Page 110 of The Enemy to the Living
“I mean, some of that we’d figured out already,” Paxton points out.
“He said Maurice and Njáll formed a true bond. And with a true bond, if one half dies, the other—”
I snap my mouth shut when Maurice jumps to his feet. He turns all his ire on Vlad, who only hangs his head as he listens.
“You knew? I came here to tell you because I was worried, and youknew?”
“I did not think it prudent to speak of it.”
“Why? Because—Oh.” Maurice makes the connection far faster than I did, but then that’s hardly a surprise, considering what he knows of magic. His gaze drops to Grant. Paxton half-rises from his seat as though he understands as well.
“What is it?” Grant asks in a small voice. He scowls when no one speaks, turning that expression on Vlad. “Whatis it?”
Vlad swallows. I do not think I have ever seen him unsure where to begin before. Better to get it over with.
“When I turned you, a bond was created between the two of us as well.”
Grant nods, perplexed. “Yeah, a sire-turn bond, right?” He baulks when Vlad doesn’t immediately reassure him. “Right?”
“Not quite. The Huntsman believes it is more potent than that.”
Jeremiah hisses. Out of the three older vampires, I’m not sure who was turned first, and I think I always assume Vlad because of his close contact with the Huntsman and general aura of control, but Jeremiah…
He’s brutal when he has to be.
“You kept this from your turn? Youronlyfledgling?”
“It is not—”
“It is all of our business,” Jeremiah says, stalking closer. He looks as though he intends to remove Vlad’s head from his shoulders. “It was all of our business that you had turned anyone at all, but you kept that to yourself as long as possible too, didn’t you?”
“Grant is none of your concern. No one’s.”
Grant pushes off from the sofa, getting to his feet. He’s shaking, and whether from anger or another emotion, I can’t tell. Anguish wars with fury on his face.
“That’s just how you want it, isn’t it?”
“What?” Vlad asks.
“You don’t want me to get close to anyone. I thought it was because of the Huntsman, but if he already knows what you’ve done, why would he care? It’syou.”
“You are still a fledgling, you—”
“Fuck you, Vlad!” Grant hisses at him, fangs bared, eyes glowing, and then he’s gone, out of the room before anyone can stop him. My heart leaps into my throat, fear only settling when I hear one of the doors upstairs slam shut.
Vlad stares after him. He might have been unreadable earlier, but he isn’t now—he’s distraught and has no idea how to fix this.
There is perhaps no fixing it. We’re not a close-knit team, all of us, but having to rely on each other because we have a fae for a leader is a given. At least I thought so, up until a few minutes ago.
“I—” Vlad says and makes a move towards the door.
“I’ll go talk to him,” I say. “You have some questions to answer.”
Maurice has more, I know it. Jeremiah wants to yell, and Paxton seems content to let him.
They’ll give me enough time to settle Grant. I leave the living room and take the stairs slowly, ensuring I make enough noisethat Grant knows I’m coming. If he doesn’t want to speak with me, I won’t make him.
After I rap on the door, there’s a charged silence. I know he’s in there. He knows that I know he’s in there.
