Chapter 13 Fracture Between Them #3
Shaking my head, I hit the button and waited, watching one of Koa’s spy eyes hover near the ceiling light fixture. When it buzzed closer, I gave it a little wave, imagining Cas’ stoic face twitching with annoyance.
After four rings, he finally answered, sounding winded.
“Foster.”
“Am I interrupting something fun?” Smirking, I stretched out on Eluned’s bed. “You sound like you’ve been busy.”
“Just finished bathing a dire wolf.”
“Oh? Is that what married men call dipping your wick these days?”
There was a moment of silence, and I grinned, imagining his jaw clenching with that perfect self-control of his. Instead of a verbal response, my phone screen lit up with an incoming video call request. I rolled my eyes, but accepted.
When the video connected, my eyebrows shot up in surprise.
There was Cas, looking annoyingly put-together despite his damp shirt, and behind him was Zane, brushing an actual dire wolf pup, the same one I’d always seen with Seri when she lived here, his charcoal gray fur standing up in every direction like a fuzzy explosion.
“Well, I’ll be damned. You really were bathing a dire wolf.”
“Something new since yesterday?” Cas cut right to the chase as I heard Koa and Seri laughing at something in the background.
“Arabesque went to Chicago for her witch conference. Since I’m alone, thought I’d share what I found out this morning.
She’s building what she literally called a ‘witch mafia.’ Each coven will function like a family, controlling different territories and targets.
Like mob bosses with spells instead of bullets. ”
“Explain.” Casimir’s expression didn’t change, but I saw his eyes sharpen with interest.
“She’s positioning herself as the godmother. Apparently, she’s been recruiting covens across the country, creating a hierarchy with herself at the top. At the conference, she’s unveiling her grand plan to take a throne to silence her skeptics.”
“Which throne?” Ko’s voice came from off-screen, and a moment later his face appeared beside Cas’. “Did she say?”
“Keeping her cards close. My guess is either your daddy or King Julian, given her power base here. Speaking of King Lucian, I witnessed something yesterday you might want to pass along. Arabesque fed Lord Mordecai Wince’s soul to a demon.”
That got a reaction, even from Cas. His jaw tightened, and Ko swore under his voice.
“She took out Wince?” Cas confirmed, voice deadly quiet.
“And kept his soul in a diamond ring.” I watched their faces. “She traded his soul for a future favor from a greater demon.”
“Sebastian and Father need to know Wince is confirmed dead,” Cas muttered. “They believe he’s the traitor they’ve been hunting.”
“How’s your bride?” I asked, partially to change the subject and partially because I was curious how she was adjusting to life with three dhampir husbands.
Before she’d left to marry my Cimmerian boys, I’d seen Serafina from afar several times while scoping out the farmhouse, and twice when she ventured into the woods to forage.
The second time was about two weeks before Arabesque shipped her off.
I’d been trailing silently after Claudio Kane, my predecessor, and he’d stopped to watch her as she’d filled a basket with a bunch of green things.
The dire wolf pup stuck so close, he nearly tripped her a few times, but it was the leer in Claudio’s eyes that had made my claws and fangs extend.
Then, a couple of days later, he’d bragged about beating the girl for eavesdropping on him and Arabesque.
That nagged at me in a way I hated. Yeah, I tried to convince myself that I didn’t care about anything or anyone anymore, but knowing that cruel bastard had needlessly crushed someone too weak to fight back?
For Arabesque? Well, it was a really bad time to discover I still had a few morals left.
Nearly blew my cover and ended the sonofabitch right then and there.
“She’s fine,” Cas said now, and the camera shifted.
For a brief moment, I caught sight of Seri sitting cross-legged on the ground beside the wolf, gold curls pulled back, gray eyes bright. She looked good. Happy and definitely healthier than I’d seen her here, where she’d been reduced to a shadow.
Less than three seconds, and Cas angled the camera back to his face.
Protective bastard.
“Amabel and Eluned aren’t getting along so well these days,” I offered. “With Seri gone, they’ve lost their favorite punching bag. Now they’re turning on each other.”
“Good.” Ko nodded. “Let the bitches tear each other apart.”
“Eluned’s particularly restless. Told me the other day she thinks it’s time to branch out on her own, away from Mommy and Sissy.”
“Encourage that,” Cas ordered. “The more fractures in Arabesque’s inner circle, the better.”
“That’s easy enough,” I scoffed. “All it takes is suggesting Amabel gets special treatment and Eluned goes into a tailspin.”
“How about you, Foster?” Ko’s perceptive gaze made me uncomfortable even through a screen. “Holding up okay?”
“Right as rain.” I deliberately misunderstood the question. “The rogues are under control, the twins are out shopping against Mommy’s wishes, but technically not breaking her rules since they didn’t go to Chicago, so I’ve got the place to myself for a bit.”
“In Eluned’s room, I see.” Cas raised his eyebrows.
“Just giving your little mechanical friends a show.” I held up one arm and flexed my bicep at one of the spy eyes. “How many do you have here, anyway? I counted four, but I’m guessing there’s more.”
“There are enough,” was all Cas said.
From somewhere off-camera, I heard Zane call out, “Tell Fosterlicious to keep his dick outta the nutso twin! He doesn’t know what else has been in that cunt!”
The view jolted, and I caught a glimpse of Ko tackling Zane to the ground while Seri’s face turned a shade of red that matched Eluned’s curtains.
A laugh slipped out, surprising me. The fearsome Cimmerian brothers, elite monster hunters and terrifying dhampir princes, rolling around like puppies while their shared bride blushed in mortification.
“Stay in touch.” Cas’ expression never changed despite the chaos behind him. “When this goes down, it will go down fast. Stay sharp.”
“Always.” I gave him a mock salute. “Good luck with domestic bliss.”
He ended the call without a goodbye, typical Casimir. I pocketed my phone and stood, then slipped out of the room and headed downstairs, making a mental note to be back before the twins returned. They’d be in volatile moods when they got back, and I didn’t want to miss the fireworks.
Or the chance of Eluned wanting me to screw her brains out.
As I reached the front door, Austin emerged from the kitchen, a protein shake in hand. He gave me a nod, his face blank, although his eyes tracked my movements with unusual sharpness for a human.
A mystery for another time, I decided as I stepped outside.
All in all, it was a good day to be a spy. The she-spider was out of her web, her spiderlings were off playing dress-up, and I’d successfully passed along valuable intel to my allies. Now all I had to do was keep a thousand rogues from ripping each other to shreds over dinner.
Yep. Just another Tuesday in paradise.