Karzac, I miss you, I sent. I didn't get a reply. And I had forever of days like this to look forward to. Fucking lovely.
* * *
I was depending on whether my skin itched or not while making decisions on the stacks of applicants. If it itched even slightly when I put my hand on the paper, it went into the "No" pile. Everything else went into the possible pile. Gabron could choose whom to interview from that stack. I sighed.
"Lissa, you placed two of my former employees in the wrong stack." Gabron was pulling those applications out and putting them in the other stack. I was too weary to argue with him over it. Nearly a thousand applications had been tested—and that was after the boring meeting, lunch, and then more boring meetings. There would likely be more applicants—on a daily basis if I guessed correctly. I wanted to bury my face in my hands and moan.
How had Le-Ath Veronis come to this? I had envisioned a tranquil and idyllic environment where the comesuli worked, played and raised their children while the vampires watched over them. I hadn't counted on those vampires wanting some of the things they'd enjoyed during their lives on other planets. They were bored, so of course something had to be done about that. We were building whorehouses. And casinos. Fuck. I moaned and misted away before Gabron could stop me.
* * *
It would have been easy to find me sitting on the roof of my own palace. I'd folded my mist to the High Demons' world and sat on top of their palace, instead. The newly arrived humanoids were doing their best to clean away the evidence of the previous occupants from Veshtul's streets. These looked as if they knew what they were doing. I hoped so—I was feeling guilty enough over the whole debacle already.
"Lissa." Garde came to sit beside me.
"How did you know I was here?" I grumbled.
"Glinda has wards up. She knew the moment you touched the roof. Otherwise, she'd never have felt you. You're sort of untraceable, you know."
"Lucky me," I said. I was depressed. Even I realized it. My chin was on my knees as I stared out at the world named after Kifirin.
"What's wrong?" His hand was on the back of my neck, moving the hair aside so he could rub my nape.
"Le-Ath Veronis is about to turn into the biggest commercialized piece of crap," I muttered. "There'll be neon everywhere, advertising whorehouses and gambling dens. People will walk the streets drinking and carousing. The noise will be continuous, Garde. They're already talking about the types of vehicles they want to import to provide transportation, which means navigable streets have to be built. You won't believe how many want to set up souvenir shops. Want a shirt that says, my friends went to Le-Ath Veronis and all I got was this lousy top?" I asked. "Pictures of my palace are going to be printed on coffee mugs. I wanted to build a university. I'm getting casinos, instead."
"And brothels," Garde nodded beside me.
"And brothels," I echoed. His fingers felt good on my neck.
"My claiming marks go here, just below Kifirin's." He was breathing on my neck.
"Uh-uh. Roff told me that you guys do that and make the woman sick for days. Nope, not going there. It was bad enough when Kifirin stuck his teeth in my neck. That hurt, but at least I wasn't ill afterward." Garde's hand had stilled on my neck.
"It is only the once, avilepha. I will be gentle and I will find healers for the illness if it comes."
"Hmmph."
"Glindarok loves my brother very much and he was far from gentle when he placed his marks upon her. He was angry at the time. She has forgiven him."
"And how long did that take?" I asked. His fingers were moving again.
"A while. Perhaps a month or two. But then Glinda knew beforehand what was coming and she endured it."
"Sounds like fun."
"You are being sarcastic."
"Duh."
"I was hoping you would find me worth the pain."
Oh, Lord. He was putting that on me? "Do you know how many males guilt their dates into sex by saying you don't love me? Do you?"
"I can see that was a foolish statement." Garde was still rubbing my neck.
"There's no other way with you people?" I asked. Did they ever forego that unpleasant little ritual?
"Not with the one chosen by our Thifilathi. We have to change at least once a month to keep it under control at other times. Mine howls for you when I change. I have to be far away when that happens, otherwise it might be persuaded to hunt you down."
"And yet I cooked for you for nearly two months and there was nothing."
"That is not completely true—I thought I was going mad, lusting after a comesula. That had never happened before and they have no way of having sex anyway—not in any conventional sense."
"Garde, why is my life complicated? I have a mate that I am terrified to have sex with. Another mate who prefers males in this particular cycle of his existence. One of my mates insists on building brothels on my planet. And I know this, because I Looked, that he used to train most of his employees. Tell me how to deal with that?"
"I don't know what to tell you," Garde was back to breathing on my neck. Yeah, I wouldn't mind going to bed with him—if it could be normal sex. And it might be, after a bite that made me sick. "Glindarok had a harder time with Jaydevik, because she was virgin for the sex later," Garde offered.
"Oh, Lord." I echoed my previous sentiment.
"We can do this now—I will take you to my bed and ask Jayd to place a guard so we will not be disturbed."
"Honey, I think I'll only consent to this if you knock me out first," I said, leaning away from him.
"I will do that for you, since Gardevik does not have the talent." Kifirin was there suddenly, placing fingers against my forehead. I only remember blackness after that.
* * *
"Be as gentle as you can," Kifirin instructed. Garde held the sleeping Lissa in his arms—Kifirin had folded Garde and Lissa into Garde's suite. Kifirin watched as Garde placed Lissa on his bed and pulled her blouse away, exposing her nape. The Thifilathi was already threatening—he was blowing smoke from his nostrils as he leaned down to nuzzle bare flesh. He turned her onto her belly, allowing his smaller Thifilathi to manifest. Kifirin folded away. Garde's darkened skin made a sharp contrast against Lissa's lighter flesh as he sank his lengthened fangs into her neck.
* * *
"Lissa, avilepha, please wake." Those were the first words I heard and I ached. All over. My neck, though, felt as if it were on fire.