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  “A problem for you?” I asked with forced patience. “Explain what could be more important?” I paced, hating that I’d allowed the situation to stress me further. My stomach burned with a hunger that I feared would soon consume me, taking me out of Ella’s life permanently. I closed my eyes and counted to ten, searching for the calm that I had escaped me.

  Jace expelled a breath. “There are some things that I have to handle here.” He sounded as if he wanted to explain more but was unable to. Maybe he was in front of his fellow Council members and didn’t want them to know that he was helping a Chorý.

  “Where are you now?” I asked.

  “It doesn’t matter. I will contact you when I can.” He ended the call.

  I placed the phone down, careful not to crush it. My anger had proven two things to me. First, the la Luxure was stronger than I had believed it was; and second, it would negatively affect my ability to find Ella.

  My head felt as if it had expanded and my sight sharpened, while each sound echoed throughout my brain. The last ten hours had gone by so painfully slowly that I thought I would explode into a million pieces.

  I needed to feed, and the longer I waited, the worse la Luxure became. The problem was that human blood was the only blood that would help my hunger, and I feared losing control if I took from a vein.

  My only option was to head to the nearest hospital. It would be easy to finesse a nurse into taking me to the blood bank there. Bagged human blood would cause the thirst to ebb, but only temporarily; soon I would be forced to find my master or take from a willing or unwilling human, but by that time, I was afraid that la Luxure would have robbed me of my regard of human life.

  I needed to find Ella, get her to safety, and then exit her life. She would have Alex and the Council to care for her while I handled Laurent.

  First, I had to make another phone call, one I had thought I’d never have to make again, to ask for help. I needed to see Ella safe before I left Cedar for good.

  Chapter 5

  Jace

  I pushed the double doors to Aleixandre’s office open and waltzed in. He sat at this desk with his head in a mass of papers. He spent most of his time there, now. Researching and debating with himself.

  “What the hell is going on?” I demanded. “Did someone in this Council ruin my retrieval? Only one other person knew of the pickup site and drop site and now I’m hearing that he’s MIA.”

  Maybe it wasn’t my fault that Ella was gone. I had assumed that Laurent found Ella through the weird connection he had with her and Agnes, but maybe I was wrong. I’d told Aleixandre that I worried about Santiago’s allegiance, but he gave the man more responsibilities, ones he’d thought would replace Santiago’s need to live forever. Santiago had threatened to leave before, saying that Laurent created immortals daily, though Laurent created his immortals with tainted blood and kept them as slaves.

  In the end, Santiago had gone to Laurent as he’d threatened. Maybe he had known the pickup site.

  “It’s good to see you too, son,” Aleixandre said, tone quiet but threatening. He didn’t even look up from his paper.

  I took a deep, calming breath. He was angry, but did I actually deserve his anger? I handled the situation as best as I could. It wasn’t the eighteenth century anymore; taking a teenage girl by the authority of the Council was harder than Aleixandre would ever know; he’d never been sent to retrieve an Arc.

  “You have about forty-five minutes before the jet leaves for Rome. Shouldn’t you be suiting up and hitting the weapons room?” His terse tone left no room for compromise.

  “Why?”

  There was a long pause. “Because.” Aleixandre looked at me with hard eyes. “I think that I have been too lenient with you, Jace. Though we had a mole in the Council, you were still responsible for getting the Arc back to us. You waited too long, and because of that, she is in his hands. The odds are stacked even higher against us now.”

  I scoffed and ran my hands through my hair. “Do you think it easy? Do you think it is easy to get a teenage girl to leave everyone she loves behind and follow a complete stranger?” I knew that Aleixandre was from a different time, but he couldn’t have been that clueless.

  “Who did she have left?” he asked pointedly. “After a nervous breakdown, she was released from the state hospital, to a family that couldn’t relate to her. You were supposed to be able to relate to her. You were supposed to bring her here!”

