Evie

I ran in zigzags through the woods for hours, sensing Sebastian’s soldiers on my heels each time I slowed.

Keep moving.

Keep moving.

You have to stay alive to save him.

Despite Liam’s deal, it was obvious Sebastian simply couldn’t pass up the chance to have us both. Still, the diversion had given me somewhat of a lead.

The sun was gone, leaving my wolf to race through the darkness by moonlight as I clutched the t-shirt Liam procured for me in my teeth. This chase was wasting valuable time, time I should have been searching for Liam. Time that gave Sebastian an opportunity to put hundreds of miles between us. But I couldn’t focus on that, not on the fact that I had no idea where Sebastian intended to take him, couldn’t focus on the fact that I was one person against an entire army. Neither of those things would stop me from trying. Neither would stop me from laying down my life in the process.

Going home was out of the question. With the lycans on my trail, I’d lead them straight to Elise, Hilda, and Dallas. I was on my own.

I slowed again, this time coming to a stop. I held my breath and listened, sniffed the icy air.

Nothing.

It seemed they had finally ended their pursuit.

I was painfully aware of time. It’d become a solid, tangible ball that sat in the pit of my stomach. Yes, time had suddenly become my enemy.

While I could, I shifted back to my human form and removed the shirt from my teeth, sliding it over my head. I’d shift into my dragon to search for a place to sleep. The only reason I hadn’t done so earlier was because I wanted the Sovereign’s henchmen to have something to follow, something that would lead them as far away from my home as possible. So, I gave them paw prints, pawprints they’d see disappear here if they were still on the hunt, because I burst from the snow with flames engulfing me.

I was airborne and finally out of danger. For the moment anyway. I would, after all, be sleeping outside tonight, in the open, vulnerable. But I didn’t even consider it an inconvenience. I’d do whatever it took to save him.

Circling the woods several times, I thought of a few places to hunker down, including the old, abandoned warehouse where I’d been to a party once. But then, that knot in my stomach ticked loud within me.

Tick tock.

Tick tock.

Tick tock.

I had to keep moving, had to find him.

When I landed, I had no real plan, only a destination. I needed help, direction, the guidance of someone who might be able to give at least some insight.

Baz … he was the only one I could think of.

A private, back entrance to the library led to the winding staircase of stone. I tugged at the shirt I wore, the only thing that covered me, and I knew what a pitiful sight I must be—half naked, dirty, and bloody. My bare feet were damp with melted snow, but at least gave me the advantage of being completely silent as I ascended, listening for signs that the Sovereign or his men had beat me there.

There was no noise in the dark abyss that awaited me at the foot of the stairs. Only the sound of dripping water as it echoed from some unseen source. There were torches lit, but far fewer with there being no meetings scheduled tonight. My heart raced with each step and I paused at the last, staring across the large, empty room.

Tick tock.

Tick tock.

There was no time for the childish fear that crept up within me, fear of the dark, fear of the unknown. I had too much at stake.

I stepped down and crossed the room, heading for the door behind the Elder’s table. I’d seen them come from behind it when I attended a meeting, but had no idea what lie across that threshold.

Should I knock? Should I simply barge in?

I rounded the table, and just as I lifted my hand to bang against the dark, thick wood…

“Can I help you?”

I turned at the sound of Baz’s gravelly voice as he emerged from the shadows, startling me. With a clear view of my face, recognition came shortly thereafter, prompting him to take quick steps forward.

“Evangeline?”

Panic swathed the sound of my name when he called out, only now confirming that it was, in fact, me. I couldn’t blame him for not believing his eyes, given my appearance.

“What’s happened? Are you injured?” he asked, gawking at the mix of blood and dirt that covered my legs, searching for a wound that had long-since healed.

“I’m fine—I’m fine,” I panted, struggling to breathe after he scared me half to death. “But Liam isn’t,” I added in a panic, feeling my hands begin to shake as those words caused reality to set in.

A gentle touch went to my shoulder. “Slow down,” Baz crooned. “Tell me what’s happened.”

“They took him!”

He lowered his hood and gazed at me with confusion in those milky-white eyes of his.

“Who?” he asked with a compassion-laden tone, far different from that with which I heard him address others.

Every limb shivered with terror at the thought of losing Liam.

My voice was quiet and strained when I uttered the name of the man who’d taken the most important thing in this world from me. “Sebastian.”

Baz froze like a deer in headlights. Processing the full breadth of this information, his hand fell away. His eyes wandered back to mine.

“When was this?”

I shrugged, scrambling for numbers, clues as to how long they kept me there, surrounded in the woods, how long I’d been running.

“Hours,” I choked out, feeling warm streaks of liquid race down my cheeks. “It’s been hours.”

