Devour (22 page)

Once the blood
is gone, he gently licks the wound to seal it. He holds my hand and kisses the back of it before bringing it back down to my side. Cody’s a life saver, crisis averted.

I try to ignore the looks of curiosity from all the council members.
I do, however, watch for Alexander’s reaction. His face holds something different. His look is thoughtful and a chill runs through me.

Chase shifts in his chair uncomfortably and the attention shifts from me to him.
Thank goodness for small favors. He glares at Alexander like a challenge and the only thing I can think to do is kick him. Chase lets out an “ouch” before turning his glare on me. Fine, at least glaring at me, instead of Alexander, could save his life.

It seems like everyone is waiting on something.
I look around, unsure of the situation. Then, two guards open the double doors and bring in two, blue, velvet chairs. They set them towards the back and leave the room, only to return with two vampires. My jaw drops at the sight of them.

It’s Jane and Lana.
I have no idea why they’re here, but it can’t be a good thing. I’m trying not to panic, but it’s a battle I’m starting to lose.

Alexander clears his throat and everyone quiets.
All eyes focus on him. I guess I’m ready now. No matter what happens, my true mate, my parents and my best friends are here. I should be thankful that I’m this blessed. Their support means everything.

“This has turned out to be a very interesting case.
We have a few things to discuss before we get started,” Alexander says.

He says the case is interesting.
Is that good or bad? I’m trying not to read anything into it, but it’s very hard to slow my racing mind.

“Chase, are you sure you have never met your father?
What were you doing in the club alone that night you met Callie?”

Chase looks him straight in the eyes as he responds, leaving no doubt that he’s telling the truth.
“I’ve never met my father, sir. My Mom would never even talk about him.”

He lets that sink in and then continues with the answer to the next question.
“I was supposed to meet up with a blind date at the club, but I got stood up. I was actually getting ready to leave right before I met Callie. I’m still glad I met her, regardless of this stupid situation.”

Alexander stiffened, but didn’t call Chase on his disrespect.
Instead, he turned his attention to me. My breath caught in my chest and I waited for the shit storm to come.

“Callie, have you ever met Chase before that night?”

“No. Jane and I were hunting and she let me have first pick of guys that night. I saw him and knew he was the one I was going to pick,” I reply with a grimace. I know this has to be hard on Cody. I can sense it through our bond.

Once Alexander turns his attention to Cody, I stiffen in fear.
I had just assumed they would leave him out of this. I was foolish to think I could get through this without dragging him through the mud as well.

“At any point during the
night of the blood ball, did you feel Callie forced you to pay close attention to her? Did you ever once wonder if her actions were anything but pure?”

Cody grits his teeth, trying to calm his temper.
“No, sir. If anything, I was the one going out of my way to gain Callie’s attention. I have wanted her for a very long time and I wasn’t about to let my chance pass me by. It was crystal clear the Moment we kissed that her actions were just as pure as mine.”

Satisfied with that answer, Alexander nod
s. I let out the breath I have been holding. This is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. I just hadn’t expected so many more questions before he read our verdict. Maybe he’s still on the fence and it could work in our favor.

“I have the results of Callie and Cody’s blood test.
Callie, it turns out that Cody is in fact your true mate. It’s very lucky to have found him so quickly. You are truly blessed.”

I’m not sure if he is really happy for us.
His voice holds an edge of disdain and I wonder if he is implying that our mating just saved my ass. Either way, I know Cody is my true mate so the confession just cements our relationship in the eyes of the public vampire population.

“As you know, there has to be a punishment for bringing Chase into our world,
whether it was on purpose or not. However, I will not sentence you to death or take your true mate away from you.”

I sit here on pins and needles as I wait for the other shoe to drop.
I’m not sure what he is going to say, but I’m relieved Cody and I will stay together. Whatever he has to say next can’t be that bad as long as we can do it as a couple.

“As you know, you are in line to be my royal heir.
With it comes a responsibility to our community. Others before you are failing to fulfill their duties. It is my decision that you and Cody will not be going to college in the fall.”

Everyone gasps and dread crops up.
What on earth could he really be saying? He’s going to take our college education away from us? Why? I wait in anticipation for Alexander to continue.

“That is not your punishment.
You may look at this as a punishment, but I hope you will look at it as an opportunity to do right by our people.”

Talk about dragging out the suspense.
I feel like I’m on one of those reality television shows where they pause a million times before revealing the baby daddy. My body is stiff as I force myself to take deep, steady breaths. I remind myself that I can handle whatever he throws my way as long as I have Cody.

“
I am going to have you move into the castle immediately. You and Cody will be trained to rule our community. Training will be tough and I expect you both to put in it everything you have. I do not make this decision lightly.”

Rule?
Oh crap, this is not how I thought this was going to go. I’m not prepared for this. It’s clear he isn’t yet finished, so I don’t dare look at Cody for his reaction yet.

