“We’re family,” Jenna argued.
“You’re family,” our uncle corrected. “She’s adopted. Moreover, she’s a monster.”
He probably intended those words to hurt me. They certainly had Jenna, if the pain wafting off her was any indication.
The funny thing was, they barely grazed me.
Iwasa monster. Finally proud of it too.
If they didn’t want me, so be it. I had too much beauty in my life to be bothered by their small minds.
“I knew Dad had a reason for cutting you out of his life,” I purred. “I’m glad I trusted his judgment.”
“What does it say about your sister that she didn’t?” our grandfather asked.
Jenna made a small sound, hurt showing on her face.
I put my hand on her arm and squeezed, offering comfort. “It means that family means a lot to her. No matter how unworthy they may turn out to be.”
“Do you include yourself in that last part?” our uncle challenged.
“Jenna has a big heart. She’s able to overlook a lot.”
Some people—like those sitting across from me—might seek to take advantage of that fact. I wasn’t going to let them.
There were a lot of ways I could have responded to this interrogation. With anger. Hurt. Or, my preference, by grabbing the gun our uncle had aimed at me under the table and using it to beat him unconscious.
Hm.
That was quite a lovely idea, now that I thought about it.
I wouldn’t though. Like I said, these two might have been a shitty example of what family was, but to Jenna, they still counted.
“Vampirism is an awful big thing to overlook,” our uncle drawled, his eyes as cold and dead as a fish’s.
I was beginning to see where Drake got the annoying part of his personality from.
“Does she know about the rest?” he asked with a pointed smirk.
He wanted to know if I’d told her about my Fae heritage.
Jenna slapped the table with both hands and pushed to her feet. For a moment, she didn’t speak. She remained in that position, her hands flat, her angry glare focused on a spot on the wood.
“I apologize. I made a mistake coming here.” Jenna straightened, her shoulders going back as she looked down her nose at our grandfather and uncle. She shook her head before turning to me. “Let’s go. We have nothing more to say to these people. You were right. They’re not family.”
Anton’s soft snort interrupted the moment. “Looks like your sister has a backbone after all.”
I rose from my seat. “She always did. It just takes a little for her to find it sometimes.”
She was the peacemaker between the two of us. Always trying to find the path of least resistance. But the few times she lost it, watch out. The resulting eruption rivaled anything I’d ever done or said.
“You’re lucky I love you,” Jenna announced in an icy voice
I gave her a crooked grin. “Yes, I am.”
My grandfather let out a sigh as we turned to go. “Sit down, granddaughters.”
Jenna cut him an angry look. “You called my sister a monster. We have nothing more to say to each other.”
