The Soldier's Hostage

Chapter Sixteen

I was hardly the only one stressing about Max being gone. Isaac, Henri, and Jake were all worried. And the Vampires were a mixture of worry and irritation, for their Mistress and that Max had been taken in the first place, respectively. As the de facto leader while Max was gone, I found myself concerned about my friends and how they were coping.

Arthur noticed and almost ordered me out of the apartment. I worried that part of his eagerness to let me go was partially because he was still dealing with what had happened after Sonya left. Fear that he would make arrangements to move me away from him crept in, but I shoved it away. I had other things to focus on, and until he made those sorts of arrangements, there was no point in worrying.

For tonight, I was hanging out with Isaac while Arthur was at work. Isaac had just gotten home from helping Joan and Chris out at their bar so he was tired but he had told me he wanted the company. I waited in the living room while he took a shower to remove the smell of alcohol and unwind a little.

Joan had gone out to run some errands so it was just me and Chris at the moment, though he was occupied with paying some bills and checking emails. I was satisfying my curiosity over the photos hung on the wall. As well as a few questions aimed at Chris as they popped into my head.

"I thought Vampires wouldn't show up in photos."

"Only when we're undead."

I nodded in understanding as I took in the wedding photo of Joan and Chris. They looked happy. They obviously weren't in a church, but I had expected that. I moved on to another photo. This one looked like a baseball game, the camera aimed down the row to capture Emilio, Chris, and Arthur with Zach slung across his shoulders. I smiled a little at how Zach appeared to be having more fun irritating Arthur than watching the game. It reminded me.

"Are Arthur and Zachary really brothers?" I glanced over my shoulder when Chris didn't answer right away. He was cocking his head at me so I explained. "When Arthur kicked me out and I came here, Zach came in and you asked what was wrong with his brother."

Chris smirked and turned back to his computer screen. "I don't believe they're brothers by birth. Blood brothers, would be the more appropriate term I guess. Joan says they were always together since the day she met them. They used to share an apartment until Zach got married."

I hummed in understanding. Chris volunteered more information before I could ask another question.

"You know Zach is actually the elder?" He laughed when I looked at him in surprise. "Yep. You'd think it would be the other way around, since Arthur is always so serious. But Zach is actually a few years older than Arthur."

I slowly nodded. "How did they meet?"

Chris shook his head. "No idea. They don't talk about it. Joan doesn't even know. I would imagine, if we really wanted to know, we'd have to get the story out of Katty's father. Katty might know, but if my math is right she was only about ten when they came to America, so the memories might be hazy."

I bit my lip, wondering if another trip to Katty's place would be productive. She had been rather tight lipped last time, like she preferred me to find things out from Arthur himself. It was certainly the more reliable source.

I sighed as my gaze shifted to a picture of Katty and her two sisters. The three of them had their heads together to fit in the close shot. I eyed their expressions. Tabitha had a genuine smile, full of joy and unguarded. She wore her heart on her sleeve and wasn't ashamed of that fact. Tony's smile was more mischievous. She had a secret and was silently laughing at anyone who didn't know it. Katty was different. Her smile was almost sad. She had a weight on her heart that she was almost comfortable carrying. I wondered if that was simply the cares of leadership or something else.