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My stomach drops when I catch the heading at the bottom of the screen.
ALLEGED SUPERNATURAL ATTACK IN VANCOUVER.
“What the fuck?” Lex snaps, sitting up in a flash, his eyes popping wide.
Kade and Gabriel move to stand on either side of me, and Calla walks around the couch and sits next to Lex, staring wide-eyed at the headline, her mouth open slightly in a silent gasp.
“…cell phone footage submitted to us anonymously. We must warn viewers that what you’re about to see is very graphic.” The image of the news anchor switches to a shaky video of a dark-haired female vampire attacking a man outside what looks to be a nightclub. She pushes him against the brick wall, throws her head back with her fangs fully extended, then sinks them into the man’s throat.
“Fucking hell,” Kade growls, gripping the back of the couch.
“Did we just get outed on national television?” Lex asks, his voice tight and his jaw sharp.
“It would appear that way,” Gabriel says in a dangerously calm voice.
I stare at the television, waiting for my phone to ring.
“What happens now?” Calla asks in a small voice, glancing at each of us. Her gaze stops on me last and holds; she expects me to have an answer.
Raking my fingers through my hair, I let out a heavy sigh. “I don’t have a fucking clue,” I admit, the words tasting bitter on my tongue.
“This has never happened before?” she asks.
“Not like this,” I tell her. “Living in the age of social media where everyone has a camera in their pocket… it’s changed things for us.” I turn my gaze to the guys. “Get on the phone and connect with as many of your contacts as possible. We need a game plan to handle things moving forward.”
We don’t give ourselves a moment to react further than we already have. Every second we don’t move on this, the worse it’s going to get.
Lex stands, pulling his phone out of his pocket, while Kade slips out to the terrace, his phone already against his ear.
“Do you think the hunters have something to do with this?” Calla asks, her brows pinched together.
I shake my head. “We can’t know for sure either way, but it doesn’t matter all that much. It’s out there.”
“Right,” she mumbles. “Do you think the hunters will go public now? They could use this as an opportunity to recruit new members by preaching public safety and all that.”
“Calla—” I start in a sharp tone before catching myself. I soften my tone and continue, “I understand this is overwhelming for you, but I can’t stand here and answer your slew of questions right now.”
She drops her gaze, and I immediately feel like the biggest asshole on the planet. I clench my jaw to stop myself from apologizing. I can’t worry about her feelings at this very moment. I need to get a handle on the situation.
Kade pokes his head back inside, still on the phone. “Word is spreading quickly.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Where?”
“Down south,” he answers, and I get a flash of his fangs. His pulse is erratic, though his expression is stoic—he’s trying to keep up a calm and collected facade, but the only one he’s likely able to fool is Calla. Even she might be able to see through it at this point.
“In the Midwest too,” Lex adds, holding the phone against his ear with his shoulder as he pours a second blood bag into a glass this time. He’s been a stress eater since I’ve known him, and it’s safe to say the exposure of our kind is stress-inducing.
Son of a bitch.
“There’s too much widespread exposure to cover up,” Gabriel comments in a level voice, though his expression is strained with concern as he scrolls on his phone. He’s always been more of a suffer in silence type, but it’s safe to say he’s as stressed as the rest of us.
I nod stiffly, letting out a heavy sigh when my phone starts buzzing in my pocket.
That took longer than I was expecting.
“What?” I bark into the phone.
“Atlas, this is Terrance Walker. I work for your parents.”
