by Sara Snow
If only he knew how terrified I really was, how much I wished I could run away from this. And that feeling was odd in itself. I’d never felt the urge to run away from anything before, but I panicked every time I thought of fighting the ancient vampire. My parents, Faelen, Skye, and Cyrus all believed I could kill the Queen, but deep down, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to pull it off.
The Vampire Queen had been alive and wielding power for centuries. How was I—a young, untried wolf—supposed to kill her, even with my newfound power? Power I had yet to learn how to control, I might add. It didn’t look good.
Where are you, Will?
I made my way through the forest just as twilight turned to night.
We need to talk!
He said he’d follow me anywhere. But if I left tomorrow without seeing him, I wasn’t sure how long it’d take for him to find me again. Or if he’d even be able to.
Levi had told Darian—and only Darian—where to take me before he left, so wherever we were going, I had a feeling it wouldn’t be easy for anyone to follow us—including Will.
I stopped walking and placed a hand against a nearby tree. Looking up, I could see twinkling stars scattered in the dark night sky, and I recalled the Goddess’s skin.
“You said you’d lend me power when I need it, adding to what I already have. I really hope you meant that, because I’m going to need it.”
A scent I hadn’t smelled in far too long hit my nostrils, and I closed my eyes and sighed. My heart was racing as I turned slowly and came face-to-face with red eyes. They soon faded to an ocean blue, and Will removed the hood hiding his face.
We stared at each other for a moment, the air sizzling between us. I wanted to run to him, to feel his arms wrapped around me, but my doubts held me back. As much as I wanted to be with him, I couldn’t help remembering that he might not be everything I thought he was.
“I’m sorry I was away for so long.” He stepped towards me, and I swallowed hard. My mouth was dry as he reached up and pinched my chin, tilting my head back. His fingers were burning into my skin and he frowned, no doubt hearing my galloping heartbeat. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?” He began looking me up and down with concern, and I shook my head.
“Nothing. I’m fine. Did you learn anything?”
His hand fell away from my chin, and he stepped back. His eyes were still roaming my face with concern. Because of the high level of anxiety I was feeling, my wolf stirred, and my skin tingled with impending change. But I couldn’t lose control right now. So instead, I stepped forward and took his hand in mine.
“Please, tell me the truth. Did you learn anything?”
“Yes,” he answered, his jaws clenched. “My mother is the one behind the disappearances.”
I released his hand and allowed mine to fall to my side.
He wasn’t looking at me anymore. “But why do I feel like you already knew that, Elinor?”
“What makes you say that?”
He didn’t answer immediately, but his eyes found mine and remained there. “I’m very old, Elinor, and after living as long as I have, it gets easier and easier to read others. You were tricky to read in the beginning. It’s one reason I was so drawn to you.” He lifted a hand to touch my face but stopped. “But now I know you a little better. And you’re not looking at me the way I thought you would after not seeing me for so long. There’s broken trust in your eyes.” A small smile grew on his lips. “I knew something was wrong the minute you didn’t throw yourself at me.”
“Because if I don't just automatically throw myself at you, it must mean something's wrong? You could be the one to throw yourself at me every once in a while, you know.”
He chuckled. “I would do that right now, but I need to know what’s going on before I touch you again. I don’t want to lose an arm.”
I relaxed a little just from seeing him smile. What was it about this man’s smile that always made me feel better, no matter what else was going on in my life?
“Yes, I already knew.” I sighed and stepped around him. “Saleem and Scarlet went to the location Arden gave us. A general attacked them. I’m assuming it was one of your brothers?”
I turned to face him and saw a flash of hatred in his eyes. “Yes, that was my brother Cain. This was all his idea, his plan.”
“So it wasn’t the Queen then?”
“Oh, she’s involved. But Cain’s the one who pushed for her to do this. They want to reclaim the land that was stolen from them long ago, the land they were forced to flee from. But this time, they intend to take a little more.”
