Nathan stalked across the beach and toward the fire, every inch of him exuding wrath. Lured forward by his presence, Vicky crept passed the outdoor pool and the shuttered bar area. Sand shifted beneath her feet when she stopped on top of a dune to listen.
Abby and Brian flanked her sides as Kadence, Ronan, and Declan emerged from the hotel behind Nathan. Asher and Logan stopped scowling when they saw Nathan and moved closer to the circle. Nathan pushed through the outer edge of the crowd and approached the woman standing near the fire.
“You’re just in time, Nathan,” Ida greeted and grabbed Simone’s arm before he could reply.
Ida’s grin faltered, and her eyes widened at him when Nathan stopped before her. Then, she smiled again, lifted a pink and blue ribbon, and drew Simone forward. For so long, many assumed he and Simone would be chosen for each other, but he’d hoped to stop this before it could be confirmed.
Simone bowed her head and color crept into her cheeks. The fact she would be upset or embarrassed by this only infuriated him more.
Vicky tried to get her feet to turn away, but they remained planted in the sand as the elder brought forward a beautiful woman to stand before Nathan. Tears burned Vicky’s eyes; her heart lumbered in her chest as she struggled to breathe.
She couldn’t deny they made a striking couple or that this woman was the ideal candidate for his wife; she doubted the elders would choose anyone less than the best for their leader.
Abby rested her hand on Vicky’s arm as she spoke. “We should go.”
“No,” Vicky said.
“Vicky—”
“I have to see this.”
Abby’s hand tightened on her arm, but she didn’t argue with her.
“I told you yesterday this would not happen today,” Nathan grated through his teeth.
Ida’s smile didn’t falter as she brought Simone’s hand toward him. “Mayday and engagement ceremonies are always such a day of celebration,” she replied in a singsong voice. “Now, join hands.”
Nathan glanced at Simone as she smiled shyly and lifted her hand toward him. He hated himself and Ida for this.
Running a hand through his hair, he glanced at the dunes. Vicky stood there, gazing down at him. Her golden skin gleamed in the sun, and her emerald eyes glistened with what he suspected were tears. Brian and Abby flanked her sides, and if looks could kill, Abby would have dropped him a thousand times over.
He didn’t want to offend Simone, but he would not hurt Vicky.
“No,” he said to Ida. “I’m sorry, Simone, I am. This ceremony was never supposed to happen.” He shot Ida a furious look. “The engagement ceremony will not be taking place today or any day in the future. From now on, engagements will happen when both people agree to the arrangement.”
An astonished murmur raced through the crowd, Ida paled, and Simone’s face resembled a tomato. Nathan looked at Vicky again. The hope in her eyes made this whole horrible situation a little easier.
“A lot of our ways have already changed, and many more will change over the coming days and weeks,” he continued as he focused his attention on the gathered hunters. “The engagement ceremony is one of those things.”
“You… you can’t do that!” Ida sputtered.
“I just did,” Nathan said to her. “This conversation and ceremony are over. There are far more important things to deal with today.”
Turning, he waved at Ronan, who gestured to someone else. A minute later, Saxon and Lucien appeared at the top of a dune with Jordan held between them.
“Jordan!” someone gasped.
“What is going on?” Ida demanded.
Nathan ignored her as he waved for Vicky to join him. She hesitated, but when Abby released her arm, Vicky climbed down the dune and strode across the beach with her sister and Brian. Vicky glanced warily at the hunters who parted to let her pass while Ronan and the other vampires joined them.
Vicky glared at Jordan when she stopped a few feet away from Nathan. The hunters whispered amongst each other and shifted as they looked from Nathan to the vamps and Jordan, then back again.
“Two days ago, Jordan attacked a vampire. Not one of Ronan’s men, not a Savage, but a woman who's been helping me hunt for Joseph.” Nathan told them about what he’d been doing with Vicky, not all the details, but enough that the hunters eyed the two of them suspiciously while he spoke. “As you know, Jordan violated the rules binding the alliance between vampires and hunters, but he did more than that.”
Unaware of what Nathan planned, Vicky almost jerked her hand away when he seized it. Holding it firmly, he drew her closer as an explosion of livid chatter burst through the gathered hunters.
Vicky threw her shoulders back and lifted her chin as she gazed at the crowd. If they had pitchforks and torches, they would have fit every angry mob she’d seen storming the castle in old Frankenstein movies.
“What are you doing?” she hissed to Nathan as the hunters yelled at him and argued with each other.
“Immersing them gradually hasn’t worked. It’s time to throw them into the deep end. Those who can swim will survive; the others will sink,” he replied.
