Darkness Embraced

by Pennington, Winter

  I stared at the slender ring. It wasn’t large or even impressive in size. On the contrary, it was rather dainty.

  I didn’t know what to say. If I said it didn’t look like something powerful enough to keep a vampire alive during the day, I would’ve only succeeded in insulting Iliaria’s kind gift.

  Vasco stood, peering over my right shoulder. “Do you see the spot of red in the center?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  “That is her blood.”

  I searched her blank expression. “You didn’t have to do this.”

  “If we are to find your traitor, then yes, I did.”

  “Thank you.”

  She tilted her head and dipped it forward ever so slightly.

  “You sound like one who knows my kind personally,” she said.

  He gave her a charming smile that belied the pain I knew he felt. “Knew,” he said, “I knew one of your kind very well.”

  “Who was she?” Iliaria asked.

  “He,” Vasco said. “His name was Pantaleone.”

  “The name does not sound familiar,” she said.

  “It was a long time ago.”

  “Dare I ask more?”

  “Another time, perhaps.”

  I looked down at the ring. “How does it work?”

  “You wear it,” Iliaria said. “That is how.”

  “Just like that?”

  “Yes, just like that.”

  “Does it matter which finger?” Iliaria shook her head.

  I slid the ring onto the middle finger of my left hand. I expected to feel some spark of magic, to feel some charge of power, and was taken aback when I felt nothing.

  “I don’t feel anything,” I said.

  “A Stone of Shadows does not work that way, Epiphany,” Renata spoke from her seat. “You will sense the magic at work once the sun rises. As it is, it lies dormant until you need it.”

  “You have used one of the stones before?” Iliaria asked.

  “No,” Renata said, “I merely know of them.”

  I held up my hand. “Why give me this, Iliaria? How will this help us catch the traitor that summoned you?”

  Renata answered before Iliaria could. “She means you to use the stone to stay awake and catch the traitor. No doubt, he will try again?”

  “I think so, yes,” Iliaria said, “and I plan on staying with Epiphany.”

  “You said you offered your aid,” Renata said.

  “Couldn’t Cuinn keep me awake?” I asked.

  I cannot keep ye awake, he said, I can only wake ye if there be danger. ’Tis not the same type of magic that the Stone bestows upon its wearer.

  Distantly, I heard Iliaria ask who Cuinn was and Renata’s smooth reply explaining that Cuinn was the spirit in the fox blade.

  I blinked finally, coming back to myself.

  “What did he say?” Vasco propped his chin on his fist. I didn’t doubt that he’d known I’d been listening to Cuinn’s voice inside my head. I still wasn’t used to it and would need to work on controlling my facial expressions.

  “He can only wake me if there’s danger. It’s not the same thing as the ring, apparently.”

  “Of course it isn’t,” Iliaria said. “Why am I under the impression that you don’t want my gift?”

  “It’s not that I don’t want your gift, Iliaria.”

  “It’s that she feels bad you went out of your way to give her something.” Vasco grinned and I directed a disapproving look at him.

  “You do not like gifts?” she asked, blinking at me as if she really didn’t understand.

  I wasn’t sure how to answer her. I didn’t mind the gift, but the fact that she had gone out of her way to create something as powerful as the Stones of Shadows did catch me a little off-guard. I wasn’t exactly sure what it required for her to make it. Though, obviously, it required a bit of blood.

  Then again, as she’d fed Renata and me earlier, she didn’t seem to mind sharing that.

  “It is a wondrous gift, Iliaria, and I do appreciate it, but Vasco is right about me. I do not know what it took for you to make this.”

  “Do you think there are strings attached to this gift?” she asked.

  I lifted my shoulders.

  “There are,” she said and the corner of her mouth curled slyly.

  “And what strings are those?”

  “It is to aid us in finding your traitor,” she said. “However, that is not all. If we succeed in finding your traitor, I expect you to use the ring for me.”

  “What do you mean use it for you?”

  “You bear my mark, Epiphany. We have a bargain. I will give you your nights with your Queen. I will share kindly, but there will be days when I do not want to share you.”

  A tremble of desire shuddered down my spine.

  “I’m fairly certain I can live with that,” I said in a voice that was almost a whisper.

  She sat back, smiling and looking pleased. “Good. I’d hoped that would be your answer.”

  “Does my opinion not matter?” Renata asked and her voice was low yet strangely commanding.

  “Do you not agree?” Iliaria asked. “Would you prefer to share her bed with me every night?”

  Renata’s face was a blank porcelain mask. “Not every night, no.”

  “Some nights?” Iliaria asked.

  “Some nights, yes,” Renata said, “but not every.”

  “Then,” Iliaria said, “those nights which you do not feel like sharing I will spend my time with Epiphany during the day.”

  Renata’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “I did not say I disagreed, Dracule. I was merely asking if my opinion mattered or not.”

  “You know it matters,” I said, glancing at her.

  Renata addressed Iliaria. “I agree, as we have more important matters to discuss, such as your plans for catching this traitor. I imagine you’ve some idea?”

  “I do,” Iliaria said.

  “And?”

  “I will stay with Epiphany and help her find the traitor.”

