Succubus Unchained - Heather Long Page 0,19

itch under his skin as Fin stepped out of the last bolt-hole not far from Istanbul in an area known as Kumkoy on the shores of the Black Sea. A handful of vampires had been inside, all retainers, most of them old enough to understand exactly what he was when he entered. Three were sun sensitive, and they’d suffered burns at his abrupt arrival. The sun had already climbed here, so he had less than an hour if he were lucky to make it back to the keep.

The interrogation took him little time. Isaac’s disobedience of Alfred’s summons earned him no friends among these retainers. They promised to capture and hold him should their former master make an appearance. Former, because if they continued to swear loyalty, Fin would be obliged to remove their heads. Everyone understood the potential threat and remained honest.

Still, a weariness Fin hadn’t felt in a long time crept through him as he left the compound behind and twisted his way along the paths back to the keep. As much as he wished to have attended the party with Fiona and introduced her to a whole new world, the task Alfred had given him was equally vital.

Also, Fin was the least likely of the four of them to shed much blood. He’d at least left survivors.

Maddox and Rogue would have left none.

Fin could also travel farther, faster than both of them, and Maddox did not want to be separated from Fiona. A situation that seemed to concern Alfred more and more. There was nothing they could do about it. Nothing they should do about it. Fiona was theirs. Fin had known it from the moment she’d begun to change. The ringing bell of clarity had gonged through him. The knowing that all their long years of waiting for the promise of her had been fulfilled.

Now they just had to not mess it up. Destiny had a tendency to slap back.

The multiple vehicles that had decorated the exterior of the keep were gone. Most of their guests had probably been dismissed following the gathering. They came in early if they wanted time to petition or give an offering.

Ugh. Fin paused and tilted his head back as he stared up at the keep’s windows. Most of them did not allow a view inside, though once upon a time, they had. Each could be shuttered and bolted. The keep itself could withstand cannon fire and had.

Updates had been made, mostly by Rogue. It was what he did with his time when they didn’t pull him away for hunts or other issues.

The offerings.

The look on Fiona’s face in the library. It had never occurred to Fin the offerings would bother her. Yet, the disappointment in her eyes had slashed at him. Refusing them hadn’t been a hardship, though it had irked Alfred, particularly after Maddox’s staunch refusal following Eleanor’s ambush. Rogue stepping in to say he would prefer to avoid them this time around had been a surprise.

It also saved Fin from an argument with Alfred. He’d been asleep for a long time, and upon waking, he’d devoted every ounce of his energy and attention to bringing Fiona across. The problem was that while they’d bonded through blood and sex, Alfred had most assuredly not become her lover, and Fiona’s anger had only intensified every time they came together.

I hate you all.

The whispered thought, raw and potent, haunted him. He’d known. They’d all known. Rogue had cautioned him and Maddox both from the beginning, but they couldn’t let her die. To save her, she had to transition, to become a hybrid.

If that meant she hated them…well, they’d just have to repair the damage. They had time now. Time to court her properly.

Inside, he found Anton waiting for him. The vampire bowed once. “My lord, Lord Alfred says you are to attend him immediately upon your return.”

Of course he did. “Absolutely. Is Her Majesty in the bathing room or the library?” Not that she’d returned to the library once in the last few days, but now that the guests were gone, maybe she would?

Not meeting his eyes, Anton said, “Forgive me, my lord. I was instructed to tell you to attend Lord Alfred immediately and to say nothing more.”

Impatience creeping through him, Fin threw up his hands, and Anton immediately took several steps back. Yeah, he wasn’t going to hit the retainer. Even if he’d been nursing a little crush on Fiona. Most males were going to. Some females for that