by Lauren Dane
David laughed, patting her shoulder. “Deesse, I’d never make you do such a thing. We have contacts so I’ll use them to get things together. I have a sense of your style so I promise no leopard prints or five thousand dollar chairs that look terrible and feel even worse.”
She smiled at him. “Good to know. Let’s have a Hunter Corp. talk while we’re on the subject.” She told him about her idea for a multi-paranormal team as they alternated throwing Star’s ball and a very impressive stick she’d found somewhere or other.
“This is getting really gross,” Rowan told Star as she held the ball in two fingers. “Let’s go inside where it’s cool. You can drink lots of water noisily while we try to talk.”
Star barked and tore around the side of the house and in through a door that had been left partially open for just that reason.
Rowan threw the ball into the bucket holding what was already an impressive number of dog toys near the back door. Or the outdoor dog toys because Star had toys inside too. She loved the squeakers so much Rowan couldn’t deny her that pleasure.
Even Clive thought it was cute.
Once inside and after some hand washing, she and David moved to her office to have some tea and talk Hunter Corp.
* * *
Clive drew his power around himself like a cloak as he pulled into his parking spot and got out of the car. They’d see him on surveillance; they’d see him as he approached and know he was their Scion.
Better still, they’d feel the waves of his strength rolling from him, humming. His father had told him to feel no shame over what had happened. To be proud because he did the right thing. Being merciless and ruthless was the thing that kept his Vampires safe. Kept his family safe. So he did it no matter who it happened to be.
Alice waited for him at the elevator upstairs with her usual steady presence. She gave him a ruthless smile. “Scion, welcome back.”
“Alice.” He gave her a nod. “What’s on the agenda tonight?”
“I think we’ve found the Vampire who’d been feeding information to your uncle,” she said. “I’ve taken the liberty of locking them out of our system and having them brought here and secured in a room until you’re ready.”
He growled. “Who?”
“No one really. That’s most likely why we didn’t see any of this coming. She’s a low-level employee here in the casino. But when we ran some of the names you sent me while you were in London, hers was one. And when we did a scan of the data she’d accessed, there was a great deal she had no business with.”
Bloody fucking hell.
He took a deep breath and placed his focus firmly back on what he had to do next. He’d get to that traitor soon enough. “All right. Thank you.”
“Everyone is gathered in the large conference room and ready for you.”
“Let’s get this over with then,” he told her as he dropped his things in his office.
He felt their loyalty like a hot, heavy weight when he walked in and to his place at the head of the table. Spines snapped straight, their attention on him. He knew, too, that those Vampires watching via video feed were doing the same. The unique magic of their allegiance to him flowed through his veins.
He’d been Scion for over three years. He’d handled a lot of trouble. Had cleaned up the rot that drew unwanted attention and his territory was thriving because of it. But it wasn’t until that exact moment that he truly took on the power of Scion of North America.
“The Vampire Nation has a problem,” he said, still standing. “You know that there have been assassination attempts on my life and the lives of my people. You know that just last week I executed the Vampire traitor Lyr. The depths of his betrayal took me to London where I found the Blood Front had been reanimated and were the ones responsible for getting the dark magic to Lyr through the black market. Roderick Haigh was found guilty of violating the Treaty and executed. Not before he gave us information about the other conspirators he worked for. That number included Thomas and Arthur Stewart, my uncles.”
He paused to look around the room and into the camera.
“Together with my father and the head of House Stewart, we wiped out Thomas’s and Arthur’s entire lines. Their belongings have been liquidated and the proceeds paid as restitution to the Vampire Nation and to the Scion of Europe. Aside from a recitation of their crimes, I will speak on them no further. Their names have been wiped from the Genesis records and from the family history. For what they have done to enable Vampires and magic users to kidnap and drain their own kind for another power, they are nothing. And forever will be nothing.
“I have been to the Keep to inform The First as to what has happened. He accepted restitution. House Stewart, one of the founding houses of the Vampire Nation, will continue to stand and use sword and shield to defend it and The First. And I will continue to hold my position as Scion. To protect you as best I can and to lead you all into a prosperous future.”
Clive let them all digest what he’d said before he continued.
“This is not over. Not yet. There’s some being at the head of a chain of siphon and energy trap spells. A being that’s been feeding on the life force of paranormals for at least the last year, maybe two. We’re narrowing down, taking out each and every being that has given succor to our enemy. And once we identify it, we will erase it from this world and the next. I tell you all this because I need vigilance. Think carefully on whether or not you’ve been asked for information that person or Vampire normally wouldn’t need. Or if you’ve lost keys or data access passwords. There are still leaks we have not found. Some of those leaks might have been from unwitting victims. If you think of anything, let Patience know.”
As one, the Vampires in the room got to one knee and bared their throats. In obeisance. In a gesture of loyalty. It said they trusted him with their lives.
He thanked them in the old language and ended the meeting, heading back to his office.
