Page 16 of Crimson Oath
Oleg switched to an old dialect of Estonian that Mika spoke. “The Poshani practice blood price. I’ll have to make some kind of financial settlement when we find the man’s immediate clan, but Radu will be reasonable considering the circumstances.”
“Fine.” Mika nodded. “It’s spring, you know. Radu and all the Poshani will be getting ready for the kamvasa.”
“Then we’d better catch him before he disappears into the wilderness for six months.” Oleg turned to Cesar. “Call the house in Bucharest. And tell the pilot to change our destination.”
Chapter 4
Tatyana
Caucasus Mountains, Georgia
Kato leaned forward and made sure to keep his voice low. “It’s time.”
Tatyana looked around the party that had been raging for hours. It was only an hour until dawn, and not an immortal had departed.
Arosh’s human women were nodding and blinking slowly, some from exhaustion and others probably from blood loss.
The musicians, being vampires, still played as strong as ever, though the tenor of the music had shifted to a slower pace.
“It’s time for what?” Tatyana asked. Was something going to happen at the party? Her fangs immediately fell. “You must remove Alexander immediately.”
“Nothing like that.” Alexander moved his hand to Tatyana’s forearm. “The party is safe. He’s talking about Arosh’s protection, dear one.”
She was immediately soothed by his touch.
Alexander had to be the most steady human she had met in herentire life. He was probably in his late thirties, and he looked like a carved statue. Appropriate, perhaps, since his partner was a water vampire who was so old he didn’t even remember being human.
Before the modern era, the oldest and most powerful immortals ruled empires that covered continents. The world was more diffuse then. Humans were scarcer and resources were limited to the most powerful vampires who could control the most territory.
Kato had been one of those emperors, ruling the ancient Mediterranean with strict control, fighting with Arosh in the East and allied to Saba, the oldest known vampire, who ruled across the African continent.
Massive powers clashed in the ancient vampire world, but as humans thrived and grew, resources became more plentiful. Territories could be broken into new pieces, ruled by younger vampires, and the time of the ancient empires passed.
Over centuries, Arosh and Kato had turned from bitter enemies to reluctant and then dear friends. As brash and intense as Arosh was, Kato was the sea—vast, generous, and deadly when he was roused.
Tatyana turned to the ancient vampire who had become her mentor. While Zara had been her sire in fact, Kato had become the vampire who taught her how to be immortal.
“Arosh means to withdraw his protection?” Tatyana blinked. “Why? What did I?—”
“Not immediately,” Kato said in a soothing bass. “And you have done nothing to anger him. He will grant you time. He will allow you to think about it. But that display back there was him telling you to start thinking of your future.”
“Which… can’t be here?” She felt as if she were barely out of vampire primary school and was being told to go make her way in the world. She’d expected to have to leave eventually, but she had so much more to learn.
“You know we would both love for you to stay here,” Alexander said. “But this is not our home.” He glanced at Kato with a raisedeyebrow. “Though perhaps very soon, we may find a new place of our own where we?—”
A pair of drunken humans burst into laughter behind them, clearly inebriated and being led away from the vampires by two of the older women in the harem.
Alexander smiled. “Where we might live a quieter life.”
Tatyana turned to Kato. “Can an ancient, terribly powerful vampire emperor have a quiet life?” She glanced at Alexander. “I don’t really see you two living in a seaside cottage.”
“Don’t worry about us,” Kato said. “Right now you need to think of yourself. Where are you going to go, Tatyana? What are your plans?”
“I don’t know.” Her heart was in her throat, and she could not get her fangs to retract. “I cannot go back to Oleg’s territory.”
“Why not?” Kato’s gaze was steady. “It has been over a year, and there has been no sign of retaliation for your actions. He’s a strict ruler, but he is not an unreasonable man. There is no reason to think that being in his territory would be dangerous for you.”
“It’s just…” Tatyana pressed her lips together.
