Her clear blue gaze swept me before rising again. "You’re not what I expected."
"I daresay I’m not who you were expecting, either."
"I daresay," she agreed. "What is it you want?"
"Answers."
She smiled. It was a real smile, a warm smile—the sort of smile that would have normally tugged a response from my lips. But there was something off-kilter about her, about the look in her eyes. Not to mention the edge of wariness that swirled across the clearing, mingling with the wood sparks and stirring the leaves of the nearby trees.
"The vampire council sent you?"
I hesitated. "In a sense. But I am not an assassin."
"If I thought you were, you would already be dead." She cocked her head and studied me for a moment. "I must admit, you intrigue me. I cannot determine exactly what you are."
"I’m a half-breed, but that’s neither here nor there. And its not what I’m here to discuss."
"Obviously," she said. "I suppose you want to know whether I am responsible for the rise of the Maniae?"
"I do."
She nodded and returned her gaze to the flames again. "I did not expect the Brindle to help the council, I must admit."
"They’re not helping the council. They’re helping me."
"A minor difference when you are here as a representative of the council."
She might have considered it minor, but I doubted the Brindle would. "So you did raise the Maniae?"