The Vampire & Her Witch

”They’re the sort of people who can love their son, and the sort of people who are worthy of his love in return...”

Ollie’s heart trembled at Hugo’s words, and for a moment, the tightness in his chest overwhelmed his ability to speak, not just because he deeply wished that Hugo’s words were true, but because of the deep pain and longing he heard in the slender scholar’s voice when he spoke about people being worthy of receiving love in return.

For better or for worse, there had been a time when Hugo tried to love his father. And that father had proven himself to be deeply unworthy of Hugo’s love.

”Thank you,” Ollie managed at last. ”I hope you’re right about them.”

Hugo gave a small, sharp nod, and then his gaze drifted back to the spires of Lothian Manor. The last of the sunlight had abandoned them entirely now, leaving them as dark silhouettes against a sky that was deepening from gray to indigo. Somewhere up there, behind those walls, Owain Lothian was preparing for tonight’s Stag Feast, and Hugo’s jaw tightened as the full weight of what the coming days would demand of him pressed in from all sides.

”The last time I did this,” Hugo said quietly, ”I thought it would be the only time. That once my father was gone, I’d never have to stand in front of a room full of people and tell them that the person they served was a monster.”

”And now here I am again,” he said as he let out a breath that misted thick in the frigid air. ”Different city, different lord, same betrayal. It’s a wonder her ladyship hasn’t decided I’m too dangerous to be kept close,” he said bitterly.

”It’s not the same,” Liam said firmly. He turned to face Hugo directly and placed a steadying hand on the slender man’s shoulder. ”I know it’s painful to say it, but your father ruled through fear and corruption, and Aiden before him ruled through murder. Your people deserved to hear the truth of their deeds, and hearing them from you carried a weight no one else’s words could have,” he said firmly.

”You saved lives when you recounted your father’s crimes,” Liam reminded the hawk-nosed steward. ”But Owain is worse than your father and your grandfather combined, and every day he sits on that throne is a day that the people of this march suffer for it.”

Hugo said nothing, his thin arms folded tight across his chest against the cold.

”Ashlynn isn’t working to topple Owain just for the sake of vengeance,” Liam continued. ”She’s building something better. Peace with the, peace between our peoples,” he said, glancing about to make sure that none of the dock workers unloading the cog were close enough to overhear them.

”Peace and prosperity for the baronies,” Liam said in a quieter tone. ”And a chance for every family in the March to stop looking over their shoulders, waiting for the next campaign to reap the lives of their sons like wheat or the next tithe that bleeds them dry.” He paused, choosing his next words with care.

”And Hanrahan will prosper under Dame Sybyll’s rule in ways it never would have under your father or Bastian,” Liam added solemnly. ”You know that. You’ve seen the ledgers. You know exactly how much wealth your father squandered on his vanity and how much more could have been done for the people if someone competent had sat upon his throne.”

”No, not competent,” Liam corrected himself. ”Ian wasn’t incompetent; he was callous and cruel, and you know the depths of his depravity. He never cared for the people of Hanrahan the way Dame Sybyll does... Or the way you do, and you proved it that night when you stood up to your father’s corruption and spoke out against his crimes.”

”Now, it’s the same with Lady Ashlynn and Lord Owain,” Liam said, giving Hugo’s shoulder a tight squeeze. ”And you know what must be done, for everyone’s sake.”

”I do know that,” Hugo said, and there was no argument in his voice, only weariness. ”I know it in my head, and I can lay out the figures to prove it to anyone who asks. I might not have served him for very long, but I worked hard managing things for Lord Owain...”

Hugo had lost count of the number of sleepless nights he’d spent hunched over a writing desk, poring over the ledgers that Sir Kaefin had neglected, resolving the debts that commoners had been too intimidated to attempt to call due against the future lord of Lothian March. He’d tried to repair the damage even as he watched Owain flinging money at wine, brothels, and sport, both at home and during their trip to Blackwell County.

Hugo’s jaw tightened, and his hands curled into fists inside his sleeves. There’d been so much to do in so little time, but after they’d returned, the pace at which things unraveled only grew, and the demands Owain placed on him turned darker and darker until he felt like he couldn’t recognize the man who looked back at him from the mirror each morning.

Or perhaps it was his reflection who could no longer recognize a man who would help his lord plot to poison a blameless woman and her child, or any of the other things Owain had wanted Hugo to spend his lord’s wealth on...

”There was a time in the beginning when I was proud of the work I did for him,” Hugo said bitterly. ”When I thought I could straighten out the mess Sir Kaefin left behind and improve Owain’s reputation among the people his former Steward neglected. And now I’m going to stand in front of a room full of lords and use everything I know, Owain, every secret he trusted me with, to tear the man down. Again.”

”Just because he used you doesn’t mean he trusted you,” Liam said gently. ”But the fact that he was willing to use your skills gives you a chance to help the march now in a greater way than you could have by cleaning up Owain’s ledgers. Men like Valeri Leufroy are deeply loyal to the Lothian family. They won’t break with Owain without proof of his crimes, and you can help them see that proof.”

”Focus on the good that will come of that,” Liam said. ”And don’t worry about what Owain will think about your ’betrayal.’ Owain doomed himself with his own actions. Don’t let loyalty to a man who wasn’t worthy of it stop you from doing the right thing for the march...”