Chapter 1
The night air in the mires was warm and balmy, scented heavily with grasses and muck. I waited with my
back against an old abandoned cottage, the boards half-rotted and crumbling. It was unwise to be alone in
the mires at night with only my horse, but I wouldn’t be alone for long. An ancient vampire was coming
to meet me. Any ghouls hoping to tear me limb from limb wouldn’t stand a chance.
I looked up at the crescent moon, trying to guess what time of night it was. The letter had said midnight,
of course. Asher, like many of the older vampires, had a flair for the dramatic.
The tiny hairs on my arms prickled as I sensed him out in the darkness, his presence like a second
heartbeat pounding in my chest. I had hoped the week we had spent apart would lessen the bond between
us, but I realized with sudden surety that it hadn’t. Our growing bond would not be so easily undone.
“Hello, Lyssandra.”
I turned toward the sound of his voice, peering around the corner of the dilapidated cottage. He stood
framed in moonlight, his long white hair lifting in the wind.
A strange sensation tickled my skin as I stepped out into the open. “It’s about time.”
“It is precisely midnight.”
I rolled my eyes, then started walking toward him. In only a linen shirt, lightweight coat, breeches, and
boots, I felt naked without my armor, but this was no official mission. No, I was going directly against my
duties as a hunter of the Helius Order. “Sending a courier to Castle Helius wasn’t exactly subtle of you.”
I had moved near enough to see the corners of his pale lips curl upward. His gray eyes caught the
moonlight as he looked me over. “Would you rather I had delivered the letter myself?”
I crossed my arms, bunching up my blue linen shirt and gray coat. “You would be dead if you had.”
He lifted one black-clad shoulder in a half shrug. “Perhaps.” He glanced around. “I had expected you to
bring Steifan and Tholdri.” The glance was only for show. He would have scented them long before he
arrived.
I tossed my red braid behind my back as I shook my head. “No, I don’t want them involved in this. It’s
too dangerous. Neither of them would stand a chance against something that could murder an ancient
vampire.”
“I’m glad to hear you think of it as murder.” He stepped closer, invading my personal space. “You’re free
to begin tonight?”
I craned my neck to meet his silver eyes so near, then my breath caught in my throat. I flashed back to our
last meeting, the feel of his body pressed against mine, the taste of him on my tongue.
I closed my eyes, fighting the sensation. “I can give you tonight and three nights after that, then I must
return to Castle Helius.” It was a lie. I had no pressing mission, but I didn’t want this investigation to
stretch on forever.
Even with my eyes closed, I could sense him moving closer. I put a hand on his chest to stop him. The
Seeing Sword at my back didn’t utter a single warning. It really didn’t see him as a threat. I supposed
neither did I, not anymore. I finally opened my eyes, observing my hand pressed against the soft black
linen covering his chest.
Normally, he would have already stepped away.
I met his eyes. “What is with you tonight? You’re usually not this pushy.”
He licked his lips, seeming to debate his answer. “Forgive me, I had forgotten what the bond feels like
when you’re near.” His fingers brushed the back of my hand, pressing it more firmly against his chest for
just a moment, then he stepped back.
Oh light, this was never going to work if we couldn’t control ourselves better than this. I swallowed the
lump in my throat. “It’s only been a week.”
“Time moves both slowly and quickly when you’ve been alive as long as I have.” He shook himself like
he was settling his feathers, then stepped further back and looked at my horse. “You will not need your
mount for long. She’ll have difficulty reaching Evral’s lair.”
I lifted my brows at the mention of the murdered vampire. “What, did he live up a tree?”
“Up a mountain. A steep, rocky mountain.”
“Of course,” I sighed. “He couldn’t make things too easy.”
“I’m sorry his death is such an inconvenience.”
I gave him a poignant look, though really, I was grateful for the change of subject. “That’s not what I
meant, and you know it. Now we should get moving. I don’t want to get stuck up on a mountaintop when
you have to flee the sun for the day.”
“We won’t reach the lair tonight,” he explained. “But you are right, we should start moving. I know
somewhere you can stay and stable your horse.”
