Page 91 of The Vampire's Lament
She grinned, poking in me gently in the side. “Be careful. With everything.”
“I will.”
She nodded. “I’ll look after the elf.” Sadness danced across her gaze. “See you soon.”
Tough love was meant to help, not hinder. In my situation, I needed to stop playing with fire. It wouldn’t take much to spark a bloodbath or any other incident. I walked an incredibly thin line, my rage a thing of peaks and valleys, in need of being wrangled into a steady pulse.
Getting away from the palace might do me some good.
With Paris by your side?
“Where did you go?” Medusa’s voice yanked me out of my thinking.
“Sorry.”
“Are you sure you want to leave for Glimmer City tonight? Maybe you should take some time to decompress and think this over.”
I folded my arms. “Thank you for the suggestion.” I didn’t mean to sound so cold, especially after the warmth we’d just exchanged. “But the sooner we fix things, the better.”
“Agreed,” she answered, although the doubt in her voice betrayed her.
“I have some business to attend to before we leave,” I added.
Time wasn’t on our side.
I glanced at the patch above the bed.
Let Paris be the release you need…
I frowned at myself, leaving my chambers to be met by two guards. They bowed as I passed, my target the ballroom.
Honestly, I enjoyed sleeping with Paris. I found my own comfort having him beside me. After he’d arrived, I’d slept the best I had in long while.
The ballroom that had been attacked was almost back to normal, my vampires flexing their engineering skills to the fullest, repurposing the debris and destruction into somethingnew. It was like watching a pack of weavers weave wool into fabric.
Within the next couple of hours, every inch of this space would be repaired.
Vaughn greeted me with a phone in his hand and a scowl on his face.
“Majesty,” he said, voice tight.
“What’s the matter?” I asked.
He handed me the phone. “I have President Walker on the line.”
Perfect timing.
I took the phone. “Madam President.”
“Your Majesty, please accept my sincerest of apologies for what transpired last night.”
A litany of backside kissing followed, complete with a new security deal for all eight of my palaces. An entire army of mortals arrived while we were on the call—air, land, and sea, surrounding the island.
There was also a team of investigators dispatched to find those responsible for this travesty.
“Rest assured that the perpetrators for this attack will be found,”the president said.
I wasn’t reassured completely but took the deal. Increased protection for my people had come at the right time.
