Fair point, but this was different. “Andre, you turned her,” I tried to explain. “Clearly that relationship was meaningful enough to want her by your side forever.” Those words shredded my throat coming out.
He stepped in closer. “You’re right,” he admitted. It felt like a knife to my chest. “A long time ago I met a beguiling woman named Vicca, and I fell in love.”
I swallowed down the thick knot at the back of my throat.
Andre’s face got a faraway look to it. “At least I thought I had,” he said. “Lust, attraction, romance—all are heady drugs, but like all drugs, they wear off.” His gaze refocused on me. “And when they inevitably did, I realized that I didn’t love her—not true love, the kind that makes you the best version of yourself.”
Andre glanced at the door. Our private moment was almost over, and not even the king of the vampires could stall his trial much longer.
“I’d never felt true love,” he said, looking back at me. “Not until you. In seven hundred years, I’d never gazed at someone and felt this bone-deep ache the way I do when I look at you. Like the other half of my bruised soul lies beneath your skin. And it’s more than everything I’d ever hoped for. It’s finding my humanity. It’s living for the first time. It’s … redemption.” He drew the words out, and they lingered in the air between us.
The tips of his fingers grazed my cheek, and I glanced at the ground, bashful now that he’d reassured me of his love.
“It’s always been you Gabrielle, even before you existed. And long after our bodies have turned to dust it will still be you. It will always, always be you.”
Chapter 17
A tentative knock interrupted us, and so caught up in the moment, I jolted at the sound. Andre sighed and took my hand. “Our time’s up. Are you ready for this?”
No, not at all, but it wasn’t like I had any other good options. I’d already decided to stay in Romania and risk this exact situation. As the saying went, I’d made my bed, and now I was going to have to sleep in it.
I took a deep breath. “Let’s get this over with.”
Together we crossed the entrance hall, and Andre pulled open one of the two solid oak doors and ushered me in.
I didn’t know what I was expecting on the other side, but it was something along the lines of a lot of crimson and black furniture, corsets, candelabras, and maybe even some spider webs. So the gilded murals and finely pressed business suits threw me. It was almost disappointing.
At least the vampires were real. They were all unnaturally still as we entered, making it appear as though someone pressed pause on time.
I saw some of their nostrils flare as they breathed my scent in. What were they scenting? My emotions, or how just how human I was?
I gazed around the room. It was set up like the courtrooms I’d seen on TV, except instead of a single judge, there was a row of them.
“The Elders,” Andre whispered into my ear.
Sure enough, Vicca sat up there, her expression stoic, though I could’ve sworn she had an evil glint to her eyes.
Up until several months ago, Theodore would’ve been among them, and roughly a decade ago so would have my father. It was a strange and sobering thought.
A vampire stepped up to us. “Miss Fiori,” he said, giving me a slight bow, “the Elders have generously rearranged today’s schedule so that you can give your testimony as the first order of business.”
Generously. I wanted to snort at that. My guess was that the schedule had been rearranged so that they could snatch me, get my testimony, and return me before Andre was made aware of the situation. And if they had, then my testimony would’ve been inconsistent with Andre’s. We’d have both been screwed.
“I was kidnapped, and now you want me to testify?” I raised my eyebrows and gazed at the sea of vampires. Their expressions remained passive.
“As a member of this coven, it is your duty to testify before our court, something you’ve managed to evade up until now.” As if he couldn’t help himself, the vampire snuck a sly glance at Andre. I guess there was no mistaking exactly who was responsible for my absence in court. Funny how I, and not Andre, was still getting punished for it.
“I am here on an official investigation for the Politia,” I said. “My primary allegiance during this time is to them.”
Now that statement got a reaction. The sound of hisses echoed throughout the courtroom.
“Blasphemy,” someone whispered. That was cute, coming from a vampire.
Another whispered, “Why does he let her get away with this heresy?”
Someone responded, “He won’t. He never does.”
One of the Elders spoke up. “Enough stalling. Gabrielle Fiori, daughter of the late Santiago Fiori, tonight you will answer the court’s questions. Once you do so, you will be allowed to leave and return to your investigation.” His voice dripped with disdain.
The Elder’s eyes moved to Andre. “Sire, I trust you will not stand in the way of these proceedings though this young vampire means something to you?”
Andre stared at the Elder for a long moment before inclining his head. “You have my word.”
Well hell, I was in for a long night.
“Please follow me to the stand,” said the vampire standing next to me.
I glanced at Andre, who stared at the vampire until he fidgeted, before inclining his head. Andre may be the defendant in this trial, but there was no mistaking that he was still in charge.
He released my hand, and I followed the vampire up to the stand, a strange sort of disbelief settling over me. This was really happening. I’d been kidnapped and now, rather than reporting the incident, I was testifying. Vampires had a majorly screwed up justice system.
At my back I could feel Andre’s comforting presence. It was the one silver lining of the whole situation.
