Duncan
Page 34
“Your vote, Lucas?” Raphael’s deep voice interrupted Lucas’s contemplation of his fellow lords. Lucas didn’t move from his slouched position at the oval table. He shifted his gaze to Raphael and lowered his glasses enough to look over them.
“Affirmative,” he said flatly, then raised the glasses to cover his eyes once again. Gods willing, the others would vote the same way and they could all get the hell out of here. Not that Malibu was a bad place to be. He just didn’t like the company much.
It seemed to take forever, and he had to endure, or ignore, more than one boring speech, but eventually the others all voted to affirm Duncan as Lord of the Capital Territory. It was the only territory that required such a vote, and only because of the unique demands imposed on its lord. They’d all agreed to the condition about a century ago, even Victor who’d laughed at the time, assuming it would never become an issue. Arrogant ass that he was, he’d never understood that he was the issue. The rest of them had been waiting ever since then for someone to take that bastard out. Thank God it had finally happened, and thank God it was Duncan who’d done it. Lucas didn’t think anyone else could have gotten approval from the full council.
“The resolution passes,” Raphael said, stating the obvious. He stood almost immediately, seeming as eager as the rest of them to get the meeting over with. Probably more so, since it was his home that had been invaded by the lords and their security details.
Lucas unfolded himself from the chair, pushing it back from the table with the same motion. He waited while the others hurried out the door, a few stopping to congratulate Duncan, including Raj, who paused long enough to shake hands. Raj and Duncan had been lieutenants to their respective lords a very long time. Lucas supposed that created a certain familiarity with one another. And their territories shared a border, so it couldn’t hurt that they were at least friendly. Of course, his own friendship with Duncan went back much further than that.
Raphael was the last to leave, his black eyes holding Lucas’s gaze for a long moment despite the glasses until, finally, he murmured something to Duncan and disappeared between the big double doors. Duncan grinned at Lucas as he made his way around the table.
“Duncan,” Lucas said warmly. “Congratulations.”
Duncan shook the proffered hand. “You can take the damn glasses off now.”
Lucas laughed and slipped the unnecessary glasses into the pocket of his suit jacket. “I only wear them to piss off Raphael. Somebody’s gotta keep the big guy humble.”
“Too late, my friend. That ship sailed long ago.”
“Yeah, well, I do what I can. You leaving right away?”
“Tomorrow. We’ll spend the night, but there’s too much to do back in D.C. to remain any longer.”
“We, is it? I’d heard you found yourself a honey back there.”
“I could as easily have been referring to Miguel and Louis,” Duncan said mildly.
“But you weren’t. It’s all in the we, my friend. So, is she a sweet, old-fashioned Southern girl then? Someone to rub your feet and wash your socks?”
Duncan laughed. “Hardly, though Emma is Southern—and sweet when she chooses. She’s around somewhere. Drinking wine with Raphael’s mate Cynthia, I believe, though I should probably track her down. One shudders to think what trouble those two could get into.”
Lucas accepted Duncan’s statement for what it was—a polite way of acknowledging that he knew Raphael was waiting to meet with Lucas. Duncan had been Raphael’s lieutenant and confidante for almost a hundred and fifty years, and while his assumption of the Capital lordship took him away from Raphael’s day-to-day operations, it changed nothing about their friendship. Just as Duncan’s new lordship changed nothing about the friendship he shared with Lucas.
They walked out together, going their separate ways after shaking hands once more and promising to stay in touch. Duncan turned for the stairs, while Lucas started down the long hallway, heading for Raphael’s office in the other wing. He’d left his security downstairs, not wanting any more witnesses than necessary to this meeting. He trusted his people, for the most part, but he was in no danger from anyone within Raphael’s estate, so there was no reason to take a chance.
The black, carved doors opened upon his approach, and he considered putting the sunglasses back on. He discarded the idea almost immediately, however. They had business to discuss, and Raphael had never appreciated Lucas’s irreverent approach to serious matters.
