Before tempting the Scarlet Queen to play Elizabeth, Annan had one important thing to do.
Marquis Nidella of Lace City had actually remembered his agreement with Annan. He sent word that he had gathered more than six hundred human slaves.
After the servant who delivered the message left, Annan worried it might be a trap.
Lucy told him not to worry. Even after centuries of silence, the Scarlet Queen's reputation still carried weight, and plenty of Nobles wanted to forge ties with the Stuart Family...
With that in mind, Annan took Count Pedro to Lace City himself. In the warehouse, he found humans packed together like animals.
Most of the humans sold to the Blood Council were young women. But whether men or women, they all had one thing in common... they were young.
According to figures from the start of the year, Free City's average age was only twenty-three, and that number had been pulled up by its Elves and other Foreign Races... The humans here would have an even lower average age. Eighteen, perhaps even sixteen...
Rikaner Glory called Free City a dumping ground. Annan didn't care. They had no idea what a population meant.
True, few of its eighty thousand people were Professionals right now, but those people represented the future.
Among the slaves was the daughter of an important man. Marquis Nidella brought her before Annan and introduced her as the daughter of a human Count.
Lya was like a forgotten pearl hidden beneath the dust.
Her skirt was torn and stained with dirt and dust. Her ordeal had left her face dull and weary, but her resolve still showed through.
In the Southern Kingdoms, titles did not signify strength the way they did among Vampires. But even in status alone, a Count was at least