He removed the anonymous notes from his jacket pocket and slid them across the table to the czar. Killian sat quietly while Olivia read through the notes, and with each one, her expression grew more furious.
“When did you get the first one?” Olivia asked tightly, her eyes still fixed on the notes.
“A couple of weeks ago. You would think that if one of your people had real issues with a werewolf business in the city, they would have voiced their concerns a few months ago when we started renovations on the club.”
“True, but word about the Loup Garou didn’t really get out until recently.” Olivia flicked her gaze to his briefly before flipping through the notes again. “I intentionally kept it under wraps. I figured the less buildup about it, the better off we’d be, and I’d hoped that people would be less likely to cause trouble once your place was up and running. I didn’t even discuss it with my coven. Actually, the rumblings that I’ve been hearing started after you and your pack began to frequent The Coven’s VIP booth.”
“I see.” Killian’s mouth was set in a tight line. “What rumblings would you be referring to?”
“The vamps that live in this city are freaked out by the idea of a pack of werewolves setting up house here.” She rolled her eyes. “Darius and his vamps came in here earlier tonight and chewed my ear off about you and your pack. Actually, it’s not even all vamps. Just the older ones like Darius. The ones who remember the war seem to be bitching the loudest, but they’ll get over it. Change is a part of life, even for us vampires.”
“Yes.” Killian kept his sights on the czar, watching for any change in her demeanor. “Sadie was more than a little surprised to hear that I was opening a business here.”
“I’m sure she was,” Olivia said through a laugh. “Your club will certainly compete for the supernatural clientele who visit this city, to say nothing of the humans.” She placed the letters on the table and sat back in her chair while holding his stare. “I have to admit, I’m relieved you brought these notes to my attention. In my experience, wolves tend to be…confident.”
“You mean arrogant.”
“Tomato, to-mah-to.” Olivia lifted one shoulder. “You’re an alpha. It goes with the territory.”
“True.” Killian sat back and folded his hands in his lap. “However, given the delicate nature of our race relations, I thought you’d want to know about this. I’m not concerned about my safety. That’s not why I brought these notes to your attention.”
“Okay, then.” Olivia arched one red eyebrow and smirked. “Why did you tell me?”
“My father isn’t the only one who wants to build better relations with your people.” He paused for a moment and said, “I want you to trust me. If I kept this to myself, that wouldn’t be very trusting, would it?”
“No,” Olivia said quietly. “I don’t suppose it would.” Her eyes narrowed and she pulled a phone out of her pocket before texting something. “I think it would be a good idea to have Xavier run some tests on the notes. He’s our resident inventor slash mad scientist. He can look for trace evidence and perhaps give us some idea of who’s behind them. I have a few vamps that come to mind, but before I start pulling people in for questioning, it would be wise to have evidence of some kind. How does that sound?”
“Perfect.” Killian went to stand up but stopped himself and settled back into his seat. “There is one more thing.”
“There usually is.” Olivia’s lips tilted and her green eyes twinkled.
Killian held his breath for a moment and studied the czar, knowing he shouldn’t say what he was about to say, but he did it anyway.
“I plan on taking Sadie for my mate.”
To his surprise, Olivia burst out laughing. “Are you serious?”
“Dead serious.” Killian kept his tone even and his expression calm. He and Sadie had a hell of a road ahead of them, and getting Olivia on their side sooner rather than later seemed like a smart idea.
“You aren’t kidding, are you?” Olivia’s smile faded. “That’s a bold statement, not to mention kind of insane.”
“Maybe.” Killian shrugged. “But it’s the truth. I realize you aren’t her mother, but you are her maker and the czar of this district. Given the tension that lingers beneath the surface between our people, I thought it would be a good idea to lay my cards on the table. I wouldn’t want there to be any misunderstandings about my intentions. After all, the mixing of our races is not exactly…commonplace.”
“Fair point.” Olivia’s smile faded. “Well, Your Highness, what exactly are your intentions?”
