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“Ambrose wouldn’t leave.” Caden groans hoarsely. “He wouldn’t leave my side. He fought harder than I’ve ever seen anyone fight…”

SEVENTEEN

ALENA

Stone talons pierce the flesh of my arms and drag me high into the night sky.

“Raphael!” I scream as loud as I can as the ground becomes a dark blur beneath me.

Then I look between the two creatures holding me between them. My childhood nightmares coming true.

Gargoyles.

Two gargoyles, one on each arm, work in tandem to carry me away. Their stone wings slicing through the air and moving with a speed that should be impossible for their size.

I’m tempted to fight them. To bite at their arms. To squirm and wiggle my way out of their grasp.

But we’re so high, with so many trees below us, I don’t know if I’ll die if they drop me.

What if one of the trees impales me?

I try to reach out to Raphael through the bond, to ask him if I’ll die if I’m dropped from this high, but our connection is weak. Whether it’s the distance causing it or something else, all I get back from him is a faint touch of fear and burning rage.

“Raphael!” I scream again, wishing I’d spent more time questioning him about things instead of fucking him and drinking from him.

Can vampires fly?

Will someone rescue me?

What can kill me?

There’s so much I still don’t know, and now I don’t know what to do! How do I get myself out of this mess?

Being a damsel in distress yet again fucking sucks! I’m seriously getting sick of this shit!

I’m a vampire now!

Stuff like this shouldn’t happen.

I look at the gargoyles again, recognizing them. When I was little, I made a point of memorizing the face of every gargoyle perched on the Boston church. I memorized them in case something like this ever happened.

But they didn’t have evil, red glowing eyes back then. They never moved, either, but I swear I felt a presence inside them, watching me…

The Prophet.

Of course.

The fucking bane of my existence!

I don’t know whether to roar in rage or cry, so I do both. Tipping my head back, I unleash on the moon. Screaming and cursing everything.

My predicament.

My stupidity.

And most of all, the evil bastard that did this.

What does he even want with me? Payback?