Chosen By Darkness Reverse Har - E. M. Moore(ang.)

Contents Title Page Copyright Other Books by E. M. Moore Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty-One Chapter Twenty-Two Chapter Twenty-Three Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five Chapter Twenty-Six Chapter Twenty-Seven Epilogue

Chosen By Darkness Ravana Clan Vampires Book One

E. M. Moore

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. Copyright © 2017 by E. M. Moore. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit in any form or by any means. For information regarding subsidiary rights, please contact E. M. Moore. Manufactured in the United States of America First Edition August 2017

Other Books by E. M. Moore Chronicles of Cas Series Reawakened Hidden Power Severed

The Adams’ Witch Bound In Blood Cursed In Love

Adams’ Witch Spinoff Series, Order of the Akasha Novella Starter — Stripped

Phoenix Series Flight of the Phoenix available in the CREATURES box set!

Witchy Librarian Cozy Mystery Series Wicked Witchcraft One Wicked Sister Wicked Cool

Chapter One There’s one question that will plague humans at some point in their lives: Why? Whether it’s why me, why this, why him, it doesn’t matter. Puzzling out something horrific will inevitably cause pain—and no answers. Or at the very least, poor excuse for answers that wouldn’t satisfy even the most unintelligent person’s curiosity. If we’re lucky, the question may only happen once. For others—the sad ones, the ones trouble seems to follow—they could be asking themselves why more than once in their lives. It was coming. The darkness. It always started like this. My eyes were

closed, in a deep sleep. That’s when the awareness came. A heavy weight settled over my chest. There was a metallic squeal of crushed metal, an unworldly jarring of my body, and worst of all, the complete feeling of being alone. I knew what was happening. My mind wouldn’t let me wake up though. I was in the dream. The dream about my life, the dream that had already taken place, the moment in my life that I just wished to forget, but my brain wouldn’t let me. It was the night my life changed forever. I could feel myself crying. A silent cry that still held the tears unchecked on my face. I was trapped, alone in the backseat as the car skidded to a stop at an unnatural angle, flipped over onto the hood. The weird part about it was, though the fear was settled deep inside my heart, I felt no pain. That would come later. My mom, who had just been in the passenger seat talking animatedly, was now hunched over, upside down, and dangling from her seatbelt. Fear started to close in, the weight on my chest heavier and heavier as I searched around me. I couldn’t see Mrs. Lawrence. She’d been driving. It was just like any other day, until it wasn’t. Now, all these years later, I couldn’t even tell you where we were going. It wasn’t unusual to find us all in the car together. Me, my mom, Mrs. Lawrence and…Jake. While still submerged in my subconscious, I

searched around the car for him. He wasn’t there. I remember my mind hyperventilating, trying to piece the clues together. Where could Jake have gone? It was a car accident, he had a seatbelt on, our mothers were safety freaks back then. Now, you would call them hover parents. They died safety freaks. What little good it did them. I remembered my eyes searching frantically for something, or someone. I didn’t want any of this to be true. One second, we were driving down the road. I was listening to my mother’s voice, the soothing, calming sound. The same voice she used to sing me to sleep. Then there was nothing, like the flashing scenes of a movie. In the first scene I had a life, it wasn’t perfect, but it was mine. In the second, I’d lost everything. In the dream, I closed my eyes just like I did that day. I saw nothing but dark, nothing but the black hole everything had turned out to be. When I opened my eyes, it was worse. Sometimes not seeing anything at all is a relief to your senses. With my eyes open, I saw everything I didn’t want to see. There was no Jake. My mother was dead, clearly, as I watched the blood run down her face and drip onto the ceiling of the car. Mrs. Lawrence, I could see only her hair dangling down, rivulets of blood twisting in it as if she was some gory Halloween costume. Then, the car shifted… My eyes flew open and I gasped in a huge

breath. Sitting up, I threw my legs over the side of the bed. Running my hands through my hair, I rested my elbows on my knees, hunched over them with the weight of everything. I hadn’t had nightmares like that in so long. Then one day a couple weeks ago, they all came flooding back. I’d always been good at blocking things out. Within months after the accident, I’d blocked it out. I blocked out the crazy cat lady, who wanted me to call her mom after I’d stayed with her only a day. Another great pick by the state when you’re an orphan with no family. I blocked out the too touchy father from my third family, and I blocked out the night the homeless guy on Seventh Street taught me how to defend myself after getting beat up for the $3.32 I had in my pocket. That was the night I ran away. It’s funny now to think that I ran away. How can you run away from your own mind? How can you run away from your own life? It’s impossible. I was beginning to realize that. There just wasn’t anything I could do to not be me. I stood from the bed, my back aching from the stiff, cheap mattress from my mildew infested apartment. My feet slapped against the concrete as I made my way to the small bathroom. I turned on the light, it blinked before coming on completely, the harsh, synthetic light unnatural. The crack in the mirror sliced through my reflection. The little

apartment, with its bed in the living room, wasn’t much, but it was mine. I opened the pus yellow medicine cabinet that could only have been fashionable in the 70’s and stared inside. My name stared back at me from the pill bottles. I took one in my palm, turning it around and around. I saw my name, the name of the medication, and how often to take it. Just like all the other nights, I put it back and shut the mirror again, choosing at first to look at my reflection. The doctor had given me those pills. I had taken them for some time. I just couldn’t bear to take them now. Call me crazy, and really half the time I thought I was. I just didn’t want to forget anymore. Maybe that was my problem before. I kept running from myself, from my life, and I didn’t want to run anymore. Well, didn’t want to run in the figurative sense, I liked to run in the literal sense. I grabbed my jogging clothes that I set out the previous night and pulled them on. There was something about the act of running that cleared my head. Maybe it was the fact I pushed myself to the point of exhaustion. Maybe it was the fact that I couldn’t focus on anything else when I needed to watch my feet in the dark so I wouldn’t faceplant the sidewalk, but running, however weird it was that I was running at night, had become my go-to to calm myself down. I couldn’t complain, really. All

this extra exercise had done pretty well for my body, if I cared about that kind of stuff. I went to the bathroom again and pulled my hair into a low ponytail. Dark purple bruising under my eyes from lack of sleep reminded me that I needed to do this. If it weren’t for the running, I wouldn’t get any sleep at all. From the dresser, I picked up my keys, the mace, and set out for the waterfront. In old Calcutta, you could run alongside the river for miles. It wasn’t a large river by any means. The narrow width pushed the water through quicker to the lake twenty miles or so down the road. I would’ve went running by my house if I had a death wish. The apartment I could afford was not in the part of town you wanted to be alone at night. Instead, I quickly ran, passing apartment buildings that mirrored mine until I reached the abandoned warehouses where I sped up, and finally slowed when I made it to the riverwalk. I was already breathing heavy by this time. My thoughts already miles away from the accident so many years ago. In, out, keep moving your feet, watch your breath. If I didn’t breathe correctly, I’d get a sharp pain in my side. I’d learned a lot about running just by doing. I ran past the back of the tiny shops where the town tried to make Calcutta a tourist destination. I didn’t know why they bothered. It wasn’t as if

having a river running through the town was a rarity. Calcutta was just ordinary. Unlike me. I ran faster, racing toward the lock. I raced until I could feel the skin around my cheeks tremble when my feet slapped the pavement. I ran until my lungs could barely keep up. I ran until I couldn’t run anymore. Not because I was physically exhausted, but because the lock and the ‘no trespassing’ signs loomed in front of me. I touched the high chainlink fence as if I had been racing with someone else and won. Who was I kidding? I never won in my life. I turned and made the slow track back up the river. I always liked being out at night. Things seemed much calmer. Sure, with the lack of light, there was always the unknown. Maybe that’s what I liked about it. In the light, everything was kind of false, wasn’t it? In the light, you always knew what was coming after you, but you really didn’t. It was like a big, fat lie. A false sense of security. The dark, though, didn’t lie. It didn’t try to make it seem like things would work out when they really wouldn’t. It was honest about who it was. It was black, gaping, and unseeing. It was everything the light wasn’t, yet real. I stopped at my usual spot. The bench looked out over a small grassy area before the riverbed took over, winding its way through town. I sat down and propped my feet up on the metal barriers

erected so no one could get too close. Between the posts, though, I could see the moon shine down on the river, reflecting its yellow orb back up to the sky. The weather was also just right lately. There was a bit of a chill in the air, just perfect for running. The days had grown humid but the night, it held everything I wanted from it. A crunch of gravel sounded and I whipped my head around to look behind me. My eyes darted through the darkness, searching for anything. Finally, my gaze moved lower and I saw a small chipmunk at the edge of the trail where the cement gave way to small stones. “Hey, little guy,” I said as relief washed over me. The chipmunk ignored me. I didn’t mind. I turned back around to stare at the river once more, loving the way the breeze caressed my face. Sweat from the exertion had started to run down my back and cold shivers and goosebumps ran up my body. It was almost time to go back. I could feel the darkness coming again but this time I knew the promise of it was numbness. My mind would let me sleep now. I placed my feet back on the ground, stood, and walked back up the trail. As soon as I got to the line of warehouses, I’d have to run again. As I always did when I got to that part, I thought of homeless Old Joe. During my runaway days, Old Joe had taken me under his wing. He told me he

knew Bruce Lee and though I always thought he was a bit of a crackpot, he did seem to know what he was doing when it came to martial arts. The night he found me in the alley, he showed me basic self-defense moves. It grew from there. Even now I visited him sometimes. I even, though stupid as it may have been, had invited him to come stay with me. He was the closest thing to a father figure I’ve ever known. In his own way, I believed he cared for me. He may have even thought of me as a daughter himself, but he refused my invitation. He told me he was too old, too stuck in his ways, to live within four walls now. That night amongst all the excuses, he told me something that stuck with me. The wrinkles pulled at his face as he took in my offer. His eyes were cast down is if he were truly thinking. When he looked up, he said, “I just want to be free. You know what I mean?” At the time, I had no idea what he meant. It seemed like living on the streets was far from the cry of freedom he deemed it to be. Now, though, I kind of understood. The apartment, as shabby as it was, kept me employed by two jerks. I worked part-time at a laundromat during the early hours of the morning. For my second job, the kung fu school down the street let me clean its facility in exchange for money and free self-defense lessons. I would’ve refused the self-defense lessons, thinking that Old Joe had taught me everything I needed to know, but

the owner insisted. It was just barely enough to keep me alive. You see, it wasn’t really freedom at all. I had a place to say, I had things to eat. That was it. Was that all there was to life? The same crunching of stones on cement sounded just behind me. My eyes darted up from watching my feet pad against the sidewalk. I was already in the warehouse district, and I hadn’t picked up the pace. I did now, immediately making my legs move. My muscles, used to this now, pulled and tightened, allowing me to break into a run. Just ahead, I saw the facade of my ground-floor apartment. The old brick building that looked more like commercial than residential. It wasn’t much, but it was home to me and I was happy to have it. Freedom, to me, meant living within four walls. A tingle of fear crawled up my spine. I didn’t want to look behind me. The same crunching of stones sounded and I knew it couldn’t be the chipmunk this time. There it went again, the darkness, wheeling me in. It was probably nothing. At least, that’s what I told myself. My lungs burned inside my chest, my muscles had started to ache, but I pushed and pushed. I only had a half a block to go. When my feet skidded to a stop by the old steel railing that led to my door, I breathed a sigh of relief. It was cut short when I finally turned my head. My eyes widened. I stopped breathing, the

earlier breath held tight in my chest. There was a guy there, under the only streetlamp within seeing distance. I stumbled backward up the steps. The guy, he couldn’t have been more than mid-twenties smiled at me. He was handsome, and I wanted to kick myself for thinking like that in this moment. For all I knew, well I didn’t really know, did I? He could have been a neighbor. I didn’t really pay attention to my neighbors. But what was he doing out at this time of night? Then again, what was I doing out at this time of night? I looked down, hoping to see jogging shoes and exercise clothes like I wore, but there was nothing. He was dressed in khakis and a sweater, so unlike what I would’ve guessed that I peered more closely, making sure he wore what I thought he did. My nerves automatically calmed and some lying voice in the back of my head told me that welldressed men, whether they were out in the middle of the night or not, did not mean me any harm. It also helped that he was handsome, with dark hair gelled to the side artfully. He was chiseled, at least that’s what I thought. I recognized the same definition in him as I had started to see in myself with my training and my running. Though, mine was nothing compared to his. He seemed to have unnatural musculature. It was like what I would have imagined a Greek God would’ve looked like. I shook my head at myself, disbelieving the way my

mind worked. Whether this guy was good-looking or not, I needed to get away. I kept backing up until my back hit the storm door, creaking. I jumped at the noise. In front of me, the guy had moved to the bottom step. He laughed, his husky voice guttural, melodic. I turned, knowing the only way to get into my house, to get to safety, was to unlock the door and lock it behind me. This may have been my undoing though. With my back turned, he was immediately on me, his hand coming to rest on mine as it worked on the lock. His breath hit my face, unnaturally cool in the night. A shiver started from my toes making its way all the way up my spine to between my shoulder blades. The guy tsked. He peeled my fingers away from the lock one by one. “You won’t be needing this.” I turned toward him. Though my body sent warning signals, I still moved closer to him on instinct. His eyes drew me in to their chestnut depths. “I-I won’t?” With a smirk sliding onto his face, the guy shook his head. “No, I’m afraid not. You’ve been chosen.” I couldn’t be sure what happened next, only that there was a flurry of movement, and then a blackness. I tensed, waiting for the nightmare to

come again.

Chapter Two My eyelids fluttered open, but the unnatural light, harsh as it was, made them close again. It was a good thing, too. Now that I was conscious, I heard voices. I kept still as I took in my surroundings with what senses I did have without alerting the others to the fact that I was awake. I was lying flat on my back, the glaring light from above shined directly down on me. Underneath me was a cushion which was only slightly better than my terrible mattress back home. I could only conclude I was in some sort of bed. My hands were fastened over my stomach, but I didn’t dare move to feel my way around. The voices echoed, leading

me to believe I was in a somewhat large room. There was a woman and a man there with me. The man’s voice I recognized. He was the one who made it dark again. The girl was closer than he was. Though I was terrified, I tried to even out my breath as if I was still asleep. The woman sighed audibly, the voice even closer now. “So, this is her?” Her? My mind, always working, always trying to connect the dots from one to the next, couldn’t comprehend any of this. The man didn’t say anything for a while. I guessed that I’d miss some sort of nonverbal communication between them. I hoped it was him shaking his head. This wasn’t her, right? I was just me. Where was I? And why were they speaking as if they knew me? “I don’t see anything that special,” the woman said. My jaw hardened. I made myself relax to appear still unconscious. It wasn’t quite so much detest in her voice that I recognized as much as it was unanswered questions, perhaps frustration. “You’re positive you got the right one?” The man’s voice deepened and hardened like steel. “Of course. Christian Ravana pointed her out to me himself. It’s impossible for me to make a mistake.” The woman grunted almost condescendingly

at him. “Your arrogance knows no bounds, Samuel.” “Some say they like that.” “They’re lying.” His voice was closer now and I couldn’t stop from tensing at his proximity. I wasn’t hurt, not that I could tell anyway, but he was the reason why I was here and not in my own bed. The man snickered, laughing at her. “You try running a military camp and see if you keep your sense of self-righteousness and cool. I’ve done this for far too long to keep a level head about my abilities.” “Military camp?” she scoffed. “You’re training a bunch of humans. I’d hardly call that—” The man growled, a short, terrifying rip through the air that barely rose above a whisper, but it cut my thoughts short on her mention of the word humans. “And what would you call the defense of our kind?” “No matter,” the woman said. Her voice was light, airy, almost as if she were hiding a laugh. There was a scuffling of feet and then her voice was far away again. “Did you ask them why they wanted her? Her specifically?” I held my breath. “Of course, I did. That doesn’t mean they gave me an answer.” Who was this Christian guy and why did they

want me? I racked my brain, rummaging through the memories of my life, trying to think if I ever knew someone named Christian Ravana. I’d been through several foster homes, but that name didn’t ring a bell. Not in any of my few foster brothers and sisters, not in any of my “parents” or other family members. I couldn’t recall the name Christian anywhere. “I have a theory,” the man offered. His voice was slow, almost testing. The woman didn’t say anything and I wondered again if I missed some sort of nonverbal cue for him to speak. Though the man had authority, a superior tone to his voice that the woman couldn’t match, I still wondered if they were equals. In any case, she didn’t seem to take any of his nonsense. I didn’t want her to interrupt. I’d love to hear this theory about why this guy Christian wanted me here. “I wondered,” he started, his voice lilting, “that perhaps the reason why they aren’t saying anything, is that they really just want her.” The woman didn’t skip a beat. “The Ravanas want her blood, you mean?” I couldn’t stop the hitch in my breath. Icy, finger-like tendrils ran up the sides of my arms. What world was I in? I wouldn’t put it past some of my previous foster families to be this weird, but this was something else. My stomach clenched. Why me? Why was it always me?

The man’s voice was close again, my skin tingled on the right side of my body as if he was standing over me, staring at me. That whole side of my body was hyper aware. “What else could it be? She has no training, background, or family connections that I’m aware of. You should’ve seen her apartment. It wasn’t fit for a girl her age. What else could they want from her if not for her blood?” The woman tsked. “I suppose her having no family or connections makes sense then. If they were going to choose someone to drain, it would be someone who no one would miss.” The words stung more than they should when they were uttered from a stranger. Heat built behind my eyes. No one would miss me. No one would even realize I was missing. I kept to myself. The only people who might notice I wasn’t around were my bosses at work, but they half expected I wouldn’t show up anyway. They would just chalk it up to me being a stupid girl, a stupid young girl who couldn’t even keep a job. The only other person who might notice was my landlord when the rent check didn’t show up in his mailbox. Would he even bother to think something bad had happened to me though? In the part of town I lived in, people probably skipped out on their rent all the time. They had taken me, this man and woman, and no one would know. The man shifted and I almost flinched away.

Even without sight, I knew he was too close. “I think we can ask her ourselves. Seeing as how she’s been awake all this time.” I cringed, hoping that the movement was internal only and that my sleeping mask was still intact. Could I still just play at sleeping? If I opened my eyes, I would be in the nightmare. Never one to be a coward for too long and always wanting to face my circumstances, I took a deep breath and opened my eyes, hoping the harsh light wouldn’t force me to close them again as soon as they opened. Hovering above me, just as I suspected, were the golden-brown eyes of the guy who took me, along with another pair of much lighter yellow eyes of a woman with long blonde hair. “Ah, there she is,” the guy, Samuel, said. I tried to sit, but the restraints on my wrists held me in place. They gave me just enough leeway to put them back down on the small table next to me, but not enough to pull me up to a sitting position. I stared at both of them, my eyes traveling to the impossible color of their eyes, one to the next, trying to make them out. Were they a threat? Stupid question. They took me here, didn’t they? I wasn’t hurt, but that part might be coming later. My eyes moved around the room. There were other tables like the one I was on. It looked strikingly like a doctor’s office, only with more

cots. A hospital, I guessed. As my eyes kept wandering around the narrow, but lengthy room, I noticed silver trays with instruments on them, a rubber glove dispenser, and hand sanitizer stations all over the place. Yes, it was most definitely a doctor’s office, hospital, or something to do with the medical profession. Maybe I just passed out? Maybe I passed out and the guy brought me here? Maybe he didn’t mean me any harm at all. The content of their conversation came back to me now. My blood. The thought crushed my hopes, sending them in a swirl to my twisting stomach. I stared up at the man. He’d already known I was awake. That meant he wouldn’t keep anything from me, right? If he’d known I was awake and he didn’t want me to know about anything, he wouldn’t have said so much in my presence. I pierced him with a stare I hoped was menacing. “What did you mean ‘want my blood’?” Samuel’s lips turned up at the corners. His face was much more handsome in this fake, bright light. In fact, he didn’t look menacing at all. He looked trustworthy, even though everything in my body said otherwise. He shook his head, then leaned his palms against the table and peered down at me. “Listen very carefully, young Ariana…” My eyes widened at the mention of my name. My real name.

His lips pulled wider. “You’re at the Rajyvik Guardian Training Facility, otherwise known as The Fort. The vampire princes have requested your presence here.” “V-vampire?” I stuttered out, the word sinking into me like sharp teeth. My blood ran cold. Even though I rebelled at the thought—vampires were a myth, not reality—I knew he wasn’t lying. To prove it, two very pointy, very white teeth razored to a needle-like edge as he spoke. “You have two choices: stay at The Fort and train to be the Ravana’s Guardian. Or, you can die. Which will it be?”

Chapter Three Samuel said I had a choice, but I didn’t. Not Ariana Stuart. I’d always had a high selfpreservation instinct. How else would I have stayed alive after all my friends and family died in that car accident? I could still almost hear my mother’s voice saying stay alive, stay alive, stay alive. It didn’t matter that it wasn’t real. It was real to me. I knew I needed to stay alive. The same thing happened again when my foster father brought home a gun. That was the night I ran away. So, for me, I would never choose to die. At least, not without a fight. I told Samuel I would stay

and be a guard even though I didn’t really know what that meant. So far, all I’d gathered was that I was at some sort of military institution in which I would be trained to fight for the vampire princes’ lives. It wasn’t much, but it didn’t matter anyway. I would play the guard route until I could escape. I wouldn’t die. Samuel walked me down a gray-stoned corridor. I followed after him, making sure to stay a step behind so that my actions would go unnoticed. My eyes wandered, taking in my surroundings. I stared out the slitted windows, looking for any possible escape route. I memorized the walk, looked inside doors, anything I could think of, I encapsulated in my memory to save it for a later date. Who knew what might help in my planned escape. Samuel hadn’t spoken to me since we left the infirmary. We headed toward a steel door at the end of the hall and once we got there, he pushed it open. A gust of the same cool air I remembered on my skin when I was jogging earlier that night rushed toward me. We stepped out into the night, the night that didn’t lie, and I looked around. We’d just exited from a monstrous stone building, reminding me of castles in the tourist brochures from England or Ireland. He didn’t stop as I gawked like a sightseer. I wanted to ask him where we were, but talking to him unnerved me. I trusted

him far too much, and against my own better judgment. Hurrying after him, my sneakers slipped through the dewy grass. There were a few buildings ahead of us. They were made of stone too, like the one we came from, but smaller. Surrounding them, I noticed with dread, was a high wall. I umderstood why they called it The Fort now. One of my nicer foster families had liked to travel. They took me to sites around where we lived, and one of them happened to be a Revolutionary War fort. This reminded me so much of that. High walls to protect its soldiers from the battle. There were small slits to stick guns through and little holes as if cannons were waiting on the other side to fire from. I stopped to stare up at a small circular stone room atop the wall when Samuel yelled back at me, “Keep up.” I scrambled after him, my heart sinking. If this truly was a fort, I would be hard-pressed to find a way to get out of here. No matter, I told myself. Not everything was bulletproof. There had to be a way. I ran forward as we headed toward another stone structure whose middle was one story high while the East and West points jutted into the starstudded sky. We walked right through the center doors and I immediately was overcome with familiarity. The inside of this small castle was like

the real world. There were carpeted floors, painted walls, and disheveled furniture. Even from the doorway, I could hear the light, breezy voices of others. Samuel stopped abruptly and turned on his heel. He glowered down at me. “The others will probably have many questions for you. Since you can’t answer them, I suggest you keep your guard up. I’m sure they will fill you in on what you’re confused about. Do keep in mind that they are merely humans with their own take on things.” He looked exasperated as if he wasn’t used to humans having their own minds. I looked up at him, crossing my arms in front of my chest. “But, I’m human.” “Yes, of course you are. You wouldn’t be allowed in the guard if you weren’t. Remember, no matter the Ravanas’ decision to take you on, Ariana, that doesn’t mean you’re special.” He spun and headed in the direction of the voices. I scowled after him, already guessing that the vampires—no matter how weird it was to say that word—had a steep superiority complex. Nothing short of what I encountered in the human world, where rich thought they were better than the poor, and some races and religions believed they were better than others. It was nice to hear that prejudices were in place even under otherworldly situations. Perhaps this place wasn’t that different

from the real world after all. I entered the room right behind Samuel. There was a smattering of boys and girls, all my age, sitting on chairs and sofas and lounging around. But when Samuel walked in the room, they all stood at attention, their heels knocking together and their arms tight to their sides with their chins raised in the air. I could see now, disbelieving yet satisfied, that my instincts were right. Samuel was someone who demanded respect. That woman vampire should not have scoffed when he called this place a military institution. That was exactly what this reminded me of. We were all recruits, and he was a drill instructor, not likely to take any of our crap. Samuel nodded once and everyone relaxed into their previous positions. He gave me a sparing glance and then looked back toward his group of young adults. “This is Ariana Stuart. As all of you know, she has been chosen to complete training here at The Fort. You will accept her as one of your own. I trust one of you will show Ariana to her room and I will come for her in the morning.” Samuel turned on his heel again and left the room. In the background, I could hear the front door opening and then closing, leaving me alone with the strangers. My eyes stayed locked on one guy, who sneered at me, his gaze narrowing by the second. I just glared back at him, knowing from the streets that you should never give up your ground. My

stomach flipped. No one moved immediately. They were all staring at me, curious, the same way I stared back at them. At last, a slight girl with blazing red hair to the middle of her back stepped forward. She had on a strappy tank top that showed off the muscles in her shoulders and arms. And here I thought I was in shape from running. I didn’t look anything like her. Her face and body were all sinewy muscles, reminding me of a feline. She held out her hand and I stepped forward to shake it. “Shannon,” she said “Ariana,” I informed her. She smiled. “Trust me, we know. We’ve been talking about you since this morning.” I eyed her. “Interesting.” I didn’t know what else to say. They knew I’d be taken before I did. “It will all become clear,” she said, positively, even though the words didn’t provide me with any reinforcement. She turned and rattled off a few names pointing at guys and girls in turn while everyone settled back into their casual places. The only other name I remembered right off the bat was Zeke. He was the one giving me a death glare. “So,” Shannon said, “you probably have a lot of questions.” I nodded, but Zeke interrupted. “Doubt that,” he said condescendingly. “She’s been hooking up with one of the vamp princes. Don’t let her fool

you, she knows all about this world and then some. Probably more than we do.” “Really, Zeke? Don’t you always say you know everything?” Zeke flipped her off. Shannon just shrugged, and turned toward me. “Don’t mind him, he’s an ass.” She moved a little closer, conspiratorially. “He’s just mad because you’re being here screws up his plans. I know you don’t know much, but know this. Zeke is not your friend.” I stared at the subject of the conversation from the corner of my eye. “I don’t even know him.” A small, sad smile flitted across her face. “It doesn’t matter. You’re being here changes everything for him and he’s not about to forget it.” A whole new level of frustration overcame me. How could I have made enemies when I didn’t even know these people? “Meaning?” “Long story short? All vampires have human guards. For some unknown reason, the Ravanas, the only royal family in need of a guard this year, have chosen you, a nobody.” She grimaced. “Sorry. Didn’t mean anything by that. No offense.” “Don’t worry about it.” Her shoulders deflated. “Those at the top of the class,” she said, hiking a thumb in Zeke’s direction, “get appointed to royalty first. With you here, Zeke’s position isn’t secure. The Ravanas are

breaking all the rules.” Half admiration, half confusion filled her face. I looked around, the others were staring at me but when I looked back, they looked away almost immediately. I felt like an outsider, again. “I don’t know why they chose me. I don’t know them.” “Welcome to the club. The others you see here? They’re from a long line of vamp guards. Our parents are stationed with vampire families all around the world. Since we’re in the know, we’ve made it our life’s mission to follow in our parents’ footsteps. We’re here to keep the vamps safe.” I stood there shaking my head. It was a lot to take in. First, there were actual vampires. Second, these vampires needed human guardians? Shannon giggled, the sound off, disproportionate to her build. “I get it. It’s a lot to take in. I guess all you need to know right now is that you’re here. You’ll find your place. It isn’t as if there’s anywhere else to go.” She threw herself into the chair she was sitting in when Samuel first walked in. I stood next to her, unsure of where else to go. The others weren’t making a motion towards me, and I wondered if they all secretly hated me like Zeke. Maybe even Shannon did, too. It wasn’t the first time I would be unwelcome in a new home. She sat up and grabbed a newspaper from the table in front of us. It was like the New York Times or any other

newspaper except it wasn’t. The font was much more Gothic, kind of what you would expect in a vampire world. She eyed me curiously. “You sure you don’t know the Ravanas?” I gave her a stern look. “No, I’ve never met them before in my life.” She raised her eyebrows. Handing me the paper, she said, “You’re in for a treat then.” She left her finger pointing to a foursome-vampires-on the front page. I strained my eyes to see them better through the black and white picture, wondering what they looked like in full color and standing right in front of me. I’d never met them before, that much I was sure of. If I had, I would’ve remembered. They were all strikingly handsome in their own way. They were like Samuel, almost, but at the same time, incomparable. They still looked lean, perhaps a little bit more boyish than the only other male vampire I’d seen. A simple, unsmiling expression graced their faces. I could only fantasize what they looked like when they smiled. Their eyes were hard, uncaring as they stared back at the camera. I searched for the headline, or some other piece of evidence to find out why they would be on the front page of the paper, other than being vampire princes, but Shannon grabbed the paper back and dropped it in her lap. “Hot, aren’t they?” She didn’t need me to answer. She didn’t even look up to see the

knowledge on my face. “Too bad the vamps are off-limits to us. Well, not that we can’t have sex with them, but we just can’t fall in love with them.” My eyes narrowed at her. As far as I was concerned, sex and love came hand-in-hand. She looked at me and smiled. “I’m really not that way, I promise. I just don’t know why they have to be so damn hot. It’s like torture.” Another female voice perked up. “Complete and utter torture.” On the sidelines, a guy, not Zeke who I noticed had already fled from the room, piped up. “Same for us. Probably worse.” Shannon laughed. “Definitely worse for you, Evan.” The more they bantered back and forth, the more I felt at ease. It probably helped that Zeke was no longer in the room and I didn’t feel as if I had to watch my back every second. I sat on the armrest of Shannon’s chair. “So, you guys can’t be with vampires?” “Nope,” the boy named Evan said. “They’re really big on keeping the bloodlines pure.” That sounded so Hitler-esque to me. “And if it does happen?” I asked, staring at the paper in Shannon’s lap. “The Council steps in,” Evan informed me. “No one wants that.” “Yeah,” Shannon said. “You definitely don’t

want that.”

Chapter Four Hours alone in my room convinced me that I needed to get out of The Fort. It wasn’t that my new room wasn’t nice. It was clean, there was no mildew, no broken mirror in the en suite bathroom. It reminded me of a much nicer dormroom, had I went to college. The bed was nice, the rooms were bigger, simple, clean. As far as I knew, it was also free. At what cost? I already had enemies here and from what everyone had told me of the Ravanas, I was still unsure of their motives. Why would they choose me, an outsider, besides someone else here who’d grown up in this world? It was my experience that people did things like that for bad

reasons, reasons you wouldn’t want to know about. So, The Fort was just another foster home I needed to escape from. I hadn’t bothered putting on the slate gray pajamas that were left on my bed. I didn’t bother rummaging through the closet to look for the uniform Shannon told me would be there for the next morning. I knew I wasn’t staying. I waited until the very early rays of sunshine began to tendril through the sky. The window in my room overlooked the back lawn that led to the creeping wall surrounding the fort. I didn’t know whether the myths about vampires were true since the myths themselves weren’t true, but I figured I would give it a whirl. From what I knew about vampires, they didn’t like sunlight. So, once I noticed the first rays peeking through the clouds, I opened my door and walked silently through the hallway. I found my way easily to the front door and breathed a sigh of relief when it pushed open without hesitation. No doubt, because of the other reinforcements here, they weren’t worried about safety. They definitely weren’t worried about anyone trying to sneak out. I went around the side of the building, staying close to the stone wall. I hurried past windows and streaked across the wide open grass until I hid in the shadow of a tree just on this side of the enormous perimeter wall. I looked

upward, trying to find a path to make it up and over. I never rock climbed before, nor was I ever a good tree climber, but I had to try. The campus was usually silent. No scruffling of chipmunks, no birds in the trees, as if nature knew what was here and was too scared to come around it. That in and of itself told me I needed to leave. To leave and never come back. I didn’t want to think too much ahead of myself, but I knew I couldn’t even go back to my apartment. They knew where I lived. If they wanted me back, they would follow me there. I had to get away from here, and go somewhere, anywhere else. Staring up, I noticed a small limb that branched out over the wall. It may have not been the best way, but it was the only way. I started up the trunk, notching my left foot into a small foothold and grasping the first branch with my outstretched fingers. I tugged, noticing how weak I was in the upper body. My legs, I knew, had been getting stronger due to the running habits I’d started recently, but that didn’t mean anything for my upper body. It felt like Jell-O as I tried to pull myself up the tree. It didn’t help that the sun hadn’t come out in full force and dried away the dew from overnight. My hands slipped and I fell back down the tree, scraping my knee in the process. Exasperated tears threatened my eyes. I kicked the tree, and then started again. This time, I jumped for

the first branch and tried to use my legs to swing up and over the first branch. As soon as my hands grasped the branch, I swung my legs up as high as they could go, but they just came crashing back down. Not able to support my body weight, I fell on all fours. Much to my horror, my hand fell on a black boot. I closed my eyes, unwilling to look up. I was sure it was Samuel, or some other head guard I hadn’t met yet. What was the punishment for trying to escape The Fort? All these questions hit me at once, my mind spinning out of control. I took a deep, leveling breath, and finally stared up. When I did, I shuffled back. It wasn’t Samuel or some other guard. It was one of the Ravanas. I recognized him from his picture in the newspaper. This was one of them, in the flesh. The ones who wanted me here. The ones who no one could figure out why I was so important to them. Other than the fact they speculated they only wanted my blood. “Y-you?” He nodded once. “Where are you going?” I stood up on shaky legs, my knees wobbling. It wasn’t so much from fright at being found out, but I was literally weak in the knees as the full force of his glare powered into me. I was struck by how handsome he was in person. His voice wasn’t hard or angry, neither was his face. In fact, his expression was open, very unlike the picture I’d seen in the paper. He looked

merely confused, one eyebrow higher than the other as he regarded me. “Escaping?” I didn’t answer. It was obvious, wasn’t it? I didn’t know anyone who would stick around in a world full of vampires when they didn’t even know they existed a few hours ago. Maybe he wasn’t up on human pop culture, but vampires were the enemies. Well, unless you’re Stephenie Meyer and write about sparkling ones. The one in front of me wasn’t sparkling. Still in the shade of the tree, I couldn’t test my theory about the first rays of sun shining through to help me escape even if I wanted to. I forced my chin in the air. “Why am I here?” His expression remained the same. His bluegray eyes searched mine. “Because we summoned you here.” I bit down the retort on my tongue. He was a vampire prince after all and everyone I’d met so far seemed to regard them as special. Somehow, I knew it would behoove me not to be sarcastic to him. “I don’t understand.” “You aren’t meant to yet.” He stared up at the tree and then at the limb that crossed over the stone wall. “I’m sorry you missed your chance at escape.” I couldn’t help the distrust that crept into my thoughts or the way my forehead creased at his words. I searched for falsities somewhere in his words or even sarcasm, but didn’t find any. He

stepped closer, reaching for my hand and I took a step back. The corners of his lips tipped up, a minute difference to his normal expression that it barely even registered. “Do not fight this, Ariana. I need to take you back to your room.” He took a step forward again, I mirrored him, walking back a step. “I need to understand why I’m here,” I said firmly. He was silent, staying where he was. His gaze traveled over me. His expression softening as he spied the scar on my forearm from the car accident. He was quiet for so long, I knew he wasn’t going to answer. Desperation fueled my next move. I conjured Old Joe and one of the many tactics he’d taught me. “I’m sorry,” I said. I pulled my arm straight back and aimed for the vampire prince’s eyes. I closed my own, not wanting to see what would happen to him. Though it was ridiculous, I couldn’t bear to hurt him. I merely only wanted to escape this place, go back to the enemy I knew. My fingers slammed into something rock hard. They curled in on themselves with the force of the movement until my wrist snapped. I cried out in pain, my eyes wide open as I cradled my wrist in my hand. Looking up, the vampire held his palm in the air, right in the place my finger jab was headed. He frowned as he stared down at my cradled

wrist. “I’m sorry, too.” He moved so quick it barely registered. Then it was black.

Chapter Five A thunderous knock sounded on the door. “Ariana, you must wake up now.” Eyes snapped open. My wrist still cradled in my hand, I moved it around gingerly, expecting the same pain I felt last night. Weird, I thought. I put my hand in front of my eyes and twisted my wrist this way and that. There was nothing, I didn’t feel a thing. The thunderous knock came again and I sighed. Placing my hands on the bed, I stood. Still no wrist pain, I realized, incredulously. Could I have dreamed everything from last night? Not likely. I was still dressed in the same jogging clothes

I wore yesterday. The gray pajamas I hadn’t bothered to put on in my haste escape were crumpled at the foot of the bed. A knock started to come again but I whipped the door open. Samuel stood on the other side, his face pulled back into a tight smile. He eyed me from head to toe, his lips turning into a smirk. “You have five minutes to get to the cafeteria. After breakfast, you start your training.” As I was used to by now, Samuel turned on his heel and left, a large blur on the edge of my peripheral vision the only evidence he was ever there at all. My heart slammed against my rib cage at the unworldly sight. Looking down the hallway, there was no sign of him at all. Nothing. Could all vampires move that fast? I slammed the door closed, and locked it behind him. Even though I’d stayed up far too late last night “escaping”, I felt bright and chipper this morning. I found the clothes Shannon told me would be in the closet and stalked into the bathroom. I took a shower, then dressed in the allblack training uniform, and braided my long hair and pulled it over my shoulder. I’d taken longer than five minutes, but it would have to do. I left my room and headed back to the large open area at the center of the building. I wasn’t exactly sure where the cafeteria was considering I’d only been here less than twenty-four hours.

