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“How?” I choked out, pain squeezing my heart. “What can I do?”

“You’ll know.” She let me go. “Your mother knew. It will come to you.”

Before I could question her further, she walked away, not sparing me a second glance. I nearly chased after her until I remembered I was on a time crunch. With a sigh, I headed the opposite way, toward the back of the house. There were a couple vampires, and while they were stealing glances at me, none of them spoke. They all knew me as Zan’s girl and wouldn’t interfere unless clearly instructed.

I eyed the back door, my pulse thrashing as I got closer. There would be no going back after this. Lifting my chin, I shoved the door open, striding into the sunlight. The warm rays were almost foreign with how much time I was spending outside during the night. Glancing around, I made sure no one was paying attention to me before I headed to the trail that led to the Pen.

I began running, letting out a quiet laugh as I flew over the dirt path. My hair whipped around my face, and I sucked in quick breaths as I pushed myself faster. This was the first time I’d been able to test this ability. While I wasn’t sure I was as fast as Zan yet, I was close. I couldn’t help but wonder how near I was to the end of my transition. Would I become even stronger?

Once I got close to the Pen, I slowed back down to a walk, amazed that I wasn’t fatigued or out of breath. I was definitely still craving blood, but the bag I had was enough to hold me over for a while. The building came into view, and I hesitated for a moment. At night, there were always vampires outside the door, but they couldn’t stand guard when the sun was out.

I crept closer, hearing heartbeats from beyond the door. Since the Pen was soundproofed, that meant it was from the small room directly behind the wall on the inside. The vampires must stay there during the day. I cursed under my breath as I trudged the last few steps to the door. It would have been mucheasier if I didn’t have to deal with vampires. But I wasn’t nervous or scared. My confidence was growing with my abilities. I just needed to make sure it didn’t turn into arrogance.

Even though I was gaining strength, Amaros was a deadly monster who I couldn’t underestimate.

Sliding the deadbolt, I unlocked the door, and opened it wide, making sure to keep the sunlight on me. The three vampires shrank back against the wall, fear gleaming in their eyes.

“Shut the door,” one of them hissed frantically.

“Oh, sorry,” I said, feigning concern.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” another vampire said, his eyes narrowing.

I stepped inside, flipping my hair off my shoulder. “Viggo is on his way.”

I didn’t wait to see if they believed my lie before I moved past them and went through the second door and entered the Pen. Most of the Shadows were sleeping, and they sat up in the bunks that covered half of the room when the door slammed behind me.

“Kali.” Rya slid off her top bunk. “What are you doing here?”

“We’re leaving.”

My statement had silence sweeping over the massive room. All eyes were on me as they stood up and circled around. I gazed at all of them, fear lighting through me for the first time since I came up with this plan. It wasn’t promised that all of us would make it off the property. The daylight would help since the vampires would be trapped in the house, but that didn’t remove all the threat.

“Leaving?” Rya repeated. “Leaving this building? The property?”

I nodded. “And we’re not coming back. Amaros is gone. Now is our chance.”

The faintest click of the door alerted me that someone had entered. The hatred appearing in the eyes of all the Shadows proved it was the last person I wanted to see.

Chapter 18

Kali

“Kali.” Viggo’s voice dripped with warning. “Whatever you’re about to do—don’t.”

I spun around, my guard rising as Viggo stormed closer. Oh, he was livid. His hands were clenched into fists, and the scowl on his face was a far cry from his usual grin. His gaze raked over all the Shadows, his shoulders tensing.

“Walk away, Viggo,” I ordered, keeping my voice steady. “This is happening, and you’re outnumbered.”

He cursed under his breath, grabbing my shoulders. “No, it’s not. You’re going to get yourself killed. Stop acting like you can take on my father. Amaros Kane is not someone you can go against and win.”

He pulled me back, clearly intent on dragging me out of the Pen. With a growl, I planted my feet and twisted out of his grasp. He lunged for me again, snatching my wrist. My eyes snapped up, meeting his.

“You’re acting like I’m the helpless human you met months ago.” My voice bled with power, making his eyes widen. “I am not weak. The blood running through my veins rivals yours andyour father’s. He knows it. Why do you think he’s so intent on forcing me to obey?”

“Kali,” he hissed desperately. “I can’t let you do this.”

“Can’t?” I laughed coldly. “You still don’t understand. You holdnopower over me anymore.”