We got close to the gathering, and what I hoped would be where I could walk for myself again. No such luck. Jason skirted around the clearing, avoiding any onlookers.
“Max,” Jason ordered. “Get the others.”
Max left us without another word.
I’d had enough. I went through the visualization my dad had taught me. Soon enough I was being dropped to my feet as Jason raised a hand to his burned neck. It was only a mild burn, like a bad sunburn, but the initial shock was enough to get Jason to put me down.
“You need to explain what's going on,” I said calmly with my feet firmly planted on the ground, then added, “Right now.”
Jason stared at me in consternation, his lips in a tight, unrelenting line. “I didn’t know there would be other vampires here,” he replied.
Other vampires? A million thoughts raced through my head. I knew quite a bit about vampires, seeing as I was dating one. Yet, Jason wasn't scary to me, he was just . . . Jason. Other vampires were scary. They were also rare.
Few victims survived the transition to become vampires. Those that did tended to be loners, or stayed with relatively small groups. I had assumed I'd go my whole life without bumping into another one, or at least not so soon.
“What?” I questioned.
“Other vampires,” he affirmed. “Several of the packs hired them. Apparently they’re afraid of you and your father . . . mainly your father. They wanted back up just in case.”
Now I was really confused. How were people supposed to be scared of me when I'd just give them sunburns . . . or set their cars on fire, or maybe burn them to death. Ok, I was moderately scary. Now my dad I understood, he is much more than moderately scary.
“But, he’s not here,” I argued.
“They’re being cautious,” he explained, wiping his palm nervously across his face. Jason had to be pretty worked up for his nervous ticks to show this much. “After Dan, and then Nick . . . werewolves tend to gossip. Stories get embellished.”
“So why hire vampires?” I asked.
“Since vampires don't have much affiliation group-wise, they often tend to work as mercenaries of a sort,” he answered.
I shrugged. “Okay, that still doesn’t explain why you ditched me all night to have a mysterious meeting in a clearing with a gang of vampire mercenaries.”
“I know two of the other vampires that were hired,” he admitted with a shrug. “I needed to make sure that they meant you no harm. Most vampires aren’t like me. They would kill you simply to see what your blood tasted like. Rarely do you find a demon of any magnitude vulnerable. Chase may be in danger of being attacked as well.”
“So basically, more monster-types out for my blood?” I asked.
Supernaturals really did have a weird obsession with blood. Vampires needed it, werewolves reacted to it, bad people tried to steal it for nefarious purposes. Not for the first time I found myself glad that the only blood I needed or wanted was the stuff running through my veins.
Jason nodded. “We shouldn't have come here. We need to be careful.”
I sighed. “Like that’s anything new. I’m almost constantly with a vampire, another demon, and three werewolves. I wouldn’t say I’m exactly vulnerable.”
Jason grabbed my shoulders to emphasize his point. “Some of them are stronger than me. I can't protect you.”
“Oh yeah?” I said, eyebrow raised. “I’m not worried until I find out they’re stronger than me.”
I turned around and sauntered away. That’s right ladies and gentlemen, Xoe Meyers can saunter. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it.
Chapter Ten
I woke up beside Jason. I was still slightly peeved, but he had apologized once we got back to the room, and I had been in serious need of some snuggling. He really was just looking out for my best interest, even though he was doing it in an overbearing way.
I had done my best not to think about Chase lying silently on his cot. I would have given a large sum of money to know what he was thinking. Then again, maybe it was best that I didn't know. He was my friend and I refused to let things get awkward.
Sensing that I was awake, Jason snuggled me closer. Jason doesn’t sleep, so when we stay the night together, he usually just lies next to me waiting for me to wake. Sounds boring to me, but he doesn’t seem to mind.
I turned over to glance at the clock. 6:30am. Ick. I had a breakfast meeting to go to at 8:00. I was the only one of our group allowed at the meeting. I had to present my proposal to form our pack. Lela had helped me write it, but I was still worried. Public speaking is not my forte.