  I looked at him in the eyes. Ella had moved from Cedar and left all she knew of Virginia Beach behind, after the death of her parents. She’d told both me and Kale that she wanted to leave and live on her own, and I had hoped to use that to get her to come to the Council. I wanted—no, I needed—her trust. “Christ, Aleixandre! That was the reason I waited so long! When she finds out the truth—”

  “She would have never known!” Aleixandre yelled, launching to his feet. He towered over me and moved around the desk at a speed that made me flinch. “You have ruined our chances of ever controlling her, Jace! It matters not that Santiago is now Chorý, with Laurent! You had the sole responsibility of bringing her here, and you failed. You are lucky that I even allow you to go as leader in a Blood Hunt!”

  Aleixandre was breathing hard, and his muscles tensed. He had never laid a hand on me, but I had seen his anger in battles. His current temper made me a bit nervous.

  “Control her?” I asked, my anger deflating.

  Aleixandre growled and walked back to his seat. What had gotten into him?

  “She would never have known? They were her parents, Aleixandre,” I said softly. “She lost everything, and now we wish to deny her the simple truth of what happened to them, as well as control her?”

  I couldn’t believe what he’d said. The Council’s job was to protect the Arc and give her a normal life, one as normal as possible. What had changed? “What kind of life would that have been?”

  Aleixandre was no longer paying attention. He sat back at his desk and picked up the phone. I waited for him to dismiss me or at least speak to me again, but instead he spoke into the receiver.

  “Marieth, if Vesco isn’t suited up, in the weapons room, and then on that jet in the next thirty minutes, let me know.”

  The coldness in Aleixandre’s eyes floored me.

  “Jace, I suggest you get on that jet and leave this mess to Tamsin and Servitto to handle. I have been lenient thus far. Please, son, don’t test me any further.” He pointed to the door. “They are all waiting on you.”

  With that, Aleixandre looked back down into his papers.

  I headed out the doors and back to my room. This situation was wrong—everything was wrong, and I had to fix it. To do that, I needed to get back to Cedar. That meant disobeying an order from Aleixandre, and though I had done it before, there had never been so much on the line.

  For the first time in more than a century, my faith in the Council weakened.

  Chapter 6

  Kale

  My body ached, and that distressed me, but not more than the satisfying taste of blood on my tongue. Where had it come from, and where was I?

  The stench of chemicals and sickness bombarded my senses. I got up, and my muscles groaned in complaint. I hadn’t felt a twinge of unease in years, and now I felt as though I were falling ill.

  I closed my eyes and took a breath. I finally processed what had happened: another blackout. The sticky sweet substance that coated my lips and chin wasn’t from an animal this time, but from a human.

  The blood was fragrant and fulfilling, but the hunger still burned beneath the surface. The change seemed imminent, and I was powerless to stop it.

  I sought to save Ella, but in reality, I was probably an even bigger risk to her safety. How could I protect Ella from Laurent if I wasn’t even sure I could protect her from myself? I looked around again, this time seeking the source of the O neg that still had my taste buds tingling and my stomach pleading for more. Contrary to popular belief, blood type meant not
hing to a full vampire, but each Chorý preferred a certain type. Ella was AB neg, and every whiff of her scent drove me wild.

  I was in a hospital lab, and an intern lay before my feet by his desk. To my relief, he still had a pulse, even if it was a weak one. What stopped me from draining him completely? I could only assume I still had some semblance of control over the beast that was la Luxure.

  I turned him over and checked his neck for teeth marks only to be surprised when I found none. I searched each side of his neck and then ventured toward his shoulders where I found the gash. I shook my head in disbelief that I had taken from him so viciously. He wasn’t dead and that was a relief. My cell rang and I sprang up and placed the phone to my ear.

  “Is this the legendary Kale Grey?” The unfamiliar voice on the other end of the line gave a low rumbling laugh.

  I used my shoulder to keep the phone to my ear and picked up the intern’s feet and dragged him out of sight of the double doors. “Infamous, maybe.”

  I chuckled as I thought of the names that I’d been called over the years. “Legendary” was not one of them. Leech, treacherous parasite, and—the least creative but most used—blood-sucker. There was no originality but it was still amusing. “Who is this?”

