We were back in Stratford, and not on the outside of the borders—the protective shields usually stopped magic from directly entering—but near our house. Braxton and Maximus's energy hit us a second before they both appeared.
"Thank fuck," Braxton roared, half shifted into his beast form. "We thought you were trapped in Faerie. I had no idea if we could fix this without the four of us to elevate our power."
"Fix what?" Tyson asked, all business. "We don't know exactly what’s happening, just that the ley line that connects the worlds is in danger."
Maximus nodded. "Yep, it’s in big fucking danger. Louis just got back from the Supernatural Academy. He’s inside and was briefing us when you arrived.”
“We called for you yesterday,” Braxton added, “the time difference appears to be slowing between the two worlds as the line grows compromised."
I caught the worried expression dancing across Justice's face. If the time difference was slowing, something major was going on, and she had people she cared about on both sides. I still didn’t know if this was about the president, but if it was, I was going to really enjoy killing him.
We were all silent as we filed into the house; the living area was already filled with supes. Jessa and Mischa were at the back door, their kids waving goodbye from the arms of my parents. They often ended up taking them during these crises, and we were damn lucky to have them.
Tyson and I hurried over to hug Jo and Jack Compass. "Stay safe out there," my mom said fiercely, her energy dancing across her skin. She held Lily closer, like she could keep her safe with her embrace alone.
"We have faith in you all," Dad said, his eyes golden as his shifter side came out to play. "You're going to show them that they should never have messed with our family." He had the twins in his arms, and at his side was Nash, their adopted son and our little brother.
I ruffled the young shifter’s hair, giving him a hug as well. The kid was really shooting up now, standing almost near my shoulders. He'd been through a lot in his life and deserved a break as well. Hopefully one day soon we’d just get to live a normal supe existence, one not fraught with end-of-world danger.
With final hugs and teary goodbyes from parents to children, the room got a little emptier.
Louis was front and center, his mate, Tee, at his side. Those two took the term "power couple" to an entirely new level.
"Thank fuck you made it back," Jessa said, throwing herself at Tyson and me. We caught her, hugging her close, before releasing her. "Brax said that you might not be able to break through the closing barrier, but I knew you'd get back to us."
"Our pack sticks together," Mischa added, looking more and more like her twin every day. She was confident and strong and powerful, wearing it as a cloak of armor. "And together we will win."
There were shouts around the room, many powerful members of our community were here, including Jonathon and Lienda, the twins’ parents.
Louis cleared his throat, bringing all attention back to him. "I'm going to quickly run over the basics of what I found out again, catch up our new arrivals who just got through the closing barrier from Faerie.” His eyes caught mine. “They'll be able to tell us what was happening from their side."
Those who could find a place to sit did; the rest of us stood around and waited for the information.
"A few months ago we signed a treaty with the president of the united states," Louis started, and we finally had our confirmation that this was about that bastard. "He found out our secret from when I was not in my sound mind, and threatened to expose us if we didn't form an agreement with him."
Energy rose in the room, draping across us like a second skin. Louis was literally shedding his power in his rage, and I hoped that he didn't lose control.
We'd all be in trouble then.
"I know most of you are aware of the agreement reached with the president," he continued when he pulled himself together, his power less palpable. "He requested fifty supes, from a variety of supernatural races, so that he might use them to help him govern his people. Stop wars. Control the famine issue. And multiple other humanitarian ventures he mentioned. We did not want to comply, as we've never worked with humans in this manner, and they've generally proven to be untrustworthy, but his evidence forced our hand."
Justice was practically bristling at my side, making angry little hissing sounds as she huffed air in and out. She’d known from the start. I should have listened to her and killed him before any of this even began.
"We underestimated President Caine," Louis said, his voice filled with rage. Heat engulfed the room and it was only when Tee put her hand on his arm that it faded. "I underestimated him. I've been distracted. A lot is happening all over the world, and I let this slide when I should have been keeping a closer eye on the humans. I should have been one of the fifty so that I could make sure no advantage had been taken."
He was so angry, and I felt deep in my energy, that whatever had happened was going to change everything. I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen Louis like this, and truth be told, it chilled me to my core.
"The president was using us all along," he rumbled. "He had a plan that we didn't know about, and when he had everything in place, he executed it."
The word executed sent a shiver of power across the room.
The sorcerer gritted his teeth, sucking in a few deep breaths. "He used the energy and magic of the fifty supernaturals that were part of the treaty," he spat. "Sacrificed them one by one, to assist a being that has forsaken everything its kind stand for.”
Noise erupted in the room, fury spilling over at the news that fifty of our people had been murdered by a fucking human. How? How was it even possible that he would get one up on supernaturals like that.
"He knew about us," Justice said, and no one should have been able to hear her over the ruckus, but somehow they grew quiet, staring at her. "Even though he pretended to be afraid of us, he was watching us. I felt his stare. His creepy stare was there every day and night."
She looked at Louis. "How did he kill them? How could he overpower fifty supes?"
