CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Meryn sat quietly at the dining room table as conversations buzzed all around her. Everyone seemed to be talking at once. The children were virus free and the sleeping vampires were getting better by the hour. But something was off. Vivi checked in on Micah and Serenity and reported that they were both awake and doing just fine. Though it wasn't said out loud, everyone seemed to understand why they weren't at dinner. Meryn smirked, she'd be lucky to see those two before she left the city.
She leaned back in her chair as something continued to eat away at her. She just couldn't remember what it was or why it was important. Stupid baby brain.
"Denka, are you well?" Ryuu asked reaching for her wrist.
Around her the table quieted.
"Ryuu, is the child well?" Magnus asked.
Meryn stared at Rheia. What on earth had she said? Something about coming so far. Meryn gasped as she remembered why it bothered her.
They had come so far. Exactly down the path laid out for them, but by who?
"Meryn, baby?" Aiden took her other hand.
Meryn turned to Magnus. "You said I could have whatever I wanted, whenever, right?"
Magnus nodded. "You, more than anyone, deserves whatever your heart could desire."
"I want to speak with DeLaFontaine."
"No," Aiden said immediately.
She scowled up at him. "I didn't ask you."
She turned back to Magnus. "I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important."
Magnus gave her a soft smile. "I am beyond doubting you." He looked over to Adriel. "Secure him and bring him here. If she wants to meet with him, I want her surrounded by unit warriors at all times."
Adriel stood and motioned to Declan. "You are with me."
Declan grinned. "I knew you liked me best." Adriel was still ignoring him when they walked out.
Magnus stood. "Meryn if you would like to adjourn to the antechamber, I think you will be more comfortable there." He looked around. "And when he leaves we can return here without of dinner being spoiled by his presence."
"Dibs on the recliner," Meryn said standing.
Beth laughed. "I think it's pretty much yours now anyway."
Meryn let Aiden help her stand and escort her to the antechamber.
Quicker than she thought it would take, the door opened, and Adriel pulled DeLaFontaine into the room. When he saw Meryn, he snarled. "You!" he hissed. "Do not think I do not know that you were behind that humiliating spell."
Meryn frowned, then remembered the twin's diarrhea spell. She burst out laughing. "I actually had very little to do with that one, but thanks for reminding me. I needed a good laugh."
Adriel drove DeLaFontaine to his knees in the middle of the room facing Meryn. "He is all yours," he announced.
DeLaFontaine stared up at her. "What is this about?"
Meryn tilted her head. "I'm not sure yet. Something about you bothers me."
"He bothers all of us," Vivi muttered under her breath.
Meryn stared into DeLaFontaine's eyes. "Black, slick, oil," she said to herself.
She felt two hands come to rest on her back. She knew without turning it was Ryuu and Kendrick. "Keep going Meryn," Kendrick urged.
"I saw that black stuff again, with that Dubois douchebag, but not like him," she pointed to the man at her feet.
Meryn's gut instinct was proven correct when DeLaFontaine paled at her words. "Impossible," he whispered.
"You know what I think?" she asked him. "I think whoever is really in charge, the one who created this virus, I don't think they are kind enough to leave us an out. We did everything they thought we would do. We opened the city, we welcomed the refugees, we gathered blood, everything according to plan." Meryn raced after that one thought evading her. "Right up until I visited you. That's when I got those awful premonitions about Magnus. That was when we stopped doing what they wanted." She turned to Vivi. "What would've happened if I hadn't warned you about Magnus?"
Vivi frowned then swayed. Etain steadied her. "Magnus would have been strong enough, fast enough to either kill or incapacitate both Gavriel and Kendrick. Once wounded they would have been killed along with everyone in the room."
Meryn continued. "What would've happened if I hadn't stopped the third trial of older blood with the children and shifters on Level Six?"
Vivi covered her face with her hands unable to speak. Gavriel turned to Meryn. "The levels of testosterone in the blood from the transition markers would have reacted to whatever was in the virus to promote aggressive behavior. They would have gone feral. The adults would have hesitated to hurt them and they would have decimated everyone in the hospital." He stared down at DeLaFontaine. "Magnus would have started from the bottom and worked his way up and the children would have started from the top and worked their way down. Any victim who lost a mate would have also turned feral and the bloodbath would have grown at an exponential rate."
