by Lia Davis
"You had anxiety?" he asked, worry in his voice.
"Since Quin became my sentry. I had no idea it was tied to it."
He took a deep breath and raised his eyebrows. "Well. We have a lot to be getting on with, don’t we?"
"How are we going to present this to the pack? They’ll be just as shocked that I’m mated to three men as they will that one of them is a vampire."
"They won’t react as badly as you think to that. There are legends, and packs in other countries that do this regularly, both with men and women."
"What?" I exclaimed. "How did I not know that?"
"It’s not talked about much. You’d have learned about them eventually, as they’ll all be under your protection one day. And it wasn’t that far back in history that fate brought us more than one mate at a time."
"I wonder what made it stop?" I asked.
"I’m not sure. But it’s not entirely true that you can’t deny your mate," Dad said with a rueful smile.
"Please explain," I said, not sure I wanted to know whatever info he was about to reveal.
"There are a lot of secrets, and tons of information that you won’t be privy to until you’re leader of the high council. When you come into your powers, and I die or step down, you’ll have a night that is, frankly, terrifying. It’s an out of body experience. Every High Alpha has it. We’ve been lucky over the past several generations that we were able to warn our heirs so it’s not totally unexpected."
"What happens?" I asked, fascinated. It sounded cool, not terrifying.
"You’ll be visited by past alphas. It’s different for everyone. We have a record book where every alpha in our family has written record of their experience. The same secrets are revealed about our history and our future. You won’t remember all of it, but the book helps."
"How does this relate to fated mates?"
"Your ancestors have more to do with your mates than you realize. Fated mates aren’t chosen by fate. They’re chosen by our ancestors. They choose the person best suited for us, and for the good of the pack. Not everyone has one, because sometimes they don’t find the right one, or somehow it wouldn’t work out right."
"Wow. So some dead guys decided these three would be best for me?"
He laughed. "Yes, but it doesn’t make it any less true. It’s still going to be the best possible life mate. Or in your case mates. It doesn’t mean you’ll have a conflict-free life. It doesn’t mean you’ll not have problems. But you’ve got the person that I believe your generation calls a ride or die."
I joined his laughter. "Thanks, Daddy. I was so nervous to tell you, but underneath, I knew you’d come through for me."
He stood and came around the desk, holding his arms out for me. "Jillian, I will always come through for you, as long as I draw breath."
3
Jillian
I walked into the living room with Dad right behind me and met Quin’s concerned stare. He must have texted Voss while I was talking with my father. My heart lurched and sucked on my lower lip as I watched them.
Quin stood slowly from the sofa, and Voss followed. Both met my gaze then Dad’s. It took all my will to keep a giggle from bubbling up at how they glanced between us, not sure what was about to happen.
Dad hardened his stare at Quin. "Are you okay with this mating?"
Oh, good gods, Dad was going to toy with them. Poor guys. Inhaling, I straightened my spine and banished all emotions from showing—something I’d mastered at a young age as part of my alpha training.
Quin locked gazes with me and held the eye contract for several moments before he spoke. "It’s a little unconventional, but we’ll adjust in time."
Too fast for any of us to track, Dad had Quin wrapped in a tight hug. Quin’s eyes grew large as he stared at me. Then Dad hooked an arm around Voss’s neck and drew him into the hug. "Welcome to the family, boys."
They hugged him back awkwardly, their bodies stiff, while giving me wide-eyed stares over his shoulder. I just shrugged my shoulders at them and laughed silently.
Thankfully, Dad didn’t torture them for long. He made his exit quickly. "I have an engagement party to plan. See you later."
"Wow…that was…" Voss watched Dad leave out the front door. "I didn’t see that going well."
"It went far better than I expected. He did yell and didn’t like that fact that I have a vampire for a mate." I walked over to them and took their hands.
Quin leaned into me, kissing my cheek. "I knew it would work out in the end. That man has never been able to deny you anything."
Voss snaked an arm around my waist and nuzzled my neck. I sighed and my body heated from being sandwiched between them. "It’ll still take him time to get used to the idea of Kane. You guys were the reason he caved. Dad thinks that our people will be more accepting of Kane with you two mixed into the relationship."
The guys nodded, but Voss said, "It’ll take time for sure."
"Let’s go tell Kane." I stepped out of their embraces and bounced on my feet. Man, it felt great not to hide my vampire lover.
Quin and Voss looked less than thrilled at the idea of going to Kane’s, but they went along with it. If they didn’t, I would’ve gone by myself, which they hated even more.
Within minutes we were in the Range Rover heading to town. Quin drove, and I texted Kane that we were on our way.
Headed your way.
Kane: Cool. See you soon.
Kane met us at the door in his pajamas. I raked my gaze over him and the corner of my lips lifted. He made black flannel pants and a dark red t-shirt look sexy. "Nice of you to dress up for us," I teased as we walked past him.
"You gave me like five minutes notice." He yawned and added, "I was up late. You’re lucky I brushed my teeth."
He walked over to me before I sat down and cupped my neck, then pulled me into a kiss. I relaxed against him, surprised at first, and melted into the kiss.
