Chapter 15
The news came just after midnight. A lead, a credible one. Aleksander was hiding in a secluded private chalet in the Swiss Alps, near Grindelwald. A remote, defensible position, but one he had occupied for at least forty-eight hours. A lifetime in their world.
Devon, who had been in the training room with Kate, transformed from patient mentor to a creature of cold, lethal focus.
The change was so abrupt it was like watching a mask drop.
One moment, he was coaching her through a complex defensive form; the next, he was a four-hundred-year-old predator preparing for a hunt.
He moved through the compound’s main hall, issuing quiet commands. “Luc, Antoine, with me. Sophia, I need two of your best trackers. We leave in twenty minutes.”
Kate followed him, her heart starting to hammer against her ribs with a mixture of fear and anticipation. This was it. The first real move against the monster who had shattered her life.
“I’m coming with you,” she said, her voice steady, betraying none of the turmoil inside her.
Devon didn’t stop moving. “No.”
The single word was flat, absolute. It wasn’t a suggestion; it was a verdict, and it landed like a physical blow, stealing the air from her lungs.
“You promised,” she said, her voice dropping, laced with hurt and disbelief. She hurried to keep pace with his long strides, forcing him to stop by planting herself directly in his path to the armory.
“You looked me in the eye, and you promised we would do this together. That I would be there when he died.”
He finally stopped, and the agony in his expression was far worse than simple anger. His eyes, usually so full of warmth when they looked at her, were now chips of obsidian clouded with a pain that mirrored her own.
“I know what I promised,” he said, his voice raw, tight with a conflict that was tearing him apart. “And I know I am breaking that promise. But I can’t… Kate, I can’t lose you.”
He took a step closer, his hands coming up to frame her face, his touch desperate.
“I have lived for four hundred years. I have lost everyone I have ever cared for. I will not lose you. Not to him. I would rather break my word to you a thousand times than risk your life once.”
“I’m ready,” she insisted, her voice gaining strength, her hands covering his. “I can control my senses and I can fight.”
“I know,” he whispered as he brushed his thumbs across her cheekbones.
“You are stronger than I ever imagined. But you are not ready for him. You’ve never seen him in a real fight.
He is chaos and cruelty made flesh. I won’t let you be in the same room as that monster.
Not when there’s even a chance he could hurt you again. ”
“How will I ever be ready if you keep me locked away like some fragile doll?” Her words were sharper than she intended, fueled by a sudden rush of anger.
“This isn’t what it’s about,” he said, his voice low and intense.
“This is about me being able to do what needs to be done without having to worry about you. My focus needs to be on him, and only him. If you are there, you will be my focus. I can’t protect you and lead a mission at the same time.”
Of course it made sense, but it felt like a punch to the gut.
He didn’t see a partner. He saw a liability, a weakness to be protected.
The weeks of training, of pushing her body and mind to their absolute limits, of learning to embrace this new, powerful existence, all felt like they amounted to nothing.
In his eyes, she was still the victim he needed to protect and save.
“So I’m a distraction,” she said, her voice hollow.
“You are the reason for this,” he corrected, his expression softening immediately. He reached out, his hand cupping her cheek. His touch was a familiar comfort, but tonight it felt like a placating gesture.
“You are the reason I will not fail. And that means ensuring you are safe while I eliminate the threat. Stay here. Train with Sophia. Be ready for when I return.”
He leaned in and kissed her forehead, a gesture that suggested the conversation was over. Then he turned and walked away, leaving her standing alone in the cold, sterile hallway.
She watched them go, a unit of ancient predators moving with a shared, deadly purpose. And she was not one of them. She was the treasure to be guarded, the prize to be won back. The thought was so infuriating, so diminishing, it made her want to scream.
She retreated to her room, the walls of the compound suddenly feeling less like a sanctuary and more like a cage. She paced the floor, an agitated energy thrumming through her veins. She could feel the bond, the hateful tether that still connected her to Aleksander.
It was a faint, ugly hum in the back of her mind, a constant reminder of her violation. She had been trying to shut it out, to build mental barriers against it. But now, in her frustration and anger, she found her focus slipping. The hateful connection felt stronger and more present.
She attempted to push it away and focus on her training. Focus on the anger she felt toward Devon, anything to avoid the cold dread creeping into her heart.
But the feeling wouldn’t go away. There was a sense of doom approaching, a whisper of something wrong that had nothing to do with her wounded pride.
All she could do was wait and hope she was wrong.