Chapter Fifteen

Sephie

I could hear Andrei snoring when I finally woke up. He was louder than Adrik, so I knew I was sleeping on him before I even opened my eyes. I would’ve been able to tell even if he wasn’t snoring. I wasn’t warm enough. It was almost warm enough, but not Adrik’s perfect warmth.

I opened my eyes, looking outside to try to get a feel for how late in the day it was. It was definitely afternoon, judging by the dim winter sunlight coming through the windows. I picked my head up to look at Andrei. He was pretty adorable when he slept. He was handsome anyway, but he had a boyish innocence to his face when he slept. I found myself watching him sleep for a few moments, enjoying his peacefulness.

He probably needed this extra sleep as much as I did. I hadn’t thought about it before now, but he had a new level unlocked between his match with Vitaliy’s men and what happened at the hotel. He was probably exhausted. I needed to check on Misha and Ivan to see how those two were doing after the past couple of days’ festivities.

I tried to get up as quietly as I could, but his giant arms were still wrapped around me. I knew he was trying to ensure maximum warmth as I slept. Poor guy must be having a heat stroke with me on top of him plus a blanket. He felt me trying to quietly move his arms and he woke up.

“I’m so glad you finally did this, spider monkey. I was exhausted too. You’re my favorite,” he said, letting go of me to rub his face in his hands.

I laughed. “I was just thinking about that. You got a new level unlocked. It always makes me exhausted when it happens. Are Misha and Ivan just as exhausted as you?”

“I think they’re okay. Boss said he’s never seen it affect Ivan this morning when he moved you out here.”

I thought for a minute. He was right. It had never affected Ivan the same way it did everyone else. “Huh. I never noticed, but you’re right. I knew he was superhuman!” I said, laughing as I got off the couch and Andrei. I stood up to stretch, my joints popping like normal.

Andrei stood up next to me, looking at his phone that had been on the coffee table. He opened it and started typing. “I know if I’m this hungry, you are too. I’ll have someone pick up Vinny’s for us.”

“Bubba, how much longer are you going to make me wait to marry me? I mean, seriously. Stop toying with me already,” I said. He grinned at me. He’d finally gotten over his nervousness with me teasing him about marrying me.

He pulled me to him, once again wrapping his arms around me, holding me to his chest. “I love you, spider monkey. But not like that,” he said laughing.

I stepped back from him, feigning outrage. I clutched my chest. “It hurts, Bubba. It hurts right here,” I said, pretending my heart was breaking. When I looked up at him, he looked surprised.

“Green really does mean sarcasm,” he said, smiling at me. I smiled at him, but the sadness from the night before came back. He picked up on it immediately. It seemed like Andrei was very quickly becoming extremely sensitive to my subtle mood changes, just like Ivan. He was almost as good as Adrik, especially considering it hadn’t been happening very long for him. “Don’t be sad, spider monkey. It changes nothing. It was just shocking last night when we saw the white eyes. Boss was right. They’re scarier than your demon eyes. We just didn’t know what to say,” he said, pulling me back to him, his strong arms holding me tightly. “Nobody is going to be uncomfortable around you because of it.”

I sighed, nodding my head, but didn’t say anything. He was quiet for a few moments, then added, “All of this is strange for all of us, but we’ve had you to help us through it. You’ve had to deal with everything on your own for so long that it’s going to feel scary to share with us, but you’re the reason I can do what I can do now. I saw you doing it so easily and it gave me courage to try.”

I remembered what the acupuncturist had told me about Andrei. I laughed quietly. I looked up at him. “Nobody thought you were going to figure it out this lifetime. You’re the youngest out of all of us,” I said.

He looked confused. “I’m older than Misha, spider monkey.”

I smiled at him. “Your body is older than Misha, but his soul is older than yours. Your soul is the youngest.” I thought for a minute, then added, “Which really just goes to show how smart and capable you are. You surprised everyone.”

“How do you know this?”

I looked up at him, trying to gauge whether he could handle the truth. I decided he could. “You know my dad is a bit of a guardian angel, right? Same for Adrik’s mother. They’re around, checking in on us.” He nodded his head. “There are also guardian angels that live among us.”

“The acupuncturist,” he said, like he’d just answered the riddle.

“Did you fish that out of my head or you figured it out before?” I asked.

