There are very few things in this world that can bring a smile to my face lately, but this is definitely one of them. After dinner I'd just crawled out of my window planning to lay on the roof and stare at the stars when the soft strums of a guitar reach my ears.

Lying back on the rough shingles, I stare up at the endless sky above me, and let myself fall into the sound of the music rising from Everett's open window. I shiver involuntarily when his husky voice joins the mellow sounds coming from the instrument.

He'd mentioned before that he could play the guitar and the drums, but he'd never mentioned that he could sing. Boy could he sing.

As I lay there listening, a tingle shoots up my spine, my stomach erupts in butterflies, and my heart starts racing. This guy is dangerous. I'm starting to believe that whatever magic this man wields over me might be even more powerful than my own.

"If you don't stop, I'm going to catch a sexual assault charge," I say just loud enough to know he'll hear me.

The sounds of the guitar and the singing both come to an abrupt halt and are replaced by a choking sound.

"Did you just choke on air?" I ask with a snort of amusement.

"Spit," I hear him mumble in reply causing me to laugh harder.

Seconds later, he climbs up onto the overhang of the roof where I'm lying, and shoots me an admonishing look.

"That was dangerously close to that line we can't cross," he says nervously.

Rolling my eyes, I choose not to even respond to that. It was only a matter of time before one of us got too close to that line.

He sits down on the roof beside me, making sure to keep some distance between us. "What are you doing out here?" He asks.

"Just looking at the stars and thinking," I respond, staring at the thousands of twinkling stars above us.

"Hey, can we join you? Or are we interrupting?" I hear Micah ask, causing me to glance back towards my window. He and Oliver are both looking out the open window at us, but neither makes a move to join us, waiting for a response.

"No, it's fine," Everett responds before I can.

"Will you tell me about your family now, or would you rather wait until it's just us?" I ask once Micah and Oliver have made themselves comfortable on the roof with us.

Everett shrugs carelessly. "What do you want to know?"

I lay there in silence, thinking for a few moments. I have so many questions. Which should I ask first?

"How old are you?" I finally ask. It seems like a simple place to start. It's something I've wondered about for a while, and it's also not too personal.

"Twenty," he answers simply, but we both know the answer to that question isn't quite that simple. Before I can ask, he continues. "I've been twenty since nineteen twenty-eight."

"And the rest of your family?"

"Cal is nineteen, Lawrence is seventeen, Lizzie is sixteen, and Annie is twenty-one," he responds easily. "Annie isn't quite as old as us though. My siblings and I were all turned close to the same time, but Annie wasn't turned until nineteen sixty-four. We met her in Chicago in seventy-three."

"So, Cal didn't turn her," I mutter more to myself than anyone else. I'd kind of just assumed that he had. Everett shakes his head in denial, answering my question that wasn't really a question.

"How did you all become vampires?" Micah asks, jumping into the conversation. I'd planned to save that question for a little while and stick to simple ones for now.

Everett sighs loudly, running a hand through his hair. "Lizzie had gotten a little wild in her teenage years. A wealthy man moved to town, who we all thought was too old for her. We knew there was something strange about him. We just didn't know what it was. We lived in a small poor village. Our family owned a farm. Most of the families there did. It didn't make sense for this rich man to suddenly move into our middle of nowhere town. He immediately took a liking to Lizzie, despite her young age. We all tried to tell her to stay away from him, but she didn't listen."

He falls silent suddenly, looking like he's lost in the past playing out in his mind as he tells the story. "She went missing one day. Just disappeared. We had no idea what had happened to her. We searched with no sign of her. Then one night, she just came home, but she was different. He had turned her into a monster. She told us the man had explained to her what she was now. She knew she was immortal now, and she didn't want to be alone. She had always been the baby of the family. She was spoiled and selfish. We had always doted on her. She turned the rest of us so she wouldn't be alone."

