Precarious Possessions (Maxwell Investigations) (5 page)

“And just where is home?” Anthony asked as he stood. The
pack members at his table all backed away from him and Troy. “Back with a
mother too scared to see that her true mate is a Wolf?”

Troy raised an eyebrow as he seethed inside. “If you’re
smart, you won’t say another word about my mother.”

Leigh stepped between the two. She didn’t want to deal with
any bloodshed. If Troy killed Anthony he wouldn’t be able to return to Madison.
“Anthony, please. We were just telling you where we’re going so you don’t worry
and try to look for us.”

Anthony ignored her. “Maybe you would rather return to your
Necromancer,” he taunted. He saw the way Troy’s eyes glowed gold and smiled.
“If she’ll still have you.
I hear that she is constantly
surrounded by Vampires.”

Just as Troy was about to lunge for Anthony, the entire club
fell silent. Sensing another predator entering their surroundings, Troy and
Anthony turned to see a tall black woman enter with two large men following
her. Troy's golden eyes widened as he recognized her. She was the woman in the picture
he had been given of Madison. The gasp at his side told him that Leigh knew who
she was too.

“The Vampire Princess,” Anthony breathed. He then moved
around his table and past Troy. “Lady Dylan, it is an honor to see you again,”
he greeted quickly moving towards her.

Dylan gave the Alpha a small smile as she glanced at one of
the guards behind her. “Hello Anthony,” she said pleasantly. She allowed him to
bow his head and kiss her hand as was custom. Her eyes searched the room, but
when her eyes settled on Troy, her gaze turned serious. “I need to talk to
you.”

Troy stiffened for a moment. There was really only one
reason why she would be looking at him.

“What’s wrong with her?” he asked.

Dylan looked him over. Sloane had been right. He was
handsome. There was something in him that was a little wild, just like
Madi
liked them. “You need to see her,” she answered. She
then touched Antonio on his arm. “Give him the pictures,” she ordered softly.

Troy could only frown as one of the large vampires stepped around
Anthony and gave him a small envelope.

“Excuse my ignorance, my Lady, but anything you have to say
to my Wolf has to go through me.” He then shrugged when Dylan turned dark eyes
to him. “It’s part of our custom.”

Dylan slowly inhaled as she looked around the club. Everyone
was watching her and she had promised that she wouldn’t do anything to
embarrass Crispin. An all-too-innocent smile crossed her face as she stepped
closer to the Wolf Alpha. “Last I checked Troy Davenport was a part of Dennis
Wolfe’s Pack. He was just out here to clear his head and think about the next
move he’ll take towards making an honest woman out of my sister.” Dylan stepped
closer to Anthony and felt her eyes start to take on a familiar glow. “Now, you
are going to step aside and let me have him, or I will bring this entire place
around your ears.”

Anthony growled. He didn’t like being threatened. “I welcome
you into my city and this is how you repay me?” he asked outraged. “Victor
should have found a better diplomat.”

Dylan waved her hand and watched as Anthony was thrown
across the club. With a snap of her fingers the wall around him easily wrapped
around his limbs and pinned him there. “Be thankful that
I am
the diplomat he sent,” she said loud enough for everyone to
hear. She then turned to Troy. “Like I said, you need to see her. I don’t care
if you put up a fight or not.”

Troy slowly opened the envelope and looked inside. His eyes
widened as he saw pictures of Madison. She had let her hair grow, and it was
now down her back. Her smiling eyes were focused on someone under the camera’s
angle. Troy turned to the next picture and his breath left him. Madison had one
arm wrapped around a blonde young man and the other was holding a toddler with
caramel skin and gold eyes. The toddler’s twin had his arms wrapped around
Madison’s neck. They looked like a happy family, but Troy noticed that
Madison’s smile didn’t reach her eyes.