They could have been anywhere by now.

Anywhere.

Baz suddenly came to his senses and reached to console me again when I slumped against the wall, feeling like Earth was upside down. I suppose, for me, it was.

“How many were with him?” was the next question.

I forced myself to see through the haze of emotion to answer. “At least a hundred. And there were witches.” I thought of how the brigade seemed to appear out of thin air and added, “Powerful witches.”

Baz was silent as he thought. “I’ll get my best men on this,” he promised. “By sunrise, they’ll start out to—”

“No.”

At the sound of my voice, Baz fell silent, questioning me with his eyes. “No?”

While the ordeal in the woods had left me rattled, I paid attention to details. My mother—in one of her “stranger danger” talks when I was a kid—taught me to always be aware of my surroundings, to pay special attention to what was done and said in any instance that I felt my safety was threatened. Coming face-to-face with the Sovereign definitely qualified. As he spoke, certain statements stuck with me.

“No,” I repeated. “Your guards have been compromised. I have no clue which one or how many, but I heard it with my own ears.”

Baz seemed to stop breathing as he listened. “Are you … are you sure?”

I nodded. “Yes. He knew I was here because of ‘an informant’, and the report of ‘a gullible guard’ who I’m guessing contacted him after Nick’s trial yesterday, sharing whatever information he gathered.”

Baz shrank back a bit as his eyes searched the stone floor. “Then … he knows everything.”

I hated being the bearer of bad news, but we were surrounded with bad. Better to be aware than ignorant, vulnerable.

“So, we have to do this another way,” I asserted, feeling my dragon step forth, clearing some of the emotional haze my human form was drowning in.

Baz lifted his eyes to mine again. “What other way is there?”

I swallowed hard and offered the only idea I had. “I’m going after him myself.”

An incredulous expression graced Baz’s face. “That’s absurd. You can’t—”

Cutting him off, I corrected the statement I hadn’t let him complete. “I can and I will … I have to.”

He blinked several times, and searching for a way to stall, placed his hand on my shoulder again. “You need to rest. I’ll have Gadreal draw you a bath. She’ll also conjure clothing for you, and—”

“I don’t have that kind of time,” I snapped.

I couldn’t expect anyone else to understand the urgency that ate me alive inside. There were gruesome images embedded in my mind. Images of that madman tearing pieces off Liam just for the fun of it, torturing him for amusement until he inevitably ended his life.

My resolve hardened and I swiped away a tear.

“I’m doing this,” I made clear. “With or without anyone’s blessing.”

Baz passed me a knowing glance, understanding I couldn’t be swayed, and then spoke a few last words.

“Then, if you cannot be reasoned with,” he began, “I hope you understand why I have to take matters into my own hands.”

Confusion caused my brow to tense just before a prick in the side of my neck sent me staggering. My legs … they felt like jelly beneath me. The room turned dark, and within seconds, my eyes were fixed on the ceiling.

Baz hovered above, as did one of his witches, and then … I succumbed to a deep well of darkness.

*****

No traces of dirt and blood. My skin and hair both felt clean as I touched my head, feeling the fog beginning to lift. Neither the clothes nor the shoes I wore were my own, but they fit. Being immune to magic, I guessed someone had actually taken the time to bathe me. Then, when they were done, dressed me in clothes that had been conjured. Just like Baz said they would.

I sat up with a gasp, suddenly aware of my unfamiliar surroundings. The elegant room was decked from floor to ceiling with rich, mahogany wood and deep-crimson fabrics trimmed in gold. A large bed topped with a pillow-soft mattress swallowed me whole, making my already weak limbs nearly useless as I scooted to the edge.

Where was I?

How long had I been out?

How long had I been out … that question made me frantic.

Tick tock.

Tick tock.

I raced to the door and pulled it toward me. Stepping out into a dimly lit hallway, I pressed a palm to my head, trying to get my bearings. The stone walls, torches, and dark fabrics made it feel like I’d stepped back in time, into a Medieval castle.

Stone walls … torches … the Elder’s chamber.

I remembered.

Faint voices murmured from the left. I took a step that way. I needed to find a way out of here without anyone seeing, without them knocking me out again, without them costing me more time.

I pressed my ear to the door and listened harder, noting one of the voices was female.

“According to our laws,” she declared, “any clan member can take it upon him or herself to bypass local sects of government to seek aid from the Sovereign should he or she feel justice is being obstructed, or if there’s suspicion that local government has been compromised.”

“Please, Mrs. Stokes, enlighten us as to how, in your opinion, we have been compromised?” The one who asked wasn’t Baz, but his voice was similar in tone and depth.

