I was tempted to let the two of them duke it out. It would free the way for me to go solo.
“Give me the child, wolf,” Liam demanded.
Child? What child? He didn’t mean me, did he? That term was familiar from the club so I was thinking, yes. I found myself suddenly wishing Brax would pound his face into the nearest hard surface.
“She is part of no Clan. Your claim on her isn’t valid,” Brax declared.
“She is well below her majority. That automatically makes her ours,” Liam said, coming closer.
That thinking right there was what I’d been afraid of this entire time.
“You can’t have her. She has a connection to this. Until I find out how, she’s staying with me. You can have her back once I find the killer.”
Son of a bitch. That back stabbing dog.
“I don’t think so,” I said, outraged. “No one’s giving me to anybody. I decide my own fate, not either one of you.”
“Hush. I don’t agree with vampires about much, but you need to be guided or you’re going to get someone killed. Probably someone close to you. Like your family.”
I didn’t like that he’d brought up my family, especially since we had an agreement that I’d help him and he wouldn’t mention their existence to any vampires. This right here was mentioning their existence.
“You’ve had contact with your family after your change?” Liam sounded unhappy about that news.
I threw my hands up, my sleeves falling down.
“What is that?” the vampire asked sharply.
“What is what?” I snapped.
“That on your arm.”
Crap. I’d forgotten about the sorcerer’s tattoo. Tugging the sleeve back down, I gave him my best dumb private look.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The werewolf grabbed the arm in question and raised the sleeve, tilting it so the vampire and he could see the lion wrapped in thorns.
“A sorcerer’s mark,” Brax said. He sounded grim, like he was telling someone they had cancer and only had a few months to live.
“How did you get that?” Liam said.
I tugged my arm free and lowered the sleeve. From the way they were acting, you’d think I had leprosy or something.
“It’s no big deal. Once I’ve completed the task he gave me, the mark will disappear.”
“What were the terms?” Liam asked, folding his arms over his muscular chest.
If they were unhappy about the presence of the mark, I doubted they would be any more thrilled to hear what I’d inadvertently promised.
“Answer him,” Brax ordered.
I was really getting sick of being treated like a recalcitrant child but refused to lower myself to acting like one.
“A hundred years of service.”
Yeah, those words didn’t sound any better than they had when the agreement had first been struck.
“What possessed you to make such a shitty deal?” the vampire asked in outrage.
