Chapter 21

Ghostlike fingers of fog wafted over the enclosed garden. Bored and antsy, I followed the curving flagstone path as far as it went, then turned and went back the other way.

It was the end of November and I'd been confined to this small section of the castle for more than three weeks, unless you counted my daily walks and that trip to Olivia's. Rio was in Bluebeard's Cove again, and Talon would just be waking up. It would be hours before he sent for me—the earliest he ever wanted me was eight or nine o'clock.

I heaved a breath and kept pacing. On my fourth or fifth lap, I took a fork that ended at one of the two outer walls. My steps slowed. I considered the grape vine trellised against the rough stone.

You could cut through the forest and be at Mom and Dad's in fifteen minutes. If you make it quick, Talon will never even know you're gone.

But even if I could get my six-month-pregnant body up a five-meter-high wall, I'd still have to drop to the ground on the other side. Not to mention the wolfdogs who patrolled the castle grounds. On the other hand, the dogs knew me. And I could probably bluff my way past their handler…

I shoved my hands in my pockets. It wasn't worth it, and not just because of the wolfdogs.

Talon was beginning to trust me again—that phone he'd given me last week was proof.

And the other night, he'd opened up about his human family, even if it was only to tell me Esposito was a shitty dad. That might not seem like much, but it was the first crack I'd seen in that barrier of his.

And I wanted Talon's trust—wanted past his walls—more than I wanted a few minutes of freedom.

A tiny sound lifted the hairs on the back of my neck. I turned to find Twilight watching me from a few meters away, her face luminous in the misty light.

"You wouldn't get far," she said—and smiled, her teeth gleaming whitely against her red lips.

Goosebumps popped up all over my body. For a panicked few seconds, I wished I'd brought that damned switchblade outside with me. But it was still in my sewing box, where it had been ever since Rio gave it to me three days ago, partly because I didn't buy that I was in danger. Other than Nathan or Jasper and the maid who cleaned my suite once a week, I didn't see anyone except Talon and Rio.

Plus, there was that trust thing. If I got caught with a switchblade, I could give up any hope of fixing things with Talon.

I lifted my chin. "A woman can dream, can't she?" I was damned if I'd let her see my fear. Yeah, she could sense it, but she didn't have to see it.

Twilight's smile morphed into a grin. An appreciative, you're-all-right grin. Unlike me, she wasn't wearing a coat, just one of her funky, ultrafeminine outfits—short-sleeved pink sweater; tiny, pink-and-black checked skirt; chunky, lug sole loafers. A shiny brown braid fell forward over one shoulder.

"It's a beautiful garden," she said.

"It is."

I relaxed marginally, still wondering why she was here, but happy to chat. Heck, who was I kidding? I was dying for some company, even if it was the woman I'd been a first-class bitch to.

"I used to think of it as my secret garden," Twilight said. "Like that book by Frances Hodgson Burnett."

"Yeah? I loved that book when I was a kid." We shared a you-too? smile.

"It's interesting how the walls keep the garden so much warmer, isn't it?" I glanced around at the wet leaves littering the ground. "Most of the trees still had leaves until that storm the other day."

"I know, right?" She lifted her face to the fat, hazy moon, and I flashed back to how she used to do that with the sun. "D'you smell it?" She inhaled like she was drawing the whole island into her lungs.

"Smell what?"

"The ocean."

"Well, yeah." I'd grown up with its sharp, salty scent.

"I love the way it mixes with those pines down the hill."

My brows climbed. The pines were a half mile away. "I can't smell them."

"No?" She gave a wondering smile. "I'm still getting used to how intense everything is."

I nodded. Why was she telling me this? Actually, why was she here at all?

A thick cloud blotted out the moon, and a sudden gust of wind rattled the tree branches. I shivered and huddled into my puffer jacket.

"You're cold," Twilight said. "Come inside—I ordered you a hot chocolate. Just the way you like it—I asked Rio."

She had? I eyed her suspiciously. "Umm—thanks?"

Inside my suite, a steaming mug of chocolate waited on the wet bar next to a split of blood-wine. Hanging up the jacket, I took one of the stools and Twilight took another, leaving an open seat between us.