Mrs. Stokes … she was the informant Sebastian spoke of? She’d all but admitted it; however, I still couldn’t conceive anyone in this town doing such a thing. Seeing as how they all seemed so well aware of the Sovereign’s agenda.

“I’ve got reason to believe the Elders, the Council as a whole, have all conspired to overthrow the Sovereign,” she rebutted. There was only false confidence in her tone, proving that not even she believed her excuse would hold up.

“And—”

When she tried to continue, the man interjected, his words dripping with disgust.

“Oh, please, Mrs. Stokes. Save your lies,” he boomed. “No one here is ignorant enough to believe you actually support the views of Sebastian De Vincenzo. Just admit you willingly endangered your clan to spare the life of that disgraceful boy of yours.”

“Disgraceful?” she seethed. “What’s disgraceful is your negligible plan to seat a dragon in the throne. As if their kind has ever been suitable to rule.”

The sound of hollow wood scraping stone hit my ears—a chair being scooted back as someone stood.

“Mind your tongue, woman,” Baz boomed. “I’ll not have you speak of your future queen in this manner.”

“She’s got you all blind,” Mrs. Stokes said incredulously, sounding like a woman who believed the entire world had gone crazy around her.

The echo of footsteps seeped through the door as I listened. She was coming closer, I could tell by how the volume and clarity of her voice increased when she spoke again.

“I’ll have you know I took great pride sharing your plan with the Sovereign,” she said, spouting a sinister chuckle right after. “The moment I went to that girl’s parents and they had no clue who or what I was talking about … I knew you all and your witches had your hands all over this, knew I couldn’t trust any of you,” she added. “So, I did some digging myself, went through Nick’s things and found notebook upon notebook of research and information, most of which centered around her—this … child you’re reverencing as queen.”

The Elders said nothing, just sat in silence while Mrs. Stokes’ divulged more.

“My son may not have known who or what she was, but I did. Right away,” she added. “And I knew it would’ve taken restorative magic to bring her back.”

The other lycan, a member of the Council who’d lingered after Nick’s trial I guessed, chuffed a long breath before asking a question. “And you truly believe our current ruler is more fit to meet the needs of our people than Evangeline?”

Without hesitation, Mrs. Stokes replied. “I’d pledge my allegiance to a lycan over a dragon any day. Hybrid or not, she’s still one of them.”

And there it was. Losing Nick, coupled with her prejudices against me, against dragons in general, had spearheaded a chain reaction. A chain reaction that resulted in Liam being taken.

This was all her fault. It was clear to me now. She, in her ignorance, in her grief, had called that tyrant here and gave up all our secrets.

“You foolish, foolish woman,” Baz murmured.

I was done listening, done wasting time.

I burst through the door, no longer content to wait until they ironed out their spat. To me, it mattered very little how we ended up here. What mattered was what we did next.

The other lycan stood as I walked toward them. Baz sputtered, most likely searching for an explanation as to why he drugged me, but I wasn’t interested, accepting the impromptu plan that developed along the way.

“I need Nick,” I blurted, fully aware of his mother’s eyes glued to me. “Since your guards can’t be trusted, and because I’ll be up against so many, I need his help.”

Confusion crossed Baz’s face. I knew what he was thinking, knew what Liam would be thinking if he’d been present to hear. He’d think I was crazy to suggest I embark on this journey with Nick—nature’s kryptonite—but I think I made it clear how far I’d go. There were no limits when it came to Liam.

When my request wasn’t immediately denied, Mrs. Stokes volleyed frantic glances back and forth between me and the two lycans. Her expression was riddled with desperation when she spoke, addressing me directly instead of the Council.

“Are you really this selfish?” she seethed. “Do you realize what you’re asking? Do you have any idea the danger you’d be putting Nick in? He’s not some pawn in your halfcocked plan. You can’t just volunteer him at will simply because you don’t value his life.”

My fists clenched at my sides, but I said nothing. She had no idea how wrong she was; no idea how much I did, in fact, value Nick’s life. Despite our differences, I’d willingly intervened when almost everyone else wanted him dead. It was on the tip of my tongue to share these thoughts and more, but I refrained.

I couldn’t even look at her, knowing she would have loved having an excuse to launch a verbal attack. Doing so would’ve shifted the direction of the conversation and stall my effort to get to Liam. Nothing was worth that—not even the chance to put this woman in her place.

Ignoring Mrs. Stokes’ protest, Baz glanced toward his comrade and stammered a few unintelligible syllables before speaking up.

“We, myself and the Chancellor, will need to discuss this with the others,” he forced out, clearly stalling. I already sensed the hard ‘no’ on his lips, although he hadn’t said it. Stating that he needed to talk it over with the Council was merely to come up with a way to dismiss my idea, I was sure.

