ClaraI prepared myself to leave the Quarters at dusk. My mind was a whirlwind of thoughts. Even now, I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to accomplish. What exactly would an enemy of Prince Legiere say about him? I certainly wasn’t currying Prince Legiere’s favor by doing this. After he had told me that I could go to Prince Bruess, he had shut himself up in his room to sleep. If he had been any other werewolf, I would have thought that he was sulking.I decided to wear a simple brown leather jerkin and black trousers. I had no intention of being seduced. Maybe it was just pure curiosity that drew me to Prince Bruess. Maybe I just wanted to see Prince Legiere’s reaction. He was annoyed, but as a whole, he kept calm.When I headed out of the Quarters, a werewolf leaned against the walls of the corridor that led out of the building.“Hello Felix,” I said. I tried not to roll my eyes. Of course. I supposed Prince Legiere couldn’t help himself after all. Felix would probably report back e

Clara “We won’t stay,” Felix said, but he was looking at me instead of Bruess. “You won’t,” Prince Bruess said to him. “What about the Lady Clara? I hope that you are made of sterner stuff than to bend at every whim my brother has.” “You make it sound like he has me under his thumb,” I said, and Felix made a sound of disgust. “You are under his rule, whether you like it or not. You only think that because Prince Legiere has made you his new favorite,” Felix said. “You don’t know do you? How many favorites come and go? A lot of the stupid ones thought that they had special immunity. Mark my words, you’ll end up in the gutter like them.” Bruess watched Felix and whistled. The birds on Felix finally flew back into their cage. “And you, little shadow?” he asked. “When will your time come? When will my brother tire of you too?” Felix bared his teeth. “Better to be the lapdog of a winner than a loser like you.” “Better to not be a lapdog at all,” Bruess said evenly. “This is the unfor

Clara“What makes you think that you’re the sane one?” I asked Bruess. “You could be lying about everything, including my mother.”Bruess lay back in his seat thoughtfully. “You’re right. There is no way to know if I’m being honest. Then judge for yourself, though I’m afraid my brother has ways of wasting your valuable time.”I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate on his emotions to see if he was telling the truth. His next words jarred me.“Are you trying to get up here?” He pointed to his head. “Loretta did the same thing. She had an extraordinary way of getting in a werewolf’s head. Some would say that it was a kind of sorcery she delved into.”No one had ever called me out on this strange skill that I had with sensing a werewolf’s emotions. “She never had the Stigma or the Mark, nor do I,” I said defensively.“You don’t deny trying to root around in my head.” He crossed his arms. “How very fascinating. What am I thinking now?”“It’s not like I can hear what you can think,” I sa

Deanneth When Clara decided on a whim that she wanted to chat with my half-brother, at first the thought annoyed me. I suppose my brother still had his charm intact. He was supposed to be the leader of the Dark Shade after Arinauld died. My sire had taught him well, or maybe his regal bearing was far more authentic than mine. There was a flavor of noble melancholy about him as well. Perhaps that was what drew her to him. I congratulated my brother’s cunning. I guess the old devil still had it in him. Obviously, Bruess needed to be disciplined, but the thought bored me. I had years of experience of thinking up new ways to humiliate Bruess, but he was surprisingly resilient. The problem with tormenting my brother was that the other werewolves of the pack were starting to notice his strength. He bore each new punishment with fatalistic grace that annoyed me. He was starting to win back the admiration of the pack, and I knew that he still had the ears of several Councilors, including Lor

ClaraFingers stroked my hair. I saw my father in the distance shuffling parchment on his desk. Someone hummed a soothing melody, and I listened to it. My mother held me in her arms. “You’re going to have a little sister.” Her fingers grasped mine and pushed them onto her swollen belly. “We’re going to call her Elena.”“Elena,” I burbled happily. My small hands patted my mother’s stomach, and I giggled when I felt a kick. “You’re going to protect her and make sure that she’s loved. Even if they say terrible things about her, even if they say she’s not really your father’s. You’re going to always be there for her.” **I was half-asleep when I heard voices murmuring in the darkness. Someone massaged my neck, and I moaned in pain.“Ugh, what in hells is that smell?” said a low voice. “It’s not the regular slum stench.”“Vamp blood. You better get used to it. They’re going to be crawling out of the woodwork now.”There was a sound of disgust. “Is that what that is? Smells like old b