The floor creaked as I loomed above him, my shadow swallowing the screen’s blue glare, and he very carefully handed the phone back to Cas.
“Presence required immediately,” Cas read the text aloud.
I gritted my teeth as we exchanged looks. The vampire king didn’t just call. If Lucian Ro?u, aka our father, summoned us, it meant something big. Or something bad. Probably both.
I hated it. Hated that he could just summon us like servants. Hated the way our biological father could just reach out and yank our strings like we were his personal puppets. Every muscle in my body tensed at the thought of seeing him, of having to stand in that palace and act like I didn’t want to tear his throat out. Not that I could; he was too powerful, too ancient, too untouchable.
That didn’t stop me from imagining it, though.
Casimir was already on his feet, slinging on his leather jacket. He probably didn’t even realize he was rubbing his knuckle between his eyes.
Zane decided it was up to him to relieve the tension, apparently.
“Yo, Ko? You ever think maybe the old man’s just lonely? Like, maybe he’s out there in that big ol’ palace, just summoning us because he’s got nothing better to do?”
“No, I don’t think that.”
“Neither do I.” Cas checked his weapons before holstering them. Always prepared, always ready for the worst. It was what kept us alive.
I didn’t speak again as I gathered my own gear. What was there to say? That I’d rather face down a horde of dire rats with nothing but my bare hands than spend five minutes in our father’s presence? That every time I saw him, I remembered how he’d trained us, beaten us, broken us, remade us into the perfect weapons? That I still hated closed spaces from the time he’d locked me in a coffin for five hours to “teach me patience”? That I’dneverforgive or forget him skipping Mom’s funeral—
A knock sounded at the door.
“Pizza’s here!” Zane bellowed, leaping up and stomping back into his boots.
The delivery guy barely got a thanks before Zane grabbed the boxes and soda, balancing them on one arm and grabbing his jacket.
“I sure as hell ain’t leaving these babies behind.” He jerked his head toward the door. “Field trip. We’ll eat on the way.”
Cas sighed, but didn’t argue, and I was already halfway out to the SUV. Resentment filled my mouth, more potent than any monster’s blood. I climbed into the driver’s seat without asking, knowing neither of my brothers would fight me for it. They knew I needed the control right now, the feeling of having my hands on the wheel, directing something in my life even if it was just our route to the palace.
Cas slid into the passenger seat, his face a mask of calm that didn’t fool me for a second. Zane sprawled in the back with the pizzas, already digging into one and passing Cas the other two.
“Hey, at least we might get to see Seb,” Zane offered through a mouthful of cheese and pepperoni.
I grunted in response, not trusting myself to speak. Sebastian was different. He was Lucian’s onlylegitimateson, the crown prince, but he’d never looked down on us. Never treated us like the mistakes, the half-breeds, the bastards everyone else at court saw. If anything, he’d protected us when we were kids, getting us out of punishments when he could and sneaking us apology treats when he couldn’t.
But not even a visit with Seb could make a summons from our sperm donor palatable.
“You know,” Zane leaned forward, “we could justnotgo.”
“Ignore a direct, personal summons from the vampire king,” I deadpanned. “Z, you may want to high-five death today, butIdon’t.”
Even if we did skip out, Lucian would find us in the end. Healwaysdid. And then everything got worse.
“Let’s just get it over with,” Cas muttered, staring out the window at the pink and gold sky.
I turned the key, and the engine roared to life. Something cold and determined settled in my chest, a hardness I recognized all too well. Whatever Lucian wanted, whatever new use he’d found for us, I’d protect my brothers. Cas had always been the shield, the wall, the one who took the hits so Z and I didn’t have to, but I wasn’t that soft little boy anymore. I’d become the earthquake no one could survive, and Lucian would have to go through me before he ever hurt them again.
I pulled away from the curb with more force than necessary, tires screeching slightly on the pavement. Beside me, Cas tensed in disapproval, but only handed me two slices folded together. Pepperoni, mushroom, and onion. My favorite, dammit.
“Mahalo,” I grunted as I one-handed it.
“Just wanted you to enjoy your last meal, baby bro!” Zane crowed from the back seat.
Baby bro.I rolled my eyes. I was exactly four weeks younger than him, and nine weeks younger than Cas, yet that’s what they both called me.Moon-damned brats.
When Zane keyed up his road-trip playlist, Cas and I groaned in sync. I made it through three Disney villain songs before I crushed his phone on verse three of “Be Prepared.”
