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Viggo chuckled. “Zan was just waiting until we got home to start the questioning.”
A bullshit response, and I was sure Amaros knew, but he didn’t comment on it. Tim was on his feet, his death glare shooting between the four of us. He barely acknowledged Kali, and I hoped it stayed that way. My father did not need to know she was a Clover. That would only make all of this worse.
“Has he admitted anything yet?” Amaros asked, slowly prowling closer to Tim.
“No,” I said stiffly. “The hawthorn should be out of his system within the next day or so.”
“You haven’t tried to ask him yet?” Danger seeped into Amaros’s voice. Before I knew what I was doing, I stepped to the right, angling myself in front of Kali just before he turned and focused right on her. “But we can do that later. First…I’d like to talk to Kali.”
I went absolutely still. Something was wrong—with me. Confusion engulfed me as I tried to figure it out. My chest was tight. My breaths were coming out fast and ragged. I couldn’t slow down my heartbeat, no matter how hard I tried. It was crippling. So paralyzing that I couldn’t move if I tried.
“Zan, get out of the way,” Amaros ordered, his eyes narrowing at me.
His command made realization slam into me. Fear. Pure, unfiltered fear. An emotion I’d never in my life fully experienced. I’d never needed to. In this world, there were few predators stronger than me. I could handle anyone or anything that came at me, and that was ingrained in me as a child. Even when I was human before I transitioned to a Shadow, I was feared. As a Kane, the world was mine.
The closest I’d come to this feeling was when I came back to Impulse and saw Kali dying when PARA raided the city. But that night, it was rage that filled me when I saw the men who’d hurt her. I’d also known my blood would save her. Tonight was so different.
Was this how humans felt? This terror that was choking the life out of me? Was this how Kali felt when she came into my city? My respect for her only grew at that thought. She’d faced my brothers and me, knowing we were the devils of the night.
Right now, dread was coiling through me, and it was so fucking suffocating. Because I wasn’t confident that I could protect Kali.
I was a killer. Deadly. Strong. Few could take me on and live to talk about it.
But my father?
He was worse. He was hundreds of years old. Shadows were stronger than full-blooded vampires, but even my strength didn’t compare to his. He had power I didn’t possess. There were a couple other vampire bloodlines that were old too, but they were spread across the world, and our paths didn’t cross often. And when they did, I was always wary because it was the only time I wasn’t the largest monster in the room.
And tonight, I wasn’t. Amaros could rip through me to get to her before I even knew what was happening.
“Zan,” Amaros snapped, his patience waning. “Move.”
My teeth were clenched so hard that pain radiated to my jaw. Every part of me wanted to drag Kali out of here and take her somewhere far away. Pax and Viggo stood behind our father, watching me intently, both wearing identical faces of worry. When Viggo expressed worry, then it was bad. I doubted his panic was for Kali. No, it was for me. Going against Amaros was a grave mistake that all three of us knew never to make.
We’d grown up on a thin line of wanting his approval and staying out of his way. He’d never threatened what could happen if we disobeyed him, because we were smart enough to never do it. The one and only time we had was the night we snuck that baby girl off his property. And it was a miracle he’d never found out it had been us because he went on a rampage about it for weeks. After that, we learned quickly that following his rules was the easiest way to keep life peaceful.
I swallowed thickly, raising my eyes to meet my father’s angered glare. Stopping him from talking to Kali would be worse than letting it happen. She was wearing my necklace, and he knew what that meant. He wouldn’t hurt her. At least that’s what I told myself when I forced myself to step to the side.
Once Kali was in his view, Amaros gave me one last look of annoyance before turning his attention to her. His lips curled into a smile, but there was no warmth in it.
“Come here, Kali.”
Chapter 12
Kali
Amaros stared at me, waiting for me to follow his command. His dark green eyes studied me, and all I could see in them was death. I stayed rooted in my spot, terror sinking into my bones. Vampires of any sort scared me. But him? He radiated a power that seemed to take over the entire room. One that made my survival instincts burn—telling me I needed to do anything to escape him.
“Kali, go,” Zan gritted out through clenched teeth as he glanced over his shoulder at me. “Now.”
My heart tightened at his words. He’d spent all this time keeping me alive, and now he was demanding me to get closer to his father? My eyes turned hard, and I lifted my chin before slowly moving across the room. The tension was stifling, and Tim was watching everything without saying a word. I didn’t know whether he realized who Amaros was, but he looked so similar to his sons that it would be impossible not to figure out.
I halted about five feet from Amaros, and he cocked his head, studying me with a cold gaze. His eyes dropped to my feet before slowly trailing higher.
“Closer,” he said, his nostrils flaring as he sucked in a large breath.
My steps were small, but he took two large ones of his own, making my stomach knot painfully. I went rigid, keeping my eyes locked on his as he continued his inspection of me from less than a foot away.
“Your blood…” He trailed off, confusion flashing across his face. “I’ve only smelled something that unique once. Years ago. Hers wasn’t quite the same, but the similarity—” He cut himself off, an unsettling frown appearing on his lips.
