Chapter 3
Dagon
“You can’t honestly think shipping me off to some island is helpful?” I keep my tone even, since I’m speaking to the king, but seriously, what the absolute fuck?
Alek shifts some things on the desk he stands behind. His shoulders are tense, his eyes a little wary as he looks at me.
“Look,” he says. “The blow we dealt the Sons was monumental. So monumental that Kyle and Samuel went into hiding. The second they pop back up on the grid, we’ll be all over them.” He scrapes his hands over his face.
I’m not sure I’ve ever seen the king look so…unhinged? Am I really pissing him off that much, or is there more going on?
“The priority now,” he continues. “Is ensuring the family we have is strong.”
“You have five hunters that have recently joined your family,” I counter. “I know you understand our powers.” But maybe he doesn’t understand them enough. “I’m not sure how taking Annika and Aurora to the island is going to bolster your—”
“You’re going with them because of your power,” he cuts me off. I arch a brow at him, not out of disrespect, but the tone of his voice. There’s an urgency to it. “You’re the only one who can help Annika control her newly surfaced water abilities. And Aurora…” His voice trails off.
Aurora. The vampire Samuel forcefully turned who has a healing ability right alongside a severe case of PTSD.
Saint has been practically glued to her side, using his gift of mind manipulation in order to grant her some peace from her traumatic memories.
He blames himself for not stopping Samuel sooner.
I’m not sure what he’s doing is totally helping.
That kind of trauma can’t be ignored and glossed over forever. It’ll surface eventually.
“Aurora needs space,” he finally says. “She’s constantly worried Grace or myself will read her thoughts, even though we’d never invade her privacy that way.”
Grace, Ajax’s mate, had the king’s unique ability that naturally set anyone not used to it on edge. I understood that, but…
“Do you think Aurora has something to hide?” I ask, shifting my weight.
“No,” he answers confidently. “She granted me permission in her mind shortly after arriving here. I saw enough to know she’s not withholding anything. There’s no grander plan there. Just…terror.” He shakes his head. “What he did to her…”
He doesn’t need to continue.
We all know. We’ve all seen the aftermath—the way she flinches at things we can’t see, the way she curls inward as her eyes glaze over, her mind broken. Every night she gets a bit more lucid with Saint’s help, but I’m not sure she’ll ever be whole again.
Shame curdles inside me over what Samuel did. What he was capable of. I hate that I didn’t see it. That none of us did.
One of our own. Samuel was one of us, and the betrayal he’s dealt…the betrayal he keeps dealing…
Talk about fucking trauma. I bury that shit even though I think Aurora shouldn’t.
“Time away will be good for her,” Alek continues. “Maybe the break and space will give her time to heal. Then she can focus on sharpening her power. Just like Annika needs to do.”
Fuck. I’m not getting out of this.
I know the others can handle things here while I’m gone.
Hell, the king has a pretty stellar arsenal of magical beings at his disposal.
I know he doesn’t need me right now. Know that Kyle and Samuel will have to regroup for a while, but damn.
The idea of being trapped on an island with Annika, being forced to spend so much time with her, train her, be close to her…
Lava slices through my veins. A need I haven’t been able to ignore grabs me by the balls and yanks.
She’s gorgeous. That’s it. That’s the only reason she’s haunted my dreams for the last few months. And yeah, she’s got a mouth on her too. One I wouldn’t expect from a noble. But that’s it. It’s intrigue. Curiosity and the fact that I haven’t gotten laid in centuries.
That’s all.
“Will you do this?” Alek asks, jolting me back to the present.
I tilt my head. “You’re asking me? Not ordering this time?”
Alek folds his arms over his chest, staring me down. When he shifts like that, it’s easy to remember he’s the most powerful vampire in existence. Easier to forget when he’s informal and downright friendly.
“Do you need me to order you?” he asks.
I blow out a breath. He doesn’t. I understand why Annika needs help. I struggled with my own elemental powers when they surfaced. They can be finnicky bitches when they want to be. I want to help her; I just want to put an end to the destruction Samuel has dealt since we awoke more.
“No,” I say, bowing slightly. “You don’t.”
Alek smiles and nods. “Good. You leave tonight.”
Wonderful.
“One big happy fucking family vacation,” Saint grumbles under his breath as he shifts in the seat next to me for the eighth time since we boarded the plane.
Cassandra and Talon are in the back, fully wrapped up in each other like they can’t bear to be apart. Mating bonds look more like a shackle than an enhancement to me, but to each their own.
“The king insisted,” I say, doing my best to keep my voice between us.
Annika and Aurora are a few rows back, quietly chatting whenever Aurora finds the courage to actually talk.
From where I sit, I can see them both perfectly, and Aurora has nervously glanced at Saint at least a dozen times in the last hour.
I hate to say it, but she looks like an addict yearning for her next fix.
I turn to Saint. “You know you’ll have to wean her off your tactics at some point,” I whisper.
Saint snaps his gaze to mine. “I know that.”
I cock a brow at the anger in his voice and raise my hands in defense. “Hit a nerve?”
His knee bounces as he blows out a breath. “Don’t you think I hate having to do what I do to her?” he shakes his head. “Altering her dreams, some of her memories, just so she can breathe? All because of my fucking brother—”
“I get it,” I cut over him. “I’m sorry, man. I really am. I wasn’t trying to be a dick. I was mainly saying it because…well, look at her.”
Saint finds her easily, like he always knows where she is. She quickly looks away, a flush dusting her cheeks.
I give him a questioning glance.
“It’s just the peace I offer her,” he answers, almost like he’s trying to convince himself.
“Are you sure?”
He nods, tearing his eyes away. “Yes.” He motions to his face, making a circle with his hand. “In reality, I’m a walking replica of the person who hurt her. But when I’m in her mind, controlling it, I’m the only thing saving her.”
Fuck. When he puts it that way… “I’m sorry.” It’s the only thing I can say. “That shit is heavy.”
He barks a laugh. It’s a rarity from him, but I’ll take it. I miss the version of him from before all of this mess—the bloodmadness, the stasis. I miss the Saint that was always terrifying as hell, but could joke and be light when he wanted to.
Now, he seems…empty. Like he’s barely holding on. And I get it. We all do. After what his twin brother did, it’s enough to break stronger vampires than us.
The captain informs us of our decent, and our conversation dulls to an anxious, thick silence. I wish I could help him, but I know Saint like my own blood. He has to do things his way. He won’t take unsolicited help. He might ask for it once a century, but he won’t take it without asking first.
He hasn’t asked, but I’ll keep an eye on him all the same.
Thirty minutes later, we’re heading down the stairs and onto the tarmac, the moon high in the sky, two black SUVs waiting to take us to Cassandra’s home.
Saint grabs enough luggage to sink a ship, hauling it to the closest car. I do the same, wondering what in the hell the girls could’ve packed that would’ve merited so many suitcases.
I hold the door open for Annika and Aurora, waving them into the SUV while Cassandra and Talon take the other one. Once they’re all settled inside, Saint shuts the trunk and eyes me.
“You know what happens when you confine vampires to an island?” he asks.
I tilt my head.
“You either get more vampires or less.”
I huff a laugh, shaking my head as he climbs in. “Remember you can’t hunt on this island,” I say, following him in. “Only on the neighboring one.”
“Understood,” he says, eyes on Aurora, who is adamantly looking at her hands.
Family fucking vacation indeed.