Moon Burned (Mirror Lake Wolves Book 4)

by Jennifer Snyder

I grabbed the phone from David and replied to him.

  Get them to take me where they took the others.

  13

  “No! You can’t let them take you back there,” Alec insisted. His eyes grew wild as the intensity of what he said got the best of him.

  “Shh!” I scolded him. I tapped out another message on the cell.

  It’s the only way I’m going to be able to rescue my pack.

  I knew escaping from this room wasn’t going to do me any good. I didn’t know where my pack was being held. I didn’t know the inner workings of this place. All I knew was how to get back to an exit I might not be able to open on my own.

  Alec shook his head. “No,” he said as he snatched the phone from me. He typed out a hurried message and flashed me the cell.

  They’ll do whatever it is they’ve been doing to the others to you. I can’t let you volunteer for that.

  Something broke inside him. I could see the fragments of it reflected in his eyes.

  I understood where he was coming from, but I had to do what I had come here to.

  I took the cell from him and hid it from his view as I tapped out another message. This one was meant for David. I handed him the phone when I was finished.

  After I get taken back, I need you to get Alec out of here the first chance you get.

  David nodded and then slipped the cell in his pocket.

  “No. Pass it over,” Alec insisted. He held a hand out and motioned for David to place it there, but David refused. “What the hell, you two? You can’t have secrets. Not in this situation. We’re in this together.”

  I opened my mouth to apologize, to tell him it was for the best, but the words never came. They froze on the tip of my tongue as the door to our room swung open. A female vampire with long blonde hair stood in the threshold.

  I knew in an instant she was Regina.

  My blood boiled, and my wolf howled with rage as I took her in. Movement behind her caught my eye. The vampire with the scar stood behind her.

  “My, you are exquisite,” Regina said as her eyes appraised me. She licked her red painted lips. “Such a pretty face.”

  I narrowed my eyes but remained silent. If I opened my mouth, harsh words that would only lead to violence would spew free.

  Regina placed a manicured finger to her lips as she continued to stare at me. What was she trying to do? Look intimidating? I wasn’t afraid of her. A part of me had thought I might be when it came down to it, but now that she stood in front of me, I felt no fear.

  In fact, I thought it was comical she was the one running this entire show.

  She was so tiny. She wasn’t much taller than I was. Maybe an inch. If that. It had everything to do with the heels she wore. Take those off and she had to be four foot nine. She wore a skintight black dress, and her hair fell in long, golden waves to her waist. Her face was heart-shaped, and she had large doe-like chocolate brown eyes. Her skin was pale and perfectly clear, devoid of freckles or even to the tiniest mole. She looked as though she were made of porcelain.

  “Neo tells me you have spunk. He’s always been a fan of spunk,” Regina said, her brown eyes glistening with excitement. “I love it when people have spunk as well. It makes the taste of their blood all the more refreshing.”

  Alec shifted around where he sat, and I worried he might try to do something stupid.

  “Should I take her to be prepared?” Neo asked.

  “Absolutely. I’d love a sample.” Regina smiled.

  Neo nodded but didn’t step forward. “What about the other two?”

  Regina’s gaze left me to skim over Alec and David. “Leave them. I have yet to decide what to do with the double-crosser, and as far as the other one is concerned, he’s kind of cute. I might let him hang around for a little while and be my boy toy.”

  My stomach rolled. The last thing I wanted was for Alec to become Regina’s boy toy. I glanced at David from the corner of my eye. He seemed as disgusted by Regina’s words as I was. Good. Hopefully he would use his emotion to help get Alec out of here. Even if it meant having to sacrifice himself.

  Regina left the room, her heels clicking against the concrete as she walked. Neo started toward me. I forced myself to stand. My knees wobbled but still I started forward. Neo paused and grinned, finding amusement in my gesture.

  “This way,” he said, motioning me to step out of the room.

  “No! This isn’t right. You can’t take her!” Alec pleaded from behind me. “Mina!”

