Page 23 of Haunted Nightmares
“No apology needed.” I tilt my head to the other side as I lift my hand and wave it dismissively through the air. “I’m sure you’re a rather busy chap, yeah?”
“Yes…” He nods slowly. “Have you been waiting long?”
Checking the nonexistent watch on my wrist, I shake my head then rest my chin on my palm.
“Good,” Deveroux says uncomfortably as he clears his throat.
“Smashing.” Declan coughs behind me and I roll my eyes. “Your wife kept us entertained in your absence.”
She hasn’t, actually.
Sarah came in shortly after we arrived, took one look at me, Declan, and a fucking raven then excused herself just as quickly as she came in. All whileAtticus was one thing but this freak is a hard pass for meran loudly through her head. Accompanied by awful images of my bastard sire railing her over this exact table while Deveroux watched, of course, and current situation aside, there are two things I have always prided myself on. Well, I used to anyway, and they were obtaining consent from whoever I intended torail, andneversticking my dick in anything my father touched.
The president nods and slides his briefcase out of the way, making room for what smells like a piping hot Irish coffee. “She’s good at that.”
“Mhmm,” I hum as sarcastically as possible. “A wonderful little hostess.”
Deveroux lifts the cup to his lips carefully, his eyes narrowing on my face and as he sips his drink, that’s when I see the man I met so many years ago.
Calculating, cold, all business.
And full of secrets.
“Before we get started,” he says as he sets the tea cup on its matching saucer. “I want to offer my condolences.” My hackles rise at that but I manage to keep mycarefreeand openly disrespectful composure. “I want you to know I had no idea Atticus was planning on trying you or your mate, and when I found out about what happened it was too late for me to intervene. I’m truly sorry for what I can only imagine was such a devastating loss.”
Bullshite.
That is the biggest load of bullshite I’ve ever heard and if I didn’t have Lydia and Orion currently breaking into this very house in search of a few things I need to find, or throngs of Purist members surrounding it as an extra precaution, I’d tell him that as I ripped out his spleen and shoved it down his throat.
There are too many other things happening behind the scenes for me to risk turning this into an unpleasant encounter, and ultimately this arsehole will get what’s coming to him in due time.
So, I nod my thanks then cut to the chase. “What do you want from me, Deveroux?”
And the slimy fuck doesn’t skip a beat. “Exactly what I had with Atticus.”
“Total control over a species that could jeopardize everything you’ve worked for if given the chance?”
“No.” He chuckles as he leans forward, dropping his elbows on the table and clasping his hands. “I want peace.”
I arch a brow and grin. “Is that what you’re calling it? Forcing the superior beings to live in fear of you while their so-called leader turned them into terrified sheep set to slowly be slaughtered?That’syour definition of peace?”
“Not at all.” Deveroux sighs as he hangs his head. “I wasn’t involved enough with your kind, didn’t work with Atticus the way I should have. Instead of following through with what we established after the Species War, I let him rule vampires as he saw fit and only got involved when it affected us.”
More lies.
The human government has never wanted things to run that way, they’ve always wanted to be over-involved in our business, and in doing so they were able to keep us in line for fear of what would happen if we stepped out of it. I guarantee every move Atticus made, everything he did right down to putting me on trial was discussed in this very room because there is nothing for Deveroux to gain otherwise. Turning a blind eye is dangerous, and it’s why it’s never once happened since we were forced into this current state of things.
“I hoped it could be like that, the way it was before the species merged,” the man says as he looks up at me with a fake expression of defeat. “There weren’t any issues before, hell, we had no idea you even existed but as with anything else that’s different from what we know, the ones who came before me feared you, and that fear turned into a need to control you.”
Thatis something we can agree on.
If this twat was genuine and believed his own words, anyway.
“Not that I enjoy repeating myself, but again I ask, what is it you want fromme?”
I adjust slightly as Deveroux reaches for his briefcase, popping it open carefully before removing two rather thick documents. “I want exactly that, Wraith. For our individual governments to run side by side without need to interfere in the other, but I want it done with the understanding that we keep each other informed. I want clear communication in the form of a monthly meeting, consultation on anything that may bear weight on both our kinds, and I want it done with a level of transparency I didn’t have with Atticus.”
Poppycock.“And what’ll happen to the VSUST? The laws and restrictions currently in place that would be affected by that?”
