And the hits keep coming. It's a good thing Dani has motherly instincts.
I had a sinking feeling as we followed Sameer away from the others. I don’t know if it’s a sign of danger ahead or just that I’m numb. Some may suggest that I’m still processing my father’s and son’s deaths. They are only half right. There is nothing to process about Toño’s death. I’ve yearned for his death for decades. The only regret I have, other than I lost my son a second time, is that I didn’t kill him myself. I have a lot to unpack and process regarding Agustín. Both that he was alive all this time and that he died again. I still plan to corner Diana soon and drill her about that tidbit. Because if she has known all along that my son was alive… I don’t know what I’ll do. I may beat her within an inch of her life or kill her straight up. All I know for sure is if she’s kept my son’s existence from me our whole friendship, she’s dead to me. There was a lot that I was dreading about entering the room Sameer had to unlock. For all I knew, this was a double cross, and we were about
It’s getting hard to differentiate my emotions from Dani’s. We were both getting angry the most Diana talked. This was all some elaborate setup orchestrated by her? She’s just admitted to being the puppet master. Each time she opens her mouth, she’s digging a deeper grave. And when I think she’s going to hammer in that last nail, she says the most unexpected and absurd thing yet. I shook my head. “That’s not possible. No supernatural being could survive a photokinesis attack from an angel. They call it the Holy White Light for a reason. It cleanses a room of any supernatural being the light touches. Dani only survived because I shielded her with my human body and that table.” Dani struggled to find words, but her face hardened as she gripped Diana tightly. She finally found words, and they were laced with rage. “Agustín couldn’t have survived that blast. He was part of the ash pile with Toño. So stop telling me lies to save your neck. You orchestrated all this and thought you got t
I never understood the phrase ‘slept like a baby.’ And while babies do not sleep for long periods, they generally have a restful sleep, having no real fears or concerns to weigh on their minds. I prefer to sleep like a log or like the dead. That was not happening with Zory in the room. She’s a newborn and was up every couple of hours, needing to be fed and changed. But once her needs were met, she went back to sleep. During one of her feedings, I managed to stop Sameer, the real one this time, in the hall and ask if there have been any messages for Khalid or me. He seemed confused that I knew his name, which reminded me that all my interactions with him weren’t him. But he had a note from Agustín telling me that he would meet us in Portland as Auðr was playing a festival in New Orleans, and it was easier for him to get to Portland than back here to Egypt. We won’t see him for at least another day or longer. I kept reminding myself I’d waited sixty years so that I could wait a few day
I don’t know who handled the flight worse, Zory or the cats. I felt a little empathy for the cats, but what little sympathy I had seemed to go down every time Asim would reach out from his carrier to take a swing at Dani or when Jordan or Keith would leave the cockpit to get food or use the bathroom. I know he was trained to distrust and attack all supernatural beings from a young age, but he will need to learn to get along with certain ones. At least the kittens seemed better about it than him, but they are young, so we can train them to accept certain vampires and werewolves as allies. I know it can be done. As I know Asim can understand, not all supernatural beings are evil. He must have known Isis was a hybrid all this time but still loved and protected her. Especially after her cat passed away, he took on the guardian role for both of us. Sure she had her cat, but that didn’t stop me from finding Asim curled up in her lap or on her bed. So I have high hopes he can be retrai
Once at Aunt Sarael’s house, everyone quickly made their way to the living room, waiting impatiently for us to explain what was happening. How I have a baby and who the guy Dani punched is. “Alright, so I guess I’ll start at the beginning. I know you have many questions, but if you wait till I’ve finished before asking, I may answer them with what I’m about to say.” I started. “So, when Dani and I left Mount Adams, it was to handle personal business. That personal business was on my half, addressing the issue of dad and his bounty on me with the guild. And for Dani, it was revenge against her father who killed her mother, and she believed he killed her son the day he was born and later turned her and her sister into vampires.” “He thought it would be easier to start with the guild,” Dani explained, shifting Zory in her arms as she fed her a bottle. “An American hunter with a horrid name of Blaine, that Khalid failed to ensure was dead was turned into a vampire and helped broker a d
Things moved so fast after we came home with Zory. We looked around Mount Adams and found an existing house we could agree on. From there, it was a matter of waiting for all the windows to be replaced with specialized windows that would block the harmful UV rays of the sun so that no matter what time of day it was, Dani could walk past a window without worrying if blackout curtains were drawn. Then it was a matter of furnishing the four bedrooms, three and a half bath, just over four thousand one hundred square foot home. Did we need a house that big? Probably not. But it has a guest suite that Dani thought would be perfect for Agustín to crash in when he comes to visit. Then Zory gets a bedroom, and we plan to use the fourth bedroom as her playroom. This may sound like a lot, but the amount of crap we’ve been gifted from the pack is insane. These people barely survived, living as rogues when we took Noya down. Now they’ve all been given jobs working either for companies that are par
