Page 65 of Vampire Bachelor Games

“How is she?”

“You’ll see for yourself tomorrow. She’s not out of the woods yet, but it’s looking encouraging. If she can get through this her heart specialist says she’ll make a full recovery. She must stay very calm, no shocks. He says barring moreincidentsshe should live to a ripe age. She’ll travel to Switzerland once she’s discharged in a few weeks and relax in a spa to round off her recovery.”

She nods, her face relaxing slightly at the news.

“I didn’t know she had heart issues,” she murmurs, shaking her head.

“I gather you visited her rooms often. She was fond of your visits,” I clear my throat, wondering how to broach the subject I need to discuss and going instead in another direction.

“I’m happy you’ll see her tomorrow. Even though protocol dictates you do so.”

She snorts.

“You mean you’ll relax my house arrest for a brief visit to a hospital because The Families and the media expect it. How big of you!”

“Angie, please, I didn’t ask you here to fight. I wanted to let you know that Mother told me she bribed the selectors and placed you in The Games.”

She leans back in her chair.

“When she thought she was going to die she confessed what she’d done.”

She sits as still as a stone, her eyes not leaving mine, not acknowledging in any way the information I’ve shared.

‘She’s still protecting Mother. She thinks this is a trick. My beautiful wife, so full of integrity and honour. How could I ever have doubted that? Doubted Her?’

“Angie, I know now that Spider didn’t put you in The Games. That you were telling the truth the whole time.”

I lean forward to clasp her hands, but she pulls them away sharply and pushes further back into her chair. Sighing, I lean back too, noting she relaxes infinitesimally.

Once, she couldn’t get close enough to me. Once, holding her hand was as natural as breathing.

Now, she shrinks from me.

I shake my head and go on.

“If it’s any consolation, you always had a champion in Jag. As it turns out I owe him an apology too. He was right all along in defending you and your innocence. And he was right about Tom’s declaration. Tom had been trying to tell me you were not part of The Free Men, or a spy — he was trying to tell me you’d been put in The Games for a different reason. I was just so blinded by rage that I didn’t let him finish.”

She stares impassively at me and I rise and stand before the fire with my back to her, unable to meet her reproachful eyes.

“I know you have every right to despise me. I’ve acted abominably towards you since that night. But Angie,” I turn back to her, “why didn’t you tell me? All this time, why didn’t you say something?”

Her voice is a monotone as she answers, but her eyes are shining with tears.

“I told you I wasn’t a Spider spy right from the start. You didn’t believe me. As for your mother, she begged me not to. I knew she was the only human woman you trusted. I couldn’t shatter that trust.”

I frown.

“She’s a grown woman who acted on impulse, foolish impulse. But you, you almost sacrificedyourselfandour future child for her folly.”

Her eyes flash, and I realise mentioning the fact that I’d held her as a prisoner under a death sentence for months was not helping matters.

“Angie…”

“Enough!”

Rising, she stares at me, her eyes hard.

“If you’ve had your say I’d like to go now.”