Chapter 6

Joshua POV

I am wearing a white dress shirt, nice black dress slacks, and a pair of black dress shoes. I am looking good and smelling good as I got into my Ruby. I typed Rue's address into my GPS, and drove to her home. Rue doesn't live too far from me, and she lives in a mobile community. As I pulled up to her home, I saw a cop car and a mocha-skinned in a police uniform scolding Rue. The male is tall, with a fade and thin mustache, Rue is wearing a white sundress with floral pattern and sandals, with her curly hair down. She looked like a sad little girl while the male was scolding her. I got out of Ruby and walked over to see what was going on. They both turned to me, and instantly realized that the male is her father. His scent and mismatched eyes gave it away.

"You must be my daughter's mate. I am Jon Johnson Sr., Chief of Police," the male said. He seemed reserved and a bit shy as we shook hands while eyeing me suspiciously. "I will break my foot up your ass if anything happens to her under your watch. I don't care what or who you are," Officer Johnson threatened. "Dad!" Rue exclaimed. Normally, I wouldn't tolerate this disrespect and threats from lesser wolves. However, this is a protective father looking out for his daughter and besides, he is my father-in-law even if I wasn't legally married to Rue. He patted Rue on her shoulder, got into his car, and drove off.

"What was going on?" I asked. She looked at me blinking away unshed tears, and explained what was going on. Her father caught wind that she took a gig at Cisp Town. He was even more pissed that she put herself on the radar of Batteux. I get why he is pissed, that vampire lord is creepy as fuck. How her daddy went about it is unfair, in my opinion. When you are starting your own business, you can't choose your customers. If your customer is a VIP, one wrong move could hurt your business.

We got into Ruby, and drove to her grandma's bar. Rue's curves, behind, and legs looked so good in that sundress. I salute the person who made the sundress, I love her in sundresses. The bar is a fun and cozy little place, it almost looks like a family restaurant. Rue's grandmother came out to meet me and take our orders, my jaw almost dropped at the sight of her. Both women could be twin sisters, minus the eyes and mannerisms. After Miss Raina took our orders, she gave me the "I-am-watching-you" gesture, which had me chuckle to myself.

Rue remembers that on Sunday, her play cousin is coming back home after graduating from college. Nathan will be working with Officer Johnson as an enforcer. Out of nowhere, she received a text from her mother to invite me over for the Sunday dinner. It had startled Rue as she tried to spot her mother in the bar. After realizing that her mother wasn't at the bar, Rue warned me that Nathan was the result of two fated people who went on break, and met other people. Unfortunately, both relationships didn't work out, so they got back together. The baby daddy is a part-time social media parent.

"Why would they get back together?" I asked Rue. I never understood going on break, like are you together or not? "Well, the mom is a homemaker who hardly cooks, cleans, and works, while his "dad" is a sarcastic, misanthropic black hole. Even though they are fated, they don't have a lot of options. More like, don't have a lot of lovers or suitors lined up. Due to the dad's infertility, Nathan is the closest thing to a child he will ever have. He fell in love with Nathan when he was born. Raising Nathan is a little cheaper than adoption and IVF for them," explained Rue.

Suddenly, a male vampire came over, and started talking to us, well to Rue mostly. He introduced himself as Thaddeus, Bernia's husband. Rue gave me a quick rundown on what is going on. As she was explaining, I looked at the vampire in disgust. What a selfish and weak piece of shit! This Bernia woman got the short-end of the stick. She died alone, being betrayed by the two people she trusted. I don't even share a drink of water with my cousin, and I would never mess with her partners. Going after relatives is kind of nasty to me. I really hate the whole cousin/sibling dynamic when it comes to the whole mom or dad messing with in-laws.

"Why did my wife put you in her will and leave you all her money?" Thaddeus asked Rue. Is he serious right now? His wife has been brutally murdered, and all he cares about is his inheritance. Your mate is more valuable than gold and life itself. Your mate is your best friend, support system, lover, therapist, and partner. Thaddeus should be more concerned about catching his wife's killer. This prick was more concerned about money when he just received the house, which is more than he deserves. "I don't really know why Bernia put me in her will, we weren't close. I was always cordial with her, but she was a very private person. I worked with her for years, and can't even tell you her favorite color and food. Bernia was like an onion, you have to peel at an onion to get to know them. Bernia however, she was like an onion with sharp metal needles protruding in her skin. I wouldn't be surprised that she was private about work when she went home. Am I correct?" asked Rue. Thaddeus hesitated when Rue asked him that. Wow, he didn't know his own wife. How disinterested in Bernia was he? Did he even care about her at all? Did she even mean anything to him?