“For starters, I’ll be getting to know Sadie, and the best way to do that is to take her out on a date or two. I wanted to arm you with the facts before rumor and innuendo could create drama that none of us need.”
“I appreciate the courtesy, but have you spoken to Sadie about any of this?” Her eyes narrowed. “How do you know she’s even interested in you?”
“I can assure you that she is…interested.” Killian leaned back in his chair and held the czar’s gaze. “Or maybe ‘intrigued’ is a better word. Any way you want to describe it, the bottom line is that I will be getting to know her better. Much better.”
“Hang on.” Olivia raised one hand, stopping him from continuing as her laughter faded and she let out a slow sigh. She settled both elbows on the armrests of her chair, and her mouth was set in a tight line. Her voice dropped low and she said, “Getting involved with any vampire would be a challenge for you, and Sadie’s not just any vampire. Let’s just say her past is complicated.”
“She already knows that,” Killian said quietly. “At least, she does after last night.”
Olivia stilled and those emerald eyes narrowed. “Go on.”
“Last night, Sadie and I walked in the dreamscape. Actually, it was more like a memory.” Killian folded his hands on the table and leaned closer, knowing he held the czar’s complete attention. “To be more specific, it was Sadie’s memory.”
“Holy hopping horseshit,” Olivia said, none too delicately. “She dreamed about the night she was turned?”
“Yes,” Killian said quietly. A glimmer of anger fired up his back when he thought about the way Olivia had lied to Sadie all these years. “And you can imagine how surprised she was to see a pack of werewolves instead of some Apache warriors. You lied to her.”
“You’re damn right I did.” Olivia’s voice was quiet but edged with steely strength. “I had my reasons, and while I’m sure she’s totally fucking furious with me, she’ll understand once I explain it to her.” As she leaned back in her chair, her sharp green eyes studied him closely. “So, you and Sadie are bloodmates?” She pointed at the door. “I’ll bet a million dollars that’s what Suzie was tweaking out about before.”
Killian gave her a quizzical look.
“My assistant, Suzie, has some psychic ability, but the poor kid hasn’t gotten a handle on it. It didn’t even manifest until after she was turned. Anyway, she probably saw that you and Sadie are supposed to hook up.” Olivia pressed her fingers to her eyes briefly before dropping her hands. “Yet another conversation I’ll be having later tonight.”
“I’m surprised that you aren’t more upset by this.” Killian’s brow knit together. “I just told you that a member of your coven is meant to be the mate of a werewolf, and you seem more worried about managing the psychic episodes of your secretary.”
“Sorry. First of all, Sadie is two centuries old and can handle herself. Suzie was turned within the past couple of years, and vampire or not, the girl is afraid of her own shadow.” Sitting back in her seat, Olivia crossed her legs and kept her steely stare on him. “Killian, you have to understand that weird shit has been going on around here for the past couple of years. It’s not like you’re dropping this news on some stodgy vamp who never colors outside the lines. I am a three-hundred-year-old vampire who recently gave bir
th to a little girl who is a human-vampire hybrid. So a werewolf prince hooking up with one of my progeny isn’t exactly the craziest incident we’ve experienced in our little corner of the world.”
“Point taken.” Killian tilted his head and smiled.
“That’s not to say this situation with you two won’t be complicated. If things progress and you really do end up mating with Sadie, then I will definitely have to inform Emperor Zhao. That being said, some developments fall under a need-to-know category—like this one.” Olivia’s tone grew more serious. “Have you told your father yet?”
“No.” Killian didn’t miss the hint of a smile on the czar’s face. “Like you said—need-to-know basis.”
“Right.” Olivia’s tone lost all humor. “I’m sure he’ll appreciate that you came to me about this before you went to him. Listen, if you and Sadie do decide to commit to each other and honor the bloodmate bond, the next conversation you have to have is with your father—and the sooner, the better. While he wants to improve relations, I can’t imagine this is what King Heinrich had in mind. If you were to mate with Sadie, the impact would be far more serious and have wider-reaching ramifications for the Werewolf Society than for ours.”
