A Cold Day in Hell (The Hellcat Series)

by Hannaford, Sharon

Byron nodded, as though he'd expected as much.

  "I don't want to walk away entirely, and I'll be making it clear that I'm available to consult and even come in to help out if there's something major on the go, but I don't want to be answerable to the Council any longer."

  "I think they would be open to what you've suggested, though I know most of us will be disappointed that we've upset you enough to force you to make this decision." When she made to interrupt, he leaned forward and covered her hand with his own. "You were right to point out the gaping hole in our manifesto. It’s long overdue to be fixed, and we're working on it. There will be a full human on the Council before the month is out, and Julius has conveyed to us that he will be appointing one of his closest lieutenants to fill the Vampire's seat on the Council.

  "Once we have a full complement, then we can move forward with rewriting the manifesto. What your father and I started was never about targeting a specific group. It was always about protecting the innocent and eradicating evil. We just lost sight of what evil truly is. I'm sincerely hoping in time that you will consider taking my place on the Council when it's time for the old dog to retire." He gave her a small grin. "You understand the core of what the SMV should stand for better than anyone else I know, including your father. They need you to keep them pointed in the right direction."

  Gabi felt the lurch in her heart at his words. They meant the world to her, but she had no assurance she'd be around to fulfil his wishes when the time came for him to retire. With the Princeps possibly wanting her dead or under their control, she wasn't making promises to anyone, but she kept her fears to herself.

  She outlined the basic problem to Byron, glossing over exactly what the Princeps might want to do with her, only telling him that ruling Vampires were making things difficult for Julius and that she may need to take a trip away for a little while.

  She was intensely glad she'd answered the phone and agreed to the lunch. The tight knot of anxiety and guilt that had been lodged in her chest for weeks had eased. It was never about the SMV Council and her obligations to them; it was about Byron. Resolving that had given her a measure of relief. With the immensity of the Princep problem hanging over them, any relief, however small, was welcome.

  When she got home, Rose had left already, and Rocky and Razor were playing tag through the house like a pack of naughty children. Lamps and photo frames had been knocked over, one curtain was ripped, and the beds in both bedrooms looked like a troop of monkeys had been playing 'Ten little monkeys jumping on the bed'. Roman had his paws up on the frame of one of the sitting room windows, anxiously trying to see what was going on inside, and Slinky the ferret was hiding out in a decorative pot near the front door. After almost being run over by a flying squirrel and a dog-sized cat, Gabi retreated to her office to check her e-mails, leaving them to wreak havoc, and praying they didn't destroy anything irreplaceable.

  There was an e-mail from Julius, telling her that he had a board meeting that evening. Apparently Julian Edwards, his human, tycoon personae, was making a rare appearance. The meeting would be finished at around nine, and he had dinner reservations for them at Olivella's, her favourite restaurant, for nine thirty. After that they were meeting with Caspian.

  Gabi loved Olivella's and the food her friend Shawn created. He didn't skimp on portion size either, especially dessert, but her meal had only tasted of anxiety tonight. She'd forced herself to eat it; she didn't want to insult Shawn or worry Julius. The fussing would've made her snap. She was glad she was driving her own car back to the estate, following Julius's low-slung sports car easily. She’d run out of small talk at the restaurant already.

  Kyle, Fergus and Alexander were in the boardroom with Caspian when they arrived. Tension hung in the silence, thick enough to choke on.

  "We have no reason to trust you," Julius said without preamble as he and Gabi took seats on the opposite side of the table. "Other than your connection to Gabrielle and your desire to meet her, you have no loyalty to me or my Clan." Caspian opened his mouth, but Julius held up a hand. "Gabrielle has expressed an interest in getting to know you," he bit the words out as though they pained him. The words weren't true, just part of the ruse they were using to ensnare Caspian, but his pain seemed real.

  Caspian's face brightened, rigid lines easing, and a hint of sly pleasure glinted in his eyes.

  "There are some conditions attached," Julius continued.

