She reached for his arm, and the worry that had been his constant companion the last few days fleeted away as he relaxed. “Come on! The others are waiting.” Then she surprised him by reaching for Mark’s arm as well, so she walked between them. Led them. They had no choice but to follow her lead. Mark gave him a questioning glance, and he shrugged. Whatever his mother wanted, she got. There was no use fightingher.
She led them to the same dining room where he’d met Mark, and the memory of that day threatened to bring the arousal simmering below the surface to a boiling point. Mark gasped, no doubt having zeroed in on the same memory, but when he turned to him, the look on his face was not what he expected. His increased heart rate signaled fear, raw and primal, followed a second later by rage.
His mother’s steps faltered, and she turned to Mark. “Honey, what’s wrong?” She’d only whispered it, but the whole room: Damien and Riley, Riley’s mother Adella, his aunt Edie, and Ben, the Prime Alpha and his little brother all heard it.
He pushed his mother aside, glad she didn’t fight him and had Mark by the arm as his wolf made its presence felt with a growl that shook the room. “What?”
Dean was there, grabbing his brother’s other arm. “Mark?”
Mark stared at Caster, his eyes amber as he fought the animal in him from overtaking him.
He followed his gaze to one vampire he didn’t recognize, and realization dawned. “He’s one of them?”
Mark’s nod was lost in his intent to move towards his goal. Caster looked at Dean, thankful to see the Prime Alpha’s understanding of what they needed to do. He tightened his hold on Mark’s arm, and together they held him in place. He paid little attention to their audience as he turned Mark to face him. “Look at me!”
He breathed a sigh when Mark obeyed, familiar brown eyes overwhelmed by the amber signaling his impendingtransformation.
He nodded towards the vampire, now in Kyle’s custody. “He won’t get away.” Mark started to fight his hold, so he drew him closer, his voice dropping to a low whisper. “Kyle will restrain him, and we can question him when we’re done here.”
Mark glanced at his brother, who nodded his acceptance.
Caster didn’t know how that vampire had ended up in his mother’s security detail, but he intended to find out.
Mark’s breath remained short, the rage in him permeating the room.
“Breathe for me.”
He was aware of Dean’s stare as Mark closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The Prime Alpha would demand an explanation soon, but as he led Mark to his seat at the table, he found he cared little for what anyone in the room thought of his relationship with Mark. He didn’t understand it himself, and even if he did, he owed no one nothing.
His mother opened her mouth, but he shook his head. Her desire to soothe Mark was not unusual, but he needed Mark’s rage just under the surface, ready to be unleashed. They would need it soon.
He’s one of them.He answered Damien’s questioning look.
His cousin maintained his composure, the involuntary tick in his jaw the only indication that he’d made the connection.
§
The food, the conversation, and even the table were all a blur to Mark. The vile scent that the vampire emitted, even now, and his wolf’s constant clawing at the barrier, were all he could focus on. If Caster hadn’t been there, he was certain he would have that vampire’s head in his jaw in the instant he’d recognized his scent.
He understood why Caster had stopped him. The violent images in his mind were not an appropriate introduction to the queen. He’d only met her a few minutes earlier. Her tenderness, easy smile, and general kindness surprised him.
He couldn’t escape Dean’s stare, his influence reaching past the barrier to calm the restless animal in his mind, and he closed his eyes. Any other time, his brother’s interference would be annoying at best, but Caster was right. Killing that vampire would only satisfy the bloodlust. It would do nothing to get him closer to his main goal.
He glanced at Caster as Dean’s Alpha won the raging battle in his mind and his wolf retreated behind the barrier, theconversation at the table edging past the rage to reach his ears.
“I can do it…” Edie, who’d introduced herself as Riley’s aunt, said, and from the puzzled look on her face, directed at him, she must have been talking about him or to him. She smiled, the expression enhancing her beautiful features. “You weren’t listening?”
“Sorry?” He didn’t know what he could say to get everyone’s attention off him.
“We were talking about the protection spell you still don’t have.” The queen’s voice drew his attention. There was a little resemblance there; he must favor his father. But when she smiled, the memory of a similar expression on Caster’s face filtered through the remainder of his rage, and he smiled back. “Edie just offered to do it.”
He nodded. “OK.”
The matter settled, the conversation went back to topics that had nothing to do with him, and it was safe for him to go back to his plans for revenge. As his mind alternated between tearing the vampire’s arms off and tearing his heart out of his chest, he kept one ear on the conversation. He didn’t miss the familiarity between the queen and his brothers. He knew they’d met before, but he hadn’t expected them to be this comfortable with each other.
Tell me.
Caster’s voice joined the whirlwind of thoughts racing through his mind.