“I think I have enough information to tell the president to make the recommendations needed,” the aide declared, giving the minister a look of death. “I suggest you detangle yourself asbest as you can and handle this as youshould have, but we both know this will end with you resigning.”
“Now see here a minute,” the minister seethed, spinning around and facing him. “I’m not stepping down because of some gossip and—”
“I know where Ethan is. I bet he would be good on camera,” I lied through my teeth. “How many others do you think can be found once the dominoes are knocked over?”
The aide moved closer to me. “I think it best we have a chat so I know just how many nukes you carry in your arsenal. The president did not know any of this and—”
“I think that depends who is willing to give the better deal and give me what I want, sir,” I told him firmly as he met my gaze. “The current president is a bitlenienton breaking up marriages and matings to follow the law, saying promises were made. Yes, bymen. I never made any such promise, and even if I did, divorce is legal in Europe, yes? Just not for us when the other—”
“You’ve made your point again,” he assured me.
“Have I? Because you have yet to even introduce yourself to me, child,” I said firmly before glancing around the room. “Nor anyone given some sort of condolences that I am no longer immortal after my centuries of abuse.” I met the minister’s furious gaze. “So again, the shame isn’t mine. I expect to hear some quickly moving progress and soon.”
“Or?” the aide asked, pushing me to spell it out.
I gestured with my head to the other attorney. “I start giving information to the shark here and let him do what he’s gleefully hoping for. When everything falls and the dust settles, I could get the females out then. I’m simply giving you the option to do it yourselves and look like the good guys. Especially when the presidentispart of LMN.”
Another fib, but no one in the room could tell or was going to take the chance that I was bluffing.
I felt more myself leaving that room than I had in centuries. Alexis and the others were right that I could be that woman again, just healthier and not traumatize others this time. I could see the forest for the trees and not make irrational decisions or assumptions.
I knew more. I was smarter and not achildtrying to survive handling adult matters.
“I’m going to need everything you just threatened them with,” the shark demanded as he grabbed my arm roughly.
Alexis removed him from me before I could even react. “You are here paying adebt, not racking up more favors for the information you get. You agreed to this because it’s the easiest case ever when I’m doing all of the heavy liftingandyou’re clearing a lot of the dirt off your name going up against a bastard like Graves. Keep focused on that.”
He bared his teeth at us. “Creed doesn’t have any bite to him anymore now that he’s disbarred and not with his family. I could cause more trouble for him—”
“Did you know they bound his lion?” I asked him. “They’re undoing that magic soon. Do you want to risk how he behaves after that if you upset the woman he’s interested in?”
It was interesting to see the shark become a guppy right before my eyes. Creed had told me to use that threat to keep the shark in line should I need it.
And now I knew that the man I was spending so much time with was very,verydangerous.
Unfortunately, some people in that room didn’t believe I had the information I did or would be strong enough to use it. I was a lot of things, but I wasn’t a woman who bluffed, so I did another horribly painful thing and did an interview where I talked aboutthe brand, naming other families I knew that used it and still did according to my father.
I spoke on losing my immortality, and while many so far said that I was the only known case that it didn’t happen to because of having a new baby, I argued that. I stated firmly that there had to be more and we hid because we were seen as shameful in our sexist world. Somehow, we were at fault when it was all done because of monsters abusing us.
And if we didn’t figure out something better and a way to heal it, it was something humans could use to destroy not only vampires, but other supes was my true worry. I wasn’t lying about that.
The interviewer didn’t make me say that I slept with elders, but we did discuss that my father planted a spy to push around the child he’d sold and it left me in bad spots. The implication was there and how he threatened to sell me to a brothel if I didn’t hand over my daughter for him to sell since I’d lost my value.
It all blew up. It went viral because of different topics. The magical community was up in arms about their magic being bastardized that way to demean women. The original magic was meant as a temporary tattoo for all children so they could never be lost or when humans used to steal them for their magic.
And the eldest of that community wanted the heads of their own who were doing that magic. Alexis received requests to see my brand and trace the magics. I agreed on the condition they would also examine Creed and see if they had anything to add to his condition. Also, if they could help the situation with the other Graves women.
One agreed and promised he would not rest until all of this evil was handled, so I agreed to meet with him when he could fit us into his schedule next week.
Until then, I was a bit busy as well because everything had blown up.
Alexis came back a bit pale after a meeting with my father and elders along with the shark and several other people. I could only imagine the threats, especially since Andrew was still in custody. I’d given her some information to promise not to look at and hand them.
“What is it?” she’d asked me.
“Everything I remember of the books of LMN,” I told her. “Beyond that, I won’t have you be on their hit list. You’re needed in this world and they won’t respect you as a woman. So make it clear that you’re there to speak for me because my being there wouldn’t be productive and we knew their games.”
“It’s money laundering, yeah?” Creed checked when she was gone.
