Page 75 of This Ravenous Fate
Thank you for letting me stay.
32
Elise shoved her hands into her coat pockets and walked down the front steps of the Saint estate. October introduced a crisp breeze into the air. The season reminded her of France in the little things such as the autumn leaves, the trench coats people began to wear as the temperature dropped, the jazz floating out of busy cafés. She missed the freedom of being abroad. Not just in the sense of being away from her parents and their rules. In Paris, Elise could walk onto a bus and sit wherever she wanted. She did not have to enter the downtown hotels from the back entrances, nor was she prohibited from entering nightclubs.
Elise never saw a Black musician or singer in France walk off the stage with the empty look in their eyes that so often followed the performances of Black artists here. She was almost glad to think she would never experience that, now that she was her father’s successor instead of a pianist. But almost was not enough.
“Saint.”
Elise stopped short. Layla Quinn stood at the estate front gates. She leaned against the iron curves, arms crossed while she watched Elise approach her.
“How did you get in here?” Elise asked, slightly awed.
Layla shrugged. “Your escort let me in.”
Elise’s heart stopped, realizing who she meant. “Did Sterling speak to you?”
“He might have grumbled,” Layla shrugged.
A sad sigh left Elise. “He hasn’t spoken to me in days.”
“Oh, forget him.” Layla pushed off the gate and straightened up, her toned arms catching the bold evening light while she stretched.
Elise couldn’t help but stare. Everything about Layla was lithe and smooth. Her skin seemed to glow a radiant golden even when the sun didn’t beam directly onto it, her eyes luminous amber pools at any tame moment. It was when she became hostile that the amber lit up into a fiery, almost white gold. Against Elise’s own precautions, she couldn’t help but long for that intensity. To be on the other end of those eyes while Layla was feeling particularly charged up and volatile… Elise wanted her devouring attention. She could only imagine how it would be to feel those eyes on her while her fangs sank into her throat—
Layla cleared her throat. Elise blinked, her cheeks growing warm while Layla watched her with suspicious eyes. “Saint?” she asked.
Elise nodded quickly. “Fine. I’m fine.” She pushed past Layla and the gates. If she was going to have such sinful thoughts, she might aswell have waited until she was off Saint property. Elise was surprised she and Layla didn’t go up in flames while they stood there together.
“Why did you come? I thought you were done with me,” Elise asked once they were on a public street.
Layla didn’t look at her. She watched the sky while they walked, only occasionally glancing down to see where she was going. “I would like to know whether the treaty your father and Stephen Wayne have proposed is real.”
Elise let out a dry laugh. “I think you know. Last time we spoke, you seemed to know my father better than me.”
Layla stopped walking and regarded her with suspicion. “Saint. Be serious.”
“Iamserious,” Elise said sharply.
The two of them watched each other, Layla’s face contemplative and perplexed, while Elise’s twisted with irritation. Layla broke the silence first. “What happened?” she demanded.
“Nothing,” Elise insisted. “I can’t help you, Layla. My father hardly lets me in anymore. We’re not…” She swallowed hard as tears crested in her eyes. “We’re not as close since I’ve screwed everything up. I’m sorry, I can’t help you. I can’t help anyone,” she muttered.
Layla pursed her lips. Silence fell between them while Elise wiped her eyes, and as she started back down the street, Layla spoke up. “Your father is wrong, Saint.”
“You’ve said that a hundred times—”
“No, I mean…” Layla sighed. “There should be no conditions on the love he gives you. He’s wrong for that.”
Elise blinked, her breath faltering. “I know that. But that doesn’t change the fact that I know nothing of what he’s planning besides wanting to deliver your clan a cure.”
Layla’s eyes widened. “What—”
“This cure is not a perfect fix—”
“It’s no small thing. Most of us have been tortured for years by our reaperhood. A cure would change everything for us,” Layla said quickly.
Elise sighed. “Layla. I understand this is important to you, but I implore you to reconsider trusting it. This cure has come at too convenient of a time.” Her voice trembled and Layla looked at her strangely, eyebrows creased. Elise began to spiral again. Her chest grew tight and hot despite the cool air pressing around her.
