Page 45

It was a struggle, but I eventually swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat.

"What are you keeping from me?" I whispered.

Viggo looked at our hands. "Initially the things I kept from you were not intentional," he said in a quiet voice. "However, after speaking with my aunt and her seeing that in which she has, I must be careful. Your mind is a complicated puzzle box, always has been. However, now tendrils of darkness that you are not aware are shadowing your memories, and I must figure out how to illuminate them to chase the shadows away."

My eyes widened.

That isn't what I thought he was going to say.

And honestly, I hadn't a clue what he was talking about, but the pain in his eyes made tears flood mine.

"With each piece that I connect, I am certain that it will reveal more pieces veiled in shadows and it will prove to be maddening, my aunt warned."

I licked my suddenly dry lips. "Chasing shadows will only cause them to come back," I reminded him. "Shadows have to be destroyed so they can never return."

Viggo nodded. "That is what complicates it and why I must be careful. It is complicated and things are not as they seem, that I now know... Why did you save my aunt, even though you thought she was nothing more than a whore that I was paying for?" he asked, changing the topic.

The answer is too embarrassing, and I'm not in a good place mentally to even attempt to continue the other subject.

"Ask me tomorrow," I whispered.

"I will," he promised.

Change the subject to something not as depressing.

"How did your aunt become the head whore?" I blurted out.

Viggo shook his head, looking away from me. "Your unbelievable bluntness I know is hereditary, Zaidin is even blunter than you thus it truly is in your genetics, but it is something you need to learn to curb because it will get you in all sorts of trouble that you will not be able to smile your way out of."

Warning acknowledged.

"Believe it or not, Majandra is a lot like you; stubborn, smart, witty, has a razor-sharp tongue, and because of the above mentioned, males viewed her as something to be conquered. When Majandra was attending the Chelsea Academy, a visiting Prince from the Fifth House of Cauls expressed interest in her, but it was not mutual. The Prince made more and more visits to the female-exclusive Academy to woo Majandra, but it was of no use. She told him no every time, and being the blunt person that she is, much like you, Majandra lacked tact in her dismissal of his affections so he tried to force her."

Sadly, that was an all too familiar story, and now it explains why Viggo always asked permission, got consent, to touch me.

Now so much was making sense when it came to his seeming awkwardness with the opposite sex...

With me!

"Majandra kicked his ass, stabbed him in the..." he looked a bit embarrassed to say it aloud, so he motioned towards his crotch.

"Oh! His nads, balls, figs, twig and berries, package-"

His hand covered my mouth. "Yes, those. Majandra stabbed him in the testicles with a letter opener and ruined any chance of him procreating with a willing partner. The King and Queen of the Unified House judged the incident and ruled that it was self-defense, but in accordance with law, she was stripped of title and rank for assaulting a Royal of one of the first Five Houses.

"Since there was not a lot for a blacklisted, stripped-of-crown Princess to do, Majandra opened a Blood Brothel. Being the sociable person she naturally is, with connections that have no restriction of race or crown, it was a very profitable business decision. Personally, I think she wanted to lose her crown because she never wanted the responsibility that accompanied it. Politics was something she expertly played, but she only wanted to play politics if they were by her rules."

"It doesn't bother you that she has sex with people for money or allows, well you know, Vampires to drink her blood while having sex?" I asked, curious.

Viggo shrugged. "I try not to think about my aunt's sex life," he said.

"Okay, that's fair," I conceded.

"Majandra would never allow another to drink from her," he said. "No Necromancer would."

My eyes widened. "Wait, that would mean you are half-Necromancer," I said in disbelief.

The look he gave me made it more than obvious that I should have already known that.

And I should have.

Now, a lot was starting to make sense, and I didn't know where to begin my questioning.

That was how Majandra was able to heal me as she had, how she was able to heal the slice on her throat from Riven's blade, and why a stake wasn't being used to put her to death. It also explained her heightened healing thaumaturgy, and how she was able to manipulate my soul, pulling it from my body so she could heal my body completely as she had.

But that was the extent of my very limited knowledge of Necromancers.

Viggo and I sat in silence looking at each other until Slevin came over and offered me his hand.

Slevin pulled me to my feet, and I pulled Viggo to his. "We're ready when you are, Beautiful," he said, wrapping his arm around my waist and escorting me away from the Prince that I was reluctant to let go of.

"I'm sorry they didn't have any boy-whores for you to entertain yourself with while I was healing," I said.

Slevin rolled his eyes before looking over his shoulder. "Oh they did, but I don't need to entertain myself with paid companionship... However, the drama this little episode will cause has effectively sated my need for tea for many months to come. And just so you know, he's totally checking out your ass."

I rolled my eyes. "It's hard to miss it in these cheek-cutter panties," I grumbled, pulling the jacket I wore around me more, but I couldn't help but blush.

I looked over my shoulder to see if Slevin was teasing me or not, and sure enough, the Vampire walking behind us was watching my ass as I walked, a small smile on his face before he licked his full top lip before biting his bottom lip.

My head snapped forward and I struggled to act as if I hadn't caught him checking my ass out.

Yes, I'd like to get off roller coaster Viggo now.