“You don’t fool me, Eudoxia,” my father said, taking a few steps forward to even the gap. I wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d actually leapt up on the dais to level the playing field. Seeing Eudoxia shrink back would’ve been delicious. As an Alpha wolf, instinct dictates you put all your enemies beneath you. Eudoxia being above him had to be infuriating. And she knew it. Instead of leaping, he growled. “I don’t know what game you’re playing yet, but I promise you it’s not a game you will win. The mere act of your henchman taking my daughter, whether it was sanctioned by you or not, gives me the right to declare war on all vampires. If I were you, I would consider yourself lucky I’m feeling very magnanimous today. I will not declare war. This time.” He turned toward me, holding out his hand to me. “Jessica, it’s time to go.”
I moved forward, not anxious to add anything to this heady mix of power. My chest still stung and I knew drawing myself into it now would be a mistake, especially since it seemed we were leaving with the upper hand.
“It’s such a shame your daughter will never lay eyes on her mate again.” The Queen’s voice rang out in a bored tone just as I stepped in front of my father. “Don’t you agree? And what was his name again?” She paused, tapping a long silver-coated nail against her lips. “Oh, that’s right … silly me … Rourke, isn’t it?”
My stomach dropped as the wolves behind me lost it.
The Queen smiled, her morbid red lips animated. “Yes, you heard me correctly, little wolf girl,” she said. “Your true mate won’t make it out of Selene’s lair alive. He doesn’t stand a chance against her. This time she will be well prepared.” This time? The Queen giggled then. “Most likely Selene is enjoying a nice game of cat and mouse with him right now. Either that or she has him tied to her infamous whipping post already. Whatever it is, she will not let him go again. Ever.”
My lungs stopped working as the vision of Selene with her hands on Rourke’s body made my nails elongate and a snarl issue from my chest without my consent. At least from what the Queen was telling me, the spell I’d inadvertently let him take hadn’t killed him. If it had, Selene would have nothing to torture. Thank gods he’s alive. My father grabbed on to my arms, effectively pulling my attention from the Queen back to him. “What is this?” he asked quietly, his tone fierce. “Is what she says correct?” Anger flashed in his eyes.
There was no way the Queen could know for sure that Rourke was my mate. She’d been grasping at straws, obviously going on a hunch of Valdov’s—but whatever she thought she knew, she’d gotten damn lucky. She’d laid down her ace and now it was my turn to play.
Did I really know for sure? We’d only known each other for such a short period of time. Before I could get my thoughts straight, my wolf slammed her paw down in my mind, snapping fiercely at me. I know exactly how you feel, how you’ve felt from the beginning, but are we willing to throw down now and risk everything for him? The Queen clearly wants something from us in return, and it won’t come cheaply. If we do this, we go against our Alpha. She gnashed her teeth at me, no indecision whatsoever.
“Jessica, answer me,” my father demanded. The room had gone completely silent.
“Yes, what she says is true.” I closed my irises and clenched my fists. “And it seems … my wolf and I are prepared to fight to get him back.”
My father focused on me hard, his irises jumping to a deadly amethyst. As we stood together, his hands still gripping my arms, the wolves deathly still, the vamps behind us started to twitter and snicker.
It was a distinct possibility it was happening because we were touching, but my father’s blood connection to me suddenly amplified, racing though my bloodstream, triggering jumps and starts like little waves cresting and tiding.
There was no mistaking the Queen’s intent to use this information to its fullest. Both my father and I knew it without having to communicate. There would be a steep price to pay before we were allowed to exit these walls if she had anything to say about it.
“When?” my father finally asked, his jaw set tightly.
“It seems my wolf recognized him immediately, but I ignored the cues she was giving me. I didn’t realize it until”—he kissed me senseless— “I made my full change. The vamps arrived immediately after. There was no time to process anything.” Then I said simply, “I will do anything to find him.”
