Dangerous Retaliation (The Harcourte Vampyre Society Book 4)

by Kelley, Morgan

  “Okay. Tell me what the hell I need to do.”

  * * * H a r c o u r t e * * *

  Two hours later, Jolie was covered in flour.

  The kitchen was wrecked.

  She’d made him cookies alright, and one heck of a mess in the process.

  Jolie loved every second of it.

  “Well, how did I do?” she asked.

  “Mistress, you’re a natural.” she said giggling. “You could pull this off all the time as long as you had a cleanup crew.”

  Jolie was about to make a comment, but then she felt them returning from their slumber. “It looks like the men are awake. We’ll see how well I did. The proof will be in the cookie.”

  ∞ Chapter Twenty-Nine ∞

  Tuesday Evening

  Jacques woke alone.

  While he expected it, he could feel Flynn not far away. Heading out, and onto their balcony, he found the man asleep. He wasn’t sure if he should wake him, or let him rest.

  He didn't have to make that decision.

  Flynn must have sensed him near.

  “Holy shit, I fell asleep!” he said, grabbing his robe from the floor.

  “It’s okay, Flynn. She’s safe and in the kitchen with Chloe,” he stated. Jacques knew why the man had passed out naked on the balcony.

  He couldn't blame him.

  “I’m sorry, Jacques. We had sex and next thing I knew you were here.”

  Jacques headed into their room with his mate. “It’s fine, Flynn. Jolie’s safe in the house. She has a demoness with her. That’s probably safer than with either of us.”

  He had a point.

  After getting dressed, the men wandered downstairs. Neither expected to find what they did--Jolie stood in the kitchen covered in flour and holding a tray of cookies.

  “I’m glad you’re here. I made you something, Flynn,” she offered, enjoying his shocked look.

  “You made me cookies?”

  “Yes, I did,” she answered, looking supremely proud. “It’s not easy to do and not eat them. Chloe kept trying the batter and telling me it was delicious.”

  The men approached their flour covered mate.

  “They’re still warm.”

  “Really? You did this all by yourself?” he inquired.

  Jolie laughed. “I think I can follow a recipe, Flynn. Don’t look so shocked.”

  He took one from the tray.

  Jacques checked out the golden cookies. “They look very good. I’m jealous that I can’t eat one,” he said. He must have missed something if Jolie was playing Suzie Homemaker.

  Jolie heard his thoughts.

  ‘He missed his mother and her baking. I can’t bring her back, but I can make him cookies to ease his pain.’

  ‘This is why we love you,’ he admitted.

  They both stared at him as he took a tentative bite of the golden cookie.

  “How is it?” she asked, putting the tray down to brush the flour from her clothes.

  Flynn chewed not sure what to expect. After all, what did a vampyre know about baking cookies? He glanced up into her serene violet eyes and couldn’t help hide his pleasure.

  “Are they okay? I know you’re not into food anymore, but I wanted to surprise you.”

  They weren’t okay.

  They were great.

  “Okay, I have to admit that I was worried, but these are amazing. I’m generally a chocolate chip kind of guy, but I like peanut butter too.”

  Jolie smiled. “Well, I was going to make those for you, but I was hesitant.”

  He didn't understand. “Why not? Aren’t they easier?”

  Crossing to the counter, she picked up the frame. “I didn't want to replace the chocolate and ruin the taste.”

  “Oh, that’s right. We can’t do chocolate.”

  “If they didn't taste the same, they wouldn’t be from this recipe.”

  She handed him the frame.

  “I hope you don’t mind that I went through your things. I just thought that we should celebrate this by hanging it in our house. Then she’d be a part of us.”

  It was like a sucker punch.

  Flynn was taken aback. It was his mother’s handwriting. “Is this…”

  “Yes. It’s hers. It belongs where we can remember her. Not in a plastic bin.”

  He didn't know what to say.

  Finally, he understood.

  He’d told her he was missing his mother and her cookies, and of course Jolie wanted to heal his heart.