Meryn nodded. "That's what I thought." She stared at DeLaFontaine. "You're not smart enough to do all this. You're too self-centered. You would've wanted to preserve the city, so you could rule it, you wouldn't have created this." Her eyes narrowed. "Who is pulling your strings?"
DeLaFontaine's body slumped forward and his head hung down, his hair blocking his face. "Do you really want to know?" he asked sounding different.
"Yes," she replied.
"So be it," was the last thing she heard before light exploded behind her eyes.
"Denka!"
"Meryn!"
Shit, they are going to be so pissed at me.
Finally, she gave in to the pain.
*****
When she opened her eyes, she looked round. She was standing in a bright white room. "Well fuck," she muttered.
A low masculine chuckle had her turning. "Holy shit!" she exclaimed. The man before her could not be real, he was simply too beautiful. If she weren't mated, she'd lust after this one.
"Thank you," he replied, in a deep voice. Silently he began to walk round her.
"Wait, can you read my mind?" she asked.
"In a way."
"Watch it, it can get a bit crazy in there," she warned.
He smiled and continued to circle her.
"I take it you're the head guy, the one in charge?"
"Something like that."
"Why are you doing all this?"
"Should you be asking so many questions? It cannot be good for your health," he warned.
"I've been asking questions my whole life buddy, it's what I do."
"The witches warned me about you. You have no idea how long I have been looking for you."
"They warned you about me?" Around them a flash of blue light illuminated the frosted glass walls. She ignored it. "Why would you be looking for me?"
"I wonder how they kept you hidden?" he mused.
"Back to my other question. Why are you doing all this? Is it for the necklaces?"
"The necklaces are just a means to an end."
"What end?"
"Your world of course."
"Dude, seriously? You want to take over the world? Have you seen how fucked up it is lately? Trust me, it's a headache you don't want."
He stopped his circling to stand in front of her. "Imagine being locked away in a small, wooden box. There are no windows, no doors. It is dry, dusty, hot and confining. Would you not risk everything to feel a bit of fresh air on your face or taste sweet, cold, water?"
"I suppose," Meryn admitted.
"Even if it meant killing others?"
She shrugged. "Depends on whether or not they deserved it."
"You are not what I expected. Most humans would respond, 'I would never kill an innocent person,'."
"Most humans lie to themselves on a regular basis, I'm not that smart," Meryn said, wincing at another bright flash of blue light.
"You think more like a demon than a human," he complimented.
"Is that what you are?"
"Your Dark Prince will be able to tell you more," he answered. He eyed her closely. "You know. I was simply going to have you killed, but I may change my mind. You are amusing. I think we could have a lot of fun together."
"You know DeLaFontaine will be questioned by the council," she pointed out.
He gave a lazy shrug. "He has served his purpose."
"Whatever you're doing, if it hurts the people I care about. I will stop you."
"You can try, and I will enjoy watching you try." He smiled and held up a finger. "Wait for it."
Meryn shielded her eyes from another flash of light.
He laughed. "Your squire is losing his mind to get you back."
Now it was her turn to shrug. "I know."
He paused. "You knew that was your squire this entire time and you are ignoring him?"
"I told you. I ask questions, it's what I do."
He slowly approached her. She felt ice slide down her spine as his lips neared her ear. "And I kill people, it is what I do."
She turned so that their noses were nearly touching. "But you won't kill me." Of this she was sure.
He smiled and leaned back. "I may not have to."
"What do you mean?"
"Did I forget to mention? To speak to me, I had to stop your heart." His eyes were cold. "I did say that asking so many questions could affect your health."
Meryn's hand went to her belly. She raced to the glass and a door appeared traced in blue fire. She looked back. "This is your only warning. Don't piss me off."
He threw his head back roaring with laughter. When he looked back at her he smiled. "Ditto."
Meryn pushed on the glass until it gave way at the fiery seam. She tumbled forward into the blue light. She exhaled as warmth seeped into her body. She didn't realize how cold that room had been. In the distance she saw a hand reaching for her. She stretched as far as she could and let it pull her back.
*****
"I have her!" Ryuu's familiar voice shouted.
"Dude, loud," she complained.
An ear shattering roar echoed around her. She opened her eyes and looked toward the sound. Adriel, Gavriel, Colton, Declan and Rex had a huge creature pinned to the floor. She smiled. "It's Fuzzy Aiden, come here boy," she said, holding out her hands.
