mind. "You could have walked away."
James shook his head immediately, scoffing my idea. "That was never an option."
"Why not?” The King frowned.
James' face flushed. “How was I to walk away, when that was the most damaging choice of all? To leave a vampire running loose among humans, all the while changing into one of us with no sense of how to cope with it? It would have been not only dangerous, but also cruel.”
“So you’re sticking to that pathetic excuse?” I couldn’t bite my tongue, even in front of all these people who were as likely to explode as live ammunition. “That you did this to help me?”
“I was backed into a corner,” James turned to face me now. “I had to make a choice, and I did.”
“I was the one backed into a corner! You didn’t give me a chance to explain anything before you attacked.”
“You were poised for attack…” James said, though he didn’t seem too convinced now.
“Those men had me against the wall!” I practically shouted. My voice echoed through the expansive room, but I didn’t pause long enough to be embarrassed about that. I had no mind for anyone but James.
“Oh, enough!” The red-head slammed her hand upon the table and looked to the boys with those piercing eyes, although when fixed upon them her gaze seemed softer. “James, please tell the council, from the beginning, what you witnessed.”
James straightened a little. “Julius and I were on patrol when we heard a scuffle in the alley. What we saw was a couple of men with a girl pinned against the wall outside a bar. We saw a woman in danger, so we acted. But when we got closer, I realized she wasn’t a human. Julius sent the men running, and then cornered her before she could run too.” It sounded rehearsed, until his voice faltered. “I just…reacted. I bit her, because I thought it was a trap for those two humans.” He dared glance at me, looking rightfully ashamed, to catch the withering way I glared at him.
“And?” The King prodded.
“And as soon as I realized she wasn’t a threat, I released her. She wasn’t conscious, and Julius and I discussed what we should do. We decided it was wrong to leave a human in pain and dangerous to leave a vampire running wild, so we brought her here. I alerted Delilah, who tended to her immediate care, and then deposited her in the training block before seeking the advice of the council.”
The woman appraised him coolly, and then turned to his brother with a delicate raise of her eyebrow. “Julius?”
“Exactly as James said.”
“So then you were caught hunting on human territory.” The woman announced, cutting through me with that acidic stare. She harbored a very obvious dislike for me, one that was unrivaled except perhaps by Julius. And just like that, I realized this was their mother, or at the very least it was certainly Julius’ mother, judging by the shared narrow shape of their eyes and their mutual hatred for me.
The revelation made me angry. “Is anybody going to give me a chance to explain, or do we just condemn people without a fair trial these days?”
“Rest assured,” The Queen said in a bitter voice. “That this is not a trial. Your guilt has already been determined. What we have gathered for is the determination of your fate.”
My face burned with anger. “Your sons go out on the one night of the month designated for the Vampire’s hunt, and you’re calling my actions into question.”
“Nonsense.” She shook her head. “The night was over and so should the hunt have been. It was a new day.”
The stunned silence offered me no answer, but it gave me all the explanation I needed. The eyes of everyone in the room (save for the queens which were still trained on me with an intensity that would suggest she was trying to slice me in half) turned to the brothers.
“Lilith has a point,” The King said softly.
James shook his head immediately, scoffing my idea. "That was never an option."
"Why not?” The King frowned.
James' face flushed. “How was I to walk away, when that was the most damaging choice of all? To leave a vampire running loose among humans, all the while changing into one of us with no sense of how to cope with it? It would have been not only dangerous, but also cruel.”
“So you’re sticking to that pathetic excuse?” I couldn’t bite my tongue, even in front of all these people who were as likely to explode as live ammunition. “That you did this to help me?”
“I was backed into a corner,” James turned to face me now. “I had to make a choice, and I did.”
“I was the one backed into a corner! You didn’t give me a chance to explain anything before you attacked.”
“You were poised for attack…” James said, though he didn’t seem too convinced now.
“Those men had me against the wall!” I practically shouted. My voice echoed through the expansive room, but I didn’t pause long enough to be embarrassed about that. I had no mind for anyone but James.
“Oh, enough!” The red-head slammed her hand upon the table and looked to the boys with those piercing eyes, although when fixed upon them her gaze seemed softer. “James, please tell the council, from the beginning, what you witnessed.”
James straightened a little. “Julius and I were on patrol when we heard a scuffle in the alley. What we saw was a couple of men with a girl pinned against the wall outside a bar. We saw a woman in danger, so we acted. But when we got closer, I realized she wasn’t a human. Julius sent the men running, and then cornered her before she could run too.” It sounded rehearsed, until his voice faltered. “I just…reacted. I bit her, because I thought it was a trap for those two humans.” He dared glance at me, looking rightfully ashamed, to catch the withering way I glared at him.
“And?” The King prodded.
“And as soon as I realized she wasn’t a threat, I released her. She wasn’t conscious, and Julius and I discussed what we should do. We decided it was wrong to leave a human in pain and dangerous to leave a vampire running wild, so we brought her here. I alerted Delilah, who tended to her immediate care, and then deposited her in the training block before seeking the advice of the council.”
The woman appraised him coolly, and then turned to his brother with a delicate raise of her eyebrow. “Julius?”
“Exactly as James said.”
“So then you were caught hunting on human territory.” The woman announced, cutting through me with that acidic stare. She harbored a very obvious dislike for me, one that was unrivaled except perhaps by Julius. And just like that, I realized this was their mother, or at the very least it was certainly Julius’ mother, judging by the shared narrow shape of their eyes and their mutual hatred for me.
The revelation made me angry. “Is anybody going to give me a chance to explain, or do we just condemn people without a fair trial these days?”
“Rest assured,” The Queen said in a bitter voice. “That this is not a trial. Your guilt has already been determined. What we have gathered for is the determination of your fate.”
My face burned with anger. “Your sons go out on the one night of the month designated for the Vampire’s hunt, and you’re calling my actions into question.”
“Nonsense.” She shook her head. “The night was over and so should the hunt have been. It was a new day.”
The stunned silence offered me no answer, but it gave me all the explanation I needed. The eyes of everyone in the room (save for the queens which were still trained on me with an intensity that would suggest she was trying to slice me in half) turned to the brothers.
“Lilith has a point,” The King said softly.
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