“Thanks, we’ll do that.”
Zachary was hoping that Gregory and the others would abide by the agreement. If not, Zachary had no aversion to killing them. If they knew Zachary was just like Adonis, they’d have to kill him too, and Danai. Then again, they had to realize, at least for now, everyone would be against them if they attempted to harm Adonis again.
“I’m staying here the rest of the night,” Daemon said, motioning to the vampires.
“Is this where you were all along?” Zachary asked. “We thought you were sleeping in your room.”
Daemon shook his head. “Once I knew we had vampires to protect, Ephraim and I came here with our mates.”
Zachary was thinking a hunter should be with them since the vampires would sleep during the day.
“I’ll stay here,” Adonis said.
“So will I,” Rachael said. “We can protect the vampires if any other hunters are looking to come here for a bounty.”
“I’ll escort Gregory and the others to your house, Adonis, to make sure no one has shown up that shouldn’t be there,” Zachary said.
“I’m going with you,” Pasha said.
“I’m going back to the house and when you return, Victor and I can get some sleep,” Boniface said to Zachary and Pasha.
Then they all made their way to the houses, Pasha having keys to all the hunters’ homes as a precaution if any of them had been in trouble.
“You can use any of the bedrooms to sleep in, except for Adonis’s. He wouldn’t have said so, but, considering that you tried to kill him and would have done the same again here if he hadn’t talked you out of it, for now at least, his master bedroom is off-limits,” Pasha said.
“Naturally. You’re really all right with what he’s become? I didn’t think you felt that way,” Gregory said to Pasha.
“Yeah. I really am. He can’t help what was done to him, but he’s been a great help to all of us. Rachael chose him over you because she loves him, and for no other reason. You’ll find someone else who would do anything for you like that, love you unconditionally no matter what. Then she’ll be the one for you.” Pasha showed them the house, living room, bathrooms, bedrooms, even Adonis’s master bedroom, mainly to make sure no one was there who shouldn’t be.
“You think the vampires who were turned and now are saying they’re not going to harm anyone will really live up to their word?” Gregory asked.
“They want to. I’m sure of it. You might want to take shifts on sleeping. The vampires won’t come during the day—”
“Except for Adonis,” Gregory said.
“Yes, which gives him an advantage over the rogue vampires,” Pasha said.
“And over the hunters.”
Pasha frowned at him. “Sure, and that means, since he’s on our side, it’s to our advantage. Talk to you later. We’ll keep in touch about what’s going on. Be sure to keep us posted also. We’ll come to your aid if you need us to. Zachary’s been keeping up on who’s where and when.”
“All right, thanks,” Gregory said, and he sounded like he meant it.
Maybe Gregory and the other hunters would be a help and not a hindrance then, Zachary thought.
Then he and Pasha returned to the house across the street from her parents’ place and they relieved Boniface and Victor again.
“Hey, it’s like last night for us when we had to fight the vampire threat,” Zachary said, smiling. “We each have to take turns.”
“I’m returning to the couch,” Pasha said, kissing Zachary, then lying back down on the couch and pulling her covers over her. “And good work for catching Gregory and the others slipping into the house. If you hadn’t, I’m sure the newly turned vampires would have been dead.”
“Maybe. A hunter or two might have been killed.”
“Or turned,” Pasha said, smiling.
“Wouldn’t that be a kicker.”
“For Gregory if it happened to him? It would be worth it!” Pasha closed her eyes.
Zachary poured himself another cup of coffee and went into the office to watch her parents’ home across the street. Everything was nice and quiet, like it should be while all good little vampires, and bad, should be asleep.
Chapter 21
Pasha woke about an hour later and found Zachary checking in with everyone who was awake to see that everyone was okay.
She rubbed his back. “How are the kids doing at the hotel?”
“Wanting to run outside and play. They’re getting antsy being cooped up all the time in the hotel room.”
“I don’t blame them. I feel that way while housesitting. I take it everything’s been quiet.”
“Yeah, it has been.” Zachary sounded glad.
“Did you want to lie down for a little bit?” She was still rubbing his back, feeling comfortable with doing this when before she’d gotten to know him better, she didn’t think she would have.
“Thanks, I’m good for now.”
She was glad he felt rested enough. Who knew what else they’d have to face before long? But it was quiet the rest of the day. The night would most likely be another story.
Once the sun had set that night, Alex contacted Zachary telepathically, feeling connected with him and Zachary hoped that he was good for his word and not attempting to lure them into Rutherford's trap. "I was surprised that so many of you are hunters turned. I'm sorry for that," Alex said.
"Don't tell Rutherford that," Zachary warned. They didn't want to kill Alex if they didn't have to, so they were really putting themselves out on a limb to trust him with the truth when no one else knew about them.
"I won't. I had to tell you that Rutherford's beginning to communicate with us. He told us to kill Crichton because he had attempted to kill Rutherford."
"I thought he said two hunters had tried to eliminate him."
"He did. He said after being injured so badly, he hadn’t wanted to let on that he had remembered that Crichton had nearly killed him. Two of his vampires had seen Crichton stabbing him with a hunter's sword he'd grabbed up for the purpose of killing Rutherford."
"Does Rutherford know Crichton’s dead?"
"No. I’m waiting to hear what you want me to do about it. The others don't know what Adonis did, and I sure didn't tell him. But when Rutherford gave the order to all of us who had been turned by him to find Crichton and eliminate him, we swore we would."
"Good. Any other orders?"
"The same standing order as before. Kill the hunters."
"So he's feeling better," Zachary said, disappointed.
"Yeah, I'm afraid so."
"And you still have no idea where he's at." Zachary wished they did, and they could end this now.
"No, but he might share with us once he knows Crichton is dead."
"Hmm, maybe we'll say you did it, send it to the news reporters to let them know the one who changed the others in the city is dead and you'll get the credit for it. You will have proof with his ashes left behind at the condo where he was staying. We didn't have the police remove his ashes yet," Zachary said.