Page 42 of Inevitably Yves

Kyson hurries to his mate, stroking his arm and calming the beast right before our eyes. Ah yes, only true love can do that.

“Unspeakable things,” Thorn says. “To innocent kids just trying to survive. Greer saw shit no mortal should have to see.”

“Do we know it’s Hadrian?” Raphael asks. I didn’t even notice him joining us.

Thorn shakes his head, holding on to his mate. “Hard to say. It could be vampire shit, or it could be unhinged criminal shit. Greer said they were abused in all the ways you’d imagine, but then after a few days, some of them were shipped off somewhere else. At first he thought maybe they were being sold off or even killed, but then he heard them talking about a place called the palace. Maybe it’s a bordello.”

“The Palace,” Yves whispers, before he realizes what I do at the exact same moment.

“Hadrian,” we say simultaneously.

“‘The Palace’ is meaningful to you?” Eros asks.

I nod. “Hadrian used to call our home the palazzo—Italian for palace. It seems a bit too on the nose to be a coincidence.”

“I agree,” Yves says. “But why the torture and abuse of young street kids?”

“Maybe he’s just another shitty guy now,” Thorn says. “We have to take him down, Yves.”

“And we will, brother, but I imagine this is the exact response he wants. Enrage me, get me to pursue him blindly, remove my ability to think clearly and strategically. Then he’ll attack.”

Gripping Yves’s hand, I nod. “Yes. He’s a master manipulator. He knows our weaknesses, perhaps even more than we do, and he’ll use them. Greer heard as much.”

“He must know about Lair,” Syn says.

“Yes, and he knows all of you,” Yves replies. “He wants to use my family to get to me.”

Thorn scoffs. “Fuck that guy. He has no idea who he’s fucking with.”

“But he does,” Yves says. “He’s likely been studying us far longer than we know.” Yves rubs his forehead. “We need a plan. Something there’s no way he can anticipate.”

“How do we ensure he can’t tap into us again?” I ask.

“We need to see how Viv can help.”

“You rang?” the witch herself says as she steps through the open doorway. “Patient is resting, healing, and calmed. Viper is finishing some energy work for his organs.” She tucks a lock of curly red hair behind her ear. “The attack was brutal. He could’ve died if he hadn’t got here when he did.”

Thorn is still seething. He clearly has a weakness for the underdog. Maybe that’s something Hadrian already knows too. Yves looks at me with glowing eyes. He’s insanely angry but holding it in for the benefit of his brothers.

“We need a blocking potion,” Yves says. “The strongest you have. Make us smell like mortals if you have to.”

“I’ll need a few hours, but remember, last time it blocked your communication with each other too.”

Yves sighs. “I think it’s a risk we have to take to make sure Hadrian can’t get to us first.”

“I’ll go to some of my sisters in magic,” Vivienne says. Her tone and expression are both somber. “Time to break out the black stuff.”

“The sooner the better,” Yves says. “He may already be upon us.”

“What can we do to help?” Syn asks, clinging tightly to Bowie.

“Stick together. No working alone. In fact, I may clear the books for a bit. We need all eyes and ears on this threat. If it’s not Hadrian, it’s certainly something.” He pauses, shifting his gaze to me. “But if it is him, then time is not on our side.”

“Can I go sniff around?” Thorn asks. “Please, Yves. Those kids out there need some help.”

“I’ll go with him,” Raphael offers.

“Yeah, me too,” Eros says.

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