Turned out I didn’t need to worry. The smell of bacon wafted into the common room where I’d met my new training buddies. Following my nose, I walked to the back and sure enough, through a glass door, was a small cafeteria. Others I’d met last night were already sitting at tables, little bits of food left on their trays. Hurrying forward, my stomach suddenly gnawing, I helped myself to the food that was there for us. Unlike school cafeteria food, these options actually looked appetizing. Once I had a full tray, I spotted Shannon and walked up to her table. She looked up at me, her bright red hair pulled into a bun. She smiled and raised her eyebrows. “Surprised you’re still here.” I set my tray down and sat opposite her. I wanted to say, ‘not for lack of trying’, but I figured if anyone else knew I’d tried to escape, I would be in for a punishment. Since Samuel never mentioned it, it was possible the prince I’d met last night didn’t tell anyone else that he had to, well, I didn’t really know what he did since I blacked out. All I knew was that I ended up back in my room last night. My wrist, still completely void of pain, was working fine. I shook my head. “I’m not sure what’s wrong with me.” She snickered. “Probably best. I have a feeling they wouldn’t let you out of here if you tried. It’s not all bad, really. Once you get past the fact that there are vampires and they use humans as

their guards, it’s not so bad.” I stared up at her, her cheeks blushed right to her ears. I couldn’t figure one thing out for the life of me. Yes, I’d been brought here against my will, but I hadn’t felt fear like I should have. “Can I ask you a question? Do you like the vampires?” Shannon placed her fork back down on the table in front of her and moved her hands to her lap. She seemed to take my question seriously, which I appreciated. I meant it seriously. Was she happy here? Were all of these people happy here? Their parents, too. They pledged their lives to protect vampires, it all just seemed so surreal. She finally met my eyes looking strong, serious. “Yes.” She regarded me as I took in her answer, trying to make my face completely devoid of feeling, but I fear I failed. “You probably think this sounds crazy, and who knows, maybe it is. This is the only life I’ve ever known. My parents, and everyone else in this room including their parents, take great pride in what we do. I’m not saying it’s not flawed in some instances, but I’m happy.” I searched her words for hidden meaning, even looking past the small smile that flickered across her face, trying to see what she really did feel, but found nothing other than what she said. Shannon did seem happy. She looked down into her tray and giggled. “I can see you’re trying to figure this all out. Think of

it like this. You have police in your world, right? They protect, they serve. They’re there to keep everyone safe. That’s what we do. We’re here to keep the peace. It just so happens that we’re here to keep the peace for the vampires.” I stabbed a tater tot with my fork and placed it in my mouth, mulling over what Shannon just said. The protecting part didn’t bother me. I was all for police and military service members. It was what we were protecting that I didn’t quite get. Reality and fantasy mixed inside me, clouding my judgment. Could vampires really be worth protecting? Shannon abruptly stood, empty tray in her hands. She nodded toward the open doorway and I followed her cue. Samuel stood just inside the door, his hands on his hips. She turned back toward me. “You better eat as much as you can, you’re going to need the energy.” She walked away and I was left there by myself. I ate everything on my plate as fast as I could. I was just forking the rest of the eggs into my mouth when a shadow fell over my table. I looked up, Samuel’s impressive body hovering over me once more. He glanced at my empty tray and then turned his gaze on me. “I’m afraid it’s going to be a tough day for you. Keep up as much as you can. You have some time to bring your abilities up to par, but not much. Everyone else here has known

what they were destined to do since they were little. I hope you’re a fast learner.” For my sake, I hoped so too. Zeke’s comment from last night still stuck with me. I was an outsider. I only knew full well what being an outsider meant. I followed Samuel from the cafeteria and realized shortly after I’d be doing that all day. Whatever Samuel did, we did. He ran three miles along the perimeter wall of The Fort, we ran three miles around the perimeter wall of the fort. In the lawn I’d crossed last night in my haste to escape this place, we did round after round of calisthenics. There were jumping jacks, squats, and more burpies than I wished to count. Next, we hit the gym. We bypassed racks of free weights and walked into another room that reminded me of the martial arts school I cleaned. The sight of training dummies, kick shields, and focus mitts were all familiar to me. Samuel told us when to punch and when to kick, and we did it. I lagged behind in the calisthenics portion of the day, but I thought Samuel was pretty happy with my progress during these exercises. It didn’t last long though. After a quick lunch, he marched us out onto the side lawn where an obstacle course was all laid out. By this time, I was so sore and unbelievably tired. Though the recent bout of running had helped

me, I knew my upper body strength sucked. From what I could tell, there were a bunch of obstacles that required upper body training. I stopped in the middle of the grass, staring up at the ropes and cargo nets, when Shannon placed a hand on my shoulder. “This is the most important thing we’ll do today. We’re tested on the other things, too, but they put a great deal of weight on how we fair in the obstacle course. The mission is to get stronger and faster.” I gulped, all hope I’d gathered throughout the day that I might be able to get good at all this vanished. “I’ve never done anything like this before.” “You’ll get used to it. You did pretty good today. No offense, but a lot better than I thought you would. Even Zeke was pissed you finished the run with the rest of us.” I couldn’t help but smirk. All in all, though it had been a tough day, I couldn’t say I didn’t enjoy myself. I felt strong, capable. It wasn’t a familiar feeling. She bumped me with her elbow. “Just give it your best—“ Shannon stiffened, and a tingle of awareness ran up my spine. Her eyes darted around the lawn, finally stopping on four figures in the distance. “Oh my…” I followed her gaze. Oh my, was right. The

Ravana princes stood with Samuel on the other side of the obstacle course with their hands on their hips. Though Samuel was gesturing with his hand toward some of the obstacles, the others’ gazes were zeroed in on me. Now that I had a full color look at all of them, they didn’t really look like brothers to me. They all had different hair colors. One jet black, blond, and two with brown, but one dark and one light. The differences didn’t end there. They were all built differently with varying heights. What was the same though was their sinewy muscles. Even with shirts and jeans, I could tell they were more fit than the average guy with tapered waists and wider shoulders. My stomach somersaulted. “Does this happen all the time?” “Nope. Vampires never come here. It’s usually just Samuel and some of the others that run The Fort. A lot has been going on here recently though. I don’t think they’ve ever come here to watch.” She eyed me, curiously. Despite answering her question before on whether or not I knew the princes, I got the sneaking suspicion she didn’t believe me. “Great,” I said with mock enthusiasm. “We better make this good,” she said as she started toward the obstacle course. I followed her, noticing a few of the guys already on some of the obstacles. I watched as

Zeke climbed the rope, rang the bell at the top of the crossbar, and then slid easily down, landing in a crouch. When he looked up, his gaze met mine. He smiled and winked, his glare more menacing than I’d seen on any of the few vampires I’d met so far. Instinct told me I had more to fear from him than any of the ones that could supposedly drink my blood. I shook my head. I would do as much as I could. They really shouldn’t expect me to be able to do it so quickly. Standing at the start line, I couldn’t help my eyes from wandering towards the princes. Last night, Shannon had told me their names. Christian, Nicolai, Stephen, and Connor. I wondered who was who. Hopefully I’d find out eventually. They were the reason why I was here after all. Samuel was no longer beside them, but coming toward me. His eyes held me in place and I waited for him, hoping to get some much needed advice. Once he stood in front of me, he looked away briefly, and then back down into my eyes. “Listen, none of us know what’s going on here. All I know is, for the first time, the vampire princes have asked if they can watch us on the obstacle course.” He stepped forward, the tips of his sneakers banging into mine as he towered over me. I shrank back, my eyes flicking toward the others. I wasn’t sure why I looked. Each of their faces

hardened in turn. The one I met last night took a step forward in our direction, his jaw ticking. The one next to him grabbed his arm. I looked away, back to Samuel, who had already returned to a respectable distance. “I suggest you do better than your best. Get to the start line.” I looked around, noticing Shannon was already on the third obstacle. Behind me, a line had started to form to start the course again. I recognized Evan, and of course, Zeke, each of them with their hands on their knees bent over to catch their breath. I wiped my sweaty hands over my training pants. My body screamed at me to look toward the princes again, but I didn’t give in. I kept telling myself to focus. I knew I held the gazes of all the vampires and with Shannon’s warning still in my head, I could feel the weight of the obstacle course on me. After a deep breath, I sprinted forward and launched myself onto the monkey bars. I was able to jump to just short of the middle bar, but my fingers slipped off easily. I landed on two feet. Behind me, I heard Zeke’s dark laughter. Jumping again, I struggled to make it past two bars. It took me longer than it should have to get to the end, but I was grateful when I finished. Wanting to make up time, I sprinted toward the next obstacle. I launched myself up the hay bales and across a small wooden plank to the other side. That hadn’t

been too bad. I jumped down and again ran as fast as I could. Unfortunately, I was at the rope climb. I wiped my hands on my pants again and grabbed hold. I stuck my heel on the bottom knot just as I’d seen the others do and pulled. I didn’t go anywhere. I tried, and tried. I pulled and got a little further, but just didn’t have the strength to pull myself all the way up the rope, or even a foot up the rope. The rest of the class came up behind me. Not wanting to be seen as weak, I pulled with everything I had left and moved another six inches up the rope but no further. Soon, I heard the slapping of sneakers against the mud as someone else reached the rope climb. It was Zeke, of course. He smirked at me again. After looking behind me at the vampires who were staring me down, he looked up at the bell and started climbing. “Careful not to fall too far behind,” he whispered back. “Since you’re not really one of us, they’ll probably just kill you.” With another sinister laugh, he pulled himself all the way up the rope and hit the bell. He slid down and ran away, lapping me. I hated him. Tears threatened my eyes. I tried again with fervor, inching up just a little on the rope but also sliding back down again, my hands and knees burning where they rubbed against the coarse threads. Without looking up, I got the tingle of awareness again. I told myself not to look. I knew it wouldn’t do any good. I knew I would only see in

their faces what I felt inside myself. I was weak though, obviously. I peeked up, grimacing. They stared at me, except this time, their faces held all the anger from the picture that was in the newspaper. The one closest to Samuel leaned toward him, his lips moving, and suddenly Samuel walked toward me. “Work, Ariana.” “I am,” I said, pulling myself up a little for emphasis. His voice came out in an angry lash, “You need to try.” “I am,” I said through clenched teeth. His sigh of exasperation only defeated me. I slid the rest of the way down the rope, landing on my feet and bending at the waist to catch my breath. Samuel shook his head. “Your lack of upper body strength will be the death of you.” I looked up at him, fear slithering down my spine.

Chapter Six “Move On. See how you fare on the rest of the course.” My heart lurched, I took his words for what they were, reprieve from something I knew I would never be able to do at that moment. I told myself I would train, try harder, do better. I launched myself at the cargo net, pulling myself up and over even though the same ropes dug into the burns on my palm. I ignored the pain, rising swiftly over the rope and jumping down, landing in a squat. Army crawl was next. We had to crawl as close to the ground as we could, just barely under line after line of barbed wire. I got down and was

able to maneuver through the obstacle unscathed. I let out a sigh of relief. I’d had visions of blood running down my cheeks and scalp, sure I was going to cut myself on one of the barbs. Thankfully, it wasn’t nearly as tough as the rope climb. Up next was speed and agility training. Huge tires were set right next to each other in straight lines. We were supposed to run through it, our feet landing in the middle of each tire to get to the next obstacle. I made it through, only tripping once near the end. I fell forward and rolled back onto my feet. Next, was a rope swing across a teen foot pool of water. I ran forward as fast as I could, grabbed onto the rope, and willed myself to hang on. I made it to the other side, free. The next few obstacles tested my endurance and not my upper body strength. I was able to finish without another hiccup. I walked back around slowly to the start line. Guards-in-training had been passing me left and right. Shannon had even whispered words of encouragement as she lapped me, but my lungs burned with every breath. I couldn’t believe I’d ever thought I was in somewhat good shape. “Come on, Ariana. Get moving!” Samuel yelled from the sidelines. I did as he said, picking up the pace, and threw myself back into the obstacle course. My focus was all off this time though. I was staring at

my vampires, wondering what they thought of me. They still stood next to Samuel, hands on his hips, gazes earnest as they watched me. I slipped off the wooden plank between the hay bales which I hadn’t done the last time. Thankfully, I caught myself, but didn’t have the strength to pull myself back onto the obstacle. I fell to the ground and had to go back to the beginning to complete it. Embarrassment crept up my cheeks. They were there to watch me, possibly placing value on me. I was most definitely the worst in the class, the other trainees continued to pass me one by one. It wasn’t much consolation, but I could say I never gave up. Except for the rope climb again. After five minutes of continuing to try to inch myself up the rope, Samuel came forward and told me to move on once more. When I looked up, their faces were impassive. After my fifth time through the course, I plopped down onto my back and stared up. It was then, and only then, that I noticed the lack of sun. From beautiful tree to beautiful tree, all around the campus, a mesh screen blocked out the sunlight. I shook my head, staring up at the wonderment. Not noticing it before, only certified the fact that I’d been focused all morning on trying not to suck at all this physical activity stuff. A boot hit the top of my sneaker. “Get up,”

Samuel said. I gazed up at him warily. “You have a special class. You’re to go with the princes now. They’re going to teach you about the vampire-human world.” I sat up. “What” Samuel shrugged and I turned to my left, only to see the one who kept me from escaping last night waltzing toward us, his hands in his pockets. “Are you ready for your lessons?” All around, other guards-in-training, stopped to stare. The girls mostly gawked, but Zeke, sneered at me, no doubt coming up with his own scenarios in his head about what was really going on. “Can’t Shannon teach me?” Samuel opened his mouth to speak, but the prince cut him off. “My brothers and I want to be the ones to teach you. Since we brought you here, it is only right.” Samuel held out his hand, and I grabbed it. He hiked me to my feet and I turned toward blue-gray eyes. The vampire prince eyed the space where Samuel and my hands had entwined. This one always looked pensive, as if he thought about a great deal of things. “Come,” he said, finally. He turned and I followed him, the dutiful servant. Instead of going to the dorms, he walked me to the main facility where the gym and the

infirmary were. His brothers must have already gone on ahead because they were no longer in sight. We didn’t stop in the area of the building I knew. We headed out another wing, and I recognized the hallway Samuel led me down the previous night when we left the infirmary. He pushed open a door to our right and we walked into a classroom. It was rather large, rows of desks and a big wooden monstrosity at the front for a teacher to sit behind, was a bit overkill for just the five of us. The room was no different than anything I’d seen before. It looked a lot like my high school classrooms. There, in the back of the room in all different modes of sitting were the vampire princes. They stopped talking to look at me. Each of them stood in turn, one from his perch on the table and the others from their seats. The air in the room lightened. It was as if I’d been suffocating all day and could just now breathe. It helped that they were all smiling at me. “Ariana,” the one who was sitting on the table said. My name was like a husky whisper on his lips. He came forward to grab my hand, pulled it to his lips, and placed a soft kiss on the top of my hand. “I’m Nicolai Ravana.” Not because I was scared, though in retrospect, I should’ve been. He was a vampire and his mouth was dangerously close to my pulse. No, it

wasn’t any of that. He was breathtakingly handsome. He was the only one with midnight black hair that fell to his ears. He pulled back and another one was directly in front of me. He smiled, his grin reaching his ears and I swear I almost had a heart attack. Hair the color of honey haloed his face. “Connor,” he said. “Hi,” I said, though it came out barely above a whisper. His smile was warm, genuine, but then he was gone and emerald-colored eyes stared into mine. “I’m Stephan Ravana.” He held his hand out to me and I took it, momentarily grimacing due to the rope burns on my palm. He frowned down at me. “You’re hurt?” “I-it’s nothing,” I said. Really. The pain barely registered anymore. I could only see them. Stephan turned and made his way to the front of the room. My head twisted to follow him, but instead, I was staring at the one who’d stopped me last night. His blue-gray eyes were still arresting. The same passive look was on his face, yet with that hint of welcome I’d recognized last night that wasn’t there when he took me from Samuel. “Christian,” he said. I gulped. Never before in my life had four hot guys stared back at me. Well, maybe from a poster at one of the foster homes, but this was real life. A soft hand tugged on my fingers and I looked

up to find Stephan carefully grabbing me and taking me to the table. “Sit,” he said. “I’ve got something for your hand.” I did as he said and stared at him as he rubbed a pink-tinted salve on the burns. The rest of the guys swarmed around us, their faces concerned as they looked me over. Nicolai broke the silence finally. He opened his arms wide at the classroom surrounding us. “Vampires go to school here,” he offered. “We’re on break now, which is why you guys are here.” I took in his words, eager to learn everything I could as Stephan’s fingers still worked the salve into my skin. This whole world was a mystery to me and I couldn’t contain my natural curiosity. That vampires went to school surprised me. What did they need to know? What kinds of classes did they have? Connor laughed, the sound endearing. “We have to start bigger than that, Nic.” He looked at me. His face serious. “There are vampires.” The rest of them burst out laughing, including me. “I kind of got that part already. Thank you, though,” I added, not wanting to offend him. “The number one rule you need to know, Ariana,” Nicolai said, his face also serious, but not in a teasing way like Connor’s. “We won’t hurt you.” That was different considering Samuel’s bet

was that they all just wanted to drink my blood. With them all sitting around me, staring at me, I felt the wrongness of it on my tongue. I believed Nicolai. They wouldn’t hurt me. “The way you say it, I get the feeling that you four won’t hurt me, but that there are others. And surely, there are others that might not be so good to me?” Christian’s lips turned up. “I told you she was smart.” Stephan finished working the salve into my hand. I looked down, a slight sheen was all over my palm, but my burns were barely red anymore. I narrowed my gaze at the small tub he held in his hand. He pocketed it and then kept his blue eyes on me. “I thought you did really good today.” I wanted to laugh. What show were they watching? I was terrible. Christian spoke up then. “She doesn’t believe you.” I narrowed my gaze at him only to have Connor talk and pull my attention away. “It’s true. You were amazing. Everyone was impressed.” “Samuel?” I asked, disbelieving. “Okay. Maybe not Samuel, but he doesn’t count. I’m talking about us. We’re the only ones that matter.” They all snickered, but I wasn’t done with this. “What happens if I don’t pass here?” I asked, remembering Samuel, and even Zeke’s, words.

Connor smiled. “Pass?” “You know, it I’m not meant to be a guard? Will I be killed?” The guys all stared at each other and then one-by-one, they all started to laugh. “No,” Connor said, humor still in his voice. “Whether you’re a guard or not, you’re staying with us.” “Why?” Christian leaned forward, struggling to answer. His fingers turned white as he held his hands together more tightly. “Next question.” I groaned, which only served to bring a smile to Christian’s face. “Fine, why should I care? Why would anyone want to guard the vampires? Can’t you protect yourselves?” “How is it that you are able to encapsulate the struggles of our world in such a short amount of time? Can we protect ourselves? Of course, we can. We’re stronger and faster than humans. There are two very different schools of thought on the subject. There are those that believe we should take the lead in our own defense, and there are those that like to have the distinction of rank. They would never lower themselves to such a task.” Just as I thought, the vampires had a major superiority complex. “In which school do you find yourselves in?” Nicolai stared down at me, his chin dropping

in disbelief. “Seriously?” He flexed his arm and my arms almost bugged out of my head. Stephan pushed his shoulder. “Stop showing off.” Christian ignored them both. “Perhaps some information on our history will help. Despite our superior abilities, we are much like humans. Our world is also much like yours. We have a governing body called the Council.” I shuddered involuntarily. Remembering what the trainees had said last night about the Council jumping in. Whether Christian noticed my reaction or not, he ignored it. “Several, shall we say, royal families make up the members of the Council. They make our laws and make sure they’re enforced. Whether you’re a part of the Council, the royal families, or not, you can interact with as much or as little as the human world as you wish . Most choose to, but others don’t. If you are not a part of the defense of the vampire world or in the vampire government, you most likely have a human job even though we don’t have to. We can have anything or do anything we wish in the human world. As you know by now, a select group of humans know about us. These humans protect us, not only from the outside world, but from other vampires. In exchange for their loyalty, we provide for them in ways they never would be able to provide for themselves in the

human world. As far as pay, you can expect to make more than you ever would in the human world. Especially with the jobs you left behind.” I gasped. His eyes found mine. Somewhere throughout his speech, his eyes had begun to wander as if he was scanning a text book or playing scenes in his head. With that sound, his gaze once again locked on mine. “What is it?” “You know what I did? In the real world, in my real life?” He stopped, glancing briefly at the others. “Of course, you’ve been a great interest to us for a very long time, Ariana.” My heart thumped in my chest. The kind of feeling that meant excitement, gratitude, and eagerness. It wasn’t the reaction I should have had. “May I continue?” “P-please.” “Humans stay with us because we treat them well. They see places they never thought they would see, make more money than they know what to do with, and they are safe. They are trained to protect us, but in return, they don’t have to live with the restraints of the human world. Nor the fears. Here, it’s almost like living in a bubble. “ “Do any other humans know about vampires?” Connor shook his head. “No, and we would like to keep it that way.”

“Is that because you are a threat to them?” His eyebrows slammed down. “Humans are a bigger threat to us than we are to them.” I opened my mouth to speak again but I shook my head. There’d been something I’d been mulling over in my mind since last night, since I didn’t see Samuel eating with us in the cafeteria for breakfast or lunch. This also reminded me of what Samuel had said to the woman vampire the night before, that the princes might just want my blood. If myths were true, vampires survived on blood. Stephan grabbed my hand again. “What is it?” I looked down. The feeling of his hand in mine comforting. I might as well get it out of the way now. I wanted to know the answer, thinking it might bring me to my senses so I could finally feel the fear I should’ve felt all along. “You say you aren’t a threat to humans, but don’t you feed on them?” Christian laughed, followed by the others. The sound echoed throughout the room, bringing a smile to my lips. Regardless of the circumstances under which I got to hear his full laugh, I couldn’t help the lift to my heart it brought. “We do,” he said. He must’ve noticed the horror in my eyes because he broke out into another huge smile. “Not in the way you think, however. The blood drives?” I nodded carefully, wondering where he was going with this.

“That’s us,” he beamed. “The blood drives put on by various companies always claiming there’s a shortage, are vampires. Every time a human donates blood, it comes to us.” “So there’s no shortage of blood?” “A ruse,” he answered. “For the most part. I can’t really speak for the human world, but I haven’t seen a blood drive yet that isn’t vampire related. They’ve lasted and sustained us for a very long time.” I pulled my hands through my hair, taking this all in. This was that I feared the most. Their feeding habits. Humans were giving the blood willingly to the vampires, at least vampires weren’t taking it. Nicolai’s next words put the fear back into me again full force. “Not that the temptation isn’t there.” He stared at the pulse point on my wrists and I moved my hands away from Stephan’s. Stephan turned and gave him a dirty look. Nicolai stood, came over, and placed his hands on my shoulders. He pulled my hair away from my neck. I felt his hot breath behind my ear. “There are good and bad in vampires. Most of us try to live in a civilized manner.” So,” I ventured, my breath hitching. Finally, Nicolai moved away and I could think rationally again. “If I’ve got this correctly, humans agreed to live in the vampire world to defend you for security and safety?”

They all nodded once. “For some, it’s all they’ve ever known,” Christian added. That made sense. Shannon had said the same thing to me. Christian stood this time, coming down to kneel in front of me. The rest of them leaned closer as he spoke. “I can promise you, Ariana. If you pledge yourself to us, if you throw yourself into our world, you’ll never worry about another thing in your life.” I stared back into his eyes and they overwhelmed me with the power of their depths. A sliver of hope started in my chest. I’d been so intent on staying alive and scraping by. What Christian was promising was a different way of life. No worries, or fear. The rational part of my brain couldn’t explain why the idea of staying tempted me. Maybe it was seeing how the other trainees interacted, maybe it was in the whispered words of encouragement from Shannon, or the way the Ravanas gazed at me so intently. In the real world, no one paid attention to me. No one told me to keep going because the end result was worth it. No one stared at me as if I mattered. They barely even knew I existed. They definitely didn’t rub salve into my palms and promise me a better life. I shuddered. The four different pairs of eyes blazed into mine. In that moment, I made my

decision. Here, I could be someone. I didn’t know what life with the Ravanas held. I only knew that, for whatever reason, it felt like I had found my four walls.

Chapter Seven What happens when you put four seriously hot vampires in the same room with me? I frequently stare without listening, forget to pay attention, and check my lips for drool every so often. They were getting used to me as much as I was getting used to them. Right now, Connor was doubled over on the mat, his face red from laughing. They’d called dibs on the gym every day after training so I could get some extra time in. According to Shannon, no one had ever done that before. I guessed when you were the princes, you could do whatever you wanted.

I put my hands on my hips and stared down at Connor, my own face blazing from the embarrassment. I didn’t understand what was so funny. Nicolai, who’d been on his phone in the corner of the room, smirked. “What?” I said for what felt like the tenth time. Being laughed at wasn’t fun even though I knew he didn’t mean anything by it. It didn’t help that I was always exhausted with the extra training and usually looked like a drowned rat. My braid was soaked through with sweat. Looking at the back of Connor, his own shirt had a ring of dampness to it. We’d been working on takedowns pretty hard today. It was nice to see even he was affected by the physical exertion. It always felt like it was just me who got too winded and had to ask to take a break. Connor held up a finger, then immediately was taken over by a fit of laughter again. Narrowing my gaze at him, I reacted on instinct. I took his arm, threw my leg over, and put him in an arm bar. His other hand immediately smacked the mat a few times. “Tap, tap, tap,” he said. “You sure?” I smiled, loving the fact that I had the upper hand. I squeezed my knees together a little more, making the arm bar sink a little further in. “Tell me why you’re laughing.” Nicolai really couldn’t help himself now. He busted out laughing, his dark hair fell over his forehead as he rested his head against the wall of

mirrors his back was propped up against. “She got you, Connor.” I was already releasing when Connor said, “Okay, okay. I’ll tell you.” At that moment, Stephan decided to walk in. His eyes went from my legs, which were still around Connor’s arm to Connor’s face, which was still pink with laughter. “What the…?” “You don’t want to know,” Nicolai said. “Connor just can’t keep his mouth shut today and Ri isn’t having it.” I smiled at Nicolai’s pet name for me. Ever since that night we’d had the talk in the classroom, he’d started calling me Ri, short for Ariana. And, every single time since then, my heart decided to do this stupid flip. I looked over at him and he winked at me. It was like he knew what he was doing to me. I smiled back, feeling the after affect of the heart flipping. The beat in my chest was a steady thrum like the rapid flap of the hummingbird wings. Calm down, I tried to tell myself. That was my mantra around them. It had only been a week, but I wondered if it was ever going to go away. “What happened?” Stephan asked as he came toward me, his face turning down into a frown. He was super sensitive to any time the others made fun of me for what I didn’t know. He was especially always giving Connor a hard time because Connor seemed to love to give me a hard time. It was a

never ending jab-fest in my honor. Not that I couldn’t appreciate a good burn. I actually thought he was really funny, but I always liked to be in on the joke. Nicolai’s gaze moved back to his phone as he scrolled. “Ri said something about us being brothers. I don’t know. I could barely hear it because hyena over there immediately went into laugh-mode.” “Well?” I asked, looking up at Stephan. I knew he would tell me why it was so funny that I called them brothers. I mean, weren’t they? What was the big deal? Stephan looked almost sorry for me as he pulled me to my feet and checked my palms. The rope climb still hated me and even though I could get halfway up now, I still hadn’t rang the bell at the top. He frowned down again, seeing the burns there. “You didn’t put any of that salve on that I told you to, did you?” He turned toward Connor who still had that mischievous look on his face. The one where he was about to burst out laughing again. “And you,” he said, kicking Connor. “Instead of going right into training, you should’ve made sure she put it on.” Connor’s eyes turned down. My health was one thing they could all agree on. Connor immediately stood and tried to look at my palms, but I pulled them out of Stephan’s hands and hid

them behind my back. I arched an eyebrow at him. “Why is it so funny I called you brothers? Aren’t you? All your last names are Ravana. I just assumed…” “Don’t frown, Ariana,” Connor said. He lifted his finger and traced it down my jaw. “I was only playing around.” He definitely looked sheepish then. The guys were always telling him he took his jokes too far. I didn’t agree. Unless they were at my expense. They were vampires after all. I was just human and normal looking. They had superior looks, abilities, physical attributes, and more. I felt like the dog poo on the underside of my shoe compared to them. “’S okay,” I said, trying to smile for him. He dropped his hand to my shoulder. “We are brothers…sort of.” He gave me an apologetic smile. “We’re like more than that and not that all at the exact same time.” I frowned, not understanding a single word he said. He gave my shoulder another squeeze. “Vampires aren’t born. We’re turned. Me, Nic, Christian, and this guy,” he said, hiking his thumb to Stephan. “We weren’t born brothers. We were all turned and brought into the Ravana family. So, not really brothers, but—” A voice sounded from the other side of the room. “…more than brothers.” Christian’s serious voice echoed around the gym and I looked past Stephan to see him standing in the doorway. He

turned to shut the metal door behind him, securing us all in the same room. Christian’s intensity did what it always did, sucked the air from my lungs. He was the most serious out of all of them even though it was Nicolai that I suspected could have the bad boy streak. “I—I didn’t think of that. That vampires couldn’t procreate.” “Well, of course not,” Connor said. He cupped my cheek and gave it a small squeeze. “We’re kind of dead.” The rest of the guys laughed at that, even Christian who was heading straight for us. “Well, in human terms we’re dead.” Christian shrugged as if he didn’t care what the hell the human world said about them. But, this was interesting news though. So, the guys weren’t related. They were turned and had human lives before they were brought into this world. It had to be that way for all the vampires alive—or not alive. I hadn’t got the chance to think about that yet. Then again, I’d only known vampires even existed for about a week. It was okay for me not to know everything yet. I was still in my own head staring at the guys and wondering about what their human lives were like when suddenly, my feet were in the air and I was heading, down, down, down. If I’d had the chance to roll my eyes before my back gently hit the mat only seconds before I could’ve slammed

into it, I would’ve. Christian was on top of me, his weight pressing down on my middle as he held me in half-guard. He quickly slipped past my guard and went to full mount, basically sitting just below my belly button. He gave me a smirk as the other guys tried to hide their smiles. Christian had made it his mission to consistently try to surprise me with certain moves to get me ready for the vamp world. I had yet to see even one of them coming. Maybe that was one reason my stomach always turned to knots when I saw him. I knew he’d get the upper hand on me. Always. He leaned over me, his lips pulled back into a smile. “Gotcha.” He moved the hair that escaped my braid away from my face. The pressure of his body on mine made my mind go there. My cheeks immediately turned pink. He knew. They all seemed to have a sixth sense when my mind went there because they would look at me with a shit-eating grin and turn almost suggestive. He secured my hair back around my ear, taking extra care that it wouldn’t pop out again. I think he actually knew how much I liked it when he touched my ear. Finally, he released his body weight from me. “You have to get faster.” Christian stood and held his hand back to me. I took it and he pulled me to my feet. Embarrassed,

I looked down. “Easy for you to say. You have supernatural abilities.” Connor prodded me with his elbow. “We are pretty awesome.” I smiled and shook my head. The tension in the air lifted. Leave it to Connor to bring me back to the present. I looked up to find his turquoise ocean eyes on me. He winked and I immediately felt relief from the tension I’d put on everyone. This was my job after all. I did have to get better at fighting, at being able to protect them. And I needed to be able to protect them against vampires, too. I would be going up against superior strength and other abilities. That couldn’t be an excuse. Though they said it didn’t matter if I “passed” my training or not. It mattered to me. Zeke, the other trainee who hated me, made it clear he thought I was lesser than. Samuel didn’t always help either. I wanted to prove myself not just to those two, but to the four guys in front of me too. They deserved me giving them my all. “I’ll try harder,” I said, staring at Christian with what I hoped was a determined expression. He nodded once, but Stephan was there, quickly comforting me. “You are doing so great, Ariana. Seriously. You’ve improved so much in just this last week.” I smiled to myself, happy they thought so. Call me crazy, but I hated that all the other trainees

—and even some of the other vampires here— thought the Ravanas only brought me in because they wanted to drain me. Since I was going to stay in their world, they needed to see me as their equal. Call it pride, but I wasn’t going to accept anything less than that. Half the trainees looked at me as if I was a charity case or the Ravana prince prostitute. “She did great today, too,” Connor offered. “We worked a bunch of judo throws. She definitely got the nuances down.” I shrugged, acting as if it was no big deal even though my stomach filled with butterflies at the compliment. Old Joe had shown me some judo throws so it wasn’t outside of my slim knowledge of martial arts. “Great,” Stephan said. “So, we done today?” He moved behind me and put his hands on my shoulders, his thumbs immediately digging into my sore muscles. “Ariana looks wiped and I thought we could get something to eat.” Nic immediately stood, making his screen go dark, and putting his cell phone in his pocket. All that boy did was eat. It was no wonder. He needed to fuel his abnormally large muscles. He winked at me. “I see that face. I’m a growing boy.” Christian smirked. “Actually, you’re not growing. Not at all.” “You know what I meant. Let’s hit the pizza place downtown.”

Anticipation rose up inside me. Downtown? I had yet to set foot outside The Fort since they brought me here. Whenever it was mentioned before, the guys kind of all looked at me as if they thought I would run away at the first chance. I couldn’t blame them really. I’d thought about running away when I first got here. If it hadn’t been for Christian, I would’ve. But that was before I met them. The rest of the trainees went out from timeto-time too. This place wasn’t like boot camp as I originally thought where drill instructors told you when to get up, when to eat, when to work out, and you didn’t have a life of your own. Well, they kind of did tell you when to workout and when to eat— if you wanted Fort food—but if you didn’t, you could go off the premises and mix into the human world. It once again showed me that the humans who were here wanted to be here. They weren’t being forced to do anything. Every single one who left the place, came back. Christian looked at me questioningly. I had a sense he never told the other guys I tried to leave that one day. None of the others had spoken up before and said we should just stick around here. It was only Christian. In the past days, we’d had food brought in or ate in the cafeteria with the rest of the trainees. The guys didn’t like that though. They were stared at the whole time, making the whole

thing uncomfortable. We’d pretty much only done that the one time and afterward, Connor said he wouldn’t do it again. He preferred to eat in peace instead of being a spectacle for people to look at. It wasn’t really the other trainees’ fault. They were something to look at, but besides that, none of the vampires ever mixed with the humans when we were in training. It supposedly was different when we got assigned to a family, but as of right now, none of them were used to it. If situations had been reversed, I would’ve been staring too. In fact, I usually did stare. Trust me, it couldn’t be helped. Connor immediately whooped and moved toward the metal door. Everyone else followed. Decision made, I guessed. I stayed behind, wonder filling me. I peeked at Christian who stayed next to me and then slowly started walking after his “brothers.” “Ride with me, okay.” I nodded, though he didn’t really ask a question. It was more of a demand. Christian called out. “I’m going to take Ariana in my car. See you guys there.” They all waved behind them as if they didn’t have a care in the world. I looked up at Christian and gulped. His face was taut, his eyes pulled together with that ever present thinking face. I hoped I could get him to trust me. I decided right then and there I was making it happen. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but I would erase the little

incident about trying to escape and make him see that this was the only place I wanted to be. Right here with them.

Chapter Eight Christian led me to a back parking lot outside the main building in The Fort. A Jeep was just pulling away, loud voices and cheers rose up from it and I recognized it right away as the rest of the guys. They were too cute for words. It seemed I wasn’t the only one looking forward to getting out of The Fort for a while. I’d been doing nothing but training nonstop since I got here. I’d even woken up early in the mornings to run the obstacle course. The guys didn’t even know about that one. They were there for my extra training in the evening, not the extra hour I put in before breakfast before the sun was even up.

Christian snickered at his brothers and then pointed to a two-seater black sports car backed into a parking space. “Here we are.” My eyebrows rose. Was he serious? I had never set foot in something so nice before. I trailed my hand along the hood before heading toward the passenger seat. Christian was right behind me. I reached out to pull the door open myself, but his hand was already there. My fingers bumped his and he looked up and smiled. “Where I’m from, women don’t get their own doors.” He smiled and my body settled in a little more. He pulled the door open and offered his hand to me. I took it, his hand swallowing my own as I held onto it while stepping into the car. A soft thud sounded as he shut the door behind me, but I was still staring at all the different technology in the car. There was a screen, a bunch of buttons and knobs. It had been a long time since I’d been in a car. If I needed to go anywhere that was a longer distance tham I could walk, I took the bus. Busses didn’t look like this. The last car I was in certainly didn’t look like this either. It was a run down old Pontiac that belonged to one of my foster families and as soon as I’d gotten in it, I’d had a panic attack. I froze mid-way toward reaching for the center console. My throat immediately dried and a cold chill numbed my body. I didn’t like cars. Not since the accident. I took a deep breath, then two. I

still stared at the dash as all the little lights lit up when Christian started the car with a push of a button. I thought he was talking, but all I heard was the sound of wind through my ears. My mind was far away. Far, far away. Christian’s fingers moved over mine. I blinked, looking up at him. His mouth moved, but I still couldn’t concentrate enough on what he said versus what my mind was playing out. His mouth formed my name. “Ariana.” I shook my head, not understanding. He turned in his seat. His body fully toward me. I recognized concern etched into his beautiful features. The strong lines in his face were even tighter with worry. His gray-blue eyes were dark as he stared at me. His hands took both mine in his own. They moved up my arms and then to my shoulders, then behind my neck where they stayed and rubbed little circles. Little by little, his voice became clearer and clearer. “Hey,” he said. “Ariana. Are you okay?” I blinked, a small smile coming over me as I realized I could hear him again. Relief washed over me. I’d been stuck in my head. Stuck in my own head for way too long. Without thinking, I reached up and grabbed his forearms, then leaned my head against my own fist. I breathed in and out until the world came back to me. I was in Christian Ravana’s car. He told me he would never let

anything happen to me. Never. And I believed him. None of them would ever let anything bad happen to me again. “Hey, hey,” he said, the circles in the back of my neck getting more earnest. “You’re okay.” He was right about that. I was better than I’d ever been thanks to them. I let out one more whoosh of air and then looked up at him, immediately regretting putting the panic in his eyes. “Sorry,” I said lamely. I sat up straighter and tried to pull my hands away from his, but he caught me in time, making sure my hands stayed exactly where they were. “I’ll be fine,” I assured him. He gave me a wary look as his thumb made idle circles on the back of my neck. “You want to talk about it?” I shook my head. The Ravanas didn’t need to know about all my issues right off the bat. They’d be throwing me back into the human world with a good riddance. “No, I’m fine. Really.” He let me pull away this time and sit back in my seat. I started to pull my seatbelt on and he took it from me as I moved it around to my side and clicked it into place. Then, he took my hand and held it in his own. With his left hand, he put the car in Drive and then back on the steering wheel so we could maneuver our way out of the parking lot. “You can have your hand back.”

