Page 39 of Vampire Visions

“Well,” I began, “I was shot a couple days ago.” I shrugged my shoulders. “Maybe whatever spell or potion was on the bullets is still lingering in my system.” Dad would want to know everything immediately after hearing that, but it was better than getting the sex talk. Again.

He nodded his head, then leaned in to sniff at my hair. “Potion, definitely. You need to shift a few times to push the rest of it out of your system, and then you need to tell me what happened.”

“Dad.” I tugged at his hand gently. “Can we talk about all this somewhere other than the foyer? You’ve taken all of four steps into the house.”

He looked around and stomped back to pick his bag up before saying, “Meet me in the dining room in fifteen minutes.” More like demanding.

When he turned to head down the opposite hall from our rooms, I scrubbed my hands across my face in a gesture that I was becoming all too familiar with. There was no way I could sit at that table and not think about all the shit going on with Palmer. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to pry into his mind. I didn’t want my words to him to be a lie, though. What if he was right, and what he was hiding really would make me think differently of him?

“Oh, this’ll be good.” Jack sniggered as he bumped my shoulder. “I heard all those nasty thoughts from earlier, you filthy bitch. You really gotta remember that I’m in the house, and you need to lock your door.” He tapped my temple.

“Jack,” I groaned. “Fuck. Off.” But I was smiling at him. I knew everything was about to peak in the complicated department, and I really needed Jack’s humor. I didn’t even care that he’d been the third “mental” wheel between my mage and me. He was right, though. In the territory of vampires, I needed to keep the door to my mind bolted shut.

I went straight to the dining room, picking my favorite chair to sit in while I waited. With my elbows propped on the table, I rested my forehead against the heels of my hands as I thought about all the bullshit we’d have to tell my parents. So much had happened. So much was happening. And, godsdamnit, so much was still going to happen before all this was over.

I should be spending time getting to know my mates, not saving the supernatural world. We should be going on dates or playing more games like Novak’s twenty questions. You know, getting to know each other the normal way. Not jumping into sealed bonds that lasted literally forever when we barely even knew each other.

I didn’t regret the decision to seal my bond with Novak, which surprised me. I didn’t regret anything really, except maybe not figuring out all the shit with York sooner. But… I wanted to know more about him. Them. All of them, before I kept jumping head first into rituals and ceremonies and fucking responsibilities.

I had a feeling that we’d be sealing the rest of the bonds before any of us was truly ready, but when would we get a break? Just a few days of peace was all I wanted. I suppose that it was too much to ask for a day off, though. Evil didn’t take vacations, and it certainly didn’t need the weekend off to rest or get to know its mates.

This wasn’t work, not like my regular jobs had been, anyway. I couldn’t do this stuff from home, sitting in my sweatpants at my desk. No. We had to be out here, in the thick of it, kicking ass and taking names. I couldn’t recall where that saying came from, but it was too accurate. Everything was plan this or plan that and not enough let’s fake it until we make it bullshit.

Not only did we have to have so many details worked out, but we had to cover every scenario, loophole, and circumstance. And not only were Novak and I about to take over in my father’s place, we also had to push Kadence out. Then we had to appoint someone to act as regent while we continued our quest, figure out how many vampires had been infected by this fucking drug, and find a way to eliminate either it or them.

The list was never ending! Once we sorted out what we could of the vampire issues, where were we heading next? I had my guesses, but I didn’t know if I would have to continue to take a mate a week or not. I just wanted to slow down, enjoy the honeymoon phase, or whatever it was that the humans called it.

And how often were my thoughts going to spiral out of control? All the planning, worrying, and traveling were really wearing me down. I wanted to live a little more. On the edge, you could say. No, I needed to live a little. To drive my car too fast again, to dance all night, or… I didn’t even know what. Just something. Anything that didn’t leave so many lives in my not so willing hands.

Sure, acting confident was easy, but I wasn’t feeling so confident anymore. I was always calm and collected, now I was frazzled and anxious. I didn’t know how to handle the switch. Everything that was going on and everything we’d yet to face was leaving me mentally exhausted and bitter. Yeah, I was a salty bitch right about now. I wanted to have my cake and eat it, too. I wanted my mates, and I wanted my normal ass life. I didn’t want titles. I didn’t want to lead covens or guilds or packs. I didn’t want to run the Underworld.

I just wanted to be me. Unabashedly and unequivocally. In every sense of the word. I wanted to be Sloane-fucking-King. But all that name came with was titles, responsibilities, and enemies.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Stone inquired, looking like sweet temptation as he stood in the doorway.

I tried to grin at him. “They aren’t dirty,” I warned.

He chuckled as he ate up the distance between us. “I’d pay more if they were.”

He pulled out the chair beside me, and I rested my head on his shoulder when he sat down. “I’m just overwhelmed,” I admitted. Talking to Stone was ridiculously easy. It was probably one of the easiest things that would happen in the next few days. It felt natural to confide in him, the same way it did with York and Novak.

“I know you feel like you’re carrying the world on your shoulders, Kitten, but you don’t have to do it alone.” He wrapped his left arm around my back and used his right hand to tip my chin up so he could look at me. “You’re trying too hard to make all the pieces fit in the mold that you’ve made in your head. It’s important to remember that being perfect is impossible, and if it were possible, then it’d be insanely boring.”

I mulled over Stone’s words while we waited for the room to fill up with the people that I cared about most in all the realms. Instead of having a handful of them, I now had an abundance. It was heartwarming and worrying. Immortal and eternal were two very different things, and though it wasn’t easy to kill us, it wasn’t completely impossible, either. I’d killed too many supernatural creatures to believe that we were all unstoppable. I’d also had enough beings attempt to murder me to know that it would take something special to end my life.

Being immortal meant there was a chance for death to catch up with us all. Being eternal would mean that we had no such worries. It was food for thought, but not today. When I finally got that off weekend, I’d think about it some more.

Papi entered the dining room with the stealth of a vampire. Stone and I had been lost in thought and we both jumped when he spoke. “When will you two be coming to Hell?” His question was expected but still irritating.

“We’re not sure, sir,” Stone spoke up as he stroked his fingers through my hair. “Are we expected to arrive at a certain time?”

“It would be nice to have Sloane make an appearance and let the demons know that she’s chosen a mate.” Papi chuckled as he took the seat across from me. “You know, my Little Devil, it is causing some duress in the Underworld. It would appease the masses if you came down and pranced around with your mate for a couple days.” When I groaned, he flashed me a giddy smile.

“Are you trying to lure me into complying with your devilish demands with guilt?” I teased, mostly. I really didn’t need any more problems. “That’s a low blow, even for the Second Devil of Hell.”

“They keep trying to bribe me or buy you from me, Sweet Devil.” Papi raises his eyebrows at me. “What am I supposed to do? Hide it from you and hope that they eventually give up? All four of us know that isn’t going to happen, right, Charlie?”

“Yeah.” My dad grimaced with his admission. He’d walked into the room in time to confirm what Papi was saying. “It’s causing some issues for us as well, Pretty Lady. You know I don’t like to sugarcoat the truth with you.” He sucked at his teeth before exhaling loudly. “Someone is causing a stir with the shifters, and situations like this can get out of hand real fast.”