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He sets his glass of Scotch or whiskey or bourbon or God only knows what it is, other than it tastes like fucking lighter fluid, down on the marble with a loud clink that makes me jump back.

"Do you want me to tell you why I've changed my attitude, Vivienne? Because being back here—" He leans closer, so close that his nose and mouth are only a breath's distance from mine. "Being back here reminds me of all of those I've failed to protect in House Midnight. It reminds me that no matter how glad I am to see that House Midnight is not as extinct as it seemed to be, you're likely to be another body I have to bury. Nobody asked for that. Nobody wants that fate. Nobody wants to be the last."

"Well, that's very rude," I tell him succinctly. "And I think you've had enough Scotch and could use some of this H2O potion," I say, pushing my water bottle at him.

He slides it back to me. "Drink it," he says in a tone that brooks no argument.

I take a swig, and when he gives me a satisfied little smile, I take a longer one.

"So you do take orders," he says easily.

"I didn't take orders so much as realized I'd rather not have a hangover, because it's going to be a lot. I've had really bad hangovers before and I don't need to be wishing to die on top of people hunting me." I tilt my head, inspecting him. "So are you gonna protect me or what?"

I was half expecting a laugh, but the mercurial Scotsman gives me a grim look instead.

"Well, at least you've got the spirit. I can't fault you for that."

"Good. Now tell me. What do I need to know to survive?"

Five

Lachlan

Ishould have figured out a way to get her away from this God-forsaken place before she made the vow and spoke the words and was given the key. I wish my magic, the magic of House Midnight, could take me anywhere but back here with her.

If I were a smarter man, I would've spirited her away before she claimed the magic—maybe taking her back to the Highlands, to my family lands, to protect her from all those that will now inevitably hunt her.

Hunt us both.

If they don’t kill her, Midnight House will. It always claims its heirs, the magic driving them insane if it doesn’t boil their blood first.

And losing Vivienne—losing this woman—will be the worst possible outcome. And I barely know her. It doesn't change the fact that she's my mate. It doesn't change the fact that I've known that since the moment I scented her in the Council room. But that doesn't mean I have to seal the bond and make things worse for both of us. That doesn't mean I have to do anything but be the bodyguard I've been sworn to be. And I think that's what I'll have to settle for.

She's watching me intently, her intelligent brown eyes tracking every facial expression that I imagine is chasing across my face as I wrestle with my dilemma.

"How do I survive?" she asks.

I sigh, rubbing my temples.

If only it were that easy. Nothing about the Eternal Society has never been easy, and it's not going to start now on account of me finding my mate after over five hundred years of searching for one.

"We train," I tell her definitively. "We train and we follow their rules, and we start to build your power."

"What does building my power entail? Magic? Or is it like court?" she asks, her mouth twisting to the side. “Social power, yeah?”

She is a clever one.

"You studied the secret societies, right?" I say, vaguely remembering what she'd said before. "So you must know something of how this is going to work."

"It'd be a lot faster if you would just tell me instead of making me guess like this is some sort of quiz."

That makes me laugh, and I hate how easy she is to like. It would make it easier if she were hideously ugly or foul or mean-tempered, but so far, she's none of those things. She's bright, and she's adjusting quickly, and she's one of the most beautiful things I've ever laid my eyes on.

I can't let fate's mark on me and her distract from the task at hand, though. So I take a long sip of the water she's pushed back in front of me before handing it back to her. She might be on death row, but I can at least give her a fighting chance.

Or try to.

"Both," I say decisively. "Your invitations to join and take part in the many rituals of the Eternal Society should begin arriving any minute, because I'm sure that your appearance—and then disappearance—at the Council has already started the wheels turning in the machinations of the Society itself. You'll be expected to claim your seat by taking part in these rituals. And failing them..." I pause, swallowing hard.