The heavy silence that followed Silas’s revelation seed to cling stubbornly to the walls of Lord Morvane’s office.
For a brief mont, nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
The ancient vampire seated behind the black stone desk had gone completely still.
That alone was alarming.
Lord Morvane rarely reacted to anything.
Wars did not impress him.
Political disputes bored him.
Even rogue vampire attacks often failed to earn more than a dismissive glance.
Yet now he sat leaning forward in his chair, crimson eyes fixed upon Silas with a level of attention that had been absent throughout the entire eting.
"They say she resembles the girl we have spent years searching for."
Silas’s words lingered in the room.
Morvane’s fingers tapped once against the arm of his chair.
Only once.
Yet everyone present noticed it.
Because it ant he was thinking.
And whenever Lord Morvane thought too deeply about sothing, people usually suffered afterward.
"Explain."
The command was quiet.
Silas imdiately bowed his head.
"There is not much to explain, my Lord. Only rumors carried between settlents."
"Rumors rarely travel without a source."
"True."
"Then find the source."
Silas smiled faintly.
"I already have."
Xandros felt his jaw tighten.
Beside him, Adrian remained silent, though he too had beco noticeably more alert.
Neither liked where this conversation was heading.
Not one bit.
Silas continued.
"The descriptions are inconsistent."
"How so?"
"So claim the girl has dark hair."
"Others claim it was brown."
"A few insist she possesses unusual eyes."
Morvane remained expressionless.
"Yet they all describe the sa face?"
"Yes."
The room fell silent once more.
Then Morvane waved a hand dismissively.
"Continue the investigation."
Silas bowed.
"It will be done."
The ancient vampire leaned back once again.
The interest slowly disappeared from his features.
Almost as quickly as it had appeared.
"Leave."
That single word ended the eting.
No further questions.
No explanations.
No discussion.
Just dismissal.
The three younger vampires bowed before turning toward the exit.
The mont the office doors closed behind them, the atmosphere changed imdiately.
The suffocating pressure lingering within Morvane’s presence vanished.
Breathing suddenly beca easier.
Not that any of them would ever admit such a thing aloud.
Silas, however, appeared entirely pleased with himself. The smug vampire adjusted the cuffs of his coat before glancing toward Xandros.
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
The expression alone was enough to irritate people.
"It was an interesting eting."
Xandros stared at him as he questioned back.
"Was it?"
Silas chuckled.
"Oh, absolutely."
Adrian sighed.
Already exhausted.
Neither of them had even started fighting yet and sohow he was tired.
Silas took a step closer.
"You seem upset."
"I seem many things."
"True."
The smile widened.
"But upset is definitely one of them."
For several seconds, neither vampire looked away.
The tension between them felt tangible.
Like a drawn blade waiting for soone foolish enough to touch it.
Then Silas laughed softly.
"Try not to break anything while you’re sulking."
With that, he turned and walked away.
His footsteps gradually disappeared down the corridor.
Only after he vanished completely did Adrian finally release a long breath.
"Please tell you’re not thinking about murder."
Xandros folded his arms.
"I’m thinking about it."
"That’s not reassuring."
"It wasn’t supposed to be."
Adrian rubbed his forehead.
So days he genuinely questioned why they remained friends.
Then again, most people questioned it.
Xandros was reckless while he was patient.
Xandros rushed toward problems.
Adrian preferred avoiding them.
Yet sohow they had remained inseparable for years.
Perhaps because they balanced one another or perhaps because nobody else could tolerate either of them for extended periods.
The two left the palace together.
Night had fully settled over the vampire capital by then.
Dark towers stretched toward the heavens.
Crimson lanterns illuminated the streets below.
Their soft glow painted the city in shades of scarlet and gold.
The capital was beautiful.
In an unsettling sort of way.
Everything appeared elegant and perfect.
Yet beneath that perfection lingered sothing dangerous.
A reminder that this was still a city built by predators.
The streets remained busy despite the late hour.
rchants sold enchanted artifacts.
Nobles traveled in luxurious carriages.
Guards patrolled rooftops and alleyways alike.
The city never truly slept.
Neither vampire spoke for several minutes.
Eventually Adrian broke the silence.
"What are you going to do?"
Xandros kept walking.
His expression remained unreadable.
"What makes you think I’m going to do anything?"
"Because I know you."
"That’s unfortunate."
"I’m serious."
"So am I."
Adrian stopped walking.
Xandros continued another few steps before finally stopping as well.
The white-haired vampire stared at him.
"You’ve been angry ever since Silas started talking."
"I’m always angry when Silas starts talking."
"Fair."
Adrian crossed his arms.
"But this feels different."
For a long mont, Xandros remained silent.
Then he sighed.
Not because he wanted to answer but necause Adrian would continue asking until he did.
"Soone followed ."
Adrian blinked.
"What?"
Xandros turned toward the city.
His grey eyes narrowed slightly.
"Think about it."
The realization ca quickly.
Much too quickly.
Adrian’s expression darkened.
"The rumor."
"Exactly."
"He couldn’t have known."
"No."
Adrian suddenly understood.
The information Silas had presented hadn’t co from coincidence.
