Page 115 of Vampire Kings Box Set

Maddox, Henry, the wolves, Lorien, and Will all stood out on the pavement and watched as thick yellow hoses were dragged through the house and then turned on inside his room. The water was far worse than the fire had ever been. The water cascaded everywhere, soaking everything, running over the polished concrete floors in rivulets.

He knew he was in trouble, but hell, it had to be worth it. After all the shit he’d been going through lately, this was the closest thing to fun he’d had in a very long time.

Maddox stepped up behind Will and murmured in his ear. “Boy, you are not going to sit for the rest of the year. You will suffer for this greatly.”

Mad probably didn’t intend on sending a thrill right through to Will’s core, but that’s what happened. A broad grin established itself on Will’s face. He liked being in trouble with Maddox. He wanted the intimacy, the two of them locked in a dynamic struggle of dominance and submission. Will looked back over his shoulder. He could have begged for Maddox’s mercy, but there was no fun in that.

“You’ve turned my house into a slip and slide for human firemen.”

“You don’t know that this is my fault! Besides, you brought a pack of wolves to kill my dad.”

“That’s not what I intended,” Maddox said. “And it’s no excuse to burn the house down.”

“Debatable.”

At that point, Will noticed that Henry was glowering at him from off to the side. The guy had no sense of what was his problem and what wasn’t.

“What the fuck do you want?” Will turned to curse the pack master out. “This is a private conversation.”

“You lack respect.”

“Yeah. We fucking know.”

Maddox grabbed Will by the ear, his powerful vampiric fingers pinching painfully. He dragged Will close, wrapping a possessive arm around his waist. “Boy, if you do not silence yourself this second, save for an apology to Henry, I swear you will regret this night more than any other in your very short life.”

Will had no intention of apologizing, but he did feel himself stiffening at being pressed against Maddox’s lithe, hard, powerful form. Why was Henry here? They didn’t need some interloper. Maddox was more than capable of handling Will on his own. And Mad was the only one Will wanted. The only one he had ever wanted.

“No regrets,” he whispered back, his grin broadening as Maddox looked down at him with a raised brow.

By this time, the fire captain had discovered the toaster.

“Someone’s been cooking in a bedroom,” he said, bringing the melted lump out in his gloves. “Wouldn’t encourage that.”

Will stifled a laugh. He couldn’t help it.

Maddox released Will in an effort to keep up appearances. “Thank you, captain,” he said. “I cannot imagine how such a thing happened. I am very sorry to have wasted your time.”

“Yeah,” the captain said, shoving the burned toaster at Maddox. “We've got another call.”

Of course they did. The entire city was always on the precipice of burning down in one way or another. Will was still on the verge of glee as the firemen left. The house was a mess. There were boot prints all the way up and down the front passage, up the stairs, and a steady flow of water from the upstairs, like a languid river carrying bits of dust and freshly introduced dirt. A toaster pastry packet floated past Will’s feet as he stood grinning inadvisedly at the scene.

“Let’s get cleaned up,” Henry said. He and his wolves were already heading for a laundry Will had never noticed before, finding mops and buckets and towels to clean up as much of the water as possible.

“You come with me,” Maddox said to Will, grabbing the same ear as before and yanking on it to propel Will deeper into the interior of the house.

Will laughed. It was the wrong thing to do, but he was no longer familiar with the right thing to do.

Maddox caged him.

“Wonder what the firemen thought of this?” Will grinned through the bars.

“Keep it up, boy,” Maddox purred. “Try my patience. See what happens.”

“I know what I hope happens.”

“And what is that?”

“We get rid of all these assholes and get back to basics. I don’t want them. I don’t need them. I don’t give a fuck about Harry.”