Team Changes by Erin R Flynn

7

I blinked at the guy. “Well, we didn’t do it. He was fine when we gave him back to you.”

“No, several people here did it when he tried to rally support to take over and handle you. They hit their limit and weren’t going to risk the help you can give for the people they love.”

“Oh boy,” I sighed. “And those people?”

“Locked up,” he answered, looking like he wasn’t happy about it. Yeah, they had to keep order even if those people had probably done the right thing to save lives.

I didn’t though. “We’ll take them and their families.” I shrugged at all the shock focused on me. “Donny taking over would have cost lives and not ended well. If you kill a man trying for world domination, that’s not a problem with me. Hell, he wanted to kill me and all those I love. Yeah, I’m fine with what they did.”

“You would accept murderers but not us?” someone bellowed, pushing towards the front of the group. “How can you say you’re trying to do better in the future with a straight face and do that?”

“I just explained how. Keep up.” I raised an eyebrow at him. “So you were denied for lying to us?”

“Your people got it wrong,” he bit out. “My father is sick and needs help, but I’m not sending him alone. You’re signing his death warrant because your people lie and play god with—”

“Okay, simmer down there,” I cut in. “I gave the inch that my people could be mistaken. I don’t think so, but we’re not perfect, so that’s why I’m here. None of them are lying. You’re a dick to jump to that. We have no reason to lie or—”

“He’s one of the group that has been trying to take over and grab power from Chris,” that same guy filled me in.

I nodded I heard him before gesturing behind me again. “We aren’t getting into all of that. Yeah, we like Chris, but we’ve got just a few things going on besides worrying over the politics in here. I would bet a hundred pounds of gold the person who turned you down had no idea what group you were with.”

“But—”

“It has nothing to do with that and everything to do with the disgust in your eyes when you look at us,” I continued, giving that same look right back. “I don’t want you anywhere near me given how you clearly feel, and I’m not subjecting my people to that. You are choosing this path for your father by not letting us help him and behaving as you have. Not us. Own it. I own my choices.”

I was currently dealing with the outcome of my last one and what it might have cost me. I wasn’t about to take the bullshit of other people’s decisions onto myself. I had enough to carry. And I was done with this dick, so I looked past him.

“For those of you who might be lying to yourselves as much as us—as that’s always an option as well—I offer the chance to spend today with us and see what we’re working on in New Orleans. That is my appeals process. You come today and hang with us, help out, and team up with a vampire who offered their time to give you another chance, and we’ll talk to you at the end of the day.

“Maybe your feelings will change, maybe they can’t, but we’ll know, so enough with the crap we’re lying or playing games. We’re not. We’ve got real shit to handle, and I should be focused on a miles-long list of things waiting for me. Instead, I’m here giving you a chance that others won’t get. If that doesn’t deserve a crumb of faith with you, be honest with yourself and don’t take that spot from someone else.”

The silence that followed actually gave me hope.

A guy—who seemed to be someone that mattered from the way people moved for him as he stepped closer—finally broke the silence, focused on me. “What is this work and help we’d be doing with a vamp?”

There was something to his tone, and I didn’t get it until several behind me snorted. I rolled my eyes. “Not feeding us. We don’t need you guys.” I opened my mouth to answer his question but then frowned, glancing over at Sebastian who had come with for some reason. “You’re helping with this?”

“I am. I want to make sure there aren’t more threats to you and the help you give my family and coven because you are trying to help these humans.”

Oh, someone wasn’t happy at the situation for sure. That was about as close as Sebastian got to throwing a fit.

I winked at him in thanks. “I don’t actually know the answer. I’m fairly sure if you’re involved, you do.” The amusement in his eyes made me feel just the tiniest better about my day.

“I’m sure there is something they can help with. Those who can drive forklifts can aid in loading, or there will be lots of odd jobs. Help preparing lunch?” He was too entertained for some reason I didn’t understand until he kept talking. “But it wasn’t originally a fishing day however; you wanted the overpopulation handled, and that means bass and pole fishing. If any knows how to fish that would help.”

And there it was. People used to love the chance to go fishing as it was one of the many things lost. That wouldn’t be work to lots of people—just like the hunting days for the vampires weren’t—but a damn vacation for the people trapped at the settlement.

“You want to take us fishing as if you’re a guy dating our mom and trying to win us over?” the guy asked, glancing between us as if trying to spot the con.

