Tenzin crossed her arms over her chest. “So, killing the annoying one is not the ideal outcome. But, if it happens, it happens. If there’s a tie, Gio has to challenge Lorenzo; that is what’s done. And if he challenges him, he will kill him.”

“He can’t just like… take him captive or something?”

Tenzin shook her head. “Nope. All or nothing. Only one of them would be allowed to leave the island.”

“Great.” Beatrice sighed.

Giovanni was torn. He wanted to find his father’s books so badly he could taste it, but the prospect of killing Lorenzo was also rather alluring. Since it was out of his control, he chose not to torment himself. He would do what he needed to do. Soon after, the group split for the evening; Beatrice kissed him goodbye before leaving with Tenzin and Baojia for more training. He and Stephen went to the library and dove back into research again.

A week and a half flew by, and the five of them stayed barricaded in Tenzin’s quarters except for one brief trip to the open ocean for Giovanni and Beatrice. She was ecstatic, ebullient in her joy and surrounded by her element. She dove under the surface, playing for hours. She wasn’t as strong as she might have been, and Giovanni suspected that, like her father, she would draw more elemental strength from fresh water, though she could easily manipulate both.

Late on Friday night, Tenzin, Beatrice, Stephen and Baojia were playing a game of poker by the fire while Giovanni read a book. He saw Beatrice’s nostrils flare a second before a knock came at the door. She burst up from the table, rushing toward the door, but Stephen quickly caught her, holding her back from the human servant someone had foolishly sent.

Giovanni walked over and took Beatrice’s arms, braceleting her wrists with one hand before he grabbed her around the waist and took her from her father, carrying her to the corner. She snarled at him, baring her teeth and whipping around in an attempt to get away and hunt the human. He waited patiently for Tenzin to send the servant away.

“Order some blood, at least a liter,” he called over his shoulder to Stephen as Beatrice cursed at him in Spanish. Baojia stood behind him, ready for her to break away. Giovanni was reluctantly grateful. A newly turned vampire in the midst of bloodlust could be surprisingly strong. When he could hear the human’s steps receding, he shoved her into the corner, braced his legs around hers, and brought his wrist to her mouth. She tore at it, biting hard into the flesh as she glared at him with narrowed eyes.

“Shhh,” he murmured. Soon, she was calmer, and he let go of her wrists, bringing his hand up to stroke her hair. “Drink what you need, my love. Your father is getting you more blood.”

He could tell when reason grabbed hold of her again because her eyes cleared and bloody tears leaked from the corners. She let go of his wrist and wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning into him.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry. That was the first time I’ve smelled a live one. Their blood—”

“I know. Don’t apologize; it’s perfectly natural, and we were unprepared. It’s fine, Beatrice.” He still stroked her face as he heard Stephen enter the room and Baojia faded back. Giovanni could smell the warm blood from the corner. “Go, drink. You hadn’t fed tonight. We’ve been too casual about it, being isolated like this. You’ll need to be more prepared in the future.”

“What about the trial?” She sniffed and wiped her eyes as she sat at the table. “There are usually humans in the hall. I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

Tenzin came to sit next to her, holding a folded piece of paper. “There won’t be any during the trial. It’s vampire only. If you were still human, you wouldn’t be allowed in.” Giovanni caught the quick gleam in Tenzin’s eye.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Lan’s back. They’re meeting tomorrow night.”

Giovanni nodded. He had no sense of nervousness, only a grim kind of resolve. Whatever happened, he would be getting his way. Either the council could vote with him, or he could kill Lorenzo.

Giovanni tried to ignore the pervasive sense of foreboding when he rose next to Beatrice the following afternoon. By nightfall, they were both fed and dressed in the formal clothing that Zhang provided them. They wore the soft blue-grey robes and pants that the scholars of the court wore. Their collars were adorned with a single jewel indicating their element, deep blue lapis lazuli for Beatrice and a blood-red jasper for Giovanni. Beatrice tied her hair back into a subdued knot at the nape of her neck.

They met Tenzin, Stephen, and Baojia in the front room. Stephen also wore the grey scholar’s robes, but Tenzin wore a silver robe similar in style to her father’s formal white, which was decorated with an ornately jeweled Mandarin collar with dotted moonstones and pearls. Her hair, which she usually tied back, flowed around her shoulders in a long, black sweep. Baojia looked severe in the plain black robes worn by the palace guards. They were met and escorted by one of the green-clad administrators who worked for Zhang.

“Gio?” He heard Beatrice speak softly as they crossed the gardens.

“Yes?”

“My dad was explaining all the color meanings to me. If yellow is supposed to be the most beautiful color, why do the servants wear it around here? Wouldn’t that be reserved for the Elders or something?”

He smiled. Trust Beatrice to be curious instead of nervous on the way to meet an enemy. “Many of the servants here are monks, Beatrice, so they wear their yellow or saffron robes. Most of the other humans dress in brown. But the ones you have seen tending the gardens are almost all monks. It is considered a great honor to serve in the palace of the Eight Immortals.”