As I sat down and faced the pale, expressionless audience, I made a promise to myself: I would not screw this up.
“Why would Theodore want to kill you?”
I stared down at my twisted hands. “He thought I was unnatural.”
“And why would he think that?”
I’d already explained this to the other lawyer—don’t even get me started on the strangeness of vampiric lawyers—but now the other side was cross-examining me, looking for holes in my story.
I drew my gaze up and gave the male vampire a sharp look. “I don’t know.” I bit back a longer response. The less they could get out of me, the likelier I was to pull this off.
“Surely you have an idea?” he prodded.
“Objection,” the other lawyer said.
“Overruled,” one of the bored Elders said.
In the courtroom beyond him, Andre controlled his expression, but every once in a while I glimpsed the muscle in his cheek feathering.
My attention returned to the lawyer. “You’ve been a vampire longer than I have, you tell me.”
That didn’t sit well with him. His eyes thinned, but he moved on.
“So walk us through what happened during that period of time you were alone in Theodore’s presence.”
I did, explaining how he divulged his attempts in the past to kill me, and how he tried again that evening but was thwarted when I used glamour on him. While I spoke, I stole a glance at the Elders. Several of them were scenting the air, and I realized they were gaging how anxious I was when I spoke. They wanted to smell whether I told the truth.
“And what happened once you escaped?” the vampire asked once I finished.
“I ran out of the room and down the stairs, and that’s when I saw Andre. Behind me Theodore had pulled out a gun and aimed it at me. When he saw the gun, Andre tackled me. I slammed my head against the staircase, and the impact knocked me out.”
The lawyer’s nostrils
flared, and I inwardly cursed. He could smell something. I didn’t dare look at the Elders for fear that they too would scent the lie.
The lawyer took a step closer, an excited spark to his eyes, and I almost jumped at the movement. I was spooking myself, but it didn’t matter. I could feel my cheeks heating up, and I knew that if no one had noticed before that I was lying, now they would.
“The reports filed never mentioned you having a head injury,” the lawyer stated.
I opened my mouth and paused. Panic rose within me. Andre and I hadn’t gone over this. I don’t know the answer. I don’t know the answer.
I took a steadying breath and collected myself once more. I’d always heard that what made a lie believable was staying as close to the truth as possible. “They wouldn’t have since it had already healed.”
“And how fast would you say the injury took to heal?”
I shrugged. “I have no idea. I was a bit distracted that evening.”
“Strange that you were unconscious precisely during the time that Andre killed Theodore—what was that, several minutes? Yet your injury healed so quickly once you woke that it went undocumented—”
Andre’s lawyer jumped to his feet. “Objection! The prosecution is insinuating that the witness is making false claims.”
“Sustained,” and Elder said.
The lawyer still had an excited spark to his eyes, like a shark scenting blood. Or a vampire. He continued to question me for what felt like an eternity but was probably only another twenty or thirty minutes.
I adamantly stuck to the story that Andre had fed me. Thank goodness for that too, since I’d seen some of the audience’s eyes flicker with anger and morbid fascination. I had the distinct impression that they wouldn’t mind me dead, vampire or not. But through it all was the lingering worry that the Elders and the prosecution had literally sniffed out the lies in my story.
Eventually my testimony came to a close, and the trial was adjourned for the rest of the evening due to the bad weather conditions. Imagine that—they had just enough time to get my testimony, but nothing else.
Sneaky didn’t even begin to cover it.
I was led from the stand to where Andre waited for me. The skin around his eyes was tight with tension. He draped an arm around my waist and placed a kiss along my temple. A few eyebrows went up, and I had to suppress a smile. I guess they were surprised that the big bad vampire king would show affection to his little pet.
But the gesture was more than just some casual PDA. Andre was warning his subjects to tread lightly when it came to me since I was a current favorite.
“Gabrielle Fiori,” a voice rang out above the commotion. I turned and met Vicca’s gaze. Her eyes dropped to where Andre’s arm draped around my waist, “stay close for the remainder of the trial. We don’t want to have to detain you again if we need to call you in for further questioning.”
“Further questioning?” I thought this was it.
Her gaze drifted up from Andre’s arm to me, and the smile she flashed was predatory. “Don’t think your role in this is over.”
I didn’t let my guard down until Andre and I sat safely in his car, and the courtroom was far behind us.
“I think they know,” I finally whispered, my voice cracking.
His hands tightened on the wheel. “They can’t prove anything based on the way you smell,” Andre said, staring at the road.
“So you smelled it?”
His mouth thinned, and he gave me a jerky nod.
“That’s what I thought,” I said softly, glancing at the storm raging outside. I raised my eyebrows. “Should we be driving in this weather?”
“No, but I wasn’t going to leave you there at the mercy of the coven.”
I swiveled my head and studied his profile. “Thank you.”
He clenched his jaw. “You should not be thanking me. They kidnapped you, and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it.”
