Epilogue
DESDEMONA
“This is blasphemy!” Leaning back at the head of the table, I let the old man yell as much as he wanted.
He had been on a tirade for a solid ten minutes, going on and on about how unfit for this position I was.
“You are only a child, and we are supposed to expect you to run the family business? We have holdings that go back centuries. You couldn’t know the first thing about. ”
I shifted my tired glance to Aiden, who sat to my right.
He raised a perfect eyebrow in my direction, and I tossed a dismissive gesture his way.
Letting him know I was going to let my Uncle Les continue his one-sided yelling match a little bit longer.
The saddest part was that none of my other uncles were joining him in his belittling of me.
They also weren’t coming to my defense either, though, not that I would have expected them to.
“Desdemona, are you even listening to me? This is what I mean: you have to hear what we are saying if you are going to continue running this business successfully. You have to take all of our voices into consideration.” My uncle spoke louder now and directed his attention right at me.
Picking at the cuticle of my long red nail, I rolled my eyes before looking over to him.
“Uncle Les, you’ve made your opinions on the matter abundantly clear.
But I, for one, am not going to break a centuries-old tradition just because you aren’t happy with how things are right now.
” Standing from my seat, I leaned forward on the long table, splaying my slender fingers out and made a point to look each of my uncles in the eye.
All five of them sat staring at me, but only Uncle Les looked as if he wanted to rip something apart.
“I am the eldest female in the Mortis family. The fact that none of you had a daughter is no fault of mine. You sit here and harp on your centuries-old holdings, yet you want me to relinquish a title that is my birthright? A title that is a familial law we have never questioned before?” Leisurely, I walked around the table, my heels clacking with each step.
“Desdemona, I’m only bringing this to everyone’s attention because you haven’t been involved in the business long.
You don’t know everything that’s going on with the Shiroganes and their business ventures.
And we can’t begin to bring you up to speed.
There is too much happening.” Les was stuttering as I continued my circle around the room.
It was cold, empty, and sterile. My mother kept it this way for a reason.
No creature comforts, no food or drink was allowed in this room.
And the only blood allowed was bloodshed.
She didn’t want anyone to feel too comfortable here.
That was something my uncles didn’t know, but I did.
They also didn’t know that I had been studying under my mother for years, reluctantly, yes, but I also knew that this day would come, and I would not be caught with my tail between my legs.
The Pulse market was mine, and I ran that with flying colors, but everything else- my mother was in charge of. Until now.
Standing behind my Uncle Les’s chair, my hands sat gently on his shoulders.
“Do you honestly think my mom would be so stupid and not prepare me for the worst-case scenario?” My hands began squeezing, my long nails ripping through his suit jacket.
“Do you really believe that she would live her life in such a risky position and not prepare me for this moment?” Dark inky blackness began to trickle from where I had pierced his flesh.
When my uncle hissed from the pain, exposing his fangs, I let go. “There, I didn’t think so.”
Aiden met me at my seat with a warm wet towel. He could anticipate my every move and was always prepared. The best enforcer that ever graced this family.
Uncle Les looked at me in disgust, hatred dancing across his irises as he looked to his brothers for any kind of backup that may come his way. They all just turned to me with their shoulders rolled back.
“Now, I think that’s settled. Does anyone else have objections to me taking my position at the head of this table?
” My feet slid back into position in front of the chair I had abandoned.
As I looked each of my uncles in the eye, circling the table and ending on my Uncle Les, they all shook their heads, confirming they had no issues with my position.
Sitting down, my fingers interlocked on the table in front of me while I crossed my legs.
“Alright then. Mom’s funeral was yesterday.
Her specific request was that nothing paused, no business ended or went to the wayside simply because she wasn’t here to oversee the closure of a deal.
Does anyone have anything to bring to my attention? ”
“Yes.” My Uncle Viktor spoke up. He was the closest to my mother in age and didn’t shy away from speaking up about business even when my mother held this position.
I nodded, encouraging him to continue. “I’ve been made aware of a potential deal across town.
Some of our regular buyers will be interested, I’m sure. ”
“Are the pieces worthwhile? What do you anticipate they will bring in?” Hearing a pen click to my right, I knew that Aiden was taking notes, preparing to initiate the next steps in a potential acquisition.
