Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 116408 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116408 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
The call ended and Philippe raised the phone so that he could throw it against the nearest wall, but Rafe quickly ripped it from his clenched fingers, shoving it into his own pocket.
“We just might need that later,” Rafe murmured, concern filling his lovely eyes.
“Fucking cowardly bastard!” Philippe shouted. He paced away from the warmth of Rafe’s body, his footsteps echoing across the wood floor of the silent hall. “I trusted him! He was by my side for a century. He was with me when we rescued some of our clanmates and then he fucking turns on them. Our clan trusted him.”
“Nolan got to him. Whispered in his ear about wars and the safety of the MacPherson clan. Played off his fears.”
Philippe shook his head at Rafe’s words. “Then Ezra should have fucking talked to me. He betrayed us. He fucking betrayed us!”
“And we’ll help you get vengeance for all those lives he’s stolen, all the people that he’s betrayed,” Aiden said evenly.
Philippe stopped pacing and stared at the older vampire. He’d made that comment so calmly, but he had to understand what he was committing the Variks to. They would be marching into a clan that had greater numbers and impressive powers. He was endangering vampires he’d viewed as his own sons for well over a century. Philippe started to shake his head, but Marcus snapped at him.
“Don’t! We knew exactly the risks we were committing ourselves to when we first considered an alliance. We don’t go into this lightly or blindly. This kind of wholesale slaughter cannot go unpunished. Our kind can’t live in fear of clans like the MacPherson’s.”
There was a snort in the open doorway, and a younger-looking Varik stepped into the room. “Trust me, Nolan MacPherson has been building toward a fight with the Variks for years. He just didn’t have the balls to start it like Minerva and her Black Wolf clan.”
Bel sighed and gave an eye roll worthy of Rafe. “Besides, we all know Rafe is going to follow his boyfriend straight into danger, and he’s not going to have the common sense to look out for his own skin along the way.”
“Fuck you,” Rafe grumbled, pointing at his twin. But the two words lacked Rafe’s usual fire. Could it be because Bel was right on the money with that assessment? Yes, Bel was very right.
“Enough, boys,” Aiden said. “We must return to Marcus’s and make plans. Rafe will need to reach out to Ryder and Lola. I doubt they would wish to miss out on this…adventure.”
Philippe was aware of the Variks starting to slowly file out of Arsenault Manor. His eyes skimmed over the broken furnishings and the cooling pools of blood. He’d tried to build this place into a home. All the buildings they’d inhabited over the years were meant to be homes. The Arsenault clan was supposed to find warmth, safety, and understanding within these walls.
But Ezra had turned it into a place of death and fear.
Strong arms wrapped around him from behind, and Rafe’s cologne wafted around him. Hints of bergamot and lavender. Philippe closed his eyes and tried to sink into Rafe’s comfort, to let it ease the pain that was trying to crush his heart.
“Come home with me,” Rafe whispered in his ear. “We’ll plan tonight. Get revenge and rescue Jullien. When we’re done, we’ll come back here and properly bury your family.”
“I love you, Rafe,” Philippe said in a broken voice.
They were the only words he could think of that could possibly encompass all his gratitude, hopes, and fears. Rafe was there for him. And while he’d prefer to keep his lover as far from the danger and violence that was to come, he was still relieved that Rafe would be beside him every step of the way.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Philippe rubbed his eyes yet again as the burning sensation worsened. Dawn was only a few hours away, and they were all gathered in Marcus’s library. Exhaustion gnawed at his bones, but nervous energy zinged through every part of his body, making it difficult to even stand still.
It had taken some time for Lola and Ryder to shut down the nightclub and safely travel to Marcus’s home. They were all being extremely cautious, assuming the MacPherson clan was watching them. Aiden thought it was unlikely any of the MacPhersons would attack that night, but not one of them wanted to take unnecessary risks.
Ethan and Gideon were seated on the sofa, watching the brothers argue while they whispered together. Rafe had told him of how Ethan and Bel had led the attack on the Black Wolf clan, so the young man was no stranger to a fight, but this would be his first one as a vampire.
Philippe’s stomach twisted when he watched Ethan. He couldn’t have been a vampire for more than a couple of months. He still had this kind of human glow about him. He was breaking in his fangs, for fuck’s sake.