Chapter 30: Rescue Party

ALEKSANDR

I was frustrated, unable to locate my second cufflink. I wanted to get to the event early, before any guests could bother Seraphina. I was looking forward to some private time with her before the event, maybe even more than once.

Thoughts of her body flashed in my mind, making my cock twitch in anticipation of her presence.

I’d never been interested in the events Jack hosted, nor was I inclined to donate in the past. Generally, I avoided charity events unless they were business-related. I knew how simple it could be for the world’s issues to be fixed if those in power actually saw those in poverty as people.

That fact alone barred many from life’s simple luxuries such as food, shelter, or clothing.

This time, I was excited. Not just for the sex but for the chance to spend an evening with Seraphina socially for the first time. Only now was I realizing that someone inferior was pursuing her between our mingling.

This was a disturbing development considering the new preference I had developed for her blood.

Just a few days ago, I’d met with a vampire said to be a step into the shadows of demons themselves: Nicodemus. But that was a minor detail in the crucial meeting with his newly turned mate. A witch-turned-vampire with unique gifts beneficial only to Nicodemus.

Tatiana was more than she seemed. A legend among witches, she possessed a wealth of knowledge usually only known to Nicodemus himself.

While the orb was still my primary concern, I had also had time to question Tatiana about people from other realms. A gut feeling was telling me that the orb and Seraphina were connected considering how well Jack had hidden her medical records.

The only proof she had ever been ill, let alone existing before the night I had shot Jack, came from Seraphina herself.

Tatiana warned me that any objects or people from another world were dangerous by nature. Sometimes claimed by the fairy folk, demons, or ~others~ as powerful as what we might perceive as gods.

The warning ignited my curiosity and arousal at the thought of pursuing both Seraphina and the Orb. Events never so often caused my body to course with excitement these days.

Before, Tatiana had assured me that the Eye of Demeter, no matter what it was called these days, was a cursed object better left on the other side despite its powerful properties. Which was why it needed to be returned.

It would slowly destroy its user and make others possessively attached due to its power, with a fail-safe to prevent its destruction.

It was also one of three objects said to bring about the end of times on earth.

While I didn’t believe in superstitious nonsense about the end of times, given my age, it was hard not to acknowledge Tatiana’s warning. The deep wisdom in her eyes was far greater than even my own.

The orb seemed less appealing and more like an object that needed to be thrown back to where it came from. Preferably with a very solid metal bat for maximum force.

It was harder to listen to the warning about Seraphina. If she didn’t taste wrong, why stop? If anything, her blood tasted more vibrant than a normal human’s, despite the brief medical history I’d managed to obtain showing her as a frail woman with fainting spells and wonderful blood levels, if a little heavy on the pasta.

Nadia didn’t bother to knock as she came into my room, a disapproving frown on her lips.

I let out a joyful gasp as I found my cufflink. It had somehow ended up in a shoe on the nearby shelf. I was curious how that had happened.

Nadia eyed me. “Pampering yourself like a princess? When her event was rescheduled?”

I raised an eyebrow as I got up off the floor to find my lint roller. “I’d still go over if that were the case.”

Nadia cleared her throat, lifting her red manicured nails that matched her hair today as she looked at her phone. She started to read from it. “Apologies to all of those who RSVPed to the yearly winter festival of the Blair estate. We regret to inform you—”

I held up two fingers, ignoring the rest of the message as I grabbed a bow tie to work on. I was trying to decide between maroon or navy, pausing for a moment before reaching for the black one.

Nadia frowned. “Why are you still getting dressed?”

“It would be a waste of a good suit. I look good, so I should still put it to use.” I walked back into my bedroom from the closet to the three-tiered mirror in the corner of my room. I stopped short as I felt the hairs on my neck prickle.

We weren’t alone.

A chill ran down my spine. I paused, adjusting my collar, my eyes focusing on a figure in the far corner of the room. Someone I recognized but had never interacted with was turning the page of a book.

Nadia tensed behind me. She assessed the situation fractions of seconds after me. Less forgiving, her knives were already slicing through the air at the sudden intrusion, deciding how to handle the situation.

Knives that didn’t hit anything but the furniture, several others clattering to the floor.

Evelyn had swung her book in a movement I had almost missed. She stood up from her seat with an annoyed look on her face.

The fact that she managed to sneak in without Nadia or me noticing was just as unbelievable as her movements. I was both impressed and wary after my recent conversation with Tatiana about rarer creatures and their abilities.

Certain demons, faeries, or beings from other realms, blending in so seamlessly with humans far superior to even vampires.

It was a concept I was reluctant to accept, especially after years of what I was now beginning to suspect was a superiority complex.

“Do you always greet your guests like this?” she retorted, seemingly unfazed by the barrage of knives. Her eyes never left Nadia.

“A guest is welcomed at the front door, an intruder shows up unannounced in someone else’s home,” I responded. I kept my gaze on her in the mirror while trying to maintain my composure as I tied my bow. There was no point in letting her see that we were both rattled. “Why are you here, and why do you think you’ll survive this encounter?”

