Page 209 of Blood Day

Which had required me to move to plan B.

Walk out into the hall and turn left,I told her once more.I won’t repeat myself again, Lily. This is our one chance, or those lycans will shatter our connection.

And I wouldn’t be able to reach her in time.

Okay,she whispered, her mind telling me that she was at war with herself. She wondered if she’d somehow contrived this entire fantasy, but essentially decided she didn’t have much to lose.

Might as well indulge it,she was thinking.I’m wolf meat anyway.

Not if I can help it,I told her.But I need you to start running.Because the monitors showed the other two lycans already returning.

The one who had gone to his office had obviously found her file, and he’d no doubt seen my name as the Master who had personally delivered her final month of training at the university.

Faster, Lily.

She picked up speed, heading down the long hallway of morbid rooms. I only had those security feeds pulled so I could keep an eye on any lycans inside. However, most of them were too busy with their “tasks” to listen for the human fleeing down the corridor. They would assume that security had everything covered.

Which they would be wrong about, as my ally had manipulated all the feeds on a loop to hide Lily’s escape from anyone watching.

And on the off chance that one of those rutting lycans did smell Lily, they wouldn’t expect her to be trying to run. Most mortals were too terrified to try.

But most mortals also didn’t have me waiting outside for them.

Come on, Lily. Show me what you can do.I scanned all the monitors, searching for potential threats or incoming issues in her path.Turn left at the end of the hall.My gaze returned to the two lycans who were headed toward the black-colored room.You’re going to be spotted in five, four, three?—

She turned the corner.

Good girl.Of course, the moment they realized she wasn’t where they’d left her, they’d start tracking her scent. We had maybe fifteen more seconds before the hunt began.

And those wolves would be much faster than Lily.

There is a door ahead of you. I want you to keep running even though it’s closed. It’ll be open by the time you reach it.

A hint of hesitation traversed our bond, her mind wondering yet again if I was even real or if she was about to hurt herself by running into a solid object.

Stop thinking,I commanded.I’m in control right now. Trust me to guide you.

Guide me,she repeated, her voice snarkier than usual.That’s all you’ve ever done, and look where I am.

I warned you about your fate, Lily. You literally ran right for it. Now I’m telling you to run for a new destiny—me.

Assuming you’re real,she muttered.

You’re about to see how real I am, sweet flower,I warned her.Then I’ll make youfeelhow real I am.

“Now,” I said, talking to Damien.

He was a vampire acquaintance of mine who lived near the border of Clemente Clan and Silvano Region. His maker, Ryder, was a recluse who resided on a property in no-man’s-land right between both territories.

Which made Damien a decent ally when I needed to sneak into Clemente Clan to deliver one of Silvano’s infamous messages. Particularly when I wanted to enter the wolf den undetected because Damien was a whiz with technology—something he proved now as he keyed in the code to open the door at the end of the hallway. He’d also been the one to bring up all the screens inside.

“I really hope your lycan contact is ready to come through because this is going to sound some alarms,” Damien drawled, his Texan accent accentuating his deep tones.

“If he doesn’t, I’ll handle it myself,” I replied, my gaze on Lily’s sprinting form.That door is going to open in three, two?—

Sharp growls sounded through the speakers as the lycans discovered their toy was no longer waiting for them in the room. Lily nearly tripped, the sound obviously echoing in the halls.

Don’t think. Act,I told her.Go through that door. It had swung open, giving her entry.Now shut it.She did, and Damien pressed a key to lock it behind her. Not that it would matter—those lycans had access to every section of the building.