Chapter 61 #2
I stretched my arms and sat up, hooking my legs over the edge of the bed and padding to the bathroom. I curled my hair into a bun and showered. I stared in the mirror as I brushed my teeth. My skin had a glow about it, my eyes sparkling like all the stars had burst to life inside.
My eyes shifted to the necklace he gave me, “I’m yours and you are mine, this necklace carries my symbol. It is my promise to you I will always love you. Wear it and it will protect you.”
My hand cradled the pendant against my chest and happiness bloomed beneath. I’d never been so happy, so in love.
I got dressed in jeans and a t-shirt and opened the door.
“Monique!” the roar rumbled the bones of the house.
Shit. I grimaced; it was safe to assume the photographer had done his job and Karson had the newspaper.
After a moment of listening to Karson bellow again like an angry bear, I went to help save her. Georgie appeared in the hallway, looking concerned, still wearing her nightgown and robe, her hair mussed from sleep.
I mouthed, It’s fine.
Monique and Karson were in the foyer.
“What have you done?” He breathed fire at her.
I passed Kenneth sitting on the stairs, watching. He would move if he had to, but for now, he looked like he was enjoying the show.
“Well.” She threw her hands out. “We have to get her out of hiding somehow so we can all get our lives back.”
“Do you realize the danger you’ve put her in?”
“How is it any different to what she’s in now?” Monique snapped.
Mary opened the front door, carrying a hessian bag filled with food, and a rolled newspaper peaking at the top like salt sprinkled on a wound.
“Goodness, what’s all the kerfuffle? I can hear you from my place.” Mary closed the door, darting her gaze between them.
“Monique has had a terrible lapse in judgment, once again,” he growled.
“Oh dear.” She walked across the room, patting his arm as she passed. “Do remember to keep your underwear straight.” She looked up at Georgie and smiled as she headed to the kitchen. “I will put some coffee on.” Then she muttered, “Or pour a bottle of wine.”
I would have laughed if Karson wasn’t so furious. His eyes were so cold, I swore the devil lived in there, waiting to rise.
“It was my idea actually.” I stepped down the stairs.
He stamped me with a look that would have had most people backpedaling. “Your idea?”
I bit my bottom lip and nodded.
“You have many abilities, but lying isn’t one of them.”
I stopped beside Monique and crossed my arms. “I’m not lying.”
“Really. How did you know from the lake with no internet connection about the opening?”
“Someone mentioned it the other day and I thought of the idea.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?”
“Yes, is that so hard to believe.”
“Oh, Amy, stop. You are a useless liar,” Monique said, exasperated. “This way, we don’t have to wait months for her to show up.”
“Do you not think, Monique,” he snapped, “I might already have something in motion to draw her out without using Amelia as bait?”
“I don’t mind being bait,” I said. “And what do you have planned?”
He ignored my question. “To go behind my back.” He shook his head, clenching his teeth so tight, a muscle bulged in his jaw. “Were you in on this debauchery, Kenneth?”
Kenneth rose casually and sauntered down the stairs. “I was aware. It was a solid plan, and one we hope will work.”
“I take you into my home, offer you protection, and the way you repay me is to connive behind my back.”
Kenneth’s tone was soft—sympathetic, even. “You had other issues to deal with. We thought we’d take some pressure off you.”
He jerked his chin up to the hallway, where Michael stood next to Georgie. “And what about you, Michael, were you aware?”
“I was not.” He guided Georgie down the stairs with his hand on her back. She tightened the belt on her silk robe. “And I agree with you, they should have run their plan by you, but it is done now and there is no point arguing about it.”
“The images were uploaded at one this morning.” Karson raised his voice. That explained why he’d left our bedroom; he would have been seething. “Before we even left the nightclub. What if something happened on the way home and I was unaware?”
“You are always aware of danger,” Kenneth answered. “Amy was safe—is safe—with you.”
It was a clever response. One Karson did not fall for.
“If you think,” he said flatly, “stroking my ego might get Monique out of her misdoings, then you are sadly mistaken.”
“I think,” Kenneth flanked Monique, “Monique only has your best interests at heart, and you should be thankful you have her on your side.”
