Chapter 7

“Will you stop thinking?” Jason purred. His unnatural eyes floated back to mine as I rolled my eyes at him.

The vampire king sighed. “Stop thinking, woman!” He said as he opened the via while I blink at it, curiosity buzzing through me. “I can’t sit very straight, but I can be still,” I offer, trying to sound helpful. My body ached from the restraints, but still, I wasn’t in the mood for more scolding.

He shot me a look, one that could freeze water in its tracks. “Don’t talk.”

I nodded, my lips closed tightly to keep myself from asking whether he knewI was looking at his neck.

I bit my lip to stop the retort that nearly slipped out, but it was hard. “I’m sorry that I distracted you,” I added quickly, unable to help myself. “But I have a mouth, and I love chatting. I’m a people person. I need to talk. I can't stop talking when I'm nervous. I…”

“Just shut up!” Jason shook his head, his patience clearly wearing thin. With a sharp twist of his wrist, he opened the vial and carefully poured half of the glowing liquid onto the cuff around my left ankle. I watched in awe as the metal hissed and sizzled before it began to melt, disappearing into nothingness like it had never existed.

He repeated the process on my right ankle, his movements precise and methodical. The second cuff melted away just as effortlessly, the potion eating through the metal like it was made of paper. As the last remnants dissolved, a strange lightness washed over me. For the first time in what felt like forever, I was free—no chains, no bindings, no cold metal biting into my skin.

I stretched out my legs, feeling the relief flood through me. It felt surreal, like I could finally move without the constant reminder of my captivity.

Jason pocketed the vial, standing up to his full height as he stared down at me. His stormy gaze softened just a fraction, but his voice remained as sharp as ever. "The tracking device won’t shock you anymore. But we’re not out of danger yet."

Okay.

I nodded, trying to absorb his words while my body still tingled with the aftershocks of freedom. The cuffs, the physical shackles that had been latched onto me for what felt like forever, were finally gone. My wrists still bore the raw, irritated skin where they’d once dug in, a reminder that this freedom was fragile and temporary. But it was there. I could breathe again, even if the weight of the world still pressed down on me.

Yet, I wasn’t stupid. I knew what lay beyond these walls—what waited for us. The shifter army prowling like hungry wolves, the witches scheming from their shadows, and whatever else was thrown into this mix of chaos. The freedom I felt was fleeting, and the deeper threats remained, gnawing at the edge of my awareness.

Still, a part of me couldn’t help but feel a flicker of hope. The cuffs were gone. The chains were broken. Maybe, just maybe, I wasn’t as powerless as I’d once thought.

I rolled my shoulders, testing the new sensation of movement without restraint. A grin spread across my face, wild and fierce. "Cool." I looked up at Jason, the ever-stoic vampire. "You did me a favour today. I’ll remember it. Now let’s go. I’m so ready to kick some wolf asses."

Jason’s expression didn’t change; his lips still set in that hard line. “Not yet,” he said grimly, a flicker of something dark passing through his eyes.

I blinked, my grin faltering. “Not yet?” My stomach twisted. “Why the hell not? The cuffs are gone, right? What else could possibly—”

“You have something else inside you,” he interrupted, voice low and edged with warning.

I felt my heart drop to the pit of my stomach. “What the actual fuck does that mean?” I asked, my voice rising in pitch. Panic bloomed in my chest, my mind scrambling to understand what he was talking about. Something else? What else had they done to me?

Jason’s lips quirked into a humourless smirk. “I’ll take it out, but you’ll have to endure pain.”

I bristled, clenching my fists. “Me? huh! I'm not that weak. I'm not—I—I’m not afraid of pain.” I frowned, though my heart raced faster. “I just hope it’s not in my stomach. If they messed with my organs—" Do I still have a kidney? A lung? Heart? Or my intestine?

“It’s not there and why the hell would—um, nevermind, you are one weird woman,” Jason cut me off, his tone steady but somehow still ominous. “Give me your arm.”

I hesitated for a second, then extended my left arm toward him. I’d gotten used to obeying orders, my body reacting before my mind could catch up. But the tension in his voice unnerved me. Was this really happening?

Without a word, Jason grabbed my arm. His grip was firm, and before I could ask what he planned to do, he tore my sleeve open, exposing the pale skin underneath. The cold air bit at my exposed flesh, and I shivered involuntarily.

Then I saw his hand shift. His fingers elongated, sharpening into deadly, blade-like claws. My breath caught in my throat as I stared at them, knowing what was coming. I had no time to brace myself. One of his claws slashed through the skin of my upper arm near the elbow, splitting it open with a swift, precise cut.

A strangled gasp escaped me. Blood spilt from the wound in a hot, steady stream. The pain was sharp, searing, and immediate, but I bit down hard on my lip, refusing to cry out.

"It’ll be over soon," Jason muttered, his voice a little rougher now, almost as if this was hard for him too. He didn’t look at me, his focus entirely on the wound he’d made as he worked his claw deeper, searching. I felt the metal tip scrape against something foreign under my skin, and bile rose in my throat. I clenched my teeth, trying to stay still, every instinct screaming at me to pull away from the pain.

Finally, Jason’s claw hooked onto something small. With a deft flick of his wrist, he pulled it free. My breath hitched as he held it up to the dim light—a quarter-inch nano tracking device, glinting faintly with a malicious sheen.

He flung the tiny device to the ground with a look of pure disgust, his lip curling as though the very sight of it offended him.

I stared at it, the blood still running down my arm, and something deep inside me snapped. The device was so small, so insignificant, yet it had been used to control me, to track me like I was nothing more than a piece of property. White-hot rage bubbled up from my core, my vision blurring as anger overtook me.

“They did this to me,” I hissed, my voice trembling with fury. "Those bastards... they did this to me."

Jason’s gaze softened just slightly, but his expression remained unreadable. “And now it’s gone. But don’t think for a second they’re finished with you.”

I looked up at him, feeling the hot sting of tears pricking the corners of my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. I had no time for weakness now. My anger was my armour. My pain was my weapon.

“Let them come,” I growled. My voice was steadier now, stronger. “I’ll make them regret ever laying a hand on me.”

Jegh must have implanted it in me when I blacked out. He was all about controlling me ever since I’d unfortunately crossed his path.

Fuck Jegh!

I stomped on the device and ground it to smidgens.

“You’re clean now, Ollivara,” Jason said, his claw slashing open the heel of his palm.

The divine scent of his blood twirled under my nostrils, and my eyes brightened. But fuck, it wasn’t normal that I craved his blood.

“It’s not for you to drink,” he said harshly before holding my arm and dripping his blood into the wound.

Instantly, the gash in my arm sealed. I knew that I could heal fast, but the vampire king’s potent blood helped me regenerate even faster.

I decided I’d stick with him, at least for a while.

I flashed him another grin and was about to thank him, but he turned away, completely ignoring my bright smile, and stepped out of the cell to study the sidewall as if it were more interesting than me.

“Now, let’s get the hell out of here, Ollivara,” he ordered.

"I'm not Ollivara!"

"Whatever!"