Chapter 26: twenty-six

Cole

“Do you understand what needs to be done?” I asked, my voice strained as my fangs began to press through my gums. They both nodded in unison and set off to complete their mission.

They weren’t Marcus’s guards, but loyal soldiers to my father. It wasn’t ideal to use them, as they were essentially empty shells, often referred to as ‘the damned.’

Once they finished their task, I’d send them back. If all went well, we’d still be able to leave tonight after I dealt with my little problem.

After reassuring the girls that we wouldn’t stay long, I winced internally at the sound of her shrill voice. It was like nails on a chalkboard.

“COLLLLLLLLE!”

Then she had the audacity to touch me, her slimy and repulsive hands making contact with my skin. Her touch had always been bothersome, but this was different. It was like being seared with a hot iron.

“Don’t fucking touch me. Don’t you have a date? Where is ~he~?”

I didn’t wait for her response and started walking away. I knew she valued her life too much to lay a hand on what was mine. Besides, I knew Raven would have no qualms about slicing her open.

Every corner I turned, I was greeted by another so-called elite.

“You’re actually here.”

“How’s your father?”

“How are you?”

I tried to make my way to my love, only to be pulled back. It felt like I was in the ocean, the waves constantly pushing me back. I could only glance in her direction to ensure she was still there.

Servants bustled around, carrying trays back and forth from the kitchen. The vampires who had pets would collect them and trap them on their laps.

Some were gentle and took care of the humans, others, not so much. I was used to the screaming, but it was becoming too much.

I knew I needed to find Marcus. Once I made my presence known, we could leave. But before I could find him, he found me.

“Cole! I see you made it. Are you enjoying yourself? Where is your delightful little pet?”

“Marcus. She’s back with the others.”

“Interesting. Have you fed yet?”

“I’m not hungry.” Of course, he pretended not to hear me.

“I have such a treat for everyone this year. We are going back to the old times. Ah, I miss those days, hiding in the shadows, slaughtering whole towns just to feed our blood lust.”

What the fuck was he talking about? Before I could say another word, he had disappeared. I spun around, trying to spot him, but Kaden appeared in front of me.

“Lord Slim ball tried to taste test Olivia,”

I’ll fucking kill him.

“But don’t worry, I told him that you’d dismember him, and he ran off,” Kaden smirked.

“I’ll take care of him later. Now help me locate Marcus. I think something is about to happen. Actually, never mind, let’s get the girls and get out of here,”

Just as we started for them, the doors opened to reveal several human prisoners, if they could even be called that.

They were clean but barely clothed, chains wrapped around their ankles and wrists as they were marched to the only table in the room.

I quickly understood what was about to happen. I glanced over at Olivia and Raven, her eyes were wide, and I knew she realized the situation as well.

I pushed my way through the vampires, dragging Kaden along with me. I heard the thud and clinking sounds. They were throwing the humans onto the table and removing the heavy chains.

The closer I got to Olivia, the stronger her pain was.

The first scream was the worst, a high-pitched wail from a woman as three vampires held her down and sank their teeth into her. No doubt mercilessly.

Once they rose, drenched in blood, I knew chaos was sure to follow.

The screams grew louder as more vampires launched themselves at the table, blood dripping from the table and onto the floor.

I was too distracted; I was preoccupied with my surroundings to even notice Raven had left Olivia and was already mid-air when I had to grab her.

I wrapped my arms around her body, pinning her arms to her side and knocking the dagger to the ground. Luckily, no one noticed her.

“OLIVIA!” I heard her scream and looked up to see a dark figure leaving with my mate, my love, my everything.

I threw Raven to the ground, no longer caring if someone devoured her. I chased after the shadow, but it was too late. Where is she? Who were they?

***

Cole

I could feel it building, scratching to be released, my rage was overwhelming all my other senses. Rational and logical thinking was pushed to the back of my mind.

No, I need to think this through. I closed my eyes and focused all my energy into trying to feel her… nothing. Did they drug her? They must have.

