“I mean it, Alana.” He lets go of my hand and starts to walk away, pulling a syringe out of his pocket. “Don’t do anything that’ll mess this case up.”
I nod again and stab my fingernails into my palms until they cut through my skin. Then I focus on the pain and the blood dripping from the wounds as I head toward the car.
One …
Two …
Three …
I count each step as I walk, refusing to look at the vampire, knowing if I do, I’ll lose my willpower. When I reach the car and duck my head to get inside, my gaze takes a mind of its own and wanders toward her just in time to see her lunge at Jax with her fangs out.
He dodges around her and swings around, moving the syringe to stab the back of her neck. But she also reels around; springs in the air, soaring at least twenty feet high; and lands on him with so much force he hits the ground like a bag of bricks. The syringe flies from his hand as she climbs on top of him and wraps her fingers around his neck. Her lips start to move. I don’t know what she’s saying. All I can tell is that Jax is trying to get back up, but he can’t.
Just how strong is she? That thought is followed by, What the hell did they do to her in those facilities?
As she begins to choke him, squeezing the life from his body, my control shatters like a fragile piece of porcelain. I run to him, a scalding, unfamiliar power pulsating through my veins. I feel alive. Free. Like I could do anything. Even kill a freakishly strong vampire. And when I reach her, I let that power unleash as I barrel into her, knocking her off Jax. We slam to the ground, and the gravel tears at my skin as I wrestle to get on top of her and fasten my fingers around her windpipe. My grip tightens. My lips curl into a snarl. But Nadene only laughs, her hair sprawled around her head, her eyes sparkling elatedly. She couldn’t be more relaxed.
“Stupid girl,” she says. “That’s not how you kill a vampire, especially not a vampire like me.”
I grip more tightly until my hands ache, and she cackles, her laugh echoing across the parking lot, as she lets her head fall back. She stares up at the stars, laughing hysterically.
When her neck arches, I catch a glimpse of the tattoo on her neck. The sight of it makes my blood burn.
“Why did you kill them?” I demand. “Tell me.”
“Kill who?” she says through her laughter.
I squeeze harder on her neck. “Don’t play dumb. You know who I’m talking about. The North Kingdom fey.”
“Oh, is that what this is about?” Her laughter dies, but the pleased smile on her face remains. “I thought this was about what’s going on with you.”
Icy cold fear slithers up my spine. “Why would this be about me?”
She lifts her head and whispers, “Because I know what you are.”
My fingers stiffen, my heart thrashing in my chest. “You’re lying.”
She grins at me, her body relaxing under mine, as if she doesn’t have a care in the world. “I thought you’d figured it out, but I guess you haven’t gotten that far yet. I’m not lying, though. I know what you are, and I could tell you, but rogues are sworn to secrecy. If we speak of such things, we die.”
I crane my fist back and bash my knuckles against her face with surprising force. “Tell me what you know! About me! About these rogues!”
She laughs maddeningly, like a person tripping on acid. “Try all you want, Alana, but you know better than to try to beat a vampire to death.”
“Yeah, I do know better.” I reach behind me and feel around for a sharp rock, figuring I’ll bash it against her chest until it punctures her heart, but Jax crouches down in front of me.
“Let her go, Alana.” His voice is steady, his gaze strong and powerful. “Let me take care of this.”
My hands tremble against her neck as I shake my head. “I-I can’t.”
He fixes his finger under my chin, forcing me to look at him. “Yes, you can.” His silver eyes glow fiercely as he carries my gaze. “You have to fight that murderous hunger you’re feeling. Do you hear me? Fight. It.”
It’s like he completely understands the battle going on inside me, the battle to be me again and the battle to get Adaliya’s revenge. My grip gradually slackens around Nadene’s neck, and I lean back, winning the internal battle for the moment.
The tension in Jax’s eyes alleviates as he removes his finger from my chin. “Thank God.”
Nadene laughs, throwing her head back and kicking her feet as she laughs. “You’re so stupid—”
Jax silences her by plunging the syringe into her neck. Her body goes limp below me as her eyelids drift shut, and her head slumps to the side.
