Page 74 of Bound By Blood

“I need you to sign this, please.” He held out a digital clipboard.

“Certainly.” Wondering what on earth could be in such a large box, Kaitlyn reached for the clipboard, gasped when the man grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her outside. Before she could scream, he jabbed a needle in her arm. The effect was immediate. As if in slow motion, she watched him lift the lid on the box. She tried to scream when he picked her up, but only a whisper emerged. She tried to fight him off, but she had lost all control of her arms and legs. As if she was a rag doll, he dumped her into the box and replaced the lid.

And her world faded to black.

Zack rose with the setting of the sun, his first thought for Kaitlyn. He took a quick shower, pulled on a pair of clean pants and a gray shirt, combed his hair, and left his room.

As soon as he stepped into the corridor, he knew something was wrong. The sound of angry voices drew him toward the council chamber. He paused outside the door. It was closed and he hesitated to go inside. Until he heard Kaitlyn’s name.

When he stepped into the room, all eyes swung in his direction. Zack nodded at Drake, who stood on the dais in the front of the room. Elena stood beside her husband, her face pale, her eyes swollen and red. The thirteen chairs at the horseshoe-shaped table were all occupied.

“Zack,” Elena said, “do you know where Kaitlyn is?”

He shook his head. “I haven’t seen her since last night. Why? Is something wrong?”

“She’s missing. We’ve looked everywhere. No one has seen her since late this morning,” Elena said. “I even checked your room while you were sleeping …” She smiled apologetically.

Zack looked from Elena to Drake. “You don’t think that I …”

“No, of course not,” her father said. He sat down heavily. “There can be only one answer,” he said, his voice as cold as glacier ice. “Nadiya.”

“But how?” Stefan asked.

“A good question,” Ciprian said. “Since Kaitlyn’s return, we have placed additional wards around the Fortress to warn us of intruders.”

“Maybe the intruder didn’t come in,” Zack remarked. “Maybe Katy went out.”

Drake stared at him a moment, then nodded. “Andrei, I want you to go to the Korzha estate and see if anyone is there. Liam, go to the Russian Fortress and see if they have heard anything. Stefan, visit the Italians, Ciprian, the Fortress in Ireland. If we want to find Kaitlyn, we must find Nadiya.”

Zack shook his head as he listened to Drake assign the other members of the council to Fortresses throughout the world. It was, he thought, a waste of time and energy. But he understood Drake’s need to be doing something, anything.

Leaving the council chamber, Zack returned to his room and shut the door. Standing in the middle of the floor, he closed his eyes and opened his vampiric senses, searching for the blood bond that had been forged between himself and Kaitlyn.

After twenty minutes, he gave up. Either she was dead—an option he refused to consider—or she was unconscious.

Swearing under his breath, he began to pace the floor. Whether she was dead or alive, he would find her, and God help the man or woman who had taken her.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Lucien looked up, smiling, when he saw Nadiya striding toward him. “I can see by the look on your face that you have good news.”

“Indeed.” She took the chair beside him. “The Carpathian Fortress will soon be ours. I have a bargaining chip that Sherrad cannot ignore.”

“What have you done?” he asked, suddenly wary.

“I have his daughter.”

“Are you mad? He will kill you for that.”

“This is no time to lose your nerve, Lucien! The Fortress is within our grasp.”

“Where is the girl?”

“Heavily drugged and in a secure location.”

“I see.” He braced his elbows on the arms of his chair and studied her over his steepled fingers. “So, what are your plans?”

“Ready your men. I have sent a messenger to Sherrad telling him to abandon the Fortress immediately.”

---