Born in Chains (Men in Chains #1)(39)
Author: Caris Roane

He eased back on pressuring her. “It’s okay. But I hope at some point you can trust me enough to tell me.”

She glanced around the room. “This is really nice.” Then her gaze drifted to the ceiling and her eyes widened. “Oh, my God.”

Adrien looked up as well. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” This part of the cavern was on a long ridge of granite that he’d had tunneled out into various living quarters. Vampire craftsmen had then chiseled and polished the ceiling of his apartment into a variety of patterns. “This design is called ‘The Brook.’”

She wrinkled her nose. “I’m not seeing it. I suppose there’s sort of a flow of water.”

He chuckled. “No, the design was named after the creator, Edgar Brook.”

“Oh, I see. Well, I believe Mr. Brook must be a genius.”

“He was. He died about three hundred years ago.”

She shifted her gaze to him once more. “Are you saying that this cave, in this state, has been around that long?”

He liked that the color was returning to her face. “Yes, that long.”

The housekeeper arrived with a tray bearing a small tureen of soup.

Lily moaned. “That smells like heaven.”

“We’re indebted to the age of electricity,” she explained. “And to hydroponics. We have acres of the best vegetables in the world growing deep in this system.”

Lily pushed herself to a sitting position, and the housekeeper carefully placed the tray over her lap. She said she hoped Lily enjoyed the soup then left the room. Adrien listened to the sound of her soft-soled shoes disappearing down the hall.

Lily wore a white cotton nightgown with small pleats across the bodice, which made her look youthful, even fragile. Her hair was clean and she swept it back with one hand to rest over her shoulder. As she lifted her spoon and dipped, Adrien didn’t know what to make of this woman or her sudden appearance in his life.

She didn’t look at him as she ate. The trip of her spoon from lips, to bowl, to broth and back, became a slow, steady progression.

He waited until she had finished the last bite, then rang the bell. The housekeeper returned to take the tray.

Adrien knew the time had come to tell Lily what needed to happen next, but she was already sliding out of bed. “We need to get to that club. What time is it? Wait, I didn’t sleep through the night, did I?”

He glanced at the clock. “No. We have several hours till dawn, but Lily, we’re not going there, at least not yet.”

She sat on the edge of the bed, and her brows rose. “Why not? I mean, I’ve recovered. I feel fine. I really do.” The whiteness of her complexion belied her true condition. Hell if he didn’t admire her all over again.

“Gabriel will be here shortly with a new set of chains, a double set. He said it wouldn’t take long to get this thing done.”

“I don’t understand.”

Absently, Adrien touched the chain at his neck.

Her eyes widened. She reached out and grabbed his wrist, hard. “No,” she cried. “No. We decided we’re not doing that.”

“You’re not doing anything. And all I’m doing is becoming something I should have become when I first flew you to Paris.”

She glared at him in response.

“Don’t look at me that way. Lily, you drowned. Don’t you understand? You were almost gone when I pulled you out of the lake. Once we were airborne I might have tried to fly you slowly, but another, larger group of assassins was on us. I can’t risk your life again. I can’t because if you die, then I’ll die and Daniel will kill my brothers. I have to keep you alive, just to stay alive myself.”

“But I know how much you don’t want to do this thing. I can feel that it’s almost unbearable to you.”

“My mind’s made up.”

She grabbed him harder and leaned forward. “No. I won’t allow it.”

“At this point, you don’t get a say. Or do you want to be dead? And frankly, you are too much of a liability for me not to add a new power level to my arsenal.”

Adrien felt like a strong wind blew over his face. He didn’t recognize the sensation right away, but he was stunned. He’d only known Lily a little over two nights, and she sat here gripping his arm, standing in his corner, battling for him. What made it more intense was knowing that his kind had taken the lives of her family, changing and ruining her life forever. Yet she cared about him enough, after so short a time, to want him to hold his course.

Maybe that’s what settled everything in his mind: As much as he detested what he was about to do, saving Lily’s life was worth it. She hadn’t deserved to have her family ripped apart, or to be somehow forced onto this mission of hers. And she sure as hell didn’t deserve to die because of fanatics that apparently wanted them both dead no matter what.

He covered her hand with his once more then leaned in and kissed her.

She drew back, surprised. “What was that for?”

“Thank you,” he said, with emphasis. “You’re a true friend and I’ll never forget that. In all my long centuries, I can count on just these two hands the people in my life who would have stood up for me as you just have. It means a lot.” He drew in a deep breath, then said, “Now, here’s how this is going down.”

* * *

An hour later Lily was dressed in appropriate sex-club attire: a shimmery, low-cut blue halter, a short black leather skirt, and long sexy boots.

She teased up her hair and added more eye makeup than she usually wore, hoping to create a different appearance so that she wouldn’t be easily recognized.

Gabriel had arrived with the more powerful bonding chains. Apparently, no more was involved than for Adrien to put on his chain and let the process work through him. She’d reap the benefits, too, in terms of taking on more vampire abilities.

Even though Adrien stood just on the other side of the wall, she felt his unease about taking this step. From all that she understood, his father had been evil and powerful. Whether he still lived, she didn’t know, but the last thing Adrien wanted was to be like him. “Lily, we’re ready when you are.”

The room had a full-length mirror so that she could get a good hard look at her reflection. Her heeled boots finished off the look better than anything else could have, and a zing of pleasure went through her knowing that Adrien would probably like this look on her.

He’d told her to wear anything she wanted. She’d considered another pair of jeans, but this was the better choice.