Chapter 13
Will
The angel’s gaze swept around the room, acknowledging the three immortals he’d been to Hell and back with. “What exactly does ‘everything we can’ entail mean? What do we still have left in our wheelhouse?”
“I need time to think.” Tobias muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“That is something we do not have,” Rion said, though not unkindly.
“How many vampires do we have in your kingdom?” Lyla asked Tobias. “How many will come if you demand their presence in battle?”
“The time it would take to rally an entire state could be better spent in other ways,” Tobias mused.
“What does that even mean?” Will threw both arms wide. “Don’t we want to throw everything we have at this?”
Tobias tilted his face to look Will in the eye. “Yes, but not like that.”
“Then what is it like?” Lyla asked. “We do not know how this is all connected. Marquez could be unaware of the other situation we are contending with. Or, he could already be possessed by my ex-husband. If that is so, he could have grown in power exponentially. If we are unable to save Kitty and the mortal simply because we did not take enough soldiers into battle, I will never forgive any of you.”
“Calm down, darlin’,” Tobias said quietly. “We are going to get them back. We’ve never had to utilize the full capacity of our powerbase before. Not since we made the trinity blood bond. Not since I expanded our forces by over thirty people in one night.”
“Is this situation really the time to test our limits?” Rion asked. “If you are wrong, the price will be inconceivable.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” Tobias’ voice rose in volume, as if his very integrity had been challenged. “Why can’t you ever just trust me?”
“How certain are you that what we have will be enough?” Lyla asked.
At first, Tobias said nothing. His haunted expression twisted Will’s stomach into knots. The vampire king wasn’t certain at all. His eyes clouded over for a moment, and then he met Lyla’s gaze with a resolve that surprised even Will.
“We will be enough.”
“What if we could expand our powerbase?” Will asked suddenly. He lit a cigarette and took a long drag.
“How?” The hope lurking in Tobias’ tone tugged at Will. They’d been through so much, and yet, everyone just expected Tobias to keep taking on more, being more. Rion had been through a ton of shit too, but he didn’t get it. Not, the way Will did.
“Taking on Althea’s vampires was difficult and it took a lot out of you.” Will combed a mesh-gloved hand through his hair, taking the time to choose his words carefully. “What if your ability to take on more is directly related to your personal powerbase?”
Tobias’ brow furrowed. “What are you talking about?”
“Your servants. I believe the reason you were able to take on Althea’s vampires through her, instead of the incredibly huge drain it would have been to take them on individually, is because you have six servants.
I know it’s only been a little over a day, but I think you could do more if you had more servants. ”
“Ridiculous.” Rion said coolly. “Are you trying to end him? That would take down everyone he has already drawn into his web, including my girlfriend and yours, not to mention the unborn child.”
Will shook his head as he exhaled a trail of cigarette smoke. “I don’t think it’s ridiculous at all. I think they’re more at risk if we do nothing. More servants could never be a bad thing, as it would provide a greater safety net for the ones he’s already got.”
“You weren’t here when I took on the last two,” Tobias protested. “You have no idea how many feeders it took to accomplish.”
“Mortal feeders, yeah?” Will took another drag on the cigarette.
“Even with the three of us, it is unlikely to be enough of a boost,” Rion said.
“I’m not talking about you and Lyla.” Will grinned. “Unholy blood is a massive boost, but temporary and not nourishing.”
“We already know this; you waste our time,” Lyla said.
Will knew the abrupt tone she kept employing was due to her concern for Kitty, so he ignored it.
“Mortal blood is nourishing and long lasting. However, angel blood is in another league all together. We didn’t realize it at first, because until Tobias, Rion, and I, became friends; angels had never fed vampires.
“Angel blood is like some sort of superfood. That’s why Tobias only ever takes a couple of mouthfuls. What if we called in a favor with the Outer Realms? There’s a vast resource of untapped potential, and you could take a lot more than a couple of mouthfuls before it becomes dangerous.”
“Let us presume what you say is true, and they agree to this,” Rion began. “Where do you propose we find willing mortals trustworthy enough to thrust into this mess?”
Frustration kicked in, drawing both brows together. Will forced his usual smartassery to retreat, but could not keep the irritation out of his tone. “I’m just trying to think outside the box, which is more than I can say for the rest of you.”
“Everybody calm the fuck down,” Tobias said, holding up a hand. “I actually think Will is onto something. I don’t know how we’re going to find mortals willing to join this shit show, but assuming we do, this could work.”
“We should go back to Rion’s place and brainstorm,” Will suggested.
Tobias gave a grim nod.
They arrived in the penthouse to find Lori and Vixen had been joined by ten angels, all from the Outer Realms.
“Did you send out a call already?” Tobias asked silently.
“No, but you know what angels are like…” Will said absently. His gaze was fixed on one angel in particular, the female standing beside Uriel. Kyriel.
For fuck’s sake… why now? Rion hadn’t seen his mother in two millennia, and could have easily waited another few weeks.
Hell, it could have waited another few years, since they were both immortal.
This felt like incredibly bad timing. The few short seconds of silence felt like an eternity, but Will couldn’t decide if he should say anything.
At first, he didn’t think Tobias, Rion, and Lyla, had noticed, but a soft gasp from the ice demon suggested otherwise. Then, Rion followed her gaze. His lips parted with shock.
While the meeting was long overdue, Will felt sorry for Rion that it had to happen with such a large audience. He could only hope this didn’t overshadow everything they needed to achieve in the next twenty-four hours.
Kyriel flashed out, to materialize right in front of her son. “Khyterrion…” she murmured, and fell to both knees. “Forgive me.”
Rion somehow managed to hold it together. He didn’t freak out, or let his anger stir. He simply reached down and offered a hand to the tiny angel bowing at his feet.
“No,” Rion said gently, “you will not do this. Not now, not ever.”
Bewildered by the response, she stared up at him, appearing uncertain what to do next. Belatedly, she saw his offering and covered her mouth with a hand to stifle a sob.
Recognizing how overwhelmed she was to see him after all this time, Rion knelt down with her. This time, he held out both hands. Trembling, she took them, tears streaming down both cheeks as he pulled her into a standing position.
“There is much to discuss,” he said, “but not yet. For now, know that forgiveness is not something you need ask of me. The horrors of the eighth realm are in the past; they shall suffocate us no longer.”
Kyriel threw both arms around his neck and cried. He embraced her with tenderness, before a wave of unconditional love radiated outward from the pair, touching everyone in the room.
Beside Will, Lyla sucked in breath after rapid breath, as if the air in the room was difficult to ingest. “I must go,” she mumbled and dematerialized.
“Fuck,” Will whispered.
“Tell me about it,” Tobias muttered. “I’m going after her; I’ll try not to be long.”
Will nodded, his heart heavy as the vampire blurred from the building.
Nothing could happen until Tobias returned.
Time was short and this could undo everything they’d gained.
Despite the inconvenience, Tobias was right to go after her.
Lyla was one of them, no matter how much it looked like she’d just been replaced.
It was so much more than necessity. They didn’t just need her help in what lay ahead.
Nope, when we negotiated her freedom with Leviathan, we claimed her.
She’s ours, and nothing is going to change that.
Not even Kyriel’s arrival. He could only hope that Tobias found her and returned quickly. Kitty’s life could depend upon it.