“Good.” Ronan turned his cheek and pressed a kiss to the top of Aiden’s head before straightening. It was easier to breathe if he knew that they’d all be protecting Aiden. But after spending this enlightening evening with the Varik clan, Ronan was coming to realize that he didn’t want anything to happen to any of them. Aiden’s family was steadily becoming more precious to him and not just because they belonged to Aiden.
“The threat is going to come from Heller,” Marcus announced suddenly, drawing all eyes to where he was standing at the far end of the room. The vampire seemed to be staring off into space, his mind still turning over what he’d just said. After a moment, he gave a small nod and continued. “Heller is going to be their best option right now. He and what remains of his clan have been hiding successfully in the Americas for the past six months. He has the best chance of sneaking around and possibly even getting close to Aiden. Far more than anyone the Ministry might send over.”
“And since he’s already gone to the Ministry for assistance, they know he’s willing to be used. They could offer him the throne for the Americas if he just gets rid of Aiden and the Variks. The promise of power could give him the courage to act that he has been lacking,” Winter murmured. “It makes sense.”
“I don’t understand.” Bel shifted on the couch, moving out of Wyatt’s arms a little while at the same time sliding one hand down across River’s chest as he sat at Bel’s feet. “If Heller has been too much of a coward to face Aiden before now, why would he act even if the European Ministry demanded it? He’d have to feel that he had an edge now that he didn’t have before.”
“Fuck,” Ronan swore then slapped his hand to his mouth in horror as a thought suddenly came to him. “He does have an edge now,” he said, the words coming out slightly muffled.
“What?” Aiden demanded.
“The party.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s right,” Winter agreed and swore as well. “How many vampires wandered through the house that night? We tried to keep an eye on them, but it wouldn’t have been too hard for someone to slip away to all the various parts of the house. An ally of Heller that we didn’t know about, scouting for him.”
“Or even Mara,” Ronan admitted, hating himself. He lifted pained eyes to Aiden’s. “I’m sorry. I didn’t keep a close watch on her and Michael after I saw you. Fuck, I wasn’t even aware of her leaving the party. I couldn’t look away from you.”
Aiden reached up, touching his cheek. “It’s not your fault.”
“It is. I should have been focused on your safety.”
Aiden barked out a laugh. “It was the first time we’d seen each other in a thousand years. How could you have thought of that? I barely remembered my own name for the rest of the night after seeing you.”
There was a sudden heavy stillness to the room that had Ronan looking up to find a look of shock on all their faces. No one breathed or blinked.
“Darling, I think you just let a very large cat out of the bag,” Ronan whispered, fighting back a smile.
“Yes,” Aiden sighed, squeezing his eyes shut. “Not tonight. That’s all I ask. Let’s focus on Heller and protecting the clan. We can discuss…my age—”
“Our ages,” Ronan corrected.
“Yes, our ages another night, I promise.”
“Just one thing real quick,” Ethan said and then sucked in a deep breath before he continued in a rush, “Holy shit! We were so far off. I mean not even in the freaking ballpark.”
“Who won the bet?” Ronan inquired.
“I did,” Philippe announced with a smug grin.
“How is that winning?” Fox scoffed. “You had five hundred and two. He’s double that.”
Philippe shrugged. “I was the closest.”
“This isn’t The Price is Right,” River chided. “You were still way off.”
“Focus, gentlemen,” Aiden prodded, his voice hardening.
“Yes, I…” Marcus broke off and scrubbed a hand over his face. “Heller. If Heller speaks to Mara or anyone who might have a grudge against the Variks and attended the party, he could gain critical insight into the house. We need to find Heller and his clan quickly.”
“I’ll talk to the ghosts. See what I can turn up,” Winter offered.
Oh, there was something Ronan wanted to ask about, but the conversation was moving on too quickly. He’d have to pry the information out of Aiden later.
“I’ve got my spies as well,” Rafe agreed. “Lola and I will see what we can turn up.”
“Marcus and I can also make a list of any clans who might side with Heller and or the European Ministry,” Sofia offered. “That could give us some new leads.”
Aiden nodded. “This is a good starting point. I want Heller found quickly, or we need to set a trap for him. He needs to be dealt with. The European Ministry needs to be sent a message that the Americas are not part of their domain. Their attempts at control are not welcome here.”