“I saw there’s something different about her. She has a glow that most people don’t have,” he said.

“She’s the only one you’ve seen that glow on?” I was curious if he’d picked up on Ivan.

He shook his head no. “Ivan has it now too. I never noticed it before he got hurt that day they tried to take you the first time. You and Boss do too, but I don’t see it all the time on you three. I’ve seen it every time on the acupuncturist.”

“How long have you been able to see this?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Since I was a kid. I’ve never told anyone because I didn’t want them to think I was crazy. My mom probably would’ve made me wear glasses because she thought there was something wrong with my eyes. I don’t always notice it. Like I don’t walk around looking at glowing people all day long. The acupuncturist is the only one I’ve seen who has it every single time.”

“Does everyone look the same?”

“No. Different colors. The acupuncturist is gold. Ivan’s changes. So does yours and so does Boss’s.”

“I’m so impressed, Bubba. You had levels I didn’t even know about,” I said, grinning at him.

After our sandwiches changed our lives for the better and allowed us a brief stay in gastro-intestinal heaven, we made our way to Adrik’s office. I was trying to find out what his schedule was like and what Vitaliy was doing today.

No sooner had I walked into the doorway and he looked up like he was expecting me to walk through the door. His wide smile stretched across his face. “You look lighter. You needed that,” he said as he pushed his chair back from his desk, opening his arms for me.

“Andrei did too, apparently. That kid has levels I didn’t even know about yet, but he feels much better too.”

He raised his eyebrow at me, but we were interrupted by Viktor coming into the office with his next meeting. “I’ll tell you later,” I said, kissing him quickly before leaving the office with Viktor.

I hooked my arm through Viktor’s as I followed him to his desk while Adrik had his meeting. “What’s his schedule like today, Papa Bear?” I asked.

“Three more meetings after this one, then he’s done. Unless I hear back from Henry’s office saying he can meet tonight,” he answered me in Russian, since there were plenty of ears around the office.

“What about Vitaliy? What’s he doing today?”

“He begrudgingly left this morning and said he won’t be back until tonight. I don’t think he’s going to stay much longer. He’s annoyed at having to see so many people,” he said, trying not to laugh.

“I find it both ironic and hilarious that he’s as popular as he is when he returns to the city,” I said. I thought for a few moments, then asked, “When will you know if he has an extra meeting tonight? I’m trying to make a plan for feeding you all since I’ve been slacking on my duties lately.”

He chuckled. “You’ve been exhausted, sestrichka. You haven’t been slacking. I’ve already ordered dinner for tonight anyway, so you don’t need to worry.” I narrowed my eyes at him but didn’t argue. I decided I would spend the afternoon making him a treat instead.

I looked around to see who else was in the office. Stephen was the only one, other than Viktor. I couldn’t steal Viktor since he was on master of schedule duties. “Yoden, are you busy this afternoon?”

He looked up from his computer. “Nope. I’m just staring at the screen pretending to be busy right now. It was starting to get boring, so I should thank you. What do you need?” he asked, as he closed his laptop.

I reached down and grabbed his arm, pulling him up. “You’re coming with me,” I said.

“Where are we going? Do you have a plan? Do we need supplies? How long will we be gone? Am I properly dressed? Do I need a coat? Never mind, I don’t get cold. It’s physically impossible,” he said. He let a sly smile slip out when I looked up at him. Very uncharacteristic of him, but I loved him a little more for it. He quietly slid his arm around my shoulders as we walked to the elevator, creating a visual barrier between me and curious eyes.

Once we were on the elevator alone, I said, “Have I mentioned how fucking funny the Vlad jokes in front of Vitaliy are? Like I love you even more each time it happens. The look on his and Alyosha’s faces is just perfection. They’re so lost. It’s so great.” We were both laughing when the elevator doors opened.

It took Stephen such a long time to warm up to me, but now that he had, I adored him. He was so smart and so freaking funny. He was so quietly hilarious that he kept us all entertained. And he could say anything with a straight face, so those who didn’t know him thought he was completely serious while saying some of the dumbest shit you’ve ever heard in your life. It was a true gift.

Because he ended up as backup for Viktor in his master of schedule duties, it meant I didn’t get to spend as much time with Viktor and Stephen as I did with the other three. I was starting to suspect that wasn’t helping those two realize how they were special, so I’d decided to try and change that as much as I could. It was easier to get time with Stephen on my own. I was going to need Adrik’s help to get time with Viktor.

