Hearts of Warriors Ch. 06

She could see him trying to rein in his fury at Kallum's presence. He could tell that Mac had no idea one of the Vârcolac was sitting right there, but it didn't alleviate his building rage.

He strode into the room, his footsteps taking him right up to her. The hands that reached for her upper arms were gentle despite the raging emotions surging down their bond. His head bent slowly, his eyes intense as he rubbed his lips gently against hers.

"I don't quite know why Mac wants to strangle you, Rhianna, but I can understand the sentiment. There had better be a very good reason for this because I am sorely struggling to rein my temper in."

His use of her given name was always a bad sign. He only used it when he was seriously pissed at her. She smiled gently and stepped into his embrace, knowing he wouldn't be able to stop himself from wrapping his arms around her.

"We have a bit of a problem with the Praetorians or I suppose I should say the Vârcolac," she admitted feeling the tension in his big body. "Lily knows about them as does Kallum now. There's no point in trying to maintain secrecy any longer which is why I wanted you to come home. We need to work out what we're going to do about it."

Caleb's body stiffened further and his arms tightened so much she almost gasped at the pressure he was applying. He appeared to notice and relaxed his hold, glancing down at her in apology.

"There's no way we can do damage control?" He had to ask even though he knew whatever was going on was probably beyond that. He kissed Rhianna's forehead, running a hand slowly down her back. Despite her brave little smile and the defiant tilt of her chin he knew she was worried about his reaction to the news.

He sighed wearily as he read the answer in her lavender eyes and then his lips quirked in a reluctant smile. Yelling at his woman was pointless. She would only yell back or smile at him until he'd vented his displeasure and succumbed to her charms. If there was no way to contain the situation then he'd be better off finding out just exactly what the situation was.

He tilted his head slightly to catch Kallum's eye. "You might as well reveal your presence. There's no arguing with my woman when she makes her mind up about something and she appears hell-bent on this course of action."

Mac immediately stiffened, turning to gaze at the empty chair. His eyes narrowed and he bit back a curse as a large, brown-haired man suddenly appeared. Brown eyes met his, wary but also full of curiosity. He'd seen those eyes before, only they belonged to someone else.

The spicy scent of sandalwood with the barest hint of lilac on the edges had him stiffening further as he realised who the mystery guest was. His eyes darted to Rhianna and he growled low in his throat.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me," he ground out through clenched teeth. "There are no Praetorians out there, Annie, which means he's as bloody reckless as his sister. How the fuck are we supposed to protect the Vârcolac if they all start shadowing themselves and running around on their own?"

Kallum rose slowly to scrutinise the man his sister had chosen as her mate. It was more than evident the vampire was deadly, a large, well-honed fighting machine. It was also evident he had a temper to match their father's, which would most likely make for some pretty explosive moments with Lily.

Obviously the Praetorians were an elite group, as Annie had mentioned, tasked with protecting the hybrid children as they grew up. It didn't take a genius to work out that there had to be some reason that protection had been required, something none of them knew about. The scent masking, no-shadowing rules when leaving the pack sort of made sense now.

He wanted to learn a bit more about his sister's mate, to make sure he was good enough for her, but something told him that it wouldn't matter to Lily whether or not he liked the man. She would prefer it if he did but she wouldn't allow it to affect her decision about mating with him. He shuddered at the thought of her bringing Mac home to meet their father.

He kept his gaze locked with eyes so black they were bottomless pits. He had a sense that Mac was waiting for something to happen, for him to do something. When he didn't drop his gaze, the vampire's mouth twitched ever so slightly, almost reluctantly.

"Might have known he'd be as bad as she is," he muttered irritably.

"Actually, Lila's a lot worse than I am," Kallum corrected. "I take it she's inveigled herself into your little band of protectors and that's what's causing all the consternation? God, that is just so like Lily. How did she manage to do it? Surely there are checks in place or something when recruiting?"

Mac's eyes tracked back to Annie and he gave her a pointed look. Caleb's eyes also dropped to his mate and he growled loudly.

"Tell me you know nothing about this," he bit out.

