Zara

"Yes. He’s a man of his word, no matter what," Marcus grumbled. "They’ll be unconscious and blindfolded, but he’ll let them go. Okay," I replied, my voice shaking.

Marcus turned to leave, and I followed him. Just as we were leaving, I caught Govinda’s eye. I tried to convey the right words with my eyes, desperately hoping he would understand.

From that single glance, I knew Govinda had seen through my mask and knew I was very attentive to everything going on around me. He moved his head, barely noticeable, but I knew he understood.

Only when Tristan led me back to the room and closed the door behind us did I take a deep breath. My shoulders slumped, and for a moment, I felt a heavy weight lifted.

Govinda knew this could be useful—no doubt Sophia would want to stay to rescue me herself. Govinda would be able to calm her down, convince her to return to Alpha Kane.

"You sounded convincing," I told Marcus, feeling anxiety creep into my stomach.

I still couldn’t figure Marcus out. I ran through various scenarios and endings in my head, never quite grasping his plan. He hadn’t once tried to take advantage of me during my time here, though I wouldn’t have been surprised.

On the contrary, he had proven useful. He had openly betrayed his King without taking control of my mind, forcing us to pretend. For now, we had the advantage.

"We each have our role, Zara," Marcus smiled grimly. "I’m simply playing mine."

"What is that?" I shouted, just as Marcus turned to leave. "You’re helping me by lying to my father. Whose side are you on?"

"I’m on the side where none of our species will be exterminated." Marcus winced. "In the current situation, Demons have the advantage."

"That’s exactly why I’m here. I want to give my pack an advantage," I countered. "There’s only one way to stop this war—kill my father. I could end it all right now, if I could get to him."

"Kill him in his own home?" Marcus sneered. "You’ll die before you even have the chance. There are two ways: use magic to end his life, or wait until you’re on the battlefield."

"I don’t know any magic, and I don’t have time to learn." I shook my head.

I would never tell Marcus about my upcoming heat, but even without it, nothing has changed. My father once put his war plans on hold so I could master magic on my own.

"Then I suppose you’d better come up with a plan," he muttered. "I’ll be back tomorrow, try to get some rest until then."

The door slammed behind Marcus with a dull thud, leaving me alone with my obsessive thoughts. I already had a plan. Find out when they were planning an attack, pinpointing the location of this warehouse, and relaying the information to Kane.

He could assemble a small team to help rescue my half-sister and prepare for the coming battle. I could only hope Kane would have enough time to evacuate the city if I knew when my father was planning the attack.

After two hours of sleep last night, I woke to the sound of the door opening. My heart sank in my chest as my half-sister entered. Even though sleep clouded my vision, I relaxed and tried to pretend I wasn’t paying attention.

Her dark hair was shorter than mine, brushing her shoulders, but everything about her seemed familiar—except those dark eyes, full of silent intelligence.

"You don’t have to pretend," she shook her head, her voice quiet and gentle. "I know he’s not on your mind."

"How do you know?" I asked, my voice even and tinged with suspicion.

"I just know," she shrugged, picking at her fingers, watching me from across the room. "Father says my abilities are supposed to manifest, but I’ve never seen any evidence of it."

"And you told him?" I winced. "You told him I was faking it?"

"No, I didn’t." Her tone was soft, her eyes wary. She approached the edge of my bed, cautiously, as if I might attack her. She sat down on the edge, her back straight. Her voice dropped to a low whisper. "Are you planning on leaving here? Running away?"

"Where did you even think that?" I asked, trying my best to keep my voice even. "I came here of my own free will."

Not that I told her, but I was planning on getting her out of here as soon as I could. I didn’t care if she resisted and screamed; I would take her far away from our Father.

He would only turn her into a monster and use her for his own purposes. She had a life before this, before he barged in and took her.

"Take me with you," she whispered. "Get me out of here. I can help. I know where all the guards are. Once Father attacks your pack, the warehouse will be vulnerable. There will only be enough guards here to keep an eye on the two of us. Father is going to fight; he wants to kill Alpha Kane himself."

I tried not to flinch at the thought of Kane’s death at my father’s hands, and I tried even harder not to think about him. Every time I thought of Kane, I felt this unbearable pain in my chest.

I didn’t know it was possible to miss someone with all my being, to be ready to burn the entire world for just one look at them.

"Do you know when he plans to attack?" I whispered, another wave of anxiety washing over me as I trusted this girl I’d never met before more than I wanted to.

"I don’t know," she frowned. "He doesn’t tell me anything; he doesn’t trust me. Any of his men here knows; the problem is getting them to tell you."

She tilted her head toward the door, as if she’d heard something interesting, and quickly rose from my bed.

"What’s your name?" I asked as she approached the door. "My name is Zara."