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“But they’re prisoners,” I said, suddenly feeling sick about him touching me. “What are you doing, Maurice? This doesn’t seem right.”

He chuckled in my ear before planting a gentle kiss on my cheek. “I don’t care.”

The room spun around me as my nerves took over. Did Maurice want me to hate him? Why was he acting so cruel? Did I really date, maybe even love, someone like this? I wished so badly I could remember everything.

He gripped my arm firmly, and I immediately attempted to wrench free. I had no strength over a vampire, though; I barely budged.

Maurice leaned down to whisper in my ear again. “Do you have something you want to say to me?” My heart raced, and it nearly exploded in my chest. I couldn’t speak. I just shook my head and looked down at my feet.

He let go of my arm and walked over to Clara as she entered the room. “We have all five, now. Alexander came in last night,” she said.

Alexander.

That name sounded familiar.

I stalked closer to the first clear stall and looked in. A young woman who looked about my age sat with her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth. How long had she been in here?

A man in his forties stood in the corner stall, his arms folded across his chest. He looked straight at me, but his face was fierce, like he wanted to rip me to pieces. I wanted to tell him I had nothing to do with this. Next was an older woman. Her silver hair was matted, and she was curled up in the fetal position. I couldn’t tell if she was sleeping, but she wouldn’t look up, either. The fourth was a beautiful blonde woman who stood against the glass and stared at me. She put her hand up and tapped. She was saying something, but I couldn’t hear it. Her eyes grew wide as she threw her hands up and screamed at me while hitting the glass. It startled me, so I backed up, my back slamming into Maurice’s chest. He wrapped his arms around me again, pulling me further back.

“That is Abigail,” he said. “She’s a wild one, isn’t she?”

I shook my head. “She’s trying to tell me something, Maurice.”

He leaned down to my ear. “Would you like to see the last one, my dear?” The coolness from his breath tickled my skin until each hair stood up on my neck. I didn’t want to be here anymore, but I nodded anyway.

When we reached the fifth stall, I looked at a middle-aged man, handsome, with dark brown hair, and the look he gave me was pained. His eyes searched mine as if something connected us in some way. I placed my hand on the glass, and he put his hand flushed with mine on the other side.

“Who is this man?” I asked.

Maurice was now by my side, but this man behind the glass only held my gaze.

“His name is Alexander.” He fisted my hair and pulled my head back. I winced.

“Maurice!” I cried out. “What are you doing? You’re hurting me!”

Once he released my hair, he straightened his back, attempting to control the beast inside him. I could see the anger contorting his features before he regained his calm. “We need their sacrifice to complete the spell. Then, we’ll needyou.”

He straightened his suit and bore his eyes into mine.

“Me?” I repeated.

Maurice grabbed my right hand and traced my palm with his index finger. “We need your beautiful green light to activate the potion as the last ingredient. You’ll be helping millions of vampires experience the freedom of the light.”

I shook my head. “But I don’t have any magic. You told me it had been taken from me.”

Clara stood in front of me now. “Julian,” she ordered. Julian was directly next to me, grabbing my arm and pulling me into the last stall at the end of the room. I tried to pry away his hands, which held me tightly, but he was too strong.

“Stop, Julian,” I cried. “Get the fuck off me!”

He slid open a glass door and threw me in. I landed on the hard floor with a thud, my knees crashing against the tile.

No.

Julian slid the door shut, raised his hands over the glass in a circle, and black smoke trickled from his fingers. He swirled it around until the door was sealed on the right side. I pulled at the handle, but it wouldn’t budge. I slammed my fist against it hard, but it wouldn’t break.

Shit! I’ll not be kept in a cage.

What is happening?

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