My eyes widened dramatically as he talked. Glancing at Micah and Oliver, I saw them looking equally as shocked. I can't imagine making a decision like that for my entire family, all so that I wouldn't be lonely. I understood the ache of loneliness better than most, and still, I can't imagine ever doing such a thing. 

Suddenly a scene from the football game flashes in my mind. Lawrence had said something to their sister about her not making decisions for him, not after that one time. Now I understood the hostility that was in his voice when he'd said it.

"What about your parents?" I asked, curiously. If she'd changed the whole family, where were they?

"They had died years before this happened," Everett says, sadness still clear in his tone even after nearly a hundred years passing. We all sit in silence for a few minutes, staring at the stars, letting the sadness pass before speaking again.

"I've noticed..." I start to say but hesitate, not wanting to say something to upset him.

He looks at me curiously and raises an eyebrow. "Go ahead," he mutters.

Licking my lips nervously, I try to choose my words carefully. "I've noticed your siblings are different with you. Like, Cal and Lawrence joke and play around with each other, but..."

"But, not with me. I seem to be on the outside of it," he cuts in, finishing for me. I nod anxiously, hoping I didn't upset him with my observation.

It's something I never noticed until they were staying here. Cal and Lawrence seemed really close, and sometimes Annie would join them in their jokes. Every now and then even Lizzie would join in, but never Everett. Everyone in their family seemed to become more serious when he entered the room. It reminds me of how Julian and River used to act with me. How they suddenly fell silent as soon as I walked through the door.

He nods absently, not seeming upset at all. "They see each other as siblings, but they see me as a parent figure despite me only being a year older than Cal."

When he notices all of us staring at him curiously, he rolls his eyes with a little groan. "Growing up, our parents owned a farm. When they died, I took over taking care of the farm, and raising my three younger siblings. Technically, our aunt had custody of us, and the farm was in her name. She basically just left it up to me though. She had her own things going on, and her own kids to worry about."

"How old were you when they died?" I can't help but ask. When did he take over not only running a farm, but also the responsibility of raising three siblings?

"I was sixteen. They were fifteen, thirteen, and ten," he says with a shrug.

That explains a lot. It explains why he acts much older than he is, and why he seems like the head of the family. Because he is, and he has been for a very long time.

Losing both parents at such a young age could also explain why Lizzie was so unwilling to let go of her siblings. Why she was willing to go to such lengths to keep them with her.

"I think that's enough story time for tonight," he mutters.

"What are you going to do to find Lucien?" Micah asks out of nowhere. I'm unsure if he's genuinely curious, or if he's helping Everett by changing the subject. He had shared way more than I ever expected him to tonight.

Micah knows what happened at the pack house. I had to tell him when I suddenly showed up with some of his and Oliver's things. He didn't seem happy about how things ended, but he didn't seem overly upset either. He seemed almost resigned. As if he was well aware that things between our group and the pack aren't going to be civil anytime soon.

"I don't know," I respond honestly. "I have no idea where to even begin looking for the coven. They've successfully remained hidden for centuries. What hope do I have of actually finding them?"

"I don't believe that," Oliver speaks up, his tone conveying how seriously he's taking the topic. This is probably the first time I've ever seen him without the mischievous glint in his eyes, or the playful tone of voice he usually speaks with.

Shooting him a questioning look, I wait for him to elaborate.

"Why would they take Lucien?" He asks, as if it's obvious.

"Because he's a vampire," I say with a shrug, not understanding where he's going with this. The fact that the coven hunts vampires isn't exactly a secret. They're famous for it among supernaturals.

"Bait," Micah says, sounding like he just had an epiphany. "He's bait."

"Exactly," Oliver responds. "It's the only thing that really makes sense. The Gorman coven usually kills vampires. They don't kidnap them. This is new. Because it's not simply them hunting vampires. They want you to come for him. So, there has to be a way to find them. Kidnapping him would be pointless if you can't find them."

Sitting up suddenly, I think over everything they've said, and I have to admit that it makes sense.

