A smile that didn’t reach his eyes still playing on his lips, Alexandru was the one to answer the younger vampire, drawling, “Relax, Lord Erou. This is no setup. As you appear to play a special role in my pet’s life, I thought it would be prudent you were made aware of the truth about her.”
Erou asked warily, “And what’s that?”
“She is no ordinary human pet. Zari is a soul seer, one of the last of her kind in fact.”
The younger vampire shook his head in disbelief. “A soul seer?” Like many, he had believed that reports about soul seers still existing were just rumors.
“You must swear to keep this a secret, of course. Too many are willing to be in possession of a soul seer’s skills.”
“I will never do or say anything that will harm Lady Zari,” he countered stiffly. “But I must confess, Lord Alexandru, I don’t understand why you’re telling me this.”
Instead of answering the other vampire, Alexandru glanced down at his pet, who still stood quietly by his side. “Do you know what Lord Erou was thinking when he came here?”
Slowly, she shook her head. Although his tone and gaze were both unreadable, Zari had a feeling she wouldn’t like his answer.
“He thought I was challenging him to a duel. For your ownership.”
Her gaze flew to Lord Erou in dismayed surprise.
Behind her, her Master continued, “And despite seeing me with my men, he did not back out. He still intended to fight me – and even my men – for the right to claim you.”
For a moment, their gazes locked, Master and pet.
He waited for her to say something.
She waited for him to say something.
But the silence remained, and Alexandru was eventually the first one to break it. Looking away, he gestured to his men, his voice turning brisk as he said, “But we can talk about that later. For now, we have a case to solve.”
Glancing at Zari, he asked, “Is this about the spree of murders in the nearby towns?”
“Correct, Lord Erou. An astute guess to make. Lady Zari should be quite impressed.”
Erou flushed at the mocking approval in the older vampire’s face, knowing that the hunter was well aware he had said it because he wanted to make Zari realize he truly could be of help in cases like this. When standing next to the five-hundred-year-old vampire, Erou knew his measly ten years of fighting paled considerably in comparison.
Zari, however, appeared truly impressed. “You knew about it, too, Lord Erou? I hadn’t heard anything about it, I’m afraid, and I’ve been trying to get a vision the whole time I was here.”
He said readily, “It’s not your fault, Lady Zari. The enforcers did their best to suppress the news.”
Alexandru knew he should have been the one to say something like that to his pet. But he was not that kind of Master, and he wouldn’t be like that, he told himself grimly, even if it meant Zari choosing someone ‘kinder’ than him.
Kinder, ha. A kinder Master might be able to wipe away her tears, but it wouldn’t be able to keep her alive when the world learned about who she really was.
Even knowing it was childish, Alexandru stepped in between the two. They had been looking at each other far too long.
“I never thought someone like you could be this immature,” Erou said under his breath, making sure his voice was low enough to be undetectable to human ears.
“Immature or not, you must take care to remember who this girl belongs to,” Alexandru returned in the same tone of voice.
Zari, sensing a sudden tension in the air, instinctively huddled closer to her Master.
Alexandru automatically wrapped an arm around her waist even as his gaze went to the boy.
Erou’s teeth gnashed against each other when he saw the other man smirk. Damn him. He swore to himself then that he’d get back at the hunter, no matter what.
“Lord Erou, my pet had her vision when she was in your company. This is likely to mean that the murders had occurred at a place you had recently visited.”
Erou raised a brow. “I’m surprised you aren’t considering me a suspect.”
“I would have known right away if you meant my pet harm. I am her Master, after all.”
Zari couldn’t make herself look at her Master after such words. She was blushing too hard because of it. However, it didn’t make her completely happy, the words making her glumly wonder if this was the last time she would hear Alexandru call himself her Master.
Her heart lurched at the thought, but she forced all feelings of despair aside, telling herself she had to concentrate on the case. Several innocent people had already died, and she had to do what she could to prevent another murder from taking place.
Erou was recounting the places that he had been to, with Alexandru listening intently. “None of those seem to fit. All those places are too public, and the way the bodies have been mutilated, it appeared the killer had all the time in the world to torture his victims.”