Riding down the street, he glanced back to discover Braith had joined her. He had her wrapped up in a hug. He could feel all of their eyes on him, but he turned away and spurred Achilles into a trot. The night enveloped him as he left the town, and all of his friends, behind.
- CHAPTER 4 -
Aria shivered, not from the cold but from the hollow feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. She fought the tears burning her eyes as she watched William fade into the snow-covered night. “Come on,” Braith said and gently pulled her away. Her shoulders sagged as she walked with him toward the tavern.
No matter how badly she wanted to, she couldn’t chase after her brother and order him to stay. He would never forgive her if she stood in his way, but at least he would still be alive. Looking over her shoulder, she almost took a step after him. She managed to restrain herself in time. William had let her go when Braith had come for her in the cave. He’d been against it, he’d fought it, but in the end he’d let her go to figure out where she belonged in this world. No matter how much it killed her to do it, she had to return the favor and let him go to find his place now.
She could only hope that one day her brother would come back to her. No matter how he tried to hide it, she was well aware of how much he had changed since he’d made the transition from human to vampire. She had made the choice to become a vampire in order to join Braith. William’s choice had been taken from him when his life had been violently ended by Kane’s blade. His death and resurrection had changed him. What had risen in his place was an often angry and distant man she sometimes didn’t recognize.
“He’s going to get himself killed,” she murmured.
“No, he’s not,” Braith assured her. She glanced back at Xavier, biting on her bottom lip as she met his deep brown eyes. He shook his head when he sensed the direction of her thoughts. Braith’s hand tightened on her waist. “He’ll never forgive you if you send Xavier after him.”
She knew he was right, but it killed her not to be able to help in some small way. “He’ll figure it out,” Braith said.
“I hope so. What did Gideon have to say?” she asked as a way to distract herself.
Braith didn’t miss the hitch in her voice and hugged her closer. “Only an update, everything is fine.”
Aria stepped back as Braith opened the door to the tavern for her. She’d expected everyone else to be in bed, but Ashby, Melinda, Jack, Hannah, Daniel and Max were gathered around one of the tables with drinks near them. Jack and Daniel glanced up at them and then sat up straighter in their chairs.
“I thought you’d gone to sleep,” Jack said.
Braith grabbed hold of a chair to move it over to the table. “Not yet.”
He gestured for her to sit. She settled comfortably onto his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. She inhaled his earthy, masculine scent, savoring the aroma she knew so well. The strength and love she felt from her husband still wasn’t enough to melt the ice encasing her.
A piece of her heart had left and gone out into the world. She didn’t know if that piece would ever return to her. Even if he accomplished what he’d set out to do, and came back alive, she still didn’t know if the brother she’d always known would come back to her, or if he would still be as lost as he seemed now.
They sat at the table, drinking and talking until the sun came up. She didn’t tell them William had left. This was Jack and Hannah’s wedding day, or at least it had been, and she refused to put any kind of a damper on it. Braith carried her upstairs when everyone else began to retreat to bed, but there would be no sleep for her, not tonight.
She lay next to him until he fell asleep before rising to her feet and pacing restlessly over to the window. The sun had come up hours ago, but the tavern below remained tranquil. She glared out at the day, her eyes focused on the distant mountains, but no matter how hard she tried, she didn’t see her brother out there.
“Aria.”
She turned to find Braith with his head propped up on his hand, watching her. The blankets had fallen away to reveal the sculpted muscles of his carved abs and broad chest. Despite her anxiety, her gaze raked over him hungrily. When he held the blankets open to her, she slid into bed with him again, allowing herself to be lost to only him for the next couple of hours.
The scent of cooking meat and the sounds of laughter wafted up from below when she woke later. She’d somehow managed to fall asleep for what must have been a couple of hours, judging by the fading sunlight filtering through the curtains. She stretched a hand behind her for Braith; it rested against his thigh as he rolled over to envelop her in a hug.
“We should show them your father’s documents tonight,” she said. They’d both decided to keep what she’d discovered in the old king’s hidden room to themselves until after the wedding.
“We will,” he murmured as he nuzzled her ear.
She laughed and slid from his arms before he kept her in bed for the rest of the night. She showered and dressed quickly. When she reemerged from the bathroom, he was sitting up in the bed, his black hair tussled, and his eyes focused on the wooden box sitting on his lap. She knew the story of his father’s life, and what had driven him to become a ruthless murderer, lay within that box.
It had taken Braith months to accept that his father hadn’t always been the monster he’d believed him to be. Now it was time to let his siblings know too. She didn’t know how Melinda and Jack would react, or what they would think about the revelations, but it would be wrong not to show them what they’d learned.
Braith lifted his head; a smile curved his mouth when he spotted her in the doorway. A sparkle lit his gray eyes and the blue band encircling his irises. The scars surrounding his eyes had faded until they were barely visible in the dim light. “It was smart of you to get dressed,”
She laughed as she tossed her towel into the hamper. “That’s why I did it.”
