Page 12 of Destined

“If you’re trying to get me to feel sorry for you, you’re wasting your breath.”

The vampire rolls his eyes and I force myself to hold back the urge to punch him in the throat. Several guards surround Mercy and the moment they put their hands on her, I forget all about the pup and my beast rises to hover just below the surface. My roar fills the small space and several of the vampire’s step back from Mercy. Probably expecting her to explode at any moment.

“Do not touch her!” I roar.

“Jarik, it’s okay.” Mercy tries to cajole me. Her eyes flick to the vampires surrounding her. “They won’t hurt me because if I blow up, so will they.”

The vampires surrounding her eye me nervously and I growl again, a little quieter this time.

“Take her.” The vampire pup at my side orders. Then he turns to me, “As soon as she’s out of the way I’ll take you to Marcus.”

The door slams shut as soon as Mercy exits the van.

I hate this. I want to release my beast and rip the blood sucking punk limb from limb, and then I want to beat the rest of them with his stumps until there is nothing left but a pulpy mess. Instead, I grit my teeth and bide my time.

An eternity passes before the door to the van opens again and the pup leads me outside. We’re at the back of the Den. The same entrance Luka and Jacob and I took before we left to find Mercy. The leech leads me through a maze of hallways and then down several flights of stairs into the very bowels of the Den, a place I’ve never spent much time in. At least not since I was a cub, and my father was faction leader. Despite my fuzzy memories, this part of the Den doesn’t seem to have changed much.

Another vampire is waiting for us at the end of a dark hallway and pulls open a door when we arrive. It’s little more than a closet, with a clear wall. I wonder briefly what it’s made of, since even the Kevlar infused stuff wouldn’t be strong enough to keep me from breaking through. As soon as I’m shoved inside, the door slams shut and bolts.

Across the room, on the other side of what is likely enchanted glass, is Marcus.

Nine

MERCY

Even though I fight them each step of the way with everything I have, the two guards pull me out of the van and into the building with ease. They appear human, but their strength is a giveaway that they are not. So is the way their eyes flash in the dim light. Are they shifters? I recall noticing Yesenia’s eyes did that sometimes, but I just assumed I was seeing things.

The further away from the van I’m taken, the faster my heart starts beating and my skin starts to crawl. This isn’t a part of the Den that I saw the last time I was here. It feels wrong to be here without Jarik. Not knowing what might be happening to him, especially now that our lives are tethered by these collars, has me terrified.

They take me down a hall with doors lining each side to the very end, where another set of guards are waiting for me. To my surprise, the room they put me in looks more like a sitting room, than a jail cell. There is an overstuffed armchair with a matching love seat, a coffee table with travel magazines from at least ten years ago and knock off Ansel Adams framed prints on the walls. There is even a fake palm tree in the corner with a layer of dust coating the fronds.

Only one of the guards leads me inside and the door is shut behind us. Guess they aren’t taking any chances by leaving me alone. The corners of my lips twitch a little at the thought that I might be considered that dangerous. Or maybe—more likely—they aren’t taking any chances with Jarik because there isn’t a doubt in my mind that he will move heaven and hell to come get me.

The guard lets out a heavy sigh and crosses the room to the armchair. Grabbing one of the magazines off the coffee table, he drops into the chair and props his feet up with a heavy sigh before making himself comfortable.

“So, what kind of monster are you?” I ask him, as I make my way to the love seat across from him.

He gives me a disinterested look over his magazine, then bares a set of wickedly sharp fangs.

“Oooh, vampire huh.” I curl my legs under me and lean against the arm rest trying not to let on that I had no idea that Vampires were real. What else is out there? Big Foot? Chupacabra? The Loch Ness Monster? “Guess that’s why you came for us in the middle of the night. It would be kind of awkward to try to walk us to the van only to burst into flames.”

He ignores me and turns the page of his magazine.

The silence in the room stretches until it turns oppressive. I try browsing one of the magazines, picking at my nails, counting ceiling tiles, but each passing moment leaves me feeling more and more twitchy. Until I’m finally able to put my finger on what, at least part of my problem is. Somewhere deep down, I’m feeling emotions that aren’t mine. How do I know they aren’t mine? Because these are volatile. A churning abyss of rage and worry while I’m only dealing with boredom.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m scared to death, but I don’t feel like I could take the entire Den apart, brick by brick, to get to what I desire most.

Without a doubt, I’m somehow channeling Jarik’s feelings right now. Which means he’s alive. Which, I guess I figured since I’m still alive too. But whatever is happening to him, isn’t good.

Something must have happened when I bit Jarik. I mean, that’s how it works in the books, right? Of course, it’s usually the other way around—and to be fair, there were subtle changes after he bit me first. But this is real life so who knows how it’s supposed to work. And if I can feel his emotions, maybe he can feel mine?

Settle down, monster-man.I think as hard as I can.I’m counting on you to have a clear head to rescue us from this mess.

Then I think about how much he’s come to mean to me. I’m not ready to admit the L-word yet, I’ve barely known him for… well, it definitely hasn’t been long enough to be falling in love. But I care for him. Like, a lot. Way more than I probably should.

I twist around so I’m lying across the love seat and my legs are draped over the opposite end. It takes some adjusting because the collar keeps digging into the back of my neck.

“So, about this collar,” I ask as I pull it into a more comfortable spot. “What does it do? Is it one sided, or will Jarik’s blow up if I do something.”

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