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“We’ve had quite the evening, gentlemen. Not the one we thought we would have. Based upon everything that’s happened, we think we should be informed,” Demos stated calmly. “Ryder is here representing the Weryn after all. One assumes you will be telling all the Bloodline representatives about this?”

Balthazar, wearing a modern three-piece suit that was cut perfectly to his lithe form, lifted his eyes to meet Caemorn’s. Something passed between them. But even without being able to read minds, Ryder was certain what it was. He crossed his arms over his wounded chest but grinned coldly instead of grimaced.

“I don’t think they do intend to tell the other Bloodlines, Demos,” Ryder said evenly. “I think they want to keep this little matter locked down. They need us to keep silent in order to do that.”

“You know that Balthazar could simply read your minds and alter your memories of what occurred,” Caemorn replied just as evenly. “You wouldn’t even know that had been done,.”

A wave of unease swept through Ryder. These two Bloodlines--the Kaly and the Eyros--were looked upon with suspicion by the other Bloodlines. Eyros, because not even Vampire minds weren’t completely immune from their control, and Kaly because… well, Kaly controlled the dead.

“Now, now, Caemorn, that wouldn’t be friendly.” Balthazar waved a delicate hand through the air as if that was no nevermind. “And we’re supposed to be friendly. Working together. One team. There’s no ‘I’ in team!”

Demos snorted. Balthazar flashed him a smile. Caemorn’s expression did not change. He was still regarding the Horys Vampire’s body as if she were already dead and he wanted to string up her corpse. Balthazar turned away from his own perusal of the body.

“You are correct that we would like to keep this quiet, for now,” Balthazar said agreeably. “And I have a feeling that you two can keep a secret.”

“The Weryn don’t gossip,” Ryder agreed. Well, they didn’t gossip outside of their pack.

“The Weryn are highly parochial and prejudiced. You pretend you are a pack because you shift into animal forms, but, ironically, you treat other Vampires as outsiders when logic dictates that your philosophy should incorporate every Vampire, regardless of Bloodline into your pack,” Caemorn remarked.

“Humans have family units, city or town units, countries, etcetera. They are all human, but they don’t consider everyone family,” Ryder objected, stung by Caemorn’s observation for some reason.

“They do now. Because they have a common enemy.” Balthazar put both hands on his own chest. “Us.”

Ryder pursed his lips. He couldn’t really argue with that.

“And now we have the Sect of Dawn or whatever she really belongs to as a common enemy,” Balthazar pointed out.

“Don’t you know?” Demos frowned. “Can’t you read her mind and know if she spoke the truth to Grayson?”

“Her mind is like a bowl of vegetable soup right now. I can poke around and things might float to the surface, but they don’t really show me the whole,” Balthazar described.

“I could simply take her soul and make her talk to us.” Caemorn took out a gem the size of a pigeon’s egg from his pocket. It was a deep red and pulsed as if alive.

Demos took a step back from the Immortal Kaly. It was Ryder’s turn to calm him down. He patted Demos’ arm and that stopped his Blood Brother from retreating.

“Yes, but if we heal her, I can get all the information out of her and turn her into a spy for us. A double agent, so to speak.” Balthazar covered Caemorn’s hand with his and urged the other Immortal to put the gem back into his pocket.

Caemorn complied with a sniff. “I suppose that has some merit.”

“It has a lot of merit,” Balthazar told him firmly. “Once she’s no longer of use, you can do whatever you like to her. But, for now, I think we need her to recover. Elgar! There you are!”

Ryder whipped around to see a dark-haired man in a lime green sweatsuit holding a skull in one arm. He hadn’t heard him enter the room. Neither had Demos whose fangs were showing. The man was almost as tall as Ryder, but he was much thinner, though not a weakling by any means. Yet there was a diffidence about him. Ryder realized that he never looked at anyone, including Balthazar, even as he spoke to the Immortal.

“Master, I have already prepared the bowl,” Elgar murmured, an unknown accent--maybe German, maybe French--tinting his words.

“Of course, you already anticipated what I wanted,” Balthazar sounded pleased.

Elgar smiled at the skull. “Master turned many enemies into friends in the past. I thought it would be no different here.”

“You’re right! It isn’t!” Balthazar grinned at all of them as if Elgar had performed a neat trick. “See, Caemorn, we don’t have to kill everyone to get what we want.”

Caemorn shrugged. “My way would be easier. But I see the value in yours. Proceed.”

“She’s all yours, Elgar!” Balthazar said with a smile.

Elgar lifted the Horys Vampire in one arm as if she weighed little more than a cat and carried her from the room.

“Now, about that Weryn secrecy thing,” Balthazar tented his fingers under his chin, “we need you to keep what happened here between us. No one else.”