Hunting the Rogues (Shadow Claw Book 8)

by Sarah J. Stone

  “Hear that, boys?” she called down to them. Cole paled and got up to look over the edge. His face paled further at the sight of a platinum blond boy. The prisoners were silent, looking away in shame. Viria sat back and observed Cole. He still allowed emotional interference.

  “Cole Grace,” Viria said and he looked up at her, regaining a professional composure and seating himself again, “I understand you’re a man of justice and that you set examples and not all talk. But I think it would be more just to hear them out first. What they did wasn’t entirely a crime.”

  “They knew they would be hurting people,” he said, voice hardening. Viria’s mouth quirked and Mitch was left confused about her reaction.

  He’s so hard on himself, she thought pitifully, It interferes with protocol and reason.

  “Are you not interested in what drove them to do so?”

  “Criminals need to be held accountable nevertheless.”

  Viria clicked her tongue, cocking her head, “That was not what I was talking about.”

  “Viria…” Ivanna said warningly, but she raised her hand to silence her.

  “Cole, who matters to you?”

  “The people of this realm.”

  “What is it of theirs that matter to you most?”

  “Their safety.”

  “And do you not get to the root of what threatens it? Is it not important to understand how and why criminals work the way they do? It’s not about the right of a criminal to a voice, but the indirect right of your people to their own voice that could protect them. There will be many amongst your people who could become criminals. How would you avoid the mistake if you do not listen to the outcome?”

  Viria knew the only reason he was listening to her at all was because she had a reputation, he had an impression to make, and that they weren’t all that well-acquainted for him to comfortably interrupt her on her territory. He may be reforming the Council of Elders, but she had the public influence and she knew how powerful people could be against authority. So did he.

  “I shall consider hearing them out.” He sighed.

  “That is very much appreciated,” Viria said with a slight nod and drew a symbol on the table with a glowing finger, flicking it with her thumb and middle finger to the center of the table. It floated in the air and the platform on which the prisoners were placed rose to the surface, visible up to their chests.

  “Would you like to talk to them alone?” she asked. Cole nodded. He couldn’t trust himself to speak. After all, it had been over ten years he’d seen his twin brother.

  Chapter 11

  They all left the High Council quarters. Yale and Grippin stayed at the door to stand guard.

  Mitch was quick to pull Viria behind a pillar.

  “Are you sure you’re okay with all that happened?” he asked, if not demanded.Viria pushed herself on her toes and pressed her lips against his, pulling away just as quickly. But his eyes had closed and he bit his lips hard to keep himself from smiling.

  “This is me letting you know that it’s fine,” she said. “Look, I’m not against romance and all. I look forward to loving and being loved.”

  “I…uh, I thought you were the really tough badass type who would shut yourself away, really,” he rubbed the back of his neck.

  “I can be anything, Mitch.” She chuckled, but turned serious. “Listen, this still could distract us both. As much I liked all that happened, we need to maintain a limit to everything. I won’t be shy about this. I want you.”

  Mitch couldn’t believe his ears. He stared at her in wonder as she took his hand and continued, “I want to give us a shot, but maybe after all of this is over?”

  He nodded. She smiled at him and pulled him out from behind the pillar to join everyone else milling about.

  ****

  Cole was shaken as he looked at the rogue vampires. It wasn’t just his brother, but two of his childhood best friends were also involved.

  “Start talking,” he said. “I need a good explanation for all of this.”

  “You were there when everything happened, Cole,” Hunt said. “That’s what had happened and we ran away to stay alive.”

  “Teaming up with a witch for politics? Morbus?”

  “Everything was to keep us alive,” Fred intervened. “We were desperate to survive.”

  “Do you always need to execute people to prove your point to everyone?” Hunt continued. “We don’t really care about dying, Cole, we’re sick of life as it is. But you can’t keep going around having people killed for crimes they had been pressured into doing to be able to live.”

  Cole sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “What could you tell me about the Morbus?”

  “Not much, to be honest,” Cameron said. “They just gave us a demand and we had to fulfill it.”

  “And how many have you taken into captive and handed over?”

  “None,” Hunt said. “We’d gotten around to accepting their request pretty recently. Then Agatha came into the picture and was willing to pay us.”

  “What if I took you guys back and let you go to your normal lives?” Cole asked. “What would happen?”

  “We’ve lived a long life committing crimes,” Fred said. “It won’t be easy to just move away from it.”

  “How many people have you killed?”

  A thoughtful silence fell over them until Cameron spoke, “We haven’t killed anyone with our own hands, at least.”

  “Doesn’t cut it,” Cole snapped.

  “There were some assisted murders.”

  “Look, all I hear is that you have committed crimes.”

  “But it was never to hurt the Black Blood community,” Hunt said. “It was never to betray anyone there. We just couldn’t go back because Joshua Callaway was still ruling the place and he wanted us dead because of dad.”

  Cole grunted at the answer, but nodded. “All right. You know what, execution’s off. But you will be kept under watch and given therapy. You will come back with me. No buts.”

