Knightly
I am now convinced I will never be bored again. I stand up and lift Phoebe onto her feet. I watch her as she fusses over her clothes. She takes a compact out of her back pocket to check her makeup. She sees me staring when she snaps the compact shut. “I can’t believe you made me mad enough to explode like that. It’s usually Aizen who does it. I almost got sweaty, Knight. That clumps the setting powder. I would have had to redo the entire thing. Show me the map,”
I take her to the mainframe table. Her eyes widen, and without permission, she starts tapping on things. Within seconds, she’s got several fashion tabs open. Then, a profile comes up; she clicks on it, and her scanned designs start popping up at the bottom.
“I didn’t know we had one of these. I’ve always wanted one, but they’re hella expensive,” she smiles at me.
“That’s because these are made for strategic planning and-”
“Oh, I know,” she closes all the tabs with a swipe of her hand. I don’t even know how to use this like that yet. “They’re Government issue. They have smaller ones, but they’re not as sick as this,”
‘Show me how you closed all that with a swipe of your hand,” I groan. Why am I this surprised anymore?
“If I can teach you how to use it properly, will you let me come in here and play around with it once in a while?” whenever you fucking want you bratty little monster.
“Better. I’ll tell your overbearing cousin that you’re thinking of getting the bullshit Lockwood Tech one because it’s cheaper, and she’ll give you one,”
“That’s taking advantage,” she shakes her head.
“I know. That’s what makes it that much cooler,” I bring up the map. I zoom into the region where the Rogue King established the underground base near Redwood City. Once we get the Alpha King to vote us in, this is everything that will legally belong to us. It’s a small hacienda in the middle of a field called Violet Ashes. This is the view of the entire property, and if that weird little hybrid did her job properly, we’ll have access to the city itself,”
“Why just the hacienda? This is a vast property,” she moves the map around. “Are there just a little bit of rogues?“/
“This is the entrance to a little underground city called Rogue Nation,” I add the blueprints for it. Her eyes light up when they see the network of caves that make up the world’s best and largest underground black market center. “And compared to the other King factions, yes. We’re openly hunted. We’re a threat to many pack dogs; our blood doesn’t have that strange connection taste. Vampires consider us delicacies,”
1/3
84
“Oh, my god. People live down there?” she always changes the subject when I bring up vampires. It’s kind of cute.
“Not at the moment. The people who lived down there were forced to leave their homes when the Rogue King fell six years ago. With his death, the entire plantation was shut down. There’s not enough ventilation because there’s no electricity. The lower levels are probably flooded because the water wheel generators were stopped. They controlled the water flow from the cascades,”
“And this would all be ours? I don’t understand; you said rogues like to be alone. This looks like a group effort,”
“Rogues don’t like the restrictions that come with living in the packs. Like you not wanting that you have run everything you do by my parents in their territory. We take care of each other out of respect.
“Because we value privacy so much, there’s a lot of shit we see that has value. We obtain things that not very many people have. We’re good at trading and selling whatever we want. Sex, love, secrets. Things that hold real power. Things that can influence the way people spend their money. Beliefs, trends, and customs.
“When the other races need something done quietly, this is where they come, and with the right payment, it’ll happen. Some of the people down there use social media to control the narrative of the people. It’s one of the biggest flaws in modern civilization. We’re all connected by these little screens.
“It’s going to be my job to keep track of the transitions that go on down here. To protect others like us. To help those who need it. Best of all, it’s a safe haven. It’s kind of an important role we’re taking on,”
“You’re telling me that we’re going to be able to control the way people think of us, and we’re not going to be attacked?” she looks up at me with disbelief.
“Essentially, but we want the world to think less of us so we can use the discrimination against rogues to ensure that it all stays under the radar. We’ll still live here. This is where the headquarters is. The best thing about being a King is doing what I need and passing on the minor stuff to more capable hands,”
“It’s happening. I didn’t think I could ever have this because I always wanted to set a good example for the twins,” she mumbles under her breath.
“What? What are you whispering over there?”
When she looked up at me, her pupils were fully dilated. For a moment, I thought I had overwhelmed her with information, and Midnight was back.
“Love, Knight. Love is the reason why I get to have my villainess era. I have designs and accessory lists prepared for this. I need to get them out and start looking for materials,” she goes straight for the door. I grab her arm, stopping her. She looks up at me and grins wide. She’s really excited. “I’m really good at making dreams come to life. I’m controlling like that. But you,” she hugs me tightly. “You make fantasies happen. I
2/3
84
think that’s the number one reason why I love you,”
She pushes herself up on her tippy toes and kisses me. She lets out a little excited squeak and leaves me floored as she escapes.
“I was going to tell you to fuck off about the table, but that was literally the cutest thing I’ve ever witnessed spying on people. I’ll send you one now. To commemorate the first time Phoebe Rizen told you she loved you for more than one reason,” Perry’s voice comes through the speaker on the table behind me. A crunching sound follows. She’s watching us while eating snacks. Great.
“Don’t you have anything better to do, you fucking demon?” I growl, needing to be alone to appreciate what just happened.
“Not at the moment, no,” she laughs. “But I’m leaving you to fan girl over your mate. I want in on these villain–era designs. I’m going to try and get Vy in on this. Laters emo
bitch,”
