Wait for Dusk

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Unfortunately, any additional quality time was cut short by the appearance of Stefan in the hotel suite. He was considerate enough to appear in the living room instead of the bedroom where Danaus and I were spread naked across the bed. Danaus brushed his lips across my temple and heaved a deep sigh.

“Can I stake him?” he asked, running his fingers up and down my back in a slow caress.

I snuggled closer as I smiled. “No, you can’t.”

“Can you at least get rid of him?”

Leaning up on my elbow, I looked down at him. “I’m afraid not. We need to make plans for how we’re going to get rid of Veyron and his companions.”

“Back to work,” he groaned, sitting up in bed.

“Back to work.”

After pulling on some clothes, I went out to keep Stefan occupied until Danaus could join us. The nightwalker was also considerate enough not to make any comment on my obviously disheveled appearance. There was no question as to what we were doing.

Setting an overturned chair back on its four legs, I sat down on the soft cushion. “How’s Valerio?”

“Better. He should be arriving shortly.”

As if summoned by our words, Valerio appeared near the entrance to the room. He gazed about, arching one eyebrow at the chaos. “I see the cleaning service hasn’t been through yet. Of course, if you’re comfortable with this arrangement, who am I to judge?” he said blandly.

I jumped out of my chair and rushed over to him. The nightwalker gave a slight grunt when I wrapped my arms around him, but he returned the hug. Seeing him strung up on the cross with a stake in his chest had terrified me. I knew I’d come to close to losing him.

“So glad to see you still alive, old man,” I said, brushing a kiss across his chin.

“I am glad to still be alive,” he said with smile. His cheeks were still a little paler than usual and he didn’t look as strong on his feet as he should. He was not up to his full strength yet, but coming back to Budapest was a start. As I stepped away from him, I noticed the smile fade from his lips. “However, I am disappointed to hear that you had a chance to kill my captor and you let him go. I’m curious to know why.” His words were deceptively calm and neutral, but I could sense frustration boiling away inside of him.

“I would like to know why you didn’t kill Rowe either,” Danaus spoke up. I spun around to find him standing in the bedroom doorway with his arms folded over his chest. At least he looked as he always did, with his dark clothes and sturdy boots. I, on the other hand, was skipping around the room barefoot, trying to avoid shards of broken glass, chunks of wood, and spent bullet casings. “He’s hunted you for months, Mira. He’s going to continue to do so. Why take such a risk as leaving him alive?”

“I couldn’t in good conscience kill him.”

“You couldn’t in good conscience kill the creature that was going to end my existence?” Valerio repeated, humor and sarcasm filling his voice.

“I’m sorry, but no. Rowe was trapped in a tiny cell with me all throughout the day. He had more than ample opportunity to kill me while I was unconscious and vulnerable, but he didn’t. I don’t know why he didn’t kill me, and in truth, I don’t want to know. The only thing that matters is that he didn’t. In repayment for that act of clemency, I agreed that no one would attack him so long as he did not attack me or anyone within my party while we attempted to escape Veyron’s house. He kept to his part of the agreement, so I kept to mine.”

“So, you’re not going to kill him now?”

A deep laugh escaped me as I wandered back over to my chair and plopped down. “Of course I’m going to kill him. If I see him on the battlefield again, I’m sure neither one of us will hesitate to attack, but I promised for that brief period of time at Veyron’s that I would not attack him. It was the fair thing to do.”

“Fair thing? He tried to kill me!” Valerio said.

“And he had ample opportunity to kill a sleeping vampire that was his enemy for centuries, but he didn’t. There is still time, Valerio. We will kill him soon enough. Please say that you understand why I did it.”

“I understand. What I do not understand is where you got this strange sense of justice and fair play. Your conscience is going to get you killed,” he warned, frowning at me.

“Possibly, but not tonight.”

“No, Veyron is going to kill you tonight. Or rather, this morning,” Stefan said grimly.

“If it’s okay with Valerio, I would prefer to retreat to Vienna during the daylight hours and regroup here in the evening for our final attack on Veyron.”

“You think Veyron will send another daylight raiding party?” Danaus asked.

“Not really, but I cannot judge Macaire’s potential attachment to Sofia,” I said with a shrug. “If he was fond of her, he may force Veyron to send people after me.”

