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“Let me go or you’ll regret it,” he snaps, trying to reach for me from over his shoulder.
Hayley gets in front of him. “It was you.”
He snarls at her. “That’s preposterous—”
Cicero materializes between Calhoun and Hayley, facing his coven brother. Without even a word, Cicero jabs his hand forward and breaks through Calhoun’s sternum. He pulls his heart out without question and drops it to the floor, leaving the man dead and hanging from my arms.
His other coven brothers remain silent in their seats, just watching Cicero handle the situation.
Turning toward Hayley, Cicero meets her gaze. “I want to offer an apology, Ms. Noble. It was quite obvious that you were telling the truth, and Calhoun proved it. I don’t need to see the footage to believe you. I’m terribly sorry, and I hope this doesn’t prevent us from working together. Abuse such as that is not tolerated with the renegades. It is what we are fighting against with our plans to divide La Vega over again. But not the donors. We do not want to separate families. We want to separate covens and start over again.”
Separate vampires? I could see how that might help things, considering it would redistribute power. But could we successfully do so? What would it mean for us? We have always been more of a lead by example and not a do as we say and not as we do type.
“You want to what?” Knox asks, getting closer to Hayley and wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “How the fuck do you plan to do that?”
Cicero offers a smile, flicking his gaze from Hayley to me and then to the others before returning it back to Knox. I drop his dead coven brother to the ground and step over him, wanting to be close enough to hold Hayley’s hand again.
“We want to unveil the dhampir and have her be our face for the change. When humans and vampires can see what is possible and how we can work together, they will change the way they see things. And as for the leaders...we won’t have to worry about them. They will fall. That I promise you.”
He plans to do what we were already considering. The leadership knows about Hayley because of Alexander, but there is an issue with that. What if they go after all the pregnant donor population? This could jeopardize things even more. We were going to declare her existence, but only as a last resort.
“No,” Cooper says, speaking up. “Hayley is pregnant. We’re not going to put focus on her right now.”
“He’s right. Hayley’s pregnancy is not like normal donors. The fetus is growing at a faster rate. She will be due soon. By my calculations, I think she could very well have the baby within two months or so.” Knox clears his throat and glances at me.
My heart skips a beat before sinking into my stomach. I had no idea of any of this. I knew that something was up, and he was meeting with a health keeper to discuss things, but his prediction? Holy shit.
Fuck.
We’re not ready for a baby. There is far too much at stake right now. If Hayley is due soon, we need to make some quick decisions. We might even need to consider leaving.
“Two months? I think we could work with that. And until then, you guys can stay here. We will keep Hayley off the radar and out of harm’s way. What do you say? Nobody knows what happened after the building collapsed. For all the leadership knows, they could think you’re all dead.” Cicero tightens his jaw. “What do you say?”
“What about the Bella? I have family there. Our crew is there. We can’t just hide. They’re counting on us.” Hayley says what I’m thinking, and I close my eyes for a second, trying to play through all the scenarios and strategies in my mind.
“Is there anyone there that you absolutely trust? You can let them know, and they can help us by acting the part.” Cicero stares at me expectantly, treating me as the leader of our crew.
But right now? I’m not in the mood for making these sorts of decisions. I still can’t stop thinking about Hayley and the fact that we are having a baby in what could possibly be two months.
“I think Tate and Walcott can keep the Bella safe. Govan can bring Mya here. As long as we can get some extra hands at the Bella, this might work. It’ll have to be one of you. You will need to go in.” Monroe speaks up, his strategizing far better than any of ours. He also knows the crews from working in the field with them. He has connections to the other crews as well.
“I will handle it myself.” Cicero stands up from his seat. “What do you say?”
I turn to Hayley. “This should be your decision. You’re the one who will have to out yourself as a dhampir. You’ll be the one who faces the aftermath. Just know, that we’re your coven. We will do whatever it takes. We are in this together.”
Hayley combs her fingers through her hair. “As long as you can promise me that Alexander’s blood will be mine, then yes.”
“Absolutely.” Cicero holds his hand out to Hayley, and she gingerly takes it, her human rationale and her fear instincts kicking on at his sudden touch.
“If you try anything stupid or go against us, I will take your heart. I’m not a possession, nor is any other donor. If I am going to lead this war as a dhampir, I will lead it. I’m not going to just be some pretty face. Me and the Bella Crew. You’re not in charge. Understand?” Hayley squeezes Cicero’s hand tighter, showing off her strength enough to make him wince.
Cicero releases Hayley’s hand and holds his hand out to me next. “Here’s to a new world and alliance.”
I nod my head. “To a new world.”
I just hope that it is better than the one we currently live in.
Our child needs a better, brighter future. I will do whatever it takes to ensure it. Our crew and family are what is most important now. The leadership will see. La Vega will see. The world is ready for this change.