The Chancellor began sizing me up, and then addressed me for the first time. “Are you suggesting that you and Nicholas set out to retrieve this … Liam that you speak of … on your own?”

He doubted we were capable. That was clear. However, I didn’t care a whole lot about his opinion.

So, with my shoulders squared, I nodded. “Absolutely.”

There was a keen sense of Mrs. Stokes’ eyes boring a hole through me, but I didn’t shift my gaze, didn’t acknowledge her.

Baz leaned in to whisper something to the Chancellor. Whatever he said, it brought a smile to the Chancellor’s face.

“Is that so?” he crooned, offering Baz a surprised grin. “Reaper … ”

The name Liam he didn’t recognize, but Reaper had definitely rung a bell. Hearing it seemed to have gotten Mrs. Stokes’ attention as well. I guessed she had a firmer grasp on supernatural history than the rest of this town seemed to.

The Chancellor stared at me long and hard. I held his gaze, making sure he knew I wouldn’t back down on this. If they denied me Nick, I’d go on my own.

Bottom Line.

When a response didn’t come soon enough for her liking, Mrs. Stokes interjected. “You couldn’t possibly be considering the idea of sending my son to die beside this girl.”

A thundering, “Silence, woman!” made my ears ring when the Chancellor yelled. His gaze lingered on her and it was clear his patience with her was running thin.

“I’ll have you know,” he stated in a much calmer manner, “had it not been for ‘this girl’, your worthless son would be smeared on the sole of my boot! So, if I were you, I would be careful to show some respect.”

After a lengthy stare-down, the Chancellor turned from Mrs. Stokes and came closer, the hint of a smirk set on his lips. Three words fell from them and I exhaled with relief.

“I’ll allow it.”

“But, sir,” Baz pleaded.

“Stop sniveling,” the Chancellor barked back. “You and the rest of Seaton Falls ought to be embracing the fact that we’ve been graced with a future queen with such … poise, such … integrity.”

With that same smirk, he walked a slow circle around me. “It’s been quite some time since our people have had a ruler so fearless, one willing to lay down their life for the sake of another.”

I breathed deep when he faced me again.

“Your bravery might just exceed your father’s,” the Chancellor added with a reserved smile as my expression went slack.

“You … you knew my father?”

His chin dipped with a nod. “We met on several occasions,” he shared. “King Noah was a true man of valor.”

My heart warmed. “Thank you.”

Behind him, Baz lowered his head, most likely thinking of all the reasons this was a terrible idea, thinking of all the things that could go wrong, including Nick being triggered while we were gone. I thought of these things, too, but … the difference was … none of the possible outcomes that came to mind were worse than losing Liam.

Period.

“Every kingdom is only as strong as its leader, its foundation. So, it is my belief that, when you return, our people will be all the stronger for it,” the Chancellor expressed. “Is there anything we can do to assist?”

I smiled, appreciating the offer. “Do you have any idea where Sebastian might have taken him? Any suggestion where I should start?”

He considered my words, locking his hands behind his back. I searched my brain for any hints, any morsel of information that might help.

“Lake Superior!” I shouted when I remembered something Sebastian mentioned. “He threatened Liam, stated that, if he gave him trouble, Lake Superior would run red with his blood.”

With Seaton falls being located on the eastern most part of Michigan, and Lake Superior being on the northern shore of the Upper Peninsula, the statement struck me as strange. And now, it might have been a bread crumb, someplace to start my search.

To my surprise, the Chancellor smiled. “I might know where our dreadful Sovereign has gone.”

I was anxious, chomping at the bit as he whispered to the witch, Gadreal, before she manifested a sheet of paper and a pen. The Chancellor turned to the table, and when he returned, had drawn a map. Tapping his finger near the shore of Lake Superior, he spoke.

“Mount Arvon,” he stated. “A member of the High Council resides there and it’s quite possible Sebastian and his men decided to set up camp on the property.”

For the first time in hours, I felt hope.

“Thank you,” I breathed, thinking better of my next action after I stretched to lock my arms around the tall lycan’s neck. Certain it was not customary for someone of his caliber to accept hugs from teenage girls, I was surprised when his rigid body slowly submitted, giving in to my unconventional gesture. His thin arms returned my embrace.

Yes, this was my first time meeting the Chancellor, but I believed he could be trusted. And right now, I was incredibly grateful for how he stood up for me.

I released him, settling back on my heels. With the map in hand, I turned toward the door Baz had just opened, the one I assumed led to the cells where they held Nick.

“Queen Evangeline.” At the sound of the Chancellor calling my name, I turned to receive his parting words. “You have our sincerest blessing.”