~~
Trinity
~~
Dinner was over, and I knew exactly what that meant. It was time for me to go with Reece to talk to the others. It was time to tell them all about the murders. And, hopefully, some of the case files would have been sent over. If not, I would be relying entirely on Rawlynne and Jackson for that information.
I hugged and kissed my seven children as they left the dining room. Most of them were going back to their rooms while Reece and I went down to my office. They all knew that we were going to have a meeting, they knew that we were working, but they didn't know what it was all about. And if I could help it, they would never know.
I don't care if Reagan and Rika were technically adults, or that Talia was getting older and all that, none of them needed to know that there was a killer, or several killers, out there targeting our people. They hadn't yet made it to our country, so for the time being, they were safe. For the time being, we didn't need to tell any of them what was happening.
Reece and I walked in silence as we moved from the dining room in our personal quarters to the elevator and down to my office. We were there before the others arrived, that was to be expected, but it wasn't long before the rest of them started to filter in.
.....
Noah was the first to join us in the room. He came in and sat just to the side of Reece. He was in the chair that was closest to him without him standing behind or next to him. After Noah, was Vincent. He came to sit next to me just like Noah had to Reece. Noah was Reece's second in command whereas Vincent was mine. These men were the ones that we went to first after seeking out the advice of our spouse. They were also the people that had been with us the longest. I had seen Vincent's children grow up, just like I had my brother's children. Vincent's oldest child, Conner, was almost as old as Vincent was when I first met him. That was just how long he had been a part of my life.
The others started to file in and take their seats after that. Shawn and Dietrich were next. David and Rawlynne came together as well. Shane and Jackson did not bring their mates with them like the others had since their mates were not part of this discussion. And rounding out the meeting was Gabriel, my personal attendant and assistant. He had been with me almost as long as Vincent and the others had been. And I had watched his children grow up as well. His oldest was about the same age as Talia was now.
“Alright, it looks like everyone is here.” Reece stood to address everyone first. He was always doing this. I think that over the years, he wanted to take some of the responsibility and authority upon himself, so he did it however he could.
As I watched him start to address the group, he walked around the room to where the files were waiting for us. When we got to my office, I saw that there were three of them waiting for us. Just three of the eighteen files that we needed. It was a start, though, and it meant that we could at least get started on the case.
“Most of you have not heard about this, but there has been a string of murders lately.”
“Murders?” Shawn sounded surprised when he heard what Reece had to say. His silvery gray eyes were opened wide in shock as he said that one word.
“In this area?” Jackson, who looked just the same as the day that I met him. Dark brown eyes, light blond hair, innocent and almost childlike expression, and he didn't look a day older than when I met him nineteen years ago.
“I haven't heard about any murders in our area.” Rawlynne pulled her phone from her pocket and started to check it like she was looking at reports that were recently filed. She probably did have access to them on that phone, with her ability I had given her, she had access to so much more information than most people.
Man, looking at Rawlynne, I couldn't believe how inferior and jealous I used to be. She was so beautiful and amazing, but she was never out to upstage me at all. She was just as young looking as Jackson was. They had been partners in the FBI for years before I met them long ago. Rawlynne had dark brown eyes with an inner ring of gold that made them pop. Her hair used to be long and wavy, but she kept it a little shorter now. It had to take her a long time to make it less wavy in the mornings, but she looked great with that pixie cut of hers. And she was only about five-foot seven, just a few inches taller than me. None of the feminine and delicate ways that she looked took away anything from the badass nature she seemed to naturally project onto the world. She was so cool at all times.
“No, not around here.” I told them before Reece could. “These murders have been happening in Europe and Asia.”
“If they're so far away, why are they a concern for us?” Shane asked in a confused sort of tone.
“Yeah, why is it something that we are looking into if they are thousands of miles away?” David was just as curious as Shane seemed to be.
“Because even though these murders have been taking place in other countries and on other continents, each and every one of the victims has been a member of my kingdom.”
I saw that they were all shocked to hear this. Well, all of them except for Reece and Noah. I knew that Noah had been at the meeting with Reece this afternoon, so he was not hearing this for the first time. The others though, hadn't been part of that meeting and didn't know what was happening to our people.
“They're shifters and other super naturals?” Gabriel's jaw had dropped in disbelief before he even asked that question of me. “Someone is killing our own people?”
“I don't yet know if they were shifters or magic users, I just know that their deaths were reported to Reece this afternoon during the quarterly report.” I answered him as calmly as I could. However, I did notice that my voice was somber and filled with emotion for all of those people that had lost their lives.
“Do we suspect that it was another shifter or magic user that killed them? Do we suspect a Fae or a Vampire? What do we know about the details of the case so far?” Rawlynne, proving that she deserved to be running that FBI field office, started to ask questions that probed into the nature of the case.
“We don't know much yet. I have three files that have been sent to me, the rest are still on their way. And, truth be told, we will most likely be relying on you and Jackson to find as much information as we can. The two of you will be vital to this investigation.” Reece answered that for me. He was quicker with his response, and I noticed that he was likely more calm than I would have been if it had been me that explained things to her.
“Yes, of course, we will assist you in whatever way that we can.” Jackson nodded in response. I remember when he was just a human, back before he met his wife and wanted to be more like her. She was a bear and not a wolf, but becoming a shifter made him more like her than a human would have been.
“How many murders have there been?” Dietrich had been looking very intense and serious since he heard what this meeting was about. I could tell that he was going to be highly focused on helping us find the culprit behind these murders.
“So far, there are at least eighteen. I do not know if this person, or group of people, have killed anyone that is not part of my kingdom, but I know that they have killed eighteen of my people so far.”
I saw their faces. All of them looked about the same at that moment. Even Reece was wearing an expression that was similar to the rest of theirs. They were scared, worried, angry, and determined at the same time. They were scared for the innocent people that we might not be able to save in time. They were worried that this asshole, or group of assholes, might strike again before we had a chance to do anything about it. They were angry that someone had decided to do this in the first place, and they were determined to put an end to it.
I had known that they would be driven to put an end to this even before I had called these people to this meeting. That was just who they were. They wouldn't be able to stand for this to happen. They wouldn't care if it were humans or supernatural beings, they would be angry and determined to stop them at any costs. That was just who they were. Who all of them were. Good people, and great warriors.
