Chapter 16

Aria slid into a seat at the dinner table and looked down at the bowl of stew Teinaava placed in front of her. She poked at a lump with her fork. "What the bloody ashes is this?"

Teinaava grinned as he placed a bowl in front of Antionetta. "Black Marsh Mystery, my Sister. A specialty of my people."

Aria raised an eyebrow as Antionetta tried a bite. "But what is it?"

"Oh, rat tails, guar livers, chopped up bat wings-"

Antionetta's eyes bugged and she choked on her mouthful of stew before spitting it out, showering Mraaj-Dar, who happened to be sitting across from her. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Please tell me you're joking."

Telaendril scooped up a chunk with her spoon and let it fall back into her bowl. "In Valenwood, we call that Sylvan Slump."

Teinaava shrugged. "It's all edible, Sister. Just ask Ocheeva. We've eaten it all our lives."

"Yeah, but we're not Argonians!" Antionetta protested.

Aria opened her mouth to agree, but froze when Vicente spoke from behind her. "Sounds like he took a walk in the forest and threw whatever he found into his pot." He looked across the table, where Mraaj-Dar was still wiping his fur clean, growling at Antionetta the entire time. Vicente sat down next to Aria and picked up a fork.

Aria stood up quickly. "Thank you, Teinaava, but I don't feel much like eating right now." She left the room before anyone could protest and went to the training room.

It had been over a month since the kiss. She had been avoiding Vicente since then, spending every moment not taken up by sleeping or doing chores in the training room. Meal times were the worst. She didn't have much of an appetite, but the rest of the family would have noticed if she skipped every meal. She usually went, but she made sure to sit between Antionetta and someone else.

Antionetta had been a faithful friend. She was careful to save a seat Aria at every meal, and often brought her food when she skipped meals. She watched Vicente carefully every time he and Aria were in the same room, looking for some sign of affection. She knew that Aria liked him, but she wasn't sure if he returned the feelings.

Aria knew that she and Vicente would have to talk about it sooner or later, but she wasn't ready. She was confused. She knew she liked him. Did his kiss mean he liked her? If he didn't, then why had he kissed her? Was it just excitement? And if he did actually have feelings for her, would those feelings develop into love? Could they actually have a future together?

And what about his vampirism? It didn't bother her anymore, but what if he didn't want to pursue a relationship because he was immortal and she wasn't? What if he wanted to turn her into a vampire?

Aria battled the questions filling her mind as fiercely as she battled the training dummy. Ocheeva had ordered a new dummy to replace the one Aria had destroyed the previous month. The new dummy hung on the other side of the room. Aria avoided using it simply because it was another reminder of her conflicted feelings.

The door opened and several people walked in. Lunch must be over. She ignored them and kept swinging Sufferthorn at the target, blocking out everything and everyone else in the room, until a hand touched her shoulder. Aria spun around and nearly hit Antionetta with her sword.

The Breton girl ducked just in time. "If I want a haircut, I'll ask. I promise," she said, straightening.

Aria sighed and lowered the sword. "Sorry, Netta. I wasn't paying attention."

"I noticed." Antionetta reached out and put a hand on Aria's shoulder. "What's going on, Sister? You've been as touchy as Mraaj-Dar for weeks now."

Aria glanced around the training room. It would help to talk to her Sister. "Not here."

The two girls left the training room and went back to the living quarters, where they sat on Aria's bed. The room was nearly deserted. Teinaava was the only one left as he washed dishes and cleaned up from lunch on the other end of the room.

Antionetta reached over and put her hand on Aria's. "All right, now start talking. What's going on?" When Aria didn't answer, Antionetta squeezed her hand. "Come on. Talk to me. Does this have to do with kissing Vicente?"

Aria sighed and got up, walking over to her dresser. She touched the Scales of Pitiless Justice with a finger to set them rocking. "I'm so confused, Netta. I mean, him kissing me has to mean has feelings for me, right? But if he does, why hasn't he said something? What if he doesn't have feelings for me?" She turned to face her friend, hoping she would have some answers.