The look I gave him was blank though. “I have no idea what that means, dude. I became an adult in the apocalypse. I ordered we even out the animal population in Mississippi and other areas. I’m glad it’s all exploded, but the wolves in Canada were eating everything and that’s not good.”

“Nor the turkeys taking over parts of Mississippi,” Sebastian interjected, chuckling when I groaned.

“The fucking turkeys. Why did they thrive so much?” I narrowed my eyes at Sebastian. “It’s because they’re nasty shits, right? Those damn geese too. I bet we need to thin out the geese there too.”

“It would be wise, yes.”

“Fucking birds.”

“Ducks as well.”

“Fucking yum,” I purred, setting off several in my party. It was well known how much I loved duck now.

It was damn good.

My amused moment was gone when I caught sight of Jaxon. “I want to go fishing. I’ve wanted to go fishing.”

And my husband didn’t say a word. He was more than close enough to hear me, and I’d given him the perfect lead-in… But he didn’t take it. He didn’t even acknowledge it.

Or me.

Fuck it.

“Will you teach me to fish, Sisay?” I whispered. “I want to have some fun and fish today.”

“I think that’s a great idea and the least you deserve after freeing a few hundred thousand people yesterday. I will teach you all my tricks.”

“Who did you ‘free?’” that human asked, still giving me a distrusting look.

I met his gaze head-on, over the bullshit. “I killed a coven leader who was going to kill a few kids and blame it on us to start a fight to take all we have. That’s what it means to be the boss. I make the hard decisions.” I glanced past him. “So I’m not the one you should push or fuck with or whatever idiotic thoughts you have because I’m young and a woman.

“I’ll deal with you before the men here would think to if you’re a threat to my people. And I don’t let people mistreat them so if you come, you’re on your best behavior. You say shit or treat my people badly, and we’ll leave you in New Orleans to find your own way back here. We don’t owe you this chance or anything. Act as you should or fuck you.”

“Fine, I’ll come today and give you a chance,” that first jerk said, trying to get back into the focus. He snorted. “Not like I have much of a choice when you’ve taken all the docs with you.”

I slowly blinked at him. “We don’t need them. We’re immortal and heal crazy fast. They went to set up the hospital and help the people we’ve brought there from here. We don’t have anyone in that hospital besides those helping.”

“How could I—” he started to defend, but a woman near him interrupted.

“If your damn father wasn’t so busy upsetting the medical staff with his racial slurs, you wouldn’t have limited options,” the Blackwoman snapped. “Something you also do and aren’t quiet about it.”

Oh damn. Just dayumn. I snorted when she nodded and looked at the guy. “You weren’t one that I invited. I told you that you were out because of the disgusted look you gave me. Now you’re a racist when we were clear we wouldn’t put up with that? Yeah, screw you, dude.”

“You’re not—” he seethed as he reached for me.

He didn’t even get close. I didn’t so much as have a second to blink before several pointy objects were touching him and two people grabbed his arm.

“Do not touch our princess,” Ty seethed, one of the people holding a knife on the guy.

The guy swallowed loudly and tried to step away. “Yeah, got it. My bad.”

I snorted. He said it to them and not me. Dickface. I glanced at Vitor. “Get it done. I’m not wasting my energy and time with this crap. People are starving and dying.” I turned to leave and saw Jaxon flinch at Vitor’s next words.

“Yes, My Princess.”

So my touching Vitor and Petre was his main issue?

I honestly couldn’t keep up with who was upset with me for what.

And I was losing the desire to care.

I ended up leaning against an SUV to stay in the shade. Summer in Texas was no joke, and I fried too easily. New Orleans would be bad too and made me realize I needed sunscreen and better protection.

Darius moved next to me and held out a bottle of water.

I accepted it with a mumbled thanks, glad when it was ice cold.

“I love you, Inez,” he whispered as he stared out at the view, not reaching for me or pushing. “I will always love you. I’m sorry I keep failing you—that we all do. I’m so sorry you had to deal with all of this alone. I know how upset you were to kill those vampires who came after you. Safie, as well.” He let out a shaky breath. “This time you had to plan to do it, and alone. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to help.”

And then he pushed off the SUV and walked away.

I opened my mouth as I glanced over to him… But then slowly closed it. I let my head thump against the SUV as I held the cold bottle to my forehead.

While tears burned in my eyes.

That was the Darius I’d fallen so deeply in love with. I missed him so, so much still, but I didn’t think I could let him back in. It hurt too much.

