The rest of Dina’s coven had followed us back here, currently tending to the wounded. Giro had jumped intoPeter’s arms when we returned, only letting go when Peter told him he needed to help me carry Sev to our bedroom. There was no way I could do that myself.
I’d yet to see Astrea and Claire, but I knew they were helping out with the wounded. The werewolves had returned with us, too, all scattered between Peter’s castle and ours. Both housing a mix of both species.
Sev’s hand caressed my back as I let myself feel every emotion. “Are you hurt?” Sev asked, his voice still croaky and weak.
“No,” I replied, hiding my face in his neck, letting the scent of him calm me.
“Can… Can I feed?” he asked, his tone unsure.
Offering my neck, I let him bite into me, letting pleasure overtake my feelings. I was soon drowning in it. In him. I moaned, pushing the battle away from my mind, allowing Sev to erase the horrors from it. Leaving me in a place filled with pleasure, love, and safety. I welcomed it before I let sleep take me, knowing Sev was alive and well.
Knowing wesurvived.
Chapter 36
Severin
Only two days had passed since the fight against the Silver Lock Coven, but we were still weakened.
“Well,” Dina began, her hands twisting nervously in front of her. We had decided a big meeting would help us all understand everything that had happened during the battle, so we were currently all outside in the grassy parts of the garden. Theworst of the wounded were left to rest inside the castle, but the rest of us were here. I sat on a blanket with Felix in my lap, both of us needing closeness.
“I guess I should start with the worst first,” Dina took in a steadying breath. “We lost twenty-three witches from our coven.” There were cries and I saw Dina’s own eyes were filled with them, too. Dina stifled a sob as she continued. “Seven werewolves were killed, and all have been buried as is the tradition of the werewolves. My witches made sure they were all laid to rest in the closest forest, together with their fallen packmates.”
The werewolves around us howled in their human forms, showing their grief.
Dina continued. “I don’t have a number on the wounded, we’re all here in town, so I guess that doesn’t matter. But I also carry some good news.” She gestured to Giro, who quickly stood beside her in front of everyone.
Giro showed his wrist, the mark was black like a normal tattoo, the lines faded some, like it was done thirty or so years ago. “I can finally speak freely without risking death,” Giro announced. “I agreed to speak for my previous coven, a coven I was born into and forced to join, like so many others before and after me.” There was silence around us as everyone listened eagerly to Giro’s words. “We weren’tallowed to leave the coven and join another, that would mean death. We weren’t allowed to speak of our coven to anyone, just that we belonged to that coven.”
“What about their killings?” a werewolf from the crowd asked, holding up her hand as she did so.
Giro nodded before answering. “I had no idea about them killing other species, but I did know they kidnapped witches and “convinced” them to join us.”
“What will happen to the Silver Lock Coven now?” I asked.
Giro shrugged. “They can do what they please. Dina gave them her number if they needed help on how to create their own covens, since no coven should ever be as big as theirs. Even with their loss in numbers, it was too big. And before you ask, no, I don’t know how many of their witches were killed, or if they joined the fight willingly. I also had no idea who Joel was. I hadn’t met him before I came here.”
“I can answer that,” a familiar voice said. Everyone looked around to find the person, but they would not find him. “You can’t see me,” Alec replied, his tone amused. “I am the vampire who killed Theodore Lendon.” There was silence. “I would show myself, but the sun is out and I don’t feel like getting burned today.”
Peter laughed at that. “Go on then,old friend.”
Alec laughed, too, before continuing. “I was contacted by a friend, telling me someone was targeting vampires, so I simply visited them and, well, spied a bit. I quickly noted that to get information, I would need to find the leaders, since the other witches in the coven rarely talked about coven matters.”
“I was there when you arrived in your cars, already knowing they expected you,” Alec continued. “I simply waited for my time to shine, knowing the sun would burn me if I missed. I was still hurt by it, so I had to stay calm and avoid getting killed after. But I did tell Severin I was there, just in case.”
“Did you get any valuable information while spying?” I asked, pleased that this old acquaintance of mine had been this big of a help. I had foolishly believed him to be across the globe, living in the jungle. He had been a few centuries ago.
“I arrived around the time Joel returned to them, I didn’t like the way they spoke to him, so I stayed close. I had to know if he was there willingly or not, especially since he was spying on you while working here.”
“And?” Dina asked, her tone hopeful.
“His sister had been taken by the coven; he wouldn’t get her back unless he did what they asked of him. They branded his chest so youwouldn’t see his mark on his wrist,” Alec explained. “I don’t know much else, just that they put some kind of runes on his back, too, to mask him from other witches.”
Peter gasped. “Was that why I could not sense his true aura?”
“What?” Giro questioned? He was back to sitting in Peter’s lap, also needing the closeness.
“I told you how I can see if people are good or bad,” Peter began and Giro nodded. “I saw Joel as good. Meaning the masking of his nature, must have also masked his aura.”