Karson’s eyes flared with annoyance. “Need I remind you, Kenneth, that when it comes to Monique, loyalty is not something you should speak of.”
The comment struck both of them. Monique’s throat bobbed and she looked away. Kenneth’s mouth dropped open for a moment before it tightened into a thin line. “There is no need to remind us of the sacrifices that we have both made. One of us made that sacrifice for you!”
Monique turned and strode toward the door, but not before I caught tears in her eyes. She reefed open the door, and it slammed shut behind her.
I saw a flash of guilt in Karson’s eyes as he watched her leave. Then he turned and strode into the ballroom.
I stared after him for a moment, debating whether to follow. “Karson …”
He didn’t answer, didn’t look back.
“Leave him be,” Michael said. “He will calm down soon.”
Georgie and I went to the kitchen, and I slumped onto a stool at the bench, guilt gnawing at my chest. I wanted him to trust me. Maybe we should have talked about it prior?
“That was intense,” Georgie said, smoothing down her hair as she slipped in beside me.
“Never mind Karson, he will settle down,” Mary said, her back to us as she poured coffee into our mugs. “When he is a little upset, he has a tendency to go off like a frog in a sock, and then he thinks about it and comes around.”
“A little upset.” Georgie spooned sugar into her cup. “I’d hate to see him pissed off, then.”
“Let’s hope you never do.” Mary smiled wryly, passing her the milk. “Where’s Josh this morning?”
“Probably sleeping in. When I left the club, he was chatting to some hot guy.”
“Oh, to be young again and dance the entire night away, both out and in the bedroom.” Mary’s eyes twinkled. “These days, I doubt the hips would spread far enough to allow entry.”
Georgie and I burst into loud laughter. My hand flew to my mouth to catch the coffee I choked on.
“Oh my God, Mary,” Georgie spluttered. “I’m sure you could find some old bingo guy ready to give it a good crack.”
“Those men can crack bones alright, just not the one that’s any good.” Mary winked.
Georgie and I laughed so hard tears ran down our faces. “Stop,” Georgie shrieked, “I’m going to wet myself!”
Mary cackled as she tossed mushrooms in a frypan. She wasn’t usually crude. That’s when I realized Mary had wanted to make us laugh, to take our minds off Karson’s anger. She was kind, the salt of the earth, like the grandmother I’d never had, and I adored her.
“What sacrifice did Monique make for Karson?” Georgie took a sip of coffee when she had stopped laughing.
“I think that is a question Monique should answer,” Michael responded, walking into the kitchen and uncurling the paper, the catalyst of my crime.
I wanted to look at the photo—I didn’t have one of us together.
“Every vampire has a story to tell and they should be the one to tell it.” He pulled out a chair at the table and sat down.
Georgie swung her stool around to face him. “Well, it’s obvious Monique and Kenneth have a thing, so I’m guessing Monique chose Karson rather than Kenneth?”
Michael sighed. “It’s not quite that simple.”
Georgie cupped her face in her hands. “What else is there to it?”
“I think I can answer that for you, love.” We all looked up as Rodney strolled into the room.
The atmosphere chilled as he entered. Or at least Georgie’s expression did. “Rodney, do invite yourself in, won’t you,” she drawled.
“Karson and I are family, his home is mine, and mine his.” Rodney sat beside Michael, resting his elbows on the table and clasping his hands in front of his chin, studying Georgie.
“What brings you out so early?” Michael commented, no annoyance in his tone. Pity.
A plastic grin slashed Rodney’s face. “I didn’t want to miss out on Karson’s fury and the argument I knew would occur after seeing the paper.”
Was he worried about Kenneth, knowing he’d stand up for Monique?
He didn’t look worried. But like Karson, he kept his feelings buried under a face as expressive as cement.
Showing emotion about those he cared for made him vulnerable.
He was no freer than Karson was, I realized. Still, I felt not a wick of sympathy.
Georgie sat back in her chair and said smugly, “Too late, never mind.”
Rodney’s brows rose. “It’s over already?”
“What were you hoping for, a blood bath?”
Rodney dropped his hands down, smoothing the edges of a napkin. “Are you offering to pour me one, love?”