Viktor nodded. “I’ll send you and Aiden the information I received this morning. It’s three pieces, all absolutely beautiful, but the buzz has stirred up a lot of interest already.”
“Great, send it over and we will look at it today so we can move forward quickly. If it’s worthwhile, we want to get our hands on it before anyone else does.” Looking over to my other uncles, I addressed them, “Anyone else?” No one spoke up.
“Fine. See you all next week.” Aiden and I stood and exited the room through a side door that led directly to my office.
Whispered chatting funneled from the room I had just vacated and tapped into my heightened hearing.
My uncles discussed my lack of emotion, the fact that I seemed not to care that my mother had just died.
What they didn’t know is I cared too much that she was gone.
Every emotion was trying to tear out of my body, and I refused to let it be seen.
Taking a deep breath, I could feel a tear well in the corner of my eye. “Nope.”
Aiden set a cup of blood brew on my desk from the machine in the corner of the room. “You say something, Des?”
“No, sorry, all good. Thanks for that.” I acknowledged the coffee and sat at my desk. “What do you think Viktor found? Something popping up this soon after Mom’s death makes me nervous. Probably nothing to worry about, but I should just trust him, right?”
Aiden occupied the chair opposite my desk, pulling out his phone and crossing his legs. “Your mom always trusted him most, you know that, Des. Let’s see what he sends over and go from there.”
“Sure, you’re right.” My hands reached out and grasped the warm mug of coffee. “Aiden, tell me I can do this.”
“Des,” he set his phone on his lap and looked me in the eye. “I don’t have to tell you that. You know you can do this. Your mom knew you could do this. Believe in yourself too.”
Aiden and I went out to Vanta after work. A bar known for strong drinks laced with blood. It was also nice because the family-owned Vanta, so we were safe here, protected. My drink tonight, however, wasn’t nearly strong enough. Tossing it back, I was ready for another one.
Aiden and I sat upstairs in a separate area from the main bar, able to oversee the dance floor and L-shaped bar below.
My cousins would join us sometimes, but tonight it was only us, so the space felt empty.
The server approached with another drink in hand.
“Safe to assume you wanted another?” Jin asked as he offered me the drink.
“Thank you, yes, this is perfect.” The server bowed slightly as he backed away.
When I took a sip, it was much, much stronger than my first drink.
Scowling, I pulled the drink away from my face.
“Jesus!” My exclamation got Aiden’s attention.
He had been leaning over the railing watching the happenings downstairs.
“You good, Des?” Aiden shouted over the music.
Coughing, I nodded. “Yep, fine.” Holding up my hand, I shooed him away to whatever he was doing.
Lifting the glass back up to my lips, I took another much smaller sip. I savored the hint of blood that swirled in the smooth dark liquor. Feeling a drop of the liquid drip down my lip, I used my tongue to clean it off.
“You do that on purpose, don’t you?” A smooth dark voice, reminiscent of the liquor I drank, wafted from behind me.
It was a voice I had grown far too familiar with lately.
“I had them make your drink on the rocks and a double. Why do you water it down with water anyway?” Milo leaned in close to me. “It’s much better raw.”
“Is that so?” Turning, I angled myself so I could look directly at him as he leaned down next to me. Silver hair had fallen into his grey-green eyes.
“Yep, I have reputable sources.” His fangs sparkled slightly under the flashing lights as he smiled at me.
Nodding, I squinted my eyes and slowly licked my lips, not missing how his eyes flicked down to my lips when I did so. “Mmmm, who exactly are these reputable sources, Milo?”
He knelt in front of me and heat filled my core.
Fuck. Not here.
“I’m the reputable source.” Leaning forward, where my hand rested in my lap holding the glass, he licked the rim slowly.
“Des, when do you want-“ Aiden spun around from where he stood and took in the scene. “Oh fuck. Okay, never mind. I’ll see myself out.” Aiden scrambled out of the space and downstairs.
“You scared Aiden away, Milo.” I scolded the blonde vampire as I cupped his chiseled cheek in front of me.
“He’ll be okay. I’m sure Severn will make his night much better.
Let’s get out of here, Des. Please?” His eyes were pleading.
When I looked down into his eyes, I couldn’t say no.
Taking a hefty sip of my drink, I handed the glass over to him.
He finished it and took my hand, leading me downstairs and out onto the city street.