“What was in that?” I ask as I crawl off Nadene.
“Siren’s blood. Layla gave me some when we were at her place.” He tosses the syringe on the ground, bends over, scoops Nadene over his shoulder, and heads toward the car. “It should knock her out for a few hours.”
I follow after him, dusting the dirt and pebbles off my jeans. “Just long enough to get her back to the academy so we can question her, right?” Deep down, I know it’s the right thing to do, but part of me feels severely disappointed that Nadene’s blood isn’t all over my hands.
He stops in his tracks and looks at me. “You did the right thing, Alana. It may not feel that way now, but after the magic in you wears off, it will. And I’m …” He wavers, deciding something, “proud of you.”
His words soften the disappointment lingering inside of me. I cross my fingers, hoping he’s right, hoping the need to kill disappears. I hope I’ll be myself again.
Chapter 17
The drive back to the academy feels endless as my senses remain in tune with Nadene. Sure, Jax put her in the trunk, but the thin barrier barely puts a dent in the emotional connection I feel to Adaliya’s desire to kill her.
I keep my hands balled into fists, the window rolled down, and talk Jax into letting me blast some music in an attempt to drown out my murderous thoughts. He seems in a hurry as he speeds down the highway, taking corners sharply and barely slowing down when the speed limit drops. I don’t blame him. The last thing we need is to be driving when the siren’s blood wears off.
We haven’t talked yet about what Nadene said to me in the parking lot or what happened between Jax and me on the dancefloor. I find myself desperate to talk to him about it, to figure stuff out—well, talk about what happened in the parking lot, anyway. I’m way less eager to talk about the sexy dance moment that happened between us. That still has me super confused.
When we near the school, I lean forward in the seat and twist the volume of the radio down. “So, what comes next? I mean, what happens when we get back to the academy? Do you just put her in, like, a jail or something until she’s sentenced?”
“No. First, I interrogate her and try to get a confession out of her and maybe some of the names of the other vampires who aided in the murders of the North Kingdom fey.” He glances in the rearview mirror, checking on the trunk for at least the hundredth time. “But then, yes, after she confesses, she’ll go to jail, wait to be tried, and then more than likely be sentenced to the Underworld where she’ll endure centuries of torture by the water fey.”
“Yeah, I knew about the torture part. Although, I wonder if anything will change now that they’re out.”
“Doubtful or we probably would’ve heard about it by now.”
“I guess so.” I stare at my hands, my fingers covered in dirt and blood. They don’t feel like they belong to me anymore, but I’m certain the shame washing through me does. “She knows what I am. Nadene said she knows what I am, but she can’t tell me because she’s a rogue.” I fold my fingers inward and elevate my gaze to him. “What if I’m something terrible? Some horrible, freakish monster who can do awful things?”
He shakes his head, rubbing at a spot of blood on his unshaven cheek. “You’re not.” His gaze welds with mine. “I know that for a fact.”
I wrap my arm around my waist as an ill feeling twists in my gut
. “How do you know that? If the Elec—they want me, it has to be for a reason. And considering they’re murderers, I doubt that something is for the greater good.”
“Just because you have powers, it doesn’t mean you have to use them for evil. Whenever a vampire or wolf is turned, they’re faced with a choice: be good or be evil. Some choose the first. Others choose the latter. But it’s still a choice.” Keeping one hand on the wheel, he reaches over with his free hand and grazes his knuckles across my cheek. “And you’ll make the first choice when and if you change.”
My heart settles from the sensation of his knuckles against my skin. I don’t know if he’s doing some sort of freaky, relaxing wolf magic on me, but if he is, I’m glad.
“But I’m not even completely good right now,” I say quietly. “I make stupid decisions. I judge certain creatures before I ever meet them.”
“You may do crazy things that piss me off, but you always have a good motive for almost everything you do.” He returns his hand to the steering wheel, and I internally sigh. “And as for the judgment thing, you’re getting better.” He brakes, slowing down the car as we near the turn off to the school. “You’re a good person, Alana. I can tell.”