Rhianna grinned sheepishly up at him. "I knew nothing about it until a couple of days ago when Mac called me to check the new recruits. Lily assured me she was okay and she appeared happy where she was. She didn't want to return to the pack and I saw no harm in leaving her with the Praetorians. They are her protectors after all."

"Rhianna, you know the pack have been going insane trying to find her," Caleb bit out, his voice starting to rise as his temper flared again. "You know Andrei has been at the killing edge for weeks now. How could you keep this quiet? We talked about this. We agreed that the sooner we found Lily and got her safely home the better."

"No, you decreed that Lily should be brought back to the pack and locked up for her own good," she countered quietly. "I just didn't argue with you about it. It was more than evident as you, Andrei, and Alexei all sat around plotting the poor woman's incarceration that there would be no reasoning with any of you. I didn't agree with you, Caleb. I just didn't disagree with you."

Caleb stared down at her for a long moment, then his arms dropped away and he stalked over to the other end of the room. He turned, his eyes almost black with anger when he pinned her with his gaze once more. "Don't you bloody argue semantics with me, woman. The very fact you didn't disagree implied that we had your agreement and you know it."

Rhianna took a deep breath to quell her own burgeoning temper and met his gaze unflinchingly. "You only hear what you want to hear sometimes, Caleb. I've learnt when it's pointless arguing with you. You knew very well that I disagreed with your decision, which was why you never actually asked me outright. You avoided it because you didn't want to get into an argument over it. But all this is rather a moot point anyway. Lily joined the Praetorians and I didn't give her up to Mac when I approved the recruits."

Her tone quite clearly dared him to deny her accusation. It also left the room in no doubt that she was quite finished with the topic and wouldn't be drawn into any more arguments about it. Caleb glared at her furiously, opened his mouth to speak, and then growled as he clamped his lips closed.

He wanted to call her a liar, wanted to be the one in the right, but as he cast his mind back a few weeks he could see that she hadn't once agreed with him and the twins. She'd been present in the room and he'd felt her disapproval down their mate bond. And that was why he hadn't asked her if they were doing the right thing. He hadn't wanted her to tell him no.

"You should have opened your mouth at the time," he finally muttered, his unhappiness still very evident.

Rhianna sighed deeply. "Andrei wasn't willing to hear it and quite frankly keeping him in check was more important at that point. I should have said something afterwards but you were all so certain you were in the right that it seemed pointless trying to get you all to see reason."

She crossed the room to her mate, stopping just before him. Her eyes raked over his face, watching him struggle to calm his annoyance at her. She hated arguing with Caleb and was thankful they didn't do it very often. But she wasn't about to apologise for the decision she'd made, not in this instance. Lily had needed freedom and she didn't regret allowing her that freedom.

"Caleb, you're almost as blinkered as Andrei on this point," she finally sighed softly. "Maybe it's a male thing, but for some strange reason none of you seem to have realised that the Vârcolac are no longer children. They're fully grown adults who are quite capable of making their own decisions and going out into the world to find their mates.

"We have no right to restrict their movements, to damage their spirits by denying them that. Yes, we can love them and want to protect them but we have to allow them to live their lives. We can't cage them or confine them to pack lands because we're frightened something may happen to them. That's just wrong and you know it."

"In more ways than one," Mac reluctantly agreed. Everyone turned to look at him and he sighed in resignation. "Annie does have a point, Caleb. Lily can fight like a professional -- hell, she blooded me when we were sparring. She's smart, fast, and utterly lethal when she's in fight mode. But when it comes to interacting with others she struggles with her emotions.

"She's fine when everything is going well and she's feeling confident but the moment things don't go to plan she reacts in one of two ways. She either loses all confidence in herself or she reacts so negatively she turns violent."

Kallum growled softly, his body tensing. "Lily isn't violent," he argued, anger creeping into his voice. "Yes, she's a bit on the wild side but she'd never deliberately hurt someone, not in anger."

Mac turned to spear him with a cold stare. "Tell that to Karn. She lost control of her wolf yesterday because she was upset about something and she ripped out part of his throat. He's lucky she regained enough control otherwise he'd be dead now. He's been her main protector all her life. He wouldn't lift a hand to defend himself against her."

