Chapter Seventeen

“Lady Bethany, Lord Aaron requests your presence upstairs.”

Bethany forced a smile for the guard, Ned. She was not in the mood to deal with her cousin this afternoon but ignoring him would not help his disposition any. Why couldn’t he simply use the phone instead of sending one of the guards to fetch her? She sighed. Probably because she could ignore a phone call, but not a guard waiting to escort her to him.

Glancing up at Davis standing outside her cubicle with his back to the wall, she noticed his folded arm stance and aloof expression. The same position he’d been in all day. Kioshi, the guard from the Asian clan, had arrived yesterday morning. The two had shared long whispered conversations, and then Kioshi had disappeared while Davis continued as her silent shadow. He barely spoke to her except to protest her return to work this morning. He had been displeased with her decision to put it mildly. She had to return to work, though. It was either that or go insane dealing with the tenseness between them.

Standing, she shut down her computer and grabbed her purse. There was no telling how long Aaron would keep her. The topic of his conversation was a given—he wanted her support. She could not in good conscience provide it. Which meant this meeting could get ugly if he pushed the issue. She didn’t think she would be able to put him off much longer. She had already put off meeting with him yesterday because she spent the day with Kate. The sight of her friend opening her eyes yesterday had filled her own with tears. Elizabeth had implied Kate should make a full recovery. A vast wave of relief had washed over Bethany with the prognosis. She had helped get her settled in at home, so she could spend the remainder of her recovery in comfort—surrounded by her own things. A guard was posted for her safety.

Bethany followed Ned into the elevator with Davis close behind them. How was she going to convince Aaron not to throw a fit at Davis’ presence? She certainly doubted Davis would leave the two of them alone. He'd made his distrust and extreme disgust of her cousin well known.

Stepping off the elevator, she was prepared to step right, but Ned turned left. Surprised, she paused. Where was the meeting? Aaron’s office and the conference room were both to the right.

Ned looked over his shoulder. “Lord Aaron has moved into your uncle’s office.”

“I see.” No, she didn’t. It was awfully presumptuous of him. How was Advisor Heyes going to feel about that? Did Aaron plan to barricade himself in there if he lost the vote? Sighing, she followed Ned to her uncle’s former office.

Two guards stood outside the closed office door. She recognized them, but didn’t recall their names. They both nodded at her and one opened the door. She started to stride through when the other guard held up his hand to Davis. “Only Lady Bethany may enter.”

“Like hell. Where she goes, I go.”

“Mr. Campbell is with me.”

“Bethany, cease the theatrics and get in here. Your hulking Neanderthal will wait outside.”

Before she could reply, Davis stepped forward between her and the door. Both guards stiffened. “No, I won’t. You want to speak to her, you’ll do it where I can keep an eye on you. And don’t forget I’m here on the council’s authority. You may have moved yourself into your uncle’s office, but you have no power here.”

Ned hissed a sharp intake of breath behind her, and she prayed a physical altercation wasn’t imminent.

Leaning to the side slightly, she peeked at her cousin to gauge his reaction. She was at a loss on how to defuse the situation. His face was bright red, and she braced herself for an explosion.

“Leave the door ajar then if you can’t bear for her to be out of your sight but make no mistake, I will rule the clan, and one of the first acts I will do is to see you permanently removed from the compound.” Aaron stalked behind the desk and sat down.

Bethany placed her hand on Davis’ forearm. “Please.”

He glanced down at her and then back to her cousin. Giving a sharp nod, he angled to the side slightly giving her enough room to slip past him into the room. She glanced back at him after she passed. He stood in the open doorway sideways, so he could see inside the office and the hallway outside as well. Folding his arms across his chest, he glared in her cousin’s direction before turning his gaze to each of the guards. For a moment she was worried they would interfere, but they quickly swung about and faced away from the office. Was her cousin aware he likely didn’t have the guards’ support should he try to enforce his rule?

Walking across the office and taking a seat in one of the chairs in front of the desk, she noticed little had changed since her uncle presided over the clan. The same antique gilded furniture, priceless paintings and sculptures filled the large room. Aaron may have moved in, but he hadn’t changed much. The prized Oriental rug was missing from the room. Whispered rumors of her uncle’s grisly murder had trickled down to her once she had returned to work. Her imagination could fill in the gaps. A beheading was the traditional method used for one Risharden to kill another. It was how her brother had killed Donald, and likely how he had killed their uncle as well.

Taking a fortifying breath, she squared her shoulders and stared at her cousin. “You wanted to see me?”

Aaron sat with the chair facing left leaving her to stare at his profile. His jaw was clenched tight, and his skin was a blotchy red. It saddened her, this man was her only remaining family. They had never been close. There had been little opportunity with her being raised mostly in the Highlands, but even when she had moved here full time, she had felt little kinship with him. He was always so angry, even as a younger man. Perhaps he was simply a product of his environment. He had been raised by her uncle after all, and he hadn’t been an affectionate man. He had pitted Aaron and Bryant against one another for as long as she could remember. Feeling sympathy for his position would be easier if he exhibited a modicum of compassion and restraint.

“Were you aware your brother wasn’t the only murderous traitor in the family?”

Sucking in a shocked breath, she clenched the arms of the chair.

“No, I don’t suppose you were.” He swiveled his chair to face her fully, crossed his legs, and placed his elbows on the arms of the chair. He tapped an index finger against his lips. “I have discovered some interesting tidbits about our family tree and our dear departed uncle. Would you like me to share them with you?”

