Courts and Cabals 6, page 10
“I think my defense for him might have been too good,” I wasn’t being egotistical. “Word will spread that he won. He’s the imp’s representative. If I toss him into the black like I did Sigrun, that’s only going to cause more problems with the transition. Plenty of people still voted for Venus’s candidates. I think it’s better if we show that we can work with those that don’t agree with us, and that didn’t commit treason. Let’s show everyone we’re not your mother and that the next Board of Directors is legitimate and not a rubber stamp for you and the LHIR.”
Lilith winced at the last bit. “You want me to let him off and let him sit on the board?” she frowned.
“I want you to do what you think is right,” I gave her a look of support. I would always support her. She knew that. “I just think my plan is the best way for everyone to come out ahead in a shitty situation.”
Lilith looked between me and the elder vamp before she waved for us to return to our spots. We did, and there were several minutes of silence as Lilith contemplated her decision.
“I can’t ignore what we saw here today,” she nodded toward where I’d banished Sigrun to wherever. “I can’t ignore the pain that all of us have felt in the last twenty-four hours, and I can’t bring back the people we’ve lost,” she paused again. “What I can do is try to make things right and bring this Cabal back together. We don’t all have to agree on everything. We never have,” that got a small chuckle from everyone. “But it is important that we honor what the people of this Cabal want. Because behind all of our power, influence, and riches, this Cabal is about people,” she turned to look at Jeremiah.
“I find you not guilty,” she announced, and as she’d just stated, there was some disagreement in the reactions of the people in the room. “But remember that not guilty does not mean innocent. You made mistakes. You were wrong, and that cost people their lives.”
“Yes, ma’am,” the imp’s head was bowed, but not in relief. His guilt was real, which was just another indication that I’d made the right call.
“In addition,” Lilith wasn’t done yet. “You were elected to lead the imps, so lead them, but know that I have my eye on you. Do what is best for the Cabal, and not yourself. Don’t be like my mother. I sure don’t want to be,” she nodded to me, and with a snap of my fingers the chains fell away.
“You’re free to go, but don’t go far. We still have a lot of work to do.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Jeremiah was stoic as he thought about how close to death he’d come. “Cam,” he nodded to me.
“Jerry,” I nodded back and smiled even bigger at the glare he shot my way as he walked past me and out of the room.
Some security imps peeled free from where they’d been leaning against the wall to follow. Lilith wasn’t a fool. She told him she’d be watching. If he didn’t like the shadow, tough shit.
“Well,” I clapped my hands together. “That’s seems like enough work for one day. How about lunch? On you,” I winked at Lilith. “You’re miss moneybags now.”
With the majority shares of the Cabal now beginning to work their way through a lengthy legal process to fall into her lap, she was probably a trillionaire. Although, she’d never show up on some Forbes list. The Hottest Thirty under Thirty . . . definitely, but no one other than the board of directors of the Cabal would ever know how much the leader of the Venitas family was actually worth.
Despite my hilarious joke, it didn’t get the laugh I expected.
“Cam,” she nodded to the door as it opened and another chained prisoner was led in. “We have another sixty-nine cases to get through.”
“Oh,” my face fell. Somehow, I didn’t think that number was going to be that fun this time around.
On the bright side, I didn’t have to play defense attorney all day. Unfortunately, I’d get more than enough practice being the executioner.
Chapter 4
It was nice to start things off with a win. It restored a little of my faith in the Cabal that I was able to prove that everyone who we thought had joined Venus wasn’t a total piece of shit. Unfortunately, as the day progressed, Jeremiah’s case turned out to be the exception and not the rule.
Supernatural after supernatural was brought before Lilith and me. There was a bevy of reactions from them. Some broke down, cried, and begged for forgiveness. Only a handful actually got it, and those were the ones that were only tangentially involved in the coup. It was a massive undertaking trying to subdue as many powerful supernaturals as were present at the HQ. It took planning, logistics, and a magical reservoir of power to pull from. The hunter-killer teams were just the cherry on top of a complicated operation that had almost succeeded.