I gave Jason a smile, then rolled out of bed and stumbled toward the bathroom to take a shower. Chase seemed to be asleep, and Max was just a lump under his blankets. Before I could pass through the doorway, Jason was just suddenly there in front of me. He pulled me in and tried to kiss me.
“Hey man,” I argued in a whisper, pushing against his chest. “Morning breath.”
Jason shrugged. “Don’t care,”
I shrugged in return, and pulled his face down to my level. The kiss started out soft, then intensified, making me forget all about my morning breath. I leaned against Jason's chest to assure that my footing remained stable.
Jason took this as a sign to kiss me further, his hands tightly gripping the sides of my waist. With all of the stress in our lives, we had kind of let our relationship fall to the sidelines. I realized that Jason had been so intent on being my bodyguard, that he had forgotten to be my boyfriend. I'd been so intent on trying to take care of everyone, that I hadn't been paying him much attention either.
We heard a throat clear somewhere beside us. Jason and I both pulled away from the kiss to regard the interruption. Chase was standing in front of us looking grumpy and half-asleep. There was no way Jason hadn't heard him walking up. I glared up at Jason.
“Um,” Chase mumbled. “I need to use the bathroom.”
My face flared with heat that had nothing to do with my demon powers. I tried to flee the bathroom doorway as quickly as possible to hide my blush. Jason laughed as he followed me out into the main room.
Max was awake and perched on his bed, because I totally needed someone else to observe my embarrassment. “Are you overheating again or something?” he questioned.
Jason walked up to hug me from behind. Max glanced at the bathroom where Chase was, then back to us. His mouth formed into an “O” of understanding. I blushed even harder as I hurried to the adjoining room door. I would be showering in the girls’ room today.
All of the girls were still soundly asleep. I would have been soundly asleep too if I had any other choice. I crept past their beds and into the bathroom, shutting the door gently behind me.
I undressed and hopped into the shower. I turned on the water, standing clear so as not to get hit by the initial cold water, but my efforts were in vain. Someone had left the shower nozzle pointing outwards, and since I hadn’t closed the curtain yet, water sprayed all over the bathroom. It completely soaked my pajamas as well as the small towel that was placed on the floor. Gre-eat.
I adjusted the shower head and closed the curtain. I’d clean up the mess later. Finding that someone had left their travel bottles of shampoo and conditioner in there, I helped myself. I hate those little hotel two-in-one shampoo/conditioners, and I wasn’t really in a mood to be polite.
The shampoo smelled strongly of some herb, maybe rosemary. My guess was that the shampoo belonged to Lela. It seemed like her kind of scent. I absorbed myself into the smell, trying to relax a little. I had just promised myself that I wouldn’t let things get awkward with Chase, and here I was, hiding in the shower, feeling embarrassed and awkward. Stupid boys. I was actually kind of glad that I got to go to this morning's meeting by myself.
When I finally stepped out of the shower and dried myself off with one of the white towels that the inn supplied, I realized that I’d forgotten to grab a change of clothes, and my pajamas were thoroughly soaked. Damn.
I wra
pped my towel around me as tightly as possible and went out into the bedroom. I sat down by a sleeping Lucy and attempted to shake her awake. She mumbled something unintelligible at me, then rolled over, burrito-ing herself up in her blankets.
I tried Allison next. She actually half woke up. “What d’you want?” she mumbled.
“I left my suitcase in the other room,” I whispered back.
Allison frowned at me as she woke up a bit more. “So go get it loser.”
I stood, showing her that I was just in a towel.
“Stop being a baby,” she grumbled before burying her face back in her pillow. Double damn.
I readjusted my towel and made my way back to the boys' room, hoping they had all gone to breakfast. Sadly, only either Max or Jason had gone. I didn't know which since one of them was in the closed bathroom with the shower running. A freshly showered, and thankfully dressed Chase was sitting on his cot putting his shoes on.
Feeling like I was in a really cheesy romantic comedy, I silently walked over to my suitcase that I’d left between the room’s two beds. I was ignoring Chase so hard, that I didn’t realize he’d gotten up to walk towards the door. I turned around with my clothes clutched against my chest, and almost ran straight into him.
