Angelica watched in awe as the duke manipulated her mother with his eloquent speech, rendering her as malleable as fine clay. By the time he was finished, it was obvious that Margaret was ready to nominate the vampire as a candidate for sainthood. Angelica was torn between admiration and envy for his diplomatic skill.
After the duke finished explaining to her mother and bid her good night, Angelica realized with a pang of sadness that she might never see him again. The next day she and her mother were to visit her grandfather, where she would thankfully have a little time to form a plan of escape.
***
She is like an angel in repose. Ian stood over Angelica, listening to the soft sounds of her breathing. Her hair cascaded across her pillow and coverlet like an ebony waterfall, glistening in the moonlight. Her full lips were still plump and rosy from his kisses in the carriage.
Flying into her room had been frighteningly easy after the family fell asleep and all the lights of the surrounding houses were extinguished. So easy that it reinforced his resolve for what he was about to do.
Ian bit his right index finger, watching in fascination as the dark ruby drop of blood welled and bloomed out of his skin. Gently, he coaxed Angelica’s lips open with the fingers of his left hand and let his blood drip into her mouth.
With a barely audible whisper, Ian whispered the ancient words of the ritual that would bind her to him. “I, Ian Ashton, Duke of Burnrath and Lord of London, Mark this mortal, Angelica Winthrop, as mine and mine alone. With this Mark I give Angelica my undying protection. Let all others, immortal and mortal alike, who cross her path sense my Mark and know that to act against her is to act against myself and thus set forth my wrath as I will avenge what is mine.”
A tremor ran through his body as the Mark flared between them. Angelica moaned in her sleep, and Ian had to clutch the bedpost for support. No one had told him that the effect of Marking a mortal would be so strong. What did this mean? The only thing he knew was that her mind would now be closed to him any time he fed on her. But since he didn’t care to eavesdrop on mortals’ thoughts when he drank from them, this meant little to him. Furthermore, he did not intend to feed on Angelica without her permission.
When he regained his composure, he brushed his lips against hers, savoring her taste. Soon, she would be sleeping in his bed. For a moment he wished he was a mortal man again so he might wake beside her in the morning light, instead of retreating to his lair to flee the sun. Then he cursed himself for thinking like an ungrateful wretch. Fate had smiled down on him at last, granting him a few years to spend with a sweet and beautiful woman. He vowed to appreciate every moment.
Ian quietly opened her window and flew out into the night. He would have to dash off a quick note to the Elders regarding his actions. He doubted they would object; however, a few of his subordinate vampires might take offense, especially Rafe. No matter. He was lord of this city and his word was law, even to his second in command. Still, perhaps he would delay presenting her to them until after he wed her. After all, he did not wish to frighten her off.
***
Ben watched the vampire’s body burn with less than his usual enthusiasm. The creature was a young female with blonde angelic beauty, a perfect foil for her demonic core.
“If I hadn’t needed the coin, I wouldn’t have bothered,” he muttered, then immediately crossed himself.
“I didn’t mean to utter such blasphemous words, Lord!” Ben gazed up at the sky, filled with shame at such a sacrilegious thought. “I know it is my duty to rid the world of these minions of hell. Please forgive me.”
But still his pride warred within, scorning him for his failure to slay an ancient vampire. Ben bowed his head and retrieved his rosary, feeling the reassuring smoothness of the wooden beads.
He knew his hunt in London would not be easy, yet things were progressing far worse than he had imagined. The Duke of Burnrath was proving to be a most elusive quarry. So much so that Ben was not even certain that the man was a vampire. The gossip articles were full of conflicting and contradictory information. In fact, if the latest issue of The Times was to be believed, the duke was to wed a young heiress within the month, a very unusual action for a monster.
Unless… Ben paused as he recalled the caricature of the Duke and his betrothed. What if the monster intended to transform the innocent girl into a vampire as well?