A Shade of Vampire 81 A Bringer of Night - Bella Forrest Page 0,60

around like that?” I wondered.

“Young Reapers are most inclined to visit their living relatives during the first years on the job. A few are foolish enough to try and reach out, to let their loved ones know they’re okay. We piggyback on their teleportation spells, covertly, to nip that problem in the bud. Otherwise, there would be stories about Reapers visiting their families in every newspaper and chronicle.”

Seeley sighed, shaking his head with faint amusement. “You did it to Rudolph, didn’t you?”

“Oh, yeah. My boy was running back to Portland to tell his mother he was okay.” Sidyan laughed, and Rudolph let out a low growl from his position crouched at Sidyan’s feet. “Oh, come on, Rudy, you knew it wasn’t allowed.”

“You scared the pants off him, didn’t you?” I replied.

Sidyan nodded, hilariously proud. I was seeing a different side of him now, and I had to admit I was fascinated. Beyond the gloomy Reaper façade, Sidyan had a playful personality. He could laugh, and whenever he did, his face lit up as if a sun were growing inside him. It was an interesting thing to watch, and it made me wonder how many other facets there were for me to discover.

Veliko drew our focus back to business with a clear shout. “The rest of you head to the Laramis compound. Some of the other imperial city escapees will be waiting for you there. I’ll be in touch as soon as I have words with the Whip.”

The Darklings nodded and stepped back as Veliko whispered his death magic into the pentagram. The lines in the mud lit up white, the air thickening with a familiar chill-inducing energy. Whispers tickled my ears, whispers of forces I might never fully understand—I could still detect them, probably due to my swamp witch nature. Perhaps I was more receptive after over ten thousand years in the Word’s service.

My skin tingled.

Sidyan took my hand in his, surprising me. He gave me a comforting half-smile. “It’ll be okay. You’ll be fine, Lumi. As long as I’m around, I’m not letting any death magic hurt you.”

“Thanks, I guess,” I murmured, wondering what had prompted him to reassure me this way. Maybe my expression wasn’t as impenetrable as I’d thought. Maybe he could read my body language better than I could hide it.

Maya took my other hand, looking up at me with her big black eyes. There was warmth in her gaze, and I knew she’d grown fond of me. For some reason, the thought made me feel good, even satisfied with myself. In my mind, getting Maya’s approval brought me closer to Sidyan. How funny life was, putting him in my path just as I’d been dealing with a shattered heart. To what end? I’d yet to find an answer, but I didn’t mind this dynamic between us. It made everything more bearable.

“Prepare yourselves,” Veliko warned as the air rippled around his group. “Tonight I shall claim what is mine!”

Assuming he was referring to his Scholar title after he threw Zoltan to the wolves, so to speak, I couldn’t help but gag a little. Veliko had no honor. A weasel like him resorted to treachery and subterfuge to get what he wanted. Naturally, that aroused my interest—he didn’t strike me as the type who’d settle for being a Scholar. He was aiming for the top, and the Whip was a hurdle in his path.

“Deep breath,” Sidyan advised.

Unseen and unheard by Veliko and his Darklings, we prepared ourselves for teleportation. I felt the air grow colder around us, the pressure rising and tightening. I held my breath as energy hummed in my ears. A split second’s worth of darkness swallowed me whole, and I instinctively gripped Sidyan’s hand tighter.

When the universe rearranged itself, we were somewhere else entirely. The elegant walls of a mansion rose around us, with family portraits in gilded frames and various ornamental objects decorating every lacquered surface available. Veliko and the Darklings stood in the middle of the reception hall, while our group was right by the main entrance.

Sidyan motioned for our pack of ghouls to step back. “Keep an ear out, just in case,” he whispered to them. “It’s getting a little too crowded in here, even in our subtle form.”

One by one, the ghouls moved and vanished beyond the massive wooden doors. Sidyan, Seeley, Nethissis, and I held our position for a few minutes, as the Darklings loosened their circle and moved around the hall. Voices echoed from a nearby dining room.