7. Vivianna
VIVIANNA
Being woken up from a dead sleep to the news that your mate had a vision was not on my top ten favorites list, that was for sure.
Wrapped up in a bathrobe that was in the bathroom—since I didn’t really have much in the way of clothes—with a cup of coffee, sitting on the couch, I digested what Orion had just told us.
The guys held their tongues until I said something, all of them watching me with bated breath.
“I told him what?” I asked, my brain refusing to register that we’d all died, and Diane had betrayed us.
Orion looked at me with sympathy as he topped off my coffee mug. “You said there was another just as important as Hope that you hid away where no one could find them. You were extremely careful not to mention anything specific.”
This left me even more in a quandary to figure out what the hell I’d done.
“Okay, so let’s deal with the easier part of this disaster.
Clearly, we need to have a talk with Diane and see what is going on there.
Has she already made contact with Vadik, or even Jason, or is this still to come?
” The guys all nodded their agreement. “I also need to go shopping and get some clothes. I’ve been borrowing Neveah’s, but I can’t keep doing that forever. ”
“I say we go have breakfast, talk with Christian and Kate, and get a feel for what, if any, plans they have. Then we take some time to get you the things you need,” Rik suggested.
Everyone was in agreement about that and started to get ready.
I used the leggings I wore yesterday but stole a shirt from Bentley since he was the smallest stature-wise of the guys.
Feeling the need to lighten Orion’s mood, I leaped onto his back, wrapping my arms and legs around him in a tight backward hug.
He grunted under my sudden attack but grinned at me over his shoulder as he hoisted me up into a more comfortable position and jogged down the stairs.
Leaning forward, I nipped at his ear, making him growl playfully at me. “I’m still here, and I plan to be for a long time yet. Your vision, as horrible as it was for you to experience, gave us some valuable insight so we can prevent that future from happening.”
“This gift of mine has always been a double-edged sword, but this is the first time it showed me something so vividly,” he shared, walking slowly across the parking lot.
“I just can’t seem to shake the feeling of watching you die right before my eyes and being unable to do anything about it.
It makes me think of Violet and how you must have felt something similar, holding her in your arms, knowing you did all you could for her. ”
“I wouldn’t doubt that the pain you felt believing you lost me would be similar.
There isn’t even a way to describe it, unless you’ve experienced it.
The worst part is… it will never be okay.
I won’t ever get over losing Violet or move on from it.
All I hope is that the pain will become more manageable as time goes on,” I explained, resting my head on his shoulder so I could nuzzle the side of his face.
“They did tell me that I would be able to have more kids, and I believe I would like to one day, once the world has settled down some, and we have a place to call our own.”
“Do you not want to go back to Kursar?” Orion inquired.
“To be honest, I don’t really know. At first, I felt like that was the place we needed to be, where I could do the most good, but now, I’m not sure.
What happens when Jason and Vadik are gone?
There will be a power vacuum, and someone is going to need to fill it.
I’d like to stay and make sure that however that happens, it’s what’s best for all werewolves,” I expressed, feeling the rightness in that choice.
Orion kissed my forehead then my nose. “This is why I love you, my dearest mate. The heart that you have for others is one that is rare to see in this day and age.” Reaching the office, he set me down and took my hand. “I’m honored that I get a front-row seat to watch you change the world.”
Hearing his words made me blush. Having spent most of my life hearing that I was never good enough, it still shocked me when I was told the opposite.
“Is she blushing?” Koit cried out. “What did you say to her? Tell me, tell me, because that doesn’t happen—ever.”
“Sorry, you’re gonna have to figure that out on your own, just like I did.” Orion winked at him as he pushed open the door and held it for me.
The apartment they had was cozy and what I would expect from such a warm couple. It had a beach theme to it, but everything was inviting and made of soft materials that I wanted to snuggle up in. Kate’s head popped out of a doorway down a short hall, her face lighting up as she saw us.
“Good morning. I figured you would all sleep much later after your late-night rendezvous,” Kate teased, winking at me.
Oh God, does that mean everyone here heard us?
Woman, you were howling like a hyena. If they didn’t, I would question their skills as a shifter.
Gee, thanks.
Anytime, always happy to help.
“Come sit, sit, I just finished making waffles,” Kate instructed. “You lot are the first ones up, so eat your fill. I’ve got bacon and eggs too if you don’t like waffles.”
“Who doesn’t like waffles?” Koit piped up.
Darius coughed and raised his hand. “I don’t see the enjoyment of eating that much bread first thing in the morning.”
Koit gasped, clutching his chest. “You’re dead to me.”
“Har, har, har, laugh it up, asshole,” Darius grumbled as he filled his plate with fruit, along with eggs and bacon. “Just know, I’ll live longer than you because of it.”
Seeing them banter like true brothers made me smile, along with Kate and Christian when they joined us at the table.
“You know, I was going to ask how you manage to deal with seven men in your life, but now I see—you’re family,” Kate commented, leaning in so only I could hear her.
“The love that I feel coming off of them for you, and each other, is astounding. You should feel blessed to experience such a thing in your life.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” I said as a plate full of food was handed to me by Tav. “Seriously? Do you expect me to eat all that?”
“Love, you hardly ate anything yesterday, so yes, I do expect this plate to be clean before we take you shopping,” he ordered.
Scowling at him, I stabbed into my eggs and got to work on the ridiculous amount of food he handed me.
“Was the room comfortable enough? You are the largest group we’ve had to fit into one room so far,” Christian asked.
Everyone mumbled or nodded yes, as their mouths were full of the extremely tasty food that Kate made, making Christian grin behind his coffee cup.