"If you're right and he's bait, he's probably still alive," I say excitedly.

"Or they could have just taken him so that you'd believe he was still alive and come looking," Oliver says cautiously, and Micah slaps the back of his head, giving him a look that clearly says, "shut up!"

I brush his comment off. I need to cling to the hope growing inside of me. It'll keep me moving forward.

"I might know someone who can help," Everett says.

"Help with what?" I ask curiously.

"An old friend of mine I met a couple decades ago has an obsession with information. Any information. He loves knowledge. If he doesn't know it already, he prides himself on being able to figure it out. He thrives on puzzles and mysteries. He might be able to help find the coven. He knows more than anyone I've ever met about supernaturals in general. He might already know where the Gorman coven is," he responds.

"I'm willing to take all the help I can get right now. Do you think he'll be willing to help us?" I ask cautiously. If he's known him for decades, he's probably a vampire, and from what I've learned the last few weeks, not many vampires would be willing to work with witches and werewolves.

"Yeah. Like I said, we've been friends for a long time. If I call and ask for help, he'll come if he can," Everett says confidently. "I'll go call him now, and see if he's available to head this way."

We all nod and remain silent as he climbs back down off the edge of the roof, returning to his room the same way he'd come.

"Leach or not... My respect for him just sky rocketed," Oliver mumbles quietly. Micah and I both nod in agreement. "I can't imagine being responsible for myself at sixteen, let alone a farm and three kids."

"And he's still taking care of them," Micah says.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

He looks at me like I'm slow for not figuring it out already. "The five of them live in that big ass house, right? Lawrence and Lizzie go to school and live as teenagers. Annie is an artist. Cal is a high school teacher which is a career notorious for being underpaid. So, who does that leave as the one who paid for that house and all those nice cars they drive?" He says as if it's obvious, and now that he laid it out like that, I guess it kind of is.

Now I wish Everett hadn't left so fast. I wonder what he does for a living. I've heard him mention a call was from work, but what he does has never come up before. I'd never thought to ask either.

We're all lying on the roof, lost in thought as we wait for Everett to return with news. The sound of a car turning onto our road, draws all of our attention towards the street in front of the house. No one should be coming down this road since the only people that live on it are here. We watch as an unfamiliar car pulls to the curb, and a very familiar figure steps from the passenger seat before the car pulls off again.

"What the f-..." Oliver mutters while I jump from the roof, landing gracefully on the grass in front of the newcomer.

Before she even registers that I'm in front of her, my hands around her throat. I lift her feet from the ground and slam her back to the grass just hard enough to make sure I have her attention.

"What are you doing here?" I ask, as she writhes in my grip, trying to free herself. Focusing, I try to listen to every sound in the night around us, listening for any signs of trouble.

I'm uncomfortable with the look of fear in my sister's eyes, but all I can think about is the people inside the house counting on me to keep them alive. Sister or not, she chose her side.

"I... I live here," she stutters out.

"You chose to leave with the coven after they tried to kill us, and you think you can just waltz back up like nothing happened? Why are you here?" I ask suspiciously, not trusting her at all.

"I don't know who to trust," she grits out. I loosen my hold to allow her to speak freely, but still keeping her pinned to the ground. Micah and Oliver both walk up behind me, staying out of it, but watching to see what happens next.

"Gran told me all kinds of stuff about the coven, vampires, and you, but then you contradicted most of it the night of the fight. I want to know the truth. No, I need to know the truth," she says, managing to speak to me without condescension or hostility for the first time ever.

Scanning her eyes, I don't see any dishonesty, but I still don't trust her. Sara could have sent her. Sara and River had always been close. Mostly, they bonded over their mutual hatred of me. After all these years, I have a hard time believing that River so easily had a change of heart.

Deciding to play along for now and see where it goes, I pull her to her feet and use her arm to guide her into the house. Pushing her down onto the couch, I cross my arms over my chest and stare down at her.

