Chapter 26
Twenty-Six
Rafe stood in front of the mirror, straightening the collar of his shirt, then adjusting the cuffs. His smile grew when Philippe appeared behind him, one eyebrow raised in mocking question.
“You wouldn’t be hiding from your brothers in here, would you?” Philippe teased.
“I can’t imagine why, considering we just got rid of Marcus and Ethan two nights ago,” Rafe replied with a little roll of his eyes.
A week had passed since the great battle of Cockaponset. Or as Rafe preferred to think of it: The Great Cock Battle. There had been an attack on Marcus’s home as well. And while Aiden had no problems putting down the troublemakers, Marcus’s home had gotten trashed in the process.
Being the amazing brother that he was, Rafe naturally offered up his home to Marcus and Ethan while construction workers secured the house.
Aiden went to stay with Winter, while Ryder and Gideon bunked with Lola.
Jullien also stayed with Rafe and Philippe since the former leader was still feeling the loss of his clan.
Two nights ago was the first time Rafe had enjoyed his penthouse with only Philippe. All the little guests were gone, and it was heaven.
Tonight, most of them were back.
Rafe considered himself a people person. An extrovert. The life of the fucking party.
But now that he was settled with the one man he wanted to spend the rest of eternity with, he was happy to have the party move somewhere else.
With a soft chuckle, Philippe kissed the side of Rafe’s neck. “They’re not staying this time.”
Rafe grunted and turned away from the mirror, wrapping Philippe in his arms. He never in his life thought he’d have this.
He’d been enraptured by Philippe from the first moment he saw him, but he’d fallen in love with his kindness, compassion, and seemingly endless patience.
A definite plus when dealing with Rafe’s impulsiveness.
His life had changed with Philippe. The endless parties, drinking, and general debauchery were over. Well, there were some parties and drinking, but the debauchery had become focused on just Philippe.
They were still looking for Ming and Peter, but there had been no sign of them in Hartford. There was a good chance they’d already moved someplace they felt safer. Away from the MacPhersons, the Variks, and the annoying power struggles.
“Thank you,” Rafe whispered. He bent his head and brushed his lips across Philippe’s.
“For what?”
“Saving me.”
Philippe pulled his head back so he could easily look into Rafe’s eyes. His brow was furrowed, and those lovely lips were turned down in a small frown. “From what? I’m pretty sure you saved me and Jullien.”
“You saved me from a life of nothing. A life that meant nothing.”
Reaching a hand up, Philippe ran the tips of his fingers across Rafe’s cheekbone. “Your clubs have given a lot of people and vampires joy over the years.”
“Empty joy.”
“You’ve created an escape for them,” Philippe pressed. “A place for them to belong.”
“And you’ve saved me from myself. Given me purpose. Love.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. The schmaltz. It burns!” Winter cried from the open doorway.
Rafe glared at his youngest brother over Philippe’s shoulder, while Philippe laughed against his chest. “Be gone, Wee One. Or dear cupid might take aim at you next.”
“So very unlikely, dear brother. I think domestication is making your threats soft and weak. I wonder if Bel can whip up a pill for that.”
With a growl, Rafe lunged after Winter, but his brother was already running toward the main living room, his wild cackle echoing through the penthouse. Oh, he fucking prayed for the day his little brother was so properly domesticated. That was going to be a sight indeed.
Rafe grabbed Philippe’s hand and they walked into the living room together, where his family was already gathered.
Marcus and Ethan were cuddled up close on the sofa, while Aiden had claimed one of the chairs.
Winter had dropped into the chair opposite Aiden.
Bel was standing near the open balcony door with a giant black raven resting on his shoulder. Fucking Ozzie.
“That black chicken goes outside!” Rafe shouted, pointing toward the balcony.
Bel released a heavy sigh and petted the raven’s head a couple of times before turning back toward the balcony. The raven cried once and took flight, disappearing into the inky night.
He worried about Bel. His twin seemed distracted recently, which was saying something since Bel always seemed distracted. But this kind of distracted came with a side of troubled, and Bel was rarely troubled.
The only clan members missing from the meeting were Lola, Ryder, Gideon, and Jullien, but all four were currently working at Blush and keeping each other out of mischief.
“I don’t understand why he likes you so much,” Bel muttered.
“Probably because he knows it annoys me,” Rafe said.
“You have no idea how happy I am to hand this nonsense off to you,” Marcus said with a sigh as he looked over to Aiden.
The older vampire smiled and shook his head. He did look happy to be there, in the middle of their bickering. But then, Aiden had missed so much over the years. He seemed a little more at peace than he had been in a long time.
“True, but you’re still dealing with the Ministry. Speaking of…”
The prompt brought them all back to the reason they’d gathered at Rafe’s.
In a matter of a few months, the Variks had taken out two of the most powerful clans in all of the Americas.
Yes, those clans had fucked with the Variks first, but there were few out there who would care about such details.
It clearly looked like the Variks were making a move for more power, and the one group taking the biggest offense to that was the Ministry.
Marcus spread his hands in front of him in a helpless gesture.
“They are skeptical of the fact that we didn’t start the fight with the MacPhersons.
The remaining members of the clan, from what I’ve been able to gather, have moved from Hartford.