A faint smile graces my lips. “Yeah, yeah, we’ll see if you still say that tomorrow when I do something else to piss you off.”
He overdramatically nods but then smiles. “You may piss me off and drive me absolutely insane, but I’ve never thought of you as a bad person.”
“Thanks,” I say. “I think, anyway.”
His smile grows then fades as he parks in front of the school entrance. “Now comes the tricky part.”
I unclip my seatbelt. “Why’s this part tricky? Can’t you just pick her up like you did in the parking lot and carry her?”
“Yeah, but I want to get her in”—he nods at the trunk—“without Vivianne knowing. If she is the princess of the North Kingdom, the last thing we need is for her to find out we have a territory vampire here.” He latches onto the door handle and shoves open the door to get out.
I follow, hopping out of the car and stretching out my arms and legs. I breathe in the fresh air, my head feeling less foggy than it did minutes ago. That has to be a good sign that the magic inside me is vanishing.
After Jax shuts the car door, he rounds the back of the car and sends a text to Dash to come out and help us get Nadene inside, not because Jax can’t carry her, but because he’s worried she’ll wake up while he’s hauling her to the interrogation room.
I stand beside him, throwing glances toward the forest, questioning if anything is out there. The only light comes from the inside the school and the moonlight, and seeing farther than twenty feet away is next to impossible.
“That’s strange,” he mutters as he reads an incoming text. “I asked Dash about Vivianne, and he said she isn’t here. She’s been gone all day, and no one’s heard from her.”
“Maybe she’s doing the same thing as us and trying to track down the territory vampires.” I hug my arms around myself. “Only, she’s not doing it for the case.”
“I don’t know.” Jax’s punches in something on his phone. Moments later, the screen lights up as a text pings through. He grits his teeth. “Dammit.”
I inch toward him. “What’s wrong?”
“Dash and his stupidity.” He shakes his head. “He’s been tailing Vivianne all day instead of going to his classes. Right now, he’s tailed her to Glamor & Glitter & Wings, some all-exclusive fey club in New York City.”
Suspicion rises inside me. “If it’s only for fey, how did he get in?”
He avoids eye contact with me. “I can’t answer that right now.”
Well, at least he’s being honest.
“I’m sure he’ll be okay,” I say. “And maybe it’s a good thing he’s tracking her. Then maybe we can find out what she’s up to and if she’s this princess.”
“And if she’s the rogue Layla told us about.”
“You thought that, too?”
“Yeah, but we can’t make any accusations until we find out more.” He moves his fingers across buttons on his phone. “I just hope Dash is more careful than he usually is.”
“I’m sure he will be,” I try to assure him.
“You don’t know him like I do. If you did, you wouldn’t say that.” He puts his phone away then turns and puts his undivided attention on me. “Thad should be out in a few seconds to help us get Nadene out to the morgue. There’s an interrogation room in the basement of the school, but I’d rather this remain quiet until we hear what she says. The last thing I want is for her to blurt out more about what you are in front of a bunch of cameras and other detectives.”
I glance at the forest I’m about to walk into then back at Jax. “Won’t you get in trouble for doing that?”
“My supervisor might get a little irked.” Noticing my wary expression, he adds, “Alana, we can’t risk anyone knowing about you. It’s too risky, not just for you, but for the people who find out. And with there being a rogue in the school …” A deafening exhale escapes his chest. “I think it’s better if we keep quiet about this for now.”
I’m starting to nod when Thad walks out of the school, wearing the same black jeans and dark hoodie he had on last night. He looks nervously around the grounds then trots down the steps to us. He doesn’t ask any questions or seem that shocked when Jax lifts open the trunk, revealing an unconscious vampire inside.
“Where are we taking her?” Thad asks, staring into the trunk.
Jax steps up to the trunk and peers inside. “To the morgue.”
Thad glances at him with confusion. “Do I even want to ask?”
Jax shakes his head. “I think the less questions you ask, the better.”
