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Chapter 14

Blood it was Fates-deemed, I’d decided. I felt like a juvenile poet, and I hated it.

I’d watched her every single evening since she walked out of The Arcane Theater. She was truly a female on a mission, killing and torturing as she saw fit. But tonight I couldn’t stay. I had a meeting with my court and Micah would notice if I wasn’t truly present.

So, I watched her stroll through the fog-riddled streets for one more moment before returning to the manor to fulfill my duty as the ruler of the Court of Shadows.

I nodded to my guards on duty as I walked over the small bridge that linked the manor with the dark streets of Darkmoor and headed to my office where I knew they’d be waiting.

However, before I arrived, Micah stopped me.

His sandy blond hair looked disheveled, and his bright green eyes appeared tired, so I knew he’d been working in his office for a while.

“I was on my way to my office to meet with you and Bastian before we meet with the coven leaders. Where are you off to?” I asked.

“Nope. No meeting there tonight. We’re going out,” Micah muttered quickly as he walked past me. “I need to breathe and get out of here, so I pushed the meetings back.”

“Oh, well, okay then.” I turned and followed him back out of the manor. Bastian was already waiting by the front door.

“I see he told you too, good. Okay, my friends, what do you say? Blood? Sex? Blood and sex?” Bastian stated as he started wagging his eyebrows at us.

“Please stop doing that,” Micah muttered. “None of that tonight—at least not right now. Drinks, yes. No drama or anything of the sort. Please.”

“Oh, I have just the place for you, Micah. Let’s go.” Bastian threw his arms over both our shoulders as he guided us down the streets of Darkmoor.

I was starting to wonder if Bastian was bringing us to a dark secluded place in the city to kill us when he smiled and stated we’d made it.

In front of us was a small tavern called The Deserted Fang. We both just stared at him and then back to the building in front of us.

“I guess I’ll ask. Where the fuck are we?” I questioned.

“Well, he said he wanted nothing fancy. He just wanted drinks and no drama. This is a comedy club. Drinks. No drama,” Bastian stated plainly.

Micah started chuckling. “It’s perfect. Let’s go.”

We walked in and the place was clearly an eclectic taste. The bar sat against the wall as you walked into the room. Farther in were high-top barstools which were all mismatched and tables made of dark wood on a white-and-black checkered-print floor. Then opposite the bar was a stage.

A small female vampire approached us. Her long brown hair pulled up into a high ponytail. She wore black pants and a tight black shirt with the tavern’s name sown onto it.

“Welcome to The Deserted Fang! The show starts soon, so make sure you find a seat. I can bring you over drinks. We have bourbon or scotch. We also have blood. Both fresh from the tap and glassed. Just let me know.” She was cheery and way too happy for my personal taste, but Micah smiled and thanked her.

The tables were actually quite full. I was surprised by the sheer amount of people here.

“So what is this?” I asked once we sat ourselves at an empty table together and accepted drinks from the perky brunette.

“A comedy club?” Bastian replied. When I arched a brow at him, he sighed. “A place where people get on the stage and tell jokes. They make people laugh. How old are you again?”

Micah chuckled behind his glass. “Well, I’m excited.”

That was all that mattered to me at this point. It was clear that Micah wasn’t talking about something, and I was sure it had to do with a certain young human currently staying under our roof, but I wasn’t one to push. So I didn’t. I’d let him work through it, and if he needed me, I’d be here for him.

* * *

W alking back from The Deserted Fang, I’d never admit it to Bastian, but I actually had fun. The jokes were absolutely ridiculous, but it was the perfect amount of ridiculous one could use to turn off their mind too. Which all of us needed.

We were almost back to the manor when Cirrius, one of my coven leaders, approached us.

“Oh, good. You’re all together.” He looked nervously at Bastian and then over at me. “My Lord… there is, uhm. Well. A male has been killed, and I think… well, I’m not completely positive—but…” He stumbled over his words, the nerves getting worse.

“Oh, for the love of the Fates, Cirrius. Spit it out,” Bastian growled.

“Right. There seems to have been a message left for you,” Cirrius quickly stated.

“Lovely. Lead the way,” I said.

The four of us walked a few blocks down and into an alley when I saw it. I had to keep the smile from my face because I knew who’d done it. Cirrius looked terrified.

“Don’t worry, Cirrius, I’ve got it from here,” I told him, trying to be comforting as he ran off to hopefully prepare for our meeting. Bastian looked around the crime scene, ever the investigator.

The victim was a male vampire. At least, he used to be. He’d been drained of the majority of his blood, his cock had been taken off, his fangs ripped out, and some of his flesh burned away. I stepped closer and realized he looked familiar.

“Micah, who is this?” I questioned.

Micah walked up beside me and looked over the dead male.

“Looks like Emerson. He was one of our coven leaders a few towns over.”

I nodded and looked over at the wall behind him. It said— Strike them where it hurts, lest they forget who is truly in charge here. I.Q.

I smiled when I realized there was a small bucket filled with the blood she’d drained from his body, and she’d thrown his cock in there as well. Spicy female.

“Raiden? I figured out why they thought it was for you,” Micah said. He moved Emerson’s shirt out of the way, and there, carved into this chest with his own fangs, was my name with a giant heart drawn around it.

“Ugh, fuck this female. I can’t wait to drive my fangs into her flesh,” I mumbled to myself. “I want to know everything there is to know about this male. She doesn’t kill without cause after all.”

Micah let out a breath. “Well, the relaxing evening was nice while it lasted. Let me go postpone the meeting again.”

I chuckled and started to walk the streets of Darkmoor. I had a female to find.