17. Nic

Chapter 17

I stood in my office at La Petite Mort looking out over the floor. Down there, nothing had changed, but in the rest of my life, everything had been turned on its head. Leia was at home with Aimée and Jason—and Kyle, but she didn't know about him—and it was better that way.

The less she ventured out in public, the less I had to worry about her safety and everyone else's.

The main doors opened as I watched, and my fangs descended immediately. Another vampire in my casino. Vampires didn't come here to gamble—they had more sense than that. And after the bloodbath the other day, my entire staff was on high alert.

I turned away from the window and strode to the door, then met Sebastian halfway up the stairs.

"Trouble," he growled.

"I saw. I was just on my way down."

He turned and jogged in front of me then stopped, his arm out to hold me back.

"What are you doing?" I tried to push past him, but he turned and shoved me against the wall, his arm over my neck. If he applied any more pressure, he'd make it difficult for me to breathe.

"Listen to what he's saying." Sebastian pitched his voice low, and I could hear the man yelling from the main casino.

"I have a message for Nic Dupont."

I tried to free myself from Sebastian's hold. "I need to go out there."

"No," my brother hissed. "Didn't you see him? Big, bulky coat in July? In Baton Rouge? And he's come to deliver you a message? Nic, I don't think he's just cold."

My mind worked quickly, joining the dots. "A bomb? A bomb in my fucking casino?"

"Yes." Seb nodded. "And we need to get you out of here now."

He manhandled me around, out toward the back even though my instincts were to get downstairs and protect my patrons and staff, his strength superhuman as he forced me through the back door. As we stepped outside, an explosion ripped through the casino, flinging us to the ground. I skidded across the concrete, small stones embedding themselves in my face.

I sat up, and my movements were slower than usual as I pushed myself to my feet. I couldn't hear a fucking thing over the ringing in my ears as I spoke. "Get me the fucking security footage."

Sebastian also stood, and together we lurched to the front of casino, but it was missing. The suicide bomber had ripped the frontage off La Petite Mort, and a large crack ran through the boutique next door, and to the other side into Vibrer.

"Fuck," I ground out as the first siren wailed in the distance.

What should have been the main floor of my casino was a charred mangled mess of wood, masonry, and limp bodies.

"I need that security feed now." I also needed to get home and check on Leia. What if this wasn't the only place they attacked? Francois's activities were getting out of control and needed to be handled now.

I glanced at Sebastian. He had his phone clamped to his ear and was shouting into it. "Pull the footage, Kyle. Speak up. No. What's that? I can't hear you." He glanced at me. "He… He's fine. I'll let you tell him half his face seems to be hanging off."

I lifted my hand to my cheek and hissed as raw pain burned through me belatedly. But I'd heal. Shit. I'd heal. I needed to get out of sight before the first ambulances showed up. Spontaneous healing was hard to explain and I was in no mood to hang around and compel half the medical staff in the city.

"I need to get back to Leia."

The ringing had become a soft pulse of muffled sound that rose and fell in time with my heartbeat, and I had no idea how much Sebastian understood, but he nodded then grabbed my arm and leaned close to put his mouth my ear.

"Kyle should have the security feed ready for you by the time you get back. I'll take care of everyone here."

I took one last look at my ruined casino and ran to my car. The bricks and mortar didn't matter. I could rebuild. But the lives lost hurt. My staff had always been loyal, and some of them had just met their final death because of a war they had no real part in. But I knew everyone was in good hands with Sebastian, and Leia had to be my top priority.

The drive home was fast, and my tires squealed onto my long driveway. Leia met me at the front door, tearing past Baldwin and thumping into my chest as she threw her arms around me.

"I was so worried. I saw what Kyle was watching. How did you survive?" She lifted her face toward me, and a tear rolled down her cheek. Then she lifted her hand like she might touch me and thought better of it. "We need someone to look at your face."

I shrugged her comment off. "I'll heal."

"With all the gravel left under your skin? Doesn't someone need to clean that out first?"

I hissed, already imagining how that was going to feel. It would hurt like a bastard. "Get Jason, then. Not Kyle. I swear his heart hasn't beat since he turned."

He was pure mercenary, untouched by pain, and he didn't understand it in others. Jason, at least, knew to respect his sire.

And fuck, I was pissed.

"Nic?" Jason stepped out of the door, uncharacteristic worry marring his face. "Thank fuck you're home. You need to come see this footage."

"What is it?" I took Leia's hand as I moved rapidly up the steps.

Jason hesitated, his gaze raking my face. "And we need to do something about that. You're starting to heal already."

"Fuck my face." Jason would just have to open it up again. "What's on the recording?"

He hesitated again. "You should probably watch it yourself."

"And I will, but tell me."

He glanced at Leia, his mouth tightening into a flat line. "It wasn't a random demand. Francois has made his move."

"The fucker. What did he say?" Sending a suicide bomber to make his demand known… that fucking bastard. That coward.

Jason sucked in a breath. "The bomber's last words were Leia for Jean or it will get worse."