He shook his head. “I don’t need it as much as you do.” I smirked. Sounded about right even though I didn’t want to admit it. Since I’d had a major freak out as soon as I got in the car, I knew Christian wouldn’t have the conversation with me he’d wanted to have when he told me to ride with him. It was up to me to bring it up. “How far away is this pizza place?” “About ten minutes. Why? You hungry?” “Famished.” It was a never ending feeling since I’d gotten to The Fort. The more I worked out, the more I wanted to eat my face off. “But that’s not the reason why I asked.” He looked over at me curiously and then put his eyes right back on the road. I was grateful. A momentary tick of panic had started to set in. I kept my eyes down on our joined hands and took another deep breath to calm myself. He wasn’t going to let anything happen to me. He’d promised. “I know why you wanted me to ride with you, Christian.” My voice was thick around his name. It was the first time I’d called him by it. These relationships were so new, yet, so easy all at the same time. For instance, I felt nothing wrong about having his hand cover mine. It was the most natural thing in the world. “You didn’t tell the guys I tried to run away, did you?” The corner of his lips tipped up as the car swayed to the left. He’d taken a right onto another

road. He must have been a good driver if he could handle all that with just one hand. Vampires had superior reflexes, but it was still awe-inspiring. “You’re so very perceptive.” “Why didn’t you?” I asked, genuinely curious. It seemed that the guys shared everything with one another. It was curious he would leave this out, and I wondered why. He took a quick peek at me and then right back to the road. I didn’t get near as much panic from his momentary glance away from driving as I did the first time. “Honestly? Because I don’t think it matters. You’re here now.” “You think they’d be upset if they knew I tried to leave?” Christian thought for more than a few moments. He was always taking his time answering my questions and I really appreciated that. I wanted his most genuine answer. “No. It’s not that.” Hmm. That wasn’t what I thought. “Then what?” “I don’t want them to worry.” “About me leaving again?” He shook his head more quickly this time. “No, that’s not it either. Worry about losing you.” “But I’m not going to try and leave again.” He chuckled and shook his head. “You’re missing the point. That’s not it at all. Worried that they could have lost you.”

I didn’t know which came first. My hand tightening around his or his around mine, but we were clinging to one another more tightly now as his words set in. Again, the fear, the worry crept into me. What was so special about me? I’d been basically told my whole life that I was worth nothing, but still, these four vampire princes thought I was something. I didn’t want to ask why. Every time the question popped into my head, I tamped it down. There were some questions even I didn’t want answered. I was sure the answer wouldn’t feel as good as this feeling. The feeling of being wanted, secure, and safe. Whatever lame excuses that would pour from Christian’s mouth about me being special might ruin this whole thing. “Are you okay?” he finally asked. More than okay. I nodded and relaxed back into the seat of the car and ventured a brief glance outside the window. We were in the country. Trees and old houses meandered by us. I saw kids playing in the yards with dogs. Some in their bathing suits while jumping through a makeshift fountain made by a garden hose. A smile played over my face as Christian’s thumb smoothed over my skin. Soon, though, those trees and old buildings were replaced by shorter brick buildings that were closer together. Signs announcing grocery stores, lawyers, and dentists cruised by as we made our way into a small town. It was even smaller than the

one they’d saved me from. My stomach growled and Christian laughed. “We’re almost there.” “Where is there anyway?” “Santorini’s. It’s a pizza place.” “No,” I said, smiling. “I mean, where are we?” He answered without hesitation. Maybe I wouldn’t have to prove my loyalty to him after all. “Pennsylvania.” Whoa. That was interesting. Samuel had taken me from Virginia. I was now two states away in the country instead of the wannabe tourist town. It was pretty here. Quaint. The kind of town I used to grow up dreaming about finding a nice family to live with in. Of course they’d have a huge farmhouse I could explore with a dog and acres and acres of land. I used to want that more than anything. I looked up at Christian who deftly maneuvered another turn and then surprised me by stopping. I looked around to see that we were parked in an angled parking space in front of a row of linked businesses. A swaying sign in front of the tan-colored brick before us read “Santorini’s”. “We’re here,” he said. Movement caught my eye out front. Stephan knocked on the hood two times and waved me forward. “Come on,” he mouthed. Christian slowly pulled his hand away from

mine. “You’re sure you’re alright?” I nodded quickly and went for the door when again, it was pulled out of my grip. Connor was there, hunched over and smiling into the pretty black car. “What took you guys so long? I’m starving.” Christian rubbed his hands across the steering wheel, clearly appreciating the woven leather. “You know how I baby this car.” Connor rolled his eyes and helped me out. We walked toward the building and I heard the locks click into place on the sports car as well as the short beep of the alarm. “What?” Christian asked from behind me. It was Nicolai’s husky voice behind me that answered. “Like anyone’s going to try and steal it here.” Connor put his arm around my shoulders and steered me into the restaurant. Immediately, the fresh smell of pizza made me swoon. The food at The Fort wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t the kind that made your mouth water either. It was more like fuel. Suddenly, I had a thought. I turned toward Connor as we walked down a short row of booths to a larger table where Stephan already sat. “You guys can eat this?” Connor moved closer, his lips brushing against my ear as he answered. “Pizza? We love pizza.” He

pat his own pockets. “That doesn’t mean we don’t bring our own condiments.” I could only imagine. It was probably blood in an old ketchup bottle. I shook my head and laughed. He leaned into me. “Hey, don’t knock it until you try it.” I clearly wasn’t a vampire because the thought of tasting blood made me want to gag like any rational human. I was sure they all felt the same way before they were turned. “How was the changing process for you?” “So many deep questions, Princess. Can’t we eat first?” He reached up and touched my cheek when I frowned. “It’s kind of personal. That’s all. I’m sure we’ll all tell you someday.” His lips brushed the sensitive part next to my ear, sending my mind spinning. I barely even realized I was scooting into the round booth until my thigh landed against Stephan’s. He gave my knee a quick squeeze and smiled at me before pulling his hand away. “You’re in for a treat.”

Chapter Nine The funniest thing about the whole meal was how the guys clearly flustered the waitress. We had two extra pizzas on the increasingly smaller table because she’d written down the wrong orders and even tripped over her own feet bringing us our drinks. It was almost comforting to know it wasn’t just me. The guys thought it was absolutely hilarious even though they never showed her that. They helped clean up the spilled drinks, and told her over and over again to stop apologizing about the pizzas. After asking us if we needed anything else, she turned around and walked straight into the next booth.

I cringed, then waited for her to walk away. Her feet eating up the floor between the pubic area and the Employee Only area. “That would’ve been me,” I said. “Totally you,” Nic agreed. “You don’t realize how stinking cute you are.” I had my mouth open to take another bite of pizza, but that was the furthest thing from my mind now. The guys all kept eating, housing down the pizza we’d ordered. Even Nicolai, who’d said what he’d said to turn my world upside down continued to eat as if nothing happened. I swallowed, reminding myself to keep calm. These guys were my friends. Really, really good friends who pledged to take care of me and didn’t mind holding my hand, massaging my muscles, or throwing their arm around my shoulder. If it wasn’t for the fact that I was on the inside, I would think it was weird, too, but it just wasn’t. I shrugged off Nicolai’s comment and continued to eat. “Yeah,” Stephan added. “Except Ariana can kick some serious ass too. She’s not quite so clumsy.” “When she’s fighting,” Christian said. “You ever see her try to walk through the quad? It’s like watching a baby horse learn to walk.” “Really?” I asked, looking at him. I expected that from Connor, but not from him. He shrugged and I laughed. “I’m not that bad.”

The guys all looked at one another and then kept eating. It was as if some sort of silent agreement had been made that I wasn’t a part of. Oh well. They were right about the pizza though. It was delicious. The best I’d had in a long time. As you could imagine, I didn’t eat out much in my old life. I was scraping by with tuna from a can and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Pizza was a luxury for me that I didn’t often get. To prove it, I was on my fifth piece. Thankfully, the guys didn’t seem to notice how much I’d eaten. On the other side of the table, Nic’s phone vibrated. He looked down and frowned before picking it up and showing it to the rest of us. Well, the rest of us that had vampire vision knew right away what it said, but I hadn’t seen it. Connor sighed and Christian leaned back in the booth, wiping his mouth with a napkin. Nicolai pressed the screen to ignore the call and then no one said anything, just continued to eat. I decided to let it go and not ask considering they weren’t offering up who it was. But then, Christian’s phone rang in his pocket. I knew the ringtone was a Metallica song, but I couldn’t quite place it before he pulled out his phone and ignored the call too. I looked around, sensing that whatever this was wasn’t over when Stephan’s leg—the one that was right next to mine —started to vibrate. With their vampire hearing, their necks all twisted toward him.

“No, Ariana,” Connor said. “Stephan’s not just happy to see you, that’s his cell phone ringing.” Har, har, I wanted to say. I gave him a look and then watched as Stephan pulled the cell from his pocket. He looked at the screen and his look confirmed that whoever had just called Nicolai and Christian had just called him. “Don’t answer it,” Nicolai said. “Are you kidding?” Stephan answered as he pushed the green phone and held the device to his ear. “Hey, Dad.” Hey, Dad? They just ignored a call from their father? Twice. Why? The rest of their shoulders slumped. Nicolai even dropped the rest of the slice of pizza he had in his hand back onto his plate. He wiped his fingers off with a napkin and then threw that down on top of his half-eaten pizza. “What’s wrong?” I asked, whispering to Connor who was the closest to me besides Stephan. Connor’s eyes widened and he put his finger to his lips. It was too late. Stephan was already stiffening beside me. “Yes, that’s her.” An angry voice sounded from the speaker and Stephan immediately waved at Christian to get out of his way. Christian scooted out of the booth and Stephan was right after him. He stood and walked outside. The thigh that had rested against his the

whole time was now cold. “Okay…” I said slowly. I must’ve missed something. I eyed the remaining Ravana brothers around me. “What’s going on?” Christian ran his hands through his dirtyblond hair. It wasn’t gelled today like it normally was. “Dad doesn’t approve of what we’ve done.” “With me?” Nic nodded once. “Not just you. The whole being here and not at home thing is bothering him too.” Christian smirked. “Bothering him? He’s downright pissed.” Nic shrugged as if he could care less. I knew it was the truth just from the few harsh, clipped words I heard said to Stephan. I looked out the window behind the booth and saw him pacing just outside, his hand rubbing his neck. Connor pressed his leg into mine. “He’ll be okay. He handles Father the best.” I nodded, though I still stared at poor Stephan. I hoped he wasn’t getting yelled at because of me. Christian’s voice pulled me out of my head. “It’s really not just you, Ariana. Dad wants us with him so we can take our rightful place in The Council.” I snapped my head around. What little I’ve heard of The Council—and I admit, I hadn’t heard much—wasn’t good. “You guys are going to be on The Council?”

“Of course, we’re the Ravana princes,” Nicolai said, though he said it almost begrudgingly with only a slight bit of humor. “It’s our rightful place.” “Thing is,” Connor said. “The Council has been doing some really messed up stuff lately. None of us really want any part of it.” “Connor,” Christian scolded. Connor seemed unrepentant as he continued to tell me what was going on. “There’s a major… issue happening right now. It’s something The Council hasn’t really seen in a while and my dad wants us there for it.” All three of them shook their heads, piquing my curiosity. It was definitely something they didn’t like. “What is it?” They looked at one another. Again, another silent agreement before Nicolai said, “Listen, Ri. Things are different here than in the human world. We have certain rules that we need to adhere to, whether anyone wants to or not, whether how outdated they are.” His stare turned angry. “Well, what is it?” I looked around as the others stared off, not looking at me. “Aren’t you guys going to tell me?” Just then, Stephan walked back into the restaurant. Christian scooted in for him and wound up next to me. He put a soothing hand on mine and I automatically felt better. There was no underlying

panic or fear seeping its way into me. Connor knocked his shoulder against mine. “We better get you back, Princess. We don’t want Samuel thinking you flew the coop. You think he’s hard on you now, you won’t have seen anything yet.” My gaze immediately moved up to Christian. He stilled a little, but let a slow smile cross his face. “Connor’s right. It’s getting late. You want to ride back with me?” I agreed immediately. I wasn’t ready for the others to see my reaction to cars yet. We all slid out of the booths. Christian put his hand on the small of my back as Nicolai dropped a few twenties on the table. The waitress came out of the back just in time to see us all get up. She stopped, her mouth unhinging into a wide “O”. “Bye,” I called to her, hoping to make her feel just a little bit better. She shook her head and gave me a short wave before watching us all leave. Once again, Christian led me to his car, opened the door for me, and then got in the front seat. He immediately turned toward me. “You don’t have to tell me why you had that reaction earlier, but tell me what I can do to make it better. It seemed to help when I touched you. Do I need to do that again?” I sat back in the seat and pulled my seatbelt across. Christian took it from me once more and made sure it latched. I sat back in the seat, getting

comfortable. “Can we try without that at first? I kind of want to push myself, to see…” I let my voice trail off so I wouldn’t have to explain everything to him. He understood. Turning back in his own seat, he put his seatbelt on and started the car. Putting it in Reverse, he backed it up and pointed it back the way we came. We made it all the way to that point when he put it in Drive and pushed on the gas until my mind started to take over again. My hand immediately reached out and gripped his thigh. His hand was covering mine in an instant, squeezing, and then moved it to the center console. A flood of warmth spread through me. Relief from the memories had me opening my eyes in the next second to try to enjoy the ride as much as I could. “It’s a really nice car,” I said, trying to take my mind off it. “Mustang,” he said, clearly proud. “She’s my pride and joy.” I snickered at his words and we fell silent for a little while before I said, “You guys aren’t going to tell me what’s going on with The Council.” I looked up to find Christian’s thinking face on as he stared out the windshield. He looked clearly torn. “It’s more difficult than you might think. One, we’re not really allowed to say much. We have privileged information for being who we are. Two, we kind of want to keep you separate

from that right now. We just brought you here. We don’t want you to run away screaming so quickly.” They weren’t going to get rid of me that easily. It would be nice to know what was going on in the vampire world though. Sometimes I felt like a bind person feeling my way through the light here. Everyone else had the upper hand on me. They’d been here far longer than I had. I leaned my head back against the headrest, staring at Christian. “Trust can go a long way.” “Ahh,” he said, his thumb tracing imaginary lines on my skin once more. “But it also goes both ways.” Touche. I’d have to be content to be in the dark for now. I wasn’t ready to give up my secrets and it seemed as if the Ravanas weren’t either. After we returned back to The Fort through the metal gate that Christian had to punch in a number on a keypad in order for the gate to open, Stephan offered to walk me back to my room. “I need to put some salve on your palms since I can’t trust you to do it yourself.” “I can do it,” I said. “I promise.” I didn’t want him to have to go out of his way, considering I was pretty sure they were all eager to ask him questions about what his dad wanted on the phone. “It’s no big deal,” he said. “I want to help.”

I said goodnight to the other guys as they walked toward the big mansion on the other side of the perimeter wall. They were staying with the family who oversaw the human guardian training. Connor blew me a kiss, Nicolai waved, and Christian gave me a small smile before Stephan led us in the opposite direction. “What’s the house like?” I asked, just catching the top of the roof before I looked out over the lawn in front of us. “It’s…big?” Stephan offered. “You don’t so sure,” I mused, smiling at his lack of details. “It’s nice.” I tried a different tactic. “Is it like your house?” He shook his head. “My parents are a little over-the-top. Ours is bigger, fancier, more gothic looking.” My stomach flipped. And this would be the house I’d stay in once I became their guardian? Well, if I became their guardian. “Do you like it there?” His green eyes regarded me from the side. “It’s my home. Of course I like it there.” “What’s your father like?” He smirked. “Intense?” He thought about it for a second and nodded once. “He’s like Christian but tenfold. How’s that?” My eyebrows shot in the air. “That’s a lot of

intensity.” “You have no idea.” “You didn’t get in trouble because of me, did you?” Stephan pulled me to a stop. “No, absolutely not. Our father understands what we’re doing. Don’t even give that a second thought, okay?” I nodded and Stephan bumped into me to lighten the mood. He wasn’t as touchy as the other guys were. Well, unless he was dealing with some injury on me. Then, he would massage my muscles or rub my palms. “Good,” he said. We started walking toward the guardian’s building again. The sun had long since been replaced by the moon. I stared up at it through the ever present mesh that kept the vampires safe from its harmful rays during the day. “What happens when sunlight hits you?” I asked. “It zaps our energy,” Stephan answered, his gaze also moving to the mesh above us. “So, it doesn’t kill you like in the movies and books?” Stephan grinned. “I suppose prolonged exposure might, but probably not. None of us are stupid enough to go out in the sun for that long anyway. We can wear certain sunglasses and fabric that helps repel the harmful rays. It’s not really as much of a threat as fiction makes it out to be.”

“Do you miss it?” I asked. He cocked his head toward me, his brows pulling together. “The sun,” I mean, trying to explain myself. “Do you miss it?” “No, not at all.” He pulled open the large door to the guardian building and we made our way through the foyer past the common room. The buzz of conversation died as soon as we walked through. I looked to my left, found Shannon, and waved at her. She did the same, but it looked awkward as heck. When we were out of sight, I shook my head and chuckled. “It’s not really their fault,” Stephan said. “They’ve been brought up with the solid line between us and them. It’s out of place to see us spending time with you. At least to them it is.” “That’s kind of sad,” I mumbled as we made our way to my room. When we got to my door, I bent over and untied my room key from the shoelace I’d knotted through it that morning. It was another tip I’d picked up from Shannon. “Clever.” Stephan watched as I unlocked the door and then he held it open for me. I quickly ran in and threw all my dirty clothes into the closet. I hadn’t expected one of the Ravanas to walk me home that evening. If I had, I would’ve made sure the place was squeaky clean. As it was, I was usually exhausted by the time I got

home and barely had enough energy to slip out of my clothes, throw on the pajamas The Fort gave me, and fall into bed. Stephan spotted the small tub of salve he gave me on the dresser. He picked it up and made his way to the bed. He sat, then immediately stood again. He pulled my pajama bottoms from the blankets and handed them to me. My ears burned. “Guardian-issue pajamas,” I said, not fully understanding why that made me so embarrassed. Perhaps it was because it was worse than sleeping in an over-sized t-shirt. They were like old man pajamas. He shrugged and I quickly threw them into my closet with the other clothes I’d tossed in there. Stephan pat the bed next to him. I sat while he unscrewed the cap. He dipped his finger into the tub and pulled it out with the pink-tinted Vicks-like substance on his fingers. He reached for my palm and I gave it up willingly. He smoothed the rub into the center of my palm and then used both his thumbs to work it over my rope burns there. My eyes fluttered closed at his touch. I wasn’t used to human contact. I hadn’t been hugged or kissed or touched in the right way since my mother died in that car accident. There’d been an incident with a too-touchy foster dad that thankfully never went anywhere, but besides that and the opposite of that, I’d never felt taken care of the way my mother had made me feel with just the slightest caress. It

wasn’t just a simple brushing of shoulders when you walked by someone on the street and rubbed up against them accidentally, this was more. I hadn’t been “touched” like this in so long. Stephan’s voice was husky when it broke through the silence. He’d moved on to my other palm and I hadn’t so much as opened my eyes. I was enjoying the moment. “You look completely blissed out.” My eyes tore open and I tried to pull my hand from his grasp, but he held on tight. “Don’t be embarrassed, babe.” His cheeks reddened as the pet name rolled off his tongue without hesitation. He cleared his throat and continued his massage of my hands. He moved his fingers everywhere. Over my palm, in between my fingers, and all the way to my tips. I didn’t know what was in this pink salve, but it really worked. I really would use it if I wasn’t so exhausted by the time I got home every evening. Even now, I could feel my tenuous grip on the day slipping away. My eyes were heavy and Stephan’s soft touch wasn’t helping. If anything, it made me more relaxed, easier to fall asleep. If he didn’t stop soon, I’d probably be Jell-O in his arms within a minute. Sure enough, my eyelids started to droop. I vaguely recognized the careful hands that pulled me into a laying position on the bed and the lifting of my head as my pillow was moved underneath

me. By the time Stephan left, I was out like a light

Chapter Ten I awoke with a start the next morning, my alarm pulling me from the first good dream I’d had in a long time. I shot right out of bed and turned the alarm off before hopping in the shower. I hadn’t woken up with this much energy in a long time. Stephan was a miracle worker. I hoped I hadn’t drooled while he was tucking me in last night. I’d have to remember to thank him. I got ready for the day quickly, throwing on another guardian-issued training uniform before grabbing my key off the dresser. I opened the door, locked it, then knelt down to tie my key into the shoelace when I stood again and a white sheet of

paper taped to my door caught my attention. I smiled, wondering if Stephan had left me a quick note after he left. Soon enough, though, my stomach dropped as I read the words on the paper. I balled the paper up and threw it into the closest garbage as I ran through the building to make it outside. I’d show them. Vamp whore my ass. This was Zeke. I knew it was. Him and any other guy he could talk into putting such a disgusting thing on my door. I didn’t remember if I’d seen him in the common room last night when Stephan and I walked through, but I bet he was there. He probably had the whole building talking about how I was putting out for the Ravanas. Not that the thought hadn’t crossed my mind, but it wasn’t like that. I ran all the way across the lawn and right to the obstacle course. I spent my mornings training on this while the rest of the trainees were still in bed. The princes didn’t even know I’d been doing this. They thought I only trained extra at night with them, but my hard work in the mornings had been paying off. I could now get through three-quarters of the horizontal ladder and halfway up the rope climb. I wasn’t going to be humiliated in front of the Ravanas again. One of these days, I was going to complete the whole thing and sit back and watch the surprised expressions on their faces. Not the

Ravanas. I knew they believed in me. But everyone else. Especially Zeke. I couldn’t wait to complete every obstacle on this course and look right in his eyes and smirk in his face. Vamp whore my ass. Rage fueled me this morning. I was more determined than ever to push myself through the obstacles. I ran it again and again. The last time through before I had to head to breakfast, I got almost a foot higher up the rope climb than my previous attempts before my arms gave up on me. I slid down smiling, confident in my progress. I was going to kill this course someday. I finished the rest of the course strong until I plopped down into the grass just on the other side of the finish line, trying to catch my breath before making my way back to the guardian building. I didn’t want anyone to know I was putting in the extra training. I tilted my head to look at the sky when a figure caught my attention. My stomach churned, hoping it wasn’t one of the guys. I didn’t want them to chastise me for training too much. Thankfully, it wasn’t. Samuel peered at me from fifty feet away. He nodded at me, and I nodded back. I wasn’t sure how long he’d been watching me for since I was so intent on what I was doing, but I guessed it didn’t matter. He seemed almost pleased. After he left, I pulled myself up from the cool grass and dragged myself back toward the stone building, wrestling with the idea of how to deal with

this nasty note issue. By the time I pulled open the heavy door, I decided to act like it didn’t bother me. If I confronted Zeke about it, it would just make him smug, make him laugh because his words had affected me. If I acted like I didn’t care, maybe he’d stop. Not likely, but a girl could hope. I walked right through the common room and into the back where the small cafeteria was. I could almost taste the delicious tater tots I’d fork into my mouth in a couple minutes. It was a good thing I was working out so much recently because I was certainly eating a lot more than I ever had. My name echoing through the hallway pulled me to a stop. I turned to find Connor just making his way through the entrance, his face taut. “You didn’t hear me calling for you?” I shook my head as he made his way up to me. He looked furious. I took a step back as he barreled right toward me. “N-no.” He didn’t stop. He threw his arms around me and pulled me into a hug. With one hand still around me, he spoke into his phone: “Found her. We’re in the guardian common room.” Then, he pressed Send. “Did you just speak a text?” I asked, my voice muffled as I was once again crushed into his chest. I didn’t know why that mattered. It was just the first time I’d seen anyone do that. He pulled me away. “What?”

“Where is she?” a voice called. Connor spun me around to face Nicolai who’d just come out of the cafeteria. Okay. This was getting odd. The guys hated the cafeteria. What gives? His face hard, Nicolai held up a small square of white paper. “You mind explaining this to me.” Again, the same words I’d found that morning on my door were staring me in the face. I pulled it out of his hand, my face on fire. “Where’d you find that?” “On your door.” “Why were you at my door?” “We were going to ask you to breakfast so you wouldn’t have to eat this junk, but never mind that.” He shook his head, his dark eyes threatening. “Who did this?” Another voice added to the mix. “Lay off, Nic. You’re scaring her.” I whipped around to see both Christian and Stephan making their way toward me. By this time, bodies had started to form an audience in front of the cafeteria door. I just shrugged at the guys, my face getting hotter and hotter. “Let’s take this outside,” Stephan offered. Nic’s voice got louder. “No, I want them to hear this. Anyone messes with Ariana, they mess with us.” Christian shoved his brother toward the exit

and we all followed, Stephan’s hand firmly on my elbow. When we got outside, he let go and stood off to the side, looking down at his feet. “Let me see it,” Christian said, waving his hand toward me. I gave the paper over reluctantly. His face turned red and hard, matching Nic’s. “It’s nothing,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. If they didn’t have their super hearing, I doubted they would’ve heard me. “It’s not nothing. This is harassment,” Nic said, still glancing toward the front of the guardian building. He looked as if he wanted to rush back in there at any moment. And from the look of him, I knew exactly what he wanted to do, I just couldn’t believe it. Finally, Stephan spoke up. “Leave her alone. It’s my fault.” “Your fault?” Connor asked. His face dropped, losing all color. “Why? Did you…?” “No,” he said quickly. “It’s my fault because they all saw us walk to her room last night. It was late. All I did was rub salve into her palms, but I’m sure they all started talking.” Everything on me was on fire. I was so embarrassed I could barely even follow their conversation. I just wanted to dig a hole and hide inside it. They didn’t need to know about my problems with the other guardians. “I can take care

of myself. It’s no big deal.” “No big deal?” Nic spat. “Chill,” Connor said. “She doesn’t get it. New, remember?” I stared at each of them now, fully taking in all their expressions. Every single one of them looked as if they were in the middle of planning someone’s murder at different stages. Nic was already there, standing over the body right down to gentle Stephan who looked guilty for even thinking about it. “What’s the big deal?” I asked, trying to sound more confident than I was. “So they called me a whore? I’ve been called worse.” That was the wrong thing to say because all the guys stared at me now, their hard gazes eating away at me. I really wanted to go dig that hole now. “Princess,” Connor said, coming up to me and putting his hands on my shoulders. “Honey… I love you, but please don’t say that again. Nicolai’s about ready to lose his shit and there are things you just don’t understand right now, ‘k?” I nodded slowly. “Good,” he said, giving me a quick squeeze on the shoulder. “Now, in the human world, being called a whore might just be a derogatory name—” A growl ripped through the air behind us and I jumped. I went to look around him, but Connor forced my chin to face him. “—but,” he said, for emphasis, making sure to throw the word over his

shoulder. “A vamp whore is something far different. It’s not only a derogatory name that means exactly what you think it means, but it also means something worse. Something you do not want to be known for in this world.” “Okay,” I said, nodding as if I understood. I kind of did. Just not all of it. He leaned down, making sure to keep his voice low. Moreso for his brothers’ sake than for mine. “A vamp whore is also a human who’ll let a vampire drink their blood. It’s kind of…intoxicating for the girl. Addictive. To be a vamp whore is definitely a no-no in our world. We can’t have people calling you this. You understand?” “Yes,” I said firmly. Finally getting it. They weren’t just calling my virginity into question, it was more than that. They were also calling me a druggie, I guessed, from Connor’s description. “Nothing happened between Stephan and I.” “We know that,” Connor said. “And I’m sure whoever wrote this knows that too. Is this the first time something like this has happened?” I swallowed. I’d never told them about the trouble I’d had with Zeke before. They didn’t know he’d told me they’d probably just kill me if I didn’t pass guardian training. They didn’t know the death look he gave me when I first got here either, and they definitely didn’t know I’d found the same exact note on my door that morning when I first

woke up. It was going to stay that way. First, I couldn’t prove that it was Zeke, and second, I was scared of what they would do if they knew it was him. I could seriously see Nic running in their and ripping Zeke’s head off. Not that it wouldn’t give me some sort of sick satisfaction, but I didn’t want the guy dead. I shook my head, already making up the decision to keep this all to myself. “No, this is the first time.” Relief swept through them all. They visibly relaxed. Connor let his forehead drop to mine as a whoosh of air escaped his chest as if he’d been holding his breath this whole time. “I’m good,” I said, realizing how worried they all were for me. “I mean, I won’t be if I don’t get some food in me before training, but I’m good for right now.” I tacked on a laugh at the end, but none of them found it funny. Christian strode forward, his grip on the paper tight as he held it in the air. “You tell us if something like this happens again, okay?” I started to nod, but he eyed me, freezing me in place. “I mean it.” “Yes,” I said. “I’ll tell you.” Guilt washed over me, deadening my limbs. Trainees had started to leave the building and headed toward the middle of the quad. It was almost time for our morning run. We were all silent

as they walked by, none of them trying to hide their curiosity as they gawked at the five of us. Christian calmly folded up the paper and slid it into his pocket. A half second later, Zeke walked past. My gaze moved to meet his. A small smirk spread his lips. I wanted to pummel him. Not just because he disgraced me, but because he was disgracing the Ravanas too. Not such a smart move when they were the princes. I had a feeling Nicolai wouldn’t even have to deal with him if he didn’t want to. All he had to do was probably tell his father what happened and The Council would deal with Zeke. I smiled back. I wasn’t so sure he had the upper hand anymore. It might just be me. When Zeke finally passed, I realized the guys were all talking. “I don’t know, guys,” Stephan said. “I don’t know if we should go.” “Go?” I asked, alarm immediately pulling at me. “Go where?” “There’s an important Council meeting tomorrow. Dad wants us to go. We’d be gone for a couple days.” On the outside, I tried to look as calm as possible, but on the inside, I was freaking out. What would I do without them for ‘a couple days’? I took a deep breath and was about to tell them to go, when Nic said, “We’re not going.” His voice was as sharp and beautiful as a diamond. Fury simmered underneath the surface.

Christian sighed, “Nicolai, we have to go.” “No,” he said firmly. “I don’t like it anymore than you do, but what else can we do? We’re needed at the meeting.” “Not after this morning. We’re needed here more.” “I don’t disagree with that,” Connor said as he stepped back from me. I looked around the circle and could see them wrestling with the decision. The last thing I wanted to be was a hindrance to them. This note was nothing. It was akin to petty high school bullshit and I’d certainly handled my fair share of bullies before. I could handle Zeke. There was no doubt in my mind he was all bark and no bite. “I want you guys to go.” Their attentions all moved toward me. Since I was shorter than all of them, they had to look down. I tried to make myself as tall and as confident as possible. “Seriously. I’ll be fine.” Samuel walked from the building then. “Princes,” he said, nodding his head toward them. “Your father just called to see if you were on your way.” He tossed his hand in the air and something came flying at me. I caught it right before it hit me in the face. I looked down at a granola bar. “You,” he said. “Get to the quad. “We run three in five.” I stopped myself from the eye roll making its way to the surface. He always said that in the mornings. ‘We’re doing our three in five.’ It meant,

get ready to do our three-mile run in five minutes. I was so lucky I’d started running before I got here or else the morning runs would’ve killed me. I looked around the group. The overwhelming feeling I was getting now was resignation. The boys were caught, and I had to go. Samuel walked away, thankfully. Voice still hard, Nic said, “I left something for you on your dresser.” I started to nod, then stopped. “You were in my room?” I grimaced, wondering if I’d put away my bras and underwear from that morning. It wasn’t like sport bras were all that sexy. He smirked—finally. “Yep.” Connor moved in front of me once more and grabbed the back of my head, once again placing his forehead on mine. “Keep yourself safe, Princess.” He moved out of the way and Stephan was there. “We’ll be back as soon as we can. Put that salve on your hands, I mean it.” He took my hand and flipped them so they were palms up. He frowned down at my new rope burns, but didn’t say anything. Christian was right behind him. “I don’t think whoever did this will do it again. Nicolai probably put the fear of God into them.” Nic chuckled. “I sure as hell meant to.” Christian walked away, leaving me and Nic. He

pushed me in the arm. “Sorry if I scared you this morning. I didn’t mean to.” “It’s fine,” I said, still taken away by how angry he got. Then, he stared at me with a gentle expression. It wasn’t Nic that I was afraid of. It was what he might do to someone else that frightened me. He gave me an apologetic smile. “Eat that bar and go kick their ass in that run. I know you have this in you, Ri. Show them.” He looked around to make sure his brothers weren’t within hearing distance and then dropped his voice. It was almost too low for me to hear, but we were dealing with superhuman vampire hearing. “If you show them, maybe they’ll cut you a break.” I nodded, wishing I could do it for him. He tugged on my ponytail braid and then spun on his heel and joined his brothers. They walked across the quad without me. Panic and sadness started to swarm me, but I pushed it aside and steeled myself. I was Ariana Stuart, used to being on my own. I sure as hell could get through a couple days without the Ravana princes. I hoped.

Chapter Eleven Maybe it was Nic’s words, maybe it was the fear of having my vampires away from me, or maybe it was the fact I was super pissed about the note left on my door, but I kicked ass that day in training. I finished neck and neck with Zeke when we ran our three miles that morning. While he hunched over afterward, trying to regain his composure, I walked on ahead even though I was dying inside. I couldn’t breathe in enough air, but I kept upright and breathed through my nose like Samuel was always telling us to do. During calisthenics, I made sure to push myself just as hard as Zeke, keeping up with him as

we grinded out push-ups, sit-ups, jumping jacks, and my nemesis—burpees. I told myself I could relax later, seeing as how the guys wouldn’t be around tonight, I wouldn’t be getting that extra training session in. I could leave it all out on the floor now, show everyone what I was made of. After that, lucky me, we worked throws on the very same mat I’d just worked them on with Connor. Seeing as how he was riddled with muscle, and the rest of us weren’t, I threw the other trainees around easily. Shannon gave me a thumbs up. Even Evan raised his eyebrows at me in admiration. By the time lunch came around, I was feeling the affect of just having a bar for breakfast. I hurried and was first through the line with a heaping pile of chicken and vegetables on my plate. I sat down at the back table where I usually sat, giving me more than enough time to finish my entire lunch and relax afterward. Shannon sought me out and sat down across from me. Her fiery red hair was all over the place today, sticking out the side of her head. “Hey, girl. You kicked some major ass today.” I smiled, relieved someone noticed. “Thanks.” She started eating her lunch, but kept looking up at me periodically. Her body language was telling me she wanted to say something or ask something, but she didn’t.

When I couldn’t take it anymore, I said, “Spit it out, Shannon. What’s up?” She chuckled into her fork, put up a finger in the air while she chewed her vegetables, then swallowed. “Sorry for being a creeper. I was just wondering what all that was about this morning. Nicolai Ravana looked like he wanted to take someone out. All the trainees were scared to death. He kept asking us where you were.” “Oh.” I kind of thought it was about the princes, but I’d forgotten he’d made such a scene this morning. I thought it was going to be some lame comment about how hot they were. “This morning when I got up, I found a note taped to my door that said something…well, not nice on it. I tore it down, but then I went for a walk to clear my head—” Lie, but I didn’t want anyone to know I was putting in the extra work. “—and when I got back, Nic had—” Her eyebrows raised. “Nic?” “Yeah,” I said, my cheeks turning pink. “Nicolai. He’d been at my door and saw a piece of paper that said the very same thing that I’d found.” “It must have said something awful on it. He was staring at all the guys as if he wanted to sink his teeth into them.” I shrugged. “It said vamp whore on it.” Shannon gasped, and pushed away from the table. Her expression told me this was way more

serious than I was making it out to be. It practically matched how enraged the Ravanas were. “What?” I asked. “I don’t understand. The guys said it meant something worse, something about girls giving up their blood willingly to vampires…” Wary, Shannon nodded. “Not just girls. Guys can do it too. I can’t believe someone would say that to you. That’s messed up. And so not smart. I can totally understand Nicolai Ravana’s reaction now. I’m surprised he didn’t start biting and asking questions later. Someone has a freaking death wish.” I put my fork down next to my plate. “Explain, please.” “Being a vamp whore isn’t just taboo, it’s against about, oh, five different laws in our world. Calling you a vamp whore puts you at risk and whoever this vamp is that they think is taking your blood. It has serious consequences. It’s called blood letting. To be called a vamp whore is to be called a… I can’t even think of a human term that is just as nasty. It doesn’t exist.” My mind whirred around this new information. “Stephen walked me to my room last night…” “I noticed,” she said. No wonder why he said all of that was his fault. “We didn’t do anything,” I said, feeling as if I

had to speak up for him. She held her hands in the air. “It wasn’t me. I would never think that, anyway. Someone has some major balls to go this route just to get to you.” She leaned in and lowered her voice. “If I were you, I wouldn’t tell anyone else. What with all the rumors surrounding The Council meeting tomorrow, just, please, for your own safety…” “What are the rumors surrounding The Council meeting? The guys left to go there.” She sat back in her chair and pulled her hair over her shoulder to play with it. “I’m not surprised their father called them back. They’re saying the meeting is because of a vamp-guard relationship. It has to be someone higher up in order for a special meeting to be called.” “So vampires and humans can’t be together?” “Vamps and guards can’t be together. Do you remember what I told you your first night here? We can look at the guards, but we shouldn’t touch. Any real relationship with a vampire is strictly forbidden. Someone’s gone rogue if that’s what they’re trying to pull off.” I thought of the hugs, the massages, the small touches that all of the Ravanas had given me and a little piece of my heart shattered after the memory faded away. Guards couldn’t have real relationships with their vampire masters or any vampires for that matter. “Why?” I snapped, indignant that anyone

should tell anyone else how to live their life and who they could love. Shannon shrugged, thankfully dismissing the vehemence in my words. “It causes a whole bunch of problems. First, the vamp-guard relationship is special. Bringing those kinds of feelings into it causes stupid mistakes. Guards have to think with their brain, not with their heart. Second, vampires can’t reproduce, but humans can. That just brings in a whole other can of worms if a male vampire lays with a female human. We’re talking whole families wiped out by a jealous woman vamp. Even when she okays it so they can bring a child into their family, lots of times the human mother doesn’t make it. Vampires are extreme creatures. They love forever, feel forever, their emotions are amplified just like some of their other powers like speed and strength. The Council strictly forbids vamp-guard relationships and heavily police the other relationships. It’s nothing to play around with, Ariana.” I swallowed. The princes had only given me half-truths earlier. This issue was even bigger than I thought. I nodded, letting her know I’d heard what she said and then went back to eating, my mind lost in thought. There was one thing she was for sure correct on: Whoever put that note on my door had a serious death wish. The Ravanas weren’t likely to let that go.

