The Fae looked troubled.
“Well?” I pressed. “You said something about your... Mistress... not wanting to become attached to him before the, what was it? The Tithe?”
Beside me, Rans had gone very still.
The Fae’s voice was so soft I had to strain to hear the words. “Yes. The Tithe to Hell.”
“What are you saying?” Rans’ tone grew dangerous.
The shape-shifter blinked large, green eyes at him. “The Fae are bound by the treaty to deliver to Hell one child of every ten that are born. That was the price for peace. Well... that and your life, vampire.”
Rans flinched almost imperceptibly.
“In order to avoid sending our own children to our sworn enemies,” the Fae continued, “we exchange many of our babies for human children, and surrender those souls to the demons, instead.”
My heart began to pound so hard that I was sure everyone in the room must have been able to hear it. “Oh, my god. Tell me you’re joking,” I whispered.
Fine, dark brows drew together. “Why in Mab’s name would I joke about such a thing, demonkin?”
My eyes flew to Rans. “This can’t possibly be what it sounds like... can it?” I demanded, trying not to fall headlong into a pool of assumptions that might be completely wrong. “I mean—Hell’s not really fire and brimstone, right? Nigellus even said so. And... he’s not evil. He’s your friend.”
I’d been hoping for some kind of casual dismissal of my concerns; some scoffing reassurance that this ‘Tithe’ wasn’t what I thought it was. Instead, Rans seemed to have disappeared into that dark place I’d glimpsed on only a couple of occasions, when he was swallowed up by the holes in his own past.
The elfin figure in the chair frowned at us, as though unsure what our problem was. “Your sire’s mind was broken when he was returned to Dhuinne, demonkin. Since he is of no more use to the Fae in his current condition, the Unseelie Commander who brought you to the Court has been arguing that he should be thrown in with the next Tithe shipment. Isn’t this a good thing? The demons are your allies, after all. Your people. Would you not rather have him in their custody than the Fae’s?”
I was seriously running close to mental capacity here, but I made a valiant effort to consider the Fae’s words objectively.
“Rans?” I asked, my tone wavering. “Is there some way we can get him back from the demons if that happens?”
He seemed to shake himself free of whatever black hole of memory had swallowed him. “It’s... it’s possible. I don’t know. We can speak to Nigellus—”
I swallowed hard. Nigellus. The other person whose friendship with Rans I might’ve destroyed when I ran off to Dhuinne.
But our uninvited guest clearly hadn’t picked up on the uncomfortable subtext.
“That would please me, I think,” the shape-shifter said, as though genuinely concerned for my father’s wellbeing. “However, you must take care. Many factions will be after the only living being who embodies humanity, demonkind, and Fae at the same time.”
“What did you just say?” Rans asked sharply.
But the Fae’s attention stayed focused on me. “Demonkin, the only reason your sire could possibly have survived marriage to a cambion—much less impregnated one—is because of the Fae magic he absorbed as an infant during his stay in Dhuinne, before he was returned to Earth.”
“Bloody hell.” The hoarse whisper made me turn back to find that Rans had gone pale as a sheet.
“What?” I demanded. “What’s wrong?”
“What’s wrong?” Rans echoed in disbelief.
“Yes!” I shot back, my temper flaring. “I mean, who cares if Dad picked up Fae magic via osmosis when he was a baby, or whatever the hell happened? The Fae already want to kill me just for being part demon!”
He was still looking at me like I was nuts.
“Zorah, don’t you see?” he said. “If this is true, you’ve just become the single most important person in the entirety of the three realms. This is far bigger than any of us realized before.” He rolled out of bed, apparently unbothered by his nakedness, and started rummaging for clothes. “Get dressed—you and I need to get back to the States and talk to Nigellus. There are forces at play here that could start a war big enough to put the last one to shame.”
I caught the bundle of clothing he tossed at me and looked from him to the Fae, then back again.
“I’m sorry, but I’m still not getting it,” I told him. “Why does this make me any more important than before?”
He paused in the middle of dressing and came over to take my hands in both of his. I blinked up at him.
“The Fae are sending human children to Hell,” he said slowly, his eyes burning into mine. “Human children who’ve been living in Dhuinne, and may have absorbed Fae magic during their stay... just like your father.”
I frowned. “And if Fae magic meant that he was able to get my mom pregnant...”
“Then the Fae may well be unknowingly providing their sworn enemies with the means to grow in number and strength until the balance of power is shifted in their favor, throwing everything into chaos again,” Rans finished.
“Oh, my god,” I breathed.
“Quite,” he agreed.
It was too much to take in, on top of everything I was already worrying about.
Stop, I tried to tell myself. Think about Dad. Stay focused on that. If the Fae intend to send him to Hell, you’ll need to talk to Nigellus anyway. Worry about the rest of it afterward.
“Okay. Give me fifteen minutes for a shower,” I said. “Then I’ll be ready to go. I’ve got my own list of questions for Uncle Demon, and this time I’m not letting things go until I get some better answers from him.”
End of Book Two
The Last Vampire: Book Three
By R. A. Steffan & Jaelynn Woolf
ONE
“WHY?” THE SINGLE WORD fell into the silence as though weighted with bricks. It barely even sounded like a question. Nigellus leaned
