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 Not entirely.
Cuinn chose that moment to interrupt.
Me thinks your Queen has taken a liking to ye.
 Be quiet, Cuinn.
Renata s head tilted to the side.  He is speaking to you?
 Yes, I said.  He s eavesdropping.
Eavesdropping? he asked, appalled. I do not eavesdrop!
I rolled my eyes in disbelief.
His next words made my heart fall to the floor.
Kiss her.
WHAT?
He smirked. Ye heard me. Kiss her.
Why on the God s green earth would I do that?
Well, Cuinn began, talking quickly, so that I may speak with her and that she may speak with me, but
most importantly he gave me one of those sly smiles  cause ye want to.
I almost tried denying it, but Cuinn shook his head and said, I know ye, and I knew without a doubt
that he spoke truth. It wouldn t get me anywhere arguing with him.
Instead, I questioned further. Why do you wish to speak with her?
Ah, it ll be easier and she won t think you ve completely lost your wits.
 Epiphany, Renata was still on my bed searching my face.  What is it?
I opened my mouth to explain, when Cuinn got impatient with me. Ye don t have to explain
everything ye do!
I moved toward her, spreading my legs and straddling her body between my thighs. I had a moment
to see the startled look in her glorious gaze before I pressed my lips to hers.
Renata put a palm against the back of my head and the kiss turned into something deeper, more
unbidden. Her hands cradled my hips and as her tongue expertly explored my mouth. I wrapped my legs
around her body, my arms lacing about her neck.
Someone cleared their throat.
Renata pulled away from the kiss, whispering my name.
What I saw was not my bedroom.
We sat in a clearing. I, in Renata s lap, her arms wrapped loosely about my waist. Moonlight cast an
enchanting glow on the wooded area that surrounded us. The trunks of the trees were dressed in skirts of
rich green moss. Beneath the fallen trunk of a tree, the ground sank into a den, and from that den came
Cuinn. Moonlight hit his orange coat, catching the fiery highlights. There were streaks of coal-like
shadows at the corners of his snout. His ash tipped ears swiveled as he dipped his head, kneeling in a
fox s version of a bow.
I had never seen anything so magical.
His eyes like sunlit molasses met mine and a crooked smirk curved oddly over his animal face.
Greetings, Epiphany. He sank lower. Greetings, Queen of the Rosso Lussuria.
Renata gave Cuinn a very long look.  So this is the spirito animale that lies hidden in the sword?
The words were simple enough to comprehend, but it was strange to hear her speak her native
tongue.
Aye, he said. Do ye see now that she is not mad?
He stepped forward and his ears flattened against his skull. He was treading cautiously.
 I did not fear she was touched by madness. Renata s fingers traced circles against my lower back
and I shuddered.
Ah well, Cuinn said, now ye know for certain she is not.
Renata dipped her head in acknowledgement.
Cuinn asked, What do ye know about my kind?
I didn t know who he was talking to, but Renata answered.
 Very little, she said.  I know that there were once swords of great power, and within them, within
every fiber of their making, they were infused with a spirit. She tilted her head.  Celts, was it not?
Aye, he said,It was, druids namely. He set back on his haunches. I must admit I am curious to know
how I fell into the hands of a vampire.
 I ve no aid to give there, volpe. I only know that it has been with the Rosso Lussuria since before I
was Queen.
 Why wouldn t you know how you got here? I asked him.
I have been sleeping for a very long time.
 Well, why didn t you wake up?
He shook his head. That is not the nature of a spirit sword, he said. We awaken when one worthy
wields our blades.
 You re starting to make all of this sound so very sword-in-the-stone-esque, I said.
The comment made his face burst into a delightful little fox grin. Aye, with every myth there s a grain
of truth.
 You re not going to start spouting some,  you are the chosen one, lines, are you?
Renata laughed.  You have been spending too much time in the library.
Cuinn shook his head. Nay, but you were in the right place at the right time.
 Or you were, I said.
Aye.
 I had wondered, Renata mused,  how Epiphany had beaten Gaspare.
Cuinn s eyes narrowed. It wasn t a human gesture, but it was a gesture of defense nonetheless. Are
ye accusing her of cheating?
 I could, Renata said blankly.
The fox slowly began to smile, and then he let out a bark of laughter. My ears seemed to hear the
barking, but my mind heard a boy s laughter, not quite a man s, but it was the closest thing my mind could
make sense of. I realized, though I had been thinking of Cuinn as male, he had an amazingly androgynous
voice.
 Why do you laugh, volpe? It could very well happen if any of the Elders figure this out. Epiphany
could be accused of cheating.
Cuinn clicked his jaw shut, but he was still smiling. Nay, he said and stood on all fours again,
coming closer. I felt the line of his furred body sliding against my back, over Renata s hand.  T was not
cheating if it was her power that called me. If I remember your laws correctly.
 How would you know our laws unless you once belonged to a vampire? Renata asked. I too,
wondered.
Nay. I did not.
 How do you know then?
 Cause I know you are not believing what you re saying.
 Clever and intuitive, she said dryly.
Aye, not so easily fooled, am I. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]