A Shade of Vampire 81 A Bringer of Night - Bella Forrest Page 0,47
well. I only wish the circumstances were better.”
“Sister, what is this about Ansel—” Aganon tried to speak, but Petra immediately shushed him, glowering at Ansel.
“How certain are you, Kalon, that your brother is a Darkling?” she asked.
Ansel didn’t even blink, petrified by his mother’s presence. Kalon sighed. “He admitted it. It’s not a suspicion, Mother. I caught him in the act during a Darkling raid in a Rimian village.”
“My beautiful little angel,” Petra murmured, still fixated on Ansel. “Whatever did I do for you to end up like this?”
“We have to get him to talk,” Kalon said.
Petra shot him a cold stare. “You need to take a bath, to change into some clean clothes, and to offer Esme some proper Visentis hospitality. Now that your uncle Aganon and Simmon are back from their travels, our house is truly safe,” she replied, briefly glancing my way. “You’re free to stay here and freshen up, Esme. I’ll deal with Ansel.”
“Milady, I’m not sure that’s something I can accept. Ansel has answers, and I need to talk to him,” I said.
“And you will, once I’m done with him,” she snapped, struggling to keep her composure. Anger bubbled beneath the surface, and Petra had a hard time keeping herself together and dignified in front of us. “Ansel betrayed the Visio empire. He sullied his family name and honor. I’m the matriarch, and I have the sole right to question him.”
“Mother, please. We can help.” Kalon tried to plead with her, but Simmon put a hand on his shoulder.
“Leave it, brother. You know she’s right,” he said. “We’ll all get our turn to talk to him.”
“Listen to Simmon, my darling Kalon. You’ve done well to bring Ansel here. At least we can give him a chance before he stands trial for his actions.” Petra sighed. I would’ve protested against this decision more, but I was literally outnumbered by the Visentis Aeternae. “I will get the whole truth out of him, I promise,” Petra continued. “By nightfall, we’ll know everything he knows.”
I hoped, for everyone’s sake, that this would turn out to be the case. Kalon and I had gone through quite the adventure to capture Ansel and bring him safely home. Upon further consideration, I decided that spending some time in the Visentis mansion wasn’t such a bad idea. It put me dangerously close to Kalon’s bedroom, of course, but it also forced me to confront the demons I’d allowed to mess with my mind since I’d first heard Kalon and Ansel talking back at the lake house.
There wasn’t a better opportunity for me to clear the air before it became unbreathable. Besides, with Ansel here, I had no intention of leaving—not until I made sure the boy was safe and supervised. The last thing we needed was a little Darkling running back to his horde.
Esme
Petra had a room arranged for me, complete with some Aeternae-style clothes. To be honest, I was looking forward to getting out of my combat suit. After a hot bath, I slipped into a simple emerald-green dress with white lace ruffles around the wrists and collar. The fitted bodice accentuated my narrow waist against the full skirt.
I combed my hair into a loose bun, adding a decorative brass comb in the front. Checking myself in the mirror, I took a deep breath and prepared myself for dinner with the Visentis dynasty. I was still feeling overwhelmed—there was something about this mansion and the people in it that made me nervous, maybe even a little insecure, which was unusual. After one more steadying breath, I put my anxiety aside and stepped out of my room, guided downstairs by the sound of voices.
The dining room was exquisite, with dark blue wallpaper and solid wood paneling. A crystal chandelier swayed low from the ceiling just above the enormous table in the center. A silk runner ran down the table’s length, and my attention was temporarily captured by the glint of silverware, fine porcelain, and crystal glasses. Pitchers of blood had been placed in the center, and servants clad in dark gray velvet awaited my arrival.
Petra sat at the head of the table—I expected nothing less from the matriarch—while Aganon and Simmon had the first two seats on either side of her. On Simmon’s side, Tudyk and Moore had taken their places—their height and childlike faces were the only things that set them apart from the adults. By all other accounts, both boys were highly advanced and maybe just as dangerous as adult Aeternae.