“I do own this place,” Kirill roared, his power flooding the room. Arvyn’s tail started to wag again. He loved it when their vampire mate went all masterful. “Everything here I bought and paid for. I worked my ass off for centuries to have everything you see here. These DVDs,” Kirill snatched a handful of them off the bed. “Mine.” He shattered the cases with his bare hands and threw the remains at Doblin who ducked.
“Those suits you treated like rags, mine.” Kirill snagged a jacket off the window seat and ripped it clean down the middle before dropping the rags on the floor. “This bed, even that damn lube, everything in here is mine. I earned it. What right do you have coming in here and trashing everything?”
Doblin clearly hadn’t been expecting Kirill’s anger. He was cowered, his arms raised, as if warding himself. “They said you were the sucker,” he said bitterly. “Never knows what’s going on under his nose, they said. Would give you the shirt off his back, they said, even if it wasn’t needed. Why shouldn’t I…”
“Who said?” Bending over, Kirill invaded Doblin’s personal space. “Who told you all this garbage? Answer me!”
Ooh. Arvyn’s tail was wagging furiously now and he glanced over at Ra to see if his other mate understood what was going on. He’s using the thrall, he sent to Ra gently, or at least Arvyn hoped it was just Ra who got the message. He didn’t want to disturb his angry mate.
“People I spoke to.” Doblin’s voice was robotic. “The office workers at the council, the guards who dragged me along here to catalogue the contents of your coven buildings. Even a few of your coven members were upset when the coven guards questioned them, claiming you didn’t care what went on around the place so long as your peace and quiet wasn’t disturbed.”
The hurt, when it came through their bond wasn’t unexpected, although Kirill showed nothing of it on his face. “How did you end up staying here,” Kirill said quietly, but the firmness was still there. Doblin had no choice but to answer.
“I had some vacation time. This house was going to be empty for months. No one was using it.”
“There are over thirty bedrooms in this coven. Why did you violate my space?”
“I wanted to be master of a coven. I have to wait five hundred years before I could ever start a coven of my own. I could be dead by then.”
Kirill shook his head. “Does anyone at the council know you’re here?”
“No. I would lose my job if they found out.”
There was a long silence. Doblin didn’t move, but Kirill didn’t either. Arvyn whined, wishing he hadn’t been so quick to play scare the vampire. His mate looked like he needed a hug. He nudged Ra with his shoulder, and his little god stepped forward.
“Kirill, babe, I think what we’ve got here is the biggest case of wanna-be-itis I’ve ever seen. This guy was messy, and chances are the pizzas were all ordered on a coven account, and yes, he did mess up your suits, and invade your living space. But he’s just a baby vamp, isn’t he?”
“How old are you?” Kirill asked Doblin.
“Seventy-three.”
“Definitely a baby vamp then,” Ra said.
Hey, he’s older than me. Arvyn nudged Ra with his nose to let him know he was joking.
“A baby who saw something he wanted and didn’t think he’d get caught out,” Ra continued, with a quick grin at Arvyn. “I mean, you could lop his head off, or Arvyn could chase him down and rip his throat out, or I could send him to Antarctica or somewhere equally unpleasant, but I’m not sure what that would achieve. It’s not going to undo what he’s done.”
“He’s not sorry.” Kirill’s voice was clipped. “You heard him. He’s got an overinflated sense of entitlement.”
“Hmm. Good point.” Ra rested a finger on his chin. “He needs to experience some sort of consequence. Perhaps working with the less fortunate in society?”
Kirill was considering it, Arvyn could tell. “How much longer is your vacation?” He asked Doblin who was still standing as if like a statue.
“Three weeks.”
“There we go,” Ra beamed. “He can do three weeks working at a shelter, and if he doesn’t follow through, then as a god, I will know about it, and we’ll lay a complaint with your council and have him charged with theft and abuse of his position.”
Arvyn wanted to chuckle. He could scent Ra’s deceit, even if Doblin and Kirill couldn’t.
“Good idea. I just want him out of here,” Kirill said. “Doblin,” he addressed the robotic vampire. “You will leave here, go to the nearest homeless shelter where you will stay and work until the end of your vacation. If you do not, then Ra, the Father of Everything will let me know, and I will lay a complaint with the council and have you charged. Is that understood?”
“Yes, sir.” Doblin still didn’t move.
“Then go. Get out of my sight. Now.”
Doblin took one step forward, and then another one, and then, as the thrall lifted, he sprinted out of the room. Arvyn had to chase – he couldn’t help himself, and he scrambled after the vampire until Doblin had cleared the gates of the estate and kept on running. Then, and only then, did Arvyn trot on back to the house. Kirill was being hugged by Ra, and Arvyn initiated his shift, keen to join in on the loving.
“I can’t wait to find a new place in Montana. Having to deal with baby vamps like that does my head in,” Kirill said quietly, lifting one of his arms, so Arvyn could slide under it. “Do you two feel any less about me, because I really don’t think I’m cut out to run a coven anymore?”
“You’re perfect just the way you are,” Arvyn said fiercely, hugging his mate tight. “I wouldn’t be interested in running a coven full of those self-entitled assholes either. I didn’t even want to run a pack, so why would I be upset with you about not wanting a coven?”
“I think we’re fine the way we are,” Ra agreed. “You’ve done your duty to your kind. You were a good, fair, and generous coven master, but now it’s time for you to start living your own life. The three of us, along with some true friends – we don’t need anything else. As for the others, you’ve looked after members of your kind for centuries, my dear Kirill. It’s time to take a break and let others deal with the headaches. We have a baby coming, a new house to organize, and a whole lot of loving to fill our days.”
“That sounds like heaven,” Kirill said with a happy sigh. “Wave your magical hand, if you don’t mind, my beloved Ra. Just stage the house with whatever and get rid of everything else. I can buy anything I need, and I’ve got everything important in my arms already. I’m ready to get out of here.”
Arvyn looked down at his nakedness. “I should probably put some clothes on first, especially if we’re meeting an estate agent. Or do you think we’d get a better deal on the price if I’m naked?”
“No.” Kirill and Ra both growled together and Arvyn laughed. He knew he was loved, and his mates’ jealousy was so cute.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The new house in Montana was beautiful, and quickly became Ra’s second favorite abode, next to his house in Ireland. Their Montana lifestyle block wasn’t as big as Paulie and Zeus’s, but sitting halfway up a valley opposite their place, it had astounding views, fresh clean air, and the warmth of a real home that Kirill had been missing.