"You're going to get your fool ass killed one of these days, Micah," Declan warned, pulling him away from her.
Declan took her hand and kissed it. "Welcome to Noctem Falls. If you need help, let any of us know." He jerked his head backward, indicating to the men behind him.
"At ease. I just wanted you all to know how grateful I was," Adriel said, wrapping an arm around her waist.
"I'd be grateful too, if I had a mate like her," one of the men teased.
"We are about to head down to Level One; can I get a quick update from the unit leaders?" Adriel asked.
Two men stepped forward. "Evening..." They nodded to Eva. "My name is Dimitri Romanov, and this is Godard Kipling; we lead the Theta and Kappa Units." Dimitri turned to Adriel and continued. "Godard and I met with the townspeople. Thanks to Eva and their betas, no one was taken. Everyone who needed medical attention received it and are recuperating in the Grand Hall."
Dimitri was dark haired and dark eyed. Godard was his opposite with sandy blond hair and blue eyes. One was like the night sky, the other like a sunny afternoon.
The three other leaders pushed through the gawking men. "My name is Beau Westerly," he pointed to the man on his right. "This is Viktor BelleRose, and this is Warrick DuBois. Both Viktor and Warrick were raised here in Noctem Falls, so if you have any questions, they can help." Beau clapped both men on the back, causing them to wince. "Sir, before returning to our level, we took turns patrolling the other levels to keep an eye on the vampires affected by the blood. Everyone has calmed down and, for now, are keeping to themselves."
Beau lived up to his name, reminding Eva of the wholesome 'boy next door' stereotype. Unlike the other vampires she had met, his light brown hair was cut short and he was clean- shaven. He had light blue eyes and a friendly smile.
Viktor had her staring. She knew she was being rude, and she knew her mate was standing right beside her, but she couldn't help it; he was beautiful. His hair was the closest thing to silver she had ever seen in hair. It wasn't quite gray, more like a gray and white mix. She half expected it to shine metallic in the light. But what was more unique than his hair were his eyes. They were a true deep purple. He smiled warmly and she blushed. "It runs in the family. Anyone born in the BelleRose clan has silver hair and amethyst colored eyes."
"You're very beautiful. I've never seen that combination before," Eva said. Beside her, Adriel cleared his throat. She placed her hand over his at her waist. "Of course, I prefer dark haired men with unhealthy obsessions with clipboards." She winked at Viktor who cracked up.
Eva looked up at her mate to find that he was staring down at her affectionately. She blew him kisses, and he winked at her.
"I do not think I am pretty enough for her," a deep voice rumbled.
She looked at Warrick and shook her head. "No, but you're one big boy. I'd love to know what you eat. What are you three fifty?"
He chuckled. "Three sixty," he admitted. "BelleRose family gets sparkly hair and purple eyes, and every other generation or so in the DuBois family, we grow as big as the fae. I think we got the better deal."
Until Eva saw Gavriel, she hadn't known vampires came that big. "I wonder if that's why Gavriel is so massive."
The men quieted. Eva looked around. "Okay, what did I say?"
"Gavriel used to be my size, sweetheart. Last year, he went through one of his major transitions. The result is what you see. He gained four inches in height and nearly sixty pounds in muscle. I heard he has to train with Aiden and the fae now."
"Sweetheart?" Declan choked on the word.
Adriel frowned at his second in command. "Is there a reason why I should not use terms of endearment with my mate? I thought it to be a standard process."
"Now that sounds more like you." Etain nodded.
"You should hear him in bed." Eva sighed happily.
Adriel kissed her temple. "Only for you."
"This is just weird," Beau said, eyes wide.
Adriel's mask of indifference fell into place. "Is it so hard to believe that I could be caring?"
You could hear a pin drop. She moved out from under Adriel's arm and stepped forward. She noticed with satisfaction some of the men took a step back. "Now y'all listen up. I don't talk proper or fancy like my wonderful mate does, so I'm gonna tell ya plain. No one, and I do mean no one, gets to hurt my mate or belittle him in anyway. I don't care if you're a unit leader or the prince himself." She focused and let her hands shift. Now, the entire front row of men, including the unit leaders, did take a step back. "I will gut you before I allow you to hurt him, hear?"