I scoffed as a gentle wind caressed my face, and I moved the single braid down my back over my shoulder. “And they’re using supernaturals to do it. Clever.”
“Yes, but I don’t think that’s all there is to it. Something else is going on, I’m sure of it. Cain is after something—I’m just not sure what. I don’t know if the Queen knows or not. If she does, she doesn’t seem to care.” He paused. “Cain’s not as strong as I am, but he shouldn’t be underestimated. What he lacks in strength, he makes up for in intelligence. My—”
He stopped speaking, and I frowned. “What? Tell me.”
“Part of the reason my mother is doing this is for me,” he answered.
My eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”
He must have fed before coming to see me because his skin was pale and his heart wasn’t beating, so he wasn’t breathing. But he inhaled deeply, no doubt an involuntary gesture.
I waited, but he said nothing. “Will?”
He took another deep breath. “The reason she wants to reclaim so much land is so that she can give it to me when she steps down.” He shook his head. “She’s doing it for me, but I swear to you, Elinor, I had no idea.”
He combed his hair back with his fingers. “I don’t live at the castle anymore. And I stay as far away from vampire business as possible. That’s why they didn’t feel the need to tell me what they were doing.” A chuckle that held no humor slipped from his lips. “It’s funny. I had been happy that they’d seemed to have forgotten about me, but now, I wish that wasn’t the case. Maybe I would have been able to stop this before it had even started.”
His words made me think of Cyrus. He, too, would be forced to live a life he didn’t want. I no longer had that problem—my father had given up on trying to marry me off—but while I was somewhat free of that now, Will and Cyrus were still trapped.
I knew how they felt. I could relate to their pain.
Will moved his cloak over his shoulders, and my eyes drifted to the neckline of his shirt. The thought of what his muscular chest and abs might look like without that shirt distracted me for a moment. When my eyes returned to his face, he shook his head.
“Don’t look at me like that.”
“I was just—”
I swallowed the rest of my words as he cupped my cheeks with both hands and kissed me. I sagged against his body, and he snaked his hands around me to pick me up. My legs dangled off the ground as I moaned into his mouth.
His body was so cold compared to mine, but the contrast felt soothing to me. He gently placed me back on my feet, his lips gliding across mine before he tipped my head back and kissed my throat.
My body stiffened, but not with fear. His fingers moved to my hair, and my eyes fluttered closed as his lips traveled slowly, leaving a trail of hot kisses to my ear.
“You thought I had betrayed you, didn’t you?” he whispered, his cool breath causing goosebumps to dot my flesh.
“Um, only a little,” I answered and then gasped as he gently nipped the top of my ear.
“Why? I will never betray you, Little Wolf. Never. What will it take for you to finally trust me?” He pulled away and stared down at me, his fingers still tangled in my hair.
I reached up to trace the outline of his lips. “I’m sorry. I do trust you, I just didn’t know what to think. But, Will, you know what has to happen, right? The Queen will have to pay for what she’s done.”<
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“I know,” he answered, suddenly serious. He released my hair but kept a firm hand on my waist. “I may not have betrayed you, but I have betrayed her. She’s still my mother, and for that, I feel . . . torn. But I won’t side with her on this. I’m not blind to the fact that my mother and my kind are poisonous.”
“Then will you help us end this? Will you show us how to get to the castle?”
His hand fell away from my waist, and my heart broke because I could see that his heart was hurting, too. No matter the state of their relationship now, there was a time when he’d ruled by his mother’s side. The thought of betraying her must be eating him alive.
I looked away, because I realized that when this was all over, I, too, would hurt my family by leaving the pack and going with Will. My family, and especially my father, would never understand.
“I’ll help you,” he finally answered, his eyes hard. “The world my mother and brother are creating isn’t one I want to live in. After I discovered the truth, I decided I would do everything I could to stop them—with or without help.”