“That was very good, Scion,” Alice told him as she closed the door at her back. “To the point. You were reassuring, which they all needed. I never doubted their support of you for a moment.”
She wouldn’t give him condolences over his uncles. She’d never speak of it again unless directly asked in a necessary situation.
“How’s Rowan and the new dog?”
He barely avoided a snort. “She’s on a hunt so she’s focused and more cranky than usual. She’s likely to figure this out before anyone else does because she’s offended by the existence of these conspirators. We’re nearly there. I can feel it.”
He took his suit jacket off, hanging it. And when they finally figured it out his wife was bound to be right in the middle of it. Blade drawn, in a killing mood.
“We had to leave so quickly after Star came into the household you haven’t met her yet. She goes everywhere Rowan does so I’m sure that’ll happen soon enough.”
“Her brief visit with her father went well?”
Clive sent Alice a look that said everything and nothing at once. Even Rowan rarely spoke ill of her father, especially in public. And they’d been keeping his mental and emotional state as quiet as possible. Alice knew all that and really cared about Rowan. Her question was genuine.
“He was very pleased to see her, even for just a short period. He announced that he’s putting on a Yule Ball and a New Year’s Eve dinner in our honor. My parents will attend as well. So clear your calendar. You may bring a guest if you like.”
Alice was normally very calm. The perfect person to have as his assistant because very little ruffled her feathers. But he understood the pleasure on her features to his very soul. To be included in such company at such an important event was currency in their world. It would raise her profile considerably.
Knowing Alice, she’d also figured out Rowan had thrown herself in front of Clive and offered up her attendance at such an event as a way
to soften the anger of The First at the situation as it’d played out.
He still couldn’t quite take it in and Rowan was his wife. It could have been worse. It had been worse for Rowan over the course of her life at the Keep under her foster father’s iron rule. And she’d done it without even blinking.
His restitution to her would have to be well thought out.
“I’m honored to be invited. Thank you.”
“Tell me everything we know about this Vampire we have in custody and then I shall go in to speak with her.”
* * *
It was nearly two in the morning when Genevieve texted that she was outside, and was Rowan still awake?
Rowan opened the gate for her and told Genevieve to come in through to her office where she and David had been working.
“I know why I’m still awake,” Rowan said once Genevieve had settled. “But why are you?”
“You’re a bad influence. My schedule is slowly shifting to Vampire time just so I can hang out with you.” Genevieve rolled her eyes.
“I’m not a Vampire!” Rowan protested. “I’m just on their schedule a lot because of work. I kill them best at night. Oh and I suppose there’s Clive. I like to be up when he gets home.” She wasn’t even sure why she’d shared that.
“He’s all right. For a Vampire.”
From Genevieve that was high praise indeed.
“Just want to be sure you’re getting enough rest,” Genevieve added with a slight cock of her head.
That was pretty sweet, actually.
“I do okay. If I’m up till dawn I usually sleep until noon and then I nap. I hope you do too.”
Genevieve waved a hand. “I only need three or four hours’ sleep anyway. And it’s so hot here at the full day it’s better to nap or be inside when that hits anyway. How do you stand it?”
“There’s something out there...in the desert that calls to me. Settles my chaos. I don’t know what it is. The heat sucks. I’m not a fan, but for whatever reason I keep coming back here. To the earth here. Stay inside between eleven and three if you can help it. Once we get to October it’s better.”
“There is something out there. Not so much within the main heart of the city, but out in the desert, away from Vegas.”
“Like, say a certain Dust Devil?” Rowan asked with a twinkle in her eye.
Genevieve pokered up a moment until she sighed. “There’s a connection between us and I don’t understand it so I’m keeping my distance until I do. Or I’m attempting to.”
“I’ve seen how he looks at you. It’s mutual. But also it’s more than just romantic and sexual chemistry between you and Darius. There’s something about you and the Trick.”
“What makes you say that?” Genevieve asked.
“Your magic is different when we’re out in the desert. I don’t know why. You’re the magic expert. But they show up when we’re out there. And not just because we’re on Devil land. The entire desert, hundreds of miles of it in every direction, is their territory. They don’t just pop in with those sorts of numbers when it’s a run-of-the-mill magic use. Not in my experience anyway.”
Genevieve had felt the pull of the land and the pull of the group of chaos demigods who held it. Especially when she did any sort of magic out there. The magic felt different too. It came to her easier but there was a sort of connection when she performed a working.
It was more than Darius, Rowan was correct in that. Just what and how was the question. Her attraction to Darius was something she felt all the way to her toes. And she’d learned over her many long years that that sort of emotion, that depth of feeling, often made thinking clearly very difficult.
Uncomfortable didn’t begin to describe how it made her feel. Off balance. Raw. She’d spent centuries of her life fighting to gain enough power to be free of anyone else’s whims and the feelings the Dust Devils and their leader evoked threatened that.
Maybe.
