Page 89 of Vampire so Virtuous

“Not since then?”

“No. Why do you ask?”

She hesitated, but could see no reason not to be frank. “A friend of mine had a family member murdered there. Blood loss. Puncture wounds on her neck.” She touched her own, fingers brushing the already healed bite. “The police covered it up.”

He surprised her by nodding gravely, without mockery. “I’m sorry for that. Vampires tend not to care if their”—he held her gaze, just a slight pause—“preylives or dies.”

Was his word choice deliberate provocation, or him being open?

“And do you care?”

He gestured at her, as if to say,You’re still alive.“I try not to kill when I don’t have to.”

“Trynot to?” She scoffed. “How noble. You’re avampire, Antoine. You’re a monster.”

Her disdain was impossible to miss. She winced, bracing for his anger, an apology already forming on her tongue. But instead, she saw something else—a flicker of hurt. Not anger. Hurt. The realization startled her, throwing her off balance. Could words wound a vampire? Something as obvious as calling him a monster?

“There are no excuses, no justification. Only reality.” He looked down. “Life and death matter less when you’ve lived as long as I have. Everyone alive when I was born is dead, and so are their children, and their children’s children. I’ve lived through times more brutal than these.” His voice dropped. “Yes, I’m a monster. Is that what you want me to say, to be?” He shrugged lightly, but it was less nonchalant, more reluctant. “Despite what I am, I do try not to kill.”

It was a more open answer than she’d expected. She found herself believing him. He could have killed her the first time he’d fed. He could have tonight. Yet here she was—alive, intact. Mostly.

“I’ll accept that,” she said, partly to make amends for the hurt she’d caused. Soothing a vampire’s injured feelings? Not what she’d expected to be doing. “Do you know which vampire might’ve killed my friend’s sister?”

His lips pressed together as he gathered his thoughts. “In all honesty, no. I could inquire, though. Most vampires are territorial, with few exceptions. But what good is the information? It’s regrettable that your friend’s sister is dead, but people die every night, and relatively few are taken by vampires. There’s nothing either of you can do. At best, it would only reopen oldwounds; at worst, it could lead you down a very foolish path.” He fixed her with a steady gaze. “I’d suggest letting the past lie.”

She didn’t like it, but she knew he was right. She wouldn’t tell Joon—nothing good would come of it.

“Why did Minh keep calling you an ‘outcast’?” She hadn’t meant to ask, but his perspective on life and death made her remember Minh’s words, and the question slipped out.

If he minded her prying, he didn’t show it. “No reason, really. Just to annoy me. He thinks I don’t…embracewhat he sees as the vampire’sraison d’être.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Reason for existing.”

“No, I know whatthatmeans. I mean what does it mean that you don’t embrace it?”

He waved a hand lazily. “I don’t go around killing, playing vampire politics, or spending copious amounts of money on gothic architecture and useless fripperies.”

She pointedly surveyed the opulence around them—high coffered ceilings, decorative paneling, a grand marble fireplace, and antique furnishings likely worth more than her entire apartment. “Google says this place has eight bedrooms.”

“My other house doesn’t look like this one.”

“Oh,” she said dryly. “Twohouses. Well, that really drives home your point, Mr. Vampire.”

He inclined his head, eyes dancing with amusement. “I concede this round to you, Ms. Davis.”

Why did he have to be so charming? That wasn’t helping her at all.

She took a steadying breath, squaring her shoulders before glaring at him, her next question sharp. “You marked me in the parking lot, didn’t you? When you kissed my hand.”

“Very perceptive. Yes, I marked you then.”

“But why?”

“I suppose that is the pertinent question. The answer is complicated, but the essence is that after our… initial encounter, I lost track of you for a time. I needed a way to find you again, and the mark allows me to do just that.”

“Complicated?” She scoffed, leaning forward slightly, eyes narrowing.“Don’t treat me like an idiot. Tell me why. I have a right to know.”