“No, I need to speak with your Mama about something important,” he says.
“Delinda, go with Marguerite for dinner. I won’t be long,” Lizzie says to her daughter and Dracul hands her off to the, maid-governess-babysitter and whatever else she does around here.
Devon follows them down the hallway to the library, where Frederick, Vito, and Lincoln are also gathered.
Dracul gives them all a suspicious look, but Lizzie says, “You can trust them.”
“A dagger is missing from the weapons cache. It is very dangerous as you are not impervious to its harm,” he says.
Devon looks at Lizzie and she looks back at him. She pulls out the dagger from the back of her jeans and says, “This one?”
Dracul narrows his eyes at it. “Yes, tha
t’s it. How did you get it?”
“Xane gave it to Devon to help me out earlier,” she replies.
“Speaking of…he wanted you to give it back to him personally, remember?” Devon says.
“Sorry, this is coming with me,” Dracul says, plucking it out of Lizzie’s hand and pocketing it himself. “There is also something else of value I need to tell you.”
“Lizzie,” Devon says.
“It’s okay, Dev,” she says to him. “I will explain to Xane. I need to talk to him anyway.”
It doesn’t make him feel any better. The deal was that she takes it back personally and that he gives Xane a favor when required. He doesn’t like his odds if the deal is broken. He just nods when she gives him a piercing look. She can’t know about the full deal. She will move mountains to break it, but she has enough on her plate without worrying about him as well.
Dracul gives them all another apprehensive look, but then speaks, “The sword that I took from Constantine to kill our mother with, was not the only one. There is another. A twin. I need to find it.”
Devon can’t help his gasp, even though he tries to stifle it. Jess was right.
“What do you know?” Dracul’s glowing green eyes land on him and he squirms visibly.
“Err,” Devon stammers.
Lizzie approaches him. “Dev, if you know something you need to speak.”
“It’s Jess, she says she has access to it,” he blurts out quickly.
All eyes land on him, mostly especially those of his sire and her scary-ass brother.
“Jess?” Lizzie shakes her head in query. “How do you know?”
“She gave me an ultimatum. Go back to her or she would kill you with it,” he says, resigned. She will get it out of him one way or another.
“Excuse me?” she thunders, rounding on him. “When? When did this happen? Why did you not tell me? How long did she give you?”
“She will be back here,” Devon says and pauses as he glances briefly at the clock, “in just over three hours.”
Lizzie’s eyes widen in shock. “You weren’t even going to tell me?” she asks sorrowfully.
“I mentioned it to Constantine, he didn’t seem all that concerned!” He tries to shift some of the blame, at least.
“Really?” she says witheringly with her arms crossed.
“Aefre, this is a most dangerous weapon. You know what it can do. We need to secure it so that no one can ever use it on a Dragon,” Dracul says, finally taking his flaming mad eyes off Devon and softening them as he looks at Lizzie.
“Let her come then,” she says. “When she does, take her out.” She gives him a level look, which Devon returns. He is not going to stop anyone from getting rid of the thorn in his side.