The men toppled off the bear creature as it lurched forward to lay its head on her chest. "Aiden your freaking head is heavy, shift back or you'll squish our jellybean."
Slowly Aiden shrank back down, his clothes were tattered rags hanging off of him. Behind her Ryuu held her close to his body, refusing to let go.
She looked up. "You were the blue light."
His lips trembled, and his eyes were filled with tears, but he did not let them fall. He simply nodded, unable to speak.
Aiden buried his face in her chest holding her belly protectively. "He killed you," he whispered in a guttural voice. When he turned to stare at DeLaFontaine's prone body his eyes were the solid black of his bear.
Meryn eyed DeLaFontaine and turned to Gavriel. "Take him back to the detention cells and seal it in a salt circle. Then come back up here for a family meeting."
Gavriel's eyes immediately flashed crimson. He hissed at DeLaFontaine before shaking his head. "It cannot be."
"You're the one who told me the stories, trust me, salt his ass then get back up here."
Gavriel moved quicker than she had even seen him move before. He had DeLaFontaine jerked up by his collar and out of the room in under two seconds.
Aiden snarled as his prey was taken from him. She kissed him on the lips. "I'm here and I'm not going anywhere I promise. I need you to pull your shit together for a bit. Later tonight you can examine every inch of me, but right now we have plans to make."
Aiden looked up at Ryuu. "She stays in your arms until I get back."
Ryuu nodded. "It shall be as you say." He tightened his arms around her.
Aiden stood on shaky legs and stumbled forward heading toward their bedroom. Colton and Adriel were at his side in seconds, propping him up on either side. "Come on Aiden, we will help," Adriel said, helping walk the drained commander to the bedroom to dress.
When she went to shift her weight Ryuu stilled her efforts. "Ryuu my back hurts. Can't you hold me in my recliner?"
"My apologies denka, I find that I am experiencing something very disturbing. It's a feeling I've never had before, and it is distracting me from my duties."
"Fear, Ryuu. What you are feeling is pure unadulterated fear," Kendrick said quietly from behind them.
Ryuu practically snarled. "I do not fear that creature!"
Kendrick placed a hand on the squire's back. "I never said you did." He looked down at Meryn. "I believe your fear stems from almost losing her."
"Oh, Ryuu," Meryn said softly. She reached up with both hands to cup his face. "I wasn't afraid you know. Because I knew you were there. You gave me the strength to face him." She wiggled until he let her get on her knees. Meryn didn't know if it was socially appropriate, but she always felt better when Aiden did it. Feeling unsure she leaned forward and kissed Ryuu on the forehead. "As long as we're together, everything will be okay," she promised.
Ryuu's mouth opened in pure shock. He looked back at Kendrick, as if unsure of his new emotions.
Kendrick laughed. "You cared for her, protected her, guided her. She is your charge, so you thought you could treat her like the others, but you were wrong. Unlike the others who only saw you as a tool to be used, she considers you family. She got past every barrier you ever created. What you are feeling is love, pure and simple. A love that goes past labels like squire and charge. She just stole a piece of your soul Ryuu," Kendrick clapped him on the back. "And it's about damn time."
Meryn dropped her hands and eyed Ryuu. "I love you, but do not want to have sex with you," she said plainly.
Her blunt, outrageous statement shook him from whatever stupor his emotions left him in. He took a deep breath. "And I love you too Meryn and do not wish to have sex with you either."
"You will still feed me, right?" she asked.
He gave her a flat look. "Of course I'll feed you. You'd probably try to sustain yourself on Hot Pockets again if I didn't."
Meryn exhaled in relief. "Thank god," she said then looked down at her wrist. "Hey! My tattoo changed! My dragon got wings!" She held up her wrist to Ryuu who was frowning. "That's not possible."
"He has wings!" she crowed getting to her feet. She held up her wrist hopping around.
"I thought I told you to keep her in your arms," Aiden growled as he walked back into the room. He scooped her up and nuzzled her neck. "Aiden! Look! My dragon has wings now!"
Aiden stared down at her wrist then over to Ryuu. "What did you do while I was getting dressed?"
"I kissed him on the forehead like you do to me all the time because it always makes me feel better. Then I told him I loved him, but I did stipulate I did not want to have sex with him," Meryn said rotating her wrist around checking out the new addition to her tattoo.
Declan nodded. "She was very clear about that part Aiden."