Rhianna let out a startled gasp and Caleb's arms automatically gathered her close, comforting his mate even as shock rippled through him.

Kallum continued to glare at Mac for a moment longer before his eyes softened and concern etched across his face. "That's why she contacted Dad and told him she was a monster," he breathed quietly. His heart ached for his sister. He knew her so well, could guess at the awful guilt she would have felt over her actions.

The room was silent as Mac's words hung heavy in the air. Caleb held Rhianna close, running soothing fingers through her riot of red curls as her distress flooded over him.

"You're right, Annie," he finally conceded. "We all should have seen this coming. There's been way too much testosterone in play. We've all let the children down."

"Not deliberately," Rhianna answered with a sad smile. "We've been working blind for the most part. Rayne came to us as an Ancient. Any issues she may have had to overcome as she grew up she handled on her own. None of us really knew what to expect. And it's not as if major harm has been done either. We just need a new plan of action going forward."

Mac had more information to impart and the news wasn't going to be very welcome. "The timing sucks," he announced bluntly. He glanced at Kallum then looked pointedly at the others.

"Whatever it is, Kallum can hear it," Caleb said, motioning for everyone to take a seat.

Mac chose the sofa closest to him and Caleb manoeuvred Annie over to the sofa across Mac. Mac's eyebrows rose when Kallum chose to sit beside him but he continued with his news without saying anything about it.

"Pietro called and said there was activity over in Europe. He's fairly certain he's about to get access to whatever is going on over there. I fly out to Scotland this afternoon. I want a firsthand feel for the situation."

Caleb's lips tightened and he looked at Kallum. "There was an attack on the compound a quarter of a century ago," he explained. "Freya and Dayton were surprised by vampires. They didn't get anywhere near the pack but an investigation into the attack led us to believe that someone was trying to harm the Vârcolac. Pack security was enhanced and we set up the Praetorians to protect you.

"The attack came from our European brethren and Pietro has been there ever since trying to infiltrate the group so we can take it out. Until now there haven't been any further incursions."

Kallum quickly digested the information. Everything about their sheltered lives and growing up in the pack suddenly made sense. "So whoever is after us probably thinks we've grown complacent and now would be a good time to have a second attempt at harming us."

He felt a bubble of fury begin to well up inside him and he fought to push it down. There was no point getting angry about the problem. He needed a clear head to protect his people. Sensing Mac's eyes on him he turned his head to meet the vampire's gaze. He was slightly surprised to see approval in the other man's eyes.

Mac was impressed by how quickly Kallum had interpreted the situation. He didn't ask any unnecessary questions, just got straight to heart of the matter. He examined the Vârcolac carefully, trying to get a feel for just who Kallum Romanov was as a man.

He was important to Lily and he knew she would be unhappy if he didn't find some common ground with her brother. He also had the impression that Kallum was equally trying to size him up too. Had Lily told her brother that she thought he was her mate? So far that little gem hadn't come up in the conversation and Mac would prefer if it didn't.

He turned back to Caleb and Annie. "So where does this leave us?" He blinked slowly when Kallum answered him.

"Everyone has underestimated just who and what the Vârcolac are," Kallum said firmly. "Everyone is so hell-bent on protecting us that you appear to have forgotten just what we're capable of. Mac said himself that Lily was a lethal fighter. I can tell you right now that she would have been curbing her skills in any sparring matches she's undertaken. If she was trying to pass as a full vampire, and a reasonably young one at that, then she'd have no option but to hide her true abilities."

"Yes, you've have extensive training, Kal," Caleb agreed though his tone was slightly doubtful. "Gard has done his best to ensure you can handle yourselves in emergency situations until backup arrives. But it's an entirely different thing when you're being assaulted by a group of experienced fighters out in the real world."

Rhianna kept her eyes on Kallum's face, noting the way his lips tightened in displeasure. She let out a slow breath, the sound drawing his gaze to hers. His lips quirked into a smile and she felt herself answering him with a smile of her own as realisation dawned on her.

"How much have you all been hiding from us?"