Killian was about to respond when the sound of the door opening behind him caught his attention. He didn’t have to turn around to know who had arrived. A smile curved his lips. He didn’t miss the somewhat amused expression on Olivia’s face when Sadie came into the room.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Sadie said with pure exasperation.
Killian spun his chair around, and the instant he clapped eyes on her, he got the wind knocked out of him. The woman was stunning. He’d known that the first moment he saw her, but he’d never seen her quite like this—clad in a white T-shirt, faded jeans, and black combat boots and with that gorgeous face free of makeup. With her long, dark hair swept up in a ponytail and a few stray strands drifting along her cheek, she looked absolutely beautiful—pure, innocent, and young. Killian’s smile faltered. He’d never realized just how young she must have been when she was turned. Eighteen? Twenty? Dressed casually and outside the buzzing energy of the club, she didn’t look much more than a girl.
“What a lovely surprise,” he said softly, rising to his feet.
“That’s one way to put it.” Sadie shot Killian a furious look.
“Sleep well?” Killian teased.
“Zip it, Prince Charming.” After giving him a withering look, Sadie turned her attention to Olivia. “What’s going on, Liv? I thought we were going to have a chance to talk.”
“Yes. I’d say I’m a little late with one talk in particular.” Olivia rose from her chair, strode across the room, and took Sadie’s hands in hers. Killian watched with rapt attention while the czar, the leader of all of the vampires in the Northeastern Territory, turned into the maternal spirit she inherently was. “Sadie, I owe you an apology. I’m sorry I lied to you about what happened the night you were turned. You have to understand that it really was for your own good.”
“You told her?” Sadie looked at Killian like she wanted to kick him in the nuts, and he realized he’d overstepped his bounds. “You might be my bloodmate, Killian, but that doesn’t give you the right to butt into my business.”
Yup. Way overstepped his bounds. Shit.
“Don’t get pissed at him, okay?” Olivia brought Sadie over to the small love seat along the back wall of the conference room. Pulling her down onto the cushions next to her, Olivia continued. “I had to do it, Sadie. The treaty with the wolves was just coming into play and the war was finally settling down. If I turned you and allowed you to keep that horrible memory of what that rogue pack did to you and your family, you would never have been able to settle into your new life as a vampire. It was, whether you believe me or not, for your own good. I wanted you to be safe.”
Silence hung heavily in the room while Sadie stared intently at her maker. In the span of only a few minutes, Killian saw a range of emotions flicker across her face. Anger. Hurt. Confusion. Sadness. Sadie’s shoulders sagged and she shot a glance in Killian’s direction.
She loves you, Sadie. Killian knew he should stay out of it but he couldn’t help himself. The pall of sadness hanging over Sadie tugged at his heart and made him feel helpless. He could handle anything other than this. His father’s disappointment, a flock of hungry vampires, anything except watching Sadie suffer. Olivia did what she did because she wanted to protect you… It’s a feeling I’m starting to get familiar with.
Sadie straightened her back when Killian’s mind met hers, and to his relief, she didn’t shut him out. Her dark, almost ebony stare met his, and in that split second he detected a glimmer of hope.
Somehow, some way, everything would work itself out. A smile tilted his lips as he thought of his mother. That was her favorite saying. Any time he’d worry about something, she would pat his arm and say, “Don’t worry, my boy. Everything has a way of working itself out.”
“I’ll be honest, Olivia. I’m pissed at you for lying to me, but the reality is that if not for you, I’d have died—really died—a long time ago.” Sadie looked at her maker through large, dark eyes. “I can try to understand why you made that decision, but given that I had already been bitten by a werewolf, weren’t you afraid of trying to turn me?”
“Absolutely, but you definitely would have died if I didn’t at least try.” Olivia brushed a strand of long, dark hair off Sadie’s forehead and cupped her cheek. “I couldn’t leave you there to die alone like that. You were so young, so fragile and innocent. How could I just walk away?”
