“These were just sent up,” what’s-his-name says.
“Who brought it up?” Cole asks
“A bellboy.”
“Did he say who gave it to him?”
“No, there’s a card though.”
Silence as I assume Cole snatches the card out of what I also assume is one of Cade’s bloody rose baskets. I get out of bed and pulling my robe back on, I join Cole at the door. He hands me a card with a grim look. “Get rid of it,” he says to the bodyguard.
“Wait.” I stop him. I can smell the blood from here, but it isn’t his. I read the card: “A favor from a friend, Your Majesty. C.”
I look at Cole who looks like he is going to be sick and I'm pretty sure I do too as I reach for the basket and scramble for the bloody rose at the bottom, splattered with blood with a tiny wooden stake pinned in the middle. I sniff. Vampire blood. He bled a Vampire and then staked him or her. I really do feel like I’m going to hurl as I shove the basket back to Cole in horror. He shoves it back to the bodyguard.
“Burn it,” he says and closes the door.
“What does he mean by a favor?” Cole muses. “Did he stake someone who didn’t support you?”
“I don’t know. Does it matter? Either way, he killed a Vampire to mess with me. Next time I see him, he’s dead. No more fucking about with these games.” I am furious with myself for letting it get this far. I should have ended this the first time I saw him at the coffee cart. “How could I let this happen?” I ask.
“You couldn’t know,” Cole tries to reassure me.
“Yes, I should have. He’s a Hunter. It’s what he does.”
My phone rings and, as expected, it’s CK. He can tell my anxiety from the other side of the world, so it must be bouncing off him just down the global road in New York.
“What’s wrong?” he asks in that overly concerned way of his.
I explain what just happened and he sighs. “This is why I need you safe, my love.”
“I know. I’ll behave. Is… is Sebastian okay?”
“’Bastian? He’s fine, why?”
“Just checking,” I murmur.
“Oh, don’t worry about him. He is a lot harder to take down than he looks.”
“Hey!” I hear Sebastian object in the background and smile despite myself.
“Okay, good. Erm, keep an eye on those two downstairs for me,” I say hesitantly.
A long pause before he says, “Of course.”
“Thank you,” I whisper.
He grunts and hangs up on me. I shake my head at the phone. Bet he feels mighty pleased with himself, infuriating beast.
“Let those three in,” I say, gesturing to the door. “And find out what their names are,” I add as I go back to bed. I’m exhausted and hungry, remembering only now, that we sent the Feeder away before because we were busy. I collapse on the bed, still reeling from the sheer nerve of that man, when Cole reappears with a glass of blood and a glass of wine.
“Main guy is Tony. Guy on right is Phil and guy on left is Ty,” he says handing me the glasses. “I told them to make themselves at home and to get whatever they wanted.”
I nod. It’s the least we can do. We haven’t exactly been the most gracious hosts so far.
Waking far too early on Monday morning, Cole is already up and ready to go at 5 AM.
“You should have woken me sooner,” I say to him.