“Whatever the case. I was able to track down a few of the names you were able to get from Roderick. One of them is dead so that’s no real help. Two others are still alive so I have some people at the Conclave researching to see if we can locate them. They’re aliases so once we get past that it should be easier to track them down.”
Rowan said, “Tell me the two and I’ll have Vanessa get started on our end as well. She’s pretty good with research and computer whiz stuff.”
Naturally Genevieve had hoped Rowan would offer, but she was also prepared to ask. Two different organizations with two different ways of accessing information was a good thing.
“While I have you here, I’d like to speak with you about a business matter sort of related to this whole thing but different too.”
Genevieve loved Rowan and her method of delivery. The surly demeanor hid a brilliant mind, sharp wit and a deep sense of responsibility to her path. Knowing that felt like knowing a delicious secret.
Rowan understood her better than most others did and their friendship had grown very deep in a short period of time. Coming to the United States and leaving Europe behind, at least for a while, had been easier because she’d known Rowan was there. She had a friend in place. A community of people that she’d found it surprisingly easy to build her life around.
That she had those beginnings of a life in Las Vegas made all the merde she had to deal with a lot easier to handle.
“Whatever that means, just tell me,” Genevieve told her.
Rowan told Genevieve about her idea to have teams of Hunters that included magic users and Vampires and then answered a barrage of questions afterward. Some of them the exact same as Clive had asked.
It was strangely comforting and it meant Genevieve and Clive took their allegiance to their respective organizations seriously. It also meant she was taking Rowan’s idea seriously or she wouldn’t have bothered.
“I have to go back to Los Angeles next week. I’ll bring it up to the Senate then. I think it’s a good idea. It’ll be a great idea with some tweaks and protections built in,” Genevieve said.
“Okay then. Come back to me with your tweaks and protections and we’ll talk. This process will be transparent. There’s no other way to gain the trust of everyone involved.” And Vampires and witches had a mutual distrust along with a god complex so if anything was done privately, the other party would automatically assume the worst.
Rowan didn’t want to be their mother. She wanted more effective teams of co-workers.
Genevieve hung out some more before she left with a promise to reconnect that afternoon to go over anything their respective searches might have found.
David left to go to his house, which was their pool house. The pool was still in progress but since they were Vampire work crews, they worked at night and slept during the day. It helped that David now often worked at night and slept at least during the first part of the day so they didn’t disturb him.
Rowan looked down to Star, who’d conked out in her doggie bed, her favorite stuffy under her left paw.
So. Fucking. Cute.
She let Star sleep, making sure the door to her bedroom was open so if the dog wanted to head in there she could.
In the meantime, Rowan took her laptop into her sitting area and set up there, intending to work but really, making it easier to nap until Clive returned.
Ugh. She was a sap for her dog and a sap for her husband and she just couldn’t seem to get too worked up over it.
Chapter Eighteen
Clive arrived home to find a quiet house. He’d already told Elisabeth to go to bed after Rowan had no need for her in the evenings. Having human daytime help and protection meant they had to be up and about in the daylight and he couldn’t very well expect them to survive on a few hours’ sleep every day.
He saw a light burning in the sitting room between his and Rowan’s bedchambers and there she was, curled u
p on the sofa, her hands under her cheek, looking so beautiful and relaxed he just stood and took her in for long moments.
Her laptop sat, closed, on the nearby table so she’d waited right here so he’d see her when he came home.
Pride warmed him as he pushed away from the doorjamb and toward her. He’d been with her long enough to know to wake her from a distance and to do it carefully if he didn’t want to end up with a punch to his balls.
He put his keys and briefcase down on the desk on the side of the room nearest his bedchamber door loud enough to have her snuffle and then slowly open her eyes.
“Hi there,” she said, her voice sleep rough.
He bent to kiss her slow and sweet. “Hello.”
She hummed and sat up, patting the couch next to her side. Instead he took her hand and tugged her to stand and then drew her into his bedchamber, closing the door to seal them both inside.
“Oh, I see.” Her smile was quick and easy.
“I’ve missed you.” He unbuttoned his shirt and she watched, a smirk on her mouth.
“I’m sure,” she said, snickering.
Once he’d gotten naked he set about taking her clothes off, kissing the bare skin he exposed.
“I miss this. I miss the way you smell. The way you taste. I even miss your voice. I miss the way no one fits into all my empty spaces but you,” he murmured in French.
“Damn. I’m totally going to fuck you and still you give me all that sexy love talk? Lucky me.”
“You’re certainly about to be,” he said, nipping her shoulder.
“Someone’s feeling sassy tonight.” She grabbed his cock and gave a few pumps of her fist around him.
He wasn’t sure sassy was a word applicable to him, but he was past caring. Especially once her hand wrapped around his dick.
She let go long enough to push him to the bed and scramble atop him. Not that he had any complaints about that turn of events.
“That’s better,” she murmured before bending to kiss him and leave a trail of soft, warm kisses around his jaw and down his throat.