Chapter 20
Chapter twenty
Jack
The sun had completely set by the time I woke up. All my late nights had caught up to me, none more so than last night. By the time I was able to fall asleep, the sun was already high in the sky.
I never ended up finding Tabby, which was all kinds of frustrating. Once we confirmed she wasn’t there, Julian took off, leaving me with Xinyi and Iris.
That would’ve been fine except I wasn’t really in the partying mood anymore. My mind swirled, bouncing between who could have sent the message and what exactly happened with Julian in the woods.
I rolled over in the bed, my head pounding from the witch’s brew, and pressed the neck of Kyren’s shirt to my face, inhaling.
Someone knocked on my door.
I ignored it, closing my eyes again.
Another knock.
I groaned, pulling the covers over my head.
The door burst open and hit the wall loudly. I jerked up from the bed, gun pointed at the entrance. Before I could shoot, a blonde figure tackled me. They shoved me back on the bed, pinning the gun above my head.
“Now, is that anyway to greet your mother?”
I peered up at my mom, rolling my eyes at her dramatics. “Really? You couldn’t have just called?”
She leaned forward, rubbing her nose against mine. My mom’s blonde hair fell around her face, hiding us in our own little world like when I was little. Snatching the gun from my hand, she rolled over.
“I did.” She studied the gun, checking the chamber. “You didn’t answer.”
“Maybe take a hint.” I snatched the gun from her and rolled out of bed. “Did the dads come with you?” I asked, walking over to shut my door.
“They’re here.” My mom lounged on my bed, one leg crossed over the other, her high heels clicking together.
Supposedly, she used to dress more like me, jeans and t-shirts, but all I ever see her wear nowadays are dress pants and blouses. Far cry from the badass hunter she’d once been.
I arched a brow at her, dragging a pair of pants on. “Where exactly here?”
“Oh, around.” My mom waved her hand in the air noncommittal. That meant that my dads were probably prowling the campus, sending everyone into a tizzy.
If the fangirls and boys of the academy were crazy every time they saw me, I could imagine how psycho they were going to get when they see one of the OG Durands walking around amongst them.
I chuckled, shaking my head as I side-eyed her. “Antoine’s going to hate that.”
My mom shrugged. “It’ll do him some good. He’s been stressed lately.”
I busied myself swapping my shirt, letting her take her time elaborating. I could ask her what dad was stressed about, but mom had a way of oversharing all on her own. All I had to do was wait her out.
She let out a long-aggravated sigh and threw her legs over the side of my bed, tapping her heels on the floor in a rat-a-tat-tat rhythm. “The witch and werewolf factions want to get in on the council.”
“But it’s a vampire council.” My brows furrowed. “They have their own councils.”
I walked into the bathroom, going about cleaning my face and teeth.
“Exactly,” my mom said from the doorway, leaning against its frame. “You know, you keep your room a lot cleaner here than at home.”
I rolled my eyes before spitting toothpaste out in the sink. “I don’t have as much stuff here.”
My mom snorted. “You also don’t have a maid or butler here and yet you are able to keep this place relatively spotless.”
Throwing my toothbrush back in its holder, I stalked across the room. “I’m working.” I brushed past her, searching for my boots.
“Ahhh,” my mom drew out, “so you’ll keep your things picked up if it’s for work.” She laughed and pulled one of my hidden daggers from its hiding place, flipping it over in her hands. “You certainly didn’t get that from me.”
“We all know how good of a cleaner you are.” I huffed a laugh as I shot her a knowing look. “If Darren wasn’t around, you’d have broken your neck just breathing.”
The dagger came flying at my face. I stepped to the side, and the blade lodged into one of the poles of my bed frame. Blowing out a breath, I pulled the dagger loose.
“Can you stop messing with my things?” I put the dagger back where it had been hidden and then sat on the edge of the bed to put my boots on. “So, is that all you came here for? To give dad an ego boost?”
“Maybe I missed you.”
I glanced up at her from where I tied my boot. “You just saw me.”
“Well… maybe I had a bad feeling.” She smirked, blinking slowly, her almond-colored eyes like looking into a mirror. “Call it mother’s intuition.”
“You don’t believe in that kind of stuff.” I finished tying my other boot before setting it back down. “Why do the wolves and witches want to join the vampire council?”
Her smile dropped. “Some crap about how, since we control the Hunter’s Guild, we have too much power over the supernatural community.”
“That’s hardly our fault,” I argued, my tone pitching up. “You have a relationship with them. Neither the wolves nor witches have tried to even be polite to the hunters, let alone work with them. You should hear how some of them talk about Julian, and he’s their professor.”
