"It's so maddening," I went on. "Bones might be able to kill Gregor, if he got him alone in a fair fight, but Gregor won't go for that. And I'm not strong enough to take Gregor down. I breathe, bleed, I don't heal instantly - I'm not tough enough for him. Being half-human was great for my old job. All those things I mentioned lured my targets and made me a more effective hunter. But with really old vampires, like Gregor, it just makes me...weak."
Vlad didn't say anything. He didn't have to. We both knew it was true.
"What are you going to do about that?" he asked at last.
I stopped pacing. That was the million-dollar question, wasn't it?
The next night, Vlad, Maximus, Shrapnel, and I were upstairs playing poker. Vlad had been winning all night, a feat I attested to his mind-reading skills - though he swore he wasn't using them on me - and the fact that Shrapnel and Maximus were probably afraid to beat Vlad even if they could. It was almost midnight when there was a loud knock downstairs. The three vampires leapt to their feet in a blur of motion. Flames were already shooting out of Vlad's hands.
Vlad hadn't been expecting anyone; that much was clear from his reaction, so I understood the cause for their alarm. Whoever it was had managed to get past Vlad's formidable guards without notice, chosen to knock to show us they didn't need the element of surprise, and had done all this without the very powerful vampire striding out of the room realizing they were even here.
In short, we were in deep shit.
I started after Vlad, but he whirled around with a snarl.
"Stay here."
I responded with a mental roar of how he could go straight to hell if he expected me just to wring my hands and wait, when something moving outside the window caught my attention.
I pointed. "Look."
About three dozen of Vlad's guards were elevated in stark relief against the clear night sky, all twirling in lazy circles about twenty feet off the ground. They were opening and closing their mouths, unable to speak, but apparently trying.
That gave me a pretty good idea who was downstairs knocking on the door. Only one vampire I knew could cloak his power level to avoid detection and twirl hardened undead guards in the air like fireflies.
Vlad must have guessed also, judging from the flames slowly extinguishing from his clenched fists.
"Mencheres," he muttered.
I froze in the hallway, wondering if the mega-Master vampire was alone - or accompanied.
The knock sounded again. Now it seemed even more ominous than when I thought it was enemy forces.
Vlad motioned for Shrapnel and Maximus to lower their weapons. "Stay here," he said to me again, but with none of his prior vehemence. "I'll find out what he wants."
"Mencheres," I heard Vlad say moments later, to the echo of a door flinging open. "You are welcome in my home and may enter. You" - and here my heart skipped a beat, because the venom in that one word confirmed my suspicions - "may not."
A laugh responded to that rude greeting. Hearing Bones so close hit me like a physical blow.
"Tepesh, I've come a long damned way to get here, and pretty as your little dragon door knockers are, I don't fancy spending more time outside admiring them."
Mencheres, more tactful, addressed Vlad with the patience a parent used on an errant child.
"Vlad, you know I cannot allow you to forbid entry to the co-ruler of my line. To do so would insult me as well, and I know you don't mean to do that."
"Let my men down," Vlad said with an edge to his voice.
"Of course." Mencheres actually made it sound like he'd forgotten about elevating over thirty vampires in the air. There were multiple thumps a moment later.
In another mood, I would have found that funny.
"Very well, come in." Vlad's tone was far from gracious. "But you'll abuse my hospitality if you venture even a foot up those stairs, and we both know who I'm talking to."
Bones laughed again, only this time, it sounded closer. They must be inside.
"Really, mate, you're like a hound fretting over his scraps. Careful you don't unwittingly combust, or you'll ruin this fetching imitation Persian rug."
"And I have had enough of your comments about my home!" Vlad barked. I could practically smell the smoke coming from him. "What do you want, not that you stand a f**k-all chance of getting it, mate."
Vlad's exaggerated Cockney accent drained away my momentary shock and turned it into alarm. Bones had wasted no time in getting Vlad good and mad. What was he up to?
"I'm here for Cat," Bones replied, all bantering gone.
Such a wave of emotion swept over me that I felt dizzy. Just as quickly, I slammed my mind shut, wishing I could do the same with my heart. This could be about business. I wouldn't humiliate myself by letting Bones know how just the sound of his voice was affecting me. Bones had said how great my shields were at keeping him out. Here's hoping I hadn't lost my touch.
"If she doesn't want to see you, then you've wasted your time," Vlad said, each word a dare.
I was still making up my mind whether or not I did want to see Bones when he let out a rude snort.
"You misunderstand, Tepesh. I'm not here to see her. I'm taking her with me."
My jaw dropped. Vlad let out something like a growl. "I'll fry you where you stand."
The unmistakable sound of knives scraping together had me out of the room, shoving Maximus aside with all my inhuman strength even as Bones replied, "Try it."
"Stop!"
Three heads swiveled up toward me. Vlad's hands were still in flames, and Bones had two silver knives in his grip. Mencheres stood a few feet off, watching them like a silent referee. I came down the stairs. Fabian floated after me, darting in and out of the wall.
A glance showed me what was different about Bones since I'd last seen him. His hair was shorter, cropped close to his head and curling at the tips. His eyes were hooded as they met mine. Devoid of any emotion at all. That was the hardest thing to see.
"What do you think you're doing?" I asked him.
"Getting you," he answered, arching a brow.
If he'd said it while holding out roses and apologizing, I might have been moved. But Bones said it like he was talking about a pair of shoes he'd misplaced. I narrowed my eyes.
"And what if I don't want to be gotten?"
Bones looked at Vlad, at me, and gave a frightening smile.
"Then as his guest, Tepesh will feel honor-bound to defend you. That means he and I will have to fight, and he's quite brassed off already. I reckon he'll try to burn me to ashes straightaway. Of course, that's if I don't rip his heart open with silver first. So if you refuse to come with me, one of us will be dead in the next few minutes. Or, you can come along and we'll both live."