  They nodded silently and Cole went to knock on the door, telling the High Council member standing guard that the talk was over and that he’d made his decision.

  ****

  Nina returned upstairs with Kevin just in time to go back in and resume the meeting. She seemed upset. Kevin confronted Ivanna, telling her Kalen had visited and left the HQ grounds.

  “I should have picked him up on my radar,” Ivanna said. “Did he say something to Nina? She looks upset.”

  “She hasn’t told me anything, but she was pretty frustrated with him,” Kevin said. “Maybe you could talk to her?”

  “I will.” She nodded.

  The rest of the meeting remained between Cole and Viria. Blake took it upon him to escort and teleport Hunt and his friends back to the Black Blood community. Ivanna took the chance to talk to Nina, finding her on the balcony.

  “You all right?” she asked, coming up to stand beside her. Nina nodded as she held Dahlia close, who cooed in her sleep before yawning. Silence fell over them and Ivanna leaned over the black wall border. She waited until Nina had calmed down enough to start venting.

  “Kalen came in to visit,” she said. “He was saying stuff like how Cole wanted to remove me from the position as the Elder and all, and that you guys were jealous that I held so much authority.”

  “Cole may have definitely said that,” Ivanna admitted.

  “I really don’t care, Ivanna,” she said. “Maybe I don’t want to have so much responsibility. I have Dahlia to raise and I hardly get to get her any attention at all.”

  “I understand that.”

  “I mean, I never asked for so much power and all this bullshit I have to deal with and neither did Dahlia,” she continued. “I want my daughter to have a normal life a witch is supposed to have.”

  “You’re very welcome here or in any other community to do so,” Ivanna said. “Viria and I will provide you well and keep a close eye on Dahlia and her growth.”

 
“I’m just really sick of doing so much and never having any energy left for my family at the end of the day,” she said. “My bod hasn’t even properly come about to adjust to the aftermath of the pregnancy. I know we being heal fast but we need a break, too. I’ve always wanted to be a powerful independent witch and be able to handle a family and what I do, but I didn’t think it would be this hard.”

  “It’s you first time being in such a situation, Nina.” Ivanna chuckled. “Don’t be too hard on yourself. I mean, look at Cassie. She’s managing her child and work quite well. It takes time for things to fall into place.”

  Nina sighed, nodding as she held Dahlia closer against her.

  “When should I hand over the throne to you?” Nina asked.

  “Tomorrow after Agatha’s trial,” she said. “After that, you’re going straight home to get the proper rest and treatment that you need.”

  “Okay then,” she said. “Thank you for everything you guys have done, Ivanna. Really, it was a lot of help.”

  “It was our duty,” she said. “We’re glad it worked out well.”

  ****

  Cole and Viria stared each other down for a while.

  “I heard you want to overthrow some of the Council members,” she stated, “and want me as the Elder of the witched and wizards.”

  “I don’t see a better candidate for such a responsibility,” he said.

  “What if I don’t want to accept the position?”

  Cole seemed taken aback, if not stunned. He’d never considered if Viria would ever want to decline. It didn’t seem like a possibility to him at all.

  “Why not, though?”

  “I don’t enjoy being in a position of power” she said. “I may order people around, but I am the one who takes on the major responsibilities. The High Council members are simply my teammates, especially in times of assistance and emergency. I’m also their teacher when I get the time.”

  “But why decline the position of responsibility you already carry?” he asked. “You would be acknowledged for your work.”

  “I did all this in secret until word started spreading on its own,” she said. “I do not care for acknowledgment.”

  “It’s all right if you personally don’t want to take this on.”

  “You’re not giving me a good enough reason to join the Council,” she said with a shrug. “They all seem centered towardpower more than toward the people. Isn’t that who the Council is for? What good would I be to them?”

  Cole understood that he didn’t have the insight that Viria did and immediately felt guilty, realizing where his mistake was. He was completely self-centered in the whole ordeal, only wanting achievements to his name. He cared about people but the position of power had momentarily blinded him.

  “I think you’ve come around to understand,” Viria started, “what happens to people in power. That” – she pointed to Cole – “is what I’m afraid of. That isn’t something I’m quite ready to work with, yet. I want the people around me to share the same core values if we’re to work well together.”

  Cole nodded as Viria continued, “I’m not declining or accepting anything as of yet. But I have my eyes on you.”

  “I understand that,” he said, “I hope we can get to work together in the future sometime soon and that I’m worthy of your trust.”

  “You will get to,” she said. “Now, tell me about yourself. What happened in your childhood, where you’d bee, what you did.”

  “Ah, well, I come from Black Blood and my leader was a little crazy in the head,” he explained. “He snatched my father and I away from our homes, and I helped my brother Cole escape before being taken captive. My father was killed in front of me because of his agenda against Joshua Callaway. I managed to escape and was found by Gael in the woods pretty far away from home. He trained me and sent me away after away to see the world and meet other vampires.”

  “I’ve heard you’ve taken part in many battles and missions.”

  “Yes, I have,” he said.

  “Have you ever killed anyone?”