“Spending a lot of time with him, are you?” She wagged her brows at me with a mischievous smile.
“We’re just teammates.” I rolled my eyes again, something I seemed to do a lot around her. Why was it that our parents always brought the child out of us?
“Sure you are.” She crossed the room, sitting next to me on the bed. “I’ve been out there, shoulder to shoulder with the hunters. I know how it feels when the adrenaline is pumping, emotions are heightened. Life or death can be a hell of an aphrodisiac.”
“Ew, mom,” I wrinkled my nose. “Stop.”
She lifted and dropped a shoulder. “I’m just saying Julian is an attractive man. I wouldn’t blame you for wanting to get some late night ‘training’ in with him. I know I would.”
“Is that before or after hell froze over and my dads let you out of their sight long enough even talk to another guy?”
“Yeah, you’re right.” My mom giggled like a schoolgirl, a grin spreading across her face. “But in your case, you should do it. Life’s too short to let rules and procedure get the in the way of love.”
“Love?” I scoffed. “I thought you just wanted me to hook up with him. Now you’re pushing love? You can’t want both, pick one.”
“I’m your mother. Of course I want both.” She bumped her shoulder with mine. “Besides, I’m not stupid. I can see what’s right in front of my nose, even if you can’t.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked as she stood up.
“You know.” She smiled, strolling toward my door. Her phone rang. She pulled it out, putting it to her ear. “Yes?”
I leaned back on my hands, sighing. I wasn’t going to get much more from mom than what she’d already given me.
“The other councils have agreed to a meeting,” Antoine’s voice announced from the other side of the phone.
I perked up, watching my mom’s expression.
“Oh, yeah? Where?” She gave me a chastising look but smiled.
“A week from now. Here.” He sighed, and I could just imagine him adjusting his tie, straightening his cufflinks.
Out of all my dads, Antoine was the most uptight.
It was no wonder that he and my mom got along well.
Darren once told me that they used to drive each other nuts, back when she was the maid, before they finally gave in to their feelings for each other.
Thankfully, Darren was there to be a buffer between the two of them.
“Should we be worried?” my mom asked, suspicion and worry filling her voice.
“No, not quite yet.” He paused. “Have you finished with Jaquelynn?”
“Ehh, for the most part. Just passing on some motherly advice.” She grinned and winked at me.
“I’m sure that went over well.” He let out a heavy sigh. “If you’re done, Marcus is waiting for you downstairs in the courtyard. Meet up with him, and we can return home together.”
“Yes, sir.” Her voice was teasing. “Right away, sir.”
“Behave,” Antoine growled on the line.
“Ew, gag me.” I mocked throwing up as she hung up the phone.
“Just wait, you’ll be madly in love and making your own child gag soon enough.”
“That’s not likely to happen,” I snorted. “Even if I wanted one, which I don’t. I can’t even keep my love life straight let alone long enough to have a kid.”
My mom pouted. “Fine. I guess I’ll have to get my grandmother kicks in with the new recruits at the guild.” She paused and then looked at me like she always did before she was going to give me unsolicited advice.
“What?” I drew out with a groan.
“It’s okay to love all of them, you know.” She gave me a small shy smile, something my mom was not. “I did.”
“Yeah, I know.” I leaned forward on my elbows, staring at the floor. “But my dads were all brothers, blood brothers,” I said softly, “but still, half of them can’t stand the other. So, even if I could figure my own guys out, they’d likely kill each other first.”
My mom chuckled. “Sometimes that kind of tension makes for the best sex.”
“Ugh, please. Stop.” I stood and ushered her out the door. “Go, dad is waiting. Be lovey dovey with them.”
“Alright, alright.” She cupped my cheeks and smiled, her eyes softening. “I love you, Jackie. No matter what, you’ll always have us.”
“Yeah, I know,” I grunted.
She smacked a kiss on my cheek before giving me a pointed look and starting down the hallway.
If there was one thing I could count on, it was my family to always have my back. Even if I didn’t want them to, which reminded me…
“Hey,” I called after her. “Tell dad to stop sending crows to watch me.”
My mom turned to walk backward, frowning. “He’s not. Antoine’s been too busy with this crap with the other councils.” She shrugged. “Maybe they just like you?”
My dad had been watching me with his crows all my life. It would make sense that they’d grown an attachment to me.
Except I didn’t feel as if they were watching me because they liked me. Maybe mom was right, and they were just another group of fans who couldn’t get enough of the Durands.