Chapter 14
Chapter
Fourteen
“Are those werewolf fangs?” I rush out, shaking my head back and forth.
They can’t be. Or at least if they aren’t, they’re not here on the desk because Theo pulled them out.
If he did, that means the werewolves and the vampires are officially at war.
With everything else going on, it’s the absolute last thing we need.
“Glad you asked,” Theo replies. “They are in fact, fangs from two young adult wolves who showed up uninvited to the meeting I was at. Who was at this meeting? Glad you asked. It was with members of the VC and two human correspondents,” he goes on and Xavier’s large hands slide down my waist, settling on my thighs.
He lets his brother rant, definitely having been through this before.
Even though I'm getting used to Theo’s theatrics, if werewolves attacked vampires during a business meeting, it’s not dramatic to be acting like this.
“What happened?” Xavier asks calmly and I know his lack of urgency makes Theo all the more enraged.
“They fucking attacked us.”
“I’ve gathered that.” Xavier takes his hands off me and turns, facing Theo. “Did they give a reason before?”
“Yes.” He widens his eyes. “A caravan of hunters has set up shop in Winston-Salem.”
“I don’t see what’s wrong with that,” I say, watching Xavier’s face. He’s not showing any emotion to clue me in.
“Of course, you don’t,” Theo huffs. “You’re fucking clueless.”
“Watch your mouth,” Xavier retorts.
“You can’t keep her ignorant and by your side like she’s an equal.”
“Hey,” I interject. “I’m not ignorant. But I’m starting to feel like I don’t know what’s going on.” I bring my hands to my face and rub my eyes, not caring if I smear my mascara. “Hunters have resided in the state for years. I mean, I did.”
“From Charlotte to the coast is vampire territory.” Xavier turns on a lamp on the desk for my sake. He and Theo can see perfectly well in the dark. “Having hunters in the Appalachia area is necessary.”
I shake my head, still not following. “I’ve been assigned to Winston-Salem to hunt a Devil Monkey which turned out to be a scrapper demon,” I say. “It’s only like an hour from here.”
“That was you?” Xavier asks, lips turning into a smile. “I remember hearing the reports about that. A group of high school students supposedly caught it on camera.”
“Yes, that was it. Six years ago, I think? You saw scrapper demons at the camp.That’s all it was. Got separated from the herd. Pack? I don’t know the correct term. The other demons. It was an easy kill.”
“ Maybe our paths were always meant to cross,” Xavier says softly before his face grows serious. “When we came to an agreement with the Order to stop killing hunters in exchange for biologically desirable females, there were terms.”
I hold up my hand. “First of all, never say that again, because ewww. And second, the Order came up with the deal?”
“Yes,” Theo and Xavier say at the same time.
I blink a few times as I push myself off the desk. “I promise we’re going to circle back to what is actually going on, but please tell me the backstory.”
“The short version,” Theo starts. “We established this city. It was always run and ruled by vampires. The Order wanted more territory for themselves and tried to claim the city. They sent hunters, we killed them.”
I just nod, knowing it’s not quite that black and white. “So, they came to you with the offer?”
“Yes,” Xavier takes over. “They were aware how we kept our bloodline going. Being selective in who becomes a member of the family has always been a priority to me, as has protecting the vampire population in my city. While we had a great advantage over the hunters, not all vampires made it out alive.”
“Okay,” I say simply. “And along with that, uh, area of the deal, you also set boundaries?”
“Yes,” Theo answers. “You think one measly human every twenty-five years is enough? The hunters can pass through, occasionally hunting something that slipped through the cracks. We are in Appalachia, after all. But they are not allowed to reside here in any way. That includes buying real estate.”
All I can do is look at both Xavier and Theo in shock.
Once again, another secret is revealed making me feel like I don’t actually know my husband at all.
He didn’t lie, didn’t purposely keep this from me, though.
Still, it’s a very strange and uncomfortable feeling, though I don’t know what to expect.
Xavier has lived so long. Of course, there are many things about him I don’t know and I’ve accepted that. He’s done things, bad things, and it would take hundreds or even thousands of hours to go over his entire life history.
But finding out about the Malus family and the Order hits me differently. The Order was my life. It robbed me of a childhood, not to mention my real family.