  Tears filled his eyes. “Baby.”

  “I know this can’t replace her, but I’d like to put it beside the Van Gogh, so one day you can tell our children about her. Our little ones won’t be able to eat grandma’s cookies, but they can learn about the woman who made you who you are today.”

  Flynn was touched beyond words. Running his fingers over the frame, his heart swelled with so much love and adoration. Jolie’s kindness overwhelmed him. “I think this is my most cherished gift from you. Well, next to a child.”

  Jolie grinned.

  Jacques knew why she did it. This was one reason the men loved her--Jolie had a heart of gold.

  Flynn pulled her into his arms before kissing her. “You’re amazing. I love you more than anything,” he admitted. He was so damn lucky that he once more had a family of his own.

  “I love you too, but are they really okay? I can take the truth, and I promise to get them right even if it takes all night.”

  Flynn found her nervousness endearing. Instead of saying anything, he grabbed three more cookies and headed toward the refrigerator for something to wash them down with.

  “Oh yeah, baby, they’re perfect, and I like the fact that I don’t have to share,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows at Jacques. “Did you hear that, Jacques?” he teased. “Jolie’s cookies are all mine.”

  Jacques couldn’t help but laugh at his mate. “There has to be a pervert in every relationship. It looks like we figured out your role,” he taunted back.

  Jolie snickered. “Good one.”

  He thought so. “If we’re done discussing Jolie’s cookies, have you been to the nursery yet, my love?”

  “No, I’m heading there next. I was distracted with baking. It was a lot harder than I thought. I’m going to check in with Ariel, and then if my mates are free, I think I’d like to spend some time with you both.”

  Neither was going to argue with that.

  “We found the child, and now it’s time to work on what steps to take against Zola.”

  “Think she’s coming for you?” Flynn asked, getting angry. At the mere idea, he wanted to break something. The vampyre had pushed her luck, and he was going to make sure it was about to come to an end, and soon.

  “Chances are, yes.”

  “Are we going to wait for that to happen?” Jacques asked.

  Jolie shook her head. “No, but we have to do this right. She’s hiding somewhere, and when we find her, she’s dead.”

  Both men agreed.

  Jolie held out her hands in invitation. “Shall we check on a little one or two?”

  “Absolutely,” Jacques said, kissing her on the forehead. He was intrigued to watch Jolie with the babies. It gave him that warm fuzzy feeling, and for a vampyre, that was saying a lot.

  Flynn popped the last cookie in his mouth and muttered something.

  “What?” Jacques inquired.

  Jolie laughed. “He said, ‘he loves eating my cookies’,” she replied, winking at her mate.

  Jacques shook his head. “See? Pervert.”

  In the nursery, Jolie sat holding Ariel in her arms. The infant stared up at Jolie with big green eyes as she sucked on her little pink thumb. Unlike human children, shortly after they are born, their all black eyes turned their permanent color.

  It looked like baby Ariel was going to have gorgeous emerald green ones, like her mother.

  Cradling the swathed little bundle against her body, Jolie fed her from the bottle of diluted mother’s milk. For
tunately, they had some in storage from Ariel’s mother.

  As both mates watched from across the room, Jolie spoke softly to the little child, “I’m sorry, Ariel, that I couldn’t save your mother. I really tried, but I promise you that we’ll tell you about her as you grow. I’ll make sure you have your tutors and your education. I can’t bring her back, but I can make sure that you’re loved. You’re part of my family now, and you’ll want for nothing,” she promised, before kissing the little girl’s fingers.

  Both mates were in awe. Jolie didn't need to worry what kind of mother she’d be. It was crystal clear to them.

  “She looks good holding a child, doesn’t she?”

  Flynn agreed. “Yeah, I can’t wait until it’s ours that she’s holding. I look forward to no sleep, and lots of screaming babies. How wrong is that?”

  Jacques laughed. “It seems very right to me. I’ll even take diaper duty. That’s how thrilled I am.”

