Page 27 of Grave Throbbing
"She wants you." Key wore a pair of Harley's sleep pants, white with black slices of pizza, a food that Harley wished was around when he was still human. Harley wore a similar pair, his black with white triangles. He thought it a fitting representation of who they were to each other, opposites in some ways while similar in others.
"She wants both of us," Harley said. "She can already control me with her mind and our shared time together. If you allow her to control your bite, you will cease to be a threat to her."
"And if I don't want her in my head or using me to bite her enemies?"
"She will kill you so no one else can have you."
It was as simple as that, but it sounded so much worse when spoken aloud. Harley's feelings, the ones Empress Marcella had been stirring and poking in his mind, rose to the surface and his heart seized in his chest. He needed Key to live. It was too early to call those feelings love, but he didn't want to return to being hopelessly alone, certain he would never find a companion besides Ithande, his lovely neighbor who spent most of the night asleep.
He didn't yet know how much he and Key had in common besides Empress Marcella's interest, but he wanted to learn their similarities and differences by his own trial and error, not from the empress's narrative.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Key asked. He'd been on his back when Harley had last noticed, but now he lay on his side with his head propped up on his elbow, studying Harley with concern.
"Thinking about tonight. I don't want to lose you."
"You won't." Key sighed. "I don't like the idea of anyone controlling me, but she's the most powerful vampire in the world. If she controls you, she can have me, as long as we can be together. You are loyal to her, and I would do anything for you."
As much as Harley wanted to hear those words from Key's mouth, he despised being the cause of Key's loyalty to Empress Marcella. He still wondered if he would have made the same decision, had he been given his own free will before the empress had sapped it from him.
He didn't want to speak on it, not when they were both tired. Instead, he drew Key's head to his shoulder and enjoyed his presence, even after Key's soul fled with the dawn and his skin cooled. Harley took comfort in knowing their souls would return that night, and they would still be together.
If only they could survive Empress Marcella's trial intact.
Chapter 12
Key
Key woke alone in Harley's bed again. The older vampire was already up and dressed, with a suit laid out at the bottom of his bed. It looked like it had been made to fit Key, much like the new suit Harley wore when he returned.
"The empress sent them." Harley completed his look with a touch of gel to slick his hair back over his ears. "Greed's already dressed. Are you coming?"
After a quick shower, Key slipped into the new clothes and met them in the living room. He'd never worn a bespoke suit before. It chafed and made him feel completely naked at the same time. Greed looked equally uncomfortable in a dress with a V-neck that dipped almost to her waist. She tried crossing her arms over her chest and almost popped out of it.
Harley tossed him a roll of double-sided tape. "Help your sister. Blood Drive called and said our order was ready for pickup."
More of Empress Marcella's doing, Key was certain.
Harley left Key and Greed alone in his apartment with the strict orders to stay until he returned, but Empress Marcella herself arrived shortly after he left. Even Harley would understand their need to obey when she demanded they ride with her to the courthouse in a bulletproof SUV. The speed-walk down the stairs was almost as quick as the ride to the building. They pulled up to the front doors within a minute. Even the wait for the security detail to surround them took longer than the car ride.
This was Key's second trip to Boston's vampire courthouse. He hadn't made it past the front desk when he'd filed his complaint against Dobbins. Now, he got a closer look as Empress Marcella's security guards checked every alcove and potted plant before allowing her to take a step.
To the outside world, it was a nondescript historical building in the colonial brick style, but inside, it was all marble floors, wood paneling, high ceilings, and modern art. Key didn't know the first thing about the paintings and sculptures scattered around the building's first and second floors. The more confusing it looked, the more expensive it probably was, and these pieces were all very confusing.
They filed into a courtroom on the second floor. Unlike the giant halls they passed on the first floor, this one had a smaller judge's bench and only three rows of ten seats for the audience. Key didn't recognize anyone in the first row of seats, but he guessed they were council members.
The second row was empty, but when Key tried to take a seat there, Empress Marcella shoved him toward the defendant's bench. "You need to answer for your actions. I'm not saying it's a crime. Yet."
She stepped toward the prosecutor's bench and motioned for Greed to join him. His sister gave him a slight shrug and took the seat next to him. She didn't know what was happening, either. Fortunately, they'd figured out the tape, so her dress stayed firmly in place with all her slouching and shrugging.
"What are we being accused of, exactly?" Key asked.
"We'll begin when Harley arrives. We all need blood for this."
"Is Harley on trial, too?"
"He's here." Empress Marcella rose from her seat at the prosecutor's bench and turned toward the back of the room, as did everyone seated behind them. Key stood, too, and turned his body. It all seemed surreal, as though they were all at a vampire wedding, waiting for the bride to appear.
Key couldn't shake the feeling of marital bliss. As soon as Harley stepped into view, Key's heart lifted, and he grinned so wide his lips ached. He hadn't yet had blood for the evening, so his body was parched and freezing. Thankfully, that meant no accidental boners, either.