"Hello, mate," he said once he finally released my lips.
I touched them with my fingers and smiled at him. "Nice way to say hello."
My insides sparked with desire, but I glanced at my other two mates to try to gauge their feelings. This whole thing was still new to us, and I wasn’t sure what kind of boundaries we needed to set.
Kane obviously didn’t have a problem with showing his affection for me in front of the others. I should make it a priority to talk with Voss and Quin about it, each privately of course, to see how they felt about it.
Pushing my thoughts aside for the moment, I sat on Kane’s large sectional, my vampire took the seat to my right, pressing himself against me, and Quin sat on my other side. Voss dropped in the armchair across from us with a wry expression on his face as he looked from Kane, to me, to Quin, and back.
Yeah, I’d start my talk with Voss the first chance I could get him alone.
"So what’s with the impromptu visit?" Kane asked with one hand on my knee. It didn’t feel like he was claiming me, or trying to make Quin or Voss jealous. It was comfortable and natural, as if he just liked touching me. It hadn’t been long since I’d left him, after spending the night here and returning home in the very early morning. However, I too wanted to be close to him.
"I told my dad." I glanced at him sideways, waiting for his reaction.
"Shit. Do you three need a place to stay?" He frowned and threaded his fingers through his long black hair and tugged at the ends. "We’d be tripping over each other in this small apartment, but we can get a house. I still have my inheritance. Money isn’t an issue."
I laughed and covered his hand with mine. "You’re sweet to offer, and especially to include them—"
He cut me off before I could finish. "You’re my mate. They’re your mates. We will find a way to make this work. As weird as it is, they’re my family now."
I twisted to face him, grabbed his face in both of my hands, and kissed him, hard. "Thank you. But it’s not necessary. Dad was upset at first, but he came around. He told me we’ll
find a way to make it work. He actually thinks having Quin and Voss as mates as well will soothe the pack and help them be more accepting of you."
"That was nice of you, Kane," Quin said from my other side. I grabbed his and Kane’s hands, relishing the feeling of having the three of them here with me. My wolf nudged me, and let me know that there was nothing stopping us from stripping naked right there and completing the mating.
Back off, sister. Have some patience. It’ll happen soon.
She chuffed but left me alone.
Kane turned his hand over so our palms flattened together, then he linked our fingers. "My main concern is the safety of our people. I know it’s not technically my coven any more, but I can’t stop feeling the need to lead and protect them. Even if I can’t lead, I can protect."
"And we want to ensure the future prosperity of the pack. We’re in a precarious situation. We’re not bonded to a future alpha," Voss said. "We’re bonded to the future alpha. It’s going to be complicated on the best day."
I nodded. He was absolutely right.
"If having Jillian bonded to all three of us is the best way to ensure everyone remains safe and happy, then we will just make the best of it." Quin added.
"Agreed," Kane said.
I smiled and reconsidered my wolf’s suggestion. It would be a lot of fun to have all three of them. Quin ruined it, though, by bringing up pack politics.
"Voss’s name is on a lot of pack lips right now."
Voss sat up in his chair, looking alarmed. "What are you talking about? Did something happen?"
"No, of course not. Don’t you know? People think you’ll either mate with Jillian, or challenge Graham and become High Alpha." Quin frowned and met Voss’s gaze.
"Why would they think that?" Kane asked.
I never thought about it much, but Quin was right. "Voss is politically in the best position for it. He comes from strong alpha stock, and he’s very well liked in the pack. Add to that his natural strength, and he’s the most liked candidate. It makes perfect sense." I turned my attention back to Voss, who had red cheeks. "Are you planning on challenging me?"
He barked out a laugh, nerves making him loud. "Of course not. You’re already my alpha, heart and instinct."
My heart melted, and I wanted to leap across the coffee table and kiss him. These damn guys were turning me into a freaking sap. Kane asked another question that I missed as I studied Voss. He got wrapped up in explaining something about Lycan hierarchy to Kane and gave me plenty of time to consider him. The pull toward Voss was strong, almost as strong as Kane.
I wanted to complete my mating with him, and soon. How do I decide who to mate with next? Maybe I should draw up a schedule. It was too much to think about without their input and help, and they weren’t in a how to schedule our love lives sort of conversation, so I just changed it completely as soon as I got an opportunity to butt in.
"What do we know about this militant group?" I asked. "Have we learned anything new?"
"Actually, yes," Kane said.
At the same time, Voss said, "A little."
I looked between the two of them. "Someone start talking."
"We tracked them to their base in Nevada," Voss said. "We coordinated with Kane. We’ve been tracking them using technology and good old-fashioned nose power."
"Great," I said. "Can we attack?"
Quin shook his head. "It’s not that simple. We need to try to find out how widespread the knowledge of our existence is. We can’t attack and risk someone letting the news out as retaliation."
I looked at Kane. "What did you have? More information?"
"Yeah, I’ve been working with a sympathetic vampire hacker I know. He managed to hack their systems, but only part of a file was downloaded. It indicates the specific information they were given before planning their attacks, but the names of the informants was apparently toward the bottom of the document, because he didn’t get that part. He got other stuff, but most of it is military strategy guides and stuff like uniform orders, just bullshit stuff."
