Page 117 of Enzo

I pay attention to the way her body tenses when she mentions that last one.

“What are sifters?”

She clears her throat. “Sifters can read minds. It’s rare, but highly sought-after in our world. A master sifter can not only read your mind, but they can also control it. Often causingsevere pain and manipulation of your thoughts and memories. They are by far the most dangerous in our world.”

That shit sounded dangerous. I didn’t like the idea of anyone being able to play in my head.

“How do you fight them?” That was what I wanted to know. How do I stand against an attack on my mind?

“It requires being mentally tough and being able to ground yourself in order to combat a sifter. Not everyone can do that.”

“What’s grounding yourself?”

She looks away before answering. “Everyone has a memory of something that is important to them. It could be of a person or a place that brings you joy. When a sifter is manipulating your mind, it is the memories that are most important to you that will be your weapon. You have to find that powerful memory. One that stays with you, something that brings you peace and happiness. Lock on to it and it will always be your defense against a sifter.”

The last memory I have of Ana comes to my mind. Her smile that day as she laid on my chest. The way the sun shined through her golden locks. The color of her blue eyes as she looked up at me.“My sweet, Zo.”The sound of her soft voice as she stared up into my eyes. That’s my most solid memory.

“Not my mate,”my wolf growls, and immediately the memory disperses in my head.

“Don’t start,”I warn him.

“I need to shower before we head to the caves.”

I’m brought back to reality when her voice cuts through my thoughts. Tension tightens her lips. She seems upset.

She goes to walk away. But I just realized something.

“You told me five gifts. What about the sixth?”

She stops walking and turns to look at me. “Conduit.”

“And what’s a conduit?”

“A very rare ability given to vampires. So rare, many will go their entire lifetime and never know it exists. It is the power to absorb, mimic, and sense others’ abilities. And masters of this rare gift can even take powers from one being and give it to another.”

“That’s dangerous. You mean to tell me there is a vampire walking around that can damn near do anything?”

She shakes her head. “As I said, the gift is rare. You don’t have to worry.”

She turns to leave again. But I have one more question.

“What’s your gift?”

She stops and looks over her shoulder at me. “Now that, you will have to discover on your own.”

As fast as she came in, she’s gone again. Her last words sit with me. I now had a new challenge, figuring out her gift.

Three days ago, we found an old map of the area. On it was an old cave system. Michaela told us we needed to check out this cave. She said this would be a prime hiding spot for vampires. Today is that day.

Alarick and Michaela went left, and Zyion, Chayton, and I branched off to the right of the cave. So far, we have found evidence that someone was here. However, we have yet to find an actual vampire.

Chayton picks up an old pizza box and looks inside before tossing it amongst the other rubbish on the floor.

“They were here, but they’re gone now.”

That’s what I’m getting from all the old food trash. It looks a lot like the underground spot Michaela and I found with the other vampire and feral.

“Looks like it,” I say.

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