“Fine. Send her to my room.”
Zarine’s lips curled into a smile. “Excellent. I hope you enjoy your time with her.”
“Just feeding, Zarine.”
She shrugged. “The girl will be disappointed, but it is your choice, of course.”
He returned to his room, pushing back the flames that danced at his collar. Giovanni wanted to leave this place. He had been battling aggression from the moment he stepped through the door. Arosh’s distinctive smell was everywhere, and the scent of burning almond wood filled the rooms. He had never been under the roof of another fire vampire. The only males he had ever met, he had killed or avoided as much as possible. Being around another male triggered the worst of his natural aggression and territorial instincts. He had to constantly fight back the fire that wanted to erupt. Perhaps, as much as he disliked it, feeding would help.
The girl tapped at the door and he clenched his fists to control his hunger.
“Enter.”
It was two days later when Arosh finally appeared. He stretched out on a low couch and drew Zarine to his chest, stroking her hair and feeding her an orange he had peeled.
“How has your stay been, my friends?”
Carwyn said, “Clearly not as pleasant as yours.”
Arosh threw his head back and laughed. “You amuse me, holy man! I understand your own odd beliefs, but why has the son of Andreas not taken his pleasure with the beauties of my home? I’m sure Zarine has pointed out those who are acceptable.”
Giovanni forced back the instinctive curl of his lip and banished the memory of the disappointed girl he had fed from. “I am mated, Arosh.”
“And you are faithful?” Arosh’s eyes lit in amusement. “How odd.”
“Not odd. No woman is appealing when compared to my wife.”
Arosh’s eyes narrowed for a moment before he smiled. It was the most sincere smile he had seen from the ancient. “Kato would approve of you. He took a number of mates over the centuries and was always very faithful to them when he did.”
“Where is my grand-sire?”
Arosh ignored the question. “Your sire, however, did not hold others in such esteem. He had little regard for family. He had little regard for anyone but himself.”
“I am aware of this.”
“You would be. Tell me, why did you kill him?”
“Wouldn’t you have? He had plans for me. I’m sure you can imagine.”
“And you wouldn’t have defied him.”
Giovanni cocked his head. “I’d like to think I would have, but probably not. Could you have ignored your sire?”
Arosh shrugged. “I do not know. My earliest memory is of a fire-scarred cave. There was no one.”
Carwyn frowned. “What? No one at all?”
“If there was, the fire burned them.” Arosh slipped another piece of orange between Zarine’s lips and ran a finger along her cheek. “That is too long ago to matter. All of my children have been sired to wind, so that must have been my own origin. Perhaps he left me. Perhaps he had no interest in my future. Unlike your sire, Giovanni Vecchio. Am I correct?”
“Yes.” Giovanni did not let his eyes wander from Arosh’s keen gaze. “My father was very… involved.”
“I can imagine he was.” He sat up and pulled Zarine with him, whispering in her ear that she should leave them. She nodded silently and backed out of the room, closing the doors behind her. Arosh watched her leave, then turned back to them.
“I knew your sire, Giovanni. I did not like him. His own sire didn’t like him. Ironically, you seem like the type of child that Kato would have wanted. He valued loyalty above all, but had the wisdom to appreciate others and respect them. Kato felt a deep responsibility toward those under his aegis. He was not only feared, but loved. A true ruler must have both.”
“I do not want to rule anything. I want only to live my life in peace and protect those who are mine.”
“Ah!” Arosh grinned. “You are a wise child. You have learned early what it took Kato and me thousands of years to learn. Peace is a treasure beyond earthly price.”
Giovanni took a deep breath. “Where is my grand-sire, Arosh?”
Arosh pulled the letter from his cloak, fingering the broken seal and staring into the fire. “Do you know, Giovanni, I asked your sire for a favor once?”
He and Carwyn exchanged glances, and he threw a careful mask over his face to hide the shock. To most, Arosh’s admission would be nothing remarkable, but for a king of legend to admit that he had once asked another immortal for a favor was shocking.
“No, I did not know this. You honored him by ask—”
“He refused.”
Giovanni almost choked. To be asked for a favor from a legend like Arosh was awe-inspiring enough. To refuse? Unthinkable. Arosh would have owed Andros a favor of his own. A favor from the ancient king was not something to be dismissed. Or refused. Ever.
“I offer my apologies, Arosh. My sire’s audacity—”
“Is not your fault!” Arosh only looked amused. “And you have killed him for me, so that is very pleasing.” He held up the letter that Ziri had written. “But it appears that you did not kill him on your own. You sired a child. And now you have a problem, Giovanni Vecchio.”
He nodded carefully. Now was the time for bargaining. “Yes, we have a problem.”
“And Ziri asks me to expose myself and my dearest friend to this annoying vampire in Rome.”