A Shade of Vampire 82 A Circle of Nine - Bella Forrest Page 0,47
to the council, the previous ruling will be undone,” Danika said calmly. “And the blood slave trade will resume.”
“Thank you, Your Grace. I’m sure that will take the pressure off many noble families across the empire,” the man replied.
A Rimian servant exited the room carrying a tray with empty cups smeared with blood. This was my chance, and I took it. Once inside, I moved into the corner behind a handwoven decorative screen with a silver frame. If I tilted my head to the side, I could see them both clearly.
Danika stood behind her desk, one hand resting on a small stack of papers. Writing was scribbled in black ink across the first page, and I could make out the wax seal’s red relief at the bottom, where Danika must’ve pressed her signet ring—the signature that turned words into law.
She wore a black silk dress, her hair neatly braided into a tight and long tail down her back. She was pale, with what looked like blush adding a too-bright dash of color to her face. She hadn’t slept much since her husband’s death, that much was obvious.
The man, on the other hand, looked dapper and spry, with black hair and burnt orange eyes. His features struck me as familiar, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on where I’d seen him before. Danika seemed comfortable in his presence. “Pharos, I’m doing this solely to get the nobles off my back,” she said. “With Acheron dead, I can’t hold them back, and I cannot afford to lose the throne. Not when there’s a Black Fever outbreak happening before its normal schedule.”
“I understand,” Pharos replied. “Once you strengthen your position, perhaps when Thayen is old enough to have a standing among the elite, you can try banning the blood slave trade again. You’ve made the right decision now, even if it feels like you’re not honoring the Lord Supreme’s memory.”
Danika scoffed. “Yes, well… I have to retain my reasoning going forward and pissing off the nobles isn’t on my to-do list. Not if I want my son to take over and ascend to the throne someday. I’d love nothing more than to grieve in peace, but alas, the empire won’t let me.”
“I will make sure the law you just signed is enacted first thing in the morning. That way, the nobles are likely to sway in your favor,” Pharos said. “You’ll need them.”
“You are stating the obvious. If I’m to launch an official accusation against Valaine Crimson, I’ll need all the support I can get. I hope I can rely on your vote, Pharos, now that I’ve made you chief councilor.”
Pharos smiled. “Of course. Corbin might be my brother, but I am in no way obliged to cater to his emotional and irrational outbursts. If Valaine is indeed as dangerous as the Darklings make her out to be, then it is our moral and legal duty to isolate and eliminate her.”
“It makes me shudder the way you talk about your own niece.” Danika frowned as she looked up at him.
“I work for the empire, not my family,” he replied, crossing his arms. “Besides, that girl has always struck me as a little too weird. The apple of her father’s eye, no doubt, but strange. Don’t think the rest of the Crimson dynasty hasn’t noticed. Most of us have already begun detaching ourselves from her.”
Danika smirked, leaning back into her high chair. “And what if we’re wrong, Pharos? What if the Darklings are full of crap, and the girl really is innocent?”
“Do you believe that, Your Grace?”
“I’m not sure what to believe anymore. That’s why I’m asking you.”
“Then we’ll have sins to atone for when the day of our final judgment comes. Because if there is one thing I wholeheartedly believe, it’s that none of us will truly live for an eternity. The end comes for us all, sooner or much, much later,” Pharos said.
It chilled me to the bone to hear them talking this way, but it also gave me a pretty good insight into Danika’s head. As I’d suspected before, the rage from Acheron’s assassination was beginning to subside, and doubt was rising about her actions against Valaine. Perhaps this was the ideal time to talk with her. I could only hope for the best, considering how unsure she sounded.
“Well, in that case, Pharos, please take this and perform your first official duty as chief councilor,” Danika said, handing the top paper to him. “My seal should not be contested.”