Page 40 of Claiming the Dhampir

“It’s not your fault that Kenrid and Nathan were targeted,” Damon countered, echoing my own concerns.

Lorna scowled and opened her mouth to argue, but Elliott interrupted.

“Damon’s right. It’s not like you ran around waving a banner that said, ‘I’m a dhampir!’” Elliott waved his hands in the air, doing a very bad impression of Lorna’s voice. “You did everything possible to dissuade everyone. It’s not your fault.”

Lorna huffed and started to speak again, but I held up my hand and stopped her.

“I saw you this morning with Brance,” I said. “You once again made him look like a fool in front of the fae. You made him out to be the liar, even though we cannot lie. Alyssa crawled from that room knowing that you’re not a dhampir.”

Lorna stared at me as if I had no idea what I was talking about. As soon as the words left my mouth, though, another thought emerged. One I didn’t want to contemplate. Instead of convincing the fae she wasn’t dhampir, had she confirmed that she was exactly what the fae hoped for? Did I want to voice those concerns? Not really.

“This is not your fault, Lorna,” I said. “If anyone is to blame besides Brance and Alyssa, it’s me. I must have done something to make them connect you with the pregnant female who escaped the research facility.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Lorna snapped.

“We need a plan,” Elliott said, interrupting his mate again. She glared at him, but it didn’t seem to faze him. “Even if Lorna did manage to convince the rest of the fae that she’s not dhampir, the fae queens need to be convinced. They’re the ones pushing the Exiled to find Lorna.”

Elliott was right, but I didn’t know how to convince the queens to back off. Alyssa would likely report what she’d seen, but I wasn’t sure it’d be enough. The fae court must have some other proof of Lorna’s existence. My thoughts once again went back to how Alyssa would interpret Lorna’s control.

I looked around the table at the people I trusted most and made my decision.

“I’m just theorizing,” I said, gaining startled looks from Elliott and Damon. I never shared my theories with them, so their surprise was somewhat warranted. “If Alyssa tells the queens what she saw, it may be the opposite of what we hoped and put Lorna in more danger. Lorna has demonstrated her self-control so many times. She is exactly what the fae were trying to create.”

Silence fell across the table. Damon frowned. Low growls rumbled from Elliott. Lorna’s breath hitched.

“A stable dhampir,” Damon said after several moments. “I should have killed them all.”

Lorna’s face paled, and her eyes flickered from blue to black. I could only imagine what her dhampir thought.

“They can’t have her,” Elliott stated, growling again.

“No, they cannot,” Damon agreed. “I may have a plan that will keep them away, if they have indeed discovered the truth.”

I turned my attention to the demon, waiting for him to explain. He picked up his fork and started eating the blackened shrimp on his plate.

“Well, don’t keep us all in suspense,” Lorna said, but I could hear the edge of her dhampir’s voice.

“Eat and get some rest,” Damon said. “I need to make arrangements first, before I commit to anything.”

“You’re really irritating sometimes.” Lorna stabbed at her food and took a bite.

“Yes, and you love me anyway,” Damon teased.

She smiled, and tears shimmered in her eyes. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one she’d professed her love to. Being jealous about it was silly. Lorna had already demonstrated that her heart had room for all of us.

“How is Nathan doing?” I asked before taking another bite. My plate was nearly empty, and I seriously considered refilling it.

“He’ll be hungry when he gets up,” Damon said.

Of course he would. He’d lost a lot of blood. It’d be good to hear how they managed to bring him back from near death. Lorna set her fork down, drawing my attention. She whispered to herself, her eyes narrowing with each second that passed.

Elliott cleared his throat and pushed his own plate aside. “What happened?”

“Nothing bad,” Lorna mumbled. “Okay, it was bad.”

Frowning, Elliott turned his attention to Damon, who was watching Lorna. My head started throbbing with the tension building in the room.

“You gave him your blood?” I asked.

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