Free Inferno by Bianca D'Arc

the haute ton reborn. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say it had never died. Not for these people.

    One woman stood out among the crowd. She wore a stunning silk dress with a slight Japanese air to its lines. Her eyes tilted exotically, displaying bone structure that indicated she was the result of the mixture of more than one race. She was exquisite. From her upswept silky black hair to the diamonds dripping around her throat, she was every inch the lady and Megan found it difficult to look away. She was fascinating.

    “Who is she?” The woman drew attention simply by breathing. She was fair skinned despite her clearly Asian traits.

    “She is the Mistress of this region, Virginia Dean.”

    “And the great hulking brute behind her?” Megan couldn’t help noticing the incredibly handsome man who stood protectively behind her.

    “That would be her father, Sir Heathclif Dean.”

    “They don’t look much alike,” she mused aloud.

    “Heath adopted her in Japan over a century ago. Virginia is the daughter of a Geisha and an English sea captain. As you can imagine, half-blood children didn’t do well in those days.
    Virginia lived a hard life until she met Heath. He told me she tried to pick his pocket. He caught her, of course. She was just a child at the time and he took her in, raising her as his own.”

    “She wasn’t born a bloodletter then?”

    “No,” Dante admitted. “That came later. Tragedy visited young Virginia and in a moment of heartbreak, Heath turned her. So he is her maker as well as her adoptive father. Together, they are a formidable pair.”

    “They’d have to be to rule over all the vampires in New York.” Even as she watched the handsome couple, the woman’s gaze moved around the room, finally coming to rest on Megan. An elegant hand rose, fingers beckoning.

    “It seems we are summoned.” Dante took Megan’s arm and led her across the space separating them. “She apparently wants to meet you, Cinderella.”

    Megan found her lips lifting in a tense smile at his small joke even as she approached the striking woman and her father. Though to be honest, Heathclif Dean didn’t look old enough to have fathered an adult child. The man was as handsome as sin and utterly devastating in that same way Dante was, only more refined. Where Dante was a warrior through and through, Heathclif looked every inch the gentleman. A gentleman who knew how to fight and use his brawny body to advantage no doubt but still a gentleman.

    Dante had rough edges that showed at the oddest moments. He was more real , if Megan had to define it, but she couldn’t say exactly how. It was just a feeling he gave her. And it was very attractive.

    When they stood in front of the couple, Dante made the introductions. Megan felt like a butterfly that had just been stuck on a pin under a magnifying glass as the Mistress looked her over with assessing eyes.

    “I’m pleased to make your acquaintance, Megan. It’s not often our kinds mix socially, which is something I regret. It wasn’t always that way.” She spoke with refined candor, her tone welcoming and polite. Megan wasn’t sure what she’d expected, but relief filled her at the Mistress’s friendly overture.

    “I was honored to be invited, Mistress.” Megan hoped she was sufficiently polite yet projected a confident stance. It wouldn’t do to be seen as weak in a room full of predators. Especially not by the leader of the pack.

    “Dante, I have some news we should discuss in private, which is impossible given our current circumstances.” Heathclif Dean spoke to Dante, though he eyed them both. “Come to the house tomorrow night. You are welcome too, Megan.”

    She nodded politely, unsure what she was agreeing to. She was intrigued by the couple, but she was also very wary of them. It paid to be cautious when dealing with bloodletters and these were two of the most powerful in the New York area. Considering the sheer numbers of rich and