Dark Legacy (House of Winterborne Book 1)

by Luanne Bennett

When I walked into the kitchen and opened his refrigerator to grab some orange juice, I got a shocking flashback. I swear I could smell that raw meat like it was right in front of me. “Want some juice?” I yelled to him. “Helps me when I’m hungover.”

  “God no,” he yelled back. “What are you doing here anyway? Shouldn’t you be at work?”

  “I thought I’d stop by on my way out.”

  When I pulled my head out of the fridge, he was sitting at the kitchen island, firing up his bullshit detector. I had about five seconds to decide if I really wanted to tell him. I trusted him as much as Jakob, and I knew he’d take whatever I told him to the grave. Besides, he had a right to know if there was a possibility that he was Ryker Caspian’s son. It was the part about Ryker being a vampire that made me hesitate.

  “Cut the shit, Morgan. What are you doing here?”

  I decided to start with the basics and see where the conversation went from there. “You know the other day when I was telling you what I read in Mom’s journal? About that guy she met at the library?”

  His brow knitted together as he recollected the conversation. “You mean my comment about us being bastards?”

  “Well, I wouldn’t use that term.”

  “It was a joke, Morgan.” He lost his grin when I stared at him silently. “You’re serious?”

  “Mom confirmed it in her journal. She was pregnant with me when she wrote it.”

  “Shit,” he muttered, scratching the top of his head.

  “The only reason I’m telling you is because…”

  “You think I might be his kid too.” He gave me a long look after finishing my sentence, like he was searching for similarities between us other than the obvious ones we’d gotten from our mother.

  “I can’t explain my red hair,” I said. “I certainly didn’t get it from him.”

  His thoughtful expression vanished as his eyes settled on mine. “How do you know that? Have you seen him?”

  “Yeah. So have you. He’s the guy who was watching me at the memorial service.”

  Michael was rarely lost for words, but as he gazed at me, the pieces came together. “Wait a minute. You said the guy from the memorial service was the same guy in the picture Ramsey showed you. Some vampire called the Reaper.”

  I nodded. “My biological father is a vampire. His name is Ryker Caspian.”

  “Jesus Christ,” he whispered, his eyes growing wider. “We’re half vampire?”

  “I’m half vampire, Michael.” I feared he might panic and do something stupid like tell Cabot. “If it makes you feel any better, I think it’s a long shot that she got pregnant a second time with Ryker.”

  “Yeah, but you don’t know that for sure.”

  It was a mistake to tell him. I could see that it terrified him, and that made him unpredictable. “I really don’t think we have the same father, Michael. And you’re right, I don’t know for sure. But she said in the journal that if she’d known what he was, she would have never taken the risk.”

  “What does that mean? Risk of what?”

  “Risk of sleeping with him, I guess. She mentioned some legacy of the Winterborne women. I don’t think it was an accident that the journal ended up in my office in that box. She’s trying to tell me something, and I have a feeling it’s going to get much worse.”

  Chapter 21

  “How’s the shoulder?” Jakob asked when I walked into the lobby.

  “Good as new.” I put on a fake smile and tried to act as if I hadn’t just told my darkest secret to my brother and wasn’t worried that he’d have a breakdown and tell Cabot. “Your blood seemed to do the trick.”

  “You would have been right as rain on your own. I just sped up the healing a little bit.” He smiled and followed me as I walked. “Is everything all right?”

  “Sure. Why wouldn’t it be?”

  He studied me for a few seconds. “You seem a little jumpy this morning. Are you sure everything’s fine?”

  Everything is perfect. Monoclaude is dead and my father is a vampire. What could be better?

  He grabbed my arm as I headed for the door. “Where did you get that?”

  I glanced at the ruby bracelet circling my wrist. I thought I’d taken it off with the rest of the jewelry. In fact, I knew I had.

  Before I could answer, Edward pulled up to the curb and got out. He walked around to the rear passenger side and leaned against the car to wait for me.

