Page 137 of Claim of Blood
“It does,” Adam confirmed, guiding them toward the room in question. “Though I wouldn’t recommend playing against him, Leo. He’s a shark.”
Raj placed a hand over his heart in mock offense. “Me? Why, I haven’t played in years.”
“The last time you said that, you cleared the table in one turn,” Adam reminded him dryly.
“Pure luck,” Raj insisted, his eyes twinkling.
The afternoon passed pleasantly, with Raj regaling Leo with carefully edited stories from Adam’s past while they played several rounds of billiards. Adam won none, though he came close twice. To everyone’s surprise, Leo won a game, though Adam strongly suspected Raj had deliberately missed several easy shots.
“Beginner’s luck,” Leo said with a grin.
“Indeed,” Raj agreed, casting a knowing look at Adam. “Pure luck.”
By the time they needed to prepare for dinner, the initial tension of the day had eased somewhat. Still, as Adam dressed for the evening, he couldn’t shake a lingering sense of unease.Something about the day’s events felt off—a subtle wrongness beneath the surface that he couldn’t quite identify.
The main dining hall’s vaulted ceiling and massive chandelier created an atmosphere of grandeur reserved for formal occasions. Tonight, the long table gleamed under subtle lighting, crystal glasses catching and refracting the candlelight from antique silver holders.
Adam sat at the head of the table, with Leo to his right and Lander to his left. Bai and Jian had been placed next to Leo, while Raj sat beside Lander. Gaspard, Oren, and Ilona completed the gathering, spread strategically around the table.
“Maja sends her regrets,” Lander announced as they settled. “She’s meeting with Nathaniel about arrangements for the solstice.”
Raj sighed dramatically. “Alas, spurned again. After centuries of devotion, I might soon begin to take it personally.”
Adam watched his brother’s performance with amusement. Raj had been playing this game with Maja since her turning—a flirtation that had become something of a tradition between them. Whether Maja was truly unmoved or simply enjoyed the dance of rejection was something even Adam couldn’t determine.
Servers brought in the first course—a crimson consommé that shimmered in the candlelight. Others followed with crystal decanters, pouring deep red bloodwine into goblets for the vampires and a fine Bordeaux for Leo. For Leo’s meal, they placed a different dish, a traditional human soup with no trace of blood. Adam noticed Bai’s slight grimace at the accommodation, her disapproval barely concealed as she sipped her bloodwine.
The sight sparked irritation in Adam’s chest. Leo was his Claim, deserving of basic respect regardless of his humanity.
“Your mansion remains quaint,” Bai remarked, sipping delicately from her glass. The condescension in her tone was subtle, but unmistakable.
“We can’t all live in skyscrapers occupying entire city blocks,” Raj countered smoothly. “Some of us prefer homes with actual character.”
Jian smiled thinly. “Not all of us wish to live in veritable palaces on private islands, collecting art like children collect toys.”
“Speaking of my palace,” Raj replied, waggling his fork at Jian with completely unsubtle sexual undertones, “you really must visit Singapore. I’d be delighted to show you my... collection. In exquisite detail.”
Adam caught the way Jian’s pupils dilated slightly before he looked away, focusing intently on his meal. Interesting. His nephew wasn’t as unaffected by Raj’s charm as he pretended.
“The situation,” Oren said, mercifully changing the subject. “What precisely have your people heard?”
Bai placed her spoon down with precision. “Coordinated hunter movements across multiple regions. Unusual supply purchases. Communications suggesting a major operation.”
“Targeted at Courts specifically?” Adam asked.
“Not just Courts,” Jian interjected. “The supernatural world as a whole. There’s talk of ‘revelation’ and ‘demonstration.’”
Leo shifted in his seat, clearly uncomfortable as the conversation focused on hunters. Adam placed a hand on his knee under the table, a small gesture of support. Throughout the meal, he noticed how both Bai and Jian directed their conversation around Leo rather than to him. Raj, by contrast, repeatedly drew Leo into the discussion, asking about his adjustment to Court life and his impressions of vampire society.
As the main course arrived—medallions of rare beef floating in a reduction sauce primarily composed of blood—Jian turned toGaspard. “The arrangements are adequate, though my team has concerns about the underground accommodations.”
“Your ‘adequate’ accommodations required a complete reorganization of the entire mansion without notice,” Gaspard replied, his usual diplomacy strained. “Perhaps next time, a warning would be appreciated.”
“Operational demands don’t always allow for advance planning,” Bai said coolly.
“Fifty-seven people don’t materialize overnight,” Oren countered. “Even with operational demands.”
The tension at the table thickened. Adam observed the subtle shifts in body language, the way conversations fractured and reformed around invisible fault lines. His siblings had always maintained complex relationships, but tonight, something felt different. The usual rivalries and alliances seemed charged with new energy.
