ABIGAIL

Abigail thought her heart would climb up her throat and escape out of her mouth from adrenaline in her system. She couldn’t believe someone was willing to go after her father to get to her. It was her mistake for not thinking of him sooner. Then again, she couldn’t blame anyone other than herself for her foolishness. She got tangled up in Alexander’s business, and she knew full well that nothing good came from that.

She parked the car in the hospital’s underground car park and jumped out the second the engine turned off. As she rushed for the lifts, she remembered that she needed to lock the damn thing. Alexander would probably get mad if she got his car stolen. She certainly would have murdered someone for losing a car that was worth a quarter of a million dollars.

Arriving on her father’s floor, she greeted the nurse at the nurse station and hurried to his ward. Pulling the door open, she stopped dead in her tracks. Glen sat by her father’s bed, peeling an apple for him with a folding knife. His charming smile caught her off guard when their eyes met.

“Neil, looks like Abigail is finally here,” Glen said, rising from his chair.

She managed to force her body to move and waved to John in the bed next to her father’s before joining them. Grabbing her dad’s hand, she managed a smile. “How are you feeling?”

“The visiting hours are almost over, hun. There was no need for you to come if you’re so busy with work,” her father said.

She shook her head as her heart tightened on her chest. “It’s fine. I just wanted to make sure you were doing okay.”

“Why wouldn’t I be? Have you forgotten that I’m as tough as they come?”

Glen laughed. He handed her father the apple and tossed the skin in the small bin by the bed. With another professional smile, he motioned for Abigail to come with him. “We’ll be right back, Neil.”

“I’ll be here. Not like I get to leave this place without the nurse.”

Abigail extracted her hand from her dad’s and followed Glen outside of the ward. He led her to a window that looked out at the small park beyond.

“What happened here? He seems okay,” she hissed.

“Of course he is. I killed the hunters before they could do any damage.”

“You did what?” Her voice rose, so she covered her mouth.

He patted her on the shoulder. “I hid their bodies in the morgue freezers. Don’t worry.”

“How am I supposed to do that? How can I believe what you’ve said as well?” She shrugged his hand off and folded her arms across her chest. “I don’t know anything about you.”

“In all honesty, you know nothing about Alexander and are willing to listen to him. Put some faith in me, Abigail. I’m not someone who throws my words around.”

She considered his statement, letting her shoulders relax. “What now? It’s not like I can move my dad out of the hospital whenever I please.”

He nodded. “I know. I’ve spoken to the nurse and your father. And I do believe that moving him out of here, for the time being, may be the safest route to take. If you were to hire bodyguards, it would cause a commotion I’m sure you don’t want.”

“I don’t think I can afford bodyguards…”

“Alexander can. It may be a path he would eagerly take while he keeps you under lock and key.”

“He wouldn’t do that.” She glared at him.

Glen raised a brow. “Wouldn’t or it’s not something you believe he’ll do?”

A heavy sigh escaped her. “You’re right, and I can’t rely on his money. This is a personal problem that I have to deal with on my own.”

“I can help you. We can bring your father to my suite where I can hire a personal doctor to look after him. He will have a nurse on call at all times. That way, you can rest easy by his side.”

Her eyes narrowed on him. “And why would you do that?”

“Because I want to help you.”

She rolled her eyes. “Uhuh, and I’m the Mona Lisa.”

Glen chuckled and offered his hand in a form of a handshake. “Hello there, Mona. It is a pleasure to meet you at last.”

“Oh, for goodness sake,” she grumbled, slapping his hand away. “You’re not serious about this, are you? I don’t know if I can trust you yet.”

“You don’t know or don’t want to know?”

“It could be both. I’m not sure.”

His playfulness vanished. “Abigail, I am here today as a friend, nothing more and nothing less. Sure, I would love it if you could get Alexander to tell me more about that fate, but that is a topic for another time. Right now, you have to decide. If you and your father come with me, I will protect you. If he stays here, he will be in danger.”

Abigail thought for a long minute about his words. In reality, she wanted to keep her father out of danger as much as possible. She also knew that whatever she ended up choosing, her father would also question her as to why she was acting so strangely. How am I going to tell him that my boss is an incubus and my maybe-boyfriend is a vampire? She pinched the bridge of her nose while her brain sluggishly turned its cogs. What on earth am I supposed to do in situations like these?

“Just come with me,” he pressed, keeping his twinkling hazel eyes on her. “I promise no harm will come to you if you do.”

“Fine. Until we figure something out, I will accept your help. But I don’t want you to pay out a fortune for my dad’s stuff. I will pay every cent back that I owe you. I’ll work multiple jobs till I’m sixty if I have to.”

“Noted.” He smiled, taking her hand. “Let’s get your dad out of here then.”

After they helped her protesting father to Glen’s rental car, she wished the leather seat below her would swallow her whole when her father’s stern gaze landed on her in the backseat.

“Abby, what have you gotten yourself into?”

She cringed at her dad’s tone, feeling like a scolded child. Her fingers twisted in her lap, and she wished for courage. “I…” The words stuck in her throat. Vampires and other supernatural beings were definitely off the list of topics she could pick from. She had to go with a half-truth. “I witnessed a shooting at the airport a while ago and one of the bad people saw me there.”

