CALEB POV
“Well, that makes sense,” Reese said. “The prophecy mentioned a traitor.”
“Dammit,” Ethan swore. I could hear Alessia next to him, shouting.
“We need to go back,” she was saying.
“Why?” I asked, curiously. Ethan put her on speaker phone.
“We need to get Troi. Remember the prophecy? We need to keep her close. The prophecy was very specific.” Alessia was adamant.
Brian and I looked at each other. “I got this here,” Brian said to me, quietly. “Go. Go get your mate back.”
“You guys keep going. I’ll bring Troi,” I said into the phone. “I’ll be there in six hours.”
IZZY POV
I took Bart’s advice and I covered up with some of the straw. It was a little warmer. I w
IZZY POVThe jerk didn’t even give me shoes or slippers. I wasn’t wearing any when I was taken, and they didn’t bother to give me any to use. They marched me out of the jail cell across the packed snow and ice to a huge house that loomed in the distance. My feet were numb within the first five steps.I looked around the property. I could see a massive concrete wall around the entire perimeter. Razor wire looped over the top of the wall and there were cameras spaced every few feet. I wondered if it was to keep people in or people out.We stepped out of the shelter of the jail and the gale of wind caught me. I put my arms around my body, trying to shield myself from the icy wind. I was wearing a loose hoodie, and the wind was relentless, finding every opening to blow into. I was shaking hard from the cold by the time we made it to the house.I was unceremoniously pushed into
IZZY POVIt took me a minute to find my voice. “I will not betray my mates,” I said, my voice shaking. I did not look at him, expecting a blow or some other sort of retaliation for my defiance. He did not move, just stood next to me for a moment before walking back to his desk.“You will come to me soon, begging me to take you to my bed,” he said, taking a seat in his chair. He sounded matter of fact.I said nothing, still sitting on the floor in front of the fire. He looked at me, his mouth quivering with amusement. “I see you doubt me.”“I do,” I said. “I know that I won’t betray my mates, no matter what you do to me.”He studied me for a moment. “Perhaps you should be worried about your pups?” he suggested. “Would you betray your mates for your pups?”I shook my head. “I would not.&nbs
REESE POV“What do you mean you can’t get me any closer?” I demanded. Travis looked nonplussed.“See this?” he asked, showing me a computer screen with a blue swath over most of the map. “Snow. A massive storm is starting. Going to be a few days before it even begins to clear up.”“So you won’t even bring us up there?” I asked in disbelief. “What about our wolves? Can we go on foot? Wouldn’t they make it?”Travis looked at me with exasperation. “Reese, you haven’t changed a bit from Alpha School. You were always my most pain in the ass student. There’s a reason I teach survival skills and a reason I’m a guide up here. I’m good at it. I will keep you alive. You need to believe me and understand. Our wolves won’t make it. The only way to m
IZZY POVI was cold. I woke up because my face hurt from the freezing air. I opened my eyes to see snow drifting into the little slits that let in our sunlight. I groaned and rolled over, pulling my hoodie tighter around my face.“This storm will last a few days,” Bart said, his voice gloomy. I opened my eyes again.“Yesterday morning you weren’t so pessimistic,” I said, critically. “What changed?”He shrugged. “I thought I’d be able to enjoy some conversation for the first time in years. But you either slept or you were gone. I didn’t get to talk to you.”I snorted. “Believe me, my time with Cornelius wasn’t a picnic.”He began to giggle and then the giggle turned into a booming laugh. After a second, I joined him. And, honestly? After we were done laughing, I felt better about things.&n
IZZY POVI saw his foot draw back, but I was too cold and too stiff to avoid it. It crashed into my chest, rolling me backwards.“Again!” he shouted, walking away.The water started back up and I did my best to stay out of the direct spray but this time Toby was in charge. He walked around me with the nozzle, making sure it was blasting directly in my face no matter what direction I turned. I was gasping for air, trying not to breathe in the water, choking and sputtering.“Enough!” a loud voice shouted. Toby looked up at the person shouting, still spraying me.“Who are you to order me around?” he asked furiously.“The Head Guard for your father, Lord Cornelius,” the guard answered. “I answer to him, not his spoiled half-breed son.” The water stopped. I looked over to see a second guard had turned it off. I breathed a
CALEB POVI stood at the window, watching the snow swirl down. It had been nonstop snowing for three days. Travis was checking the doppler again.“There might be a break tomorrow night,” he said. “I just don’t know if it’s long enough to get us in and out.”“We can worry about getting out later,” Ethan said. “We just need to get in and get her.”Travis shook his head. “You don’t know these vampires. The fortress has a small village of people who live there. They all owe Lord Cornelius for their lives which means that they will fight for him. We have to have an exit strategy. Your mate is strong. But if she sees you killed, how strong do you think she’s going to remain? They’ll manage to keep her alive until they can cut your pups out of her and then her worth is over. Your pups will be raised by Vampir
IZZY POVWe woke to snow covering every surface in the cell. It blew so hard in the night that it looked like it stormed inside our prison. When the snow began to cover my blanket it made a layer of insulation so I was warmer than I had been since I got here. I wasn’t warm, I was just not as cold.Because I didn’t want to disturb the snow and let any of the chilly air in, I refused to get up for breakfast. It just sat there in the bucket because Bart didn’t want to move, either. We lay on our straw beds and talked. I found out that he was once married to a mortal woman, and they had two children together. One of the children had died of the bubonic plague but the other child and his wife lived long lives. Neither one had wanted him to turn them, so he had to watch them die.“What year was this?” I asked, curiously.“Mary was born in 1347 and Henry was born in 1351.&n
IZZY POVI woke up on something soft. I was hot, too hot, and everything hurt. I painfully turned my head to the left and felt a sharp sting. I put my hand up to my neck and was surprised to feel a wide collar had been fastened like a tight necklace. Or a collar. My fingers stung when I touched it and I realized it was silver.I forced my eyes open. The room was dark but there was a fire going in the fireplace, casting a reddish glow over everything. There was a high back chair situated next to the fireplace and a large figure was sitting in it.I was suddenly wracked with a cough. I rolled to my side, curling into a ball, ignoring the searing pain on my neck. I coughed until I wretched. Finally, the spasm ceased. I continued to lay on my side, exhausted and catching my breath.The figure in the chair moved into the light from the fire. I could see that it was Cornelius.