Angels of Darkness
donna. The word âcourtâ was in fact a misnomer. This was no extravagant place with formal dinners every night and courtiers dressed up to impress, their primary tasks being to look pretty and kiss ass.
Nimraâs court was a highly functional unit, the capable skill of her men and women evident. Christianâwho showed no sign of thawing to Noelâs presenceâhandled the day-to-day business affairs, including managing the investments that kept the court wealthy. He was assisted in certain tasks by Fen, though from what Noel had seen, it was more of a mentor-mentee relationship. Fen was passing the torch to Christian, who mightâve been older in years, but was younger in experience.
Asirani, by contrast, was Nimraâs social secretary. âShe rejects the majority of the invitations,â the frustrated vampire said to him on the second day, âwhich makes my job very challenging.â However, the invitationsâfrom other angels, high-level vampires, and humans eager to make contact with the ruling angelâcontinued to pour in, which meant Asirani was kept busy.
Exeter, the scholar, lived up to his reputation. An eccentricappearing individual with tufts of dusty gray hair that stuck out in all directions and wings of an astonishing deep yellow stroked with copper, he seemed to spend his time with his head in the clouds. However, a closer look proved him to be a source of both advice and information for Nimra when it came to angelic politics. Fen, by contrast, had his finger on the pulse when it came to the vampiric and human populations.
It was only Amariyah who seemed to have no real position, aside from her care of her father. âDo you remain in this court because of Fen?â he asked her that night after a rare formal dinner, as they stood on the balcony under the silver light of a half-moon, the humid air tangled with the sounds of insects going about their business and a lush dark that was the bayou.
The other vampire sipped from a wineglass of bloodred liquid that sang to Noelâs own senses. But heâd fed earlier, and so the hunger was nothing urgent, simply a humming awareness of the potent taste of iron. Before, he wouldâve ignored the glass in her hand to focus on the pulse in her neck, on her wrist, but the idea of putting his mouth to her skin, anyoneâs skin, of having someone that closeâit made his entire body burn cold, the hunger shutting down with harsh finality.
âNo,â she said at last, flicking out her tongue to collect a drop of blood on her plump lower lip. âI owe Nimra my allegiance for the way I was Made, and while I have nothing to compare it to, the others say this is a good territory. Iâve heard stories of other courts that make the hairs rise on my arms.â
Noel knew those stories were more apt to be true than not. Many immortals were so inhuman that they considered humans and vampires nothing but toys for their amusement, ruling through a mix of bone-deep terror and sadistic pain. In contrast, while Nimraâs servants and courtiers treated her with utmost respect, there was no acrid touch of fear, no skittering nervousness.
And yet . . . No ruler who had even a vein of kindness within her couldâve held off challengers as brutal as Nazarach. It made him question the truth of everything heâd seen to date, wonder if he was being played by the most skillful of adversaries, an angel whoâd had six centuries to learn her craft.
Amariyah took a step closer, too close. âYou sense it, too, donât you? The lies here.â A whisper. âThe hints of truth concealed.â Her scent was deep and luxuriant, hotly sensual with no subtle undertones.
The bold scent suited the truth of her natureâall color and sex and beauty with no thought to future consequences. Young. He felt ancient in comparison. âIâm new to this court,â he said, though he was disturbed by her question, her implication. âIâm very aware of what I donât know.â
A curve to her lips that held a vicious edge. âAnd you must of course please your mistress. Without her, you have no place here.â
âIâm no cipher,â Noel said, knowing that everyone here had to have investigated his background by now. Christian clearly had, though Noel didnât think the angel wouldâve shared what heâd dug upâthere was a stiff kind of pride to Christian
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