I crossed my arms. “You’re not really in a position to demand anything. Agree to my favor and I’ll let you go. I’m assuming the key is in Valdov’s pocket?”
“I will not fight demons. What you ask will risk many lives, not just mine. I will not bargain away the lives of my flock for your protection. Demons are not sorcerers—they are a wicked breed. They will come to destroy everything in their path, nothing less.”
“If they come to destroy, you and your flock will be in the middle of it anyway. You harbored me of your own free will,” I pointed out, dropping my voice. “Eudoxia, I know you can craft spells. I don’t know why, or what you are, but I know you have the power to protect us. We came here seeking that same protection for a reason. That’s what we bartered for when I arrived. That hasn’t changed.”
“Everything has changed!” She yanked on her chains, causing plaster to fly from the walls as an evil snarl came out of her mouth. “I offered you protection and instead you wreaked havoc on my Coterie. I will not be subjected to—”
“I don’t believe that.”
She had the gall to look taken aback.
“You ordered me into a cell with your uncle for a reason,” I challenged. “You gave me a lone guard I could’ve killed. The mighty chains you had me shackled to snapped off the wall at my merest tug. Yuri had a way out and he ominously told me he’d been waiting for me. My escape was no mistake.” I peered down at her, my eyes shrewd. “You knew Valdov was a spy, didn’t you? You also knew he would attack. You made yourself vulnerable at the right time and used me to kill him so you didn’t have to.”
“I did no such thing,” she retorted. “My head was severed from my body. I would never allow it. He was my most trusted advisor and he turned on me, but only once you broke the ward. You did this!”
“Eudoxia,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m tired of the mind games.” I was so, so tired. “I don’t know what’s really going on here, but by my calculations my brother and I just saved your life. The truth behind it doesn’t concern me. If we hadn’t been here, Valdov would’ve taken your power and finished you off completely. By all rights you owe us. And I want protection from the demons. For one night. After that, we go our separate ways. If not, I leave you chained here to your fate. The demons will ascend and you will be destroyed alongside all of us.”
Her eyes flickered. She knew I’d reached the end of negotiations. “Your favor will be a ward of protection,” she said, her voice full of hate, “but no matter what I do, it will not be as strong as the last. That’s all I will do. I will not fight the demons once they arrive, nor will I put any of my vampires at risk. If the demons ask me for you, I will gladly hand you over.”
I glanced at Rourke, who stood by the foot of her bed. “What do you think?”
“I think it will be full dark in twenty minutes. We aren’t leaving, so another ward may be the only thing we can do. The vamps won’t be much help against the demons anyway.” He growled at Eudoxia, “They can’t fight. They’re courtiers in every sense. More concerned their frocks will get rumpled and soiled if they lift a finger. They prefer to feast on innocent humans who pose no threat, and when the real danger sets in, they simply fly away.”
“We are a refined race,” Eudoxia snapped. “Unlike you filthy animals. But that does not mean we are weak.” Her power sparked, white forming at the tips of her fingers for the first time. It was building fast, repairing her to full strength. She grinned, her fangs still sharp. “We enjoy a good fight, and tearing you apart limb by limb would be an especially welcome treat.”
I waved my hand, dismissing her threats. “Here’s the deal. I let you go, but you cast the ward when I say so, not a moment before.”
She balked. “As your feline just pointed out, it will be full dark momentarily. I will not wait.”
“You will.”
“And why should I acquiesce to such a demand?”
“Because I’m waiting for my Pack to arrive.” My father needed every opportunity to arrive, and I was going to make sure I gave it to him. “It’s the main reason I took out your barrier. Once they reach us, we will have enough backup to fight the demons, with or without your help.”
Her lips pursed. “Fine. I will wait until the last ray of sunlight filters out of the sky, but not a moment later. I care not if your precious Pack arrives.”
I turned to Naomi. “Check Valdov’s pockets for a key to these.”
“There is no key, fool,” Eudoxia retorted. “They were spelled to my signature and mine alone. You can break them.”
“Valdov pulled out all the stops,” I said, reaching for the chains. “How did he get you into these willingly?”
Her eyes slid to full black.
I wasn’t going to get an answer, but they had obviously laid some elaborate plan and, in the end, something that had gone very wrong for Valdov. He would never have chosen to die. “Let’s not forget, Eudoxia,” I said as I pried open a silver cuff, “I still have something you want. Keeping me alive is still in your best interest.” I ignored the burn and crushed the manacle. It popped off her wrist. Then I reached over and did the next one.
She stood immediately.
Her hair had fallen from the elaborate coif of curls she wore tightly pinned to her head. She was several inches shorter than I was, and her long pale ringlets made her appear very young, possibly in her teens as I had originally guessed. The only thing marking her true age were her shrewd eyes, which were latched on mine. “I have not forgotten. It is the only reason you still live.”
In the next blink she was gone.
21
The Queen had disappeared out the window so quickly that it appeared she had vanished.
The moment she left, my entire body relaxed. I walked over to an empty chair and sat down with a thump. Tyler and Danny paced back into the room. “Danny, take the muscle vamp and toss him somewhere, will you?” I asked.
Without hesitation, Danny picked up the vamp and slung him over his shoulder and headed straight for the windows. I was too tired to argue, and Conan likely wouldn’t die from the fall.
Plus, he kind of deserved being tossed out a window for being a stone-cold ass**le.
“We need to regroup. Tyler, can you fix the door or at least shut it?” I glanced over at Valdov’s dead body. Without its head, it had withered to bones. I met Naomi’s gaze. “There must be a time limit to the severed-neck rule?”