She glanced nervously at the crowd, but they were too busy shouting at each other to band together enough to lynch the vampires, so far. “You’re risking everything.”
He grasped her chin and turned her head toward him. “No, I’m not. They will accept this, or they will go.”
“But, these are your people and your family has ruled them for thousands of years.”
“My family never had to contend with the shit I have. I’ll always question if I’m the leader my father was, but I’ll never question choosing you. The only way to save the hunters is to make them change. I’ve discussed this with Ronan.”
It took a second for his words to sink in. He’s choosing me! That hope she’d denied herself burst over her. Then, she glanced at the crowd, and some of it dwindled.
“Were you going to discuss this with me?” she asked.
“I planned to, but the engagement ceremony forced me into action before I could. I can tell them I’ve changed my mind if you’d like.”
“No!” she blurted, and he smiled as he drew her closer.
He surveyed the crowd, waiting for them to absorb his revelation, before speaking again. “I will not tolerate an attack on her,” he shouted to be heard over the voices. “I will not tolerate any attack against a vampire that isn’t warranted, just as I won’t tolerate any vampire in the alliance attacking a hunter.”
“Liar!” someone yelled from the back of the crowd.
“Think what you will,” Nathan replied, remaining unruffled by the discord he’d sown with his revelation. This complete fracturing of the hunters was necessary so that they could rebuild better and stronger than before, and with Vicky at his side, he could get through anything.
“Jordan would normally be tried as a traitor for his actions. However, there will be no trial as some of you here see me as a traitor, and I broke the rules by keeping Jordan imprisoned without alerting the elders.”
“That’s because you are a traitor!” someone shouted.
“Jordan and I will try each other, in one-on-one combat,” Nathan said, refusing to rise to the anger and accusations. Clear head, clear mind. “One of us will pay for our crimes.”
“Wait!” Elfry cried as she pushed her way through the crowd to stand at the front. “We cannot risk the life of our leader!”
“I second that!” Roland agreed as he stepped forward.
Asher and Logan slid through the crowd to flank Nathan and Vicky. Some hunters moved to stand with them, but half still looked uncertain, and the other half looked prepared to murder.
“He’s not our leader. He’s a filthy, vampire fucker like his sister!” someone else shouted.
“I will not tolerate that!” Ronan bellowed, and the hunters closest to him staggered away as red fire burned from his eyes.
“Hang Nathan; save Jordan!” Ida cried and then cringed away from the look Vicky gave her.
“No! Everyone is too emotional right now!” Elfry shouted. “We must discuss this rationally!”
Vicky kept waiting for the pitchforks to break out as the crowd increasingly yelled over one another.
“Enough!” Nathan roared and lifted his hand into the air.
Vicky marveled when even the hunters campaigning to kill him hushed at his command. Whether they believed him a traitor or not, he still exuded an aura of authority they obeyed.
“This trial will be between me and Jordan. If I lose, you will find another leader and be free to do as you choose. If I win, you are still free to find another leader, continue your traditions, and pull out of the alliance with the vampires. With everything that’s happened, I’m sure the other strongholds would welcome new members to strengthen them. But when the Savages come for you, and they will come for you, the vampires won’t be there to back you up.”
When many hunters looked to Ronan, his smile revealed his fangs. “I won’t save your lives if you’re not helping us stop this.”
More excited, loud voices exploded as the hunters argued with each other.
When Roland stepped forward and raised his hand, the chatter died down again. “I don’t like it, but Nathan’s right, let them try each other. This continued division will destroy us all. Many of us don’t like change, but the time has come when we must adapt or perish. If Nathan is meant to rule, he’ll win. If not, then Jordan will win and we’ll sort out the pieces afterward.”
“I don’t like this,” Elfry said.
“Neither do I,” Vicky murmured.
“It’s what must be done,” Nathan said. “Do you agree to this and feel up to it today?” he asked Jordan.
“I’m up for killing you any day,” Jordan spat.
“We need weapons,” Roland said.
Striding forward, Declan removed two identical swords from where he’d strapped them in a cross against his back. “Will these do?” he asked as he held them out to Roland.
Roland took the blades from him and inspected them both before handing them back. “Yes.”
Declan passed a sword to Nathan and the other to Jordan. “Don’t ruin my blades,” he said to Nathan before rejoining Ronan.
Nathan tested the weight of the sword in his hand and examined the honed edge of the blade. It would slice a head off in one swing.
“Do me a favor,” Roland mumbled as he walked by Nathan, “and kill that asshole.”
Nathan bit back a smile as Jordan was led over to stand across from him inside the circle of hunters and vampires.