The corners of my mouth drew downwards. “Kidnapping doesn’t seem so harsh compared to some of the violence the coven’s used to.” The memory of Andre squeezing Freddy’s throat played out in my mind.
Andre looked over at me, and he squinted his eyes. “I’m not a good person,” he said, reading between the lines. “None of us vampires really are.”
“You’re good to me.” Even I recognized that was a bit of a booby prize. I mean, I was his soulmate. It’d be strange if he didn’t treat me well.
Andre turned to look at me, his features warming, and he gave me a small smile. “You are the light of my existence.”
Ironic that he was finding his humanity at the same time I was losing mine. Or maybe it wasn’t ironic at all.
We road in silence after that, until the car came to a halt in front of a beautiful but unfamiliar building.
“Where are we?” I asked.
Andre turned off the ignition and turned to face me. “My home.”
My brows drew together. “Your home?” I repeated, confused. I didn’t know whether I should feel annoyance that he hadn’t told me we were making a pit stop or excitement to see what was probably Andre’s oldest and dearest home.
I rubbed my eyes. “Andre I want to see your place, but I have to get back.”
“You misunderstand,” he said, reaching out and tucking a lock of hair behind my ear. “I’m asking you to stay here.”
I drew back and searched his features. “You’re not asking me anything,” I stated. This wasn’t a request. This was a coup.
His expression turned protective. “Please, Gabrielle, go along with this. I can’t have my coven snatching you again while I’m unaware.”
“Andre—”
“You have to trust me that I know my people.”
“How about instead of trust, you keep me informed?” I asked.
He palmed the side of my face. “You’re a teenager Gabrielle, and you are the love of my life. I want you to be safe, happy, carefree. I want to keep the darkness that surrounds us both at bay as much as possible. You deserve that.”
Damn him. When he put it like that, it was hard to feel indignant. And boy did I want to feel indignant.
“But Andre, I have a case to solve, and my friends—”
“Arrangements have already been made.”
I opened my mouth and closed it. “What?” I finally said.
“Someone will be bringing your things and your friends as soon as the storm lets up.”
I pushed my hands through my hair. What he said made sense, so why did this bother me so much?
Because you’re being treated like a precious flower. A delicate, fragile flower that’s easily crushed.
“No,” said, making up my mind.
Andre’s eyes flashed. “Gabrielle …”
“Take me back to the inn.”
Andre’s eyes slitted. “No.”
“Yes,” I said, staring him down.
“Arguing is not going to change my mind.”
I knew it wasn’t, and I didn’t want to waste the effort on arguing when I had glamour.
My skin began to glow, and I opened my mouth. “Andre, take me—”
Before I could finish the order, Andre leaned across the consul, tipped my chin back, and kissed me roughly.
The siren practically squealed with pleasure. Damn her. I moaned against Andre’s lips as my skin flared. Encouraged, he cradled the back of my head and deepened the kiss. I felt his tongue brush against mine, and warmth spread throughout my stomach.
He broke away and, lust drunk, I didn’t realize he’d left the car until he was opening my door and pulling me out. I touched my tender lips, dazed. But just as the siren in me began to ebb away, Andre removed my hand from my mouth and resumed the kiss.
He picked m
e up and, lost in him, I wrapped my legs around his waist as he carried me. I threaded my fingers through his hair and drew away long enough to drink in his beauty.
Dark, expressive eyes stared back at me, and right now they looked … remorseful. Using my thumb I touched the skin at the corner of one of his eyes. “Why do you look so sad?” I asked. My voice no longer sounded like my own. The rich melody that came out of my mouth was pitched both lower and higher. It had layers to it; it made words music.
He swallowed. “Don’t concern yourself, soulmate,” he said, his words laced with regret.
My eyes moved between his. “But I want to.” I ran my tongue over my fangs. I hadn’t noticed them drop down, but now that I did, my gaze dropped to his neck. No pulse stirred, but I knew blood lay beneath, and that excited me.
He sighed. “I cannot win. I do not know how,” he said.
I kissed his cheek. “Win what?” I asked. The siren shrank away some as worry replaced lust.
“A battle involving you and fate,” Andre said, moving us down a hall.
I frowned. He wasn’t usually so cryptic.
Andre brushed his palm against my temple. “Instead I help fate along and push you away.”
My brows pinched down. This talk was killing my lusty buzz. Making a small noise, I pressed my lips to Andre’s and moved against him. I smiled against his mouth as I felt his grip tighten and his body tense. And then we were lost in the kiss once more. At the back of my mind I knew I was forgetting something important.
He pressed me against the wall, and I practically purred with pleasure.
Andre broke off the kiss and bowed his head. “I can’t do this.” He sounded defeated.
Why were we talking again?
I ran a hand through his hair, and he turned his cheek into it, kissing my palm. “Damnit,” he whispered, “I really can’t do this.”
The Cursed (The Unearthly) Page 13