Chapter twenty-nine
Levi was careful as he slipped his arm from beneath Amaya and out of their bed.
She made a small whimper of displeasure but turned over, spreading out under the covers.
He let his eyes drift over her beautiful, curvy body a moment longer, then thanked the gods for their bond every day he felt closer to his queen.
Though his body was relaxed with satiation, his mind immediately turned back to the attack on his mate.
‘Bas.’
‘In the basement.’ His best friend already knew what he wanted.
Wasting no time, Levi changed into a pair of joggers and a t-shirt.
He trusted his men to question the attackers, but he wanted to look them in the eyes and make sure they didn’t miss even the smallest piece of information.
He put in the code for the basement, smiling as he heard the screaming the moment the door opened.
Bas was doing exactly what the fuck he was supposed to be doing.
Sinister glee filled him as he fully entered the space.
There were two males shackled to the wall.
Levi looked at the blood on the ground and decided then and there that he needed to move this little setup somewhere else.
Torturing people in the same place where his mate laid her head didn’t seem right.
He looked over the males, smirking at the bloodied mess his friend had made of them.
They were not Buru, which confirmed for him that the Collective really was behind the attempt.
Anger burned through the last of his good mood and he stepped closer to the warlocks.
Sebastian stepped back to allow him room.
One male gazed at Levi through the eye not swollen shut, though it was well on the way.
The other hung useless in his shackles, his breathing labored, on the brink of death.
Levi dismissed that one and focused on the warlock in front of him.
“Who hired you?” He didn’t care about any other information the males might have.
The male’s body shuddered and he shook his head. “Don’t know.”
Levi sighed.
The hard way then.
Staring into the warlock’s eyes, Levi delved into his mind, not bothering to be gentle about it.
He chuckled as the male’s every memory opened up to him.
Before Amaya, Levi would have had to take blood to get this type of access, but with their combined power, he easily took over the warlock’s mind.
Shuffling through his memories, he saw that the male had been telling the truth.
They’d been hired via a website. Levi filed away the address for their safehouse and the others in the crew that had eluded his men.
The male released a relieved breath when Levi retreated from his mind. “See? I’m not lying.”
Levi smiled. “I know you don’t think that matters. You came after my queen and death is my only response to that.” He gripped the warlock’s chin, grunting in pleasure when his jaw cracked. “You’ll be lucky if I allow you to die with your sanity intact.”
The male whimpered and Levi released him, stepping back. “Let them rest a while, Bas. Can’t let ‘em die before we really have fun.”
With those parting words, he left the basement. Lucas met him at the top, waving an envelope at him. Levi lifted an eyebrow, waiting on his friend to speak.
“Your invitation to the governor’s ball came in,” Lucas said with a smile.
Levi nodded, no closer to the reason for his friend’s smugness.
They received the invitation every year.
Some years he attended, most he did not.
His attendance had always been contingent on his needs that year.
While the whole thing was held under the guise of charity, most treated it as the opportunity to make deals while the city officials were inebriated and feeling generous. Levi was no different.
Lucas waved the envelope again. “I persuaded your favorite governor to hire the same staff the Collective uses for their events.”
This time Levi understood the underlying words. Lucas had had a hard time finding the woman who had served him the drink at the Collective’s meeting.
“They could’ve killed her by now,” Levi said.
“Maybe.” Lucas shrugged. “Or maybe they’re arrogant enough to think it wouldn’t be needed. It’s not like we can prove you were poisoned by them.”
Levi hummed. “It would be the perfect opportunity to pop out with my mate.”
Lucas bowed. “You’re welcome.”
He could only laugh at his friend. “I applaud your genius,” he said dryly.
Lucas laughed and left Levi. With nothing further to do, he wandered towards the dining room.
Ms. Anita and Richard were sitting at the table, whispering to each other.
Amaya’s mother had taken a turn for the better as soon as Richard showed up on the scene.
As they spent more time together, Anita spent less time in the fugue state her magic had devolved her into.
There were still times when she would space out, but they were becoming less frequent.
“Ma,” he greeted, bending down to kiss her forehead.
She cupped his cheek. “You’re older than me,” she chided.
