*Darick’s POV*I grunted, resting my hand on my lower back. From head to toe, every bone in my body felt like it was on fire. A searing pain erupted at the back of my head, and pain tore through me like shattered glass with every step. As bad as the pain was, nothing bothered me more than my own pride.I had almost got my men killed. I HAD gotten men killed…all because I wasn’t on my game. All because I was distracted. All because Amon got the upper hand. The look of despair on their faces would haunt me for many nights to come. I could still see Amon grabbing Blade's body from the van as we drove away. The question of whether or not he was still alive plagued me. Knowing Amon, it could go either way. I had never left a man behind, and I wasn't going to start now. I was already plotting a way to free him and prayed Amon hadn't killed him. It was the worst battle I had ever lost. I tried to wrap my mind around what went wrong, but it hurt to think about it,
*Gwen’s POV*Darick inhaled deeply. He took a moment to reply—and even though it was a fraction of a second, the hesitancy worried me."Are you sure?" he finally asked. I interlocked my fingers with his, more for my own reassurance than his. "Yes, I'm not afraid. I want to, Darick. I'm ready to give myself to you. All of me." "It may hurt. You may even pass out," he noted with a hint of seriousness in his eyes. "I'm not afraid," I repeated.Darick observed me for a little while longer before walking to his closet. I watched him as he shuffled through clothes and other items. He grabbed what looked like lingerie and then shut the closet door.“Do you know what this fully means?” he asked me. It seemed like he was giving me another chance to back out, but I wasn’t going to. I was determined on my decision.“Yes,” I replied. “Well, somewhat. Isabella briefly told me.”Darick nodded. "The ‘kiss’ is a special ritual. It's an act of ecstatic an
*Gwen’s POV*That night, after returning downstairs to help Amber tend to the others and get them to their respective bedrooms, we crashed. We were both exhausted—me, from giving so much blood, and Darick, from battle.When I woke the next day, I saw Darick already awake, staring at me. "Good morning, beautiful." He leaned forward and kissed my forehead. I smiled scooting closer to him.“Good morning,” I replied.Darick pushed a strand of hair behind my ear. "You slept so peacefully last night." "I slept peacefully because I was in your arms," I said, resting my hand on his chest. Darick looked at the clock on the bedside table and sighed. "I can't stay long, but there are some things I need to share with you before I go into my meeting with Amber." "Okay…" I climbed on top of him, and he swaddled the covers over me, hemming me in."Vampires…we’re particular creatures. We like to keep the knowledge of our politics to ourselves. Few
*Gwen’s POV*"Gwen… I-I don't know what to say. I'm so sorry this is happening to you. What can I do to help," Isabella said, grabbing my hand.I gazed at the wall, lost in a trance. Was this situation of me being held hostage by vampires and falling in love with one real? Was I stuck in a nightmare? Vampires aren't real. None of this is real. I wanted someone to pinch me and wake me up. But it never came."Gwen, are you okay? Please say something." Isabella waved her hand in front of my trying to gain my attention. "Please tell me I'm dreaming,” was all I could say. “Please tell me this is just all a bad nightmare, and I'm going to wake up any minute now." My bottom lip trembled as tears streamed down my cheek. "I'm so sorry, Gwen. I wish this were all a bad dream." She wrapped her around me, and my face plunged into her chest. "What can I do?" Isabella said softly as she rubbed my back. I lifted my head and grabbed the picture of Che
*Darick’s POV*I stormed into my office and began tearing through papers and books. I needed to formulate a plan of some sort—one that would help save this Chelsea woman, and also protect Gwen. To be honest, after what she said to me, I didn’t know why I was still helping her.But I was.I growled. Situations like this are why I don't get into relationships. I knew the minute I started having feelings for Gwen, her life was going to be in danger. Love was a weakness, and arsenal for your enemies. It was even worse as a vampire.Edward once told me love would be the death of vampires. We aren't made for love, only lust. We are demonized and shunned—we'll never be accepted. I should have listened to Edward. But here I was, searching the room for answers to help someone who had already turned her back on me.To top it all off, I’d be getting a summons from the Elders soon regarding the last fight. Too many issues had gotten out of my control under my leadership. Ther
*Gwen’s POV*I waited, staring into Isabella’s eyes. She didn’t speak for what seemed like an eternity.Isabella inhaled deeply and sighed."I don't know much about breaking blood oaths, but I was told your master can break them, if they know how. When Viktor first told me what Darick did to you, I searched for the book in the library to see if there was another way to break the blood oath because I wanted to set you free, but I couldn't find anything."My eyes widened in awe. "You were willing to do that for me, despite not knowing me?"She nodded. "Yes, because I disagreed with Darick bonding you two for life. There were other ways he could have kept you here without using that method. Viktor didn't agree with what Darick did either. It was the source of a lot of tension between them when you first arrived.""I thought Viktor hated me…" I said, meeting her eye.Isabella licked her lips and paused for a moment. "Well, he wasn't pleased about you brea
*Darick’s POV*Viktor turned off the van headlights and slowly approached the back entrance of what used to be our headquarters. My stomach churned each time I saw what used to be our territory. I could still picture the community of vampires laughing together during an evening event.I shook my head. Now wasn’t the time to get sentimental. Gwen and Chelsea’s lives were on the line. I grabbed my walkie-talkie and contacted Amber, who was scanning the area a few miles away."Amber. Come in. Do you copy?”"I can hear you, Darick. Are you guys in the tunnel yet?" she responded. "No. We just arrived. I know you're far out, but how are the skies looking?" The question was code for if there were any rival vampires out to make sure our path was clear. We also didn't know if Amon had any systems that could track our frequency."Skies are clear tonight, Darick," Amber responded."Roger that. I'll get in touch with you soon.""Ok. Be safe. I won't b
*Gwen’s POV*My heart raced as Jasper inched closer to the door. Shit, I needed to say something, and quick."Wait!" I shouted. "I-I, uh, wanted to say I wish I could have been able to go with you the night you tried to kidnap me." I bat my eyes and bit my bottom lip. I had to do something to try and stall for time. Amon’s eyebrow raised, and he lifted a finger to stop Jasper. "Really?" "Yeah. I’ve realized…I want to be with a big, strong, sexy vampire like you. After the way you took control at Darick’s…it’s all I’ve been thinking about.” "Well, I tried to show you what you were missing out on," Amon smirked, taking a step closer to me. He was so close, I could almost feel his breath on my face. It took everything in me not to step back—not to lose my cool."Hey, boss, don't you want—""Shut the fuck up!" Amon yelled, interrupting Jasper. I swore I saw Amon’s eyes flick for a second to red, and then he shook his head and re