Scarred

Chapter 19: Surprise for Elijah

Hey everyone - sorry for the long delay, but here's the next chapter! Enjoy!

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Michael gazed out the large picture window that formed one wall of his large office while he waited for Elijah to arrive. Currently his Made was settling Keisha's and Smythson's people into his guest quarters, and he could sense Elijah was very unsettled. Michael was extremely curious to know the cause. After all, if there were danger, Elijah would have already reported that, so whatever had disturbed his usually unflappable Made had to be both unique and interesting.

Hopefully whatever has Elijah upset won't cause much difficulty. There are already many balls in the air, I would prefer not to add more, Michael thought with a small frown, his thoughts drifting to Lucienne who was currently catching up with her friend Maria.

His lips lifted slightly as he remembered his brief meeting with the small woman and the way she'd forced herself to meet the full weight of his gaze without flinching and then proceeded to question him and take his measure. It was clear to him that she wanted to ensure he would treat Lucienne properly, and he admired the strength it had taken for her to do that in spite of her fear.

Once he'd let Jason know he had no reservations becoming Maria's Alpha when the time came, he'd turned his attention to his and Lucienne's future. Eogan's revelation that he would be capable of siring children had shaken him to his core, but even in his state of shock his mind had not been idle. He was more than aware of the many dangers they would face and already he had a number of long range plans. He'd then spent the rest of his day laying groundwork so if the time came, structures would already be in place to protect his potential family.

He'd also contacted Victor, one of his Made who'd been laying low after an incident where he'd been presumed dead. The man was a brilliant researcher and historian with a unique talent for seeing the truth written between the lines. Unfortunately that very talent was also the reason his Made was in hiding. Victor had wanted a vacation from the people that were threatened by his wealth of knowledge and extreme focus on the truth.

Michael had quickly learned his Made was bored out of his skull and more than ready to end his break from the world. He'd jumped at the opportunity for a new research project, and by the time their conversation ended, Michael knew Victor was utterly hooked. After all, he'd never really investigated the Unsleir or their history with vampires before, and though Michael had been as tight lipped as possible, Victor was no fool. His Made was like a bloodhound on a scent, now, and would let nothing stand in his way of his search for the truth.

Michael turned away from the window, sensing the shift of energy that signaled Elijah's imminent arrival, and poured a second glass of scotch for his eldest Made. Moments later Elijah appeared showing subtle signs of stress in his eyes. He wasted no time grabbing the glass from Michael and downed it in one go before sitting on one of the chairs in front of the desk, his body rigid with tension. Michael simply raised an eyebrow and waited for Elijah to gather himself enough to speak.

"I met my Ruachs," Elijah finally spoke, rubbing a hand across his face.

"Ruachs?" Michael questioned. "As in more than one?"

Elijah nodded sharply, meeting Michael's gaze with an intensity and fire that he rarely displayed. "I'm not mistaken," he said defensively. "I have two Ruachs and only one is a vampire. The other is a shifter."

"I see," Michael replied calmly, now understanding Elijah's reaction. Bonding between shifters and vampires was extremely uncommon and rarely accepted. Additionally, clearly the vampire had to be one of Keisha's people and the shifter one of Alpha Smythson's which would mean split loyalties.