Chapter 15

My jaw dropped. Twilight was a vampire?

"You didn't tell her?" she asked Talon.

"Didn't think of it," he said.

Twilight looked back at me. "Brien turned me after you left."

"Oh."

"Eden." Talon's fingers tightened on my waist, and I realized I was gaping at Twilight, mouth ajar.

Closing it with a snap, I lowered my gaze to the polished wood desk.

But, damn. Brien hadn't just mated with her, he'd turned her.

It was a punch in the throat. Brien hadn't known Twilight nearly as long as Talon had known me. Plus, she was a freaking slayer.

She was one of them now, while I was still on the outside looking in. I felt like a teenager again, gazing up at the castle on the cliff, wondering what it would be like to live in it. A thrall's life had seemed so glamorous. Parties, clothes, expensive gifts. Beautiful, broody men who'd ruin you for any other man…

No, wait, that last part I hadn't known back then.

I wiped my face of expression, shoving my shock and hurt down deep. Otherwise, they'd all pick up on it and right now, I couldn't bear that.

"Answer him," Talon ordered under his breath, and I realized Brien had asked how I was doing.

"I'm good, thank you." I stretched my lips in a smile that probably didn't fool any of them.

Brien dipped his chin in acknowledgment. His dark blond hair was pulled back in a short ponytail, his lean face surfer-boy handsome. A man who'd been born a pureblood vampire and a prince, he wore his new position as primus easily, as comfortable in a ten-thousand-dollar suit as in a T-shirt and jeans.

Grovel, Talon had told me. Humbling myself wasn't easy, but I was determined to do it—and not because of Talon. I owed both Twilight and Brien an apology.

I squared my shoulders. "If I may speak…?"

"Go ahead," Brien said.

Okay.My heart banged against my chest. I had to get this right.

I wiped my sweaty palms on my skirt and let the words spill out.

"Before we go any further, I want to apologize. To you both, but especially to Twilight. I'm sorry." I met her eyes. "I never did anything like that before—I want you both to know that. That's not an excuse, by the way. There's no excuse for what I did—breaking the syndicate's trust like that, and especially, for spying on you. I'm sorry for that, and I'm especially sorry if it put you in—in any danger."

To my humiliation, my voice cracked. I dug my teeth into my lower lip, willing myself not to cry. That would be the final straw, breaking down in front of Twilight.

Talon's hand returned to my lower back in silent support. I hadn't expected that. My heart squeezed. If only we really had a relationship like that, one where he had my back, no matter what.

One where he loved me like I loved him. No matter what.

Twilight tilted her head like an inquisitive robin. She'd been pretty as a human, but as a vampire, she was breath-taking. Her skin shimmered like the inside of a shell, her dark eyes were luminous, her lips a rosy red.

"Why did you do it?" she asked.

I shook my head. "That's not important. I knew it was wrong, and I did it anyway."

"Mm." Her gaze dropped to my swollen belly, her look knowing.

Shortly before I'd left the island, Twilight had found me crying in the bathroom of the Bite Club, the castle's dance club. I hadn't told her why, but she must've realized that was around the time I'd found out I was carrying Talon's child.

My lower back was aching from standing too long. I shifted my weight and brought my hands to my sacrum. Talon's large palm went right to where it hurt the most, massaging the tightness.

"Jesus." Twilight pointed to the armchair in front of the desk. "Let her sit already."

"Thank you." Talon helped me lower myself to the leather seat.

The new prima folded her toned arms over her candy-pink bodice. "Here's what I think, Eden. Nothing you did harmed me personally. I was here under false pretenses myself." She and Brien shared a look. "So as far as I'm concerned, we're good, although I appreciate the apology."

I swallowed, nodded. "Thank you."

"But that's only me," she said. "There's still Brien and Talon."

Talon put his hands on my shoulders. "We're good. She apologized to me, too."

My mind flashed to me on my knees, taking him into my mouth, and my face heated.

Twilight's gaze flicked to my cheeks. I had a feeling she guessed exactly what form my apology had taken.

Brien leaned back in his chair, and she rested a hand on his shoulder, like one of those scary power couples from Suits or Succession.

"We let you into our castle," he said. "You were a third-year thrall, someone I believed we could trust. Talon made you his favorite. I suppose we should be grateful they didn't ask you to do anything more damaging. Or did they?"

"No!" I straightened. "That's all I agreed to—make friends with Twilight and report on what she did. And I passed one note for them. That's it. I swear that's all."

Talon's grip tightened on my shoulders. I wasn't sure if he was protecting me or making sure I stayed put.

The baby moved like he'd picked up on my agitation. I took a deep breath.

"Look," I told Brien, "you can have the money he—Eugene—paid me. I don't want it. I haven't spent any of it, just the money I earned as a thrall."

