Page 21 of Burn Falls

Thoughts of Mary raced through my head, and I smiled tightly at the memory of her. Little did my father know I had almost been a father. But now, I’d never have my own family, and I’d never age past twenty-four.

“I will,” I lied.

I could sense him before I turned around to see Renzo standing in the doorway of the room I shared with a fellow coven member, Athan, in Renzo’s mansion or what the coven called his compound. “How’s the family?”

I hadn’t told him I’d went to see them. Given my speed, I thought I could run the distance and back before he knew. Apparently, I was wrong.

“Well …” I hesitated, still not turning to look at him.

“You’re never to see them again.”

I spun around finally. “Why?”

Renzo’s arms were crossed over his suit covered chest as he leaned against the doorjamb. “You belong to me now.”

“They’re my family.”

“They’ll die before you.”

“So?” I knew they would. I could live forever.

“Don’t you think they’ll notice you not aging?” I stared at him, and Renzo smirked. “It’s better to get rid of them now.”

“What?” I was on him before I blinked, my hands clenching his lapel. “Don’t you fucking touch them!”

His grin widened. “I won’t, but you will.”

I growled deep in my throat, my fangs deciding. “Over my dead body.”

Renzo pushed me, and I flew across the room, crashing into the chest of drawers that held my clothes. It shattered, the wood slicing into my skin that quickly healed before I stood.

“Don’t fucking tempt me to end you, Draven. I’m your master, and I will always be your master. You do as I say, no questions asked.”

“It’s my family,” I pleaded.

“It’s the rules,” he stated and then he was gone.

I was in my room, trying to come up with a plan on how to escape and save my family, when the door opened, and Athan entered. Since I’d arrived at Renzo’s mansion, Athan had been my closest ally. He was turned three months before I was, and was a guard who worked the door of the casino. Renzo wanted an entire army, and he was quickly forming one. By my calculations, there were at least one hundred of us living on his farm outside of Chicago, learning how to be killers while making him money in illegal dealings.

Athan didn’t say a word. Instead, he handed me a piece of paper and pointed to his ear. I knew he meant that Renzo or Samuel could hear us and that was why he was putting it in writing. If we spoke telepathically, others could hear too because we could only turn the ability off completely or not at all. I grabbed the note, blocked my thoughts from being read, and then started to read it.

“Get dressed. We’re getting a few bearcats tonight,” Athan said. Bearcats were also known as fiery women.

Ren ordered Sam to go with you to take out your folks.

My eyes widened, and I knew that he was warning me that no matter what, my family wasn’t long for this world.

“When?” I asked, interrupting him.

“Tomorrow.”

“Did you?” I asked, referring to his family.

“Everyone has.”

I closed my eyes and shook my head. “Why?”

“Just the rules.”