He shrugged nonchalantly. "It varies depending on skill level. I'd say the majority of us probably train at about eighty percent. Me, personally, I dial it down to about seventy percent, Lily about seventy-five. I'm not entirely sure about Kothari because he only does the basic training. I think he's hiding a lot of his power from all of us.

"The same goes for Liam. He's so empathic he doesn't want to fight but he knows he has to be able to defend himself. I think he's got a lot in reserves. It's almost as if he's afraid of what he's capable of..." Kallum trailed off to give the people in the room time to process his admission.

They'd never made a conscious decision to hide their abilities from their pack; it had just sort of happened. When it had become so obvious that they were outstripping their teachers at such a young age, they'd become concerned that their friends and family would start to fear them.

Without discussion, they'd all started training that little bit under their skill level until it became the norm for them. The only time they trained at their full abilities was when they were alone and sparring against each other.

Rhianna wondered why she wasn't overly surprised by the news. She could sense Caleb's consternation through their bond. He didn't say anything though. He appeared to be content to let her decide how to deal with the situation.

"Does that include whatever magical abilities you have?" she finally asked.

Kallum frowned and shook his head. "That's the one area we've still not managed to break through yet. We can all do the small things that Rayne does but no one's exhibited anything more enhanced than that. Lily can create things other than clothes when she shifts, mostly jewellery and girlie trinkets. She's certain she's got untapped power deep inside. She believes she can create things that don't necessarily relate to her body, though she hasn't been able to so far."

"Why is this the first time we're hearing about all this, Kallum?" There was disapproval in Caleb's tone. He wasn't happy that they'd all been kept in the dark.

The younger man met his gaze steadily. There was no apology in his eyes. "Nobody wanted to listen to us, Caleb. You were all too busy telling us what to do and how to do it. I know it was done out of love and concern but you guys dropped the ball big time. You left us with no choice but to rely on ourselves."

More silence filled the room and it was Mac who eventually broke it. "So basically, Kallum's saying that the Praetorians are a waste of time and the Vârcolac could run rings around us when it comes to protecting themselves?"

"On the contrary, I think the Praetorians are completely necessary," Kallum countered. "When we were younger, we needed the protection you gave us. Any new children born will be in dire need of that same protection as they grow into their skills.

"Lily's problems highlight that we still need you, just in a different way. We need to train with you, learn what issues we have as individuals and work to correct any problems which may crop up. Everyone just needs to stop treating us like we're incapable of protecting ourselves and let us train properly."

His gaze left Mac's and turned to Rhianna. She wasn't one to hide her emotions and he could clearly see the distress in her eyes. He hadn't meant to make her feel bad. Learning about Lily's anguish had just been the last straw. The situation was no one person's fault. They had all failed to communicate properly.

"No one's angry, Annie," he said soothingly, giving her his usual lopsided grin. "We love our families and our pack. We know you love us too. It's a relief to finally be taken seriously and tell you about this. I've wanted to for a long time, and until Lily ran away there really wasn't a compelling reason to break the silence."

"I feel like we've failed you, Kal," Rhianna whispered, her voice trembling slightly. "How could I have gotten this so wrong?"

He moved to kneel before her, taking her hands gently in his. He was just like everyone else; he couldn't bear to see her so upset. "You didn't fail us, Annie. All you've ever done is love and protect us. We just need a different kind of guidance now. I should have told you sooner. I'm sorry I didn't."

He squeezed her hands gently, his eyes turning to Caleb to see his reaction. The Ancient didn't like it when his mate was upset. He couldn't read Caleb's expression though his hand was stroking gently through Rhianna's curls.

Caleb nodded to Kallum, silently urging him to return to his seat. They'd learned so much in this meeting, and it was a lot to take in. He gathered Rhianna against his side and brushed his lips soothingly against her hair as he sensed her distress starting to subside.

"You really think your presence is required in Scotland?" he finally asked Mac.

"I'm concerned that Pietro's cover could be blown if we're wrong and someone close to the Council is actually involved in this plot. I know he's not technically a Praetorian in the real sense but I class him as one of mine. I don't leave one of my team hanging out on a limb with no backup, Caleb."