Nor had it co from simple gossip.
Soone had been watching.
Watching the village.
Watching Xandros.
Perhaps even following him.
The thought imdiately soured Adrian’s mood.
"I don’t like that."
"Neither do I."
For several monts neither spoke.
The city continued moving around them.
Yet the conversation had suddenly beco much heavier.
Much more serious.
Eventually Adrian sighed.
"So what now?"
A slow smile appeared on Xandros’s face.
The kind that rarely ant anything good.
"I’m going to teach Silas a lesson."
Adrian imdiately groaned.
"There it is."
"What?"
"The terrible idea."
"It’s an excellent idea."
"It’s never an excellent idea when you look like that."
Xandros looked offended.
Adrian ignored him completely.
So argunts had been settled years ago.
This happened to be one of them.
The two resud walking.
The conversation gradually faded yet Xandros’s irritation remained.
Not because of Morvane.
Not because of the rumors.
Not even because of the possibility that Saline resembled soone important.
No.
What bothered him was the thought of soone watching them.
Watching her.
Sothing about it felt wrong.
Uncomfortable and dangerous to him.
The feeling lingered stubbornly in his chest.
Eventually their path led toward one of the elevated bridges crossing the city.
The structure overlooked countless rooftops below.
Crimson lights stretched endlessly toward the horizon.
The view was beautiful.
Adrian stopped at the railing.
Xandros joined him monts later.
For a while neither spoke.
The cool night wind drifted through the city.
Far below, voices echoed through distant streets.
The silence that followed felt strangely peaceful.
Then Adrian glanced sideways.
"You’re thinking again."
Xandros frowned.
"That’s usually your job."
"Exactly."
"Then stop paying attention."
"No."
The response ca imdiately.
Xandros rolled his eyes.
Adrian smiled.
Then his expression softened.
Because he understood sothing many others did not.
Most people assud Xandros and Lord Morvane were similar.
How could they not?
They shared the sa blood.
The sa eyes.
The sa family na.
Yet those assumptions couldn’t have been more wrong.
Lord Morvane was ancient.
Older than most kingdoms.
Older than most histories.
Power had shaped him.
Centuries of ruling had turned him into sothing cold.
Calculating and reckless.
The ancient vampire viewed the world as a collection of pieces arranged upon a board.
Every alliance had value, every conflict had purpose, every person had a use.
Even kindness often served a greater objective.
Morvane rarely acted without reason.
Rarely spoke without intent.
Rarely cared unless sothing benefited him directly.
It was not cruelty.
Not exactly.
It was simply who he had beco.
Xandros, however, had inherited almost none of it.
Sothing Adrian found endlessly amusing.
The son of one of the most feared rulers in existence possessed remarkably little interest in ruling anything.
Politics bored him.
Manipulation irritated him.
Court gatherings felt like punishnt.
While Morvane spent centuries building power, Xandros spent most of his ti avoiding it.
He preferred patrols.
Training grounds.
Ordinary soldiers.
Ordinary people.
He would rather spend a week hunting rogue vampires than attend a single noble banquet.
Much to his father’s disappointnt.
Though neither openly discussed it.
Their relationship remained distant.
Not hostile.
Not affectionate.
Simply distant.
Like two people sharing a bloodline and little else.
Adrian had once asked whether that bothered him.
Xandros had laughed.
Then changed the subject.
Which answered the question better than words ever could.
The wind shifted.
Xandros rested both elbows against the railing.
His gaze drifted toward the horizon.
"You know."
Adrian imdiately beca suspicious.
"What?"
"If I disappear tonight."
"No."
"You don’t even know what I was going to say."
"I don’t need to."
Xandros grinned.
Adrian groaned.
The dangerous smile had returned.
The sa smile that usually preceded disasters.
Large disasters.
The expensive kind.
"You’re going after Silas."
"I’m considering it."
"You’re lying."
"Probably."
Adrian closed his eyes.
Then slowly shook his head.
Sowhere deep within his soul, exhaustion settled.
Not physical exhaustion.
Emotional exhaustion.
The kind caused by years of friendship.
"You realize this will end badly."
"It will end hilariously."
"For you."
"That’s the important part."
Adrian looked toward the sky.
As though seeking divine assistance.
Unfortunately, none arrived.
Xandros straightened.
The grin remained.
Sharp,mischievous and dangerous.
The exact sort of grin that made sensible people leave the area imdiately.
Adrian recognized it instantly.
Which was why he sighed.
Again.
"How bad is this lesson?"
Xandros pretended to think.
"A little bad."
"Define little."
"A flexible amount."
Adrian stared.
Xandros smiled wider.
The answer told him everything.
"No."
"Absolutely yes."
Adrian rubbed his face.
Sowhere within the city, completely unaware of his approaching misfortune, Silas was probably enjoying his evening.
The poor fool.
And as the lights of the vampire capital shimred beneath the night sky, Xandros finally pushed himself away from the railing.
His grey eyes glead with anticipation.
Because if there was one thing he enjoyed almost as much as annoying Adrian...
It was preying Silas.
And tonight...
Silas was about to have a very unfortunate evening.
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