“Did Sadie’s turn go normally?” Killian interjected. He folded his arms over his chest and kept his intense gaze on Sadie. “I thought that when a vampire is turned, much like when a human is turned by one of my people, any scars or wounds they had as a human vanish. But Sadie has a scar. The one on her shoulder that looks like a full moon.”
“It took two days, like it does with most vamps. After the turn Sadie remained, shall we say, sensitive to the presence of werewolves.” Olivia smiled and squeezed her progeny’s hands. “You always had a sixth sense about it if any were around. Nothing specific or anything, but your hunches always gave us a heads-up.”
“My scar tingles sometimes.” Sadie looked at Killian with something akin to acceptance. “The scar where I was bitten.”
“Your blood was some of the most potent I’ve ever tasted.” Olivia sat back on the sofa and let out a tired sigh. “When I drained most of it for the turn, I got seriously high. It wasn’t that different than feeding straight from one of Killian’s people. Anyway, the only other unusual side effect was that scar you retained on your shoulder.”
“There’s one thing I don’t understand,” Sadie said, tearing her gaze from Killian’s.
“What is it?”
“You ended up putting the treaty in danger anyway by killing those wolves when you saved me. Why bother changing my memory if you killed them?”
“I didn’t kill them.” Olivia glanced at Killian before turning back to Sadie. “Not then, anyway. That night I knocked them out, only wounded them. I didn’t kill them until a few nights later. Truthfully…we killed them a few nights later.”
“Oh my God.” Sadie’s eyes grew wide with tears. “The pack we fought…just a few nights after I was turned. They were the same pack who killed my family.”
“Yes.” Olivia nodded and patted Sadie’s knee before giving it a squeeze. “I took you to an abandoned cabin while you were in the transition sleep. It wasn’t far from where you lived with your family, and unfortunately they tracked us there.”
“So you killed them after all?” Killian asked.
“You’re damn right I did.” Olivia shot him a deadly look and sat up straighter in her seat. “I gave them a chance to escape with their lives, but that wasn’t enough. They came back for revenge and they sure
as hell got some.”
“N-no one ever found out about that, did they?” Sadie asked quietly.
“No.” Olivia shook her head adamantly. “That area was virtually uninhabited at that time, so we were able to sweep it under the rug. I was worried that the second encounter with them would trigger something in your memory. But it didn’t. It sure made you want to stay far away from wolves of any kind though.”
Sadie flicked her gaze to Killian’s and he touched her mind with his. Not all wolves, I hope. To his delight, the hint of a smile played at her lips before she looked away.
“So no one ever knew,” Olivia said firmly. Turning a stony look in Killian’s direction, she rose to her feet. “At least until now. Am I going to have to worry about this revelation being accidentally leaked to the king?”
“If you ask me, Olivia,” Killian murmured. “You shouldn’t have let them go the first time around. After what I saw in that dreamscape, those men deserved their fate. Attacking an innocent family and slaughtering women and children is an act of cowardice. Men like that have no honor and bring nothing but shame to my people. Besides, it’s ancient news. It has no bearing on current or future events.”
“Good.” Olivia crossed her arms over her chest and arched one eyebrow. “I’m glad you agree.” Turning to Sadie, her tone softened along with her rigid posture. “I really am sorry, Sadie. To be honest, I’m relieved you finally know the truth.”
“Yeah, well, the truth isn’t all it’s cracked up to be,” Sadie murmured. Rising to her feet, she shrugged and suddenly looked remarkably uncomfortable. “So, Killian told you about…us…I mean…the bloodmate thing.”
“Yes.” Olivia seemed to be suppressing a smile. She nodded as she moved past Sadie toward the notes she’d left on the table. “Actually, given your history and what happened on the day you were turned, being mated to a werewolf doesn’t seem all that weird.”
Killian stilled and clapped eyes with Sadie as a few more pieces to their bizarre puzzle fell into place. The universe seemed to be doling out information one crumb at a time, and he had just snagged another one.
Vampires Never Cry Wolf Page 14
