"I've no concern about my enemies, Carnal. They're far more confident of themselves than they should be."
Carnal gave a half bow, his dark hair falling forward over his shoulders. "I hope for your happiness and long life it is so. There are many these days who resist the Council and their pro-human laws. Taking down the vampire queen who helped implement them… That would be a powerful victory for them, a catalyst for irrevocable change."
"An era of more bloodshed. It seems some never tire of it."
"Blood is nothing, Lyssa. It is power that drives your enemies.; Didn't Rex always say that? Have you forgotten his wisdom?"
Lyssa's posture did not change. From what little of her profile Jacob could see, she didn't even alter her expression. But he sensed Carnal had fired the first arrow when her tone went to frost.
"It seems you've forgotten proper etiquette. We've received no missive from you or a servant. You are to announce your presence before entering my Region."
A flash of something went through the steely eyes, too fast for Jacob to give it a name, though he suspected it was hostility.
"My apologies," the vampire said lightly. "I didn't think old friends needed such formalities. Perhaps you might consider sharing your dinner dalliance with me to break some of the ice between us?"
It took Jacob a moment to realize Carnal was referring to him, for he didn't look in his direction. He focused on Lyssa as if he were trying to peel the skin from her bones with the scalpel of his gaze.
"He isn't food. I'm training him as a new servant."
Curiosity swept the vampire's features and his attention shifted back toward Jacob.
Lower your gaze.
The night he'd brought Lyssa home, Jacob recalled Thomas had advised him to avoid eye contact with Bran and not challenge the dog's dominance. Jacob had refused to do it. I'm here to take care of her, mate. That's the end of it.
He'd trained for months on the proper etiquette when a human servant met another vampire. But even with that and his Mistress's sharp admonition in his mind, Jacob faced the vampire's thorough assessment head-on, blue eyes clashing with gray as Carnal registered his existence for the first time.
Carnal's lip curled slightly at the left corner, exposing a fang. Jacob didn't find it anywhere near as intimidating as Bran's upper set, which seemed at the time like it could have graced the model of a saber-toothed tiger at the Smithsonian. Jacob detected a glimmer of red in the man's eyes, but he kept that creepy flat tone, even as he held Jacob's gaze, acknowledging the challenge. "So the rumor is true. You dispatched your scabrous scholar."
"I couldn't bear to have him near me after Rex's death." Lyssa shifted between the two men, breaking the stalemate. Carnal's gaze shot quickly to her, a predator registering the slightest movement of prey that might try to escape him.
"You were merciful. I would have tortured him for months."
"I don't have your lust for blood."
The expression on Carnal's face altered, became more drawn. "Your distance wounds me, Lyssa. I've missed Rex, too."
The arrogance dropped from his voice, making it become more vulnerable. There was a disturbing rawness contrasting with the smooth menace. Strangely, Jacob sensed this was a more honest side to the creature confronting them.
"Things aren't the same without Rex. I was hoping… You and I loved him best. All I wanted was to spend time with you remembering him. To come to your home and feel the lingering sense of his presence. I was afraid you'd say no if I asked first. Please forgive me for taunting you. Truly, grief makes me a bastard."
He dropped to one knee as Lyssa remained motionless, her back straight as one of the concrete pillars on the parking deck. When he lifted his head, his gaze returned to Jacob.
"Come, share the blood of your servant with me. He seems young and not yet broken in. The experience of being shared will do him good. He's a fine specimen." Calculation gleamed in his now darkening eyes, reminding Jacob of twin rat holes. "I've no interest in his cock, but it's a particular pleasure to fuck a straight male while feeding. Their humiliation, their rage… Throw in a little pain, and it's an incredible taste. This one needs to learn humility."
"I don't share the blood of my servant. Why would I be so foolish as to give you a connection to myself?"
"You were foolish enough to unleash your unique magic in this crowded place, Lyssa," he pointed out, rising to his feet and squaring with her again.
"My husband gave you leave to call me familiar," she said softly. "I never did. Since he's dead, the invitation is rescinded."