All those fuckers didn’t deserve an ounce of mercy, but arguments for leniency were made for those who’d helped pre-position those resources but didn’t take part in the massacre. If Lilith was a cold-hearted bitch, she could have consigned everyone to the same fate, but I knew her true motivation. Still, even those who skirted being sent to their deaths by me were punished in some way, shape, or form. Just like people didn’t get the electric chair for possession of weed, Lilith didn’t throw the book at everyone.
While many were repentant, what surprised me most were the ones who weren’t. They remained loyal to Venus until the end. I had to respect that level of dedication, even if that trust was completely misplaced. I didn’t feel bad about tossing those assholes to their demise.
Then there was a third group, and they were the only group that really pissed me off. These were the people that tried to con us. They were like Sigrun. They tried to play both sides, but up until now, they’d fooled everyone. They’d infiltrated, sabotaged, and in some ways caused even more damage to the integrity of the Cabal than the kill teams.
Because of them, people didn’t know who to trust. A man could look at the neighbor he’d had for five years, who he’d drunk beer and watched the Raiders with on Sundays, and he couldn’t tell if that neighbor secretly wanted to kill him because of who he supported in the elections. Those were the toughest cases to decide because the people who’d been tasked with infiltration and disruption were very good at their jobs. I was glad that responsibility fell on Lilith’s shoulders and not mine.
Technically, there was a fourth group of people, but they didn’t count for me. Those were the people who Venus had Inceptioned. There was a lot of discussion between Lilith, Marcella, and other high-ranking Cabal members about what to do with those people. They hadn’t intentionally killed or betrayed the Cabal. It had been Venus’s power that had overridden their conscious thoughts. They were just as much victims as the people who’d been physically beaten by the traitorous imps.
But the people who had been beaten didn’t always feel that way. There was more than one exclamation of outrage as a person was deemed innocent. I didn’t blame them. If some dude broke my legs and then got off scot-free, I’d be pretty pissed too. Lilith was adamant that those who were victims of Venus’s mental machinations would be monitored by medical professionals and undergo deprogramming. Anima mages were being brought in to do deep dives, and the Cabal didn’t have a rule about double jeopardy. If someone somehow slipped through the cracks, they would be identified and dealt with . . . permanently. Those promises helped ease some minds.
After most of the day spent executing people, it was clear the one thing the Cabal needed above all else was healing. Things were not going to be the same for a very long time, even after all the good we’d done today. Supernaturals could hold grudges like it was their job, but it wasn’t all bad. I got the chance to reconnect with an old friend. Although, I’m not sure friend was the right word.
“Amanda?” I caught sight of a woman who was helping lead away some of the brainwashed Cabal members.
“What?” the woman looked around for who’d called for her. She’d always been a little weird.
“Amanda, from St. Vincent’s,” I stepped away from Lilith’s throne during one of the breaks in the proceedings.
“Yes, that’s me,” she looked at me for a second through her spectacles.
“It’s me. Cameron. Cameron Dupree,” I waved.
“Everyone knows who you are, Mr. Dupree,” she replied stiffly, but not harshly.
If I remember correctly, she’d always been a little stiff and awkward. It was the nature of being an Anima mage. Unrestricted access to the human mind could mess with a person who delved into the depths of consciousness, and that was why there were so many rules and regulations at the national and international levels about those types of mages. Rules I was sure the Cabal’s deprogramming regimen was going to use more as guidelines.
“What’s up, Doc?” Mia slid in beside me and offered a fist bump to my old classmate.
“Mia,” she responded with a nod. I wasn’t going to lie. It hurt a bit that she was on a first-name basis with the Caeli mage but I was Mr. Dupree.
“How do you two know each other?” Mia looked back and forth between Amanda and me.
“We both went to . . .” I began, but Amanda beat me to it.
