Zachary stood at the front gate to his father’s unwavering kingdom. The guards on the other side kept their weapons on him. Zachary mentally counted them. They added more since my last visit.
     “I wasn’t expecting to see you again,” said Alex as he reached the gate.
     “I see things are returning to normal around here,” said Zachary, looking past his father and toward the manor. “And I trust Evonne is glad to be back home. How is she doing?”
     Alex crossed his arms. “Why are you here?”
     “There’s a pack of werewolves causing a nuisance just east of Richmond Virginia. Gabriel has been tracking them for two weeks now, and decided it was best to hand this one over to you.” Zachary took notice of his father’s subtle reaction to the mentioning of Gabriel.
     “If he is suppose to be so good, then why does he need my help?”
     “The pack is made up of twenty rogues, all of them young-bloods.”
     Alex suspicions remained high. “What kind of nuisance are they?”
     “Six humans were killed thus far. The youngest was a girl, seven years of age. If Gabriel could’ve handled it by now, then he would have.”
     “I can send the order to the SEVEN headquarters in Alexandria. That’s the best I can do on such short notice.”
     Zachary gave a respectful bow. “I will inform him of your decision.”
     “Humor me. Why did he send you? Why not tell me himself?”
     A short-lived smile left Zachary as quickly as it came. “For some reason he doesn’t feel welcome here.” He tilted his head, certain his sarcasm was heard. “I’m not quite sure why he feels this way.”
     The guards lowered their weapons, seeing that there was no real threat from the simple conversation.
     “What about the other vampire with him?” Alex wondered. “Where is he?”
     The new smile lasted longer on Zachary this time. “It won’t be that easy, father. But I can tell you this—he’s not in this state. Hell, he’s not even in the country. So you can relax. After the run-in with the overzealous group from SEVEN, he wanted to get as far away from you as possible.”
     “Anything else?”
     “Oh, how is Evonne doing? You never really answered me.” He could see his father’s jaw tighten.
     “She’s doing fine. I guess I owe you a ‘thank you’ for your assistance. Sorry I can’t allow you beyond the gate. New rules and all.”
     “I understand. But I think you already know how it feels not to be trusted.”
     Alex’s composure turned cold. “Are we finished here?”
     “Just one more thing. I heard about your raid on Mehdar’s haven last week. Excellent work, I may say. However, you failed to kill Mehdar himself.”
     “I think killing five elders, as well as one hundred other vampires, counts as a victory. Mehdar would’ve been the icing on the cake.”
     Zachary laughed. “I’d imagine the celebration would be in full swing tonight.”
     “Next week, after all the details are logged. Procedure first, you know.”
     He nodded. “Procedure first.” He then bowed. “Goodnight, father.” With one last glance toward the house, he walked back down the long, winding road.
     Alex watched his son leave. He waited until he was gone from sight before speaking. “They’re planning something. They may be cunning creatures, but all creatures have their flaws. Report anything suspicious.”

Down the road, Zachary saw the dark blue car waiting for him. Things went as smoothly as he hoped, and they were one step closer to their goal.
     Inside the car, Keelan waited for the news.
     “Next week,” Zachary said, after closing the door. “We still have to narrow down the day.”
     Keelan turned on the car and pulled onto the road. “I’ll leave that up to Mikolas and Emery. They’re the geniuses behind this plan. They may be able to figure out the correct date.”
     “You’re placing a lot of faith in them.”
     “Gabriel trusts them.”
     Gabriel trusts them. Zachary wanted to laugh at the words. He believed they were placing too much trust in Gabriel. The plan wasn’t fool proof. In fact, it was the most bold plan they picked from the slew of ideas. Half of Zachary wanted to see the plan go on without a hitch, while the other wanted to see everything fall apart.

Evonne left the kitchen, carrying a plate of peanut butter crackers and slices of cheddar cheese, as well as a glass of soda. It was her way of telling others that things were back to normal, for her at least.
     Rounding the corner, she stopped as she saw her father enter through the front door. Jonathan was at his side, both talking. Her father looked concerned, while Jonathan tried his best to calm his boss. Though she tried to listen to their brief conversation, Evonne wasn’t too interested in what they said. She continued walking. As her presence was known, they ceased talking and watched as she headed up the stairs and into her room.
     This was the first time Evonne had seen any signs of distress from her father. What had him so worried? She wanted to smile at the possible cause. It had been more than a month since her return and she was certain they would make their move soon. All she had to do was wait.