Death Game: Supernatural Battle (Vampire Towers #3) - Kelly St. Clare Page 0,35
I’ll see that it gets to you. And after, when things are safe, I’ll see that you find a council position equivalent to what you now hold. Better if I can wrangle it.” Lady Treena shouldn’t have any trouble with that.
“I just…” The woman blinked. “It’s so fast. No one has ever helped me. I’ve been afraid for so long. I don’t know what to think or do.”
I pressed my lips together. “What is your body telling you to do, Sandra?”
“T-To run. To not look back.”
“Stop ignoring your instincts. They’re there for a reason. I have you now.”
Tears tracked down her cheeks. “I want to believe you. That you’ll help me.”
“That’s enough for now,” I said, holding out another tissue. “Dry your face and let’s get to work. These fuckers are going down. You might have been their victim until now, but you’ll stand beside me when we have the last laugh.”
Hatred glinted in her eyes. “I want that.”
Revenge was a strong motivator. It had fuelled my grandmother for decades. It fuelled me for a while too. I missed the mindlessness of revenge after all Kyros’s lies. When I hated him, my decisions were blissfully black and white.
“Then take it,” I replied, lifting my phone up. “Tell everyone what happened to you.”
Sandra squared her shoulders.
“I’m ready,” she said.
10
My body had begged for rest, and sleeping on the drive back was tempting to the extreme, but I had shit to sort through. This development was huge, and I had to play it exactly right. The lives of Kyros’s family depended on this. Kyros’s forgiveness hinged on this too.
“Fred, please pull over when you can.”
I fired off a text to Laurel, and in short duration, she slipped into the car.
“Laurel,” I greeted.
I pressed a button on the console next to me and the soundproof screen between us and Fred slid up. Soundproof for human ears anyway.
She took the seat opposite me. “Basi.”
“You heard?”
The vampire inclined her head. “I worry about leaving her unprotected.”
“Same here. But I can’t leave you guys to protect her without questions being raised by Kyros and Sundulus. I’m not prepared to answer their questions yet.”
Sandra got this far without being compelled. I’d do everything possible to keep her out of chains.
Twenty-five Vissimo came with me to Frankton Gorge. I had to assume twenty-five heard Sandra’s story. All of them knew the confidentiality rules when with me on the estate, but I couldn’t depend on Laurel keeping them in check when they had so much motive to pay off their debts.
The sooner I hammered out the finer details, the better I’d feel.
“What do you know about the rules surrounding the presentation of this kind of evidence?” I asked.
Laurel’s eyes darkened. “Nothing. The rules of Vissimo are well known to me. The intricate rules of Ingenium are not.”
Fuck.
I couldn’t move in the dark.
“You need the rule book,” she said. “The manuals are readily available. Children in both clans are taught the rules during their schooling.”
I lifted my head. “You’re shitting me?”
She shrugged a shoulder. “How else would the clans keep track of everything? The rule book is a direct copy of the original contract between the two kings with any new rules inserted with passing decades.”
This was… “I needed this, like, yesterday.”
“Might I recommend consulting Deana on this point?”
Deana was the woman who introduced me to vampires when she sank her teeth into her boyfriend.
“She’s not here today.” Laurel continued. “I keep the newest of our kind in the tower and away from the estate. Their loyalty must be proven first. However, you’re part of the inner circle on Level 66 now. You can use that as a cover. With some caution, she’ll be one of the best to quiz on the complexities of the game. She’s the only one of us to have worked in Ingenium.”
Talking to her would be a risk, but nothing on the risks I’d taken to get here. “I need a copy of that book regardless.” I hesitated before adding, “Are there books on the rules of Vissimo and mating?”
“Publications are held in high esteem in our world,” the vampire replied, blue eyes scanning passing cars. “You know every clan is dedicated to a cause. They tend to write these things down and disperse the copies to various clans to show what they’ve achieved. But I warn you, they’re generally long-winded and complex. That’s why I didn’t bring them up. Incorrect interpretation is dangerous.” Her eyes glimmered.