“As a contingency though, I must invoke the breeding law.
You and Cody are true mates and of royal bloodlines. As such, you two are responsible as rulers, to produce an heir to the throne. I will give you one year to complete the task of pregnancy.”

I nearly choke on his words.
I’m still not sure I heard him right. Cody and I are going to rule? I must be pregnant within a year? There won’t be a college education for us? We are moving into the royal castle with Alexander himself? We’re going to be trained in vampire politics? How has this all come about? What on earth is Alexander thinking?

I try not to let panic overcome me as I wait for him to finish his wordy verdict.
The words are swirling into each other, forming a string of confusion in my head.

“
I understand you two have a bonding ceremony tomorrow. I will allow you to have the weekend to yourselves. The ceremony is important. Monday, I will send movers for your things. You will have Tuesday night to get moved in and settled. I expect you to report to this room on Wednesday night at nine to start your training.”

Holy hot sauce, this is big.
I’m not expecting this at all. I know he is finished and expects a response from me. I choke out what I can through all the shocking news I am absorbing.

“Yes
, sir. I’ll be ready.”

Then he turns to Cody.
I finally look over to see his expression. It’s neutral, not giving anything away. I feel a wall blocking our bond right now and am not sure what he’s hiding from me. Maybe he’s disappointed and doesn’t want me to know. Now I’ll just worry twice as much.

“Yes
, sir. I am honored and will make you proud.”

I’m shocked by his words.
He isn’t mad. Part of me is indignant that he’s taking it so well. The rational part of me is thrilled. He isn’t mad and he won’t leave me. I get to keep him forever. I can’t see his eyes, his head is slightly tilted down in respect and a shock of hair is hanging over them.

I try not to let everything Alexander said get to me right now.
There are more important things to worry about. Things like making sure Chase doesn’t lose his life.

“Now, I am forced to address a less pleasant issue.
Chase.”

He doesn’t even need to say more.
He has said enough with just that one word.

“After reviewing
your blood work, I have made an interesting discovery. I have not had to deal with this particular issue in decades. This situation is rare and has to be addressed.”

Now that the spotlight is off of me, I risk a
glance at Chase. He is uncharacteristically still and devoid of emotion.

“The reason that the memory wipe won’t work on you is because you’re not human.
You are a dhampir, a half vampire, half human breed.”

Alexander waits for him to soak up that tidbit.
Chase shoots back an immediate response.

“What the
…what the hell is a dhampir? I’m not a vampire, but I’m not opposed to becoming one.”

“As I was saying, a
dhampir is the resulting progeny when a vampire and a human mate. The end result of the mating is a sub species of humans with vampire blood in their veins. They are stronger and faster than a normal human, but they do not require the blood that we do.”

“If my
Dad was a vampire, would my Mom have known?”

“Yes, she would have.
You can’t memory wipe an entire pregnancy. Our hold isn’t that strong.”

“I can’t believe she never told me.
My whole life was a lie.”

Chase’s features crumple
and I actually feel even sorrier for him than I already did. He may not be my favorite person, but this was just as serious as being sentenced to death.  Someone broke the rules and he will have to pay the price.

“Now comes the most unpleasant part of this verdict,” Alexander says, his features looking stiff and forced.

Oh, no. This is it. I can’t believe it is happening and it’s my fault. He pauses and then scans the room. What on earth is he looking for? Who on earth is he looking for, I should say? Chase is now sitting ramrod straight with his whole attention focused on Alexander. He knows something big is about to go down.

“In light of your blood work
, Chase, I must address your lineage. I ran your blood test up against our vampire database and found out who your father is.”

If anyone thought that would be his next statement, they didn’t show it.
Shock swept through the room and everyone looked around wildly to find the culprit. Everyone knows that this person is in for a death sentence now.

“Before I reveal the person responsible for your mixed heritage, I want to say a few things.
This verdict has nothing to do with my personal feelings. I don’t enjoy tearing families apart, especially mates. However, the mate bond can’t be that strong if this indiscretion happened. For the family, I am truly sorry for your loss. Just remember this verdict can’t be reversed.”

Fried green tomatoes, this whole thing has taken an interesting turn.
Here I was worried about my own future and some family in this room is about to be torn apart. It didn’t seem fair that I could cause yet another family pain from this fiasco.

“
Mr. Monte and Mr. Lucia, please approach the dais.”

Both men stand up and make their way forward.
Everyone is searching wildly for the one responsible. Both of their mates look scared and ready to break at the words to come.

Alexander waits until they have reached him and then he answers the question on all of our minds.
Who is Chase’s father?

“Mr. Monte, I have called you up here to tell you what you already know. You are Chase’s father and will receive the death sentence, effective immediately.”

Mrs. Monte drops to the floor in shock.
Everyone rushes to check on her. In the midst of the commotion, Mr. Monte tries to make a futile attempt at escape. Mr. Lucia catches up to him and grabs him by the leg. Mr. Monte falls to the ground and Mr. Lucia has him pinned.