  “It was my mother’s.” I had no time to explain it, and as soon as I got in the car, I planned to rip it off my wrist and shove it in my purse. That jewelry definitely had to go. “I’m really late for work, but we’ll talk tonight.” I needed to tell someone about Monoclaude because I had no idea how to properly deal with the death of a familiar. Some kind of death rite had to be performed, and I was sure Jakob would know what to do.

  “I know who it belonged to,” he said, letting go of my arm.

  Before he could drag the conversation out any longer, I pushed the door open and walked toward the car.

  Edward straightened up and buttoned his jacket before reaching for the door handle.

  “Morgan!” someone called out before I could climb in.

  I looked back at the doorway and saw Cabot standing next to Jakob. “I’m late, so make it quick.”

  “Come with me.”

  “Come with you where? I told you I’m late. Can it wait until tonight?” The look on his face made me nervous, and his voice had an edge to it.

  When I didn’t comply fast enough, he walked up to the car and took me by the arm. “Now please.”

  Edward glanced at Cabot’s hand tightly clenched around my forearm, and his sunny expression faded. Cabot gave him a warning look and then ushered me back toward the building.

  Jakob was watching from the doorway and nodded discreetly for me to cooperate with my uncle.

  I pulled my arm out of his grip and glanced back at the car. “Wait for me, Edward. This shouldn’t take very long.” When we were back inside, I glared at Cabot. “Don’t ever grab me like that again.”

  My warning didn’t seem to faze him as he headed for the elevator, glancing back to make sure I was following him. Jakob grabbed my forearm as I walked past him, slipping the bracelet off my wrist like a magician performing sleight of hand. He shoved it in his pocket, and I didn’t question it.

  When I stepped into the elevator, Cabot pushed the button for council chambers but didn’t say another word as we ascended. My heart began to race as my imagination went wild. Had Michael panicked and called Cabot the second I left his apartment? My mouth went dry when the door opened and the entire clan was seated at the table. Everyone but Avery, who had all but relinquished her family ties.

  I locked eyes with Michael as I walked past him, but his expression was impossible to read.

  As I took a seat, Ramsey came through the wall with the rest of the Elders behind him. “Morgan Winterborne,” he bellowed dramatically as he approached the table. “You have been accused of a high crime.”

  My mind raced so fast I felt dizzy. I had no idea what was going on, but it didn’t seem like they were about to slice my head off for being the daughter of the notorious Reaper. I shot Michael another look, this one filled with fear. He must have suddenly realized I thought he’d betrayed me, because he suddenly looked horrified and discreetly shook his head.

  As my eyes wandered around the table, Ramsey’s voice muting in my ears, I caught Rebecca’s accusatory glare. Then I realized why I was there. I knew Olivia had seen me with Hawk in the theater, but Rebecca must have seen us too. I’d rushed right past her to save my brother, leaving her to fend for herself with those vampires cornering her against the wall, and I bet she couldn’t wait to pay me back. Which one had betrayed me?

  Ramsey continued. “You are accused of consorting with the enemy. Do you deny attacking a fellow Circle member last night in order to prevent him from killing a Night Walker?”

  “Yes,” I said, denying it. Hawk was
n’t a Night Walker, so the accusation was technically false. But they must have sensed his vampire blood and assumed he was.

  The room filled with whispers when I replied, but Ramsey kept going as if he hadn’t heard me. “The same Walker who attacked Rebecca Winterborne this morning.”

  Rebecca pushed her chair back and stood up, unbuttoning her blouse just enough to pull it away from her left shoulder to reveal a vicious bite mark. “I went for an early run this morning around five a.m., but I didn’t get very far.”

  Since when did Rebecca run?

  “He’s not a Night Walker,” I said. “And there’s no way he did this.” I’d helped Hawk in the theater, and I was about to pay the price for that, but I knew he couldn’t have attacked Rebecca because he was with me until dawn. But if I was stupid enough to provide his alibi, they’d sentence me to a worse crime and kill him anyway. One way or another, Hawk was damned.

