Page 80 of Thunder with a Chance of Lovestruck

The night my brother had unleashed a horde of monsters into the world, and resurrected Amice, had been just the start of what we’d been forced to endure.

ChapterTwenty-Seven

Drest

Drest strolledleisurely alongside his cousin through the middle of Grimm University’s campus. For eighteen years, they’d been tracking Henry’s monsters from Chicago, where they were now homicide detectives. It was their newest assignment, and Drest knew he should feel lucky it wasn’t a remote area in the middle of nowhere, especially after what he and Stratton had pulled during Henry’s trial.

First, Drest had attacked Henry while he’d been on the stand, and then Stratton had done the same, evidently learning nothing from Drest. Though he did get good hits in, so that was a positive. Henry had gotten off easy, in Drest’s humble opinion. He’d been sentenced to life without parole in the same facility for the supernatural criminally insane as his uncle.

How that much evil could be from the same family was beyond Drest.

Eighteen years ago, Drest truly believed he and Rachael were close to being able to be a family without interference from anyone. The rules with the Nightshade Clan had been on the verge of changing (which they eventually did), and he and Rachael were working hard to be on the same page and in the same location.

But then the tragic accident on the bridge in Tarrytown happened, leaving Amice dead and Rachael trying to control her brother alone as Henry spiraled into madness. The man had then built an army of creatures all to protect the version of Amice that he’d stitched back together and brought back to life. He’d known Hunters would come for him and her. That she wouldn’t be allowed to exist. Not that the thing he’d brought back had even been Amice.

No.

It was missing so much of what had made her who she was.

Henry knew his time with her would be limited, and he’d confessed as much on the stand. He’d created the horde of monsters to stand against the Hunters and to keep him and the reanimated version of his wife safe. He’d also confessed to making them in order to exact justice on Astria, who he blamed fully for Amice’s passing, and Rachael.

That had sent Drest into a blind rage. And that had been the moment he’d attacked Henry in the courthouse. That bastard and his uncle had taken everything from Drest.

His monsters hadn’t been like the ones Victor had created. No. Henry’s were twenty steps down on the evolutionary ladder. They were rage-filled monsters, with insatiable cravings for brains, much like zombies. They were strong and singularly focused. And if Drest was right, they were congregating here in Grimm Cove for a reason. One he prayed would lead him back to his family.

He needed to hold his wife and tell her how much he loved and missed her. He needed to hug Astria and be sure she was safe. And he needed to meet his child. Needed to know if he had a son or daughter and be sure they knew he loved them. That being separated from them all for eighteen years was the last thing Drest ever wanted.

After the incident at the manor involving Henry and his monsters, Drest had come to on the floor, confused as to what had happened. All he’d known was that one second, he’d been battling stitched-together creatures that had rushed out from the basement in numbers that didn’t seem possible and keeping himself in front of his very pregnant mate in an attempt to protect her, and the next second, a mass of white light had engulfed him, rendering him unconscious.

Upon waking, Drest had found Rachael there, on the floor next to him, unresponsive. At first, he’d thought she was dead and had nearly lost control of his power. He’d nearly done the unthinkable. The one thing that was most forbidden among his kind of Fae. The kind who dealt in death and blood magiks, as was the case with the Nightshade Clan. Drest had nearly drawn upon his power to resurrect her—consequences be damned.

Then she’d stirred ever so slightly, and he’d felt it then—their connection. She’d been alive but in need of medical attention. Astria had been in the same condition. The baby Rachael had been carrying was safe too. Relief had rushed through Drest’s veins. His family had survived.

When the ambulances arrived, Drest had tried to go with Rachael and Astria, wanting to be close to his family, but fellow Nightshade Clan Hunters had been en route. They’d given strict orders that he wasn’t to leave the scene.

Gil and the others had stepped in, orchestrating a way to sweep Rachael and Astria away from New York—away from Drest. A full two weeks had passed before Drest got word that Rachael had survived her injuries and that Astria was fine.

Drest had thought those two weeks had been the longest of his life. He’d had no idea back then that he’d still be hunting for his family nearly eighteen years later.

The internal investigation that followed the Henry incident left Drest and Stratton standing before the people they reported to, answering for their part in it all. Drest’s record already had a black spot on it from the Nile ordeal. Having another of his charges do something horrific under his watch had proven to be the breaking point for his bosses.

When they’d then learned the truth of his relationship with Rachael and that Farin had been right all along, it had only added fuel to the fire. They’d dropped a fifteen-year mystical ban on him, preventing him from being near Rachael or his child. The night before the last day of the ban, Drest had foolishly thought he’d wake up and instantly sense Rachael again—like he’d been able to do before the ban.

That hadn’t happened.

She, Astria, and his child had vanished without a trace.

It didn’t matter that the rules had changed with the Nightshade Clan regarding being romantically linked to one’s charges. No one would give him any information on the whereabouts of his family. All they’d been able to tell him was that Rachael and the kids had been put in the Fae’s version of witness protection, only to leave the program several years into it. No one had heard from her since.

Drest searched every free second he had for her and for his family. He understood his child was no longer a child anymore and would be seventeen, going on eighteen years old at this point. And he knew Astria was now twenty-two. He’d missed so much time with them all.

That was what had landed him and Stratton in the town of Grimm Cove, in South Carolina. They were tracking Henry’s monsters in hopes of killing them and that the monsters would somehow lead Drest to his family.

So far, they’d not seen one single monster since entering Grimm Cove.

He and Stratton had been making small talk as they walked the campus grounds, joking a little about the town and its reputation of being one of many supernatural gathering spots. Thick energy hung in the air, letting Drest know the rumors were true. Grimm Cove was something more than met the eye.

So far, all Drest saw were random groups of students and a lot of gargoyle statues. Other than that, nothing. The night was shaping up to be a loss.

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