  Renata gave a slow shake of her head. “No.”

  Iliaria narrowed her eyes. “I have gone out of my way for you and yours, and yet you trust me so little?”

  “It is not a matter of distrust, Dracule. It is a matter of Epiphany’s safety.”

  “You do not trust me to keep her safe.”

  “That is not what I said,” Renata said in a voice that was dangerously slow.

  “It is what you implied,” Iliaria continued to glare at my Queen, my lover.

  Before Renata could open her mouth and say whatever she was going to say, I interceded. “Then what is the reason, Renata?”

  “If this traitor is working with another Dracule and perhaps more than one vampire, you and the Dracule alone will not be enough.”

  “I wouldn’t be so quick to jump to conclusions, Iliaria,” I said gently, not wanting to offend her.

  Iliaria did not apologize, but she stopped glaring. “Ah,” she said. “If we are outnumbered it is true that I will not be enough to protect her,” she said. “I cannot make another Stone of Shadows.”

  “I know,” Renata said, watching me.

  “But,” I said, “I could use the sword.”

  “That might work,” Vasco said. “Cuinn told you he cannot keep you awake? You used the sword today to wake the Queen.”

  “And you could use it again to wake the others,” Renata said.

  “The question is,” I said, “which others would we wake?”

  “Well, to start,” she said, crossing her long legs and tilting her head, “Vasco and I.”

  “That’s a given.” I smiled softly.

  “Who would you wake?” she asked.

  I almost responded without thinking it through, but decided that thinking very carefully about whom I would wake was a good idea.

  “Not Rosabella,” I said.

  Renata offered an encouraging nod. “And?”

  “I would not wake Lorrenzo or Alessan
dra.”

  “Why? Alessandra fears me.”

  “That fear can turn against you,” I said. “I wouldn’t give her the opportunity of having my back in a fight, just for caution’s sake. Lorrenzo didn’t believe what we told him. I don’t trust him for the reason that he doesn’t seem to take this seriously.”

  “What about Severiano?”

  “He’s secure in his power,” I said. “That’s a point for him. I don’t think he’d hesitate to use it. I am uncertain as to whether he would use it for the right reasons, though.”

  “What do you mean?” she asked.

  “Would he use it for his advantage, his gain?”

  “Many of us use our powers for advantage and gain, colombina,” Vasco said.

  “But is it for the right reasons? Would Severiano use his power to help his people or himself?”

  “You do not think much like a vampire,” Iliaria noted.

  “How not?” I asked.

  “Oh, she thinks like a vampire,” Renata said with a tendril of amusement. “She simply does not think like most vampires.”

  “She does not think like a majority of the Elders,” Vasco said.

  “It has never seemed to me like you think like the other Elders either, Vasco.”

  “I have my moments, bellezza. You will too. As you are learning, in order to survive you have to secure and defend.”

  “It is so with the Dracule,” Iliaria said. “We have that much in common.”

  Renata steered the conversation back to the previous topic. “Who else would you wake, Epiphany? Would you wake Severiano?”

  I turned to Vasco and asked, “Would you?”

  Vasco raised his hands, indicating his retreat in answering. “This is your question to answer, colombina, not mine.”

  I licked my lips, thinking. “Fair enough,” I said. “No, I would not wake him.”

  “Why?” Renata asked, searching my face.

  “I have my doubts. If I have doubts about him, then he is not someone I want to offer trust. There is no proof that I should trust him, so I will not.”

  “The others have not offered you proof of their trust,” she added.

  “No,” I said, “they haven’t, but I have more doubts about Severiano’s motives than most.”

  “Then who would you wake? Would you wake Vittoria and Vito?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  “They believed,” I said. “Vittoria herself said that if it is true, then we are all in grave danger. They seem to care about the Rosso Lussuria as a whole and not just themselves.”

  She nodded and seemed pleased with my answer. I was beginning to think the line of questions was a test of sorts.

  “What about Nirena?”

  “Yes,” I said, remembering the look of understanding and the knowledge that Nirena had when she’d realized I’d bargained with the Dracule. “Yes, because she is knowledgeable. She too is secure in her power, but she does not have that dangerous curiosity I’ve seen present in others.”

  “Out of twelve Elders, you would wake four, Epiphany?”

  “Dante and Dominique. I would wake them.”

  Vasco grinned at me. “That was well reasoned.”

  I grinned back. “It just occurred to me.”

  “I can wake Dante and Dominique,” Renata said, “for I made them and they are my guard. Once I am awake, I will be capable of calling to them. The others you will have to wake with the sword.”

  “Will you be able to wake four Elder vampires with the sword?” Vasco asked.

  I sensed Cuinn’s ears swivel and flatten against the back of his skull. I didn’t need to hear him to know what the gesture meant.

  “I’m fairly certain you just insulted Cuinn.”

  “I did not mean to insult him. I am only checking to make certain.”

  Aye, Cuinn thought, ye can wake four. I’d not advise trying to wake the whole clan, but four is cake and as ye’ve seen, requires little blood.

  “We can do it,” I said.

  “So we shall,” Renata said.

  Vasco nodded his agreement.

  All three of us turned to Iliaria.

