Page 10 of Flock This

“Yeah,” I answered, meeting Galen’s gaze head-on. “You should replace the bed, though.”

“Why? What did you do to it?” He lifted an eyebrow, suspicion in his expression I didn’t think I quite deserved.

“It’s too comfortable. You want a tip? Never make a guest room too comfortable or moochers will never leave.”

“When did I ever ask you to leave?”

Not fair! How could he throw out a line like that, and damn it, why did it work so well? Other men could say the most romantic things but they never landed, never made my heart flutter. Maybe Galen’s seriousness forced me to take his words for truth, but I didn’t want to admit the way my cheeks burned.

Instead, I turned my attention to Matt. “You’re here early.”

He made a show of lifting his wrist and staring at the watch there. “No, I’m not. It’s almost noon.”

I could have gone into the fact that I’d had a rather hard night, that I deserved to sleep in, but what was the point? Matt wouldn’t approve of me no matter what, and for the most part, I was okay with that.

So I smiled and took another sip of my coffee.

Galen gestured for me to sit at the large oval dining table. It was a honey-hued walnut with scratches on the surface that proved its use over the years. It reminded me of the one at my mom’s house, the one I’d eaten dinner at each night growing up, after she’d married my stepdad.

Galen and Matt took their seats as well, no coffee with them. They might have drunk some earlier, or it was possible they were just more physically fit than I was and didn’t require drugs to get going in the morning.

“Anything new?” I asked.

Galen nodded, sitting back in his chair, not avoiding my gaze at all. “William Garrison was officially announced as murdered. The vampires are in an upheaval as they look for a replacement.”

“There’s no direct heir?”

“No. He had no heirs, and the vampires have had some internal struggles recently. I’ve heard that splinter groups are trying to take control. In fact, as far as I know, William didn’t even leave a will.”

“Vampires do that?”

“Often, yes. They use pebbles—a form of record keeping that can’t be tampered with. They record messages with them—visual representations that are created by using a conduit that records the image and voice of the person inside of a small rock. Usually, vampires of William’s position would have done that for directions after they pass. It seems William was arrogant enough to not think he needed it. Whoever it is that takes over will have a lot of power to dictate the future of the Graves.” He let out a sigh, one that said so much more than his words. It screamed of things he hadn’t yet uttered.

“Out with it. Clearly that’s not what you really want to say.”

“They also named you as the killer.”

“And there it is.” I laughed softly at the absurdity of the moment. After so many years of keeping my head down, of trying not to become a target, I was the subject of a massive manhunt. Fitting somehow. “So what now?”

“The Graves will have to assign a temporary council seat and call a meeting. I can postpone any meeting for at least a week if I make myself unavailable, but not longer than that.”

“So I’m safe until they can call the meeting?”

Galen pressed his lips together, the pink leeching away and turning white from the pressure. It took a moment, probably for him to do the mental gymnastics so he could admit what he didn’t want to worry me over. “Not exactly. You have no backing, no clan, no group. That means if they can find you in their territory, they don’t have to take you to the council. They can execute you on their own. Taking the charges to the council will give them the right to send a Justice after you no matter where you are.”

“They’d prefer to handle it quietly,” Matt said. “No one likes the outside world to know about their failures, so others finding out that one little clanless murdered their highest-ranking elder doesn’t look great on them. They’d much rather grab you quietly then just announce that the murder was avenged later.”

“Which means they’re going to be looking for me,” I whispered.

“It would be best to avoid vampire territory until this is handled,” Galen agreed. “You should stay to other territories or the Nulls.”

I blew out a long breath, staring at the woodgrain of the table, my brain racing but coming to no real conclusion. Then again, how often did I have to think about how to avoid people who wanted me dead?

More often than I want to admit.

However, it was usually just individuals pissed about something small I’d done. This was the first time the issue was as large as murdering the head of their biggest family. I doubted that would get swept under the rug by a quick apology.

My arm itched, forcing me to look down. On my skin glowed a message, the same yellow-gold hue as an address when on a delivery.

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