3. Ezra #2
“Honestly, I’d be more surprised if you did.” Leaning against the wall, I watched the coven interact with each other. They seemed like a family, and I wondered what it would feel like to be a part of something like that. While I had close confidants, vampires I trusted, it was nothing like this.
A growl slipped from his throat. “If you hurt them—”
“Relax, demon. I’m only here to help Barrett. And then I’ll be gone from this town.” That seemed to get him to relax, if only a little.
The front door opened, Eryne and Barrett rushing in, hand in hand.
“So nice of you two to join us,” Cait said, smirking at the pair.
From their scents, I could guess what they’d been up to after leaving the bar last night.
Eryne blushed, her freckled cheeks turning pink. “Sorry.”
“So, what’s going on?” Barrett asked as the two settled into the two open chairs at the table.
Lightning flashed outside—the storm feeling foreboding, adding to the general gloominess in the room. I settled into a chair at the open table, doing my best to appear unthreatening. No one was in a good mood, and I didn’t want to add to that.
Damien crossed his arms over his chest. “When were you going to tell us you knew what was living outside the wards, feasting on the town’s magic?”
Barrett turned to glare at me, and I gave a small shrug. “I only found out yesterday.”
“But you suspected?” Willow asked, the witch frowning.
Nodding, Barrett looked at Eryne. There was hurt in her eyes—hurt that he’d kept this from her.
“I didn’t want anyone to worry until I was sure.
These beings—wraiths—are dangerous. They mindlessly feed off magic, using it to become stronger and attack anything that gets in their way.
Beings that shouldn’t even exist in our world, let alone the depths of hell.
I’ve seen a lot of things over the years, but even this is new for me. ”
Wraiths. Gods fucking dammit, why did it have to be wraiths?
Of everything I’d ever come across in the mortal world…
even with our training, I knew this wouldn’t be an easy fight.
They weren’t beings with any humanity left to them—nothing to reason with.
There was only one ending we could afford them.
“Knowing that, we’re not sure it’s still a good idea for us to destroy the wards. This being, this wraith?” Cait practically spat out the word. “Whatever is keeping it out there is the only thing keeping us safe. We have to put the protection of the town first.”
Eryne slammed her fist on the table, more fired up than I’d expected.
“No. The wards need to go. We can recreate them, right? They’re keeping us isolated, and not in a good way.
We’ve been kept in the dark for hundreds of years, and for what?
To keep us safe from the others like us?
” She shook her head. “I don’t want to live like this any longer.
We need to know the truth.” She looked to Damien, and then to me, though she avoided my eyes.
“Last year, we all thought demons and vampires were bedtime stories told to keep us from acting out. None of us had any idea until Damien came to town that there was even anything we were missing. But now we know. And I can’t go back to that.
” She looked at Barrett. “It might have taken one injured wolf shifter for me to find out, but I know we deserve better than this.” Last night, I’d thought she was meek, submissive, but I’d been wrong.
She would have to be strong, being Barrett’s mate.
Willow nodded. “You’re right. And it’s not just us who deserves better. Pleasant Grove could be a haven for all of us—shifters and vampires, and witches alike. Locking ourselves away from the paranormal community may have been our ancestors’ choice, but it doesn’t have to be ours.”
I wondered what it would be like, a town full of paranormal beings, ones who choose not to live in seclusion or apart from each other. I’d had enough dealings with the coven of Hemlock Bay over the last century, but even they hardly got along with the vampires.
“Should we put it to a vote?” Rina asked, trying not to meet my eyes. She’d been ignoring me ever since we’d walked inside the house, which suited me just fine. She made it clear just how much she loathed me, and I didn’t need a reminder of just how monstrous she found my kind.
Rina’s friend from last night—the blonde, Wendy—looked between everyone at the table.
She was soft-spoken, and yet, the power within her made me wonder how long she’d been touched by death.
“I agree with Eryne. And I want to un-write the wrongs of my ancestors. I think we owe it to everyone in town.”
“So, we’re still doing it then?” Cait asked.
They all finally agreed, and I brushed a piece of lint off my jacket, bored. “Great. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, we need to strategize. We have to be smart about this, or else.”
Damien rapped his fingers against the table. “That’s the smartest thing you’ve said all day, vampire.” His eyes seemed to flash a deeper red.
My lips curled, revealing my fangs.
“No fighting, both of you,” his pregnant mate said, reaching out and putting a hand on her mate. “We’re all working together towards the same goal.”
“Fine,” Damien huffed.
I said nothing, looking away. She was right, I was here to help. Not to antagonize the demon. I’d met demons before, but none of them had been quite like Damien, who bore no horns or colored skin, symbols of lesser demons. He must have been high born, if not… royalty. And yet, he was here.
In Pleasant Grove, with a witch for a mate. I wondered how that happened.
Whatever secrets this town held, I suspected I could be here for years and not unravel all of them.
Answers I wasn’t sure I wanted, because I feared they would change everything for me.