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“Allof these vampires are magic capable, and at least one of them has mage powers.” I eyed her severely. “They could freeze you in place with a flick of a hand and dine from you at their leisure, and there wouldn’t be one goddamn thing you could do about it.”
“Well, fuck.” She scraped a hand through her short, dark hair. “Is there anything we can do to protect ourselves? Can you fashion up some charms that’ll ward off the bastards?”
“I can, but there’s no guarantee they’ll work against a mage.”
“If it’ll hold off a vamp long enough for us to run in the opposite direction, I’ll consider that a win.”
I couldn’t imagine Tala or any of the other rangers actually doing a runner if they did come across a vampire, simply because it wasn’t in their nature, but I simply nodded and said I’d get straight on to it.
You can head home now, if you want, Belle said.Monty and I can handle this from here. Monty said you can take the beast, as we’re not that far from home.
I’ll catch an Uber. It’s too hot for any of us to be walking.
There was a slight pause, then Belle said, her laughter running down the mental lines,Monty said the beast will be getting a complex about nobody loving her at this rate.
That’s because no one does.
My voice was dry, and her laughter bubbled through me again.See you tomorrow.
I told Tala I was heading home, tugged out my phone to order the Uber, and headed around the side of the house and through the front gate to wait.
A few minutes later, I was back home.
And discovered that once again someone waited for me.
This time, it wasn’t a dead body.
It was Karleen Jayne O’Connor.
Aiden’s mom.
ChapterNine
Of the many—many—emotions that flooded me, surprise wasn’t one of them. She’d always arranged these little confrontations well away from prying ears or her son’s presence. Whatdidsurprise me was the fact that she was here rather than at the council meeting ratifying her son as pack alpha.
Unless, of course, that meeting was over and done with, and she’d scuttled here as soon as possible to warn me off yet again. She might not know that he and I had gotten engaged, but she wasn’t stupid. She’d be well aware Aiden intended to use his position as alpha to enforce a vote on the two of us setting up a home within the compound.
But hey, if she was here to fight, then I was fucking willing to give her one.
I directed the Uber into the rear parking area and gave her a wave as we pulled into the laneway, knowing full well it would piss her off to no end. I didn’t see her scowl, but the force of her displeasure vibrated through the air, something I could sense despite all the metal surrounding me.
The Uber came to a halt near the rear door. I thanked the driver, then grabbed the pack and climbed out. By the time I reached the step and opened the door, she was beside me.
“Karleen,” I said evenly, “what a pleasure to see your lovely self again.”
She snorted. “I’m not here to be pleasant.”
“You never are. Come in, or stand on the step and shout at me, your choice. I don’t care either way.”
I opened the door and walked inside, my back itching with the force of her glare. She couldn’t hurt me, not in here, but tiny flickers of energy nevertheless danced across my fingers. I placed the pack in the reading room, then walked behind the counter to flick on the kettle. She might not be here to be pleasant, but I certainly needed a pleasant cup of tea. Whiskey would have been better, of course, but that was sadly out of bounds.
She stopped on the other side of the counter and crossed her arms, her expression giving little away, but her aura practically screaming. Furious did not even begin to describe the current state of her mind.
“You will never be his mate,” she growled. “Even if heisconfirmed, you will never be allowed a permanent place within the compound’s grounds.”
“Ifhe’s confirmed?” I countered. “You mean you don’t know? Why not, given you’re currently pack alpha and the meeting to approve his rise in rank was held this afternoon?”
“That is pack business, not yours.”
