undisguised. He knew as well as I did that, while the belt would do well against werewolves, it had always been intended for vampires. I knew his daytime resting place, too. He had good reason to bear me a measure of respect, even if it was due to an unspoken threat I’d never carry out against him. “What did you want to tell me?”
“I’m going to say some things to you in confidence. I need your word that you’ll keep this to yourself.”
“You have it. Speak freely.”
If nothing else, I trusted the vampire to be truthful. He might bend and reshape the facts to suit his whims, but he was never completely dishonest with me. “Okay. First, I need to know something about our contract. I need to know what it might mean for us if I turn Were.”
There was an understandably long pause. I bit my lower lip to keep from saying anything until he answered me.
“That depends. Did you sign a contract with someone else?” His voice was deceptively mild; I was sure there was a great deal of emotion underlying the statement, no matter how calm he sounded right now.
“No.”
“Then it means nothing. You are still wholly mine.”
I had to fight back a sudden, violent shudder at that statement. It took a silent count to ten before I could continue.
“So that means if I become Were, everything that’s mine stays mine?”
“Yes. When you die, your belongings will be turned over to me to manage as your estate. Turning Were does not change that clause, though it would throw a great number of things into question and might involve a lengthier, more expensive probate process. However, that shouldn’t happen unless you sign another contract. If you are considering it, I would advise against doing so. The legal liability alone—”
“I haven’t, and I won’t,” I said, voice harsh, breaking with the strain. “Don’t assume anything here, Royce. It’s not what you think.”
He quieted, considering my words. I knew the moment he must have realized what I meant. His anger was immediate and intense. “Who is responsible for this? Have you reported them to the authorities yet?”
“I haven’t, and I’m not sure I will.”
“If it was Chaz, I can understand your reluctance. However, consider the implications of failing to uphold your obligation to report an incident like this. With the attention paid to you by the media, it won’t go unnoticed for long.”
“It wasn’t Chaz,” I said, voice cold. The mention of the media dragged out a deep, abiding sense of hatred for the direction my life was now hurtling, no matter how much I wished it otherwise. “I asked you to keep quiet about this because the reporter tailing me—hopefully—doesn’t know yet. Neither does my family.”
“I see. I’d like to know exactly what happened. Are you certain you are infected?”
I rubbed at my forehead as I thought about what to say. How much to tell him. What he might use against me later.
“It’s not certain. I was scratched on Sunday night by one of the shifted Weres. I’ve had a conversation about it with Rohrik Donovan, and he told me I won’t know for sure for maybe three or four weeks.”
“I see.”
“Royce, how did you know something bad was going to happen out there?”
“It’s not something I can risk disclosing over the phone. Next time we meet, I’ll go over it with you.”
“That’s not very helpful.”
“I’m sorry that I can’t do more for you right now. Please believe I didn’t expect anything like this to happen,” he said, some of the cold anger draining out of his voice. Instead, he seemed resigned. “I knew there was a possibility you might have been hurt by one of the people seeking revenge against the Sunstrikers, but I never considered that Chaz would be so careless as to put you in a position to become infected. Our conversations had led me to believe that wasn’t in his plans for you. I apologize for my lack of foresight.”
“Hey, you just apologized to me twice in less than a minute. You’re creeping me out here.”
His laughter was a shadow of the usual ironic tones I was used to hearing from him. “It’s unusual, yes. You’re one of few people I’ve had good reason or desire to apologize to in quite some time. I suppose I should be getting used to it by now.”
“Okay, no pity parties allowed. I’m the one who’s supposed to be upset about all this.”
“Ms. Waynest—Shiarra—I feel some measure of personal