Chapter 11 Lennox
LENNOX
The door to my and Nol’s cell clanged open, waking me from a restless sleep.
Since we had moved to this new location, they had allowed Nol and I to share a room. I didn’t know why, but I was grateful, so I didn’t question it. Anytime we were separated, I worried about him. My mind conjured up every possible thing Adreona could have been doing to him.
With him in the same room as me, I could attempt to get a little bit of sleep.
For three days now, I had been faking the spell, killing innocent vampires while Nol watched on, Adreona standing beside him, one of her guards holding a dagger to my brother’s throat.
She was infuriated each time the vampire keeled over dead, but she didn’t question me. She sent me back to my cell with Astria’s journal telling me to do better tomorrow.
I worried if I didn’t start to make actual progress, she might resume with punishments. On me or on Nol. But I’d worry about that if it came to it.
I’d stall for as long as I could while I tried to figure out a way to get us out of here.
Getting myself out was one thing, but now, with Nol—I wouldn’t leave him behind, so my task got a lot more difficult. If I was going to get us out of here, it would have to be while we were in Adreona’s office, while I had access to my magic.
I sat up from my mattress on the ground as Nakul shoved a cloaked figure through the door, not saying a word before slamming it shut again. The newcomer grunted as she fell to her knees, breathing heavily as the door locked behind her, dark hair falling across her face, hiding her features from me.
This new location must be short on space if they were adding another prisoner to our room.
I reached for my thigh, feeling for a dagger that wasn’t there.
I spared a glance at Nol, who somehow still slept.
Maybe that was a perk to having been a prisoner for so long. You could sleep through anything.
“There aren’t any more beds, you’ll have to sleep on the floor,” I told the new prisoner as I crossed my arms over my chest, shifting to stand in front of Nol’s slumbering form.
“I’ll fight you for it.” The female stood, a smile creeping up her face as she removed her hood.
“Luce,” I breathed.
I ran to her, throwing my arms around my cousin. “What happened? Why are you here?”
My heart hammered in my chest. She’d been caught. She wasn’t here to rescue me, she was a prisoner alongside me.
My stomach twisted.
Luce didn’t let go of my arms, she leaned in close, whispering in my ear, “Trust me, it’s all part of the plan.”
A plan. She had a plan.
I met her gaze, there wasn’t a flicker of fear or worry in her eyes. Only wide-eyed excitement and determination. I squeezed her arms tight.
Luce had a plan. But what kind of plan could she have that included her getting captured and thrown in a cell without magic? The seed of hope in my chest flickered. I’d been in here for weeks unable to find a way out, what could Luce possibly do from the inside?
“Lennox?” Nol’s voice was rough with sleep as he shifted on the makeshift bed, the lantern casting him in shadows and orange light.
“Does your plan allow room for one more?” I stepped aside to reveal Nol.
“Luce?”
My cousin sucked in a breath. “Nol?” Her voice wavered. “Is that really you?”
Nol stood. “It’s a long story, but yes, it’s me.”
“I don’t—” Luce placed a trembling hand on Nol’s shoulder. “You’re real. You’re not dead.” Her voice wobbled. “I knew you weren’t dead. I told everyone I could feel it. Holy fuck. Nol, you’re alive.”
She threw her arms around Nol, crushing him to her. “I’ve missed you.”
“Not as much as I’ve missed you, master storyteller.”
I let Nol and Luce have their reunion—they had always been closer—Nol and Luce were a pair and me and Kara and I were the other.
They’d always had so much in common being the heirs. They were each other’s best friends, and Kara was mine.
I sat back and listened as Nol filled Luce in on how he had ended up here and what had transpired since I arrived.
“They put a hand on you?” Luce whipped her head toward me.
I flinched as I remembered the sting of the whip against my back. My still-healing scars tender against my clothes.
I lifted my chin. “Yes.”
“Luka will go on a killing spree when he hears that.”
Besides everything, I let myself smile slightly. “Not if I do so first.”
Luce rolled her eyes. “Has she told you about him?” She bumped her shoulder against Nol’s.
“About her mate? A little, yes.”
“Wait until you see the two of them together, they’re insufferable. You should have seen how they tried to resist one another. Drove us all insane.” She smirked.
Nol’s eyes met mine. “I can’t wait to meet the male who has managed to win over my sister’s heart.”
“How is he?” I asked tentatively. “Luka, how has he been?”
“Insufferable. We have to practically force him to eat and sleep. He’s ready to run himself into an early grave looking for you.”
“Is he mad at me—for what I did?”
Luce placed a gentle hand on my arm. “No, he’s not mad at you. He knows you, Lennox. He knew, walking into the mountains that day, you would trade yourself for Kara if it came down to it. He’s worried about you. And he misses you.”
The mark on my palm burned. I traced my finger over the lines.
“And he’s been irritable as fuck, but I’m sure that’s partly because he’s gone from fucking you incessantly to nothing.”
“Luce!” I shrieked, slapping her on the arm.
Nol groaned. “I didn’t need to hear that.”
“Better get used to it Nol, because Lennox and Luka are not quiet, and you know the moment they are reunited they’re going to start ripping each other’s clothes off.”
Even I couldn’t stop myself from laughing as Nol fell back onto the bed, covering his face with a pillow. There was no use in scolding Luce this time, what she said had truth to it.
I’d let Luka take me in the middle of a crowded forest if that’s where he wanted me when we were united.
But we needed to get out of here before that could happen.
“So,” I lowered my voice to a whisper, “What’s the plan?”
A sly smile worked its way onto Luce’s face. “We’re going to break you out from the inside.”
“How? Without magic or weapons, we’re as much as dead if we try to escape.”
“They’ll send the Dhampirs after us,” Nol added.
“It’s a good thing I found a way for us to use magic then.” Luce waggled her dark brows. I opened my mouth to protest, but Luce stopped me. “Try it.” She nodded toward my hands.
I reached for my magic. Every time we switched locations, I tried to summon my magic, hoping one day they’d mess up the spell that cut me off from it while I was in my cell.
Week after week I tried and nothing—until today.
Magic rushed to my palms. Tiny flames sparked from my fingertips. “How?”
“They were smart, I was smarter.”
Beside me, Nol brought a ball of water to his palm.
“They created a spell to snuff out your magic, so I created a spell to nullify their spell.”