  Flynn was just about ready to tell him the job was all his, when there was a loud commotion from outside the nursery. As they turned, a large human stormed into the room.

  “Give me my child! We’re leaving here now!” he yelled as he approached her menacingly.

  Ariel began crying at the loud noise.

  Jolie glanced up at the intruder, forcing herself to remain calm as she tried to soothe the baby. “Demetre, I’m sorry for your loss, but you know I can’t let you leave with Ariel.”

  “Give me my child! Mariana wouldn’t want her here without me.”

  Jolie rocked her gently, soothing her cries. “You don’t have to leave, Demetre. No one is forcing you from your home. We love you and want you to stay with us.”

  “We’re going!”

  She sighed. “I’m sorry, but she’s not. You knew when you mated with Mariana that children remain with the family if something happens to one or both of the parents.”

  “I want to leave! I can’t stay here and remember how Mariana was once alive and well. You can’t keep my daughter! She’s all I have left.”

  Jolie calmly continued rocking and feeding the infant. “I’m sorry, but the answer is still no.”

  “Please, I need my child,” he begged.

  Both mates looked on. Jacques felt sympathy for the man, but Flynn…he looked sick.

  “And she needs you, Demetre, but she’ll also need her family. We will be her only source of protection against the humans and the hunters. By taking her from the protection of this house, you’re signing her death warrant, and I can’t allow that.”

  “I’m taking her,” he stated, moving toward Jolie, “and you can’t stop me.”

  Despite the turmoil brewing, both mates moved to her side, protectively flanking Jolie and the little child.

  “I’m sorry, but you can’t, and we can stop you, Demetre. What will you do when she needs to start blood feeding or when it’s time to start kindergarten? She’s not a normal child. This is a tiny, helpless vampyre. Without us, she won’t survive in the human world.”

  “She’s mine and should be with me.”

  “Yes, I agree, she should be, and the second you opted to enter our world, you were told the truth. No one lied or hid it from you, Demetre. The day you mated with Mariana, you took a chance that this would happen. If you leave, Ariel is no longer yours. I’m sorry.”

  Jolie could feel the tension, and it wasn’t only from the man before her, but one of the men beside her. She could read the horror on Flynn’s face, and it tore at her heart.

  This wasn’t how she wanted to have this conversation with him. In fact, she was going to be a coward and never have it.

  “You must choose, Demetre. Stay and battle the demons of losing your mate or leave. If you walk out that door, it won’t lock behind you. You’re free to come and go here any time you want, but ultimately, Ariel remains with me. I’m her primus.”

  “I’ll petition the council.”

  Jolie didn't want to hurt the man, but that amused her. “You may do that if you so wish, but they won’t side with you. In fact, they may opt to destroy you.”

  He looked nervously around. “Why?”

  “You're a human, and we’re hunted by them. If they believe you’d turn on our kind, despite their dislike of me, they’d put you down like a rabid dog. Then you won’t have any moments with your child. I think you know that’s true.”

  Demetre glared at her with pure hate. “You’d steal my child?”

  “You’d take her and sentence her to death?”

  It was obviously a stalemate, and Demetre was furious. “I’ll win this, Jolie. It’s not over. That’s my baby, and I’ll do anything to keep her. I’m going to the council tonight. If they kill me, so be it.”

  “Good luck,” she said as Demetre stormed past both of her mates. Knowing what was coming, Jolie placed the sleeping Ariel back in her cradle. When she took a deep breath, she was ready to face her mate.

  “Yes, Flynn? Say it so we can finish this.” Jolie knew where it was heading.

  “If you and Jacques were to die, and I wanted to take our children, I wouldn’t be allowed to?”

  “No,” she said, moving into Jacques’s arms. While she knew Flynn wouldn’t hurt her, she still needed the support while they had this conversation. “You’d have the same option that Demetre has. You could stay or leave--alone.”

  He couldn’t believe any of this. “After serving this family, bleeding for it, and being part of it, those are my only choices?”

