The Vampire’s Servant
Chapter 26

[Victor]

I'd been impressed by the Alpha's decision to put aside his brother's desire for my Echo in lieu of forming an alliance. He said he'd decided to use his brother's stubbornness to gain the information he needed. If he'd asked him to try and find out, Grayson wouldn't have done anything. The boy didn't like vampires and wouldn't have supported an alliance to the rest of the pack.

By saying they were forming an alliance to get in to see me about Echo, Grayson would be inclined to help convince the majority of the pack. Apparently, they all liked the pup a little more than they liked his brother. He won them over easily and there was no pushback from the pack. It was brilliant.

"He better not try and kidnap her." I told Trent quietly.

"If he does, I'll kick his a*s and bring her back. I dug into dhampyrs, I know she was property from the moment she was born. Created to serve a vampire in any way they desire." He replied. "Much like an omega, she's unable to care for herself in the world. She needs to be owned by a more powerful being. You treat her well. She doesn't hunch or shy away from people. She isn't intimidated by werewolves. She knows she's safe."

I didn't like that he said she was born to be property, but he wasn't wrong. It's what we'd turned them into. She was so different from any dhampyr I'd ever met. I think the difference was in being raised by humans. Never knowing what the future actually held for her. Having the chance to realistically dream of freedom.

"Echo is my trusted servant. I don't view her as property. I would like her returned if the boy does get any ideas. She told me she felt nothing when he touched her. She is not his mate. Make sure he understands that." I stated.

"That makes things difficult. She needs to properly reject him, if that's the case. Whatever it was he was attached to, isn't there anymore. Maybe that connection died the first time her mother let a vampire feed on her, maybe it died when you saved her instead of him. He came to me the night he met her insisting we had to save her from you. He thinks you're planning to use her to make babies for profit, or something." He shrugged.

"That's disgusting. I would never. Let's just get back to work. I want the whole thing wrapped up before morning. This alliance will benefit us both in the long run. We can deal with your brother later." I sighed.

We focused again on where our territories overlapped and what issues he'd had with vampires. He had a lot of information on what other supernatural beings resided in the territory, and the wolf packs that fell in my borders. He promised to email me their contact information. I believed in peaceful co-existence whenever possible.

Echo and the boys returned and went straight back to the television room. I smiled a little. She told me how much she wanted friends. These ones were her age, at least. Maybe tomorrow I'd have her show me how the games worked. She'd probably like that. By four in the morning, we'd finally gotten an agreement we both found acceptable hammered out. It contained dispute procedure, rules of conduct between individuals and businesses, guidelines for alliance in battle, and cooperative planning for territory expansion.

It was one of the most comprehensive and progressive agreements I'd seen between a master and an alpha. Rosalynn was thrilled to send it into the council. It would make my territory a test site for future relations between species.

"I think that covers everything, Master Nightshade." Trent smiled.

"It seems so, Alpha Padua. I look forward to working with you in the future." I held out my hand and he shook it heartily.

"Our territory will benefit greatly from this. I can feel it. I'll go get the boys and head home." He yawned.

"We have several guest rooms. If they're as tired as you are, then none of you are in any condition to drive. Your pack lands are outside of town. I would rather not have our newly formed alliance dissolve because you died in a car accident. Rosy, I'll go with Alpha Padua to get the kids. Will you take everything to the office?"

"Yes, Master Nightshade. I need to get my report in before bed anyway." She smiled.

I led him down the hall to the television room. When I opened the door, I found Echo and her brother playing a racing game and Gray stretched out on the couch, sleeping. She looked so happy, I felt badly about disturbing them. "Echo. It's four in the morning. Would you show our guests to some rooms, please?" I asked.

Echo stopped the game and turned it off, helping her brother up. Trent woke his brother and explained that they would stay the rest of the night. The boy looked happy about it and I made the decision to lock my bedroom door. I still didn't trust him. "I'll show you to your rooms. Since it's so late, I'll make a brunch at eleven so you won't have to leave on an empty stomach." Echo stated and led them out of the room.