***** Fueled by my new knowledge, I threw myself into the obstacle course after lunch. I made it all the way across the horizontal ladder and most of the way up the rope climb. Samuel had told me to push myself as far as I could go and then drop when I needed to. They would add seconds to my run times based on how far I had left to go. The shorter the length, the less seconds they would add. The longer I had to go, the more seconds they would add. We ran the course a few times like we usually did and then Samuel brought us together in a group. He stood in front of us, his hands on his hips as he glowered down. “I think it’s time. We’re not just going to race against our old times, now we’re going to race against others.” The guys started to cheer and I looked over at Shannon. A small smile pulled at her lips. “First up, Evan versus Zeke.” Evan and Zeke lined up on the starting line and shook hands. Samuel shouted for them to go and they took off. It may have been my imagination, but Zeke took off harder than I’d ever seen him before. I hated to admit it, but his physical prowess was quite impressive. “Okay,” I said, leaning toward Shannon. “Please tell me what’s going on.” “Time trials are over and the real competition

begins. From now on, we’re going to race against one another. At the end of our training, it culminates in one last epic event. Think playoffs in human football. The trainee who wins all their races is the number one guard out of this class. The number one guard gets the best station. Well, at least they’re supposed to.” She glanced at me, and I shrugged it off, knowing what she meant. That was up in the air now that the Ravanas brought me here. Everyone just assumed they would give me the the guard of the Ravanas now, whether I deserved it or not. I wanted to deserve it. “They put us all in a bracket based on how well we do in training all year. Just like in other sports, you’re a number one seed all the way down to the last spot. Say number ten seed or whatever. You’ll want to be a high seed.” “I understand,” I said, knowing exactly what she meant. I’d watched my fair share of sparring competitions at the martial arts school I cleaned back in Virginia and they did it similarly. I watched as Zeke overtook Evan at the tire agility obstacle and lengthened his lead from there. I wouldn’t say he beat Evan easily, but it was with a marked difference in time. Samuel took notes, then looked down at his clipboard and called out another pairing. He did this and I watched the other races, making sure to stretch my legs and arms, as I waited for my name to be called. Finally, he did. He

called my name along with Liv. She was the trainee who’d said being next to the vampires and not being able to have them was pure torture my first night here. We shook hands and then waited for Samuel’s signal to start. As soon as I heard it, I took off. Blood thumped through my veins, adrenaline coursing through me, hurling me forward. I completed the horizontal ladder faster than I ever had. I launched myself up the hay bales and across the thin wooden plank as fast as I could. In fact, when I got close enough to the edge, I jumped over and and right to the next hay bale down. Next was the rope climb. It must have been the adrenaline rush because I actually made it to the top. I reached up and rang the bell, which was literally music to my ears. The other trainees applauded, excited for me. I fell halfway down the rope, stumbled, but still made it to the cargo net before Liv. I decided then and there I wasn’t going to keep looking over at her. I was getting distracted. I would just run my race. I launched myself over that and then into the tires next. My whole body shook with energy as I went from one obstacle to the next. With singular focus, I stared at the finish line until I ran across it. I looked back and noticed I’d beaten Liv. She was still on the last obstacle. “Holy shit,” I said, smiling to myself. I won. I couldn’t believe I’d won.

I gave her a high-five as she sprinted across. “Good job, Liv.” “Nice work,” she said, giving me an energetic smile. What a rush, I thought as I moved back to the group waiting for their name to be called again. That was crazy. I’d just barely gotten my breath back when my name was called again. The air whooshed from my lungs. Zeke? Did he just say Zeke? He had. Zeke was already making his way to the start of the course, an infuriating smirk on his face. Instead of scowling at Samuel, which was really what I wanted to do, I smiled. It didn’t matter that he’d had more time to catch his breath or that he was, in general, in better shape than I was. I was going to give it my all. Kick their ass, I could almost hear Nicolai saying. I lined up and as soon as I heard Samuel shout, I sprinted from the line. The race passed in a blur. He was ahead of me after the rope climb because I heard his bell first, but after that, I lost track. My limbs hurt, my energy was draining, but I pushed through. When we got to the army crawl, I saw him just ahead of me, which gave me another burst of energy. I wasn’t so far behind him after all. I stayed low to the ground and pushed and pushed. Miraculously enough, I passed him. His collar had

gotten caught on one of the barbs. I dug in the next couple of feet and then rolled to a standing position as soon as I passed the obstacle. The other trainees were cheering, the sound echoed in my ears. I saw Shannon and her bright red hair just on the other side of the finish line waving me over. It was almost as if it was slow motion. Her mouth opened, cheering, but I couldn’t understand a word of it. Finally, I finished and launched myself right at Shannon. “Holy shit,” she said, throwing her arms around me. “You beat Zeke! You did it!” I turned around, stunned. Sure enough, Zeke was just now crossing the finish line, his face red, blood staining his shirt from where he had caught it on the barbs. My mouth dropped as Evan came over to clap me on the back. Liv, too, came over and gave me a hug. I jumped up and down with them and celebrated. Then, Samuel was in front of us and we stilled, coming to attention. “Nice job, Stuart.” I beamed at him and watched as he walked away. “That’s all for the day,” he shouted. “See you in the a.m.” A few other trainees came over to congratulate me as I guzzled down some water. I thanked them, basking in the glory. Who knew how long it would last? Zeke probably wouldn’t make

that mistake the next time and would crush me. Who cares? I could always say I did it once. And, who knew? Maybe I could beat Zeke for the top guard spot and earn my station at the Ravanas. That would be…epic—to use Shannon’s word. I still had a smile on my face as I made my way toward the guard building for dinner. I was in desperate need of a shower. Maybe I could hang out with the other trainees afterward since I didn’t have to have my “class” with the princes. A vice-like grip curled around my arm. “Hey!” I said, trying to pull it free. Zeke was in front of me then. His face as furious as I’d ever seen it. But not just pissed, the kind of hate that also had fear behind it. The worst kind of hate. He slammed me against the building and my head cracked against the stone. My vision went blurry for a second and there was a whooshing between my ears. My feet weren’t touching the ground anymore either. All my weight was being held up with Zeke’s cold fingers twisted around my neck. I clawed at him, losing my breath, but he wouldn’t let go. I tried to speak, but it only came out as gurgled sounds. I hacked at his arms, leaving red marks behind, but still his grip remained. He moved in closer, his sour breath infiltrating my nose. “I don’t like to lose,” he said through clenched teeth. “Especially to vamp whores.”

I kicked out, and then I was dropping. I fell on my ass, my feet splayed out in front of me. Right before me, Zeke was huddled over, his hand cupping his balls. Even though I was choking, trying to at least catch my breath, I couldn’t stop the smirk that came to my face. I’d got him, and right exactly where I aimed too. “Screw you, Zeke,” I choked out. I grabbed the water bottle I’d dropped and walked around him, quickly making it to my room and locking the door behind me. Suspicions confirmed, I thought to myself. It was definitely Zeke who put the letter on my door. I leaned back against the locked door. My throat was killing me. I moved to the bathroom to look at it in the mirror when something silver and shiny caught my eye on the dresser. It was a cell phone. Nicolai left me a cell phone. He’d said he left me something on the dresser and I’d forgotten to check during lunch. I picked it up, choking back tears as I replayed the day’s events in my head. The note, how pissed my princes were, them telling me they were leaving, the great day of training where I was totally proving myself, then Zeke. Now here I was clutching a cell phone in my hand that they’d left me. They hadn’t abandoned me here with no one. At that thought, the phone rang. When the screen lit up, I noticed I had missed messages and

calls throughout the day. I covered my mouth as I saw the name show up on the screen. It read, Dark, Sexy, & Badass. It had to have been Nic. I was so happy to hear from them that I answered without thinking. “Hi,” I said, choking back tears. Alarm immediately filled his voice. I could feel the tension through the phone. “What’s wrong?” “Nothing,” I blurted out. Not wanting to ruin the moment. “I just got back in and noticed the surprise you left me.” My voice sounded off even to my own ears. It was dry and crackly. That asshole better not have crushed my vocal chords, I thought. “So, you’re getting all weepy?” he asked. A chorus of aww’s sounded on the other side of the line. I covered my mouth, choking back a definite sob. I fell to the bed and tucked my knees to my chest and made myself calm down. I removed my hand. “I guess so,” I said, then covered my mouth again so as not to let anything else escape. The Ravanas were far more observant that they ever let on. “Sorry,” I ventured. “Don’t be,” he said. “It’s cute. We’ve been wondering where you’ve been. When we get off the phone, check yours, there’ll be a ton of messages to make you all weepy again.” I closed my eyes and listened as Nicolai’s

voice soothed me. It was as if he was right there, talking to me. He told me about his day, what the others were doing, and how Connor had pissed their father off so royally that I was already starting to laugh. We talked and talked until he could tell I was sleepy, then he handed the phone off to his brothers so we could all say good night. Instead of going to bed unsure and alone, I drifted off with the knowledge that I was cared for. Even if they weren’t right there next to me, I still had them.

Chapter Twelve Days passed without the Ravana princes. Though it was lonely, the cell phone Nicolai left was my lifeline to them. Every day I received texts that brought a smile to my face. It was evident Nic himself had entered all their names and numbers into my contacts list. There was his: Dark, Sexy & Badass. There was really nothing to argue with there. Then there was The Brooder, The WorryWart Healer, and the Thinks He’s Funny, But He’s Not. I was leaving those names in there for now since I laughed every time my phone dinged with a new message, but when they all got back to The Fort, I’d change them. Stephan’s and Connor’s

entries weren’t right at all. I was thinking names to match all their personalities like Nicolai had used for himself. Instead of The Brooder for Christian, maybe I’d choose Hot Brooding Hero. Then again, maybe I’d just use their regular names because if they ever stole my phone and saw what I called them, I’d probably die of embarrassment. Zeke was keeping his distance ever since he almost crushed my trachea. Or maybe it was me avoiding him. Angry red marks still marred the skin on my neck. I half hoped they would be gone by the time the guys returned to The Fort, and half hoped they wouldn’t. If they noticed and I just happened to let it slip that Zeke was the culprit, it wasn’t as if he would get something he didn’t deserve. The other trainees noticed the bruising, but they never said anything. Not even Shannon. I get the fact that my being here turned everyone’s world upside down, but it also wasn’t my choice. For now, I guessed we were operating under the ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ line of thinking. The only thing I could do was throw myself further into training. I continued to do better and better with my physical requirements along with the martial arts workouts. After lunch, Samuel paired me up with someone new every day to run the obstacle course against, but my second race was always versus Zeke. I’d yet to beat him again. Though I could

now climb the rope and ring the bell, I was still slower than he was doing it. Every single race, I fell behind and could never make up the time. This afternoon was no exception. I stumbled across the line, throwing everything I had into the last few feet. It was no use. Zeke had already finished nearly four seconds before I did. Four seconds didn’t seem like that long, but it was when talking about racing. Shannon gave me a half-smile and clapped me on the back before everyone else picked up their water bottles and sweat towels and started walking toward the guardian building. I was the last to catch my breath and follow. I stayed clear of the buildings that lined the walk on my way to my room, not wanting to get blind-sided again. All the training I’d been doing wasn’t worth anything if I didn’t use my head too. “Ariana,” a voice called out behind me. Turning, I found Samuel jogging my way, his step featherlight and graceful. It reminded me of watching the princes and a crack opened in my heart. Just how long were they going to be gone? I’d wanted to ask, but also didn’t want to seem like the needy girlfriend. I clutched at my chest and took a deep breath. By this time, Samuel was in front of me. He gestured forward. “Care to walk with me?” I nodded, my instincts on high alert already. Samuel had been nothing but indifferent toward me

since I got here, but his initial feelings about my presence still stuck with me. He’d evidently thought I was nothing but a vamp whore, too. The thought made me sick. They must not know the Ravanas at all because there was no way they would do that. Not even just to me. To anyone. He strolled next to me for a few paces without saying anything. With every step, my heart lodged in my throat a little higher. I didn’t know what this was about, but it must have been something important. He hadn’t taken the time to talk to me privately before. Finally, he asked, “How are you adapting here so far?” I pulled the collar of my shirt up around my neck, trying not to garner any attention as I did so. “Going well.” “No…complaints?” he asked, his voice tense. I shook my head, my sweat-laden braid swishing across my back. His intense eyes were questioning. He may have guessed, or knew, something had happened, but he wasn’t saying anything either. He nodded. “You’re doing much better than when you first started. I have to admit when I first saw you on the rope climb, I thought the princes had made a terrible mistake. How were you ever going to guard them if you couldn’t even lift your own bodyweight?” He snickered to himself even though I didn’t find it all that funny. “Everyone can

see your improvement, however. The princes will be happy to hear that when I give them an update when they get back. You’re quickly moving up to the top of the class.” Despite myself, a small smile spread over my face. He was actually complimenting me. “Thank you.” He stopped and put a hand on my shoulder. Leaning over me, his eyes locked on mine. “The Ravanas are our noble family. Because of that, the princes can get away with a lot. I promise you, though, they will not get away with choosing their own guard unless that guard is the best in the class.” He straightened up and smiled down. “I’m not sure what they’re telling you, Ariana, but if you want the station with them, you’ll have to beat Zeke in the finals. Though it may not matter to the princes, I can guarantee you their mother and father will have a say in who they bring into their home, and their decision far outweighs the princes. Do you understand?” My stomach hollowed out. Mouth dry, I nodded. Not that I thought I would be able to form a coherent word anyway after he dropped that bomb on me. The princes had promised I’d stay with them no matter what. Calm down, I told myself. I’d beaten Zeke before, and this news didn’t really change anything. I said before I wanted to deserve the placement

with the Ravanas, this just added an extra dose of reality. Four seconds was between me and what I wanted most. I had to figure out a way to make that time up. “I know you don’t know much about our world, but the safety of the princes is our utmost concern. They will run The Council one day. Just like in your world, those with more power and prestige make themselves targets. It’s not a job to be taken lightly. The princes have other ideals that often times don’t mesh with older vampires. Regardless of their beliefs with the guard issue, they will be made to see reason. And if they can’t, their decision will be overruled.” I paled. I hadn’t thought about how important guarding the Ravanas would be on a vampire level. I’d only regarded it in a way that they were my friends—my saviors—and there was no way I wanted them hurt. I stretched my fingers out, trying to get rid of the tension coiling inside me. “Do you understand what I’m telling you?” Samuel asked. “Yes.” He nodded once. “Good.” Samuel continued to walk toward the building and I followed him. Neither one of us said another word to one another until he took a right down the path toward the main building while I kept going toward my room. As soon as I stepped into the

guardian building, voices met my ears. Everyone was all relaxed from a hard day. I could see some sitting in the lounge area with their feet up. Further still, I could see the open doors that led to the cafeteria where the majority of the noise came from. I really wanted nothing more than to go to my room and think about everything Samuel had just said to me, but my stomach was growling. If I didn’t get anything to eat right now, I wouldn’t eat. The princes weren’t here to take me off site and the cafeteria would be closing soon. Making my decision, I walked into the cafeteria and filled my tray with steamed vegetables and a piece of rotisserie chicken. I didn’t stop at one of the tables or the lounge though, I kept going and took the food right to my room where I could be alone with my thoughts. I walked by Shannon and Liv who were deep in conversation with Evan. My only consolation was that my cell phone was up in my room and I’d probably have messages waiting for me. I unlocked the door, grabbed my cell phone off the dresser and sat on my bed with the tray of food on my lap. With one hand working the cell phone and the other shoveling food into my mouth, I waited for the screen to turn on to see what the guys had written to me today. My fork paused halfway to my mouth. The

screen had come on and nothing. Not one message or voicemail alert on my phone. The backs of my eyes burned. I tossed the phone down onto my comforter and ate the rest of my food with a heavy heart. When I was done, I pushed the tray to the side and stared at the phone. Not a day had gone by yet where I hadn’t heard from them all. What if something was wrong? What if their parents had already talked them out of using me and they were just casting me aside? No. I refused to believe that. Not only because it just felt wrong, but because it was wrong. There was no way they would do that to me. I picked up the phone and started a group text: Do you guys know when you’ll be back? Yes, the girly part of me had taken over, but I couldn’t stand not knowing. I wanted them here to feel the way they felt about me, not just the memory of it. We were linked more than anyone thought. Even if their parents did try to fight them, I had a feeling the princes definitely would have something to say about it. If they had a choice. Only a minute went by before the first text came in. It was from Stephan. Long day here. Council meeting. We hope to be done soon. Nicolai: You miss us, don’t you? We’ll be back soon, Ri. Just trying to wrap this up. Connor: These people are insane. Can’t wait to get back to see my girl.

Christian’s was the last, which I would have guessed. He’d probably mulled over what he would write for a few moments before sending it. I hope training is going well. Don’t worry about us and concentrate on getting to the top of that rope climb. I smiled to myself. I couldn’t wait to tell them what I’d been able to accomplish since they’d been away. I hoped I got to tell them first before Samuel ruined the surprise. The initial glee at hearing from them was quickly replaced by a loneliness that was hard to ignore. They were there, yet not. Nothing could ease me like their presence, not their words or voices. It muted their absence, but only for a little while. I took a deep breath and sent: Training is going well. I can’t wait to see all of you. About thirty seconds later, Connor sent me a group selfie picture. All of them had varying ranges of smiles from Connor’s, which was the biggest, all the way to Nic’s, which was just barely there. Connor: To tide you over. Your turn. Me: No way. I just got in from training. I still look a mess. Nicolai: Not possible. Do you have any idea how sexy a sweaty chick is? Me: Yeah, maybe when those chicks are sexy to begin with. None of them responded for at least a minute.

I bit down on my lip while I waited. My heart took off the longer it took for them to send something. Then, finally, instead of a text, my phone rang. It was Dark, Sexy, & Badass. “Hello?” His voice was gruff, urgent. “I’ll have you know I just walked away from the dinner table and my father really hates that.” I sat very still, not sure where he was going with this. “Ri, if you ever talk down about yourself again, I’m going to throw you over my shoulder and…” I swallowed, tension building in my lower stomach. “And?” He groaned. “Make you see reason. I just had to fight my brothers to be the one to call you. And don’t think I’m not going to get a huge lecture when I walk back in that room, but it will all be worth it if I can make you realize what a— Shit. Maybe I should’ve let Christian call. Sometimes I’m not good with words. Does it sound too lame if I say you’re beautiful inside and out?” I clenched my teeth together and shook my head. “No. Not at all.” “Good. Now send us a damn selfie of your cute ass so my brothers and I can stop checking our phones every two seconds.” I bit back a laugh. “O-okay.”

He sighed. “I—all of us—we all can’t wait to see you.” There was a loud voice from somewhere near Nic and then he whispered, “Got to go. Bye.” “Bye,” I said, but I was too late. Nic had already ended the call. I spent an inordinate amount of time sending the right selfie. I turned the lights on. I turned the lights off. I laid down on the bed, then stood up. I must’ve had ten pictures saved to my phone, but none of them looked good enough to send. In the middle of deciding, a text came through from Connor. Are you going to let Nicolai get in trouble for nothing? That’s not very nice. :( I groaned in frustration. Picking out a selfie to send to four very hot vampires was just impossible. They were completely flawless while I was merely human. I sat on the bed, held my hands out, and snapped a pic of me smiling. I barely even looked at it before hitting Send, kind of like ripping off a Band-Aid. My stomach wound around in knots as I waited for their responses. Worth it, Nic responded. Ha. Ha., I texted back. Aren’t you guys getting in trouble for texting at the dinner table? Christian: Yes, but we’ve all decided it’s worth it. You look beautiful. My stomach flipped as Connor’s response came in: Damn girl.

Stephan’s was last and it was in a separate, private text. What are those red marks on your neck? My stomach bottomed out. I hadn’t thought to make sure they were hidden. Nothing, I quickly replied. Is it red? I know I’ve been itching there. I think I got a bug bite today in training. I threw the phone down on the bed and nearly crossed my fingers. Leave it to Stephan to make sure I was all in one piece. His response was immediate. :( That salve I gave you will help with that too. Please put some on. It would be a shame to have those marks marring your perfection. God, these guys were too much. Every single one of them made me feel all fluttery and hopeful. I liked all of them. I had a thing for all four of them. I ran my hands through my hair as I stared at Stephan’s text. I shouldn’t have lied, but I needed to. They had more important things to worry about than me right now. They were with the vampire elite at a Council meeting and if what Shannon said was true, they needed all their attention on what was going on and not back here at The Fort.

Chapter Thirteen I’d just texted the guys good night when a loud rap sounded on the door. I let out a short scream and tensed. Muffled laughter came from the other side. A guy’s and a girl’s. Visions of Zeke putting another note on my door pressed into me. I tore the sheets away from me, ran to the door, and whipped it open. Shannon and Evan backed away, startled. I closed my eyes and took a calming breath before smiling and trying to act casually. “Hey, guys. What’s up?” Evan peered behind me, taking in my room while Shannon twirled her red hair nervously

around her finger. “We noticed you didn’t stick around at dinner and wanted to see if you were okay.” “Really?” I asked, eyebrows raised. I shook my head. “I’m fine. Thanks.” Evan’s gazed move to me, his eyes twinkling with mischief. “Good, because we all got something to do tonight.” “We?” I asked, curious since I wasn’t really one of them, was I? “Well, yeah.” Shannon smiled. “It’s kind of a tradition.” “Think of it as an initiation,” Evan broke in. Both of them looked super excited. I glanced from one to the other and smiled. They were including me, trying to be nice. And if I really wanted to be the Ravana’s guard, I should be friendly with others like me. “Okay, you’ve got my curiosity.” Evan chuckled. “Grab a sweatshirt and come on.” I did as I was told, also grabbing my key and locking the door behind me. I walked with them outside the building and to the guard parking lot. I’d noticed cars out there before, but I didn’t know who they all belonged to. A car was the furthest thing from my mind when I was back in my other world. “That’s me in the Jeep,” Evan said, pointing to an older model in the back of the parking lot. It

wasn’t anything like the Ravana’s new Jeep. Evan unlocked the doors and I slid in the back. “Are you guys going to tell me what we’re doing?” Shannon turned around, her gray eyes almost translucent in the moonlight. “Bridge jumping.” “Bridge jumping?” My heart sped off in my chest. “Like bungee jumping?” Evan shook his head and shifted in his seat to look back at me. “No, nothing like that. There’s a bridge just on the outside of town that you can jump from. It’s not that high. Maybe forty feet or so. All the classes do it.” Shannon waggled her eyebrows at me. “We’re just waiting on Liv then we’ll head out.” I looked outside the Jeep’s windows to find all the other trainees heading to cars and leaving the parking lot. Nerves twisted in my stomach. “How did this tradition get started?” Shannon shrugged. “My brother said it’s kind of like an overcoming fear thing. To be a guard, you have to face fear head on. Might as well start now while we’re still in training.” “Has anyone ever gotten hurt?” I regretted the question immediately after I said it. I was acting like such a killjoy. Evan and Shannon were actually excited about this and I was acting like their mother. I didn’t want to be seen as a coward. It was just my standpoint was always, ‘why press your

luck?’ “Nah,” Evan said. “You’ll be fine. It’s actually fun. We’ll probably do it more than once.” Liv pulled the door open then and got in on the other side of me. She gave me a quick wave and then clicked her seatbelt. Oh, shit. Slowly, I clicked my seatbelt into place. “How far away is this did you say?” I asked. They hadn’t seen fear yet. Hopefully I could calm myself down for this trip. “It’s barely even a mile,” Evan said, already backing the Jeep out of its space. I clutched the Jeep door and closed my eyes. Nausea rolled through me. “Mind if I roll down the window back here?” I asked through clenched teeth. “Go for it.” All of us rolled down our windows then. I kept my eyes closed, my fingers tight around the door handle, and my head back against the seatrest the whole time. Thankfully, Evan was right. It really wasn’t that long of a drive at all. It felt like a long time because I was so tense, but somewhere in the back of my head, I understood it could’ve been much longer. When he pulled to a stop and parked, I sighed in relief. We were in a dirt alcove just off the road that others were using as parking too. All around

me, excited voices rang through the air. I tried to get excited. They were including me after all, but I just couldn’t force myself into it. The trepidation started in my toes and was working its way up. Bridge jumping sounded like a horrible idea. What choice did I have though? Not do it and be thought a coward by everyone here? That wasn’t happening. Especially since I was sure Zeke was here somewhere and there was no way I was going to give him any type of advantage, no matter how small. I got out of the Jeep and decided to leave my sweatshirt inside. It wasn’t so bad out right now. After we jumped, that may be a whole different story, but for now, I was fine. I followed the rest of them up the road. A sign at the beginning of the bridge said “Harry Davidson Memorial Bridge over Wysocki River”. My heart rate skyrocketed, not liking the sound of “memorial” bridge. There was a similar sign next to where my mom died. A cold sweat broke out across my forehead and I rubbed my arms, suddenly cool in the damp, night air. Evan turned around to find me. His brow furrowed and he waited for me to catch up with him. “You’ll be fine,” he whispered. “The river’s deep. The local kids do it all the time. You just have to do it once and make it to the bank. Then, you’re golden.” I gave him a grateful smile. “Thanks. I needed

the pep talk.” He looked down at the road as we walked while rubbing the back of his neck. “You know, you can hang out with us more often if you want. I mean, when the Ravanas aren’t around. And only if you want to. It’s just a little weird when they’re here.” “I’ve heard that,” I said. “They’re really great guys though. I think you’d like them.” His expression didn’t seem as hopeful as I was. “Maybe.” We walked a little further and I looked out at the river as we neared the middle of the bridge. He bumped his shoulder into mine, taking my thoughts away. “I just hate to see you all alone. It must be strange for you to finally find yourself in a whole other world. You have an open invitation to eat at my table, or even stop by my room some time if you need me or just want to talk. I’ve been told I’m a good listener.” Evan winked, but all it did was succeed in making me feel awkward. He was trying to flirt and even though he was nice, he just didn’t do anything for me. “I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks.” A smile widened across his face and a niggle of sympathy started in my chest. I hoped he didn’t think that meant I was interested in anything with him. I would’ve been blown away by his attentions if I was back where I came from, but he couldn’t hold a candle to the Ravanas. No one could.

We neared the huddle of trainees at the middle of the bridge. Zeke, of course, was leaning against the stone barrier, his body already on the other side of the bridge. He looked out at everyone with a cocky smile. “You guys know the drill. We jump, wait for that person to move all the way to the bank before the next person goes. Got it?” Shouts of excitement rose up. I tried to get closer to the stone barrier to look down, then thought maybe I shouldn’t. Instead, I looked out. The moon was reflected in the river, making the scene just perfect for an oil painting that sat above someone’s living room furniture. An almost warrior-like cry of “Here we go,” broke into my musings. Zeke was no longer at the middle of the bridge. In fact, I couldn’t see him anywhere. I pushed forward and leaned over the side just in time to see him splash the surface. A couple seconds later, his head emerged. He blew a fan of water out from his face and then let out a yell, “Woooo!” A few in the crowd clapped for him, but I sure as hell wasn’t. Not after what he did to me. Another body passed the stone barrier to stand facing the river as Zeke swam to the bank. As soon as he was pulling himself out of the water, the other trainee jumped. It was a girl this time and she screamed all the way down until just a second before she hit the river surface. She popped up

quicker, letting out a strangled cry of excitement. “Holy crap! That was fun!” I meandered closer to the middle as the rest of us jockeyed for space. I figured I might as well get it over with. It didn’t look so bad. Sure, it was higher than I would’ve liked, but Zeke and the other girl had already jumped and nothing happened to them. I could handle this if I could handle finding out vampires existed and there was this secret world where humans fought for their safety. Sure. Piece of cake. It turned out I was still one of the last to jump. My heart beat like crazy in my chest as I straddled the stone barrier. Snickers sounded in the crowd and I looked up to see Zeke making a very inappropriate hip gesture. I scowled at him and quickly threw my other leg over the barrier and stared down at the river below. The water was the color of obsidian and still like the eye of the storm. From this vantage point, it didn’t even look like the river flowed. I closed by eyes and took a deep breath. It was now or never and I certainly wasn’t going to back out. Talk about humiliation. I rubbed my hands in front of me and then forced my hands to my sides. Then, I leapt. Just as I jumped, someone shouted, “Wait!” Panic strangled me, a cry caught in my throat. Then, some part of me heard laughter and I realized it was just Zeke trying to scare me. Mission

accomplished. Asshole. I slipped through the water, my head going under in an icy rush. I kicked to the surface as hard as I could. The total fear and excitement made me want to take a deep breath, but it wouldn’t be smart until my head broke the surface unless I wanted a mouthful of river water. Thankfully, it was only a second or two later, when I pushed above the surface. I breathed in long and deep and then held it in my chest as I swam to the bank. My whole body felt as if it was in an ice bath. Tremors shook me, some from the temperature and some from the nerves. My foot kicked against rocks and I breathed a sigh of relief. Whoa. That was nuts. Up above, I heard Evan say, “Way to go, Ariana.” My lips broke apart in a huge smile. I couldn’t believe I did that! I didn’t want to do it again, but I was still on a high as I made my way up the rocky bank and grabbed one of the towels everyone else had used to dry off with. Shannon and Liv ran toward me. “Well?” “Wow.” It was all I could get out. “I know, right?” Liv said. She still hugged her arms to her chest. “A few of us already went down to start the bonfire. Come on!” She untangled herself for a brief moment to pull at my arm, and I followed. I needed a bonfire about now. It was

freezing out here. I followed the other girls back through the makeshift parking lot to a narrow path that led through the woods. I looked wistfully at Evan’s Jeep, wishing I could get in to grab my sweatshirt, but a quick check of the door handle said it was locked. “You need something?” Shannon asked. “I left my sweatshirt in there.” She looked me up and down, a small frown pulling at her lips. “I guess we should’ve told you to grab it. We can ask Evan when he gets to the bonfire, but I’m pretty sure he’s jumping again. Let’s get you to the heat.” I hurried after them. Luckily, the fire looked like it had already been going for awhile when we got there. It was almost as tall as me. All three of us huddled around it switching between our fronts and backs and laughing about what we’d just done. I was actually having fun. Liv was nice and had a great sense of humor. Shannon was Shannon. She was a spunky little thing whose personality increased tenfold as soon as they started serving alcohol. I passed on that, figuring someone would need to drive home in case Evan decided to have a few. I couldn’t drive, but I figured anything was better than an impaired driver. Within a half hour, the other group who’d decided to jump multiple times came up the path.

Evan spotted us right away. He held up my sweatshirt and I grinned at him. “Thank you.” Now I could actually move away from the fire without freezing to death. I put it on and zipped it all the way up. Even bringing the hood up in the back to keep my ears warm. My hands went to my pockets and I smiled when I felt the small cell phone. I’d forgotten I’d put it in there. I wasn’t use to having a cell phone and I never took it with me anywhere at The Fort. A trainee named Josh had done that once and Samuel made him run an extra two miles for the indiscretion. I took it out and turned on the screen. No messages. I couldn’t blame them. They’d thought I went to bed. I pulled Shannon and Liv to my side and took a group selfie. I told them it was to memorialize our first bridge jump, but really, I sent it as a text to the guys. I wanted them to know I was fine and that I was fitting in. Finally. A tingle of awareness started up my spine. I turned to find a guy hovering just over my left shoulder. He was way too close for comfort. I jumped away. Looking at him, I knew he wasn’t human. He had the strong, defined lines of the other vampires I’d met. Hard jaw, perfectly sculpted cheekbones, and his eyes, they were almost yellow. He was good looking, but in an

almost feral sort of way. While the Ravanas made me feel at peace, this one made me want to run the other way. “Hey there,” he said. “Hi.” I gave him a quick wave and then turned to find Shannon and Liv. I shouldn’t have been texting on my phone. They’d left and I didn’t know where they’d gone off to. I searched through the crowd of people, but I would never find Shannon that way. She was too short. “Don’t be like that,” the guy said. “I hear you’re a toy of the Ravanas. I know them, you know.” I gave him a hard look behind me. “If you knew them then you’d know I’m not their toy.” I turned around again, moving away. Somehow, the whole party had moved to the other side of the bonfire and I was on this side, alone, with creeper vamp. An ice cold finger touched my neck and I swung back around to face him. He smiled almost cruelly. “Then why is it that you’re here? If you’re not their toy, I mean.” “Don’t touch me,” I warned. Was I allowed to touch vampires? I seemed to remember hearing it was frowned upon unless provoked. Surely if it was in self-defense it wouldn’t matter. I took a step toward the other side of the fire. He followed. “I hear they’re at The Council meeting.”

I kept going. “Liv,” I shouted, because it was the first name I could think of. His cold hand snapped out and wrapped around mine. His fingers were like a vise on my wrist. Just then, there was a rustle in the leaves. The vampire looked in that direction. I turned quickly, hoping it could be help, but it wasn’t. Zeke stood there. “What’s up, Ryan?” he asked. The vampire nodded his head toward him and then me. “I thought you said she was down for the whole blood letting thing. She seems a little squeamish.” Fear shot through me. Zeke smirked. “Trust me, she’s—” “If you touch me,” I started. Then, I picked up my foot and slammed my heel down on his toes. I wrenched my arm free and then ran. “Evan! Shannon!” Hands wrapped around my waist and yanked backward. I fell to the ground, my shoulder blade landing on a jagged rock. “Dude,” the vampire Ryan said. “She’s not into this.” Blinking, I looked up to see that it was Zeke over me, trying to still my arms and legs as I flailed around, trying to get up and escape. “She’s a vamp whore. She’ll like it.” I kicked up, catching Zeke in the chin. I scrambled to my feet and backed away. Ryan was

on his phone as if nothing was happening and Zeke looked as if he could murder me. He stalked toward me, but Ryan held back on his arm. “I’m telling you, man. Do not mess with the Ravanas.” The guy looked at me. “I didn’t know.” “Oh, just shut up,” Zeke said. He spat on the ground. “Just get out of here then.” The vamp looked at me and then shook his head, disappearing into the forest. “You asshole,” I screamed, staring right into Zeke’s cocky face. “I don’t know what your problem is with me, but you better get over it. I’m not a vamp whore. I don’t care that you don’t like to lose. In fact, you better get used to it because I’m going to kick your ass come course finals.” Zeke’s eyes narrowed. He came forward, but I didn’t shy away. Not this time. I met him glare for glare, step for step. “Don’t push me, whore.” I placed my foot behind his leg and did just that. I heaved my whole body into him, knowing it would take a lot to get him down. His eyes rounded and his arms flailed, trying to catch his balance. He didn’t. He sprawled into the brush just like I had. “You haven’t seen anything yet.” I spun on my heel and turned. I wanted to be long gone before Zeke got to his feet. A loud growl rose up behind me and I turned just in time to see a black mass barrel into him. Holy—.

Zeke went flying. The black mass landed on top of him. “If you ever touch her—” The mass, which I could clearly see now was a person rearing back to punch someone trembled with anger. A sense of calm swept over me. “Stop!” I called out. The figure turned. Stephan.

Chapter Fourteen Tears threatened my eyes at the same time relief poured through me. “Don’t,” I said, shaking my head. “He’s not worth it.” He took what I said to heart. Stephan got off him, then pulled Zeke to his feet by his collar. Then, with a quick shove, he sent Zeke sprawling backward again. “Leave. Her. Alone.” There was an extra forceful growl punctuating his words. He had me convinced. I’d never seen such a pure display of alpha male before. Damn. These vampires were fierce. The way he was able to push Zeke with little effort and the big guy went flying. It was something else.

