Page 38 of Malice

“It doesn’t matter,” Theo presses. “By making the Order Public Enemy Number one, you informally called off the deal. And if the deal is off, you need to inform the alliance and not let your bullshit, sloppy actions speak for themselves because by the way it looks, the Order has bested us and that is a fucking problem.”

“The real problem, brother,” he says, mocking the way Theo says the word. “You are impulsive. Violent. Emotional. There was no need to rip the fangs out of those wolves after you killed them.”

“They attacked us,” Theo spits through his gritted teeth. “And tried to sink those dirty fangs into vampire flesh. That is punishable by death as it has been written for centuries.”

“True as that may be, a room full of vampires could have easily subdued werewolves any other way. Unlike witches, they aren’t immune to our ability to hold them spellbound.”

“Don’t try to shift the blame to me. You’re the one who fucked up by being too busy caring about her.”

Xavier’s eyes flash. “I told you to watch your mouth. She’s part of this family and she is my wife.”

“Let’s go with that,” Theo continues. “Somehow, she finds the sigil, gets this demon-deal called off and everything is peachy. Then what? You leave her to help you rule a broken kingdom? You’re not thinking things through. She’s clouding your judgment and it will affect us all.”

If I could slink back and disappear into the shadows, I would. But there are no shadows or anywhere to hide. So instead, I stand there feeling awkward even though it’s not out of the ordinary to listen to Theo rant about Xavier’s love for me clouding his judgement.

“Hunters are not supposed to take up residence anywhere east of Charlotte,” Xavier begins and unbuttons his suit jacket. He takes it off and drapes it over the chair like this conversation is boring to him. “Maybe it’s time we make an exception.”

“You can’t be fucking serious,” Theo spits. “You’re inviting them in?”

“I’m presenting an opportunity,” he replies, a razor-sharp grin on his face. Light glints off of fangs, which I hadn’t even seen come down. “I’m giving them rope and letting them hang themselves.”

Theo’s eyes narrow but then his shoulders relax. “Then we won’t have to justify what comes next.”

“Exactly,” Xavier says, and his calmness sends a chill through me. He’s giving the Order the opportunity to fuck around so they can find out. And finding out the Malus family way means bloodshed.

“You guys want to go for a run?” I ask my brothers, coming back into the kitchen. They’ve moved to the table, snacking on slices of cheese and veggies.

“Now?” Leo asks. “I’d rather take a nap and then…I don’t know. Figure out where to go because I don’t want to stay another night in this vampire-Barbie dream house.”

“Everything okay?” Antonio asks, grabbing two slices of cheese. “I mean, besides the obvious.”

“I don’t know,” I sigh, and guilt rises up inside of me. I still haven’t told anyone about Marie and the witches and I shouldn’t feel bad. I’m not doing anything wrong…right? I’m more than allowed to make friends and right now, she seems pretty harmless and possibly even helpful. There’s not enough to tell anyway, so it makes sense to keep it to myself and yes, I know I’m rationalizing this whole situation. “I’ve been slacking on my training. Let’s run.”

“We don’t have running clothes,” Leo tries.

“Nice try,” I tell him. “I’ll get you something.” Leo, Antonio, and Devon are all roughly the same size, and there never seems to be a shortage of clothes in this house. I go upstairs, wave to Mabel as I pass by her room, and change into workout clothes myself and then bring some down for my brothers.

“I really don’t feel like fucking running,” Leo complains when we get out into the later afternoon heat and start down the driveway.

“Did you drink yourself stupid?” Antonio asks, flicking Leo on the back of the head. “Being outside means the vamps can’t hear us anymore.”

“Oh, right.” Leo blinks a few times and takes a deep breath. “I thought you trusted them, Wren.”

“I do,” I counter, stretching my arms out as we walk. “But I can still enjoy a walk without being overheard.” I raise my eyebrows, giving him a pointed look. “And right now, I need to know if you knew anything about the Order agreeing to keep hunters from being stationed permanently in eastern North Carolina.”

Antonio shakes his head. “Never heard anything, but I always wondered why. I joked a few times about being relocated to the coast and it wasn’t met with humor—at all. Could explain why.”

“Why would the Order keep hunters out of a certain area?” Leo questions and at first I think he’s going back to being Team Order but thankfully I see the question on his face. “It would go against everything they stand for.”

“Right,” I say with a shrug. We make it to the road and start jogging.

“We know they made a deal with Xavier,” Antonio starts. “And the demon. They’re self-serving.”

“And corrupt,” Leo adds. “Makes you wonder what else they have done.”

We jog maybe half a mile before Antonio asks me, “Why did you bring up hunters in the eastern part of the state?”

I hesitate, hating how torn I feel. It would be so much easier to tell them everything and have them be on my side. And it would be so much easier if this were black and white. Order equals bad. Vampires are equally good.