“I knew you would help,” I replied. “But there’s more. We learned something else about the Queen. She’s Cyrus’s great-grand-niece many times over.”
Will’s eyes slid to the side contemplatively. “Of course.” He frowned. “I hadn’t even thought of that. She was a by-product of his father raping a goddess.”
“The Demon King raped a goddess? Hell, I already thought he was bad enough from the way Cyrus described him, but if he raped a goddess, he’s way worse than I thought.”
“Yes, but let’s not get into that. I should have thought about . . .” He paused, his eyes widening, and he looked me up and down. “How are you planning to defeat her?”
“How were you?” I shot back, and his eyes narrowed.
“No,” he replied, his voice murderous. “I won’t let you do it. Why didn’t I think of this?” He turned his back to me and walked away. “You’re a white wolf. Wolves like you existed before my time, and you’ve proven the rumors to be true. You have divinity enough to face her. But you can’t do it. I won’t let you.”
“I don’t have a choice, and you can’t stop me.”
“The fuck I can’t!”
I stepped back as his loud words echoed through the forest.
He blinked rapidly. “I’m sorry, but you’re not ready to face my mother, Elinor. I’m not saying that to belittle your strength. But I know how powerful my mother is. You just recently gained your new power, and you’re still not in control of it. My mother has been wielding her power for centuries.”
“Then how were you going to stop her?” He grew silent, and I crossed my arms over my chest as I waited. “Well?”
“I can easily handle my brother. And while I can’t kill my mother, I can weaken her enough that she can be trapped.”
I shrugged. “You still didn’t tell me what your plan was.”
“My venom is toxic to vampires.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “It’s something only older vampires know, ones that were alive centuries ago when I was a different man. My mother commanded them never to speak of it, so the younger vampires, the ones who now hate me, would never know.”
“I get it. It would give them more reason to say you’re some kind of freak,” I said, and he nodded.
“Yes. A vampire’s venom is toxic and potent to other species but does nothing when used on each other. Except for mine. I can’t kill the Queen, but I can wound her enough for us to contain her.”
Containing her wasn’t going to be enough to make up for all the things she’d done. I was confident that every species would agree on that, but Will might have just given me a great idea.
“Then we have the perfect plan, Will. Don’t you see? Between you, me, and Cyrus, we can defeat her.”
Even though he said he was on our side, I figured it was better not to keep talking about killing her. I knew, deep down, he understood what I was saying. But I also understood what this was costing him.
I stepped forward and took his hands into mine.
All the doubt I had previously felt evaporated, and confidence filled me. “We can do this. Cyrus is powerful, and he would have been by my side to begin with. But with your power added, I know we can do this. I can do this.”
As terrified as I was, I had to do my part, even if it killed me. And for a while there, I thought it would. But now, with Will helping us, I couldn’t help feeling like we actually stood a chance of defeating her.
“Okay,” he answered, reluctantly nodding.
“I forgot to tell you . . . I’m leaving tomorrow morning, and you can’t follow me,” I blurted out, covering his mouth with my hand before he could protest. “I have to—orders from the Council. They want me to go into hiding so I can learn to control these new powers.” I dropped my hand from his mouth. “How long do you think it’ll take for your mother to find out who and what I am?”
He pulled me against him. “Unfortunately, she probably already knows. So going into hiding isn’t a bad idea. And learning to control those powers is definitely a good thing. But me not following you?” He laughed. “That’s not going to happen.”
“Will . . .”
“I’ll keep my distance, but I’m not letting you out of my sight. If we’re going to do this together, I need to stay close.”
I thought about that for a moment, and I had to admit, he was right. “Okay.”
We fell silent, and he moved a strand of my hair behind my ear. “We make a pretty good team, don’t we?”
My cheeks heated. “It would seem so.”
