Chapter 16: Chapter 16

Allister

“What the fuck were you thinking?” Antoine growled. The sound was low but menacing, and everyone in the room flinched except my brother.

Drake stood before Antoine’s desk, his arms crossed over his chest. He didn’t even look contrite. No remorse. No guilt. Not that I was surprised. My twin rarely did anything he didn’t want to do. He’d never apologized before, and I doubted after all this time he’d do it now.

“I was thinking that I was hungry, and my donor wanted to play.” Drake let out gruffly. With a chuckle, he shrugged. “Who was I to deny her?”

I let out a short laugh, earning me a glare from Antoine. I wasn’t the only one laughing either. Wynn smiled. Well, he was always smiling at some stupid shit or another. His own mind made him smile.

Rayne, the little shit, had a perpetual scowl on his lips lately. Something I had a feeling had to do with the pretty maid we’re all so preoccupied with.

Speaking of the maid...

Piper Billings. Hard to fucking seduce someone when the legs have been cut out from beneath you. I didn’t know what I’d been agreeing to when I’d told Wynn I wouldn’t use my powers. Wynn had all the charm of a viper, yes, but take away his fangs and he was still a viper. I couldn’t even communicate with the woman.

Maybe I should send her flowers? Women liked flowers, didn’t they?

An annoyed groan came from Rayne. “Knock it the fuck off, would you?”

All eyes went to Rayne, pausing Antoine in his interrogation of my brother. Rayne shifted in his seat and frowned. “You all think too loudly.”

“I’m sorry if our thoughts are disturbed you.” Antoine snapped, not at all sorry. Rayne might have the most annoying gift of all of us. Not only to him, who bitched about it constantly, but to the rest of us. Couldn’t have a decent wank without him listening in, let alone a secret.

Pushing up from his seat, Rayne snapped, “I don’t see why we all need to be here for this. Drake fucked up. We got it. Good riddance. She was a pest anyway. Get another one. Maybe this time we can find a deaf and mute one. Then all our problems would be solved.”

Wynn threw his head back and laughed. “That might help us, but it wouldn’t stop you from hearing her thoughts.” He paused and stroked his chin. “Wait, does a deaf-mute think in words? Or signs? I’d love to know. Get on that, would you?”

“Fuck you.” Rayne flashed his fangs at Wynn, making Marcus tense beside Antoine.

“Enough, both of you.” Antoine steepled his fingers and leaned back in his chair. “We want the maid we have, so no more talk of getting another one. You lot just need to keep your fangs and your cocks where they belong.” Antoine’s eyes slid back around the room and landed on Drake. “I don’t want to see another incident like last night’s, and if I find any of you doing what this arrogant piece of shit has done, I’ll send you to our sire. See how you like a century or two under his thumb.”

The room went still. None of us wanted to go to our sire’s home. The Russian fucker was worse than Antoine and crazier too. At least, Antoine we could trust not to stake us in our sleep because we’d annoyed him. Our sire wouldn’t be so lenient.

“I’m sorry.” Drake ducked his head. “I won’t do it again.”

Antoine’s eyes shifted to Rayne. The redhead shook his head, his shaggy hair jerking side to side with his head. “Good. Then I believe this meeting is over.” He raised a hand to Marcus. “Lock the front door and keep an eye out for our skittish maid. She is no doubt packing her bags right this very second.”

Antoine stood, adjusting his suit jacket. “The rest of you go to bed while I clean up our brother’s mess.”

We filed out of the room, our heads hung low, thoroughly chastised. I followed my twin on his way to his room. Drake tried to shut his door behind him, but I grabbed ahold of it and pushed my way in.

“You really fucked up this time.” I threw myself down in his armchair, folding my hands over my stomach. “What did you expect to gain from your little display? Did you think she would come out of her room with open veins?”

“More like legs,” Drake snorted, pulling his shirt over his head.

We both had the same tattoo across our left breast. The symbol of our house, the Durand black crow with the words Sanguinem meum in saecula wrapped around it. It loosely translated to ‘Blood of my blood, now and forever.’ A bit of irony there as our house sigil was a bad omen, but it was the only thing that has kept us alive over the years. And we had Antoine to thank for that.

“At least I’m actually trying to do something.” Drake kicked his shoes off and pulled on a new shirt. “You have your thumb so far up your ass trying to find some fancy way around Wynn’s rules.”

I frowned, not getting what he was saying.

Drake chuckled. “Do you really think Wynn is playing by the rules?”

Sighing, I kicked my feet out in front of me. “I guess you have a point there. So, what do I do? Corner her and charm her out of her panties? The same ones that are so wet for Wynn?”

“No, you pull her out from under him mid-fuck.” Drake shook his head, scoffing. “Seriously, some days I wonder how we ever shared the same womb.”

Ignoring his jab, I stood. “I ask the same thing, asshole.”

I walked to his bedroom door, pulling it open. Before going out, I turned back to him. “If you were in my position, what would you do? To charm her?”

Drake glanced over at me and then smirked. “I’d whisper sweet nothings in her ears until she didn’t know who or what she wanted anymore. Until all she thought about was you.”