Death Game: Supernatural Battle (Vampire Towers #3) - Kelly St. Clare Page 0,41

the chapter on the fifth exchange and squinted at the sixth before deciding to quit while I was ahead.

Picking up the third book, The Law & Etiquette of Vissimo, I scanned the index, finding the section titled Human-Vissimo Mating Bonds. The subject was covered by two sections, one for expected etiquette and the other for all legalities.

“Any mated human must walk in front of his or her mate at all times, head bowed, and hands clasped at the waist,” I read aloud, my jaw dropping. Laughter burst from my lips. “They can go fuck themselves.”

Kyros preferred me to walk in front, but the head bowed part could climb a tree and sing a beanstalk into existence for all I cared.

Shaking my head, I read through the rest of the section—which was as ridiculous as the first sentence.

I flicked to the legal half of the book. “When was this shit even published?”

I checked the date. 1907.

That explained a few things. Was this the most recent edition Laurel could find? The other two books were at least revised during this century. The law section was much larger, and my heart sank at the third clause.

Unless the transition ritual is invoked at the seventh exchange, the human or elevated-human mate will not speak in formal gatherings unless permitted by their Vissimo counterpart.

I’d broken that about a million times.

Trailing my finger through the legal clauses, I flicked through the pages until finding the topic I was specifically interested in.

After the sixth exchange, a human mate is considered an elevated human.

“Elevated human, my butthole,” I muttered. But Laurel was right. Clause 7.6 stated—in much clearer terms than the Ingenium rule book stated anything—that I could own and direct Indebted, who were considered lesser than an elevated human.

Asswipes, ranking people like that. Not that humans didn’t do that to themselves and everything around them. But still. Immortality clearly didn’t correlate with increased wisdom.

My phone buzzed on the office desk.

Safina.

“Go away,” I grumbled, clicking on the green button despite myself. “What?”

“Basilia. We have something to discuss.”

We did?

“I’ve been meaning to apologise about going into Fyrlia territory and putting you at risk. I didn’t understand it completely at the time, but I gather now that if I died and Kyros lost the plot, you would have paid the price. And Kearra.”

“Life is too short to apologise for things that never happened. Your intent was not malicious. You warned us. Everything worked out.”

No, it didn’t.

“Okay, I’m still sorry though.”

“My time is precious, Miss Le Spyre. You’re wasting it.”

Total badass. I’d said it once, I’d say it a million times. “Spit it out then, Safina.”

“Most of my siblings have spent quality time with you—”

I spun in my chair. “That’s what you guys are calling it? Quality time?”

She was walking around a room. I listened to the rustling of papers, imagining her in the penthouse of her own tower. Aside from Kyros Sky, I’d only been to Lionel’s tower—to look at his model of the vertical farming developments.

“Call it what you will,” Safina said breezily. “Because my time is short these days—”

“—You’re not going to do anything to me?”

“Quaint. No. But I will make things easier if you’re cooperative.”

I groaned. “That’s where Lionel learned it.”

“What?”

“He used that exact line on me during his turn.”

Safina hummed. “We must teach our younger siblings all we can to survive.”

They could have stopped at don’t touch the hot oven, Lionel.

“Tell me straight then. What crap have you got planned?”

She purred down the line. “A week’s worth of outfits, shoes, and jewellery are about to arrive at your estate. They are labelled Monday to Saturday. You are to wear them each night with your hair styled in my usual bun. Make-up is to be kept simple. I will send you a picture to mimic. This week, you’ll sit next to me when we’re in the same room. You’ll mimic my actions. Bonus points if you copy some of my other mannerisms and speech patterns.”

I absorbed that. “You want me to be a mini-me?”

“Yes.”

My lips trembled. “Safina. That’s seriously messed up.”

“The only thing worse than not fucking your true mate is for her to look like your sister while you obsess over it.”

Brilliant.

Husky chuckles tumbled from my lips. “I really like you. I’m totally behind your Game of Thrones mindfuckery.”

“Thought you might be.”

This would create the barrier I needed to erect between us again.

And Safina didn’t even know I’d called Kyros mate last night either.

The seconds’ furious debate bounced overhead as Kyros stared at me in consternation.