“The only thing I’ll ever owe that blood-sucking bastard is an early grave. His, specifically.”
Patrick rolled his eyes. “That attitude is exactly why I didn’t want you making any deals with him.”
“You’re being a right fucking arsehole about this, you know that?”
“Congratulations,” Patrick bit out. “You’ve met me.”
Jono threw his arms into the air. “You didn’t even fight his demands. You just accepted without asking, without making better terms. Iknowyou, Pat. I know the word games you play, and you didn’t bother playing them with Lucien.”
“Because Iowehim.”
“Why?” Jono took a step forward. “What do you think you did to merit being at Lucien’s mercy for even a second?”
“I killed his mother.”
The words dropped between them like an anvil, heavy and bitter and full of a self-loathing Jono was all too familiar with when it came to Patrick. Jono stared at him, seeing the way his hands were clenched into fists and the way he was holding his breath, air locked in his lungs.
“Come again?” Jono said, his anger dying beneath the twist of oldgriefhe could smell coming off Patrick.
Patrick refused to look Jono in the eye. “Ashanti is dead. She’s dead because ofme, Jono.”
“Why?”
“She was the mother of all vampires and a goddess in her own right. Ashanti was the immortal who delivered the dagger to me at the end of the Thirty-Day War, but it brought her within the bounds of Ethan’s sacrificial spell. She died because of it, and I couldn’t save her. I know there’s no comfort to be found in missing the dead, only damaged judgment, but that doesn’t change the fact it’s my fault she’s gone.”
Jono could smell the truth in his words, but that still didn’t explain why it smelled like Patrick was in mourning over avampire. Shaking his head, Jono closed the distance between them and curled a hand over Patrick’s chin, tipping his head up. Patrick reluctantly met his gaze, a grimace tugging at his mouth.
“You don’t mourn the monsters of the world,” Jono said quietly. “What was she to you?”
He thought Patrick would lie to him, maybe ignore the question and shift the conversation to something less personal. Jono had stumbled into more than one of Patrick’s walls since moving in together, and he’d respected the memories that built them. But Jono couldn’t do that here, not when Patrick’s familiarity of working alone had fucked them both over in a way Jono refused to accept.
“A teacher,” Patrick finally said, lips barely moving, but Jono heard him anyway.
The riot of emotions Jono got half a lungful of before Patrick locked his personal shields down tight made his fingers loosen on Patrick’s chin. Jono let his anger die away completely, unwilling to hold on to it in the face of Patrick’s old trauma.
“She must’ve been brilliant,” Jono said, not quite believing he was singing a vampire’s praises.
Patrick stepped back, out of reach. “The best. And it’s my fault she no longer walks the world. That’s why I promised Lucien my help. Ashanti would still be alive if it weren’t for me and my family.”
Jono sighed. “Should’ve rung Sage and told her to skip that meeting and do the bargaining for you.”
“I can bargain just fine.” Jono could not believe those words had come out of Patrick’s mouth and stared at him. Patrick rolled his eyes. “Don’t give me that look.”
“I’m trying to decide if I’ve ever met a bloke as thick as you when it comes to asking for help.”
“Jono—”
“No, hear me out. I’m still bloody pissed you made that deal. You didn’t ask me what I thought and I was standingright there. That’s not how pack works, and if we want to make it work, you need to stop acting like you’re in this alone. Because you aren’t. Not anymore.”
Patrick’s jaw worked for a moment before he took a deep breath and let it out on a heavy exhale. “I’m not used to having a partner.”
Jono reached out and grabbed Patrick’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I know. I’m not asking you to change your habits with all your cases, just the ones that involve me.”
Before Patrick could answer, Jono’s mobile rang, thePsychoring tone echoing from his back pocket. He fished it out, scowling down at Youssef’s name on the screen.
“Ignore it?”
“They’ll just keep ringing.” Jono swiped his thumb over the green icon to answer. “Yeah?”