Valerio finally entered the room completely and sat down on the sofa after brushing off some of the debris. “So, tell us you’ve got this whole mess figured out. I don’t believe that Macaire sent us here simply to get rid of the naturi.”

“What you have to keep in mind,” I said, “is that he only sent me to Budapest. He knew I would bring Danaus with me. You and Valerio are just expendable.”

Stefan grimaced. “Nicely put.”

I ignored his comment and continued. “There’s a power structure here unlike any of the other domains, and Macaire was counting on it being strong enough to kill both Danaus and me.” Pushing out of my chair, I went over to the desk and picked up the piece of paper I had been scribbling on. As I returned to my chair, I handed it to Valerio, who looked down at it.

“I don’t understand,” he said, handing the paper over to Stefan.

“Macaire built a ruling system here similar to the coven, with five shared rulers,” I explained. “My guess is that he drew Veyron and Odelia, but also struck a deal with Ferko and the warlock Clarion. They held the city in a firm hand, killing off any creature that might have been seen as a threat to their control.”

I looked up at Stefan and frowned. “Odelia may have given the excuse of Michelle’s beauty, but if they knew she belonged to you, they might have feared that she was a scout for you, looking for new territory. She may have been killed simply as a poorly thought out warning against coming into their domain.”

Stefan clenched the paper in his fist and stared down at it. “So, Veyron, Odelia, Ferko, and Clarion all conspired together to be the keepers of Budapest, and Macaire knew.”

“Macaire didn’t just know, he arranged it,” I said. “We’re not talking keepers. He was setting up a replacement coven. He had the liege role here in Budapest and planned to extend his power once his little group destroyed Danaus and me.”

“Th-That’s treason,” Stefan stuttered. “Our Liege would never allow it.”

“I think the hope was that he would never be able to withstand an assault by all five of them, particularly with the warlock in hand. Macaire’s first goal was to get rid of me.”

Valerio leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “The odd thing is that this should have worked. If they all had acted in concert, we never would have been able to adequately protect you, especially not with Clarion as backup. You should be dead and you’re not.”

“How kind of you,” I said with a smirk. “You’re right, though. In a perfect world it should have worked, except that nightwalkers don’t play well with other creatures.”

“The agreement between the various members was falling apart?” Danaus asked from the other side of the room.

“Or it never really worked in the first place because it never really had a good test,” I replied.

“They set up Ferko to take the fall for Michelle from the very beginning, knowing we would strike back by wiping out his entire pack along with Ferko, freeing the others from their agreement. They could have come riding to his rescue at any time, particularly earlier tonight at Veyron’s house, but they didn’t. Someone wanted him out of the way. He was sacrificed.”

“And Sofia?” Danaus asked.

I frowned, still hating to hear her name pass his lips. “Just one of Macaire’s pawns.” I turned to look at Stefan and Valerio, wiping my face clean of expression. “Her job was to separate Danaus and me using his weakness for humans. Their hope was that we would kill each other so they wouldn’t have to do the job themselves. If Danaus didn’t kill me first, it was a given that I was going to kill Sofia for her trouble, even if I never discovered that she was truly a witch in disguise.”

“How sweet! A crime of passion,” Stefan mocked.

I bit my tongue. Stefan had committed his own crime of passion when he ripped Ferko to shreds over Michelle’s death, and I had no doubt that he planned to do the same to Odelia when she crossed his path again.

“So, we’re left with an intimate trio of conspirators against you,” Valerio said, sitting back against the sofa again with a heavy sigh.

“Oh, no. This is a quartet, and I fully intend to clean house. I won’t tolerate being hunted. This conspiracy was not only for our death, but yours as well. I don’t find myself quite so forgiving as you when it comes to the planned assassination of those I consider to be my friends.”

Skepticism filled Stefan’s expression, and in truth I couldn’t blame him. We’d never seen eye-to-eye on anything, and I had no doubt that he would take the first opportunity that presented itself to kill me for my seat on the coven. But by the same token, he had protected and defended me on more than one occasion since Peru. He was proving to be more useful than I initially anticipated, though I still didn’t trust him. Stefan needed a seat on the coven if he was ever going to be satisfied.

