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“SO . . .” MINDY drew her knees up to her chest and
wrapped her arms around her legs, probably trying to keep
warm in my bedroom, which was chilly even in summer.
“What’s up with that Raniero guy? He was a surprise, huh?”
I finished buttoning up my pajamas and crawled onto the
mattress with her, as if we were having one of our slumber
parties back in Lebanon County. “Raniero’s definitely not
what I expected,” I agreed.
Mindy cocked her head. “So what do you know about
him?”
“Only that he’s Lucius’s cousin. But Lucius considers him
a brother, because he spent a lot of time at the Vladescu estate
when they were growing up. They were raised like siblings.”
“Doesn’t Raniero have parents, either?” Mindy asked,
sympathy in her voice. “Why’d he live with Lukey so much?”
I smiled at Mindy’s use of that nickname again. I’d missed
that—along with everything else about my best friend.
“Raniero does have parents—in Italy,” I explained, trying to
recall everything that Lucius had told me about his best man.
“But the Elders thought it would be wise to educate him with
Lucius.”
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Mindy seemed confused, maybe because we’d grown up in a
culture where “heirs to the throne” weren’t such a big deal.
“Why?” she asked.
“Since Lucius really is an only child, the Elders thought it
would make sense to prepare another young Vladescu vampire
to rule—just in case something should happen . . .”
I couldn’t bring myself to finish that sentence. Not on the
eve of my wedding, when I was supposed to be planning for
a long, happy future with Lucius. I couldn’t bear to think
about the possibility of something awful happening to him.
“Anyway, the Elders thought Raniero showed promise
and could be raised to serve as Lucius’s right-hand man—
almost like a general,” I added. “A second-in-command, since
there’s no pure-blooded Vladescu brother.”
“So what went wrong?” Mindy asked, grabbing a pillow
and hugging that to her chest, too. “Because Raniero doesn’t
look like he could lead a limbo contest at whatever beach he
washed up on—let alone take charge of an army or a nation!”
I shrugged. “Lucius hasn’t revealed much more about
him. Only that he abruptly moved to California a few years
ago, putting distance between himself and the clan leaders.”
I wondered, suddenly, if Raniero had also ever endured
time in those dungeon rooms I’d seen. Or was that type of
“education” reserved for genuine princes in training? Because
if Raniero did bear some of the same scars Lucius did—if he’d
been taken into those dark chambers to be “educated” within
an inch of his life—I could imagine why he’d escaped to a
beach in the sunshine.
“He and Lucius are obviously still close, though,” I added,
remembering other, awful thoughts, memories of the way
Lucius’s uncles had thrashed him when they’d come to
Pennsylvania, and how that had changed him, taken him to a
dark place . . .
“Well, Lucius and Raniero sure are different,” Mindy
noted, rolling her eyes. “Lucius is totally royal, and Raniero
is, like, a slacker!”
Although my thoughts had just been trapped in a dismal
dungeon, I couldn’t help laughing at the idea of a slacker
vampire—especially a Vladescu slacker. “We only saw him for
a few hours,” I reminded her. “Maybe he was just having a
rough day.”
“Or a rough year,” Mindy said. “That guy needs a
haircut—or at least a shower!”
“Mindy!” I started to protest, wanting to defend Lucius’s
best friend. But I couldn’t do it. Raniero Vladescu Lovatu had
seemed a little . . . scruffy. He’d slurped down his soup like a
starving barbarian, slouched in his chair, and actually
summoned a servant by waving his hand and calling out, in
his Italian accent with a California surfer twist, “Dude—
more lentils, prego.”
I’d kept looking at Lucius, expecting him to cringe or
maybe even suggest that Raniero watch his manners, but I’d
seen nothing more than indulgent amusement in my fiancé’s
eyes.
Who, exactly, was this guy Lucius called “brother”? Had
he really left behind a life of wealth and power to . . . surf?
“I guess we’ll see if he cleans up for the wedding, huh?” I
said, laughing off any vague suspicions I might’ve had. “I can’t
imagine that Lucius would let his best man—even a guy he
considers a brother—wear board shorts at the ceremony.”
Mindy hugged her pillow tighter and frowned. “Unless
somebody does a real extreme makeover on that guy between
now and tomorrow, I’m not getting my hopes up.”
“Hopes?” I asked, not sure why Mindy cared about
Raniero at all. I mean, it was my wedding. If Lucius’s best
man looked like he’d just rolled in with the tide, that was my
problem.
“Well, I’m the one who has to spend the whole wedding
with him, right?” she reminded me. “And I at least have to
dance with him, don’t I?”
I realized then that as maid of honor, Mindy probably
considered Raniero her date for the evening. And maybe, just
maybe, she’d hoped that the guy she’d be paired with might
be . . . better. Or, given her old crush on “Lukey,” a little bit
like the groom himself. “Oh, Mindy . . .”
I wanted to tell her that I was both sorry that Lucius’s best
man was a disappointment—and that she really shouldn’t
even think about getting involved with a vampire. I was born
to marry Lucius—couldn’t wait to do it—and yet I wouldn’t
necessarily recommend blood, eternity, and being considered
frighteningly different as a lifestyle choice for any of my
friends.
Before I could advise Mindy that she was probably lucky
that Raniero wasn’t her type, we were interrupted by a knock
on the door. My mom poked her head in to ask, “Mindy?
Would you mind if I spoke to Jessica alone for a minute? I
have something to give her.”
I started to tell Mom that Mindy could stay. After all, we
were practically sisters, as surely as Lucius and Raniero were
brothers. But I saw the look on Mom’s face, and I turned to
Mindy, saying, “I think you’d better go, okay?”
Because the expression my mother was wearing...I
hadn’t seen her look like that in all the years she’d raised me.
Continue to Chapter 8...
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