Page 71 of Fated By Fire
“Am I?” He glances at his watch, then shrugs. “Guess I am.”
He slides into a chair, immediately pulling out his phone and scrolling through messages. His leg bounces restlessly under the table.
I raise an eyebrow. “What’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing,” he replies, not looking up. “Just tired.”
“Long night?”
He hesitates, thumb hovering over the screen before locking the phone and slipping it into his pocket. “I suppose you could say that.”
“Let me guess. It’s a woman.” Wouldn’t surprise me to learn that my brother’s screwing around while our species faces destruction.
“None of your business,” he says. There’s a tightness around his eyes I’ve seen before—the same look he gets when things are slipping out of his control.
My gut tells me things aren’t right. There’s an unease radiating off him that’s hard to ignore.
“Everything okay?” I ask.
He meets my gaze briefly before looking away. “Fine.”
I decide not to push further. We all have our distractions. God knows I’ve got mine.
The door opens again as Lydia enters, followed by a few other clan members—Luke, an imposing figure with a stern expression, and Serena, her sharp eyes missing nothing. They take their seats around the table, conversations murmuring softly.
“Caleb,” Lydia acknowledges me with a nod, her silver-gray hair pulled back into an elegant twist. She studies me for a moment, a flicker of concern passing over her features.
“Lydia,” I reply, taking my seat at the head of the table. “Thank you all for coming on such short notice.”
“Didn’t give us much of a choice,” Luke grumbles, folding his arms.
I glance at Dorian, who gives a slight nod. “As some of you may be aware, there’s been a… development.”
Serena leans forward. “This about the security breaches?”
“Partly,” I say. “But more pressing is the matter of a video that’s gone viral in the past few hours.”
I tap a key on the laptop before me, and the large screen at the end of the room lights up, displaying Mara’s video. As it plays, the room grows colder, realization settling over the clan members.
“Dragons among us?” Luke scoffs, but there’s a nervous edge to his voice.
“Who is this woman?” Serena demands.
“A conspiracy theorist,” Dorian answers. “But her reach is extensive. Millions of views already, and the numbers are climbing.”
“How did this happen?” Lydia asks, eyes narrowing.
I take a deep breath. “An information leak. Someone close to us shared sensitive details.”
Luke slams a fist on the table. “This is unacceptable! Our secrecy is paramount!”
“I’m aware,” I say tightly.
“Where were you when this happened?” Serena fixes me with a piercing stare. “Shouldn’t you have prevented this?”
“I was dealing with another situation,” I reply evenly.
“Another situation?” Luke sneers. “Your absences are becoming frequent, Caleb. Perhaps you need to reassess your priorities.”
