Page 28 of Unbound

“Not any more danger than you were before, but also possibly yes, though maybe also no.”

My non-answer probably makes her feel worse. “I have no idea what you just implied, but I’m going to take that as everything’s fine and it’s all sunshine and rainbows.”

“That’s exactly what I meant. Talk to you later, girl.” I end the call and let out a breath. “I know we don’t want to agree with Theo that this is my fault,” I begin, “but it seems too targeted, doesn’t it?”

“Yes,” Xavier says. He knows better than anyone that Vaelric is inside Vivian’s body. The demon can sense her hatred toward me. Hearing the words out loud feels like a punch to the gut all over again. I just don’t understand how someone can pretend to be my mother, pretend to care about me, and not develop feelings in any way. How could she stand there and let the Order use me without having some sort of maternal instinct to intervene?

Not even as my fake mother. Just as a human being. I want to understand it because I think if I understand, it’ll hurt less. But there are some things I’ll never understand, and I know I’ll only drive myself crazy trying. The bottom line is that the Russos are terrible people, and the Order is an institution that needs to collapse.

I get up, get dressed, and then go back downstairs. The food has arrived. This time, Mabel ordered from an Indian restaurant. Everything smells delicious, and I load up a plate before heading into the family room and sitting on the floor in front of the coffee table.

Antonio and Devon are in here again, and this time Leo has joined them. Things were so dicey with Devon for a while, but he seems to be settling into his vampire life decently now.

The whole situation is still so wild.

I think if we weren’t battling one crisis after another, there would definitely be more animosity between him and my brothers. It’s because of them that he was turned. And though he says he likes being a vampire now, I still question it. There’s no going back, though, so he might as well make the most of it. Right?

Almost as soon as I sit down, Victoria bursts into the room. Zeke and Mabel follow behind her, and Victoria looks flustered as fuck.

She stops in the middle of the room and points at Leo. “Oh God. There are two of them now.”

“I told you about my family,” I say, tearing off a piece of naan and using it to scoop up butter paneer. “I have two brothers and two sisters.”

“Why is he here?” Victoria asks.

“Who is this chick? And how did she get here during the day?” Leo replies, instantly matching her annoying energy. Maybe his attitude will come in handy after all.

“I told you,” Zeke starts, looking at Victoria. “This probably isn’t the best time.”

Victoria just holds up a hand. “I work for Xavier,” she says, and I wish I could smack the smug smile off her face. “I’m Victoria, and I’m here to do damage control. Again.” She adds the last word pointedly. “Vampires can travel during the day as long as you have a light-proof car, obviously. You must be Leo.”

“Yes,” Leo replies dryly.

“What do you mean, damage control?” I ask.

“Well, you know there was, like, a mass murder last night, right?” She widens her eyes as she speaks. “And not that long ago, there was an attack at the restaurant.”

“Right,” I say, remembering that night. It was after that attack that Xavier rose into a surprising position of political power.

“There’s a serial killer on the loose,” Victoria continues. “Someone like Xavier should be able to send someone to stop them.”

“I don’t think it quite works that way,” I say around a mouthful of food. I’m taking a page from Xavier’s playbook and purposely acting bored so I don’t feed into her. But I know she has a point. And I was thinking with tunnel vision before. It’s not only the coalition that’s going to question Xavier’s ability to protect them. Now the public is scared too, and they might think twice about electing a vampire to a position of serious political power. There are still plenty of people who don’t think vampires should even be allowed to exist. Having one as a mayor or governor comes with obvious benefits when it comes to keeping people safe.

Vampires are superior to humans in a lot of ways. They’re stronger. Faster. They’ve lived longer, arguably giving them more experience in nearly every area of life. They’re not easily killed either, so having one looking out for you definitely has its advantages.

But Victoria has a point, and I can’t ignore that.

A serial killer showing up in vampire-protected territory is a slap in the face. It tells the public the rules don’t matter. That no one is safe. Not even with a vampire in charge.

“I saw some of the crime scene photos,” Victoria goes on. “And this has witchy shit written all over it.”

“It’s demonic shit,” Devon snaps back. “Not witchy.”

Victoria stares at him, probably trying to decide if that news is better or worse than whatever she came here prepared to deal with.

“Well,” I say, “Xavier is in his office, so go do your damage control.” I’ve dealt with Larissa’s hatred long enough to know the best way to get back at someone like this is not to give them the reaction they want. Instead of fighting with Larissa, completely ignoring her was what pissed her off the most. She wanted a fight. She wanted a reason to keep picking at me.

And when I refused to give her one, she just looked like the asshole she actually was.