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."If you will excuse me a moment," Seth murmured and followed the servantfrom the room.Barra abruptly started laughing.Midnight looked at him askance."Whatever is so amusing?"200Midnight Megan Derr"The way Devlin will react when he finds out that rescuing him involved gettinghelp from a vampire who spent the whole of the affair flirting shamelessly withyou," Barra replied, face flushed with laughter."What in the world are you talking about?" Midnight demanded."No one isflirting with me!"Neirin chuckled, shaking his head at Barra, still laughing."I tend to agree withBarra, I'm afraid.Perhaps you are unused to being the object of flirtation? Icannot think anyone would be brazen enough to try it with Devlin scowlingnearby."But " Midnight dropped his head, embarrassed."That's silly.Why would avampire flirt with me? Anyway, I belong to Devlin, so there's no point."Barra's laughter finally eased off, though his eyes were still bright with mirth."Come now, Midnight.You are quite the tease when Devlin is around; everyoneknows you drive the man positively mad.You obviously know your charms."Midnight stared very hard at his crystal wine glass, and the blood which stillfilled it halfway."I don't have charms," he said, glad that his face could not turnred for otherwise he feared he would be redder than the blood he was enjoying."I just love Devlin."When Barra only laughed again, he rallied and looked up, curving his mouth intoa smirk."Anyway, I don't want to hear all this nonsense from a pretty wolf-elfwho used his charms to snare a knight and a dragon.We're going to have to buyyou a larger bed, wolf-elf."Barra turned bright red and made a choked, squeaking sound, suddenly findinghis dinner plate extremely fascinating.Neirin and Troyes both snickered, and Midnight didn't doubt that Barra's nextsqueak came from someone's wandering hand.201Midnight Megan DerrThe door opened and they abruptly ceased the friendly byplay, especially whenthey saw that Seth was accompanied by a new vampire.Midnight immediatelysmelled magic on him, far stronger and sharper than it had been on any of theother vampires.Stronger than it was on anyone he knew, except Devlin.He was tall and slender, with messy, pale blonde hair that fell to his shoulders.His eyes, Midnight saw with surprise, were the same brilliant emerald of Seth's.Were they related? They must be, with eyes like that.He was dressed in simple,worn but respectable clothes, all of it stark black.His eyes immediately landedupon Midnight and widened.Striding into the room, eschewing proper introductions, he sat down in Seth'sseat and reached out to lightly touch Midnight's face."My word, it is the corpsechild.The spell worked better than I ever could have hoped, though we knewour magic was sound.Stunning, truly."Midnight had never felt more embarrassed in his life, between the courtesy, theteasing over the supposed flirting, and now this, whatever it was."Um.I didn'tknow you helped make me."Ceadda blinked, then laughed briefly and withdrew his hand."I had very littlepart in it, child.His Grace did the real work; I only filled in the gaps.He put forththe heart and soul, and magic does not work if it is coldly cast." His levityabruptly faded."The Alucard informs me that His Grace has been kidnapped,because of what we did with you.""Yes," Midnight said."That is our belief, anyway.""It is probably correct," Ceadda mused, sitting back, apparently oblivious to thefact he had stolen Seth's chair.Seth, mouth quirked in amusement, slid into the one opposite Midnight.202Midnight Megan Derr"We always feared that, should you become well known, then someone woulddesire the knowledge that made you," Ceadda continued."I think I need not listall the reasons an existence such as yours would be favorably regarded bypeople, especially amongst the weaker and more short-lived species."Neirin snorted in amusement, but said nothing.Midnight scowled."I cannot believe that idiot never told me that he had help,and how typical of him to do it for the best."Ceadda shrugged."It was actually my request that I go unmentioned; because itwas safest, but also because I wanted to be left alone.If others knew I hadsuccessfully helped such an endeavor, they would pester me for other things.Ijust want to be left alone."Seth chuckled."A fierce recluse, our Ceadda," he said, looking at Ceadda with anindecipherable expression on his face."Nothing and no one can draw him fromhis magic.""Magic makes more sense than the rest of the world," Ceadda repliedautomatically, still not taking his eyes off Midnight."I am glad you turned out sowell.No spell before or since was better than you.""Thank you," Midnight said, not certain what else he could say."Does that meanyou will help us?"Ceadda frowned."Seth mentioned my assisting you, but truly I am not certainhow I might.I am, as he said, reclusive.""Reclusive, but not oblivious," Seth said."Come now, cousin, I know you betterthan that.If anyone knows of a sorcerer tampering with such dangerous things,it would be you."203Midnight Megan Derr"If you had asked me thirty or so years ago, certainly," Ceadda said with a shrug."However, I only ever knew one magic-using human with the potential for suchmagic, and he died before he could achieve it.A weak heart, or so the rumorssaid [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]