A part of him relaxed at the sound of those familiar voices, but another part felt like he was walking barefoot across hot coals. He teetered on the verge of something as he walked a fine line between control and giving in to the sucking madness pulling at him since he became an adult vampire.
He’d lost control once before, and he’d vowed never to let it happen again, but the demon part of him was riled up and seeking to be set free. Dipping a hand into his pocket, he pulled out a lollipop and unwrapped it. He didn’t look at it before sticking it in his mouth; he concealed a wince when the grape flavor hit his tongue.
Fucking grape.
It was his least favorite flavor, followed closely by the blue raspberry shit that made his mouth look like he’d eaten a Smurf. No, blue raspberry was his least favorite flavor simply because of the blue-mouth aftereffect.
They’re both atrocious, he decided.
As they walked, he counted the licks while trying to calm himself as well as prepare for the barrage of emotions about to hit him. He believed he was under control again until they stepped through the door.
He lost count of the licks as a sledgehammer of feelings blasted him in the chest and nearly staggered him back a step. Instead, his stride never faltered as he plastered on a smile and tried not to ram his fist into something.
“Declan,” Ronan greeted and broke away from the others.
Declan’s smile was more genuine as he embraced his friend. They squeezed each other’s shoulders before parting ways. Ronan shook Logan’s hand next. “Good to see you.”
“You too,” Logan said as he shifted his bag on his back.
“How was Mexico?” Ronan inquired.
“Good. I’m glad I went. We’re confident the vamps and hunters will continue to work well together. What’s going on here?”
Ronan turned back to the table where the others stood. “I wish you’d come back to better news.”
Ronan led Declan and Logan over to the large table. The tension inside Declan increased with every step they took. Vicky stood by the table with her head bowed and her hands resting on the flat surface. He didn’t have to feel the anxiety radiating from her; one glance at her pale face and pinched lips told him that her sister was with Lucien.
Declan didn’t realize he’d put his hand back in his pocket until he crushed the lollipops. Chunks of sugar seeped out from the wrappers and stuck to his fingers. He clearly recalled the beautiful girl with dark blonde hair that had shades of gold and wheat threaded through it.
It wasn’t easy to forget her long, lean body with curves in all the right places. And then there were those astounding violet eyes; he’d been alive for centuries and never seen anything as beautiful as they were.
She was the main reason he jumped at the chance to go to Mexico. His desire for her rattled his ironclad control in ways no one had before, and he couldn’t allow it to happen. The last time he lost control, too many people paid the price, and he’d been living with the consequences of it ever since.
So he packed his bag, hopped in his car with Logan, and took a trip to Mexico where Willow haunted his dreams almost every night. And now, she was missing.
His fangs unexpectedly lengthened, and for a minute, a haze of red coated everything in the room as he resisted his impulse to destroy and kill everything in his way of her. He worked to retract his fangs while he focused on the others.
Nathan stood beside Vicky with a hand on her shoulder and another resting near the map. Next to her brother, Kadence stared at some pictures of trees. The photos were upside down to him, so it took a few seconds to register that they were camera footage taken outside the massive bunker in Maine.
Standing next to Kadence, Roland, the head of security, pointed at something in one of the pictures. “The computer programs I’m running threw up a red flag on this one the day the cameras went down. At first glance, I didn’t see anything wrong with the photo, and after knowing what caused it to be flagged, I put it aside. After their disappearance, I decided to take a closer look at some of the flagged photos. That was when I spotted this.”
They all leaned closer to get a better look. It took a couple of seconds before Declan made out the shape of what looked like a human, or possibly a Savage, in the photo. But it could also be a tree or a deer or a shadow. If it was a human or Savage, they had their back to the camera and were nearly out of range.
“Do you see it?” Roland asked.
“Yes,” Kadence said.
“Is it a Savage?” Elyse asked.
When Saxon went to stand by his mate, Madison held her arms out to her mother, and Elyse drew her daughter into them. She cradled the little girl against her chest while Madison rested her head on her shoulder. The love emanating from them helped calm Declan a little.
“It could be anything,” Kadence murmured.
“It could, but I’m going to assume it’s a Savage after losing contact with them,” Roland said.
“Why are we just seeing this picture now?” Ronan inquired.
“We have close to fifty cameras up there,” Roland said. “I have the footage from each running through computer programs for face recognition and that are designed to pick up movement and people, but they’re not perfect, and they miss things. So do I. There are no faces here, and this isn’t even one of the cameras that went down. This camera is still running. That is the only reason this photo was flagged.”
He pointed to a speck of red in the upper left corner of the photo.
“What is that?” Saxon asked.
“A ladybug,” Roland answered. “It landed on the camera.”
“Why would a ladybug send up a red flag?”
“The programs monitoring the footage are set to pick up any red, or a vampire’s eyes. They’re also set to pick up the white-blue color of a turned hunter’s eyes. The red of the ladybug’s wings set off the warning system.”
Before leaving for Mexico, Declan was working with Roland on the programs and monitoring, but the hunter had done a lot more since he left.