The Queen cleared her throat as she descended the steps slowly, reveling in the show. “Dear, dear,” she murmured. “This is such a quandary. How will you ever find him on your own?” she mocked. “Do you know where Selene keeps her lair? Or I should say lairs, really. She has a number of preferred haunts, because she is a very powerful Goddess, you know.” She placed a bony white hand over her unbeating heart. “But how silly of me. Of course you know she’s powerful. She has already defeated you once.” But I’d made her bleed. I smiled, remembering. “I’m left wondering how you will ever conquer her and win back your mate all on your own. That seems an immeasurable mountain to climb for what meager strengths you’ve shown thus far.”
“I—”
“She won’t be alone.” My brother stepped forward, his voice hard and angry. “Her Pack will assist her, as our law dictates.” I watched Tyler struggle with the next bit, obviously trying to reconcile a number of things for himself. “We are duty-bound to accept all mates … even if they … even if they’re … of a different … Sect.” He rolled his shoulders back instead of shuddering, and I loved him more in that instant than I ever had. “She will not be alone in her search. Her Pack will assist her.”
The Queen glared at the interruption, looking vaguely put upon. “It does not matter in the least if every one of your wolves joins in the hunt, boy.” She waved her arm as a dismissal. “You will never find them in time—and even if you manage to bumble your way in, Selene’s protection is as vast as a deadly ocean. She will kill you on sight if her multitude of traps don’t kill you first.” She laughed, bright and hard, tracing her mercury stare to me. “Your only choice, little wolf girl, will be to swear an oath to me for one small favor of my choosing, and I will grant you two of my best and brightest trackers to aid you in your quest. Without them, you will fail. There is no other way.”
23
“Impossible,” my father’s voice boomed over the din around us. That one word held incredible power. Everyone quieted whether they wanted to or not. He dropped my arms and marched directly to the Queen. “Werewolves do not swear anything to vampires. Or anyone else for that matter. We have always fought our own battles and we always will.”
“Is that so?” The Queen stayed just out of arm’s reach, her accent even thicker now. “Why just last week a pack of mangy wolves, some of your very own precious young, eagerly swore their oaths to me. In return, I vowed to track down your daughter and bring her here.” She smiled shrewdly. “In fact, they were so taken with themselves, and swore so quickly, they didn’t even bother to ask me if I intended to end her life or if I was merely interested in chatting with her.”
My father’s expression stayed stoic, leading me to believe he was already well aware of the fracture across Packs and the new splinter group of wolves. I wondered for the first time where Hank and some of the younger wolves were, because they weren’t here with us now. I know I’d seen Hank in his wolf form behind my father in the clearing. Once he learned I’d ended Stuart’s life—his level of hatred toward me would skyrocket into the upper stratosphere. I wasn’t looking forward to seeing how that manifested itself.
“I can assure you, Eudoxia”—my father’s voice strummed low and fierce—”the wolves who allegedly swore to you were simply rogues and nothing more. They were wolves without honor and no longer members of any Pack. They will be hunted down by our own. No wolf with any notion of self-worth would ever seek the help of vampires. Wolves with honor have always fought their own battles, and we will continue to fight them in the future. No one will be swearing anything to you.”
“Really, Callum, how very old-fashio
ned and positively downright male of you. I think you will soon find that persons of the … feminine persuasion may feel differently about such things.” The Queen turned her bird stare on me. “Hmm, little wolf? Are you agreeing with Daddy here? Or do you actually wish to find your mate … alive?” Her power thrummed through the room.
No more playtime.
I bit the inside of my cheek.
The bitter taste of iron swirled on my tongue. I could feel my father’s anger weighing on me. I knew that with our current resources we had no clue how to find a powerful Sorceress quickly, even coupled with Devon’s vast computer skills. Wolves concerned themselves about wolves. Evil Goddesses, imps, demons, or vamps were completely ignored until a problem arose. Hell, I didn’t even know Selene was real until I saw her in the flesh. I’d only heard rumors, but had dismissed them like everyone else.
