“We should select a new leader, a new king so to speak, here, now, amongst the leaders that our people have elected to speak for them.”
“Not all of them are here,” Braith reminded them, unable to keep the aggravation from his voice as Gideon tried to railroad him.
“Either I, or William, can vote for our father, for now,” Aria amended quickly. “I’m sure he would trust our judgment, and if he doesn’t then he can have his say when we reunite.”
He wanted to tell her no, that there would be no vote now, but the others were already nodding their agreement. A cold chill swept down his spine. He was not a coward, he had never shirked his responsibilities but he did not want this. Maybe he was getting ahead of himself though; they had not elected him yet. Gideon had just given a rousing speech that had swayed everyone in the room. After Braith, he was the most elder vampire within this room. They all knew Gideon well, had worked well with him over the past hundred years. All Braith had was his older age, his power, and his pedigree.
“I think that’s fair,” Xavier said. “They came as representatives for their father after all.” His gaze fixated on Braith. “I’m sure he would respect their vote.”
“He would,” William confirmed.
“Jericho is also an option as a leader,” Braith reminded them. “My brother has lived amongst David’s rebel faction for the past six years. He is part of the royal bloodline, David’s people trust him.”
Saul chuckled as he shook his head and spread his hands before him. “I’m sure Jericho has matured greatly over the years Braith, but I do not believe he is up for this responsibility. Nor was he ever groomed for it. We represent our families now because most of our family members are dead. Barnaby’s youngest cousin, and my sister, are the only others that survived the war, subsequent slaughter, and exile. Neither of them is prepared to lead, and neither is Jericho.”
“That is yet another thing we can discuss when we’re all united,” Xavier said. “I’m sure that Jericho is not the boy we remember, and if there is to be true equality amongst us than we should consider him. If he wishes to be considered.”
“Then we are in agreement, for the most part,” Gideon asserted. “We’ll vote now. Ashby?”
Ashby was pensive as his eyes flickered briefly between Aria and Braith before his shoulders slumped a little. “Braith started this, he has led us this far, united us, and defeated most of your enemies. He’ll see us to the end; he’ll take down his father. My vote is with him.”
Braith remained silent, unmoving, his body becoming steadily colder as Gideon went through the room. He somehow managed to remain impassive and unflinching every time his name was said. William and Aria were second to last. They spoke briefly with each other before Aria quietly said his name. It was like a stake to his heart, she didn’t know what she had just done.
“It seems as if we have had our first unanimous vote.” There was no satisfaction in Gideon’s tone. In fact he seemed resigned, saddened yet sturdy as he met Braith’s gaze. “Will you accept the decision to run the form of government that you would like to see carried out in the future?”
Braith’s jaw clenched, his teeth ground as he slowly nodded. “I will.”
He left out the words “for now” as he gave his response but they were there and Gideon and Ashby were well aware of it. He would lead them into this war, he would help to see them established, and then he would disappear with Aria leaving Jack or even Gideon in his place. They may be unsure of his little brother; to a certain degree so was he, but Jack would at the very least be a fair king.
“You have two days to gather your people. We’ll move out on the third to rejoin with David.”
“How will we find him?” Barnaby inquired.
Aria grinned. “Oh we’ll find him.”
The sinking feeling in Braith’s stomach had nothing to do with his recent election, and everything to do with the unruly air suddenly surrounding her. He’d never inquired how Aria and William would find their father again; he’d simply assumed they had a way of relocating each other after all their years of moving and separating so often. He was beginning to realize he wasn’t going to like the answer.
CHAPTER 10
Her forest. She’d missed it so much, the sweet scent that filled her nostrils; the cool shade that hid the heat of the sun. The sounds of the animals were familiar and soothing. The tension in her body eased, her heart beat seemed to slow to match the melodious rhythm of the world around her. A rhythm that enveloped her within its comforting embrace, and held her close as she picked her way through the natural obstacles with the ease of an expert.
An ease that a lot of their group did not exhibit. Though their predatory vampire nature made them stealthier than most, they were not accustomed to the sticks, leaves and fallen debris that littered the forest floor. And they were obvious about it. Aria flinched at every snap of a twig or branch. She was doing a lot of flinching.
Braith finally stopped, his impatience was apparent as he turned to face the massive troops gathered behind them. Though most of the women had remained in The Barrens with the children or the elderly, there were a couple hundred of them mixed in amongst the men and looking just as ferocious and annoyed by their surroundings.
She was leading an army of deadly vampires, humans, and weaponry straight into the heart of her world. Aria swallowed the lump of trepidation that lodged in her throat. What they were doing went against everything she had ever known, ever fought against.