We walked into the kitchen and I started to pull a few things out of the cabinets. Stephen said, “You know Viktor already ordered dinner for tonight, right? You don’t have to cook, Seph. You should still rest today.”

I smiled at him. “I know, Yoden. I’m making him cookies. You’re helping.”

He groaned. “My stomach is having a love affair with you. I hope you know that. It’s a little weird. It’s very unorthodox, but he’s very much in love with you. It’s to the point that he almost revolts if I eat food made by anyone else. He’s not happy about it and he’s very loud about that fact.”

I laughed at him talking about his stomach like it was a whole other person inside him. “My stomach feels the same about Vinny. So much so that I think Adrik got a little jealous in the beginning.”

It was his turn to laugh. “Is he capable of getting jealous? I’ve never once seen him jealous with you.”

“Not when it comes to you guys, no. Not usually. Although he did struggle with feeling jealous this last time I got hurt. I spent so much time with all of you guys since I did nothing but sleep and apparently I’m incapable of sleeping on my own anymore that he started to feel jealous. It’s why you guys only just found out about my eyes. That’s been happening for quite a while now. He wanted to keep it just between us for a while,” I said. “But he’s very possessive in front of other people who aren’t you five.”

“Huh. I never noticed.”

“Because you’re too busy analyzing what’s been said or what you have noticed. Your brain is very busy. You should cut it some slack for not noticing insignificant things,” I said.

“Guilty. It’s a gift and a curse,” he said. He followed me to the pantry so I could hand him everything I needed for this project.

“I think it’s more of a gift than a curse. You just struggle with believing in yourself so you’re overanalyzing. Your first instinct is always right. Stop second-guessing yourself. Whoever told you that you were dumb when you were younger was completely wrong.”

“You’re not supposed to be fishing in my head, remember?” he said, as I piled ingredients in his arms.

“I wasn’t. It’s so obvious that I didn’t need to fish. Much like Ivan doesn’t want people to know how wise he is because he values his peace too much, you don’t want people to know how wise you are either. But it’s because you’re insecure with your wisdom. For the record, I find it endearing but also hilarious. You’re seriously one of the smartest people I know. Especially when it comes to how best to mindfuck someone. I’m guessing you felt very misunderstood as a kid?” I asked.

He narrowed his eyes at me, like he was unsure he wanted to answer. He sighed, but agreed. “I was. I was very quiet as a kid. My sisters are loud as fuck. So are my parents. I stuck out. While they are loud and obnoxious to distract from what they don’t want people to see, I took the opposite approach. I was always quiet, never talked much. My middle sister used to tease me relentlessly for it. She would tell her friends that I was retarded and they would all pick on me. My youngest sister always went along with everything the middle one did, so when she got old enough, she would tease me as well. My oldest sister would join in sometimes, but not always. She never stopped it though.”

“Do you want me to kick your sister’s ass? Because I’ll do it,” I asked.

He chuckled. “No, I think she’s already getting her own karma. I don’t talk to my sisters often, but my mother keeps me updated on them. My middle sister is on her fourth husband. She struggles to keep a job for very long. It’s because she’s a miserable human being, but of course she blames everyone else.”

“What about your youngest sister?”

“She’s not much better, although she hasn’t gotten married yet. That’s mostly because she has a very loud reputation for being very easy. She’s slept her way through the entire town we grew up in. She moved to a larger city, trying to increase her chances of finding a husband. I think she only increased the number of STDs she has.”

I couldn’t keep from laughing. “I’m sorry. That’s not funny. I shouldn’t laugh at that.”

“Oh no, you can laugh. She brought it on herself. Nobody forced her to be a slut,” he said, very matter-of-factly.

I giggled again. “I used to always wonder what it would be like to have a brother or sister. I think after hearing this, I would’ve preferred brothers. You guys are much better to deal with than that.”

“It’s why I took so long to warm up to you. I was waiting for you to turn mean,” he said.

“That’s heart-breaking. I know I pick on all of you, but I don’t want to be a dick about it,” I said.

