Page 96 of Alpha Power

Time ground to a halt between them, holding them captive in this intense moment of anger, frustration and desire.

Eventually, Luther released her and stepped back, giving her some space. Zamorra was too much of a chicken shit to turn around, to face him after blurting out something so bloody embarrassing, so she immediately opened the door and went to leave.

"I think Leilani was the one who put the bounty on your head."

Zamorra stilled, hatred slowly filling her up inside. Ugh. Leilani. She thought if anyone was gonna hire someone to kill her, it would have been Ophelia. Considering the run-ins they'd already had, she seemed like the most likely culprit. Guess she was wrong.

She turned to face the room, watching as Luther moved to a small cart in the corner. He poured himself a drink, scotch and blood if the scents reaching her nose were correct and gestured to her. "Would you like one, Little Alpha?"

Zamorra shook her head, choosing to ignore the fact he called her by the nickname he liked to use sometimes. Over the last few days, she had been 'Zamorra' to him, not 'Little Alpha'. She had no clue what prompted this change in him, why he was all of a sudden gracing her with his presence and words.

Luther sat down in one of the chairs by the bed and took a sip of his drink, inclining his head to the empty chair beside him. She hesitated briefly before exhaling a sigh and closing the door, moving to join him.

This was the first time he seemed willing to share information without her having to literally drag it out of him. She planned to take full advantage.

"I've known Leilani for a very long time," Luther began, easing back into his chair and crossing his ankle over his knee. "I know exactly what kind of person she is and what she's capable of. Unfortunately, this isn't the first time she's done something like this, and I highly doubt it'll be the last."

Zamorra pursed her lips, a disturbing thought streaming through her mind. "Do you think she could be the one responsible for Night Flare?"

He shook his head. "No. As much as I would love to stick the blame on her for that, it isn't her style. Plus, Zvetari would kill her if she ever did anything like that."

"Your maker? Why would he care?"

"Because he's her maker too."

Zamorra scrunched up her nose. "Ew. Seriously? And you guys slept together? Isn't that kinda like... I dunno, incest or something?"

Luther chuckled softly and shook his head again. "No. Zvetari's blood may have brought us back from the edge of death, but we don't share any other connection. Our bond is with Zvetari, not each other."

"Still... seems kinda weird to me," Zamorra murmured. "What makes you think she's the one behind the hit?"

Luther brought the glass to his lips and took a sip, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as the liquid slid down his throat. "Morpheus is what we call an Elite Assassin, meaning he has a very specific clientele. He'll only accept jobs from certain people, Leilani being one of them. I only know of a few incidents where she's had to use Morpheus' services. Usually, she likes to do her own dirty work, however you present a problem for her. As a servant of my House, you're afforded protection against any vampire sired by Zvetari."

"What?" She frowned. "Why?"

"Zvetari has very strict rules that we all have to follow, sort of like a code of ethics. One of those rules is no internal fighting. If we're caught breaking them, it's an instant death sentence."

She looked him up and down. "Even for you?"

"Even for me."

The fact there was a being out there capable of killing Luther made her a little uneasy. How old exactly was his maker? Surely not much older than Luther himself?

"Zvetari believes very strongly that it's important to present a united front to other supernatural’s." Luther finished the contents of his glass and placed it on the bed side table. "Even though I have branched out and formed my own House, I am still tied to him and his bloodline. Same goes for Leilani and any other vampires he's sired."

"So, even though you're no longer a member of his House you're still bound by his rules?"

“Yes. If I were to attack Leilani or any member or servant of her House, it would be a breach of those rules and I would be punished."

Zamorra leaned back, blowing out a breath. She didn't know a lot about vampires and the bond they shared with their makers. All she did know was that they possessed a certain level of influence over those they've sired. Whether that degraded over time, she wasn't sure. But based on the way Luther still abided by Zvetari's rules, that influence was still going strong.

"Okay, so you think because Zvetari would punish Leilani for coming after me directly, she's just hired someone else to do it instead?"

Luther pressed his lips together tightly, reaching into his jacket and pulling out his phone. "She's done a lot more than just hire one person." His long fingers moved over the screen before he turned it to face her.

A picture of Zamorra in her red pant suit standing outside of DeVos was staring back at her, her silver hair flowing through the wind like a bird flapping its wings in the air. A figure of two million dollars sat right underneath the image, with a list of extra incentives on the side made specifically for each species.

What. The. Fuck.

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