He glanced at him, unsure how he could. Their telepathic communication until now had only been one-way.
Get a clear image of me in your head and then just… tell me.
He closed his eyes and tried. The clear image of him was easy enough.Like this?
Caster smiled.Yes. Now, stop looking at me like that. We don’t want them to listen in, do we?
Mark stared at the plate of what was a second course. He hadn’t touched the first, and lifting the fork to his mouth seemed like a chore.Do you know him?
No.
How is he here? Why?
He must have been in my mother’s security detail. Trust me, he will tell Kyle how that happened.
The conviction was unmistakable, and so was his rage. It paled in comparison to the rage Mark struggled to contain, but it was there. Against the conviction of beliefs he still held on to, he trusted Caster’s word.I am going to kill him.
That I don’t doubt. I expect nothing less, but baby, we need to find out what he knows first.
There it was again, the endearment. The first time he’d heard it, he thought perhaps he’d imagined it. Caster’s hand had been tearing his world apart with expert precision, driving him toward the inevitable ultimate pleasure. But here it was, unimagined and real. He liked it. Liked the way it rolled off his tongue, like he was unaware he used it.
He shook his head to tear his mind away from any thoughts of Caster’s tongue and shoved food into his mouth. Blood, flailing limbs, that vampire’s beating heart in his fist. Hecouldn’t let Caster’s pet names or the way he was looking at him now tear him away from his ultimate goal.
Dean, who sat next to him, kicked his shin under the table, and he turned to his brother, giving him a shrug. His inability to contain his anger and his response to Caster earlier meant that his brother would soon demand an explanation.
But as the table descended into laughter at something Ben said, Mark gave his brother his best blank stare. If Dean wanted an explanation, he’d have to get in line behind him. This was so fucked up on so many levels, he would soon drown in them.
Why was he still talking to his mother? Dinner had come to an end twenty minutes ago, and impatience for action clawed at Mark. Caster stood across from him in the mansion’s main living area, talking to his mother, Edie, and Riley’s mother, whose name he’d missed. He guessed they had a lot to discuss, given everything that happened, but did they have to do it now?
“You are going to tell me what is going on, aren’t you?” Mikey’s subdued voice startled him, and Mark turned to his brother. He couldn’t read minds or decipher emotions with effortless precision like Caster, but he’d seen that look on his younger brother so much, he didn’t need to.
“Yeah. When it’s—”
“If you say, when it’s safe, I swear to the Goddess, I will kick your ass.”
His unexpected laughter drew Caster’s attention. It took a lot of frustration for his brother to threaten violence. Mikey had been the most sheltered of them. They didn’t mean to do it, but he’d been too young to remember their mother’s overbearing nature, and Mark and Dean closed ranks around their brother, trying to protect him from the challenge their childhood had been.
“You’re an asshole.”
He grabbed Mikey’s arm before he could walk away. “I will tell you, I promise.” He waited for the familiar exasperated sigh that came without fail. “I need to take care of something right now. Meet me for breakfast tomorrow?”
Mikey smiled. “OK.” Then he narrowed his eyes. “Are you OK?” His voice lowered to a low whisper. “Don’t kill me. Just… you seemed a bit off earlier.”
“I’m fine.” It was a lie they both accepted. He was so far from fine, he wasn’t sure he’d recognize it if he saw it again. But like every time he said it, his brother played his role with little hesitation. All questions fled, and he went back to Ben’s side. Mark watched a much brighter smile overtake Mikey’s features, and he relaxed. Ben seemed like a good friend. Perhaps he shouldn’t worry about Mikey too much.
“Ready?” Dean’s expression held none of the playfulness it always did. His Prime Alpha mask was in place.
He nodded and followed his older brother and Casterthrough a section of the house he hadn’t ventured to. The familiar hallway lighting dimmed as they approached their destination. The distinct sound of pain reached his ears, and he let his wolf through the barrier. He stopped short of a transformation. This he needed to do in human form.
That revolting scent, one that had plagued his existence for more than a decade, permeated his mind, and he could do nothing to stop the growl rumbling out of his chest. The vampire leaned against a wall, unrestrained.
He turned to Caster, questions tumbling past the barrier in his mind.
“It’s not necessary.” Caster didn’t skip a beat.
Their prisoner’s attempted movement proved his point when Kyle’s arm reached out, pushing him against the wall, holding him there with little effort. The giant bodyguard looked at Mark and nodded at him. His control was total, and the prisoner was well aware of it. Even with a mind consumed by the need to kill, he couldn’t help but be impressed.
“Tell him what you told me.” Kyle’s voice was low, the threat in it undisguised.