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Chapter 41
In the vampire world, when you defeat a Master and take over his territory, the majority of his assets become yours. It took a month for the stocks, bonds, titles, and deeds to go through the legalities of changing hands, and for Gavin to be listed as CEO of the various corporations, in place of his predecessor. And while this happened, he signed his Branson assets over to the new Master of Branson, who paid Gavin a fair price for the businesses he legally purchased.
So, while Gavin was paid for the properties he’d owned in Branson, he merely had to pay the legal fees for the transfers when it came to the territory he’d taken by the rules of challenge.
Huxley hadn’t been married, which was helpful, because Gavin would’ve gained his wife, and Lauren wouldn’t have found humor in that.
Gavin’s victory had been challenged, of course, and the Concilio ruled that Lauren had, indeed, merely given Gavin her magic when she launched Cally into the fight.
For a formal challenge, the combatants are usually nude and inside of a fire circle or other barrier to separate them from observers, but this hadn’t been a formal contest. Gavin hadn’t intended to win, but he should’ve known Lauren wouldn’t allow him to lose, if he’d considered it.
But now that he held the power, he was happy she’d intervened. He’d restricted himself to Branson because he’d been afraid of holding too much power. He’d abused his power, once upon a time, but he was a different man now. A different vampire.
Zander’s method of balancing kindness and cruelty absolutely worked. Gavin wasn’t going to be cruel just for the hell of it. Well, not terribly often, anyway.
Nathan had encouraged Nick to return to Branson, rather than put himself into a position of having to challenge the Las Vegas Rex. Nathan had assured Nick they could figure out how to get him to Vegas, or at least the next county over, but it might take a few months.
Lauren’s mother had flashed her daughter back and forth, so Lauren could spend the night with their lion a few nights a week.
Gavin hoped to rectify this today, but it was going to be touch-and-go, and Gavin had to trust Nathan to handle the majority of the Rex situation.
Lauren and Gavin had moved into the former Master’s penthouse condo on the strip, and the furniture was still all white fabrics with shiny gold lamps and tables and picture frames on the walls. Tacky, tacky, tacky, but he’d had a million other things to deal with. Razor’s boy, in Chattanooga, was putting together some options for them, based on videos, pictures, and measurements Queenie had sent him.
This room was set up as a throne room. Gavin had removed the hideous gold chair with the high back and replaced it with two comfortable upholstered chairs. He and Lauren sat in the chairs while Nathan stood below them and welcomed the Rex of the Las Vegas Pride into the room.
Nathan, Nick, and the Rex sat in a grouping of love seats and chairs, and Gavin took Lauren’s hand, floated them to the seating arrangement, and sat with her on a loveseat.
“You don’t live on the strip, and as far as I can tell, eschew it.” Nathan told the local Rex.
“This is true, My King.”
“Nick leads a non-traditional Pack — dancers and entertainers, many of whom have life-partners who aren’t lion. This works well in Branson, and can work in Vegas as well.” He took a breath, and Gavin had the sense the Amakhosi was working to stay relaxed and not show how important this negotiation was to him. “New York City has seventeen Prides, some only a few blocks from each other. I propose that Vegas is big enough for two: One relegated to the strip and the roads immediately around it, and another for those who prefer the desert, away from the lights and mania of Sin City.”
“If this comes to pass, three of the members of my Pride will almost certainly want to join the new inner-city Pride, and I will allow it.” The Rex glanced at Nick and looked back to the Amakhosi. “I am not interested in providing land for this new Pride, Your Majesty, nor will I want their scentsanywhereinside my territory. I will allow for a closed vehicle on the road into and out of town, but no other presence within my territory.”
“I’ve negotiated an agreement with the Pride in Esmerelda County,” Gavin told them. “I own property there, and I will designate some of it as Pride lands for Nick’s people.” Point of fact, Gavin owned a legal brothel in Esmerelda County, and it came with plenty of land.
“You will be invited into my territory at times,” Nick told the other Rex. “Galas, fundraisers, supernatural gatherings, and likely other activities. It’s also possible you or your people will wish to attend sporting events and concerts in town, and you’ll need my invitation to do so. In exchange for accommodating you for these incursions, I will ask you to accommodate me when I visit the coterie’s other properties in the county.”
The other Rex didn’t want to agree to allowing Nick in his territory, and Gavin could sense the battle between man and lion. Thankfully, the human’s logic won out, and he told Nick, “My lion is territorial. So long as you remain on the streets, inside your vehicle, while traveling to and from those properties, and so long as I have a heads up before your energy is in my territory, I believe I can tolerate this.” He sighed, sat back, and relaxed. He’d been expecting a fight, and seemed relieved to find himself in negotiations rather than a fight to the death. “You’re in a relationship with a woman whom our Master calls the love of his life, and whom our King sees as a daughter of sorts. I will gladly hand over the ceremonial jobs of the Rex of Vegas.”
“Nice try,” Gavin told him. “You will remain the Las Vegas Rex, and Nick will be the Rex of the Vegas Strip. It’s true Nick can handle many of the ceremonial duties you’ve been trotted out for, but we’ll need both of you present for the big events.”
“Understood.” He looked back to Nick. “I will gladly hand over my three diva lionesses who are only here for the work they get in the shows. Many of my lions work on the strip as guards, or in the hospitality industry, so they’ll need your permission to enter for work.”
“And I expect some of my Pride will find homes in the suburbs when they move here, and they will need your permission to own or rent a home in your territory.”
It took three hours for them to draw out territory lines, iron out the written contract, and agree to the wording on updated blood oaths with Gavin to reflect the new agreement.
When the Las Vegas Rex and Amakhosi finally left the room together, Gavin sat with Lauren and the Rex of the Vegas Strip, and they were home.
Chapter 42
Lauren had never expected that when she left the Branson coterie house to fly to Vegas, she’d never return. Movers packed her things and brought them to Vegas, where she and Gavin lived on top of theUniversal Palace Hotel and Casino.
She’d been worried about the Shakespearean piece, but she needn’t have been. Ancient vampires excel at making sure the legal wording is in their favor, and Gavin’s contracts made sure the piece followed him when he moved. It was in their shared bedroom in the penthouse, and she had it to look at for another six weeks. Nick knew about it now, and he might roll his eyes at her when she stopped to look at it and take in the gravity of having the actual paper Shakespeare wrote the beginning of the famous play on, but she thought he was secretly pleased to have it in their room, too. He’d been with them seven weeks, and the three had come together, living under the same roof with an easy harmony Lauren hadn’t expected. They’d all been terribly busy, organizing their new lives and jobs and responsibilities, but they’d also had plenty of time for each other.
Gavin’s main property, on practically the middle of the strip, housed five theaters — a huge mega theater with a theatrical circus act, two large theaters, one with a famous physical comedy troupe, and another with a naughty circus-type show complete with topless dancers and lots of bizarre acts all melded into an odd-show type theme. The two smaller theaters only held a few hundred people for each showing, one with a topless burlesque show and the other with an impressive magician who was destined for greater things, eventually.