We both stared at each other for a moment. He tugged at the bottom edge of his shirt like it needed to be adjusted. “Um, sorry about earlier-” he began.
“No problem,” I interrupted before he could say something to make me feel even more embarrassed.
I clutched my towel tightly and looked down at the floor, not wanting to discuss it further.
He just stood there, at a loss for words. Dark, slightly wavy hair slicked back with moisture, looking scrumptious. Oh geez.
I brushed past him as quickly as possible and bolted back into the girls’ room. Not awkward at all, and my name is Queen Elizabeth Mary.
Chapter Eleven
After I got dressed I marched back into the boys' room, head held high. I was all ready to be smooth and not at all awkward.
“Why are you walking like that?” Max asked as soon as I entered the room.
I kept my nose up just as high as ever. “I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm off to my meeting.”
I lowered my nose enough to see Chase staring at me. As soon as I noticed him, he quickly looked down at his hands sitting in his lap. I looked away just as quickly. Totally not awkward.
“I'll walk you down,” Jason offered, turning my attention to him.
“You can't come in with me, remember?”
Jason smiled. “I'll wait for you outside the door.”
The appearance of the other vampires had made my already paranoid boyfriend even more so. I made myself smile and told myself that paranoia couldn't hurt, and it was probably warranted anyhow. Heck, maybe he wasn't paranoid at all, maybe he was just smarter than the rest of us.
I nodded and held out my hand to him. We left the room without another glance, but I could feel eyes on me as I left. It was probably Max, wondering why I was once again acting like a crazy person. You'd think he'd be used to it by now.
Fortunately today’s meeting was labeled as casual, so I’d dressed down in faded jeans, dark green v-neck t-shirt, and my trusty sneakers. I felt much more comfortable in my casual wear. Hard as I tried, dressing up made me feel embarrassed and weird. Plus, I like to be in shoes I can run away in. One should always be prepared to run away.
The meeting was being held in one of the small conference rooms that the inn boasted, down by the lobby. I left Jason outside the door with a quick kiss, then went in without knocking.
I was early (a rarity for me), and only a few of the seats were filled. I sat down at the small rectangular table in the small rectangular room. Across the table from me sat bear-man (who introduced himself as Mike) and a dark skinned woman that I guessed would be about 6’3” when she stood. Deep brown, dense curls foamed around her face. She introduced herself as Darla.
Though Darla and Mike sat next to one-another, I sensed some major animosity going on. They each spoke to me, but had looks of utter distaste on their faces when they were not the one speaking.
“So you’re the demon,” Darla said to me conversationally, voice only expressing mild interest.
“Yep,” I shrugged. “That’s me.”
“You know you better watch your back around here,” she stated, absolutely no emotion in her voice.
“Is that a threat?” I asked casually.
She shrugged. “Not really. Just a fact.”
How could something ‘not really’ be a threat? I turned my attention from Darla as the rest of our group began to file into the room. Everyone avoided the seats directly next to me until Devin entered, sitting next to me and even scooting a little closer.
His vested interest in me had me even more worried than Darla’s non-threat. I glanced down at his arm on the table, way too close to mine, and scooted my arm a few more inches away. Devin didn't seem to notice. He was in all black again. He either needed a serious wardrobe makeover, or he was constantly monochrome for a reason. A sign of neutrality maybe? Though, for someone who was supposed to be neutral, he didn't resemble Switzerland in the slightest.
Abel entered last and stood at the head of the table. Greta, my new favorite werewolf, was nowhere to be seen. I guess Mike didn’t think she was needed. I was with Mike on this one.
No one spoke as Abel went to a coffee pot in the corner and poured himself a cup. I was told that this was a breakfast meeting, but they must have just meant that it occurred at breakfast time, because I didn’t see any food in sight. My stomach growled at the thought, and Devin turned to raise an eyebrow at me. No one else seemed to notice, but I was in a room full of werewolves, so I knew they all heard it.
