very far out. I hesitated a moment but then tore off my own to join him… ”
Joe cleared his throat. “So— you called this Gaius an elder. This is how order is kept?”
“Elders are like feudal barons in their own little fiefdoms. There are thirteen houses in all. They fall over themselves to be hospitable should other Immortyls chance to visit. It’s very bad form not to. You know the old story about vampires not entering a house without invitation? Believe it, because they’re highly territorial sonsofbitches. You don’t just barge in without making the proper petition to the head of household, but on the other hand he’s honor bound to make you welcome. Elders handle problems in house whenever possible. Justice is swift and deadly. Each house is its own little world, each one more bizarre than the next. The elder sets the tone. There’s a body called the Grand Council, made up of elders of the houses, presided over by the oldest living Immortyl, Kalidasa. Major disputes are brought to the Chief. Otherwise the GC meets only at the turn of each century. Oh, by the way, slaves have almost no rights— cast-offs none.
It never really hit me until that moment that I was his virtual prisoner. After the incident on the beach I was always apprehensive when he left but he assured me that sewer rats would never invade the domicile of an alpha. But one night when I was alone, a car approached, from the whine of the engine, something small and sporty. It wasn’t Ethan’s. He preferred more substantial automobiles, always in discreet black.
I’d taken up drawing in pastels and was setting up a still life of a bottle of wine and fruit on the table, opulent oranges, grapes and pomegranates. I couldn’t stomach veggies anymore, but fruit had a pleasant scent, like flowers. Rare red meat I devoured with relish. Strangely enough, garlic, the traditional old bane of vampires, was entirely revolting to me. So much for my Italian ancestry.
As the car pulled into the drive, I peered out the window. It was the landlord and he’d brought Dirk, his young alpha in training, a thoroughly nasty creature who reminded me of a mortal child who pulled the wings off flies. This former SS thug was a hulking brute whose large hands hung down his sides, like he only recently learned to walk upright. I suppose some might call him handsome with his large nose, jutting jaw, yellowish eyes and blondish hair. Not my flavor by any means. But he liked me well enough.
I went to the door and opened it. Ethan told me not to let anyone in while he was out, however I wasn’t sure his eeriness, Gaius would appreciate being treated so rudely.
Gaius took me by the hands, kissing my cheeks. Dirk grinned at me. I ignored him.
“Ethan will be back soon. Please come in, my lord.”
Gaius’s unctuous smile flowed over his face. “If you insist. Dirk, come.”
Dirk leered as he walked by me and reached out, tugging playfully at my hair. I could have protested but saw no reason to make a scene over something so harmless.
“Won’t you sit down?” I motioned to the armchairs by the fireplace.
“Thank you,” Gaius answered, strolling over to the table to peruse my work. “Lovely.”
“It passes the considerable time.”
“Don’t let us interrupt you. Continue,” Gaius ordered. He wasn’t the type to just ask.
I sat down at my place to sketch again while Gaius stood at my shoulder observing. It was unnerving to feel those sharp black eyes on my neck, as if his fangs pierced the skin. “You must learn to paint in oils. I know a good teacher. He taught my Guilietta.”
“Until she developed a taste for him and got whipped,” Dirk put in.
Gaius snapped at him, “Mind your tongue.”
I shuddered at this glimpse inside their little domestic arrangement and hurried to change the subject. “I’m not sure my talent is worthy of developing.”
“You have a good eye and sense of proportion.”
“You’re too kind, my lord.”
“Lisette and Guilietta talk of you often. They speculate if you’re all the horrible things they’ve heard and why you hate men.”
“I don’t hate men.” I put down the crayon and blew the dust away. I cocked an eye at Dirk lounging in the chair. “But life would sure be more serene without some.”
Gaius took my drawing up in his hands, examining it closely. “They visualize you as an Amazon.”