If I declined the Queen’s help, I would be going home cold. It could take me weeks of interviews to come up with any viable way to track Rourke. If Selene had multiple lairs, it would take longer. We had her scent, but could only track her accurately on the ground. If she could fly, which I was assuming without a doubt she could—flight being a credential of card-carrying high-level supes—Evil Goddesses included—by then it would be too late.
I knew it in my bones.
If I played this game correctly, I could bind the Vampire Queen to keep her end of the bargain, which would include not killing me. I knew whatever she wanted from me mattered a great deal to her, or we wouldn’t be dancing together right now.
I shuddered, knowing the price might be too steep for me to pay, but if I didn’t try, I would lose my mate.
“What would it cost me?” I asked the Queen.
“Jessica,” my father roared. He turned to me, his fury pinging around the room. “I forbid this!” His command swirled in my blood, teasing me at its edges, but it was a command from the Alpha—not a blood-request from my father—and even though it tried to capture me, to make me obey, it didn’t hold me. It seemed my father and I had entered into a complicated relationship when we had unwittingly swapped blood. His Alpha commands still did not affect me, but as a father he could manipulate our new blooded bond if he chose. But, clearly right now, as a father he loved me, even if his Alphaness was furious with me. I had to hope that as a father he would ultimately understand what it meant to have a mate and what I had to do to get him back.
“I’m sorry,” I said, my voice pleading. “Please forgive me, but I have no other choice. I have to do this or I will lose him. I owe it to him to try.”
“Jessica, there is nothing in this world worth binding yourself to them for. We will find your mate on our own, with our own kind.” My father’s blood danced in my body, rich and angry, but no other command came.
“I will accept that,” I said quietly, dropping my eyes, giving him my full submission. “If you can tell me where Selene is right now. Do you, or any of your wolves, know anything about her? If you know where she is, I will follow you from here without pause. I promise to leave this place and never look back. If not, you must understand I must do this.”
My father grappled with the knowledge that his Alpha command hadn’t taken. The wolves behind us started to become agitated. This would not go unnoticed. I had just defied my Alpha in a very public arena, in front of our enemy.
I had a stark moment of regret.
I was on a very dangerous ground. Everything I’d done so far had screamed something was wrong with me, that I wasn’t a normal wolf. The Pack was already fractured, and I was putting them in danger by showing that weakness to our enemy.
My wolf shot to the surface, growling as menacingly as I’d ever seen her. I know. You don’t have to remind me. This is a cluster-fuck, and we choose Rourke. It doesn’t mean I’m not sorry it turned out this way. We’re going up against our Alpha, my father, in front of the whole damn world. It’s going to come back and bite us, I know it will. No wolf is going to trust me when they know the Alpha can’t control me. It’s a big deal.
She huffed.
I had no other choice. My wolf and my body both demanded I find him. There was no other option. “I can’t explain it”—unfamiliar emotion erupted as I spoke—”but I know Rourke only has a short amount of time. If we take too long, I will lose him. Give me another choice, and I will gladly take it.” Then I said very, very quietly, “There may be some things in this world worth binding yourself for.”
My father ran a hand over his face. He had incredible control, but I could see a faint line of fur erupting on his forearms. He was trying hard to contain himself. I didn’t even sneak a glance at the Queen, who was likely elated with her soon-to-be victory.
The wolves behind us growled and shifted uncomfortably. There was also a low murmur running through the crowd of vamps. They weren’t familiar with our ways, but they knew enough to know that this interaction between us was wrong. It was likely physically impossible for most of the vamps to go against a direct order from their Queen.
My father still said nothing. My eyes pleaded with him to understand.
After a moment, I felt a shift. His eyes flashed a deep violet, and calmness wove its way through me. He’d made his decision. Whatever it was, I’d have to live with it. His voice was strong and final. “Jessica, you leave me no other choice. If you take this path, you will receive no help from us. You make this choice separate from Pack, acting on your own as an individual.” He was giving me an option. He was trying to fix this.