“You’re not. There’s a very big difference in picking on things that people do versus picking on who someone is. You never pick at things we can’t change about ourselves, which means it’s always coming from a good place with you. My sisters would pick on who I am as a person, just because I’m different than they are. Huge difference.”

“I’m secretly glad you don’t talk to your sisters very much because it means I’ll never have to meet them. I don’t know if I could keep myself from beating them senseless.”

He laughed. “Well …”

“Uh oh.”

“They’ve been talking about coming for a visit. It hasn’t happened yet, but there’s a chance. My youngest sister apparently hasn’t finished her STD collection. She’s trying to get a full set, so she needs new partners.”

“Is she cute? I could hook her up with Max.”

He laughed loudly at that idea. “Seph, you’re just the best,” he said, hugging my shoulders and kissing my cheek.

“I don’t know about that, but I do know that your sisters were very wrong about you,” I said, putting Stephen to work washing a few dishes I’d dirtied.

“On some level, I know that too. There’s …” Instead of completing his thought, he paused. He was quiet for long enough that I knew he wasn’t going to finish.

“I know there’s more, Stephen. You don’t ever have to tell me. I know you’re struggling, but I won’t pry and I won’t fish. You know the best way to conquer your demons, Yoden?” He shook his head no. He was still facing away from me, his shoulders slightly slumped. I knew this was difficult for him. “It’s to stop fighting them and make friends with them. They have no power over you that way. The more you try to ignore the monster you’re trying to keep locked away, the bigger and stronger it grows. You have to make friends with it before it consumes you.”

I went back to what I was doing, not wanting to force him to talk any more than he wanted to. I heard him turn the water in the sink off, then he dried his hands, tossing the towel back on the counter. I felt his hand on my arm as he gently turned me around, then he pulled me against him so tightly, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to breathe. I heard him sniffle a few times. I kept my arms around him just as tightly and would do so for as long as he needed.

“I’ll be right here the whole time, Stephen. You don’t have to face it alone.”

I thought there was no way he could hold me any tighter, but I was wrong. I was so wrong. I knew he was struggling, but I didn’t realize it was this much. I heard him inhale sharply, like he was choking back sobs and my heart just hurt for him.

“I love you, Yoden. And as much as whatever you went through sucked and still sucks, it made you into my absolute favorite vampire of all time. Without you, no one would know what enabling is,” I said, trying to sound serious, but unable to hide my smile.

He laughed and his grip on me loosened. He wiped his eyes before he let me go completely. “I didn’t realize how much I needed that, Seph. I still don’t understand how you do it, but please never stop.”

“Can’t stop, won’t stop,” I said, grinning at him, which made him laugh again. “Now come here, I could use extra hands for this part.”

Stephen’s phone beeped while we were waiting for the cookies to come out of the oven. “Henry will be here tonight. Viktor said Boss wants you at the meeting, so whatever we’re doing needs to be finished by six.”

“He’s very bossy today,” I said, crossing my arms across my chest.

Stephen pretended like he was typing a reply to Viktor. “Sephie says you’re not the boss of her and you can suck it. Send.”

I laughed. “Even with your lightning-fast vampire thumbs, I could see you weren’t even touching the screen. He’s always so sweet about ordering dinner when I need a break, but I seriously think it makes him grumpy when I don’t cook.”

“Um, I thought that one was obvious, Seph. Everyone knows he hates it when you don’t cook. He’s just so nice that he’ll never admit it.”

The timer for the oven went off. “He’ll be happy when he sees whatever we’re doing completed by six, then,” I said, pulling the cookies out of the oven. “The question is, though, should we take one to him before the meeting or make him wait until we’re done for the day to come back up here and find them?”

“Option three, I think,” he said.

“What’s option three?”

“I think you should put them in his apartment. We never lock our doors. We don’t need to. But I think he’s gonna need a minute and it’ll be better if we’re not watching him.”

“Yoden, you’re so incredibly smart. That’s perfect. I would’ve tortured the poor man,” I said. I glanced at the clock on the oven. “Okay, so now we have to hurry slightly to get whatever we’re doing done and down to his apartment and back to the office by six. Oh my God, the pressure!” I said, dramatically.

Stephen laughed, shaking his head at me. He joined in the dramatics though, taking an extra baking sheet and fanning the cookies so they’d cool faster, which made me laugh.

“You’re my favorite. Don’t tell the others,” I said.