I glanced at my horse, feeling almost guilty for having taken her. She was bred and trained to carry
hunters into battle. Not to carry traitors while they investigated vampire murders.
I hadn’t heard Asher move, but suddenly he was standing close again. “Your thoughts play across your
face. You feel guilty.”
I sucked my teeth, irritated that he could read me so easily. “I take my oaths seriously, as you know, else I
wouldn’t be here.”
“Have you figured out yet why the Potentate chose you to go to Silgard?”
I looked up at the moon. “No.”
“So you believe you weren’t intentionally sent and away just before Evral was murdered?”
“That’s none of your concern.” I stepped away, then started walking toward my horse, not wanting him to
see my expression.
Because I hadn’t learned anything. I hadn’t learned how the Potentate had known to send Markus and
Isolde to aid me when I faced Karpov. I hadn’t learned why he would give me a sword that would only
awaken for a vampire or a vampire’s human servant. I hadn’t learned why he sent me to Silgard, or why
he never questioned Karpov’s demise.
But I could admit, if only to myself, that my suspicions were part of why I was standing in the mires with
Asher in the middle of the night. Because it was true, the Potentate had sent me away right before the
ancient was murdered. Perhaps it was a coincidence, but I was beginning to learn that few things in life
were actual coincidences. Not when powerful men shaped your fate. Not when ancient vampires stalked
you from the shadows.
So here I was, prepared to solve a vampire murder, and to stop the other ancients from being killed. To
stop a particular ancient from being killed, because if someone was trying to overthrow the old order, he
had a target on his back as much as any of us. His death would end me too. I didn’t want to die, and
maybe, just maybe, I didn’t want him to die either.
***
We traveled east through much of the night, ending up outside a moderate sized village I had never visited
before. Most of my hunting brought me north, or to the mires, not to the desolate lands bordering the
Silvercrag mountain range. The range itself was near impassible, though a committed climber could
eventually reach the eastern sea several days past the other side.
I gazed out at those dark rocky mountains, feeling the coming dawn like a weight upon my bones. The air
was cooler and thinner here than in the mires. I glanced at Asher standing on my other side, realizing I
was sensing the heavy feeling from him. Usually dawn came as a relief to me.
“This is where I must leave you.” He glanced at my horse, held close to my side by my grip on its reins.
“Your room is already paid for, and your horse will be well taken care of.”
I bristled at his words. “I see you already have everything planned out, don’t you?”
He gave me the ghost of a smile. “You’re the one who made me wait so long for your help. What else was
I supposed to do?”
I couldn’t argue with him there. I observed the large whitewashed building at the edge of the village,
smoke pumping heavily from its chimney. The stables were behind it. I could hear the snuffling of a few
resting horses. “What am I supposed to do all day until you wake?”
“Get some rest, have a nice meal. No one will disturb you.”
I wasn’t sure how he could make such guarantees when he’d be hiding somewhere for the day, but
somehow, I believed him. This far east, no one would recognize me. No one would know I was a hunter.
It was almost a relief. I turned to say goodbye, but Asher was already gone.
Cursing under my breath at his sudden disappearance, I led my horse toward the inn. I reached the stables
to find a young man waiting outside to take my horse. Asher must have arranged it, because no one would
be awake at this hour otherwise. He gave me a nod as he rubbed his tired eyes, then led my mare away
before I could offer any coin.
Feeling irritated even though Asher had done me a favor, I walked toward the front of the inn and let
myself inside. The warmth of the roaring hearthfire enveloped me, and I took just a moment to enjoy it as
an older woman stood from one of the many tables to greet me. She didn’t look as tired as the young man
who had taken my horse. No, she smelled like the bread she had already baked for the coming day,
evidenced by the flour on her dark brown apron. She was used to being up this early.
She tucked a graying golden lock behind her ear as I approached, then held out a hand, palm facing
upward. “You must be Lady Yonvrode. I was told you would arrive at first light.”
She bowed her head slightly as I placed my hand in hers. Just who did this woman think I was? What had
Asher told her? There was no way to ask without seeming like a fool.
She didn’t seem to notice my hesitation as she released my hand. “I’ll show you to your room.”
I bowed my head. “Thank you.”
