Page 39 of Hunted

6

River

“TELL ME YOU’VE GOT GOOD NEWS,” I growled at my brother by way of greeting.

“Hello to you too, sunshine,” August retorted dryly. “And before you jump down my throat for what I’m about to say, you should be aware that we’re all worried.”

“Let me guess. West put it up to a vote on the group chat and you were chosen because everyone thought I’d be least likely to bite your head off?”

“More like I have the fastest reflexes.” I could practically hear August rolling his eyes from back home in Blood Moon. “Crazy, right? And do I even want to know where you are right now?”

“Probably not.”

The modern four-bedroom home was located in the Mueller development, one of the few truly walkable neighborhoods in Austin that had been built at the site of the old airport. A small nicely manicured yard blended in with the neighborhood perfectly, hot pink roses blooming with the cooler weather we were finally enjoying. The only sign any of the neighbors might have picked up on that something about this address was off was the heavy window treatments and lack of lighting coming from within the house despite it being just after dusk. Its centralized location made it easy to network with other Vampire Nation properties in the event any one safehouse was raided. Conveniently, it also kept the fang-heads close to a blood source when Austinites congregated at the restaurants, grocery stores and movie theatres in the heart of the neighborhood.

Foot traffic would be less of an issue tonight with the dropping temperatures and pouring rain. I’d been crouching behind a clump of bushes that smelled like dog piss across the street from the fang-head house of horrors for three, make that four hours now, all while Vlad and Cris kept up a constant stream of arguing droning in my head from their position across the street, where they were monitoring the other side of the house.

This was why I absolutely hated stakeouts.

You could come back, you know, Cris said, checking the safety on his tranq gun for the tenth time.

Vlad scoffed. I highly doubt mother dearest is going to be so willing to wipe the slate clean.

You’d be surprised. She misses you. She misses Rowan.

Vlad laughed sharply. The latter, I can actually believe.

Your petty rebellion is tearing vampire society apart.

Check your privilege. That divide was always there, the haves and the have nots. Of course it’s uncomfortable to many that now their suffering has become more visible.

Cris bared his fangs. Check your own privilege before you deign to lecture.I had the misfortune of being born first. I had to sit through endless classes and tutoring sessions on military strategy, self-defense and foreign languages of any country our mother thought she might want as an ally one day, all while you got to go play soccer with your friends after school. That, brother, is the difference between being born the heir and the spare.

Yes, well. Vlad shrugged, but his voice had grown hard. We always did know you were her favorite. Ask Rowan sometime how her childhood was, hmm?

I will regret every day until I breathe my last that I did not make a different decision when Rowan came to me and told me she had learned the truth about what she was and that she was being used for her blood. I was twenty-one. I know that doesn’t excuse anything.

No, it doesn’t, but you should still try saying it to her some time.

She won’t take my calls.

Can you blame her?

Cris’s voice in my head grew sad. I no longer blame anyone when they walk away from me.

I turned my attention back to August. “We’re trying to get a critical piece of intel that could lead us to Rossi. The past two nights have been spectacular frack ups. We can’t miss tonight.”

“Look, Riv. Just be careful, okay?” August’s tone turned serious. “We hear all the chatter about Rossi, and then nothing from you for weeks. The whole family is worried.”

“I can handle myself.”

“I’m sending you some intel now that I pieced together on Rossi’s family.” There was the sound of typing in the background. “He holds dual Italian and UK citizenship. His mother is Nicoletta Rossi, from the powerful werewolf line in Europe. His father is believed to be Tristen Davies, though the Davies family has never formally claimed him.”

“They have some powerful magic users in that bloodline. Wouldn’t surprise me if the families arranged that match, hoping they might have a doubly gifted magic user like Rossi. But the Davies pack refusing to claim him as their blood is odd, particularly given how exceptional he is. Territorial considerations aside, Rossi is gaining power and a snub like that isn’t a good move politically.”

“Tristan Davies mated into a powerful bloodline and has two more legitimate children. His wife’s family controls half the werewolves in the London area. She may feel territorial about allowing an old girlfriend into the picture, even if it’s unfair to his son.”

“The piece that doesn’t make sense to me is why he’d come here.” I shook my head, rain sluicing off the back of my neck. “Rossi has no ties to anyone in Texas. Why come to Dallas and try to join the Tracers? Not to knock our training program, but the ones they have over in Europe are just as good.”