Chapter 2
The momentI caught the sound of approaching footsteps, I ignored the ache in my side and snapped to attention. Still in wolf form, I rose to my feet and waited for the inevitable moment when the door opened. It didn’t take long. A few seconds at most.
Light flooded the entryway, but it wasn’t the familiar silhouette of the guards. My ears twitched as my new visitor stepped inside, but it was their scent that had me snarling and backing deeper into the cage. I only knew of one person who stunk of old blood and rich cologne.
Adrian.
A lump formed in my throat, and my breath hitched. He hadn’t once come to visit since locking us in here, always sending his minions to do his dirty work. Until tonight.
I pressed my furred body against the cold, unyielding bars behind me, my eyes tracking his every step. He strode into the room at a leisurely pace, as though nothing in the world could hurry him, and I had to clamp my jaw to keep from snarling. Every bone in my body yearned to rip this asshole to shreds, to unleash every ounce of pent-up rage and frustration on him, to make him pay for what he’d done to us. For what he was currently doing to Gabriel. But deep down, I knew any sort of outburst would cost me dearly. I couldn’t give him any reason to punish Gabriel on my behalf.
Adrian strode into the room, an arrogant grin curling his lips. His gaze fell on Gabriel, and that damn grin grew. The sight nearly broke me, and a growl slipped past my lips.
The bastard’s focus swung toward me, amusement pulling one corner of his mouth higher. “Good evening, Maddie.” He turned away from Gabriel’s cage and approached mine, his eyes coldly assessing me. “My apologies for waiting so long to visit. There’s been a lot going on, which I’m sure you’ve already guessed. Preparations to handle and people to talk to.”
I clenched my teeth.
“I must say, I truly had no idea what to expect from you. When I heard my son”—he spat the word out, then glanced at Gabriel with such disdain—“took a werewolf for a mate, I expected to find some little pup following around at his heels. Not…you.” He waved a hand in my direction.
Oh, I was far from a pup, and I was dying to prove that to him.
“It’s a shame my wife is dead,” he said, the words muttered darkly. “She had this talent for making werewolves see things her way. Bending them to her will. She would have had you begging for belly rubs and whining for treats with little more than a look.”
Yes, I’d heard of the dead vampire queen’s ability to command werewolves. It was because of her, and her orders to kill Lucy, that my sister had even become a werewolf in the first place. Thanks to our father’s genes, Lucy had survived the attack, and become the alpha of the Mississippi Pack. Strange to think how all this was connected.
“But she’s gone now. Because of him,” Adrian continued, his eyes narrowed as he glared daggers at his son. “He killed her. His own mother. Just to protect his friends.”
The urge to give Adrian a piece of my mind had me instantly shifting back into human form. I’d promised myself I would remain in wolf form, but I just couldn’t keep quiet about this.
Once back on two legs, I snatched my clothes and growled a dark response while quickly dressing. “She was not his mother.”
Fury rippled across Adrian’s face. “How little you know.”
“I know everything,” I barked. I stalked closer, my hands clenched at my sides. “The two of you stole him from an abbey when he was just a kid.”
“We raised him! We loved him,” Adrian shouted, his fangs flashing at me. “We gave him the gift of eternal life. And how did he repay us? He killed the only woman he’d ever known as a mother.”
Rage on Gabriel’s behalf had me staggering a step forward and pointing a finger at Adrian. “He killed her because he had no choice. You want someone to blame? How about you blame your wife? She was the one terrorizing your people. She was the one burning down establishments and holding people’s loved ones hostage in order to make them obey. She was the one who ordered a werewolf to kill my sister! And she was the one who tried to murder Anna. Gabriel did what he did, not because he wanted to, but because she left him no other choice. Maybe ask yourself where you were during all this. You should have been there to help him, to rein your wife back in, but last I heard, you were too busy sticking your cock where it didn’t belong to know what was happening.”
Shock flickered across Adrian’s face, clearly stunned I knew so much about his so-called family. That shock quickly morphed into fury and he lunged for the bars, his hand held up as though he meant to strike me. Good luck with that. He’d have to open the cage to do so, and I would enjoy that immensely. A truth he saw in my own wicked grin.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Oh, but I do,” I taunted, taking great pleasure in this moment. “You loved her. She was your whole world. But you weren’t hers. It had to hurt when you learned you weren’t your wife’s mate. I couldn’t imagine how that felt.” My face hardened. “But that’s no excuse for your behavior. She caused a lot of pain, and you sat by and did nothing. And because you did nothing, you forced your son to step up and take matters into his own hands. You don’t like how he handled things? Well, guess you should have been there to help him. But no, you’re just another absentee father who only cares about legacy and bloodlines. Well, fuck you. Fuck all of you.”
Clearly, I had some pent-up daddy issues to release.
Something akin to pure rage rippled across Adrian’s face. It took a moment, but he calmed down and appraised me with a cool expression. “I can’t tell if you’re brave or incredibly stupid. You realize I could kill you right now?”
