Sylas

Lake

Derrick rushes at me, and I make a beeline for the hotel room door. Wrenching it open, I hurtle down the hallway, trying to escape this strange, dangerous mood that has overtaken my mate.

Even his scent has changed, to a suffocating musk that makes my lungs heave for fresh air.

I call on Lynne for strength, but she doesn’t respond. Looks like I’m on my own.

We’re on the fifth floor, which means I have no easy escape out the front doors of this place. Derrick inches closer to me, cornering me against a large window at the end of the hallway.

My back presses against the cold glass. Cars pass by on the road below, with no idea of what’s going on. Their headlights bleed into the dimly lit hallway, but do nothing to illuminate the darkness of my mate’s gaze.

“Derrick. Please.” Tears prick my eyes. This is the first time since turning rogue that I’ve been purely terrified. And I’ve never in my life been afraid of ~him.~

Derrick cocks his head to the side as if he can’t understand me. His canines protrude out of his mouth like some kind of wild animal. His eyes are vacant with no emotions behind them.

I’m at a loss over what to do as Derrick readies himself to attack. I sink to the floor, my heart breaking as I look into those black voids, wondering if these are my last moments.

~No love. No contentment. Nothing but pure hunger for violence.~

I squeeze my eyes shut as Derrick lunges for my throat. The pain I expect to feel never comes, though.

Just the sound of glass shattering.

I open my eyes to see a shadowy figure crashing through the window and into Derrick. The stranger from earlier, Sylas, is tangling with my mate, keeping him away from me.

They both slam each other into the walls and doors dotting the hallway. My mate growls while Sylas’s eyes glow a beautiful gold.

Down by the elevators, my grandfather appears, flanked by a pair of warriors. Evin has a sadistic smile on his face as he watches Derrick and Sylas brawl in the confined space.

Sylas gets an opportunity to uppercut Derrick. A stomach-churning ~crack~ rattles my very soul as my mate falls limp on the floor. I cry out, my hands pressed to my chest.

He’s not dead—I would know if he was. But how badly has he been injured?

Evin smirks. “Seize them. We have plans for all three.”

Before I have time to react, Sylas scoops me in his arms and jumps back out the window. Derrick’s comforting face and his scent fade away as Sylas lands in the middle of the main street.

His landing creates a mini crater in the concrete. Car horns blare around us, and he kicks off the ground once again, sending us soaring off into the night.

Reeling from all that’s happened in the past few minutes, my sight begins to darken, blackness enveloping me from head to toe.

***

~“Lake, wake up,”~ a voice calls. ~“You can’t let them get a hold of what lies within you. You must run.”~

“Kjarni.”

I stir at the sound of that voice, feeling unbearably weary. “Mom, just a few more minutes.”

“~Kjarni.~”

My eyelids flutter open to see a pair of red eyes gazing down at me. I blink a few times before getting my bearings and realizing what happened. I sit up abruptly, only to bang heads with Sylas.

He groans in pain as I hold my forehead with the same pain.

~Who knew vampyres had such hard heads?~

“Kjarni, you have got to watch what you’re bumping into.” Sylas rubs his forehead and checks mine with his other hand. “So much more of a klutz than I could have imagined.”

“Derrick! Where’s Derrick?!” I ask in a panic, scrambling to my feet. “What did Evin do to him?”

“Whoa! Wait a minute!” Sylas grabs my arm just as I begin walking back in the direction of the hotel. “Kjarni, let’s think rationally before waltzing back into the place where you were just about killed by your ~mate~.”

I turn to him and raise my eyebrow. “My ~mate~ is not your concern,” I reply acidly. “But your hand being removed from your wrist will be if you don’t take it off my arm.”

Sylas purses his lips into a thin line and only grips me tighter.

~What is up with this vampyre?~

“I ~said~—”

“You’re right. That werewolf mate of yours isn’t my concern,” Sylas says, his eyes glowing the same brilliant red they were while I was feeding on him.

“Kjarni, ~you~ are my concern. I don’t care if I lose my hand, my arm, or even my life if it means keeping you safe.”

Okay, now this guy is giving off creepy stalking vibes.

“First of all, the name’s Lake. Not…Ka…Kjar—”

“Kjarni.”

“Yeah. That word.” I clear my throat. “It’s Lake. Second, my mate is all my ~only~ concern. So, thank you for saving me, but I can handle myself from here.”

“Kjarni—” I raise an eyebrow, and Sylas corrects himself. “Lake. There are things happening in this pack that you don’t understand. You’ll need some help if you want to get Derrick back.”

“It’s never cut and dry, is it?” I grit my teeth. “What kinds of things are going on?”

“Can we get you to a safe place before we dig into all of that?” Sylas asks, his words hurried. “Evin’s Trackers will be out soon.”

“Fine. Once we swing by my special spot outside the territory, I’ll go with you,” I reply. “But this doesn’t mean I trust you. The minute I suspect anything amiss, I’ll break your neck before you can blink.”

I don’t want to go anywhere without my mate, especially with a stranger. But if I’m to see Derrick again, I have to. And for his sake, I’ll do anything.

***

As we travel on the edge of Dark Moon’s territory, I notice the terrain is much harder to get through in human form. Mostly because I’m barefoot and still wearing a stupid dress.

Sylas is quicker, but makes sure to wait for me if he gets too far ahead.

~Show-off.~

The rocks, uneven ground, and enormous roots are making it hard for me to avoid faceplanting every ten feet.

Sylas smirks as I struggle up the steep path. “I could always carry you on my back.”

“Like Bella in ~Twilight~?” I scoff. “No thanks. I’d rather have gashes in my feet.”

“But Edward was such a good match for her.”

“Dude, don’t get me started on that twisted love triangle.”

I’m struggling to even my breathing as Sylas leads the way to the top of the steep hill I just spent twenty minutes cursing.

I’m a hybrid, one of the most powerful things on this stupid planet, and yet I’m struggling to climb this small obstacle. I really need to get back into training my human body.

“So, what’s so special about this spot that you have to get to it right now?” Sylas asks.

His dirty blonde hair is still perfectly slicked back, while his thick eyebrows are knit together in curiosity.

“There’s extra clothes and two books I need,” I say between breaths. “They may help us. Even if I don’t know what’s going on, I’m sure they can point us in the right direction.”

“You’re extremely calm about what’s going on here,” Sylas points out.

I let out a laugh. “I may not have my mate with me, but I’ve been through worse.”