“And possibly caught a Savage on camera,” Killean muttered.
“It has to be a Savage,” Saxon said. “There’s no other reason for them not to report in.”
He was right, but if this was the only Savage caught on camera, it made him think they were aware of the cameras and knew how to get around them.
“How many are with Lucien?” Declan asked.
“Four,” Asher answered. “One newer recruit and three hunters.”
“And your sister is with them,” he said to Vicky. He knew the answer, but he had to have it confirmed.
Terror shone in Vicky’s emerald eyes when they met his. “Yes.”
Declan couldn’t stop himself from chomping down on the lollipop. The acrid taste filling his mouth gave him something else to focus on, besides the rage trying to take him over. He chewed on what remained of the pop before using his tongue to pick away the pieces sticking to his teeth.
Willow should not be out there. She was a member of the Alliance, a choice she’d made, but she couldn’t become one of those monsters. He would not allow her or Lucien to be tortured and brutalized until nothing of them remained.
CHAPTER 5
“How many of the ones on this mission know how to get here?” Declan asked.
“Only Lucien and Leonard,” Ronan said.
“Leonard is a young hunter who only recently completed his training and was allowed to join the fight,” Nathan said.
All the new vampires who joined the Alliance were blindfolded before coming here and placed in the back of a van they couldn’t see out of even if they weren’t blindfolded. They remained at the compound throughout their training, and when it was time to test them on the streets, they were blindfolded and put in the same van. Many of the younger hunters had no idea how to get in and out of here, but the ones who graduated to become fighters did.
Even after the vamps became full-fledged members of the Alliance, they still didn’t reveal
their location until the Alliance decided it was okay for them to know. If the recruits didn’t like the arrangement, they didn’t have to stay.
It wasn’t that they didn’t trust them, the recruits wouldn’t be here if they weren’t trustworthy, but they couldn’t risk one of them falling into the hands of the Savages. When the Savages started turning their captives instead of killing them, they completely changed the rules of the game.
If too many vamps and hunters knew the location of the compound, it was only a matter of time before the information fell into the wrong hands. Declan would prefer if they didn’t tell any of them where they were living, but he realized it wasn’t practical or fair to them. Still, he preferred the compound remained more of a secret.
“If they were captured,” Asher said, “we have a big problem.”
“Lucien would never reveal our location,” Killean growled.
Declan had to give Asher credit; he didn’t back down from the lethal look on Killean’s scarred face when many would have fled the room.
“I don’t think he would say anything,” Asher said, “and neither would Leonard, unless they succeed in turning them into Savages, and if they do—”
“That won’t happen,” Killean interjected. “At least not with Lucien.”
Anger flickered in Asher’s eyes, and his jaw clenched. Simone rested her hand on Killean’s arm; he remained visibly tensed but relaxed a little.
“We have to face the possibility it could happen,” she said gently, “to Leonard and Lucien. We’re putting the children at risk if we don’t prepare for the worst.”
Killean opened his mouth to protest, but when Madison let out a small coo and giggled, he clamped his lips together. He stared at the baby for a minute before giving a brisk nod. “We’ll prepare for the worst.”
“Can you track any of the ones who disappeared?” Declan asked Elyse.
Elyse’s rare gift of being able to track others through their blood was a big asset for them until she got pregnant and decided to take a break.
“No,” she said. “I haven’t started using my ability again since Madi’s birth. Besides, there was no reason for me to come into contact with the blood of anyone on that mission.”
His fingers rattled the broken pieces of candy in his pocket as his agitation mounted. The woods around that bunker took up thousands of acres of land; if anyone was alive up there, it could be impossible to find them.
“What about Brian?” Declan asked. “Can he find Willow and Lucien?”
Vicky’s brother-in-law, Brian, had a different ability than Elyse, but he could also locate people and vamps. He’d helped them out more than a few times over the years.
“He’s in Australia,” Vicky said.
“What is he doing there?” Declan demanded.
When they all shot him questioning looks, he took a deep breath to calm the turmoil rolling through him. But they had to find Lucien and Willow; he realized there were three others with them, but right now, he didn’t care about them. Lucien was more like a brother to him, and Willow….
Well, he had no idea what she was to him. However, the idea of her in the hands of the Savages, being brutalized and tortured until she became a monster, awakened protective instincts he never knew he possessed. It also brought forth a murderous rage that was dangerous to them all.
He never should have gone to Mexico. He should have been stronger. He should have handled his desire for Willow instead of leaving. If he’d been here, he would have been on that mission too. He would have kept her safe; he would have helped Lucien… or he could also be missing and possibly in the hands of Savages.
Taking a deep breath, he lifted his eyes to the thousands of books lining the walls as he sought to control the demon part of him trying to break free and destroy. Since the day he stopped aging, he’d walked a fine line between man and monster.
Most days, he expected to lose the battle. But somehow, he got up, got through it, and continued the war against the Savages and himself.
