“The Brotherhood have a dungeon near Harvard,” she said. “There’s at least a mile of cells underground. They kept us each in our own cell.”
Ambrose leaned forward, his green eyes burning with intensity. “Did they torture you?”
Aurora turned, displaying the top of her mangled back. “Yes. But I didn’t tell them anything helpful. They had no idea if I was telling the truth or not, so I didn’t see the point of helping them.”
Ambrose stood, and within a fraction of a second he was inches from Caine. Crossing the room that fast was just one of his deeply unnerving habits. Ambrose’s green eyes bored into Caine. “They killed ten of our soldiers this morning?”
“Yes,” said Caine. “They forced them into the sunlight. I slaughtered both Hunters, but it was too late. The sun had already touched the vampires’ skin.”
Within the next second, Erish was by their side. Coral tinged her cheeks, and Caine could feel the hot fury burning off her body. “Why have we allowed the Brotherhood to survive?” She gripped Caine’s collar, pulling him close.
Her intoxicating scent of anise and myrrh momentarily distracted him.
Her eyes burned with ferocity. “They murdered one of my sisters in the fifteenth century. Human mages killed the other two. We should have enslaved their species long ago.”
Caine plucked her hands from his clothes. “The Brotherhood have been weak for the past four centuries—until the mage Rawhed lured them out of the woodwork. We haven’t needed to act until now.”
“Erish,” said Ambrose, his tone clipped. “Please return to our chambers. This will only upset you.”
Fury scorched her eyes, and she glared at the Vampire Lord. Before leaving, she tossed her dark hair over her shoulder. Her heels echoed over the flagstones as she strode from the room.
Ambrose arched an eyebrow. “She gets so emotional about these things. She’d destroy the entire human race if she didn’t depend on them for sustenance. I think she resents that she needs them.”
At the thought of feeding, Caine ran a hand over his chest where he’d been staked. The wound still burned, and he’d need the touch of a human woman to heal. “It’s hard not to feel wrath when the Brotherhood come for your family. Even if she’s wrong about humans, she’s right about the Brotherhood. We must crush them.” They had Malphus, his brother. That fact alone made him want to tear their skin from their muscles.
Ambrose stroked his chin. “Most of our army is vulnerable to bursting into flames every time the sun rises. It’s a bit of a problem.”
One you can’t do anything about. “So we’ll attack them at night.”
Ambrose stared off into the distance. “We must find a way to get stronger, to overcome our natural weakness. The other kingdoms of night are richer with incubi who can walk in the light, but our numbers are fewer.”
Aurora frowned. “We’re only weak in the daylight.”
“Exactly,” said Ambrose. “I would like to remedy that.”
Caine shook his head. What is he talking about? “That’s never been possible.”
Ambrose splayed his fingers. “My scholars have located a spell, once held in the ancient library of Alexandria. The legends say any army of vampires roamed the light nearly two thousand years ago. King Cranaus of Athens created such an army to serve him. He used a very powerful spell and a triumvirate of three legendary mages. His vampire army outlived him by over a thousand years, until they were slaughtered by a legion of Persian hellhounds.”
An uncomfortable feeling simmered in Caine’s chest. “And how do you propose to find three legendary mages?”
“I have you,” said Ambrose. “And we know there are two more like you. Humans—not nearly as powerful, but with the same magical knowledge. I speak of the Atherton twins, of course.”
Dread crawled up Caine’s spine. He didn’t want anything to do with the Athertons. “They’re completely untrained. There must be someone else.”
Ambrose eyed him. “You are a remarkable specimen, Caine. Half-incubus, and half human. And even your human side is extraordinary, imbued with the spirit of a staggeringly powerful mage. I can only assume Lord Atherton found similarly gifted mages for his own daughters. You must put your personal feelings aside. This triumvirate can get us what we need: the gift of light, granted through the power of three. You need a coven.”
Caine clenched his jaw. The last thing he wanted was to face those girls again. They belonged to a part of his life he was desperate to forget. But how could he say no to Ambrose? Caine had possessed nothing when he’d first met the Vampire Lord. He’d been half-mad and completely alone, driven only by a seething rage. It was Ambrose who had recognized his true power.
He met Ambrose’s penetrating gaze. “What do you need me to do?”
“Miranda roams free, in full possession of her powers, though she is untrained. Rosalind will be more difficult.”