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CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

I spun around, searching for shadows or vampires. We were close to the two-hour mark Ashlyn had predicted, though it was an estimate at best.

Nothing was near, but then another shot cracked in the distance.

We stumbled upon some vampires on patrol, Kendric linked. We’re all disbursing, and I’m taking Sun, Cassi, Xander, and one of the Grimstone pack members with me into the secret tunnel.

What about Gage? A lump formed in my throat.

I’m staying with the others since I know my way around and can link back to you all, Gage replied. But thanks for worrying about me.

Be careful, all of you, Ryker replied evenly, but his face was taut. Keep us posted on what’s going on with everyone.

The wind kicked up, and a branch snapped somewhere in the darkness. Some of our group members flinched, heads whipping toward the sound.

Ryker's jaw tightened as he assessed their fear. With a sharp jerk of his chin, he motioned for them to continue forward. "Stay close to us," he commanded, voice barely audible. "We can't afford to separate."

The weight of what we were about to do pressed on my chest. We climbed over tree trunks to find bigger oak trees blotting out any view of civilization. The dense branches and leaves offered protection since some leaves still hadn’t fallen.

Ryker followed a twisted path through dense underbrush gradually sloping downward. He pushed aside a curtain of hanging moss to reveal a narrow gap between two massive boulders. His shoulders barely fit through the opening as he slipped inside. Watch your step.

I followed right on his heels, the stone cold against my palms as I squeezed through. The passage opened into a small clearing where a depression in the ground marked our destination. Ryker knelt and brushed away fallen leaves to expose a metal handle embedded in what looked like solid earth.

He gripped the handle with both hands, and his muscles flexed beneath his shirt as he pulled upward. The door budged an inch, and his face contorted with effort as a low growl rumbled in his chest.

I dropped to my knees beside him and wrapped my fingers under the edge he'd managed to lift. Together, we heaved, and the door finally gave way with a groan of rusted hinges.

A cloud of dust and what looked like fur particles erupted from the opening, making us both recoil.

Stale air hit my face. Ryker went first, disappearing into the blackness. I followed, each step cautious on the metal rungs of the ladder. The others filed in behind me, the last one pulling the door closed above us with a dull thud that seemed to echo forever.

We moved forward in near-total darkness, our eyes adjusting to reveal a low-ceilinged tunnel. I traced my fingers along the rough stone walls for balance, feeling cold, wet liquid there. The passageway was eerily silent—no skittering of tiny feet, no distant drips of water, nothing living seeming to have been here in what felt like decades.

Something crunched under my boot. I froze, heart pounding, and squinted, trying to make out what I'd stepped on.

Bones.

Small animal bones, picked clean and scattered across the floor. But they were old, crumbling to dust under pressure.

There are no live rats or mice down here. My stomach churned uncomfortably.

Ryker paused, his broad shoulders tensing. He crouched down, examining the ground with heightened senses. "You're right. No fresh droppings, no nest materials."

A chill crawled up my spine that had nothing to do with the damp air. It seems likely that a strong witch or several witches live here, to make the animals leave like that.

Ryker frowned. We need to keep moving.

After another hundred yards, the tunnel began to slope upward, and the air gradually became less stale. My wolf stirred restlessly beneath my skin, sensing we were approaching our destination. Muffled sounds filtered down from above—voices.

Ryker stopped.

The distinct murmur of multiple people talking drifted through the tunnel. Their words were unintelligible, but the cadence suggested a meeting of some kind.

They’re in the royal meeting chambers. Ryker began moving forward again at a steady pace.

The voices grew clearer, and then I recognized a voice that had me stopping in my tracks.

Felix.

The vampire queen’s son, who’d been punished for turning a human who’d attacked me.

His entitled ass was discussing security breaches and patrol adjustments. My pulse quickened. We reached the end of the tunnel, where a small grate next to a wooden door allowed us to peer into the chamber.

Through the thin slats, I could see a massive oak table surrounded by vampires in formal attire. Maps were spread across the surface and weighted down with ornate daggers. Felix stood at the head, his pale fingers tracing lines across territories, while officers nodded solemnly. There were about fifteen vampires with him, and my stomach revolted when I saw Lucinda, Bella, Martin, and even Simon among them.

Ryker signaled silently, directing our group to get ready and to use daggers, not guns, so we wouldn’t alert more vampires. Each of us mimicked his movements to ensure that everyone knew what was about to happen.

We were going to attack.

We’re ready, Briar replied from the very end of the group.

Ryker's muscles bunched, and he braced against the door. One powerful kick, and the wood shattered inward with a deafening crash. He was through the opening before the vampires could process what was happening, a blur of lethal movement.

Adrenaline made everything clearer as I jumped onto the middle of the table. The room erupted into chaos, chairs scraping the wooden floor and the vampires shouting for help.