Stephan turned and came over to me, taking my face in his hands. They trembled against my skin. Not out of fear, or chill, but in pure rage. I’d only been that angry once in my life and I could remember it vividly. “Did he hurt you?” I shook my head. “I’m fine. How are you—?” I peeked behind him, making sure Zeke wasn’t as stupid as I thought he was and try to attack from behind. “Shh,” he said. “I need to calm down. I’ll get calm, you think of your questions, and then we can talk.” He tipped my chin to force my gaze on him. “He will not hurt you.” His emerald eyes blazed into mine. I nodded, transfixed by the anger in his usually soft expression. It was a good thing I stopped him from hitting Zeke. His fist would’ve went straight through his skull. I reached up and put my hands over his. “Okay,” I said, smiling for his benefit. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Let’s get out of here. You got everything?” I checked my sweatshirt pockets. No phone. My keys had somehow tangled in a loose string so they were still there. I looked down at the forest floor. “My phone must’ve fallen out.” He took his phone from his pocket. “I’ll call it.” I cringed. “It’s on vibrate, I think.” He looked at me, his eyes blinking. When I

just continued to stare back at him, he said, “Oh, I thought you were joking. Super hearing, remember?” Right. I needed to get used to things like that. Using his above average hearing abilities, Stephan found my found about the place where my back hit the rock earlier. While he bent over, I looked toward the area I’d seen Zeke last. He wasn’t there. Not that I could blame him. Stephan was intense, and the weird thing was, he was the last of the Ravanas I would’ve thought capable of such a thing. Like Nicolai’s name for him in my phone, he was a healer. He didn’t inflict damage, he took it away. Stephan entwined his fingers with mine and we walked back up the path. Ryan stood on the outskirts of the circle the trainees had made around the bonfire. He gave Stephan a nod and we walked up to him. “Thank you,” Stephan told him. Ryan looked from him to me, then down to our entwined hands, and then up again. He nodded again. Though he didn’t say anything, it was evident there was nothing but respect in his gaze. Stephan pulled me away, but I hung back. “I need to tell who I came with that I’m leaving. I don’t want them to worry.” Stephan’s eyes traveled around the other trainees. Others had noticed us and were staring, but I didn’t see the girls or Evan. Stephan took a

step back and faced Ryan again. “Can you do one more thing for me tonight? Please tell…” Stephan looked at me, his eyebrows raised, expectant. “I came with Shannon, Liv, and Evan.” Stephan’s hand tightened around mine when I said Evan’s name. He didn’t so much as flinch as he addressed Ryan again. “Please tell them I am taking Ariana back to The Fort.” “Will do,” Ryan said. He turned around and sauntered into the crowd with that easy gait that all vampires had. It almost looked as if they were floating over the ground, not actually walking. This time when Stephan led me away from the bonfire and back up the path to the parking area, I let him. I stayed close, leaning on his arm. Not so much for support, even though my back was killing me, but for comfort. Stephan was here, and I’d missed them so much. He stroked my hair as he walked me past the other cars and to a sleek, silver Audi that was haphazardly parked, blocking the entrance and exit to the makeshift lot. He opened the door and I got in. Like his brother, he pulled the seatbelt around me and made sure it locked into place. His hands lingered by my side, then he crouched down so we were face-to-face. He swallowed. “I hope I didn’t scare you back there. Sometimes it’s hard to control my anger. Especially —” His jaw worked. “Especially…” He trailed off and I put my hand on his. “It’s

okay. I get it.” I could imagine if our situations were reversed and I’d seen him in trouble. All the training at The Fort would’ve kicked in immediately. “Are you really taking me back to The Fort?” I asked. His brows furrowed. “Why wouldn’t I?” “I just…,” I said, looking down into my lap. “Last time they said nasty things about us.” Below my hand, his fingers went rigid as they dug into the leather seats. “Which is the reason you were in this mess tonight.” I tried to shake my head, but he wasn’t having it. “Don’t try to deny it, Ariana. Ryan told me what that trainee brought him there to do.” “How did you—?” “I was already on my way back to you.” He sat on the lip where the car door rested when it was closed and looked at me. “I told the rest of them my suspicions about the photo you shared with us. They all agreed I should come back early to check it out even though they all wanted to. The only reason why I got to do it is because of my caring abilities. I was already halfway here when I got the photo you shared with you and your friends. I thought maybe I’d been too hasty. Then not twenty minutes later did I get a text from Ryan saying what was happening.” “So that’s what he was doing?” His usually smooth forehead wrinkled with

confusion. “Ryan? Yes, he texted me that the trainee convinced him you were into blood letting, but when he could tell you weren’t, he let me know right away.” “I understand now. When Ze—the other trainee had me down, I saw Ryan on his phone and I didn’t understand what he could possibly be doing.” Stephan’s eyes glazed over and he stood, fists at his sides. His hands clenched and reclenched. “He was just on his phone while you were being attacked?” Stephan stepped away from the car and I went to follow him, but the seatbelt held me back. Stupid thing! “Stephan!” I called out. He was already five paces back across the parking lot. Damn. They were so fast. “Please come back,” I urged. “I haven’t seen you in almost a week. I want to get out of here. Please.” My whining voice was on, but if it would stop Stephan from getting into a second fight today, I was okay with that. It worked. He stilled and then strode back to me. His finger traced a line from my ear to my chin. “You’re right. I need to get out of here before I do something stupid.” I leaned away as Stephan closed the door. He was opening his door and sitting within a second after. I barely had time to blink. “Are we going

back to The Fort?” I asked again. I didn’t really want to. Not right away anyway. The events of the night were starting to sink in and I trembled a little. There was a lot I still didn’t understand about this world, and I was afraid I’d never fit in. “I have a place we can go,” he said. He pulled out onto the road. It was dark and eerie outside, and every time I looked outside the car, I thought I saw Ryan’s yellow eyes coming to prove how much of a vamp whore I was. I shivered and Stephan put his hand on mine. “It won’t take long.” He was right. Within a few minutes, we were pulling up to a black metal gate much like the one at The Fort and Stephan was punching in a code. I didn’t say anything as he drove up the circular driveway and up to an enormous brick house. “What is this place?” He unclicked his seatbelt and leaned over me to look up at the place. “This is where my parents stay when we’re at school.” “It’s your house?” I asked. “Then why aren’t you guys staying here now?” Stephan shrugged. “Our parents weren’t exactly on board with what we were doing so they made a compromise. We had to stay at The Fort house while we watched over your training.” He reached up and picked a dry leaf out of my hair. “We’ll be safe here.” I nodded, my throat dry as Stephan got out of

the car and came around my side to get me out. We walked up the stone walkway and to the large door. Stephan unlocked it with one of the keys from his keychain and ushered me inside. The interior of the brick house took ‘open floor plan’ to a whole other level. “This is…huge,” I said. Stephan offered a reserved smile. He wasn’t in the mood to be happy yet. “This is nothing compared to our big house.” My eyes widened as I looked at him, trying to gauge his seriousness. He was, in fact, very serious. The big house must be a mansion…or a castle. Maybe it had a moat like the movies on TV. Wasn’t that a vampire thing? He pulled me in and set me down on the couch. “The guys and I wanted to stay here, but it wouldn’t fly. We come here every so often. Speaking of—” He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and grimaced down at the screen. “They’ve been blowing up my phone asking if you’re okay. You should call them.” “Me?” I squeaked. “They’re not going to take it from me,” Stephan said. “They’re going to want to talk to you anyway. Might as well get it over with.” “What am I going to tell them?” “The truth.” My heart slammed inside my chest. The truth? If I did that, all the Ravanas would be here as fast

as they could. What about Ryan? And Zeke? Not that I should care what happened to him, but I knew his actions were based out of fear. I’d rather prove him right than wrong. I wanted to kick his ass at the final course run. “I don’t know…” Stephan sat next to me on the couch. “You have to tell them something. We have to tell them something. I wouldn’t be surprised if they already didn’t jump in a car and are on their way here. My dad will blow a gasket, but it wouldn’t matter. That’s how much we care for you, Ariana. They deserve the truth.” I took a deep, steadying breath. He was right. I just hoped I could convince them not to do anything. I’d done it with Stephan, hadn’t I? I could do it again. “Will you stay with me while I do it?” His hands weaved through my hair and came to rest at the back of my neck. “I’m not leaving you.” I nodded, the intensity of his words not lost on me. They would probably all be beating themselves up about leaving me, making it their fault that something happened while they were gone. “Okay.” I slipped my phone out of my sweatshirt pocket and called Christian. He answered immediately. “Are you okay?” I swallowed. “Are the others there? Can you put me on speaker please?” Stephan moved behind me on the couch,

straddling me. I moved up a little to accommodate him. From behind, he unzipped my sweatshirt and worked it off my shoulders and down and then pulled it off my arms one-by-one. “You’re on speaker,” Christian said. “We’re all here. Well, except Stephan. He’s with you, right?” “He’s right here.” I pulled the phone away from my ear and pressed the screen above the word speaker. “He can hear you.” “I’m here,” Stephan said gruffly. He pulled his slim, soft fingers through my hair and started a pile beside us on the couch with leaves and twigs. I mentally cringed. I probably looked awful when he first saw me. Not how I wanted their homecoming to be. “Tell us what happened,” Nic demanded. Stephan pulled me back to him, his lips just barely grazing my ear. “I told you,” he whispered. “Are you okay?” Connor asked. “I am,” I said. Three audible sighs of relief came through the phone’s speaker. “What were the red marks on your neck?” Nic asked, his voice stern. Stephan pulled me tighter. Maybe in response to my trembling, maybe because he wanted to whisper in my ear again. “He can’t believe he didn’t notice them himself. They all can’t.” Louder, he said, “I haven’t gotten that out of her yet,

though, I can tell you right now…” Stephan pulled my hair aside. His next words came out through clenched teeth. “They look like finger marks.” I tried to wrestle away from Stephan, but his grip was like a vice. “Shh,” he whispered again. “They need to know.” All at once, Nic, Connor, and Christian started to talk in varying degrees of hostility. Finally, Christian told them all to shut up. “Finger marks?” he questioned. “Someone tried to…choke you?” I nodded, not able to form the words. Stephan tensed behind me. “She just nodded.” “I’ll kill them,” Nic seethed. “Get in line,” Connor said. Christian was abnormally quiet. “Hate to break it to you, but there’s something more,” Stephan said. He rubbed his hands up and down my bare arms, his chin resting atop my shoulder. His lips grazed my neck, making every last bad memory of that area of my body float away. They were all silent, waiting for Stephan to speak. Even me, I was rigid, waiting for the other shoe to drop. “Our buddy Ryan Pavone called me on my way here. It seems he got a call from another trainee for a sure BL. He wanted me to know right away after Ariana made it clear she wasn’t into it that it wasn’t his fault.” My mind struggled to keep up with what

Stephan said. It took an abnormal amount of time to realize that BL stood for blood letting. “He didn’t,” Nic growled. “Calm down,” Connor said. “The hell I will.” “He didn’t,” I said immediately. “I stomped on his foot and pushed him away. He got the message after that.” “That’s my girl,” Connor said. “Believe it or not, that’s not the real problem,” Stephan said. “The problem is Ariana’s being targeted by another trainee. They were fighting when I got there and if she hadn’t told me to stop, I probably would’ve taken his head off.” So my instincts were correct. The dark vamp side of Stephan had definitely come out. I eased back into him, trying to calm him again. Just talking about it made him tense. It was almost as if I could feel the anger coursing through him. I rubbed his knee that was next to mine and snuggled back into his chest. It seemed to work. He relaxed into my touch and for the first time in almost a week, I felt whole again. Well, almost whole. It helped that the other three parts of me were on the phone. “We did this to her,” Christian said, finally speaking. “I knew he would say that,” I whispered to Stephan. He nodded into my hair. “You’re very

perceptive.” “It doesn’t matter,” I said, louder this time. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. Yes, there are a few who are mad that I’m here because I hear that being stationed with the Ravanas is a coveted spot.” I paused, hoping Connor would say something to break the tension, but he didn’t. I’d set him up perfectly for a joke about how awesome they were, but he didn’t take the bait. “It doesn’t change anything. I’m where I’m supposed to be and I’m not going to let anyone ruin it. He’s in for the fight of his life because I’m going to own him at finals. I’m not taking the spot away from him, I’m earning it.” Stephan wrapped his arms around me, his fingers brushing across my middle. “God, you’re perfect.” “Did Ri just give us a motivational speech?” Nic asked, dumbfounded. “Damn,” Connor said. “You won’t have to beat him,” Christian said. “I’m still debating on killing this guy. Who is it?” Stephan stilled behind me. I took that as a cue not to say who it was. “Like I said, doesn’t matter. He’s going down.” Everyone was silent for a few moments. Stephan sniffed my hair and then took my phone from my fingers. “Are we all satisfied Ariana’s okay? She’s had a tough night. I’m going to rub

some salve on her injuries and then she can go to bed.” “Injuries?” Nic barked. “Chill, Nicolai,” Connor said. “Stephan’s got it under control.” There were a few tense seconds of silence when Christian said, “Yeah, we’re all good here. You two take care of yourselves. We’ll see you tomorrow, hopefully, but at the very latest, Sunday.” “Miss you, guys,” I said, my voice small, weak. I wished they were here with us. “Aww, we miss you too, Princess. Good night.” “Night,” Nic said. “Tomorrow,” Christian promised, then the line went dead. Stephan turned my screen off and tossed the phone onto the table beside us. Then, he put his hands right back on me. He couldn’t keep his hands from touching me, searching my skin as if he were looking for answers. “I’m going to grab the salve,” he said. “I’ll be right back.” I held my breath and watched as Stephan untangled himself from me and walked toward the staircase in the corner of the room. His movements were fluid, graceful as he bounded up the steps. All at once, realization dawned on me. I was in the Ravana house with just Stephan. My heart

hammered inside my chest, fear and excitement overwhelming me all at the same time. I just hoped I’d be able to control myself.

Chapter Fifteen Not a minute later, Stephan traced his tracks back down the steps and was at my side again. He had a similar small container in his hand with the gel-like pink-tinted substance inside. “Are you ever going to tell me what this miracle stuff is?” I asked, trying for light-hearted even though my heart was pumping away at a mile a minute. He made a hesitant face. “If I do, you promise not to freak out?” I eyed him warily. I hated when people asked things like that. It was obvious it was something that would make me want to freak out so why ask me not to? I swallowed and tried to stand up a little

straighter. “I promise.” He held my gaze with his. “It’s a medicinal cream I came up with. I won’t bore you with some of the ingredients, but the main ingredient is…my blood.” My eyes rounded, and he kept talking. “Vampire blood can be known to heal. You know, since we have all the supernatural powers and stuff. I mixed it in this other medicine and noticed how well it did at healing others. Even vampires.” I nodded as I took all this in. I’d been using vampire blood to heal me this whole time. Wow. “It’s your blood, right?” I asked, suddenly worried I’d been smothering someone else’s life force all over me. He grinned. “It’s mine. It’s also how I was able to find you so easily earlier. I kind of…smelled you.” “Smelled me?” I pulled away, but he laughed and followed. “It’s not weird, I promise. Other vampires can sense each other because of their blood. Because my blood is on you, I was able to sniff you out. I was able to get to you in time because of it. Not that you needed it. Truthfully, I think you can take him.” That did kind of sound like it came in handy, but a little warning would’ve been nice. I supposed I should’ve picked up on the salve’s main ingredient seeing as how it was tinged pink. Goes to

show how observant I was. He looked me up and down, once again doing a thorough check. “I know about the neck, but is there anything else my ‘miracle cream’ can help with?” I nodded, still feeling the pain radiating from the spot in my back where I fell into the jagged rock. “It’s my upper back and shoulder area.” His eyebrows raised. “When Ze—” Wow. I was doing a horrible job at hiding his identity. “—the other trainee pulled me to the ground, I think I fell back on a sharp rock.” I turned and pointed in the direction of the pain. Stephan didn’t immediately move. I looked over my shoulder to find him frowning at my shirt. He looked up, his stare meeting mine. “I’m going to have to move your shirt up to take a look. Is that okay?” My stomach clenched. I nodded, dumbly. I’d never felt any of this before. I wished I had some sort of superior social skills to help me through this, but it was evident I was doomed to flail my way through it. Slowly, he rolled my shirt up and held it on my shoulder. He hissed, a sharp, stinging noise that made me cringe. “How bad is it?” “It’s bad enough that I can’t believe you didn’t say anything before this. Ariana, I was pulling you back on me when we were on the

couch. You would tell me if I hurt you, wouldn’t you?” I nodded. Of course, I would. “I honestly didn’t feel anything when you did that. It actually felt good being so close to you.” His fingers traced the spot on my back, but when I’d said those words, he stilled. A second later, his inspection returned. I heard him unscrewing the cap on the small jar and then next thing I knew, his fingertips were on my skin, rubbing the ointment in. The only problem was, his fingertips kept hitting my bra strap. He kept mumbling sorry, but after the fifth time, he said, “I’m sorry, but can you take this off?” he asked, his fingers tracing my strap all the way to the clasp. Talk about cotton mouth. I was lucky I was coherent enough to reach up and undo the clasps myself. He gingerly pushed the straps aside and continued to rub his blood on me. It already started to feel better when he told me to wait there again. He got off the couch and hurried upstairs a second time. I couldn’t make my heartbeat slow. I draped myself over my knees, exposing more of my back and tried to breathe in deep. Stephan, Connor, Nicolai, Christian…it didn’t matter. I had an unruly reaction to all of them. I’d known them for far shorter than anyone in my life, yet still, there was an undeniable connection. It didn’t feel odd that

Stephan had made me a salve from his own blood or that he was putting it on me with my shirt pulled up and my back fully exposed to him. No, it wasn’t weird, just nerve wrecking. I heard him on the steps again. I peeked out from around my hair to find him striding toward me. He moved the hair away from my face and kissed my cheek. “I brought some gauze so the ointment can soak in without ruining your clothes.” “Okay.” He went to his task, securing the gauze to my back. Then, he quickly clasped my bra back in place for me and then pulled my shirt down before dragging me into his lap. It was stupid, but since he had no problems hooking my bra, I couldn’t help but wonder how much experience he had with that. I was playing with zero experience. None. Zilch. Nada. I got nothin’. “Here,” he said, offering me a hair tie. “I grabbed this from my mom’s room upstairs. You’ll have to put your hair up so I can rub the salve on your neck, too.” I did as I was asked and Stephan smiled and pulled at the ends that escaped from my messy bun. “Cute.” I grinned, happy with myself for making him say that. Then, he was all business again. He told me to look up and twist my body this way and that so he could put the cream on. It was so silent in the

house, I had to break it. “I’ve been putting that on my neck every night.” I was expecting praise, not for his fingers to still. I peeked at him and he forced a smile. “How long have you been putting this on?” he asked. I shrugged. “A couple nights.” He didn’t say anything so I glanced back again. He was biting his lip. “What is it?” I asked. He peered up at me. “It’s not you,” he reassured me. “I was actually just thinking I’m glad I didn’t see what they looked like when they hadn’t already been healing for a few days. I might hunt that trainee down myself and take him out.” I was glad he didn’t see either then. But that got me thinking. “Why did you have that reaction when Christian said he was going to kill him?” His tender touch stroked my neck until the ointment was all rubbed in. Stephan leaned back against the cushions, tossed the ointment next to my cell phone, and pulled me back onto his chest again, making sure to avoid the area of my back that was bruised. “One, because when Christian says he’s going to do something like that, he means it. He’s nothing if not steadfast in his beliefs. Nicolai might say it at first, but that’s because he’s quick to anger. I’m not saying he wouldn’t do it, but it’s more than likely that when he calms down, he might think differently. Christian is dangerous

because he’s already calm when he says those things, which means he’s already thought it through and determined it’s a good idea.” I couldn’t help it. I shivered. It wasn’t Christian’s reaction that scared me, it was the depth of all our feelings. I would do the same for them. I knew it in my core. “He won’t hurt you.” “I know,” I said, curling into him, my head on his shoulder. “I know none of you would. What’s the other reason?” “Simple, actually. Murder is policed here just as much as the human world. I don’t think The Council would like it if we used ‘He attacked our girl’ as a reason for his demise. Even if we are a part of said Council. That just means we have to live up to higher expectations, as our father reminds us daily.” I pulled away to look him in the eye. His emerald eyes were blazing with light. He looked calm, happy even. I didn’t think I’d ever seen him more relaxed. “I don’t want any of you to get into trouble for me.” A sly smile crept across his face as he pulled my head back to his shoulder. “We’ll try to behave ourselves.” “I’m being serious,” I mumbled into his shirt. He smelled like fresh wind off a beach. Mmm. “I know,” he said. “So am I.” He pulled the

hair back from my forehead and kissed me again. His lips lingered there. Every time I took a breath, his lips brushed my skin, sending warm and fuzzies through my body. He moved his hand from my shoulder to my wrist and back again in whisper light touches that made all my nerve endings aware of his presence. It was perfect, yet maddening all at the same time. He craned his neck to kiss my shoulder. “I don’t think you understand the depth of our feelings for you, Ariana. We didn’t just pick you off the street because you look good in jogging pants and were fit enough to survive training. It’s far more than that.” His hands splayed across my belly and pulled me closer to him. “Far more than that. We’ve pledged to keep you safe and we will.” The truth oozed out of his pores, as if the sentiment came from his soul. “I’m going to keep you safe, too. It’s my job,” I reminded him. “Not yet,” he said. “But soon. Until then, it’s all about you, sweetheart.” He laced his fingers with mine and squeezed. “You feel something, here, right?” He straightened his fingers and then curled them around mine again. “All of us do. All of us in our own way have feelings for you. I know it’s a lot to take in, but you can trust us.” Not sure my voice would work, I nodded. Then, I pulled up on our entwined hands and placed a soft kiss by his knuckles. He shivered, and I snuggled into him more.

We were practically laying on the couch now. His back against the cushions while he all but spooned me. He brought our hands around my chest and squeezed while he dropped another kiss on my shoulder. “You’re safe here with me as you’re safe with all of them.” I was one lucky girl. That was for sure. I twisted in his grip and held both his hands to my chest as I stared up at him. “Shannon says vampires can’t be with their guards.” His face hardened. “That is a current law. Yes.” “And do you believe in that law?” His gaze raked over me as if he was piercing my very insides, tattooing me with his tortured look. I held onto his hands for dear life, afraid of what he might say. I was sure that even what we were doing right now would make The Council very angry. We may have even been breaking the law in our current state. I didn’t care. The only question was, did he? Did they? He pulled out of my grip and placed his hands on the side of my face. “No one—” His gaze dropped to my lips. He moved forward, quicker than I would’ve guessed and sealed his lips to mine. It was fierce, and passionate, and short. Slowly, hesitantly, he pulled away, savoring every last touch. My heart was in my throat. I wasn’t even sure if what had happened really happened or if it

was some sort of messed up manifestation my mind had conjured to torture me with. Stephan Ravana had just kissed me. Was still kissing me. The full pout of his lips was just leaving mine. He stared down at me, his tight grip pressing into my cheeks territorially. His breath was on my now tingling lips as he said, “No one tells me who to love.” The reserve in my heart shattered.

Chapter Sixteen I awoke the next morning in a large bedroom with the most comfy mattress I’d ever slept on. I could go spread eagle on this bed, make snow angels in the sheets, and still not even come close to touching the sides. It was like heaven. In fact, I was doing just that when a soft knock came on the door. It opened slowly and I pulled myself up to a sitting position when Stephan entered. “Good news. I just heard from Nicolai. They’ll be able to come back tonight.” “That’s great,” I said, and meant it. I’d expected awkwardness after seeing Stephan for the first time after our kiss, but it was as easy as it ever

was. “Did I sleep here last night?” I asked, spreading my arms out wide on the mattress. He nodded. “Did you sleep here last night with me?” I asked, almost hopeful. He shook his head. “You fell asleep in my arms. I knew you’d be sore today and I wanted to make sure you had some place comfortable. This is my room. I slept in Connor’s.” I looked around his space. There was really nothing around to catch a glimpse of his caring side. It was pretty sparse as far as decorations went and what was there looked as if it had been picked from a designer furniture store catalog and haphazardly thrown around. It didn’t scream Stephan at all. Not to me. “There’s breakfast downstairs.” “You can cook?” He smirked. “No. It’s just cereal, actually.” His cheeks turned red as if I’d caught him in a lie. “Do you mind if I take a shower first? I’d love to wash the forest floor out of my hair.” He searched around my head for any blatant evidence that what I said was true. “I’m pretty sure I got all of it last night,” he teased. “But there’s a shower right there.” He pointed to one of two other doors in the room. “I share it with Connor and we’re pretty good at picking up after ourselves.” He gave me a slow look as I pulled the soft sheets

off me and lowered my feet to the floor. “I’ll see if I can’t get you something to wear. Would a t-shirt and shorts be okay? I can look at my mom’s stuff, but—” “That’s okay,” I said, cutting him off. “I’d rather not use anything of your mother’s. If you have something old you can let me borrow, that’s all I need.” He went to work searching through the dresser and closet for something for me to wear while I went straight for the hot shower. I barely noticed the pain this morning from my back. Stephan’s salve really was a miracle cure. After fifteen minutes of playing with the different streams of water their showerhead had, I was satisfied everything from yesterday was now spiraling down the drain. I pulled a towel around myself and searched through Connor and Stephan’s things to make myself as presentable as possible. There was toothpaste, and I had my trusty finger to work with that. A hairbrush I used to comb my hair out with, and then searched the enormous bed for the hair tie he’d given me last night in case my hair decided to dry funny. He left me a pair of old sweats and a t-shirt. I put them on and tried as best as I could to make it seem as if I wasn’t swimming in them and then went downstairs. Stephan already sat across from an empty place setting. There were several

different kinds of cereals on the table to choose from. I chose one and dug in. I didn’t know how late it was, but there was a lot of light streaming in from the windows. It was a good thing all this happened on a Friday night. We got Saturday mornings off at The Fort and all of Sundays. I looked around the room for a clock. Stephan must have realized what I was doing because he said, “You still got time. Not a lot, but I’ll make sure to get you back in time.” He hesitated, swirling the last few cereal pieces in his bowl. “Not that I want to take you back. In fact, I really don’t want to. We can’t always be around you when you’re there. You saw what happened when I dropped you off that one night. Now everyone thinks you’re a vamp whore. And don’t get me started on yesterday or the marks on your neck.” I pushed my cereal aside and reached out. “I don’t think everyone thinks that about me. Just the ones who are jealous.” He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. It was clearly for my benefit only. “It’s not just that,” he admitted. “What you asked me about last night? How being with you is against the rules?” I nodded, suddenly wishing I hadn’t eaten anything that morning. What little I did was flopping around in my stomach. “If one of us displays any outright…

affection…for you. It won’t be good.” I nodded, completely understanding the predicament we were in. “Which also means taking out anyone who even threatens me is a no-no. I get it, Stephan. You guys don’t need to do that. I can take care of myself. I’ve been taking care of myself for a while.” “We know that,” he said. “One of the things we wanted to do by bringing you here was to show you that it didn’t have to be just you. Now all this stuff has happened and you’re right back at it. It’s like it’s you versus the world again. It’s not supposed to be like that.” I understood the helpless feeling completely. I stood, made my way around the table, and sat in his lap. “I know I’m not alone. See this?” I asked, lacing my fingers through his. “This lets me know it’s not just me. The cell phone? All those fun texts and voicemails? I know you guys are with me too even if you’re not physically with me.” He didn’t seem one-hundred percent convinced, but there was a small tinge of relief in his gaze. Happy that he was at least settled for now, I went back to my seat and ate the rest of my breakfast. Afterward, Stephan handed me my cell phone and grabbed his car keys. “It’s time?” I asked. He nodded. “Don’t make any plans for dinner. If the guys get back in time, I’m sure

they’re going to want to see you right away.” My heart skipped a beat at the prospect. I couldn’t wait to see them all. “Okay, but let’s not go to that pizza place.” His face dropped. “Really? You didn’t like it?” “It’s not that,” I promised. “You guys were about to give that waitress a heart attack. Not that I blame her. That’s a lot of Ravana to take in one sitting.” Stephan rolled his eyes and grabbed my hand. “Come on. I better take you back now before you act too cute. Then, there’s no way I’m giving up the extra time with you.” ***** Easy Saturdays as Samuel called it were only easy because there was no morning run or lawn calisthenics. There was still training in the gym and our usual obstacle course runs. Today, though, Samuel didn’t pair me up with Zeke. I almost wished he had because he was looking a little sore today, slower than he usually was. A smirk pulled at my lips. I hoped I had something to do with that even though I was sure it was probably Stephan who inflicted the pain, if anyone. Shannon caught up with me after the last race. “Hey, how you doing today?” I shrugged. “Fine.” “Someone told us last night that you were

going home with a hot guy…” she said, her voice trailing off, obviously wanting details. I wanted to roll my eyes and tell her it was just Stephan Ravana, but the truth died on my tongue. Would people start asking questions if they knew Stephan took me home? I didn’t want to get him in trouble, nor me. I couldn’t very well lie though. Someone had to have seen him there. I went with the next best thing—a half truth. “I wasn’t feeling too well. Stephan happened to text me and say that he was coming back from The Council meeting early so I asked him to come pick me up.” Shannon looked genuinely concerned. “I’m sure Evan would’ve driven you home.” I shook my head. “I didn’t want to bother you guys. Everyone was having such a great time. I didn’t want to ruin it because of me.” She smiled, untied the hair tie from around her hair, and put it back up in a bun. “You know, I wanted to talk to you about that. I had a fun time hanging out with you. So did Liv. We should do it again.” I searched her face. She seemed nothing but genuine. I needed to remind myself that just because Zeke was a jerk, that didn’t mean that all the guards here were. “Yeah,” I said. “Cool.” We were almost to the guardian building now when she said, “I almost forgot. Did you see the

paper this morning? There’s a whole big article about The Council meeting and what it was about. The rumors are true, but it’s far worse than we thought.” With all the drama last night, I’d completely forgotten to ask Stephan what the meeting was about. Why was it such a secret? “So, a vampire did fall in love with a guard?” I hedged. She nodded and my heart twisted. Might as well get it over now. What kind of fate did I and the Ravanas have? She blew out a breath. “It’s sick. I almost can’t even say it. The worst thing they did was actually try and have a relationship, and now they’re facing the ultimate punishment.” “What?” I asked, not grasping her meaning. “What happened?” “They got pregnant,” she said simply, but sadness still laced her voice. “The Council voted for a forced abortion.” My mouth dropped as all the twisted realities of the situation sank into my toes, making them feel like dead weights. I stopped walking. “Allegedly,” she tacked on. “No one can say really. They’re usually pretty hush-hush about things that happen. I wouldn’t put it past them to do this though.” She stopped alongside me and shook her had. When she looked up, concern etched her features. “Ariana? You okay?” I shook my head. “That’s just…wrong. So

wrong. Why can’t the baby be brought up as a vampire? Feed the baby blood like they do in regular pregnancies? Why kill it?” Even as I was asking all these questions, my mind simply revolted at the idea. There was no way the guys had voted for this. Not my princes. They weren’t heartless. Shannon shrugged. “No one can say for sure, but there’s speculation that this kind of incident would provoke the laws to be tested and perhaps amended. The old vamps don’t want that. They want everything just as it is. There are vampires, and there are guards. There are not half vamps-half guards. They’re acting as if it would be some kind of abomination.” I couldn’t hear anymore of this. She must have had her story wrong. I told her I had to go and then ran to the guardian building. Last time I’d seen a newspaper, it was in the common room. Sure enough, there was one there. I grabbed it and ran to my room. Some of what was said didn’t make any sense to me. They made mention that the vampire who fell in love with the guard was rumored to be +20 years old. What did that even mean? He was twenty? My phone buzzed and I ignored it, searching through the paper for any type of falsehood I could pick out. Did it definitely say that the Ravana princes were there? No. No, it didn’t. It just said that The Council had rumored to make an

unprecedented decision based on the facts of the case. They would not let a law such as that be broken. What kind of messed up world was I brought into?

Chapter Seventeen The phone continued to buzz beside me until it was almost an incessant noise that wouldn’t stop. About that time, I heard footsteps in the hall and then my door was flying open and bouncing off the wall. I looked up, not noticing until then that tears had begun to stream down my face. It was Connor who first stepped in, his face a mask of complete confusion. “Is she okay?” Nic asked. “I told you she was fine when I dropped her off this morning,” Stephan said, pushing through the other bodies in his way to see me. Then, they were all piling into my room.

Connor’s gaze dropped to the bed. My hands were shaking as I read the article over for the fifth time, trying to seek out its truths and dirty lies. They were dirty lies, right? Connor closed his eyes. “Get in the room. Everyone. Shut the door behind you.” All three of them blinked at me, noticing what I held in my hand. “It’s not what you think,” Stephan said. Not what I thought? I wasn’t even sure what I thought. Did they have a hand in this? No. No, it couldn’t be. “It’s exactly what she thinks,” Christian said. I peered at him. There was nothing but honesty in his eyes. It made me sick. “You guys…” I gulped. “…did this?” “Screw you, Christian,” Nic said. He knelt down in front of me and grabbed one of my hands and placed it between his own. “No, we didn’t do this. I promise you. Please look at me, Ri. Come on.” I turned my head. Sorrow pulled at his eyes. “I want to know it all,” I told him. He nodded and the rest of them made themselves comfortable in my small room. Christian sat in my desk chair, Nic stayed kneeling in front of me, while Connor and Stephan sat on the edge of my bed. “We didn’t get to vote,” Nic explained.

“But it’s true? Some poor woman guard is going to get a forced abortion because she fell in love with a vampire?” My chest ached. I didn’t even understand fully why I cared so much. I had never wanted children. How could I have children? I couldn’t offer them a good life. I had nothing, barely enough for myself. I wouldn’t have brought a child into this world like that. “When we’re old enough,” Connor said, “we’re going to bring a lot of change to The Council. They have no idea.” “But this woman?” I said, bringing up the paper in my shaky hands. “She’s getting an abortion?” Connor rubbed my leg, his touch still soothing despite the panic in my chest. It wasn’t them, I reminded myself. I knew it wasn’t because if it was, I wouldn’t even be able to stand Connor’s touch. “We’ll explain everything,” he promised. With Nic still clasping my hand and Connor rubbing my leg, Stephan touched my knee and Christian leaned over to place his hand on my thigh. “There are things you don’t know.” Already I was feeling calmer. I took a deep breath. “Let’s start small. What does +20 mean?” “That one’s easy,” Stephan said. “Vampires who are turned before the age of thirty-five grow until they turn that age. Once they hit thirty-five,

they never age further than that. Their body, their skin, everything, will never be older than thirtyfive. +20 is everything after thirty-five.” “So, the vampire who got the human guard pregnant is fifty-five?” I asked, doing the math in my head. “In human years, yes.” “Okay,” I said, relaxing even more. “I understand that part now. This guard and the vampire worked together?” I asked. Nic nodded. “Yes, she was brought in to guard him when they were both young. The vampire-guard relationship is already a special one. I believe…” He looked at the other guys. “… neither one of them expected anything to happen.” “A one-night stand?” “Not technically,” Stephan said. He drew my attention and my heart almost broke in two. We’d kissed. I couldn’t imagine not kissing him again. Just from the briefest touch of his lips, I knew I’d never be the same. It would be that way with all the Ravanas. He seemed to sense what I was going through and his hand squeezed my knee tighter. “It’s just that they never intended to have the baby. I think they do love one another.” “Sincerely,” Christian broke in. His soft touch on my thigh brought my attention to him. “It’s not illegal to have sex with a guard, per se.” “Just having feelings with sex?” I asked,

scoffing. “How can you police that?” “Which is exactly why The Council was formed,” Connor said. “Some on The Council could care less if vampires and guards got together. Others? Not so much. That’s why we have the governing body like we do.” “So, they’re going to kill the baby? This governing body decided that the best thing to do would be to kill an innocent child?” Nic squeezed my hand while nodding. His face was furious. “I think even the couple is okay with that decision. At least, that’s what they’re telling The Council. Who knows what they’re really plotting.” “And you guys didn’t vote?” I asked. I knew it in my heart, I just needed them to say it again and keep saying it until this whole thing was untrue. “No,” was the resounding answer. ***** A little while later, I was almost back to normal. The guys had moved the conversation to me and wanted to look at the bruises on my neck and back. They weren’t happy, but held back their anger as best they could considering the circumstances. I didn’t know if I could deal with anymore drama today. I felt horrible for that woman guard. I could see myself in that woman’s place and it made me nauseous. None of them let me be silent for longer than

a few minutes. They kept me busy by asking what I’d been doing while they were gone. In turn, I made them tell me stories about their parents and what they did when they were at home. Once, when Connor was keeping me occupied, I heard Christian say to Nicolai, “Sometimes I wonder if we did the right thing by bringing her here.” He shifted his gaze to me and I pretended to be listening to Connor. “I wonder if we’ll ruin her.” My gut clenched. I couldn’t bear to have them think that. Before I could say anything, Nic said, “We might all be the ruin of each other, but damnit…” This time I looked up and held his gaze. “It’ll be worth every terrifying second.” I swallowed, slowly nodding at him. The tension in the room shifted and all of us stared at one another in turn. No matter what happened, no matter The Council or Zeke or any other future craziness that might seep into our lives, I would never give the Ravanas up. And they would never give me up either. We were everything to one another.

Chapter Eighteen That night, I had nightmares. It was the same old thing. The crunch of the metal, the glass shattering into thousands of tinkling shards, and the scrape of the car frame against pavement. I blinked again and again. Total black. My mom hanging upside down. Total black. Blood-red rivulets dripping from the wound in her head. Black. Red. Black. Red. I sat straight up in bed, my heart pounding against my chest. My eyes searched the shadows, but it was just me in my small room at The Fort. My princes had left a couple hours ago. They didn’t want to leave me, but what could we do?

Staying at The Fort was my only option. Anything else would be too conspicuous, especially with what was happening in the vampire world right now. The last thing we wanted to do was bring attention to ourselves. I tore the covers off and set my feet down on the floor. Every time I thought about that poor mother, I wanted to vomit. I understood that she and her vampire lover had broken the law, but that rule in particular was outdated, and just plain wrong. The princes needed to get on that Council and kick some of the older ones out. Change, that was what this world needed, and a healthy dose of it too. My hand shook at my side, my nerves stretched thin. Tonight had been one of the most difficult in this world yet. The worst was when I actually thought the Ravanas had something to do with The Council’s decision. Sure, it’d only been a split second, but in that tiny fraction of time, my world shook at its core. I wiped a hand over my brow, a cold sweat dotting the clammy skin there. I knew what I needed. It was Sunday and I wouldn’t be getting a run in later. Sunday was the only day we got off at The Fort. I wrenched my drab, Fort-issued pajamas off and grabbed the same outfit I’d come here in. It was practically the only thing I owned from the other world. It felt good to wear it if only because it

was something so unrelated to the vampires. Other than the Ravanas, I was disgusted with this world right now and their ridiculous superiority. Seething, I grabbed my keys off the dresser, locked the door behind me, and started toward The Fort grounds. Once I was out of the building, the fresh air helped a little. The night was still young. The moon hung high in the sky with a small breeze teasing at my chilled skin. I stretched for a few moments while looking up past the mesh sun-savior that helped the vampires walk around during the day in full blown sunlight. The stars twinkled, some of them almost winking at me from space. I supposed I could’ve calmed down by calling one of the Ravanas, but it felt good to go for a run again like I used to, keeping me grounded to who I was at my core. Whether I knew about the vampire world or not, I was still me. Stepping forward, I started the jog along the same route Samuel ran us every single morning, making the big loop around campus. Soon, I only thought about my feet hitting the ground and my breathing. I was only vaguely aware that I was coming up on my sixth and last loop. Finally working myself tired, hopefully enough to sleep until morning, I stopped near the tree I’d tried to escape from my first night here. I did a couple of arm stretches while glancing up at the limb I was dead set on walking out over and using as a launch

pad to jump across the perimeter wall with. I smiled, realizing how ridiculous that sounded. I never would’ve made it. Goosebumps spread over me and I turned on my heel. I gasped, recognizing the shadowy figure at the base of the tree. “You’re not out here for that again, are you?” Startled despite knowing who it was, I clutched at my chest, then moved closer to Christian so I could punch him in the shoulder. “Don’t sneak up on people. It’s not nice.” He moved out of the shadows, taking my lame punch like a champ, and showed off his perfected smirk. It wasn’t quite as rehearsed as Nicolai’s, but it was still good. As he came closer, my mind started to wander. I was no longer worried about him sneaking up on me as he came into full view. His gray-blue eyes never looked more tantalizing than they did in the moonlight, and once again, his usually dirty blond hair looked closer to Connor’s color out here in the dead of night. “You didn’t answer my question,” he said. I lifted an eyebrow. “Do I really need to?” He came closer still. It was easier for me to see now that he was very serious. I thought we were way past that. The intensity in his eyes subsided as a cooler, more unsettled look rearranged his features. He rubbed the back of his neck and gazed into my eyes. “I thought maybe

with tonight’s news you’d want to leave. Especially when I said we’d done it.” “What did you mean by that anyway? You guys didn’t vote. How could it be your fault?” He shrugged. “Does it matter? We’re all a part of this world. If we don’t condemn it, aren’t we part of the problem?” Always the serious thinker, I understood now the burden Christian carried with him because of this. So much so that he thought I would bail as soon as I had the chance. My heart hurt for him. “I don’t know what the answer is,” I said honestly. “What could you guys do? What could anyone do?” “That’s the problem,” he said, his hands clenching to fists at his sides. “There really isn’t anything to do. The decision’s been made. My brothers and I aren’t anybody right now. Sure, we’re princes, but we don’t have any real power. We have to wait to take our Council seats before we can make any change. Do you have any idea how frustrating that is?” “Hey,” I said, inching closer to him and grabbing his hand. “I don’t have any idea. Not really. I’ve never been in a position like yours.” He shook his head. “Listen to me. I sound like a child.” His eyes shimmered silver as he gazed down at me. I tried to tell him that was the last thing I thought he was, but he cut me off. “I admire

your strength, Ariana. I wish I could be as strong as you.” Me? I thought. Was he going crazy? The Council’s decision had really messed with him. Squeezing my fingers, he asked, “So, you really weren’t going to make a run for it?” I tried to mimic his usual demeanor, managing all the seriousness I had into one determined look. “No, and I never will.” His eyes searched my own for a couple of silent moments before he pulled at my hands and we started back toward the buildings. A weight lifted from me and an easiness settled in. Walking and talking with Christian was as easy as breathing. He bumped into me with his shoulder. “Your running form has improved.” “You were watching me?” I asked, trying to dampen the alarm in my voice at the same time. I hoped I didn’t do anything embarrassing like pick a wedgie or rearrange my bra while he watched. “Don’t be mad.” “I’m not,” I quickly assured him. “I’d just rather you be with me instead of watching me from afar. You could’ve run with me if you wanted. I mean, if you promise not to use your awesome vampire abilities to make me feel bad about myself. What’s it feel like to walk? Does it seem like we’re crawling right now?” He chuckled. “No, it seems perfectly normal,

actually. When we kick our vampire abilities in, it actually feels like we’re going that fast.” Well, that made me feel a little better. I peered to my right, watching Christian’s silhouette. He still had a half smile on his face. That was good. At least I’d accomplished making him smile today. Maybe he’d stop beating himself up about The Council’s decision considering there was nothing he could do about it anyway. “I got thinking earlier,” I said, trying to feel his mood out. After reading the news article and having the princes explain to me how vampires’ ages were calculated, I couldn’t help but wonder how old they really were. The Ravanas looked young, but were they really? He looked at me with nothing but curiosity so I went for it. “How old are you?” “Twenty.” “Plus twenty?” I asked, barely hiding the squeaky panic in my voice. It didn’t really matter to me, but I also didn’t want to feel like I was a newborn compared to them. “No,” he said. “Plain old twenty. None of us have reached our peak yet. Nicolai is twenty-one and Connor and Stephan are nineteen.” “And when you hit thirty-five, you just… stop?” I couldn’t keep the anxious curiosity out of my voice and he must’ve picked up on that. “It doesn’t sound as weird as I think you’re making it

out to be. When a vampire hits thirty-five, that’s our highest maturity. From that point on, our bodies will never age or deteriorate in any way.” “So, you will look older than you look like right now? You’re not fully grown?” “Right. I’ve aged just as I would have were I human and I’ll continue to age until I hit the magic number.” I pulled him to a stop close to the obstacle course. My mind was full of questions and they were getting the best of me. “Were you turned? Or were your born a vampire?” “So inquisitive,” he murmured, tugging a stray hair around my ear. “I can’t help it,” I said. “It’s all new to me.” “I don’t blame you. I’d be the same way.” He turned toward the obstacle course and nodded. “How about this? If you beat me, I’ll tell you my story.” “Beat you?” I gasped. That was never going to happen. “Can’t we bet on something else? Something more fair?” He shook his head. Fine. If he was going to be that way, I’d give myself any help I could. I reached out and pushed him. I waited until he was stumbling backward before I said, “Go.” He laughed into the night air, the sound melodic, almost intoxicating. “That’s cheating,” he

shouted after me. I didn’t answer as I threw myself at the monkey bars and then up and over the hay bails. I wasn’t even thinking when I launched myself up the rope climb and rung the bell. I slid down and turned right into Christian. He was like a stiff wall in front of me and I fell back a couple of steps before he reached out and grabbed me, saving me from falling. His eyes lit up. “You climbed the rope.” I nodded. “All the way to the top.” I breathed in deep, letting a smile overtake my face. “I was going to tell you guys when you got back, but then there were a lot of things going on.” He pulled me into a hug, his strong arms encapsulating me. My head pressed into his shoulder. His chest moved as he laughed into my hair. “They’re going to go nuts. We’re so proud of you.” I wound my arms around his waist and squeezed back. Easy excitement filled me. I’d done it. I didn’t know if I was happier about making Christian proud or making myself. It was definitely a toss up. He pulled me away at arm’s length. “You have to do it again. I’ll take a picture of you at the top. The guys have to see this.”

