Katherine cursed the weather as she climbed into her rental car once again, shaking out the rain from her hair. She had straightened the long blond locks before heading off on her journey but thanks to the rain and the stressful drive she was now looking more surfer chick with the soft waves flowing over her shoulders, than a slick lawyer.
Oh well, time to embrace the curls.
She hastily tied it up into a knot on top of her head, she’d loosen it again before she got to Tumbricane to meet with her father and this Lucian guy. At least she had a name. She knew something about her enemy, it was a small advantage admittedly, but it was something. It was almost enough to bolster her confidence. Almost.
She checked her phone once more for the directions and with a deep breath, pulled out of the parking lot and headed out into the hills, mentally preparing herself for whatever shit storm lay ahead of her.
Chapter Two
Lucian
Lord Lucian Nightingale looked out of the french doors that led onto the balcony of his private suite and wondered at the rain. It seemed to fall in heavy slow motion this evening. Each drop against the glass panes punctuation for something. He was used to seeing things move slowly around him. Slowing his pace to fit with the rhythm of everything else, had long since become second nature to him, and yet sometimes when he became lost in his own thoughts, moments like this would catch him off guard. The rain was particularly heavy and plentiful. Perhaps it was just a mere optical illusion that he, being what he was, was more prone to notice.
His phone vibrated in the inside pocket of his tailored suit jacket, drawing his focus back to the present. He absently reached inside the silk lining and slid the shining screen out. It was a message from his associate, or rather he supposed, he should say, friend.
Cayden: There is a young woman on her way to Tumbricane. You expecting her?
Lucian sighed. Indeed he was expecting her.
Lucian: She has been requested by a man with whom I have business. All is well Mr. Greystone.
He was about to return his phone to its resting place when it vibrated again in his hand.
Cayden: Alright then. By the way, Rose wants to know if you’re planning on coming to our mating ceremony?
He smirked at that and slid his phone back in his pocket. He would send a formal reply within the next week or so. He was undecided as to whether he would attend. While he liked the Alpha and Luna of the Darkhills pack and he would enjoy being amongst others for a night, he knew there would be a bittersweetness to the whole affair that would likely send him into a downward spiral.
He would never be able to have what Cayden and his mate Rose had. Someone to love and to cherish and put above all others. Someone to raise a family and grow old with. He was playing a dangerous enough game as it was by courting a friendship with the Alpha. He would have to watch as the wolf shifter grew old and eventually withered and died. But he couldn’t stop himself from wanting something of an interaction with another living being. Cayden was a good man. He was dutiful, honest, trustworthy, and loyal. He was exactly how Lucian himself had been. How he had tried to remain for so long before he had woken up to the reality of what he truly was.
It would be better if he avoided contact with others for a while. Perhaps a period of solitude might suit him well. It would likely be considered rude but it was probably for the best that he left Cayden and Rose to celebrate their nuptials with those who could live and grow with them. He wouldn’t flatter himself to think that the Alpha would be upset by his absence, but it would likely put his keen nose out of joint.
He returned his gaze to the rain once again. The sound of it on the panes of glass lulling him into a calm and contemplative state. He was never sure which was better for his mood. To spend time within the city so he could observe the virility of life at a detached distance or remain in the quiet solitude of his estate in the foothills of the mountains. It seemed as though wherever he resided he was becoming more prone to bouts of loneliness. Perhaps after the nasty business with Mr. Daxton was finished he would look to emigrate elsewhere. He hadn’t visited his British homeland since he left centuries ago, and yet he still couldn’t bring himself to return. Perhaps a tour of Europe would enliven him enough to keep the darkness at bay?
He suddenly became aware of tingling at the back of his neck and turned his head slightly towards the source of his interruption. Lucian sensed the lost soul of his manservant before he knocked quietly on the door to his chambers. The poor man had once been so torn apart by grief at losing his family, that he had come to Lucian to beg for them to be returned to him.
Many wrongly thought he was capable of raising the dead. But alas, he was no necromancer. He had felt pity for the man whose mind, heart and soul were utterly destroyed. He’d offered him peace instead and existence without pain. The butler lived permanently under Lucian’s thrall. Living comfortably at Tumbricane, and attending to Lucian with small duties to keep his mind from rotting.
“My Lord, Mr. Pines and your guest Mr. Daxton are assembled in the Hall. It is nearly midnight.” The monosyllabic voice spoke softly behind him.
“Very good. I