"Wolf shifters," Felix spat as his face contorted with fury and shock. “Why are you shouting for help? Handle them!”

Lucinda, Bella, and Martin brandished their weapons and attacked.

I launched myself off the table, knocking Lucinda backward. Her head cracked against the wooden floor as I rolled to my feet, already facing the next threat. Ryker lunged forward with his dagger out, slicing through Martin’s throat, while Bella turned and ran out the regular door.

Around me, the witches used their daggers to attack in ways that proved they’d trained with a blade. The wolf shifters held their own, taking down a few vampires with their daggers.

Ryker pinned Felix to the wall with his forearm pressed against the vampire prince’s throat. Felix hissed as Ryker leaned in close, his voice dropping to a deadly whisper.

"You thought you could hurt her and live?" Ryker got in his face, not seeming worried Felix might try to bite him. "This is for trying to kill my mate."

“I’d do it all over again if given the chance,” Felix said and spat in his face.

Ryker's hand plunged into his chest with a sickening crunch. Blood spurted across the wall. The vampire prince's scream died in his throat as Ryker yanked his hand back, clutching Felix's still-beating heart.

I couldn't look away as Ryker crushed the organ in his fist, blood oozing between his fingers. Felix's body crumpled to the floor.

I turned from the grisly scene, but all I saw were twelve other vampire bodies bleeding to death. My stomach churned as Ryker’s love and anger swirled through our bond. The human part of me recoiled at the brutal execution, but my wolf—she panted with savage satisfaction.

Ryker had shown everyone that he would tear apart anyone who threatened what was his. What was ours.

My wolf's approval radiated through my body and our bond like liquid heat.

Three vampires had gotten away, so when approaching footsteps echoed in the corridor, I wasn’t surprised. I wiped blood spatter from my cheek with the back of my hand.

A few witches seemed alarmed by what Ryker had done, but they tore their gazes from Felix’s body and removed their daggers while the wolf shifters unholstered their guns.

New vampires came into view. And of course, at the back was Raven.

The betrayal stung like acid in my mouth. Raven stood with our enemies like she’d always done, having played us for fools until now.

"No one hurt Raven. She's mine," Briar snarled, her voice barely human.

My sister slammed into Raven and pinned her to the wall, and the others reacted instantly. Daggers whistled through the air, and one by one, the vampires dropped.

Briar’s sense of betrayal etched deep lines into her face. She pressed her dagger to Raven’s throat.

My lungs stopped working. I didn’t want Briar to do something she’d regret.

“Before you kill me,” Raven started as her eyes filled with tears, “Let me tell you that the wolf shifter royals are in the basement. There are two witches down there that you’ll have to address. Most of the guards are running through the woods right now, attacking whoever is out there and searching for the rest of your group.”

Ryker laughed bitterly as we positioned ourselves behind Briar. His voice was cold, mocking. "And why exactly would we believe a single word from your mouth?"

“You’d smell the lie if I were lying.” Raven lifted both hands. “I’m trying to help you to make up for what I did.”

My heart wanted to believe her. The very thing that got us all in this situation now. “If a witch can make you smell like wolf shifters, then she can hide the smell of a lie.”

“No one’s doing that,” Raven said, but Briar pressed harder on her neck, and her last few words were just a whisper. “Ambrosia didn’t kill the royals. She has them in the basement, draining them of their blood so vampires can drink it. She figured out that if we drink several ounces of wolf shifter blood daily, vampires can lose our scent completely.”

Her words were like a punch to my gut. Greats-grandfather hadn’t been kidding when he’d stated that he suspected the vampire queen had been plotting this for centuries. She had every detail mapped out.

If what Raven said was true, that put the last piece of the puzzle in place—why the vampires smelled faintly of wolf shifter, and why they killed primarily with claws and ripping out necks. It was the best way to pin it on us and turn our kind against each other.

"Why would we trust you? If a witch spelled you, we wouldn’t know it," I demanded, stepping closer. As I spoke, I searched for any sign of a shadow to indicate magic on her. "You've been playing both sides this entire time."

Raven's eyes flickered from Briar to me, then to Ryker. Her shoulders slumped, but her gaze remained steady.

"You shouldn't trust me," she admitted. "I haven't given you reason to. But I'd been searching for a way out from under the queen's control before I had to betray you." Her fingers trembled against the wall. "She suspected that my loyalty had begun to change and left me out of plans.”

That could explain why some of her actions had seemed genuine.

I don’t see signs of magic, I linked, unsure what to do with this information now.

We don’t have time for this, Ryker linked, taking the spot next to Briar. Let me handle her. We can’t risk her betraying us again.

