Jorick led Katelina back to the now empty audience chamber. They climbed the abandoned dais to find a door concealed in the paneling of the back wall. Jorick pried it open and they ducked inside what looked like a meeting room with a long table. Katelina hung back, unsure if she should be there, but Jorick stormed to a door in the farthest wall and pulled her though it.
The room was small and lounge like. Eileifr was seated in a plush green chair, and Celandine, the female member of the High Council, sat across from him. She turned her silver-gray eyes on the newcomers and Katelina suddenly couldn't move. She could feel the pressure of the ancient vampiress in her mind, seeking the answer for their appearance. Though not as strong or as devastating as Malick's intrusions had been, the br
