“Then I will see you in about an hour and forty-five minutes,” Lily said humorously before hanging up.
True to Queen Hazar’s vision or flash or whatever it was, Lily arrived at the queen’s manor at one hour and forty-three minutes since their phone call. “Ah good you have arrived,” the queen said as a greeting when she saw Lily. Hazar lounged on a purple fainting couch, looking as if she was posing for a painting.
She was dressed in elegant satiny royal blue Arabic gown with a matching veil covering her hair and face, drawing attention to a vampire’s most lethal weapon, their eyes. Her eyes were dark, almost black that gleamed blood red if the light hit them just right.
She looked to the others in the room, most of them familiar faces. In the chair to her right slouched the demon Crocell, who appeared more like a poster boy for surfers than a demon. “Greetings once more little hybrid,” he said in an Australian accent and giving her a lazy wave of his hand, his voice reminding her the sound of a waterfall.
“Hey Cro,” she replied and returned his lazy wave. Next to him lying on the floor was the ever smirking face of Karya, a dryad. Her skin was pale but with a healthy pink touch to it that seemed to just bring out dark green almost black hair with bright green highlights. To Queen Hazar’s left was the dark and brooding angel, Uriel. Jessie Hart and Dorin Stancu each stood in a stiff preparation of the edges of the Queen and her council.
Dorin was a vampire and one of Silvano’s men before he betrayed the Aequivalere, he was also Queen Hazar’s youngest liege. He was still a good four or five hundred years old, though. Dorin stood just a little taller than Lily and Jessie with an average build and strong Romanian features. He had assisted Lily getting some control over her vampire side while Bianca had tried her best to make Lily lose that control.
Jessie was Lily’s favorite member of the Aequivalere. She was the archetype for Fem Fatale. She was beautiful as she was deadly. As the head guardian, she was an expert in how to take down any creature quickly and the best part yet, she was just a simple human. Everyone regarded her with wary caution and Lily loved it. Too many of these big bad creatures thought of humans as weak and easy prey.
Next to Jessie and Dorin, were Donovan and Evangeline, she hadn’t either that much lately. Donovan was a large bulky man that seemed to take up half the spacious room all by himself with long dark hair tied loosely behind him. He dressed in a similar fashion as Jessie. He was one of the Aequivalere’s best fighters hands down and a fairy. Evangeline or Evan for short, seemed petite and frail in his company. As usual her face was difficult to see with her sunny blonde hair blocked it in wavy clumps.
“Let us begin,” the queen began. “As you know, the former king Silvano and his liege Bianca have escaped and they have done so with help. Since his flight, several people who have been suspected of aiding or supporting the rogue lycanthrope doctor Xavier Thompson have also disappeared. There also have been two attacks on our electrical storage system in an attempt to retrieve the wolf’s research that we have in our possession, I think the term is hacking,” the vampire explained with a tone that she suggested she cared little for computers or such devices.
“Why would Silvano work with anyone that supported Xavier?” Lily asked with a displeased frown. “I thought it was well known that he hates hybrids. He killed Dorin’s brother for being one and willing to lose everything to attack me against your orders. Why now would he support someone or some group wanting to get their hands on what was done to actually make hybrids?”
“We’re not yet sure,” spoke Uriel with his deep thunderous tone.
“Maybe losing his title and territory made him consider options he had otherwise discarded,” offered Crocell.
“Whatever the reason, an attack on the Aequivalere high secure files along with freeing one of maximum security prisoners is something we can’t take lightly,” Jessie spoke up, earning a small nod from the vampire queen. “I’m assuming you want me to detach a full tactical unit to follow his trail?” She added, but Queen Hazar shook her head softly side to side.
“No, my dear guardian that would be a waste of time. Silvano would never leave a trail that we could follow for he has always been very gifted at disappearing without a trace,” the queen answered Jessie and sat up. “No, we must draw the former king out,” she explained then looked to Lily. Lily did her best to keep her expression neutral, having finally figured out why Hazar had invited her to this little meeting.
“And what makes you think he’d come after me? I mean surely he would know if I leave myself only slightly vulnerable it would be a trap,” she asked the queen who smiled at her.
“Oh, he’ll go after you if he had the chance, even knowing it was most likely a trap,” Dorin spoke finally. “As the source of his downfall, his pride would demand that he’d return the favor. Also if he is actually working with these supporters, owes them for aiding his escape, or as Crocell suggested, open to new options then again he’d want to get his hands on you,” he finished.
“The digital copies of the research have been wiped from the computers and any other digital media leaving only the hard copies that you brought us,” Karya jumped in. “With the increased security of those files you, hybrid, are the easier option.”
“So you need me to play the part of vamp bait?” Lily asked and the queen gave her an affirmative nod.
“It wouldn’t be so odd for you to visit your family after so much time away. Your hometown is familiar territory for the king and would put him at ease. It would allow us the advantage when setting up a trap,” the queen explained.
Lily put her hands on her hips as she thought about their plan. She couldn’t say she was a fan of this plan but at the same time Lily could see it working. “What about the local alpha? Wouldn’t he be a little upset if you go playing in his sandbox?”
Queen Hazar smiled, but it was Uriel who spoke. “We’ve contacted your brother and he’s given us permission to attempt to apprehend the vampire in his territory but,” the angel explained and Lily felt a small smile break across her lips.
“To apprehend him but not that his sister is going to be playing the part of bait?” She asked, knowing already the answer. Uriel almost looked sheepish as told her that Tony, in fact, didn’t know of her part.
“What good is a trap if the fly knows the spider is waiting?” Crocell jumped in. “There’s no way the alpha pup could resist taking some precautions to keep you safe which would tell the king that something was up,” he finished.
“It is true, your brother as soon as discovers your part or the rogue vampire we’re hunting is the former king Silvano he will not be able to suppress his lycanthrope instincts of protection. Despite any argument we could give him against it, the alpha would implement his own measures of protection and Silvano wouldn’t draw himself out,” the queen explained.
“You’re right he would. He’s very protective of his family and his own,” Lily agreed, smiling at the remembrance at the many times he had tried to be protective of her. At the time, it simply annoyed her but now she understood why he did it. The queen got up from the fainting couch in a smooth, elegant motion, walking towards her till the vampire stood at her side.