Page 39 of Hitched to the Vampire King
I stared at the two of them, hating every word they said, but knowing it was likely all true.
“Which means there’s a network out there,” Aimee provided. “There must be a client list somewhere.”
“That would make sense,” I said. “I wondered how Adrian was involved. Maybe he wasn’t involved, per se. But maybe he knew of Nash and Nash’s unique product.”
“Calls Nash up and says, ‘Hey, I have a werewolf I need to hold for a few days.’”
I nodded. “It adds up.”
“But it does beg one question,” Aimee said. Only when she had our full attention did she speak it aloud. “How much does Gabriel know about these cages?”
ChapterThirteen
I immediately stiffenedin my chair. It felt like she’d sucker-punched me, her words like a needle pricking my heart. That she could even ask such a question after everything Gabriel and I had been through downright pissed me off.
Gabriel was my mate. I trusted him with my life. That Aimee could insinuate that he was involved in something so vile meant she knew absolutely nothing about him. And in all fairness, she didn’t.
“Gabriel may be many things, but he’s not a monster,” I bit out. “He wouldneverbe involved in anything like this.”
“How do you know?” Aimee pressed. “From what I hear, you two have only known each other for a few months.”
I gripped the table, about to lash out when Aimee held up a hand.
“I can tell you’re angry,” she said. “But these are questions I need to ask.”
A low growl ripped past my lips. My wolf’s hackles were up, and she wanted nothing more than to shift and defend her mate. I didn’t even care that Aimee was an alpha, or that I’d just growled at her. Suggesting Gabriel could know about something like this and keep it a secret from me crossed a line. Abigline.
“Think about it, Maddie,” Aimee urged. “Gabriel is literally the Vampire King. It’s hisjobto know about everything that’s going on. If his father knew about Nash and that nightmarish warehouse, how can we not assume the same of Gabriel?”
“Because Gabriel isn’t like that!” I shouted. “He’s?—”
“Avampire, Maddie,” Aimee said, cutting me off. “At the end of the day, he’s a damned vampire. They live by their own rules and agenda, and they’re renowned for being secretive.”
“How judgmental of you,” I ground out. “People could say the same thing about werewolves, that we’re nothing more than animals. Notallvampires are like what you described.” I shot Lucy a glance. “Tell her! Anna is your best friend. She could never keep a secret like this. Nor would Vlad.”
“She’s right,” Lucy said, laying her hand on top of mine. “I understand where you’re coming from, Aimee, but Gabriel wouldn’t keep a secret like this. It’s more likely that Adrian learned about Nash’s little operation and kept that intel to himself. Gabriel and Adrian haven’t even spoken to each other for years. There’s a lot one can learn in that length of time. And if they aren’t speaking, why would Adrian share the info with his estranged son?”
The scowl on Aimee’s face told me she wasn’t convinced. Well, tough.
“You’re barking up the wrong tree,” I said. “Need I remind you that Adrian kept Gabriel in one of those damn cages?”
“So what?” Aimee argued. “Just because his father kept him prisoner in one doesn’t mean he didn’t know about them. He is literally their sovereign. So either he knows about the cages and said nothing, or he’s so incompetent a king that he doesn’t know anything. Which one is it?”
Another growl erupted from my throat. I wasthisclose to unleashing my wolf on Aimee just to shut her up. “Gabriel has less power over the vamps here than you’d expect. Once the vamps went public about their existence, our government took over. They have to obey our laws and we have a system in place to police them.” Acorruptsystem, but I didn’t add that fact in.
“That may be, but that doesn’t clear him of suspicion,” Aimee snapped.
I shoved to my feet and started pacing the kitchen, looking for any way to burn off the incensed energy coursing through me. “Look, you’re new to all this. Which means you haven’t been involved inanythingthat’s happened in the last few months. Sure, you may have heard some things, but believe me, you don’t know anything. And you sure as hell don’t know Gabriel. If he knew anything about Nash or these cages, he would have mentioned it.”
“Again, I’ll point out that you don’t know him as well asyouthink. A few months doesn’t make you besties. And just because fate decides you’re mates doesn’t mean he isn’t keeping secrets. And why do you think he would mention any of this to us? You’re a werewolf. Why would he tell you that his people have designed a rather successful means of caging us?”
I completed another round in the kitchen and snarled. My inner wolf and I were ready to rip into Aimee’s throat for trash talking our mate, but thankfully, I managed to restrain myself for now.
“Look, I’m just saying it can’t hurt to ask him,” Aimee said, her voice taking on a more placating tone. One I immediately resented.
“No, you want to accuse him,” I said. “You want to string him up and hold him responsible for everything Nash has done to your people. And I get that, I do. But you’re wrong about him.” I stopped pacing and whirled around to face her. “And I refuse to let you place the blame on him.”
“Okay, everyone needs to take a breath,” Sam suggested. “Emotions are running a bit high. Maybe we should stop before someone says something they regret.” His gaze shifted to me, and I saw the silent warning there, not to push his sister any further. Being that she was an alpha werewolf, if I did, I might find myself challenging her authority. Which I did not want. I had no desire to fight her or take over her pack if I won that fight.
