Shadow Kin by M.J. Scott Read Free Book Online

man could would look at me that way if he ever saw me as I was soon to be.
    The towering wooden doors that guarded the hall were shut. Usually they stood open, guarded by the Trusted. Tonight those at the door were Blood. Private session. Blood only. Not a good sign. My throat tightened as the urge to turn and flee bit into my stomach.
    Show no fear , I reminded myself as the nearest of the two guards opened the doors. I straightened my shoulders as I passed under the carved threshold and stepped into the vast room, trying to pretend I was perfectly at ease.
    The liquid murmur of the gathered Blood halted as we proceeded down the main aisle toward Lucius, the groups and pairs falling silent as I passed until the room became a still life in black and white, the silence swelling until the eerie lack of noise completely filled the space between the black marble beneath my feet and the highest points of the vaulted arches far above my head.
    The Blood stood motionless, silver haired, pale skinned, dressed in their customary immaculate black. The identical expressions of studied detachment on their faces were spoiled a little by the fear I sensed running deep beneath the surface.
    I wasn’t the only one made uneasy by Lucius calling a private meeting of the Court, it seemed.
    The only color came from their eyes—the eyes of the Blood do not fade after they turn, unlike their skin and hair—and the clothing of the vampire I walked toward.
    Lucius always wore a touch of red amongst his stark black-and-white. A cravat. Ruby cuff links. A crimson enameled watch on a red-gold chain. Tonight it was more than a touch. Tonight his long velvet frock coat was the color of the blood he commanded me to spill. I wondered if he’d donned it to avoid any coming stains and had to suppress a slightly hysterical urge to laugh.
    His eyes tracked me as I moved closer, the deep brown seemingly tinged the red of molten iron. There was nothing for me to read in those depths; he could be about to kill me or kiss me for all I could decipher.
    “Good evening, my shadow,” he said as I came to a halt in front of his chair.
    “My Lord.” I inclined my head the correct degree, wishing again I’d had more time to make myself presentable. But at least the mess of my braids might hide the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end. “Night keep you.”
    He didn’t nod in response, or offer me the customary greeting in return. Just watched me with eyes like banked coals, as if regarding an insect crawling across the floor.
    He knew. That much was obvious. Knew I’d failed to carry out my mission. Failed him for the first time.
    Not many were given a second chance at failure.
    I kept my gaze on his. Might as well see what was coming. Behind me, Ricco’s breathing and the small rustles and creaks of the near-silent Court sounded like thunder in my ears, matching the pounding of my heart. Ricco’s continued presence reminded me that any retribution Lucius might care to mete out could come from behind just as easily as in front. Sweat beaded on my back.
    It was always hot in the hall. The light of hundreds of candles carefully shielded in glass lamps hanging from chains bolted to the ceilings warmed the air. The Blood preferred it warm even though, in truth, neither heat nor cold truly affected them. Maybe because heat gave them more excuse to keep the Trusted—the humans who served them—scantily clothed. The Beast Kind and the Fae share their love of warmth. Normally I appreciated it too, but tonight the air pressed in on me: suffocating and clinging, perfumed with too many expensive colognes.
    I made myself breathe slowly, waited for Lucius to speak. He was pale as always, as unmoved by the heat as an iceberg would be by a lit match, a perfect statue carved in white and black and red.
    The silence stretched until my pulse echoed in my ears.
    “You look tired, my shadow. Are you well?” He shifted in his seat, easing the right hand cuff of his