Ryuu gracefully rose to his feet. "Denka and I have moved to a deeper understanding of each other, which allowed us both to grow. I think the tattoo changing is a reflection of our new relationship." He straightened his vest and jacket before smoothing them to lay flat. He placed his hand over his heart and bowed. "Denka, if you would return to the dining table, I will continue to serve dinner."
Etain put his phone away. "Micah and Serenity are on the way. Normally I would let them rest, but I have a feeling they will need to hear what happened."
Meryn grabbed Aiden's hand and tried to pull him into the dining room. "Come on, I'm starving."
Magnus looked to the others. "Then by all means let us continue our dinner."
*****
Micah gripped his mate's hand tightly as they hurried down the hallway on Level One toward the Rioux quarters.
"Did Etain say what was going on?" she asked.
"No, but he knew I wanted to spend more time reconnecting with you. It must be something important."
As they approached the entry door, they met up with Gavriel coming from the direction of the detention cells. His eyes blazed scarlet. He looked at them and simply nodded before opening the door for them to walk through.
When they walked into the dining room everyone was seated as they normally were, but the conversations around the table were subdued.
"I hid," Pip admitted quietly.
"I am glad you did Pip." Magnus said approvingly. "I did not want him anywhere near you."
Once they were seated Micah turned to Adriel. "So, what happened?"
Adriel simply drained his wine glass. Micah was about to ask Gavriel when he saw that he too was emptying his goblet.
Kendrick stared down into his wine, but wasn't drinking. That's how Micah knew it was bad. As a witch drinking impaired your abilities. If Kendrick wasn't drinking, he wanted to stay sharp in case he had to call on his magic.
Kendrick set his glass down. "Meryn confronted DeLaFontaine today and made certain truths clearer for the rest of us.
"The virus was designed so that the only possible cure was older vampire blood."
Micah nodded. "We knew that."
Kendrick continued. "Meryn pointed out that, had we administered the third trial, bloodshed would have been inevitable as shifters and vampires alike lost control due to the aggression triggers built into the virus. I think we all realized the bullet we dodged, but only Meryn saw it for what it was. A calculated attempt to destroy the city."
"Father did not like that people were getting sick," Pip said quietly. "But the scary men said it was the only way father would get the city."
Meryn tapped on the table with her finger. "That's what I thought. He wanted to be the new prince, which meant he kinda needed people to kiss his ass. This virus would've wiped everyone out." Her eyes widened, and she looked over at Vivi. "I think because I stopped the trials, the city remained on lock down and they couldn't take advantage of the chaos to escape. So, your attack was simply a way to open the door for them to leave," she grimaced. "Sorry about that."
Vivi waved off her concern. "It wasn't your fault Meryn."
Aiden looked down at Pip. "Pip, why didn't you go to any of the unit warriors and tell them what was happening?"
Meryn glared at Aiden. "It's not his fault if he was scared of his dad."
Pip just blinked up at Aiden. "But the warriors knew."
Aiden looked over at Adriel who shook his head. Aiden turned back to Pip. "Why would you think that?"
Pip poked Aiden in the upper arm. "Because they had the same tattoos as unit warriors, except theirs were red."
Micah wasn't the only warrior to collapse back in their chair. Of course, Pip wouldn't know the difference.
Aiden had tears in his eyes as he continued to ask the questions no one wanted to hear the answers to. "Did they all have red tattoos?" Pip nodded. Aiden looked like he was going to be ill. "Is that why you tried to protect Meryn when we first met? You thought I was like them?" Pip nodded again. Aiden unbuttoned his sleeve and pushed it up to reveal his unit tattoo. "This is a unit warrior tattoo Pip. It shows what city, unit, and race we belong to. Mine is black because I am actively serving. When a warrior retires or goes inactive an outline appears around it." He swallowed hard. "When it turns red, that means the warrior has turned feral. Because warriors are trained for so many centuries it was decided that in the event a warrior loses his soul, the ink will turn red as a warning to others to stay away or call for help." He looked around the table. "There is nothing more dangerous than a unit warrior who has lost his soul."
Meryn covered her mouth with both hands. "The missing Vanguard."
Micah couldn't face the room. He buried his head in his arms on the table and tried to block out the truth. He felt his mate wrap an arm around him and hold him tight.
Finally, Meryn spoke, breaking the silence. "It explains the sophistication of this entire plan. The execution of it had military precision, not like the raging idiots we faced in Lycaonia."