Georgie folded her arms and glowered at him. “You really are a psychopath, you know that? There’s nothing to see here, so you might as well go back to the coffin you crawled out from, love.”
Michael looked between them, a barely restrained grin tugging on his lips. Mary slipped a plate of eggs, mushrooms and buttery toast in front Georgie and me, throwing a look at Rodney, which was entirely wasted because he didn’t take his eyes off Georgie.
“I thought you wanted to know the sacrifices a vampire must make to ensure survival.”
Georgie scoffed. “Other than sucking the life force from humans, do you mean?”
“One of the necessary requirements, obviously,” Rodney drawled.
Georgie picked up her fork, stabbing a slice of mushroom and speaking around a delicate mouthful. “Well, go on, then, do tell why Monique is so angry with the world.”
“Kenneth and Monique were in love, and as much as Karson and I are loyal friends who support each other, two alphas in the same area was never a good idea for long periods of time. I decided to leave, and Kenneth chose to come with me.”
Georgie frowned. “Why would he leave someone he loves for you?”
“Clearly, it’s my charm.” Rodney smiled in an attempt at a joke, but Georgie just stared at him and his smile dropped. “Kenneth came with me because when a vampire turns a human, they owe him, and they feel a connection—”
“Wait,” I interrupted, “you can turn people? I thought only firstborns could do that?”
Rodney lifted his silver eyes to me. “Firstborns and a few of the strongest of vampires can turn people, though I’m not always successful. I’ve had a few failings.”
Someone had turned Leah—what if it wasn’t Sarah but Rodney?
Georgie fiddled with the handle of her mug. “So, you turned Kenneth and he felt some kind of loyalty to you and so he left her. Surely, you could have let him go?”
“It was in a time when both humans and witches were hunting vampires. I needed him. And once you turn someone, they are indebted to you for the rest of their lives.”
Georgie’s hand tightened on her mug. “Oh, so you broke both their hearts just to keep yourself safe. You must feel good about yourself.”
A muscle twitched in the corner of Rodney’s mouth.
Michael flicked his gaze between them, settling on Georgie.
“Once a vampire turns someone, they feel a bond between them, a connection that is hard to let go of. Even if times were peaceful, had Kenneth stayed with Monique, with Rodney so far away, he would have felt the disconnect, as if a part of him was missing.”
“So instead, he left and still he feels a piece of him missing, a gaping hole in in his heart that tears at his lungs and makes it hard to breathe.” Georgie’s voice shook with anger, with pain.
“And all because you couldn’t put your ego aside and get along with Karson long enough to keep them happy. ”
Rodney’s brow flickered as he studied her. “Is that how it feels for you?” he said gently.
Georgie reeled back. “I’m not talking about me, I’m talking about you and what you took from them.”
Michael answered, “It is not Rodney’s fault. It was a tough choice they both had to make.”
“Why don’t all the vampires Karson’s turned need to hang around him?” I asked, changing the subject.
Michael thanked Mary as she placed a teapot and cups on a tray in front of him. She stood next to Georgie, her hand on her shoulder for a long moment, before moving back to the kitchen.
Michael poured tea as he answered, “Many are centuries old. We were forced to live apart when we were hunted because smaller numbers were easier to hide. They have grown used to living that way. But they would be here should he need them.”
“Josh,” Georgie murmured almost to herself. “That’s why he’s always here, he’s drawn to be near Karson?”
Michael nodded. “In part, and in part because he doesn’t have family to go to.”
“So, you see.” Rodney splayed his hands out. “I’m not always the bad guy.”
Georgie stood up. “You are definitely the bad guy.” She took her mug and plate to the sink.
Rodney tracked her every move as she padded barefoot to the door. “By the way, I forgot to tell you how beautiful you look this morning, Georgie.”
She gave him the finger as she strode out.
“Would you like me to drive you home?” he called after her.
“Hell would freeze over first,” she called back.
Rodney’s lips were curled up as his attention dropped to the newspaper Michael had open. “Lovely pictures, Amelia,” he drawled.
I jumped off the stool, peering over Michael’s shoulder. There were two pictures with me in them. The first one was with Karson, our eyes locked, our arms around each other, looking like lovers. The second was similar.
Except I was with Ethan.