Chapter 33
Xavier catches the arrow as it whizzes through the air. Someone screams and Xavier looks down and chuckles.
“I expected better aim from someone I’m guessing is in the Order.” Closing his fist, he snaps the arrow in half and drops the pieces on the ground as he gets up. I grab Gia and push her down, getting to my feet, ready to defend her.
“What the hell, Buck?” Antonio exclaims. “Put the crossbow down.”
“Of course, you’re defending her,” Buck spits. There are three other hunters behind him, and they all look just as drunk and stupid and fucking Buck McGraw. “You’ve always defended that witch-bitch.”
“I’m going to suggest you stop insulting my wife,” Xavier says. His voice is calm yet carries throughout the restaurant. He takes off his suit jacket and gets to his feet.
“Wife?” Buck repeats and turns to look at his buddies, making sure they heard. “The witch-bitch married a vampire. Fitting for trash to find trash.”
In the blink of an eye, Xavier is there. The crossbow clatters to the ground and he lifts Buck up, hand around his throat.
“Did I stutter when I told you to stop insulting my wife?” he asks, fangs coming down as he effortlessly lifts Buck into the air. The other hunters, who I recognize as Dale, Gavin, and Randall, shuffle back, bumping into each other. It’s embarrassing how drunk and sloppy they are.
“Whoa, buddy,” Dale says, holding up his hands and Gavin pulls another arrow.
“Don’t shoot!” Leo yells but it’s too late.
Xavier, however, is unfazed and turns. The arrow hits Buck in the shoulder, and he cries out in pain.
Xavier drops Buck to the ground and grabs Gavin’s wrist, breaking it with one single squeeze of his hand.
The crossbow clatters to the ground and Leo and Antonio rush over, pushing Dale and Randall back before they try to do something stupid.
“He attacked me,” Buck cries, clutching his arm. “The vampire attacked me!”
“You attacked him,” Gia counters, peeking out from behind me. “I saw the whole thing!”
I look around and see that several people have their phones out, crouched down but still recording. There are several cameras in this place, so I know, one way or another, this whole exchange was captured and recorded.
“Don’t look him in the eyes!” Randall shouts, trying to push past Leo.
“He’ll hold you spellbound and make you his slave like he did to her!
” He points at me, and I just roll my eyes.
They know I’m a witch and they know witches cannot be held spellbound.
Come to think of it, I’m sure that’s just another reason why so many of the Order members don’t like me. I have so many advantages over them.
“You came in here and started this,” Xavier says calmly, taking a step back. He rolls up his sleeves, expression more amused than anything. “We were enjoying a quiet evening until you disturbed us as well as everyone else in this establishment. You owe us all an apology.”
Buck dumbly starts to yank on the arrow and Gavin lets out a grunt of pain, clutching his broken wrist to his chest.
“You shot me!” Buck cries and someone at a table near me grabs a handful of napkins, taking a tentative step forward to give them to Buck.
“Your friend shot you,” Xavier corrects. “Which leads me to repeat myself and say I had much higher expectations of accuracy. The Order boasts they have the best of the best, but here you lot are, drunk and pathetic at best.”
“Just get them out of here,” I tell my brothers, slowly shaking my head as I glare at Buck. Our eyes meet and even though he’s meek and bleeding on the floor, he still looks at me with so much hatred for no reason other than I’m different from him.
“The cops are on the way,” one of the waitstaff says.
“I won’t be pressing charges,” Xavier says.
“They’re coming for you, dumbass fanger,” Dale huffs and Xavier speeds over to him.
Dale, who’s pushing against Leo, takes a quick step back.
But he’s drunk so he stumbles and backs right into the bench in the front that’s meant for people to sit at while waiting for a table.
He slides onto his butt and reaches for the gun clipped to his hip.
Xavier is faster, of course.
“I’m curious if you have the proper permit for this.” Xavier takes the gun and pulls out the magazine then empties the extra bullet from the chamber. He gives the unloaded gun back to Dale and puts the ammunition in his pocket.
“We all do, fanger!”
“You really need to come up with a better insult,” I chide and sit back down, making a point to look bored and disinterested just to further piss the hunters off.
“Should I call an ambulance?” Our waitress is next to the table, pale in the face and a little unsteady on her feet. Sometimes I have to stop and remind myself that most people—okay, like all normal people—aren’t used to seeing the things I see on an almost daily basis.
