Page 178 of Vampire's Choice

The active warriors in the room—Daegan, Gideon, Jacob—were tense, as if they could envision the fight, imagine the impossible tactics Mal had used.

“They had wooden stakes, but decapitation ended up being the quickest and safest way…for them. It was an acknowledgement of just how unexpectedly effective his resistance was. Your mother…”

The savage smile on Mason’s face made Ruth suck in a startled, pained breath. “She stood in front of the stairs to the rooms below. She watched the fight, her body quivering as if she were feeling each blow. I know she was his sight and ears on every blind front, letting him know what was coming, who was attacking. She was fighting with him, in the best way a servant like her could.”

Mason’s expression darkened. “When the blade ended him, she grabbed onto the doorway and cried out. She had only moments left, but her gaze speared her enemies. Even though they were cloaked from her view, she showed them the truth of their darkness. Though I didn’t know who it was at the time, Pallas ordered another to dispatch her. I think he didn’t care to wait for Mal’s death to turn that condemning stare away from his soul.”

Mason’s attention on Ruth was a weighted touch. Though every word was a wound, it was something else, too. “The Fae who approached her saw a human woman who barely reached his chin, one dying before his eyes. He should have known better. She had Mal’s knife, that long one he was so fond of. It was hidden in her skirts.”

Ruth’s hands closed into fists. Her gentle mother who called her a chuisle mo chroí, when Ruth needed to hear it most. Heart’s beloved, or literally, pulse of my heart. Her gentle, passionate mother.

“She gutted him, twisting the blade and shoving it upward, into his chest.” Mason’s gaze flashed. “She held onto his shoulder, practically climbing him as she did it.”

“Hellfire,” someone murmured. Ruth thought it was Gideon.

Mason shook his head. “She knew, as Mal did, that they couldn’t keep them from my daughter. But they would not allow it to happen while they had life to stop it.”

Ruth saw tears on Danny’s face. “She was one of the most remarkable females I’ve ever met,” the blonde said. “In the most unlikely of packages.”

“Yes,” Mason said. “Another Fae plucked her off the wounded one and tossed her away from him. She landed near the kitchen. I expect that was how she was able to reach Mal before the ending of his life took hers. I did not see that part. They took me away then.”

The chamber was silent. Then a chair whispered across the carpeted floor. Belizar rose. Then Walton. And Helga. One by one, they each rose and faced Ruth, Lyssa joining them. They bowed in her direction. So did their servants. Gideon’s resolute expression was as clear as spoken words.

That’s your inheritance. Nothing will ever break you.

When Lady Kaela and Garron bowed to her, too, a sob escaped Ruth’s raw throat.

“Your father and mother have our thanks and eternal regard.” Lady Lyssa’s voice was thick with emotion. “Their island and their children will be protected and given all the consideration that a fallen hero…and heroine’s…should.”

Ruth blinked back tears. “Thank you, my lady.”

It was all she could manage, but it was all that was needed.

When they took their seats, Merc drawing Ruth back to her own, Mason remained standing. “I expect Lady Carola is wondering how my words connect to Lady Kaela and Garron, but her respect for the moment is keeping her from pointing it out.”

Carola’s lips twitched, and she made a dismissive gesture, but she wasn’t disagreeing. Lord Mason nodded.

“Mal was not our strongest. With his cat sanctuary, he forged a different path than most vampires. Yet can anyone here say he didn’t honor the best parts of our race?”

His attention locked on Carola, Stewart and Belizar. “What preserves us as a race? What works against that? What traditions should we allow to die, which should we uphold? Which do we modify to allow more room for growth? Will that turn on us and achieve the opposite? These are difficult questions.”

He paused. “Even Lady Kaela submits to your judgment, your wisdom, understanding the preservation of the race rests in your hands, and she must trust that your wisdom could be greater than her own, because its scope has to be wider than one person’s view.”

His gaze touched on the California overlord, and Kaela gave him a stiff nod, acknowledging it. “Any governing body given that kind of faith should do their damnedest to honor it,” Mason said. “They should question every choice they make, and be sure they have invited in dissenting viewpoints to challenge it.”

Carola’s lips tightened, but she said nothing, allowing Mason to continue. “I am no different,” he said. “Because of today’s events, what sticks with me is Mal and Elisa. Who they are, what they sacrificed. Who they chose to be. Mal protected predators who needed help, rather than letting nature take its course on the strong who can no longer defend themselves. He helped them become self-sufficient again where possible, but provided them sanctuary so they could live the best lives available to them when they could not.

“He let his judgment, his practicality, his human and vampire sides, help him with those decisions. But in the end, I think he did what all enlightened beings do—he let his soul be his guide. And his heart. Elisa was his heart.”

His expression didn’t soften. “I have no doubt how much he loved Elisa. She was his servant. He held full command over her, and she was an obedient, loving and submissive soul. She was his soulmate, but he was that to her, too. As I very much believe the optimal vampire and servant relationship should be.

“All these things, accepting more intimate vampire-servant relationships, bonds with other races, it may weaken our species. Or it may strengthen them, after we get through the growing pains. Approved made vampires have to learn to control bloodlust. No one says they should not have been made, at least not during that difficult and dangerous time. The wrong kind of change can destroy a race, the wrong kind of adapting.”

His gaze moved around the room, touching on vampires, servants and all. “But the ability to love freely, as oneself? Denying that ability will kill a soul, and if you kill enough souls, you kill the race.”

His attention returned to Jessica, held, then came back to Council. “In that last moment, Mal and Elisa decided, as equals, to give their lives to protect a child. To protect the future of our race. So for today, in this moment, I take it as a sign. Let us allow Lady Kaela and Garron to be an opportunity for growth in our race, and see where it leads. Reverse this sentence, which I believe is reactive rather than weighing all the relevant variables.”

He paused. “Let us take three moments of silence, not just to honor Mal and his servant, but to contemplate this matter.”