  I placed the intern in a chair and glanced again at the gash on his shoulder. The blood had started to dry around the wound, so I went to the door, cracking it open to glance around. The hallway was empty.

  I went back to the young man. His face was pale, and his breathing was shallow. I was lucky that he was alive; I pulled my up sleeve to bite my wrist and smiled.

  “Funny. Yeah, well, I’m sitting here at my girlfriend’s house, wondering when she’s coming home.”

  I had more important things to worry about than some stranger’s relationship. “Can you tell me why you think I care?” I asked, then bit my wrist and placed it to the wound on the intern’s shoulder. The healing was instantaneous.

  “Because when Mia comes home, I am going to rip her throat out for her betrayal.”

  A click signaled the end of the call.

  I placed the phone back in my pocket and cursed. I’d forgotten about the Chorý that was left behind, the one that Alex asked me to take care of. I left the hospital and headed back to the cottage to pick up my vehicle. On the way to Elmwood City, I called Jace, only to get no answer.

  I arrived at the lake near Mia’s home and parked the car on the side farthest from the house.

  I ventured into the woods, following the rogue Chorý’s scent to Mia’s backyard. A figure stood in one of the windows on the second floor, awaiting my arrival. I hadn’t expected to arrive unnoticed, but I’d hoped. With Mia’s parents out of town and Mia with Alex, I wasn’t worried about any unexpected guests.

  The back door was wide open. I headed inside and followed the melted ice up two flights of stairs and into a room in the back. I entered slowly, keeping my hands at my sides to show that I had no weapon. I was sure that this wouldn’t end well, but I needed to assess the situation before it blew up.

  “And I thought you said that you didn’t care,” crooned a husky voice from the corner veiled in darkness.

  “Who says that I care?” I shrugged.

  “Your presence here says a lot, wouldn’t you say?”

  “Or maybe I want to send you back to Laurent with a message.”

  “Do I look like some errand boy to you?” The bald man stepped from the shadows. Anger marred his face.

  “You telling me that you aren’t Laurent’s whipping boy?”

  The bald man growled in anger and then visibly calmed. He raised his hands in surrender. An innocent look replaced the dark shadows that had at first plagued his face. “Hey, I’m just sitting here waiting for my blond princess to come home, and you break in and insult me.”

  “And I guess I should just leave and let you, what was it you said—”

  “Oh, I said that I am going to rip her throat out for her betrayal.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Betrayal. Is that what this is all about?” I shook my head and looked to the ceiling, searching in vain for patience.

  “Okay I can see you’re getting bored, so let’s spice things up a bit. I say we make this a game, shall we? I’m Xavier, and you must be Kale.” He swayed, and he leaned into the purple wall in Mia’s room.

  The moon’s light reflected from the bright white snow outside, illuminating the room in a milky haze. Pictures of Mia with some old flame shook as he leaned into the wall. He reached up and straightened the photo before plucking it off the wall. I smiled.

  “A game?” I leaned against the dresser, glancing at the photo in his hand. If he could pretend to be relaxed, so could I. Why did stalkers always seem at ease, when they were the main reason for the disturbance? “What kind of game are you suggesting?”

  He looked pointedly at me before rolling his eyes. “A battle of wits.” Sarcasm and annoyance laced his voice.

  “I was told that you’re pretty nasty in battle.” He clapped his hands, rubbed them together, and then pulled them to his lips. “You were the one that left that nasty little scar on the Council hunter’s face, and you also took down the last death bringer.” He smiled.

  I couldn’t tell if he was amazed at what I had done or jealous that he hadn’t done it himself. “And you want me to teach you to fight?”

  His smirk morphed into a snarl of anger and then into a full-bellied laugh. I smiled.

  He shook his finger at me as he laughed. “A comedian as well, eh?”

  “If it pays the bills.”

  He laughed again. “Wow. Standup comedians are making good money in this economy? I guess maybe I should take the sweet li’l princess with me on the road when I start my tour?”