She poured herself a glass of wine and we faced each other on the stools like two gunslingers in a Hollywood Western.

I wrapped my fingers around the mug to warm them. "You're not going to tell Talon, are you?"

"Tell him what? That you were walking in the garden?"

I blinked, then nodded. "Thank you," I said and took a sip of the hot chocolate. It was delicious—dark, sweet, and topped with whipped cream and a dash of nutmeg. I gave a little hum of pleasure. "Damn, that's good," I said, taking another sip. "It might even be better than Rio's, but if you tell him I said that I'll say you lied."

"You're welcome." She took a drink of her wine. "You know there's a camera in the garden, don't you? Near the French door."

"Yeah," I said with a shrug. I knew where all the cameras were.

"Although they probably wouldn't have seen you back there," she added. "Not in the dark."

Exactly. I wasn't dumb enough to say that aloud, though.

Twilight fingered her wine glass. "You like the garden suite?"

"I do, yes." She seemed to expect more, so I added, "It's very pretty. Were you the one who told them to put me in here?"

"No, that was Talon. He wanted you to be able to get outside whenever you wanted to."

"Yeah?" I smiled, liking that he'd thought of that.

She considered me. "He was messed up after you left. He wouldn't stop looking for you. The man was obsessed."

My smile faded. "Because I ran."

"No. Because he missed you. We all saw it—me, Brien, Cain."

"Huh." Her comment was like a shot of hope to my veins.

"And he didn't forget what you said about dhampirs. He's been pushing for a change in how the dhampirs are treated, starting with promoting Adrian to enforcer. Brien agreed—the announcement will be made in a few days."

"He didn't say anything to me."

"Maybe he's waiting until it's a done deal." She toyed with the stem of her wineglass. "You know, he wasn't even interested in other thralls until it was clear you'd gone of your own free will. And then he didn't seem to care who he fucked—I think he was just trying to forget you."

"You think?"

"Yeah. Every time I saw him, he was with a different thrall."

The hope expanded, spreading to my chest. Maybe Talon had cared more than I'd realized?

And then I'd ruined it by leaving like that.

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked Twilight.

"Because Talon won't."

Yeah, that sounded like Talon. "You're probably right about that. But why do you care?"

"Honestly?" She leaned back on her stool to eye me. "I'm not sure. Except that I like you for some goddamn reason."

"You do? But why?"

She lifted a shoulder, let it drop. "I like how you handled yourself in that meeting with me and Brien. You were straight with us and your apology was sincere, but you didn't let us push you around. And you're smart. For someone with no training in covert ops, you were damn hard to find."

I moved the mug in a slow circle on the bar. "That was partly Eugene Smith—he got me the fake ID. I think he wanted to use me down the road, maybe to draw Talon off the island. I'm lucky he got staked when he did. I was always on edge, thinking he was going to catch up to me—him or Talon."

I hadn't even gone out at night unless I couldn't help it.

"They wouldn't have ever let you go free. Once they have something on you…" A shadow crossed her face. "Trust me, I know. They were blackmailing me, too. That's why I was here in the first place. And Eugene didn't get staked—Brien ripped the prick's head off." Her smile was all vampire. "He made the mistake of touching me in front of Brien."

At the visual, I gave a queasy swallow, but I couldn't help being relieved that Eugene was in his final grave. Who knew what he would've forced me to do next?

"I was so damn stupid," I muttered.

"You weren't the only one. They got to Avril, too."

"Brien's PA?"

"Yeah. She's gone—Brien banished her from Maritime territory."

My eyes widened. "That's harsh."

"Not when she almost got him staked. Any other primus would've slit her throat."

"Oh." I gulped and subsided.

There was a short silence, then Twilight said, "So why'd you do it?"

I shrugged and shook my head.

"Because of the baby?" she asked.

I hesitated, but maybe Twilight deserved to know—my actions had impacted her, after all.

"Yeah. I wanted off the island before anyone found out." Before Talon found out. "Eugene didn't know, of course."

Just thinking about what the dhampir might've done if he'd realized I was pregnant with Talon's baby sent an icy prickle up my spine.

