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Maksim looked at Jean-Pierre with suspicion. “Why didn’t you tell me this before?”
The vampire smiled, meeting Maksim’s gaze. “You were not my king and therefore not privy to my history. Now you are, and you have the right to hear my secrets, should you wish to know them.”
When he concentrated, Maksim could feel the other vampire’s mind and caught limited glimpses into his thoughts. He decided to continue working on his telepathy since peeking into the enemy’s mind had many advantages. He’d already done it without trying.
Feeling more in control of himself by the moment, Maksim got out of bed and dressed in the clothes Jean-Pierre offered. He transitioned to command mode, effortlessly slipping into his new leadership role.
“I need to meet with the generals, but first, recall all vampires in the area to our stronghold. Those who came back from the battle with Nadya are the highest priority. I need information,” Maksim ordered.
Jean-Pierre nodded. “Right away, my lord. How do you prefer to be addressed?”
Maksim had to think about it. As the son of a farmer, he had never considered such things. He knew little outside of his isolated life in the wilderness during his father’s exile. How did he want to express his position and power now that he had them?
“I am not your lord, Jean-Pierre. I am your king. The typical royal titles will suffice, and ‘Sire’ in informal settings. Now, I am hungry. Surely, we have a Therian or two around here. Bring me some dinner.”
Jean-Pierre nodded and left to work on Maksim’s orders. They had several Therians on the premises, but they weren’t captives—not that it mattered. Jean-Pierre would serve them to his king without hesitation. Shifters were less than nothing in his eyes.
Two of Jules’ rebel hyenas entered the tiled sitting room, where Maksim waited. They were unprepared when the tall, dark-haired man moved faster than their enhanced gazes could track, ripped one of their throats out, and gorged on the blood as the other tried to flee. Grinning malevolently, Maksim thrust his hand out, and a tendril of darkness secured his prey. He gorged on the Therians, reveling in the rush of power that flowed through him as he consumed their blood and bodies.
While Maksim fed, vampires poured into the compound. He caught snippets of their thoughts, making it difficult to concentrate. He didn’t know how to shut them out, which made him feel trapped in his mind as his agitation built. By the time he’d finished his meal and was full, if not satisfied, several hundred vampires had gathered in the mansion’s ballroom.
His head ached with the buzz of unfamiliar minds, and he longed to retreat somewhere quiet even as he anticipated addressing his subjects for the first time as their king. He stepped onto the second-floor balcony overlooking the ballroom and thought that Nadya had chosen her home well. Maksim felt regal as he addressed the vampires looking up at him expectantly.
“I have seen the face of the traitor who killed our queen!” Maksim roared, his voice carrying to the far corners of the room.
His nerves were on edge with all the invasive thoughts bombarding his mind from every angle, but at that moment, he was grateful for the connection since he could feel their emotions as they reacted to his words. The image of the blonde vampire with burning copper eyes came to him, and he projected it so they all saw they all saw Nadya’s final moments.
Good. It should motivate them to avenge her.
“We will not let Nadya’s murder stand unchallenged!” he declared. “The bloodline of every Therian who had a part in her death will be drained to pay our queen’s blood debt.”
The vampires shouted in bloodthirsty agreement. “We must find that traitor and rip her fucking heart out!” Maksim shouted, his barely contained rage urging him to change. He fought his beast for control and won, but only just. “Everyone who has seen the traitor in person or knows anything about her, come forward. We will kill the bitch painfully, but we need to know what we’re facing.”
Maksim was determined to take the vampire out in some spectacularly bloody fashion, but a direct approach wasn’t the way to do it. Nadya had not been a fool, and she had been anything but weak. Underestimating their foe would lead to disaster. He planned to come at the traitor from the shadows.
He dedicated the following week to gathering intelligence as he planned their next steps. So far, all his soldiers had learned from those who’d seen the blonde vampire was her name. Ashlynn. It would only be a matter of time before his people brought him enough information to strike her where it would hurt most. A malicious smile turned up the corners of Maksim’s full lips as he imagined the gloriously bloody ways he could exact his vengeance.
En Route to the Vampire Compound
During the long flight, Ash mused about the horror of burning the executed vampires shortly after dawn. While Niletean navigated the sky toward their objective, Ash felt a foreign presence creep into her mind. The touch felt familiar and had echoes of Nadya’s dark power, but it provided no information other than a location—dead ahead. The presence wasn’t welcome in her brain.
Pouring every ounce of her formidable magic and willpower into the task, Ash ejected the intruder from her mind. GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HEAD!
When her mind was secure, Ash opened her eyes and called for everyone to land. They had to change their plans. Something dark and compelling waited for them at Nadya’s compound.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Therian Palace, Friday, January 11, 2013, Morning
Benji Sciathian had always been a patient man. He knew the value of letting people work through things in their own time and was content to allow King Lucaindrion a few days to deal with the latest uproar in his kingdom. The reason for his visit could wait.
He’d wandered around the enormous palace since his arrival, hoping to stay out of the way and perhaps stumble upon a library to pass the time. Benji missed the comforting embrace of books and the familiar surroundings of home. He was a tall, thin man with a fragile-looking frame that gave him a birdlike appearance and disguised his wiry strength. He typically thought his unruly sandy blonde hair and large yellow eyes reinforced the avian impression he gave, but he rather liked the association. Not all the owl Therians carried animalistic traits over to their human forms, but it was considered attractive among his people.
While owls weren’t the only Therian species to lay eggs, that was where his people’s similarities to others ended. Owls were born in their animal forms and didn’t shift to human until they were thirty years old. The owls had a much closer relationship with their animalistic sides. They spent most of their time in owl form and were often ungainly when they finally assumed human shape.
The owl’s city provided a haven for their people in either form, far from the rest of the world. Benji had changed for the first time when he was only twenty, and his parents had been very proud of him. Early change often indicated a strong Therian bloodline and the potential for extraordinary abilities, but that had been long ago.
As he strode through a long stone corridor lined with tall windows, Benji tried to ignore the stab of longing he felt for the freedom of the sky. His human skin felt awkward and uncomfortable. Benji’s owl shape was glorious, and he knew it. His Therian form was over six feet tall and had a twenty-foot wingspan. His strong body was covered in sand-colored feathers that blended perfectly with the hills of his homeland in Mexico. The owl form also had razor-sharp talons and could use them with deadly efficiency.
