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He shoved a Shadow away when one of them tried grabbing him again. “My loyalty is to my brothers. Zan will walk to his death for you. And Pax? He’s had a soft spot for humans his entire life. I will doanythingfor them. That includes leaving everything I’ve known to follow you into what will probably end with my own damn death.”

His answer wasn’t good enough for everyone surrounding me. Their hate for the Kane family was tangible. With good reason. They’d been trapped here for years. Indecision tore through me as I stared at him.

“I need more,” I finally said. “I know you’re loyal to your brothers. You need to be loyal tome.”

A noise of agreement passed over the Shadows, most of them still glowering at Viggo. I wasn’t even sure that would be enough to appease them.

Viggo’s eyes narrowed, his body bristling with arrogance as he straightened up. I bit my lip, attempting to hide my taunting smile. I should not be enjoying this, but I couldn’t help myself. As a Kane, he didn’t bow to anyone. It went against everything he was taught. Against his very nature. He blew out a shaky breath, lowering his head slightly as he kept his gaze locked on mine.

“My loyalty is to you,” he ground out roughly. “I will do what you ask me.”

“Prove it,” Rya spoke up, crossing her arms.

Viggo’s jaw ticked. “Fine.”

He stalked away, heading to the door before ripping it open. After a few heated words, the three vampires slowly stepped into the room, their bodies rigid. Viggo pushed the last one so he could shut the door.

“I’m guessing you all know these three,” Viggo drawled, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his pack of cigarettes. “They’re the ones who are usually outside this door.”

“They took our blood bags away,” one Shadow hissed.

“What is this?” a vampire asked, his throat moving as he swallowed thickly.

“The Shadows have decided they want to leave,” Viggo informed him. “You three are on watch. It’s your job to stop them. Go ahead.”

All three vampires were gawking at Viggo as if he was crazy. The Shadows were staring at him with distrust as if this was a trap. With a sigh, Viggo stepped forward and shoved his fist into the chest of the closest vampire. He let out a gurgled gasp before collapsing to the floor when Viggo ripped his heart out.

The other two vampires bolted for the exit, but Shadows blocked their escape as they looked at me. All it took was a small nod for them to pounce. They had been waiting for my approval. My chest tightened with nerves. What was I doing? There were hundreds of Shadows who were willing to stand with me and fight. What if I failed them?

I watched as they surrounded the two vampires, taunting and playing with them before going for the kill. Viggo was wiping his bloody hand on his shirt, an annoyed frown on his face as he ignored the vampires’ pleas for help. He glared at me, not saying a word as he snatched the paper and pen from my hand before moving away and putting it against the wall so he could draw whatever map he had in mind.

Rya nudged my shoulder. “Do you trust him?”

Knowing full well that Viggo could hear me, I met her eyes. “Yes. He won’t betray me.”

“Because of his brothers,” she muttered. “Not for you.”

“Zan…” I paused for a moment, my heart pounding in my chest. “Viggo will protect me because his brother loves me.”

Rya scoffed. “You had to fall in love with a Kane?”

I stiffened, not answering her.Love.Was I in love with Zan? I hadn’t admitted it even to myself yet. But I knew. It was why I trusted him. Why he was my first thought when I woke up. His being away from me only made it more real. There was an ache that refused to leave. I wasn’t whole when I was away from him.

“I’m excited,” Rya breathed out, pulling me from my thoughts. “To see something other than these walls.”

“It’s going to be dangerous,” I mumbled, knots building in my stomach. “Not all of us will survive.”

“It’ll be worth it.” Her words were confident. “We’re going to change this world, Kali.”

An anguished scream made my eyes snap back to the fight. One of the vampires was already dead, and the one who screamed was on the brink of death. The Shadows were taking turns ripping into his body with their fangs.

“Here,” Viggo said grudgingly, handing me the paper. “If we can get here, then we won’t have to worry about PARA or my father finding us for a while.”

I glanced at the rough map he made. “How will Zan find us?”

“We have a way to communicate,” he said, his voice full of resignation.

Rya looked over my shoulder at the paper. “I’ll take half of the group on foot. It’ll take us longer, but we’ll be fine.”