“I understand.”
“I can grant you this only because there has been no official ceremony tying you to Pack … yet.” Not the truth, since I was blood-born and needed no ceremony, but the vamps likely didn’t know. “You are still separate from us.” He gritted his teeth and forced out, “This time. If you are successful in finding your … mate … and return to us alive … you will immediately be given the proper ceremonies, and will henceforth be expected to follow Pack Law to the letter.” His irises flashed, telling me all I needed to know. I would follow orders. “If you fail to do so, you’ll be labeled a rogue and cast out. There will be no more chances. My decision on this is final.”
That was it.
“I accept those conditions.”
My brother strode forward and knelt in front of our father, his head bowed, his voice clear. “I request permission to aid my sister in her quest as a Selective. I will act solely as her human bodyguard. I voluntarily forswear all of my rights as Pack during this journey.”
A Selective was a paid position wolves took outside of Pack for extra cash. The jobs usually consisted of some kind of body-guarding or some other muscle. It was understood a Selective couldn’t shift, ever. They could not call any attention to themselves, use any powers, and anything that happened to them on the job wasn’t Pack business.
In a nutshell, if you were stupid enough to get yourself into trouble it was all on you.
It was extremely clever of Tyler, and extremely dangerous. He’d be forced to stay human for the duration of the journey. I would never allow it. I started, “Tyler, that’s—”
“Granted,” my father said before I could finish, clasping Tyler’s shoulder as he stood up. “You have my permission to act as a Selective, along with Daniel Walker, if he so desires. All restitutions will be made in full by Jessica on the eve of your return. Our standard hourly rates apply, of course,” my father said with his very first hint of a grin.
My father had just hired two bodyguards who would likely cost more than I made in two years.
“I hate to interrupt this adorable family moment,” the Queen snapped. “But the sun will be breaking the horizon shortly and we must act quickly if we are to move forward.”
I turned toward her and said, “I accept your aid.”
The Queen stepped from behind the altar and snapped her fingers. “Eamon, Naomi, come forward.”
A pair of vampires, both dressed in period costumes, came forward. It was clear they were siblings. Th
ey stood almost the same height, same brown hair, same lilt to their enamel features, dark eyes, and arching brows. Both looked like they’d been frozen in death in their early twenties, which seemed to be a common trait among the Undead.
The Queen directed her response at me next. “These two share a kin-bond and each has a particular specialty, one in tracking and the other in sensing. They are not only capable of getting you to your destination safely, but they will be able to detect Selene’s many defenses.” Her voice turned hard. “I do not lie in telling you this is the only way you will have a chance to succeed. After you breach Selene’s lair, it will be up to you, and you alone, to save your mate. Selene is a very dangerous being. None but your cat has ever bested her before. She will not relinquish him easily. You will have to kill her.”
“And what do you ask of me in return?” The billion-dollar question. If the price was too high, I would be forced to leave here with little chance of success.
My father stiffened beside me. Every fiber of his being rebelled at what I was about to do, but he stayed quiet, honoring his decision.
The Queen stepped up beside me, her lips parted without shame, flaunting her delight. The upper hand was hers, and if I refused—well, she would happily take glee in my sorrow. “It’s nothing really.” She gave another dismissive wave of her hand. “You will swear to return to me here in New Orleans, on the eve of our annual celebration of T¸epes¸, to provide your service of guard as we enjoy our … festivities.”
My mouth fell open a teensy bit without my consent. “You want me to serve as a guard dog at your annual gala?” I asked incredulously. She didn’t want my firstborn? Or my blood drained hourly? Or primal torture at the hands of Valdov?
“Oh, it isn’t merely a party, little wolf girl. It’s an … event. It lasts for a full fortnight, and the revelry can get quite … out of hand. We have hired mercenaries in the past, like your cat, to keep things in check and away from human knowledge. But this year we will require a more civilized crowd, for this year marks the five hundred and fiftieth year of our celebrations, and we plan to … outdo ourselves.”
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