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“You’re only defending her because she’s our mate. Once she’s dead, you’ll see clearly again.” Kael says matter-of-factly.

“You’re acting like a fucking child,” Callum snaps.

“I am? You’re too soft, Callum,” Kael says. He stands up and goes to walk away when Callum abruptly stands and shoves Kael.

“The only reason you’re being a dick right now is because you actually want to mate with her, and it fucking scares you that she could die,” Callum says, raising his voice.

“How many women have we fucked? She will be just like the rest. We will just move on,” Kael says.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Callum says louder.

“Will you two shut the fuck up before she hears you?” I bark at them.

“There is no harm in seeing if she wants to help,” I say. “Don’t get your hopes up, Callum, because you and I both know she probably won’t. For now, we mate with her while buying us a little more time. If she survives, we tell her tomorrow about the curse and how the others died. I have no interest in having her help only to hide the truth from her. The truth of the matter is we are the bad guys. We willingly sacrifice these women so we can live. We are constantly adding to the stereotype that fox shifters are the lowest in society. She is in the position she is because of us. Her ancestors might have done some fucked-up things, but she’s not them,” I say. “I won’t stop you from being a dick to her, but understand I won’t stop her from hurting you either.”

“What the fuck could she do to me? She’s not even five foot tall,” Kael frowns.

“Electrocute you, apparently,” Callum chuckles.

“Fuck you,” Kael retorts with a glare.

“Keep talking like that and I will,” Callum says, winking at him.

“I dare you to try,” Kael says in a grave tone.

“Oh, shut up. You two bicker like old women,” I say as I roll my eyes. We all get quiet when we hear the bedroom door open, signaling to us that Lilith is coming downstairs for dinner.

Chapter Four

Lilith

WhenIgetdonehealing myself, I go to the bathroom and clean my face. I caught it right as I got a nosebleed, but I can’t stop once I have started. It cleared up quickly, fortunately enough. I hate when I let it get that far because nosebleeds are inconvenient. I’ve managed to avoid one for months now.

I go to the dresser in my section of the closet and hide my bag underneath some clothes in the bottom drawer. I don’t suspect they will snoop, but I do a simple masking spell so that if they do open the drawer, it looks like everything else. That should last a few days, and I can just redo it before it wears off.

I bet there’s a library in this massive mansion. I’d like to take a look and see if they have any older witchcraft books. I don’t know nearly as much as I want to know, and I suspect that as their mate, it will require me to know much more. I’m going to be in the public eye a lot when the country finds out I am their mate, so I know I can’t keep the truth hidden forever. I have to be able to protect myself when they come after me.

I take a look around to make sure that I have my belongings put away. Once I confirm that everything is neat and orderly, I open the bedroom door and go downstairs.

When I get to the bottom of the stairs, Daemon, Callum, and Kael are staring at me. Callum smiles when he sees that I actually have clothes on now. I’m not used to people smiling when I have clothes on; usually it’s when I’m naked.

“Why are you all staring at me?” I frown.

“Just trying to picture what you would look like at your funeral,” Kael says flatly.

“I don’t know about that, but I can show you what you’ll look like at yours,” I smile.

“You’re obnoxious,” he says.

“And you have a stick up your ass,” I say.

“What do you want for dinner?” Daemon asks.

“Why are you asking me? It’s your house. I’m just the maiden,” I say.

“What do you want, Lilith?” he asks again as he stands up.

“I’m fine with whatever you three want me to cook,” I say.