Brother Remembered - Black Dagger Brotherhood FanFic - Sumter Colony 2

Chapter 2

Tarra watched the dark male in the small half-silvered mirror the Scribe Virgin had assigned her for this purpose. It was large enough to see detail but small enough to hide when not used. Watching and recording were essential since her deity had instructed her to do it in utmost secrecy.

The one she watched, Night, sat at his massive desk, the light from the banker's lamp the only illumination in the room save for the harsh glow of the computer's screen and the soft gleam from the frame-mounted light on the portrait of the red-headed Victorian woman. He scowled at the screen and muttered about death and taxes under his breath. He sat back, sinking into the office chair, and rubbed his eyes. She could tell that he was, again, frustrated by the accounting side of his business.

Her heart ached for him when he looked up and gazed at the woman in the portrait. As he always did, he rubbed his chest when he remembered anything of meaning from his past. She was Fleur, his bonded mate, his shellan, for centuries until her death in the late 1980s. He studied her image for several heartbeats until he closed his eyes and sighed.

He heaved his muscular bulk out of the chair, pulling the chain on the lamp to turn it off. He descended the stairs, boots quieter than one might expect. He donned his heavy coat and slipped out the back door to the deck. Soon, his son would come down the stairs and begin to make coffee for them.

"Tarra! Quick!" Jardine called from the hall outside of Tarra's chambers.

Tarra started and quickly slipped the scrying mirror and the book she had been writing in under the pillow next to her. She scrambled across the bed and swiftly stepped to throw open the door. "What has happened? Is something wrong?"

"Lassiter has summoned you! The Directrix sent me to fetch you."

A hand flew to Tarra's mouth as she gasped. "But I have done nothing!"

Jardine rolled her eyes as she pushed her way into the room past her friend. "Do not be silly. Of course you have done nothing."

Tarra closed the door and hurried to her closet to peruse the robes there as Jardine began searching through her vanity's drawers for the items needed to do her hair. She would need her best to visit with the Scribe Virgin's successor. "Then why has he sent for me?"

"How would I know that? Now, come here and sit!"

Tarra had a moment's indecision and thought to try the one that was soft peach simply because she knew it would look good against her dark skin. But, she wasn't presenting herself for service, only answering a summons. She shrugged out of her old cotton robe, grand by most standards, to change into a better one, pulling the flowing white linen over her head. She pulled on matching slippers to complete the simple outfit.

When Tarra sat at the vanity, Jardine pulled out the pins holding her black hair in place. Her friend finger-teased it out of shape deftly, then regathered it with the carved wooden styling brush. With a few quick twists of her hands, she created the elegant chignon updo, a popular style amongst the Chosen. She set it in place with a lovely comb adorned with a multitude of tiny delicate pearls and white porcelain flowers. It was one of Tarra's favorites.

As Jardine coifed her hair, Tarra added a light sheen of pink gloss to her lips. The Chosen didn't wear a lot of makeup, but many, including herself, were beginning to experiment now that the Primale had opened the Sanctuary and allowed them to leave as they wished, chaperoned. Jardine had brought back the shade for her the last time she had visited the Chosen Cormia, now mated to Phury, the Primale.

She changed her earrings to pearls to match the comb, donned a single dropped pearl necklace on a delicate gold chain, and checked her reflection. She smoothed the robe one last time before she turned to her friend.