A Shade of Vampire 81 A Bringer of Night - Bella Forrest Page 0,61

My gaze wandered up a pair of majestic stairs leading to the second level. An Aeternae boy bolted along that open corridor, swinging a slim silver sword around with perhaps too much skill and speed for his age. He moved like a shadow, sparring with an imaginary adversary.

Veliko sneered, watching him vanish beyond the corner. We all heard a bedroom door close.

“Scholar, what do we do? Where are we?” one of the Darklings whispered. I was as confused as Veliko’s underlings as to where he’d brought them.

“That’s right, you fellas have never been introduced to the Whip,” Veliko replied. “Consider it an honor and be thankful I’m giving you this opportunity.”

“He’s full of crap,” Sidyan muttered, glowering at him. “He brought a few bodies with him just in case he might need them. He’s either scared of the Whip, or he’s looking to do something nasty.”

“Either way, we don’t interfere,” Seeley reminded him. “We only observe.”

Nethissis scoffed. “Yeah, keep preaching. Maybe this time you’ll obey your own rules.”

That must’ve hurt, but Seeley didn’t show it. Instead, he gave Nethissis a soft nod, respectfully acknowledging her retort. I had to give the guy credit. He handled himself with grace and poise in these circumstances.

“Who is the Whip?” the underling asked Veliko.

“Shut up. We go upstairs. You’ll see soon enough. I’m in no mood to ruin the surprise.”

We followed the Darklings upstairs, quiet and almost breathless. Odds were good Veliko wasn’t immediately suspicious of our presence here, since we’d kept ourselves well hidden since the last scuffle. Even so, we stayed a few feet away from him, and Seeley had his scythe out, ready to intercept any death magic they might throw at us.

Veliko opened the door to one of the bedrooms, and I realized it was the chamber where the Aeternae boy with his silver sword had chosen to stop and practice.

“Moore,” Veliko said, smiling. “Long time no see, young man.”

Moore whirled around, beaming at the sight of him and the Darklings. It made my blood run cold when I realized that he knew them. He welcomed them.

“I’m glad to see you made it out of Astoria in one piece,” Moore said, remarkably calm and eloquent for his young age. He didn’t look older than six or seven, and the fact that he was a Darkling sympathizer gave me the creeps. “I hear Zoltan wasn’t so lucky.”

Veliko chuckled, hands politely behind his back. From where I stood, I could see the scythe in his hand, ready in case he needed it. The six Darklings he’d brought with him stood back, while the four of us inched along the western wall. Rudolph and Maya stayed by the doorway, trained to intervene only if they had to.

“Zoltan was weak. He’s probably on his way to death row as we speak,” Veliko said. “I always did think one of you Visentis boys should take his place as Scholar, but since none of you were willing, I figured I might as well apply for the position.”

Moore giggled. “I’m not sure Mother will like that. She’s not your biggest fan.”

“Oh crap,” Nethissis murmured, her eyes bulging from pure shock as she gawked at the boy. “His mother… Holy hell, that’s Petra Visentis. Kalon’s mother. Oh no…”

“Why don’t you go fetch the high priestess for me?” Veliko said to the boy. “She and I have a lot to talk about, and by the sound of what’s going on downstairs, I suppose she’s entertaining some guests for dinner.”

Holding my breath, I watched Moore roll his blue eyes as he made his way toward the door, slipping the silver sword under his leather belt. “Yeah, okay. She’s not going to appreciate being interrupted during dinner. I already upset her by leaving the table early.”

“Just go,” Veliko groaned, his patience wearing thin.

That was rarely a good sign.

But the most terrifying of truths had just been revealed, and I knew it wouldn’t bode well for Tristan and Esme’s efforts if Petra friggin’ Visentis was the Whip of the Darklings. The enemy was way too close to them. Close enough to get someone else killed.

“Well, this was unexpected,” Sidyan remarked, clearly astonished by this development.

“Unexpected doesn’t even begin to cover it,” I whispered.

It was downright terrifying, because we were now wading into supposedly allied territory. In all the GASP reports I’d read about Petra Visentis, she was considered a supporter of the empire and a friend to our people. Not the bloody Whip of the Darklings.

Esme

“So? What is it, Esme? What is

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