“What are you doing here?” she demanded.
Luc pouted. “Are you still angry about the other night?”
“You mean when you tried to eat me?”
“It wasn’t like that. Well, maybe it was a little like that.” He grinned, flashing his fangs as if they were the equivalent of a shiny new pocket watch, an accessory to match his doublet, which was black velvet with deep bloodred embroidery.
“This isn’t funny, Luc. What are you doing here?”
“Aw, come on. You’re clever, or you were. I’d have thought you’d have figured it out.” He twirled the crown again, round and round his fingers. It was just a simple circlet, but it was made of gold and it shone through the miasma, making it rather obvious what should have been apparent since the moment she’d walked in: Luc was Lucien.
“You started the ridiculous rumors about Lucien Acadian?” Evangeline had thought this Lucien was too good to be true, but she’d never actually imagined the young man who taught children to read and found homes for stray puppies could be Luc. Luc was a lot of things, but he wasn’t cunning enough to rule a kingdom, let alone steal one.
How had Luc pulled this off? She knew vampires possessed allure, an ability that allowed them to dazzle humans if a human looked them in the eye. But Luc would have needed more than that to turn himself into the heir. He wasn’t even from the Magnificent North.
If only she’d found a way to wake up Apollo, this would have never happened.
“I thought you’d be more impressed. I’m a prince now!” Luc jauntily tossed his crown into the air and caught it with the top of his head.
She cringed.
Luc scowled, the expression marring his handsome features.
“I don’t understand how or why you’re doing this, Luc, but it isn’t going to work. You can’t just make up a name and claim a throne.”
“Don’t worry so much, Eva. Only the name is a lie.” He started playing with his crown again, letting it slip from his head onto his fingers. “Chaos said altering my name would make it easier for people to accept the truth—turns out, I really am a long-lost distant relation of the dead prince.”
Evangeline winced at the words dead prince and resisted the urge to shake her head. She didn’t believe for a second that Luc was Apollo’s long-lost relation. But of course, Luc would believe it. He had always been a little entitled. It was a minor flaw she’d ignored in the past, but suddenly, it didn’t seem so harmless. As a human, Luc had thought he deserved every nice thing, and now that he was a vampire, he clearly thought himself worthy of much more.
The question was, why would Chaos give the throne to him? Evangeline had met Chaos on several occasions. The first two times they’d crossed paths, he’d pretended to be a royal guard, but it turned out he was the Vampire Lord of Spies and Assassins.
Perhaps he’d placed Luc on the throne because Chaos supposed that, as a new vampire, Luc would be easy to control. Although that was difficult for Evangeline to believe as well. Luc was too impulsive. Even if he did what Chaos desired in terms of laws and policies, Evangeline imagined Luc losing control of his vampire urges. If he’d attacked her—someone he’d supposedly cared about—she couldn’t picture him holding back with others.
Evangeline had a sudden terrifying flash of Wolf Hall full of courtiers and servants who were bleeding or dead or turned into vampires.
This would be a disaster. Evangeline wanted to say as much, but she doubted Luc would take it well. Instead, she wondered why Luc had called her here, alone. She would have never feared him as a human—she’d loved him—but that boy had disappeared as soon as Luc had been infected with vampire venom.
“Why don’t you come a little closer?” He cocked his head toward Evangeline, and she felt heat nip her earlobe and then sensed his burning gaze on her throat.
“Stop that, Luc.”
“Stop what?” Another smile, but it didn’t touch his eyes—they were dark and brown and hungry.
She needed to go—she needed to find that cure for Apollo more than ever, to get Luc off his throne—but if she left Luc alone, she feared what else he might do. Who else he might bite.
“Luc, please—” Evangeline paused at the sound of footsteps.
They were just outside the doors and as soft as the muffled feminine voice that followed. “I was summoned by Prince Lucien to join him for dinner.”
Evangeline tensed at the last word. “Tell me she means actual food.”