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Sky held on to his smile as a stray thought drifted through his mind. He’d stumbled into a strange world.
This must be how Nolan feels.
Hugs. The second he got Nolan away from Christoph, he was going to drown that man in hugs. Yes, lots of hugs and cuddles and muffins. Anything to make him feel safe again.
The interior of the Varik mansion was as opulent as Sky had expected after seeing the exterior. Everywhere he looked were thick Persian carpets, antique vases and knickknacks, while classic oil paintings of people and landscapes covered the walls. It was like stepping back in time to an old English manor for some duke. Sky immediately shoved his hands into his pockets. He was in a living museum and his inner child wanted to toucheverything.
“I thought we were expecting only one witch,” a voice growled from above. Sky lifted his eyes to a man in a dark suit with black hair pulled into a small ponytail at the nape of his neck, descending a set of wide, curving stairs.
“You got two for the price of one,” Moon called out, leaving Sky wanting to groan.
“What the hell! Don’t I count anymore?” Fox complained.
“No. You’re just his,” the stranger said with a jerk of his head toward Winter.
“Be nice!” The shout echoed off the walls and the three-story-high ceiling. They all glanced up to see a young man charging down the stairs with a wide grin on his face.
Fox leaned close to Moon and Sky. “The grumpy asshole is Marcus, the oldest Varik brother, and the one descending the stairs is his mate, Ethan.”
“Why do you whisper? We’re vampires. We can hear you,” Marcus grumbled as he reached the ground floor and glared at Fox.
The witch smirked at Marcus and continued in a whisper. “Because it seems less insulting if I whisper, and maybe you’ll get the hint not to eavesdrop.”
Marcus turned his glare on Winter as if there was something he could do about his boyfriend, but Winter smiled at his brother in an expression that screamed, “Fuck off!” Sky wanted to ask if Fox meant they were truly blood brothers when he kept using that word, but after seeing these two with each other, it was clear they were related.
“How many vampire brothers are there?” Sky inquired.
“Four. Winter is the youngest. Rafe and Bel are twins and the middle children. Aiden is their stepfather and sire. But the clan is much bigger than that. It even includes non-vampires like me,” Fox explained.
“We’ve even got two wolves,” Ethan announced as he joined them at the foot of the stairs. The bright young man with blond hair and eager grin turned his attention to Fox, punching him lightly in the shoulder. “You told me that male witches were rare.” He waved both of his hands at Sky and Moon. “Bam! We got two right here.”
Fox made a disgusted noise and gave Ethan a shove. “Whatever.” Some quick introductions were made all around, but Fox didn’t bother to give his or Moon’s magical specialty, which was appreciated. Sky might have glanced at Winter from the corner of his eye to find the vampire with a secret smirk on his lips. It fit that the youngest of the brothers was the biggest pot stirrer as well.
“Are Rafe and Bel coming?” Winter asked as Marcus led them up to the second floor.
“Bel, River, and Wyatt are already here,” Marcus replied.
Ethan tossed over his shoulder, “That’s a perk of having a wolf boyfriend who can drive during those thin daylight hours.”
“Rafe, Philippe, and Ryder are monitoring the Sandor clan. They won’t be joining us unless it appears there’s going to be a problem,” Marcus continued.
“Oh, I can guarantee you there’s going to be a problem. A big fucking problem if Christoph Sandor thinks he’s going to keep Nolan. Hekidnappedhim from his home!” Sky didn’t realize that he was nearly shouting at Marcus’s back until Moon placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. Sky bit on the inside of his mouth to keep from shouting more. Yes, it wasn’t helping, but it had been hours since he’d last seen Nolan. God only knew what had happened to him during that time.
“Christoph Sandor won’t be permitted to get away with this. He’s already on Father’s shit list for allowing his clan to sell humans as pets to other vampires,” Marcus said.
Sky almost laughed. Somehow that had slipped his mind. The whole encounter with Owen felt like a lifetime ago, but it had been barely a week ago.
When they reached the second floor, Marcus led them to a room with double doors. Sky’s heart skipped and sped up. His mouth grew dry, and his hands wanted to tremble. This was it. He was meeting the leader of all the vampires of North America. If shit went badly today, he’d not only worsen the animosity between himself and the Sandor clan, but it was likely that he’d make himself the enemy of all vampires.
So be it. The one thing that mattered was getting Nolan home safe.
He could do this.
Except the room stole away all his angry energy itself. It was supposed to be an opulent throne room. What he got was a cozy library with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and big leather couches for lounging. He wanted to live in this room. If someone could bring him the occasional scone and tea, he’d be happy.
Nolan would love this room. The image of Nolan stretched out on the sofa with a book instantly sprung to mind and a lump grew in Sky’s throat. He shook off the thought. Later. After he dealt with the vampires.
Only, he couldn’t guess which one was the king.
