Jelisette strode beside Dimitri, the pair deep in conversation. The werewolf was handsome in his own way, but there was a definite mortality to his beauty.
A scar ran down his cheek that Brynleigh had been toodistracted to notice the last time they met, and his face was covered in freckles. His forehead was wrinkled, and his nose was a little too crooked. He was still conventionally attractive, though. Beautiful in a way that most Mature creatures were.
But next to Jelisette, the Alpha looked average. Normal. Not quite… right.
Jelisette’s deadly, too-beautiful-to-be-real appearance had always amazed Brynleigh. Darkness surrounded the older vampire. She had an aura of harshness, death, and danger. Yet, when one looked upon the vampire with her chestnut hair, smooth features, and black eyes, one couldn’t help but be awed by her violent grace. The older vampire had seen over nine centuries, but she appeared no older than three human decades.
Except for her eyes.
Those eyes had been the first thing Brynleigh saw when she woke after the storm; sometimes, she still had nightmares about them.
Now, Jelisette’s dark, lifeless orbs drilled into Brynleigh. Shivers crawled down the younger vampire’s spine, and she shifted in her metal seat.
As much as Brynleigh thought she’d won some kind of favor in fighting and besting the Crimson Shade, she would never forget the sting of her Maker’s betrayal. It was a sharp, endless burn in her heart that would keep her warm on the coldest of days.
She would never forget that it was Jelisette who’d sent her to kill Ryker even though River had been the one to destroy Chavin, just like she would never forget that Zanri had come to kill Ryker on Jelisette’s command.
Brynleigh might be playing the part of the dutiful progeny out to destroy the Representatives, but she would always remember that her Maker had lied to her and left her in prison to rot.
Jelisette moved her gaze as she came to stand in front of the group, but Brynleigh didn’t relax. She wouldn’t until she was back home with Ryker.
“Welcome, brethren.” Dimitri stood in front of the assembly,his stance relaxed and his hands tucked in the pockets of his jeans. “I’m glad so many of you could make it. Tonight, our time is short. I won’t keep us waiting with pleasantries. We?—”
A chair was shoved back in the second row.
A woman stood, her rounded ears and average stature speaking to her human heritage. “Seriously, Dimitri? You’re not going to address the fucking elephant in the room?”
The werewolf canted his head in a predatory manner, and his orange eyes glowed. “What elephant are you referring to, Mercy?”
Mercy swung on her heel and pointed at Brynleigh. “That one. It’s big, blonde, and has black batwings.”
Fucking hell. So much for flying under the radar. How come Brynleigh kept attracting the attention of mean girls? First, Valentina Rose, the bitchy fire fae from the Choosing. Now, this human. She was over it.
“That’s a vampire, not an elephant,” Dimitri said calmly.
“Fuck off,” Mercy snarled. “You know what I mean. She’s married to a gods-damnedWaterborn. I watched her wedding on the Choosing. What in the name of all the gods is she doing here?”
Mercy’s voice had risen to a shrill shriek. It was like she broke the spell because the earlier quiet disappeared. Murmurs of agreement rose from the others, and Brynleigh shifted in her seat.
Had she miscalculated, coming here alone? It wasn’t as though she’d forgotten that the Choosing had been broadcast to the entire Republic, but she had been a little too busy to consider all the potential ramifications.
Discontent rose, and her stomach twisted tighter and tighter. Her shadows’ throb was incessant, as though they were saying, “I told you so.”
Maybe they’d been right.
Faces painted in hatred turned and sneered at Brynleigh. More people stood—some humans, a fae, and an elf—and all of them shouted their discontent at her presence. No one seemed to care that she had been here before, but maybe the fight club wasdifferent.
Tension ratcheted up, up, up, until Brynleigh’s skin felt too tight for her bones. The voices echoed off the steel walls like clanging cymbals. Her heart was a horse galloping in her chest. She kept her wings out and clenched her fists. Would she have to fight her way out of here?
Dimitri didn’t say anything as the rebels spewed their venomous anger for several minutes.
“She’s with me.” Jelisette stepped forward, her quiet words steeped with power. Shadows hung lazily around her hands, and her black gaze met Brynleigh’s. “My progeny harbors a hatred for the Representatives and their oppressive ways, just like the rest of you.”
That was not true, but Brynleigh had enough preservation instincts to keep that to herself.
Most of the others sat back down, but Mercy remained on her feet.
“She might as wellbea Representative,” the human sneered. “Those fucking bastards killed my husband and children! Do you expect me to work with the likes of her?”