Love Thy Enemy

Chapter 11

Matthias sighed dramatically when Lucy came back down the stairs. Something about her was different and he wasn't talking about the baby she was obviously carrying; he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. For weeks now, Matthias had been unable to get in touch with Missy, so he assumed she was around here somewhere. He didn't know that she’d left the pack to join the rogues. "Please come with me into the lounge and I will have someone bring you something to eat and drink. You must be tired from your long journey." Lucy spoke with barely contained disdain. The council members followed her into a large, comfortable lounge area. Soon after being seated, they were served freshly brewed coffee and tea as well as given a small buffet of food. The council was made up of five factions. There were Shifters, Demons, Vampires, Fae and Witches. As Brone walked into the lounge, all the council members lifted their heads to look at him. He in turn gave them stern looks. He wasn't happy. "Welcome to my home. I have a lot to discuss with you." He began and the council members all rolled their eyes. "Yes, yes we've all heard about your conspiracy theory concerning the humans and their testing on our kind." Soarn, the Vampire council member said, waving his fingers. Brone growled. He once thought the council was better than this. They’d always been respectful and kind in the past but lately they seemed to show more contempt towards him.

"It isn't a conspiracy theory. Lucy found the human laboratory. That is where she found her mate. I believe you've all met him. He's a Dragon Shifter." Brone stated and the room grew quiet. "So, what do you expect us to do about it? Start an all-scale war with the humans?" Ana, the witch said, throwing her hands up in the air. Brone sighed, barely containing the snarl that wanted free. "Patience my love. The council is filled with young creatures who are high on the power they deluded themselves into believing they possess." Evolet whispered into his mind. She could feel his anger and frustration. Brone took deep breaths to calm down. Sometimes it was easy to forget just how much older than everyone else, Evolet was. She was right though, snarling at the council would only make them turn on him. "Someone is working with the Hunters and slipping them information on our people, telling them our weaknesses. That is how they’re capturing us. We need to find out who it is!" Brone urged. Oberon, the Fae council member looked at Brone silently. He’d been quiet the entire time. It made him extremely happy to know that the Dragon shifters weren't all gone. "Brone is right." He said, suddenly. All eyes turned to him. "It is very hard to track my people. We blend in with nature and rarely interact with humans or other creatures for that matter. Hunters should not be able to capture us and yet they are. I want to know how." He demanded. Oberon looked at Brone again. There was something he wasn't telling them, Oberon could feel it and whatever it was, it was something big.

Hours passed since the Council arrived and they’d been arguing amongst themselves and Brone about how to deal with the problem of the hunters and the human scientists. Each council member didn't want to consider that one of their own could turn on them and give information about their vulnerabilities to their enemies. Brone raked his hands through his hair for the umpteenth time that night and looked over at Lucy, Jake and Case. They all rolled their eyes. Things were going nowhere. They were like a bunch of dogs chasing their tails. "Alpha Brone, where is my niece, Missy? I would like to see her; it's been many years." Matthias asked as nonchalant as possible. Case frowned at the man. There was something in his tone of voice that Case didn't like. The wolf's scent didn't incite trust. In fact, the man's scent made him more wary and guarded. Lucy barely stopped the growl that tried to rip from deep within her. "I am sorry Matthias; Missy isn't apart of this pack anymore." Brone told him as politely as possible. Matthias sat up straighter in his seat. "Explain please?" his question sounding more like a demand. Brone crossed his arms and sat back in his chair. "I wasn't aware that it was law to explain when a pack member decides to leave their pack." Brone said and Matthias growled low.

Matthias was about to shoot up out of his seat when the doors to the lounge opened and Evolet walked in flanked by Nikolai, Kali and Marcus. No one seemed to notice right away. "When that pack member is related to a council member than yes you are required to explain!" Matthias yelled. Anger raced through Evolet at his disrespectful tone. He may be a council member, but he was on another Alpha’s land. He should be showing Brone the respect due him, being an Alpha. "Well then she’s brought shame to your bloodline for deciding to join a pack of rogues. The fact that she is no longer here is better for her. If she'd stayed, I would have killed her slowly!" Evolet said calmly. All at once, every head of the council members turned in her direction. Evolet got different reactions from each member. Matthias growled at her for her words and finally stood up. He didn't realize just how much danger he was in. Soarn gasped. As Evolet got closer, Soarn lowered his eyes in deference, offering her his neck like a wolf would do to their alpha. At Soarn's display, Ana shrank back from Evolet. Soarn was over a thousand years old. If he was reacting to this woman in such a way, then she was not someone to mess with.

The Demon Vale crossed his arms over his chest and watched silently. Oberon smiled and leaned forward. So, this woman is what the Lycan was hiding. He thought to himself. Brone smiled and got up from his seat. He walked over to Evolet and pulled her into his arms. She lifted her head and tilted it to the side so he could kiss her mark. Matthias growled again. He'd known that Brone slept with Missy, he'd planned for it, but Missy never mentioned Brone mating another. "Esteemed members of the Council, I would like to introduce you to Evolet, my fated mate." he announced. Soarn nearly fell from the chair he'd just sat back down in. "Your mate?" he asked, looking between the two. "You do know that she is a vampire, right?" Soarn asked. Brone smiled. "Yes, Soarn I know what she is." he replied. Soarn shook his head. "How could you be mated to an ancient vampire, Lycan?" Soarn hissed in jealousy. Evolet stared at Soarn with cold silver eyes.

With his suspicions of Brone finding his mate confirmed, Mattias sat back down in his chair with a dark look. It would do him no good to attack Brone now, not with Evolet right there. She was an unknown factor in this scenario, and he didn't want to risk his neck, not even for his own family. Soarn nearly pissed himself when Brone’s leech showed herself. Soarn fidgeted in his own seat, his eyes never leaving Evolet. "How did you come to be here Evolet?" he asked her softly. Soarn always bragged he was among the oldest of his kind but oh how wrong he’d been. The aura pulsing from Evolet made it clear she was much older than him. He fidgeted even more caught in the stare of her unnerving silver eyes. "Humans found me while I was slumbering. They experimented on me for decades. I would still be there now if it weren't for Lucy, Jake and Case." She replied. Soarn cleared his throat and nodded. "Tell me, why is Soarn so afraid of you Evolet? the smell of his fear is clogging the air." Vale asked, crossing his legs as though this were a normal conversation. Evolet smiled, her eyes moving between Soarn and Vale. "After all, he is ancient himself, isn't he? being over a thousand years old?" Vale taunted. Evolet watched Vale carefully. She could sense the power, the barely restrained violence in him. "Yes, he is indeed ancient in his own right. However, I am nearly ten times older than he is." She told him and surprise lit his eyes.

"So how are we supposed to take on these hunters if they know our weaknesses?" Ana demanded and Evolet's silver eyes snapped to her. "You won't be doing anything. We wanted you to know so you can better protect your people. Warn them. But stay the hell out of our way! We will deal with the rogues and the hunters. I have rebuilt my Clan and together with Brone's pack, we will deal with the threat." She told them bluntly. It was obvious that she’d just given them an order and nearly all the council gasped. Evolet got up and walked over to Lucy. "You need to eat Lucy." Evolet said and Lucy nodded. As Lucy was getting up, Evolet turned back towards the council. "If you will excuse me, oh great council!" Evolet intoned sarcastically, before ushering Lucy from the room. "How dare she mock us!" Matthias snarled. Ana shook her head and Soarn hissed at him. "I dare you to confront her about it!" Vale taunted as Brone and Oberon broke out into guffaws.