Page 82 of Deadly Deception
Jay’s hand flew to his torn skin, but it was far too late. His body crumpled to the ground, and he bled to death within a matter of minutes, if not seconds. There was no time for any final words, not that I wanted to hear them anyway.
Tabitha stood stock still while I jerked. Franklin’s arms held me all the tighter as we watched Millicent flick her taloned nails to the side, spreading little droplets of blood against the wall. She stared down at the growing pool of blood with a mixture of disappointment and disgust.
“His blood smells foul,” Millicent complained. “What a waste of food.”
“Indeed,” Nick answered, and I wondered if he ever disagreed with his queen. It was probably in his best interest to be ayes-man.
With a put-upon sigh, Millicent moved her attention to Sara. I could see Sara’s carotid artery jumping along her neck, her blood pressure soaring.
Quick as lightening, Sara moved into self-preservation mode. “I know where Vanja’s treasure is. I’m more valuable alive than dead.”
At first, I thought Millicent was crying, but the sound bubbling up from her chest wasn’t tears; it was laughter. Bright, joyful, laughter. Throwing her head back, Millicent wrapped her arms around her middle and gave a full belly laugh. “Oh, that’sso precious.” Raucous delight simmering to hiccupping giggles, Millicent wiped a tear from her eye and shook her head. “You honestly believe that, don’t you?”
Sara had conveniently forgotten that Franklin and I knew the same information she had, and yet I didn’t think that was what Millicent was referring to.
“You’d be a fool to pass up that kind of fortune,” Sara bravely—or more accurately, desperately—argued.
“Oh, we can certainly agree on that. That’s why I recovered the treasure over thirty years ago, shortly after I slaughtered the true Vanja.” All laughter was gone, leaving a frigid killer in its place. There was nothing soft about Queen Millicent. There was no room for forgiveness. No leeway for stupid mistakes or delusions of grandeur.
I watched the truth of that statement smack Sara where it hurt the most—her hope and pride. “The treasure’s gone?” Sara asked, her voice soft and despondent. “That can’t be true. It…” Her words faded with her own disbelief.
Millicent casually shrugged. “I suppose it depends on your definition ofgone. I can assure you it is no longer at the bottom of Lake Michigan, but it hardly disappeared. It is safely tucked away. I keep it in a place of pride, along with the other spoils of those I’ve dispatched.” Millicent wagged her index finger in Sara’s direction. “Overvaluation of one’s worth is one of my greatest pet peeves. My maker suffered the same misguided notion. I made certain she was aware of how little she was truly worth before I ended her second life.”
Sara wobbled, her hand reaching for the countertop. For a moment, I thought she might faint. Her skin was pale and looked clammy.
“Oh dear, please don’t pass out. Not yet. Not when there is still so much fun to be had.” Millicent barely moved. She simply stood there, staring up at Sara with big, anticipatory eyes.“Nick,” Millicent said, and Nick moved. One moment he was standing next to the wall, and the next he had Sara by the neck. He didn’t bite her. His hand wrapped around her throat, choking her until she passed out.
Franklin and I stood there, as did Tabitha. Aurelia watched as well, the look on her face no longer one of an entertained individual. I had no idea what was currently going through Aurelia’s mind. I didn’t think I wanted to know.
Franklin and Sheriff Henson had discussed this before. Getting Queen Millicent involved meant moving beyond human law. Franklin’s involvement would do nothing but get him killed, and I would not allow him to throw his life away for someone like Sara Tompkins. I didn’t care if that made me a bad necromancer or not. To my mind, there was no choice to be made. Losing Sara in such a way would hurt Franklin’s former captain, Shane Tompkins. I felt for the man, but Sara had made her thorny bed, and now she was being made to lie in it.
Nick tossed Sara’s unconscious body over his shoulder as if Sara weighed nothing. “I will meet you back at the nest,” Nick said, and after receiving a confirmatory nod from Millicent, he was gone before I could so much as take a breath.
Franklin and I stood there, our backs plastered to the couch. Tabitha was across the room, all our eyes on the deceptively innocent-looking vampire standing in the kitchen. With a huff, Millicent tossed her hair over her shoulder and said, “That was a bit messier than I’d hoped.” Wrinkling her nose, she glared at the bloody pool congealing under Jay’s body. “What a waste. Drug-tainted blood is the worst.” She stuck out her tongue before dismissing Jay and Tabitha, turning her attention on me.
Franklin tried maneuvering his body more in front of mine, but I wasn’t having it and remained by his side.
Millicent walked toward us, her head cocked to the side. Millicent’s eyes were all coal-black again and her talons haddisappeared to wherever vampire talons vanished to. Her gaze swept up and down my body before settling on my eyes. “Necromancer Erasmus Boone. You brought Vanja’s spirit back using nothing more than his ashes.”
It wasn’t a question, but I still answered it as such. “I did. Under duress.”
Millicent huffed. “I am not angered you did so. More…curious.”
I didn’t like her curiosity. I didn’t like it one bit. She tilted her head again and said, “Where are you from? You sound Southern.”
“Mississippi,” I answered. “I just came up north to help out a fellow necromancer.” That was pushing the facts a little, but I wasn’t out and out lying.
Millicent’s nose crinkled again. “Mississippi? King Moony’s territory.”
I nodded. “So I’ve been told.”
“Unfortunate,” Millicent huffed. “While your skills are uniquely commendable and…desirable, I do not believe they would be worth the threat of war, especially with King Moony.”
My heart thudded, and Franklin squeezed me tighter. I thought I might go into cardiac arrest when Franklin opened his mouth and said, “I doubt his warlock father, Nikodemus Holland, would appreciate his son moving to the Midwest either.” It was tactfully said. Franklin didn’t outright accuse Millicent of threatening to kidnap me, but he’d placed another obstacle neatly in her way.
Eyes fractionally widening, the edge of Millicent’s lips quirked. “You’re certainly full of surprises, Necromancer Boone. A warlock father who actually cares what happens to his necromancer son. That is a first for me.” Stepping closer, Millicent craned her neck farther and added, “Should you ever tire of the South, give me a call. I can be most generous whenthe occasion calls.” Going up on her tiptoes, Millicent bopped my nose with the end of her fingertip before leaving in a fit of giggles. “Goodbye, boys. Sorry to leave, but I’ve got a very misguided human to reeducate. Before I’m done with her, Sara will understand what humility is.”
Franklin and I stared, wide-eyed, as Millicent, Queen of the Midwest vampire nest, walked out of the room. She didn’t bother stepping over or around Henson’s cooling blood, nor did she take Jay’s body with her. We stood there in that eerily silent room, the scent of blood overriding the coffee Sara brewed earlier.
