“That is, unless you’d feel slighted?” Cyrus asked me with a rueful grin. His voice invaded my head. If you refuse me, I’ll take her to my bed in the morning and she won’t live to the next sunset.

The girl looked at me with something akin to jealousy and despair. I had no doubt Cyrus would make good on his threat. I leaned close to his side. I managed, “It’s my first night here. Wouldn’t you rather spend it with me?” Concentrating as hard as I could, I silently added, You dick.

A low laugh rumbled from his throat, and he spread his hands in a gesture of helplessness. “I’m sorry, Cami, the doctor has spoken. Perhaps you’ll find company with one of my guests?”

She paled further, her eyes filling with tears. “Will they hurt me?”

“Of course not. I wouldn’t allow it.” He patted her on the head. “Run along now, I have to show Dr. Ames the rest of the mansion.”

We exited the hallway and entered a small sitting room. I glanced at the railing to one side and realized we were directly above the foyer. I heard the good-natured shouting of the Fangs below.

“You pervert,” I said as soon as the door closed behind us. “She’s only a little girl.”

“She’s fifteen. Just a year younger than my first wife.”

“This isn’t the Dark Ages anymore,” I seethed. “There are rules.”

“I find there is something beautiful in the forbidden.”

“Beautiful?” I thought of the memory Cyrus had shown me, the way her knuckles had turned white as she’d gripped the bedsheets. “What about her parents? Her family? They’re out there somewhere, looking for her, and you’re planning to kill her?”

“She’s a runaway, Carrie. Nearly all of my pets are. Now, if they don’t suit you, I wouldn’t miss a few of my guards as long as you’re discreet about it.”

“I’m not going to kill for blood. I want a willing donor.”

“The cattle are willing,” he said, pointing in the direction we’d just come from.

“Willing to die?”

He nodded. “Willing to endure a little bit of discomfort for what I give them. I kill them eventually, but for a few days, maybe even weeks, they feel like they belong. Like someone wants them. Surely you know how precious that can be.”

I did. As a child, I’d worked hard to be the best, the smartest, the most accomplished in the hopes my parents would take notice. I’d savored every word of their praise like ambrosia. I knew what poor Cami had been looking for. She’d prostituted herself for love, or at least, a shadow of it. She would never know the difference.

I was infinitely thankful that no one like Cyrus had come along when I was fifteen. I would have been easy prey. I still was. I felt a gentle probing at the edges of my thoughts and pushed away the taloned hand that rested on my arm. “Stop it.”