Page 150 of Magic of the Damned

He nodded, although I wasn’t sure he believed that to be true. “I’m not my father.” If he found solace in that, good.

“He’s ruthless.” I said the part that was left unspoken. Dominic’s expression hardened and he put a lot of effort in softening his furrowed brow and clenched jaw. The hold he had on my hand was increasingly tight and uncomfortable.

“Ow,” I whispered.

“Sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

The tacit conversation between us expressed more than we’d said in that exchange. To dethrone his father, Dominic would have to become just as ruthless. And I’d see a side of him that I hadn’t yet seen. I’d said it was fine. But would it be?

Patricide. When I thought of fathers, a warmth swelled in me. My dad’s quirky ways, his overt affection for my mother, and his tight, comforting hugs. That was what fathers meant to me. Dominic didn’t have that kind of relationship with his father. He wouldn’t be killing a person like my dad, but a father who had betrayed him, used me as a pawn to hurt him, and brutally attacked him. Their relationship was anything but typical.

With a tight smile, Dominic guided me out of the room, his fingers twined with mine as we walked to the dining area. Once in our seats, we were given plates with French toast, bacon, and an assortment of berries. My stomach growled at the sight of the food, but I couldn’t pull my attention from the woman who served it. Her pale coral skin was complemented by russet-color low-coifed hair. Vivid, wide brown eyes and vulpine features were distinctive but human-like, if I ignored the fluttering butterfly wings. I thought they were just ornamental until she used them to retreat to the kitchen.

Sabin, who was sitting across from us, offered a wry smile before picking up his nearly untouched plate and leaving. His departure felt like he was fleeing rather than deciding to have his meal elsewhere. With Sabin gone, my attention moved to the lavish dining area and kitchen that reminded me of Dominic’s focus on Ileana’s created and their unsuccessful attempt to be unobtrusive.

This place is creepy. I wanted desperately to be more fascinated and intrigued by the created but couldn’t manage to get past them unsettling me. Despite my introduction to shifters, witches, vampires—even a soiree with shades, the weirdest of the weird—I still found her creatures simultaneously beautiful and discomfiting.

Shoving a forkful of French toast into my mouth, I had the indulgent tastes of butter with hints of vanilla and cinnamon turn to sawdust at the sight of Areleus and Helena entering the room. I gulped water, forcing the mouthful down. Dominic stopped mid-bite, his eyes searing over his father and giving little regard to his sister who greeted him with a warm, insouciant smile devoid of any traces of remorse for her betrayal. She turned the same smile to me, and I responded with a glare. If he couldn’t hate his sister, I was more than willing to hate her doubly on his behalf.

Dominic managed to school his murderous scowl into a cool look of indifference that mirrored his mother’s, who had glided in next to her daughter. The similarities in their appearance were so stark that Ileana had to see herself in Helena every time she looked at her. Maybe that explained her insistence on leniency for Helena’s behavior.

“I intervened since I wasn’t confident that you’d call on your father and sister for assistance.”

“You were right.” Steeled hostility filled Dominic’s words. He pushed his nearly full plate aside. Well, he might not need food to function, but I did. I scarfed the remainder of my breakfast despite the rising feeling that in minutes I’d be in the middle of unfettered violence between Dominic and Areleus. Dominic’s claws emerged in protection. It took several beats of slow breathing before they receded.

“We need to figure out how to recapture the shades so they can’t be used by the person who now possesses Luna’s and Peter’s magic,” Areleus stated, approaching the table with an aloof confidence that wasn’t warranted by the situation.

Read the room, man.

He’d known his son longer than I had, so how could he miss the calculations in Dominic’s expression? There was nothing reassuring about Dominic’s calm, which was just the peace before a blistering storm that encouraged approaching without fear. Areleus was ruthless, cruel, and had years of knowledge including the skills of self-preservation, yet he wasn’t exhibiting any of those attributes today.

“Has there been any activity?” Dominic managed in a tight voice.

“The New Conventicle and the Conventicle appear to have unified. A common enemy seems to do that,” Helena offered.

Dominic offered a cool assessing gaze in response before a cynical smile lifted his lips. “It’s good to know that people ally for a common goal and not because they are power hungry. That I can understand and respect.”

Helena swallowed her retort and pressed her lips into a rigid line.

It was a fragile union between the Conventicle and New Conventicle, which was hungering for power and just waiting in the wings. Could people who wanted to seize your position of authority be trusted?

Ileana’s speculative gaze traveled over the royals’ faces, the hostility-filled room deepening her frown. What exactly did she expect? Areleus and Dominic had every intention of determining who would be the official ruler of the Underworld under any violent conditions necessary. Helena would ally with the victor, whoever it was, although I suspected she preferred Areleus who would continue to allow her cruel behavior with impunity. Although Ileana clearly had no more use for Areleus, he’d help her create weapons that could ward off any invasions.

“I doubt we can do anything with that fractured alliance,” Dominic said.

His father smiled and nodded, stepping forward to extend his hand to Dominic. Jerking his eyes to the proffered olive branch, Dominic stared, then dismissed it by turning an expectant look on his mother.

“Tenuous alliances are difficult to manage, which is why I made sure it was inevitable by releasing the prisoners from the Perils. If that doesn’t work, I’ll release the ones they were tasked with imprisoning,” Areleus provided before Ileana could offer any explanation for her interference.

Dominic narrowed a hard gaze on his father. An assassin’s final look through the scope. I had the sneaking suspicion Ileana was the instigator of Areleus’s decision to release the prisoners, because she kept a keen eye on the two of them like she was expecting the hostility to escalate quickly.

Before Areleus could defend his actions, Ileana spoke up. “The Conventicle, along with their counterparts, will have to work together if they don’t want to fall victim to the released prisoners’ vengeance. Their focus on staying alive will strengthen their alliance more than their shared dislike for the Dark Caster, which at this time is an unknown. It’s difficult to forge a bond over an unknown. They need to understand the threat. Some of them have been victims of Vadim’s, Roman’s, and Celeste’s cruelty and recklessness, or know victims of, so they will be motivated to prevent more losses.” Her lips quirked into a knowing smile. “And, this person with immeasurable powers isn’t going to go after lowly witches, shifters, and vampires. The others—” She rolled her eyes. “The Awakeners, petulant children who don’t see the value of anonymity, are not the majority or the strongest from what I understand. Forcing them to join the alliance. The three sects will be unified. Once this situation is over, keep it that way. It is beneath us to be so involved in their matters. Discover other ways to entertain yourself.”

“I thought you weren’t going to be involved,” Dominic said.

“I’m not. I simply provided a strategy and set things in motion for the best outcome. It is a better approach than”—she looked at me, her smirk more pronounced— “descending into chaos and murder or setting off a magical carpet bomb. I’ve made things decidedly better,” she said, paraphrasing the accusations I’d made about her previous strategies.

---