To calm him, Faye gently stroked her hand against his hip. His eyes immediately sought hers and began to shimmer golden. His vampire side was simmering right under his skin, ready to burst to the surface at any moment should he feel that somebody was threatening his territory.
“My love,” she murmured under her breath.
The words seemed to soothe him, and he severed the eye contact and continued following the two gay vampires.#p#分页标题#e#
It took only a few minutes until they reached the driveway leading to the palace. Several guards were already rushing toward them, weapons at the ready. Clearly drawn by the scent of Blake’s blood, they were expecting trouble and ready to meet it head on.
Before the guards reached them, Cain called out to them, “Stand down! They’re friends.”
The king’s guards waited for their small group to reach them. “Was there an attack?” Lee, one of the more senior guards, asked, glancing suspiciously at Blake, his nostrils flaring.
“A little accident with some overly hungry alligators,” Cain explained. “Escort us to the palace. We need to take care of my human friend here.”
“Of course, Your Majesty.”
Flanked by the guards, they marched to the palace and entered it.
“Where to?” Faye asked, looking up at Cain.
“Downstairs. Blake will be staying with Haven and Wesley.” Cain glanced at Thomas and Eddie who were receiving curious looks from the guards. Cain didn’t have to point out where Eddie would be staying. By the looks the two lovers exchanged, it was clear that they couldn’t wait to withdraw to their room.
“Back to your posts,” Cain ordered the guards who’d accompanied them.
Faye walked ahead as Cain brought Blake downstairs and almost carried him along the corridor to the king’s quarters, Eddie and Thomas following them. She opened the double doors wide to make way for the men behind her, then glanced at Cain. He motioned to the door on the right, indicating that it was Haven and Wesley’s room.
She knocked and opened it before getting any reply. The room was empty.
“Here, on the sofa,” she instructed, pointing to the large sectional that dominated the sitting room of the comfortably appointed guard’s suite. While not as luxurious as the king’s or the queen’s suites, the king’s guards’ suites were homey. Considering that the king’s guards had little private life, with the leader of the king’s guard having none at all, each king had made sure that they were housed in rooms which spared no expense to make them feel at home. Each guard’s room was therefore different and furnished to the taste of the guard.
Cain lowered the human onto the sofa. Blake let out a sigh of obvious relief at being able to get off his feet.
“I’ll wash out his wound first, then somebody can give him vampire blood,” she suggested. She had already turned toward the ensuite bathroom to get water and a towel, when Cain stopped her.
“I’ll get it.”
Surprised at Cain’s willingness to help her, she smiled at him. “Thank you.”
While he disappeared in the bathroom, she took a pillow and shoved it under Blake’s head. “Here. That might be a little more comfortable.”
Blake tossed a look at the open bathroom door behind her before thanking her with a smile.
From the corner of her eye, she noticed Thomas and Eddie waiting. She looked at them. “So who’s gonna give him his blood?”
Eddie raised his hands. “Not me.”
Thomas hesitated, but didn’t get a chance to answer, because Cain’s voice now came from the bathroom as he stepped out. “I will.”
He walked to her and set a small bowl of water on the floor beside her, placed the towel on the armrest of the sofa, then crouched down next to the couch and loosened the knot of the makeshift bandage around Blake’s leg Faye had made earlier.
“You don’t need to do that,” she said, and kneeled down next to him. “You’re the king.”
“He’s my responsibility.”
Faye put her hand over his and gently pulled it back. “I’m much better at that than you are.” She held his gaze until he finally nodded and rose.
“Cain,” Eddie addressed him. “A word, please.”
“Excuse us. I’ll be back in a moment,” Cain said and followed Thomas and Eddie as they left the room. She heard them walk across the common area and open the door to the other guard’s room, before turning back to Blake.
“Now let’s have a look at your wound.”
Cain shut the door to Thomas’s room and looked at Eddie.
“You asked us to check out John’s story,” the young blond vampire started.