He placed the silk over her eyes and knotted it behind her head. Then he rested his hand on her shoulder.

“Be brave, Raven.”

She didn’t feel brave, but she had no choice but to act the part. She focused on her breathing, trying to inhale and exhale deeply. She felt the car continue for a while, until it turned and seemed to enter a building of some sort. Shortly thereafter, the car came to a halt.

William helped her from the vehicle and held her elbow as he escorted her through a door. The ground beneath her feet felt like stone, which indicated to her that they were probably in one of the older buildings in Florence.

She wondered if they were in the Palazzo Riccardi.

William led her through a series of hallways and doors and down a winding staircase that seemed to last forever. She was almost convinced they were journeying to the very center of the earth.

Once they descended the staircase, they walked through a door and down a long, echoing corridor. She heard voices—men and women, but no children. She heard scraps of conversation in various languages, some of which she couldn’t identify.

She heard laughter and the very obvious moans and rhythms of sexual encounters.

She felt the color rise in her cheeks, wondering if the underworld was actually a sex club for vampyres. She wondered if the erotic groans and sounds were those of human men and women, giving up their blood as they climaxed.

“Steady now,” William whispered.

His hand slid down her arm and squeezed before returning to her elbow.

Raven took a deep breath, trying not to shake.

The air surrounding them was damp and carried with it a hint of mold.

She coughed.

“Be brave and be silent, no matter what you hear.” William’s grip tightened on her arm.

Her stomach pitched.

A door opened and they entered what must have been a huge hall or theater. Raven could hear the echoes of metal clanking against metal, and the sounds of grunts and yells.

She lifted her chin slowly.

Despite William’s best efforts, the blindfold had shifted. It was failing to cover a tiny field of vision to the right of her nose. If she moved her head, she could see.

And what she saw overwhelmed her.

She was on a balcony that overlooked an immense space, like a gymnasium. Men and women were engaged in various kinds of combat on the floor below. Some used weapons; some used just their bodies.

As Raven tried very hard not to move, she saw people leaping from the ground and seeming to fly through the air. She also saw them inflicting what she thought would be mortal wounds, although the victims remained unscathed.

She cursed impulsively.

“No sounds.” William squeezed her once again.

What she had just seen was impossible. It defied gravity. It defied everything she had come to believe about human beings and their abilities.

It confirmed what she already believed—that William and his kind, whatever they were, weren’t human.

He led her through another door and into a hallway. It was dark and appeared to be lit dimly by torches that were placed on the walls.

As they moved forward, Raven noticed that the underworld was hewn out of stone.

She heard voices in the distance, but no one passed them.

They stopped and Raven heard another door open. William led her inside a small, dark room.

She heard the striking of a match and inhaled the scent of smoke. A small light grew visible from a short distance away.

He must have lit a candle.

“Take a few moments to calm yourself.”

Raven breathed deeply.

She heard the opening of a bottle and the splash of liquid. He placed a cold, smooth object in her hand and closed her fingers around it.

“This is Vin Santo. Sip it slowly, but drink all of it. It will relax you.”

She brought the glass to her nose and sniffed.

She pressed the glass to her lips and drank.

“Humans are not allowed here unless they’re under mind control and reserved as food. You must pretend your very will is slave to mine. You cannot reveal what you’ve seen. Or I’ll be forced to silence the lark I’ve come to admire.”

Chapter Twenty-nine

“What is the meaning of this? Why have we been convened?” Aoibhe strode into the council chambers below the Palazzo Riccardi. She was in a foul mood.

Pierre shrugged. “No one knows. The order came from the Prince himself, and he would not accept delays.”

“But for what purpose?” She turned her attention to Lorenzo, who shook his head.

“Something came in from the human intelligence network but the report went straight to the Prince. I haven’t seen it.”

Aoibhe frowned. “That’s irregular. You’re second in command.”

Lorenzo opened his mouth to comment, but closed it almost immediately.

“Where’s Max?” She scanned the large room.

“He’s been summoned.” Lorenzo took his place at the front of the hall, holding the staff of the city out to his side.

Aoibhe approached Niccolò, who was already seated. “Are there problems with the patrols?”

“Not at all. Everything is proceeding according to plan.” Niccolò’s tone was not friendly.

Aoibhe clapped slowly. “Eager to keep your head, Nick?”

“It’s attached to my body.”

“For now,” she muttered.

“Perché la fortuna è donna, et è necessario, volendola tenere sotto, batterla et urtarla,” Niccolò stated, his dark eyes taunting her.

She scowled and took a threatening step forward. “Five hundred years later and you’re still spouting that ridiculous drivel? I’ll show you what it is to be beaten, you ridiculous cretin.”

“Aoibhe.” Lorenzo spoke sharply. “Stop antagonizing Sir Machiavelli.” She opened her mouth to protest, but at that moment Max entered the room, followed by Gregor.

Aoibhe reluctantly took her seat, but not before hurling a few insults in Niccolò’s direction.

“This meeting of the Consilium will come to order.” Lorenzo tapped his staff on the floor.

The Consilium members stood as the Prince entered the room.

As soon as they saw the young woman beside him, a series of growls left their throats. All six vampyres inhaled her heady scent, turning with hunger in her direction.

Chapter Thirty

It was all Raven could do to keep moving. Her leg was troubling her but she refused to limp. She walked slowly, navigating the stone floor in her high heels like a cat mincing across a hot surface.