Raphael looked up from behind his desk as Lucas strolled into the room. The doors closed right behind him with a whoosh of air, barely clearing his ass. Lucas grinned briefly, but approached the desk and gave a sincerely respectful bow from the waist.
“Sire,” he said. “Thank you for seeing me.”
Raphael studied him for a suspicious moment, then gestured at the two comfortable chairs in front of the desk. “Sit down, Lucas. Where are your sunglasses?”
Lucas laughed then. “Duncan told me not to wear them.”
Raphael permitted a smile to edge around his mouth. “Tell me what’s happening.”
“It’s Klemens,” Lucas said referring to the Midwestern Vampire Lord who’d been glaring at him across the table moments before. “He’s pecking away at my eastern border. I held off until Duncan was confirmed, because you asked me, too, and because it was something we both wanted. But I can’t put up with it any longer. My own people are starting to doubt that I have the will to hold on to my territory.”
“Son of a bitch,” Raphael swore. “What does he want?”
Lucas shrugged. “I suspect he wants my entire Plains territory to combine with his own. It’s always ground at him that yours is bigger than his.” He punctuated this statement with an irreverent wink, which Raphael ignored. “He’ll settle for anything he can chip off, though,” Lucas continued. “And I won’t let that happen.”
“No,” Raphael agreed. “So, what will you do?”
“Nothing until after next week.”
“Why next week?”
“The FBI’s coming to see me,” Lucas said, relaxing now that his real reason for the meeting was resolved.
“The FBI?” Raphael said. “What have you done now?”
“Sire!” Lucas said, placing a hand over his heart and pretending to be wounded by the accusation. Raphael gave him a look of disgust, so Lucas said, “I haven’t done anything that I know of. Some FBI chick has been calling. And not only us, either. She called the local sheriff, too. Claims she’s looking for a lost person and thinks he disappeared in our area. I’ve checked with my people and nobody’s heard of him. If he’s lost, it’s either the humans or the Badlands that’ve taken him, not us.”
“And once she’s gone?”
“Once she’s gone, Sire,” Lucas said seriously. “There will be war.”
To be continued
Acknowledgments
First and foremost, my thanks go to Linda Kichline for the knowledge and nonstop hard work that go into every book. And to the talented Patricia Lazarus for another gorgeous cover.
My unending gratitude and big hugs to my critique partners and fellow writers, the very talented Michelle Muto and Steve J. McHugh, for their willingness to read bits and pieces and parts and finally the whole damn thing. And for their constant support and willingness to listen. Not that I complain or anything.
Thank you to the wonderful and oh-so-talented Adrian Phoenix for hanging around with me at RT when I’m sure she had better stuff to do, and for helping me celebrate the big win! To Kelley Armstrong for creating the best writing group on the Internet, and to all the members of OWG 6 for commiserating and/or celebrating as the moment requires!
Huge thanks to John Gorski, whose generosity in sharing his knowledge and experience shows up every time one of my characters picks up weapon. And to D. P. Lyle, M.D. (dplylemd.com) for once again answering my questions about dead bodies. Thanks also to Elizabeth from Rep. Henry A. Waxman’s office, and yes, I know there are some congressp
eople who actually do work to make things better.
Thank you to all of my readers who make it possible for me to tell my stories, and especially to those who write to let me know how much they love my beautiful vampires (and their mates, too.) And thanks also to all of the reviewers and book bloggers who help me get the word out about my vamps.
Thanks once more to my large and loving family for their ever-present pride and support. And finally, endless love and gratitude to my darling husband who still wonders what the heck his wife is doing pecking away at the computer into the wee hours of the night.
You can find me on Facebook, D. B. Reynolds, and on Twitter, @dbreynoldswrite.
Or stop by my blog at http://dbreynolds.wordpress.com for the latest news, contests, and Vampire Vignettes!