  I kept walking, not pausing until I was out of the room. Alec never reached out for me like I’d expected. When I spun around to face him, David had a hold of him. Alec fought against him, but David refused to let him win. He knew Neo would hurt him if he did.

  “I’ll be okay,” I said to Alec before Neo closed the door.

  What would they do now? Would David be able to get Alec out?

  I hoped so. The thought of Alec becoming Regina’s boy toy soured my stomach. Again, I found myself feeling guilty for having dragged him into this mess. I should’ve listened to Gran. I should’ve listened to Eli. Hell, I should’ve listened to anyone except myself when it came to Alec. If I’d kept my distance, he wouldn’t be here right now.

  “Don’t look so sad, little wolf,” Neo said as he directed me farther down the hall. “Regina will take good care of him. Trust me. She treats her boy toys well. I’m proof.”

  My feet faltered as all of my breath rushed from my lungs. Did he mean Regina turned her boy toys into vampires? The floor beneath my bare feet spun. I would never be able to forgive myself if Alec was turned into a damn bloodsucker.

  Neo winked and flashed me a wicked smile. One that let me know that was exactly what he’d meant. I sent a silent prayer up to the moon goddess, begging her to help get Alec out of here. To help get us all out alive.

  A door at the end of the hall captured my attention, mainly because of the exit sign hung above it. Even though this place was shady as hell, considering what its purpose was, Regina still had the place up to code. I found humor in that.

  A desk and a buff vampire sitting at it near the door held my attention next. The guy wore a suit and had his feet propped up on the desk. I imagined he was some sort of security personnel. Maybe he checked IDs as people entered the place, making sure they signed in.

  How hard would it be to get past him with a group of nearly dead werewolves?

  It had to be easier than getting them through this entire place, up the stairs, and through whatever waited in the boutique shop above.

  I glanced around, taking in more of my surroundings. This section of the building wasn’t as populated as the area we’d first entered. It seemed as though it was more for storage purposes and distribution.

  “Step inside,” Neo insisted as he motioned to an open door. Bright light filtered from inside spilling out into the hallway causing a glare across the concrete.

  I stepped toward the room without hesitation. This was what I was here for. I’d gotten exactly what I wanted.

  The room was larger than I’d expected. The largest I’d seen so far. When I stepped farther inside I noticed the space was actually two rooms split in half. One housed medical equipment, while the other had computers and chemistry sets. Three chairs lined the wall opposite me. Two of them were empty, but one was occupied by someone I’d been searching for.

  Glenn’s head lifted at the sight of me. A moan escaped him. His eyes rolled back into his head as he fell against the chair he was strapped to.

  “No. Not another one,” he muttered as his head rolled around. His voice was weak. It was clear he wasn’t well.

  My eyes drifted to the machine hooked up to him. I wasn’t sure what it was called, but I could easily figure out its purpose—to drain him.

  How long had he been hooked up to it? Hours? Days? For the entire week since I’d last seen him?

  “That was dramatic.” Regina chuckled. She’d been inside when we stepped in, standing near the lab section waitin
g. “I guess I should’ve expected as much. After all, you are from the same pack.”

  “Why?” The word propelled past my lips before I could stop it.

  Regina’s eyes darted to me. Anger flashed within their color. “Why? To make your alpha pay of course!” Rage blistered through her. She was a fiery one. I’d have to watch out for her temper. Which meant I’d have to watch my mouth.

  It wasn’t going to be easy.

  While I hadn’t expected her to answer me, I damn sure hadn’t expected her answer to sound so personal. What had our alpha done to her to make her do something like this? How did she even know him?

  “Don’t look so surprised,” Regina snarled. “You should know your alpha is not as innocent as he claims to be.”

  “What are you talking about?” I asked.

  Regina’s eyes narrowed as though she wasn’t sure she should say anything more. Or maybe it was that she couldn’t without blowing a gasket or having a breakdown. Rage radiated off her in waves.