The fact she had clothes on wasn’t quite the mental deterrent she’d hoped it would be when he placed the box aside, threw back the blanket, and rose to his six-foot-five height. Aside from Timber, he was the largest man she’d ever seen, and he was hers. A thrill of possession and pleasure slid through her as he stalked toward her. When he bent and placed a kiss on her forehead, she had to fight the urge to grab hold of his arms and keep him there.
The water turned on as she made her way over to the window again. The moon glimmered across the snow, causing it to sparkle as if it had thousands of crystals spread across the surface. She knew William wouldn’t have returned, he wasn’t going to anytime soon, but she kept hoping she’d see him ride up on the horizon. Her gaze lifted to the craggy peaks of the mountains in the distance. She hadn’t had to ask him; she knew that’s where he was heading.
When Braith came out of the bathroom, he gathered the box from the bed and tucked it under his arm. She followed him from the room and down to the crowded tavern floor below. Melinda and Ashby were already at one of the tables, their blond heads bent close together as they talked. Melinda ran her fingers over the back of Ashby’s hand as she laughed. Beyond them, she spotted Timber, Daniel, and Max playing a game of dice. Xavier stood to the side, watching the game. Not surprisingly, Jack and Hannah were nowhere around.
Ashby’s sandy blond eyebrows drew together when Braith placed the box on the table. “What do you have there?” he inquired.
“Something I’d like for you to see,” Braith replied. “Somewhere else though.”
The bell hanging over the front door rang, drawing her attention to it as Jack and Hannah stepped inside. “We’ll go to their home,” she said.
Braith glanced over at them and gave a brisk nod. Melinda and Ashby exchanged a puzzled look before rising to their feet. Aria waved to Daniel and the others; she jerked her head toward the door and gestured for them to follow.
“I’d like to use your house and for you to come with me,” Braith said to Jack when they reached the door.
The smile slipped from Jack’s face. ??
?What is it?”
“There’s something you must know,” Braith replied.
Jack pushed the door open for Braith. Aria pulled her hood up before stepping into the frigid winter air. She walked beside Braith to the newly built, gray-shingled house Hannah and Jack shared. Hurrying forward, Jack opened the door and turned on the lanterns as he moved through the house to the dining room at the back of it.
Braith placed the box on the table then opened it. He began to carefully remove the yellowed and wrinkled documents from within. The aged aroma of the weathered documents filled the air. “What are those?” Melinda inquired.
“Journals, some belonged to Atticus,” Braith replied.
Melinda recoiled from the papers as if they were a rattlesnake ready to strike. Jack’s eyes took on the glint of ice when he lifted his head to look at Braith. “What are you doing with them?” he demanded.
Removing the last of the documents from the box, Braith rested his hand on top of them and turned to face his brother and sister. “Aria discovered them in a secret room of father’s.”
Jack folded his arms over his chest. “Father, is it?”
“Read them,” Braith said.
“I’d rather take a stake to the heart.”
“Jack,” Hannah whispered and slid her hand into his.
“There was a time I would have too.” Braith’s gaze slid to Aria before he continued speaking, “But there are details and facts in here you need to know. Answers you never even knew there were questions to.” Those words had been the ones she’d uttered to him when she’d first brought him the box of journals and letters. His gaze fixed on Melinda. “You, especially, will find something extremely interesting within these pages.”
Melinda still looked like she would prefer to run barefoot over a field of glass, but she reluctantly approached the table. Her brow furrowed as she stared at the yellowed pages and faded handwriting. “Who is Genny?” she inquired.
Xavier took a step forward; his curiosity piqued by the old books and Melinda’s question. “A vampire,” Braith replied.
Melinda glanced at him, but she finally settled into the seat. Her fingers lingered on the first page of the journal before she finally began to flip through the pages. Ashby stood over her shoulder, reading along with her. At first, Melinda flipped speedily through the pages, but her hand slowed, and her brow cleared as her attention became riveted on the words.
Jack stepped forward but Braith stopped him from grabbing a different book. “They should be read in order.”
Melinda handed the first journal over to him when she finished reading through it. Jack and Hannah read it together before passing it on. Daniel, Max and Timber weren’t as good at reading as Jack, Hannah, Melinda, Ashby and Xavier, but they steadily made their way through the books.
Aria stood by watching all of them for a good hour or so before roaming out of the room to stare out the front windows of the house. She paced through the confines of the home before wandering back to the room to rejoin the others. Braith remained unmoving in the corner of the room, his hands clasped behind his back. His eyes burned into hers when she walked over to stand beside him.
Melinda’s face had taken on an ashen hue. Tears brimmed in her eyes when she finished with the last journal. She remained unmoving, her hands folded in her lap as she stared at the far wall.
“Are you all right?” Aria asked nervously. Out of them all, Melinda would have gotten the biggest shock from the journals.
Ashby rested his hands on her shoulders; he pulled her back against his chest, as she remained lost in her own thoughts for a few minutes. Finally, she relaxed beneath his touch. “Yes, I’m fine. It’s just not what I expected.”