"Informants?" I asked, dreading the answer. They must’ve had people either in the coven or the pack helping them. Or both.
"I skimmed the document," he said. "They’ve got someone inside the pack and the coven. And in both situations it seems like it’s someone well-connected and well-informed."
"Shit," Quin said. "Fuck!"
"How will we start figuring this shit out?" Voss asked.
Kane shrugged. "I have no idea. I only found out right before you got here."
We discussed possible ways to ferret out a traitor, including starting rumors, but until we knew what the Red Night was after, why they were attacking, we didn’t know what we needed to do to stop them.
"Do you think your guy can hack them again, or more quietly?" I asked Kane.
"He said they’ve got the best. He’s going to try, but no promises."
I was about to suggest we make some lunch when everyone’s phone went off at once. I pulled mine out of my back pocket to find a text from my dad. "Another Pack attack." He followed that up with an address.
Voss and Quin jumped up.
"We’ve gotta go, Kane. Another pack was attacked." I hugged him quickly and stood.
"I’ll come with you," he said.
"No, pack enforcers will be there. We want to introduce you to the pack on our terms," I said. "Plus, it’s daylight."
"Joe sent me a new sunscreen. He’s in college biology. He’s been working on a sunscreen that will prolong our time in the sun." Kane raised a brow, knowing I was about to argue with him about going. "Tell the enforcers the truth. It’s not like your dad doesn’t know."
Tempting. I so wanted to shout from the top of the mountains that I was mated to the vampire prince. Yet, we needed to follow protocol and break the news to my people in the right way. "Well, Dad will be announcing my mating to Voss and Quin first, then break it gently that you are also my true mate. So we have to keep it a secret a little longer."
Kane stroked my cheek with his knuckles. "I understand. The tension is high between our people. But I’m still going. Tell them we’re working together."
Kane ran to his closet and pulled out a long sleeved shirt and pants, and changed right there. He wasn’t wearing any underwear. When he tugged his pants off, I grinned, and Quin and Voss whirled around, turning away from him.
"Dude," Voss complained.
"Not cool," Quin said.
"Sorry, just trying to hurry. Don’t be intimidated," Kane replied, but his voice was teasing. He was trying to start a camaraderie between them, and I appreciated him for it.
He was dressed in record time, and grabbed a jar of white cream while Quin ran for the SUV. Kane spread it all over his face and hands, then stuffed a ball cap on his head, leaving his long black hair to cover his neck.
Kane stepped out into the rays of the sun after me. "It feels very, very hot. But I don’t feel like I’m going get sick or pass out."
"Excellent," Voss replied. "Hop in the car quickly. No sense in testing it longer than you have to."
We piled in, and I sat in the back with Kane. I didn’t want to seem like I was preferring him, but figured their budding friendship didn’t have to be stressed by sitting beside each other just yet. The conversation on the way to the pack’s house was stunted, all of us worried about what we’d find. Kane spent the ride texting everyone he thought would give him information to try to find out if any of his coven was attacked.
Apparently none were. I breathed a sigh of relief for that.
We pulled into the driveway, but didn’t immediately get out of the car. None of us looked forward to what was coming. If the scene was anything like the last two, it would be grisly. I had to mentally prepare myself.
A modest house sat in the center of a large plot of land. My guess was the property was at least 5 acres. Most of the land was full of trees, except for the small lawn. No neighbors to hear the screams.
I took a deep b
reath and opened my car door, already preparing myself for what was coming. As I called on my wolf senses, Quin and Voss joined me. We followed the same pattern as before, starting in the yard and working our way around the house until we caught the scents of the attackers. Quin picked it up first. "I smell them. Humans."
Voss, a few yards away, walked over to us, studying the grass. "There weren’t as many of them this time."
I focused, and the militant group's spiritual imprint flowed around me. "It's a smaller group this time, for sure."
Kane stepped closer to me. "Can you count them?"
Looking around me, I narrowed my eyes, willing my extra sense to give me more information. "Not exactly. I think this is more like four or five, but there could be some more that I'm not picking up. Before it felt like twice that."
"What would make them send fewer men, I wonder?" Kane moved closer to me as we continued toward the house. I felt his tension and worry but I pushed it aside and focused on the scene in front of me.
"Maybe they had the element of surprise before, so they were able to murder our people easily," Voss said. "They possibly thought they didn't need so much help this time."
"That makes sense," Kane said. "The report we hacked described the first two attacks as child's play."
They were getting cocky.
Images from the last scenes formed in my mind, and I fought bile rising up my throat. I could only hope those bastards made a mistake for us to exploit this time.
We reached the front door sooner than I wanted. I wasn’t sure I was ready. The door opened to a red nightmare. Blood was splattered everywhere, from sprays on the ceiling to puddles on the floor.
Dread gripped my heart as I asked the question I really didn’t want to know the answer to. "Children?"
"Yes, but they were saved." Quin stepped closer and touched my lower back.