"I'll leave that up to Talon." Brien flicked a long-fingered hand, dismissing the hundred thousand dollars I'd been paid as if it were nothing. "I don't need or want your money. But you broke your contract, Eden. That, I can't forgive. You owe us."

All the spit left my mouth. The office walls felt like they were closing in on me.

"I…owe you?"

"Not money." Brien's teeth gleamed in the dim light. "A favor."

I gulped. No human with any brains wanted to owe a "favor" to a vampire syndicate.

"A favor," I echoed with a panicked glance up at Talon.

He was glaring at Brien, but he kept silent.

"What kind of favor?" I asked.

"I'll let you know," said Brien. "You can refuse, of course. But I'd think hard before I said no. Because if you do, I'll have to assume your apology is just words, won't I?"

My hands were in my lap now, the fingers so tightly interlaced, my knuckles had turned white. But I pulled back my shoulders, looked Brien in the eye. "I won't say no."

A slight smile. "I'm glad to hear that. For now, your movements will continue to be restricted. Talon will decide when the restrictions should be lifted."

Twilight took her hand from Brien's shoulder.

Behind me, I felt Talon relax. "We appreciate that," he said to his friend.

"And your spawn?" Brien glanced at my stomach. "I understand you saw the midwife?"

I had to make a conscious effort not to wrap my arms around my belly to hide it. "I did, yes."

"Olivia says they're both doing fine," Talon inserted. "Our spawn is due in mid-February. A male."

"A male?" Brien's eyes creased in a smile. "That's good news, very good news. It's been years since we had a child in the castle. Congratulations, both of you."

Talon released me. "Thank you." When I slanted a look up at him, he was smiling, too.

"Thank you," I murmured hollowly. All my fears rushed back.

What kind of life would my baby have? I don't care what Jasper said about things being better for dhampirs here on Lilith Island. The vampires still treated them like they were somehow lesser. Half-bloods, they called them.

Twilight frowned. "Why does that bother you? Aren't you happy about the baby?"

I blinked. "I—."

Now Brien was frowning, too.

Behind me, Talon said, "Answer the prima."

I couldn't lie to them, so I started to side-step the question. After almost three years as a thrall, it was second nature to suck up to vampires. To keep my head down, avoid making waves.

"Of course, I'm happy—," I started to say, but why not tell them the truth? What did I have to lose, after all? I was already in disgrace.

And maybe it would make a difference to my son. Brien wasn't an old-world aristocrat like his father. He might be open to a new way of doing things.

"I'm happy about the baby," I said. "But I'm worried for him, too. I don't know if I want him growing up in the castle."

"Because he's a dhampir?" Twilight asked.

"Yes, exactly." I nodded, surprised at how quickly she'd grasped the issue. However, as a slayer, she must've seen the inner workings of a number of vampire syndicates. "You guys look down on dhampirs."

"Eden," Talon warned.

"No," said Twilight, "let her finish. I want to hear this."

Brien was no longer frowning, but now his expression was unreadable, which was almost worse.

"Go on," Twilight told me.

I sat a little straighter. "Right now every single enforcer in the Maritime Syndicate is a vampire, and your two lieutenants—" I spoke directly to Brien—"are also vampires. I get that you're stronger and faster, but don't brains count for anything? Not one dhampir has a rank higher than soldier."

There was a short silence, then Talon said, "She's right, you know."

I slow-blinked. I hadn't expected Talon to take my side, not with the way he felt about siring a dhampir child.

"The hierarchy decides these things," Brien said. "Not me. Except for my lieutenants, of course."

"But Adrian could hold his own against the less dominant vampires," said Talon.

Brien lifted a brow. "Then why doesn't he challenge them?"

Twilight leaned a hip on the desk. "Maybe he thinks it wouldn't do any good. Even if he won, he wouldn't necessarily be promoted. That's up to the primus."

"I don't know," said Brien. "The hierarchy exists for a reason, and if Adrian receives a promotion over a vampire, there will be hell to pay."

"Then maybe," Twilight muttered, "the vampires need to get over themselves."

Brien turned his head to look at her. She smirked back.

"Tell me again why I mated with a slayer?" Brien asked the ceiling.

Her smirk deepened. "Because I think outside of the box."

"There is that…" He turned back to us. "I'll think about it, all right?"

"Thank you," Talon said, and I echoed him.

Brien pulled Twilight onto his lap. "C'mere, you."

Behind me, Talon said, "If we're done here?"

"Get out," Brien said without taking his gaze from his mate.

Talon helped me to my feet, and we exited the office. He shook his head, a smile on his lips.

"Those two," he said, then sobered. "You did good," he told me. He tucked a short strand of hair behind my ear. "I'll bring it up again," he added, low-voiced. "About the dhampirs."

"You will?"

"Yes. That's a promise."

Cain emerged from the office next door. "What's a promise?"

