Page 14 of A Dance of Water (Moon Song #2)

CHOCOLATE AND RIBBONS

LUELLA

T he palace was undergoing the most magnificent of transformations.

Luella nearly floated down the halls, awestruck by the resplendent, icy beauty that had befallen Serpentis. Well, she would have floated, if not for her gripping fear of running into two particular individuals she had, so far, successfully avoided all day…

She had skipped breakfast under the guise of sleeping too late, skipped lunch because she was napping—not a lie, she was tired and had not gotten much rest last night—and skipped dinner because she had pretended to be ill, yelling to Graves who stood on the other side of her bedroom door that she would be taking dinner in her room.

The raven shifter had not refuted her claim; though, if the lingering sound of his footsteps outside her door had been any indication, he had not believed her.

She wasn’t fooling anyone, she knew, least of all herself.

Luella was not ill, she just didn’t want to run into the King— Vale , her mind hissed.

Or Az…

So, she did not float down the halls but carefully watched where she was going as servants flitted about, stringing up long banners made of soft blue and wrapping the many chandeliers hanging overhead with icy swaths of fabric.

The candles had already been enchanted to burn blue, and the flames cast each room in a frozen hue.

What once was an admittedly beautiful and free castle, ripe with greenery and perfectly cut stone walls and polished marble floors, was now a wintry, frost-bitten escape.

The servants turned away from her as she walked by, and her steps grew slow as she could not help but stop and take it all in. If the most innocuous of hallways had been turned to such frigid beauty, she wondered what the main part of the palace looked like…

But Luella would not be venturing there.

"Watch yourself," a passing servant mumbled, carrying a large rolled-up rug.

Her brows crinkled, but she stepped aside, curious that he would be so bold as to speak to her. She had wondered if the Kin?—

She had wondered if Vale had made an order for those within the palace to ignore her very presence, with how no one except for her maids and captors spoke to her.

Her back pressed against the stone walls, her shoulders brushing a blue, shimmering tapestry that had been hung, silken folds that cascaded down and bathed the halls in icy light.

She watched as the male servant, a large and peculiarly kind-faced serpent shifter with slitted eyes, nearly jogged down to the end of the hall, rolling out the rug with a flourishing crinkle as he laid the thick rug down.

Now, even the floors were covered with blue.

She pressed a hand to her lips. The Solstice—it seemed more important than they had let on during their breakfast yesterday morning. Luella had been groggy and out of sorts, but she still had sensed a bit of trepidation lingering about. She just did not understand why .

She continued to walk down the less-traveled halls, taking in the blue decor and icy sheen of it all. The rain was a soft trickle today, but the clouds had been thick and white when she awoke, less so of the dark and stormy kind and more of a promise of wintry precipitation.

The soft drizzle soothed something within her, and she found herself lulled into a sense of safety as she strolled. Only to round the corner and bump into a large chest .

A sound of protest fell from Luella’s lips, and her hands came up to brace against a cool chest as she attempted to stop herself from falling backward.

"Well, isn’t this a surprise?"

She looked up, fingertips digging into a silken shirt as her neck craned.

Glittering silver rings in pale ears, sculpted cheekbones, and an almost daintily perfect jawline.

Half-lidded, reddened eyes took her in, hands coming up to grasp firmly at her waist. His long fingers bunched the material of her gown, and rich bergamot made her head swim.

Now that she was not so arrested by the transformation of the castle, she could feel the call inside her—a song of want and fire.

The vampire before her radiated chilled elegance, and he stared down at Luella with the slightest of ticks in his jaw.

"I thought you were not feeling well, pet?

" Bastian brushed a cool palm against the skin of her forehead, sweeping back a few strands of her white hair.

Her breath hitched; it took everything inside her not to fall into him and allow her traitorous eyelids to flutter shut. "I was just coming to check on you."

She hummed, managing a quiet, "I feel better now," under the weight of his stare.

An elegant, dark brow lifted. "Is that so? Then, I have another gift for you."

"W-what is it?"

The vampire did not answer her. "Did you enjoy my last gift?"

