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“Mistress Gabriella.” Julian nodded.
No one could miss the rage vibrating off Gabby in waves, but Julian’s expression remained neutral. He was the ruler of Vegas, twice Gabby’s age, and had seen more than his share of murderous vampires. For the sake of their masquerade before the humans, he preferred any vampire business to be done without humans present.
“How can you not tell her?” With Gabby on her feet and Julian sitting, she towered over him. Neither of them was fooled. Gabby could do nothing that would threaten Julian, but it didn’t matter.
It was the principle of the thing.
“Who?”
“Leah. Your mate.”
Julian’s eyes narrowed. Raw, primal power emanated from him. Gabby refused to cow under the weight of the lethal glare that had other vampires quaking in their boots.
“What did you do?”
“I told her the truth. She deserves at least that much from the likes of you.”
A low growl, a sound no human should be able to make, reverberated up Julian’s chest. Everyone froze, their gazes trained on them as an oppressive tension pervaded the room. More than one human jerked their collar to loosen their tie in search of air.
Gabby’s eyes locked on Julian, waiting for any sudden movements. His expressionless face told her he would like to tear her limb from limb.
Deep down, she knew Felix was the target of her wrath, but Julian seemed like the easier target. Something must be wrong with her to make her confront Julian rather than Felix.
Felix chose that moment to arrive with Nasir, his second-in-command. It took him less than a second to assess the room and appear next to Gabby.
“Should I be worried?” He glanced between Gabby and Julian, his body ready to move at the first sign of aggression from either party.
“No.”
No one could ignore the command from behind them. Alistair stood at the door in a pressed navy suit. His chocolate-colored hair was brushed back to emphasize the rough edges of his savage yet beautiful face. Goosebumps rose on Gabby’s arm as his black gaze landed on her.
Neither the time nor the place.
Outwardly, he gestured to everyone, especially the humans, and said, “Everyone, please sit.”
He sauntered to the head of the table with the confidence of a man who was used to being obeyed. When he passed Gabby and Julian, he repeated, “Sit.”
Gabby recognized a lost cause when she saw one and took a seat at the opposite corner from Julian. She couldn’t battle it out with Julian right there. At least she’d done the right thing by Leah. Perhaps Leah could use this newfound knowledge to her advantage, whatever that may be.
Felix sat next to her. The second in commands, including Nasir and Nikolas, stood behind the respective Head of the House.
Why does Julian want to kill you?Felix asked through their connection.
Because I told Leah she’s Julian’s mate.
A mental sigh from Felix.It’s not our place to interfere in their relationship.
Gabby glared at him.He is a vampire who’s lived a thousand years. Leah is just a young human woman. She needs all the help she can get. Now get out of my head. I need to focus. Unlike you, I’m not versed in this world yet.
Tamping down the urge to punch some sense into every one of these domineering Ancients, she surveyed the room. There were more vampires than humans present, which explained the humans’ scent of fear and nervousness. Her little stare down with Julian hadn’t helped with their comfort levels.
She didn’t recognize most of the humans, except the Vice President of the United States and the Governor of California, whom she’d met during the Gala. To be fair, she didn’t know all the vampires yet, either.
In her flurry of studying since her awakening, she’d learned there were four vampire Houses in the US, including House Haven, House Eden, House Whitmore, and House Mahal. She recognized Devon, Head of House Whitmore, who was also a Councilor. Nikolas pointed out Malika Mahal a few seats away, a tall woman with honeyed skin, who was Head of House Mahal. The heads of the two Houses in Mexico, as well as in Canada, were also present. Stephen, as official vampire liaison between the US government and vampire society, was also here.
Alistair stood at the head of the table, his overwhelming presence dwarfing those of every other vampire. The room quieted and everyone’s attention turned to the Vampire King.
“Welcome, everyone, to the first united Gathering of humans and vampires. This is an important next step for our two races to not only maintain lasting peace, but also to build a stronger bond and work together toward common goals to benefit both parties.
