16

There was no time to think about my mortality now. As I finished off the last of my drink, Bishop whisked me back to my new office. It had an entrance directly to the Great Court but the main entrance was accessible through the Lesser Courts. The gold motif continued and I wondered if it fulfilled some kind of fetish for Trick. The wall paper was cream with gold flecks, the writing desk was cast in gold, the chandelier shimmered with Swarovski crystals in gold settings. Sunlight gleamed through windows trimmed in gold and the whole room had a wicked glare to it. First order of business, sheers to diffuse the light.

“Well, Milady, here are the final candidates for your staff,” Bishop brought my attention to the paperwork on my desk. Each showed a headshot of the woman being considered, as well as a detailed resume.

“No humans?” I inquired, flipped through the sheets.

“Given the nature of the palace business, it’s best to have a staff well versed in vampire culture,” Bishop explained.