Conversation ceased.
Seth nodded to all present, avoiding their eyes and the recriminations they must certainly bear, and crossed to his chair.
Étienne rose as Seth passed him. “Seth, I was an ass about the whole Lisette thing. I hope you’ll forgive me.”
Seth’s steps faltered as he turned his disbelieving gaze on Étienne. No accusation. Just genuine remorse.
Richart nodded as he rose. “Me too. Everyone makes mistakes. We shouldn’t have condemned you for yours. And, after all of the trouble our sister has gotten us into over the centuries, I would’ve suspected her myself, had I been thinking clearly.”
“Hey!” Lisette protested with a laugh and stood. Circling around to them, she linked her arm through Seth’s and escorted him to his chair. “Believe it or not, it’s actually kind of a relief for us to discover that you aren’t infallible. Perfection can be annoying sometimes.”
“All of the time,” Marcus corrected with a smile. “It’s good to know we aren’t the only ones who screw up on occasion.”
“I never screw up,” Stanislav boasted with false disdain.
Everyone hurled insults at him.
Seth just stared at them as he let Lisette gently push him down into his chair.
As she returned to her own seat, the dark figure beside her shook his head.
“Zach,” Seth greeted him cautiously. “I’m surprised you joined us.”
“Apparently, he’s an enigma,” Marcus drawled, the words dripping with sarcasm.
Seth actually felt the urge to smile.
“And you’re the luckiest bastard on the planet,” Zach declared. “They love you, faults and all.”
Seth met every glance, examined every face, and found none of the anger he had expected. No condemnation. Only acceptance. And, as Zach had claimed, love. He really was the luckiest man on the planet.
Feeling lighter than he had in weeks, Seth smiled and shook his head. “Shall we get down to business?”
Lisette hoped she had made it clear to everyone present that she harbored no anger toward their leader.
Seth looked like hell, at least as much as he could look like hell. Lines of fatigue creased his face. Dark shadows created hollows beneath his bloodshot eyes. His chiseled jaw hadn’t seen a razor in days.#p#分页标题#e#
The last thing he needed was to deal with hostility from his immortal family.
“So,” Seth began, “we seem to have a problem.”
The men and women present nodded and murmured their agreement.
“A vampire army, more powerful than any we’ve fought before, is amassing, and even their thoughts don’t reveal who leads them,” Seth told them. “Étienne found blank spots in the minds of members of this vampire army. Blank spots that he thought indicated buried memories. However, the specimens Zach so thoughtfully provided us with a few nights ago revealed that at least some of the memories had not been buried. They had been permanently removed.”
Lisette wished she could have been conscious when Zach had tossed the vampires through the bay window. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. Magnifique.
Roland scowled. “Doesn’t that cause brain damage?”
“Yes,” Seth said, “which is why David and I prefer to bury memories rather than erase them. The vampires whose memories have been removed will descend into madness at a much swifter rate, because they are suffering brain damage spawned by two different sources: the virus and our new enemy.”
“Clearly our new enemy isn’t concerned about the health or longevity of his army,” Roland drawled.
Seth’s gaze circled the table. “Any ideas regarding the identity of this mysterious foe?”
“An Immortal Guardian with a grudge?” Zach suggested.
“Anyone know of such an individual?” Seth asked. “Or two? Or three?”
Lisette sure as hell didn’t. The only immortal she had ever met—aside from Zach—who didn’t credit Seth with every ounce of happiness he had found since transforming was Bastien. And he seemed right as rain with Seth.
Stanislav cleared his throat. “We all owe you a great debt, Seth, for aiding us in finding contentment in our new existence. I don’t know anyone who would wish you ill.”
Darnell folded his hands on the table, his handsome face troubled. “I haven’t seen anything on the Web site that would indicate animosity. No subtle digs or stray comments that might indicate discontent.”
“I haven’t either,” Chris mentioned. “There’s also the problem of how this new army came to possess the sedative.”
“Not only that,” Marcus tossed in, “but how they knew that they needed to increase the dosage.”