Chapter 32

Chapter Thirty-Two

“ S o that is why Zara brought her to you.” Mika blew a stream of smoke from the thin cigar he’d lit in the library. The French doors to the back terrace were open, and the scent of oranges and lemons filled the air. “Because Tatyana will be loyal to her blood.”

It was midnight and the newborn in the house was taking a bath. If Oleg knew water vampires, she could be in there for several hours.

“I always liked this house.” Oleg breathed in the scent of the sea and the ripening citrus trees. “I should spend more time here. Lazlo isn’t hard to be around, and he mostly wants to be left alone.”

“It’s not very convenient.” Mika took another drag on his cigar.

He’d taken up the old habit in the weeks since they’d found Elene’s body. Mika hadn’t attended the funeral because he knew it would anger Dmytro and the children. He’d spent most of his nights alone or working furiously with Oksana to track down every human and vampire who’d had a part in Elene and Tatyana’s abduction.

They were dead. All of them except Zara and whomever she had directly with her. Mika had personally executed them all.

Oleg had been trying to walk softly around his old friend even through his own grief after losing Elene. Because his grief was nothing to Mika’s.

“It’s too isolated here,” Mika said. “It’s not close enough to a seaport or an airport.”

“It reminds me of the citadel.” Oleg didn’t mind the isolation. He’d been far too exposed in the past few years. His blood craved revenge, but his soul craved a decade or two away from business and politics, which wouldn’t be possible anytime soon after Elene’s sudden loss.

“The citadel is also too isolated,” Mika muttered, “but at least there’s the river.”

“Luana and I had many good decades in this house. She was fond of this place.” Which was probably why Oleg avoided it.

Mika set his cigar to the side and returned to the matter at hand. “What are you going to do about the newborn? She’s a problem.”

“She’s Zara’s child,” Oleg said. “So she loves her sire; her feelings are completely predictable.”

“But she’s under your aegis, so you’re bound to care for her,” Mika said.

“She’s not under my aegis.” Oleg raised an eyebrow. “Not at the moment. Until she disavows her own sire and pledges loyalty to me, she’s under Zara’s.”

“So you could kill her.”

“Zara? I would like to, but it’s complicated now.”

“No, Tatyana.”

Oleg wasn’t prepared for the snarl that erupted from his throat, the way his fangs fell and cut his own lip, or the look of utter terror when Mika saw his reaction.

His boyar blinked. “Are you in love with?—”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Oleg snapped. “But that woman lost her human life because of me. Because of both of us. She didn’t choose this; we failed her. She was a human under my protection who placed her trust in me, and I failed to protect her. Honor demands that I keep her from further harm.”

“Fuck honor.” Mika’s voice was dead. “If anyone paid attention to honor these days, Elene would still be alive.”

“I want her then.” Oleg stared at Mika. “So no, I will not kill her because she’s Zara’s blood.”

His boyar lifted a hand, opened his mouth, then shut it and slumped back in his chair. “It will be as you wish, Knyaz.”

The old title mollified Oleg, and his fire calmed.

The allure that Tatyana had as a human had exponentially expanded when she became an immortal with power. Oleg had never been a man attracted to demure women. He liked power, and he liked women who knew how to use theirs. There was nothing sexier than a formidable woman, and Tatyana had the potential and the brains to be an extraordinary immortal.

But he needed to kill her sire to set her free.

And he couldn’t kill her sire because it might kill her.

The thread of an idea formed in his mind, but it was a raw idea and far too personal to share with Mika.

“Tatyana loves Zara,” Oleg said. “That’s a completely natural response of a newborn vampire to their sire. It’s born in the blood, and there is nothing we can do about it.”

“But it means she’s a liability.” Mika leaned forward, his expression cold. “As much as I sympathize with the woman, she’s a time bomb waiting to go off. Zara could have planted ideas in Tatyana’s head we don’t even know about.”

Oleg scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous. Vampire minds are stronger than that. Hers was already resistant to manipulation when she was human. She’s not Zara’s puppet. It doesn’t work that way.”

“Fine. She’s erratic. She’s a newborn, and she won’t be able to harm her own sire in a fight. If it came down to you or Zara, she would choose her sire no matter what she’s done.”

Oleg couldn’t refute Mika’s observations because he knew they were correct.

“She’ll be completely subservient to Zara whether she likes it or not,” Mika continued. “No newborn has the strength to defy their sire.”

Oleg kept his eyes on the fire in the grate. “What do you suggest?”

“If you’re not going to kill Tatyana—which I can accept—at least send her away. Make sure she pledges to you, then send her away. It would be a mercy.”

And yet Oleg wasn’t interested in mercy. He wanted Tatyana more.

Mika continued, “Send her away until we’ve neutralized your daughter. Either by death or captivity.”

“Impossible.” Oleg rose and walked to the wooden bar where he poured a goblet of blood-wine. “Zara has a sire bond with Tatyana. She will know if her child is gone. If we’re going to lure her here, Tatyana should stay.”

And Oleg didn’t want to send her away. He had unfinished business with his little wolf, and he didn’t want to let her out of his reach.

“Lure Zara here?” Mika’s eyes went wide. “With what? A newborn she doesn’t want to deal with? Zara had her and she got rid of her.”

Which still didn’t make sense. Why was Tatyana alive? Why had Zara turned her? Was it an impulse? A chaotic plan that made sense to no one but his own daughter?

Oleg slowly sipped his wine. Tatyana’s turning might have been an impulse on Zara’s part. She might have panicked and tried to keep alive the only link she had left to her lost fortune.

Zara might have had a searing and intense moment of pity—it wouldn’t be the first time—and turned Tatyana to save her life.

Only God knew Zara’s mind, and God and Oleg weren’t on speaking terms.

“We don’t lure Zara here with her child,” Oleg said. “We move her treasure here and let Zara know about it. Whatever she’s plotting, she’s short on money and she won’t be able to resist. She doesn’t just want her gold now—she needs it.”

“Fine. I’ll take care of it.” Mika stood. “Oksana and Ludmila are here. About half a dozen others, and I can call more of the druzhina if we need them.”

“Oksana and Ludmila both?” Oleg nodded. “Good. Tatyana might prefer to have some other women around.”

Mika rolled his eyes. “The house is secured. We can move the treasure on the plane since you won’t need it for a while. I’m going to assume that you’re staying with the woman.”

“I promised to protect her.” Oleg set down his glass. “Call her mother. Arrange for a video call of some kind.”

“Good. That woman has been harassing my assistant anyway.” Mika was already headed toward the door. “What do we tell her mother?”

Oleg shrugged. “The truth.”