Page 81 of Possess Me at Midnight

Clearly, but is there any chance she came to Bram last night? Or maybe the dark witch seeded a dream of his missing mate in my brother’s mind. I’ve never dabbled in dark magic, so I don’t know how it works. But despair fills me. Without a mate’s love to save his soul, will the darkness inside him slowly destroy him?

“And when I find the slippery little human…” His smile stretches menacingly across his face. “She’ll answer to me.”

I inch away. Bram is back with me…yet this is not exactly him. He’s angrier, less patient, more confrontational. He’s always been a diplomat. A thinker. I pray this is a mood, simply a side effect of the dark healing. That my brother hasn’t been permanently altered by some remnant of Mathias’s magic.

“Later. Unfortunately, we have problems that require attention now,” Duke says, rising to his feet. “Welcome back from the relative dead, by the way.”

Bram flicks a glare Ice’s way again before settling his attention on Duke. “What problems?”

Simon quickly fills him in on MacKinnett’s murder and Blackbourne’s nomination of Mathias for the empty seat.

“Has anyone else on the Council suggested a nominee?” Bram demands to know.

Duke shakes his head. “Despite Sydney’s transcasts, most of those old blokes didn’t believe in Mathias’s return until yesterday, when he contacted them all personally and declared his intent. Blackbourne’s nomination corroborated it.”

“And still the prats have done nothing?” Angry incredulity explodes in his tone. “Spineless cowards, the lot of them.”

This bluntness is so unlike my cool, collected brother. Usually, Bram is diplomatic, even when he’s frustrated. He never openly insults Council members—especially in front of others. He’s behaving so out of character that I’m actually scared. What if the brother who raised me is gone forever?

Lucan’s voice turns cold. “You’re under my uncle’s roof. He’s just been convinced of Mathias’s return, and he’s quite shaken. I also doubt Tynan would appreciate your description of his grandfather.”

“The truth can be painful,” Bram spits.

“Name-calling will hardly solve our problems,” I point out. “A plan would be better.”

“You know quite well the cause of my anger, little sister.” Bram’s scowl slides again to Ice.

The deadly promise on his face fills me with dread, but that’s an excuse. I don’t for a single second believe that’s the sole cause of his odd behavior. Something is off with my brother, and I fear Mathias left a lasting mark.

Before I can protest, Bram goes on. “But your point is a good one, and I might know how to solve two problems at once. Lucan, your uncle has heirs independent of your father and his line, yes?”

“Indeed. He had three sons of his own, the eldest of whom now also has a son.”

“Excellent. If I nominate you for MacKinnett’s seat, no one can claim I’m disrupting the MacTavish family’s traditional succession.”

“That was Tynan’s suggestion as well,” Lucan concedes. “But the Council will likely protest two members from the same family.”

“In desperate times? When they’ve all shown such an appalling lack of leadership? They shouldn’t. You’ve proven you’re a man of reason. They respect you.”

“Perhaps, but my claim isn’t as strong as, say, Alfred Hexham.”

“Who?” Duke asks.

“He was a mere boy when his father passed to his nextlife. Alfred Senior had no other heirs to keep the seat in the family, so the Council at the time voted to bestow the seat on MacKinnett precisely because he was elderly and had no heirs. My uncle told me everyone assumed that by the time MacKinnett passed, Hexham would be ready.”

Bram snorts. “Alfred Hexham is an idiot who should not be allowed to make decisions about his own life, much less anyone else’s. His presence on the Council won’t be tolerated.”

My brother’s assessment is harsh…but unfortunately true. Still the venom in his voice unnerves me. He sounds beyond dismissive, almost mean. The brother I know would have found a more diplomatic way to express that same sentiment. I’m beginning to wonder if this is more than the lingering effects of Mathias’s spell. Is it possible someone else—someone evil—is wearing Bram’s face and speaking with his voice?

“He’s not the wizard his father was,” Lucan concedes, “but?—”

“No buts. Your point is well taken, and we will simply give you a stronger claim, especially since you currently have no heirs. In order to keep Mathias off the Council, I’ll require solid allies who will vote in solidarity with me. If I can count on you, your uncle, and Clifden O’Shea, we’ll have enough to keep Mathias out.”

“True,” I say. “But how will you give Lucan a stronger claim than Hexham?”

“By making an advantageous mating to a very Privileged witch with an impeccable bloodline.” Bram smiles as he slides Ice another nasty glare before settling his heavy stare on me. “In short, dear sister, by mating him to you.”

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