Nodding, Thad reaches in, picks up Nadene, and tosses her slackened body over his large, bulky shoulder.
“I could’ve carried her,” Jax says, slamming the trunk.
“It’s okay.” Thad starts for the stretch of grass that leads to the forest. “I like feeling useful.”
Jax nods, stuffs his keys into his pocket, and motions for me to follow as he heads after Thad.
As the three of us reach the forest and step inside the trees, any small conversation dies between us. We walk in stiff silence, listening to owls hoot, twigs snapping, and the howling of a wolf.
“Man, I really hate this place,” Thad mutters as he weaves through the trees.
“I do, too,” Jax agrees, hopping over a log. “But I’m really surprised you said that, considering it seems like you and my brother were out here last night.”
“We were inspecting the area for Vivianne.” Thad sighs as he swings around a large rock.
“Inspecting it for what?” Jax asks, tensing when another wolf howls.
“She never said,” Thad replies. “But I’m guessing she probably had us do it so she could make sure nothing was lurking around when she had that secret meeting in the forest with the empress of the Water Fey—” Thad suddenly soars through the air like a leaf blowing in the wind and lands near a thick tree with a thud. He blinks, stunned, as he staggers to his feet. “What the heck just happened?”
I open my mouth, but the words die on my tongue as I realize Nadene is no longer on Thad’s shoulder.
“Um, Jax—”
He cuts me off, rushing in front of me and placing a hand over my mouth. “Shhh …” He tilts his head to the side, listening, but the forest is eerily quiet except for the sound of my ragged breathing.
Jax lowers his hand from my mouth and walks a circle around me. “Whatever you do, don’t leave my side.”
I nod, bending over and grabbing a broken tree branch from off the ground to use for a stake. Thad follows my lead and does the same before edging toward us.
When he reaches us, he rubs his shoulder and winces. “She’s absurdly strong for a vamp. She’s probably the strongest I’ve ever seen.”
“Look at you. Three scared, little cowards.” Nadene’s shrill
cackle echoes through the forest as a blur zips through the trees and zooms out in front of us.
I shuffle back as fingernails clip my cheek and draw blood.
“Dammit, she cut me.”
She laughs, zipping through the trees, moving so swiftly my eyes can barely track her. Leaves fly through the air, the trees begin to tremble, and birds flee from the trees.
“Think you could take me down.” The blur darts back and forth in front of us, and Jax stalks the movement like prey. “You have no idea who you’re messing with.”
“You want to bet?” Jax starts to run forward, but an instant later, he drops to the ground, landing on his back hard.
Thad runs toward him but gets knocked down from behind and slams to the ground on his front.
Neither of them budge, and I start to fear they’re dead. But the trail of moonlight sneaking through the branches above offers just the right amount of light that I can tell they’re still breathing.
“You want to know why I haven’t taken you down yet?” Nadene asks, her laughter hitting me from every angle.
I turn in a slow circle with the tree branch positioned to strike. “Because you’re a coward.”
Her laughter dies, and a roar vibrates through the ground. “How dare you insult me like that! I may be a lot of things, but I’m definitely not a coward.”
“Prove it, then.” My gaze sweeps the trees. “Stop messing around and come out and fight fair.”
I don’t expect her to take the bait, so when she appears in front of me, I startle back in shock and nearly trip over a rock. I manage to get my footing before I fall flat on my ass, though.
Regaining my balance, I stand upright with the stake raised.
Her lip twitches with delight as she stands in the center of the trees, her hair dancing in the wind. “It’s like watching a child play dress up, pretending to be a warrior when really you’re just a scared, little girl.”
“I’m not scared.” My voice comes out smooth and even. “Not even a little bit.”
“You lie.” Her grin challenges me. “I can smell it all over you. You’re scared. Scared for yourself. Scared for your little friend over there.” She glances at Jax before her emotionless eyes land back on me. “That I’ll kill him, which I will. I’ll kill him and the ogre, slaughter them just like my clan and I did to the North Kingdom fey.” A sickeningly pleased smile possesses her face.