Violet Ashes: The Blood Ridge Alpha - Chapter 56: Chapter 56

Alpha Barnes sent me a location when he saw that I was home. I get cleaned up and head to the gas station to top off Baby's bike. I stashed the Bronco just outside the city in a parking lot at a storage facility. The guys put a tracker on it so even if someone were to report it abandoned, they'll be able to locate it.
The gas station is closed when I pull in. I use my card and take a couple of napkins to clean the small windshield on the bike. I have to do something nice for Baby for letting me use it. Maybe get her some flashy parts and some cute riding gear. I hate it when I see her on this thing with short and tank top.
My skin crawls when I hear an irregular heartbeat racing in the silence of the empty station. I check to see if the tank is full and stop the nozzle. From the corner of my eye, I see movement. I hold up the pump in one hand and screw the tank shut. I wipe it down and turn back to place the pump back in place.
"I know you're there," I call out. "Are we fighting, or are you just being a pervert?"
The light from the street lamp is blinding me from what's beyond it, but I know that whatever it is, it's back there. I scream and aim my gun at the vampire that flits into the spot light with her hands up.
"Lilith, you fucking psycho. What the hell, man?" I growl at her. I put the safety back on my gun and tuck it under my jacket.
"Sorry, I wasn't following you. I saw you pull in from over there," she points at the building behind me. It's a Hilton. "What did you do?"
"What do you mean?" I palm my chest, trying to calm Beverly and myself. Hybrid cousin is not something anyone should ever have. Especially when the other half is blood sucker.
"You're twice as powerful as you were the last time we met. I only knew it was you because it couldn't possibly be a twelve-year-old driving 250k around the city without anyone batting an eye?" she smirks. I flip her off.
"I came home. Vince and I an alpha again," I remind her.
"Oh, do you think I can have a sample to compare with what I already have, then?" she didn't miss a single fucking beat to ask that.
"You are really fucking creep, Lily."
"Come on. It's for research," she says and reaches into her coat to pull out a big ass rubber band and a syringe.
"What- do you just carry test tubes and shit with you?" I glare at her.
"Don't you have hella weapons and shit in your jacket?" she shoots back. "Yeah, this is my thing. I'd look pretty silly pulling out a gun I don't know how to use. Take your jacket off."
"Fine." I agree and remove my jacket. She does a little happy dance and comes over to check my arms. "So, why do you smell like gasoline, barbeque, and Chanel? It's so unlike you. One of my favorite things about you is your hygiene. You always smell clean and yummy."
"We roasted some pervs on council grounds. Never call me 'yummy' again. You're my cousin," I shiver.
"Doesn't mean your blood would disagree with me. It's okay, though. I'm not interested. Rich girls are a little too spicy for me. Also, cudos on the roasted sickos. Where, maybe I can get some for my dogs."
"Don't discuss your preference for blood with me, freak," I laugh. "Just outside the outskirts. It's probably going to be swarming with royal guards."
"Those tools. Ever since the Nelsons went exstinct, they guards aren't as savage as they once were. I'll snag the bodies. Thanks. Saves me the hunt."
"Sure," I shrug. "Make sure they're identified."
"I saw your brother today," she says quietly.
I hate it when she uses that tone. She never uses that tone because she rarely ever pretends to be empathetic. I did say pretend. She has all these pictures of gestures and books about emotions. I've seen her practicing them in the mirror several times. I've also witnessed her forget that she's not supposed to be a beast.
"What? Which one?"
"Vincent. For a moment, I thought it was you, but there he was, all big and broody. I shook his hand."
I feel a cold flash run through me. Lilithian is clairvoyant. A gift bestowed on her because she harbors one of the strongest vessels a wolf can have. It's the reaction her wolf has to coming into contact with those of her kind—the need to connect. The vampire blood in her prevents her from being part of a pack.
It's like having the most powerful pet wolf in a muzzle and a leash tucked away inside the cute as a button girl standing in front of me. She's a couple of years older than me and she still looks the way she did when we were fifteen.
This thing doesn't do anything unless it knows it'll benefit her and her two mates. A mate for each beast inside of her. It's how she was able to secure her spot as the Vampire King. Her mates are alpha and they run everything for her so she can run around doing weird science shit. Perry just bound her to Lycan Tech. Their union scares me a little.
"How long?"
"Do you want to know how?" she asks.
I look up to see that her mismatched eyes are serene. I hate meeting her gaze because she could easily compel me, but I can't help it at the moment. This is about Vince.
"How long, Lily?" I repeat.
"I'm not sure. A year, five. It's really up to the circumstances," she releases the rubber band and pulls out a mini ziploc baggy with cotton balls and swabs in it. She takes one and puts it over the needle before pulling it out. "Hold that."
"Does he suffer?" I ask. She glances up at me as she opens up a bandaid to hold the cotton ball in place. Everything disappears into her jacket as if it had never happened. She holds up a blue sucker for me. I take it because I deserve it for this weird encounter.
"Fate has not been very kind to you, Cuz. Mom said it was because your mom was a jinks. It's been a long time since Vincent hasn't suffered. He's kind of a dipshit. You're dad really fucked him up.
"You know, there's a ritual Lycans do, and from all the intel I've gathered, it's the same for most races. There should only be one," she nods. "It's dangerous to empower the two of them the way you two are. The way my mates are. The way the pretty Lycan flowers are. It's a tough choice to make. After all, they are the embodiment of everything the other isn't.
"However, when do you suppose enough is enough? The happier you are, the more miserable he is. The more miserable you are. The happier he is. Balance," she leans over the bike to place her hand on my shoulders. "The only way the two of you would have made it in one piece was if you had never run away from him. You're a selfish bitch and to survive, you're going to have to embrace that."
I pull away from her. She stands up straight and is gone at the blink of an eye. Her words settle with the implications of her words. I reach for the helmet and look down at the reflection staring back at me. There is no way in hell I could ever kill my brother. He's my brother. The greater half of me.
"Crazy bitch," I scoff and slip the helmet on. I start the bike and look around a little creeped out about our interaction. She always leaves me like this. Every encounter has ended with me questioning my entire existence. "Fuck you, Lily."