Page 47 of Daring Her Vampires

“She did bad things,” he says.

“Haven’t we all?” I ask. Fuck, if the family excluded you for doing bad things, the family would have no members.

“Of course, but it will stir shit up,” he says.

“I’ll send a group text,” I say, picking up my phone. “See what everyone thinks.”

“Sally, put down the phone,” Quinn warns.

“Careful, bear,” Atlas hisses, and I bite my lip.

“Can someone explain what you’re talking about?” Luca asks, walking to the desk and leaning against it.

“There was a witch who helped the bad guys,” I start, despite Quinn's grumblings. “River’s uncle started the Games when he was young. Gill held shifters in cages, tormented them, and chased them through the forest. Bishop and Saphira were forced to participate with River; that's how they met. Years later, Gill showed up again, restarted the Games, and kidnapped Ava. Stephanie and Logan met her because they were already there when she was taken. This time, a witch was casting a spell on the area so no one could find them. Mara was forced to help Gill. Serenity gained her witch power when she became a vampire and helped find where they were hiding, since the witch weakened her spell. After everything, Serenity spent time with Mara. She still talks to her, even though she moved away.”

“You are going to suggest we bring her back when all of them probably still have nightmares from the experience.” Quinn crosses his arms.

“Mara came back when Penny was taken,” I point out. “She helped find her.”

“We don’t have many experiences with witches,” Luca says.

“What could she do?” Atlas asks.

“Do you have anything that belonged to Fredrick?” I ask.

“I don’t think so,” Allie says.

“It was long ago. Anything we have would be disintegrated.” Atlas frowns.

“But he turned Allie,” I say softly. “I wonder if Mara could find him through that connection.”

“This is a bad idea,” Quinn says as Stephanie walks through the door.

“I’ve heard that before,” I mumble.

“What’s a bad idea?” Steph asks, stopping by Quinn.

“Sally wants to call the witch to help find Fredrick,” he growls. Steph looks at me, I tense, but don’t look away. I know she had severe trauma from being held in the cage. We’ve discussed it, and Quinn has been a steady force, helping her move past what she endured. She spoke to Mara while she was there and hated her for doing nothing to stop it. I don’t want to hurt her.

“It’s okay, mate,” she says, leaning against him. “I think she should do it.” My body relaxes.

“Little Cub,” Quinn rumbles.

“It’s been several months. I’ve worked hard to get past it. With time, I see her role differently. She didn’t enjoy what she was doing.” She cups his jaw. “I appreciate your concern. Don’t worry so much.”

“I can’t help that,” he grumbles, and I look away.

I hope the others will be just as willing.

“Do you think Mara would do it?” Luca asks.

“It wouldn’t hurt to ask.” I engage my phone. “If she can locate him, it would be easy to sneak up on him. He wouldn’t know a witch is looking for him.” I call Serenity, but she doesn’t answer, so I hit Ryker’s name.

“Sally,” he answers.

“Serenity still talks to Mara, right?” The pause is long.

“She does,” he says slowly.