“Okay.” I turned and made my way up the rope once again. When I hit the top, I turned around with a huge grin. Christian’s phone camera flashed, succeeding in blinding me for a couple seconds. I called down. “Did it come out?” “It’s perfect,” he said, giving me a thumbs up. I loosened my grip and slid down until my feet hit the bottom knot. I looked over his shoulder at the text he was sending his brothers. He captioned the picture with “Look what our girl can do”. “Do they know you’re here?” I asked. He shook his head. “They’re about to find out.” “So…” I started as Christian put away his phone. “Does that earn me your vampire story?” He side-eyed me. “That’s not fair.” “Isn’t it? Technically, you stopped running. That means you forfeit.” “What if I was already done and came back just to see how you were doing?” My jaw dropped, instantly super impressed, my mind trying to calculate how fast he was probably going if he did lap me. “You did?” He shook his head, a small smile curving his lips. “No. Not at all.” This was a different Christian than I’d seen yet. He seemed relaxed, easy going. If I was ever going to get his story out of him, it would probably

be tonight. “Yeah,” I said, deciding once and for all. “You owe me the story.” He nodded. Resignation darkened his features as he gestured back toward the guardian building. He was so quiet, so lost in his own thought that I was sorry I’d even brought it up. When we were halfway back to the building, I said, “You don’t have to, Christian. I can live with not knowing.” He put his arm around me and tugged me closer into his side. “It’s not that. I want to tell you. I just don’t want anything you hear to change your mind about this world.” My stomach twisted into knots, suddenly nervous about the story he would share. We walked into the stone building and through the empty hallway. The fluorescent lighting seemed too harsh after coming in from outside. Christian’s hair went back to being dirty-blond and his eyes that steel blue color that was closer to polished metal. He waited patiently as I unlocked the door and he shut it behind us. It barely made a sound as he clicked it into place and then locked it. The single lamp was on by my bed. I moved to turn on the main light, but his hand covered mine on the switch. “Leave it off. Why don’t you get dressed for bed and I’ll gather my thoughts?” I nodded, letting out the breath I held in my chest from his touch. I grabbed my ugly pajamas

off the floor and hurried into the small bathroom. I changed quickly and then brushed out my hair, leaving it to hang long around my shoulders. I pulled the door open and peeked out the small crack. Christian sat in the middle of the bed, his back against the wall and his feet hanging off the side. As soon as he saw me, he pat the bed. I walked out, unsure of where to sit. He nodded toward my pillow. “Get in bed, beautiful.” Walking over, I sat on the edge gingerly. He grabbed my ankles and forced them over his lap, my knees resting on his. I turned toward him, my ankles curving around by his thighs and my thighs coming to rest on his stomach. He reached out and ran a hand down the length of my hair. “So pretty,” he murmured. My face swamped with heat. He studied me before he even started talking. I told myself I wouldn’t urge him again. Honestly, right now, I was just content to feel his fingers slide through my hair. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything to him in the first place. I didn’t mean to force it out of him. “Some of us,” he finally said, “don’t like talking about how we were turned. It’s different for everyone. It’s worse for those who had a life before this though.” “And you did?” I guessed. He nodded. “I was turned when I was seven. I don’t remember much from my previous life. That’s

different for everyone, too.” He turned away at that, his face filling with an inexplicable sadness. I reached out and touched his elbow. “The turning process is supposed to be a complete redo,” he continued. “If it works the way it should, the vampire shouldn’t remember anything about his or her other life. They just wake up being the age they were turned. Their personalities, mannerisms, special quirks, they all remain the same. They’re inherent in us. It’s only the memories of our previous lives that are wiped, especially important when it’s a vampire couple changing a child to become one of their own. They don’t want us to remember our birth parents or siblings or anything like that. They want to become everything to us.” It made sense, but I understood the sorrow in Christian’s gaze now. Did he miss his real parents? “My parents have always been very open about how we were all brought to them.” “Were they all turned like you?” My head started spinning with images of Nic, Stephan, and Connor. What were their previous lives like? Were they happy? Did they—? Christian bent down, his elbow propping his head up and his hand coming to rest on my thigh. “I’m not going to tell you my brothers’ stories, Ariana. They can tell you when they’re ready.” “Of course,” I said. “I’m sorry, I’m just—” “It’s okay,” he said quickly. “I just know

they’ll want to tell you themselves.” He squeezed my thigh and then continued. “As I was saying, my parents aren’t like some of the other vampires. They’re very open with our stories. If we remembered something or even if we didn’t and we just asked, they would tell us. Mine started with a memory and then my parents filled in the blanks from there.” I sat very still. The deeper Christian got into his own story, the more he looked as if he were far away from me at the moment. I didn’t dare move or talk for fear of breaking the spell. “I kept dreaming about a blue balloon and at first, I didn’t really understand it. The more I dreamt about it, the more I knew it must’ve meant something so I asked my mom about it. That’s when she told me my story. They saw me at a zoo with my real parents when they were visiting the vampire clans in California. That’s where I was born a human. My mom immediately fell in love with me. They’d been looking for another child. My parents always wanted a large family. They kept seeing me throughout the day. My mom says I was the most grown up seven year old she’d ever met and she just had to have me. I asked intelligent questions, was well-spoken, and—” He smiled to himself. “—always looked as if I was in deep thought.” I chuckled with him. That sounded exactly

like Christian. “So, when we were leaving the zoo that day, my parents followed us home. Once they knew where I lived, they petitioned The Council to have me turned. When they approved, my official acclimation into the vampire world began. Mine and my birth parents’ minds were wiped. Theirs specifically of me. Any other family members and friends were also persuaded into believing I was never there. It’s a lot to explain, but it’s impossible for anyone to remember me. For instance, even if my parents went to a grocery store they always frequented with me, no one would ask them about where their young son went. It was as if I never existed at all. Afterward, I was taken to my parents home, bitten by my father, and the feeding process began. I don’t even remember what my old life was like. I don’t even really care.” “But your parents,” I said, my voice coming out much harsher than I wanted. “The Ravanas are my parents.” “You don’t wonder…?” He shook his head. “No. Not at all. My parents brought me up, they made me who I am. That’s all I care about.” “But they took you.” He grabbed my hand, his fingers covering mine. “I don’t see it that way. I see it as this was how I was always supposed to end up. This was

supposed to be my life all along. It is my life. I’m Christian Ravana. I’m a prince in a royal family. I have three ‘brothers’,” he said, actually pulling his hand from mine for a moment to make air quotes. “One day, I’ll be a member of The Council and can actually bring change to this world.” I stared, trying to wrap my head around what he said. “You don’t feel like something is missing?” He cupped my cheek in his hand. “How in the world could I think anything is missing right now?” I closed my eyes, reveling in his touch. I knew from his words, his look, Christian didn’t regret anything. He was proud to be who he was. Happy where he was. I got that, actually. Understood it totally. I’d been through something some would call traumatic, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t right where I was supposed to be, scars and all.

Chapter Nineteen I woke in the same position I’d fallen asleep in last night, my legs tucked against Christian, my hand outstretched toward his. He sat there, his back against the wall though his head dipped to the side, still sound asleep. He looked even younger in the peacefulness of dreams. Could vampires dream? I imagined they could. Part of my brain wanted to feel sorry for him after what he’d told me yesterday, but how could I feel sorry for someone who seemed so utterly at peace where he was now. It was as if he was always meant to be the one sitting next to me. It didn’t matter he wasn’t born with vampire blood in his veins, he was one so

completely now. The bed started to vibrate. I glanced around looking for the culprit. My phone was on the dresser so it must have been Christian’s. I searched his body as he still lay fast asleep and remembered he’d put it in his front pocket. Carefully, I reached out and slipped it from his pocket and quickly refused the call without even looking down. Then, I powered it down. It was Sunday. I didn’t have to get up and go train, and Christian must’ve been exhausted because not even the vibration of the cell phone woke him. I put it down on the bed between us and continued to stare at him. I’d almost told him my story last night. About the accident, and my mom, and even our friends. He already knew I freaked out about cars so he’d understand, but something still held me back. He’d said I was strong last night. I wanted him to think that about me. If I told him my story, I didn’t want that pride to turn to pity. A sharp knock came on the door and I jumped. “Ariana,” a voice barked. Christian sprung from his position on the bed and jumped to the floor. He was in a fighting stance, hands outstretched and eyes searching for the threat. He looked lost for a moment before he looked around the room and found me. Then, his eyes widened, startled, fear blanketing his features. When the knock came again, he lifted his

finger to his lips and then crept toward the closet door. Without making a sound, he slipped inside and closed the door behind him. “Ariana,” the voice growled. I recognized it as Samuel’s instantly. My heart leapt into my throat. I knew I didn’t have training today. What was his problem? “Coming,” I said, throwing the blankets off and padding toward the door. I pulled it open and stared up at a red-faced vampire. He looked past me into my room, his gaze sweeping over the corners. “Are you alone?” “Y-yes,” I said, taking a step back. “Why?” “Gregor and Isabelle Ravana are here for the party tonight and their son Christian is missing. They thought maybe he’d be stupid enough,” he made sure to raise his voice as he glanced toward the closet, “to be in your room.” “I don’t know where he is,” I said, keeping up the ruse, angling my body to hide as much of the closet as I could. My heart thumped inside my chest. We’d been stupid last night, that was for sure. Samuel returned his gaze to me. He bent over, whispering. “People are starting to talk. Don’t give them ammunition. The only person who gets hurt in this is you.” With that, he pulled the knob closed, safely leaving Christian and I in my room alone. I reached

out and locked the door as my mind repeated what he said. The only person who gets hurt in this is you. I blew out a breath and ran my hand through my hair. I turned to find Christian just outside the closet, his face etched in concern. “I’m so sorry, Ariana. I fell asleep.” He scrubbed his hands up and down his face and then wrapped them around his neck as he looked up at the ceiling with a groan. “What the hell was I thinking?” “You were tired.” I reached out to him, but he pulled away. “I know better. Jesus. Why don’t I just put a freaking neon sign outside your door?” “It’s not—” He turned toward me, his eyes blazing. “If you say it’s not my fault, I’m going to…going to…” He searched his jeans’ pockets and came up empty. “Where’s my phone?” I pointed toward the bed. He walked over and tried to turn on the screen. It was then he noticed it was off and then pushed the power button so hard, the tip of his finger turned white. “It vibrated. You didn’t wake up and you looked so peaceful that I turned it off. I didn’t want it to bother you.” He held a hand up to me. “None of this is your fault. Just let me think.”

The phone finally came to life and Christian scrolled through his missed calls and messages. Finally, he pushed on the screen and held the phone to his ear. “What the hell?” a voice said. It was Nicolai. I sat down next to Christian on the bed, trying to hear all the conversation. Christian moved over and angled away. My heart sunk. “Are you there?” Nic asked. “Yes.” “I thought we all agreed—” “We did. I messed up, okay? Damnit. How do I get out of here with no one noticing? We can’t let anyone know I was here.” “You should’ve thought of that last night. You don’t think Samuel smelled you? What the hell, Christian?” Christian stood and paced the room. I wanted to go to him, put my arms around him, but I knew it wouldn’t be welcome right now. He was so furious with himself. I should’ve been furious with me, too. If anyone knew he was here, we’d only bring attention to ourselves, to all of us. The Council was forcing that guard to get an abortion, what about a trainee? Would they do something worse to me? I rested my elbows on my thighs and held my head in my hands as Christian and Nicolai made a plan. I heard the words ‘window’ and ‘lookout’ as if

we were in some sort of heist movie. Finally, Christian hung up the phone. I didn’t dare look up. Afraid of what I might see on his face. Tension strangled the air around us. The tips of his shoes moved to just in front of mine. Then, he crouched in front of me. “I’m so sorry, Ariana. Samuel covered for us this time, but—” I raised my gaze to meet his. He pushed the strands of hair that had fallen into my view around my ear. He tried to smile, but it was a poor impostor for his usual genuine grins. “We have to be more careful,” he said. “Today of all days, too. There’s a party at the main Fort house tonight. The daughter of the Rajyvik family is bringing home her new son. Any vampire who’s anybody is going to be there and I’m sleeping here in your room putting you in jeopardy. All the members of The Council and their families will be around.” “Do your parents know?” I croaked out. He shook his head. “I don’t think so. Nicolai said they made something up about me going out early this morning to train. It was only Samuel who got suspicious, which means we’re being entirely too obvious. The others probably want to kill me right now.” His phone vibrated in his hand and he looked down. “I have to go.” “But—” I tried to reach out to stop him, but he threw

open the window, leapt up onto the frame, and then jumped. No! I ran toward the window, my heart skipping a beat. We weren’t super high, but we were high enough that he could get hurt. What the hell did he do that for? I rested my hands against the frame and peered down, my body halfway out the window myself. He wasn’t sprawled out on the ground below. In fact, he wasn’t anywhere in sight. I looked from one edge of the campus to the other. As far as I could see, there was no Christian Ravana. With a groan, I heaved the window closed once again and turned immediately for my phone. Just as I was reaching for it, the screen lit up with a message. Christian. I tapped on it and it came up. I’m fine. I’m so, so sorry. I swiped away from that one as soon as I read it. I didn’t care that he’d apologized. There was no need to in the first place. It was both our faults. Looking through the rest of my texts, they went from excitement for my accomplishment at able to reach the top of the rope climb to worry about where Christian was. I had missed calls from all of the guys, but I was too embarrassed and a little hurt to call them all back right now. Even after all that talk about not showing our feelings for one another

in public, I’d went and done the most stupid thing. Still, I couldn’t bring myself to regret being that close to him all night. We’d bonded in a way we never had before. With the story of his turning, I felt closer to him than ever. I put the phone back down and hurried into the bathroom to start the day, hoping the hot water would wash away all my worries. Since it wasn’t magical water, I was sure it wouldn’t work, but a girl could dream, couldn’t she?

Chapter Twenty The morning was relatively uneventful. I ate breakfast with a few other guards, making sure to make my presence inside the guardian building known. No one looked at me funny or whispered about me behind my back. I heaved a sigh of relief after Liv and Shannon sat down and we started making plans for the day. I figured the guys would be busy since their parents were in town so it would be up to me to find something to do to take my mind off of everything today. In the middle of our conversation, Evan joined us. “Hey, Ariana,” he said, slipping into the seat across from me and next to Liv. “Are you

feeling better?” I gave him a confused look until it dawned on me. Then, I wanted to punch myself in the face. We’d told my friends I hadn’t been feeling good the other day and that’s why I’d left the bridge jumping party early. “I am,” I said. “Thanks.” “Good,” he said, beaming at me. “Got any plans for today?” Nerves pricked my insides. I motioned toward Liv and Shannon. “That’s what we were just talking about. Got any ideas?” He looked at the two of them, not able to hide the disappointment on his face. “I was actually kind of thinking we could go out for lunch.” Liv and Shannon both turned away, their hands coming up to hide their smiles. They were evidently getting joy out of this. I faced Evan again. What could I say? ‘Sorry, but I like the Ravanas. I know I’m not supposed to and it will probably only lead to tragedy, but at this point, I could really care less?’ That just seemed like a mouthful for a simple date invitation. “I-I don’t know,” I said, my nerves getting the better of me. I turned toward Liv and Shannon. “Would you guys want to do that?” Shannon acted as if she weren’t paying attention. She looked around, her eyes widening like she hadn’t realized Evan had even joined us. “What’s that?” “Evan wants to go off campus for lunch.

Would you guys want to do that?” I asked, pleading with my eyes. Evan was resilient however. “No offense, ladies, but I was thinking it could be just me and Ariana this time.” He looked back at me with his eyebrows raised. “What do you think?” Flustered, I peered at all three of them. Liv and Shannon were looking away and Evan just looked too willing that it almost broke my heart. I was almost happy for the distraction to see Samuel come into the cafeteria and stride right up to Zeke. He handed him an envelope and they exchanged a few words. Samuel moved on to other trainees then, handing some of them simple white envelopes. “Lucky,” Liv muttered, her voice laced with jealousy. “What is it?” I asked. “They’re being invited to the vamp party tonight. Natalie Rajyvik is bringing home her new son. They do this every time a member of the elite brings home a vamp baby.” “Them?” I asked, watching Zeke as he tossed the invitation next to him and continued to eat the food on his tray. “Why?” “Their parents are guards of the elite,” Shannon said. “Zeke?” I asked, my voice rising in surprise. I guessed I should’ve known considering he was at

the top of our class. It would make sense that his parents were also. “Yeah,” Evan said. “His mom is guardian for the Nicholson clan.” I watched Zeke, clearly unaffected that he’d been invited to a vamp party. He hadn’t even given his invitation a second look as he talked and laughed with his friends. I was so engrossed in staring after him that I hadn’t noticed Samuel make his way toward me. “Ariana,” he said. I jumped in my seat, tearing my eyes away from Zeke and then up and up, meeting Samuel’s intense gaze. “Yes?” He had one white envelope left in his hands. He offered it to me. I glanced at it and then back a him without taking it. He shook his head. “It’s for you.” “Me?” I questioned, eyebrows raising. “Yes.” He forced it into my hands. Sure enough, my name was scrawled elegantly in the middle of the envelope. I stared down in disbelief, and then back at him. He glanced at my table companions. “Might I have a word with Ariana alone?” Each of them gave me an apologetic look, though Liv’s was also tinged with jealousy, then they stood from the table and walked away. After Samuel made sure no one was within hearing distance, he leaned over. “Isabelle Ravana

specifically requested your presence. If I were you, and you’re serious about taking up the position available with the Ravana clan, I’d be on your best behavior.” My tongue felt thick in my mouth. I stared down at the envelope and traced my fingers over the beautiful handwriting wondering if Isabelle Ravana herself had written it. My fingers started to tremble. Could I seriously go to a vampire party? What was I supposed to do? Make small talk? I glanced up to find that Samuel had already left the room, and Liv, Shannon, and Evan were making their way back. Evan stood across from me. “I guess this means you won’t be able to do lunch.” I blinked up at him. That was one bright side, I thought to myself. I wouldn’t have to turn him down. “I guess not. Sorry.” He shrugged. “Some other time then.” He left, and Shannon elbowed me. “You’re having a good day. Evan asked you out and you’re going to a vamp party. Dang.” Evan was the furthest thing from my mind. Did the princes know about this? I excused myself from the table and ran to my room. I shut the door behind me and turned my cell phone screen on. There was one message from Nicolai, a warning that I’d be getting an invitation. Jeez, I wished I’d had this with me. That way I wouldn’t have looked so stupid.

As I held the phone in my hand, another one came in. Check your closet. I whirled around and slid the door open. I didn’t know if I expected to find him in there—or Christian—but no, it was neither one of them. There was a dress bag hanging off the rod. I slipped my phone into my pocket, took the hanger down, and turned around to lay the dress down on my bed. I lifted the bottom, rolling it up until the red silk fabric fell out. My breath caught. I pulled the bag up more quickly, revealing a full skirt and a heart-shaped, strapless neckline. It was the most beautiful dress I’d ever seen. Attached to the hanger was a note: For you, Princess. I can’t wait to see you in this. My heart lifted. Connor. How thoughtful. I pulled the dress off the hanger and held it up to my chest. I ran to the bathroom mirror and even though I could only see the neckline, I was in love. Heat built behind my eyes. In the other room, my phone started to ring. I hurried up and swiped the screen to answer. It was Nic. “Hey,” I said, my voice catching on the word. “Hell, Ri, you’re not crying again, are you?” “No,” I said, forcing my voice to be normal. “Why would I be crying?” “Good. I don’t know.” He sounded as if he believed me. Phew. He sighed into the speaker. “Listen, I’m sorry about earlier. Christian said you

looked upset. We’ve all talked and—” “Nic, stop right there. I love you guys and all, but for the love of God, can you please include me in discussions?” I held the phone between my ear and shoulder and started to put the dress back on its hanger. When I was finished, I put it back in the closet and smoothed it down toward the floor. “I have opinions, too, and I have a right to know what’s going on.” He grumbled into the phone. I smirked. “What was that?” “Ri, we’re trying to protect you.” Though he couldn’t see me, I put my free hand on my hip. “It goes both ways. Christian and I made a stupid mistake. Nothing happened. We just fell asleep.” “All we need is the implication,” he said, stubbornly. “We’ll be more careful.” Even as I said it, I doubted my own actions. It was so hard to be away from them. I hadn’t wanted Christian to leave earlier even though I knew if anyone found him in my room, it would be bad. “We keep saying that. We all do.” I pulled the phone away from my ear and rubbed my temples. Relaxing a little, I held it back up again and whispered, “Can I see you guys? Please.” “See,” he said more forcefully. “None of us is

doing a very good job.” “So we can’t be together as friends, either?” “Of course we can. The problem is, none of us think clearly when we’re around you. That’s why Stephan takes you to our parents’ house and Christian spends the night in your damn room. You’re like our kryptonite for crying out loud.” “So, what do we have to do? Wait until my training is over, until I’m actually allowed to be around you guys? That’s even if I end up first in my class.” His voice hardened. “You will be our guard.” “Not according to Samuel. He says if I’m not the number one trainee, there’s no way I’ll be assigned to you. He said your parents will make sure of it and the rest of The Council will make you all see reason.” He growled into the phone. “Trust me.” He breathed in and out for a few seconds and then spoke again, his voice much calmer this time. “Regardless, all we need to do is just be much smarter when we’re around one another. We don’t have to wait until training is over. We just have to make sure everyone else sees that we’re only worried about that. Nothing more.” “Fine,” I said. “Fine?” I could almost picture his face on the other side of the line. “Fine?” he said more matterof-fact. “You are so damn frustrating sometimes.”

I was breathing heavy into the phone now. I knew exactly what he meant. The feeling was mutual, but only because I cared. I cared so much. “Maybe it’s because you feel the same way I feel. I don’t want to wait or act like we’re just friends. Sometimes when I see you, I just want to…wrap my arms around you.” There was nothing on the other side of the line now. I couldn’t even hear Nic breathing. Then, a door closed somewhere on his side. There was another thump, and then he said, “Just wrap your arms around me? Is that all you want to do?” His voice was husky, pricking the skin on my arms. I swallowed. “No. Not just that. The point is —” “I know what the point is,” Nic said. “The point is, you don’t want to have to hide. I get it. We all do. You wouldn’t have to hide with Evan, you know.” His voice was soft, unapologetic, and sincere. Huh? That was a weird twist in conversation. Evan was the furthest thing from my mind. “How did you know about Evan?” I whispered, taken aback. I didn’t care about Evan. Neither should he. “We see the way he looks at you. Why? Did he do something?” His voice was slow, deliberate, almost carefully and painfully under control. “He asked me to lunch today. That’s all.” “Do me a favor?” he asked, finally. “Don’t

tell me anything like that again. Even if I ask.” “I’m sorry.” He snickered. “You’re always quick to apologize. Christian told us you kept saying you were sorry earlier too. We’re all in this together, Ri. No matter what happens, you should never apologize.” “Same goes for you guys.” “I’m not so sure of that anymore.” A sound came through the other side and then Nic moaned. “Chill. Let me get up.” “What’s going on?” I asked. Nic sucked in a breath. “I was sitting with my back against my door and Connor tried to come through it like the spaz he is. Wait, he’s holding out his hand for the phone. No,” Nic said, a little ways away from the speaker. “Call her yourself.” “How can I call her if you’re on the phone with her?” “Wait your turn.” “Give me the phone.” “No.” I covered my mouth to keep from laughing. “What does he want?” “What do you want?” Nic asked, repeating me. Connor said, “I just wanted to know if she got the invitation and the dress.” “I did.”

“She did,” Nic told his brother. Then, into the phone, he said, “I knew that already.” “Does she like it?” Connor asked. “Tell him I love it.” “She loves it,” Nic repeated, clearly not enjoying this at all. “Tell her—” “No,” Nic said. “We’re done here. We’ll see you in about an hour, Ri.” He hung up the phone before I could have a full blown panic attack. An hour! I really needed to look at that invitation, and now.

Chapter Twenty-One With shaking hands, I tucked the last curl in with a bobby pin. I’d borrowed Shannon’s curling iron to do the job and even though I was freaking out inside, I thought I looked pretty nice. The dress was amazing. It was by far the most beautiful thing I’d ever worn. If only there was a full-length mirror somewhere, I’d love to see my whole self in it. Even do a girly thing and twirl around to look at my body in the dress from all angles. When I’d finally opened the invitation earlier, there was a note tucked inside from Isabelle Ravana. Though she mentioned that a trainee with no connections being invited to a welcome party

was unheard of, she understood how much I meant to her sons. No, this wasn’t a warm and fuzzy wanting-to-meet-her-sons’-girlfriend kind of a thing. It was more of an appraisal situation. I felt as if I was going up for sale on an auction block. She specifically stated she’d be watching out for me tonight, taking notes on whether or not I was fit to be her sons’ guard. That didn’t mean I couldn’t appreciate the dress though. I stood back from the bathroom mirror and looked at what I had in view. I’d done everything I could on the outside to garner Isabelle’s approval, now I just had to go in there and meet her. I unplugged the curling iron and pressed the front of my dress down. Luckily, Connor had also sent someone to the door a half an hour ago with shoes. My training sneakers would’ve messed the whole ensemble up. I’d have to remember to thank him tonight, just not in the way I wanted to. I’d use my words, not my hands, fingers, or lips. No, all of those were off-limits. With all the prying eyes tonight, we had to be on our best behavior. Scratch that. We had to be better than our best behavior. Our best behavior wasn’t working out so good. Part of me wondered about the guys’ mom. Was she really just trying to feel me out? I couldn’t help but worry that it was something else entirely. If she knew the depths of our feelings for one another,

wouldn’t she be wholly against it? Especially since it could call into question her sons? If I were her, I’d be looking for a way to get rid of me. Without thinking any more about it, I pulled the small black purse Liv let me borrow and walked into the hall. I locked the door and put the key to my room inside the purse along with my new cell phone. It felt odd walking down the hallway with anything but my training gear on. When I walked by the common room, all heads turned my way as if this red dress was a magnet. “Wow, Ariana. You look amazing!” Shannon shouted. I turned, finding her and Liv on the couch. I waved to them. Off to the side, Evan looked up. His eyes widened and then he was making his way toward me. My stomach flopped, but honestly, I had way more important things to deal with tonight. He gave me a half smile as he approached, looking all the way from my head right down to my skirts that graced the floor beneath me. “I have to say, I was really disappointed in not going to lunch with you today. But…maybe it was worth it just to see you in this dress. You look—” “Hello, Ariana.” The deep, rich voice of Nicolai Ravana sounded behind me. I turned, and almost lost my balance. He wore a black tux, his usually wavy hair that flirted with his ears was gelled back, artfully arranged on his head. All the air inside my chest

rushed out. I was stunned speechless. If this was what all the guys looked like tonight, I was in for some trouble. Nicolai tore his gaze away from mine and looked off my right shoulder. His lips turned upward into a smile. “Evan, isn’t it?” He walked forward and offered him his hand. Evan shook it. “Yes, Evan Waters. Nice to formally meet you.” There was a twinkle in Nicolai’s eyes as I watched the scene play out in front of me. “Same,” he said. “I’m glad our guardian-in-training has friends.” “Well, she’s something special,” Evan offered as he looked me up and down. I leaned closer to Nicolai, but he kept his distance. He turned a mischievous smile toward me. “I guess we’ll find out. Our mother can’t wait to meet her.” Evan raised his eyebrows at me. “Good luck,” he said, as if I was going to need it. Well, I probably would need it. What just happened? Nic turned and walked away. He was already out the main doors before I even took my first step. I hurried after him, vaguely hearing Evan’s voice as he told me to have a good night. I didn’t respond. As soon as I got outside, hands closed over my forearms. I was in the air, my feet dangling,

until they were safely on the ground again, my back against the side of the building. Nicolai’s hot breath was on my lips. “I’m going to kill my brother for buying that for you.” His gaze racked over my body. Every where his gaze touched, my skin heated. “He’s going to get us all in trouble.” I stared down, my chest heaved in front of me, and my nerve endings were on fire. Nicolai closed his eyes. In one torturous step, he tore himself away from me and opened his eyes once more. The light in his eyes was dead. “I might have to kill that Evan kid.” “Kill?” I asked, finally finding my voice. “Did you not see the way he was looking at you? It was the way I wanted to look at you, but no. Instead, I had to act like you were just my guard and I wanted to walk you to the main house so you knew where to go. I had to play a part instead of taking in every last curve of your body. He’s lucky he’s not already bleeding out on the floor of that common room.” I reached for Nicolai, but he took a frustrating step back. “Hey,” I said, coming close again, matching his step back with another step forward. “Don’t,” he said, holding a hand up. “You have no idea how difficult this is. Let’s get to the party and in front of others before I lose my damn mind.” He walked ahead of me and I followed

behind. I hated seeing the stiff set to his shoulders and the unnatural gait to his walk. He looked almost as if he was in pain as we made our way around the building and toward the perimeter wall on the East side that separated The Fort grounds with the Rajyvik family’s estate. He opened up the steel gate revealing a stone path to the front entrance. I walked past him and smiled up. “I take it you like my dress.” His eyes clouded over. “Don’t tease me tonight, Ri. I’m already on edge and I’m more than likely to say, ‘Screw everything’, and do whatever the hell I want. Everything else be damned.” He was serious. I walked ahead, not wanting to give him reason. I knew how he felt. “Thank you,” he said, sighing. We made our way up the path in silence. A soft glow emanated from the stone house windows ahead of us. A large, black iron chandelier swung lightly in the breeze just above the main entrance. When we got there, Nicolai held his elbow out for me. I looked down at it questioningly. “It’s customary,” he said. Heart pounding, knowing what torture this would bring both of us, I slipped my hand through the crook of his arm and tried to ignore the pull. Everything in me wanted to lean into him, smell his musky scent, touch the fine cut of his tux, but I couldn’t. Definitely not here, not now.

The door opened in front of us. It startled me, and I stepped another pace away from Nic. I blinked, getting used to the light now that came from the inside of the house. It took a minute for Stephan to come into full view. When he did, my breath hitched in my throat. He looked so handsome. “I’m going to kill him,” Stephan said, his voice as calm as I’d ever heard it. “Get in line,” Nic said as he pushed us past him. I smiled at Stephan, and he smiled back before letting his gaze drop again, admiring my beautiful dress. My cheeks heated as I scanned the room around us. Everywhere I looked, there were perfect vampires in varying degrees of partying. The impeccably dressed men had stunning women hanging off one of their arms with drinks in the other. Our entrance into the house hadn’t been as world-changing as I imagined it to be. I thought for sure Isabelle Ravana would’ve been standing there, a knowing, hateful look silencing me forever. Instead, everyone seemed too in tune with the party to notice my arrival. I was fine with that. More than fine with that actually. Christian was the first to turn and find us standing just inside the doorway. His gray-blue eyes hardened as his gaze swept over me. He shook his head and looked away, his jaw working. Was he still

upset with me? Himself? “It’s not you,” Nic whispered. I took a steadying breath and told myself to relax. To my right, Connor’s voice sounded. “Wow,” he said. “You look—” “Like our guard,” Nic said. “No,” Connor said. The look on his face clearly said I looked like anything but his guard. “I’m going to kill you.” “Why?” he asked, eyebrows raising. “She looks—” He dropped my hand and moved forward. He whispered in his brother’s ear and Connor’s gaze moved to the floor immediately. He nodded once and then they both straightened again. By this time, Christian was able to extract himself from whatever he’d been doing and the four of them hovered around me. We all stood looking at one another. The three of them, in turn, cast Connor nasty looks who looked properly ashamed. A deep clearing of a throat sounded behind them. All four of them stiffened. Christian was the first to turn. “Dad,” he said, pulling away from our group and revealing him to me. Gregor Ravana stood tall. He had at least a couple inches on Nic who was the tallest out of the princes. I recognized their father from one of the pictures in the paper recently, but I hadn’t put the Ravana name to his face. He looked thirty-five, not

surprisingly. His chiseled features were flawless in their own right, but looked nothing like any of his sons. He had a darker complexion with dark hair and startling green eyes. “This must be Ariana,” he said, his lips pulling back into a smile. “The guard my sons are determined to text with at the dinner table.” My heart caught in my throat, but the rest of them just laughed. Thankfully. It made my shoulders relax and allowed my brain to think of my manners. I stepped forward and held my hand out. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Ravana.” I held my voice steady, forcing myself not to stumble around the words. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to say Mr. Ravana now that I’d said it. If Nic, Christian, Connor, and Stephan were princes, didn’t that make Gregor Ravana a king? Should I have addressed him as King Gregor or his majesty? I wished I’d thought to ask Nicolai on the way here, but we’d been distracted. He reached his hand out and gave mine a firm shake. “Please, call me Gregor. My sons have told me a lot about you. They’re very impressed with your progress in training.” “Thank you, Sir. I’ve been trying my best.” From the corner of my eye, I saw Nicolai nod. I could’ve went into much more detail, but something told me just to accept his praise and move on.

