After a moment he finally nodded.
“While you’re outside, scope out the grounds and keep an eye out for James and Marcy,” I told them. “Nick, I want you to make your way back over the wall and see what you can find. If you’re successful in locating James, he can help coordinate the wolves. If my father is badly injured, we need him. We can’t afford status fights in the middle of all this. Maggie said they would turn up here and Marcy has to stay safe.”
“Will do,” Nick said. “I have all the emergency Pack numbers in the SUV. If James and Marcy are free, he has likely put a call in to the Safe House. I can let them know where we are and make sure the rest of the Pack members are alerted.”
I turned to Tyler and Danny. “Don’t worry about me in here. Contacting Dad is your top priority. Go somewhere to shift. Keep trying. If you don’t hear from me once the sun sets, find Ray and keep him safe.”
The library door clicked open by itself.
Our five minutes were up.
“Are we all good?” I asked, glancing around the group.
Everyone nodded. I walked out into the foyer, Rourke behind me, followed by the boys.
There was a lone vampire waiting for me, as the Queen had promised.
He was the exact opposite of Valdov in every way: young, blond, and built like a Mack truck. I had no idea vampires could have that many muscles. He must’ve been changed in his absolute prime as a bodybuilder. It was weird to see, because most vamps were lean with sinewy muscle.
His incisors snapped down as he took a step toward me.
“No need to touch me,” I told Conan the Vampire Barbarian, blocking Rourke with my back. If given a chance, my mate would go for his throat if this vamp mistreated me in any way, especially with a buildup of adrenaline bouncing around his system. “I will go with you willingly, as agreed. I won’t put up a fight. Just let me say goodbye to them.”
“You will not dictate what I can and can’t do,” he sneered as he reached a beefy arm toward me.
One second before Rourke took a step forward to snap him in half, I snarled, “If you touch me, I will kill you. How about that instead?” To accentuate my point, I lashed my power outward. This vamp was a baby, and even though he tried to keep up his macho fa?ade, he shrank back against my power. “Like I said, I will follow you. Your Queen left you in charge because she knew I would not resist. I gave her my word and I will honor it. If you don’t fight me on this, nobody has to get hurt.”
I turned back to Rourke without waiting for Conan’s approval and wrapped my arms around his neck.
He leaned down and brushed his lips against mine, whispering, “I will find you.”
15
The underground maze Conan led me through was easily twice as big as the mansion above it. There were no windows and the walls were made of thick, porous limestone. Lit torches hung every ten feet, giving it an ominous feel, perfectly fit for a dank dungeon.
“The Queen couldn’t spring for electricity down here? This is a little on the Addams Family side if you ask me. If anyone were watching us now, we’d be in black and white and you’d look exactly like Lurch.”
“This place is off the grid and we keep it that way on purpose,” Conan grumped. “And keep your mouth shut, or I’ll shut it for you.”
“I’d like to see that,” I snickered under my breath. I could easily incapacitate him and make a break for it, but it would lead to immediate complications I didn’t need. This was probably a test anyway. Send me with a baby guard and see what I’d do. She probably had fifty guards waiting around the corner. If I pushed too hard from the beginning, she would be justified in torturing me next, which I’m sure she was hoping for.
We’d passed a few closed doors, but I hadn’t heard any heartbeats or movement behind them. I hadn’t scented anything familiar either. I was fairly certain Naomi and Ray weren’t down here, but that wasn’t an absolute. Things were likely spelled.
The real question was: How was I going to break my way out of limestone and dirt?
Once I sprang myself from the cell, I would find Naomi first. She would know her way around this place. Then we could free Ray and meet up with the boys, hopefully before the demons arrived. There was no question they were coming. I just hoped my father would turn up before then. I gave a little silent prayer to Maggie. I hope you’re right, little one.
The muscled vamp stopped in front of a huge iron door with a tiny barred window. He took his brawny arm and unlocked it with a key from his belt. He strained as he tugged it open, so I knew it was ridiculously heavy. Once it was open, he gestured for me to enter.
I walked into the cell.
And stopped. “You have got to be kidding me. I’m not staying in here with them.”