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He’d had his reasons, at first Exposing Redgravehimself, and Charity, which orse Charity murdered indiscriht or wrong--Redgrave’s countless brutalities had wrenched the very concept of evil from her mind Balthazar had rationalized that he had to keep his silence lest he destroy Charity even more completely than he already had

But for the last several decades, he’d found it harder and harder to care

"Co down the length of his chest "The hour is late"

When she took his hand, Balthazar didn’t resist He let her lead him upstairs to their room, to their bed

How he hated her, but he couldn’t resist her The first woman--the only woman--he’d ever lain with, with no love or tenderness between them Her kisses tasted like poison, and he kissed her ht finally finish this life that wasn’t life and let him truly die Every time she took him to bed, he felt another shard of his human soul crumble into dust

Balthazar only wanted it to be over

A few hours later, as Constantia slept by his side, Balthazar lay awake, toro It’s no different fro her So thatto happen If I know and I don’t stop it, that’s as bad as if I drank her blood er, Balthazar slipped from beneath the bedcovers He set each foot on the floorboards carefully, wary of awakening Constantia--but she was a sound sleeper, and tonight was no exception For a moment he stared down at her, with her lustrous hair splayed across the pillow and her exquisite body outlined by the sheets that had covered them both, and wondered how a forh He had work to do

Balthazar slipped into his trousers, shirt, and boots; the rest of his clothes were unnecessary In the hallway of the inn, far from the modest fires in the rooms, the air was almost colder than it would have been out of doors No candles lit his way, but one of the few undeniable advantages of being a vampire was the ability to see in the dark Sure and swift, he found his way down the stairs His sharp hearing caught the sounds immediately--he’d come just in time

"Sir--you should return to your rooeways of the old inn as well as he could,his way to the very back There, just in front of a doorway that must have led to the alley, was the barmaid’s room She stood there, wrapper around her as she shivered, while Lorenzo held a candle too close to her face

"I have written irl "Do you not wish to hear it?"

"Nobody wants to hear your poeht the candle allowed "They’re abyshtened; Lorenzo scowled as he said, "This is none of your concern"

"And none of yours, either Leave her I won’t go until you do" Balthazar folded his arms in front of his chest