Boaz tensed behind me, and I forced myself to meet her stare rather than watch her tap, tap, tapping her manicured nails on the gilded lid of the wretched box she made sure to keep in my line of sight.
“Ah. There you are. There’s a spark left in you yet.” Eagerness beat in her words. “I’ve had you watched since your release, and the reports were promising. I’m glad to see they weren’t exaggerated.”
“Why did you have me pardoned?” I reached deep and found a scrap of backbone. “Why am I here?”
“An interesting thing happened last year.” She absorbed my shock that she’d kept tabs on me even in Atramentous without batting an eyelash. “An unsanctioned resuscitation, if you can believe it. Understandably, my contacts within the prison messaged me immediately.”
How anyone kept as magically impotent as the inmates in Atramentous managed to raise an undead was beyond me. Not to mention the key ingredient was missing. “There are no humans in Atramentous.”
“The diversity of your cellmates might surprise you.” The Grande Dame continued illuminating me. “Necromancers, vampires and fae, yes. But there are also humans who have discovered us, who have threatened us with exposure, who have betrayed their lovers or spouses or children for fame or glory or wealth.”
A chill settled into my bones that froze me to the spot.
“A new inmate, a vampire, suffered a bad reaction to his regimen and attacked a human in your group during your weekly exercise period.” She steepled her fingers in front of her mouth. “You resuscitated him, Grier, with nothing but your own blood, a hint of magic, and the crudest sigils. Though I doubt he thanks you for extending his sentence from thirty or forty years into three or four hundred, I am, nonetheless, impressed.”
“I didn’t…” I tossed my head. “I don’t remember…”
“I interviewed the witnesses myself. There can be no doubt. What’s more, he’s Deathless.” She studied me for my reaction. “Do you understand what that means?”
“I’ve never heard the term, no.”
“What you’ve created shouldn’t be possible. The Deathless are made vampires with the longevity of a Last Seed but without their fertility limitations. They are capable of reproduction, and their children…” She drew in a breath that shuddered with pleasure. “They are true immortals, though their grandchildren are rumored to be mortal.”
“You’re saying two entire castes of vampires exist that aren’t in any of our history books.” None of the ones passed down to lowly assistants at least. “How is that possible?”
“There are only two documented cases of Deathless vampires rising. Any other records were destroyed when our Great Library burned in the 1300s. Surviving tomes are the private property of the Lyceum. Their care—and location—have been entrusted to the Elite, sentinels who are beyond reproach. They operate outside the laws of the Society to safeguard our history from those who might seek to alter it.”
A secret history. My history. “Can I see them?”
“That’s not possible.” Her attempt at sympathy fell as flat as her tone. “They’re stored in a climate-controlled facility somewhere outside the city. That’s all I know, all any of us are allowed to know. The books come to us. We do not go to the books.”
“What else can you tell me about the Deathless?”
“Only that five instances of them reproducing exists, along with eight examples of their mortal grandchildren. The bulk of the research on them has been lost.” A thoughtful expression crossed her features. “That is why I’m considering pardoning your progeny in exchange for his full cooperation in our study of the Deathless condition.”
Progeny. I had progeny, a man I didn’t remember and doubted I would ever see again.
“What about me?” Thankful I wasn’t alone, I reached up and covered one of Boaz’s hands with mine. “How is this possible?”
“How much do you remember about your birth parents?” She prodded the old wound with careless fingers. “We believe the trait is passed through the paternal lineage.”
“I remember small things about my mom, but there was only ever the two of us.”
“You have no idea who your father is?”
“I was so young, and we were happy. Just the two of us.” I shook my head. “The few times I asked if I had a father, usually after a playmate brought it up, she distracted me with ice cream.” Slowly, my eyes drifted back to the box. “I asked Maud, but she swore Mom had never told her. Her answer was always the same. That if he wasn’t in my life, there was a good reason. That I should trust my mother’s judgment.”
“That is unfortunate.” The Grande Dame digested this bit of news with a frown. “All I can tell you at this time is that your condition is rare. The surviving texts all refer to the afflicted necromancers as being goddess-touched, favored by the three-faced goddess.”
The urge to laugh tensed my shoulders at the thought of all those nights I prayed to Hecate when she answered with silence.
“This unexpected ability saved your life.” She gave me a moment to absorb the subtle threat. “I have done you a great favor in restoring you to your former station. The announcement was made prior to this conversation as a show of trust. You must understand what this means.”
“You want me to make more of them.” But not too many. There was no prestige in being common.
“Don’t sound so glum. You were heartbroken when Maud declared you were only fit to work as an apprentice. Well, this is your chance to be a full-fledged practitioner with a specialization no one else can claim. Wealth and fame are yours for the taking.” She made a grasping gesture that ended with her fisted hand. “What more could you want?”
The truth for starters. “Did Maud know?”
“Without access to her library, we can’t be certain.” Her gaze unfocused as she stared at the macabre box. “She loved your mother very much. They were inseparable until Evangeline’s family returned to France around her two hundred and thirtieth birthday. They kept in touch during the separation, but I didn’t see Evangeline again until she showed up on Maud’s doorstep after a dinner party with a child in tow. How much Evangeline confided in her, I can’t say. I was the annoying younger sister and not welcome in their club of two.
“My sister was one of the most celebrated minds of our time. Even if Evangeline kept the truth from her, she must have known that once Maud took over your education, she would understand immediately that your magic worked in impossible ways. Perhaps that is why your mother turned to her old friend after an absence of so many years. Perhaps Maud robbed you of your rightful status and kept your education lacking in order to protect you. We may never know those answers with any degree of certainty.”
Keet.
The first and only test Maud ever administered that required me to mix my own ink, using my own blood, and she’d let me believe I failed. She’d lied to me. One of the most powerful necromancers in existence had told me I was less, and I had believed her. Keeping me ignorant might have seemed like the ideal solution to her, but I was coming to the rapid understanding that only I could protect myself, and I had no idea how.
Exhaustion swept through me. All the fretting and waiting and pageantry had burned me out for the night. I wanted to go home. I wanted this to be yet another nightmare. At least I woke up from those. This—this new reality terrified me.
No wonder Volkov wanted me. Every clan would petition me to resuscitate their candidates. An alliance with me meant he would have a say in who was turned and in naming the price of their immortality. Here I thought my restored title and fortune might be factors, but I had sorely underestimated the scope of his master’s ambition.
“I’m tired.” I rubbed my forehead. “Can I sleep on this?”
“Of course, dear girl. I imagine this must all come as a shock.” She pressed a button on her desk, and the door to her right swung open. The sentinel who entered did so carrying Keet in a small cage. The Grande Dame gestured to him. “I believe this belongs to you.”