Page 36 of Blades and Bone

“Why, though?” Vivian asked. “Their business was growing, and without the Hadleys they had no competition.”

“We may never know why, so we need to concentrate on our own survival.”

“Knowing why will help us. Have you not gotten anything useful out of Frankie?”

Frankie Orlan had been in Reid custody since being captured in Albany. Her capture had to be a thorn in Mirabella’s side. She’d lost a female vampire, and one who understood the inner workings of the business.

“Only that they want the trade routes. We have already mapped them, and we can hold Albany. The Sterlings should be able to hold their territory in South Australia, though it is unfortunate the capital city is unaffiliated—or was. If the Orlans have moved through the way they did in Albany, we may as well call Adelaide Orlan territory.”

The same could be said for Brisbane, which they had largely ignored as it was too far south for them to worry about. Not only that, there were a fair number of unaffiliated involved in criminal behavior, which made joining the Orlans a potentially attractive opportunity.

The Ashbys didn’t have the numbers to police them, and they were too spread out across the state. They had land, and they had cattle, and a hundred years ago that had been enough to stop other families from messing with them. Now they looked like a fruit ripe for plucking.

Were there now too many unaffiliated vampires? Had the families in Australia become lax in a way that would never happen in Europe?

More importantly, was it already too late to stop the Orlans from a complete takeover?

In a pause in conversation, Brodie voiced the concern that no one had breathed life into. “If the Orlans attract too much human attention, will one of the European families step in? And if so, what will that mean for all the Australian families who are offshoots, either by force or by seeking new opportunities?”

“That is something we want to avoid if we want to keep our independence. I am sure that your family has been monitored from afar, and that your bloodline would be more than happy to take over and take credit,” Ann said.

Brodie had no doubt that she’d studied the history of the Ashbys as well as the reasons they’d been shackled and sent away. Perhaps the Reids were still on speaking terms with the main branch of their family. And while they’d taken a new name in Australia, and a new symbol to note the start of a new line, they were originally from Wales, and their bloodline had mining and metal in their blood for centuries.

The Orlans had come out as redcoats, policing the convicts and profiteering off gambling and liquor. They’d always played both sides, looking like angels and scheming like demons. But he didn’t know if the new branch had been a deliberate and approved expansion or a woman packing up her things and striking out on her own, maybe with her brothers or a couple of male cousins disenchanted by the current leadership. The way a new branch started had implications on how it would be treated should the original bloodline step in. His family would be fucked, they were supposed to die over two hundred years ago, and instead, they’d not only survived but thrived.

The Orlans were fucking things up for everyone, and he could guarantee that the European families, the ones that had existed for thousands of years, would not allow humans to light brands and pick up pitchforks. They would not go quietly to government labs, nor would they give up the power they had built over centuries.

Perhaps that was another mistake the young branches had made. They’d concentrated on survival, which meant making money and staying beneath the radar when perhaps they should’ve placed themselves in more prominent positions, standing under the spotlight instead of hiding in the shadows.

“We should’ve gone into politics,” Brodie muttered.

Ann gave a single nod.

“It is a little late for the crafting of that plan. It should’ve started twenty years ago,” Garrick said. “However, the next best time to start is now.” He added it to a running list of things they needed to work out. “Do you have any in your pocket?”

Vivian sighed. “No. Do you?”

Garrick nodded.

God, they had really played too clean.

“Of course, it helps smooth out the bumps that can occur in our businesses.” Garrick made a couple more notes. “I don’t think we’re going to solve every problem today or tomorrow; there’s too many on this list, and I think two good plans are better than a handful of half-baked ones.” He glanced at Ann, but Brodie had no doubt they’d already discussed the way they wanted things to go today.

Brodie had to agree with Garrick, even though he would much rather solve everything.

Vivian nodded. “And what are your top three things you think we should focus on? So we can then whittle it down to two?”

Ann didn’t even glance at Garrick’s list. “It’s not as easy as coming up with the top three, as they are interlinked. You have a large population of unaffiliated in the south. Many of them have come from Victoria and New South Wales. Some of them will have Orlan blood. You need to get in there with your own promises of protection and such because I can guarantee Mirabella will already have people there making promises of wealth while using their loved ones as leverage. Then you need to start blooding and increase your numbers. Because at some point every battle is a numbers game.” Ann leaned forward. “I can put people into your unaffiliated population, but you have to be prepared to help them and blood them. You also need to be able to watch them.”

Vivian frowned. “We don’t have the numbers for that.”

“I’m aware, which is why I am offering some of my people. Your grandmother and mother kept your family small and strong. There was loyalty because you are all intimately related, and it’s why you have been able to create successful businesses and grow wealth out of sweat and blood and tears. You’re a young matriarch, and I’m sure it took great courage to reach out for help, which means you clearly see the threat.”

And Vivian had seen it before him. He’d been thinking the same way his family had done for over two centuries—if they kept their heads down and worked hard, everything would be fine.

It was not fine.

Vivian licked her lower lip. “I do not want my family to disappear.”