  “No, not as of yet,” he said. “I had an executioner with me as an assistant. He’d do the work for me if needed.”

  Viria nodded. “Do you feel Gael made the right decision by choosing you? He had plenty of other students to pick from.”

  “I think, yes,” he said. “I wanted this for a long time and worked all I could for it.”

  “Your learning doesn’t stop here, though.”

  “Indeed not.”

  “Cole,” she started, her tone shifting, “what did it feel like knowing Gael lost his powers?”

  He was silent for a moment, “I remember feeling shocked and angry. I remember wanting to do anything to get his powers back and take care of him while I did so.”

  “Do you really believe it’s all that easy to just take someone’s powers away?” she pondered with a tilt of her head. “Asther may have been powerful enough to control other people and their powers, but to take them away?”

  “Gael was absolutely weak when I saw him,” Cole said a little defensively. He could see where Viria was going with what she was saying. She was suspicious.

  “I can tell you’re working on your own terms completely uninfluenced and with absolute loyalty to the council,” she assured him, but her smirk was unsettling, “You’re a smart guy, Cole. Think about it. You might want to go and check on Gael sometime soon and make sure you don’t have any friends plotting behind your back. People can’t be trusted all that easily.”

  “Gael wouldn’t dare,” he said, but he was starting to second guess everything.

  “Losing the powers that he had is not something that a person can easily come to terms with,” she said. “Again, just keep your eyes open. It’s good to practice suspicion and exert caution.”

  Cole could definitely see where Ivanna got a lot of her demeanor from. The little girl was very influential in a lot of ways.

  “Well, that aside,” she said, straightening up. “Would you like to meet Nina?”

  Chapter 12

  Kalen was upset with the encounter he had with Nina. He hadn’t mean to hurt her, but he knew he’d taken a really wrong approach to it. He could admita mistake if he needed to, though, and now with Nina so willing to give up such an important position of power, he was concerned more than ever now. Nina was very important because – he hated to admit it – some of them weren’t just losing their efficiency, but will power as well. They all had been in the council for such a long time working that it wasn’t satisfying anymore. He kept hearing about how some members would like to go and spend time with their families and do something else.

  He made his way to Samuel’s office, but he couldn’t get past the door as Heather’s sobs racked through her body and past the wood and walls.

  “He was so cruel with his words,” he wailed. “Why would he say such things to me?”

  “Heather, I–”

  “It has to be another woma-a-an,” she hiccupped like a child. Kalen listened on pitifully.

  “But think about it,” Samuel tried gently. “He’s a mortal, simple man now. You really think a woman of your caliber and high standards could ever work out with a mere human anymore. You shouldn’t settle.”

  “It’s not about the power or status,” she choked. “I loved him!”

  “Goodness!” Samuel sighed, exasperated. “What did he even say?”

  “H-h-he,” she stammered, “said that he didn’t want to see me again and that I could never take the hint and leave people alooone. And that I was annoying and that he could do better.”

  “Sounds like another woman.”

  “IT IS ANOTHER WOMAN!” she screeched over her tears. Kalen had never heard an adult act so childishly. He’d seen children act better. Maybe Heather had reached her limit, as well.

  He turned away from the door and walked away. He knew Gael wasn’t the kind of person to do such a thing. Not in this way, at least. Maybe he was bitter about losing h
is powers still and the visit made him more conscious. And maybe they did have sexist egos. Sighing, He headed to Ammara. He felt depressed and he wasn’t sure who would make him feel better than she would. He just wanted to lie in her arms and fall asleep.

  She was straightening out the bed sheets when he got inside. She didn’t notice, and he went straight up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and letting his head fall on her shoulder.

  “Everything okay, love?” she whispered, reaching behind her to scratch his head.

  “Not really, no.”

  “Why? What happened?” she said, turning around and scooping him into her arms. He melted into her touch and pushed her onto the bed, climbing over her and wrapping her up in his hold, nuzzling his face in her hair.

  “I don’t really feel like talking about it right now,” he said. “I just feel really tired and depressed. Please just hold me?”

  Ammara was silent for a while.

  “Wouldn’t you rather I–”

  “I appreciate the thought, my love, but, no,” he said quickly before he got hard.Ammara shrugged and cuddled into him, rubbing his back. His muscles relaxed and he melted into her again. But what Ammara was about to say was no settling into his head and going right down to his nether regions. And it did not go unnoticed. She laughed into his chest and he groaned.

  “I really didn’t want to tonight, really,” Kalen said apologetically, but Ammara rolled him over and kissed him, hands sliding down into his pants and stroking his shaft. He groaned into her mouth and reached for her ass, squeezing it. She squealed into his mouth and Kalen pushed himself over and got Ammara under him. He loved it when she started whining and moaning for him.

  He thrust his hand under her dress and over her panties, pressing past the cloth to find her clit, rubbing it in circles. Ammara’s moans came through and he swallowed each one. His mouth moved down to her neck to suck love bites onto her, but she stopped him, pushing him upright. She followed him up, hands riding up his chest and pulling the shirt away. He helped her undress himself as he pulled the dress off of her body.