  "Name them," Caspian said, his gaze locked on Gabi.

  "You are not to contact anyone at court without my express permission, and someone will be privy to all your communications in those instances."

  Caspian's face clouded a little. "Go on," he said warily.

  "If you are to stay with us, you are to swear fealty to me. We cannot risk you playing both sides of this…conflict. Until this is resolved, you will be one of mine."

  This was a gamble; nomads were notoriously resistant to joining Clans. Once fealty had been sworn, only the Master could end it, and only if they wanted to. Any action against Master or Clan under sworn fealty was punishable by death. This would truly test his intentions and desire to be near Gabi.

  Caspian swallowed, his eyes going wide, words failing him at that moment.

  "We realise this is a lot to ask. If you choose to, you may simply give us the information you came to deliver and return to the court. Before I can allow you to leave, though, I will be calling in a favour from a Magus. You will have all knowledge of Gabi and her heritage blocked from your mind. You understand that I can't let you leave with your memory intact. That would be tantamount to surrender on my part."

  "You don't have to make the decision immediately," Gabi put in. "You have twenty-four hours to make your choice." She made as if to stand and leave. The plan had been to push him into a hasty decision, but Gabi had her doubts. This was a three-hundred-year-old Vampire they were talking to. For him to agree to this, he either had to be truly desperate or truly cunning, perhaps a combination of the two. Either way, he leaned forward quickly, as though to reach for Gabi's hand.

  "No, please," he said, his Spanish accent a little thicker than normal. "I don't need time to think. I will do whatever is required so that I may be close to you. To spend time getting to know you." He looked to Julius. "It is a grave thing you request of me. I hope my willingness makes my intentions clear. That you see I am also wanting only to protect her."

  "You will swear fealty. The blood oath?" Alexander asked, his scepticism clear.

  "I will do it right now if that is what you require," he declared. Though he was answering Alexander's question, his attention never wavered from Julius.

  Gabi felt the unease flit through the others in the room; she felt it too. The Spaniard had agreed to this far too easily.

  "Tomorrow night," Julius said. "I need to prepare a few things. In the meanwhile you can tell us what you know of the Princeps' knowledge of Gabrielle."

  "I know you have a powerful ally in the court," Caspian began. "The Princeps know it too, though they do not appear to know who it is. Your contact is very discreet. Only your countermoves in the past have given away the fact that you know far more than you should. There are rumours whispered among the rest that it is, in fact, one of the Princeps themselves." His eyebrow quirked inquisitively.

  "Tell us something we don't know, Spaniard," Alex said, sounding bored.

  "The court is becoming more…how do you say…techno savvy." He used his hands to indicate using a keyboard. "They have Turned some young ones who know how to use all the modern equipment. Someone finally became aware that information can be sent via computers, and they are in the process of identifying potential leaks."

  Gabi stiffened. Trish could be on the receiving side of those leaks, but Julius merely smiled mirthlessly.

  "Go on," he said calmly. Even Gabi couldn't tell if the revelation was news to him or not.

  "There is disagreement amongst the Princeps over the issue of Gabrielle. There are a few who realise the destruc
tion that would follow the revealing of her secret, but those are divided on whether it would be better to issue an order of protection over her life and leave you be, and those who think it would be safer to simply kill her and eliminate the threat entirely."

  Alex and Kyle both went noticeably still, and Caspian smiled. Gabi wanted to smack them for making their interest so apparent.

  "There are others who want her alive to force the secret from her, and others who would just imprison her and tap her blood to feed them all. As things stand at the moment, you wouldn't have enough support to risk a Princep council vote. That is your only way out of this mess. One way or another, the Princeps will decide your fate. You need to find ways to convince more of them to side with you. And I can help you with that."