"Gods, isn't she the sexiest thing you've ever seen?" A male voice said from the back.
Eva rolled her eyes. "Get up here, Micah." Micah had stepped back when the unit leaders came forward to report.
Micah pushed his way back to the front. "Yes, my gorgeous little kitten?"
Eva turned to Adriel. "You know he's playin' right?" She froze; her mate was half turned away from them, his hand over his face.
"Adriel?"
When he turned back, he had tears streaming down his face, and he was gasping for breath. "Adriel!" She went to his side, and he leaned against her. Seconds later, a deep, rich belly laugh escaped, and Adriel was gasping for breath again. Her mate was laughing so hard; she literally had to hold him up.
"He's laughing," someone whispered.
"Looks damn good on him," another commented.
When she looked around the room, the men were smiling wide.
"What'd we miss?" a light male voice asked. Seconds later two young, orange haired men skidded to a stop in front of the group.
"Who made him laugh?"
"Yeah, who?"
Eva blinked. "There are two of you."
"Yeah."
"Yeah."
Adriel wiped at his eyes. "I think Declan pissed himself."
His remark had the men joining him in laughter.
Declan sputtered indignantly. "I did not!"
"We should check," one orange haired twin suggested.
"Yeah," the other responded. And together, they de-pantsed Declan right there in front of everyone. "Nope, no piss here."
"Nope."
"Dimitri! Godard! Get these brats under control!" Declan roared, fumbling for his pants.
Adriel leaned over her body in an effort to stay upright. He wrapped his arms around his stomach. "Oh Gods! Did you see his face?"
By now everyone in the room was crying they were laughing so hard, Eva included.
Declan reached out, but the twins evaded his grasp and ducked behind their respective unit leaders.
Grant leaned in. "Thank you. Thank you, for helping him remember how to laugh."
Eva felt her heart swell. She couldn't imagine how long her stoic mate had tried to be strong alone. But having taken the mask off with her, he seemed to be having a hard time keeping it on.
When his breathing slowed, he smiled at her and wiped his eyes.
"The two mischievous devils are Nigel and Neil Morninglory, recent transfers from Storm Keep." Adriel pointed to where the two were peeking out from behind Dimitri and Godard. The two unit leaders both wore exasperated expressions.
"Nice to meet you," she said waving at them.
"Nice to meet you too," the one behind Dimitri called out.
"Which one are you?"
"I'm Nigel."
Eva turned to Godard. "That means you're Neil. Thank you for such a warm welcome."
Neil grinned at her and gave her a thumbs up.
"Warm welcome, my ass! I'm going to shove those two monsters into the refuse tube!" Declan threatened.
Adriel looked over at Micah. "I'm reassigning you to patrol the levels. Eva will take over guard duty for Meryn."
Micah's face fell and assumed a wounded expression. "To be parted from my delicate flower pains my heart."
Adriel ignored him. "On that note, we better be going. Are you ready Declan? Your shirt is untucked; you know we have an
image to maintain here in the city," Adriel said in a perfectly serious tone.
Declan eyed her mate, and then slowly began to smile. "Was that a joke? Was that you cracking a joke?"
"The world may never know." Adriel turned and offered her his arm. "My lady."
She rested her hand on his forearm and let him escort her to the door.
"I can't wait to see what dinner is like," Eva murmured.
"It was a joke. I'm sure it was a joke," Declan told Etain as he tucked in his shirt.
Adriel inclined his head. "After you."
*****
Adriel noticed a few new faces at dinner. Demetrio, Stefan, and Adora Bolivar had been added to the guest list. Sebastian glided from person to person, filling glasses and smiling; he was totally in his element. Everyone was standing around talking in the antechamber while waiting for dinner to be ready.
Eva was pulled from his side and into the arms of a handsome wolf shifter. Adriel had to remember at the last moment that killing this pup at dinner would be something of a political faux pas.
"Stefan, let Eva go. Her mate looks like he's two seconds away from strangling you, and I don't blame him one bit," the older wolf said to his son.