I think many of them that haven’t gone their own way are now gathering to form a new clan in the south. ”
“Would it help if I went before the Ministry?” Philippe offered. “As a former clan leader, I can explain how I turned to the Variks to form an alliance, and the MacPhersons threatened and killed my people.”
Marcus’s smile was warm but a little sad. “I don’t know how much it would help us, considering you are now a Varik.”
“And our brother has very loudly advertised that you and he are lovers,” Winter added.
Rafe gave a little sniff. “I was told my Instagram account was getting boring.”
Ethan’s head flopped back against the couch cushion and groaned loudly. “Once! I said that once. I didn’t mean for you to post a naked pic of you and Philippe in bed.” Ethan groaned again. “Hashtag QuietNightIn, my ass.”
When Rafe had suggested taking a picture of him and Philippe cuddled up in bed, naked and still blissed-out after sex, he’d never expected Philippe to agree, let alone suggest he post it on social media. Who was he to argue with that?
Of course it was all tasteful, and nothing risqué was showing since Instagram would have slammed the ban hammer down immediately.
“We don’t need updates on what my brother is doing to your ass,” Bel mumbled and slapped his hand over his mouth as if he couldn’t believe what had just come out. His wide eyes darted around the room.
Rafe laughed so hard he stumbled, catching himself with one hand against the wall. “Finally! Years of being a positive influence on you has taken effect at last.”
Aiden pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger and rubbed. “Focus, boys.” He sounded half-annoyed and half-amused.
“The point being,” Marcus started again, “Philippe’s offer is generous, but I doubt it would have the desired effect.”
“So what? Are we being censured?” Winter demanded.
Rafe had no idea what a censure entailed, but he doubted it was good for the Variks.
“I don’t know.”
Winter shifted to the edge of his seat. “What do you mean?”
“Just that. I don’t know. The Ministry hasn’t indicated that it has decided on any course of action. And if they truly see the Variks as a threat to their power, then I don’t see them telling us what they plan.”
“Do we return to our original plan? Form an alliance with another clan or two?”
Philippe’s shoulders slumped. “I’m sorry.”
Rafe was at his side in an instant, wrapping his arms around him from behind, but Marcus spoke before he could.
“You have nothing to apologize for. While an alliance with the Arsenaults would have been a boon for the Variks, we can’t complain about how things worked out on our end. The Variks are a clan now. We’ve added five new members. We’re stronger than we were. We’re just sorry for what you have lost.”
“We could try reaching out to the Montgomery Clan. They used to have a grievance with the MacPhersons. They could be more agreeable to an alliance now that the MacPherson clan is gone,” Winter suggested.
“Moon and Novik are in Hartford now, and I think they are both sympathetic to the Variks. At the very least, neither were fans of the MacPherson or Black Wolf clans,” Rafe added.
Winter looked at him, his eyes wide and mouth hanging open a little. Rafe winked at him. “I’ve got sources too.”
Which reminded him that he needed to check in on Edgar. The money had been arranged for his granddaughter, but he could do a little more for the vampire. It didn’t hurt to have an ally who had ears everywhere around the city and was good at not being seen.
“Aiden?” Marcus asked.
Their father sat in the chair, his eyes on the coffee table in front of him, but his gaze was a million miles away. “There have been no other attacks on the Ministry?”
“None since this last summer.”
“Then we wait,” Aiden said with a small nod. “If clans make overtures, talking about alliances, we will listen, but we reach out to no one. We do nothing to draw the attention of the Ministry.”
“Why?” Rafe asked.
“Because several months ago, the Black Wolf clan started a fight with the Ministry, and severely weakened them. I don’t think this fight is over.
The Ministry is vulnerable and someone will want to take advantage.
It’s in their best interest to have the Ministry pick a fight with the Variks.
Regardless of who wins, our next shadowy threat benefits.
I’m in no mood to help this person or clan unless I know it will benefit the Variks as well.
” Aiden’s eyes narrowed as he looked at each of his sons.
“I need you all to keep a low profile. Behave. Draw no attention to the Variks. Particularly avoid the Ministry.”
“You don’t think they’ll just forget about us,” Marcus scoffed.
“No, but I suspect that our troublemaker will want to use the Variks’ newfound fame and strength to stir up fresh trouble with the Ministry.”
Rafe wandered over to the bar and poured himself a drink.
He remained there for a moment, watching as his family argued the pros and cons of Aiden’s course of action.
Doing nothing was usually not their first choice, but Rafe could see the wisdom in it.
The Variks slipping back into the shadows forced other players to make a move and risk exposing themselves.
Not long ago, Rafe would have argued that they needed to do something big and bold to shock the vampire world. Waiting and patience weren’t among his strengths.
But now as he watched his lover carefully ask questions and bring up new suggestions, Rafe found that he was perfectly happy to wait in the shadows. From there, he could better protect his growing family. He could take the time to learn from Aiden now that his father was close at hand.
And most importantly, he could care for the man who had become the center of his existence.
The loneliness that had hounded him for most of his life was gone. Philippe had shined a light on him that chased away all the darkness. Now he wanted to bask in his own personal sun.
And when the time came, he’d fight whoever he had to, kill whoever he must, to keep his family safe.
Now and forever, he was a Varik.