“It’s not money,” Dalton replied. “I knew Finau well. The only thing that could make him turn on another Vampire would be his mate.”
“We would’ve helped him if he’d asked.” I let out a humorless chuckle. “Wedidhelp him when he asked. If he would’ve been straight with us, he might even have her back by now.”
“I’ll put out feelers and see if he’ll reach out,” Dalton said thoughtfully.
“You do that,” I replied, shrugging my shoulders. “But if he does, keep me out of it. I’m grateful that the clusterfuck brought me to Rosemary.” I looked up at my mate, but she was staring into her soup. “But while we were putting our asses on the line to save Finau’s mate, my home was being overrun by humans. He lured us out so they could get to my brothers’ mates. It’s a fucking miracle that none of them were taken. Billy Finau can go fuck himself with a bat covered in barbed wire.”
“They weren’t taking any chances,” Rosemary added quietly. “They sentsomany. You should’ve seen the piles of bodies. It must’ve been like a stampede toward the house.”
“But they held them off?” Gary asked.
I nodded. “They underestimated my brothers’ mates and my mother. By the time we made it back, things were mostly over, and Alice was treating the wounded.”
“How is Alice?” Halle asked. “Ian, Alice delivered you.”
“She’s well. Sven got a partial in the attack?—”
Halle gasped.
“What’s a partial?” Rosemary asked.
“They nearly decapitated him,” Gary replied grimly.
“He hasn’t woken up yet,” I added. “But he’s alive, and he’s a tough old fucker. He’ll be okay.”
“Break it down from the very beginning,” Dalton ordered after a moment. “Tell me everything you can remember.”
“Do you think they’ll come for us next?” Halle asked softly.
“I’d like to be prepared if it comes to that,” Dalton replied, setting his hand over hers.
I spent the next two hours giving details that I hadn’t even realized I remembered, starting from the moment Billy Finau had come knocking. Rosemary shot me a look when I didn’t mention Matthias or Josiah helping us in the woods, but she didn’t say a word to contradict me. By the time I was done, Gary was rubbing at the silver scruff on his chin, and Halle had tucked herself against Dalton’s side. Even Ian had left his place at the counter and sat down with us at the table.
“They didn’t have enough people to send while you were home,” Dalton said finally. “That’s something.”
“There had to have been at least fifty bodies,” Rosemary countered, looking at me for confirmation. “Right?”
“Fifty humans to six Vampires isn’t good odds,” I reminded her. No one had known that Matthias and Josiah had flown in too, making the humans’ odds even worse. “Plus, they had to have known that we had guards on the property. When you add those Vampires?—”
“It would’ve been a bloodbath,” Gary mused.
“Itwasa bloodbath,” Rosemary said smugly. “I bet they won’t underestimate mates in the future.”
“They’ve been doing this a while,” Dalton reminded her. “What happened at the Boucher house was an anomaly. Most mates won’t have the skill set that the Boucher mates do. This won’t slow them down.”
“But it might make them pause before going after Rosemary,” Halle said hopefully. “Knowing that the others in that family didn’t go easily.”
“As far as anyone knows, Rosemary is Ian’s mate,” Dalton replied.
“Shit,” she whispered.
I curled my hands into fists against my thighs. Now wasn’t the time to tell them to fucking correct their bullshit announcement… or maybe it was.
“Command might have their bond on record, but the militia know—or at least suspect—she’s not his mate,” I argued. “That’s why they kept her for so long. They were watching for signs of the heat. When we got there, my brothers noticed straight off that she wasn’t showing any.”
“So, best case, they believe the mating notice was a lie,” Gary said grimly. “Worst case, they’re even more curious about her and searching high and low to get her back.”
“And if they get their hands on her again, they’ll find all the symptoms she didn’t have before. They’re not killing newly mated pairs for shits and giggles. They’re experimenting on them. To them, Rosemary would be a fucking prize.”