  “He killed the one I love. Now sit.” She pointed at the chair beside Glenn.

  I crossed the room and positioned myself in it, thinking about what she’d said. I didn’t feel bad for her. The only thing floating through my mind was how I was going to kill her.

  Neo followed me to the chair. He strapped me in place.

  My gaze never wavered from Regina. She snapped her fingers and one of the doctors from behind the glass separating the two spaces started toward her. His eyes were glossed over, and I knew it was because he’d been compelled by her.

  “No,” Glenn groaned from the chair beside me. He shifted around but couldn’t get free. He was too weak.

  The doctor stepped to my side and hooked me to a machine similar to the one Glenn was attached to.

  “Don’t do this to her,” Glenn pleaded. His words slurred. He lifted his head but couldn’t hold it up for long. “Please. Take all of my blood but leave her be.”

  “Aw, how sweet. He would sacrifice himself for you.” Regina smiled sweetly. If she wasn’t such a crazy vampire bitch, she’d be pretty.

  I glanced at Glenn. It was my fault he was here. Did he know that? If I’d done something more, said something to someone that first night, maybe he wouldn’t be here. Maybe he’d be with Taryn, excited about becoming a dad soon.

  Maybe a lot of things would’ve been different.

  At the sting of a needle entering my arm, I closed my eyes and pulled in a deep breath through my nose. How was I going to get myself out of this? I couldn’t allow them to take too much of my blood. Then I’d be as weak as Glenn. There would be no way I’d be able to get us out of here then.

  Shit. What was I going to do?

  “Here you go, Miss Regina,” the doctor said. His words sounded robotic. Cold and unfeeling. Zombielike. He had no idea what he’d just done.

  I watched as he passed a syringe of my blood to Regina. Her face lit up. She squirted my blood into a shot glass and licked her lips.

  “I’m so excited!” she shouted as she placed the glass to her lips. “Oh, wait a minute. What am I doing? I don’t want to just drink her blood. I want to taste Abstraction made from her blood. Add in the secret ingredient. I feel like celebrating!”

  The doctor took the glass from her and walked back to the lab. I watched as he reached for a tiny dropper. He twisted off the lid and added a single drop of ginseng to my blood.

  “Come on. Add in another. I said I’m celebrating,” Regina insisted. Her brows pinched together as though she was struggling not to lose her cool with the doctor.

  He did as she asked, releasing three more drops into the tiny amount of my blood. He mixed it together as he walked back to Regina.

  A wide smile stretched across her face as she took it from him and swirled the two ingredients together with her long fingernail. Once she was satisfied, she placed her finger in her mouth.

  “Perfect.” Regina sighed before placing the tiny glass to her red lips.

  My stomach somersaulted at the sight of her drinking my blood.

  Her eyes rolled back into her head as a low moan escaped her once she’d downed it. “That was good. She’s going to make some of the most potent selection we have. We could charge double.”

  It was a creepy hearing her talk like that about my blood.

  “I might have to come back later for another taste,” Regina said. Her face grew slack and the pupils of her eyes widened until her eyes were black. Obviously, whatever effects Abstraction caused were already hitting her.

  “Don’t you know the making of a bad drug dealer is one who dips into her own supply?” I asked before I could stop myself. I wasn’t in a position to be snarky, but it wasn’t in me to stay mute any longer.

  Regina’s dark eyes focused on me. Her lips twisted into a wicked grin. “I can’t very well sell something I haven’t tried myself. One has to know how potent the product is so they can place a price tag on it.”

  “Said every drug dealer addicted to her own shit,” I spat.

  Regina flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder and spun on the tip of her heel until she faced the exit. “I’m done here. She’s killing my buzz.”

  Neo grabbed her hand and escorted her through the door. Once they were gone, the doctor took another syringe of blood from me before he hooked me up to a machine like the one Glenn was attached to. Once he was finished, he stepped into the next room.

