“My pleasure, Nat.” Casey winked a holding Sylvie’s hand as though it were an unbreakable bond. “I am curious to know what Kody means about a vampire hunter. Aren’t they supposed to be like humans that e after us?”

  Standing up and smming his hand oable, Jester aggressively took over. “Look, These little tas aren’t getting us anywhere.” He watched Jessica slide the boxes oable and remove the lids. “So, your answer is bloodstones? Will …at least ONE of you tell us what is going on.” He started visibly shaking and his eyes rimmed red. “I want to know why I lost the st three of my troupe and over a dozen of my own wards..along with a reason why I ran in the sewers to get away from these things.”

  “Don’t.” Amber warned and raised her eyebrow, “You want answers? Sit down and shut up, so we get to it.” She poio the bloodstones. “Ask yourself why An had boxes of them before we kheir weaknesses.”

  Suddenly filled with an unusual amount of apprehensioer calmed down and sat in his seat. “Fine.” He looked away from Amber’s tortuous teal eyes and focused oable. “We should at least have a leader that guide this meeting.”

  Wiping his lips with the back of his hand to clear excess blood, Frank spoke. “Since I represent four cartels, I will be the one running the meeting.”

  “The fuck you will.” Casey stood up and gred at the cartel leader, her eyes almost afme. “You have the numbers, sure.” She poio Sylvie and then Amber. “My mistress is older than all of your newborns bined, and I already see the fear in your eyes ing Amber.” She smiled and exposed her fangs. “If Kody is right, Amber could probably do this by herself.”

  Unwilling to accept the fact he wasn’t able to influehe vampires at the table, Frank whispered into a wat his wrist, and had twenty vampires walk silently into the Mill. “Looks like my demand is now valid. Unless you think you all handle my little bat unit.” He wiggled his finger. “Now then. We have an uanding through force.” Frank leaned on his elbows, “I have the advantage.”

  Kody’s hand started wildly shaking and they rubbed their temples while sidering flying out of one of the open windows. “Please. I really don’t want to see if I am right about Amber. I am not in the mi yet to deal with another vampire massacre.” They looked at Frank. “Casey is right. Given Sylvie’s age and Amber’s aggression…along with Jason, Krystal, Brienne, Daniel, and Nathaniel and the puter systems Sylvie, Casey and I have operating…” Kody turned and looked at the cartel leader, their eyes pulsing green, “...Your odds are not as distinctive as you believe.” They looked among the others, “I am only here because An said I artly responsible for the shadewraiths getting freed.” Kody looked back to Frank. “Please keep your war in Rid.”

  Walking to the front aer of the stage, Amber licked her fangs. “And I am always hungry.” She poio An. “I did that myself and he had no idea it was ing. I’ll at least tell you, I. Am. Hungry.” Amber extended her cws still ced with An and Veronica’s blood. “Get them out of here. We have better things to discuss rather than turning on each other.”

  Patting Casey on her hand, Sylvie gently pulled her girlfriend bato her seat. “Casey. It’s okay.” Sylvie’s eyes phased to new moons a bck as night. “Let him attack.” She tapped lightly ohird eye tattoo. “I’ve seen what will happen.” Allowing the smile to slip from her face, Sylvie faced Frank. “I am sure you know I am a precog, ahings that will happen.” Watg as Frank hastily looked at his progeny, Sylvie knew she had the younger vampire on the ropes. “Whatever I see, does e true.” She pointed one of her bck cws at Frank. “You die immediately. Amber..” She poio the teal-eyed beauty, “Is faster than all of us. You lose your head before you finish the and.” Sylvie squinted and ughed disdainfully at the cartel leader. “The others simply walk away…or the ohat Amber does.” Sylvie leaned closer to Frank, “You see, your people hate you, Frank. You see it in their eyes. They are pelled to be here, and with you dead? They are free.” Having finished her warning, Sylvie sat ba her chair and looked at Amber. “While he decides, Tell us what you know.”

  Fshing her glistening and guileless teal eyes at Frank, Amber tinues. “The important part is that he is the ohat freed the others from some sort of portal.” She lifted An’s head. “Go on, admit it, you bastard.”

  “She doesn’t heed my ands.” An sorrowfully announced. “I made her, but I don’t trol her.” fusion still swirling in his mind and the inability to move due to the stake, An took a bit loo ahe perti question. “Archaios Enas is the white one’s name, and…” He sucked in a hard breath, “...I actally freed them from whatever prison they were in.” Defeated, An recalled the deal he made with Archaios Enas. “She jumped inside me and made my darkness self-aware.” Tears began streaking down his white cheeks. “I helped her so I wouldn’t be eaten by my demon. I mean shadewraith.” He sobbed, “She…she just turned Veronica's darkoo…I’ve lost everything.”

  Looking at Kody briefly, Sylvie asked a simple question. “ these show footage that I have saved, or it has been saved?” She poio her tacts. When Kody nodded, Sylvie devoted a little blood to the little lenses and her saved images came up. “He’s telling half the truth. What An is not telling everyone is that he willingly made a deal and helped Archaios Enas bring others through the pool, then covered it up with the soil from his stru. He hid the open portal.” Sylvie then faced An. “Then you thought to bme all of the mysterious things on me and Kody, calling it leftovers from Phantasmagoria. Even enlisted my creator to help him with the ving.” Bowing to the others, Sylvie stopped the footage that her little CPU was dispying.

  Jester led the pack of others, who echoed the same se right after. “Unbelievable bastard.”

  Tilting An’s head to the side, Amber hesitated and looked at the crowd. “I would love to rid us of this traitor. I am certainly not going to free the fucker from the stake, so we have a decision.”

  Pig up her phone and earbud, Brieood up and grabbed Nathaniel. “I think we should take a five or ten-minute break.” She gnced up at Amber briefly, “I think you should…guard An while we are gone.” Brieugged her boyfriend behind her a back outside.

  “Good pn.” Jason growled. “I could use a break, and if you want to guard the other twenty in the room, I won’t mind that either.” Jason walked out and caught up to Brienne and Nathaniel.

  One by ohe vampires emptied the Mill a Sylvie, Casey and Amber aloh An. Sylvie stood up and walked up to Amber. “I don’t see that there is much choice, really.” She gave her former blood bunny a hug. “I am gd you are safe though. I was worried when I found out you were his ward.” Sylvie k in front of An. “I am not keen on taking out felloires, An. I didn’t want to kill the girl in Rid. She didn’t leave me much choice, she attacked Casey and was…well, you heard it all.” Sylvie lifted An’s to stare him in the eyes. “The others have made their choice, I am making mi out of vengea y. You are in league with the White-wraith, anything else we discuss within this meeting you’d be privy to and will have to tell her.” Sylvie stood up and gave Amber an. “That is too dangerous, Amber. You take care of this, or I . Your call.”

  “Oh, I am hungry.” Amber’s teal eyes glimmered with excitement as the rims turned red. “You two get out of here.”

  Sylvie ed her arm around Casey’s waist and headed out of the Mill. “We have ten mio ourselves honey-lips.”

  “Good one.” Casey purred, “I say we test the theory for ten minutes.”

  “Again..I thought you would never ask.” Sylvie purred and walked into the night.