"Where's Lucien?" I ask, gritting my teeth in anger. The pulsing begins under my skin, but my need to hear her answer is enough to keep it under control... for now.

"I don't know," she says, her eyes dropping to the floor.

Narrowing my eyes suspiciously, I grunt in annoyance and take a step in her direction, fully prepared to put my hands on her again, but our uncle appears out of nowhere. He grips my shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze before squatting down to look River in the eyes.

"Lucien has never done anything wrong, River. You know that. You've known him your whole life. He doesn't deserve to be a pawn in Sara's vendetta against Ari," he says much too gently for my liking. I'm feeling a lot of things in this moment, and gentle definitely isn't one of them.

She looks at him for a moment before glancing up at me hesitantly.

"I really don't know where he is," she mumbles.

Narrowing my eyes in a silent warning, I move to my next question.

"Where is the coven?"

She immediately starts shaking her head and I have to bite back a curse.

"I don't know that either. It was dark when I went there and when I left," she says unconvincingly.

"How did you leave? You honestly expect me to believe Sara just let you leave?" I say with an angry edge to my voice.

"Of course not. She had no idea I doubted her. I left after she fell asleep. I got a ride," she says, and I raise a brow in question, causing her to sigh and answer reluctantly. "I met a guy."

Rolling my eyes with a scoff, I let the subject drop.

"Don't move," I tell her with a glare before gesturing for my uncle, Micah, and Oliver to follow me to the kitchen. On our way, I notice Julian standing in the doorway, staring at River. Grabbing his arm, I pull him along with us.

"I don't think we can turn her away, Ari," Uncle Ben says as soon as the kitchen door swings shut behind us.

"She's our sister. We have to give her another chance... Don't we?" Julian says quietly.

"You know she's lying, right?" Micah says, his annoyance clear, and I nod.

I'm well aware she lied. I'm not sure if she knows where they have Lucien or not, but I know for a fact she knows where the coven is.

"What are we going to do?" Julian asks.

Chewing on my lip, I only hesitate for a moment before spitting out the only real option we have.

"We let her stay," I say reluctantly, causing everyone to look at me in surprise.

"She knows where the coven is. We have to get it out of her. We can't do that if she leaves. She's our best chance right now. Besides, she's not a real threat to anyone here on her own. We'll just watch her closely, and do not under any circumstances tell her anything about our plans when we make them."

Staring at Julian, I don't want to say this next part, but it needs to be said. "No one goes anywhere alone with her. I don't trust her."

With a loud sigh, he nods, agreeing with what I've said before walking silently out of the kitchen.

"We should probably watch him closely too. Without your sister here, keeping him on our side, I don't know if she might convince him to switch sides," I say sadly with a glance in Micah's direction.

Going back out to the living room, I walk back in front of where River still sits quietly. She looks up at me nervously as if I'm her judge, jury, and executioner, and I have to suppress a snort at her sudden change in demeanor. Where's the girl that looks at me like I'm the bane of her existence? The abrupt change just makes me more suspicious. I have to wonder if it's an act.

"You can stay," I say unenthusiastically. I hurry to finish when I see her lips begin to curl up in a small smile. "But if you even attempt to hurt anyone staying in this house, you'll be out faster than you can blink."

Staring deep into her eyes, I make sure I have her full attention before continuing.

"If you do something to get kicked out, you will never be welcomed back, River. This is your last chance to choose to do the right thing. You can either stand with me and Julian or with Sara. There is no room for in between here. Not after she took Lucien."

She nods in understanding and stands from the couch, ready to head upstairs.

"You can stay in the guest room on this floor," I say, and she stops in her tracks.

"What about my room?" She asks snidely. Well, her usual attitude returned pretty quick after getting what she wanted.

"The second floor is currently occupied by five vampires. You're free to share the space with them if you'd like," I reply with a small smirk.

With a huff, she spins on her heel, flipping her hair over her shoulder and stomping up the stairs to move some of her things down to the first floor.