyes widened and he shrunk back. “Oh, shit. I dunno. I—”

“What?” Blade placed a hand between Mike and I, forcing us apart. “What are you talking about?”

“David,” Mike said.

“Mike?”

“It’s all right, Ara—he knows,” Mike said.

“He does?”

“Yeah,” Blade said, grinning. “Mike told us all yesterday, while you were being tortured by mystical-woman-with-long-stories.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were telling them?”

“Come on.” Mike grabbed my wrist. “No time for this now. We need to get down to the Throne Room. If that's David, we gotta conceal it quickly.”

“Never mind that,” I screeched. “Blade said the knights will rough him up pretty bad. He could be really hurt.”

“Ara, that is the least of our problems,” Mike said, dragging me—nightdress and all—to the corridor.

We burst through the Throne Room doors and Mike threw the curtain aside, dragging me past the back of the big gold chair to the edge of the landing it was perched on.

Blade leaped onto the balcony at the back of the room, and Quaid flung open the double doors leading out to the forest.

“See anything yet, Blade?” Mike called.

“No, sir. Just trees’n’shit.”

Mike turned back to me. “You okay?”

I nodded and sat down on the steps.

Satisfied, Mike wandered over and stomped on the panel that opened the Round Room. “If it’s him, we’ll get him straight into hiding. It’ll be okay, baby.”

“I know,” I said breathily. But it wasn't our little ‘David's dead’ conspiracy I was worried about.

“Hey, wanna know a useless piece of information?” He placed a hand to the step and fell into it, spinning to sit on his butt beside me. “Might help distract you.”

“Sure.”

“Those marble columns that hold the roof up.” He pointed to the six cream pillars along the length of the room, sitting in the gaps between each giant window.

“Yeah.”

“They’re fake. They’re not structural at all. Lilith had them placed in here after she saw a Roman palace.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. That’s my room up there—” He pointed to the roof. “Its foundations are set in the external bricks—same as yours. But no one knows these are fake, so don't tell anyone, okay?”