“You are going to have to speak to me eventually, imp!” Teague said, standing next to Nadira as she sat at the kitchen table. She had been minding her own business, drinking a glass of her favorite blood type, AB positive, when Teague came into the kitchen, pleading for her to speak to him.

“No, I don’t,” she responded, not looking up from her book. It had been a week since the night she snuck out to her date with Cooper.

“Ha!” He grabbed the chair next to her and sat down on it backwards. “You just spoke!”

“You could have spoken up for me,” she started. He opened his mouth to speak but she held up her hand. “But no, you go right along with the other brothers, intimidating my mate!”

“He’s not your mate, Naddy,” he said, using her childhood nickname.

“How would you know? When a person meets their mate, they know. It hits them here.” She slammed her open palm on her chest above her heart. “Have you found your mate? Do you know how it feels to look at a person for the first time and just feel a connection? Like finally two halves are moving together. Feeling almost complete?” His face filled with regret. He tried to say something, but no words passed. He closed his eyes and ran his hands through his hair. “You guys took that from me!” She quickly wiped the tears from her eyes before they fell.

“Naddy, I’m sorry…” he trailed off.

“I’m not,” Nicu said, interrupting from the kitchen entrance. He glared at Teague, nodding for him to leave. Teague looked to her first; she looked back down at her book, dismissing him. He sighed as he left the room.

“He’s not your mate, Nadira,” Nicu continued, sitting down at the table across from her. She continued to ignore him, refusing to look up at him. “I know you’re not really reading the book. Look at me, Naddy.” She rolled her eyes as he too, used her childhood nickname. She sat back in her chair as she looked at her eldest sibling.

She wished that her parents were here so that she could speak to her mother. The king had business in Paris and the queen naturally went with him. For support, the queen claimed, but everyone knew the shopping in Paris drew her to travel with the king.

“Nicu, just let it be. You got what you wanted,” she sighed as she closed her book, setting it on the table.

“Seeing you sad and moping around the house is not what I wanted. I’m trying to protect you,” he said, massaging his temples.

“From my mate?” She could feel her eyebrows almost reach her hairline. “Why would I need protection from my—”

“Enough!” Nicu roared, slamming his hand down on the table. “The human is not good enough to be your mate. You need a strong vampire to mate with! Our line cannot be polluted by a human’s blood!”

“Our line? I have nothing to do with our line! That is between you, Toma, Adrian, and Teague. Your children will carry on the family name, not mine!” She stood up suddenly, yelling. She was so much smaller than her older brother was. Even her standing in front of him, they were still eye level. His eyes narrowed on her, locking on her, causing a shiver to slide down her spine. She knew she went too far. She was talking to Nicu. No one yelled at him, except the king, and Nadira was definitely not the king.

“Sit down, Nadira,” his voice remained low and calm. She knew better than to test him. She quickly sat back down in her chair. “You are the vampire princess and you matter to this family. Your children may not carry our last name, but they will still carry Olaru blood and will be just as important as if their last name was Olaru.” He looked away for a second before turning his eyes back to Nadira.

“Why do you hate humans so much?” she asked quietly.

“You know that the Dark Shadows’ mission is to hunt down the rogue vampires, protect our people and that of humans, even though they do not know of our existence.”

“You didn’t answer my question,” she pointed out.

“A human male cannot protect you as you should be,” he said, crossing his arms across his massive chest.

“From what? When have I ever been threatened?”

“The current threat is being handled. You do not need to worry. You are not to leave this house without an escort again.” He stood, walking towards the kitchen door.

“What are you talking about? I deserve to know!” she followed, yelling at his back. He paused at the door.

“We are handling it,” he answered without looking at her and stalked out the kitchen.

That answer was not good enough for her. She ran through the house looking for her brother Adrian. She knew that she had him wrapped around her little finger and he would tell her what she wanted to know. She knew that she was lucky to have four older brothers who loved her, but they could be smothering at times. She held a special relationship with each of them.

With Teague, they were two years apart and had always been thick as thieves. As children, they were always getting into trouble together. He understood her like no one else could as if they had a special sibling bond. When she wanted to learn more than self-defense, he was there to teach her to master the art of combat and weaponry.

Toma, twelve years older than her, still looked at her as if she was still that little girl that would run to him for protection. She never had to worry when she was scared or afraid; she knew that Toma would keep her safe. When Nadira was eight years old, a nasty thunderstorm woke her up in the middle of the night. She didn’t run to their parents’ room for safety, but to Toma’s room. She would knock two times, pause, then knock two more times, then enter his room. He wouldn’t say a word, but pull back the covers so that she could huddle in the bed with him to wait out the storm.

Adrian, seventeen years her senior, was wrapped around her finger so tight, that she could pretty much make him tell or do anything she wanted. There were no secrets between the two of them. Adrian was who she was most comfortable speaking with about any matter. When she was younger, he would provide her with cover stories when she would sneak out to hang out with her friends.

Even though there was a twenty-two year difference between her and Nicu, they still were able to form a bond. He had always been the brother who would not let her get away with anything. Rules were to be followed. She knew that he would protect her with his life and truly wanted what was best for her, even though she may not like it. Out of the four brothers, he was the most overbearing and the most protective of her.

She arrived at Adrian’s door. She knocked quickly, waiting for a response. She heard a muffled ‘come in’ before she flew into his room.

“Adrian Olaru!”

“Shit!” he groaned, taking one look at her with her hand on her hip and foot tapping. “Oh, no! I’m not telling you anything!” He backed away from her.

“What is Nicu talking about? He said that a threat is being handled?” She gave him her best puppy dog eyes. “Someone has threatened me? I haven’t done anything to anyone!”

He let out a large sigh. “You know Nicu will have my head for this! Shut the door,” he said, pointing to the door. She slammed the door shut before plopping down on Adrian’s extra-large recliner.

“This does not leave this room,” he said. She nodded her head, anxious to find out what was going on. Of course, she wouldn’t tell anyone, apparently she was the last one to find out. “There have been sightings of a few necros in the city.”

Necros or necromancers were supernatural beings that practiced the darkest of black magic. They were creatures that fed on life forces and needed to consume human souls and energy. Their powers enabled them to summon the dead to do their bidding. Necromancers and vampires had been mortal enemies for as long as the history books date back in time.

“Necros in the city? What are they doing here?” she asked. After The Battle between necros and vampires fifty years ago, necromancers disappeared from the face of the Earth. Just overnight, they vanished, never to be seen again. Many have speculated that they went into hiding in a different realm, but that theory was never confirmed.

“We don’t know. We haven’t been able to catch one yet,” Adrian said, rubbing a hand across his face.

“But what does that have to do with me?” she asked confused. Why would she be the target of the necromancers?

“Sodan, the necromancer king, has offered a truce. His term for peace is that he wants you to mate with his son, Xalak.”