Page 227 of Caelum

It had been a long fifteen days at sea—we were stuck there if we were to remain incognito—and even using the jet had come with a risk that had me eager for Eve to finally disembark so we could be on our way to the University of Greenwich.

According to Samuel, Caelum was under red alert thanks to the infiltration we’d prevented, and the faculty was in disarray. But just because that was the case didn’t mean they didn’t have soldiers out there looking for us. Especially, as we’d feared, we were under suspicion thanks to the unfortunate timing of our leaving.

Though our numbers were smaller than the Ghouls, there were still hundreds of thousands of us. We had a well-established army, but it wasn’t enough to overcome our enemies, just to control them. And even then, that wasn’t always possible—the infiltration being proof of that.

Grimly absorbing that fact, I peered up at the dark sky that showed not a single star thanks to the heavy light pollution in the vicinity. The private airfield was a ninety-minute journey from the capital, but with the runway’s illumination, it made the stars impossible to behold. That was something I instantly missed. The long sail around the African coastline, and then years at Caelum, had spoiled me.

City living would no longer cut it.

When her scent drifted on the breeze, stronger even than the harsh scents of an airport, I turned and held out my hand for her.

My mate.

My body grew taut when our palms drifted across the other’s, and her rose-tinged cheeks showed me that she was just as affected by our touch.

Reaching over, I tilted up her chin with my hand, and as I stared into her eyes, I asked, “You okay?”

“I don’t like planes,” she answered, her tone wary as she peered back at the private jet.

“I know. They’re a mercy, though. Sometimes.” When she winced, I had to hide a smile.

A limo was waiting for us beside the jet, and I guided her over to it then helped her in. The rest of my Pack pounded their way down the airstairs and hustled into the limo behind her. Before I joined them, I caught the pilot’s eye and nodded my thanks. He waved at me politely in response before beginning the sequence that would prepare him for takeoff.

Leaving the jet for the limo wasn’t exactly a reprieve, not with another long journey ahead of us, but at least we could open the window and let some fresh air into the passenger compartment.

“I’m fucking beat,” Dre grumbled around a yawn as, like a dog, he leaned his arm against the window and stuck his face in the wind. Dude was a bear, not a wolf. He shouldn’t need reminding of that.

“Me too,” Stefan admitted. “I always hated flying, but that was the worst journey I’ve ever had.”

I knew what they meant. The one Caelum used was about fifteen times the size, almost a passenger airplane. By contrast, the jet was as large as this damn car. No matter how much luxury there was, it was still too small for our souls.

“Not long until we’re at the cottage,” I assured Eve, who had leaned herhead against Eren’s shoulder while tucking her hand in Samuel’s. The former didn’t surprise me—Eve found great comfort in Eren’s presence. I was kind of jealous, but equally grateful that she found that kind of succor in one of us—but the latter did. Samuel was the last to get her mark, after all, but they’d quickly grown close over the trip.

After a shaky start, Eve had begun feeding Samuel, with one of the Pack supplementing what she couldn’t manage. The feedings were imperative. Created an intimacy that I was, in truth, relieved Samuel had with Eve. Their origin story was pretty dicey, and one that had only gone down in the first place because Sam had wanted to protect the Pack from the faculty. It wasn’t fair that he should pay the price for that.

I’d admit, though, that it was weird not to have to feed from him in turn, but I was glad my time for that was over. I was a Sin Eater through and through now, and even though that soul wasn’t the most pleasant of the creatures, I was grateful that blood was something that ran in my veins and no longer down my throat.

“Good,” she mumbled, her eyes drifting closed. I empathized. We’d been on the go all day, and Eve, totally unaccustomed to travel after a lifetime of being in two places, was finding the constant motion of these past weeks hard on her system.

Today, we’d started off the morning anchoring the yacht, then had flown, and now we were driving. I wasn’t sure if there could be any worse way to spend a full twelve hours where Eve was concerned.

Though she was dozing, the rest of us were silent as we took in London. It had been a long time since any of us had been anywhere this metropolitan. The most we’d traveled at Caelum was to Africa, and not to any of the major cities in the nations there either. Just out of the way places where the local witch doctor was the nearest healthcare provider. Aboh was pretty much as cosmopolitan as it had been for a long time.

London was alive, even though it was late. It was not like how I remembered the one time I’d gone to New York when I was seven, but close, especially as we approached the center.

As we did, though, traveling down the M11 toward the house Samuel had purchased for us in Chelsea years back, I appreciated the lushness of the scenery. Even though we were on the road, because it was late at night, I could smell the grass verges framing the asphalt. After years at Caelum and being so close to Africa, the rich verdant area was a pleasure to the senses.

About forty-five minutes into our trip, a scent wandered into the limo. It had me frowning because I recognized it but hadn’t scented it this stronglybefore. My nostrils flared as I tilted my head to the side to process what it meant.

Where Ghouls were concerned, a Sin Eaters’ senses were preternatural. But because this was the first time I’d truly scented one since Eve had turned me, it took way too long to register what I was actually smelling. Beside me, though, Samuel jerked upright, jolting Eve, as tension swarmed through him.

“What is it?” Reed demanded, as surprised as everyone at Samuel’s sudden move.

“Blood. A lot of it.”

“Stop the car,” Stefan stated, his finger on the intercom that patched us through to the driver. The vehicle came to an abrupt halt on the side of the road, and within seconds we were all out, standing near something called Dave’s Chippy and Enders’ Greasy Spoon. I had no idea what either establishment actually served, nor did I care. Eve made to climb out of the car, but I shoved her back inside.

“What’s going on?” she asked warily, the drowsiness having slipped from her eyes in the panic of the moment, but we didn’t have time to chat. That amount of blood in the air meant it might already be too late for whoever was being feasted upon as we dawdled around.

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