Abel placed his coffee on the table without taking a single sip. He was dressed down today in a tight gray t-shirt and expensive looking jeans. His hair was loose and flowed long and thick, nearly to his waist. Having hair that long would drive my crazy. Knowing me, I'd probably slam it in car doors and strangle myself in my sleep.
Abel cleared his throat. “Today’s meeting,” he began, “has been called so that one, Alexondra Meyers, may state her need for the formation of a new pack. Her statement will be heard in full, then you will have an opportunity to question her. After that, the meeting will adjourn, and we will place the matter to a vote tonight.”
Apparently finished speaking, Abel sat and turned his gaze to me. His gaze was intense, like he was trying to prod me into action with the powers of his mind alone. When I didn’t do anything except sit there and look nervous, he motioned with his hand for me to rise.
I stood hesitantly and cleared my throat. Please don’t mess up, please don’t mess up. “Um hi,” I said, giving a feeble wave to the room. ‘Um hi’? Great way to start Xoe. Werewolves responded to confidence and aggression, not meek nervousness.
I took a deep breath to gather my composure, and went on, “I’m here today to petition to form a pack-”
“Tell us something we don’t know,” a younger woman with hair and skin as pale as mine mumbled. I hadn't noticed her at the meeting the day before, but then again I had been a little too busy worrying about my own presentation to pay much attention to anyone else's.
At a simultaneous dirty look from me, Devin, and Abel, she promptly shut up. Darla covered her mouth with her hand to hide her silent laughter. It didn't help much, her amber eyes were shiny with amusement. At least someone was having a good time.
I stood a little straighter and tried to remember what Lela had told me to say. “The only wolves in my area have unanimously agreed to be part of my pack. My bid as Alpha has been approved by the coalition leader. Members of my soon-to-be pack stood witness to the event that qualified me as such.”
“Murder doesn’t make you Alpha,” Mike interjected.
“But self-defense after a personal challenge does,” Devin countered.
Mike opened his mouth to say
more, but Abel interrupted him. “Questions and opinions will be held until after Alexondra’s proposal.”
I took a deep breath and went on. “I will live by werewolf law, though I am not a werewolf, and I will protect my pack with my life.” The end, I thought to myself . . . hopefully it wasn’t my end.
I sat without another word. There was a brief moment of silence, then everyone erupted into a mixture of excited and angry chatter. Darla just sat back and smiled. Either she cared little enough about what was happening to find it funny, or she knew something I didn't. I was betting on the latter.
Once Abel calmed the crowd, the questioning began, and oh, what a questioning it was. They basically just repeated that I wasn’t a werewolf, that I was a murderer, and so on and so forth.
When the meeting finally ended, I let everyone leave before me. No need to get accosted in the hallway if I could help it.
“You did good,” Devin observed, still sitting beside me.
“You don’t stand a chance,” Abel added, head in his hands.
We were the only three left in the room.
“We could just push it through without a vote,” Devin suggested.
Abel shook his head. “It would be chaos.”
“Not that I mind,” I interrupted. “But why do you guys care?”
Abel stared at me for a long time, before finally speaking. “Our packs are vulnerable,” he explained. “Our most recent incident has shown us that.” The incident he was referring to was the killing of several werewolves by the same group that kidnapped and tried to kill me.
“If you are bound by werewolf law,” he explained, “it will give demons and other supernaturals pause before messing with any of our wolves. Everyone is made more wary where demons are involved. Demons live forever. That's a long time to run away from vengeance.”
“But I’m only a half-demon,” I countered. “I killed Dan by accident, and had to be rescued from my kidnappers by my dad. I'm going to have a normal human lifespan. No one is going to be scared of my vengeance.”
“But very few know any of that,” Devin explained. “The human lifespan maybe, but that's it. It’s the same principle that someone would use in burglarizing a home. One home has a big angry dog, one home does not. Which would you choose to rob?”
The Xoe Meyers Trilogy (Xoe Meyers Young Adult Fantasy/Horror Series) Page 35