You miss many things when you’re a nocturnal being like me. I love being a mom and raising Zory with Khalid. But I know I miss out on a lot during the day. It makes it hard knowing that I’ve missed her firsts because I was sleeping. Even if Khalid records things so I can watch them later, it’s not the same. After I missed her first steps at nine months, I decided I needed to modify my sleep schedule. After all, I can safely walk around the house during the day. I can’t go outside with her to play during the day. So instead of waking up just after sunset, I started getting up three hours before sunset to spend time with her. I can’t ever wholly flip my schedule. I am still a vampire, and night is the only time I can leave the house. Plus, my Delta duties are centered around being the one nocturnal member of the ranked leadership. I am the one the pack comes to first for any emergencies after dark. I am the one in charge of the overnight patrol units. So I will never spend an entire da
Fuck! I swerved as a bullet took out my rear right tire. Double fuck! I should have never freed my mother. I should have left the bitch to die at the hands of the Bloodmoon Alpha.She said we would leave and that we would go home. She promised we would leave Isis and Auntie Sarael alone.I even sought Syndicate sympathizers within Bloodmoon to help me get her out, promising that my sister would ensure Kurt officially renounced all claims to his father’s pack.I didn’t realize when they got her; she made a new deal—promising to kill Isis so that either Kurt would be weak enough to kill or accept Noya as a chosen mate. I may not be a fan of my sister being with a werewolf, but I also know and accept I don’t get a say.Isis is a werewolf, and therefore, Kurt is her soulmate. I wouldn’t want to separate her from her soulmate.I thought just having her get him to abstain from being Alpha would be sufficient. My mother went too far.And now she’s dead. Fuck! I swerved again, and the bullet
You miss many things when you’re a nocturnal being like me. I love being a mom and raising Zory with Khalid. But I know I miss out on a lot during the day. It makes it hard knowing that I’ve missed her firsts because I was sleeping. Even if Khalid records things so I can watch them later, it’s not the same. After I missed her first steps at nine months, I decided I needed to modify my sleep schedule. After all, I can safely walk around the house during the day. I can’t go outside with her to play during the day. So instead of waking up just after sunset, I started getting up three hours before sunset to spend time with her. I can’t ever wholly flip my schedule. I am still a vampire, and night is the only time I can leave the house. Plus, my Delta duties are centered around being the one nocturnal member of the ranked leadership. I am the one the pack comes to first for any emergencies after dark. I am the one in charge of the overnight patrol units. So I will never spend an entire da
Things moved so fast after we came home with Zory. We looked around Mount Adams and found an existing house we could agree on. From there, it was a matter of waiting for all the windows to be replaced with specialized windows that would block the harmful UV rays of the sun so that no matter what time of day it was, Dani could walk past a window without worrying if blackout curtains were drawn. Then it was a matter of furnishing the four bedrooms, three and a half bath, just over four thousand one hundred square foot home. Did we need a house that big? Probably not. But it has a guest suite that Dani thought would be perfect for Agustín to crash in when he comes to visit. Then Zory gets a bedroom, and we plan to use the fourth bedroom as her playroom. This may sound like a lot, but the amount of crap we’ve been gifted from the pack is insane. These people barely survived, living as rogues when we took Noya down. Now they’ve all been given jobs working either for companies that are par
Once at Aunt Sarael’s house, everyone quickly made their way to the living room, waiting impatiently for us to explain what was happening. How I have a baby and who the guy Dani punched is. “Alright, so I guess I’ll start at the beginning. I know you have many questions, but if you wait till I’ve finished before asking, I may answer them with what I’m about to say.” I started. “So, when Dani and I left Mount Adams, it was to handle personal business. That personal business was on my half, addressing the issue of dad and his bounty on me with the guild. And for Dani, it was revenge against her father who killed her mother, and she believed he killed her son the day he was born and later turned her and her sister into vampires.” “He thought it would be easier to start with the guild,” Dani explained, shifting Zory in her arms as she fed her a bottle. “An American hunter with a horrid name of Blaine, that Khalid failed to ensure was dead was turned into a vampire and helped broker a d