Dylan waited for his eyes to lift to her own. She was going
to hope that he was a smart boy and could put two and two together. When he
looked at her, she could see the recognition and resolve in his eyes. “Are you
going to put up a fight?” she asked.

“She had twins?” he asked in a whisper. When the princess
nodded, Troy felt his stomach drop. That was why he couldn’t get Madison off of
his mind. He could only imagine what she had been going through all of these
years without him.

Leigh carefully took the pictures out of his hands and gasped
as she looked at the two boys. They were little darlings, and there was no
denying that their father was standing next to her. She looked at Dylan and
gave her a small smile. “When is our flight?” she asked simply.

Troy looked over his shoulder at Leigh, a stunned expression
on his face. “She had twins,” he said lowly.

Leigh nodded at him. “Yes Troy,” she cajoled. “And you
already said you were going after her. This doesn’t change anything.”

His lips thinned as he turned his eyes to Dylan. She was watching
them with a mildly interested expression. The look she wore told him that Leigh
was wrong. Madison having his sons changed everything.

* * *
* *

Alex walked into the kitchen of Madison’s estate. He smiled
when he saw her in the kitchen fixing lunch. “Hi Mom,” he said. “Where are the
boys?”

Madison’s lips pressed together for a moment as she took in
the sight of her foster son. She took note of the black turtleneck under his
jacket. “They’re hunting Casper.” She turned her back to him and smeared strawberry
jelly across a piece of bread. “I think he’s a better target for them than
Donald.”

“I know Don will be happy to hear that.” Alex went to
Madison’s side and took out his own bread. This was going to be awkward, but
this was something that he had to tell her. Crispin was right. The longer he
and Claudia hid their relationship, the more it would hurt Madison.

And the more she would hurt them….

“There’s something that I want to tell you,” he said in a
serious tone.

Madison looked at him with narrowed eyes. Before he could
say anything, she grabbed the collar of his shirt and growled when she saw two
punctures at the base of his throat. “You’re fucking Claudia,” she hissed.

“I love Claudia,” Alex reasoned. His eyes narrowed when she
snorted and released him. “What? You think I’m too young or something?”

She nodded. “Yes, that’s exactly it,” she snapped as she
slammed the sandwich together. “She’s 23, she killed a man, and she’s an
ex-stripper.”

“I’m going to be 20 in two months, I’m a Necromancer, and
everyone thought I was a freak anyway,” he argued back.

“So that’s supposed to make everything okay?” she asked.
Madison shook her head. “It doesn’t. You don’t even know if she’s going to stay
faithful to you when she goes to Germany.”

Alex’s eyes narrowed. “I asked her to marry me.”

“The hell you did,” Madison hissed. She slammed the jar of
jelly on the counter, ignoring the way it splattered.

“Last night, after the movie.
On
the way back to the estate I proposed.”

“No!” Madison yelled. She spun wildly with the jelly covered
butter knife still in her hand. Tears were slowly coming to her eyes as the red
goo hit him in his face. “I will not condone this. I will not allow this. You
are my son and I won’t have you tying yourself to a whore!”

Alex lowered his head to hide the tears coming to his eyes.
He had known that Madison was going to be upset, but this was bad. Even for
her. He gritted his teeth, “I love Claudia.” As he used a dish towel to wipe
the jelly off his face, he kept his gaze away from Madison. “She is going to
Germany to finish her studies and when she comes home we will get married.”

Madison shook her head as he walked away. She ran in front
of him and gasped when she saw how much she was hurting him. “But Alex,” she
whispered. She reached up and touched his face. “The moon phases...”

“Grandfather has already said that he would aid us anyway he
can.” He stepped around Madison and continued to go to the stairs. “During the
full moon, either I’ll fly to her or she’ll come home to me.”

She pressed her lips together to keep from crying out. “So
you have everything planned out,” she whispered.

“No, not everything,” Alex replied. “But we have most of
it.” He turned his Madison and ignored the tears sliding down his cheeks. “I
love her Madison. And I can’t just stand here and let you insult her.”

