“Who is this? ” A second man pushed his way out past Pia. He was shorter than the first, very thin, with a narrow face and pinched expression, as if he smelled something nasty. He gave me a once-over that made me faintly uncomfortable.
“My name is Corazon Ferreira,” I answered, embarrassed as hell. Dammit , Alec, your friends are still pissed at you!
They are?
“She’s a friend of Alec,” Pia told the tall man, who I assumed was her vampire. The two of them gave me a strange look. “This is Brother Ailwin. He’s . . . uh . . . he’s going to help us out with a little problem we have concerning a friend.”
I murmured a polite nothing, feeling horribly in the way.
“Perhaps you wish to conduct this business another time?” the skinny man asked, turning his sour face on Pia.
“No, no, we want it done as soon as possible. Er . . .” She shot me a hesitant look. “I’m sure we can come to some arrangement regarding the terms of your summoning a lich for us.”
“I will, naturally, be obligated to charge more since the lich in question belongs to an Ilargi.” The man gave me a considering look, his eyes filled with speculation.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized. “I’m interrupting. I’ll come back—”
“No, please, don’t leave, we’d love to talk to you about Alec, wouldn’t we?” She turned to the large man behind her.
“Yes, we would. We are finished here. We will expect the ceremony to take place this evening, Brother Ailwin,” Kristoff said.
What is taking so long? Who is that man who keeps looking at you?
Some priest, I think, and we’re in the way. Just so you know.
We are not. And that is no priest.
“That is too short of notice,” the man said, biting off the words as if he was reluctant to let them go. “But assuming you will pay for my time, I will make the arrangements.”
Maybe he’s a monk? I asked as the man, with one last look at me, got into a small car and drove off. He seems kind of ascetic to me. Although he’s wearing jeans and a shirt like anyone else. Do monks still wear robes?
That is no monk, either, querida. I do not like the way he kept looking at you.
Jealous? I asked with a smile.
Not in this case.
The grim tone to his words had my mental smile melting away to nothing. I had to admit that Brother Ailwin was making me more than a little nervous.
“So, you’re Alec’s friend,” Pia said as both she and Kristoff examined me again.
“Was a friend,” I growled, “if he keeps up pulling this sort of stunt on me. Look, I’m sorry to have bothered you and interrupted your meeting. We’ll just be on our way.”
I started to turn from the door but stopped when Kristoff said, “We?”
You didn’t tell them we were coming, did you?
Why would I do that?
“Oh my god,” I said, mortified to the tips of my toes. “He didn’t tell you we were coming. I’m so sorry. I’ll yell at him later on your behalf, all right?”
“He who?” Pia asked, stopping me when I would have marched away to give a certain vampire a very large piece of my mind.
You are in so much trouble, buster!
I’m well aware of that. The Moravian Council is not going to be happy.
Not with them, with me! I could die of embarrassment! These people think I’m a pushy interloper! And I am! “Alec.”
“Alec is in the Akasha,” she said slowly, as if I were a nutball.
Great, and now they think I’m crazy, too! “No, he’s not. He’s right there.” I waved a hand toward the tree.
Pia moved out of the doorway to look, her hand shading her eyes against the sun before she gave a whoop of happiness and ran toward the tree.
“Er . . .” I looked from where Pia had flung herself on Alec, who was spinning her around in the shade, to the vampire standing very close behind me. Alec had told me a little of his history with Kristoff, including the fact that he was the one responsible for Kristoff being a vampire in the first place. “Your . . . um . . . Beloved seems to be happy to see him. I’m confused.”
“No more so than am I,” he said, his voice rich with an Italian accent. He pushed past me and strolled toward the tree, not running through the sunlight as I assumed he would. I stood in the doorway and watched as he and Alec sized each other up for a moment, then embraced in a bear hug that looked like it should have broken at least one rib.
OK, I guess I was wrong.
About many things, love, but I try not to point them out too frequently.
Stop being smug. I thought they were pissed! How come your friend isn’t affected by sunshine?
He is, but Dark Ones who are Joined have more of a tolerance to the sun. I’m sure Kristoff still avoids it when possible.
“This is . . . oh, my. We never expected you to get yourself out. That’s why we . . . oh, dear. Is Cora . . . um . . . Kristoff, maybe you could . . . ?”
Something was wrong with Pia. She looked uncomfortable, and slightly distressed, and she kept shooting little glances past me toward the house.
“Come into the house,” Kristoff said with a dark look. “There is much we have to . . . explain.”
What’s up? I asked Alec as Pia bustled past me, her gaze curious as she sized me up.
I have no idea, but it can’t be too bad. Despite your concerns, they are happy to see us.
I said nothing to that, but the uneasy feeling continued.
“Who was that man?” Alec asked Kristoff.
“Brother Ailwin? He’s a lichmaster. We’ve been negotiating with him to steal Ulfur from whoever the Ilargi is who has him.”
“Alphonse de Marco,” Alec said, nodding.
Pia and Kristoff stopped and stared as Alec pulled me into the house after him.
The inside of the house was even more attractive than the outside, long, cool rooms with stone floors and arched entryways giving way to a columned loggia. Through a large set of French doors, I could see outside to where a small tiered garden rose into the hillside.
“You know who the Ilargi is? Alphonse de . . .” Pia sucked in a huge breath. “Al! Al from the tour! Oh my god, he is the Ilargi? Holy cow!”
“Interesting, but not, I think, of utmost importance at this moment,” Kristoff said, his hand on Pia’s back as they escorted us into the house proper. “Alec, we need to talk.”
“This is so lovely,” I couldn’t help but say, wondering how many people it took to keep up a house and grounds of this size. The room we were in was clearly a favorite, the walls a dappled oatmeal color, bearing a number of small, brilliantly colored, but obviously quite old paintings of the Renaissance style. Antiques mingled with more comfortable furniture, a blue and cream rug on the floor mimicking a mosaic. Outside, the garden was dotted with red and amber flowers, along with a thousand different shades of green. “And the views are outstanding.”
“Perhaps you and I should have our discussion in the library,” Kristoff said slowly, his speculative gaze on me.
“There’s nothing you can say to me that you can’t say in front of Cora,” Alec said in an even tone. “For lack of a better phrase, we are bound together.”
“Temporarily,” I said quickly, giving him a look that should have melted his hair right off his head. “We’re temporarily bound together.”