Breathe Under Water - Shadows of the Night 1

Chapter 16

Hi!

So it took me longer than anticipated to finish this one. BUT it's longer than the last and, hopefully, you'll love it as much as I do. No more rambling. Enjoy and please let me know if you like it!

Lara

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Chapter 16

Another stealthy glimpse towards where Alexander was standing. Ancient eyes glancing back. Heron was looking at me. Alexander turned around. His gaze carried a weight I could feel on my face, my arms, and my shoulders. For a moment I caught something in his eyes – a stir, or a motion that reminded me of oil dripping into water.

I faltered in my steps. Or, maybe, it wasn't oil after all. He looked like he was thinking about how my blood tasted like. Somehow I managed to keep moving.

"There you are."

His voice didn't give away anything. For all I knew Alexander could have been talking to the plumber, explaining the problem at hand in a technical sign language.

"My Master," I whispered when I moved to his side, feeling incredibly stupid.

Alexander placed his hand on my hip without missing a beat and resumed his conversation with Heron as if the gesture was something he did every day. The touch hummed with power and something akin to electricity, sent shivers down my spine I tried my best to hide. He held me with the confidence of someone who had a penchant for showing off his possession. And he was right, wasn't he? For the duration of or stay in Pennsylvania I was no more than that. My fingers curled.

I tried to act like a human servant and look like one, but I couldn't seem to rid my body of the underlying tension. My eyes wandered up and down the marble floor unseeingly. I was in the middle of a lair crawling with vampires as powerful and ancient as the world. Things couldn't get much worse. At least that was what I hoped.

"I am of the same opinion. If we want to protect our interests, acting proactively is the only policy we can use," Alexander said. The softness in his voice had a musicality to it that was above anything strictly human.

"Still, the Canadians are not in favor of the proposal," Heron noted.

Alexander's voice softened to the point of inaudibility. I had to strain my ears and hold my breath to understand what he was saying.

"I expected nothing else from François."

"As did I, Alexander. As did I," Heron said.

Something in the sound of his voice made me forget about my act. I looked up, my eyes going from one vampire to the other. Was I or was I not witness of a vampire male bonding thing here? One thing was clear, Heron and Alexander were buddies – if that term even applied to vampires.

Then I remembered where I was, and who I was supposed to be. Hastily I lowered my eyes to the floor, but not before I caught a glimpse of Jake heading toward us from across the hall. He whispered something to Heron that I couldn't make out.

"All right. Let us stop talking about business. Since the conference is over, the time has come to celebrate. The dinner will be served instantly. Please take a seat," Heron said. His voice was loud enough to grasp everybody's attention and move beyond the room's walls.

Alexander tugged me along, while we were followed by most of the other guests. The accumulated coldness of the undead settled in my bones, deeper and more profound than a chill breeze. If I could feel it without magic, the power the creatures around me were harnessing had to be mind-blowing. I shuddered and forced my eyes and mind to what lay before us.