“How do you find your training?” His eyes latched onto mine. I smiled, feeling as if this was somehow a trick question. Or at least my answer would tell him a lot about me. I took my time in choosing the perfect words. “It’s challenging, but I’m up to the task. The princes’ safety is of the utmost importance. If that means I have to train harder and longer, I will.” I meant every word. This wasn’t some show to parade me in front of their parents to get them to like me, this was what I truly felt. I’d been waking up early to master the obstacle course. I relished the training the princes gave me. It would suit me for the future I’d chosen. “Excellent,” he said. A slim hand came to rest on Connor’s shoulder. The bright red nail polish caught my attention and then it was the woman who wore it. She was breathtaking. Again, she looked to be in her mid-thirties with waist-length blonde hair. She had perfectly shaped eyebrows and a figure to die for. “I’m happy to hear that as well,” she said. Her voice was feminine, yet firm. She held her hand out. “I am Isabelle Ravana.” I took it at once, returning the firm hold. “Ariana Stuart.” She did a cursory glance of my figure and dress and met my eyes again. “If the men of my family would be so kind as to leave us alone, I’d

like to have a talk with you.” “Of course,” I said, glancing at the guys. None of them looked worried, which put me immediately at ease. Connor gave me a huge smile and even the soft upturn of Nic’s lips gave me all the encouragement I needed to follow Isabelle through the beautiful house to a back room. I couldn’t believe they’d said their house was even larger than this one. The room was small, with fake candles glowing in each of the windows. She shut the door behind us and then faced me. Her elegant green dress looked as if it was designed to fit her and only her. “Ariana,” she said, smiling lightly and then motioning toward a small couch in the center of the room. I walked toward it and picked the skirts of my dress up to sit. She followed after and then faced me. “I’m happy you accepted my invitation.” “I was glad to have been invited. An honor,” I quickly added. A bundle of nerves pulled in my lower stomach. Her eyes searched mine. Whatever she saw, she blinked and her smile turned genuine. “You mean a great deal to my sons. I can’t say I understand all of it, but I wanted you to know that not only their safety, but their happiness, means more to me than anything in the world. I think I can see the same in you.” “You can,” I said. Closing my eyes, I

chastised myself. Had I said too much? What would she think about that? I was only supposed to be their guard after all. Was I supposed to care about their happiness? Perhaps the guys and I did really need to sit down and talk—all five of us—about how we needed to play this out. I didn’t want to have to constantly wonder if I was saying the wrong thing. She looked behind her toward the closed door and then back at me. I looked over her shoulder, but found nothing. When I met her eyes again, I recognized fear swirling in the caramel brown. “I’m worried for them.” I swallowed and inched closer to her on the couch. The hairs on the back of my neck stood. “I don’t know how much they’ve told you, but our world is in the middle of the biggest turmoil we’ve seen. There have been upheavals and arguments, more than there has ever been. Some are screaming for change, while others are steadfast in their fixed ways. My sons are independent thinkers, brought on by their father’s determined opinions,” she said, her voice betraying the tender feelings for Gregor. “They are growing up in a time of great complication. Their positions—their very lives—may very well be at stake.” “W-what?” I hadn’t heard anything like this before. “You’re sure?” “We are all treading in unsafe water. More

often than not have I heard from one side or the other that they are being unreasonable. I fear it all may lead to war.” I swallowed, trying to bury that word deep into the ether. “Please tell me exactly what is happening,” I pleaded. If the princes lives were at stake, I needed to know. “It is only a feeling,” she said. She pressed her fist into her core. “I feel it here that this tenuous grip we have on peace won’t last very long. My poor sons have already dealt with enough grief, I can’t stand the thought of something else happening.” She looked up, her gaze connecting to mine as if she’d physically reached out and pulled me to her. “Nothing can happen to them.” I nodded, transfixed by the deep sincerity in her words. “I agree.” Her gaze dropped and I almost physically drooped back into the cushion from the aftermath of her intensity. “I like you, Ariana. You make my sons happy. I can see the change in them since you came here to train. I do want to impress upon you the importance of their lives to me. I hope you can finish at the top of your guard class for the sake of my sons, but if you can’t, I hope you also understand that I want nothing but the best for them.” I nodded, agreeing with that too. Zeke was bigger, stronger, maybe he should win. Maybe he

could keep them all safe. If the vampire world was on the brink of war, wouldn’t they rather have someone like him? What if I failed at this? I wouldn’t ever be able to forgive myself if something happened to them and they would never be able to forgive me either. Our connection would implode from the inside out. The door pushed open across the room and Isabelle stood at once, slinking to the other side of the room. I pulled my shoulders back and waited. My heart pounded a furious rhythm in my chest. I could even hear it in my ears. Someone else had just come into the room.

Chapter Twenty-Two A petite, brown-haired female vampire walked in. She held a fussy blond-haired baby to her chest. “I’m so sorry,” she said, noticing Isabelle. “I came in here to escape for just a little while with Christopher.” “He is adorable,” Isabelle said, glancing momentarily at the new baby. She motioned toward me. “This is Ariana Stuart. She is the guard trainee my sons brought in to train at your parents’ facility.” “Ah, yes,” she said, smiling at me. “I hear the princes are making waves wherever they go.” Isabelle laughed softly, if not reservedly.

“That’s them.” “Oh,” the other vampire said. “Forgive me. I didn’t mean anything by it. I hope Christopher grows up to be as brave as your sons. You know we stand behind you, Isabelle.” The princes’ mother’s shoulders relaxed visibly. “We appreciate that.” She looked down at the other vampire’s young child and cooed at him. “And how is Alexander taking all this, Natalie? Newly changed, and a son within a month? He must be beside himself.” Natalie blushed. “It did all happen quickly, but we wouldn’t want it any other way. I’m just so happy that what with everything else going on The Council approved my bid to have Alexander turned.” “Alexander is your husband?” I asked, coming around to look down at the sweet baby. He was precious, all bundled up in a soft, blue fleece. “You had him turned?” “Yes, and not quickly enough,” she said. “We met in L.A. As soon as I saw him, it was like the world as I knew it turned upside down. We dated, of course. He knew all about me and then we both decided we should petition The Council.” “I’m sorry,” I said, shaking my head. “This is all so new to me. The Council let you turn your boyfriend so you could be with one another. And now you have a baby?”

“It doesn’t always happen like that,” she said. “There aren’t many vampires my age to choose from, and it didn’t even matter after I met Alexander. I probably would’ve defied The Council for him.” She laughed, but it fell flat. Both she and Isabelle winced, and then quickly continued with the other line of talk. “We found a mother willing to give us her baby.” “Like an adoption?” I asked, feeling completely stupid. “Yes, we were lucky to have found one. I wasn’t going to have Alexander lie with a human and I know we could’ve just picked one out, but it felt better to do it this way. The woman was more than willing to give us Christopher. She wasn’t able to take care of the child herself.” She stared down at her son, her face in complete awe of him. The door to the room opened again and a young man walked in. My jaw dropped. What the…? I knew him. Well, not personally, but Alexander Short had just walked in the door. He was the front man for Turning Stone, a rock band back in the real world. He’d went missing a year ago. What the hell? “Oh,” Natalie giggled. “You’ve been caught.” Alexander glanced up at my face and laughed. “Guess so.” He came forward and held his hand out. “Alexander Rajyvik.”

I shook my head. “No. You’re Alex Short. You’re Turning Stone’s lead singer. You were all over the news.” He nodded and held his hands up. “Busted. That was all well and good, but I’ve found my place now with Nat and Christopher.” He walked over to his wife and baby, putting his arm around her and caressing Christopher’s forehead. “I’m sorry,” I mumbled. “That was so rude. I was just in shock, I guess. You know people think you’re dead?” “Aren’t I?” he asked, his voice teasing. Everyone laughed at that, even me. I could find the humor in this after all, but holy crap. Alex Short was a vampire now. He’d changed for Natalie. They had a baby. Wow. The real world would flip their lid if they knew what actually happened to him. Isabelle’s fingers grazed my shoulder. “Let’s leave them alone, shall we, Ariana?” I nodded, still dumbfounded. We walked from the room and Isabelle pulled the door closed after us. I looked back at it, still in shock. I didn’t know what surprised me more, the fact that Alex was a vampire, or the fact that someone I “knew” from real life was in this world with me? I turned back around and pulled myself together. “I’ll have to apologize to them,” I said. “I don’t think I handled that well at all.”

Isabelle smirked. “It must be difficult for you,” she mused. “Even Alexander came into this world knowingly. You were, kind of,—” “—kidnapped?” I suggested. She brought her hand to her mouth to hide a smile now that we were out in the main room with all the other vampires. “Yes, I suppose so,” she said. She turned toward me. “You don’t look like you care about that though. Do you?” “Not one bit.” She smiled, then her gaze drifted over my shoulder. Peeking back at me, she said, “Nicolai is coming this way. He looks intent on talking to you.” She moved closer, her lips near my ear. “Please do be careful, Ariana. All of you.” Then, she was gone. In her place stood Nic. He grinned down at me. “Did you and my mom have a good talk?” I glanced around the room for her. Finally, I spotted her next to Gregor, her arm gripping his elbow as if she had been there the whole time. “We all need to talk.” “She wasn’t mean to you?” “No. Of course not. It’s just that I think— No, I know you guys have been holding back information from me.” Shadows darkened Nicolai’s face. Thoughts of Alex Short turned vampire whisked through my brain as well as his mother’s cautionary words.

War? Conflict? What was going on and why hadn’t they told me about it from the beginning? No wonder why Samuel had warned me that it didn’t matter what the princes wanted. Their safety was of the utmost concern. Especially if we were all headed into war. I hated to lose the spot to Zeke, but if he was truly the best person for the job, I should just back off. I could take some other station. Even as I thought it, my stomach rolled. Then what? My mind shot back at me. See them only when you see them? What if they found women they wanted to be with and years from now, we’d all be at a party like this, and I’d have to witness Nic or Christian or any of them walking around with their wife and a baby in their arms. “You don’t look good,” Nic said. “Ariana?” I rubbed my temple, trying to push back the headache I could feel coming on. Nic reached out and then let his hand drop between us. I drew in a deep breath and let it out as I said, “You guys need the perfect guardian.” “We do. And that’s you.” “You need someone strong. And powerful. And—” This time he did reach out and grab my wrist as reason after reason rolled off my tongue of why I wouldn’t be the best choice. “We need someone fearless and brave.

Strength doesn’t just come from physicality, Ariana. It comes from somewhere deep inside, from the knowledge that you must survive. You’re a survivor.” I shook my head. Already I could see what my naivete would bring the Ravanas. I knew nothing of this world. Christian was wrong yesterday. I would be the ruin of them, not the other way around. And not because of our feelings for one another, but because I’d never be as strong as the guards who grew up in this world. It was too late. “Whatever you’re thinking, just stop,” he said, his voice calm, yet stern. He looked around, his gaze almost pleading with the rest of the partygoers to leave so they wouldn’t witness the implosion that was about to happen. “I should probably go,” I said. His fingers tightened around my wrist. “I am begging you. Wait. Let’s go talk somewhere privately.” “Where?” I asked through clenched teeth. We couldn’t even talk in public because we were all hiding something we shouldn’t be. I was already in too deep. Shannon had said before that the reason why guards and vamps couldn’t have relationships was because it complicated things. I saw that now. More than ever. “We’re in the middle of a party and we can’t even be honest with one another,

Nicolai.” His jaw ticked. “I know where your mind went, and I’m standing right next to you telling you you’re being ridiculous. The reason why you’ll make the perfect guard is because you do care. We’re stronger together as a team. A team, Ariana,” repeating it as if I hadn’t heard him the first time. The world spun around me. Were we all just being delusional? I didn’t disagree with him, but I didn’t fully agree with him either. We had made this so much more complicated than it needed to be. I started to curse my stupid hormones, but it was much more than that. My feelings went deeper than how great all four of them looked in their tuxes. Nic’s fingers started to peel off my wrist. I looked up to find Connor smiling at us. He pulled our hands away from one another and it was then I noticed the insincerity in his gaze. “What’s going on?” he asked through a too-wide smile. “Ri’s having a meltdown and none of us can do a goddamn thing about it because we’re stuck here.” Connor looked at me briefly. “She looks fine.” Nic turned toward Connor. His happy facade dropped and he scowled. “I’m telling you—” “Alright, chill. You okay, Princess?” “I’m fine,” I said, my voice high and tight.

Connor and Nic shared a look. “Really,” I said, but they weren’t buying it. I really just wanted to get out of here and think on my own. I was always sensible. If I could just get away and think this all through, I’d feel more confident in the feelings swarming around me. “She wants to leave,” Nic said. “You’re not having fun?” Connor asked. “Really?” Nic said, and I thought for a moment he was going to hit his brother upside the head. Behind us, the sound of metal clinking against glass reverberated through the room. I looked up to find Gregor in the center of the room tapping the ring on his finger against his wine glass which was filled to the brim with a deep red. Not wine, I reminded myself. Blood. They all turned and I tried to step away, but backed right into a hard surface. I swiveled on my heel and found Stephan standing behind me, his gaze lowered to mine. My breath caught in my throat again. He really pulled his fancy suit off well. He wore a dark gray tux, highlighting his emerald eyes as if there were flecks of green in the material. As soon as I saw him, my heart stopped. Poor, caring Stephan. He’d saved me, held me like I’d never been held before, and then gave me my first kiss. My lips tingled just thinking about it. He blushed as my gaze dropped to his lips. “Ariana?”

I needed to get out of here. With them around, I would never make a sane decision. I needed to separate my brain from my heart for a few minutes. With them so near, that was impossible. It was getting hot in here. A fierce rush of heat swamped my body as I stood looking at him. Gregor continued to talk in the background. Stephan looked to Connor and Nic. “What’s going on? Where’s Christian?” I leaned over to whisper to him. “Can you take me back to my room?” “Of course.” “Stephan!” Nic growled. “She’s staying with us until we can all find a way to just sit back and talk. Where the hell is Christian?” “I’ll text him,” Connor said. “I’m fine,” I pleaded, but none of them were listening anymore. They all absentmindedly clapped when the rest of the room did though they still kept their gazes on me. Then, the whole room turned toward us. All the vampires smiled and clapped in our direction. No, not ours. Theirs, the princes. I stepped back out of the limelight and was able to sneak away. With the princes having to play to the crowd in light of whatever their father had said, I slinked off and found myself in the kitchen. I gazed around, then spotting an outside door, I went straight for it. As

soon as the cool evening air hit my face, I breathed out, letting all the anxiety of the past few minutes escape my every pore. Freedom. Just for a minute. I closed the door carefully behind me and made my way back toward the iron gate in the barrier wall. I pulled my phone from my purse and sent them a text telling them not to worry. I was safe, just needed time to think a few things over. Had our feelings clouded our judgment that much? Why me? If they really wanted me, couldn’t they just turn me into a vampire instead of going through this whole guard training? My mind went around and around as I made way across the large lawn. It went from doubt to love to even thinking again that Zeke might actually be the best choice for them. A hand grabbed mine and I twisted, managing to extract my fingers and whirling into a fighting position. After the last time Zeke had got the jump on me, I vowed it would never happen again. I punched out, moving toward the dark blur, but a hand caught mine. It wasn’t until my vision cleared —or was it until the vampire stopped moving—that I realized it was Nicolai. “What the hell?” I said. He smirked. “Shouldn’t that be my line? You did try and punch me. Nice one, by the way.” “Whatever,” I said, pulling my hand from his grip and moving again toward the entryway back to

The Fort. “Whatever? Have we resorted into turning into a human teenager with a bad attitude?” “I’ve always had a bad attitude,” I shot back over my shoulder. “Damnit, Ri, quit walking away. I want to talk to you, but I’m sick of chasing.” I whirled on him. Whatever he saw on my face, stopped him dead in his tracks. “You want to talk. Good. Finally. Why don’t we start with how you guys haven’t been totally honest? What’s going on in your world, Nicolai? Why is your mother telling me your lives are in danger? Don’t you think that’s something I should know. Not only because I care, but because I’m supposed to graduate from this,” I said, pointing at the Fort, “and become your guard?” “I get it. You’re pissed. Do it. Be pissed. We didn’t want to tell you everything right away because we didn’t want to scare you off. We thought if we overwhelmed you, there was no way you’d stay.” “I need to know everything. I need to know how bad this is and what we’re up against. What if I’m not the best, huh? What if you’re safer with someone else?” He strode up to me and took my chin in his hands. I tried to slap him off, but he didn’t move. When that failed, I looked away. He was too close.

I couldn’t think rationally anymore. He sighed. “Look at me.” When I didn’t, he said it again, demanding this time. “Look. At. Me.” My stare found his automatically. It wasn’t fair that he had the ability to do that. There was something primal about it, something I couldn’t resist even if I wanted to. His face softened and his dark eyes almost gutted me. “I’m sorry, okay? We never wanted it to seem like we didn’t trust you or even that you couldn’t handle it. We know you can handle anything, Ri. I meant it when I said there’s more to strength than just physical prowess. You, my sweetheart, are the strongest person I know. I want you by my side with my brothers. I don’t care if we’re fighting, arguing, risking our lives, or just at the pizza shop downtown having fun. You’re a part of us and nothing is going to take that away.” “But we can’t,” I said, my voice breaking, reminding him what a fragile line there was between us all. We were in danger of putting all our lives at risk. Just one simple touch, just this, his hand on my chin could raise suspicions. “We’ll find a way.” “You’re being naive.” He smirked, but it wasn’t playful, it was hard and sharp. “I’m being naive? So what? Maybe I am, but I’ll be damned if I just let you walk out of here without you hearing our side. We chose you for a

reason. You’re everything we thought, and more.” I shook my head. “I need to think.” I tried to walk away again, but he held me back. “Think about what?” he demanded as he gripped my forearms. His tux jacket bulged, his muscles flexing beneath his sleeves. “What is there to think about? You feel this, I know you do. It’s the reason why you kissed Stephan and why you and Christian fell asleep in your bed. This is what raw feelings, raw emotions feel like, Ri. What more is there to think about?” “Isn’t that the problem?” I asked, heat gathering behind my eyes. “What good is it doing us if we can’t even explore it? What good is it doing us if it complicates things? Above all else, I need you guys to be safe. I—” “Above all else? Above all else, we need to be with you. We’re—” “Stronger together. I know. You said that before.” “Then believe me,” he said, his voice pleading. “We’ll tell you everything. We won’t ever keep anything from you again, but damnit, Ri, you can’t look at me like you want to leave anymore. You’re tearing me up inside.” I looked away. His eyes were bright, shiny, everything that was complex was hidden there. “I don’t want to leave. That’s not it at all. I just wonder if it would be the best thing.”

“Stop thinking that. I don’t want to tell you you’re being stupid, but you’re being stupid.” A tear escaped and slid down my cheek. I reached up to wipe it away. “I just wanted a minute. One minute to think by myself.” He looked away, chewing on his lip. “I didn’t want to give you time to think about it and come up with the wrong decision.” “The wrong decision?” I smirked, trying to relieve the tension between us. “Yes, any decision that takes you away from us is the wrong decision. That much I know. I know it deep in here.” His hand curled around mine and brought it to his gut. There was nothing but rock hard abs under my fist. He pulled it closer, his stomach flexing. I took a deep breath. His mother had said the same thing when she told me she knew something bad was going to happen, even made the same gesture toward her core. I’d usually chalk it up to being related, but they weren’t blood. It wasn’t inherent in them to act alike. I dropped my head to his shoulder. I guessed some connections went deeper than that. Deeper than blood or family ties. All the anger, the hurt fell away from me. I reached up, my hands making their way along Nic’s fancy suit. They felt up his forearms, over his bulging biceps, and then to his shoulders. He stilled underneath me as I started to

pull my head away to look at him. My mouth was dry, waiting in anticipation. What would I see reflected in his eyes? I held a breath in my chest and pulled even further away, his tux coming back into clear view in front of me. The next thing I knew, my feet were in the air and I was being pulled back. A scream caught in the back of my throat. My gaze latched onto Nic’s. Terror, complete and terrifying, stared back at me, echoing through me in his haunted gaze. Then, complete darkness.

Chapter Twenty-Three Drip. Drip, drip. Drip. My eyes felt as if they were sealed together with superglue. It was hell trying to pry them open. I fought through the drowning feeling, the pure wall of black in front of me. Somewhere, deep inside me, I knew that if I could just open my eyes. If I could just try hard enough. I was just so tired, but not in the sense that I hadn’t slept in a while. This was overwhelming as if all I ever wanted to do again was sleep. Drip.

Drip, drip. I tried again, willing myself to open my eyes. I raised my eyebrows as far as they would go, but still, my eyelids wouldn’t budge. It was like swimming through a deep sludge. I kept moving, or trying to, but nothing came out of it. I fought through the haze, my fingers curling in on themselves. If I was awake, I’d be coming apart at the seams with the amount of energy I put behind just trying to get my eyes to open. Do it, Ariana. Do it. I tried to bring my hand up, thinking there may have been something covering my eyes. Why the hell wouldn’t they open on their own? I couldn’t even do that. No matter how much I willed my hands to move, they stayed at their sides. In my head, I screamed in frustration, lashing out at everything. I couldn’t move. Couldn’t see. But my brain could function and so could my heart. Nicolai. I’d been taken from him. I needed to know if he was okay. Where was he? Damnit! Why couldn’t I just wake up? In my head, I opened my mouth to scream and focused on moving just my one finger. I focused and focused. If I was awake, I’d be hoarse and out of breath from the scream that was only real inside my head. Little by little though, it started to work. Ever so slightly, I started to come up for air.

Drip. Drip, drip. Do it, Ariana. Do it. I focused all my attention on moving my pinky. I pictured the knuckle bending. I pictured it flexing. I pictured it attached to my hand and reaching out for Nicolai. Finally, I awoke with a huge breath. I gasped, staring around me as if I’d just emerged from a nightmare. My eyes blinked, searching while the room came into focus, searching for anything familiar. It was musty, and dark. Shadows crept everywhere just out of reach. Drip. I turned to my right. There was a puddle on the floor. My gaze moved upward and found a broken pipe. It was leaking its contents out onto the cement. There was barely any light, only a faint red glow from a piece of machinery in the corner and a lighter shade of black coming from what appeared to be a window. I tried to sit up, but I couldn’t pull my hands apart. They were behind me. Every time I moved, a thin, tight line cut into my skin. I was tied up, laying on the floor in what looked like a basement. I searched the room for Nicolai. He’d been with me. Was he here too? What was happening? A door creaked above and a shaft of light

illuminated one corner, revealing a set of steps. A foot stepped down. A woman, I noted, looking at the black classic ballet flats. Then another step and another until the woman stood at the bottom of the stairway. She held a wooden stake in her hands, tapping it off her palm. She stared at me without really seeing, reminding me of the look Christian would get when he was in deep thought. She wore a black, flowy dress. Though simple, it was floorlength and every bit as beautiful on her as Isabelle Ravanas was, except the woman in front of me wasn’t a vampire, she was a human. A guard, if I was thinking correctly. She had the build of a warrior. Strong, wide shoulders, deep collarbone indents and the muscles in her arms flexed with each tapping of the wooden stake. She stepped forward again and again, her elegant dress swishing across the damp floor as she made her way toward me. My heart popped up into my throat. The closer she got, the more her lips pulled back into a snarl. I pushed back with my legs, cursing when I realized they were tied together, too. All I could do was sit there and wait as she moved closer, stalking me like a lion. Finally, she bent down, her head close to mine. Her one palm came to rest near my head. The other one tapped the stake right in front of my nose. “I should kill you right now.”

Chapter Twenty-Four I didn’t know how much time had passed while I lay in the musty room, but the side of my face that was planted on the damp cement ached. My captor sat on the bottom step of the staircase now, tapping the wooden stake against the railing next to her head. The sound reverberated around the room. Each thump another reminder she held a weapon that could easily destroy me, and I had no doubt from the looks of her she could use it. She hadn’t spoken since she told me she should kill me. Afterward, she’d backed off right away muttering about how it wasn’t part of the plan—yet. What plan? Who was this woman? I racked

my brain trying to search for her face in any of my memories, but I was coming up empty. I didn’t know this woman at all, yet she was planning out my demise. It didn’t make sense. I was afraid to make a noise, but I was even more afraid to stay in the same position, jaw aching for who knew how long I’d be here. I tipped my chin down and used my forehead to try and push off the hard floor. If I could just push up enough to use my core to help me sit up, I could relieve the pressure on my face. With one huge push, I engaged my abs and righted myself. Before I could fall back into the same position, I swiveled my feet out in front of me and sat up. My movement caught her attention. She glared at me. “You’re just like Zeke described.” My eyes rounded. “Zeke? How do you know him?” “He’s my son.” Son of a— Really? What was this? The mother and son team from hell? She leaned her forehead against the railing while still eyeing me. “He’s worried you’ll take his station at the Ravanas. He’s been pretty much guaranteed that spot since no one else could touch him, but with you at The Fort, now he’s not so sure.” “And what? Now you’re helping him make sure that doesn’t happen?”

Confusion spread out over the woman’s face. Then, she burst out laughing. If it didn’t pitch so high with such pent up anger behind it, I might’ve even said she had a pretty laugh. Maybe she did when she wasn’t holding people captive. “No,” she said, still chuckling. “That’s not what this is about. Zeke can fight his own battles. And I certainly wouldn’t get myself mixed up in something as trivial as a guard station.” She blinked, sorrow deadening her eyes with each opening. It could’ve been my mind playing tricks on me, but if I wasn’t mistaken, tears glittered the corner of her eyes. “No, Ariana. This is about something much more important than that. This is about an eye-for-aneye. A love for a love.” I shook my head, not understanding what she meant. There were only four people in this world who cared about me, and to my knowledge, they hadn’t done anything to anybody. “I don’t understand,” I hedged. “Why am I here?” She wiped at her eyes and then pressed her hands into her dress. “Let me tell you a story. When I was your age, I went through training just like you. I was at the top of my class, graduated number one.” She smiled briefly, then it hung there almost lonely. “I was stationed with a great family. Not as prestigious as the position available with the Ravanas, but it was the best one available at the time. They were the Michaelsons. Not royalty, but

their father had a council seat. I was so happy. My parents were proud. Then, I met their son.” Her face twisted in agony as she said the next words. “Royce Michaelson.” “He was an only child, his parents never wanting more than one. They’d waited and waited until they picked the perfect parent hosts. They wanted him to be perfect. He was.” She slid a shaking hand through her hair and rubbed under her eyes again absentmindedly. “We started out as really good friends. He didn’t have any before me, so we did a lot together. Back in those days, there wasn’t as much tension, things were more lax. I taught him how to fight and he would take me places. The mall, the movies, just everywhere he wanted a friend.” My stomach hollowed out. I could almost guess where this was going. I kept my gaze on her, willing her to keep going with the story. “Then one day, things kind of just changed between us. Looking back, it was a slow build. I wanted to be around him more than I wanted to perform my duties. We did more hanging out than training. I tried to push the thoughts away. Even had a relationship with another guard, which is where I got Zeke. But, it just wouldn’t work. Royce and I couldn’t deny our feelings for one another. Then, his parents decided to ‘move on’ from this world. It damn near broke him, but after that, we

became so much more than just friends to one another. We fell in love.” Yes, there were definite tears now. In the low light from the room, they were like shooting stars falling across her cheeks. Her story transfixed me. I didn’t want her to stop. “We didn’t have to hide our relationship when we were at home. His parents were always a bit reclusive, which made it kind of perfect after they were gone. There was no one to hide from outside the house and definitely no one inside. We lived like true husband and wife for years. Years,” she said, her voice breaking. “It would’ve been fine except I got pregnant.” I gasped. She didn’t hear me, her gaze traveling down to her midsection as she passed a loving hand over her stomach. She closed her eyes and looked toward the ceiling. The pure look of despair on her face twisted my stomach. This was unreal. The guard who fell in love with her vampire was Zeke’s mom? Even I couldn’t push away the irony in that. Did he call his own mother a vamp whore? “Don’t judge me,” she snapped. “I’m not,” I said quickly. I was torn. I wanted to reach out and tell her I felt sorry for her. Tell her I felt the same things for my princes, but she was a part of this world. No one could know what I felt. Even if she was going to kill me, my princes had to

remain safe, and they wouldn’t be if the truth got out. “Does Zeke know?” The woman shook her head. “He’s very much like his father, a strict rule-follower.” That hadn’t been my experience. He must’ve been a self-righteous, make-the-rules-work-for-me kind of person. Calling in a vamp buddy to bloodlet a trainee wasn’t following the Vampire World Handbook, if such a thing existed. “He would be furious if he found out.” While she talked, I glanced around the room for some sort of weapon besides the obvious one in her hand. As trainees, we hadn’t been shown how to wield a stake yet. That was the last area of training. Vampires didn’t want just anyone to know how to kill them. You had to prove yourself worthy first. The stair creaked and I peeked back at her. I let out a breath, relieved to see she’d just moved slightly and hadn’t stood to make her way toward me again. If I kept her talking, maybe she’d be distracted long enough for me to figure out something to do. No matter how sorry I felt for her, the words she said when I’d first met her still hung in the back of my head. Her ultimate goal was to kill me. “Do you and Zeke get along?” She gave an annoyed grunt. “Do you and your parents get along?”

“My mother’s dead,” I said matter-of-factly. “My father was never around.” She turned to look at me again, her gaze searching mine, then swiveled away quickly. “He’s a cocky teenager. I was the same when I was his age so I guess I can’t really complain.” As she spoke, I looked into every nook and cranny I could see. This had to be the cleanest basement I’d ever been in. The basements in all my foster homes were a mess compared to this. Whoever lived here couldn’t at least have an old screwdriver, or some other tool, hanging around? “Where are we anyway?” I asked, looking around the room for a third time. I gazed onto every surface, and into every corner to see what was available. Something sharp would be nice so I could get out of these ties. She narrowed her gaze. “Nowhere.” “Oh,” I said. “Is that in Pennsylvania?” I’d meant it as a joke, but it fell painfully flat. The woman stood, and came forward to tower over me. “You’ll have to excuse me if I don’t feel like laughing. I found Royce dead a few hours ago.” My mouth fell open. He was dead? How? I thought vampires could only die of murder and only then in very specific ways. She’d made mention of Royce’s parents deciding to ‘move on’ and I wasn’t one-hundred percent sure what that meant, but I could guess. “Someone killed him?”

It all started to make sense now. She wanted to avenge Royce’s death. But with me? I certainly didn’t do it, and neither did the Ravanas. They were with me at the party all night. She shook her head. Her hair, wet with tears, slapped against her cheeks. “He killed himself. He couldn’t take it that they were going to separate us, that we would lose our child. A child that is rightfully his. He laid with me. We didn’t take him or find host parents. This child,” she said, holding her stomach again, “is a part of Royce. Whatever they wanted to do with me, they still could’ve let him have the child.” My head ached, my body ached, and now my heart. I’d always felt sorry for her ever since I read the article in the paper. Now, the person she loved, the person who she broke all the rules for, was dead by his own infliction. “How?” I asked, not even meaning to say the words, but my brain just popped them out. She gazed at the stake in her hands wideeyed. I noticed now that it was stained red. “He dug a hole in the ground. He put this in it, facing up. Then, he climbed the stairs to the third floor and jumped out our bedroom window. He landed exactly where he needed to.” I closed my eyes, my mind imagining the whole scenario. I saw him walk up the stairs, jump out the window, and land on the stake that could

take his life. Then, she came home and found him. Were they supposed to go to the party? Was that why she had the fancy dress on? “I’m sorry,” I said, my own eyes starting to sting. Sometimes, grief was contagious. I swallowed and stared up at her. “It’s tragic. I feel awful, but what does this have to do with me? Royce killed himself.” She gave a short bark of a laugh. “That’s where you’re wrong. Royce didn’t kill himself. Gregor Ravana killed him. He killed him when he was the deciding vote that mandated I abort my baby and break off the relationship with Gregor, basically forcing me from this world and leaving not only Royce, but Zeke, too. Not to mention the loss of the life inside me. “Yes, Gregor has a lot to atone for.” “No,” I said, not believing it. I’d met the princes’ father. He wouldn’t have voted that way. The princes themselves were appalled by the ruling. Even Natalie mentioned that she stood with the Ravanas. Why would anyone stand with someone who would do that? No, she was wrong. She must’ve had her information wrong. She nodded. “It’s all true. If you do get the station at the Ravanas, just be forewarned about what kind of family you’ll be guarding. They place no value on life. No value on freedom. They make me sick.” “Where’s Nicolai?” I asked finally. Her anger

poured off her in waves. The kind of anger that made it easy to take a life, especially if she thought the Ravanas had something to do with Royce’s death. Was that just his blood on that stake, or someone else’s too? My lips trembled. “I was with him when you took me here. Where is he?” My body rebelled against the words. I could hardly get them out, but at the same time, I knew she was furious enough to do it. “Please,” I begged. “Where is he?” She stepped back and returned to the stair. “Safe. Unfortunately. I hoped I’d find you with one of the others. From what I gathered from Zeke, I knew the oldest would put up the biggest fight. He did. No matter, though. I still got you.” Relief swept through me. Thank God. Zeke was safe. No matter what, that was the most important—that the princes stay safe. Now I could just worry about me. What had Zeke just told me before I was taken? I was a survivor. I wasn’t going to go down like this. “Why am I even here then? What good will I do you?” Zeke’s mom wiped her hand over her forehead. “It’s not you who we really wanted. It’s them. Since you were the one we got, I’m going to use you as bait.” She turned to me and smiled. “Vampires are hard to resist, aren’t they? No need to play coy. Zeke’s already told me his suspicions about you and judging by your tirade on wanting to

know where Nicolai Ravana is, I’d say he was right.” “Zeke’s wrong,” I blurted out. I usually wasn’t a good liar, but I had to try. “There’s nothing going on between Nicolai and I. I’m just a trainee. They’re not going to care that I’m here. And even if they do—” “All I need is for them to want to save you. Once we get them all in one place, we’re going to kill them. That way Gregor knows what it feels like to lose everything.” I shook my head, still trying with everything in me. “It’s not going to work. Gregor isn’t going to send his sons to help me. He doesn’t even know me.” “Oh, I think he will. And even if he doesn’t, they’ll want to play hero by themselves, and then I’ve got them. I just need you to do your part and lure them in.” There was no way that was happening. I’d die before I betrayed them.

Chapter Twenty-Five A chiming sound wafted its way down from somewhere above us. The woman and I immediately looked up. It rang several more times. A doorbell, I realized. Before hope could even gather in my chest, a cruel smile curved her lips. “Don’t think about yelling. I know who’s here and he’s not a friend to you.” Well, at least I was right about one thing. We were in a basement of a house. But whose house? That I didn’t know, only that they were impeccably clean owners. The stake and Zeke’s mom walked upstairs. I pulled my feet back toward my butt so I could try

to stand, but they kept getting caught in the yards and yards of fabric around my legs. If I could just get to my feet, I could hop around the room and try to get out of these restraints. A rip broke the silence when I tried again. I stilled. The good news was, I was able to get my feet into the position I wanted. I heaved myself up and soon, I was on my feet. I wobbled for a second, trying to get my bearings. My feet were tied so tight around my ankles that there was no give, my only option was to hop. My feet slapped the cold, wet floor. Since she’d left the basement door open, I had more light to see around the area with, but it didn’t do me any good because there was nothing to see. I pulled at my wrist restraints, but all I succeeded in doing was sending shooting pain up my arm. I passed by the blinking red light I’d noticed earlier and felt something slice into my forearm. Yes! A sharp edge! I hopped around until my back was toward the machine. Then, I put tension on my restraints as I squatted up and down, rubbing whatever held me together lengthwise down the jagged corner. Voices sounded from above and I stilled. They were just murmurs, nothing I could discern for now. They didn’t matter, I told myself. I needed to focus on getting my hands free. Footsteps creaked the floorboards and I worked harder. There was a slip of release and my

heart skipped a beat. The joy was short-lived. I could pull my wrists apart now, but the ties were still intact. Up above, the footsteps moved closer and closer to the open door separating me from them. I could hear the voices more clearly—Zeke’s mom and a man. I hopped over to my spot in the basement and waited until I was sure they were coming down. Sure enough, her black ballet flat stepped onto the first stair I could see. I plopped myself down. Pain radiated up my behind. I bit down on my lip to keep from crying out. Maneuvering myself into the same position I was in before she went upstairs proved difficult, but finally, just before she hit the bottom step, I was able to prop myself up again. She came forward. From her hands dangled a tiny, silver cell phone. Not just any cell phone. Mine. She grinned. “You wouldn’t believe who’s been texting you while you’ve been down here with me. Every last Ravana prince.” I closed my eyes. Damnit. “This is what we’re going to do, Ariana. I’m going to call one of your princes and hold the phone up to your ear. You’re going to tell them that you’re fine, that you’ve escaped, but you need to be picked up at the bridge over Wysocki River. I believe you know the place.” “I won’t do it,” I said, already shaking my head. “I’m not telling them that. Not ever. They

don’t need to be brought into this. You want revenge on Gregor, fine. Get it. Don’t bring them into this.” “Kay…” the man said from up above. The woman turned scowling. “What?” His voice was deep, rich, with a slight accent I couldn’t place. When he didn’t say anything, she sighed, stood, and turned around to run back up the stairs. While they were there, I pulled at my restraints again. It was no use. They wouldn’t budge any further than they already had. After a few moments of whispering, Kay turned back around and walked down the stairs. The skirts of her dress swished behind her as she walked. What a messed up picture this was. We were both wearing beautiful dresses except she was carrying around a stake and a broken heart, while I was tied up in the corner. Talk about things not computing. She held the phone out to me. I could already see the screen clearly displaying it was calling Dark, Sexy & Badass. I sealed my lips shut as she held the phone to my ear. I pulled away, but she just moved with me. When I was almost falling over, she yanked my arm, bringing my head right back to the cell phone speaker. “Ariana? Are you there?” Nicolai’s beautiful tenor of a voice was

broken with worry. It killed me to hear it. I shook my head, tears welling up over the sides. “Please, Ri, are you okay?” he asked again, his voice more husky than usual. Like all the times before, I had no willpower when it came to the Ravanas. “Yes,” I finally choked out. “I’m fine.” His voice sounded strangled. “Where are you?” “I don’t know,” I said, finally giving into the terror. The woman’s eyes bore into mine. Tell him the river, she mouthed. I shook my head again. That was the last thing I’d do. “Listen to me,” I told Nicolai, speaking as fast as I could. “Don’t come after me. Promise you won’t.” Kay’s fist shot out and cocked me in the side of the face. I fell to my left, my shoulder just barely catching me so I didn’t smack the side of my face off the cement floor. I tried not to cry out, but I wasn’t sure if I succeeded when I heard Nicolai screaming. Then, I heard him say her name very calmly, like we were all in the eye of the storm. I blinked, just catching her movements. She dropped her hand to her side right before she rubbed the bridge of her nose with the hand she held the stake in. Finally, she put the phone up to her own ear. “Is that you, Nicolai

