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Khan glanced over at Black. "Right, because shifters spill all their secrets freely, without holding back?"
Shifters were the paranormals most likely to work with humans over fae witches or vampires, especially regarding the military or for protection.
As a result, they often had a hand in delicate human matters the vampires or fae witches couldn't begin to fathom.
Much like how vampires had an exceptional skill for earning money, far more than the other paranormal species ever guessed.
Leo hated all of the fucking secrets between them. But as much as he was slowly coming to trust the pair more and more, he didn't think any of them were about to share everything, without restraint.
Maybe one day. Or so Leo hoped, for the sake of his unborn children.
Leo cleared his throat and the pair focused back on him. "All I'll say regarding my sister right now is that her future is her choice, and that includes where she wishes to live eventually." Leo tugged his waistcoat down and added, "Now, let's discuss our next steps with the French vampire bastards so Khan can get to his meeting with Vale."
Black crossed his arms over his chest and nodded. "A few individuals have been passing information to me, secretly of course, from the human government and what's known or allowed by the French vamps."
Leo waved a hand for him to continue. "And?"
"It seems someone in the Home Office has written a report, praising their good behavior and advocates for them staying in England as long as they behave."
"Bloody hell," Leo grumbled.
Black grimaced. "Aye. They most likely have an ally inside the Home Office, which will make them that much harder to attack or take down without repercussions."
Leo clenched his fingers into fists. "Fuck." He looked around the room. "That means we're going to have to either deal with the French vampires covertly or find a way to expose their ally—most likely a bribed one—in the Home Office itself. Because no matter what the current relations between France and Britain, most won't think it's a good idea to allow so many foreign vampires into the country at once, let alone allow for them to establish themselves right outside my territory."
Because if there was ever a way to stir up trouble, it was to put paranormals from different European countries right next to each other. History was long, and betrayals over the centuries had created constant animosity.
Khan finally spoke up. "Many of my seers have disappeared, so not even I can know everything that's coming."
"How many are left?"
Khan shook his head. "I won't divulge that much detail. Regardless, it puts me at a bigger disadvantage than I'm used to. As such, I think we need to train as many males as we can, in case it comes to a fight, or even war."
Black nodded. "Aye, I've been doing that with nearly all my shifters for weeks now, as a precaution. However, don't be like our forefathers and discount all of the females either. More than a few of my female shifters have seen combat before, and are weapons in their own right. And no, don't ask for the details of how many, because I can't give them."
Leo suspected it had something to do with a shifter-human army relationship. "Well, I'm about as different from my father as possible. However, vampires aren't the same in that our females usually don't train to be soldiers. Although females can be useful in other ways, even without fighting. I'll discuss it with my bride and see what ideas she might have, since she comes from a time when females have greater freedoms and take on more important roles."
Black smiled. "What I wouldn't give to see the future. Maybe if I'm a lucky bastard like you, Leo, my fated one will be from the future too."
Khan snorted. "Hoping doesn't make it true."
"But a wolf can still dream, aye?"
Leo cleared his throat. "Yesenia hasn't yet finished her time travel magic training, and won't open any sort of matchmaker business until her third sibling is safely here. So for now, let's just focus on the fucking French. Because even if you two don't have wives yet, you might one day, and a safer London is something we all want."
They all nodded and went over the final lingering details of what came next, including some training sessions where all of their respective people worked together. If they were to be united against the French vampires, then the British paranormals needed to learn to trust each other more via forced proximity. It was hard to hate someone if they were supposed to guard your back in battle.
Once he was finally alone again, Leo went in search of his wife. She'd been running herself ragged with all of her studies and preparing for her next attempt at bringing a fated one to this time period. And it was Leo's job to help her relax a bit, release stress, and to simply love her.
It was one of his favorite things to do, taking care of his witch. So he went looking and planned exactly how to release her stress best, with them both naked and in bed, so she wouldn't fret during River's meeting with Khan.
ChapterThirteen
River walked into Leo's empty study and went to sit down in one of the chairs in front of the desk. Even though he could walk short distances without crutches now, he couldn't stand for long periods yet without sweating.
And he needed all the strength he could muster because who knew what kind of power play bullshit Dark Lord Khan might try to pull on him. No matter the century, dick-swinging contests were a thing. River was going to do his best to follow Yesenia's advice to be firm, and yet not disrespectful.
He'd even promised Yesenia he'd try to tone down his language. He didn't like it, but apparently this Dark Lord had a shitton of magical power—a type often used as a sort of boogeyman for children in this time period—and the male could, and probably would, decide River's fate in a matter of minutes.
