Ethan and I never did finish our conversation. Now, whenever I bring it up, he casually finds a way to change the subject without ever answering my question. Which means our situation may be worse than I thought. Not to mention he, Trudy, and Vivienne have formed some sort of secret circle the rest of us aren't privy to. Coaxing my jealousy to the surface.
But now isn't the time to be splitting hairs.
We need everyone we've got no matter how close they are to my mate.
Or how much I may want to gouge their eyes out.
It's insanely warm in Ethan's bedroom, which is amplified by the heavy comforter he must've covered me with sometime in the middle of the night. Sitting up, I set my feet onto the cold hardwood floor of his bedroom, and I am instantly struck with a feeling of foreboding. One that seems to intensify by the second.
Unable to breathe, I drop to my knees. Clenching my throat as it feels like a piece of my soul is being ripped from my being. Painfully tearing, shredding, and severing a part of me that fractures my mind.
What the hell is this?
As the pain intensifies, the overwhelming power of it threatens to consume me to madness. Pushing me to a point of madness I never even knew was possible, and I am flung forward onto all fours gasping for air while trying to hold onto what is left of myself.
Only, the pain is too much to bear.
Gritting my teeth... the grinding so loud in my ears and the pressure of me biting down so powerful... I fear I may crack all my teeth before this ends.
Whatever it is.
I keep hoping the pain will relent.
That whatever is causing this will have mercy on me and end my suffering. But the universe has never been kind to me.
Why should it be nice to me now?
As the last strand of the piece of my soul is ripped away, the pain is so excruciating that eventually, the thing inside me snaps. And my back arches a strong wave of power bursts from me just as Ethan, his father, and Celeste manages to throw a containment shield around me to keep my from destroying everything in my wake.
Well... except for the poor hardwood flooring beneath my feet. There are blue scorch marks that spread out in every direction up to where it impacted with the containment shield, was absorbed, and then disappeared.
"That was a lot of power from someone so... young." Eli glances at Ethan like he's been holding out. "The other royal blood siphoner only took one of us to contain. How is it that the three of us could barely contain her?"
"Have you forgotten who her grandfather is and all that he can do?" Celeste asks.
"I know who he is. But even Darien with all his might couldn't give off that much power."
Weak and out of breath, I collapse onto my side once the well of my power is fully drained. With my eyes shutting shortly after Ethan lifts me up in his arms to carry me back to bed. The sounds of their hushed whispers lulling me to sleep.
Sometime later, flutter open to utter darkness. The only light in the room coming from a fireplace on the other side where Ethan is sitting. Staring contemplatively into the fire with a solemn expression. I barely move an inch before his head whips in my direction and he's beside me in the next breath.
"Do not get up," he cautions me. "You drained yourself and your strength hasn't fully returned to you yet."
"What happened?" I ask. Confused.
"That's what we're hoping to find out. Only, we need you to do it."
"I don't understand."
Sighing heavily, Ethan pulls my phone out of his pocket and hands it to me. Still confused, I unlock it and go through my notifications until I find a message that makes my skin crawl. It's a message from Zayd.
ZAYD: Did you feel that?
Annoyed, I start to text him back when Ethan stops me.
"Tristan received a similar text, and you both went through a similar episode. That's what made Celeste demand we come check on you when we did." He tells me.
"Well, did Tristan ever reply to him?" I ask.
"Yes, but he will only speak to you."
This can't be good...
Looking down at his message on my phone, I take deep breath to prepare myself and reply to him.
ME: Ali here... what are you talking about douche-nozzle? Did I feel what?
Three dots appear for what seems like forever before his next message finally comes through.
ZAYD: 247 Sound Beach Ave 06870
"That isn't very far from here." Ethan plugs the address into the map on his phone. "Stay here while we investigate and get your strength back."
"Absolutely not." I attempt to get out of bed to no avail. Every time I place my legs off the side of the bed he shoves them right back on. "Look, either you take me with you, or you force me to stay in this bed until I find a way to get out anyway and go there anyway. I need to see what he's done."
Annoyed, Ethan nods. Grabbing my shoes and putting them on my feet. Then he helps me steady myself on both feet by wrapping his arm around my waist to keep me upright. Making sure he's the one supporting the brunt of my weight instead of me doing it myself.
We gather everyone in living room then split up into cars. Tristan's weary gaze meets mine as what's left of the Syth carries him to a car. He's in as bad a shape as I am, and equally as stubborn. Which we both acknowledge with a slight smirk.
It takes us twenty-three minutes to get to the address in question and I already don't like what I'm seeing. The street is eerily quiet, dark, and the porch light on every single house is just bright enough to illuminate the porch. But the street is shrouded in darkness. With only the whispering of the trees, the cold kiss of the wind, and the moon looming over our shoulders to bear witness to whatever this is.
There are no lights on as we climb the stairs of the house. It's porch light flickering as if there's a short in its wiring somewhere. With Ethan holding me up and a member of the Syth holding Tristan up on his feet, Celeste takes the initiative to try the doorhandle and it pops open effortlessly. Almost immediately the metallic smell of blood and the rotting smell of a corpse invades my senses. Whatever we're about to find, it's not alive. And as we enter the living room of the vacant home, we finally understand why. Because strewn up like Jesus with his hands outstretched and nailed to the wall is the body of Nik. A member of the Syth that was taken along with Lexie.
His shirt is torn, and most of his body is charred except for his torso. Because etched into the skin of his abs are two words.
THREE DAYS.
YOU ARE READING
SEDUCTIVE PREY
VampireAli may have escaped Trudy's clutches, but not without cost. As in the best damn surrogate big brother a girl could ever ask for. Now everything around her is broken. Friends have become enemies. Her mate is MIA. Both her brother and mother are de...