“Mira, you can’t mean . . .” Valerio started, but his voice faded off. Even as we sat in Budapest, a long distance from Venice, it still didn’t feel safe to say the words out loud.

“I do and I will. It’s the only reason that Jabari allowed me to join the coven in the first place. It’s time I fulfilled my purpose so I can move on with my life,” I grumbled, staring at the sparkling glass-covered floor before me.

“If you fulfill your purpose, then what reason will Jabari have to keep you around?” Danaus asked softly from the far side of the room.

“None,” I whispered, then shook my head. “I’ll deal with that problem when the time comes.” Though I had a feeling I would have to deal with it sooner if Nick had any say in the matter. My time was running out. Soon I would have to deal with two coven Elders, not just one.

“What about the naturi?” Stefan inquired, drawing my gaze back to his face. The nightwalker leaned against the wall with his hands shoved into his pockets, looking very content with my plans. If I took on Macaire directly, there was a very good chance that a seat was going to open up on the coven. He honestly didn’t care if it was mine or Macaire’s. It was a win-win situation for him.

“They were just a red herring,” Valerio said, his lips twisting around the words. He had been nearly killed by something that wasn’t important in the grander scheme of things.

“Yes, it was either just luck or coincidence that Rowe happened to be in Budapest at the same time.” I shrugged. “I hadn’t seen any sign of the bastard since Peru.”

“Or there’s a chance that Macaire is still in contact with the naturi,” Danaus said, “plotting new plots that would mean your eventual death.”

“Macaire is plotting with the naturi?” Valerio nearly came off the sofa.

I inwardly cringed, wishing I could throw something at Danaus. I really wasn’t in the mood to get into this with Stefan and Valerio. Neither knew that members of the coven had conspired with the naturi at one time to bring about the end of Our Liege.

“He did at one time,” I muttered. “We don’t know if he still is. I thought I had killed his contact, and I find it hard to believe that Rowe would cooperate with any nightwalker.”

“He might if it means getting his hands on you,” Danaus countered, sending a shiver down my spine.

“It doesn’t matter. I plan to clean up this mess.”

“Tonight?” Valerio asked.

“No. I need you in peak fighting form. I will need everyone’s help to take down not only Veyron but Odelia and Clarion as well. We’re cleaning out Budapest before we return to Venice.”

“Will you ever return?” Stefan inquired. “You are the keeper, after all.”

“Keeper,” I grumbled. “I never wanted to be keeper of this city.”

“It’s not that bad a city. Once you clean out the rabble, of course,” Danaus added, surprising me.

I leaned my head into my hand with my elbow resting on the arm of the chair. “I just want to go home at this point. I’ll come back to Budapest eventually. It’s not like we’re going to be leaving behind any power players. The shifters are dead, and there aren’t any old nightwalkers here.”

“That’s just the problem, Mira,” Stefan spoke up. “You’re leaving behind a power vacuum. Anyone will be able to move into this domain and take over.”

“What? You want it? Take it!” I dropped my hand and glared at Valerio. “Or you. It’s closest to your domain. You take it.”

“I don’t have a domain,” Valerio said smugly.

I slammed my fist against the arm of the chair, causing the wood to creak. “Then man up and claim one finally!”

Valerio just smiled at me, enjoying my evident frustration. I didn’t want Budapest. It was a gorgeous city and I had no doubt that I might actually enjoy it once Veyron and the others were cleared out. However, my mind kept drifting back to my sweet Savannah. I had left Tristan and too many others unguarded. I needed to get back there before something horrible happened.

“If nothing is going to be done tonight,” Valerio said, pushing slowly to his feet, “then we should pull back to Vienna, where it’s safer.”

“We need to be at our strongest if we’re going to take them on,” I added, rising as well.

“Veyron got you worried?” Danaus asked.

I shook my head as I carefully picked my way over to the bedroom. “Clarion. You never know what warlocks are capable of until they have already cast the spell.”

Danaus and I quickly packed our bags. Then Stefan placed an arm across my shoulders, while Valerio put his hand on Danaus’s arm. In a blink of an eye we were whisked across vast empty miles to Valerio’s private apartments in downtown Vienna.