Briar’s bottom lip quivered, and I loved that Ryker understood her. She was angry, but if she killed Raven, she’d wind up living with huge regret. She had such a big heart, and I hoped the world never robbed her of that as long as I was around to keep her out of trouble.

Ryker squeezed Briar's shoulder gently. Let me.

My sister hesitated, her dagger still pressed to Raven's throat. I saw conflict in my sister's eyes, the need for justice battling with her compassion.

"She betrayed us all," Ryker said, his voice steady. "This isn't something you need to carry."

A tear trailed down Briar’s cheek as her grip loosened. She stepped back, allowing Ryker to take her place, and I moved to her side and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"I’m sor—" she began, but her plea was cut short.

Ryker plunged his dagger into Raven's chest. Her face didn’t change at all, and she didn’t even try to fight Ryker. Blood bloomed across her cream dress.

I expected Ryker to do more because I felt his sense of betrayal and need for revenge, but then something drifted into me that I hadn’t expected. Heartbreak and remorse. He still cared about Raven.

Instead of twisting the knife like the vampires had done to me, Ryker released his dagger and stepped back, and she slid down the wall and to the floor. She’s incapacitated and won’t harm more of us now. I’ll leave her life in Fate’s hands.

We’re in, Xander linked. There aren’t any guards.

I shuddered, realizing that part of what Raven had just told us was true.

Raven said most of the guards are outside. Ryker watched as blood trickled from the corners of Raven’s mouth. So let’s get down there. Gage, they’re outside targeting you all and searching for the rest of us.

Fuck yeah they were, but I heard a walkie-talkie go off. They were just informed that the palace has been breached, and they’re heading back inside.

We had to move fast.

Ryker tore his gaze from Raven's slumped form, guilt and doubt settling uncomfortably in our bond. Yet, he squared his shoulders and moved with purpose.

"The vampire guards are coming back. We need to move fast," he barked.

Briar's silent tears streamed down her dirt-smudged face as she stared at Raven. Her shoulders shook with each suppressed sob, but she didn't make a sound. I squeezed her arm gently, pulling her away from the blood pooling on the floor.

The rest of the group was eager to move.

Ryker led our group through the corridor, following Raven's directions despite what he'd just done. The irony wasn't lost on me, but it wasn’t something I’d say. We were trusting the information of someone we couldn't afford to question now. But keeping the royals in the basement made sense.

Everyone’s sadness ebbed, and our anxiety strengthened. Two sets of stairs led to the basement.

The air grew colder with each step, and the unmistakable copper scent of blood made my stomach lurch. The metallic tang overpowered even the musty dampness of the underground space.

Ryker paused at the bottom of the stairs, his body tensing. His face hardened into stone.

The fact that we’d made it down to this level without issue had the hair on my neck rising.

A narrow hall stretched before us, and the pressure of magic around me made me feel as if I couldn’t breathe. Still, I moved forward, knowing that we had to end this now. We rounded a corner, and the passage widened into a cavernous basement.

My breath caught in my throat.

In the center of the room stood a witch. Black inky energy swirled around her body like a living storm, and her eyes appeared soulless.

The twenty-three royal wolf shifters lay arranged in a perfect circle around her, their bodies unnaturally still. Tubes ran from their arms, necks, and legs and connected to ornate glass containers that pulsed with dark red liquid. Their faces were ashen, drained of life. A strand of the witch’s magic connected to each of them.

We found the royals, Briar linked, and I heard the gasps of the wolf shifters behind us.

My eyes were drawn to movement in the corner of the room.

There stood Ambrosia. Even surrounded by death, her beauty was timeless. Her maroon lace dress seemed to show off the cruelty in her eyes. Her long chestnut hair waved over her shoulders, accentuating her curves.

Beside her stood another witch—one who looked like an older version of the real Adara. No magic swirled from her, indicating the vampires weren’t cloaked again… at least, not yet.

The vampire queen scowled, the hate in her eyes somehow shining even brighter. "Impossible. You’re dead.”

Her words rang in the air as my mind raced. How many times had she assumed we were dead, only to be disappointed? I'd lost count.

Vampires are returning to the mansion in groups, Kendric linked. We're delaying them as long as we can, but you need to hurry.

Panic and rage emanated from Ryker, stealing the little breath I had left. Just when we’d thought we had an edge, the vampires changed their strategy to compensate.

"Handle this now," Queen Ambrosia hissed at Adara's mother, her voice cutting through the basement like a blade. "Cloak the vampires again. I don't care if it drains every last drop of your power."

The older witch's face paled, but she nodded and raised her trembling hands. The air around her began to shimmer, and my skin crawled as the pressure of magic increased.

I fell to my knees.

The rest of our group surged forward as one. There was no time for strategy or careful planning—if that witch completed her spell, we'd lose our advantage completely.

"Stop her!" I shouted, unable to move at all.