Chapter 7

“Stevie, it’s not your fault...” I didn’t get a chance to finish before Alex cut in.

“We have company.”

Chase moved to stand in front of me as if to shield me from our visitor. Stevie and Alex stood on either side of Chase, their bodies coiled tight with tension. I didn’t hear a car or even footsteps.

“Well, well, the infamous Knox family has returned.” The man’s voice sent shivers down my spine, and not in a good way, either.

“Tell me, Miss Knox, where is your father? Surely the great Ralph Knox did not let his prized daughter come here alone, unprotected?”

The man’s voice had a harsh edge to it, and you could tell from the condescending way he spoke my father’s name that he hadn’t liked him. I didn’t understand why. This was the first time Stevie had been here, so how did he know her or my dad? Before I could think about it more, my sister spoke.

“Randall Cane, what an unpleasant surprise. What brings you to my family’s land? You know your kind is not welcome here without an invitation.” Wait, what did she just say—our family’s fucking land? I’m missing something here, and I do not like it one bit.

As soon as this Randall guy left, my sister was getting an earful from me. I was fucking done with the lies and the secrets. What else was my sister hiding from me?

“The fact that my clan was not notified of your return is what brought me here, young one. You would be wise to watch your tone. I do not care for smart-mouthed youth,” he snapped.

“Where is your father? We had an agreement, and your kind has not kept their end of the deal.”

“My uncle is no longer with us, Cane. So watch how you speak of the dead!” Alex roared. I could feel the tension rolling off my three family members.

“My apologies, I did not know of his death. I meant no disrespect, young ones. Your father was a great man, Miss Knox. He brought peace to all the communities, but I am afraid that peace may not last much longer, given recent events.” Randall sounded like he was trying really hard to project sincerity, but he failed miserably to pretend he wasn’t also happy our father was dead.

“What do you mean? The peace treaty has had no problems as far as we are aware. Our coven has been keeping tabs on the witches and warlocks in our region,” Chase stated.

“Then they have misled you, Mr. Knox. I can assure my kind and the packs have been under attack for the past three months. We assume it’s the coven, as it’s not my clan or the pack. If you cannot reel your coven in, we will take matters into our own hands.”

“Is that a threat, Cane?” Chase snapped, stepping off the porch stairs, heading toward Randall.

His fists were balled at his sides, with a purple light covering them. No sooner had Chase moved—and I came into view—did the strange man take a step back, almost like he had seen a ghost. He looked scared.

“It cannot be! You cannot be alive—she said you were dead!” I was meant to be dead? Chase stopped in his tracks and peered over his shoulder at me, clearly no better informed than I about this development. I shrugged and decided to ask Randall myself. I wasn’t going to hide anymore, or be lied to and kept in the dark.

“What do you mean I’m supposed to be dead? And who is this ‘she’?” He shook his head before he answered; it was as if he was trying to clear his mind of what he was thinking. He was not a tall man— Chase and Alex towered over him. He had blond hair and blue eyes, and his build was stocky. If he hadn’t been projecting malice and rage like an antenna, I might have even described him as attractive.

“Forgive me, I am Randall Cane, king of the Alaskan Vampire Clan,” he said with a bow. My mouth charged ahead before my brain could catch up.

“What the fuck did you just say? Vampires? Are you kidding me?” Randall turned to Stevie with eyes sparking in outrage.

“My sister is new to all of this,” Stevie rushed to add, giving me a sharp look. Her irritation pissed me off. How dare she? It wasn’t my fault I didn’t know about this shit.

“Sister? Well, that explains why you look alike,” he said dryly.

“Why have I never heard of her before? Ralph never said he had two daughters.”

“That is not of your concern, Randall!” Stevie’s voice was like a knife, razor-sharp.

“It is my concern when I signed a blood treaty with a man who lied to me and told me he had one living heir, not two!” he roared.

“You will watch your tone when you address the coven heir, Cane. If she says it is not your concern, then it’s not,” Alex bellowed and took a step forward.

“You will watch how you address me, Mr. Knox. Do not forget your place here. I will end you if you push me too far, boy!”

“You lay one hand on my cousin, and I will kick your ass to kingdom come, buddy. I may not have the witchy voodoo shit under control as they do, but I am a black belt in karate,” I snapped at the vampire king. Nobody was talking to my cousin like that in my presence.

All heads turned in my direction. Stevie looked shocked, while Alex and Chase were suppressing smug grins. Randall guffawed, which sent my blood pressure rising. Once his fit of giggles finally stopped, he looked at me and spoke.

“There will be no need for that, Miss…?”

“My name is Ryan.”

“Well, I guess your father was telling the truth. He said your mother really did want a boy.” The sarcasm was thick in his tone.

He was actually right about that. My mother hated the fact that we were not boys. She said girls were always trouble, and boys were easier because they could never come home with a baby growing in their womb.

“Well, surprise! I’m a girl, just like my sister, tits and all,” I replied, with a wink and fake smile.

“You have the mouth of a sailor to boot. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Ryan. I hope you will be staying in town for a while? I would love to get to know you better.”

“That’s not going to happen. If you want to talk to her, then you can do so in front of all of us.” Chase’s tone left no room for argument, and his glare would have sent me back a step or two if it had been directed my way.

“Well, if that is the case, I would love for you all to join me this evening at my home. I am having a little get-together. The pack will be over for a meeting regarding the treaty, so it would be beneficial for you all to join us.”

“Wait! What do you mean pack? As in, like, a werewolf pack?” I said, laughing. Next thing you know, they’re going to produce Santa Claus at this meeting.

“I do not understand why you think the pack is funny. They are hairy, ugly creatures, but they are no laughing matter.” Randall seemed bemused by me, tilting his head to the side.

“Holy fuck, you’re for real. There is a wolf pack?” I can’t believe this; my mind is reeling with all the shit I have learned today. This was some Twilight shit, was Randall going to sparkle in the sunlight? Stevie turned to me and murmured,

“We will explain everything, Ry—we just haven’t had the chance yet.” Stevie then turned back to Randall.

“We accept your invitation, Randall.”

“Excellent. Please arrive no later than seven this evening. Until then, I will bid you farewell, Knox family.” And with a slight bow, he turns and is gone like a flash of light. I scan the yard, unable to believe my eyes. It was like he just vanished into thin air. I didn’t even notice Alex approaching me, I was so stunned by Randall’s vanishing act.

“How are you holding up, squirt?”

“I feel like I should be in a looney bin,” I deadpanned.

“With padded white walls?” Chase teases, a playful smirk on his face.

“Yep,” I agreed.

“I know you must have a lot of questions for us, and we want to answer them all. For your own wellbeing, though, we can’t right now. We have to get ready for this evening’s event. Can you handle waiting a little bit longer?” Alex asked.

I didn’t really know how to answer that question. I wanted answers, and I had so many questions, but I needed time to process what I had just learned today. So I simply shrugged and nodded in agreement.

With that, we all went inside to begin getting ready for an evening with vampires and werewolves—whatever that entailed.