I was pleased she was doing well. I'd thought she would have been more upset about her brother being with the wolves, but she handled the situation very professionally. No one would be able to use her family to affect my choices. She refused to let it be a weakness for us.

Heading back to my office, I worked on the information Silence and Talon were able to get me last night about the population of the area. We estimated that there were seventy-five vampires living in this city. There were more throughout the entire territory. It would be important to get them tied to me as soon as possible.

This was a much larger territory than the council initially thought and my taking over could have dire consequences. I knew from Trent that it housed a growing pack that was becoming more powerful by the day, far more powerful than his pack. There was also an extremely large rogue collective that had its seat in the powerful pack's lands.

Normally rogues and pack wolves wouldn't form more than a superficial alliance. These two leaders were trying to do what I was. Make an unprecedented union. I would need to get in contact with them. Maybe securing an alliance with the two leaders would strengthen my hold.

Silence suggested sending the vampires a survey online. I hadn't realized how adept at technology other vampires had become in the last fifteen years. Single minded focus tends to make one less observant about general situations. The room lightened as dawn approached. I headed to bed as soon as I'd gotten my files and computer locked up. As I had the night before, I set the blanket to warm up my bed while I showered and changed. Before I climbed into bed, I threw the locks so no one could get in.

-

[Gray]

-

I woke up late Sunday morning to the smell of bacon, sausage, and some sort of pastry. My mouth watered. It took a moment to realize I wasn't at the pack house or my parents' house. I remembered that I'd stayed at the vampire's place overnight. Now would be the best time to find out where he slept. I'd honor my agreement with Echo. I wouldn't harm him if he didn't hurt her. But, I would be prepared.

The hallways were well lit and I could see that most of the rooms had numbers. One room had an 'E' on it and I could smell Echo's scent. It must be her room. The smell of vampire was coming from the room across from it. It wasn't marked by any number.

I tried the handle, but it was locked. That was definitely his room. I didn't like that it was right across from my mate's. Rex growled. There was nothing we could do right now. She wouldn't take kindly to us insisting she move rooms.

Heading downstairs, I bumped into Trent. He was watching the kitchen from the archway. I looked in and saw Echo putting things on platters and Val setting the table. She was still perfect. I loved watching her move around the kitchen. "Gray. I needed to tell you something Victor told me last night." Trent said in a low voice.

"What?" I asked.

"When you touched Echo, she didn't feel anything. It's likely that she was your mate at one point, but isn't anymore. Do you understand what that means?" He asked.

"I didn't think that was possible. How do I get her back? How could that even happen? Are you sure she wasn't lying so he wouldn't be mad?" I questioned.

"I don't know. We can ask her, but I don't know how much she'll feel comfortable telling. We may have to have her reject you so you can find your second chance mate. It could be your only choice." He replied.

"But, I want Echo. Look at her. She's so sweet and innocent. She made a big meal for us without being told to by her master because she wanted us to be healthy. Echo agreed to be my friend. I was going to work on making her love me. Did her parents mess her up so much that our connection was lost or something? Was it becoming his servant that did it?" I was confused. She was supposed to be mine.

"Let's see what we can find out and consult with the Association. Maybe they know how to get her back, but you might not get what you're looking for, Gray." He sighed.

"I won't stop until she's mine, Trent. I'm never giving her up. She needed me and I didn't even know. I'm not going to leave because this relationship isn't easy." I vowed. "You'll have to learn the hard way then. This is selfish, Gray. I think you need to let her go. Let her be happy without you. Find a new mate."

"Alpha? Gray? Are you going to join us or keep whispering in the doorway?" Echo asked.

I pushed past my brother and took a seat opposite Val. That way she had to sit next to me. Echo brought a pitcher of juice and sat between me and Val.

It was exciting to have her so close. Rex was happy to be near her. All I had to do was be a friend to her until she was ready to make it more. And I would.