Page 16 of Seduction in Blood
"Of course, but Devon isn't a stickler for enforcing rules." She swung the basket.
"What's the basket for?" I asked, steering the conversation away from the clothes, Devon's eagle eye, and house rings.
"The lilacs are blooming. I thought it would be nice to have some for the dinner table this evening." She waltzed out the door, and I followed, shutting it behind us.
"Where's Lucas?" I hadn't seen my bodyguard or whatever he was since breakfast.
"Oh, he's around." She waved a hand in the air, which I assumed meant he could be anywhere on the grounds or in the house. "He said something about new business to attend to."
We meandered through lush gardens framed by sycamores, maples, and a larger California Buckeye. The morning dew had already dried under the filtered sunlight.
"Have you lived here long?" I had to admit, now that I'd had a good night's sleep, a hearty breakfast, and clean clothes, even if not my preferred fashion, I was curious about my surroundings.
"About six years now. My father requested I come here after his death."
"I'm sorry."
She gave me a sad smile. "Oh, it was a long time ago now. And I'm quite happy here. Devon and his family have made me very comfortable."
"Family? He's married?"
Her burst of laughter surprised me and completely changed her. She looked even younger than before. "I doubt he'd ever do that. No. I'm speaking of his vampire family. He's an alpha."
I shook my head. "I thought that was what the shifters called their leader."
She nodded. "As do the vampires. Devon is also a Council member, so it's only natural he would head his own family."
I glanced around. There had been six vampires in the audience chamber when I'd first arrived. Since then, I'd only seen Trelane and Lucas. "Where is everyone?"
She didn't respond, and I thought she was determining how much to tell me, but when I glanced over, she was gone. I turned around to find her kneeling next to a flower bed, carefully snipping buds with tiny clippers. She jumped up when she was done and handed me one.
I smelled it. I'd never seen this variety of flower before and found the scent a little too musky for my taste. "It's beautiful." Which was true enough if one didn't get too close to it. I cringed at the thought of it being on a dining room table.
"Devon only keeps a handful of his people here. He doesn't want anyone thinking this house is anything special." She shrugged. "Everyone must have duties elsewhere today." She turned us down a wide dirt path littered with dead leaves and bits of shredded bark.
I'd been keeping my eye on the ground but stopped and glanced up. In front of us was the longest archway of vines I'd ever seen. The leaves, fresh with a spring green color, had filled in the gaps, giving the path the appearance of a long tunnel.
"Great, isn't it? In a month, it will be covered with purple and red flowers that will last all summer." Anna skipped through the living tunnel, turning in a circle halfway through before moving on.
By the time I met up with her on the other side, she was snipping lavender lilacs from a large bush. When she'd filled the basket, she led me down a path that ran toward the grave markers I'd seen the previous night.
She stopped at a bench just shy of the markers and sat down, patting the spot next to her.
"Can I ask a personal question?" I wasn't sure about the proper etiquette, but I needed to know. When she nodded and glanced up with an expectant expression, I leaped. "Are you a vampire?"
That tinkling laugh again. "Oh no, but I'd like to be."
"What?"
"That's why I'm here."
I must have appeared perplexed because she set down the basket and turned toward me. "My father worked for another vampire, one closely aligned to this house. I grew up with vampires."
"Did they drink your blood?"
Her eyes grew wide, and then she shook her head, giving me one of those where-do-you-get-all-this-from looks.
"I'm sorry for asking. I really don't know anything about this world."