I returned to the dining hall, the human servants were huddled together, shaking, sobbing, stuttering nonsense.

I then realized that Kaden and Raven were trying to hold back the clearly blood-thirsty vampires.

They appeared to have taken out a few, but there were more than thirty still. I did not have time for this shit.

I put my index finger and thumb in my mouth and whistled loudly. Everyone looked up at me, but I wasn’t trying to get their attention.

The two Damned soldiers appeared in front of me.

“Get rid of them,” I stated, gesturing to the mob of vampires.

“Clarification,” They both said. Clear, specific orders. I could already hear my father’s voice scolding me.

“Lock them in the dungeons, if they don’t go or try to fight back then kill them. Leave these two and the humans.”

The Damned nodded and I could see the vampire’s eyes start to return to normal, the black beginning to shrink.

I suspected Marcus had laced the blood somehow. Nothing was making sense.

“Just hand over the humans and we’ll be on our way,” I said, my gaze snapping to Lord Slimball.

Ah, I’d almost forgotten about him. I moved toward him, my steps slow and deliberate. He didn’t seem to fear me, probably still riding his high.

I remained silent as I stood before him, my hand, claws extended, plunging into his chest. I pulled his heart through the gaping wound. He wouldn’t die from this, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t crush his heart in my hand.

And that’s exactly what I did. It was like popping a water balloon. Blood sprayed our faces, and I took a moment to admire the look on his face before gripping his hair and ripping it from his body, listening as it made a thud in front of the others.

“Anyone else?” I asked calmly, already knowing the answer.

They scrambled, running in every direction. The Damned looked at me and I waved my hand dismissively.

“Forget them. Ensure the humans make it to their quarters safely and meet me at the rendezvous point. Everything is ready?”

“Yes,” they answered in unison.

***

“Cole, what the fuck was that?” Raven shouted at me as I entered the area where Olivia had been taken.

“Shut. Up. I should do the same to you. All you had to do was stay with her and you couldn’t even do that,” I growled at her.

“Don’t blame me! I couldn’t just stand by and watch that! You know I couldn’t!”

“Enough of your fae warrior bullshit, Raven.” Her eyes widened, and Kaden’s mouth dropped open.

“What the hell is going on here!” Kaden threw his hands in the air.

“ENOUGH! Just… just help me find something to figure out who did this or get the fuck out,” I gritted through my teeth.

I knew Raven wasn’t at fault. I was. We could have just left, I could have made her stay with me, I should have kept her safe.

We began searching, for what I had no idea. The dining area was a disaster, blood was everywhere, and the smell was horrific.

“I found something,” Kaden shouted a few feet away.

We ran over to him to see him holding a syringe in his hand.

“We already know she was drugged; how does this help us?” Raven huffed out, crossing her arms.

“True,” he said as he began to examine a shiny strand that was wrapped around the plunger, “However, what vampire do we know that has blonde hair?”

Fucking Annabelle.

***

I grabbed Raven’s wrists and sped us to my room, Kaden was seconds behind.

“Stop doing that! What are we doing here? We need to be hunting that bitch down,” she shouted.

“We’ll never find her. We don’t know where she went, she could be anywhere,” Kaden stated.

I picked up the black bag and threw it at him.

“I know someone who probably knows,” I calmly said as I walked into my closet and started to change my clothes.

I wasn’t one for casual clothes, so I just changed into a pair of black dress pants and a white button-down shirt. Kaden was already digging through his bag and pulling out clothes for him and Raven.

Kaden and Raven’s eyes grew wide as he pulled out the missing collar from the black bag.

“Is that?” he started as he handed Raven her clothes but I just cut him off,

“Yes. And I’m sure he’s involved somehow. The Damned have him, now get dressed and follow me. We can discuss everything on the way there.”

“Where?” Raven asked while quickly changing into a pair of black pants and a blue t-shirt.

“Hell,” I told them as we left.