At least Vail could be certain now that Victoria had had nothing to do with the Saint who had attacked him yesterday. As soon as she responded with his wellbeing at the forefront of her mind, he relaxed. She must have arranged this meeting to clear the air between them. That meant he didn’t have to worry about being ambushed again—well, not as much. There was always still a chance of a hunter tracking them down without her knowledge. He continued to pay subtle attention to the scents in the room, just in case anything changed.

As she went on to explain that the man who’d tried to trap him was the same man she’d been searching for, he raised a brow. He found it strange that a man who was “protective” of her would hit her over the head and then proceed to use her as bait to catch a demon. Personally, he didn’t buy it. Gerald seemed like the type to put his own agenda ahead of everyone else, so there was probably a different reason as to why he’d treated her the way he had.

His suspicion was confirmed when Victoria said the Saint who had helped her escape believed there was something sinister going on between the Order and the Wynters. Now it was all starting to make sense. If Gerald was on [i]their[/i] side, then of course he wouldn’t allow another vampire to have his way with the Lady before she married Spencer.

Although he’d figured that much out, he did have to wonder how the rival clan had weaseled their way into an organization that killed their kind for a living. Just the thought of it was bewildering to him. The Hygraces had been cooperating with the Saints for far longer, yet they still conflicted with the hunters often. How had a clan as bloodthirsty as the Wynters been accepted into their ranks? He couldn’t fathom a reason why.

Vail was drawn from his thoughts as Victoria spoke again in a more defeated voice. He studied her quietly when she brought up the fact that his involvement with her had become a risk to his safety. It was true. In the two centuries he’d lived thus far, he’d never found himself in more danger than when he’d begun to associate with the Crest heiress. It was to be expected though. He’d known what he was getting into from the start—maybe not to the full extent, but he’d still had an idea of it. After all, she was Alexander’s daughter [i]and[/i] the fiancée of one of his long-time enemies. If they had gone about their business without a single problem, he would have been far more shocked.

Hearing Victoria sniffle, Vail averted his gaze. He knew it was a bad idea to empathize with his prey, but he couldn’t stop the pang of sadness that twisted his stomach upon knowing how upset she was. He didn’t want her to blame herself for everything that had happened. They had both agreed to the deal. It didn’t matter if she was the catalyst. He was just as much at fault for accepting her offer. He opened his mouth to say so, but then closed it again as his father’s words echoed inside his head: [i]You would be wise to guard your heart.[/i]

He shifted uncomfortably, suddenly realizing that his attachment to her might have begun to run deeper than his addiction to her blood. Just the fact that he couldn’t bear to see her upset was proof enough of that. He pursed his lips, feeling tugged in two directions. While he knew in his head that it was dangerous for him to get close to her, his heart didn’t want to do anything but. It was too late. He’d already let her in too far.

Abandoning his station by the door, Vail stepped up behind Victoria and wrapped his arms around her middle in an attempt to comfort her. “I know you didn’t mean for any of this to happen,” he murmured, looking away from her as he spoke. He wasn’t used to getting so close to a Lady without the motive of feeding on her. “And I’m not going to end our deal… especially now that I know the Order wants you to marry a Wynter. I don’t know what’s going on, but I don’t like it. We need to get rid of him before whatever they’re planning comes to pass.”