“I can hardly be held responsible if a mage student wants to show off their magic for me,” Carmine yelled, kicking and trying to dig his feet into the floorboards. Viktor barely noticed. “It didn’t do any harm. You two are still here.”
“You were blatantly attempting to set me up to fail at reading Carol’s murder scene. A scene reading you paid me to do.”
“I changed my mind. I didn’t want you to tell me anything that would spoil the last memories I have of my beloved sister.”
“Beloved sister?” Able started to snarl as Viktor dragged Carmine closer. “The same sister who was murdered on your orders? Your sister, who the men poisoned with a bottle of whiskey they didn’t touch, and then beat her as she was dying.The same sister who was then tended by those same men, removing the marks of their violence, tidying her clothes, and laying her out as though she were already in a mortuary, rather than a remote spot in a park. That beloved sister?”
“I loved my sister, and you can’t prove otherwise.”
“That’s not why you’re being arrested. You should never mess with anyone in the paranormal community. Viktor, if you could take him out to the car…”
Viktor was doing that anyway, but as they got close to Ant, three things happened at once. Carmine grabbed Ant, catching his hand. Ant’s face went so white it was almost translucent, and his knees wobbled, and Able… Able started growling, but he was sitting, which meant…
Oh, shit, Ant’s being force-fed a vision.
“Do you really want to know what I’ve done in my life, Mage?” Viktor didn’t dare tug Carmine’s arm too hard. The end of Carmine’s fingers were digging into Ant’s shirt, which had to hurt, and Viktor had no idea what it would do to Ant if he was pulled from a vision too soon.
“You should’ve known, Vampire.” Carmine’s lips were pulled apart in a grimace and the hatred he threw at Ant was tangible. “Money is the honey, but knowledge is power.”
“You should know I’m going to separate your head from your neck if you don’t let go of my mate.”
“It won’t take much longer.” Carmine’s laugh was bitter and short. “A lifetime of crime all delivered to your cute little mage’s brain in the space of five minutes. Shit, some of that stuff still keeps me awake at night. Imagine what that’ll do to an innocent like him. It’s guaranteed to overwhelm him, render him useless,and who do you think told me that little nugget of information? His precious Captain Bains.”
“I will kill you,” Viktor growled.
“Then Bains will charge you for my murder.” Carmine’s jaw tightened along with his grip. “Come on, Mage, get on your knees for me. How much more will it take?”
“Able, restrain.” The words were strained, barely heard, but Able heard. Ant let go of Able’s leash, and the dog immediately leaped for Carmine’s hand, sinking his teeth into the flesh, the weight of his body dragging it away from Ant’s arm.
“Fuck.” Carmine screamed. “How? Fuck. Let go of me you damn beast. Vampire, stop him. That mutt’s fucking eating me.”
“Able’s got more sense.” Now Carmine was free from Ant, it took less than a minute to get Carmine restrained, his arms bound to his chest with his own belt. As soon as he was sure Carmine couldn’t move, Viktor was at Ant’s side. His mate was still pale, and his shoulders were trembling, but he was upright.
“You okay?”
Ant nodded and then stepped around Viktor and looked at Carmine. “You BASTARD!”
“Ant, are you sure you’re okay?” Viktor was sure he’d never heard Ant curse at another person the whole time they’d been together. Not even at him, and he’d deserved it at times.
“I’m fine, but I will never unsee the shit you poured into my head.” Ant waved his arms, and the frozen guests all came to life again. “This man isn’t even Carmine Doukas. He’s a petty thief and con artist who isn’t even from Greece, or the original Doukas family. He set upon Carmine, two days after the man came to America to reunite with his family, killing him and dropping him off a wharf as fish food.
“I call him a bastard because he is one. He has no knowledge of who his father was. But the cursing is because of what he did to Carol. He raped her and took her virginity when she was barely sixteen – her thinking all this time that he was herbrother. Then, when she finally got her confidence back and started seeing someone else, he had her killed. Jealousy. Possessiveness. No other reason than he’d stuck his dick in her and thought that meant he owned her. He’s a piece of human scum.
“And as for you lot…” Ant turned to the wide-eyed guests. “If any of you had one ounce of intelligence or human decency, then Carmine’s reign of terror in this town would’ve been over a long time ago. I am giving you fair warning, although you don’t deserve it. Every single one of Carmine’s crimes that he shoved into my brain this evening will be reported, and he will be charged on a federal level. I don’t trust the local authorities. If any of you assisted in covering up the crimes I will never unsee, well…you’d better be prepared for a lengthy prison stay as part of your immediate future. I’m done with the lot of you.”
He shook his head. “You had the audacity to suggest Viktor’s influence on me was bad. He’s got more decency and honesty in his little finger than I could find in the rest of you. Viktor, can you take out the trash please? Able needs water, and I need a drink. It’s going to be a long night.”
“Why the hell didn’t you fall to your knees for me, you freak?” Viktor slammed his hand over Carmine’s mouth as he kept dragging him through the house.
“I was overwhelmed by Casey and Banks - two men’s memories, and I had suffered a head injury, giving me a concussion. That is what rendered me unconscious, not the visions. On a scale of one to ten of evil criminal masterminds, you barely rank a five.”
Ant stopped in the middle of the reception hall, kneeling and giving Able his pats. “You’re such a good dog. A very good dog.”
“He might need some tweaks to his training,” Viktor said, shoving Carmine out of his own front door. “He should’ve attacked when Carmine grabbed you.”
“He did exactly what he was trained to do, supporting me when I was in a vision state. He’s perfect,” Ant said firmly as he and Able joined Viktor. “Can we get coffee before we go to the Academy please?”
“I’ll see if I can find a spare sock or something to stuff in Carmine’s mouth.” Reaching the car, Viktor shoved the man in the back seat and then clicked his fingers at Able. “I am not listening to his crap if we’re having a coffee break.”
