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This had never been asked of me before. I felt the question pierce deep within me and echo in my mind. For so long I had asserted who I wished to be only to be told it was an impossibility. Then I was forced to take on the visage Vlad had imposed upon me. I had not stopped to consider the woman I had evolved into over the course of the last two years. In a flash of a second, I saw all that had led to this moment. It was beautiful and terrible, wondrous and horrific, healing and painful. For the last year I had fought so hard against Vlad, struggling to not become the woman he wanted me to be, that I had forgotten the life that had come before. I was more than just a creature of the night created by Vlad. I was an aristocrat, an Englishwoman, and the member of a loving family. I was not just pain and pathos born of a cruel Master.

“At my core, I am Lady Glynis Wright. My desires are simple. To be with the ones I love and choose for myself the path I travel through this world. I wish to live here in Buda in peace. ” I found it difficult to speak, but the truth of my words rang clear in the night.

Ilinca slid from the step and gracefully slipped through the snow like a swan over still water. Stopping before me, her gaze met mine. Leaning toward me, she said, “Answer me truthfully. Who do you love?”

I could not take my eyes from her face. I sensed the danger in her words, but did not dare recoil. Ilinca’s gaze did not waver as she waited for my answer. I knew that Astir would advise me to lie, but I was sick of lying and hiding.

“Ignatius,” I answered. “He is my heart. ”

A smile slowly turned up the corners of Ilinca’s lush mouth. “You did not lie. A wise decision on your part, Lady Glynis Wright. ” She returned to where Gavril continued to lounge on the steps. Standing at his side, she looked pleased with the course of events.

“We extend our treaty with your husband to all in your household,” Gavril declared. “Adhere to our edicts and we shall have no trouble between us. ”

I bowed my head and sank into a deep cu

rtsey. Laura followed suit. It seemed only proper. Through my lashes I saw a slight smile upon Gavril’s lips before he motioned for us to rise.

“Let the gathering begin. ” He rose to his feet and raised his arms. The candles flamed high around him and I felt the power of his Beckoning unfurl from within him as he summoned his progeny.

Within moments, the vampires began to arrive. The first was a woman with shimmering white hair clad in a blue cloak that matched her ice blue eyes. She emerged from the snow like a wraith to sit upon a gravestone.

The next was a pack of black wolves that tore into the graveyard before transforming into three young men. They scrambled over a small tomb and sat along the curved roof.

Laura gasped beside me. “Can we do that?”

I nodded, though I was not certain how. I had seen Vlad and the sisters transform into wolves, but Vlad had never taught me.

A black raven soared over the graveyard to the mausoleum and alighted on an angel. In the blink of an eye it was replaced by a young girl with curly black hair and lavender eyes. She sat upon the angel’s wings, staring down at us with interest.

One by one, the progeny of Gavril and Ilinca appeared and took their places among the graveyard. Each was strikingly perfect to behold except for one twisted little man no taller than my waist with a hump on one shoulder. His unruly brown hair, gentle face, and keen green eyes were his finest feature. He walked with a slight limp and sat at the feet of Gavril.

“The House of Gavril has gathered on St. Andrew’s Eve to acknowledge the great victory over the House of Baatar and the claiming of the city of Buda,” the little man announced.

There were cheers from the vampires as Laura and I sat upon a tomb to watch the proceedings.

“Magyar vampires once more rule Magyar land!” Ilinca cried out, raising her fist above her head. “The Mongolian invader is vanquished!”

More cheers and the three men who had arrived together were especially rowdy. As I studied their features, I concluded they were brothers. There was a wild element to them that unsettled me, but I was even more keenly aware of the white haired vampire studying me from her perch.

The small man motioned for silence. “May we all remember this great victory as we continue forth in the name of Gavril. ”

“Hail Gavril!” the girl on the mausoleum cried out.

The other vampires, perhaps a dozen in all, echoed her words.

Though Gavril kept his expression neutral, there was a bit of pride in his eyes. “We fought together and were victorious. We lost some of our own in our battles, but we shall remember them always. Jenci, call out the names of our fallen brethren. ”

The little man stood up and cleared his throat. With sorrow in his voice, he announced those vampires who had died. Of course, Laura and I did not recognize any of the names, but the House of Gavril responded with great emotion. Each name was repeated by the vampires once it was announced and wails of despair erupted from some of those gathered. The emotion among those congregated was more than I was accustomed to witnessing. They tore at their hair and fell on their knees. As Jenci shouted out a name, Ilinca would recount how they died.

“Lajos!” Jenci called out.

“Fell to the sword of Baatar, but struck off the head of Baatar’s favored Bride!” Ilinca shouted beside him.

“Juliana!”

“Fell to the teeth of an unknown assailant, but killed four of Baatar’s guards!”

In the end, ten names were announced and I realized the great loss the House of Gavril had suffered taking over Buda. Tears of blood streaked the faces of the gathered vampires.