  Laughter burst from Glenn. “You are crazy. I wish you weren’t here, though. This place is bad. I saw them almost drain a guy the other day.” His eyes rolled back into his head as though talking took too much energy.

  “What guy? Did you recognize him?” I hated bombarding him with questions, but I needed to know how many werewolves from the files Eli had grabbed from Peter’s were still alive. I needed to know how many members of the pack I’d be rescuing.

  Most of all, I needed to know if my mother was among them still.

  Glenn glanced at me. “Frank. You remember him?”

  My heart stalled in my chest. “Felicia’s ex?”

  She would be so happy once I brought him home.

  “Yeah, that’s him. He’s here too.” Glenn licked his chapped lips. “Everyone that’s ever left our pack is here. Or at least they were.”

  His words felt like a physical blow.

  Were? Did that mean some of them had died?

  I wanted to ask if my mother was still alive but didn’t. If he didn’t give me the answer I’d been hoping for, I might fall apart. I couldn’t do that. Not now. Not here.

  “There’s a woman,” Glenn whispered. “She resembles you. Or you resemble her, considering she’s older.”

  My mom. He was talking about my mom.

  “Is she okay?” I held my breath.

  “As good as she can be in a place like this, I guess.” He let out another moan as he shifted around in his seat.

  “When did you see her?” I asked. He’d only been here a week.

  “Yesterday,” Glenn said as he yawned. “They put me in her place yesterday. That’s what they do. They slowly drain you for two or three days, until they think you can’t handle anymore without dying. Then they put you in one of those steel door rooms to let you recoup for a week before they put you back in the chair, at least that’s what I’ve been told.”

  Bile rose up the back of my throat. I couldn’t imagine going through something like that for as long as my mother and the others had.

  I couldn’t even think of it.

  “She was here yesterday, the woman who I look like? Was she alive when they took her away?” I asked, double-checking.

  “Yeah. She probably wishes she wasn’t,” Glenn muttered. His words were becoming faint. I only had a few minutes with him before he would pass out, succumbing to the darkness that was trying to pull him under.

  I needed more information, though. I needed to know more about the process.

  “How do they allow you to heal? Do they give you silver?” It was the only wa
y we’d be able to regenerate quickly.

  “The guys who brought you here, the ones from the woods, they take your silver because they’re human and weak. Scared. But the vampires, they don’t give a shit. They enjoy the fight if you try. Besides they know silver is the only way to keep our wolf tethered to us…the only way to keep it from getting lost in our mind. They know it helps us heal quickly.” Glenn yawned and forced his eyes open wider so he could glance at me. “They let you keep your silver.” He nodded to my ring and bracelet.

  “I didn’t fight when I was brought in.”

  “You should have,” Glenn said. “You should’ve fought like hell. Maybe then you wouldn’t be here.”

  “You’re wrong. I would be because I want to be.”

  “Well in that case, welcome to the rotation,” he muttered with as much annoyance as he could muster before he passed out cold.

  14

  My mom was here. She was still alive. I couldn’t begin to process how that made me feel. Happy. Exhilarated. Relieved.

  The machine hooked up to Glenn beeped, pulling me from my thoughts. What was happening to him? Had he been drained to the point just before death? Or did it mean he had died? Or was at risk of death?

  No. I couldn’t think like that.

  It had to be beeping because something with the machine needed to be changed out or his allotted time was up.

  Glenn wasn’t dead. He couldn’t be.

  I’d just found him again. He had a baby on the way he didn’t even know about yet.

  “Glenn!” I shouted, hoping to rouse him. He’d passed out. He hadn’t died. “Glenn, wake up!”

  The doctor from the other room came out. He headed for Glenn without seeming worried. I watched as he pushed buttons on the machine, silencing the deafening beep.

  “Is he still alive? Is he okay?” I asked.

  No response came from the doctor. He didn’t even acknowledge the fact that I’d spoken. Regina had screwed with his mind too much.

  “I asked you a question! Is he still alive? You can at least answer me after everything you’ve done.” Anger and panic twisted my words.