I threw my arms open, practically daring him to make a move. “Do it then.”
Adrian drew a long, and unnecessary, breath. Once he released it, he took a step back, shaking his head.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” I said, my chiding tone clearly rankling him. “Because you aren’t the one pulling the strings here, are you? You’re waiting for someone else to arrive before you do anything. The question is, who?”
Adrian sneered, flashing his fangs at me. He didn’t answer the question. Instead, he stalked toward Gabriel’s cage. At the sight of his son unresponsive and unconscious, Adrian’s sneer turned into a smirk. One that curdled my blood.
The second Adrian reached for the lock, I lunged at the bars with a snarl I’d only heard myself make when in wolf form. I grabbed the cold metal and shook the cage as hard as I could. “Get the fuck away from him.”
Adrian turned to face me, our gazes locking. I held his stare, all the while imagining the many ways I could kill him.
“Not so cocky now, are you?” he taunted.
He pushed his hand into a pocket and withdrew a set of keys and another syringe. I rattled the bars again and cried out. “Leave him alone!”
Adrian’s lips curled in a taunting smile as he lifted the syringe in the air and uncapped it. Apparently, it was his turn to taunt me.
“Shouting won’t help you, Maddie,” he commented, his voice completely devoid of the anger I’d seen only moments ago. “There’s no one around for miles. No one would hear you.”
I slammed my hands against the bars, the metallic clang echoing in the dark room. “I’m going to kill you. I’m going to kill all of you.”
That smirk only grew. “You werewolves. Always so arrogant. But in the end, every single one of you is just another animal. Easily caged.” He inserted the key into the lock and twisted it with a click that sent a spike of dread right through my heart. He wrenched open the door and stepped inside. “You can roar and growl and gnash your teeth, but soon, you won’t be my problem anymore.”
He crouched and inserted a syringe into Gabriel’s neck for the second time that night.
My fingers gripped the bars so hard, I hoped they’d break. The instant the holy water hit Gabriel’s veins, his body gave the slightest twitch. I sucked in a sharp breath, hope blooming in my chest. It was the first time he’d moved in a day, but I took it to mean he was still fighting, still holding on.
I tore my focus from my mate and glared at Adrian. “I am going to rip you to pieces. Do you hear me?” I released the bars and took three slow steps backward. “And I’m going to keep you alive as long as I can so you can watch me tear you apart.”
Adrian gave a derisive snort, then stood. “Good luck with that, luv.”
I jerked at the sound of Gabriel’s pet name for me. Adrian’s mocking use of it twisted the knife deeper, fueling a rage within me that burned hotter than any fire. My heart pounded against my ribs, a wild drumbeat urging me to take action, to deliver on my promises, but until I escaped this cage, I was useless.
Adrian stepped out of Gabriel’s cage and locked it behind him. With a wink, he pocketed the key, then turned to leave.
I started pacing, all the while wracking my brain for any sort of plan. I had to get us out of here, I just didn’t know how. And didn’t that realization just chap my ass. I was supposed to be this badass vampire slayer, and here I was, trapped in this godforsaken cage without the slightest idea about how to escape.
As Adrian turned to leave, another set of footsteps, slow and measured, approached the room. I frowned and glanced from the door to Adrian, alarmed at the sight of his smug grin.
“Finally,” he murmured, more to himself than me.
That wasn’t a good sign. Anything that made him that happy spelled disaster for me.
The footsteps drew closer, then paused at the threshold. Muffled voices carried down into the room, the guards’ tones unmistakable. But it was the other voice—a third one I didn’t know—that caught my attention and stirred something in my memory.
Frowning, I inched closer to my cage door and listened. The voice was deep and accented. Unsurprising, considering most of Adrian’s people were British. But there was something about the playful lilt and dramatic pauses that sparked familiarity.
Before I could place it, the door swung open, and our visitor slowly entered. My gaze started low and slowly climbed upward, taking in every detail. Black combat boots, dark acid-washed jeans, a plaid long-sleeved shirt rolled up past his elbows, and an angular face with freckled cheeks, brown eyes, and blond hair.
But I didn’t recognize him.
Not even a flicker of recognition.
I shot Adrian another glance to find that ever-present smirk still gracing his lips. He’d turned to face our visitor. “Ah. Just in time,” he said, his voice laced with a satisfaction that sent shivers down my spine. “I trust your trip was pleasant?”
“Pleasant enough, considering the circumstances,” the familiar voice replied, his eyes locked on Adrian. He hadn’t spared me even a single glance yet. Apparently, I wasn’t worth his time.
Brows creased, I replayed his words in my head. I knew this voice. I just couldn’t place it.
The stranger took the last step, coming to a stop next to Adrian. He towered over him by at least half a foot.
“I’m glad you could join us,” Adrian said. “Now that you’re here, we can dispose of this little problem of ours.”
The blond nodded, then flicked a glance at Gabriel. Disappointment flashed across his face, and his mouth flattened into a grim line. Then he finally turned to look at me. Those dark eyes captured mine and held them as he casually strolled across the room, his hands tucked behind his back.