Jacob tensed as the air heated around them, impending violence thrumming in the air. Carnal's pale lips curled back. "You weren't so formal when I was ramming my cock into you and you were screaming. Do you know how often I've thought of that? The way my cock was bathed in your blood when I pulled out of your tight ass? After I spilled my come into your body? Perhaps if Rex had let me fuck your frigid cunt we might now be celebrating our heir."
Jacob stepped forward, intending murder. Instead, he was knocked to his knees. Lyssa's hand was in his hair, holding him fast, her eyes cold and remote as she stared down at him in the subjugated pose. "Behave."
She turned her attention back to Carnal, who arrested his forward motion as she pinned him with her gaze. "As you see, I can teach my servant about humility myself. I need nothing from you except to observe the proper courtesies. Go back to your territory. Jacob will contact you when I have decided on the date you may attend me at my home and perform the correct formalities. Then you may travel through my Region. Otherwise I'll place a complaint with your Region Master."
A muscle in his jaw flexed, but he performed a mocking bow. "As you wish. If my inconvenience serves your desires, then I will suffer it gladly. Far be it from me to disregard the all-important bureaucratic rules of the Council."
She inclined her head, not rising to the bait. His gaze swept her. "I hope to see you in your normal attire on that date. This doesn't suit your great beauty at all. Good luck with your servant. I suspect he won't live long."
Turning on his heel, he walked across the parking deck, his hard-soled shoes crisp and sharp on the concrete. Lyssa's nails dug into Jacob's scalp as her eyes remained on her adversary. His knees ached from the impact with the unyielding cement and his chest was tight with anger and embarrassment, but he forced himself to stay still, do nothing further she would perceive as defiance of her wishes.
When he reached the edge of the deck, Carnal stopped. "Do you even miss him, Lady Lyssa?" He turned his head, showing his profile. His lip curled, giving the impression he was spitting on the title, but Jacob saw the vulnerability had returned to his expression.
It was a long moment, but Lyssa replied at last, one hollow syllable that echoed, rebounding on ugly gray walls. "Yes."
"And me?"
"You were my husband's friend, Carnal. Not mine. You'll visit my home due to my respect for your Region Master and in honor of my husband's memory, but I do not desire your friendship. Don't seek it further from me."
With a snarl, he disappeared into the darkness. Lyssa waited. Jacob watched her face, realizing she was listening, all her senses extended to determine if they were alone. Her grip eased somewhat, her thumb stroking a lock of his hair from his forehead, easing the strain on his neck her hold had created. It didn't abate his fury, however. He wanted to tell her to let go, to never again make him take a second seat to her in a dangerous situation. Or treat him like a recalcitrant child.
When she turned her gaze to him at last, her green eyes were hard and cold. She backhanded him in the face.
Pain exploded in the bridge of his nose, his jaw and cheek area. The impact knocked him to the concrete. He knew she'd used restraint because he was alive, but he tasted blood in his mouth where his teeth had snapped onto his tongue.
"When I give you an order, you'll obey it. If I tell you to stand behind me, that's where you will stay. Without movement, without a word. Do you understand me?"
He scrambled to his feet almost as soon as she hit him. But before he could regain his balance, she struck him again, the opposite side, knocking him back down, making it clear she could do it all night long. He'd never be able to touch her, not even a slap worthy of two girls squabbling on a playground.
This wasn't being treated like a child. He was being treated like a slave, someone's property, prohibited by the laws of her existence from correcting that notion.
If you want to be in my world, that is what you are. What you must accept.
The presence of her in his mind, the things she had been trying to tell him and things Thomas had hinted at, suddenly made a cohesive, frightening picture. A picture she was forcing him to look at more closely than he'd done before.
Was she the answer to his destiny he'd sought for so long, or was Gideon right? Was he indulging in romanticized wishful thinking rather than truth? As Jacob pushed himself back on his heels, she turned her back on him, a strike more painful than the physical blows.
He didn't have to take it. He could take her home, walk away. Of course he'd walk away with two marks binding him permanently to her, but she would let him go. He swiped at his lips with the back of his hand, came up with blood.
Only moments ago, he'd known down to the depths of his soul he'd never walk away from her. He'd known it even when he took the oath, otherwise he wouldn't have taken it, for to him an oath was sacred, unbreakable.