I don’t know who handled the flight worse, Zory or the cats. I felt a little empathy for the cats, but what little sympathy I had seemed to go down every time Asim would reach out from his carrier to take a swing at Dani or when Jordan or Keith would leave the cockpit to get food or use the bathroom. I know he was trained to distrust and attack all supernatural beings from a young age, but he will need to learn to get along with certain ones. At least the kittens seemed better about it than him, but they are young, so we can train them to accept certain vampires and werewolves as allies. I know it can be done. As I know Asim can understand, not all supernatural beings are evil. He must have known Isis was a hybrid all this time but still loved and protected her. Especially after her cat passed away, he took on the guardian role for both of us. Sure she had her cat, but that didn’t stop me from finding Asim curled up in her lap or on her bed. So I have high hopes he can be retrai
I never understood the phrase ‘slept like a baby.’ And while babies do not sleep for long periods, they generally have a restful sleep, having no real fears or concerns to weigh on their minds. I prefer to sleep like a log or like the dead. That was not happening with Zory in the room. She’s a newborn and was up every couple of hours, needing to be fed and changed. But once her needs were met, she went back to sleep. During one of her feedings, I managed to stop Sameer, the real one this time, in the hall and ask if there have been any messages for Khalid or me. He seemed confused that I knew his name, which reminded me that all my interactions with him weren’t him. But he had a note from Agustín telling me that he would meet us in Portland as Auðr was playing a festival in New Orleans, and it was easier for him to get to Portland than back here to Egypt. We won’t see him for at least another day or longer. I kept reminding myself I’d waited sixty years so that I could wait a few day
It’s getting hard to differentiate my emotions from Dani’s. We were both getting angry the most Diana talked. This was all some elaborate setup orchestrated by her? She’s just admitted to being the puppet master. Each time she opens her mouth, she’s digging a deeper grave. And when I think she’s going to hammer in that last nail, she says the most unexpected and absurd thing yet. I shook my head. “That’s not possible. No supernatural being could survive a photokinesis attack from an angel. They call it the Holy White Light for a reason. It cleanses a room of any supernatural being the light touches. Dani only survived because I shielded her with my human body and that table.” Dani struggled to find words, but her face hardened as she gripped Diana tightly. She finally found words, and they were laced with rage. “Agustín couldn’t have survived that blast. He was part of the ash pile with Toño. So stop telling me lies to save your neck. You orchestrated all this and thought you got t
I had a sinking feeling as we followed Sameer away from the others. I don’t know if it’s a sign of danger ahead or just that I’m numb. Some may suggest that I’m still processing my father’s and son’s deaths. They are only half right. There is nothing to process about Toño’s death. I’ve yearned for his death for decades. The only regret I have, other than I lost my son a second time, is that I didn’t kill him myself. I have a lot to unpack and process regarding Agustín. Both that he was alive all this time and that he died again. I still plan to corner Diana soon and drill her about that tidbit. Because if she has known all along that my son was alive… I don’t know what I’ll do. I may beat her within an inch of her life or kill her straight up. All I know for sure is if she’s kept my son’s existence from me our whole friendship, she’s dead to me. There was a lot that I was dreading about entering the room Sameer had to unlock. For all I knew, this was a double cross, and we were about
I don’t know what’s harder to believe. That Diana is here simply because she was Toño’s prisoner or Sameer supporting me had created a domino effect within the others from the guild down here. I’m going to go with the latter. It isn’t that I find Sameer believing me a hard pill to swallow. He’s been my best friend since we were in diapers. He is to me what Silvercloud is to Kurt. The person will always have your back, even if you lead them down stupid paths. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for the support. But other than Sameer, I find it hard to believe that you believe my words. We’ve all worked together as hunters, and while your dislike of me was never as apparent as Blaine’s, I still knew most of you didn’t like me because I was the Adio heir. So why believe me? Or is it more than you believe Sameer?” I questioned. “Khalid, my dear friend, have some more faith in your brethren than that. No one ever disliked you.” Sameer sighed, stepping closer. I arched an eyebrow because we kno
This is my worst nightmare coming to life. Toño is holding Khalid by the throat, his hand ready and itching to rip his heart out. He takes pleasure in killing people I care about, especially in front of me. I can’t let this happen! I can’t lose Khalid. Of course, the damn asshole would choose NOW to tell me he loves me. I haven’t heard those words since I was human. My backstabbing piece of trash boyfriend whispered them along with promises of marrying me and starting a family in America. Cirilo may not have meant it, or at least not unconditionally, but Khalid does. I can feel it through our bond. I started to move, hoping to get there fast enough. I won’t let Khalid die. I will not let my nightmare become a reality. I can’t just wake up and reach for his half of the bed to be sure he’s safe. This is happening, and if I don’t stop Toño, I will lose the man I love. Now I, like most vampires, can move very fast. But I’m not as fast as Caleb or apparently as fast as my son. All the co