  I released an aggrieved breath. “You called me here to discuss a career move?”

  Xavier suddenly moved closer; I straightened.

  “No-o,” he cooed, drawing the word out. “Why don’t we see who is the strongest?”

  “Strongest?” I laughed. “What? Would you like to clear the table in the corner and arm wrestle?”

  “Funny.” He lifted the picture of Mia to his mouth and kissed it. “If I win, I get her.”

  “Never going to happen.”

  “Yes, well I’m sure you think so, but for the sake of the game, let’s—”

  “This is not a game; this is the life of an innocent girl you are talking about.”

  Xavier laughed as he flung the picture of Mia onto the bed. “She is food, and that is it. I don’t understand why you feel the need to treat her any differently.” Xavier looked at the picture on the bed and then back to me. “You can fight for her, or step out of the way and let me have her.”

  His smiled baited me, and his laugh grated my nerves. I didn’t love Mia, and at times she drove me insane, but I would not allow Xavier to harm her.

  “What are you suggesting?”

  “I’ve been lonely.” He ran his hand across the white nightstand at the head of the bed. I raised a brow at his peculiar statement. “I was thinking of that sweet-smelling blonde and how long it’s been.”

  He looked up at me with soulless moss green eyes. “You know, since I’ve held a woman.” He cackled as his meaning dawned on me.

  My shock and disgust no doubt fueled his fire. I moved from the door, standing no more than an inch in front of him.

  “Yes, please tell me that you have a problem with this.” His hot breath assaulted my senses. He had just fed, and I could smell the human’s blood on his breath. The blood still smelled fresh, and I could only imagine the satisfaction its warmth would give.

  My throat tightened and burned with jealousy. My gaze had lingered on his lips longer than I’d intended, and Xavier used this to his advantage. Air swooshed as his fist arced towards my face.

  I barely dodged the blow—the rough knuckles of his left fist grazed my jaw and ear. I blocked the punch with my arm, leaving my mid-section open for Xavier’s right-hand punch to knock me off
balance. He was strong, stronger than I’d given him credit for, and as I regained my balance, I realized that he was fast as well. His right knee caught me in the stomach, sending me back and onto the floor.

  “Things just got interesting.” Xavier advanced toward me.

  I quickly rolled over and made it to my feet again. “How is that?” I quickly dodged another punch.

  “Well, had I known you swung that way…” Xavier winked and blew me a kiss.

  I laughed and shook my head. “You’re not my type!” I sprinted toward him. Just as I reached him, I unleashed a flurry of punches, making sure that one of them landed in his cocky mouth and another to his stomach.

  Blood sprayed from his busted lip and the beast inside awoke with a howl. Xavier growled as he failed to block the punch to his stomach.

  His blood was unappetizing; I could smell the Chorý taint. But it was the hint of his victim’s blood that sent me into frenzy. The beast stirred low in my belly, and I wanted nothing more than to give in, to take that last meal’s O-neg.

  My fangs descended, and I reached for Xavier’s neck. Before he had a chance to stop me, I sank my teeth deep into him. He screamed, surprised. I closed my mouth harder over his neck and drank.

  Xavier kicked and screamed. The tainted blood burned my throat, but I continued to drink, to please the beast. I’d learned before that my torment was his pleasure.

  “What are you doing?” Xavier gurgled; his fighting started to cease as his body sagged to the floor. “You’ll kill yourself as well!” Each swallow burned and branded my belly with the proof of his tainted blood, but stopping was impossible. The beast purred, and my belly was full.

  Chapter 7

  Ella

  Sounds woke me. A soft accented voice, a metallic clang, and hushed footsteps pulled me from the fog that was my dream, but fear of the unknown stopped me from opening my eyes.

  I kept my breathing steady and lay deathly still, hoping that the person in the room wouldn’t suspect that I was awake. I remembered Kale taking me in the woods, and the look on his face as he left me there to return to Jace and fight off Laurent’s men. The soft female voice spoke again, but this time in a language that sounded like French.