“Yes,” Max said tersely. “As I discovered firsthand, at the same time I confronted herothervampire lover. Janos, an ally of many centuries who wanted the SERC seat for himself. He arrived at my home fresh from slaying my mentor, and Jacquette let him inside as I slept.”
Eyes wide, Kip ripped open a bag of truffle-flecked potato chips he’d unearthed from somewhere. “Daaaaaaamn.”
“That’s someJerry Springershit right there,” Lorraine agreed, and grabbed a handful.
Max’s attention didn’t stray from Edie. “To her credit, Jacquette had no interest in political power. She desired my wealth. At the time, she was the main beneficiary in my will.”
Only complete trust would have prompted him to change his will for her. And then—
“After feeding and other…activities with Jacquette, I’d dozed off.” Max’s hand tightened on hers, and she squeezed back as hard as she could. “I woke in flames.”
Her breath hitched, and she had to close her eyes for a moment because…dear gods and goddesses. She couldn’t imagine it. She didn’twantto imagine it.
Starla gasped. A choked sound came from Gwen’s chair, where she had a hand clamped over her mouth, her stare tear-bright and horrified. Sabrina’s fists fell from her hips.
Kip and Lorraine made big eyes at each other, then each took another mouthful of chips.
The question stuck in Edie’s throat, too terrible to utter in full. “Janos…what did he…”
Her hands were trembling, and Max chafed them. As if she were merely cold and not aghast and sickened and roiling with too many emotions to name.
“He held me in place.” When she furrowed her brow in silent confusion, he somehow interpreted the look correctly. “Protective gear, sweet Edie. He came prepared. For the fire, anyway.”
His lips twisted into a small smile then. It wasn’t pretty.
“If that’s what actually happened,” Sabrina said, her voice gruff but less hostile than before, “how the hells did you survive?”
Max’s shoulder lifted in that signature Gallic shrug. “I’d always been mindful of Jacquette’s relative fragility. She didn’t have any conception of how strong I truly was. And Janos might have been an old, powerful vampire, but I was older. More powerful. More than capable of ripping out one betrayer’s throat and removing another’s head. Even as I burned.”
“Holy fuck,” Edie whispered. “Max, you must have been in agony.”
He inclined his head. “Yes. That.”
She could only make a pained noise in response.
Her nose was running. She couldn’t see him or anything clearly anymore, and then something soft brushed against her wet face. A handkerchief, which he’d apparently kept tucked away in his hoodie’s pocket. Tenderly, Max blotted her eyes and cheeks before pressing the cloth into her free hand.
“Since I know you’ll doubt my version of events…” After a final, light kiss to Edie’s temple, he turned back to Sabrina. “Once the inaugural SERC representatives took office, they sent authorities to investigate the incident. I’d called one of the other reps-to-be myself as soon as I was capable of crawling to the nearest phone. The records are sealed, however, because the Council was new and fragile back then. Reps were worried a story about violent infighting would damage their reputation and bring bad press to all Supernaturals and Enhanced humans.”
The witch pursed her lips, her fingers uncurling. “Convenient.”
“At the moment? Not especially.” The words were surprisingly wry. “After communications are back online, I’ll have the documents made available to everyone in this room. With one caveat.”
Kip and Lorraine froze mid-chew when that awful smile stretched across Max’s face again.
“If you disclose the incident to anyone else,” he told them, cold eyes sweeping across the living room and all its inhabitants, “you won’t live long enough to regret it.”
When his gaze met Edie’s, he shook his head.
I don’t mean you, he mouthed.You wouldn’t tell anyone.
Her lips curved, and she nudged his knee with hers.
Kip spoke through a mouthful of potato chips. “Did SERC ask you to drop out of sight? So they could keep things quiet?”
“Yes. But I was preparing to disappear even before they made their request. Janos and Jacquette each had their defenders, who might wish to avenge them. And my desire to interact with anyone of any species was…” He thought for a moment. “Minimal, shall we say.”
Everything he’d just told her—told them all—explained so much about the man she’d met three years ago, and even more about the vampire she’d met only that week.
