“I abdicated. He obtained it rightfully because of my mistakes.”
“Yes, Nikolai. You made errors, but only because your father was brutally murdered along with his best friend. My dear friend. His claim to the throne was illegitimate. It’s time for you to make things right.”
“Which is exactly what I plan to do. Let me out of here.”
The cloaked vampires shifted in their chairs, clearly uncomfortable. Vlad clasped one on the shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze. “You are not in the mindset to do this at this time, Nikolai Itzov.”
“Fydor plans a human massacre. A large-scale one. I fear it will be initiated today.”
“Doubtful, if he plans to execute the queen tonight.”
Nik’s brow furrowed. “How did you know that?”
“He can read my mind,” Elena answered, rising to go to him. Which also meant Vlad knew what she planned to do to stop Fydor. So far, he was keeping that to himself, which was good.
She met Vlad’s amused gaze. Sneaky devil.
“Just so,” he said, with a wink.
He pulled away from her. “This can’t wait. A surgical strike on Fydor and the rescue of the queen is critical. I can do this and prevent the human massacre and a full-scale attack on the Slayer fortress by our resistance.” He stood very still, tension practically rolling off him in waves from his dark hair to his bare feet. His attempt to hold his emotions in check had him close to cracking.
“Take the Uniter with you,” Vlad said.
He answered without even considering it. “No. Absolutely not. If you can read her mind, then you know exactly why. There is too much risk for her.”
“You underestimate her.”
“You underestimate me,” Nik answered.
“How about letting me weigh in on this?” Talking about her like she wasn’t in the room was infuriating.
“No,” Nik snapped.
Hands on hips, she collected herself for several reasons. Not only did she not want to set off the two empath vamps, she didn’t want to set Nik off, either. He’d just been through a horrible ordeal, and he was being asked to give up control and concede he needed help, neither of which were easy for him.
“She doesn’t need your approval. She has her own powers and can go without you,” Vlad observed.
“I won’t allow it.”
Enough. Elena gripped the edge of the table. “Is Chauvinism 101 a required course for all Slayers, or is it reserved for royalty?”
Both of his dark eyebrows shot up. Other than that, he remained still.
“I can teleport out of here any time I want, Nik, but you can’t. I’ll give you half an hour to make up your mind whether or not you want me to take you when I teleport to the fortress.” With that, she marched out the door to go get her sword from her bedroom.
Her vision blurred through the tears she refused to shed. She was trying, she really was, but he needed to meet her halfway. When he was ready to treat her as an equal and stop acting like a royal ass, she’d be more than happy to talk to him. As soon as she got what she needed from the elf, she was out of here, with or without him.
Nikolai knew he was being a prick, and possibly giving Elena cause to hate him, but couldn’t risk losing her or his baby. Just thinking about her carrying his child made his heart beat faster . No. She would stay here with Vladimir Dalca where they both were safe.
“I would like some more suitable battle clothes if available.”
The three vampires didn’t respond, not that he expected the two empaths to do anything. Freakish creatures, but invaluable in battle. They fed off the opponents’ fear or fury and were unstoppable. Sadly, that carried over into everyday life, so they had to be contained to this mountain where their interaction with other species, especially humans, was limited.
Dalca reached for a goblet on the table in front of him. “You spoke of mistakes you’d made. You are about to make the biggest one of your existence.”
“I can’t allow her to put herself and our baby in harm’s way.”
“Which is exactly what would happen if she remains here. We will all be in harm’s way. She’s the key to ending the war.”
Part of him knew he was right, but the other part wasn’t willing to take the risk. “I couldn’t bear to lose her.”
“Based on her thoughts, you very well might have lost her already.” He took a sip from the goblet and put it back on the table. “Your markings do not say that the Uniter will rise from the ashes of death by a warrior’s hand, only to be locked away for her own good, thereby denied the ability to dethrone tyrants and anoint kings.”
“This is bullshit.”
“Yes, it is.” He closed his eyes and then stood. “Evidently, there is some unusual activity in the forest on the south side. You two are needed to see your units secure the castle. Go now.”
Both vampires stood and wordlessly left the room.