Antionetta crossed her legs on the bed. "If he doesn't have feelings for you, then why would he kiss you?"

"That's what I want to know. Was it just excitement or something? Did he just get caught up in the moment?" Aria sat down again and grabbed her pillow, fidgeting with the pillowcase.

"I don't think it was a case of getting caught up in the moment. I know Vicente. It might have been a spur of the moment decision, but he was in complete control."

Aria looked at her Sister, her green eyes full of questions. "Do you think we could actually have a future together?"

Antionetta shrugged. "Why not? Anything's possible."

"But what about his vampirism?"

"What about it?"

"He's immortal, I'm not. He drinks blood, I don't. He can't go out in sunlight, I can. What if he doesn't want to pursue a relationship because of all that?"

"Well, he could always turn you into a vampire."

Aria clutched the pillow to her chest. "That's another thing I'm afraid of. I don't think I'm ready to become a vampire."

Antionetta sat silently for a moment, organizing her thoughts. "It sounds to me like you only have one option here: go talk to him."

"But what if I go talk to him and end up making a fool of myself?"

Antionetta put her hand on Aria's knee. "You'll never know until you try. You'll only torment yourself with all these 'what ifs'. If it doesn't work out, at least you'll know where you'll stand. If it does work out, and he does have feelings for you, then you're that much better off."

Aria lowered the pillow and started smoothing out the wrinkles. "So you think I should talk to him?"

"Yes. You'll never be able to figure this out until you do. And the sooner, the better. In fact, do it now before you lose your courage."

Aria took a deep breath. "Okay, I'll do it."

Antionetta gave her a quick hug, and then they stood up. "Good luck, Sister. Let me know what happens."

Decision made, Aria headed to Vicente's room. The door was closed, so she knocked and waited. After a moment, Vicente called for her to come in. She pushed the door open. "Do you have a moment, Vicente?"

Vicente was sitting at his desk, writing in his journal. He looked up and pushed the book back so he wouldn't smear the ink. "For you, always." He motioned for her to pull a chair over. "What is it, Aria?"

Aria sat down and looked at her hands. Now that she was here, she wasn't sure what to do next. "I, uh...I wanted to...talk."

Vicente sat back and raised an eyebrow. "All right. About what?"

"About...that night." Aria could feel herself blushing.

Vicente nodded. "I see." He knew exactly what she was talking about. "I was hoping you'd give me a chance to explain." He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees with a sigh. "I'm sorry. I was too forward. I assure you, I don't make it a habit of kissing my students. I just..."

Aria looked up as his voice trailed off. "Just what, Vicente?"

Vicente looked at her, his brown eyes turning almost black with emotion. "I...I have feelings for you, Aria. Strong ones. For the first time in three centuries, my heart has been captured. From the moment you walked into this Sanctuary, I've been attracted to you. I suppose I let my feelings get away from me that night."

Aria sat back and stared at him. "Vicente...I...why didn't you say something?"

Vicente looked away. "We have a good friendship, one I treasure. I didn't want to spoil it."

"And after we kissed? Why didn't you say something then?"

"Part of me was hoping that things would simply go back to the way they were before. The other part of me couldn't think of a way to tell you."

They sat in silence for a minute, then Aria whispered, "I...don't really know how to say-"

"Then don't say anything. Take some time to think about it. " Vicente picked up a paper from his desk. "As a matter of fact, I have a special contract that needs fulfillment." He handed her the paper. "You can think about...us...while you travel."

Aria took the paper, but didn't look at it. Instead, she took Vicente's hand. "That's not what I meant. I don't need to think about it, Vicente. I- I feel the same way about you." She shrugged, trying to lighten the mood. "Well, minus the three hundred years."

Vicente's face lightened, even though his eyes remained dark in his excitement. "You do?"

Aria nodded, unable to keep the smile off her face. "Yes. I didn't realize it, though, until the night you taught me that healing spell."

"Let me guess. Antionetta said something?"

"How'd you know?"

Vicente shook his head with a smile. "That girl is a hopeless romantic. She'll be thrilled to hear about this."

