The Vampire Who Thirsted for a Wolf (16 page)

sign that she knew about it, until she’d been imprisoned and she’d

started pressuring him. At first, Lou had managed to quiet her down

with luxuries, providing things she shouldn’t have been able to have

as a normal prisoner. Lately, though, nothing he did was enough. She

wanted her freedom, and she had threatened to reveal the truth should

he not help her.

Since she was trapped in a facility run by him, Lou could have

easily killed her any day. No shifter there would refuse cooperating

with him in it. But that would just continue the vicious circle of his

secrets, offering potential blackmail material to others. Yakumo

Yamamoto had no interest in the jellyfish-shifters. The vampire was

focused on his own kind, and from what Lou could tell, planned to

take over from his brother. Lou would be free to pursue his marriage

with Lauren and perhaps finally have the heirs he needed to

perpetuate the Figgs family line.

“I’m happy to hear it,” his unexpected ally said. “Be watchful,

though. Should Yamamoto-sama come your way, you must keep him

from reading your mind.”

Lou squashed the incipient feeling of apprehension growing inside

him. He could deal with the vampire elder. Besides, Byron

Cunningham would be so pissed at Sophia’s escape that he might even

keep Kaname Yamamoto away from Lou entirely.

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Distantly, Lou wondered why Yakumo was using the respectful

address for the brother he planned to dethrone, but he pushed aside

the question. “Thank you for your advice,” he said. “And you be on

your guard as well. The guards at the facility aren’t to be trifled

with.”

“Duly noted. Good-bye, Figgs-san, and good luck.”

Before Lou could say anything else, the dial tone ended the

conversation. Shrugging off the lingering traces of his doubt, Lou

pocketed the phone and left his office. He was set to meet Lauren that

night, and he more than looked forward to seeing her. Once her

annoying daughter was gone, Lou would finally have what he’d

wanted for so long—Lauren, all to himself.

As the information registered in Kaname’s mind, he plopped back

down on the couch, going over everything he’d learned. Yes, someone

had called Lou and used the shifter’s weakness to manipulate him into

giving information on Sophia’s location. That someone had

introduced himself as Yakumo, only, it wasn’t Yakumo who Lou had

been talking to.

The voice had been modulated to suggest Yakumo’s tone, its

owner perhaps anticipating that, in spite of Lou’s words, Kaname

would indeed find out. But whatever precautions the person had

taken, Kaname would never have mistaken his brother for anyone

else, let alone his butler, the human he’d trusted with the deepest

feelings in his heart.

Takaba. What role was Takaba playing in all of this? He couldn’t

be the brains of it all since he had no authority over vampires.

Furthermore, Kaname would have figured it all out by now had

Takaba not benefited from some special assistance from his employer

to strengthen his mind against Kaname’s abilities.

Anger bubbled inside Kaname as realization dawned. Everything

was a huge game, a series of tricks played on him. In the end, the

persons behind this could have easily wiped Lou’s mind as well, but

they hadn’t. They could have ignored Sophia altogether and gone for

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99

a more straightforward approach. But then, they’d always enjoyed

keeping others on the edge, teasing them with vampiric superiority. It

was a game, yes, but also a lesson, and Kaname feared what they

wanted him to learn.

He was certain of one thing, however. All the loyalties he’d

considered unshakeable—with the exception of Derek’s—could no

longer be relied upon. Kaname wanted to believe that his brother

would remain by his side in spite of this, but at the same time, he

knew how much Yakumo would suffer if he had to choose. Everyone

else would just choose the side of the most powerful, and right now,

in the guerilla battle his enemies had started, Kaname was losing.

He did have one big advantage, though. While testing him, his

opponents had also given Kaname a chance to fight back. Their

arrogance would be their downfall.

Taking a deep breath, Kaname reached out with his mind,

searching his connection with his brother. Vampires could use mind

speech with people they were blood bonded with—mostly their

constant donors. This light form of telepathy had its limits, though,

and Kaname shouldn’t have been able to talk to his brother from this

distance. His age and position came with certain perks, though, and

his sibling’s trust in him gave him the ability to overcome these

restrictions.

“Yakumo, can you hear me?”
he asked. He had never attempted

this with his brother before, and could only do so now because of the

plan they’d set in motion before Kaname’s departure.

His brother’s voice tentatively replied mere seconds later.
“What

is it, Kaname? What’s wrong?”

“Our parents are back, and they’re not planning a happy family

reunion.”

He sensed Yakumo’s shock and dismay at his proclamation, as

well as an unsurprising thread of joy. Yakumo had always worshipped

their parents and had suffered greatly when they’d gone to ground.

Kaname didn’t blame his brother for it, but he needed to make

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Yakumo understand that the situation was growing increasingly

dangerous.

“Be very careful,”
he told Yakumo.
“Some people in the coven

might believe Father’s and Mother’s authority surpasses mine.”

The younger vampire seemed skeptical.
“You don’t really think

our parents would hurt me, do you?”

“Not them, no, but their behavior could cause instability. I don’t

want you caught in the middle.”

“I see,”
Yakumo replied.
“What should I do then, Kaname? I

can’t just leave.”