"That can't be her mate; he's a vampire. I bet her mate is the wolf they came in with," Stefan said, pointing to Grant who shook his head.
Stefan frowned. "The lion then." Declan also shook his head.
Adriel pulled Eva to his side. "She is my mate. I am Adriel Aristaios, the unit leader here in Noctem Falls. I believe we met earlier to discuss your people's settlement."
Stefan growled low. "That was before I knew you had mated to my Eva."
Adriel felt his fangs extend. "Your Eva?"
Eva stepped between the two of them. "Stefan, you better be nice to my mate, or I won't be in your fantasy football league anymore."
Stefan snapped his mouth shut. "You don't know what they're capable of."
Gavriel left his conversation with Aiden to stand beside him. "They, who, exactly?"
Adriel was surprised at the show of support.
Stefan snarled. "They murdered my cousin!"
Demetrio sighed. "It is true that Angel was killed by vampires, but son, that was nearly four hundred years before you were born."
Stefan's eyes never left his. "I heard the stories from my uncles; they kill shifters. I bet the problem with the ferals is their doing."
Adora slapped her mate's arm. "Those would be your brothers he's referring to."
Magnus walked over to stand between the two of them. "Son, it is true that seven hundred years ago many shifters were killed by vampires." Magnus lay a supporting hand on Adriel's shoulder and squeezed. "But it is also true that shifters hunted down and killed innocent vampires as well, including Adriel's parents."
Adriel heard a soft gasp, and then Eva was suddenly at his side. Gavriel took a step back to allow his mate to stand next to him in a show of support.
Some of the fire seemed to drain out of Stefan. "I'm sorry about your parents." Stefan's eyes filled with sympathy.
Adriel did not know what to make of the young wolf. One second he was snarling and barring his canines, the next he was sincerely sorry for his loss.
Eva laid her head on his shoulder. "Stefan is very young for an Alpha. He is sometimes rash and impetuous, but he is never insincere, fake, or a liar. Our people love him for those reasons."
Stefan rolled his eyes. "I'm not that young."
Gavriel and his prince chuckled. Adriel could not help but smile. "Pup, I am probably older than your parents, and Prince Magnus is at least three times older than I am."
Stefan frowned. "I can't be the youngest one here."
Bethy walked over to stand by her mate. "You're older than I am."
"Me too!" Adriel heard a voice call out.
Meryn's head popped up next to Bethy.
Stefan smiled; he started to speak then stopped. He sniffed the air and walked over to Meryn, frowning. He sniffed her hair then her neck.
"He's doing a sniffing thing! I've already been through this; it's how I got stuck with Aiden!" Meryn yelled.
Aiden stalked forward, his eyes jet-black. "Why are you sniffing my mate?"
Stefan looked up at Aiden. "She smells familiar." He leaned in again, sniffing around her ear."
"He's doing it again." Meryn waved her hand in front of Stefan's face. "Shoo. Shoo."
Stefan looked at his parents, perplexed. "I never forget a scent. I know hers from somewhere." His head snapped back to Meryn. "Mate? How can you be mated? You're just a baby!"
Beside him, Eva snickered and leaned in to whisper. "I thought the same thing when I saw her."
"I'm fully grown! Really people! I'm not that short! Y'all are just huge." She stomped her foot.
Stefan looked down. "You're pregnant." He glared at Aiden. "Dirty old man."
Aiden's eyes bulged. "What?" he demanded in a strangled voice.
Meryn started giggling. "Dirty old man! Wait until I tell Colton!"
Demetrio turned to them, his face red. "Now that my son has managed to put both feet in his mouth and offend everyone here, we'll take our leave."
The prince waved off his concerns. "No worries. Being around these young people has made me realize how dull and dry my day-to-day life had become. We need more Stefans and Meryns in this world."
Both Stefan and Meryn turned to the prince, grinning. "Thanks!" they said together.
Aiden clapped the young wolf on the shoulder. "Let me tell you about how humans age. I am not a dirty old man."
"Forget that, I want to hear about what happened seven hundred years ago," Meryn interjected.