Good Lord, what now? She could tell by the smirk on his face he was enjoying himself. No, she had no sympathy for him anymore.

“You are too young to remember much about your parents, let alone our grandparents as they died before you were even a thought. They were gone when I was but a child. What do you know about our grandfather?”

“Not much, I admit. He was the ruler of the clan. He had three children, Uncle Elsof, my mother, and your mother.” She doubted he wanted to give her a history lesson.

“Do you know how he died?”

She tilted her head to the side and sighed loudly. “Old age?”

His eyes narrowed over her perceived sarcasm. “He drowned in the loch you call home.”

No, she had not been aware of that.

“Where does the murderous traitor part come in?” Her cousin was drawing out his tale. The slight smirk on his face expressed his enjoyment of the situation. He relished this.

“Did you know our uncle kept journals?”

She inwardly sighed. A trait her brother had apparently shared. “No.”

“Actually, neither did I until I moved into this office and found a stack of them hidden in the wall. Quite fascinating reading.”

Glancing around the room, she wondered briefly which wall, but did it really matter? She really wished he’d get on with it, but at the same time dreaded hearing what awful family skeletons he was about to reveal. The glee on his face and in his voice were rather sickening. Didn’t he realize this was also his family he was talking about?

“Dear Uncle Elsof was a bit of a braggart. He couldn’t very well publicly brag about his deeds, so he wrote them down. For posterity’s sake, I imagine.” Aaron leaned forward and propped his elbows on the desk, pinning his gaze on her. “He killed his father in the loch and let everyone believe he died in his sleep.” Giving an artless shrug, he leaned back. “He was ancient, so no one questioned him.”

Closing her eyes, she wished the dainty chair had a higher back, so she could rest her head. It suddenly felt like it weighed too much for her neck to support. Her uncle had killed her grandfather?

“Would you like to know why?”

Opening her eyes, she stared at the lines the wooden planks made in the floor. Each one straight and narrow, no deviations, no cracks or grooves, or crazy lines. Unlike the path her family tree possessed. Those lines were bent, diseased, and downright rotten.

Aaron didn’t bother waiting for her reply. “For the throne of course. You see our grandfather planned to announce his son was not his heir. He was choosing someone else to rule the clan. He foolishly told Uncle Elsof of his plans. Apparently thinking his son would calmly accept them. Dear old Uncle Elsof put an end to that.” Aaron chuckled.

Nausea churned in her stomach. She wanted to leave the room, the building, the compound, the whole city. She was fed up with the violence and the sickening delight men took in killing one another for power. She wasn’t naïve enough to believe some women didn’t hunger for it as well, but men were enthralled by it.

Bethany gripped the arms of the chair, preparing to stand. Wait, who had her grandfather planned to name as heir? “He intended for one of his daughters to inherit the clan?”

Aaron outright laughed. “Don’t be ridiculous. A woman cannot rule a clan.” He clasped his hands together on top of the desk. “However, her husband could if named as a successor.”

Bethany grasped her knees and locked her spine. She was damned if she would give him any more reason to gloat. She knew now why he called her in and didn’t fight the issue of Davis staying within earshot. He wanted him to hear. He wanted everyone to hear. It was his father named to be the successor, and he would use this to cement his right to rule the clan.

“My father, not Uncle Elsof should have been ruler.”

Pushing to her feet, she avoided eye contact with him. The sight of him was impossible to endure any longer. She had already decided she could not support him, but now she would oppose him with relish. She would support Advisor Heyes publicly. Aaron would not only perpetuate the twisted reign of the past but make it infinitely worse.

“Leaving so soon, dear cousin? But I have more news to share.” Aaron stood and stalked around the desk to stand in front of her. “Uncle Elsof didn’t stop his murderous tendencies with his father. Oh no, he made sure to eliminate any possibility of competition all together.”

She stared at the floor in horror as the implications of his statement flashed through her mind.

“My parents and yours, dead at his hands. Quite the Machiavellian ruler our uncle was. I simply had no idea he had it in him.”

Wrenching her gaze to his, she let the utter disgust and contempt show on her face. “He murdered our parents, and you sound as if you admire him. You are as depraved as he and my brother were. You don’t deserve to rule. I will never support you.”

Aaron seized her arm and dragged her up on her toes to snarl in her face. “I will rule, and you will show me your support!”

She wrenched her arm away as a furious growl sounded behind her. “Never!” She stumbled back as a blur rushed by her.

Catching herself against the wall, she gawked at the sight of Davis as a wolf straddling Aaron prostate on the floor. Davis snarled in his face.

Watching his jaws open, Bethany leaped forward. If he tore out Aaron’s throat, it would mean war!

“Davis!”

She swung her gaze to the guards standing in the doorway. They made no motion to intervene, not that she could particularly blame them. A trail of shredded clothes was strewn across the floor. His fur stood on end around his thick neck. Saliva dripped from his snarling mouth.

Bethany stepped closer and held out her hand toward him. “Please, this isn’t the way.”

The wolf cocked its head slightly to meet her gaze before turning back to Aaron, who was gasping in horror on the floor. A long canine tooth appeared as he growled low before slowly backing off and standing between her and Aaron.

She couldn’t resist delving her hand into the soft, thick fur of his coat. He leaned against her briefly before turning back into a man.

“Get him some clothes.” Ned jumped to do her bidding as the two remaining guards stood in the doorway.

Davis stared down at Aaron. “Looks like he’ll need a change of pants too.”

Bethany glanced down to see the telltale wet spot on her cousin’s pants and grimaced.