Micah sat up and looked around at his fellow unit brothers. None of them wanted to contemplate taking down a single feral warrior much less two. From what Pip said the enemy seemed to have their own feral version of units.
Aiden had one hand over his eyes. "I need to call my father and tell him about the feral warriors. He will have to activate the Old Guard to help us deal with this." His hand dropped. "We will issue an edict making it mandatory for every unit warrior ever trained to check in and register for the app. It's the only way we can get a scope of how bad this really is."
"Why is this happening?" Ellie whispered, sounding completely hopeless. Grant scooted back and lifted her easily into his lap. She buried her face in his neck.
"The guy, who I think is a demon by the way, said that he was trying to get out of some kind of box," Meryn answered.
Ryuu looked down at her sourly. "You almost die and that is what you come back with?"
She glared at her squire. "This guy answered questions with questions, okay. I'm lucky I got that much out of him."
Gavriel looked to her. "Did he say anything else?"
Meryn looked up, recounting her experience. "I asked him if he was a demon and he said, 'The Dark Prince will be able to tell you more'. He said that the necklaces were a means to an end to get our world... Oh and witches warned him about me." She smiled. "Then he said he didn't think he was going to kill me because I was amusing, and we could have fun together." She frowned. "I think he likes me."
Hal appeared at Aiden's side and poured him a full goblet of amber liquid. With a shaking hand Aiden downed the whole thing and coughed once. He looked up at Hal. "Thank you."
Hal looked as spooked as the rest of them. "If anyone deserves a stiff drink it's you."
Kendrick held up a hand. "He mentioned witches as in plural?"
Meryn nodded. "He said he wasn't able to find me because I was hidden or something."
Kendrick looked over to Gavriel. "By Fate?"
Gavriel shook his head. "At this point I feel like I do not know anything."
Kendrick turned back to Meryn. "How did you know to put a demon in a salt circle?"
Meryn brightened. "Netflix."
Kendrick's mouth dropped, and he turned to Anne. "Magic in your role-playing games, alchemy in anime and now demon hunting on Netflix? Why didn't I know about any of this?"
Anne's mouth twitched. "We can Netflix and chill later love." Meryn giggled, and Anne winked at her.
"How can you laugh?" Vivi asked. "How do we face tomorrow?"
Meryn tilted her head. "We face tomorrow because the alternative is to not face it, which means dying, and I for one, am not done doing all the things I want to do. Like, watching the newest season of Doctor Who or trying the new chipotle flavored Cheetos. I face tomorrow laughing, because if I let them steal my happiness, then they've already won, and fuck that, because I'm going to win."
Aiden sighed. "You could have said watch centuries worth of sunsets with my mate or tour the Amazon, but you went with Cheetos and Netflix?"
"Fuck the Amazon! Do you know how many bugs are in the Amazon? Like they don't even have an accurate count of the number of species there are, much less how many individual bugs. Did you know that one statistic says that in the Amazon, bugs outweigh all vertebrates four to one? Like imagine how many tiny bugs it would take to make up four of your huge ass. No way! Fuck that."
Aiden pouted. "I'm not that big Meryn and I don't have a huge ass."
Etain leaned in toward his mate and pointed across the table at the Unit Commander and his tiny mate. "That is how we face tomorrow. That is how we laugh. By finding joy in the moment." Etain's mouth twitched at Aiden's expression.
Serenity rested her head on Micah's shoulder. "We have thousands of moments to look forward to. We can't turn our back on all of them because we're scared of a few."
He turned to her and whispered. "I am especially interested in more naked Twister moments."
She blushed and kissed his temple. "You're on," she replied.
Kari sighed and picked up her iPad. "So, we have a possible virus creating demon leading an army of feral unit warriors, in addition to invisible reapers and mindless garden variety ferals?" She tapped a few times then looked up. Everyone was staring. "What? We might as well be organized about this."
Magnus was the first one to lose his composure. But his belly laughing seemed to trigger then entire room. They were facing impossible odds, but somehow being with family made it seem like everything would be okay.
Ellie sniffed. "What do we do now?"
Micah leaned forward to answer her. "Celebrate." He looked around the table and back to his mate. "Celebrate every moment."
Micah could see the unconditional love she had for him in her eyes. "Because tomorrow isn't promised," she said smiling.
He raised her hand and kissed it. "But anything can happen, our future holds infinite possibilities and I intend to enjoy each one."