Page 10 of Midwinter Night's Prince

“A born vampire,” he replied smoothly, “with the blood of a god.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Enough with the obvious. I’m supposed to be able to stay a step ahead of you. That requires understanding who I’m running from. If you’re a water deity, I should stay away from islands. If you’re an Egyptian demi-god, as your ridiculously pompous name would suggest—”

Seth saw her point, but it was irrelevant. “You’re not running from me. I know where you are—thousands of feet over the ocean at the moment. I always know where you are.”

She blinked in surprise. “Then—”

“I gave you my soul because I want you to keep it safe. I’m not your enemy.”

“But—”

“No buts. That’s all you need to know. Don't ask questions you don't want answered.”

So long as she was carrying part of him, Blair had to stay safe, and getting pulled into his world, into his legacy, was the opposite.

Aveka was child’s play, compared to the enemies he’d inherited.

“Seth—”

He didn’t let her say another word. Seth willed himself awake, abandoning the only peace he’d known in months.

6

RESPONSIBILITIES

There were many things that the old Chloe Miller could have imagined doing by the time she approached her twenty-seventh birthday. Working, of course—probably waiting tables. Studying for her master's, if she was lucky. Taking up the violin, maybe. Who knew?

Running after an evil, cackling goblin wouldn't have been anywhere on the list.

Chloe Eirikrson’s life had taken many turns she could never have foreseen. She regretted none of them.

"Ruby! You need pants if you want to go outside!" Her daughter didn't agree with that statement. She was quite content to crawl on all fours, her diaper-covered bottom high in the air.

Chloe rushed down the lavish flight of stairs leading to the entryway of Skyhall, yet again wondering how that toddler managed to be so damn fast and sneaky. None of the new-parent books she'd inhaled the last few months had prepared her to raise a little fledgling. They should have. Born vampires were mortal until they turned, like Chloe had been. Her baby shouldn’t be any different from a human child.

Chloe snorted.

A minute ago, Ruby had been playing quietly in her playpen. Chloe took the opportunity to catch the shortest shower in the history of vampirekind. She didn't think she'd taken more than thirty-five seconds to undress, hop under the cold spray, wash, and wrap herself in a towel. By the time she returned to the master bedroom, Ruby was gone.

"Devious little thing," she grumbled.

Ruby was fast. Incredibly fast.

Chloe used the might of her supernatural speed to rush through the house, following her daughter’s scent until she reached the front doors.

She arrived just as Alexius picked the little demon up, and threw her high over his head. The toddler laughed, delighted as ever. "Now where are we going, princess?"

Ruby had a reply at the ready—a steady stream of gibberish that she delivered with the confidence of a true orator.

"I see," Alexius replied with a sage nod. "You might just want to wear a jacket before going down to see Billivern. Or pants. It's quite chilly out."

"You didnotunderstand what she was saying." Chloe rolled her eyes.

"Of course I did. She made herself perfectly clear. The question is, why didn't you?"

Chloe didn't grace that with an answer. The one person who could actually understand Ruby was Eirikr himself. In her first few weeks, Ruby had cried a fair bit. During one of her visits to Cosnoc, Eirikr had told Chloe exactly which of her daughter’s teeth had hurt. Though she had no clear speech yet, he'd been able to interpret the feelings her mind projected to him.

Chloe had not hidden how insanely jealous of her ancestor she was, and the rest of her friends didn't miss an opportunity to mock her about it.

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