I didn’t want to hurt anymore.

But what he’d said was exactly what I wanted from any of them. Not the apology, since I’d handled things wrong too, but the acknowledgment what I’d done had shredded me. That they saw me enough to understand that I hated to do what I did. That I did it for everyone else, and I suffered by myself because of it.

That they would love me enough to push aside their upset and reach for me when I was drowning. Apparently, Darius was the only one, but I didn’t know if I could trust him to save me. My heart told me he might keep me from falling over the edge in that moment, but then be the reason I did later if I let him back in.

And that wasn’t the right reason to accept someone—that they could save you right then. That was putting duct tape on a huge leak in a dam. It would do nothing in the long run and probably add to the reasons it exploded.

So I didn’t reach for him. I didn’t say anything and simply drank the water he’d given me.

I was glad when it was time to go, walking right over to Sisay so he could blur me over to New Orleans. He was so neutral and calm that I honestly chose him most of the time even when I was in good with my husbands.

Or Branko. We’d barely spent any time together since I’d accepted his request to court, and the longer that went on, the more I convinced myself he regretted his decision. He probably didn’t break things off because most would think he had to leave, and we had what others didn’t.

Or he was completely fine with it and sleeping with ten different women a night. I had no clue.

Well, no, I doubted he would be a cad like that.

Probably.

Honestly, I didn’t understand men at all, so I couldn’t even guess.

As if to prove my point, Sisay didn’t take us to New Orleans.

I took a few moments to adjust after he set me down but then blinked at him in question. It could have been a part of New Orleans I’d never been to, but the goal was the dock… And I’d been there several times.

He simply nodded behind me as if that was my answer.

I glanced over to see Maddy Dogo, the head of a clan of hundreds of African elephant shifters. I’d met her through Nora before the wedding and hadn’t had a chance to get into much with her or the clan. From what I knew, they were hanging with us for a bit to recharge after all the problems they’d had and see if we were the right fit for them.

Apparently, she was involved in whatever was going on at the location Sisay brought us. She was giving instructions to people while glancing at a clipboard. Smiling when she caught sight of me, she came over.

“How are you?” I asked, accepting the surprising hug she offered.

“Good. We’re good. How are you, Princess?”

“A little confused,” I admitted.

She sighed, giving Sisay a side glance. “She’s got too much going on to be throwing her for loops.” She didn’t wait for his reply. “I’m working with Kristof on Jackson. You’re just outside of it in Mississippi.”

“Oh, cool, thanks.” I smiled at her but then noticed the tension in her shoulders, realizing what was really going on. “You want this area?”

“We think we might. With your permission,” she hedged.

I shrugged. “I’m fine with it. I’ve been pretty clear that I don’t want to spread us too thin. We can have multiple clans in one huge city. Salt Lake is doing great with three.”

“Oh, for sure, for sure,” she agreed. “We might pair up with someone or a few. This is a better fit climate-wise for us. Florida might have been the best we’ve got in the US, but this is a good mix of forests, marshes, and more that our elephants like.” She hurried on when I opened my mouth. “So far. We’re not saying for sure yet, and there’s no rush.”

“No, absolutely not,” I assured her. I got the feeling their clan had been trapped in some bad situations before because Maddy was as cautious as I was.

Something I appreciated when too many jumped into everything.

“But yeah, Kristof tapped me to head this up to work with his idea, and now yours.”

“How’s it going?”

“Good, really good,” she said quietly, but not even trying to whisper with all the ears around us that could hear better than us. That was sort of the polite behavior of how supes handled that situation. It was customary to sort of ignore what she was saying then unless she was talking about you.

It made sense to me, but it was hard to adjust to sometimes.

“Most of that coven was completely neglected and treated like crap,” she explained. “And I get it because you don’t know another coven is better, or on your own won’t get you dead. Plus, if the princess is nuts—like clearly Bahati was—they hold grudges and could come after them for leaving. Some solo ones run, but if there’s family you’re leaving behind…”

“They could be on the hook for you taking off,” I muttered, having heard that a lot already from those of Safie’s coven. “That’s crazy. If people want to leave—leave. If you come after us or join a coven that we’re not cool with, having lived here won’t help you, but this isn’t prison. Or those stupid humans at Fort Knox. No one is forced to be here.”