“Okay,” I say. “I see how important this deal was beyond getting a baby-mama.” And I do. Keeping hunters away kept the peace for more than just the Malus family.
It united everyone—because of Xavier.
“The deal with the Order didn’t just keep peace between the hunters and vampires,” Xavier calmly states. “It kept them out of the area, which was beneficial to the werewolves.”
“That’s why so many have joined the packs around here,” I say out loud, needing confirmation because this is just so fucking much to take in.
“Exactly,” Theo says. “And while a handful of wolves aren’t a threat, a whole fucking pack of them can be a pain in the ass to deal with.
Keeping the Order at bay meant they were indebted to us and they knew it.
They were rightly beneath us and never challenged our authority.
But publicly calling out Marcus Henry and then not handling the hunters who set up in Wolf Territory—after you were made aware…
” Theo trails off. “What the hell did you think was going to happen?”
“How long have they been there?” I ask. “It’s only been like a day since everything went down.
Two days?” I close my eyes, realizing that everything is blending together.
It’s been a shit show since Devon got shot, really.
Man, I’m not going to know what to do if things settle down.
Spare time? Relaxing? Hah—what’s that like?
“Almost immediately after Marcus Henry was named on live TV,” Theo says.
“Antonio would know more than me,” I start. “The Order doesn’t usually make rash decisions. Like they’re impulsive and bad, of course, but getting a bunch of hunters to move doesn’t seem like it just happened overnight.”
Xavier tips his head, considering my words. “If they were angry enough about their leader being murdered.”
“Hunters do love revenge. Still…it seems oddly fast,” I say. “Like they had it planned before.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Theo presses. “By making the Order Public Enemy Number one, you informally called off the deal. And if the deal is off, you need to inform the alliance and not let your bullshit, sloppy actions speak for themselves because by the way it looks, the Order has bested us and that is a fucking problem.”
“The real problem, brother,” he says, mocking the way Theo says the word. “You are impulsive. Violent. Emotional. There was no need to rip the fangs out of those wolves after you killed them.”
“They attacked us,” Theo spits through his gritted teeth. “And tried to sink those dirty fangs into vampire flesh. That is punishable by death as it has been written for centuries.”
“True as that may be, a room full of vampires could have easily subdued werewolves any other way. Unlike witches, they aren’t immune to our ability to hold them spellbound.”
“Don’t try to shift the blame to me. You’re the one who fucked up by being too busy caring about her.”
Xavier’s eyes flash. “I told you to watch your mouth. She’s part of this family and she is my wife.”
“Let’s go with that,” Theo continues. “Somehow, she finds the sigil, gets this demon-deal called off and everything is peachy. Then what? You leave her to help you rule a broken kingdom? You’re not thinking things through. She’s clouding your judgment and it will affect us all.”
If I could slink back and disappear into the shadows, I would. But there are no shadows or anywhere to hide. So instead, I stand there feeling awkward even though it’s not out of the ordinary to listen to Theo rant about Xavier’s love for me clouding his judgement.
“Hunters are not supposed to take up residence anywhere east of Charlotte,” Xavier begins and unbuttons his suit jacket. He takes it off and drapes it over the chair like this conversation is boring to him. “Maybe it’s time we make an exception.”
“You can’t be fucking serious,” Theo spits. “You’re inviting them in?”
“I’m presenting an opportunity,” he replies, a razor-sharp grin on his face. Light glints off of fangs, which I hadn’t even seen come down. “I’m giving them rope and letting them hang themselves.”
Theo’s eyes narrow but then his shoulders relax. “Then we won’t have to justify what comes next.”
“Exactly,” Xavier says, and his calmness sends a chill through me. He’s giving the Order the opportunity to fuck around so they can find out. And finding out the Malus family way means bloodshed.
“You guys want to go for a run?” I ask my brothers, coming back into the kitchen. They’ve moved to the table, snacking on slices of cheese and veggies.
“Now?” Leo asks. “I’d rather take a nap and then…I don’t know. Figure out where to go because I don’t want to stay another night in this vampire-Barbie dream house.”
“Everything okay?” Antonio asks, grabbing two slices of cheese. “I mean, besides the obvious.”