Page 76 of Endlessly Raphael
“Yeah, okay,” Syn says. “But the stench is too much. I’ll go get a change of clothes.”
“Vampires smell everything intensely,” Raphael whispers in my ear. “What’s overwhelming for mortals is intolerable to us.”
I turn to face him as his unspoken words settle in my brain. That means Syn is a vampire. That means all of them probably are. Cool.
Syn returns lightning fast, tossing a shirt and sweatpants at Joe. He looks at all of us, then sighs with resignation when he realizes he’s not getting any privacy. My mother, bless her, looks away while Joe changes.
An intercom buzzes and Yves nods. “Your uncle Ali was invited over.”
“Oh good. He needs to hear this too.”
Raphael pulls a small vial from his pocket and drinks it down.
“What is that?” I ask.
“Hides the blood,” he whispers.
“I can still see it.”
“Because you know. No one else can.”
After Joe is changed, Midnight nudges him to walk to the area in the center where there are lots of couches and chairs. The brothers must hang out here a lot. When Ali comes up, he has Amir Hassan, the estate trustee, with him. Ooh, good call.
Ali’s eyes flicker to me, then my father, then finally reflect surprise when he sees the condition Joe is in. Dirty, wearing clothes too big for him, and guarded by two of Rapha’s brothers, he’s far from the commanding presence he usually is.
“Right,” Yves says. “Let’s get on with this, shall we?”
“We shall,” I say, walking over to stand in front of Joe. “Why don’t you tell the class what you’ve been up to, dear uncle.”
Joe glares, his jaw tight. Doesn’t look like he plans to speak up.
“Don’t make us encourage you,” I add. “You’re pretty outnumbered right now.”
“What did you do, Joe?” my father asks. “Is it true you tried to hurt my son?”
“He almost got me killed. I was seconds away from a very brutal end.”
My mother’s gasp breaks my heart, but I don’t look at her. I’ll fall apart if I do.
“You tricked me,” I continue. “You sent me to a Mafia drug house. You asshole. Do you know what they were gonna do to me?” My voice finally cracks with the stress and fear I was holding in. “They were going to rape me, Joe. Then they were gonna cut my throat and leave me there to die. Is that what you wanted?”
“Oh god,” my mother wails before she lunges forward and attacks Joe, scratching his face as she pummels him.
My father grabs her, holding her close as she sobs. My eyes well with tears, but Rapha is right there supporting me.
“Look what you did,” I say to him. “Are you happy now?”
“That wasn’t supposed to happen,” he finally says. His voice is hard though. “I was just trying to scare you into walking away.”
“Yeah, I heard about that. Scare me by having me beaten up. So much better.”
He lifts his head, glaring at me with pure hatred. “You spoiled little brat,” he spits. “You don’t lift a finger but you get everything on a silver platter because your grandfather had a soft spot for you. I’ll never understand what he saw in you, but I had no intention of letting you take this away from me. You don’t deserve it.”
“I don’t deserve it? At least I can look in a mirror at night and know that I still have my honor. What do you have?”
“If I may,” Mr. Hassan says softly. “I finished reviewing the last two quarters of financial reports.” He hands identical sheets of paper to me, my father, and Ali.
I notice how pale Joe turns as he watches. When I look down at the paper, my stomach plummets to the floor. Fuck.