Ho boy, someone had been hankering for a fight, and now he’d found one.
“For Christ’s sake, Andre,” Tybalt said, his words somewhat garbled from the hits, “you killed Theodore on her behalf. She needs to die.”
Andre hissed back at the man, his fangs fully descended. As I watched, he applied pressure to Blondie’s neck.
I glanced around. Andre’s human servants had made themselves scarce. I wondered if they were used to seeing unnatural things here or if they’d been hired for their discretion. Or perhaps they fell into the third category: clueless and scared shitless.
When I swiveled back around, the man’s eyelids were fluttering and he made slight choking noises.
“You think this is some sick game to me?” Andre’s voice echoed off the walls. “The devil wants my soulmate.”
He pulled his fist back, but it wavered. “The devil wants her,” he repeated. This time grief and not anger ruled his voice. “And you wish me to deliver her to him.”
Nope, I was wrong. Anger was back. Still, that fist hesitated.
“I could not devise another betrayal so great as that,” Andre said. “She is my soulmate, and while she lives, you and every other vampire will afford her the respect she is due.”
The man’s eyes flicked to me and his upper lip twitched, like he wanted to snarl again but only just held himself back. Finally he nodded.
Andre didn’t relinquish his hold.
Right now I needed allies, and these were my people—our people. Maybe, if given a chance, I could convince them.
Just like you convinced the Politia, a bitter voice inside me said. I swallowed. My life might come down to the associations I made.
I stepped up behind the two and placed a hand on Andre’s shoulder. Blondie’s gaze darted to the touch.
“Andre, please.”
I thought he wasn’t going to listen, but after several seconds he slowly released his grip on the vampire. The blond man stayed on the ground and rubbed his neck. His facial wounds had already healed.
I reached out a hand to help him up, but Andre pushed it down and stepped in front of me.
“I will die before harm comes to my mate,” he said. The three of us knew the weight of that statement. If Andre died, every vampire descended from him—essentially the entire coven—would die with him. “You’d be wise to consider her prophecy through that filter.”
Tybalt’s eyes widened. When his gaze traveled to me, it was as though he was seeing me in a new light. “I had never considered that interpretation.”
Holy shit. I’d never considered the prophecy in those terms either, but it made a sick sort of sense. As far as I was aware, the prophecy hadn’t said that I would personally kill off every vampire; it had said that I’d lead to their extermination. Perhaps my involvement was indirect. But that interpretation meant Andre died. I almost choked on the idea of him dead and gone.
Andre held an arm out to Tybalt as though he hadn’t been wailing on the dude a moment before. I guess it was a peace offering. The vampire took it, and Andre hauled him to his feet. “Unfortunately,” Andre said, “considering the bounty out on my mate, that might be the only interpretation left.”
Now when Tybalt met my gaze, something like pity clouded his features. “I see.” He inclined his head, first to Andre, then to me, looking sheepish. “Apologies for the hostility. As always, Sire, I am at your service.”
“Good, because I need you to pass along a message to the coven,” Andre said, stepping away from him to return to my side. “For now, let it be known that unless all vampires want to wipe themselves from existence, they should do everything in their power to keep my mate alive.”
Tybalt’s face grew grim, but he gave a jerky nod.
“Alert the coven that I’m calling for a meeting at Bishopcourt. Tell them to make their own accommodations on the Isle of Man. No one is to set foot on my property until I give the order to do so. Once I’m in town, I will give the details of the meeting and explain more fully my and Gabrielle’s circumstances.
“Let it be known that the estate is to be neutral territory. If anyone betrays our meeting to those outside the coven or thinks to attack, they will be bled, gutted, and burned at first light.”
Holy shitballs, that was intense. I kept my mouth clamped shut.
“Consider it done,” Tybalt said. With another bow of his head, he left us.
Andre turned to face me, his eyes daring me to challenge his orders. He knew I hated violence. But hey, threats never hurt anyone.
Until they did.
Andre reached out a hand to me. Another peace offering. I stared at it; Tybalt’s blood still stained it.
“Are you going to take my hand?”
“Would you really do it?” I asked, my gaze flicking up to him.
“Without hesitation, love.” My heart sputtered at the endearment, even as another part of me recoiled at his statement.
“And would you enjoy it?” I don’t know why I asked. Maybe because I had never really considered the dark part of Andre.
He didn’t answer immediately. I could tell he was wary of what my reaction would be. “Normally—no,” he finally said. “But if it endangered you, I would relish every second of it.”
I believed him. So help me, I did.
His eyes glittered as he watched me. “Does that scare you, soulmate?”
“What do you think?”
“I think that if roles were reversed, you’d be shocked by what you wouldn’t do to save me.”
He loved me something fierce and dreadful, and I knew in my heart of hearts everything he said was true—even the last part.
Especially the last part.
I took his outstretched hand. He gave me a small smile. “Now,” he said, forcing some cheerfulness into his voice, “my soulmate must be hungry.”
And just like that, things were normal once more.