A cold hand closed over Madison’s heart. Ever since she gave
birth to the twins, Alex called her Mom. To hear her name from his lips again
cut her to the core. “Alex, please,
don’t
…”

“You know,” he cut in. He shook his head and took a shaky
breath, “I knew you would be pissed. But I didn’t think you’d be like this.”

“I don’t want you to be hurt,” Madison cried. She grabbed
the sides of his face and made him look into her eyes. “I don’t want to see you
suffer like I am….”

“So you treat me like Tina treated you?” he asked. When she
gasped he stepped back and let her hands fall. “You haven’t tossed me out, but
I can’t stay here. Not if you feel that way about Claudia.”

Madison watched silently as Alex walked to the stairs. The
phone started ringing in the living room. Madison chose to ignore it. She
wasn’t going to talk to anyone. Not with what Alex just said.

When she was only a child, Tina and James sent her to New York.
Every time they were supposed to come to visit with her, they would think of
some excuse not to. Then only a few short years ago Tina called her a monster.

Now here she was giving another child that had it just as
rough, just as vicious of a title.

It didn’t matter if it was Monster or Whore. Both titles
could rip a person’s heart out.

Alex had a duffle bag over his shoulder when he returned. He
stared at Madison for a long moment. The look on her face made him want to
apologize. She had taken him into her family and quickly became the one person
he knew would always look out for him.

Madison taught him to stand up for what he believed in, and
if there was one thing Alex believed in, it was his relationship with Claudia.

A sad smile crossed Madison’s face as she looked into his
eyes. “You look like you don’t know if you want me to apologize, or give you
more reasons to leave,” she said before turning and going back to the kitchen.
She wiped her eyes and gestured to the bag on his shoulder. “Do you want me to
send the rest of your things? Or are you coming back to get it later?”

Alex paused a moment at Madison’s resigned mood change. If
she was coming down from her anger, there was still a chance he could salvage
their relationship. “Do you want me to leave?” he asked carefully.

More tears slid down her face as she looked out of the back
window. “No,” she answered honestly. “But if you’re anything like me, it
wouldn’t matter what I said. You’d still be out of the door.”

“Like you would be with Tina?”

She nodded. “Like I would with Tina,” she echoed.

Alex walked over to Madison and wrapped his arms around her.
“I love her, Mom. And I don’t want you to make me choose between you two.”

Madison smiled and turned to look at him. “I know. I’m
sorry.” She wiped her eyes. “But in my own defense, I don’t think there are any
women in the world good enough for my boys.”

He nodded as she went back to making sandwiches. “I get
that,” he mused. “But I still think I should go.”

“I know,” she said quietly. She looked at him and gently
caressed his cheek. “Will you stay through lunch?”

Alex smiled and kissed her cheek. “I’ll be by every day,” he
offered.

“And you’ll wear a condom?”

“Mom.”

Madison went to the door, her usual smile in place. “What?”
she asked innocently. “I’m too young to be a grandmother.”

* * *
* *

Victor watched quietly as his youngest adoptee adjusted the
teal dress she wore. He had always known that little Lacey would take to being
a princess well. Currently, he was being entertained by the fact that the child
was so small, yet so infatuated with her bodyguard. “My dear,” he started. When
she looked up at him, he reached forward and adjusted the teal flower just over
her ear. “You look fine. Your mother will be gushing when she sees you.”

Lacey smiled at him. “Thank you Grandpa,” she smiled. Her
eyes glanced to the other passenger in the back of the limousine and frowned.

Crispin fought a growl as he looked out of his window. While
his father thought the fact that Lacey was half in love with Antonio was amusing,
he hated it. Now he had to suffer the wrath of a six year old diva with a crush
on a man old enough to be her grandfather.

“I
would not say grandfather,”
Victor said into his mind.
“Perhaps an old uncle.”