Page 44 of You Will Obey
“Again, if you survive. I do wish you luck, my friend. But I will not send my vampires to their doom for your gain. Godspeed.”
With that, Nikolai ended the call. I sat down in my chair and let my head rest on the cushion. I had to calm my rage and focus. I had only my alliances to rely on and I prayed that they would not betray me now… not now.
Chapter nine
Josef
“So,Alexanderhasreturnedto take his vengeance on Ara. It was only a matter of time,” I said, smirking at the news.
“Regardless of how you feel about them, we need to organize our pack,” Dante said as he pulled on his shoes.
I was still lying in the bed naked and in no hurry to rush to Ara’s aid. “Why?”
Dante frowned at me. “You’re kidding, right?”
I shrugged. “The way I see it, Alexander has the upper hand. When he once held the territory you vamps have now, we had respect and an alliance between us. I’m more inclined to rekindle that. At least with him, my pack will be my own.”
“If you think I’m going to let you use this opportunity to go back on your word–”
“A promise I made under duress.” I sat up and scooted closer to Dante. “You could be your own true Alpha. You’ll never have to take orders from Théoden or anyone ever again.”
His jaw grew tight and his stare became hard in his ire. “And you honestly think I’ll sit back and allow Alexander to kill my Sire and brothers just because you don’t like them?”
“It’s true, I don’t like them, however, it’s more than that. I don’t like not being in full control of the pack I fought hard for. The pack that I grew and maintained and bled for. Whether or not I ask them to risk their lives should only be in defense of what’s ours, not what’s theirs,” I said. “As Alpha, you should feel the same.”
Dante snarled at me and pounced, the force of his body crashing into mine pinned me to the bed. His grip around my throat was tight as his claws dug into my skin. He growled in his rage, canines extended as his eyes glowed red in his anger, which was different from my silver, as he was a pure hybrid. “How dare you even suggest this.”
I growled back, knocked his hand away from my throat, and flipped him over with ease, pinning him to the bed by his throat. “I’ll allow that little lapse in judgment because I know you’re emotional right now, Dante. But never forget that I am the true Alpha and far older and stronger than you.” I released him and sat back on his lap. He glared up at me, a mixture of rage and sadness in his expression. He’d never looked at me like that before and I almost wanted to turn away, but I had to make him understand. This was no time for me to be sentimental. “Learn how to take an opportunity when it presents itself, young wolf. I will not have my army die for Ara or Théoden. If it’s the betrayal that leaves a poor taste in your mouth, I’m sure you’ll get over it in time.” I shoved myself off him and climbed out of the bed.
He sat up and looked up at me. “I’ll get the pack ready without you.”
I scoffed and leaned against the dresser. “If the command of that magnitude doesn’t come from me, they won’t obey. But you can try to throw your weight around and see where it’ll get you, my mate. You’ll be in for a rather rude awakening.”
“Did it ever occur to you that if Ara is killed, that I will die as well?” Dante asked me.
“A vampire Royal would never kill another. They know that what happens to one will happen to them all. Why do you think they’ve never killed or even harmed each other before,” I said.
Dante cocked an eyebrow. “Oh? Alexander’s vampires are immune to fire and the sun and have the venoms of dragon and wolf. They can fly. Alexander is a Royal, why can’t Ara do the same? I doubt the other Royals can either. Are you honestly willing to take that risk, Josef? The risk of losing your mate that you’ve waited eight hundred years for? Are you willing to lose access to all of the territories you and our pack now have access to because of the fact that our pack belongs to Ara? You’ve gained so much in that exchange and if you don’t act now because you’re bitching about not having absolute power, you can lose it all.” He climbed out of the bed and threw his hands in the air. “But hey, what the what fuck do I know? Maybe you aren’t concerned that Alexander might want to take over all of this territory now that he’s so powerful. Kendrick might be in his sights, too. But what about me, Josef? Maybe you don’t love me–”
I slapped him and his head jerked to the side. He looked back at me, the bruise already fading. We stared hard at each other, my chest heaving as I struggled to reel my emotions back in.
“Did I say something that you didn’t like?” Dante asked.
I walked away to get dressed. I’d been so focused on finally ridding myself of Théoden and Ara, I hadn’t taken into account the link Dante shared with them. Sure, I did like having access to Japan, India, and Greece as well as New Haven. But It was also something I could sacrifice. What I’d never sacrifice was Dante. If there was a chance he could die, if Alexander had discovered that he could kill Ara and not take himself and every vampire in the world down at the same time, I had to stop him.
“So, are we fighting?” Dante stood in the doorway of my closet.
“With extreme prejudice, yes,” I snapped.
“Good,” he said. “Why did you slap me?”
“Because you dared to suggest that your life meant nothing to me. That I didn't love you.”
He didn’t say anything, but the smile on his face spoke volumes.
Now dressed, I walked out onto my balcony and threw my head back, releasing a howl that would resonate throughout my territory. It was the best way to gather our wolves to us faster. Dante joined me, standing by my side, and together, we watched as the backyard began to fill with members of our pack. Santi was the first, then more.
Dante leaned down toward my ear. “I’m glad you came to your senses,” he whispered.