Stephen and I finished up Viktor’s favorite cookies, then snuck downstairs to deliver them to his apartment and made it to the office with five minutes to spare. Everyone else was already in the office, waiting on us, but also still waiting on Henry to arrive. Just as we walked in, Viktor’s phone beeped, signaling that Henry was in the lobby. He walked out right after we walked in.

“What have you two been up to?” Adrik asked. I could tell he was amused that I’d disappeared with Stephen and not one of the others.

“Strategic planning. Vlad’s army is going to be magnificent,” I said.

Stephen surprised us all by laughing loudly. I could get him to laugh when it was just the two of us, but he rarely laughed loudly in front of the group. It made me happy to see. “Seph has a mind for logistics. He was only defending Wallachia before, but now he can finally see the complete destruction of the Ottoman Empire. I can’t wait to tell him. Those Turks totally have it coming.”

Everyone laughed at his answer. Several of the guys looked surprised at how relaxed Stephen looked. They all caught my eye at one point, giving me small, knowing smiles.

“You shouldn’t fight sleeping in for so long next time, princess. You look much better tonight. Andrei does too. He’s prettier,” Ivan said.

“He is a pretty, pretty princess, Squish. You’re absolutely correct. I think we both needed it,” I said. I heard the doors to the elevator ding, so I got up from Adrik’s lap after kissing him quickly. He still had a very amused expression on his face.

Viktor walked in with Henry and the mood turned more serious in an instant. Everyone went into boss mode.

Adrik extended his hand to Henry as he walked to his desk. They shook hands before Henry sat down in front of Adrik’s desk. He glanced back to me, smiling. “Sephie, you’re looking much better than the last time I saw you.”

“I mean, that depends. Sometimes I want to be colorful,” I said, referring to the heavy bruising I’d had the last time. “But life is much better with two arms again.”

He chuckled, shaking his head. He looked at Adrik. “What do you have for me this time?”

“Your police chiefs. How well do you know them?” Adrik asked. He was now very serious. There was no trace of the amusement that was evident not two minutes ago.

“Well, before you asked me that question, I would have said very well. Now that you’ve asked me that question, I’m wondering if that’s the correct answer,” Henry said, a look of worry on his face.

“We have it on very good authority that two of your police chiefs are loyal to the mayor,” Adrik said. We both saw Henry’s face fall.

“Do you know which ones?” he asked.

Adrik nodded his head. Ivan got up and put two files down on Adrik’s desk in front of Henry. “They both met with the mayor. After you met with all of them to discuss taking down the mayor. We only have confirmation on these two, but I wouldn’t trust any of them at this point,” Adrik said. Henry looked stunned. “How much have you told them about the mayor? Or about Ricardo?”

“Nothing about Ricardo. I’m sitting on that one. I’ve been after that guy so long that I don’t want to risk messing it up. But they have everything I have on the mayor so far,” Henry said.

Adrik looked to Viktor, saying in Russian, “We definitely need to hurry that journalist up.”

Viktor responded, still in Russian, saying, “I contacted him earlier. I’ll check when this is over to see if he responded.”

Adrik nodded, then looked back to Henry. “We’re working to gather more information on the mayor, but it takes time. Until we get more on him, be very careful what you tell the other police chiefs.”

“Agreed. Let me know when you get something definitive on the mayor. Until then, I don’t think we should do this again,” Henry said. He suddenly looked worried, like he was nervous. I glanced to Andrei, who caught it as well. We both focused back on Henry, trying to figure out the reason for his nervousness.

“We have other places we can meet the next time, if you’re nervous about coming here,” Adrik said. He had also picked up on Henry’s nervousness.

They conversed for a short time more, while I quietly studied Henry. The first time we’d met with him, I got the feeling that he was a good man, trying to do the right thing. This time, something had changed about him and I wasn’t sure what it was, but I wasn’t sure I liked it.

Henry stood up to leave, once again shaking Adrik’s hand. When he did, I saw Adrik stiffen ever so slightly. That’s new. I glanced to Andrei, who had seen something as well. Stephen’s phone beeped as Viktor was walking Henry back to the elevator. “Dinner’s here. Be right back,” he said, jogging out of the office to catch the elevator.

Once we heard the doors close, I walked to Adrik. “What happened when you shook his hand before he left?”