“He took Abby on a tour of the world,” Vicky said. “They’ve been traveling for a couple of weeks and planned to be gone for six months.”
“Have you contacted them?” Declan asked.
“He was the first person I called,” Ronan said. “I haven’t heard back from him.”
“They probably don’t have reception where they are, but they’ll call as soon as they get the messages.” Vicky wiped a tear from her eye as her gaze shifted to the windows. “I had to tell my mom Willow is missing.”
Nathan drew her against his chest and hugged her. “We’re going to find her.”
Vicky relaxed against him, but her palpable grief beat against Declan.
“We have to decide what to do with the women and children,” Nathan said. “If they have Lucien and Leonard, we have some time before they turn them into Savages. We have plenty of fighters and defenses here, but it might not be enough if a horde of Savages arrives, especially since Lucien knows all those defenses.”
“We’ll add more,” Ronan said. “I’ve already ordered more guards on watch. We’ll dig more traps and add more guns and bombs to the perimeter. If someone tries to get in here, they’re going to regret it.”
“So, you plan to keep the children here?” Elyse asked as she held Madison closer.
“For now,” Ronan said. “Until we can find a place that Lucien and Leonard don’t know anything about. If they were captured, then we still have some time. It will take at least a couple of weeks for them to turn, if not longer. Baldric is already looking for another property to purchase.”
“Okay.” Declan stepped closer to the table and grasped the map lying near one of the pictures. He recognized the map as the same one they used when they hunted down the location of the Savages in Maine. Elyse’s mark was still on the map. “Let’s go find out what happened to them.”
“How many are you going to take?” Roland asked.
“Not many,” Declan murmured.
He didn’t have to look at Vicky to know she didn’t like his response.
“What do you mean, not many?” Vicky demanded.
Declan lifted his head to meet her narrowed eyes. He would also prefer to take an army up there and tear the woods apart, but they couldn’t risk more lives, and they couldn’t leave the compound weakened.
“We can’t afford to leave the women and children here unprotected,” Ronan said. “And if we have to evacuate, we’ll require as much help here as possible.”
“We can’t leave them up there!” Vicky protested.
“We’re not,” Declan assured her. “I’m going.”
“So am I,” Logan said.
“Me too,” Asher said.
“I’ll join you,” Saxon said.
The color drained from Elyse’s face as Madison stuck her thumb in her mouth. Saxon smiled at her, but Declan sensed his reluctance to leave his family behind. However, Lucien would be the first one out the door in search of him, and Saxon would go to find him.
“You should stay with your mate and child,” Declan said. “If we’re forced to abandon the compound, it will be better if you’re here with them.”
Saxon gazed from him to his family before bowing his head. “You’re right.”
Elyse’s shoulders hunched forward, and she sighed. Before she became pregnant, she was a fierce fighter, but her family was her priority now, and she didn’t want it separated.
Declan didn’t blame her; if he had a family, he would do everything in his power to protect it. However, he never planned to have a family. He was too fucked up for that, and after what happened with his father, and then him, he couldn’t risk having a child.
CHAPTER 6
Declan buried the memories battering against the wall he’d sealed them behind as he shifted his attention back to the map. Now was not the time for the past. He knew he had to learn from the past, but he couldn’t dwell on it. Dwelling on it would only drive him mad.
The only thing he had a
ny control over was the present, so dwelling on the past and worrying about the future were pointless endeavors—although there were many times when he found himself walking the paths of his past before recalling he couldn’t alter them.
“I’m going too,” Killean said.
“It’s better if you stay here,” Declan said. “We’re already taking some of our best fighters. We can’t take anymore.”
“I am going,” Vicky stated.
“Not without me,” Nathan said.
“Yes, without you. You’re staying with Wyatt, and I am going.”
Nathan looked as if she’d socked him in the gut, and then red began to suffuse his face. The couple stared at each other, neither of them willing to back down.
Gazing between them, Declan couldn’t decide if he should say something that might diffuse the situation or back out of the room. The others shuffled around him, and he felt their unease as they tried to decide how to react.
“I’m not letting you go out there alone,” Nathan said.
“Then it’s a good thing I won’t be alone, and you don’t get to let me do anything. I’m going to look for my sister.”
“And what about our son?” Nathan demanded.
“Don’t do that,” Vicky hissed. “Don’t use him against me.”
“I’m going to unpack some of my things from Mexico and get ready for this trip,” Declan said.
“I’ll help you unload that tequila,” Saxon said, and draping his arm around Elyse’s shoulders, he hurried her toward the door.
Declan didn’t listen to the murmured excuses of the others as they followed him out of the room. Ronan closed the doors on Vicky and Nathan’s heated discussion.
“I don’t envy him,” Ronan said.
“He never should have said he wasn’t going to let her go,” Kadence said.
“I’m not even that stupid,” Killean said.
Simone nudged him in the side with her elbow. “You better not be.”
“Happy wife, happy life,” he said as he kissed her temple.
Bound by Torment (The Alliance, Book 5) Page 3