JК
Bloody Bones :: Гамильтон Лорел
Страница: 146 из 272Being prepareddoes. Are you afraid of her?" I looked at him, trying to read that lovely mask.
"I do not fear her power. I believe us to be near equals in that, but let us say I am wary. All things being equal, I am still in her territory with only one of my wolves, my human servant, and Monsieur Lawrence. It is not the show of force I would have chosen to confront her after two centuries.
"Why didn't you bring more people? More werewolves, anyway."
"If I had had time to negotiate more of an entourage I would have, but with the rush. ." He looked at me. "There was no time to bargain."
"Are you in danger?"
He laughed, and it wasn't entirely pleasant. "Am I in danger, she asks. When the council asked me to divide my lands, they promised to set in place someone of power equal to or less than mine. But they did not expect me to enter her territory so unprepared."
"Who are they? What council?"
He cocked his head to one side. "Have you really come among us so long and not heard of our council?"
"Just tell me," I said.
"We have a council, Ma petite . It has existed for a very long time. It is not so much a governing body as a court, or police, perhaps. Before your courts made us citizens with rights, we had very few rules, and only one law. Thou shalt not draw attention to yourself. That's the law that Tepes forgot."
"Tepes," I said, "Vlad Tepes? You mean Dracula?"
Jean-Claude just looked at me. His face was perfectly blank, no expression. He looked like a particularly lovely statue, if a statue's eyes could glitter like sapphires. I could not read that expressionless face, nor was I meant to.
"I don't believe you."
"About the council, our law, or Tepes?"
"The last part."
"Oh, I assure you we did kill him."
"You make it sound like you were around when it happened. He died in, what, the 1300s?"
"Was it 1476, or was it 1477?" He made a great show of trying to remember.
"You are not that old," I said.
"Are you sure, ma petite?" He turned that unnervingly blank face to me; even his eyes went dead and empty. It was like looking at a well-constructed doll.
"Yeah, I'm sure."
He smiled, and sighed. Life, for lack of a better word, rushed back into his face, his body. It was like watching Pinocchio spring to life.
"Shit."
"So nice to know that I can still unnerve you from time to time, Ma petite ." I let that go. He knew exactly the effect he had on me.
"I do not fear her power. I believe us to be near equals in that, but let us say I am wary. All things being equal, I am still in her territory with only one of my wolves, my human servant, and Monsieur Lawrence. It is not the show of force I would have chosen to confront her after two centuries.
"Why didn't you bring more people? More werewolves, anyway."
"If I had had time to negotiate more of an entourage I would have, but with the rush. ." He looked at me. "There was no time to bargain."
"Are you in danger?"
He laughed, and it wasn't entirely pleasant. "Am I in danger, she asks. When the council asked me to divide my lands, they promised to set in place someone of power equal to or less than mine. But they did not expect me to enter her territory so unprepared."
"Who are they? What council?"
He cocked his head to one side. "Have you really come among us so long and not heard of our council?"
"Just tell me," I said.
"We have a council, Ma petite . It has existed for a very long time. It is not so much a governing body as a court, or police, perhaps. Before your courts made us citizens with rights, we had very few rules, and only one law. Thou shalt not draw attention to yourself. That's the law that Tepes forgot."
"Tepes," I said, "Vlad Tepes? You mean Dracula?"
Jean-Claude just looked at me. His face was perfectly blank, no expression. He looked like a particularly lovely statue, if a statue's eyes could glitter like sapphires. I could not read that expressionless face, nor was I meant to.
"I don't believe you."
"About the council, our law, or Tepes?"
"The last part."
"Oh, I assure you we did kill him."
"You make it sound like you were around when it happened. He died in, what, the 1300s?"
"Was it 1476, or was it 1477?" He made a great show of trying to remember.
"You are not that old," I said.
"Are you sure, ma petite?" He turned that unnervingly blank face to me; even his eyes went dead and empty. It was like looking at a well-constructed doll.
"Yeah, I'm sure."
He smiled, and sighed. Life, for lack of a better word, rushed back into his face, his body. It was like watching Pinocchio spring to life.
"Shit."
"So nice to know that I can still unnerve you from time to time, Ma petite ." I let that go. He knew exactly the effect he had on me.