Jeaniene Frost - This Side of the Grave

She smiled at me, revealing pretty white teeth that contrasted nicely with her matte red lipstick. “You forgot to mention your ability to kill your first husband with a fireball.”

My answering smile froze on my face. I’d expected us to talk about Apollyon, not Gregor. He’d been the vampire whose blood was combined with a ghoul’s heart to raise Marie from the dead almost a hundred and fifty years ago, but Marie had wanted him dead, too, so I didn’t anticipate recriminations from her for killing him.

Marie’s a valuable ally, don’t lose your temper and give her an excuse to side with Apollyon , I reminded myself. Look at Bones. He almost seems bored even though he’s got to be as ticked as you over Marie bringing up Gregor.

“Because he cheated in his duel with Bones, the Guardian Council of Vampires cleared me of any wrongdoing,” I said, proud that my voice was very calm.

Marie leaned back in her chair, idly stroking the fabric. Part of me wondered where the secret door was in this room. That chair wasn’t a permanent fixture or it would be mildewed from the damp air, not to mention I didn’t believe Marie would leave herself without an alternate means of escape.

“Cheating, that doesn’t surprise me,” she commented. “Gregor’s arrogance always was his Achilles’ heel. Like bringing you to Paris when you were sixteen. I told him to come here instead. That his hometown would be the first place anyone would look for him, should his actions be discovered, but he didn’t listen.”

Everything in me froze. I didn’t dare glance at Bones again. The flash of rage that skipped across my subconscious before he recloaked his emotions told me he was thisclose to losing it at this revelation.

“So.” I couldn’t keep the edge from my tone if my life depended on it. “Gregor told you about his kidnapping plans for me back then?”

She continued to stroke her armrest, as though the tension in the room hadn’t become thick enough to cut. “Gregor told me many things. He trusted my loyalty to him as my only living sire. I don’t betray those I’ve sworn loyalty to. This shouldn’t surprise you. I told you last year that if Gregor’s claims of marriage to you were proved, I’d back his side.”

“You also told me a neat story about how you murdered your husband when he pushed you too far,” I replied sharply. “Well, I’d say tricking me into marrying him as a teenager, murdering my friend, forcibly changing my mother into a vampire, and trying to murder Bones by cheating in their duel all fell under the ‘too far’ category for me. Too bad for Gregor the vision he had of me when I was sixteen didn’t show the part about me using all those neat powers he wanted to control to kill him.”

“Underestimating you was Gregor’s mistake.” Marie didn’t move a muscle, but all of a sudden, I felt like a mouse staring at a hungry owl. “It won’t be mine. But”—a shrug—“no one can hide from death forever. No one , not even our kind. Death travels the world and passes through even the thickest walls we protect ourselves with. You should remember that.”

Was that a threat? “Not to be rude, Majestic, but it sounds like you’re telling me to watch my back with you.”

Marie grunted. “When you truly understand what it means, you’ll know how to defeat Apollyon.”

At last, we were getting on topic. I’d already figured out that I’d need to kill the ghoul to stop him, but if Marie wanted to feel like she was being all cool and cryptic with the advice, I’d play along.

“Okay. I’ll remember that.”

She smiled, genial and somehow terrifying at the same time. “You should. If you don’t, he’ll win.”

“You could always just spell it out and save us all some time,” I said, unable to keep all the exasperation out of my voice. Did being dead for over a century turn everyone into riddle masters instead of people who could just say what they meant?

“I won’t join your cause against Apollyon. Last year, my sire could have ordered me to, but with Gregor dead, my loyalty is to my people alone.”

Anger rose in me. “Even at the expense of countless thousands dying over reasons as stupid as who has fangs versus flat teeth?” I gave her café-latte skin a pointed look. “I would think you’d be smarter than to side with a senseless bigot.”

“It has nothing to do with bigotry,” she replied sharply. “But Apollyon’s reach has grown. If I openly oppose him, I will be seen as a betrayer of my race. Even ghouls who disagree with Apollyon may side with him out of species loyalty. It will be civil war. During this, am I to believe the vampire nation will not swoop in to crush us while we are weak from infighting?” Marie gave me a thin smile. “I am not so trusting.”

“Oh come on,” I huffed. “Vampires have no dreams of subjugating ghouls. You know that’s just a smoke screen Apollyon’s using.”

“There are some among your race who would take advantage of ghouls just as ruthlessly as Apollyon is seeking to do with vampires. If you’re not smart enough to heed my words and outwit him on your own, then you deserve to lose,” she replied with brutal bluntness before leaning forward and reaching behind her chair.

Everything in me tensed, ready to spring for the knives in my boots, but all she did was pull out an empty wineglass. That previous tension began to ebb. Jacques had served us drinks last time I was here, even though for the life of me I didn’t know how he’d managed to procure a cold gin and tonic in this dank underground area. But instead of calling out to him, Marie set the glass on the armrest of her chair without a word. Then she flicked open a ring on her finger, revealing that it hid a tiny sharp point, and sliced it across her wrist before holding the wineglass underneath the cut.

Oh fuck no , I thought, keeping myself from bolting out of my chair with every last bit of willpower in me.

Her gaze drilled into mine as dark purplish liquid began to fill the glass.

“Reaper,” she said coolly. “Won’t you have something to drink?”

Once more, I couldn’t even risk glancing at Bones to see if he looked as appalled as I felt. Play it cool, she could be bluffing , I chanted to myself, managing not to flinch when she held out that half-full glass to me.

“What an unusual offer, but you know I prefer gin and tonic,” I said, praying my heart didn’t start beating out of sheer panic. If she did know about my twisted feeding habits, who would have told her? And did that person somehow screw it up and report back that I drank ghoul blood for nourishment instead of vampire?

“Over a dozen years ago, Gregor told me of his vision about a young half-breed who would one day wield the power of pyrokinesis,” Marie said. “After his sire, Tenoch, perished, only one other vampire existed who could manifest fire and bend it to his will, and as you know, Vlad Tepesh was no ally of Gregor’s. Gregor assumed you’d come into this power about a century after you’d been changed into a vampire, and he intended to have you under his control long before that. Yet you killed him using fire within a month of your turning.”

I didn’t move, afraid that my slightest gesture would betray me. “Everyone knows that,” I said as calmly as I could. “Beginner’s luck.”

A sharp laugh came from her. “Then, curiously, you weren’t reported to use fire again, even when you were in dire circumstances. You were reported to have used telekinesis against a group of vampires in Monaco a few months ago. So that’s two incredible powers, all manifested less than a year after your changing. More beginner’s luck?”