Leia gasped, and I tightened my hold on her hand. "At least we know he's alive now, though, right?" Her tone was brave, her words uncertain.

I fought to remain calm, but it was a losing battle. Rage roared through me, constricting each of my muscles and muffling my hearing again.

Jason's mouth was moving again, and he gestured inside. I followed him to my office, where Kyle was watching the screen. As we entered, he paused the recording and rewound it to the start.

"This is where the bomber enters the casino." He indicated the opening main door and the guy in the too-big jacket.

I'd already seen that part—I'd been there for the live action version. "I should have stopped him. I saw him come in. Sebastian pushed me out the back." As I spoke, the guy on the screen detonated his bomb and the camera jerked and shook, capturing a few seconds of falling debris before going black.

"I can slow this down if you think there's more we need to see?" Kyle rewound the footage again.

"No." I shook my head. I didn't need to see the slow-motion destruction of my casino or a guy bringing about his own final death. "I don't think we'll learn anything more from the footage. He came to deliver one specific message. The rest of the damage was just theater." I swallowed against the sudden bitterness of bile and curled my hands into fists. "Do we have any other leads at all?"

Kyle shook his head. "I've reached out to Temple, but he's gone to ground. It could be a while before I hear back." He hesitated. "After the witch and everything."

Leia tensed, and her breathing quickened. I led her to a chair.

"Francois has just started a war the likes of which he's never seen," I said as I looked at Jason, my hand still resting on Leia's shoulder.

Except it wasn't entirely true.

Francois had started this war when he first took Leia. My true mate. And now he was trying to get her back.

The fact he now had her father was almost secondary to the fact he'd brought the fight to my business and killed my people to make his point. I forced myself to breathe. Not content with simply taking what was mine, he'd invaded my territory again.

"We need to step up surveillance in New Orleans. We need to find out exactly where he has Jean." I directed my words at Kyle. He was my guy in the shadows, capable of moving unseen. "Jason, I need you on Leia all the time. Don't let her out of your sight."

Leia looked up at me. "But what about you?"

I shook my head. "I'll be fine."

I'm a vampire. But I didn't say those words. We were all probably thinking the same, although wisely neither Jason nor Kyle looked at me. Leia's humanity made us all vulnerable and we all knew it.

But again, now wasn't the time to discuss turning her. She'd rejected talk of it earlier, and I had to be seen to respect that. I also needed to choose a moment when it didn't look like I had some sort of ulterior motive beyond love or my desire to spend an immortal lifetime at her side.

"This is all my fault." Leia's unexpected words fell into the silence. "I'm the intended target. You shouldn't even be involved and at risk of getting hurt." She looked at the others then at me again, her eyes filling with tears. "And look at your face."

I shook my head in denial of her beliefs. "It's not your fault. Francois has done all of this. One man abducted you, abducted your father, and has bombed La…" I couldn't bring myself to name it. "My casino. The responsibility for this lies with Francois, and I will find him and I will end him."

"Maybe I should just give myself up." She spoke like she hadn't even heard me. "He's come after my dad, after you. All he actually wants is me."

My chest hollowed at the idea of Leia willingly giving herself to Francois.

I tightened my grip on her a little. "You can't do that."

"But maybe I could be… I don't know. Bait? Draw him out? That would work, right?"

I shook my head. "Not an option. You've seen what he's capable of. He's ruthless."

She swiped her thumb across her cheek like she could catch the tear before I saw it. "But people keep getting hurt because of me. He killed Lettie, more people died today, and you still haven't let Jason look at your face. Something has to change, and this is all I can think of."

I glanced at Jason, making a snap decision. "Then you have two jobs, Jason."

"Oh?" He tilted his head, his eyes quizzical.

I nodded. "Apparently my mate wishes you to return me to my former beauty. And I also need you to contact Conri. It seems I'm in need of his assistance."

I wrinkled my nose, haunted by the odor of wet dog already.

"He won't come here," Jason said, and I nodded.

I'd expected that.

"I'll meet him at The Pour House." I patted Leia's hand as I felt her flinch at the mention of her business. "Please don't worry. No danger will come to your property."

I couldn't exactly promise that, but I'd do everything in my fucking power to ensure it remained standing and undamaged.

Conri wasn't a friend or even really an ally. None of the Baton Rouge shifters were allies to vampires, and who could blame them? We had years of wrong and hurt between us. But with Francois encroaching ever further into our mutual territories, we had a common enemy and that would have to be enough.

Not for the first time, I spared a thought for how my sireling might have come to be on such good terms with the shifters, but really that didn't matter. I just needed somewhere neutral…ish to have a meeting.

"Oh, and warn Benedict." I gestured toward Kyle and he slid his phone from his pocket.

Leia stood. "You need to sit so Jason can look at your face." She slipped her hand in mine. "You can squeeze if it hurts."

We switched places and I gripped her hand. I didn't need the reassurance, and I wasn't afraid of the pain. I just wanted the contact with my mate, but whatever meaning she felt most comfortable with was fine by me.

