Page 229 of Blood Day

Until now.

Until Lily.

“Which is precisely why I had to audition you properly, Cedric.” He set his glass down on the table, his expression darkening. “I needed to know you still possessed some of your humanity. Because many of our kind do not, and Lilith has spent the better part of the last century grooming that mentality and praising it.”

“You make it sound like she has some master plan for us all,” I hedged, more curious now than I’d been before.

“Her plan is a moot point; she’ll be dead before she can see it through. What concerns me more is the upcoming war.”

My eyebrow arched upward. “Upcoming war?”

“Mmm,” he hummed, relaxing a bit into his chair. “Cam was always a clever man. And it’s just like him to sacrifice himself for the greater good. Or, in this case, as a way to temporarily appease Lilith’s delusions.”

Who is Cam?Lily whispered into my mind.

Rather than reply, I showed her a bit of his history—namely, the day Lilith had publicly annihilated him for rebelling against her cause.

“You’re suggesting he died with a cause,” I translated aloud.

“Oh, no. He’s not dead,” Khalid replied with a chuckle. “Lilith has him chained up somewhere. She just wants everyone to think he’s dead. Which has worked to her advantage—or so she thinks. But his imprisonment is all a cover for the real threat—the revolutionaries he left behind. Which brings me back to the Sire bond.”

He retrieved his drink to take a sip while I processed everything he’d just said. There was clearly a point he would be arriving at eventually; I just wasn’t quite sure what it was.

So I’d play along for now.

“Darius,” I said. “That’s who you mean, yes?” He was Cam’s only progeny, and as Khalid had just brought us back to the Sire bond, then Darius must be important to this discussion. “He just claimed a sovereign role in Jace Region after living in silence for the last century or so.”

“That he did,” Khalid mused. “He’s been playing his part perfectly, first by picking a blood virgin, then by mate-bonding her, and using her as a demonstration of how little regard he truly has for anErositabond. It’s all bullshit, of course. But no one bothers to look beneath the surface.”

I frowned. “He’s rumored to be sharing her with Jace.”

“Yes, Jace. And who was his best friend for thousands of years before his death?” Khalid canted his head to the side. “Why, it was Cam, I believe. Coincidence, that? I think not.”

“So you’re suggesting they’re doing what, exactly? Carrying out Cam’s wishes to rebel against Lilith?”

“I’m not suggesting anything, Cedric. Iknowthey are planning to revolt against the current system. And I know they’re not alone, too.” He finished his glass and stood to make another.

As I’d barely touched mine, he didn’t bother topping mine up. But he did fix Emine another drink as well.

And he brought a second bottle of water for Lily.

“Viper is one of my many assets, lying in wait and observing the chess pieces on the board for me. I had originally intended to make you an offer to serve as the same, but you taking anErositacomplicated matters. So I’m improvising a little.”

He settled into his chair again.

“Besides, it won’t really matter. Removing you from Silvano’s clutches will ensure he self-implodes in a matter of years, maybe even months.” He gave me a look. “Thatimbecile is hopeless without you, and he’s too gluttonous to see reason.”

No argument there, I thought.

“So I don’t really need you in his region for information. You would be much more useful within my territory where you can help ensure we survive the pending fallout. Which is why I want to make you a sovereign of Khalid Region.”

He’d hinted at that several times before, so I wasn’t shocked by the position offer.

But his reasoning certainly came as a surprise. “So this is what you meant about an upcoming war—you mean Cam’s followers against those who support Lilith’s ideas.”

He nodded. “Yes. The final pieces are in play—which was indicated by Darius taking the sovereign role—so we’re on the steps of the endgame now. Which means I want to secure my borders as quickly as possible. And I need powerful men within my region to ensure that happens both efficiently and effectively.”

Khalid pressed a button on the table, causing a translucent screen to appear between us.