Page 85 of Vampire's Hearth

“As though you would have RSVP’d. Besides, you always were one to underestimate me. Did you really think I wouldn’t have been watching you?” His sneer deepened, a flash of teeth punctuating the venom in his words. He leaned back in Father’s chair, one hand swirling the wine in his glass, the other toying with the blade beside his plate.

I reached across the table and helped myself to some bread. “It really didn’t matter if you did. But I guess I have you to thank for the dead body I cleaned up the other day?”

“Just wanting to get my point across.” He smiled over the rim of his glass as he took a sip, his eyes darkening.

“And what point was that, brother?” I placed a roll on my plate, careful not to allow any anger to show. I tore a piece off and savored it as it melted on my tongue.

“That you could end up that way too,” he said, stabbing the roast next to him, taking a piece and passing it to me. He took a bite of it. “Ugh, this needs more flavor.”

He glanced around. “You.” He pointed at a brunette who waltzed to his side. “My steak needs flavor. My brother’s as well.” He pointed at the slice of roast I just placed on my plate.

“Yes, sir,” she said.

Without another word, she picked up the knife that lay beside him and ran it across her wrist. Blood flowed from the wound over the roast. “Enough,” he said, as though this treatment of humans were perfectly normal. My stomach tightened. “My brother’s now.”

“No, thank you.” I held my hand over the plate. I glared at my brother, his dominance over these creatures a ridiculous show of power. “Do you plan to just let her bleed out?”

“Oh, don’t be such a spoilsport.”

I narrowed my eyes at him and glanced at the blood gathering beneath her. “Mother’s rug?”

“Fine.” He looked at the vampire next to Declan. “Jeremiah, get Rachel cleaned up and make sure she doesn’t perish.”

“Yes, sire,” said the vampire I assumed was Jeremiah as he jumped from his seat.

“Thank you, brother,” I said.

“Anything for you,” he sneered.

His confidence unsettled me; he was more in control of his faculties than I understood from Declan. I tore off another piece of bread, chewing deliberately, not allowing Aiden to see any concern. I caught Declan’s eyes as they flitted about the room.

Aiden wouldn’t kill me—he needed me, which was why he brought me here. The O’Cillians were always strongest as a family. But I didn’t have time for his games. Aurora was out there somewhere, and every second here kept me from her. “As for your earlier threat, let’s be clear. You won’t kill me, nor will you try. If you were going to, you would have just done it. So what is the game you are playing at?”

“Oh, this is no game, brother. Welcome to the new age, where wolf and vampire unite. The age that you can be a part of—if you remove the stick from your ass. Just what you want, to be at my side, reunited as a family.”

“Is wolf what that insipid smell is? I had hoped that you would find some better friends after all this time.” I took a bite of my roast, noting a hidden smile on Declan’s face as I did. At least one of us was getting joy out of this. Somewhere to my right, the wolf I just insulted growled low in his throat.

“Now, now. Remember thatIam in charge of this city.” He glanced down the table at his guests. “This is simply the beginning, the Council of Charleston. We’ll only grow from here.” His lips curled in a soft, calm smile as though I had already agreed to join him.

“You’ll do no such thing,” I said firmly, poking at the food on my plate.

His face fell as he leaned forward toward me. “And who is going to stop me, Cormac? Will it be you? Or the Cure?”

The mention of the Cure twisted in my chest. If Aiden found him first, everything would be lost—my family would be gone forever.

I whipped my gaze toward him, but it was too much, too fast, too telling.

“Oh yes, I’m aware of the Cure and that you and your little witch friend you are shacking up with are trying to find him. I promise you I will find him first. Or maybe I’ll just go after her. Mother never was a fan of the Coven of the Blood.” His voice dropped low into a hiss. “It would be a shame if the witches paid the price for your little rebellion.”

I forced the muscles in my face to freeze. If I let him see my feelings for Aurora, she would be in even worse danger. “So it is to be a race to find the Cure, then?” I raised the glass of wine at my plate, holding it out to him to make a toast. “May the best man win.” I tilted my head and smirked, taking a drink while Aiden sat stunned. I caught Declan’s slight twitch of his lips. It must have been some time since anyone openly defied my brother.

“Declan, old friend,” I said, leaning back in my chair as though I had all the time in the world, “I hear through the supernatural grapevine that you’ve found a mate.”

Declan’s head jerked up, but he nodded. “Her name’s Isla.”

I turned my gaze to Aiden, who glared at me, his jaw tightening. “And you? Have you met her?”

Aiden pressed his lips into a thin line, his voice cold. “Redhead. Mousy. I don’t know what he sees in her.” He raised his glass, sipping slowly, his eyes never leaving mine.

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