  "How many support us now?" Gabi asked. She was still largely ignorant when it came to the Princeps and their court, though Julius had explained a little over dinner. She knew that the council consisted of twelve members, six male and six female Vampires, ranging in Vamp years from three hundred to over nine hundred. Only a few were truly interested in performing their original duty: the protection of all Vampires from human knowledge and persecution. For the rest it was about political posturing and power. Each Princep represented a different Clan. Only the Master of a Clan could become a Princep, and their allegiance was always Clan first. The most powerful Clans felt it was imperative to have representation by their own Princep so that their aims and goals could be achieved. No one resigned from the Princeps; death was the only way out and the only way for another to get in.

  "To my knowledge there are three who would vote to leave you be," he answered. "Another four are undecided, and the rest want you either dead or enslaved."

  A menacing growl erupted from deep in Kyle's throat as an apprehensive shiver went through Gabi. Fergus shifted restively. No one spoke for several seconds. Caspian's gaze flicked from Julius to Gabi, unsure whether to continue.

  "Do you know which of them…" Julius's question was interrupted by a sharp knock on the door.

  Alexander opened it angrily a split second later. Gabi hadn't seen him move. "What?" he demanded.

  Maximilian's head was already bowed in apology, but his anxiety was palpable. "Sire," he rasped, "there is an emissary at the gate. He says he has an urgent message to deliver, and he will only deliver it into your hands." The tall Vampire was wringing his hands together. "He claims he is an emissary of the Court of Princeps. His message carries their insignia."

  CHAPTER 8

  "We've been expecting him," Julius said to Maximilian. "Fergus, assemble the rest of the guard, and arrange to escort the emissary to us here." The Scotsman was moving before Julius finished speaking. Maximilian backed subserviently out of the big man's way. "Maximilian, you may convey back to the emissary that he will be attended in a few minutes."

  A quiet vibration disturbed the air in the boardroom, and Gabi realised it was her phone. She’d put it on silent before the meeting. She pulled it out, annoyed but curious. Not many people had this number, and it was nearly midnight. Byron’s name flashed on the screen. She hesitated, normally she'd have sent it to voicemail without a second thought, but they'd only just eased the tension between them this afternoon.

  "Take it," Julius said, seeing the caller ID. "It’ll be a while before our visitor arrives."

  Gabi hit the answer icon as she rose from the table, giving herself a modicum of privacy.

  "Gabi." Byron's voice put her on immediate alert.

  "Yes, what's wrong?" she asked without preamble. Her question alerted the others, and three pairs of eyes fastened on her.

  "It's the Oracles," Byron said, loud enough for the others to hear.

  Gabi frowned. The Oracles? The trio of powerful, but very secretive Magi clairvoyants rarely concerned themselves with anything except the safety of local Magi.

  Byron continued in a terse voice. "They have information for us, and it pertains to you and Julius. We need you to join us as soon as you can."

  "We, uh…have a bit of a situation we're dealing with…" she began.

  "Tell him we can meet in two hours," Julius interrupted her.

  "Can the meeting wait two hours?" she checked with Byron.

  "Yes, that should be fine," he replied after a brief pause. "Meet us at HQ. I'll leave passes for you at the front desk. Bring Kyle as well if you can round him up."

  "He's here with us," Gabi assured him. "We'll see you soon."

  A deep cloud of foreboding settled over her as she disconnected. Things were moving way faster than she'd anticipated. Her plan was falling apart unless she moved quicker. She quickly stopped herself thinking about it as she noticed Julius narrow his eyes as he watched her speculatively. Her anxiety levels were too high for her to sit while they waited. She took to pacing the length of the room, her hands clenching and unclenching as she itched to feel the familiar, comforting solidity of Nex's hilt in her hand. She doubted it would be good form to have the sword drawn when the emissary arrived. No one spoke as they waited for the arrival. Even Caspian held his tongue, though his eyes followed her every movement, almost hungrily.

  They all heard the front door open and the march of over a dozen pairs of boots across the tiles and down the corridor. A pause at the door to the boardroom. Caspian moved out of the chair he'd been occupying and moved to stand to one side of the room, out of the dubious limelight.

  "No sudden movements, Emissary," Nathan's voice commanded. "We’d hate to send you back to your Masters in an urn."