“Seraphina’s in trouble. Out of the two she’s sleeping with, you’re the closest to home,” she replied. She smirked and crossed her arms as she met my gaze in the mirror.

I wasn’t sure what upset Nadia more; the idea that I would rush to Seraphina’s aid, or that a creature had managed to intrude. Regardless, it didn’t matter. Nadia was across the room in a flash, putting the woman in a chokehold—or so it seemed.

By the time I turned around, the situation had drastically changed. Evelyn was grinning from ear to ear, her mouth full of blood, while Nadia cursed and clutched her forearm. She took several steps back, a mix of emotions playing across her face.

Her scream suggested her flesh had been torn, and the amount of blood seeping through her fingers as she tried to stem the flow before her healing abilities kicked in confirmed it.

“You bit me!” Nadia accused, seeming more shocked than angry.

“Better me than you,” Evelyn replied, a glint in her eyes as she licked the blood from her lips.

Nadia let out a feral growl. I silenced her with a raised hand. Their bickering was starting to annoy me.

“What do you mean, she’s in trouble? Did Seraphina send you?”

“No, she didn’t send me. While I was setting up the champagne fountain, five idiots tried to tie me up. Considering they had magic and were working with Damien, I high tailed it out of there. Plus, two of them smelled like wet dog. So, between the wet dog smell and the blood-sucking leech, yes, you were the better of the two options,” Evelyn said.

She wrinkled her nose as if my questions were irritating her.

“Sounds like a lie,” Nadia retorted. She flicked her hair back with the arm that now bore a healing bite mark.

My eyes were drawn to the wound, which looked surprisingly human now that it was closed.

“Aleksandr wouldn’t lie with a female who slept with a wolf.”

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I reached for it while keeping my eyes on the two women.

The number was unfamiliar. I wondered who could have gotten it. If tonight was a night for unusual events, there was clearly more than just danger in the air.

“Vasiliev.”

“I need your help.”

I kept my expression neutral at the sound of the dog’s voice—a voice that had threatened me with death on multiple occasions if he ever got within arm’s reach one on one.

The only reason stopping short of killing Garrick was his lycan brother, who would hunt me to the ends of the earth if I so much as touched a hair on his head.

That meant the brother had to be dealt with first, and discreetly, or the entire pack of lycans would be after me.

Garrick was a nuisance, one that was becoming more painful the longer he lived, even more so than Jack ever had.

“I’m busy.”

“Look, I know you’ve been…close. With Seraphina.”

“Is it that hard to say I fucked her? Or is it the thought of her screaming my name that bothers you?” The opportunity to provoke a territorial growl was too good to pass up.

I grinned as I picked up a second phone from a nearby drawer.

“Cut the shit. Something’s fishy, and she needs help.”

“You think I’m willing to help? Do you think she’d give me a reward for the trouble? Maybe another blow job?” I mused lightly, my fingers busy messaging my men.

“You bastard, if you caused this—”

“Not guilty,” I cut him off before he could waste more time with his irrational accusations.

“How did you find out? My sources say you need to clean house.”

“One of my betas had a delta roll over and squeal on Rafe. Whatever wild goose chase they were trying to send me on was being handled by my second in command. I stayed behind to make sure Seraphina was safe at her party, until someone tried to insist otherwise, which raised some red flags.”

Turns out I had a few cult worshippers in our ranks, one of whom has already been dealt with.

“They’re the same worshippers who infected Jackson’s pack in Anchorage a while back. I didn’t realize they were here. They worship the god Dionysus. They’re bad news, Vasiliev, really bad. They’re the kinds that enjoy ripping up their victims, and if they have Seraphina—her death won’t be pretty if we don’t get to her in time.”

“Busy playing dress-up to look pretty, so you just happened to get lucky.” I mocked.

Nadia shot me a look that spoke volumes about my own behavior.

“Is that what we’re calling a coven with power now? A cult?”

“They’re brainwashed, Aleksandr. What they want is to summon a god on earth. To bring power to the beasts of the land and erase humanity. They think the land belongs to magical creatures and humans, as well as creatures like us stole it from them. That gods ripped it from them. They have wolves, sirens, leprechauns, an incubus—this isn’t a normal coven.”

“Like any other magic user trying to summon gods that want nothing to do with us,” I replied, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Can we fast-forward through your theatrics and get to the part where we save Seraphina and figure out what’s so dangerous about this cult that can’t be handled in under five minutes?”

“They have the orb. I know you’ve been looking for it too. I’ve heard about it, but one of his men confirmed their leader has it. The ceremony to bring him back is tonight. With power like that—Dionysus will come whether he wants to or not. It’s the same power that cured a woman’s stage four cancer before Jack died.”

If I had been a younger vampire, Nadia might have noticed the slight tremor in my hand as I adjusted my grip on the phone I was texting on.

I was sending out more detailed orders to my men.

“Meet me at the brewery near her house in fifteen minutes. We’ll strategize and then move in.”

“And if fifteen minutes isn’t enough time?”

“It’ll have to be,” I responded tersely, hoping that whatever cosmic forces controlled our destinies were on our side.

“I’m not inclined to meet a pissed-off god tonight that doesn’t want to be here.”