He chuckled at that truth. “Are you doing okay?”
She nodded. “I want you to talk to Amaya.”
Levi held up his hand and sighed. “Ma. You know how your daughter is.”
Richard spoke up. “My home is a fortress, much like yours. I’ll be able to keep her safe.”
“Your boss at the Archive is worried that any of the matings between a Bayi and Chawi will be targeted. You would be safer here.”
“With all due respect, Levi…” Richard started.
Levi shook his head. He wasn’t about to go back and forth with grown ass people. “Amaya was attacked on her way home from work this evening. She’ll be resistant to you leaving.”
Anita gasped and stood. “Is she alright?”
“She’s in our room resting,” he told her, and she rushed from the dining room.
That left him alone with Richard. The older vampire eyed him. It was clear that while he respected Levi, he wasn’t awed by his position. Richard was master vampire of his own coven and that could well be the reason.
“I would feel better with my mate away from here. I believe the Collective will only ramp up their attacks,” Richard said, breaking the silence.
Levi nodded. “You could be right, but Amaya and her mom have been a duo for years. Breaking that up won’t be easy.”
Richard sighed and slid down the chair into a more relaxed position. “I can take her out of the country. Her daughter wouldn’t object to a vacation.”
“It could work.” Levi shrugged. “Are you certain you can keep her safe?”
Richard gave him a droll look. “What will you do about the attacks?”
That was too close to being in his business for Levi’s comfort, so he said nothing. Richard chuckled and propped his arms on the table.
“If you’re thinking of taking on the Collective, you’ll have more allies than not.” The older male shifted until he was leaning back with his hands behind his head. “Your reputation well precedes your movements. If you were of a mind to unite all of the Bayi under your rule, it could be done.”
Levi grunted. Despite the moniker, he wasn’t sure he wanted to be King of all the Bayi, but the Collective wasn’t giving him any choice in the manner. He couldn’t in good conscience claim his mate and then deny that same right to the other vampires in the South.
“That’s a lot of territory,” he said noncommittedly.
Richard smiled. “All of the South. Not so bad. Uniting the coven masters and leaving them in place will keep you from having to manage the whole of it.”
Now that was something to consider. He would talk to Sebastian about it. He didn’t move without his best friend and if he were down, then he would take it under advisement.
“And you, master vampire, decades older than me, would willingly follow behind me.” Levi tested the water.
“As I said, your reputation and that of your enforcers precede you. I would never say no to the vampires under me living a stable, lucrative life.”
“And all of that is contingent on my coven taking on the Collective?”
Richard chuckled. “We’re just talking in hypotheticals, right? But without the Collective choking our movements, the Bayi would be free.”
“And hypothetically, the vampires would exchange one rule for another?”
Richard held up his hands. “Just something for you to consider.”
Levi nodded. The rest of their conversation was cut off as the dining room started to fill with his men coming down for the evening. He acknowledged Richard with another head bob before he left to go check on his mate. Ms. Anita was coming out of the room as he reached his hallway.
She smiled. “She’s fine.”
“Of course,” he assured her.
Anita touched his shoulder softly as she passed him to head downstairs. He waited until she reached the end of the hallway before he entered his room. His mate was up, her eyes bright with unshed tears.
“Anita tell you she was ready to go with her mate?”
She nodded. “I tried to tell her that it would be safer here.”
He chuckled and joined her in bed. “You have to let your mama live her life, baby doll.”
She burrowed into his side and sniffled. “She thinks she’s grown.”
He laughed full out, pulling her on top of him. “Silly woman,” he murmured, kissing her hair.
“You have to go to work this evening?” she asked.
“You got a better reason for me to stay home?” He lowered his voice, scraping his teeth along her neck.
He’d fed from her not even two hours ago, yet the beast within him salivated at the chance to taste her again. Reading his mind, Amaya whined her hips and sighed.
“Tell me something, baby girl.” He gripped her waist and rolled them from the bed.
Amaya squealed as he lifted her, carrying her into the bathroom. “I’ve already taken a shower.”
“I want a bath,” he told her, setting her down on the counter.
“What that got to do with me?” she asked flippantly.