Cassandra Palmer 1(102)
Rafe answered from behind me, his voice bitter. «It seems Tomas has changed sides, mia stella. What was the price for your betrayal, bastardo?»
Tomas sneered at him, and the expression looked strange on his usually stoic face. «Did you really think I would work to keep myself in chains? I should be Consul! I would lead the Latin American Senate today if it had not been for that creature's interference. I will not let you keep me subject to the whims of a child!»
«Oh, okay.» Billy Joe floated around Tomas' head.
«That's how the dark mages were able to figure out the wards so fast. Tomas told them what to expect. Guess he ain't thrilled with the idea of staying servant to that French guy.» He glanced over his shoulder, back the way we came. «I'll be back in a minute.»
«They will be here soon,» Tomas told Mircea. «Don't be a fool. Help us, and you will be rewarded. I give you my word!»
«Why would anyone take the word of a traitor?» Rafe asked, his tone insulting. I would have told him to be quiet if I'd thought it would do any good. The expression on Tomas' face reminded me of Tony in a mood, and antagonizing him then had never been smart.
«What do you plan for Cassandra?» Mircea demanded.
Tomas' eyes flickered to me. «She has been promised to me, as part of my reward. She will not be harmed.»
Mircea laughed contemptuously. «Cassandra may become Pythia. Quite a prize, Tomas. Do you really think your master will let you keep her?»
«I have no master!» Tomas shouted, and I felt a bolt of power slam against Mircea's shields, just above my head. His defenses held, but I didn't see how. I was dazed from only the near miss, and Rafe was on the floor, screaming.
«Rafe! Mircea, put me down.» He ignored me. I had the impression that he and Tomas had forgotten that anybody else was in the room.
«If Rasputin kills Louis-Cesar in anything but fair combat, your side wins nothing. You know this, Tomas. What are you planning?»
«Rasputin will be fighting Mei Ling, not Louis-Cesar. He will win easily, and the other senates will have to acknowledge his control. The Frenchman dodged our first attempt, when Cassie and I saved the girl, but soon it won't matter.»
«What?» I had the impression I'd missed something.
Mircea seemed to understand, though. «You slipped earlier, when you said he'd been cursed. But he wasn't, and you should have known that—you've been his servant for a century. I should have caught it then. Before you and Cassie interfered, Louis-Cesar was not made; he was cursed, wasn't he? By the gypsy family whose daughter died because of him. That is the way it originally happened, is it not?»
It took a second for his words to soak in. «You have got to be kidding,» I told him. He shot me a warning look, and I shut up.
Tomas apparently didn't notice. «She was their only daughter. The king ordered her death to make a lasting impression on his half brother, but her family didn't know that. They blamed the man they thought had seduced her and then had her killed when she ceased to be amusing. Her grandmother was a very powerful woman, and in her grief she cursed him with vampirism.»
Rafe had managed to get back to his feet, although he didn't look good. He started to speak, but I frantically shook my head at him. The last thing I wanted was to remind Tomas that he was in the room.
Tomas was too caught up in his story to care. «When I realized Cassie had brought us to a time when Louis-Cesar was still human, I knew it was the perfect opportunity to free myself. I thought if the girl was rescued, the curse would not be laid and he would die after a normal, human life span. I blame him for causing much suffering by his interference, but it was largely unwitting. I thought it would not be a tragedy for him to die as all men do, at his appointed time, but I should have been firmer. I do not know what went wrong, how he became vampire after all, but it does not matter.» He looked at me. «You will take me back, Cassie, and this time, I will be more direct. You must help me possess a body so I will have the strength to kill him.»
I stared at him. What the hell did he expect me to say: sure thing, no problem! I was beginning to think he was as crazy as Rasputin.
Before I could figure out what to say, Billy Joe appeared in front of me. «Cassie! They're in the Senate chamber. If you're gonna do anything, now would be good.»
«Do what? I need to touch Louis-Cesar to shift. And he's not here!»
«Well, you better come up with something. The Senate's wards are goin' down like some first-year wardsmith crafted 'em, and the glamourie in the outer chamber ain't gonna fool anybody if they already know where it is. They'll be here any minute.»