Page 7 of Shadow Bound

“I wouldn’t call you generous.”

“Really?” She raises a dark brow. “Considering I could have killed you six times over by now, I would say I’ve been incredibly generous.” Her eyes leave me for a second to look at the clock on the wall. “You’ll need to work fast if this plan is to work.”

I look at her skeptically. “Why the fuck should I believe a word out of your mouth? You work for Sterling and are loyal to him, are you not?”

Her eyes flare with anger and she presses the knife deeper. “There was a time that I was a loyal little soldier, but not anymore. I’m loyal to no one but myself now,” she sneers at me. “And if you don’t listen to me, he won’t just come for your precious little white wolf, he’ll come for all of you. He’ll smile while you beg for mercy and he’ll laugh when tears fall down your face as you watch your family die in front of you. I came here to warn you. I’ve given you a small window to save Pruitt—that’s all I can do. I’m not going to force you to listen to me, just know you’re sealing your whole pack’s fate if you don’t.”

I peer up at her face, trying to see past the blank expression she wears like armor. “What did he take from you?”

No one escapes Sterling unscathed.

“Everything,” she whispers. “Just like he’ll do to you if you don’t listen to me.”

She looks at me warily before removing the knife at my neck and standing up. She takes a few steps away from me as I follow her lead and also stand.

I’d originally vowed to kill the person who shot Pruitt, but now that she stands in front of me and her confession echoes in the air, I don’t know if I want to anymore. My wolf on the other hand is still itching to know what it’d be like to rip into her pale skin. He’s never been trusting.

We stand there for a second, just looking at each other. How can something so beautiful be so deadly? I guess the best things in life are like that—they lure you in, tempting you with their beauty and pretty words before destroying you.

“Who are you?” I ask her again, and this time I’m not asking so I’ll know the name of the person I’m going to kill. I’m genuinely curious what a creature like her is called.

“I’m no one,” she answers simply. “You’ll never see me again. I’ll be nothing but a shadow to you.”

“My wolf has your scent now,” I warn. “If we ever cross paths again, I’ll know.”

She holds up the blade that has a thin line of my blood on it. Eyes locked on mine, she raises it to her mouth and swipes her pink tongue across it. “And I have yours.” When her lips twitch, I get the fleeting sight of the tips of her fangs.

“Vampire.”

She backs away from me more, her hand reaching out into the shadows behind her. Sheathing her blade back in her belt, she shrugs her narrow shoulders at me. “Partially.” The shadows grow and her body quickly fades into them, becoming one with them again before completely disappearing. “Try not to get killed, Ransom.” Her disjointed voice floats through the air.

My wolf snarls at the sound of my name on her lips, but it sends a shiver down my spine like her words have caressed me.

She knows my name, but I have no idea what hers is; and for some godforsaken reason, that fact fucking aggravates me.

Three Months Ago

I’m bored out of my mind.

There were days when my training was so brutal, I would hope for a boring job like the one I have now, but now that I’ve been standing in this shadowy corner observing the crowd of corrupted socialites for hours, I’d take a grueling training exercise from Nessa over this.

Alexandre and I were brought here to act as extra security for a very important auction taking place. Vance, one of Sterling’s men, has been put in charge of the whole event. I have no idea why Sterling would trust him with something so important. He’s a fucking idiot. Sterling didn’t hire him for his brilliant mind though. Vance is just another one of Sterling’s sheep; he follows orders like the dog he is.

No one would survive the horror show that is Sterling’s organization if they didn’t like inflicting a little pain on others. And by a little, I mean a lot. I was raised in one of the facilities Sterling keeps his little experiments in. I know this operation like the back of my hand. I could destroy it if I wanted to and I swear there are days I want to burn it to the ground.

There’s only one thing stopping me from doing it.

Alexandre.

If I want to destroy Sterling’s operation, I would have to first take out my brother and no matter how cold I become, I can’t. He believes in Sterling’s plan and will defend it with his dying breath. There’s a lot of things I can do without batting an eye, but I can never be the one who kills Alex. Though he’s not the same Alexandre I knew and protected most of my life. He’s changed just as much as I have.

Where I’ve fought hard to hold on to the thin, fading pieces of my soul, Alexandre’s soul has been burned away. The things I adored about him no longer exist, I cling to the memory of what he once was because despite everything, he’s the only family I have.

I still haveher, but Nessa doesn’t count as family.

I roll my neck and grind my teeth together, irritation spreading through my stiff bones. I hate crowds. My oversensitive senses make it so I can hear and smell everything and everyone. The voices of the patrons sound through the air like a turning radio dial, different parts of their conversation cut in and out, but I don’t focus on what they’re saying. I hear every breath they take and every beat of their collective hearts. I wish I’d been able to wear my wireless earbuds, so I could drown out some of the sound with music, but Vance wouldn’t allow it. And even though I could snap his neck in less than a second, he’s in charge.

The intoxicating scent of the guests’ blood mixes with the perfumes they wear and the expensive liquor they drink. They mingle about in their prestigious clothing, laughing and chatting like attending an auction for human babies is a normal Thursday night event.

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