Page 69 of Death and Donuts

“You’re overreacting,” I said to Cross. “Even if the spell had hit me, it wouldn’t have been a big deal.”

Cross' eyes went completely black and stayed like that as his gaze shifted to Shepard.

“We agree that having Everly hit by that spell would have been devastating; however, the danger to her wasn’t in the spell but in the moment's distraction.” He withdrew the note from his pocket and handed it to Shepard. “She discovered this in her bag while having lunch with me.”

Shepard took the note, saying nothing as he scanned the brief message.

“We called the number. An old acquaintance of mine, Orphia Prince, wanted to meet with Everly. We declined. When we left the restaurant, Adriel was there in his other form. I gave chase.”

“And that was when the man appeared?” Shepard asked.

“Yes.”

“So, who is behind all of this? Orphia or Adriel?” Shepard asked.

“Adriel follows Orphia. He’s after the rings for her,” Cross said.

The rings.

“I believe she’ll continue trying to lure Everly to appear like she did when Adriel lured her to that club.” Cross looked at me. “You cannot fall for her tricks. No matter who she uses or what she does. Do you understand?”

“Why me?”

Cross and Shepard shared a look before Shepard said, “She understands we would do anything to get you back.

“I’ll let Anchor know about this slip-up,” Shepard said, pocketing the note. “I’ll also ensure he isn’t the only one keeping watch over Everly and Vena.”

Uncomfortable with the current mood, I quickly changed topics.

“How did your meeting with the fae go?”

Shepard flushed and tugged at his earlobe. Cross chuckled.

“What? Why are you laughing?”

“Do you recall Shepard’s call on the way to the mountain?” Cross asked. “He had to meet with the fae queen, who has long lusted after your Alpha.”

My Alpha?I glanced at Shepard, noting the increasing color in his face.

“Was she too handsy?” I asked.

Cross' laugh echoed in the room. The door opened behind him before either of them answered, and the server delivered the first course.

Once he was gone, I waited expectantly for one of them to clue me in.

“I’m betting it wasn’t only her hands he had to fend off,” Cross said.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that, Shepard. I know what unwanted attention feels like.” Both shot me a worried look. “I meant serving at Blur.”

“Ah. Yeah, it was uncomfortable, but at least, she listened to the problem and acknowledged that the vampires need to be stopped. However, she isn’t convinced that the problem is serious enough to break their neutrality yet.”

Cross tapped his fingers on the table as he gazed at the food.

“Fools,” he said before sighing and looking at me. “Let’s focus on dinner. The rest can wait until later.”

It turned out to be a nine-course meal. Each course was paired with a wine, and even though each serving was appropriately sized smaller, I was full by the last dish.

The waiter arrived with the bill.

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