"You didn't want Talon to find out, did you?" When I made a noncommittal sound, Twilight let out a surprised huff. "You're in love with him. That's what this was about."

My chest compressed at hearing her say it out loud. It was my secret, my self-respect. "No, I'm not. I'm from the island, remember? I know better than to fall in—"

"You do love him." When I sputtered a denial, she held up a hand. "Vampire," she said, pointing to herself. "I can sense a lie now."

My shoulders sagged. The hope I'd been feeling collapsed like a torn balloon as I relived what I'd overheard Talon telling Cain.

"So what if I do? It's not like he cares." Bitterness leaked into my voice, but hell, it was the truth. "He wants a vampire mate. Someone powerful. Someone who will increase his standing in the vampire world. Not a human—especially a thrall who was only in it for the money."

Twilight's brows climbed. "He told you that?"

"Not straight out." I white-knuckled the mug. Six months later, and it still hurt like a knife to the heart. "But he said it. He was talking to Cain—he didn't know I could hear him."

Her brow furrowed. "That doesn't sound like Talon. He's not power-hungry."

"Yeah? Cain was talking about this pact they'd made to mate with a vampire or nobody, especially a human. And Talon said, ‘Eden's a thrall, nothing more. And the last thing I want is to sire a dhampir. I want a pureblood spawn, same as you.'" My mouth pulled sideways. "And to put the cherry on the fucking sundae, I'd just found out I was pregnant."

"Jesus." Twilight ran a hand down her braid. "I'm sorry."

She pitied me. My stomach knotted with humiliation.

I put the mug down on the bar—loudly. Angry at myself for telling her so much. Angry at her for dragging it out of me.

"Look, I apologized to you. Wasn't that enough? Why are you here, really?"

She gazed back steadily. "Because I think you need a friend."

I made a scornful sound. "And you're it?"

"I'm the best you've got. Unless you count Rio, who I've gotta admit is awesome."

Despite my turmoil, that got me right in my proud big-sister heart. "He is," I muttered.

"You're thinking I feel sorry for you," she said. "Which has to be hard as fuck, especially when it's me." When I stiffened, she added, "And no, I'm not reading your emotions—it's what I'd think if I were you. We're not that different, you know."

"Yeah, right. You're a former slayer who's now a vampire, and I'm the thrall who spied on you for your mate's enemies. We have so much in common."

She leveled a look at me. "I thought we were friends. Was it all an act?"

I was tempted to lie and say yeah, it had been. But she'd know it was a lie, and why was I pushing her away, anyhow? I needed all the friends I could get.

"No," I admitted. "I liked—like—you too. Spying on you like that—it's not me. I got sucked in, and then I was fucked. I still feel dirty."

"Well, don't," she said. "Just focus on the fact that you're free of that slimy little reptile."

"I will," I said. "Hearing that from you helps. Even knowing I wasn't the only one he blackmailed helps."

"You weren't. And there might've been others we don't know about."

I nodded, processing that. The guilt and shame that had been weighing me down eased. I felt better, lighter.

"And you're right," I told her. "I could use a friend—and not just because you're the prima."

Twilight's lips twitched. "See, that's why I like you. You're honest."

I replayed what I'd said and gave a rueful smile. "Maybe a little too honest."

"No, I love it. Half the vampires in the syndicate are horrified that a slayer is their new prima, but they can't say anything because of Brien. It feels like no one but Talon and Cain tells me what they're really thinking. They just say what they think I want to hear."

I hadn't looked at it from her perspective. Maybe this friend-thing went both ways because it sounded like Twilight could use a friend, too. I flashed my middle finger at those clueless vampires. "Well, fuck them, then."

She burst out laughing. "My friend Renata's going to love you."

"Who's Renata?"

"Another slayer. Except now she's the Paris Syndicate princess—and mated to Zaq Kral." Twilight made a comical face. "It's complicated. Let's just say she's not the princess type."

"Well, good for her. Zaq Kral is hot." The middle Kral brother was a gorgeous, fallen-angel of a man with sun-streaked brown hair and green eyes.

"Don't tell Renata that. She's wicked good with a switchblade."

"Noted."

Twilight raised her wineglass to me. "To friends."

I touched my mug to it. "To friends."