"Gamichee is not the vampire you think he is."

Lyla turned from the window to look at Isaac.

She was in the living room watching the sunrise. It shone over the trees, slowly moving higher. Closing the curtain, Lyla turned and sat on the lounge.

Adley and Merissa joined them. Everyone was ready for bed but couldn't rest. They knew that someone was actively hunting purebloods, and it made them worried that Lennon was out there, alone and possibly in danger. Merissa had tried to call him, but they all went unanswered. She sent a message, hoping that he'd read it and respond. All she asked was that he let her know that he was okay because purebloods were being culled. Ris knew that it was possible that anyone could respond if they had Lennon's phone but sent the message anyway. There was no response.

"I'm beginning to see that."

"No, I don't mean about the pureblood protection service. I mean, he's not the top dog that you all think he is. You asked me if I had any thoughts about who the instigator is. I asked that question too. I figured that the person had to be of some influence, perhaps a leader or someone close to one. They'd have to have access to money or vampires to attend to the plan. There are not many who can meet these requirements. I created a list of all known vampires who are influential in some way. Your new friend was on the list. In fact, he checks all of the boxes."

"Used to."

Isaac looked at his ex-wife for a moment. He was always in awe of how fierce she was. Isaac could see that determined nature was given to their daughter. In the end, it might have been her downfall. She was a stubborn child. She thought she knew everything and was always determined to do what she wanted. Even as a toddler, she was like this. In his opinion, it was not surprising that she clashed with her mother, given that they were so similar.

"Yeah. I was considering two vampires up until you said something earlier about Gamichee hiding the pureblood children. It was a commonly known fact that he was not liked in the wider vampire circles because everyone believed that he was breeding vampires to claim the populace rebate. I re-read through the notes while you were in the shower, thinking about this and something else. I'd read that the northern district has a high number of pureblood vampires, something that is quite odd."

"Charlton was collecting purebloods?"

Isaac nodded grimly.

"He was the one killing them?"

"Yes, only the masses were told that they were turned vampires."

"Why was he killing pureblood vampires?"

"Because he wanted complete control,"

Everyone gasped, turning to the new voice. Gamichee walked in with a supreme smile on his face. His underling wasn't far behind, dragging an annoyed vampire with him. Carson forced Lennon to sit on the lounge next to Lyla.

"I must thank you, Lyla. You did a superior job tonight. I don't think that any of us could have done it better though, you did take your time. I'd expected you to complete the tasks by the first or second night, not a week later."

"What tasks?" she muttered, pretending that she didn't know the truth.

She was not the fool that he thought she was. Lyla got to where she was in this world because she always looked over her shoulder. She saw more than she should and always knew her enemy.

"Killing Charlton for me. You are a crack shot."

Lyla's gaze turned to Carson, who watched her with a dark smile on his face. Her steadfast face was not going to crack.

"You were there?"

"Watching from the shadows. Boss likes to know that his plans move according to his needs, so we entered the place to watch and ensure that you did what he expected. And boy, did you ever. I swear they did not see those bullets coming."

Gamichee sat down, stretching back into the seat. With a satisfied hum, he crossed a leg over his knee and settled in. He liked that they were clueless, and he loved that he managed to get it all done without them figuring it out.

"You killed Eloise." Lyla snapped.

She knew the truth; Lyla could see it all now. But she needed more from Gamichee, so she played the grieving mother that pretended to be ill-informed.

"No, Lyla, I did not. Nironsa did. He was angry at me because I said that Eloise had to go into protective care because of her status. When I met you, I could see it easily, but in her, I could not. If she went into protective care, he would have to stop the markets and go with her or let her go. Neither of which he was prepared to do. He stated that if he couldn't have her, then no one would. When he killed her, I could see that I'd lost my brother. I suspect that I'd lost him a long time ago, but it was difficult to see when he did his damnedest to avoid me. I am not angry that you killed him, Lyla. I believe that you put his weary and damaged soul to rest."

"What did you want Lyla to do?"

"Remove the pestilence in the north. When Carson rang and said that Lyla was Special Ops and we would struggle against her, I thought about her status and abilities. He also mentioned that Nironsa had engaged the services of Aneska, another troubling aspect of the situation. The more I thought about it, the more I realised that I could use these issues to my advantage. When he requested the extractor to take down Aneska, I sent two with very clear instructions. One to be used and the other to be left aside to be found."

Lyla stared. The false view showed a woman that was unable to accept that she'd walked the exact path that he'd wanted.

"You think that I'd let Carson walk away without taking Aneska with him? I knew you'd be angry over what happened and would seek answers. Lennon knew that going south was dangerous. The answer was either west or north. Given that west takes several days to reach, I knew he'd go with the easiest answer. Carson mentioned that you kept a firm hold of the containment chamber to be used as leverage so it was only natural to think that you'd take the beast with you. You travelled north, taking that vile thing and as expected, took down the enemy. I knew Charlton would take you in because of Lennon, and I knew he wouldn't let you leave. You're such a hot-headed woman Lyla, you don't take things lightly and when Charlton interfered with the man that you love, well,"

Gamichee chuckled.

"He was a dead vampire walking, wasn't he?"

Lyla nodded grimly.

"I rang the orphanage and told them to let you take the files." He said in a dark, firm tone. "I ensured that you had access to Aneska and a secondary containment chamber. I ensured that you found the vampire that I wanted you to find. Everything that you did was by my design."

Gamichee stood, looking around the group.

"Behave yourselves and perhaps stay out of my office. As much as it's amusing to hear of your antics, I don't relish the thought of walking in to see what you've been up to."

With a smile on his face, Gamichee walked out of the house, this time using the front door. Carson tipped his head with a fond goodbye and followed his boss.

Isaac looked around, feeling the tension rise with each passing second.

"Well, I don't know about you lot, but I'm tired. Planes and a lack of sleep are not a good combination. I'll see you all later."

As he made his way to the kitchen to dump his coffee cup, Isaac watched as they all filed out the rear door to the guest house. Lyla gave him a smile, then turned to close the door.