“We fucked,” she said with a totally straight face.
“How am I not surprised?” Mia raised an eyebrow in my direction. “Were you always such a ladies’ man?” she grinned.
“No. He was a delinquent in school. As far as I know, he was a virgin until Lilith decided to take him,” Amanda was as blunt as I remembered.
“Uh, first off, no. I was not a virgin before Lilith,” I felt like I had to defend my honor. Sure, my sexual experiences were limited compared to a succubus going down on me, but I’d more than made up for that by this point. “And second, it’s more accurate to say we mindfucked,” I clarified.
“Yes,” she agreed with me like that’s what she said in the first place “I detest the exchange of bodily fluids.” That was such an Amanda thing to say.
“Really? I find that’s the best part,” Mia squeezed my ass and made me jump.
“So . . .” I swatted at the mage’s hand. “What are you doing here?”
“Your Cabal contracted my services to help with the unfortunate incident that occurred. I’m a psychologist now, and many people will need my expertise in the coming months to find a new sense of normal after the violation that occurred,” she stated.
“Well, that’s great . . . for you,” I made sure I wasn’t cheering people getting violated. “I’m glad everything went well for you after school.”
“It went very well. My services are not cheap. Now, if you two will excuse me,” she nodded and followed her new patients out the door.
“Was she always . . .” Mia waited until she was out of earshot.
“Weird,” I finished for her. “Yeah. But most Anima mages are.”
“Did you two really . . .?” she began.
“Yep,” I cut her off again. Things looked like they were going to get started up again soon.
“How was it?” she was like a dog with a bone.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” I started to move back toward Lilith.
“Oh, that means it’s juicy,” she latched onto me like a tic. “Did she mentally probe your hidden depths or . . . fine . . . don’t tell me. I’ll figure it out myself,” she huffed when it became clear my lips were sealed.
The truth was it had been awesome sex, but it hadn’t been real. I didn’t think I’d even talked with Amanda since then. It was nice to see a familiar face, even if that face looked like it was five years older than me now. Everyone from my class had lived so much while I’d been traveling between realms. It made me wonder what all of my high school friends were up to. I had a second, so I whipped out my phone to find out.
It seemed Jerome was still working for the Whitepaw pack. Big surprise there. New York had legalized marijuana while I was away, and as the pack had already planned, they were ready to meet the new market and demand. My old best bud ran a string of dispensaries. He looked high as a kite, but happy in his pictures on the company website.
Brad had always been skilled with computers, and like Mia, was a Caeli mage. Just weaker. He’d given up his side gig as a hacktivist and was in corporate IT. Apparently, he was making a decent buck because I found his wedding registry and nothing on there was less than a hundred bucks. Good for him and his future husband.
Last but not least was Makaylah. “Wow,” I chuckled to myself. I wasn’t sure if I should be surprised or not that the first picture that came up online for her was her mugshot.
Apparently, she’d gotten into a little trouble not long after graduating from St. Vincent’s. Being a vampire didn’t help things. She’d actually done a little time from what I could see, but in a very Makaylah turn of events, she was doing prison outreach stuff now. Good for her. Gods only knew the state and federal corrections departments needed all the help they could get. Being understaffed and underfunded was not the way to rehabilitate people.
Over the past few years, my old friends had all gone very different directions in their lives. “They probably think I ghosted them,” I thought, and they wouldn’t necessarily be wrong.
At the time, when I’d been hunted by the UN, it made sense to cut ties. Now that no one could touch me or mine, running into Amanda had me thinking about reconnecting. With everything being interconnected these days. A few more minutes of research and I would have their phone numbers, or I could just ask Xamira and she’d have them for me in seconds. I could be chatting with them at our next coffee break if I wanted.
Lilith clearing her throat put an end to that line of thought, and as far as my to-do list was concerned, saying hello to my high school besties was at the bottom of it. But with literally all the time in the world, I made sure to make a note to try and reconnect once this crisis was past.
