Zara

The thought of drinking blood made me nauseous, but the taste—the power it evoked—was unlike anything I’d ever experienced. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t mean to go around biting people, but I couldn’t deny that part of me enjoyed the taste and the power.

"What do you want, princess?" they hissed in unison, their slick voices swirling around my head and running down my skin in cold waves.

I pulled a small pocket knife from my leggings pocket. Alpha had given it to me when I told him of my plan, assuring me there was no silver in the blade. It was small and inconspicuous, and would do little harm if I actually stabbed someone with it.

I opened it and watched the remnants of sunlight reflect off the blade’s shiny metal. The blade was wickedly sharp, as if begging to break my skin.

I pressed the pocket knife to my palm, gritting my teeth, and drew it across my skin. A pained groan escaped my clenched teeth, reminding me of how often the shadows had sounded.

Blood pooled in my hand, burning my icy skin. The shadows slid around my feet, their anticipation growing with every drop of blood spattering the ground.

"I need you to relay my location to Marcus, along with a message."

"Tell us," they hissed, slithering excitedly around my feet. "What message?"

I scooped up the blood in my hands, splashed it into the air, and watched it rain down on the shadows at my feet. They pounced on the blood, and I silently watched as they washed it from the ground.

"I’m here. Come and get me."

With each passing minute, I had more time to think, which was a curse in itself. The more time I had to think, the more I wondered if there was a way out of this mess, how Sophia and Govinda could return safe and sound.

I’d risked so much, hoping Marcus would finally let them go. Sophia was useless to him once he’d taken me, but her mate worried me most. He had betrayed his Alpha, and any proud ruler would thirst for retribution.

Chances were good that Marcus had no intention of letting him go, and I knew Sophia would refuse to leave without him. I needed a plan in case that happened.

An hour and thirty-four minutes later, I heard the soft crunch of leaves under the heavy feet of Marcus’s men. I knew the people who had come for me were Moon Freya’s people.

The footsteps continued for the next ten minutes, growing louder with each passing second. I froze, letting my senses follow the path of Moon Freya’s people. I could discern at least six or seven pairs of feet, perhaps more.

When the heavy footsteps ceased completely and the forest fell silent again, a sickening feeling of dread washed over me.

A sharp pain flared in my neck, like a bee sting. My hand darted to the source of the pain, pulling a small arrow from my skin. The needle was a few centimeters long, with a clear substance dripping from its tip.

The forest around me blurred into vibrant shades of green and brown. I could hear nothing but my own ragged breathing. The pain spread throughout my body, seeping into my bloodstream. The world around me narrowed, my vision narrowed, and I found myself looking up from the forest floor.

My legs buckled, but I felt nothing. The sky was a vivid blue, with round wisps of clouds drifting slowly past. The world around me faded, the vibrant colors fading from my vision until I was swallowed by darkness.

I awoke to the sound of voices, though I couldn’t discern their identity. The main speaker had a raspy voice I’d never heard before. I heard the crunch of gravel and the shaking of my body as we drove along some kind of road. My vision was clouded, obscured by the dark netting over my head.

My whole body ached, my muscles groaned as I fought to remain still. I focused on my breathing, trying to keep it even and calm. Judging by the aching pain in my body, they were using wolfsbane.

A dart that size should have been enough to knock me unconscious for days, but for some reason, I woke up early. Nova was still unconscious, in my mind, but I was becoming more lucid with each passing second.

It must have had something to do with the fact that I wasn’t a full-fledged werewolf. That was the only explanation I could think of for why the monkshood hadn’t taken full effect. I strained my eyes, trying to see through the thin cloth over my head.

It was clear they expected me to still be asleep, as the cloth wasn’t as thick as it could have been. There was still time, that much I could tell. I could discern blurred shades of green as we passed a clump of trees.

My hands were bound in front of me, and judging by the slight stinging pain, the cuffs were embedded with small pieces of silver. Not enough to cause excruciating pain, but enough to keep me in human form.

The silver and aconite prevented me from establishing a mental connection with Alpha, though I had no useful information at the moment, but it would have been nice to hear his voice.

I was squeezed between two large bodies, radiating intense heat. My head rested comfortably on the shoulder of one of the men, who sat motionless while I slept, huddled against him.

From what I could hear, there were four men in the car. Two were huddled next to me, one in the passenger seat, and the other driving.

"Marcus has prepared a room. It should be vacant by the end of the day."

I wondered if they were going to throw me in a cell like the one they’d probably put Sophia and Govinda in. I hadn’t expected hospitality or kindness; I knew exactly what I was getting into.

Would Marcus actively try to lure me over to his side? Or was he using my friends against me, forcing me to take action?