His face paled a shade as Glen started the car. “Did they hurt you? What about the gards? Can’t you go to them?”

“I can’t because…they may be helping them cover it up.”

Her father glanced at Glen. “Is that why you came to the hospital to see me? To keep an eye on me?” Her dad’s eyes narrowed. “Why is her boss involved in something like this unless you two are—”

“No!” She frantically waved her hands in denial.

Glen added, “That’s exactly how it is, Neil. I couldn’t leave her alone because we’re dating. No matter what, I decided to keep her safe.”

Abigail glared at the back of his head, willing him to shut up. When he did, she let out a breath and took hold of her dad’s shaking hands. “It’s going to be okay. I just need to figure a way out of this.”

He gave her hands a squeeze. “You’re my daughter, Abby. I will stand by your decision even if you want us to go to another country right this instant.”

“You would do that?”

“Of course, I would. Your safety comes first.”

She couldn’t hold in her emotions any longer. She scooted closer to her dad and hugged him, allowing her frustration and worry to escape in the form of tears. As he patted her on the back, she buried her face in his shoulder, inhaling the scent of his cheap washing powder.

“I love you, Dad,” she mumbled, sniffling.

“I love you too, sweetheart,” he whispered in her ear and hugged her closer to him.

Glen turned on the radio in the car, giving them some privacy while he hummed along to the music.

ALEXANDER

Alexander sat outside of the cell they were keeping Andrew in. He could hear the young man’s agonised pleas to let him go. His heart ruptured at his inability to help Andrew. He never wished a descent upon anyone. In the vampire community, the chances of anyone getting themselves out of it were fifty-fifty. Most sires would not bother wasting their energy on getting their childe under control once they overfed and became consumed by the thirst. And, even if Andrew was partially conscious of his actions, he was too young to undergo such an arduous process. As much as Alexander wished to ignore that fact, he no longer could. He needed to reach out to Lucious and tell him what had happened to his childe.

He climbed into a standing position and took out his new phone from his pocket. Once he held it in his hand, he tried contacting his friend, but as before, Lucious did not take his call. Then, he called the Council building—no one answered. Grumbling cuss words under his breath, Alexander called one of his acquaintances.

“To what do I owe the pleasure of your voice gracing my phone line, Alexander?” Garett Trent, an information broker from Essex purred down the line.

“I need to know what is going on in London. I can’t seem to get in contact with the Council.”

Garett snorted. “Oh? You didn’t hear the latest gossip?” He let out a laugh. “Apparently, no one can contact them. They’ve gone dark.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The Council members called for a summons of all vampires. It has to be linked to the arrival of the rumoured Royals.”

Alexander wasn’t certain of what he had just heard. The Royal vampires were a myth in their community, even though he had come in contact with one recently. “I’m sorry, did you say Royals?”

“Have you gone deaf in one ear? Yeah, the Royals! Can you imagine? I wonder what they look like. I bet some of them are ravishing.”

“What about Lucious? Any word from him?” Alexander demanded to keep Garett on track.

“I haven’t got a clue, mate,” Garett replied. “If you push some money into my account, I’ll find out for you.”

Alexander groaned. “Are you seriously telling me you will not work unless I pay you? When was I ever known as someone who could not afford your services?”

“These are tough times we live in. Just last week, I was swindled out of some info by a good friend of mine. I’m not making the same mistake again. Send the money, and I’ll get back to you once I’ve got something.”

“Fine.”

Alexander used his phone to transfer twenty thousand pounds into the informant’s account. He combed his hand through his hair as he stared at the stone walls. What was happening in London to make the Council go dark? Without their control over Europe’s vampires, who was in charge? More importantly, what stopped the vampires who used to fear the Council from getting out of line?

While Alexander pondered the possible reasons for this terrible situation, he didn’t notice Tanya creeping up on him. She nudged him on the shoulder. “Can we talk for a second?”

“Yes. What is on your mind?”

Tanya pressed her palms together. “I was thinking about Andrew’s situation. What if I help him in the same way Zafira helped Lucious?”

He stared at her in disbelief. Although he had not told Tanya about the state Lucious was in after that experiment, he certainly was not going to allow Andrew to follow in Lucious’ footsteps. “No! You are not to even consider that as an option.”

“Why not?”

“Because it did more harm than good. We will have to wait it out.”

She grasped his hands, her body trembling. “What if he can’t overcome it? He’s like family to us. I don’t want to lose another friend!”

“None of us do, Tanya.” He tucked a lock of her blonde hair behind her ear. “We simply have to be here for him and let him know that. Trust me, childe, he will pull through.”

She bobbed her head as her sapphire eyes filled with tears. “I will trust your judgement on this.”

“Good.” He drew her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. “Stay strong, for all of us.”

Letting her go, he assessed her worried expression. What he saw on her face had confirmed his initial suspicion. She had gotten emotionally involved with Andrew since he turned. Alexander did not wish to see his daughter heartbroken again. Not like it was his place to tell her otherwise.

He gave her a tentative smile. “Keep watch over him. I am going to cancel all of my appointments for the next two weeks.”