Her voice took on a cant that said she was repeating a memorized statement. "The alliance of Mithrans is in grave danger, as is the safety of this city. Mearkanis and Rousseau have formed a new coalition, leaving the weaker clans Arceneau and Desmarais unprotected. They have allied with St. Martin, who has broken faith with Pellissier."
Bruiser cursed and went pale. I tried to figure out what it all meant. And then Innara told me. "There are now three leagues of Mithrans rather than the former two, and the new association leaves Pellissier's alliance with Bouvier and Laurent no longer in a position of strength. Pellissier's enemies plot war. Rafael has come clandestinely to Clan Bouvier to propose we join him in revolt against Pellissier. My master has agreed to formal talks, to consider this, as a ruse to gain his trust. It is said that Rafael has contacted one of the Sons of Darkness for his blessing, though this is only rumor."
Bruiser went nearly vamp-still in shock. I wondered what the sons were and why they made the blood slowly drain from his face. The Sons of Darkness . . . They had been part of something I had read recently.
Innara stepped close and took Bruiser's hands in hers. "The new union believes in the old ways. The Naturaleza has been reintroduced to the newly fledged and many yearn for a way of life the old ones among us have renounced. Rafael of Mearkanis feeds this desire with fiery rhetoric and hopes the change in balance of power will allow him to challenge for master of the city. Be assured. To protect against the new alliance, my master will again blood-oath Clan Bouvier to Leo."
I felt Bruiser's relief like a blow to my side. He'd been braced for something else. "Pellissier is honored."
"Naturaleza?" I asked, picking out that nugget for clarification.
Bruiser ignored my question. "There have been indications that Rafael was seeking power."
"Traditionally," Innara said to me, "the strength of Pellissier held us in balance and allowed us to blend harmoniously with humans. Now that is changing." She pressed Bruiser's hands. "Leo must act."
Leo was whacked-out with grief and might not be able to act. But I didn't say it.
Bruiser said, "The recent alignment between Pellissier and Arceneau is advantageous to restoring that peace."
"Arceneau has sworn itself to Leo?" Innara asked, her face taking on a fierce joy.
Bruiser nodded. It was news to me. I asked them, "Will Arceneau give Leo enough power to defeat the new coalition?"
"No," Innara said, "but if Desmarais swears to Leo, and if Leo acts quickly, then we have a chance."
I redrew the balance of power in my mind, the new alliance of vamp clans. On the one hand was Rafael of Mearkanis, with Rousseau and St. Martin pledged to him. And maybe these sons, whatever they were. Then there was Leo of Pellissier, with Laurent, Bouvier, and now Arceneau. Desmarais lingered by its lonesome. So if a new vamp war started, it would be a battle between Rafael and Leo. I didn't know enough about clan strengths to know if it would be a fair match.
Satisfied that the Bouvier vamp didn't mean us harm, I lowered my weapons. Tension I hadn't noted in her slight frame relaxed. Instantly, she looked like a child playing dress-up in her mommy's clothes and jewels, innocent and sweet and fully human, not like the killer she was. I hated how they could do that. "Leo must put aside the Dolore and take up the reins of his power," she said.
Bruiser took a step back, his face closing in. Before I could ask what a dolore was, she went on, her tone fierce, her hands fisting, trying to convince Bruiser. "You must tell Leo that if he hopes to keep the peace, he must break the new alliance quickly or there will be war--violent, bloody, and decisive. Our masters will die. We will not be able to protect our young in devoveo while they regain themselves--they will be left to run mad. Our humans will not survive. The city will be torn asunder." To me she said, "Rafael believes in the Naturaleza, the old ways, that humans are here only for our pleasure and to feed us--and that all other supernatural beings must be wiped from the earth."
The words "supernatural beings must be wiped from the earth" reverberated in the small room. That meant Molly and her kids. And every other witch in the city. And me. Crap. Crap, crap, crap. And then I heard the word "devoveo." What the heck was that? I'd never heard the term before, but it sounded as though it was related to the madness of young rogues. Maybe worth investigating.
"Make Leo listen," she demanded of Bruiser. Her head cocked, rocking on the stem of her neck into an angle not common to humans, like a bird with a broken neck. It was just . . . so weird. She seemed to be listening to something or someone I couldn't hear. Her pupils widened, vamping out.