Draco placed his fist over his heart and bowed to Vaughn. “Thank you. If there’s anything I can do for you or your pack, name it.”
“You can keep my son safe,” Vaughn said.
“I will,” Draco promised.
“Henry! I’m leaving. Get your butt out here and say goodbye!”
Henry opened the bathroom door and came rushing out. He tripped over his feet and landed against his dad’s chest with an oomph.
“You take care of yourself,” Vaughn said. “And if you need anything—”
“I’ll call.”
“You better.”
“Bye, Dad. Hug Pappa for me.”
“I will. Call your Nana so she doesn’t yell at me.”
Henry grinned. “I’ll call her tonight.”
Vaughn left and Henry leaned against the bed with a quiet sigh.
Draco couldn’t resist moving closer, even though he should. He leaned in and wrapped his arm around Henry’s chest, pulling him in so Henry’s back was against Draco. “You okay?”
“It’s weird not being with my pack,” Henry said. “But I guess we’re kind of a pack now, huh?”
It wasn’t exactly the way Draco thought of them, but he could see that it would make sense to Henry to call them a pack. The more little tidbits were revealed from Henry’s past, the more curious Draco became about him. How, exactly, had a mage been raised by a pack of shifters? And he’d referred to multiple siblings in a time when most clans were struggling to have children.
Instead of disagreeing, Draco pulled Henry closer. He leaned in and pressed his cheek to Henry’s. “You’ll have two packs fussing over you now. Just imagine it.”
His teasing had the desired effect. Henry snorted out a laugh and gently elbowed him in the stomach.
“Jerk,” he said with another chuckle. “I can barely manage the one I’ve got.”
Andvari
Andvari tested the weight of the sword in his hand, feeling the heft of the metal through his arm. He tightened his grip and completed one of his most difficult maneuvers, spinning his body while slicing the blade through the air. He focused on his breathing, letting his muscles use the memory of the thousands of times he’d practiced this very move.
Normally, this type of workout served as a form of meditation for him. He could wield his blade and quiet his mind. Instead, his mind was inside the house, upstairs in a master bedroom where a young man lay quiet and still on the over-sized bed.
He’d gone up several times to check on Sawyer and Henry. Henry hadn’t left Sawyer’s side since they brought him home from campus. And the fact that whoever had hurt Sawyer had threatened Henry? It sent Andvari’s blood to boiling. He sliced his weapon through the air again, the blade whistling with the force of his swing.
If anyone thought they were going to harm a hair on either young man’s head again, they’d have a pissed off vampire to get through first. As much as Henry baffled and confused him, Andvari was not letting him get hurt. Part of it was because of his duty. The other part… well, he didn’t need to think about that.
And as to Sawyer, the young human had helped Henry through his vision and that was enough reason for Andvari to keep him safe. He returned his blade to its sheath and circled the house one last time. His enhanced senses hadn’t picked up anything unusual, but he had this tingling sensation at the back of his neck that he didn’t like at all. Perhaps Eduard could take to the air and use his eagle eyes to see if there was some sort of threat close by.
Back inside, the sounds of bustling dishes from the kitchen faded into a pleasant background hum. Andvari couldn’t deny that he approved of Eduard’s desire to add staff to the house. He’d grown up surrounded by them as well, and although he liked taking care of things himself for the most part, when he was as on guard as he presently felt, it helped knowing that someone else was there to take care of their basic needs.
None of them had eaten since Sawyer came back, which meant that Henry hadn’t had anything to eat all day. Andvari went to the kitchen and found Cecil already one step ahead of him. He had a large tray half-filled with food and he was packing up another with plates, utensils, glasses, and a silver pitcher.
“I can take one up for you,” Andvari said.
Cecil looked up from his task. “That’s not necessary, sir.”
“I know it’s not, but I don’t mind helping. Henry needs to eat.”
“Yes, sir. He merely nibbled on breakfast and hasn’t had so much as a sip of water since then.”
