He shrugged. “Not unless the sire wishes it. Andros had the odd theory, based only on his own madness, that a child sired in anger or pain would become unstable, but I’ve never seen any reason to believe that.”
“So it didn’t hurt when you were turned?”
Giovanni smiled and stroked her cheek. “No,
He drifted off, lost in his own thoughts, and Beatrice took a chance on his talkative mood to ask something that had bothered her for years. “You seem like you have such complicated feelings for Andros; when you talk about him, it’s almost like you love him.”
“I did love him.”
“But you bartered with Lorenzo to kill him.”
“Yes,” he said, and his eyes shuttered.
She rose onto her knees and straddled his lap on the couch, forcing him to look at her.
“I don’t understand.”
He began several times but paused before he could speak. Finally, he continued in a whisper, “He would have used me. He was already planning something. I don’t know exactly what. You see, he never counted on me controlling fire. Once he knew…I think the temptation to use me for his own ends was too great.”
She stroked his face and ran her fingers through his hair. He almost seemed like a large, fierce cat as he pushed into her palm and sought comfort in her touch.
“You had him killed so he wouldn’t use you.”
He nodded, but his eyes were still haunted. “I loved him, but whatever he was planning I wanted no part of. And I knew…I knew he would have been able to convince me.”
“You can’t feel guilty, Jacopo,” she said gently, using his childhood name. “He was crazy. He murdered your uncle. He held you captive for ten years.”
Giovanni nodded. “Yes, and without him doing all that, I wouldn’t be sitting here with you. I would never have known Carwyn or Tenzin. No one would have been there to save Caspar. Benjamin would probably never have known a better life. So how can I hate him? His cruelty brought me to the people I love, Beatrice. What price can I put on that?”
She leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead, smoothing the lines he created with his frown. Beatrice pulled his face into the crook of her neck and he wrapped his arms around her waist. He held her for hours until she drifted to sleep.
They arrived by car at the small lodge tucked into the Wicklow Mountains a few hours after dusk the next night. There was a grouping of low, whitewashed houses around a central open courtyard, where small children ran and laughed. A large farmhouse spread out from the rear of the courtyard and a sheep dog sat by the doorway. She could see two human women walking across the garden, speaking and gesturing with their hands, as they corralled the children into the glowing houses.
“There are a lot of humans here,” she said quietly to Giovanni, who had grabbed their bags and began walking toward the large farmhouse.
“Yes,” he said with a nod. “Deirdre and Ioan are a poorly concealed secret in this area. The human population asks no questions, and the area is safe from almost all crime and poverty. The humans that live here are mostly connected to their children in some way.”
“They have a lot of kids?”
He nodded again. “They are a large clan. Probably the largest in Ireland. And very influential. Even the water vampire that controls Dublin defers to them on most matters if they desire.”
“So losing Ioan-”
“Is a very,
He did not knock but pushed open the door of the large house, only to be greeted by a familiar furry face as they walked in.
“Bran!” she cried and immediately reached out to pet the wolfhound who was nudging her hip in a persistent manner. He was older and obviously near the end of his life, but the large dog still wore a friendly smile.
“
“Gio,” she said with a smile. “It’s been too long.”
“Sinead,” he said softly, bending down to kiss her cheek. “This is-”
“You must be B.” The woman held out her hand to shake. “Carwyn said to expect you both. Gio, your usual room is ready and, B, there’s one upstairs for you. Give me a second to clean up and I’ll show you. Such a dreadful, sad way to see old friends. Such a sorrow. The Father is on the warpath, though. If anyone can find Ioan, it’ll be him.”
“They contacted Dublin?”
Sinead nodded. “Days ago. They’ve both been to the city, but the reports are unclear and they’ve not wanted to leave the valley unprotected.”
Giovanni sighed and reached for her hand. She held it tightly and stood in silence, wishing there was something useful she could do. Sinead was looking back and forth between them with a sad smile, but Giovanni didn’t seem to notice.
“B, I’ll take you up to your room. Gio, make yourself at home, of course.”
He nodded and let go of her hand so she could follow Sinead up to the second floor. Beatrice was led to a cheerful yellow room at the top of the stairs with a full bed, a small desk, and a set of drawers where she set her duffel bag. She sat on the edge of the bed and stared out the window. The stars had come out, and the clock read close to nine o’clock. She wasn’t tired, but she felt lost in the unfamiliar room until she caught the whiff of smoke.
She turned and saw him standing in the doorway. He looked at her with grim eyes, and she held out her hand. He crossed the room, took it, and pulled her next to him, stretching out on the small bed as he enfolded her in his arms. They lay silently, watching the stars for a few minutes before he spoke.
“I’m glad you’re here, but I wish you hadn’t come.”
“Not an option,” she murmured as she stroked his forearm.
“Beatrice-”
“If you’re so worried, train me.”
“I’ve never studied judo.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about.” He snorted and she looked over her shoulder. “What?”
“Train you? To fight vampires?”
She shrugged. “I know I’ll never be as strong or as fast-”
“Or have keen senses, or control an element.” She leaned down and bit his arm. “Ow!” He laughed. “Do it again.”
She scowled. “Hush. I just mean, something is better than nothing. And it’ll give you something to do until Carwyn comes back.”
“What? You want to do it now?”
“What did you have in mind to pass the time?”
He raised a speculative eyebrow. “Well…”
“Yeah,” she snorted. “Right. I have a feeling the house mom wouldn’t be too keen on that idea.” She nodded toward the door where she had no doubt Sinead’s ears were tuned toward them. “Otherwise, she’d probably have put us in the same room.”
“True. I still-”
He sat up so quickly she almost fell off the bed.
“Carwyn’s here,” he said before he flew down the stairs.
Beatrice sat up and looked out the window, where she could just see the red hair of the priest as Giovanni
