Page 61 of Betrayed in Blood
“Oh, honey,. Ginger moved to sit on the arm of Lyra’s chair and put an arm around her. “Is it because of your own struggles during that time?”
She nodded, but words appeared difficult for her.
I ran for the bathroom and came out with a box of tissues, dropping it in her lap. “You don’t give yourself enough credit. You’ve had your own demons to battle, and just when you were getting to a place where you felt normal, you were handed a huge burden becoming the House leader. And you faced it with grace, courage, and loyalty. Who wouldn’t look to you for inspiration?”
Lyra shrugged. “You make it sound so honorable. I was terrified the whole time.”
Ginger laughed and hugged her. “That’s what makes you so amazing. A lot of people push their fear aside to do amazing things. I think Hamilton is right to look to you for his recovery. Not just as his lover but as the strong female that you are.”
“Devon’s never afraid.”
I snorted. “He’s been leading men into battles for centuries.” I considered my next words, not wanting to share Devon’s perceived weaknesses with his sister, but there was one thing she’d understand. Something I could only sympathize with when I remembered the first time I wore my medallion, and someone took control of me during a dreamwalk.
“He was terrified when the beast took over while he’d been addicted to the Poppy, and he thought he might never regain his physical form or mental acuity. You know this.”
“When Lucas was severely injured,” Ginger stopped and swallowed two gulps of her drink. We were officially on the path to Wasted Land. “I was terrified he was going to die. It’s not nearly the same as your struggles after such a great loss of your parents and Hamilton, but we have to give ourselves time to heal. All I know is that when our loved ones are on the line, and the road is dark, we always find a way to pull ourselves up. We do what we have to do for those around us. Be Hamilton’s inspiration, because that’s what you are.”
Lyra pulled more tissues and wiped at her eyes. Then she gulped two swallows of her drink. “Sometimes I wish I could get drunk.”
I glanced at Ginger, and we both busted up as I handed her the empty pitcher. She knew what to do. Then I gave Lyra my sternest look, which might have been some funky leer. “That’s only because you’re not trying hard enough.”
ChapterEighteen
Devon climbedthe stairs to the second floor with Sergi close behind. Lyra’s message had been cryptic.
“We have trouble.”
His concern had increased when he noted Lyra had used Cressa’s phone rather than her own. Had that meant Cressa was in trouble, or the women were talking and discovered a problem?
They’d just reached the landing when Letty rushed down the hall from the direction of Cressa’s room, holding a tray of empty platters and dishes. She stopped short when she saw Devon.
“Oh, sorry, sir. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
“That’s alright, Letty. We were moving rather fast.” His brow lifted when he confirmed there wasn’t a drop of food remaining on the tray. “Are they still in Cressa’s room?” His initial worry drained away at the evidence of a happy hour in full swing.
She rolled her eyes while grinning. “Yes. I just brought them another tray, though they tried to convince me it was for you.” She moved past them then stopped. “I believe they started a second pitcher of margaritas.” She didn’t get far when Devon called out, “Bring a carafe of coffee, please.”
“Yes, sir.” She had a grin on her face before she turned to scurry down the stairs.
Devon glanced at Sergi, who only shook his head with a look of irritation. Did this mean the women drank too much and had created a problem where there wasn’t one? One pitcher of margaritas between three females, and one of them a vampire, shouldn’t create a false crisis. Lyra wouldn’t have been intoxicated, yet whatever was going on, she felt it was worth involving him.
When they reached Cressa’s door, the laughter inside was boisterous.
“Are you positive they’re not drunk?” Sergi asked. “Maybe this is their third or fourth pitcher.”
“I was before, but now I’m not so sure.” He grinned at Sergi. “Maybe you should go first.”
Sergi grunted. “A House leader standing behind his cadre? Not very commanding. You’ve ridden into battles facing hundreds of enemies. Are you scared of three females?”
“As a House leader who’s not at war with the females inside, I could quite easily assign this task to you.”
Sergi growled, but he paled, and that was good enough.
“Alright then. Strength in numbers.” He knocked on the door.
This time, Sergi snickered. “Then perhaps we should have brought Lucas and a couple from the security detail.”
Devon forced his expression to go blank as he entered the room. The women hadn’t responded but were too loud to have heard the knock. When he entered, all three went silent in what had obviously been a full-blown discussion, though he doubted it had been a serious one.
