"Your flat is verysmall."
"I'm a student," I saydefensively.
He ambles over to my bedroom door, which is ajar, and looks through the crack. I hear him inhale as if he's trying to smell my bedroom, which I find just a bitcreepy…
Hey—quit looking at my private life. Which is, of course, a ridiculous thing to think. Who knows what secrets he's mined from my memories while touchingme?
After returning to the living room, he sits on the chair across from me, crossing his legs and stretching out his arms on theback.
"What's yourscent?"
Huh? None of your business. He asks such personal questions and once again, I feel that he'sintruding.
"Why do youask?"
"I likeit."
"It's 'Noir' by this little French perfumer I visited on a field trip toParis."
He smiles. "I like the note of citrus in it. And jasmine I think. Verynice."
"Are we going to talk about my perfume and piano practicehabits?"
He ignores my attempt to be rude and leans forward, his face earnestnow.
"There's a whole process to you becoming my Adept, Eve, and working for the Council. You have to pass a few tests, interviews, that sort ofthing."
HisAdept?
"Is there some kind of vampire hunterjob?"
"Yes. I can set the process in motion," he says and nods, looking at me with that intense gaze. "Plead your case. You were supposed to have been better-trained by now, but obviously, things didn't go as planned with your family. Your foster parents started training you in martial arts and science but you're not ready. I can train you. Are you willing to undergo thetests?"
"Will it mean I can take over my mother'swork?"
He nods, his head tilted to theside.
"What about the manuscript? Are you going to let me readit?"
He sighs."What is it about the manuscript that intrigues you somuch?"
"Your brother gave it to my mother for a reason. I have to know why. Maybe it has something to do with herdeath."
He lifts the messenger bag from the floor and opens it, withdrawing themanuscript.
"You really want to read it?" he says, taking it out of the envelope and laying it on my coffee table. "It's very explicit. Too explicit andpersonal."
I nod, unable to get Sir Julien's words out of my head from even the short passage I didread.
"Is the manuscript that violent?" I frown. "I know all about violence." I say quietly. "Andpain."
"Yes, I think you do. But this," he says and holds the manuscript up. "This is both very violent and very personal," he says quietly. "And sexual but not in a good way." He looks away from me. "You can understand why I don't want ittranslated."
I squirm a bit. Now I'm dying to read themanuscript.
"It's thatbad?"
"I'd burn it now, happily, if I wasn't curious myself. I have to read it at least once before Ido."