I glanced around The Pour House, realizing I might have lost Ben forever. He looked completely at home behind this bar, chatting to regulars like he'd opened the business himself. He poured drinks before people even gave their orders and shared smiles and jokes… And every so often he swung a concerned gaze in my direction, but he needn't have worried.

Leia was in the back office with Jason outside the door, Kyle was on the front porch of the bar, although knowing him, he'd actually found some nearby shadows to melt into, and we had a few younger vampires at various points in the woods around the area.

No doubt Conri had men of his own stationed outside too. The smell of wolf was too strong to only be emanating from the massive man sitting opposite me.

His meaty hand grasped his beer, the glass nearly disappearing in his fist, and the fine hairs of his thick beard fluttered every time he drew breath. "Why am I here?"

I half-smiled. He wasn't one for pleasantries, but that suited me. I wanted Leia safe as soon as possible. "Well, I guess time is money," I started, and Conri nodded.

This meeting hadn't come cheap—two million dollars—but I'd pay any amount to assure Leia's continued safety and that of my people.

"It has probably come to your attention that Francois Ricard has recently stepped up his activities in the bayous around New Orleans, and he's attempting to stretch his field of influence toward Baton Rouge." I paused. Territorial matters were a hot button issue for the shifters because of the distances they roamed and considered their own.

Conri lifted an eyebrow but his expression didn't change beyond that. "I heard something about it. Heard you have a pet human you're wasting time not turning, too."

It was like a game of poker. We each had information we had no intention of sharing unless disclosure became absolutely necessary. And we were pretty evenly matched. My only wild card was Jason. As a friend to Conri's beta, I was unsure how much Jason had already said, and what Conri truly knew about my situation. Regardless, I'd proceed like he knew nothing and see what he revealed instead.

"I need to protect the human at all costs," I said, side-stepping the issue of who and what she was. This part was hardly likely to be confidential information. The fact I even had her anywhere near me was enough to broadcast to every vampire and shifter nearby that her survival was important to me. "And currently that means protecting her from Francois."

I nearly spat his name out, and the syllables left a nasty taste on my tongue.

Conri nodded. "I heard something ‘bout that too."

I smiled, though I was sure the effect wasn't pleasant. "And I've heard of wolf-owned properties. Well-protected properties that act as safe houses to those in need. Something that is little-known outside your pack."

He didn't confirm or deny or my words. Instead, he sipped his beer before responding. "I would imagine a good many things are available to those with the means to afford them."

I'd expected as much. The shifters took their territory very seriously, but there wasn't much they wouldn't do for the right price—including sheltering a vampire king's true mate. "I'm sure that can be negotiated and arranged."

Conri nodded, and we were in business. Benedict sent replacement beers to the table whenever we ran low, but over the course of the evening, we hammered out an agreement. Conri was an easy guy to underestimate—looking far more like muscle than brains—but he had both. Maybe earlier in my life, when arrogance would have won out over care, I would have believed myself better than the shifter alpha, but we were closer matched than probably either of us would have ever wanted to admit.

"Are you going straight there?" he asked.

I hesitated. I hadn't actually planned for him to agree so quickly. I thought he'd need at least one night to consider my proposal. "If that's agreeable," I hedged.

He nodded. "I can have my men escort you from here." He glanced around the interior of the bar, his gaze resting on Ben for a moment, like he was also sizing up the vampire presence I had with me.

He probably was. Because a good alpha should, and Conri seemed like a good alpha.

"This is about the human?"

I nodded, unsure how much to disclose now he'd agreed to the use of his safe house so readily.

He huffed an unexpected sigh. "They're a fragile, stubborn breed." Something suspiciously like pain flashed through his eyes, and I sensed a story I didn't necessarily want to know.

"And can I rely on additional protection from your men?" This probably wasn't something Jason had mentioned might form part of our negotiations, but I'd be a dumbfuck not to ask.

The shifters were superior trackers, equal to vampire speed in animal form, and they had at least twice our numbers. They also knew the woods and local bayous better than anyone else.

As I'd expected, Conri narrowed his eyes. Then he shifted his gaze toward the back, where the kitchen and office were. Something about Leia's presence was affecting his behavior, and it likely had nothing to do with the fact she was covered in my scent. I racked my brains for what I knew about the shifter alpha, but usually I took precious little interest in him and his pack.

We stayed out of each other's way by unspoken mutual agreement.

He remained quiet for a long time, and I matched him. To speak would be to show my hand.

"I heard about La Petite Mort." His statement was unexpected, and I tried not to react. He jerked his head in the direction of the office. "Was the female there?"

I shook my head and almost laughed. "No." Thank fuck I'd had enough sense to keep her away. The witch had only been a warning. "Last time she was there didn't…end well." I released some information as a gesture of goodwill, and Conri nodded, seeming almost like he was nodding in agreement to his thoughts rather than our conversation.

"They make it hard to protect them sometimes."

I nodded as well, my fingertips against my healing cheek, my thoughts firmly on Leia and taking her somewhere safe while we worked out the next steps to find Jean.