Aria laughed with him, her heart feeling lighter than it had in months, then turned her attention to the contract in her hand. "Then tell me what's so special about this contract so I can go talk to her."

Vicente leaned back again. "We're usually called upon to take a life, but not this time. This contract requires us to stage the assassination of a marked man. In truth, I don't wish to offer it to any other family member. I've come to rely on your abilities. What do you say?"

Aria raised an eyebrow. "Sounds interesting. I accept."

"Excellent." Vicente opened a drawer and started flipping through papers until he found the one he was looking for. He flattened it out against his knee. Aria leaned forward to study it and saw that it was a detailed map of Chorrol. "You must go to the city of Chorrol and break into the house of Francois Mortierre." He pointed to a house in the middle of town. "Inside, you will find Motierre waiting for you. Do not kill him!" He held up a finger to make sure Aria understood him.

Aria frowned. "Isn't that the whole point of a contract, though?"

"Yes, but this is a unique circumstance. You see, Francois Motierre is a marked man. He owes a considerable sum to the wrong kind of people. So they have sent an enforcer to kill him."

Aria crossed her arms. "So he wants to fake his death to get away? How stupid is this guy?"

"Very, apparently. Lucien had to do most of the planning for this charade." He handed her a sheathed silver dagger. "Here. Motierre himself will provide more details, but you are to use this specially poisoned knife to stage Motierre's death in the enforcer's presence."

Aria took the knife. "You were right. This is unusual."

Vicente grinned. "I prefer to think of it as unique. It's a learning experience for everyone."

Aria cocked her head and raised an eyebrow. "So how much did Motierre have to pay before we agreed to this?"

Vicente folded up the map and returned it to his desk. "A substantial amount, as well as agreeing to other special arrangements." He slid the drawer closed. "Any questions?"

Aria held up the knife. "You said this was poisoned?"

Vicente nodded. "The blade has been coated with a rare poison called Langourwine. One drop in a normal human bloodstream will mimic the effects of death immediately. You need only cut Motierre once, and he will appear to die." He handed her a small bottle. "This is the antidote, which will be used to revive Motierre after you have successfully staged his death. You should also know that there's only enough Langourwine on the blade for this one contract. After Motierre is sliced, the knife will be useless."

Aria unstopped the bottle and sniffed the contents. The sharp smell made her head jerk back as she quickly corked the bottle again. "So I slice him, then wake him up once the enforcer is gone? The enforcer isn't going to appreciate my presence. How do I deal with him?"

Vicente shrugged. "The contract doesn't say anything about him, so you could kill him if he becomes a problem. Hopefully Motierre will give you further instructions about him. If not, I'm sure you'll figure it out."

"I think that covers everything." Aria rolled up the paper and stood up. "I'll leave tonight."

Vicente stood as well and put his hands on her shoulders. "Are you sure you don't need any time to think?"

Aria smiled up at him. "I'm sure." She put her hand on his cheek and gave him a timid peck on the lips, then started to pull away. Vicente kept hold of her wrist and pulled her back for a longer kiss.

When he released her, he pressed his forehead to hers and whispered, "Come back to me, dear one."

Aria gave him one last kiss, then pulled away again. "I will. I promise." She moved to the door and opened it, then stopped. "One last question. What were the special arrangements that had to be made?"

Vicente cleared his throat. "The Dark Brotherhood is not in the business of staging deaths, no matter how much gold is offered. Sithis demands blood, and blood must be paid. In order to accept the contract, we demanded a life. Motierre offered his mother, and we accepted. Lucien has already accepted that...detail."

Aria's eyebrows went up at that. Even she wasn't so callus as to sacrifice her own mother. Then again, if her parents were still around, she never would have joined the Dark Brotherhood in the first place...

She shook her head. Best to stay away from thoughts like that. She was here now, and that's what mattered. Dredging up the past wouldn't get this contract completed. "I have to get going." She smiled at the look on Vicente's face. "Don't worry. I'll be back before you know it."

She left before he could say anything else. She still had to find Antionetta and let her know how her talk went.