  Cabot, who had held his tongue so far, stood up to retrieve a laptop from the deck. He set it on the table in front of me and hit the Play button on a security video. It showed Rebecca dressed in leggings and running shoes leaving the building before dawn. But before she even made it to the end of the block, something jumped her and dragged her around the corner to the side street. It was too dark to make out the face of her attacker. A minute later, her assailant came back into view, shifted into a large bird, and flew into the park. It could have been a hawk, but it also could have been another large bird, like a falcon or a crow.

  Cabot shut the laptop. “Security footage doesn’t lie.”

  Rebecca looked at Cabot and sighed. “If it hadn’t been for the knife I jammed into his side, he probably would have finished me off. All I could think about was Georgia growing up without a mother.”

  I had news for her. Every time she participated in a hunt, she was taking the risk of her daughter growing up motherless.

  “What do you have to say for yourself, Morgan?” Ramsey demanded. “We have two witnesses, so be very careful with your reply.”

  So they’d both betrayed me. “His name is Hawk. And yes, I helped him because he was helping me! A Walker was about to rip my throat out, but Hawk stopped him. When Ethan tried to kill Hawk, all I did was put my hand up to stop him.” I looked at my older brother, who seemed shocked and hurt by my confession. “I wasn’t trying to hurt you, Ethan. Believe me, I was horrified when you hit that wall. You’re my brother, for God’s sake. I love you!”

  “How do you know this vampire?” Cabot asked.

  “Vampire and shifter,” Rebecca said, fueling the fire. “I saw him shift and escape through the window.”

  I took the Fifth, because I wasn’t about to tell them I’d been seeing him for days. God forbid they found out he was in bed with me when Rebecca was attacked.

  “Since you refuse to defend yourself, the council has no choice but to assume your guilt in the charges against you.”

  There was more chatter filling my ears as Cabot stood up and held out his hand. “Relinquish your seal, Morgan.”

  “My seal?”

  “You’ve committed a high crime against your clan. You’ve been banished from the Circle.”

  I pulled the green stone out from under my shirt and lifted the chain from around my neck. Before I could hand it over, Cabot snatched it from me.

  “Is that it?” I said, knowing damn well the gavel hadn’t swung yet. “Because I have to get to work.”

  “No, you don’t,” he said. “You no longer work for Winterborne Holdings.”

  “What?” I felt like I’d been punched in the gut. Like I’d lost everything. My mother, Monoclaude, and now my job. What next? My home? “Are you planning to strip me of my title and kick me out too?”

  “If only we could,” Rebecca said with a smug grin.

  The urge to fly across the table at her was overwhelming, but that would definitely render me homeless and penniless.

  “For now, you’ll retain your title,” Ramsey said. “You’ll be sequestered in the penthouse until we hunt down this vampire and deliver justice. Once he’s dead, we’ll have a formal trial to address the charges and determine your fate.”

  Dead? Even after everything I’d said, they still intended to kill Hawk?

  I laughed nervously. “You can’t lock me up! I’m the head of this clan!”

  “Yes, we can,” Cabot said. “A high crime against the clan is sufficient to strip you of your power until the trial is completed.” He stood up and headed for the elevator. “I’ll escort you up.”

  “This is ridiculous.” Not wanting to test my magic against all of theirs—especially the twins—I got up and followed him.

  When we arrived at the penthouse, Cabot walked me into the living room, Otto’s calm voice greeted us as we passed through the foyer. It was humiliating to be treated like a criminal in my own home. I was still head of Clan Winterborne, but what good was it if it was in title only? No one would listen to me. I was officially a pariah. A traitor.

  He held his hand out when I dropped my bag on the coffee table. “Give me your phone.”

  “My phone? I’m not giving you my phone. Jesus, it’s the only thing I have left. You might as well lock me up in solitary confinement.”

  His brow arched. “That can be arranged.”

  I groaned and handed him my only link to the outside world, feeling completely isolated as it slipped from my fingers.

