His lips curled. “And I sawyou.”
He pulled her in for a kiss, one that caught the attention of several other royals and alphas in the room.
They’re not used to open affection,Ismerelda whispered via our bond.Darius hasn’t been allowed to show it since the day he bought her from this Coventus.
I see.
This place held special meaning to them.
Because it was where their story began.
He chose her as a distraction, a way to prove his allegiance to the Blood Alliance,Ismerelda added.But it was all a charade. And that simple exchange—thatkiss—has just let everyone know the truth. He never conformed to their rules.
I wonder how many others played a role in this world that they didn’t truly admire,I said to her. Vampires were all about maintaining facades, and it seemed the Blood Alliance might be the biggest facade of them all.
Khalid and Emine were the last to enter the room, Cedric and Lily having preceded them by only a few seconds.
With the final vampires in attendance, everyone sat, the tension thick in the air.
Jace cleared his throat. “I believe by now that everyone has been brought up to speed regarding recent events,” he said, his gaze going to Luka. “Yes?”
The lycan nodded. “We’ve informed the various pack leaders in attendance, as well as the ones who couldn’t be here in person.” He glanced at the screen where three alphas stared expectantly at the room, their video presence the only way they could make the meeting in time.
Yulian, Jenkins’s son, was one of the faces on the screen. The death of his father had probably created some chaos back home, making it likely impossible for him to journey from former-day Siberia to Rome.
The other two alphas were also from distant locations.
“We’ve brought all of the vampires up to speed as well,” Jace commented, referring to the other royals in attendance. “And, as promised, we’ve detained Cane’s remaining ally.”
Sofia,I thought, aware of the agreement Jace and Luka had come to yesterday regarding her known affiliation.
My brother had kept meticulous records.
Records that were now public.
Which was how I knew that everyone in this room was aware of what he’d done to me and how I’d been manipulated by my brother.
I’d skimmed over a few of my brother’s notes. Any guilt I might have felt regarding his death had diminished after reading his crude analysis of mycure.
Immortal insanity had definitely wrapped its deadly fingers around my brother’s brain, leaving him irrevocably broken.
I’d miss him. But I wouldn’t mourn him.
I rested my arm over the back of Ismerelda’s chair as Luka and Jace stared one another down, neither of them submitting to the other.
“What will be done with her?” Luka finally asked, referring to Sofia.
“I believe that’s up to you and your fellow lycans,” Jace replied, causing several vampires in the room to straighten.
“Well, I believe that should be up for a vote,” Sahara interjected. “A royal can’t just begivento a lycan for retribution.”
“Even if we did vote, the lycans are the majority party present,” Naomi murmured. “Besides, she made her bed when she decided to keep some of Cane’s failed lycan experiments aspets.”
Several lycans growled at the notion despite having already been made aware of that information from my brother’s detailed records.
“But if you think we need tovote,” Naomi went on. “Then feel free to initiate it. However, I personally vote that we not waste any more time.”
“Indeed,” Jace agreed. “What Cane did was inexcusable. The lycans have more than earned their right to deliver whatever retribution they see fit.”
