“You can wash up now, Tempest,” Aria said.
Tempest glanced at her before her gaze went to William, who stretched his hand out to her. Aria didn’t turn to watch them walk away, but she hoped they would stay gone for a while. They needed time alone, and she needed time to just be.
John settled into the chair across from her. In the time since she’d last seen him, he’d gone from a child to a young man. His brunet hair hung in waves around his narrow face and his brown eyes were eager. Brown peach fuzz dotted his upper lip, cheeks, and chin.
“I’m glad you are well,” Aria said to him.
“What is life like in the palace?” he inquired.
“Manners, John,” Mary scolded.
“When was this place built?” Aria inquired to distract the conversation from anything having to do with the palace or her life there.
“After the last war,” Mary replied. “I know we were all supposed to be safe, there was a truce and things have actually been going extremely well, but…”
“But it is always better safe than sorry,” Aria finished when Mary’s voice trailed off.
“Yes, and it had become well known by the vampires that many of us resided within the caves, so we knew we had to do something different.”
“So you built shelters beneath the ground,” Aria said and forced herself not to shudder at the reminder that ultimately she was standing in a large coffin. If one of those beams in the ceiling gave out…
Stop it!
“Yes, and until now, we’ve never had a reason to use one. We keep them stocked, make sure the water supply and ventilation system is still operational at least once every two weeks, and we clear away any debris obstructing the peepholes. Your brother is a genius.”
“He is,” Aria agreed. “I wish there was no reason to have to use one of these safe houses now.”
Rising to her feet, she paced over to the wall, feeling uncomfortable in her own skin as it seemed to tighten around her as much as these walls were. Her hand went to her heart, and she placed her palm over the deadened organ as she once again fought the impulse to tear it from her body. It was unnatural for a bloodlink to carry on without their love, and all of her instincts screamed at her to end it, while another sinister part of her hungered for blood and revenge.
“This new threat, is it bad?” Mary asked.
“Yes,” Aria replied as she stared at the wall and tried to ignore the enticing rush of blood in their veins.
“Is it… is it the king?” Mary asked hesitantly and Aria couldn’t help but wince as she kept her gaze locked on the wall. “Has he become like his father?”
“No, he hasn’t,” Aria replied. His wife might though. She took a minute to regain her composure and make sure her fangs weren’t visible before facing Mary. “How many of these safe houses are there?”
“Five.”
“Are there any closer to the palace?”
“One.”
Aria turned to pace over to the other wall. Caged. It’s what she felt right now and she needed free of these bars. Easy, calm. “How far is it from the palace?”
“About five miles.”
“Close enough,” she murmured as Tempest and William reappeared.
The scent of their mingled blood drifted to her, along with the fresh scent of the pine soap. William had his arm around Tempest’s waist as she rested her head on his chest. Turning away, Aria paced over to the other wall and then around to the door they’d entered through. She almost grabbed the handle and fled into the hallway beyond, but she managed to keep herself restrained from doing so. If only there was a window. If only she could feel and smell fresh air instead of the musty air surrounding her.
“Close enough for what?” William inquired.
“I don’t think Sabine will go for the palace, not yet,” Aria replied. “She’ll try to find Braith first, but she’ll be in the area of the palace, getting ready for her next move. We have to be there too, if we’re to learn anything about her and to corner her when she does finally attack.”
“How do you know that is her next move?” Tempest asked.
“Because she left your town and headed toward the palace,” Aria replied. “I don’t think she planned to discover us in the woods earlier. She would have had more of her followers with her if she had. She probably didn’t realize Braith was outside the palace walls. Once she was uncovered in Badwin and knew there was a chance you would get word to us, she decided to make a move to seize the palace before we could gather more troops to defend against her.”
“How do you plan to get past her troops to the safe house closest to the palace?” William asked.
Aria finally turned to face him. “Quietly.”
Despite the fact he looked tempted to throttle her, a smile curved his lips. He had Tempest to worry about now, a family to start, a woman to love, but her brother relished the thrill of a good challenge. They both did. Taking down Sabine may be the ultimate challenge.