My Vampire Harem Will Dominate Everything

Chapter 282: Pillow Talk

Ezra lay on the bed, the cool silk sheets tangled around his waist, Helena resting her head against his chest.

The room was dim, with only the faint light of the moon filtering through the curtains, casting soft silver streaks across the floor. Helena's fingers traced idle patterns on his skin, her touch light and affectionate, but Ezra's mind was far from the room, far from the moment. Or at least, that was what he wanted any observer to see.

But half the job of convincing others is to first convince oneself.

His eyes were fixed on the ceiling, but they weren't seeing the faint shadows of the room. They were elsewhere, chasing thoughts of what lay ahead of him. The war, the coven, the missing slush fund, everything. His hands absentmindedly stroked Helena's arm, but the rhythm was off, distracted. He knew she could feel the shift in his energy and that was exactly what he wanted.

Helena lifted her head slightly, glancing up at him. "You're far away." She murmured, her voice soft but curious. She gave him a playful poke in the ribs, trying to pull him back to the present. "What's going on in that complicated mind of yours?" Your journey continues at m v|l-e'-NovelBin.net

Ezra smiled faintly, but made sure it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Nothing important," he replied, his tone evasive. "Just... tired."

Helena propped herself up on one elbow, her eyes narrowing at him. Anybody with a working pair of eyes would be hard pressed to believe that. "Ezra, we both know something's bothering you and you're doing a terrible job of hiding it. You think I can't tell?" she teased gently, but there was concern laced in her words. "Come on. Out with it."

Ezra hesitated, glancing away from her gaze. The kind of man he was pretending to be would want to keep his distance, to avoid bringing her into the storm that was brewing in his mind. But that wasn't his end goal. But he still had to play his part.

"Helena, it's nothing, really." He said again, though his voice lacked conviction.

She sighed, but she wasn't going to let it go. "Ezra, I don't care what it is, but I'd rather hear it from you than watch you spiral in silence. You came here for a reason, didn't you? Talk to me."

After a long moment of silence, Ezra relented, exhaling heavily as he turned his head to face her. "It's the Necromancer." He finally said. "I haven't recovered my slush fund from him, and it's... it's getting to me."

Helena's brow furrowed, and she shifted closer to him, her fingers still tracing soft circles on his chest. "Your slush fund?" she repeated, concern creeping into her tone. "That's why you've been so distracted?"

Ezra nodded, his jaw tightening as he spoke. "It's more than that. That fund is the future for my coven. Without it, everything we've built, everything we're planning, it all grinds to a halt. I don't know where the Necromancer is, and no matter what I do, he always seems to stay one step ahead of me. It's...

frustrating, to say the least."

Helena's expression softened as she listened to him. Her face was exactly the face of a woman whose heart was tugging at the vulnerability in his voice and wanted to do something about it. But who knew what was actually going on in her mind?

"Ezra," she said after a moment, her voice steady but kind, "I can help you."

Ezra blinked in surprise. He hadn't expected her to offer her help so readily. He'd expected to have to ask for a favor or something like that. "What do you mean?" He asked.

Helena sat up slightly, turning to face him fully. "Simple. I still have my peacekeeper assets. I can use them to find the Necromancer. I can pull strings, gather intel. With everything going on, my network is more active than ever.

We can find him."

For a moment, Ezra didn't respond. He just looked at her with the expression of a man who was still trying to process her words. But deep down, he couldn't help but feel the satisfaction creeping in. This was what he wanted all along. He needed Helena to find the Necromancer for him, to give him an excuse to connect the dots back to her.

He smiled, a look of gratitude on his face. "Helena, I don't know what to say. Thank you."

Helena gave him a soft smile in return, her hand resting on his chest again as she leaned in. "You don't have to say anything. I know how much this means to you, Ezra. I want to help."

Inwardly, Ezra's mind raced, formulating the next steps. If Helena could track down the Necromancer, it would force her hand. She'd have to choose between casting him aside or sticking with him.

Casting him aside would mean she would attack him with the Necromancer but he didn't believe that was her plan all along. Helena had no reasons to come after him except to rope him into helping her twisted ambitions.

But if she chose to stick with him, the slush fund would conveniently reappear, and he would finally get back what was his without having to lift a finger. Helena's trust in her plans, her willingness to help to get what she wanted, was exactly what he needed to trap her.

Helena settled back against him, her head on his chest once more. They laid down together in silence, enjoying the night together. Helena shifted slightly, her hand still resting on his chest. She looked peaceful, but Ezra's mind was already working through the next stages of his plan.

Once the fund was recovered, Helena had no more value. His eyes narrowed slightly as he stared at the ceiling. Her fate was already set in stone.

The war around them would come to a head soon. The Shield Wall was still up, trapping them all in the city and Ezra's thoughts kept returning to one thing.

Itachi Yaiba.

If Itachi returned and the Shield Wall dropped, he would be free. Free from the war, free from Yuri, and free from the blood oaths that bound him to too many players in this deadly game.

But before that, Helena had to go and his funds had to be retrieved.