She’s like a dog with a bone about that whole thing. It’s like she can’t let it go.

“I remember a day when confessing such a thing would have embarrassed such a prideful, arrogant vampire,” Tiara cuts in, purposely studying the back of her own hand, as opposed to looking at Shera.

“I remember a time when omega wolves knew how to fear extremely powerful beta vampires,” Shera volleys.

I open my mouth to speak, but Mary speaks before I can.

“You look brave, but is it all talk? I’ve yet to see you do anything all that badass,” the wolf quietly prods, cutting a slanted gaze toward Shera, and then quickly darts her eyes away again, since it’s all false bravado.

Shera tenses behind me.

“Avery says the renewing of the combat trials has actually had a positive effect on the entire community,” Leiza says, smirking in a way that suggests she’s being petty. “Betas want the chance to fight for their houses, and with the absence of true war, they’re restless. This will give them their chance to have a say in what does or does not change, so long as it’s matched up to be a fair fight.”

“That’s where it gets tricky, huh? I mean, if someone’s not really as tough as they pretend to be,” Lemon chimes in, as she files her nails with a devious smile on her face.

Shera’s body tenses again, and she slowly turns her attention to Lemon.

Lemon’s devious smile fades, when she notices the serious expression on Shera’s face.

“I’ve already requested to move to Emily’s new House and serve as her beta. I’m strong, but I’m not capable of contending with the elite beta powerhouses, who will be competing the vast majority of the time. The fights will be fairer if I’m second beta in a new House, and Arion will have room for new top betas who can win in the ring for the Head Alpha Vampyre. Even if they can’t run his House, because all they rely on is strength.”

She calmly puts the curling iron down at last, gives me a tight smile in the mirror, and turns to go.

I cast some side-eye toward the wolves, who all look guilty as hell, as the door shuts behind the sad vampire.

“The world is entirely too fucked up if I feel bad for hurting her feelings,” Leiza tells me, swallowing thickly. “But I honestly feel like shit right now.”

“She’s giving up the alpha who saved her life and gave a survivor a chance to do more than simply survive,” I remind them. “She’s thrived since meeting him, by comparison to what she’d have done anywhere else.”

“But she’s a coldhearted vampire,” Ingrid quietly argues, as though she can’t believe any of them feel bad about this.

“She’s more than that, and we unfortunately know that now,” Leiza grumbles, as she grabs her drink from the table beside her. “Great. Just when I finally start catching on that she’s not that fierce, I can’t even get any jabs in without feeling bad about it. I fucking hate being an omega sometimes.”

“Only sometimes,” Mary is quick to agree, clearly horror-stricken by this new development.

“I didn’t do anything. I don’t have to face her. Maybe you’re all okay with her enough to provoke her, but I still want to pee myself when she walks into a room,” Ingrid says as she steps into the wall passage.

Poking her head back out, she smiles and adds, “But I sat in a room with her. I don’t feel like she’s out to get me for my secret. She’s probably heard about it by now, and nothing bad has happened. Apologize for me.”

The wall shuts behind her, and Leiza mutters a curse, as they slowly leave the room, reluctant to do so.

“Shera’s going to get really pissed off when they apologize. It’ll make her feel weird,” Anna notes aloud, even as she grins.

The triplets appear before me, all of them so eerily reminiscent of Wednesday Adams that I can’t believe it took me so long to piece that together.

I know I’m a gypsy. I know storytelling is in my veins. Now I’m aware that my monster knows how to use every single thing in my blood, heritage, and mind against me to get its way.

“You didn’t win anything. I was always going to give in to Arion, but it’s really scary being in love with him. Really, really scary.”

They grin as though they enjoy that, and then they all wag their eyebrows in synchronized unison.

“You should have let us claim him earlier,” they tell me.

“She’s stubborn,” Anna chimes in. “And such a horribly, boringly cautious person. Far too simple to be a main character.”

“I really do hate you,” I tell her flatly.

“One could argue that means you hate yourself,” the triplets are quick to rebut.

I salt them.

Anna grins, even as they disappear.

“What are we going to do about Talbot?” she asks, making me truly miss the days when she talked about dildos, grandma, and orgies, especially when her eyes dance with excitement.

My monster’s out of the closet now.

“We’re not doing anything. Talbot is Damien’s. He’s either really good, or really bad. He did plan to steal my monster. However, he seemed genuinely relieved that I could handle you,” I tell her, now feeling crazier every time we talk.

I’m talking to my monster.

There’s no need to put a pin in it.

There’s no need to hush my thoughts.

Shit…Demetria. I almost forgot.

Just because she fought for us, that doesn’t mean I should rush into trusting what I can and can’t think about. Not until I know her agenda.

And Jasper…what happens to him?

I can’t let him go back to the skin-walkers. With Idun down and done, will Demetria leave Sanctuary? Is she now my beta? Doesn’t seem likely, and given her vicious reputation, I’m not sure I want her here around my terrified omegas.

None of the wolves have brought it up. I half wonder if they know about it.

The skin-walkers know about me now. Anna deviated from the plan, because I can’t fully control her. But collateral damage was limited.

Zuela knows…

There’s so much to—

A knock at the door interrupts the beginnings of the internal, mounting list of things that need my attention—the cleanup after the Mad Hatter’s festival, so to speak.

I swing the door open, and there stands Arion…shirtless.

A confident smirk only adds to his smug, dark expression, as he twirls a long-stemmed rose in his hand. His right eyebrow lifts, as he deliberately sweeps his gaze over me in appraisal.

Suddenly, I feel self-conscious.

I accidentally mated Vance and had no idea that’s what we were doing. I didn’t have to think about it because I didn’t know.

Emit had to die, or I had to take his mark for all eternity. The choice was so simple that it made me realize just how hard I really had fallen for him. Then he spent three days ensuring I didn’t need sex for three weeks.

However, I didn’t have to think about it, because there was so much else going on.

Damien…

Damien’s always going to be the best in bed. My body will never feel anything but pleasure, even in places where pleasure isn’t ever felt any other time. And he makes it his job to ensure he’s stays at the top of that ladder. He’s also the man who avoids most everyone else in hopes they’ll forget him, but never lets me go for long without at least a small appearance.