Stefan released me once he was sure I was steady on my feet. He walked into the living room and relaxed across a chaise lounge. Valerio and Danaus appeared beside me a second later. The hunter frowned and shook his head as if to clear it of the cobwebs, while Valerio came over and picked up my bag so he could personally escort me to a room that I would use for changing. I would be sleeping in a more secure and private chamber with him and Stefan when the sun finally started to rise in the sky.

“It seems that you and Danaus have reconciled your differences,” Valerio murmured when we were alone in the other room. He placed my bag down on the bed and leaned against one of the four wooden posters with his arms crossed over his chest.

“We’re trying to make this work,” I admitted, though I was reluctant to speak about it. Valerio and I had a past together that stretched across several centuries. I’d taken different lovers during the times when we were apart, and he had not batted an eye at it. Why had he taken a sudden interest now? “What’s your concern?”

Valerio smiled at me and extended one hand. I took it, allowing him to raise it to his lips and brush a kiss across the knuckles. “You are my concern. You are always my concern.”

“You’re also full of shit. What’s your sudden interest?” I snapped. I tugged at my hand, but he refused to release me.

“A powerful nightwalker hunter has obviously won the heart of one of the most powerful nightwalkers in the world. Certainly that should raise a concern or two among the masses.”

“Shouldn’t you also consider that one of the most powerful nightwalkers in the world has potentially won the heart of a powerful nightwalker hunter? Wouldn’t that benefit us?” I countered.

“Have you, now?”

“If not now, then soon I think,” I said with a small smile. “He has stopped hunting us at random. Directed execution is not out of the question for him. He would be protecting the humans, and protecting my interests as well.”

Valerio chuckled at me as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “You make it sound as if you planned this.”

“Hmmm . . . wouldn’t that be marvelous,” I purred, and then grew serious. “I have plans for Danaus, but they have nothing to do with the coven or the naturi or anything of this world.”

“And what plans would those be?”

“Going home to Savannah and letting the world forget about us.”

“Ahh . . . mi amor , I don’t think that will ever be possible.”

“You’re probably right, but we have to try. Even if it’s only for a little while.”

A knock at the door pulled us apart. I turned to find Danaus standing in the hall with his bag slung over his shoulder and his coat folded over his other arm. “Is this a private party?”

“No, we were discussing plans after we are done with Budapest and Venice,” I replied, forcing a smile upon my lips.

“Savannah,” he said with a sigh. Home, I heard whispered through his brain. He then turned his full attention to Valerio. “Does Clarion know where you reside in Vienna?”

“No, I don’t believe so,” Valerio replied. “No one has seen me come or go from this particular residence. The few times I saw Clarion in Vienna it was in some very public locations. He should not bother us here.”

“Can Veyron or Odelia track me like the naturi can?” he asked, turning his attention to me.

“No. They found us at the hotel because I made no secret of where we were staying. We did not try to hide our movements within the city. We were easily followed, I have no doubt. They may guess that we have left the city with Valerio and Stefan, but they are more likely to believe that we have pulled back to Venice rather than Vienna.”

“It may not be safe for me to stay here with you during the day.” Danaus frowned down at me, tightening one hand on the strap of his bag. “I could go stay in a nearby hotel so you don’t have to worry about Clarion getting close during the day.”

I walked over and laid my hand against his cheek. I could spend a lifetime touching him. “If I know Valerio, we will not exactly be here during the daylight hours. He has some secret den tucked away for us to sleep in, which will be safe. You will have the run of the house until sunset.”

“You’ll be safe?”

“Completely.”

I could feel the tension ease from his shoulders. The naturi were able to get to me in the past because they had been able to track him, following him until he finally met up with me. It was trick I was sure Rowe found handy more than once during our association.

“Well, if that’s all for the evening, I must go feed,” Valerio said in a louder than necessary voice to remind us that we weren’t alone. I rolled my eyes, but I was still smiling when I turned to look at my old friend. “Feed well, but be back well before sunrise. We have to plan tomorrow’s attack.”

“Mmmm . . . sounds like fun.” Then he disappeared completely.

Yes, the time had come for us to finally be on the offensive. I was done running and chasing my tail. The naturi were out of the way. The lycanthropes were dead. It was time to clean out the rest of the house, and Veyron was on the top of my list for Budapest. I had little doubt that Macaire had pulled back to Venice following the death of Ferko and Odelia. I would deal with the Elder in Venice.