While the half-breed ordered a Saint to bring a chair over for Victoria, Vail held her up, trying to process everything that was happening around him. When he’d left the Hygrace manor that morning, he had thought he would be petitioning the Order to allow him to offer his assistance, learning their plans to fight back against the Wynters, and then waiting until nightfall for the battle to commence. He certainly hadn’t been prepared to be greeted with an angry Victoria, accusations of being unfaithful, and an entire clan of vampires, one of whom was apparently her long-lost brother. It was enough to make his head swim as he attempted to keep up with it all.

Watching James tensely, he was further intrigued by how smoothly the demand flowed off the half-breed’s tongue. He didn’t know any other vampires who would speak to a human in such a manner. It was both humble and bold in the same stroke. Most of their kind wouldn’t even hold eye contact with a Saint long enough to address them, let alone bark orders with the expectation that said orders would be obeyed. Yet the man James chose to fetch the chair did so without skipping a beat. He wondered if the unusual interaction was due to the fact that Victoria’s brother had human blood coursing through his veins or if he felt comfortable around hunters because he was a child of Lady Diana Crest. Either way, it was a scene he had never witnessed before, and he found himself staring until the man returned with a seat for the weak-kneed Crest heiress.

Carefully, Vail set Victoria down so she could rest, but he remained on his feet at her side. Surrounded by Saints and now a new clan with which he was unfamiliar, he preferred to be mobile in case he needed to move quickly. He was the only one in the foyer without numbers on his side, and the disadvantage was tangible in the midst of such a diverse crowd. So, as James approached, he stood stiffly and tilted his chin up when the half-breed glared at him. No words were exchanged between them, so he wasn’t sure exactly what would have warranted the expression, but he could take a guess. If Victoria’s brother had inherited his father’s nose, he would have been able to smell the metallic scent of blood that still hung in the air around both him and the Crest heiress.

The exchange between the united siblings went without his interruption. While they spoke, Vail held Victoria’s hand in silence, offering her support as he listened to them. It seemed that Lady Diana had told her estranged son quite a bit about what had been going on in London. James even knew that Lord Spencer had hurt his sister. His hazel eyes drifted to the widow, who was still standing beside her former vampire lover, before returning to her half-breed son, who had just asked him a question.

“Protector?” he echoed the title with some amusement. It was fitting, he supposed, since he did see it as his responsibility to keep Victoria safe, but there was so much more to their relationship than that. “My name is Vail Hygrace,” he answered with a polite bow of his own. “And I think you’ll find that [i]lover [/i]is a more accurate description of what I am to Lady Crest.” Righting his posture, he met the half-breed’s blue eyes evenly. “Diana may not have mentioned me, but I will be staying here until the Wynters are removed from this city like the tumors they are.”