We did indeed make a great team, and I pressed my lips together as a new sensation warmed the pit of my stomach. I felt terrible that I had harbored doubts about Will. But with the way he was looking at me now with such raw love in his gaze, those thoughts were silenced. He leaned forward and placed his forehead against mine. It was such a simple action, but it held so much meaning.
“I love you,” I breathed out, the words slipping from my lips of their own accord.
He kissed my forehead. “I love you, too.”
His lips claimed mine, and my eyes fluttered closed as he pulled my bottom lip into his mouth. He sucked on it gently, once, twice, and then released it, and I fisted his shirt.
My breathing became shallow as his hands snaked around me to rest on my hips. He stepped forward, closing the space between us, and I mentally urged his hand to slide lower.
I’d never been attracted to anyone the way I was to Will, so I’d never wanted to get intimate with anyone before. But ever since I’d met Will, I'd lain awake countless nights, my body yearning for his touch. And now, as I stared up into his blue eyes that were slowly turning red, I knew I was truly ready to share everything with him, body and soul.
Who knew what the future held for us? We could talk and plan as much as we wanted, but nothing was guaranteed.
And I don’t want to die without ever feeling William’s body against mine.
I frowned at that thought. I couldn’t think like that. I wasn’t going to die. But I didn’t want to ignore what I wanted any longer, either. I wanted Will with every fiber of my being, and I knew that would never change.
He took a deep breath, and a crease appeared between his brows. “Your scent, Elinor. You’re . . . I can smell your—” He swallowed hard. “—your arousal. You don’t know what you’re doing to me. I need you to calm down.”
My cheeks were burning as I looked down, unable to face him right now. “And what if I don’t want to?”
His hand slid further down my body, and I gasped as he gently grabbed and squeezed my bottom, pulling my body tight up against him so I could feel the evidence of his excitement.
“Then I need you to say it. Tell me what you want, Elinor.”
I swallowed hard and held his stare. My lips parted, but I couldn’t speak—couldn’t bring myself to say the words I wanted to—that I wanted him. My teeth sank into my lower lip as he sudd
enly lifted me off the ground. I gripped his shoulder and wrapped my legs around his waist.
“I need to hear the words, Elinor. Say them.”
“I-I want you . . . I want you to be my first.”
This time when he kissed me, he wasn’t gentle. But I didn’t mind it, and I matched his urgency with my own fire. Unwrapping my legs from around him, he shifted my weight so that he was carrying me like he would a bride.
The trees around us blurred as he sprinted through the forest, and I clung to him. I didn’t know where he was taking me, but I would gladly go anywhere with him. I trusted this man with my life, and I knew I wasn’t foolish to do so.
He ran for a few minutes, then stopped and placed me on my feet in front of an abandoned house. Because the place didn’t look as battered and decrepit as I would have thought they’d be, I looked at Will questioningly.
“I come here sometimes,” he admitted, taking my hand and leading me inside. “When I need space.”
I was surprised to find the place clean, though rather empty. “This is awfully close to my pack. Weren’t you ever worried about being discovered?”
He didn’t answer as he gently tugged on my hand, and I followed him towards a closed door. When he opened it, my heart skipped a beat when I saw the lightly furnished bedroom.
I swallowed hard, the sound audible, and Will paused and turned to me. He smiled knowingly, and my cheeks flushed. It only worsened my embarrassment. “If you wish, Elinor, we can just lay here for a while together. I’ve constantly thought about simply lying next to you. I’d be satisfied with that, if it’s what you want.”
I sighed. Will was so extraordinary in every way. Yes, I’d imagined the same thing that he had, but I’d wished for so much more, and I was tired of waiting. Without thinking, I rose on my tiptoes and kissed him. For a moment, I lost myself in the feel of him and the way his cool lips felt on mine before I pulled away.
I poured my need into my eyes because I knew I couldn’t voice the words.
He reached out for me and gripped my waist firmly, but not painfully, and kissed my cheeks, my forehead, and then my ears and neck. All the while, his hands were dragging my shirt out from my pants.