“Did you feel it?” he asked.

I shook my head no. “I didn’t feel anything, but I saw you tense. It’s different. You don’t do that.”

Ivan chuckled. “Vitaliy is also a Game Master, it seems,” he said.

I remembered. Adrik was like Vitaliy. “That escalated quickly,” I said, raising my eyebrow at him.

“Did you feel it when he first came into the office?” Ivan asked.

Andrei spoke up, “Something changed while he was in here. He made some decision while he was here and something changed. I couldn’t figure out what it was, though.”

“It’s something to do with power. He wants it. He doesn’t like that Adrik has it. But we should wait for Stephen. Somehow I think he’s going to have insight into this,” I said.

It didn’t take long for Viktor and Stephen to return. We were all waiting for them at the elevator, so we could go to the penthouse, where we knew we could speak freely. When the doors opened and we were all standing there, Viktor and Stephen both looked surprised.

“Are you guys that hungry?” Stephen asked.

I laughed. “No, we just need to be in the penthouse to finish the discussion we started. And we needed your insight and Viktor’s sleuthing skills. We were saving time.”

“I just really feel like Vlad is going to make you his Director of Operations. Logistics, efficiency, systems, you’ve got it all handled. His army is going to run like a well-oiled machine because of you,” Stephen said.

“Dammit, I was really hoping for Supreme Leader, but Director of Operations does have a nice ring to it. I’m not opposed to working my way up through his organization.”

“Okay, somebody catch us up,” Stephen said as we started dinner.

“Boss felt something different when he shook Henry’s hand at the end. He didn’t feel it when he walked in. Andrei said something changed while Henry was in the office, like he made a decision while he was in there and things are different now,” Ivan said.

“I couldn’t get as many details as I wanted from him, but I think we can fill in more in a bit with Misha. What I did get, however, was that it was related to power. Henry wants it. He doesn’t like that Adrik already has it.” I looked to Adrik. “Do you remember when we first met him—how uncomfortable he got when you first told him you were getting rid of the other bosses?”

He nodded his head. “You made the comment he thought that was too much power for one man. He was worried I was going to become a tyrant.”

I started to speak, but Ivan said, “He wants to be the tyrant.”

“He got it in his head last time that he could replace the mayor and he would run the city. When Boss knew more than him this time, it pissed him off. I bet he made a decision to come after Boss now. I don’t think he’s stupid enough to try it right away, but if we keep the plan of trying to get him into the mayor’s seat, he’ll do it then,” Stephen said.

Adrik looked to Misha. “Do you think you can find out? We’ve never tried to find a specific answer before.”

“I’d be happy to try. Sephie and Andrei help make things clearer. It’s different almost every time it happens,” Misha said.

I looked at Andrei. “I could clearly see your thoughts the last time we did it. Did it happen for you too?”

“You could? What was I thinking about?” Andrei asked.

I started laughing and almost couldn’t stop myself. It took me a few moments to answer. I couldn’t believe I’d forgotten about this. “We were looking for Martin, so you were thinking about him. And a cheeseburger. Not necessarily in that order either,” I said, still trying to contain my laughter.

“That seems completely accurate,” Andrei said.

“He wasn’t holding back. He was just focusing on cheeseburgers instead,” Misha said, laughing. “That’s why it wasn’t as clear with just him.”

“To be fair, I spend a lot of time thinking about cheeseburgers too,” Viktor said, his deep belly laugh filling the penthouse.

“I mean, who doesn’t love a good cheeseburger?” Andrei said. His cheeks were flushed, but he was laughing just as much as everyone else.

“New rule: we can only look for people after Andrei’s belly is full. For best results,” Adrik said, which caused another round of laughter from everyone.

Vitaliy and Aleksei walked into the penthouse as we were still laughing about Andrei’s random thoughts. Vitaliy was surprised to see us all laughing so heartily. “You guys must’ve gotten very good news today,” he said, a small smile on his face as he watched us all try to gain control of ourselves.

“The opposite, really. But one of Sephie’s many gifts is giving us a reason to laugh for a few minutes. It’s always perfect timing and it’s always much needed,” Adrik said, his wide smile stretching across his face as he looked at me. I felt the pull in my chest that meant he was thinking about how much he loved me. I answered by sending my warmth back to him, loving the wink he gave me when he felt it.