“Ah, Maddie. It’s about time we finally met.”
My frown deepened. I lifted my chin and drew in a deep breath, but his scent told me nothing. Everything about him was unfamiliar—except his voice.
“Who are you?” I demanded, refusing to play nice.
His mouth twitched with what I assumed was humor. He closed the remaining distance between us and leaned against the cage. This close, I could reach through the bars and rip his head clean off. Yet he seemed utterly unafraid of me.
“Yeah, I suppose you wouldn’t know me. We’ve spoken, but never really met.”
I canted my head and studied his face, memorizing his features.
“I guess it’s time to rectify that. Allow me to formally introduce myself. I’m Elias.”
The name hit me like a punch to the gut.
Elias.
Memories of all our phone calls came rushing back, and my stomach dropped. Gabriel had assured me we could trust his brother, that their bond was unbreakable, that Elias would never do anything to harm us. Yet, here he stood, next to Adrian, the one man I wanted dead most in the world.
Wet heat pricked my eyes, and I had to turn away before my tears fell. I refused to let them see how this surprise affected me. I’d trusted him. Gabriel had trusted him.
“Yes, I’d imagine this is a bit of a shock,” Elias commented, his voice calm, almost teasing.
“Why?” I demanded, grateful that my tone didn’t waiver.
“Why what?”
I whirled around, anger replacing my tears. “Why betray your brother like this?”
Elias snapped to attention, the humor vanishing from his face in the blink of an eye. “Betray him? Oh, Maddie, I don’t know what stories my dear brother has been regaling you with, but he betrayed me. He murdered our mother and stole my throne. Don’t pretend like you’re shocked. You’re not stupid, nor na?ve.”
A fresh wave of rage surged through me, one tainted by a simultaneous sense of defeat. This would devastate Gabriel. He loved his brother.
I shook my head and turned my back on him again. I couldn’t look at him. “Let me guess. You’re the person we’ve been waiting for? The mysterious him everyone kept talking about.”
“Mysterious?” he chuckled. “Hmm. I quite like that. Nothing mysterious about me, I’m afraid. It just took me a little longer to get here than anticipated. Traveling internationally can be challenging for the sun-averse.”
“And now that you’re here?” I demanded.
Movement had me turning to find Elias strolling toward Gabriel’s cage. He stared down at his brother, his face devoid of any emotion.
“I needed to be here for this,” Elias murmured. “Regardless of what he’s done, he’s still my brother.” He lifted his head and caught my gaze. “I wanted to be here to watch him die.”
Elias’s words cut through me. It felt like someone had driven a blade deep into my heart, then given it a little twist, just because. The way he’d spoken those words, so cold, so detached, I never would have imagined how deeply his hatred ran.
“Elias,” I whispered, at a loss for what to say. “He’s your brother.”
Elias’s gaze remained steady, unflinching. “My brother died the day he killed our mother. What’s left of him, this husk of a vampire, is not the brother I knew.”
I pressed a hand to my stomach. This wasn’t the Elias Gabriel had told me about, the brother he’d admired and trusted. This man was a stranger, cold and vengeful. He’d flown thousands of miles just to watch Gabriel die.
“He loves you,” I whispered.
Elias’s eyes narrowed, a flicker of something—hurt, or perhaps regret—crossing his face before he quickly masked it.
“Then he never should have done what he did.”
Adrian stepped back into the frame. “Oh, the drama of family. But enough wallowing and arguing. Let’s do what we came for and finish this. Once they’re dead, we’ll hand their bodies over to the Academy. They’ve promised to make it look like an accident.”
Horror swept through me, and I shook my head. “Don’t do this, Elias.”
He cast me a disgusted look, then turned away from Gabriel and gestured for Adrian to leave. Elias waited for Adrian to step through the door before he turned and stared at me, his expression open and calm. He pointedly stared at me before tapping one of his fangs and pointing at Gabriel. Then, without a single word, he turned and left.
My heart pounded as my focus bounced between Gabriel and the closed door. What had that been about? Clearly, Elias had been trying to tell me something that he hadn’t wanted Adrian to overhear.
I inched closer to the cage bars, my mind racing, Elias’s gestures playing over and over. Each action had seemed deliberate. But what did it mean? Did he want me to bite Gabriel? Suck out the holy water like someone would the poison of a snake? Except, even I knew that wasn’t an accurate way of purifying someone’s blood.
I froze, my eyes widening as the realization slowly sank in.
Blood.
Gabriel needed blood! How had I not made this connection before? Vampires healed everything through blood. It was so simple, yet so profound. For the first time in days, excitement thrummed beneath my skin.
I shot the door another glance, and listened as Elias instructed Adrian to meet him in another room, then ordered the guards to prepare for their departure. Their footsteps faded into the distance. For the first time since waking up here, we were alone, no one guarding us.
Holy shit.
If I was going to do this, it had to be now. Because every damn second mattered.