“Amen, Sister,” she agreed. “I think that has been the biggest shock with that other coven from what I’ve heard. Some of the other nobles have said they can’t seem to realign their minds to such normal after hundreds or thousands of years of the way of their coven and then almost a decade of the apocalypse.”

I hadn’t considered that. It would be as good for them to go slowly to accept becoming part of our coven as it was for us then. I nodded. “There’s no need for anyone to rush and sign on the line. Everyone behave well and like polite guests, and we can all work together to live better.”

“I think the vamps from Safie’s coven welcoming those from Bahati’s that have already ventured over here have eased them that this is legit,” she admitted. “I guess the nobles came with you here after it happened and got their assignments of which covens to inform, but then after they did that, swung back by the coven to tell those they trusted you were worth the risk.”

We both shrugged. There wasn’t much to say. People would figure it out or come to their own opinions no matter what we told them. Time and experience was the best thing for people to come to the right conclusions if they were open to it.

Idiots would always be idiots even if they had forever.

“One of the first things people are asking you get back online is the toilet paper factory,” she informed me. “I think finding one here in fairly decent condition is the reason you’re doing this area next.”

“Are we running out?” I asked, not having heard about this.

“It’s not easy to find. Everyone and their brother was hoarding the damn stuff when the first whispers of problems started.”

I couldn’t hide my confusion. “Why? Did they think it would help them fight corrupted?”

She gave me a funny look but then I about saw the light bulb go off over her head. “No one originally knew that’s what was going on. It was reported as an illness, and people were told to hunker down. People bought up all the water and necessities but hoarded toilet paper like crazy.”

Well, that message hadn’t gotten through to everywhere because there had been a lot of water and basics that I’d found in my travels… But yeah, toilet paper was always one of the most difficult to find. “I wonder why toilet paper?”

She shrugged again. “I remember some psychologists on the news saying it was a normal reaction of fear and represented security. If people had that basic necessity covered and on-hand, that it was comforting or some shit.”

“Or they were afraid of having to use newspaper. I have the fear of ever going back to that. Wipe with it once, and I would fucking do just about anything not to have to do it again.”

She laughed so loudly it echoed.

And she wasn’t the only one.

“I think you have the best chance of having the most pampered bum of anyone we know going forward the way people adore you, Princess Inez,” she said when she finally stopped laughing… Setting people off all over again.

I simply rolled my eyes. “We know lots of people who hate me just fine.”

She instantly lost her mirth. “They’re jealous. That’s all it is. Anyone who’s remotely spent time with you likes you. You’re nice to everyone unless they’re rude to you. That’s a person people like.”

I wished that were true. There were lots of people who were mean-spirited and tore those down for reasons that I didn’t think had anything to do with jealousy. I know some thought they were simply unhappy in their own lives.

Personally, I didn’t really care. It hurt me to be around, so I gave zero shits if their situation sucked. Mine had at times, and I didn’t pass it on. Like right then, I simply smiled and agreed, not arguing or sharing my issues to keep the mood light and people happy at the progress.

Maddy quickly caught me up with where they were at, and I was happy to learn how much had already been done in one night. It seemed at least a thousand immediately jumped on the idea of coming to the coven of the princess who freed them from Bahati and killed the corrupted Kristof had required them to.

And in an effort to be fair—and probably help their chances to be accepted to the coven permanently—a few hundred vampires, originally from Safie’s coven, had done the same. They also liked my idea to speak directly to the people of those three covens—the ones where the princesses had lied about their dreams from Aether and were already hunting gobs to help.

Awesome. Help and people agreeing to work towards peace were awesome.

And so was Maddy. She had her shit on lock and was so confident without being overbearing or a pain that even the much older vampires had no problem taking direction or working with her. Something that seemed to shock her, but I reminded her that they were used to a female leader.

I think that warmed her up to the idea of being in a coven. Most shifters didn’t inherently seem sexist, but they defaulted to men being the final say or boss. Even my knights had to adjust to the idea that I was the boss sometimes. Granted, I wasn’t all about it and was fine they handled things with my nobles given how much more experience they had, but it was something I’d noticed.

And so did others, so I was glad they watched it. I was also glad Maddy appreciated things were going well as she was definitely an asset.

It gave me a moment of calmer feelings when I went off to handle the ghosts from the corrupted my power barrier had killed while I’d killed Bahati.

Yeah, my mood was right back in the toilet then.

Apparently, we’d have all the toilet paper we’d ever need for that though after I fixed the factory they wanted me to. My life was so damn weird.