Jewel

38

As they left Aaron's room they run into Arthur, Julie looks at him with hurt eyes.

"Julie, I'm sorry, I know we shouldn't have without telling you." Arthur pleads with her.

"You're an ass, Arthur. Julie needs your blood," Aaron tells him shortly. He really doesn't have time to deal with Arthur. He wasn't very happy when he found out what they talked her into doing. Neither was Adam, but he could only sigh. Julie needed to be with them both and if she was willing to try out something like that, who was he to tell her no?

Arthur takes out a knife and slices his wrist and holds it out to Julie. She's not sure how much blood she'll be able to stomach and still be able to eat her food, but she obediently starts in taking the blood.

The wound heals about the same time she can't stomach any more blood. 

"Aaron, I'm ready now." Julie says softly not even speaking to Arthur. She had liked the quiet vampire and had looked forward to the play that ended up being a no go because of the mess last week. She doesn't like the fact that he would do something like that to her. 

She tries to surreptitiously wipe the tear that fell away. Both vampires notice but don't say anything. Arthur feels even worse than before. He doesn't like that Julie has pulled away from him emotionally like he feels she has. He really fucked up and he knows it.

They make it to the kitchen and only find Alex there. "I'll see what is already made and get out something okay, Julie?" Aaron tells her and she just nods. She climbs up onto the stool there at the counter.

"What's wrong, Jules?" Alex asks her not liking how sad she looks.

"Well you know that I have to be with all of you by tomorrow night, right? Well I was with Aiden and he had Arthur join us. That was okay because he asked me first. But they made a video," Julie can't continue.

"They made a video without you knowing?" Alex is furious at his brothers. What the hell were they thinking?

"Adam found out about it and wasn't he fit to be tied." Aaron is still angry himself.

"That would explain why he left earlier and just about slammed the door." Alex says mostly to himself.

"Yeah, about the same time we got a call from the main company, someone is trying to make a hostile takeover. They won't have the ability, our financials are solid, but it has made him more than a little upset. I think that this time he'll stay out until he is able to find the one that keeps trying to take us over." Aaron is by now all but slamming things onto the counter.

Alex pries the items out of his hand and takes over making food for Julie.

"Aaron, you're starting to scare Jules, I think you better get rid of some of your anger." Alex finishes up serving the food and Julie eats mechanically. She wishes she could help them instead of just add to their problems.

"I have only added to all you guys' burdens." Julie says morosely picking up the food. She eats out of habit and doesn't even taste the food. She's sure that it's good, she's never had anything less than incredible food here.

"This in no way reflects on you, Julie," Alex consoles her.

"Part of it does. You all having to be with me, the video, having to save my friends."

Alex pulls her to him and holds her. "First off, I don't think any of us mind being intimate with you. I know I don't, I would have last night if Adam wouldn't have killed me for it. Second, I very much like the idea of you being the mother to my children. Again I can't speak for my brothers but I do. As for your friends, that wasn't a problem except that bitch. I wouldn't have had a problem letting her turn furry and then killing her as a rogue.

"I know that's not nice, but neither is she." Aaron is doing his best to not choke on the bite of food he swallowed when Alex told Julie that. He agrees with Alex on that though.

"We were able to gain two very valuable assets because of that and now have the gratitude of one of the biggest wolf packs in the States.

"The rest of it has nothing to do with you and is part of doing business. Adam will find out who has the temerity to try to destroy our empire and he'll destroy them. Right now he's in the mood to kill so he might even do so if the fool is anywhere nearby." Alex consoles the girl he more than likes. 

He knows just how he's going to seduce her.

Aaron nods to Alex and leaves the two and goes back to work.

"Are you finished?"

"Yeah, I guess." Julie pushes the plate away, she'd only been able to eat about half of what Alex fixed her.

"Your car was delivered earlier. They were able to get it done faster than they told Adam they could. I think the manager is trying to make points with Adam. It won't really  work, but hey, it got your car here earlier.

"Would you like to drive it?"

Alex watches as her sad face blooms into a full fledged smile. "Can we?"

"As long as one of us is with you, Adam said that you could. He doesn't want you alone until the rogues are taken care of."

Julie wants to bristle at that but after seeing what happened to her friends she doesn't dare do so. They had all had guards and still ended up hurt.

"Alex, what are hunters?"

"Hunters are those that go after the supernaturals. They are the supernatural police force if you will."

"So they know how to fight?"

"They are deadly fighters."

"Then how come the two hunters that we took in didn't have any kills?"

Alex thinks about that for a bit. "Well it could be that they were taken in completely by surprise or they are plants by the rogues to weaken us."

"How likely is that later one?"

"With how devastated they both were at the death of Cyril's family? Not bloody likely. Those two want blood and vengeance, but we'll be keeping an eye on them anyway. A good part of that is because of the blood lust. Newly turned vamps have a hard time controlling the need to feed. They are dangerous and wasteful. They'll kill several humans just to get a mouthful or two of blood.

"Adam won't let that happen with them though. He has plans for those two if they don't turn out to be traitors."