“Where did you find it?”
“Online,” Bel answered. “Apparently a collector was cleaning out and decided to part with a few pieces. We lucked into an auction.”
“Very lucky,” Winter agreed and started to hand it back to River, but the wolf was shaking his head.
“Play something. I’m still learning, and I’d love to hear what it’s really capable of.”
Winter looked over at Aiden, who nodded as well.
“We’re still waiting on Rafe, and I haven’t heard you play in years.”
Winter didn’t need to be urged further. Part of him was dying to try out the Gibson as well. Winter took the guitar over to his seat, sat, and settled it in his lap. He plucked at the strings one at a time, tweaking the tuning just a little here and there. It was like the instrument was begging to be played.
When it was ready, he reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out a few picks. He didn’t know how they ended up there each night. Somehow they were always grabbed with spare change and keys. Sorting through them, he selected his favorite and shoved the rest back into his pocket.
The song started slow. It was part of an old Spanish song, but he began to improvise halfway through, putting the guitar and his own fingers through their paces. The notes danced off the strings and echoed up from the hollow body. It was a winding, sinuous dance he could get completely lost in. There was only the music and the Gibson cradled in his arms. The magic of the music.
No more whispering voices. No more ghosts. No more Ministry. No more blood and death.
Winter didn’t know how long he played. He just let himself get lost in the melody for a time. When he finally looked up at the end of the song, it was to find his family seated around him, smiles on their faces. Even Rafe was now resting on the arm of the couch closest to his twin, a warm look on his face.
“Impressive, Wee One. I’d forgotten how skilled you were with that instrument,” Rafe drawled, and Winter rolled his eyes. He really did detest the nickname, but he knew better than to say anything to Rafe. Eventually he would grow bored with it.
“Glad you could join us. We were just killing a little time,” Winter said sharply. He turned toward River and extended the guitar to the wolf. “It’s a gorgeous guitar. Keep practicing. She needs to sing.”
“I will,” River said, cuddling the instrument against his chest.
“Now that we’re all here,” Marcus started, his voice dark and deep. Winter settled into his chair, turning the plastic pick over his fingers while he mentally braced himself. He knew what Marcus was going to announce. Winter had already spoken with Aiden since leaving the sporting goods store, but he wasn’t looking forward to watching the impact on his brothers’ faces.
“We’ve learned a couple of pieces of disturbing information this evening,” Aiden continued. “The first is that Damon James has officially disbanded the American Ministry. He has proclaimed himself king of the vampires in all of the Americas.”
“It’s fucking ridiculous,” Rafe snarled. “As if the vampires in Argentina and Peru are going to give a shit about him.”
Aiden allowed a little smirk. “Most likely not, since not many vampires in the U.S. and Canada venture that far south. Until Damon actually goes down there, they are likely to get away with ignoring him.”
“But you’ve also pointed out that the highest concentrations of vampires are in the United States,” Bel said.
“That’s true,” Aiden agreed with a nod. “Damon will focus his efforts on subjugating and controlling those closest to home first.”
“And the first step will be shoring up his numbers.” Marcus stood and folded his arms over his chest as he took a spot near the center of the room. “We already know he’s got solid allies with Christopher Heller’s and Paavo Wetzel’s clans. I think we can also count on the remnants of the Black Wolf clan and the MacPherson clan to side with Damon.”
“That’s a lot of vampires, isn’t it?” River whispered.
“Yes,” Bel murmured, not even trying to sugarcoat it for his lover.
“But we’re not alone,” Ethan quickly chimed in. “We’ve still got the Montgomery clan on our side, right?”
Aiden nodded again, flashing the fledging at the other end of the couch a small smile. “Yes. I’ve spoken with Sofia tonight, and she is not wavering in her allegiance to us. She’s working to strike up more alliances. We also have Moon and Novik, though their numbers are smaller.”
“After what you’ve told us about Damon, I’m sure the Tambor werewolf pack would help,” River offered.
Damon was a monster that wanted vampires to openly feed and kill humans. He wanted to pull vampires out of the shadows and allow them to claim the top spot on the food chain. That wasn’t good for humans or werewolves.