Lucian had settled back into his teasing humor after the passing flash of annoyance had disappeared. He'd enjoy watching Lena have her way with her after he was done. The witch had been stupid to come to Paris without his brother's protection, although Christian had certainly seemed incapacitated when he had checked. Before they broke her, he would find out exactly where Christian was and save himself the legwork of trying to locate him to ensure his long-awaited demise.
"Tori and I were just discussing dinner plans," he said to Lena.
Lena's eyes narrowed. She had warned Lucian about this witch's abilities and still he didn't listen. His arrogance would cost him. She glanced at Victoria, whose skin was flushed as if she'd just finished running a marathon, even though her breathing was slow, calm. Lena couldn't see why Christian was infatuated with her, this woman-child. She was quite ordinary, with the exception of her eyes, which were an unusual emerald color.
Victoria turned from Lucian to Lena, her look measured. It was at that same moment Lena realized that she had been mistaken about the color of Victoria's eyes. They weren't green at all ... they were jet black.
"Lucian," Victoria said carefully, watching them both, "if you try to hurt Christian in any way, I will forget my promise not to hurt you because you are his brother."
Lucian was incredulous. He couldn't believe that she was still threatening him. Why he ought to kill her right there! His glance dropped to his mother's ring gleaming on her right hand and anger flooded into him, fueling his rage. With inhuman speed he lunged toward Victoria but to her magical, blood-inspired senses, it looked like he was moving in slow motion. She let him get within inches of her.
"Confuto," she said, as she'd done with the other vampires. Lucian's body froze in mid-leap. Lena snarled but she found that she couldn't move either. Victoria's blood boiled and without thinking, she almost said the words of death it whispered seductively.
Careful, she warned herself, the blood would kill deviously and without conscience, and losing control to it was the one thing she could not afford. She tore her eyes away from Lena with effort.
For the first time since he'd met her, Lucian looked at her with new awareness. Too late. She leaned forward and touched his face, feeling his muscle flex beneath her touch. "Like I said, because you are his brother, I'll be generous, but come near him, Lucian, and I won't be this kind," she said.
She could see the rage, the hatred and the new fear burning in his eyes. He wanted to hurt her so badly that she could smell it. Slowly, unhurriedly, she took out the pocketknife she had used with Enhard, and Lucian's eyes narrowed. "It's not for you, don't worry."
Victoria repeated the cut, slicing diagonally across her palm, letting the blood pool in her cupped palm. She knew they could smell its heady scent in the confined space and she was careful not to let a single drop fall. Lucian's body strained against the magical bonds and his eyes were feral with uncontrollable hunger, as were Lena's. Victoria smiled and said, "Transeo."
As before, her body melted into the air and the last thing she saw was Lucian's enraged face as he lunged into open air just where she had been standing.
Lucian stood in the elevator, clenching and unclenching his fists. The hunger was so fierce he could barely control himself.
He had never been so deliriously happy in all his life.
"Did you see it?" he said. Lena stared at him confused.
"The blood?" she asked. When he nodded, she continued. "I could barely stand to look at it. The smell alone was like nothing else I have ever smelled, it felt like my stomach was eating itself I became so ravenous. Why?"
"It was as dark as I have ever seen."
"So?" Lucian glared at her obtuseness.
"Le Sang Noir ... it's her."
VICTORIA HOPED HER Mini would still be where she'd left it in the parking lot at 125th Street. If not, this would end up being one of those teleportation jumps gone tragically wrong. She didn't have a choice because it was the place she knew in New York that had the lowest variability risk. She couldn't go to Angie's apartment because that would be too dangerous, and there was no way she could just pick a spot in the city and hope for the best, far too risky.
"Transeo," she said.
When she opened her eyes, she was sitting in the freezing cold interior of her car, and she breathed a slow, grateful breath. She hopped on the express number five subway train and switched to the local number six train to get to the address that Enhard had given her. She hoped that Enhard would have already arrived.
Time was running out. Victoria had stayed close to Christian via the tenuous tunnel between their minds that she'd kept open despite the risk of discovery. After a time, the effort for the portal had become mindless and she barely had to think about holding it open, it was just another thing that the blood magic did naturally.