Page 101 of The Last Slayer
Once everyone was seated, Toshi’s staff started serving an exquisite French dinner composed of crisp green vegetables, lightly seared veal, foie gras, rich sauces and an excellent wine. None of us talked much. I wasn’t in the mood since I was busy thinking about what I’d overheard, and Ramiel and Alexandros didn’t seem inclined to make small talk. Someone was playing a soothing melody on flutes outside our window—Toshi’s doing, no doubt—but it did nothing to liven up the meal. Ramiel and Alexandros kept their silence, and I didn’t want to talk to either of them. Especially Ramiel. I knew he’d been hiding things, but not to this extent.
Was I wrong to think that I could trust him? I was beginning to hate this. I usually knew what I needed to do, where the pieces lay. But ever since I’d killed Selena, I felt like I had been caught up in a game so large it was impossible to come to grips with it.
“That’s a handsome ring,” Alexandros said suddenly, sipping his wine. “What does the M stand for?”
I continued cutting my veal, consciously keeping my hands relaxed. “Miguel.”
“Someone special?”
I glanced at Alexandros. “My first lover.”
Ramiel seemed to stiffen a bit, and the incubus king’s dark eyebrows rose slightly.
“One of your kind killed him,” I continued. “And I’m going to hunt it down and make it pay.”
“‘It’?”
“Doesn’t deserve to be humanized.” I gave the incubus a smile. “This is one of the reasons why you and I can never be allies, Alexandros.”
He gazed at me languidly. “Is that so? Not even if I tell you who killed your precious lover?”
I almost dropped my cutlery. “You know?”
“Some of us have been tracking you. Who do you think filed those complaints with the Federation?”
“You?”
“Not me. I found your zeal entertaining, but my councilors disagreed. You were incredibly cruel, even to the ones who surrendered. Dismemberment is forever.”
I deliberately let a slow smile spread across my face and satisfaction permeate my voice. “Yeah, it is.” Then I thought about Ramiel’s wing, felt slightly guilty, and took a long swallow of wine. “You want to preserve more of your boys, give me the name of the culprit.”
“Ashera, this isn’t the time,” Ramiel said. He looked pained by Alexandros’s continued efforts to distract me from forming this “alliance.” “You have to think about claiming Eastvale first.”
“You aren’t the only one who’s sworn an oath, Ramiel.” Why did he care about my situation with Miguel anyway? He just wanted to keep his vow, whatever it was. As I wanted to keep mine.
I realized that it gave us something in common.
Ramiel chewed his lip for a moment, looking at me steadily, then finally said, “We are not the only ones courting an alliance with the incubi.”
Then everyone must be stupid, because who the hell could trust incubi? I would have preferred to spend a day with a serial killer than a creature of nightmare.
“It’s true,” Alexandros said. “I only came here because I’m rather fond of Ramiel. And because I heard you antagonized Nahemah, which is always great sport, if, er, somewhat dangerous.”
Great. So everyone knew about my situation with her. I pushed my chair back. “You’ll have to excuse me, gentlemen.”
“You aren’t finished eating,” Ramiel said.
“Lost my appetite.” I turned to Toshi. “Do you mind showing me back to my room?”
“I’ll be happy to do that,” Alexandros said smoothly.
Now Ramiel was on his feet too. “I am the host. I’ll take care of it.”
“Not necessary,” Alexandros said. “No trouble at all.”
“Fine by me. Ramiel, you can have my dessert.”
Ramiel’s eyes hardened, but he couldn’t make a scene without looking ridiculous. For once, I was grateful for his control. I took Alexandros’s arm, and we left together. The vast hall was blessedly free of activity. Maybe the bas-reliefs had signed a peace treaty.