“The cops are already on their way,” I say and pick up my glass of water, taking a drink.
“Shouldn’t we help him?” Gia asks, still in the ‘Girl Scout’ phase of the Order.
All she knows is the rules we’re supposed to live by.
She hasn’t lived it out in real life yet to see that the 'rules’ are more or less loose guidelines no one really follows until it’s time to get someone in trouble for not following them.
“I guess.” I let out a sigh and get up, but before I can go to Buck, Xavier zooms over.
“Are you all right?” His hands land on my arms and he looks right into my eyes. Something flutters inside me and I can’t deny how fucking hot it was watching him push the hunters around.
“I’m fine. Are you?”
His lips twitch into a smile. “Yes, my dear wife, I am unscathed. I take it you also know these hunters?”
“Yeah. And they’re not my biggest fan either.”
“I gathered that.” His fangs show as he talks and it’s making it harder to resist him. “What should we do with them?”
Needing to take a second to swallow the giddiness that’s rising inside of me, I look from Xavier to the hunters. “Let them go back to the tavern and explain to the elders what just happened. They attacked us in public. It won’t go over well for them.”
“If that is your wish,” Xavier says, not hiding the fact that he’s disappointed I didn’t tell him to rip out their jugulars and suck the blood from their extracted hearts.
“It is,” I say right as the doors open. Two officers walk in, coming to a stop as they take in the scene. That was fast. They must have been in the area when the call came in. One looks up and—holy shit—it’s one of the officers from the back-alley dinner meeting the other night.
“He’s a vampire!” Randall starts, pointing to Xavier. “He started it!”
“Well, now,” the officer replies. “I don’t see any blood other than…does he have a wooden arrow in his arm?”
The other officer walks over and crouches down next to Buck, bumping the crossbow away from him. “Vampires don’t use weapons designed to kill them, last I checked.”
“There are cameras,” I say, and pretend not to notice the way my brothers are looking at me. “The whole thing can be reviewed. Those assholes committed a hate-crime against a vampire and his human wife.” I hold up my hand, showing off my ridiculous ring. “Me.”
“That’s a serious accusation, uh…”
“Florence,” I say. “Florence Malus.”
The officer does a good job pretending he has no idea who we are.
I’m able to take Gia outside just a bit later, while the investigation is underway.
The cops call in an ambulance for Buck, and there’s no way he can get out of it without looking hella suspicious.
Leo and Antonio take him outside as soon as the EMTs arrive.
“Well, that was fun,” I sigh, leaning against the building. Gia is next to me, watching Buck’s arm get wrapped before he’s taken to the hospital to get the arrow taken out of his arm. Gavin is escorted out next, and I overhear the officer tell the EMTs that he needs his wrist attended to.
“That was embarrassing,” Gia says. “Do you think Xavier is going to think all hunters are that sloppy?”
“It doesn’t matter what he thinks,” Leo huffs and gives me a look.
“What?” I ask, not sure why he’s getting huffy at me.
“That was a fucking mess,” he says like it’s not obvious.
“I’m aware. But still, why are you acting like it’s something I did?”
Leo raises his eyebrows and throws out his hands. “You’re the one who came here!”
“I’m not allowed to?”
“Oh, come on,” Leo continues. “You brought a vampire to Asheville. Specifically to Maria Elena’s which is right down the road from Zodiac Tavern, which is a hunter bar.”
“You are not making this my fault,” I shoot back. “I’m just as much allowed to be here as you are.”
“Yes, you,” he presses. “But the fucking vampire?”
“He’s my husband.”
Leo scoffs. “Don’t give me that. You hardly know him and you’re siding with him. That’s not you, Wren. You’re not dumb.”
“Seriously? Xavier has been more honest with me in the few days that I’ve known him than my own family—if I can even call you guys that anymore—has been my whole life!”
“That’s not true,” he counters.
“It is!” I push off the side of the building. “Vivian and Marco didn’t save me from the aftermath of a demon attack. They fucking kidnapped me!” The words come out of my mouth on their own accord.
“That’s not true,” Leo says, but I can see the doubt in his eyes.
“I saw the files myself. They ran tests on me, used me like a lab rat to try and replicate my powers to create more perfect little super-soldiers. If you don’t believe me, look into it yourself.”