"Later," Talon said with a glance at Diane.

Cain followed us out of the war room, closing the door behind him. He eyed my pregnant stomach but otherwise ignored me as if I were a rock or other unimportant, inanimate object.

"So what happened?" he asked Talon.

"She apologized."

"And?" the lean blond vampire prompted.

Talon gave Cain the Cliff notes on what had been discussed in Brien's office.

"A favor, huh?" Cain's expression carefully neutral.

But when Talon turned back to me, the look Cain sent me from his ice-blue eyes made me gulp.

"I'm going to walk Eden back," Talon said. "I'll see you in a few minutes."

The fear and adrenaline caught up to me on the way back. By the time we reached my suite, my legs felt like two overcooked noodles. I made my way across the living room, sinking onto the couch.

Talon's brows pulled together in a frown. "You're hungry." He took out his phone. "What do you want to eat?"

"A yogurt." I toed off my high heels and released a sigh of relief. "But you don't have to order it for me. I have a couple in the fridge." All the thralls' suites came with a wet bar and a small refrigerator.

"I'll get it," Talon said and, going to the fridge, got me a banana cream yogurt and a spoon, then folded his long body into the green-and yellow striped armchair next to the couch as I ate.

"Brien went easy on you," he said after a while.

"Because of you."

"Maybe. But you were honest, and with Brien, that counts."

I put down the yogurt cup. "That favor," I burst out. "I won't kill someone. Or…hurt them, you know."

Talon's mouth twitched up. "Why would Brien ask you to do that when he can send a soldier—or even me?"

My lungs released like a deflating balloon. That was good, at least.

But I was pregnant now with a dhampir baby, the spawn of one of Brien's top men. A child Brien clearly was interested in.

"It won't have anything to do with the baby, will it?" I asked. "Because that's a hard no. I don't care if that pissed him off."

Talon's face lost its humor. "He'd have to go through me first. But Brien's not like his father—he doesn't take his anger out on innocents. You should know that."

"I do know that. But this baby's mine, first—not the syndicate's. It's why I accepted your blood bond, remember?"

A nod. "That's why I offered it."

That hurt, even though I'd asked for it. Even though it was the truth.

I looked away. "Right."

Talon's mouth flattened. "Finish your yogurt," he said and watched from beneath hooded lids until I'd eaten every bite.

"About the money," I said. "I'd like to give it to Rio."

He lifted a brow. "I'll think about it."

"Please?" I put the empty yogurt cup down. "He wants to go to culinary arts school, and a year costs as much as college. More, even, if you go to one of the top schools like the one he's looking at in New York. Plus, he'll need somewhere to live, and apartments are so expensive there. You could rent a whole house in Nova Scotia for what I was paying for that one-bedroom. That money plus the money he's making from the syndicate would mean he had enough to pay for an associate's degree and an apartment."

"I'll think about it, okay?" Talon drew me to my feet. "Walk me to the door."

I followed him into the hall. "Please. Rio deserves a break, you know? And he's such a good cook already. He—"

He considered me. "This really means a lot to you, doesn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Fine. Give me the details and I'll have Smythe—that's Brien's new PA—set up an account for Rio and transfer the money."

"You will?" I broke into a smile. "Thank you. It will mean so much to him."

And then somehow, I had my back to the wall with Talon so close that when I took a breath, my nipples in the black knit dress dragged over his suitcoat.

He put a hand next to my head. "What about you, Eden? How much does it mean to you?"

A hot shiver went over me. "A lot."

"So you'd say you owe me?"

Oh, God. At his dark tone, my panties went from damp to soaked. Without taking my gaze from his, I dipped my chin in assent.

"Good. Because you'll be paying me back."

"I will?"

"Yeah. With interest." He nuzzled my neck. "But I have to leave—work."

My head fell back against the wall. "Are you coming back?"

"No."

Don't beg. Don't beg.

But the words spilled out. I'd missed him, and I was lonely. I knew I'd gotten off easy, but the isolation was getting to me. And I was so turned on, craving sex…but also more of Talon, even if I knew I'd feel empty after.

"Please?" Sliding my hand between us, I gave his erection a suggestive squeeze. "Just for a little while."

He briefly closed his eyes and I thought he was going to give in, but instead, he took my hand and moved it back to my side. "You need your sleep."

"You could wake me up."

"It wouldn't be for hours. I have things to do."

Things. Which probably included another thrall.

I turned my head, giving him my profile. "Got it."

He drew a harsh breath. "Fuck this," he said under his breath, and palmed my cheek, turning my face toward his.

His mouth came down on mine. His body pushed me into the rough stone, his hips grinding into mine.

When he broke the kiss, all I could do was swallow. Twice.

In the flickering torchlight, Talon's face was all shadows and gold. "Get some sleep, Eden. You're going to need it."