  The door opened, and Charlie, one of Julius's personal guards, preceded an unknown Vampire into the room. Julius had moved to the far side of the table, facing the new arrival. Charlie immediately moved to take up a position in front of the table, to one side of Julius, also facing the emissary, and Tabari, the dark-skinned Vampire that had the unusual ability to make Gabi nervous, took up the position on the other side. Silent, protective sentinels alert to the emissary's slightest movement.

  The emissary was a slightly built male, possibly of Middle Eastern origin, his skin and hair colour too rich to be European. He walked calmly into the room and stood before the table, inclining his head slightly to Julius. Not quite subservience, but polite acknowledgment of a more superior Vampire.

  Gabi stopped her pacing at Julius's side as the rest of the Vampire guard filed in and formed an impressively ominous wall behind the messenger. The emissary's gaze flitted to Gabi's face, and his eyes widened slightly. Gabi studied him as intensely in return; her innate sense told her that he was no Vampire powerhouse, though probably several centuries old.

  Julius cleared his throat. "You are an emissary from the Princeps?"

  The Vampire immediately drew himself up and dragged his attention back to Julius. "Yes," he confirmed, "I am here at the behest of the Court of Princeps to extend to you a request to attend a hearing before them." He held out an envelope. It was large and made from thick, expensive-looking paper. The front was addressed, in neat calligraphy, to Julius Constantine. Despite the gravity of the situation, a tiny smile threatened to break through Gabi's poker face. He'd never mentioned his second name was Constantine.

  Alexander moved from his position to Julius's right and strode to the other side of the table to take the envelope from the Vampire. He walked back to Julius at human speed and placed the envelope in front of him on the table, returning to his position without a word. On his walk back he'd given the envelope a thorough sniff and feel, checking for what, Gabi didn’t know.

  "By request you mean demand, I assume?" Julius asked the man as he reached for the envelope.

  "I do not presume to know the minds of the Princeps," he replied calmly. "I only ensure the delivery of the missive and deliver the reply."

  Julius turned the envelope over and broke the red wax seal with a thumbnail, pulling out an archaically formal card. The same insignia that embossed the red wax seal adorned the top of the card, and Gabi could now see it was a circle of twelve tiny, detai
led insignias set in two perfect circles. Twelve Princeps, twelve Clans, twelve insignias.

  On the card was a time and date, again inked in the same flowing handwriting as the front of the envelope. The date was two days away. Gabi had to bite back a gasp. Two days? They only had two days to find a way through this disaster. An unusually rough wave of power rushed over her skin as Julius sent out a mental command. They all waited in silence until Maximilian arrived, eyes wide and movements jerky.

  "I need pen, paper and my seal from my office, Maximilian," Julius said, and the steward rushed off, only to return in seconds with the required items. He set them on the desk in front of Julius before scurrying out. Gabi wished she had the same effect on the steward, with Julius's lack of effort.

  Julius pulled out a chair and sat to write a reply. Gabi wasn't sure what she expected him to say, but his reply was a surprise to her regardless. Instead of simply giving in or outright refusing the invitation, Julius wrote a mild reply acknowledging their request and stating that the time and date didn't suit him, and suggesting an alternative time and date a week from now. Gabi actually had to bite her lip to prevent the grin escaping. If nothing else, he'd bought them a bit more time. It would take the emissary at least a day to travel back to court, and another day to return with their reply to his suggested date. Right now another day or two to plan was extremely valuable.

  He signed the end of the note and folded it before slipping it into an envelope, melting a stick of dark red wax and dripping it onto the sealed flap, then pressing his personal seal into the soft wax before it set.

  "Return this to the Princeps, Emissary," Julius said, handing the envelope to Alexander to take back to the Vampire. "Do not linger in my City. Those who do not ask for safe passage are fair game to the local Werewolf Packs."

  "I shall return directly to my employers, have no fear," he replied with a cold smile. "They are eagerly awaiting your reply. So eager, in fact, that they might surprise you."