Marked by Blood: Book 2 of The Marked Series by Ford, Rinna (top novels of all time txt) 📕

others, that was how he showed that he cared. Even when he was still hurt and angry, he did what he could to take care of me.

I leaned over my seat and kissed him on the cheek. Surprised, he turned to face me and I kissed him once on the lips then sat back in my seat, and scooped up a forkful of eggs. I winked at Matias before putting the eggs in my mouth, who returned it with a grin.

I ate quickly and the three of us went in search of my grandfather. I learned that since he took over, Amos was usually one of two places, either outside with some of the other shifters or in the office Di had once occupied. Unlike Di, whenever he was in it, he usually kept the door open, proving there were few secrets within the rebellion. It was Di who was the one keeping secrets by holding exclusive meetings and making ultra private phone calls. Yes, the rebellion kept quiet, but they seemed to earn respect from within, which made less people want to rat them out.

We decided to check the office first and I was glad that I did. Amos was sitting behind the desk going over some papers which were lying in front of him. He looked young and strong with his thick muscled arms and golden blonde hair and beard, but him sitting there, he looked like he bore the weight of the world.

After our talk, I learned he really was a good man, he was just blinded by revenge for his son, and who could blame him? When Di approached him with the idea of fulfilling the prophecy of overthrowing the Council, well, he couldn’t say no. I didn’t blame him for his part in how I was turned anymore. I was learning to let go and look at the bigger picture. If I were in his position, I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t have done the same thing.

“Hey guys. Come on in,” Amos said with a smile, breaking me out of my thoughts.

I walked all the way in the room first, followed by Xander and Matias. I sat in one of the chairs across from my grandfather.

“Hi,” I smiled back genuinely. “I, we, just wanted to check…”

“Everything’s fine, just like I told you early this morning.” He emphasized the word early, letting us know that he still wasn’t happy about it. “You’re in the clear for what happened to Di and her associates. There will be no blowback, no revenge taken for what either one of you did. I promise.”

I quietly filled Xan in on what happened on the way to find Amos. To say he was angry was an understatement. But he wasn’t mad at me, or even at Matias. He was beyond furious Di was there in the house and trying to get back at me for how she felt wronged. Then, he was angry she was foolish enough to bring other vampires who tried to avenge her. They all died painfully, but it wasn’t enough in Xander’s opinion. He wanted to fish them out of the ocean and burn them to a crisp with his dragon fire.

Standing behind me, Xan leaned forward and gripped the back of my chair, squeezing it tight until Amos gave his assurances. He trusted Amos and I was glad for it. Us going to see my grandfather was more for Xander than for Matias and me. I knew he’d need to hear it from the source.

I reached back and put my hand on top of one of Xan’s and lightly squeezed it. In all honesty, I was glad Xander wasn’t there when I drained Di dry. I didn’t want him to ever see me that way. Hell, I didn’t want Matias see me that way, but him being a vampire made him share the same darkness I possessed. To him, it was natural. I knew Xan wouldn’t see it the same way.

He was a shifter, so he was used to fighting because that’s how shifters lived and died, but not that level of viciousness I showed early that morning by the indoor pool.

I thanked Amos for his help and rose from my chair and kissed both of my mates, telling them I’d see them later. Matching looks of surprise crossed their faces when they realized I was ditching them both to do laundry and work on my casting. It was priceless, and good for them both, I thought.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

After leaving Amos’ office, I ran up to my room to grab my dirty laundry and took it down to the main floor laundry room. I had to say one thing for Di, she was a pretty good at planning the best use of the house for so many people. There were several industrial washers and dryers and folding stations available in the large laundry room. I never had any issues waiting for a machine to open up because of how many there were.

While my clothes were washing, I grabbed my spellbook from my second floor bedroom and went up to the solarium to work on my casting. Camille was there, like I hoped she would be, along with several other casters, including Irna. She, I wasn’t expecting. When she saw me, she froze and turned pale, much like she did before breakfast. But unlike the insignificant confrontation earlier, I completely ignored her.

It might have been petty, but I was still hurt and angry by what she had done. I trusted her because my uncle said she was a good person, and she used my secrets against me, even if she thought it was for the greater good. Being around her was a major test to my self control, and I was glad to see I passed.

What I didn’t do well on was creating magic. In the casting circle, we mostly worked on spells and making concoctions of one kind or another. It was allowed in