Vail nodded wordlessly when Victoria explained that her father hadn’t known what Lord Spencer was, nor had he chosen the Wynter to become her husband. The Lady’s guess that Spencer had used her mother as his way into the Crest family was probably right too. If their kind could use their pheromones to force their prey into submission, his rival could have easily done the same to manipulate Alexander’s widow. It seemed slimy to him that the other vampire would abuse his hunting abilities in such a perverse manner, but knowing the Wynters, he wouldn’t put it past any of them for a moment. They had always been willing to do whatever it took to get their way. If puppeteering humans was a means to their end, they wouldn’t hesitate to try it.

As Victoria went on to say that Spencer might have had something to do with her father’s death, Vail wasn’t sure what to say. Admittedly, he agreed with her. If the Wynters were trying to usurp the head of the Crest household, he wouldn’t have been at all surprised to find out they had murdered Alexander to secure it. It was the same trick they had tried on the Hygrace family over a century ago. However, he didn’t want to further upset her by reaffirming her belief that the man she was engaged to marry was behind her father’s early demise. If it was true, she would surely find out without his help later on.

At last, they arrived at the looming gate in front of the Crest manor. Vail slowed to a stop, lingering a short distance behind the Lady as she approached the barrier. He was relieved that the trip hadn’t been long, since he still had to walk all the way back to his own home before he could get some rest. It wasn’t a terribly far distance away, but he was glad he had managed to feed that night, otherwise he might have had a hard time getting back. His eyes wandered to Victoria’s neck. Despite the discomfort of his recent cravings, her blood had been worth the wait. It was just as satisfying as he had expected, if not more so, and he couldn’t help but wonder if he would ever be so lucky to taste it again.

Suddenly, the Lady turned back to bid him goodbye, and Vail broke out of his thoughts in mild surprise. The amiability in her voice was quite unexpected. He had just attacked her, yet she seemed to be focusing on their [i]conversation[/i] instead. The thought nearly drew a laugh out of him. Victoria Crest was an interesting woman for sure.

“I wasn’t expecting so, but it has been enjoyable for me as well,” he agreed with a smile. It still felt strange to him that he had just walked his own victim home and chattered with her along the way, but it hadn’t been bad. He found that he genuinely liked talking with her. Her innocence and curiosity were a breath of fresh air compared to his always-serious family. He was glad they had had the chance to speak before parting ways.

As she regarded him with pity, Vail’s smile faded. His isolated life had become so normal to him that he hadn’t considered it might be thought of as lonely to someone on the outside. He and the rest of his family had been in hiding longer than any human had been alive. Staying away from other people was their method of survival. It was the only way he knew how to live. However, after his discussion with Victoria, he wondered if there was perhaps something more to life that he was missing.

He didn’t get the chance to dwell on the thought for long before the Lady changed the subject. At her determined words about the Wynters, he smiled again, amused this time. He had no doubt that she would try everything in her power to thwart the rival clan. The tenacity she had shown to him thus far was proof enough of that. Whether she would actually be able to stop them was another question though.

As Victoria turned away to go into to her manor, Vail did as well, preparing to head back to his home. However, he didn’t take more than a step before her gentle voice caught his attention once more. Looking back at her, he raised his brow at her offer to uphold the truce that her father had created between the Crests and the Hygraces before his death. He wasn’t sure what power she had to make sure a promise, since she wasn’t part of the Order, but he appreciated the gesture nonetheless.

“Thank you,” he bowed his head courteously. When he rose again, he noticed that the Lady now had an almost melancholic expression on her face. He was just beginning to wonder what was on her mind when she addressed him one more time to apologize for what had happened yesterday.

“Don’t fuss over it,” he shook his head. Though he hadn’t originally planned to reconcile that night, he supposed there was no reason not to talk about it now that she’d brought it up. “I shouldn’t have been as inconsiderate to you as I was. I know you were just looking for answers about your father, right?” He’d made the connection throughout their last talk. “I’m sorry I was so short with you.”

As she asked about his shoulder, he rolled it again in an absent check of the healing process. “Better now,” he mused. “I must admit, feeding on your blood has helped it tremendously. I’m sure I’ll be back to normal before the end of the week.”