“If it passes,” the defeatist thought crept in on me. If the Allfather won, then I’d be dead, and so would everyone else. There wouldn’t be much of a reunion for the St. Vincent’s Academy class of 2020.
“Bring in the next prisoner,” Lilith ordered, before lowering her voice and leaning over to me. “Get ready for this one,” she gave me a heads up before the door opened and in walked Aoife.
I felt the glare form on my face before I could stop myself, but I doubted anyone in the room held it against me after what the super imp had done. Unlike everyone else who’d been tried today, she wasn’t bound like a BDSM fantasy. Even without the chains, she looked completely defeated. Good.
I didn’t feel sorry for her. She’d stabbed me in the heart with a cold iron dagger and nearly killed me. If Io hadn’t rescued me, I might have survived the stabbing, but I would have been too weak to break out of the god prison Venus constructed or been able to face the queen succubus. Venus would have won, and none of us would be standing here today looking for justice.
Then, as if that wasn’t enough, Aoife held Lilith hostage as I faced the former queen in our mental battle royale. It didn’t matter that in the end, she hadn’t followed Venus’s final orders to kill Lilith while she was too weak to defend herself. The super imp had committed multiple crimes, and she needed to pay for them.
“I’m going to enjoy this,” I tried my best to keep the smile off my face. It was time for her to face the music.
She stood calmly before Lilith, her chin down, waiting to accept her fate.
“Aoife, you are charged with the attempted assassination of a member of the board of directors, conspiracy, kidnapping, and treason. How do you plead?”
There was a slight twitch of her face. “I plead guilty to attempted assassination, conspiracy, and treason, but I am not guilty of kidnapping,” a little steel leaked back into her spine.
“Why?” I couldn’t help myself.
“Cam?” Lilith warned, but I held up my hand to tell her I was fine.
“It’s just an unusual declaration. You’re guilty of everything but one charge. Any of those charges you’re pleading to will seal your fate, so why the not-guilty plea?” I was genuinely curious as to what she was thinking.
“I did not kidnap anyone,” she stated simply.
“Roll the tape,” I pointed at Xamira.
The surveillance footage had to be slowed down significantly, and even then, Aoife wasn’t much more than a blur when she opened the door and yanked Damien out. Despite not seeing her face, it was impossible to miss her fire-red hair. Also, the number of women in the cabal HQ that stood six foot five were limited.
“That looks like kidnapping to me,” I stated bluntly.
“I was trying to protect him,” she glowered. “If you want to know why I plead not guilty to that charge, that is why. Damien was innocent, and I wanted to make sure he didn’t suffer because of who his mother was, and what she’d done. The best way to do that was to get him out of there.”
“Away from his father?” a little heat entered my tone.
“Yes,” she didn’t back down. “A father he didn’t know. And a father that had just killed his mother . . . even if it was a just act,” she stood straight and tall. No one could ever say that Aoife didn’t stand by her convictions.
Now, it was my turn to glower. I hated it when the bad guys were honorable. It was probably worse than when they were smart.
“So, you are admitting of your own free will that you were not under the compulsion of Venus Venitas when you tried to assassinate Cameron Dupree. And you conspired with her to undo a lawful election and seize power for herself,” Lilith wanted the super imp to say it out loud for the record so there was no misunderstanding.
“I tried to kill Cam and helped Venus in her plots. She was my queen. I was sworn to do my duty to her,” Aoife’s head fell again. “But I would never harm a hair on that child’s head.”
“Very well,” Lilith nodded. “I find you guilty of your crimes. Cam,” she turned to me to carry out the sentence but then paused. Normally, she skipped straight to telling me to toss them into the abyss. I turned and frowned at the look on her face.
“I will allow you to choose her punishment,” that declaration got more than a few whispers from the peanut gallery. A lot of them weren’t happy. Everyone else who’d been harmed in the coup hadn’t been given that choice.
