Page 66 of Soulbound Shadows: Part 1

We headed out into the cool night air. Just before the door closed behind us, I heard Theo say, “You know, they really do grow up so fast.”

“I have an idea,” Gabriel said once our car had pulled away from the curb. “But it may not be something that you’re comfortable with. I understand completely if you’re not willing.”

“You can tell me the idea before you give me the disclaimer,” I told him. “I trust you, okay?”

He gave me a small, sweet smile. “We’ll be going into a situation that has the potential to be very dangerous. There will be people everywhere, and we won’t know who will be listening in. It may be too risky for us to speak, even if we think we’re in private. I know my mind-reading abilities have concerned you in the past, but this may be the time to utilize them.”

I blinked at him. “You want to read my mind?” I tried to ignore how many less-than-wholesome thoughts I’d been having about Gabriel recently. Would he be able to see those?

“It would just be at the surface level,” he said quickly. “I’d only be able to hear the thoughts you directed at me, and if you felt a very strong emotion, I’d feel it as well. I’d also be able to hear what you hear. I wouldn’t do it without your permission, and I thought if you were willing, you could signal me when you’d like me to do it.”

I glanced sidelong at Gabriel. His face went in and out of shadow with every streetlight we passed. Maybe I should have been afraid of him, mistrustful, eager to protect my secrets, but…

“I’m in.”

There was something in Gabriel’s eyes I couldn’t read. “I’m glad. It’s—it’ll help. And if you need help, it’s useful.” He reached into an inner pocket and pulled out a slim box. It held two rings—simple bands of plain gold. My stomach fluttered, and I did my best to ignore it.

“Roving rings,” he said, holding the more delicate band out to me. I held out my hand, and he took it gently, slipping the ring onto my pointer finger. “If you brush your thumb over yours, mine will vibrate slightly, and vice versa. They’re meant for lovers who are far apart to let the other know that they’re thinking of them.”

“Clever,” I said. I was pretty sure my heart was pounding hard enough for Gabriel to hear. He slid his own ring on. When he brushed the pad of his thumb over the smooth metal, the ring on my finger buzzed.

“If you touch yours, I’ll take it as permission to communicate telepathically. And if I need to get in contact, I’ll press mine, but I’ll wait for you to activate yours in response. Try to stay within eyesight when we’re there,” he said. “If something happens and you need help, press the ring three times.”

“Got it.”

Our car pulled up past a massive stone wall with a twisting, wrought-iron gate, and Gabriel pulled his own mask out of his pocket. It was a match for mine, black instead of nebulous purple, with a few delicate threads of green twisting through it. We both put our masks on.

“Here, let me.” I reached out and touched the very edge of Gabriel’s mask, right where the fabric pressed against his sharp cheekbones. He watched me with wide, cautious eyes as I murmured a few words and twined a spell into the mask, then leaned back to admire my handiwork. Now, even though Gabriel still looked infuriatingly, breathtakingly handsome, suspicious eyes would slide off him just a little, making him harder to recognize beneath the mask. I cast the same charm on myself just as we pulled to a stop.

We were in front of a massive manor house; a foreboding blocky thing with at least three architectural styles mashed together. It looked like it had been a huge stately Georgian once, until someone got unfortunate ideas about brutalism and postmodernism. Big concrete and glass extensions grew out of the building like a hulking invasive species. The whole building was lit up with thousands of shimmering lights. A steady stream of eyewatering expensive cars stopped to drop off people dressed in finery.

Our driver opened the door, and Gabriel slid out into the night air, then offered me a hand. I took it. Gabriel handed his invitation to one of the two burly vampires flanking the front door, and they waved us inside. Gabriel gave me his arm, and I tucked my hand into the crook of his elbow, my nerves and adrenaline already going wild.

The ballroom was enormous and opulent. It was clearly part of the older area of the house, with a terrace and a grand, sweeping staircase. Modern windows in tiling triangular shapes took over an entire wall, overlooking garden filled with elaborate topiaries and beautiful people. The room had been hung with thousands of colored lanterns, and the walls were draped with layers of sheer fabrics, making the whole place feel otherworldly, and oddly soft-edged.

Below us, hundreds of people danced to the music being played by masked musicians. Every single one of the guests was dressed in something glittery and spectacular, their faces hidden behind masks that ranged wildly between simple, beautiful, and grotesque.

I tightened my grip on Gabriel’s arm.

“Remember, three presses if you need me,” he murmured. “I’ll stay as close as I can. Be safe.”

I nodded, trying to force my face into a charming, mysterious smile. As we reached the bottom of the stairs, we separated, splitting off to mingle. I walked a slow circuit of the room, trying to get the lay of the land and map out possible entries and exits. A laughing couple brushed past me and went to a wall, pushing aside some of the draperies and disappearing through the door hidden behind them. I bit back a curse. How many more hidden doors were there? It would be damn near impossible to keep track of comings and goings.

A few tables had been scattered around the edges off the ballroom, all well-stocked with champagne flutes. A few of the tables had fountains of blood, surrounded with quaint little punch cups. I gave those a wide berth. I was pretty sure they were using synthetic blood since it didn’t clot, but I didn’t want to get close enough to smell it and find out. Taking a glass of champagne from one of the table, I faked a sip as I glanced around the ballroom.

The band began to play something sweeping and dark, and a tall woman in a blue gown with a creamy white mask sculpted into a tortured expression approached me.

“May I have this dance?” she asked, dark eyes curious behind her mask. She had an accent I couldn’t place. Scandinavian, definitely, but I couldn’t pin it down.

Time to mingle. I set down my champagne flute and took her offered hand, letting myself be whisked away onto the dance floor. Once the dancing began, I fell into a pattern quickly, moving from partner to partner as the evening went on. I heard all sorts of things, but most of it was idle gossip—little snippets of info about affairs and petty society scandals.

I brushed my thumb against the ring and immediately felt a gentle presence in my mind that was cool and comforting.

I didn’t expect to be able to feel you, I thought to Gabriel. I felt a flicker of amusement through our connection.

I thought you might find it more comfortable if you were aware of my presence, he explained. Don’t worry, the others won’t be able to tell when I read their minds. It was definitely weird hearing him inside my head. It wasn’t like he was speaking to me, exactly. It was similar to when you heard someone talk while you were resting your head on their chest, all rumbles and vibrations. Weird, but definitely not bad.

This is like how you walk differently around humans, I said, and he sent a pulse of agreement to me. Thanks. That’s actually pretty thoughtful of you. I was being careful to keep my expression controlled during the internal conversation, although I probably didn’t need to bother; my current dance partner had been talking about how hard it was to find proper lace these days for what felt like an hour without pausing to take a breath.

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