She glanced around. “Where are your things?”
I patted the saddlebag slung across my shoulder. It contained one change of clothes, a few rations,
bandages, and three silver daggers. I had left my water skin with my horse. I would find a place to fill it
later in the morning.
The proprietress quickly erased her apparent confusion, gesturing for me to walk up the stairs at the other
side of the room. I noticed her gaze shifting to my sword as I moved past.
“I know it’s early,” she said to my back as she followed me, “but would you like me to draw you a bath?”
I thought about it as I started up the stairs. If I had an entire day to kill, I may as well take advantage. “A
bath would be lovely.”
She showed me to my room, a simple affair with a single bed, a washbasin, and a small fireplace, then left
to prepare my bath.
I tossed my saddle bag onto the bed, put my hands on my hips, then glanced around the silent room, not
quite sure what to do with myself. Free time was not something I was used to. When there wasn’t a
mission, there was training, honing my skills and staying fit.
I was just getting used to the idea of an entire day off when an abrupt scream reached my ears. It cut off
quickly, then all was silent. I drew my sword and rushed out of the room, heading down the stairs in the
direction of the scream. I didn’t see the proprietress in the common room, so I went through an open door
and down the hall, rushing into the bathing room.
She stood with fluffy towels clutched against her chest, wide eyed as she turned to me. Her jaw fell open,
and she staggered back toward the wall.
I took a step toward her. I didn’t see any enemies in the room. “Why did you scream?”
“P-please don’t hurt me!”
I glanced at my raised sword, then quickly lowered it. “I’m not going to hurt you. I heard you scream. I
thought you were being attacked.”
She relaxed her grip on the towels, then pointed one finger toward the corner of the room. “I saw a
mouse. The stable cat has gotten lazy.”
My shoulders relaxed, leaving me shaky from the sudden burst of excitement. I sheathed my sword at my
back. “You shouldn’t scream like that unless you’re actually in danger.”
The color was slowly returning to her face. She looked me up and down. “Most women scream when they
see mice. Few women come running with swords when they do.”
My face heated. Here I had actually been granted a few days of not being a hunter, and I was already
giving myself away.
“So you actually know how to use that sword? Who are you?”
I bit my lip. I wasn’t sure what Asher had told her, but I definitely didn’t want her to know the truth,
especially if anyone saw me with Asher and realized what he was. “I travel a lot. It’s best to know how to
protect yourself. I’m no one special.”
She let out a long breath, quickly re-composing herself. “Well since you’re here, your bath is almost
heated. Is there anything else I can get you?”
I shook my head. “I’ll sleep after my bath, then I’ll have a meal later today.”
She gave me an odd look, but nodded. “I’ll leave you to it then.” She handed me the towels as she walked
past me, then turned in the open doorway and gave me a bemused smile. “I appreciate you coming to . . .
save me.” She walked out and shut the door, leaving me to take my bath.
I locked the door behind her, then glanced around the room one more time, taking comfort in the rays of
morning light edging in through the small windows high up in the wall. My gaze hesitated on a vase of
yellow daisies on a small wooden table next to the bath.
Glaring at the flowers, I moved closer to see a note held in place beneath the vase. I lifted the paper and
unfolded it.
Until Tonight.
-A
I rolled my eyes as I crumpled the note, then started undressing. Asher hadn’t lied when he said he’d had
too much time on his hands waiting for me.
My gaze drifted back to the flowers as I folded my clothes and set them aside. I could never tell if he was
trying to seriously romance me, or just enjoyed teasing me, making me feel like a foolish human. Either
way, I did not appreciate his overtures. He knew I could go no further with him than I already had.
Leaning my sword against the bath, I lowered myself into the steaming water. All of my perpetually tight
muscles relaxed. Lavender oil wafted up from the water, calming me further.
I glanced at my sword just before closing my eyes. “I suppose if we are forced to work with him, we may
as well make the best of it.”
My sword didn’t answer, not that I expected it to. There were many questions I would ask if it could
actually hold a conversation. But instead it remained silent. I would just have to find the answers myself,
starting with who had murdered the ancient, and who they planned to kill next. ...
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