  She smiled and there was a hint of danger lurking in her eyes. As far as agreements went, it looked an awful lot like one.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Dante was posted just outside the door to the sitting room. Dominique was posted on the opposite door that connected to Renata’s boudoir.

  Renata went to the double doors leading to one of the lesser hallways, opening it and making a gesture with her head, indicating that Dante should enter. Vasco, having determined the wishes of his queen, opened the other door and told Dominique, “The Queen wishes to speak with you.”

  Dante wore a black coachman’s coat that had a metal clasp at the throat. The coat was reasonably modern. If he wasn’t a vampire I might’ve accused him of trying to look like one.

  Dominique, as usual, was the more modest of the two. His hair that was a brown so dark it was almost black was pulled back into its usual low ponytail. He wore a pair of black denim pants with a long sleeved black T-shirt. Generally, it was the younger vampires that embraced the more modern fashion trends of the outside world. We were aware of the trends of the outside world, though very few of us embraced them. There was a great library within the Sotto that held many number of texts, both old and new. The Cacciatori hunted primarily for food, but if they had to go into the city, only those adept at concealing themselves were sent forth to retrieve supplies.

  I’d slowly grown an appreciation for slacks and long-sleeved tops, but I would never in my undead life embrace denim. I hadn’t even begun wearing pants until I was no longer Renata’s pet. I did eventually learn that pants provided a certain protection that a gown did not, and within the Sotto a woman liked to retain some decency.

  Renata told them of our plan. However, she did not tell them we would be waking Vittoria, Vito, and Nirena. She trusted her guards more than the Elders, of that I knew for a surety, but I also knew that Renata would only tell as much as was necessary. I learned some years ago that there was always more going on inside her head than she let on.

  Dante looked ready to pounce on the prospect, eyes eager as his mouth curled like a cat up to no good.

  Dominique bowed. “I understand, my Queen.”

  “Good,” Renata said. “You are dismissed.”

  I didn’t have to see a clock to know that it was some hours until dawn.

  The two left to return to their separate posts outside the doors. I sat on the small couch next to Iliaria.

  “What of the third challenge?” I asked, meeting Renata’s gaze as she returned to her seat in the high-backed armchair. “The others will grow suspicious, will they not?”

  “No doubt one of the Elders has already informed the others of the meeting and its significance,” she said.

  “I thought you called upon those you trusted?”

  It was Iliaria that said, “You’re fishing them out.”

  Renata grinned. It wasn’t the bright and good-natured grin Vasco often gave. It was slyer, more cunning, and cutting. “In a way.”

  “I understand what fishing them out means,” I said, “but I do not comprehend why you would willingly place your trust in those that you doubt.”

  “To see who will break it,” Vasco said from his perch on the opposite couch.

  “Appunto,” she said, inclining her head in his direction. “It is a risk I must take to see who is loyal to me.”

  I understood then. “How will you know who breaks your trust by spreading the word?”

  “I have my ways,” she said.

  “What your Queen means, Epiphany, is that she has her spies,” Iliaria said.

  Renata raised her brows. “You think so?”

  Iliaria smiled wickedly. “I would, were I you.”

  “And who do you think my spies are, Dracule?”

  I caught the flicker in Vasco’s features and said, “Vasco
knows.”

  He gave me a surprised look. “You caught that?”

  “Yes.”

  “Once, you would not have.”

  “I’ve learned to play closer attention.”

  “How would I know who your spies are?” Iliaria said.

  I remembered Renata’s words about hearing talk of her death. Why hadn’t I concluded then that she’d had her spies? I tried to figure out the question that she had directed at Iliaria. If I were Queen, who would I appoint as my spies? Vasco was an obvious choice. At least, from my position. I remembered the Underling that had held the doors to the banquet hall open for us. I remembered the girl and the boy that had helped prepare for the dream trial. They too had kept their faces hidden behind their hair, eyes studiously averted.

  There were always Underlings. Anytime a mortal was reborn a vampire, they became an Underling within whatever clan they belong to. It was the way our society worked.

  Of course, there were Underlings that let their newfound powers go to their head. There were also Underlings that never came into their power and those who chose not to embrace it even when they did. The Underlings that sought to ascend rank sooner than allowed were punished by the clan’s head, if not the Elders. Those Underlings that conformed and served their Queen or King, that offered utmost loyalty, they would have made the perfect spies.

  The Elders in a clan did one of two things with Underlings. As Lucrezia had done to me, they tormented and taunted, but as some of the other Elders had done, like Vittoria and Vito, they ignored the Underlings in such a way that it seemed almost as if they were pretending they did not exist.

  If you were not important enough to be acknowledged, were you important enough for someone to censor his or her words and actions around you?

  “The Underlings,” I said.

  Renata turned to Vasco. “My, my, Vasco. What have you been teaching her?”

  Vasco practically beamed with pride. “My lady, I have learned that if you offer Epiphany a grain of sand she will eventually find the ocean.”

  “Well said, Vasco, but that does not tell me what you have been teaching her.”

  “I have taught her little in comparison to what she has figured out on her own.”

  “Again,” she said to me, “you surprise me, Epiphany.”