  “This is for your own good, Morgan. That vampire is playing you for a fool.” He glanced at my bedroom door and sighed. “If it makes you feel any better, most of us have been fooled by the heart at one time or another.” He stuffed the phone in his pocket and gave me a weak smile. “I know it’s difficult to see that right now, but you will. In time I’m sure the clan will forgive you. We might even let you go back to work at the auction house.”

  As he headed toward the elevator to leave, I stopped him. “I guess you’ve won.”

  “Won?” He looked back at me with a twisted brow. “I didn’t know we were at war.”

  “Right,” I scoffed, heading for the kitchen, hoping I had a full supply of alcohol to keep me from losing my mind while I was caged up like an animal. “Your wife is a liar.” I stopped and looked at him as a thought struck me. “Did you put her up to it?”

  I must have pushed his buttons because his voice dropped to a growl. “That security tape didn’t lie, Morgan. You’re in denial.”

  “You can get out now.”

  Without another word, he left, and I went to work thinking about what to do next. Hawk was on their kill list, and I had no way to warn him. He’d show up on my terrace eventually, and they’d be waiting.

  “The terrace!” I ran to the door and reached for the handle, but my hand stopped a few inches away from it, hitting an invisible wall. When my second attempt failed, I stepped back and raised my power hand to build a ball of magic in my palm, but the light I hurled at it bounced off the mysterious wall and nearly hit me when it ricocheted back.

  “It won’t work,” someone said. “James and I sealed the place pretty tight.”

  I turned around and saw Olivia standing at the other end of the living room, wisely keeping her distance.

  “Aren’t you brave,” I said, resisting the urge to unleash my anger on her because she could put me in my place in a heartbeat. “Why did you do it? I thought you were better than that.”

  My cousin had always been fair. She usually kept her nose out of other people’s business, so I couldn’t understand why she’d betrayed me. She had to have seen Hawk save me from that Walker’s blow, and it was obvious I hadn’t intended to hurt Ethan. She was also intelligent enough to recognize that he wasn’t a Night Walker. So why hadn’t she come to me before opening her mouth to the council?

  “I wouldn’t have said anything if he hadn’t jumped Rebecca,” she said. “You know she saw the whole thing last night too.” She snorted a laugh. “Hell, I thought he was just trying to save his girlfriend. By the way, you’ve got some king-
size balls.”

  “Meaning?”

  “Hooking up with a vampire when your job is to kill them.”

  “Come on, Olivia. You know as well as I do he’s not a Night Walker. And I’d bet my life he didn’t attack Rebecca either.”

  “Then how do you explain that video?” She sat down and crossed her boot over her knee. “Don’t be a fucking cliché, Morgan. I hate when women do that shit.”

  “It wasn’t him in the video. You saw how dark and grainy it was. I think our dear uncle hired one of his Flyer buddies to frame Hawk.”

  “Why would he do that?”

  I hesitated to say it because I wasn’t sure I could ever trust her again. “He has his reasons.” I left it at that and decided to get rid of her. The damage was done, and I had more important things to worry about than trying to convince her that Cabot was out to get me. “I don’t think there’s much more to say, so I think you should leave.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said as she stood up. “I did this to protect you. I hope you see that someday.”

  It wasn’t worth a reply. I believed she thought she was protecting me, but I couldn’t forgive her for not coming to me first.

  As soon as the elevator door closed, the wheels in my head started to turn. I waited a few minutes to make sure Olivia had gotten off, and then I tried to call the elevator, but I couldn’t reach the button. I kept hitting an invisible barrier just like the one around the terrace door.

  “Otto, get the elevator for me please.” It was worth a shot, but I doubted I’d be able to step into it anyway.

  “I’m sorry, mistress. I’m not authorized for that.”

  They must have reprogrammed Otto.

  Knowing my magic was no match for the spell the twins had thrown up, I looked around for something to write on and found an empty cardboard box. It wasn’t likely that Hawk would show up on my terrace while the sun was up, but I was going to make damn sure I could warn him if he did.

  I tore a side off the box and grabbed a black marker. Then I dragged one of my comfy chairs over to the terrace door and sat down. I’d sleep in the damn thing if I had to. In my hand was a cardboard sign that said Run!