Page 22 of Broken Souls

As will we.

The Blood Fangs used to number over a thousand in this city alone. If the Death Hunt is capable of killing hundreds in only a few months, then it isn’t just Antonio we have to worry about. He’s shared his new powers with others. There is no doubt about that now. The only question is how many super werewolves are fucking out there? How many with his new speed? His strength?

“But all this talk is meaningless,” he says with a grin. “You have a traitor in your Family, and until you deal with her, I’m not signing shit.”

“I don’t know what –”

He waves his hand. “Someone wants Khalid gone. A call came in an hour ago saying your brother doesn’t have an alibi for last night’s murder and that there is a witness the police can interview.”

My brother spent last night torturing and killing those who’d hurt his girl. He assured me this morning that he had dealt with all the evidence, having gotten Talon to wipe his image from the hotel’s security cameras before the tapes were dropped off at the police station. There was one man who’d passed him in the hall – the witness Aleric speaks of. Killing him then would have caused more issues given he hadn’t seen anything. But he knows when Khalid entered the premises. Knows the time of his alibi is a lie. Now he won’t live to see the sunset.

I keep my voice flat, my face expressionless. “Who called it in?”Is it the same person blackmailing Micha? Are they after the ledger to find leverage on the reaper?

“You bring me a picture of your mom,” Aleric says, “and I’ll tell you.”

“You mention my mom again, and I’ll kill you.”

He stills. “So protective...” A flash of red fills his eyes. “Are you fucking her?”

I’m on my feet, but he’s there first, his hand around my throat. My knife touches his side, but he doesn’t fucking care. I can see it in his eyes. Faster and stronger, he’ll kill me before I can kill him, and he won’t give a damn if he loses his entire Family for doing so when mine retaliates.

“Touch her like that,” he says, “and I’ll force you to blood bond with a pig.” It isn’t a growl. It isn’t a wild threat. It’s a simple promise. A godsdamn fact.

One way or another, he’ll make it happen.

Now I know Aleric isn’t just playing with her.

He’s obsessed with her.

In love with her?

And then I see it.

The answer to all my questions.

Feeling sick, I shove him away. He lets me go, and I put my knife in its hidden sheath. “I’ll deal with the traitor,” I say. “Be ready to wipe out the Death Hunt in two weeks.”

Yanking open the door as soon as he nods, I step out into the hall. Talon is a tight wad of energy ready to explode, but Khalid is deadly calm. His eyes flick over my shoulder to look at Aleric. I wouldn’t be surprised if the fucker waves.

My brother looks back at me with a silent question, but I don’t answer him as I walk away. We get in the car without any trouble, no vampires coming to ambush us, but the knot in my stomach doesn’t relax. The hairs on my neck don’t settle.

There’s another godsdamn traitor in my Family, someone who wants my brother dead, but that isn’t the issue that has hold of my tongue, that’s making it hard to form words.

It’s that Aleric is in love with Mother.

And I have powers no witch should have, but which are all too common in vampires.

No. I’m being too fucking paranoid.We don’t even look anything alike.

But now that the thought is there, I can’t get it to leave.

Especially since the one constant with Mother is that she will do anything to save her children – even if one was the son of Aleric Zadar. A hated enemy. Even if that boy was a rape baby. An abomination. A fuckinghybridthat should never see the light.

She is a strong witch.

She could’ve cursed me…

Bound both sides of my true nature so only slivers of them remained.