  “Yes,” she stated, not pulling any punches. “We should have had this conversation earlier, but let’s be frank. I wasn’t expecting to get pregnant. Had I, you would have been warned in advance.”

  “Great.”

  “Flynn, while you’re more like us than human, a vampyre child is a handful. Why do you think we have nannies and a nursery? It takes a village, my love.”

  He still couldn’t believe it.

  Jolie continued, “They can’t stay awake during the day, and like a normal child, they snack all night long. Feeding a vampyre toddler isn’t like a human child. You can’t hand them some cereal and plop them in front of the TV.”

  “I get that.”

  “If our children went out into the world and people found out the truth, we’d be destroyed. Keeping our kind alive is hard enough, but the havoc would be insane.”

  “I understand that, but it would be my child.”

  “No, it wouldn’t be. If I die, these children I’m growing would be part of the whole, not the individual parts.” Jolie knew he was scared shitless by not having any control over his child’s life.

  He didn't have the words. “You’re right. I should have been warned earlier. This is a game changer. No wonder your species is going extinct.”

  His words were like daggers to her heart, but she understood where the pain came from. Flynn was hurting, and that was justified.

  “So, basically, in this relationship, I’m nothing? I’m only food and sex for the primus?”

  She though back to what they’d just shared. Jolie almost expected him to throw it in her face.

  “Flynn, this is the way we are. The truth is that while Mariana loved Demetre, she used him to keep our species going.”

  “I see. I guess that’s my role too.” He glanced over at his other mate, hoping he’d say something. After all, they were important to each other. When Jacques said nothing, his heart broke further.

  Jolie moved toward him, but instead of accepting her touch, he stepped back out of reach.

  “I need to know! Is that all I am?” Flynn was incredibly wounded by her words.

  “You’re everything to me,” she admitted.

  “Including a baby daddy.”

  Jolie had reached her limit. With tears in her eyes, Jolie stood her ground. “If that’s what you think, Flynn, then you don’t really know and love me. I’ve shared so much with you, and it comes down to this?”

  “I don’t feel like I’m everything to you. Why can’t you understand
how I feel? Is it so odd that this hurt me?”

  Oh, it hurt them both. Jolie hated that if she were to die, Flynn might leave. Before, she believed he was stepping up, and could lead their family. If she died, Jacques would crumble. Her hope was that Flynn would hold them together.

  Her Flynn would stand for them.

  “I’m obviously nothing to you if you can stand there, look me in my eyes, and say any of this.”

  He stood his ground.

  “I see.” Jolie did something drastic. She slid the ring he’d just given her off her finger. “You should give this to someone you trust more. I’m pretty sure that baby daddies don’t hand out the bling to incubators. You already got what you wanted from me. There’s no need to put a ring on it.”

  With that, she walked away.

  He stared, openmouthed.

  This had gone so very wrong, so very fast.

  When she was gone, Flynn knew it was only beginning. There was a vampyre in the room, and Flynn could feel Jacques’s eyes on his back.

  “Say it.”

  “That was probably the most idiotic display I’ve ever seen from you, Flynn. Yeah, we’ve been known to screw up, but you just scored a field goal on this one.”

  “Homerun,” he mumbled. Normally, he found Jacques’s mixed up sayings funny, but today was going downhill pretty damn fast.

  “Thanks for having my back on this one. I guess when it comes down to humans against the vampyres, you’re still a good soldier.”

  Jacques didn't even flinch. “That’s exactly what I am, and my job is to protect her--unlike you.”

  They each lobbed a good one that time.

  At the door, Jacques turned. “Flynn. Was this it worth it?”

  “I’m sorry, Jacques, but look at it from my point of view. I’m human, and I would have no rights to my child. That makes me feel used.”

  Despite Flynn thinking that he didn't understand, Jacques did. He loved both his mates, and he hated seeing them suffer needlessly. “Do you really think she’d use you? Jolie has given you everything she has to offer. The smell of food makes her incredibly ill, and yet she spent hours learning how to bake you cookies.”