Ravana? You sound very upset. Did your father tell you what he did to my Royce?” Her chin hit the phone, accidentally spilling Nicolai’s voice into the small room. My heart clenched while he spoke. “Ariana had nothing to do with this. Give her back. We’ll meet you. Wherever you want. We’ll meet you. You don’t want her anyway.” “No, Nic!” Kay glared at me and then moved toward the staircase to look up at her friend. She waited for a split second before nodding. “Yes, we’ll— I’ll meet you. Bridge over the Wysocki River. Half hour.” “No!” I said, “Don’t, please.” Realization set in that my princes were going to be brought into this after all. I didn’t want that. I couldn’t bear the thought of one of them getting hurt, or worse. “It’s okay, Ri,” Nicolai said. His voice was so smooth, so in control. He had no idea what he was walking into. “I’ll see you soon.” “I don’t want you to—” The phone went dead, the screen blinked out. It was just Kay and I again in the dingy, but sparse, basement. The man up above said, “You know what to do.” Then, his feet were gone. I was still laying on the floor from the blow to my face, but it felt as if my world had turned upside down and not just sideways. Christian had really

nailed it the other day, hadn’t he? We would all be the ruin of one another. Kay strode forward and pulled up on my arm until I was standing once more. She slid my phone into the front of her dress, then heaved me up and over her shoulder. She was abnormally strong. Every time she took a step up the stairs, my body curved around her strong frame. Shutting the door behind us, she strolled through a kitchen, a family room, and then turned right through a foyer that led to the outside. She kept me in the air as we stepped outside and up to a car in the driveway, then she heaved me into the backseat. The air was cool and moist, not that much different from the basement. Above us, the sky was cloudy, secreting away the stars. She propped my head up against the headrest and was about to shut the door when a black shadow slammed into her from behind. She fell to the ground in a heap. The figure tried to leap on top of her, but she kicked out when he made his descent. The shadow groaned and staggered back. Then, they faced one another. Though the shadow’s back was to me, I’d recognize him anywhere. It was Stephan. My heart catapulted into my throat as they exchanged blows. Each of them well-trained, it was more like a chess match as they tried to feel each other out. He’d fake and she wouldn’t fall for it and vice versa. Breathless, Kay

moved back into fighting stance and circled around him. “How did you find her?” Stephan pointed to his nose. Her head recoiled. “You fed her your blood?” Stephan used the momentary distraction to attack her again, but she was too quick for him. She swept out with her foot, catching Stephan’s feet and sending him flying in the air. His back hit the driveway with a thud. He didn’t move. “Stephan? Stephan?” I cried. Kay moved closer to him. She pulled him up by the collar. He was lifeless in her arms, his hands dangling at his sides. Terror struck me. “Leave him alone!” She twisted toward me. “He’s just knocked out. It’s a shame they don’t teach these vampires how to defend themselves well enough. They’re faster and more powerful than we could hope to be. The thing is, they think it’s beneath them. They’ll be surprised when they have to fight one another, won’t they?” “What do you mean?” I watched as she picked up Stephan’s body and carried him to the other side of the car. She didn’t even grunt with the exertion. If I wasn’t so furious at her for doing this, I’d think she was kind of badass. The Fort could use some female trainers—especially human guards who knew what it was like. She put Stephan in next to me, not taking near

as much care as she did with me. She practically tossed him in, his head bouncing off my shoulder before it came to rest there. She shut the door and got in the driver’s side. As she started the car, she said, “I would think even the trainees knew about all the hostility being tossed around at The Council meetings. They can all barely stand each other. More than one wants to knock your precious Ravanas off the pedestal they put themselves on.” I cuddled in next to Stephan, placing my head on his. Just his presence calmed me. Not that I wanted either one of us where we were, least of all him, but at least we were here together. If he could just wake up, maybe he could take my ties off so we could fight back. Regardless of what she’d said, Stephan had held his own against her. All it took was one mistake and she was able to get in on him. The princes had more training than any other vampires as far as I knew. “The princes aren’t like that,” I told her. “They want to be able to fight for their own safety. They told me.” “Vamps say lots of things to get the red stuff, especially when it’s fresh.” “Is that what Royce did to you?” Kay slammed on the brakes. I used my knees to brace me back into the seat, but Stephan wasn’t so lucky. He tumbled off my shoulder and into my lap. I looked down, frowning, hoping he hadn’t been more hurt when Kay turned around. “Don’t

you dare say anything like that about him.” I locked gazes with her. “The princes aren’t like that either. I promise you. They would never do anything like that to me or anyone else. You’re hurting the wrong people. What are you going to do when we get there anyway? You’ll be outnumbered five to one.” Kay smirked, then turned back around to maneuver us out of the driveway. “You think I’m going to be the only one there to take their revenge on the Ravanas. That’s a sweet thought, but no. I’m not the only one who owes them.” “Like that guy that came to your house? Who was that?” Her gaze flitted up, looking at me through the rearview mirror. “Like I said, not a friend to you. That’s all you need to know.” “What’s Zeke going to think when he knows what you did?” She raised her eyebrows, then shrugged. “Probably thank me for taking you out of commission. With you gone, he’ll get his top spot back. Not that it’ll be with the Ravanas. They’ll be dead, but it’ll be the next best thing.” She found my gaze in the mirror again. “It really is kind of sad. From what Zeke’s told me, you remind me of me. I can understand why he sees you as a threat.” My stomach rolled over. “I’m nothing like you. For one, I take responsibility for my own

actions. Royce didn’t die because of Gregor. He killed himself.” Her hands tightened around the steering wheel, her knuckles turning white. She didn’t respond so I looked down. Stephan was still out cold. My heart lurched. Wake up, I silently pleaded. Wake up. If he could just regain consciousness, we could take her on together. There was no way she’d be a match for the both of us. The car slowed and I looked around. Sure enough, the street looked familiar. Off to our right was the same small, makeshift parking lot I’d been in before. Though it was dark, I knew that right in front of us would be the bridge we were meeting the Ravanas on. Would Gregor be there along with the rest of his sons? No matter what, I needed to keep Stephan safe. He belonged here, they all did. I was the most recent transplant into their world, and really, my life meant nothing without them. The number one priority was keeping them safe. I stared down at Stephan’s handsomely chiseled face. Though his eyes were closed, I knew there was the most perfect set of emerald green eyes behind those lids. His dark brown hair was perfectly arranged as it had been at the party. He was even still in his pants and collared shirt, though the tux jacket was off, left somewhere and

forgotten. What did he do when they found out I’d been taken? He’d obviously gone out on his own to find me. He knew he would be able to track me down because of the salve he made me that was mixed with his all-curing blood. A tear slipped down my face as I stared down. Stephan was the caretaker. To think that I might never feel his fingers on my skin, massaging his healing ointment into my body. Or that I might never feel his lips once again press into mine. My breath shuddered out of me. A replay of all the moments I shared with my princes appeared like snapshots in my mind. There was Christian when he stopped my punch my first night at The Fort when he found me trying to escape. I thought for sure my wrist was broken. It was probably another injury Stephan’s miracle cream healed without me even knowing about it. There was Connor’s face when he couldn’t recover from laughing at me so hard. I’d accidentally called them brothers, which brought on a laughing fit of epic proportion. There was Nic and his husky voice, making my stomach flip flop. Especially that time when he asked me if all I’d wanted to do was hold him. It wasn’t, but I never got the opportunity. And dear, sweet Stephan. My first, and only, kiss. “I’ve got an idea,” I said. “If revenge is what you want, then just kill me. Leave the Ravana

Princes alone. They’ll be so distraught they’ll never forgive their dad anyway.” She raised her eyebrows at me. “I’m guessing you don’t understand what an eye-for-an-eye means? And you looked so smart, too.” “I get it. I even understand the sentiment, but won’t it be even sweeter when he feels so alone? The people he loves are still in this world, but they don’t want anything to do with him. That’s the perfect, twisted revenge. I promise you that if they find out he’s the reason why you killed me, they’ll never speak to him again.” A cell phone buzzed, distracting her. Kay looked down at the passenger seat and then back up at me. “Nice try, but not happening. Backup’s on the phone.” She pulled a black cell phone from the seat next to her and held it to her ear. “Yeah, I’m ready.” I wasn’t. Not at all. Of course, there never would’ve been enough moments with the Ravanas. Even if we’d had forever.

Chapter Twenty-Six “What do you mean you’re not here yet?” Kay’s grip tightened around the cell phone. “I told you they would come. They want the girl.” Headlights flashed from the other side of the bridge. Kay turned, the wash of lights making her face appear deathly pale. “They’re here.” If I wasn’t mistaken, I thought I could hear a tremor in her voice. She put the phone between her shoulder and cheek and put the car in reverse. “If you’re not here, I’m getting out of here. I will not be sent on a death mission.” She checked the rearview mirror and placed her foot on the gas.

We lurched backward until even I could hear the yelling from the phone close to Kay’s ear. She pulled away, grimacing. The phone dropped to the seat. She put the car in Park again and then picked up the phone, holding it to her ear once again. I stared at the other headlights. Could it really be my princes in there? I wanted it to be, but also didn’t want it to be at the same time. If it was just us and Kay, it would be a beatdown. She didn’t have a chance. But if others were truly coming, I didn’t want them anywhere close to here. A figure stepped in front of the lights, blocking them out briefly before it started moving toward us. It was just one. I held my breath in my chest, wondering which one of the princes it would be. “They’re approaching the car.” There was a pause, then, “Just get here!” Kay threw her phone down on the seat and then both of us just watched as the figure casually strode toward us. From its blase nature, I envisioned it to be Nicolai with his cool swagger. But when the face was clear enough to see in the dark, my breath hitched in my throat. It wasn’t a prince at all. It was Zeke. Kay realized a moment after me. She gasped and then swung the car door open before heaving herself out and running toward her son. I stared down at Stephan. His eyes were still closed, but his

chest moved up and down peacefully. “Stephan,” I said, whispering to him. “Wake up. Please.” I nudged him with my legs, but still nothing. That sweep Kay pulled off must’ve taken it all out of him. “Please, baby,” I pleaded. “I need you to open your eyes.” I nudged him harder this time, cringing while I did it. The door to my right opened, the wind twisting its way inside the car and spreading goosebumps over me. Rough hands grabbed my arm and pulled me out. I looked up to find Kay. She reached into her shoe and brought out a razor blade. “Don’t try any funny business. I’m just taking the knots off your feet.” “Why is Zeke here?” I asked, looking toward the middle of the bridge where he waited. “Did they make him come?” She shook her head. “No.” I didn’t ask anymore questions. Her hand shook as she tried to cut away my ties. It was evident her son being here was not part of the plan and it wasn’t sitting well with her either. “The princes are in the car behind him. They want you back now. They think that by bringing Zeke here I won’t try anything, but they’ve never met a woman scorned, I don’t think.” I closed my eyes, but she pushed me forward.

My legs buzzed from being tied up for so long. Pinpoints of pain blossomed all up and down my legs and the soles of my feet. I hobbled next to her as we made our way to Zeke. For his part, he looked properly shamed. He wouldn’t meet my eyes. He kept his gaze on the road the whole time. When we finally stood in front of him, he looked up at his mom. “Just hand her over now, Mom.” Kay shook her head and pulled me closer to her. She still had the razor blade in her hand. “No, they don’t get to just walk away from this, Zeke. You don’t understand.” “I do,” he said. “Royce killed himself earlier today. That’s how they knew you’d have her. What I didn’t know was that you were the woman in the paper who was having the affair with a vamp.” His voice turned hard the more he spoke. It didn’t affect Kay in the least. “What if I told you? It wouldn’t have made a difference.” “Did you leave Dad for him?” Kay shook as she brought her blade-free hand through her hair. “What does that even matter? They killed him, Zeke.” She pulled her arms away from me and approached her son. “Don’t you see? We loved one another. Royce couldn’t take their punishment. They weren’t going to let me be his guard anymore and they were going to make us kill the baby. He just couldn’t take it.”

Zeke shied away from her. “He killed himself, Mom. And if he’d been a better man, he would’ve done it before he made your life a living hell. You know we can’t be with them. You know it.” So she had been right. Zeke was a stickler for the rules, even when it came to his own mom. Kay rubbed her hands up and down her face. “It’s important that we make them pay.” “We? There’s no ‘we’, Mom. You’re going to give Ariana back over to the princes and then you’re going to get your mind wiped and sent back to the human world.” Her voice kicked up a notch. “Mind wiped?” “Yes, I had to talk them into that. The Council wanted a stricter punishment, but I told them if they just wiped your mind and took you away from this world, you’d never bother them again. It’s the best offer you’re going to get so you might as well take it.” “The baby,” she said, her lips trembling. She placed a hand over her small stomach. Zeke shook his head. Her voice was firm. “No. Not good enough.” She walked away, grabbed my arm, and pulled me forward. “Come out, Princes, or she’s dead.” The sharp edge of the razor blade cut into my neck. I stilled, pressing my eyes tightly closed. I didn’t want to see the moment I wouldn’t exist anymore. I surely didn’t want the last memory I

had of this Earth being the looks on the Ravanas’ faces as I died. That was too much burden to carry on to the next life. Zeke’s voice rose, panicked. “You said you’d stay in the car.” “Plans change.” I swallowed. Christian. No, he couldn’t be here right now. “Leave, Christian. You have to. There are others. Stehan’s in the backseat. Get him and leave. Now.” “She won’t do anything to her,” Zeke said, his voice rising. “There are others,” I screamed back. The edge to the razor blade pushed into my throat. I choked, more from the shock of the pain than because of any real damage. It didn’t matter. My reaction was enough to bring on the growl that ripped through the night air. Nicolai. It was too much. Both of them? I could afford one last peek, couldn’t I? Then maybe Connor would come too and I could enjoy one last image of all of them. I opened my eyes. Christian stood next to Zeke, his stare zeroed in on me. Relief swept over him once he saw my eyes though I had no idea why. Look where we were. We were all in danger, especially him. “Go get Stephan,” I urged. “Leave.” He shook his head. “I can’t do that, Ariana.”

“It’s not worth it.” His jaw ticked, but Zeke took a step toward his mother, silencing us. “Mom, put the blade down. No one’s coming.” His hand reached out and touched her wrist. She tensed, digging the blade a little further into my skin. “Shh, Mom. I don’t know what they told you, but no one’s coming to help. It’s just you against the rest of them.” “No, they said they wanted revenge against the Ravanas too. They’ll be here.” “It’s already too late. If these guys wanted to, they would’ve already killed you by now. They don’t want to hurt you. Don’t force them.” He pulled at her hand, making space between my throat and her razor blade. I felt like I could actually breathe now. I gulped in air a few times, loving the way it filled my lungs. “Stephan,” I said, pleading with Christian again. He shook his head. “He’ll be fine.” Zeke pulled his mother away from me. Christian took a step forward to lead me out of the way, but Kay cried out. “No! It’s not fair!” Her hand slashed through the air. My skin tore from my shoulder down to my elbow. A slicing, hot pain that pulsed every time my heart beat. I gasped in pain, but there was nothing I could do. My hands were still tied. Kay kicked out, stomp-kicking her own son in

the gut and sending him sprawling into the road. She turned, reached under her skirts, and brought out the wooden stake. Christian ran for me. “No,” I screamed. “Stake.” He halted and turned toward the threat, but it was too late. She threw the stake. It sunk into him. Dark, red blood spilled from the wound, already staining his white collared shirt. Sorrow the likes I had never known before seized me. Christian’s eyes widened and he dropped to the road. I fell to my knees and scooted my way over toward him. “No. No. No,” I kept repeating. But it was true. Everything I’d just seen had actually happened. There was a wooden stake protruding from Christian Ravana. Vomit worked its way up my throat as tears spilled out over my cheeks. He was dead. Dead. No. Hands grabbed my hair and yanked back to reveal my throat. “Come out or she’s dead,” Kay screamed. A growl ripped through the beat of silence, or maybe it had already been echoing through the night air since the stake pierced Christian. Within an instant, the grip on me loosened and Kay’s body fell to the side. Her head, which was now twisted into an unnatural angle, cracked onto the road. Her

lifeless eyes stared at me. Then, there was another face in front of me pulling at my chin to face him. I blinked, trying to focus, but there were too many hot tears. “Shh,” the voice said. “Shh.” Connor. I almost grinned from the relief, but there was nothing to be happy about here. I looked up to find Stephan shaking. He was looking down at his hands as he stood over Kay’s body. His pallor was muted, white with shock. “Stephan,” I said, barely moving my lips, wondering if anyone could even understand what I was saying. “There’s something wrong…” Connor’s fingers worked at the knots around my wrists as he cradled me in his arms. For the first time in a long time, my hands fell limp at my sides. They were like dead weights. He moved them around to my front and then pulled me back into his arms. “It’s okay. It’s okay. He had to do it.” I’d understood now. Stephan shaking. Stephan standing over the body. Stephan as white as a ghost. He’d killed Kay. Zeke stumbled forward and kneeled next to his mother. He put one hand on her shoulder, his head lowering between his shoulder blades. So, so much pain. It reminded me of the accident. Everywhere I looked there was another sight of tragedy. Blood. Wounds. Sadness. Nic stood over Christian now. He yanked up

on the stake. More blood pooled onto his perfect shirt. “Stephan, I need you,” he called out. “Now.” “He’s dead,” I mumbled. I shook my head, not wanting it to be true. I didn’t want any of them to die for me. How fair was this? I was the only one who wasn’t supposed to be in this world, yet here I was, alive. “Not fair. Not fair.” Connor cooed me like a baby, his arms going around me tighter while my chest broke wide open. Kay might as well have shoved that stake into my own heart. That’s what it felt like to lose Christian. Connor tipped my chin up to meet his face. He smiled down at me. “You were so brave, my Princess. So, so brave.” He looked over my head, glancing Christian and Nicolai’s way. He looked back at me, tears shimmering in his eyes. He pulled me to him, pressing his lips into my forehead. A tear slipped from his cheek and landed on my nose. That’s when I lost it.

Chapter Twenty-Seven I must have passed out. When I woke, we were in a moving vehicle. I was still pressed against Connor. I could tell by his fresh scent. There was a tang in the air, too. Something I couldn’t quite place, but I’d smelled it before. I must not have been totally with it because I swore I heard Christian’s voice mixing with all the others. What a terrible joke. If I went to sleep again, maybe his voice wouldn’t be haunting me. No such luck. Whatever we were in stopped. “Give her to me,” a husky voice said. Hands tightened around my middle and brought me back again. I almost suffocated in folds

of fabric. “Please,” Nic said, almost groveling now. “You’ve had her the whole time. I just want to feel her, make sure she’s really alive.” There was a moment of open air, nothing touching me but two strong hands, then I was given over to another firm, safe grip. Nicolai’s lips pressed into my cheek. I blinked, looking into his eyes. The love I saw there was almost as bad. I wanted to close my eyes against it. I didn’t deserve it. Once everything settled, they’d never forgive me for being the reason their brother was killed. Never. I would never even be able to forgive myself for something so awful. “You’re okay,” he murmured. “You’re okay.” He repeated it again and again, more for his own benefit than mine. “I’m so sorry,” he said. “I tried to stop them. They caught me off guard. There was nothing I could do.” I reached up a shaky hand and touched his cheek. Why did he even care about me right now? We had way more important things to talk about. Like, where was Christian? I wanted to see him one last time, commit his face to memory. I didn’t know what happened to vampire bodies after they were killed. Did they turn to dust? I was pretty sure I’d seen that in a movie before. What if he was already dust and I’d missed my chance? Nic’s eyebrows rose. “Dust? I don’t

understand what you’re saying, Ri.” “Christian,” I said, my voice thick around my pain. “He’s right here.” Nic tipped my chin to point me in the right direction. Christian, or someone who looked like him, was hanging over the front car seat, staring at me in awe. His white shirt was soaked with blood. I shook my head. No. I’d seen him dead on the road. He had a stake through his heart. “I told you she wanted me,” Christian said. “I’m her favorite.” “Too soon for jokes,” Connor deadpanned. I twisted my neck to look at the honey-haired boy. He was talking to Christian. Was Christian really here? “You’re alive?” Christian, bless him, with his earnest looks and ability to always say the right thing. “Look at me, Ariana.” He pulled his shirt away from his body, showing me where the hole was. “She missed my heart. I’ll be fine. Stephan patched me up. I’m sore, but I’m alive.” “You’re alive.” I smiled, almost disbelieving my own eyes and ears. I twisted and Nic helped me to sit. “I thought you were—” “We all did,” Nic said. “Thankfully it’s nearly impossible to kill a vampire.” I sat there, looking at all of them in turn. “Stephan?” I didn’t see him. “Where is he?”

Christian locked eyes with Nic, then back at me. “He went inside. He’s telling mom and dad we’re out here.” “And he’s okay?” “He’s not injured,” Nic said, pulling me close, forcing his face into my hair. “Zeke?” I asked, wondering where he’d gone. What about Kay? Her body, anyway. “The Council is dealing with them,” Connor said. He placed his hand on my thigh, his thumb passing back and forth over my skin. Christian reached over, his fingertips just barely grazing my knee. “I don’t know how the injured one ended up being this far away from her.” “Shut up,” Nic said. “You’re completely healed.” They all laughed. It was like music to my ears. I joined in, almost high with the happiness filling me from the inside out. They were all okay. They were more than okay. They were here, together, all of us like we used to. “I’m sorry,” I croaked out. Then, I found Nic’s eyes. “I’m sorry I made a big deal about needing time alone. I just needed a moment.” “Well,” Connor said. “I hope you got enough moments of being away from us because I’m pretty sure none of us are ever going to let you out of our sights again.” I nodded. I didn’t want them to.

A knock sounded on the car door and all of us looked out. Stephan stood there. His face was drawn, somber. Nic pushed the door open. He helped me up and I stood on shaky feet. I looked to my left, finding a long strip of white bandage around my upper arm. Stephan’s fingers reached out, inspecting it. “Your handiwork, I take it?” He glanced down and then back again. There was a tiny upturn of his lips, but nothing like the most genuine Stephan smiles. “I’m so happy you’re okay. I thought—” He cleared his throat. “I thought for a minute…” I stepped forward and wound my arms around his shoulders, the palms of my hands pressing into his neck. He hesitated a second before his arms went around mine. Then, it was truly a Stephan hug. The kind that made me curl up and want to take a good nap because I was so relaxed. I kissed the spot just below his ear. His body shivered and he held me even tighter. “Thank you for coming for me,” I said. He shrugged, pulled away, and left a chaste kiss on my forehead. He turned back toward the house and I recognized it as the Ravanas’ home. The one Stephan had taken me to before. “Mom and Dad want to see everybody.” Connor pushed past Nic and put a hand

around my shoulders. “Can you walk, Princess?” I nodded. “Tired, and a little painful, but I’m fine. I can make it up there.” “You’re sure?” Christian asked from the other side of him. For someone who’d ‘almost’ been staked in the heart, he was quite chipper. “Sure,” I promised. “But I’m not sure I’m talking to you. You scared the crap out of me.” They all chuckled except for Stephan. I was worried about him. The others just seemed as if they were happy to be alive, but not him. Of course, they hadn’t killed anyone tonight and he had. I made a mental note to spend some private time with him, maybe ask him about what he’d done. Sometimes when you were down, you just needed someone else to point out the awesome things about you. And Stephan Ravana was one of the best. Top four to be exact. At least in my heart. He pushed the door open to their second biggest house. We walked in and Isabelle was there immediately, giving out hugs to the sons she hadn’t seen yet. Gregor stood behind her, looking properly relieved to see everyone in his family was alive and well. Isabelle hugged Christian the longest, definitely not liking the red stain all over his shirt. I couldn’t get past looking at Gregor though. He’d voted to kill that innocent baby. He tore a family apart. Why? Isabelle ushered us into the living room.

Christian excused himself to run upstairs quickly while the rest of us sat. Connor and Nic pulled me down between them on the couch. Stephan sat in an armchair, and Gregor and Isabelle sat in the couch facing us. “Tell me everything that happened,” Gregor said, his voice taking on the position of authority and forgoing any fatherly kindness. “Do we have to do this right now?” Nic asked. “Christian nearly died and if Stephan hadn’t stopped Ri from bleeding, she would be in worse shape than she is right now.” His father raised one dark eyebrow at him. “Ri?” “Yes, Ariana. Our guard.” I certainly didn’t fit that description. They’d had to save me from all this mess. Then again, I wouldn’t be in this mess if it weren’t for their father. I held Gregor’s gaze. “Kay is one…” I cleared my throat and started again. The back of my mouth burned and I had to push back the tears. I shouldn’t feel bad for the woman who tried to kill me and damn near almost succeeded in killing Christian, but it was obvious she wasn’t thinking straight. She’d been driven mad by the vampire rules that didn’t make any sense. “She was clearly out of it with grief,” I stated simply. Being as diplomatic as possible, I continued, “She did not agree with your decision to kill her child, and then

when she found Royce dead, she couldn’t cope. She kept saying it was your fault.” “I am the reason Royce Michaelson killed himself?” Bitterness was swallowing me, but I tried not to let it. “If he’d just listened to you,” Nic said. Christian finally returned from upstairs with a fresh shirt on. He sat on the carpet in front of me and leaned back against my legs. “What did I miss?” “Kay blamed Dad for Royce’s death.” “Well, we knew that,” Christian said, his thumb tracing over my feet. I’d lost my shoes, and I had no idea when or where. “You asked,” Nic said. “I was just filling you in.” Gregor almost rolled his eyes. Before it could turn into an epic argument, I started again, “She also said that others were supposed to be at the bridge with her. Others that also wanted revenge on you and your family.” The Ravanas all exchanged glances, but none of them said anything. I sighed. My arm was killing me, my cheek where it had laid against that hard cement for God knew how many hours was also pulsing, and no one was giving me any answers. “So, what’s going on?” I demanded. “From where I sit, it sounds as if Kay

had a legitimate gripe.” Gregor turned a hard gaze on me. I held up my hand. “Not about Royce killing himself, but about the baby. I can see why she was upset about that. No, not enough to kidnap me to try to get your sons hurt, but I can understand her pain.” “It’s not like that,” Nic said. “He—” “Don’t,” Gregor said, steeling his son with a look. Nicolai shook his head. “I told Ri I wouldn’t lie to her anymore. If she’s going to be our guard, she needs to be told everything so she can see where the threats are.” He turned to me on the couch. “Yes, our dad was the deciding vote on whether or not the baby should be killed, but he also told Royce privately that he would help them.” “Royce has always been too hasty in his decisions,” Gregor explained. “What were you going to do?” “I told him I would take Kay away so she could have the baby. If she wanted to continue as his guard, there could be no more relationship. They also couldn’t keep the child, but she could still stay on with him. If she wanted to keep the baby, she’d have to leave. It was the best alternative to their situation.” “An alternative that didn’t break any laws,” Nic chimed in. “And he knew this before he killed himself?”

“We’d set up a meeting for today, actually. Then the Rajyvik’s announced they were bringing home their new son. Another vampire being introduced into our world takes precedence over everything else. I told him we would meet tomorrow. He, evidently, couldn’t wait.” Sorrow cut deep into my bones. If he’d just waited, if he’d just listened to Gregor when he said he would help him, none of this would’ve happened. No, it wasn’t the happy family I was sure they were dreaming about, but it didn’t all have to end like it did. I shook my head and sat back on the couch. Both Connor and Nic instinctively moved closer to me. “Is there anything else you can think of that would be of help to us, Ariana?” Isabelle asked. “You mentioned there were supposed to be others there.” I took a deep breath and told them everything I could remember. “There was one guy at the house with her, but I’m sorry, I didn’t see his face. I only heard his voice so I couldn’t even tell if he was guard or vampire. He seemed to be helping her, maybe even calling the shots. Then, someone called her on the phone when we first got to the bridge. I just assumed it was the same guy. Kay got mad because they were supposed to be there with her so she wasn’t outnumbered. In fact, she started to drive away, but he must have told her they were

coming. That’s when Zeke stepped out of the car. She just kept saying ‘we’ a lot, but she didn’t mention any names. I’m sorry.” Isabelle nodded. Her forehead had deep creases that weren’t there earlier. “It’s okay,” she said, offering me a small smile. “I’m just glad you’re all safe now.” “Yes, me too,” Gregor said. Looking at him, though, he looked deep in thought, reminding me of Christian. I doubted he would let any of this go. His mind most likely already contemplating who Kay’s accomplices were. She’d been so sure there were others who wanted their revenge on the Ravanas as much as she did. It wasn’t surprising that someone with so much power such as Gregor Ravana had enemies. He probably knew who they were, too. He had to at least have an inkling of who it could be. Someone who he’d angered in the past probably. The princes started to give their father a playby-play of what happened that I was happy enough to tune out. I wanted to ask Gregor my own questions, but since we were done talking about their enemies now, I’d have to wait for another time. When they got to the part where Stephan broke Kay’s neck, I looked over at him on the armchair. He looked green as if he could barely keep it together. My heart went out to him. I didn’t know what it was like to take a life. But didn’t he

realize she could’ve easily taken one of our own— almost did, in fact? I would think that would give him a little solace. Isabelle rose from her seat, telling everyone she would bring in drinks. She squeezed Stephan’s shoulder on the way through and he looked up and gave her a small smile. That was comforting, at least. Nic followed her into the kitchen. They weren’t gone very long when they came out with trays of water for everyone. When Nic sat down next to me, he said, “You’re staying here with us tonight.” I looked over my shoulder at him, my eyebrows halfway up my forehead. “That’s probably not a good idea.” He bumped his shoulder into mine. “You’re not going back to The Fort right now where you’ll have to be alone. Plus, Stephan needs to keep a look out for your injuries. Mom said it’s fine. She was going to invite you to stay anyway.” “You’re sure?” I asked. He nodded, then turned toward his father. “I know it’s late, but I’m starving.” “It’s not late, it’s early, Nicolai,” his father said. “I’ll take that as my cue to make breakfast,” Isabelle said. “Gregor, you can help me in the kitchen.” He looked at her as if she was crazy, but she

pulled on his shirt and he reluctantly followed her. It was a relief to have them gone and be alone with the princes. “Stephan?” He looked toward me. His usually bright green eyes were dull. “Come here,” I said. “Please?” I gave him a sweet look I knew would be hell for him to turn down. The other guys on the couch made room for him, Connor even slipping down to the floor to sit next to Christian. When Stephan sat next to me, I leaned into his side. “Thank you for saving me, both times.” “You did what you had to do,” Nicolai said. Stephan nodded though he didn’t look at any of us. “One of us would’ve done it if you didn’t,” Connor added. He still kept nodding. I took his hand in mine. It was colder than I would’ve liked. When I squeezed it though, he squeezed back. Hope filled my chest. Stephan would get past this. I knew he would. It would be a terrible memory, one he’d never be able to get rid of like my mom in the car accident and seeing Christian bleeding out on the road, but eventually, the pain would fade and it would just be a mute numbness that would accompany it. “So, we’re having a sleepover?” I asked.

“Not my kind of sleepover,” Nic said. The other guys chuckled. “I just want to be close to you guys for a while.” Looking at all of them, a rush of emotion punched from my chest. We were all okay. Even Stephan looked back at me, a knowing look in his eyes. He felt the same way, too. We just needed to be with each other right now. That’s how we would heal and get past this. That’s how we would strengthen and get ready for whatever was going to come after us next. Nic touched my cheek, Connor and Christian rubbed my legs, and Stephan squeezed my hand. I wished I could say this was probably the worst thing that would ever happen to us, but I wasn’t under any illusions. I’d chosen this life, or at least, it had chosen me. I was going to guard four vampire princes who already had enemies. Enemies we didn’t even know yet. The vampire world was in turmoil and the princes were front and center. It didn’t matter though. As long as we were together, we’d get through anything.

Epilogue Christian looked at me skeptically. “Are you sure you want to do this?” I smiled at his hesitation. He was something else. The truth was, the wound Kay had given me on my arm hadn’t healed all that well. Stephan did the best he could with what he had at the time, but I was sporting a long, light-skin colored scar on my arm. It wasn’t even in one straight line. It was kind of jagged, and ugly. I didn’t want to have to look at it every day and remember what happened. I wanted to replace it with something happy, something that meant something to me.

Yes, I was getting a tattoo. And Christian didn’t approve, which kind of made it even better. He really didn’t like when I suggested he do the same. But really, looking at him, he didn’t have anything to cover up. What with his perfect vampire blood and all, Stephan didn’t need to do half as much work on him and he’d been fine. It was only the human, who was less hurt than he was, that would have to live with the gross scar the rest of her life. Well, not anymore. “I think it’s badass,” Nic said as he pulled the Jeep out of The Fort parking lot. We’d squeezed all five of us in there. They’d really taken to heart what I said about wanting to be around them all the time. No one on the outside was really batting an eye after what happened to all of us either. Thankfully. “But she won’t even tell us what she’s getting,” Connor said. “What if it’s like a turtle or something? How could that be badass?” “A turtle? Seriously?” Even Stephan laughed at that. “Okay, I’ve got a cool game,” I said. “You guys tell me what tattoo you think I’m getting.” All of them were silent for a little while as they thought this through. I waited with a smile on my face. I was pretty sure I was going to stump them all. I didn’t think they would guess it. Not in a million years.

While they thought, I stared out the windshield from the backseat. Since I was the smallest, I agreed to ride the hump. I was squished between Connor and Stephan. Nicolai drove while Christian called the front seat. After I got my tattoo, we were going to head over to our pizza place and act like it was old times. “I got it,” Connor said. “I think you’re going to get an I heart Ravana tattoo. You know with an actual heart filled in with red and everything.” I burst out laughing. “Nope. Sorry. Hate to break it to you, but that was literally the last thing on my mind.” Though, I didn’t mind the sentiment. That I actually did like. “Lame,” Stephan said. “Fine.” Connor nodded toward him next. “You’re turn. What do you think Ariana is getting tattooed on her arm?” Stephan passed his thumb over his bottom lip while he thought. “A butterfly. Girls always get butterflies.” I made a buzzer sound with my mouth. “Nope. Try again.” I squeezed his hand to let him know I’d been joking. We’d had several talks about what happened that night and I knew we’d need several more to process through it all. It didn’t matter. I’d talk as long and as much as he needed to get through this. “Alright, I’m next,” Nic said. “I think she’s

going to trace the scar with barbed wire. Then have it loop around her arm so all the other trainees know not to mess with her.” “Not a terrible idea, but nope. Sorry.” Stephan pushed Christian’s shoulder. “You’re our last hope, man. What do you got?” He held up his hands. “I don’t want any part of this.” We’d already done the requisite teasing, asking him if he was afraid of needles, which he adamantly denied. “Why?” I asked. “Come on, it’s just for fun.” He turned around in his seat. “I think you’re perfect the way you are. You don’t need a tattoo to cover it up. There. You happy?” He smiled to let me know he was joking. My “aww”, was drowned out by the rest of the guys’ groans. “Sure, butter her up,” Nic said. “Everyone of us could’ve said the very same thing.” “Yeah, but…you didn’t,” Christian teased. “So, you going to tell us or what?” Connor asked. I shook my head. “I want it to be a surprise.” They all groaned again, even Christian. “Don’t get mad at us if we don’t like it then,” he said. “Oh, I won’t be mad. I’ll be furious.” Connor laughed next to me, the carefree sound bouncing around the interior of the Jeep.

“Honestly though. You guys will like it. I’m not worried.” At that, Nic finally pulled into the tattoo shop parking lot. A guy named Jared was going to be inking me today. I’d already spoken to him over the phone and even sent a rough—very rough—sketch of what I wanted. I couldn’t wait to see what he’d turned it into. “You’re scaring me,” Stephan said as he helped me out of the Jeep. “You’re acting like a kid on Christmas.” “Do you guys even celebrate Christmas?” “Well, yeah. Vampires like presents as well as the next guy.” Stephan held the door open for me and I stepped into the shop. The guy behind the counter looked up. He had a short mohawk with the sides shaved and a single diamond stud nose earring. “You must be Ariana.” “That’s me,” I said, grinning. “Great. Nice to finally meet you in person. If you’ll all just come back here.” I turned and stood in front of the guys. They’d all taken a step forward, but I stretched my hands out. “Nope. No way. You guys wait here. You can see when I’m done.” Nicolai looked at Jared with a frown. I’ll be fine, I mouthed. After all, what was he going to do? Tattoo me to death. The rest of the guys took seats

in the waiting area. I waited for Nic to sit down before I followed Jared back. “So,” he said, clearly pleased with himself. “This is what I have for you.” My breath caught as I stared down at the seethrough paper. It was exactly what I’d wanted. Four distinct ropey vines twisting in, out, and around a single tulip. The flower represented me, of course, and the vines were the princes. It showed that we were all connected, five separate people that had all come together for one purpose. Linked, not just for a period of time, but for all time. That’s why I wanted this tattoo to cover up the scar. “What do you think?” I asked him, holding up the paper to my arm. “It’s gonna look sick,” he said. I smiled to myself and watched as he got to work. He sat me in the chair and I waited as he traced the design on my arm. I didn’t get really nervous until the buzz of the needle sounded. “It’s going to pinch,” he said. I shook my head and bit down on my lip. I didn’t want to cry out because four vampires would be running in the room after me if I did. No one wanted that. I’d end up with some weird tattoo line on my arm from Jared being scared half to death, and who knew what they would do to him. Okay. Jared was wrong. It didn’t pinch. It

literally felt like the needle was tearing through my skin, especially when he was coloring it in. Wow. I was really glad now that I hadn’t looked up any videos or searched online how much tattoos hurt. I never would’ve been brave enough to get it done if I had. I sat in the chair for hours while the princes waited outside. Finally, Jared finished. He put the instrument of torture away, wiped my arm off and smiled down. “Like I said, sick.” I peered down and smiled, my heart filling to capacity. I’d always have them with me now. “It looks awesome. Seriously, thank you so much.” He brought around a mirror so I could look at it up close. It was utterly perfect. Exactly how I wanted it. All the vines had their own distinct shape and twists and turns, but all of them eventually wound around the flower and through it—through me. “Can I call them in now? I don’t want to put the bandage on it before they’ve seen it.” “Please,” I said, grinning from ear-to-ear. He helped me out of the chair and then went into the other room to get the guys. I turned with my opposite shoulder toward them so neither one could sneak a peek before the other. Finally, they were all in the room and looking at me with varying degrees of interest. “Ready?” They all nodded.

I turned, holding my arm out for them to see. “Wow,” Nic said, his eyes widening just a little. They all came closer. Stephan’s eyebrows were practically in his hair. Connor’s grin matched my own. I searched out Christian. He was closer than the others, inspecting it. “That’s…cool. I admit it,” he finally said. “Yeah?” “It’s beautiful,” he said. He winked at me, leaving the last part unsaid. Just like you. Nic started talking to Jared about his own tattoo ideas while the other three still stared down at mine. “Four vines?” Stephan asked. “Four,” I said. “No more, no less.” “I get why you wanted it now,” Christian said. “I might even scar my body for something like that.” “It was already scarred,” I said, pushing him lightly in the shoulder. Connor touched the outline. “It’s perfect,” he said. “I agree.” Nic came over and threw an arm around my shoulder, careful not to touch my sensitive skin. “Ready to head to the pizza place?” We agreed and then waited as Jared patched me up like he said he would while he gave me strict instructions on how to take care of my tattoo.

When we left, Stephan shook his head. “Forget all that. I’ll just rub some of my salve on you. You’ll be fine. I bet it heals right away.” I had no doubt about that. That stuff worked wonders. Nicolai squeezed the back of my neck. “Don’t think I didn’t get the context behind the tattoo, Ri. I love it. Amazing choice.” I smiled up at him. His eyes glittered. We all piled into the Jeep and I took a moment to just sit back and take this for what it was, a perfect moment. We were all happy, laughing, joking. They knew how much they meant to me and I knew how much I meant to them. Life was good.

The end AUTHOR’S NOTE Thank you so much for reading the first part of Ariana’s story in Chosen By Darkness! I’ll continue with Into the Darkness, the next part of Ariana’s story soon! If you don’t want to miss it, “Follow” my author page on Amazon and you will be notified of all my new releases. You can also like my Facebook page for snippets and teasers.

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