“It’s not what I expected either,” Braith said. “The fact he wasn’t your father changes nothing, between us.”
She hastily wiped away the tear sliding down her cheek. “Are you sure?” she whispered.
“I always am,” Braith replied with a smile. He walked over to squeeze his sister’s hand reassuringly.
Jack closed the last book and handed it over to Xavier; he pulled Hannah up against his chest and hugged her close. “We’re both sure,” Jack said to Melinda. “It changes nothing.”
Another tear slipped free of Melinda’s gray eyes; she smiled at both of her brothers before squeezing Ashby’s hand. “Who knew we would ever have a small understanding of that man,” she murmured.
“Certainly not me,” Jack said.
“Amazing,” Xavier murmured. “There’s so much history within these pages I never knew of, lives I’d never heard of. I always suspected Atticus had something to do with my father’s death, but there was no way to prove it.” He didn’t sound angry over this new bit of information, only somewhat distracted and awed as he reclaimed the first book and opened the pages again. She knew well how riveted he could become in anything pertaining to history. “May I look through these again?” he inquired of Braith.
“Yes,” he replied as Daniel finished with the last book and handed it to Timber.
Aria stood within the doorway and waited until Max had read the last page also. Closing the book, he lifted his head and looked at her and Braith, before the others. “So that could happen to you?” he asked of Braith.
“No!” Aria blurted. She stepped forward and wrapped her hand firmly around Braith’s arm. Beneath her touch, his muscles rippled, and his body remained rigid. She knew his biggest fear was becoming his father; no matter what she said, he believed it to be a possibility. “No, they are two completely different men. That could never happen to Braith.”
Max’s gaze darted between the two of them. She knew he didn’t completely believe her, but he bowed his head in acceptance anyway. Stepping forward, he rested the book on the table and lifted it to look around the room again. “Where is William?” he demanded.
Aria’s shoulders slumped; she’d known it would only be a matter of time before they noticed he was missing. “He’d said he was going hunting again today,” Daniel answered.
Aria forced a smile when they all looked at her. “He is hunting,” she replied far more cheerfully than she believed possible. “Just not for animals.”
They all stared at her for a minute before realization settled in. “He shouldn’t have gone alone,” Daniel hissed.
“I know, but it was his choice to make.”
“Stubborn, twin fools,” Max muttered. “Always determined to get yourselves killed.”
Aria scowled at him, but this time she couldn’t argue.
- CHAPTER 5 -
Tempest stood at the window with Abbott and the children gathered by her side. Gazing out at the street, she felt as if she were looking at a completely different town. She recognized only a few of the vampires prowling up and down the road. Her mind spun as she tried to figure out why a handful of vampires had been locked into the stocks overnight, while others had been imprisoned inside the jail. She didn’t see any humans amongst the vampires on the street and suspected they’d all been rounded up and placed inside the blood bank.
Confusion swirled through her, she didn’t understand why the king had been fighting to make everything so equal between humans and vampires, yet his wife, who had once been a human, was tearing it all apart. None of it made any sense. The more she tried to figure it out, the more it made her head pound, and the colder she felt.
The men must have been lying to her last night. They must have been telling everyone they were here for the queen so there would be less of a fight, but then her gaze drifted to the heavily guarded hotel at the end of the street. The woman she’d seen last night had yet to reemerge from inside the building, and they were protecting her as if she were the actual queen. All of it made her want to bang her head against the window in frustration.
She looked back at the five vampires locked into the stocks. Four of them were men, but one was a woman. She knew them all; she hadn’t grown up in a town this small without getting to know everyone. She may not know t
hem well, but her heart still ached for their position and the unnecessary humiliation they were enduring. Almost two inches of snow coated their hair and clothes. The woman’s brown hair dangled into the snow building up on the ground.
She glanced at the children surrounding her. Pressed close against her side, a small tremor rocked Agnes’s delicate frame. Her brown eyes were troubled as she slid her hand into Tempest’s. Nora stood with her shoulders thrown back and her blue eyes on the street. Claude, who was only eight, stood beside Nora, and nine-year-old Dane stood beside him.
“What are they doing?” Abbott inquired.
“I don’t know,” Tempest replied.
Her gaze returned to the road as more of the vampires dressed in the white cloaks, patrolled back and forth. They all looked as if they were on a mission or in the middle of a war zone, but even before the old king was ousted from his throne their town had always been one of relative peace. The humans hadn’t been treated as well as they were now, but they hadn’t been as abused and mishandled here as they had in other areas.
As an orphan she’d never had a blood slave, never could have afforded one, but she’d relied on the blood of the humans sentenced to death. It wasn’t something she was ashamed of, or proud of, it was simply a fact. She’d had to survive, all the orphans had, and they’d been lucky enough to get the scraps offered to them before the fairer laws of the new king had been set forth.
Before the most recent war, it had never been one established vampire caring for them for long, but many who came and went as they pleased. None of the caretakers had given much attention to the forgotten children, and why should they? Their own parents had given them little consideration when they’d abandoned them. The caretakers back then had simply wanted their pay.