Page 38 of Crave

Merrick’s face was neutral, like she’d told him that they were out of his favorite flavor of ice cream rather than that our ancestral homes were gone. I mightn’t feel much for the place, but that didn’t mean everyone else felt the same way.

Susannah reached out and twined her fingers through his, pushing some of her soothing Omega essence toward him. He let out a shuddering sigh, nodding at the vampire in front of us. “Thank you. We’ve been out of touch for a couple of days.”

Raine looked between Merrick and Tanner. “Indeed. You better tell me what you’re doing here, instead of where you’re supposed to be.” She looked around at all the people pretending they weren’t listening. “And perhaps we should do that in my office.”

She disappeared, and we all filed out of the cafe at a normal pace. Tanner looked over his shoulder. “Good to see ya, Everly.”

“You too, Shark Bait.”

He chuckled, and I couldn’t imagine the brass balls on a shifter to so openly make fun of a vampire, even one as good-natured as Tanner.

We walked at a human speed along the footpath, and I tried to ignore the fact that people were staring at us like we were a sideshow. Tanner did his best to play tour guide. “Dark River was set up by the vampire Nico and a few others, as a place for vampires who were tired of the endless blood and death of normal vampire society. To live here, you have to pledge not to feed from or turn humans. The penalties for doing so are… harsh. They are ruled by a Town Council, and every year, they get at least one or two new town members. Everyone is given a job in or out of town, depending on whether they’re at an age where they can control themselves properly around heartbeats. It’s kind of like a Hallmark Christmas movie, if you couple it with a late-night horror movie, and a little snuff film.”

“What the hell kind of movies are you watching?” Murphy grumbled, and I laughed.

“It’s a pretty good place to live. People who think like you, who have the same morals and ethics as you. Kinda idyllic, really.”

“Sounds like a cult,” Murphy added.

Tanner chuckled. “Maybe a little.” He stopped out the front of a non-descript door. “Nico is in,” he said with a huff. “Guess it's better to get it over with in one go.”

He pulled the door open, and we were met with an honest-to-god, nineties-style wooden bead curtain. Behind it was a short vampire with swirling blue tattoos and a presence so heavy it made my Omega whine. Merrick tensed beside me, an Alpha reacting to the Omega’s distress—or maybe it just sensed a bigger predator in the room.

“With a reaction like that, you’d think that you weren’t happy to see me, Tanner?”

I watched Tanner’s face. He gave a one-sided smile, but it was resigned. “I was hoping we could put off the inevitable for a little longer.” He walked over and gave the vamp a man hug; all back-slapping and grumbling questions on how he’d been.

Finally, Nico pulled away. “She’s in her office answering another call. Come on in.” The ancient vampire looked over us all. “Merrick, it’s good to see you again.” His gaze bounced to the rest of us. “I’m Nico. Who wants ice cream?”

23

MERRICK

My Beast was disconcerted by the energy in the room. He didn’t care that our Omegas were happily eating ice cream, or that the two vampires in front of me looked about the right age to attend the local community college’s Orientation Week.

He knew what they were, and therefore he couldn’t relax. I couldn’t relax. It didn’t help that their faces were stony as Tanner gave his recount of what happened in the last week or so, though I did see something inherently terrifying pass through the Convocation Member’s eyes as he listed off Wilkie’s systematic abuse of my Omegas, and I hadn’t been able to hold back the growl.

Quinn had grabbed my thigh, squeezing it gently, a reassurance I so desperately needed. That was behind them now. They would never be treated like that again, not while I still breathed.

However, when we got to the part where Tanner not only killed Wilkie and Joseph, but tore them to pieces, I winced. The way he recounted facts dispassionately made it sound way worse than it was. I mean, it was bad, but he’d done it for the right reasons.

Susannah interrupted. “Without him, Quinn would have been assaulted in the worst way, and I would have been too. We would have been bred against our will, captives to an Alpha who thought he owned our bodies and that free will meant nothing. Yes, Tanner took two lives, but he saved two lives—maybe even more—in the process.”

No one mentioned Errol, and I was okay with that. The look of relief, of guilt, of hope, that he’d had on his face as he looked down at his dead Alpha had been heartbreaking. That poor Beta had deserved better, and if anyone could survive in the human world, or greater supernatural society, it was Errol. I hoped he found something, or someone, who made him happy, and he never returned to Maxton.

Well, there wasn’t a Maxton to return to. I should feel something, knowing that my home had burned. That the place where I’d been born, grown up, fallen in love, had my heart broken, and fallen in love again was no more, but I didn’t. Murphy was my home. And if I had my way, the Omegas beside me would become the heart of it.

Raine was nodding at Susannah’s impassioned plea. “I understand, and as the Convocation Member, I give him a total reprieve for the deaths of those two Manix. I’m not above an eye for an eye.” Relief swamped Susannah’s face, but when I looked at Tanner, he was still expressionless. When Raine continued, I understood why. “But it’s not justmyrules he broke. I don’t think I need to bring this to the Vampire Nation—it sounds like you cleaned up your mess—but the Dark River Town Council will have to meet.”

Nico nodded, looking a little sad. “You were acting within the purview of your duties as a representative of the Convocation Member in the very general sense, so I’ll ensure execution is off the table—”

“What?” Quinn gasped, his eyes whipping to Tanner. “You came back here to confess, knowing they may decide to kill you?” He punched our vampire in the arm, hard. “You fucking dick.”

I ignored the fact that I’d mentally referred to him as our vampire. In this room, he was ours. Not like, in a Pack sense, in, like, a familiar sense.

Yeah, let's go with that.

Tanner grabbed Quinn’s hand and squeezed it gently. “I didn’t think they would. I was at least ninety percent certain. They might be strict about their rules, but they do have some fairness.”

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