The room fell into a comfortable silence as we enjoyed the meal, some going back for seconds.
Much to my surprise, I did finish off my whole plate and could have had more, but I didn’t, no matter how much my wolf begged for more bacon.
Seriously, you’re just going to ignore those last two strips sitting there? They look so lonely. They would feel much better in the safety of our stomach with their friends.
Yeah, and what happens if we get attacked or something else, causing us to need to run or fight? We would be so full we would be slow or need to puke in the corner first.
Listen to you, getting your mom voice on. Fine—but just know I’m not happy about this choice.
Noted, but ignored.
With a huff, she curled up, keeping her back to me in protest. Shaking my head, I turned to Christian. “Are Tim and his family staying here as well, or did you move them to a different location?”
“No, they are here, just in the building on the other side of the parking lot. We keep that one open for any human guests who might stumble upon us, needing a place to stay. The building you’re in is built for werewolves, providing extra soundproofing and more long-term comfort, since some need to lie low for a bit,” he explained. “Why do you ask?”
My gaze shifted over to Orion, the question in my expression. With a nod of his head, I continued, “We have a reason to believe that Diane might pose a threat, doing something rash in order to keep her family safe.”
“Oh? Rash how?” Christian pressed.
“We believe she is going to rat us out to Jason or Vadik in the belief that she can save her family,” I explained.
Christian narrowed his eyes and shifted his gaze to Orion. “Is this from one of your visions?”
“Yes, I saw us lose the battle because of her,” he added. “There are a few other things as well, but there isn’t enough information to figure out those pieces yet.”
“So what do you plan to do?” Christian inquired, returning his attention to me.
This was the part I wasn’t sure about. Christian was the leader of this rebel alliance, as well as the alpha on this land. Technically, I outranked him, but being a new friend and all, I didn’t want to just come in and take over—right away that is.
“That depends on you, I guess,” I said, putting the ball in his court so to speak. “I won’t lie to you. If I don’t agree with your choices, or I believe they will keep me from my mission, I’ll run you over if I have to.”
The guys around me tensed at my words.
“Yes, you warned me of that before,” Christian mused before his face broke into a smile.
“Good thing I think you are exactly what we need in a leader to win this war. I’m more than willing to step aside and let you run this show, supporting you in any way that you need through my contacts.
Hell, I’ll send out the word to the whole rebellion that you are now the boss if that makes you feel better.
I stepped up into this position because no one else would, but also because I couldn’t stand to see what they want to turn our world into. ”
Tension in the room relaxed at his words, once my guys figured out he wasn’t going to fight me for control.
“It might be best to leave things as they are at face value, keeping the change of command as quiet as possible. As yesterday showed, we don’t really know for sure who is on our side and I don’t want to take any chances of information leaking out.
No one here knows who I or my mates are, other than those that we came here with. Which leads us to the matter of Diane.”
My brain had been working overtime to try and figure out what to do. I understood why she did what she did… or was going to do. Fuck, that was weird to think about. Now that we knew about it though, we needed to use it to our advantage.
“Darius, Tristan, what are the chances we could use her to get in contact with them, but use it to feed them false information?” I mused. “Then we could control the narrative and get him out of hiding. That vision already proved that he’s willing to leave to get me personally.”
Tristan leaned back in his chair, scratching at his chin, deep in thought, while Darius seemed not to be a fan of the idea. “Are you going to be the bait?” he demanded.
“That wasn’t my first thought, but it’s an idea,” I ventured with a shrug.
“Like fuck it is. I refuse to allow that. There is no way we can let him get that close to you again,” Darius snarled.
This had both me and my wolf sitting up at attention. “What did you just say?”
“Uh-oh,” Koit muttered under his breath. “Somebody’s about to be in trouble.”
Darius locked eyes with me, not backing down as I filled the room with my alpha power.
“No, Viv, I’m not going to roll over on this one.
I understand you want to be the one to gut the son of a bitch, but that doesn’t mean you need to be there for the takedown.
We can bring you in after he’s secured.”
“Over my dead body will that be happening,” I shot back.
“That’s what could happen, Viv, if we let the two of you close to each other. He could kill you.” Darius yelled, slamming his fists on the table. “Orion saw it right in his vision, so don’t you tell me it won’t happen in some fucked-up version of this. It already did.”
“He took everything from me.” I roared back, tears pricking my eyes. “That bastard will die with me being the last thing he sees through the haze of pain that I’ve brought him, just like he did to me. No one will get in my way, not even you.”
Darius deflated as he watched the tears streaming down my face, while my body shook with anger.
Standing up, he walked over to me, pulling back my chair so he could kneel between my legs.
“My queen, I know you went through hell and lost so much. You deserve everything you are asking for, but all I ask is that you remember that we almost lost you, too. I’m fighting everything inside of me not to lock you away somewhere safe until this is over and we can reunite with our daughter.
” He placed a finger over my lips to keep me from talking as he continued, “Don’t worry, I’m not actually going to do that, but it doesn’t mean I won’t do everything else in my power to keep you safe.
I support this idea but refuse to let you be the bait.
There has to be something else he wants just as bad. ”
Hearing his plea and seeing the truth of his words in his eyes had my anger cooled slightly.
I still wasn’t happy with him, but on the other hand, he wasn’t shutting down the idea completely.
“Alright, we’ll find something else to use as bait.
” Darius surged upward and kissed me soundly, then picked me up, setting me on his lap as he took my chair.
Once settled with his arms around my waist and his nose nestled in my hair, we both relaxed.
“Damn… and I thought our fights were intense,” Christian whispered loudly to Kate, who punched him in the arm with a scowl on her face.