It was a genuine question, as Yakumo did indeed understand the

way things worked in vampire society. Once elders stepped down

from their position, they could not come back, and if they attempted

to, chaos always followed. Even if Kaname’s father had once been

leader of the vampires, he’d lost his rights to lead when he’d gone to

ground, as had Kaname’s mother. Nevertheless, they didn’t seem

inclined to take that into account, and the instability caused by the

current diplomatic situation could lead to conflicts that would rival

the oldest clan wars.

It was tremendously hard to answer Yakumo’s question. Under

normal circumstances, Kaname would have told Yakumo to retreat to

the family mansion, but that was the worst place possible now.

Leaving Japan altogether would have been preferable, but there was

no time, and most likely, their parents would not allow it.

“Just stay put and pretend to be harmless. As long as they believe

you’re willing to change loyalties, you’ll be fine. Don’t discuss it with

anyone. Takaba is involved, and I suspect Mizuki must have a hand in

it as well.”

He realized all too well Yakumo wasn’t too happy about this, but

he couldn’t do anything about it, not yet. He’d just have to keep

monitoring Yakumo and hope that the contingency plan he had

prepared wouldn’t be necessary.

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101

Once Yakumo drifted to a more distant part of his consciousness,

Kaname became aware of the activity going on in the room. Lauren

seemed horrified at what she had learned of her lover. Apparently, as

much as she had disliked her husband and daughter, she wasn’t very

fond of the idea of sleeping with their murderer. She shied away from

Lou, who looked on the edge, ready to attack. The ruckus didn’t go

unnoticed, and several guards appeared, obviously intending to jump

to their elder’s defense. Brody, Carson, Noah, and Rhys were ready to

fight back, but thankfully, Byron intervened before the situation could

get out of hand, immobilizing their opponents with a thought.

“If I understand correctly, Elder Figgs killed Malcolm’s brother,”

the shark-shifter said, his voice low and dangerous. “He then arranged

with the vampires to eliminate Sophia, who must have known

something about it.”

“Indeed,” Kaname replied. While Byron might not have been

directly fond of Silas Bristol, Sophia’s father had been close to

Malcolm, who was practically family for Byron. Nevertheless,

revenge of any type would have to wait. “Unfortunately, my parents

are the ones who orchestrated this whole thing. I must return to Japan

at once, before something worse happens.”

Just as he finished the phrase, Byron’s expression went rigid with

a surprise that had nothing to do with his revelations. His gaze went to

Rhys, and he hesitated, as if not knowing what to say.

A dark suspicion invaded Kaname’s heart. Rhys must have felt it

as well because he softly asked, “Mr. Cunningham, what’s wrong?”

“It’s your dad, Rhys…Romaine and his wife suffered from a

vampire attack. Right now, Skylar isn’t sure if they are going to

survive or not.”

Somehow, Kaname was not surprised. Incubus Romaine Arceneau

lived in a very secluded area with his Sidhe mate, Ysanne. The two of

them were the perfect target. While not obviously linked to the

diplomatic process Kaname had been struggling with, they were

nevertheless very close to important shifter and demon families.

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Romaine himself had birthed Rhys Whitaker, and Ysanne still had

strong connections with her people. Their son, Chantay, was mated to

Isaac Wade, Derek’s uncle.

Rhys leaned against Noah, obviously shocked and horrified at the

news. “They…Oh, God, how is this possible?”

Obviously still in communication with his mate, Byron gave Rhys

a look full of sympathy that seemed at odds with his generally harsh

character. “According to Skylar, your father is caring for them. He

feared something might happen and arrived at their home just in time

to stop the vampire group.”

“Do Chantay and Isaac know?” Carson inquired in a soft voice.

“Yes,” Byron answered. “I believe they’re on their way to

Whitaker lands now.”

In spite of his anger, Kaname found a thread of hope lingering

within him. The fact that Romaine and Ysanne had survived so far

might mean the vampires hadn’t gotten the chance to do whatever

they’d intended. There was a fair chance the couple would live

through this. At the same time, though, Kaname was beginning to

believe that the woman they’d come here to search for had not been

so lucky. Kaname’s parents seemed intent on wrecking everything he

had worked so hard for, and the death of a couple of jellyfish-shifters

was nothing for them.

“Cunningham-san, you should continue looking for Sophia here,”

he told Byron. “I don’t think she got too far. I’m going back to my

coven. This will only end where it all began, and I will not allow this

harassment to continue.”

“I’m coming with you,” Derek immediately said.

Kaname didn’t even bother to argue with his mate. He knew better

than to believe he could convince Derek to stay out of this one.

Besides, Derek’s support had been invaluable to him so far. Since

mating Derek, he felt stronger than ever and his connection with the

werewolf had been the one allowing him to monitor Yakumo at such a

great distance in the first place.

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103

“Well then, so are we,” Carson said, “and I’m sure Melanie will

want to do the same.”

Kaname groaned, already seeing more and more people who

might get hurt by his parents. “It’s not safe,” he replied, trying to

make them see reason.

“In the world of the shifters, few things are,” Brody replied.

“We’re used to it by now.”