Bethy sighed. "Meryn! Social cues remember. This isn't a topic for discussion at dinner."
"Why?"
Bethy looked around the room as if asking for help answering the question.
The prince raised an eyebrow at his niece. "Well Bethy, aren't you going to answer her?"
Gavriel took pity on his mate and answered for her. "Meryn, I know that you have been obsessed with paranormal history, but it is a bit different when the events being discussed personally affect the people in the room."
"Yeah, but if Stefan is right, a lot of shifters were killed, and according to Magnus, vampires were hunted down. Why isn't any of that in the history books?" Meryn asked, crossing her arms.
Bethy frowned. "It is, isn't it?"
Meryn shook her head. "Nope. I read up on Noctem Falls, and it didn't mention any of this."
Bethy pulled out her phone. Seconds later, she handed it to Meryn. "There."
Meryn used her finger to scroll and read. "In the summer of 1315, a skirmish broke out between the vampires of Noctem Falls and a local wolf pack. Reason unknown." She turned to Stefan. "How many shifters were killed?"
Stefan turned to his father for the answer. Demetrio rubbed the back of his neck. "The entire western pack was decimated. We buried three hundred and twenty nine pack members. The remaining wolves had to join our pack; there weren't enough members left to sustain themselves."
Meryn pivoted and stared at Magnus. "Well?"
"Two hundred and four," the prince answered, frowning.
Meryn handed Bethy back her phone. "Skirmish, my fucking ass. More like pitched battles, why isn't this in the history books?"
Magnus looked a bit shocked. "I had no idea it was not there. Demetrio?"
The older wolf looked just as surprised. "This is news to me as well."
"Ladies and gentlemen, dinner is ready." Sebastian's booming voice had more than one person jumping. The unsettling news about past events had everyone preoccupied.
Magnus walked over to Meryn and offered her his arm. "Aiden, if you would allow me to escort your beguiling mate to dinner?"
Aiden smiled and bowed to Magnus, extending him the honor. Slowly, everyone made their way to the dining room.
*****
Once everyone was seated, Sebastian and Ryuu walked around and served dinn
er. Eva was nervous about her jeans until she saw Meryn in the same Ghostbusters tee shirt she had on earlier.
"No, thank you, Sebastian, I'm not really feeling like beef stroganoff tonight." Meryn held her hands over her plate to avoid being served.
"Denka, are you unwell?" Ryuu asked.
"I'm not feeling nauseous if that's what you mean; it's just that nothing looks good to me right now. All I really want is some more of Sebastian's magic pudding."
"Meryn, you can't live off pudding," Aiden said, a worried expression on his face.
"I can't help it."
"I will go get her some right away. I have heard more than one woman say that when they carried, if they denied their cravings, nothing else tasted right." Sebastian passed the large serving bowl to Ryuu.
Adora nodded. "It's true. When I carried Stefan, I went an entire month living off venison stew. It was years before I was able to eat it again."
"Thank you, Sebastian," Meryn said, looking relieved. Sebastian headed toward the kitchen as Ryuu began to serve everyone's dinner.
Magnus turned to Demetrio. "How are people settling in?"
The older wolf gave a terse smile. "I think it would be easier on everyone if we knew an exact date of when we could head home. We were still getting arguments against coming here last night at the city's estate. The attack this morning has really spooked a lot of people. I think in the back of everyone's minds, we didn't really believe we'd be attacked."
Adriel looked down the table to Magnus. "Sire, we need to think about where these people will go. We have already received more than was projected, and your announcement was only sent out yesterday. We simply do not have any plans in place to house this many people."
Beth turned to her uncle. "He's right. Just organizing trips to the bathroom became a logistical nightmare this morning. More tunnel escorts are desperately needed along with semi-permanent living quarters. They can't stay in the Grand Hall forever."
"I do not think any of us were prepared for this many people, this soon," Magnus admitted.
Sebastian returned with a large bowl of pudding for Meryn. She picked up her spoon and dug in.
Eva liked the pudding, but she was a shifter; she needed more than sugar and milk to keep her satisfied, and Sebastian's beef stroganoff was the best she had ever had.