in my life.” He peered toward Zach. “One of them at any rate.”
Gareth nodded, as if he understood. “They’re going to be fine. I give you my word.”
With the promise made, Rupert visibly relaxed. Zach yawned then, his entire body shuddering.
“Are you tired, Zach?” Rupert whispered. “You can rest on my shoulder.”
Zach looked out the window, watching the land as it went by. “We do not sleep. While we were being held, I pretended so that Deke would not think anything wrong, but I was awake and alert to my surroundings.”
“You never sleep?”
Zach shrugged one of his big shoulders. “We might nap for a few minutes here and there, but none of the Vampyri need sleep. To do so would distract us from our mission.”
“Oh.” Rupert’s voice was filled with sadness. “Okay.”
“But,” Zach said, moving closer, “I could use a rest.”
That seemed to make Rupert insanely happy. He snuggled in and opened his arms, allowing Zach to put his weight onto Rupert’s shoulders. Quinn could hear him purr from where he was.
They rode in silence then, until they reached the airport.
“This is yours?” Quinn asked, as they got out of the van and headed for the sleek jet.
They boarded quickly, Sean telling everyone to find a place and get comfortable. It wouldn’t be difficult. Quinn had never seen so much gleaming metal and wood in his life. Having this much luxury while others were suffering disgusted him.
“It will be,” Sean replied. “After we finish paying it off.”
They spread out around the cabin, with Gareth pulling Sean close and stroking a hand over his chest, Deke sleeping in Quinn’s arms, Rupert whispering to Zach he could close his eyes again. It was… nice.
“Klein took everything from us,” Rupert said. “In many cases, even basic necessities went unfilled, but Klein lived high on the proverbial hog. We’d heard he’d bought something extravagant, but this? It’s obscene.”
“We told Klein’s brother, the new Alpha, to sell it, but he said after everything we did for them, it was the least they could do in return. Still, we’re going to pay for it so that the people won’t go without anymore.”
“I wish you had been our Alpha,” Rupert said, his voice breaking. “Things would have turned out differently, I’m sure.”
“Well, he’s here now,” Sean replied. “And I swear to you, things will get better.” He closed his eyes. “Rupert, I know you pledged yourself to Gareth, but you don’t have to come back with us if you’d prefer to stay here.”
There was obvious tension in Rupert’s body. “Don’t you want me to come with you?”
“Of course, but the choice is yours.”
“What will you do, Zach?”
There was so much need in that question, there wasn’t any way people listening could miss it.
Zach opened his eyes. “I am pledged to the Omega, so where he goes, I will.”
Sean sighed. “I have a name. Please don’t call me Omega. I’m Sean.”
Zach cracked open an eye. “You’re so much different from other Omegas. The ones I knew, they were aware of their special status and had no problems using it to their advantage. You’re… not like that.”
“No, he’s not,” Quinn said. “Sean has always been a good person. He was a great brother and a mentor to me. I doubt you’ll find a better man than him anywhere.”
Zach nodded. “Then it’s an honor to pledge our lives to him.”
“Listen, about that—”
“We’ll talk when we get back to Lydon,” Gareth said. “There’s no reason to make plans right now. Tell me, how many are in your… what’s a group of Vampyri called?”
“They are my caste.”
“Okay, and how many of you are there?”
“Ten in all, Alpha Supreme.”
Gareth groaned. “Sean’s right. That’ll get old very quickly. My name is Gareth, and my inner circle calls me that. Please, use our names.”
A deep sigh rolled out of Zach. “This is nothing like before. It’s going to be difficult to get used to your ways.”
From the corner of his eye, Quinn noticed Rupert tighten his grip. “Rest now. You’re safe with us.”
“As you say,” Zach said, a small smile on his face. He leaned against Rupert and closed his eyes. “Thank you.”
It wasn’t long before Zach was taking deep, even breaths. Rupert stroked a hand over his chest in slow, rhythmic movements.
“Something on your mind, Rupert?” Quinn asked.
He bit his lip and shook his head. “No, nothing.”
Though he could argue, Quinn rested his head against Deke’s. He’d missed him terribly, and now that he had him again, he didn’t want to let Deke out