on vampires, and the one in front of him hadn’t expected it. His mouth hung open, his fangs bared as he shook before falling all the way to the ground. Hyde had tampered with the Taser, and it gave a lethal dose that would kill any human, but for the supernatural such as werewolves and vampires, it just seemed to stun them for a bit.
Hyde looked up around him as they hissed at him again. If he could predict the future, and Hyde was sure he couldn’t, he’d say he wasn’t going to make it home tonight. Or at least not clean or unscathed. He sighed, really just wanting to live a somewhat peaceful life—as peaceful as a necromancer could anyway.
“Now you’ve done it,” one of the others said.
“Don’t.” The one with the same voice who’d called out Hyde’s full name stepped forward carefully so as not to get too close to Hyde.
Hyde wasn’t about to inform the vampire that his Taser was one of those one-and-done kinds of things. He held it in his hand as if it could be used again. Dealing with other supernaturals was about the ability to bluff, especially when they could listen in on his heart.
“We aren’t here to cause a scene,” the vampire said with a smooth, rich tone.
Hyde shrugged. “Could have fooled me.”
A toothy grin greeted Hyde. The vampires made a slow show off showing his hands as if that’s what worried Hyde. The vampire’s smile only grew wider and his fangs descended. If it was meant as a threat, Hyde got it, and he’d be more than happy to show them his own threat. But again, Hyde just wanted to live peacefully, so calling more attention to himself was the last fucking thing he wanted to do.
“You have been invited to Prince Timeus’s home,” the vampire said.
Fuckity fuck fuck. The damn vampire prince and the ruler of the vampires of Alvestia City, just fuck. Why the hell did he want to meet with Hyde? Only one thought came to mind but there was no way Hyde’s secret had been uncovered without him knowing.
“An invitation, huh? And if I decline said invite?” Hyde asked.
The vampire took a few steps closer, and Hyde could make out a few features, like his high cheekbones, broad chest, and dark brown facial hair. If he was human, Hyde easily would have asked for his number. He was tall and built, with light brown skin, the closer the vampire got the more Hyde could see his handsome features.
There it was again, that smile. It would be charming if he lost the fangs.
“I know I said invitation, but it’s more of a demand,” the vampire said.
Hyde bristled at the word. He lifted an eyebrow. “Are you sure you want to go with the word ‘demand’?” he asked evenly.
Almost calmly, his magic prickled the back of his head. Hyde needed to control his emotions, or shit would go south real quick and he’d end up exposing himself. Which would result in a big cross country move in the winter.
The vampire either felt something or just knew from Hyde’s voice. His face went stone still and did that dead thing that so many vampires were fond of. It was creepy as fuck when they stopped imitating humans, no longer breathing and blinking. The older ones for sure had that issue—it was as if once they died and became the walking dead, all the humanity was stripped from them, and they had to learn to imitate so that they didn’t stick out too much.
People kind of knew of vampires, witches, and werewolves, but they turned a blind eye. The whole thing being if they weren’t right there in your face, then they weren’t real. The government and the underbelly knew of supernaturals and treated them like the threat they were. Hyde was unfortunately included in the threat category, even if he hadn’t intentionally ever hurt a human.
The silence was getting to the creepy point, and Hyde was getting colder by the freaking second. Home to make brownies or go with the crazy vampires to meet the prince of insanity. Hyde hadn’t personally met Timeus, but he’d heard rumors about the cocky prince and the way he treated other supes in his territory.
Hyde had been in Alvestia City a total of four years and a half and had successfully avoided dealing with any vampires, but his luck was shit. He cursed the moon, knowing if he had a shot of eating a