The chocolate bark was still untouched—but she had inhaled its scent before bed last night and stared up at the ceiling, wondering where Az slept his first night above ground.

"I don’t like chocolate," she lied.

A soft laugh rang out through the air between them. "You don’t like chocolate?" he asked.

She started to nod but felt the tiniest brush of invisible fingertips against her mind. "Stop that!"

His palm moved to cradle the back of her head. "Stop what? I’m not doing anything."

She glowered up at him. The vampire’s Mind magic swept through her, only the slightest sense of strangeness alerting her to his presence. His fingers dug into her skull comfortingly.

And then his magic left her.

Those half-lidded eyes only grew heavier as Bastian leaned down, still cupping the back of her head.

He pulled her further into him, and amid the swaths of blue, his pale skin almost seemed to reflect it, turning him into an untouchable, sculptural thing.

She glanced down at her arms, the barest hint of skin revealed by the cut of her gown.

Her skin was just as pale as his, the blue veins on the underside of her wrists almost the same shade as the blue ornaments decorating the halls.

Bastian lifted her face with a finger under her chin. "Liar," he whispered against the slowly flushing skin of her cheeks.

Her blush grew deeper.

"You love chocolate. Not because you have a knack for sweet things"—a sensual smirk broke free upon his lips—"but because it reminds you of a certain demon."

"I d-don’t know what you’re talking about." Luella tried to get away from him, but he was caging her in almost completely, a hand keeping her head still and his other on her waist, pulling her body snugly against his.

He tapped the back of her head. "I see your mind, and I know your secrets." With that, he pulled away from her but kept a hand on her wrist so she could not flee. "It is a good thing because then you will enjoy your next gift."

All the blood inside her body pooled in her feet, leaving her head light. "Not him. Please not him." She couldn’t bear to see him. Not yet.

An understanding look fell over his face. "Orders of the King." For the briefest of moments, Bastian turned into the Advisor, diplomatic and loyal. "Azgorath’s violence needs to be quelled, and you are the only one who can do so."

She rolled her bottom lip between her teeth, and he stared at her mouth as if he desired to use his fangs to free her tender flesh from the abuse of her teeth.

"Do I have a choice?" Her tone was resigned.

A silky black lock of hair fell over his forehead as he shook his head. The jewels in his ears caught the soft blue light, making the silver appear incandescent. "No."

"Then take me," she whispered.

So, he did.

Bastian led Luella down the halls, and she found herself not caring for the pretty sights any longer. The blue silks and ribbons and enchanted flames only made her stomach sink.

They came to a stop outside a familiar door in a familiar hallway: the library.

The call tugged and tugged, and she dug her heels into the floor to stop herself from moving forward, from placing a shaking hand on the knob and entering.

Bastian was a cold, constant presence at her back. "He’s inside."

Luella nodded, unable to form words. She would be forced to see Az again—the first time since yesterday when she visited him in the dungeons, and only the second time since her awakening.

"Luella," he uttered. She turned to him at the sound of her name, unused to it on his lips. "Tell me now, what do you wish me to do? Do you want me to stay or go?" His hands settled above her hips, forcing her nervous fidgeting to stop.

She didn’t have to think hard to figure out what she wanted. The answer was clear to her. "Stay."

The vampire would be the perfect buffer. She hoped, at least.

"After you." Bastian reached around her for the handle and pushed the door open.

And they entered the library.

Her steps were hesitant, and her neck ached from the force with which her head swiveled, searching for the one she knew to be at the end of that tug on her soul.

He saw her first.

Az stood, taking a few steps forward before he stalled.

Luella could do nothing but stare at him.

The demon wore a simple dark shirt and pants.

His horns curved from his head, his dark brown hair unruly as always.

Her eyes fell to his feet, bare. A soft, hazed smile graced her lips.

No manacles or chains held him captive, but there was the faintest of red marks on his wrists.

Her throat grew tight with emotion. Would it ever heal ?

The library was quiet, the trickle of water in the pools a slow and steady drip, drip, drip that echoed in tune with her heart. She hadn’t been here since she escaped.