“A lot of us were taken around then,” I said.
“They were.” His eyes darkened—he must not like remembering his story of how he was brought here any more than I liked remembering mine. I couldn’t blame him… but I was also curious about his story.
Then I realized why he looked so familiar.
“I recognize you,” I said slowly. “Or at least I think I do.”
“Really?” He raised an eyebrow. “Because I know we haven’t met before. You’re not someone I could ever forget.”
My cheeks flushed, and I cursed my body for betraying his effect on me. “You remind me of that swimmer,” I said. “The one who was on track for the Olympics.”
“You follow sports?” he asked.
“I was a gymnast.” I shrugged. “I was never good enough to try for the Olympics, but I was hoping to compete in college.”
“But now you’re here.” His deadpan tone got across what he meant—that now I would never be able to compete in the sport that I’d previously dedicated my life to.
“Yes,” I said. “Now I’m here.”
I waited for him to answer my question—to tell me if he was that swimmer—but he said nothing. I supposed I would have to prod further.
“Am I right?” I asked. “About who you are? Well… who you were? Before being brought here?”
“No.” He laughed. “I do get that a lot though. Apparently I look a lot like him.”
“You do,” I agreed, hoping I hadn’t made him feel insignificant by comparing him to a minor celebrity. “And that’s a good thing. I always thought he was attractive. So I meant it as a compliment.” I shut my mouth immediately afterward, realizing that I sounded like a babbling idiot.
His eyes shined in amusement. “If you meant it as a compliment, then I’ll take it as one,” he said.
We continued to dance, and I sunk into his arms, inwardly thanking Tanya for forcing me to come out tonight.
Then the music went off—before the song ended. It was like someone had pulled the plug.
People groaned and complained in the crowd.
“What’s going on?” I pulled away from Jake and looked for my friends. My heart rose in my throat when I couldn’t find them where I’d left them.
“Vampires.” Jake whispered in my ear. “Look.”
I looked at where he was facing, and sure enough, five vampires dressed in their black guard uniforms stood around the Christmas tree.
What were they doing here? Vampires never guarded the human village. The wolves were enough of a threat to keep us out of trouble. We were usually guarded by higher up humans— usually the humans who had generations of family in the Vale. Vampires were only called in for emergencies.
Judging by the hushed chatter throughout the crowd, I wasn’t the only one who was confused.
“I need to leave,” Jake said, his eyes darting around the square. “Now.”
“Why?” I held tighter onto his hand, not ready to let him go. I had no idea if I would see him again.
And if he was in trouble… I wanted to help. Which was silly, because I barely knew him, but I wanted to help nonetheless.
“They’re looking for me.” He pulled the hood higher over his head and turned away from the guards.
“Why?” I asked.
Because what would they want with a human from the Vale?
There was only one answer I could think of—they wanted to bring him into the dungeons of the palace.
If he was brought there… he would never come back.
“Never mind why,” I said, not giving him a chance to answer—and still not letting go of his hand. The guards all blocked the road that led to the vampire’s town, but the street leading to the Tavern was unmanned. “I know a place where you can hide.”
“Where is this place?” he asked, his voice low.
“Somewhere secret,” I told him. “They won’t find you, I promise.”
“You trust me?” He raised an eyebrow, and I was surprised to find a hint of playfulness in his silver eyes. “Even though we just met?”
“I’m not sure why, but yes,” I said, not needing to stop to think about my answer. “And if we want a shot at getting away, we have to go now.”
He gave me a small nod, and I led him out of the crowd, breaking into a run the moment we turned into the nearest alley.
Jacen
I kept up with Annika, impressed by her speed. However, it held nothing on mine, and I had to focus on running slowly as to not give away the fact that I wasn’t human.
As we ran, I questioned my decision to go with her. It hadn’t been an easy decision to make. Because if the vampire guards had found me, they might have revealed who I was.
What I was.
Once Annika knew I wasn’t human, she would never look at me the same again. And the way she’d looked at me while we’d been dancing—with interest, and perhaps even intrigue—I didn’t want to lose that. At least not yet.
So I went with her.
She navigated the alleyways so fluidly—like a choreographed dance. I supposed it was the gymnast in her. Finally, we rounded a corner, and she stopped at a wooden building with a sign above the door that said The Tavern.
“This is your secret place?” I asked. “A bar?”
“Above the bar.” She looked up at the highest window. “But if anyone sees us come in the front door, they’ll ask about you. So… how good are you at climbing?”
“Up there?” I glanced worriedly at the window. Not because I thought I couldn’t do it—as a vampire, climbing the wall would be easy—but because I was worried about her.
“Yes.” She nodded.
“Have you ever done this before?” I asked.
“A few times.” She shrugged. “It’s pretty easy to climb, as long as you know the right places to hold onto.”
“You first,” I told her—because while she seemed confident, I wanted to be there to catch her if she fell. “I’ll follow your lead.”
“All right.” She smiled and bounded toward the side of the building, placing her hands and feet in each spot with ease as she made her way up the side. She looked like Rapunzel climbing up her tower.
I held my breath, sure she was about to make a wrong move. But she made it up so gracefully that if she’d said she was a vampire, I would have believed her.
Once at the top, she opened the window and hoisted herself inside. “Come on,” she called out, her hair blowing in the wind. “I’ll guide you if you get stuck.”
“I won’t get stuck.” I smirked, ready for the challenge, and rushed toward the building. My abilities would have easily allowed myself to jump from the ground to the window, but I went at the same pace she’d climbed. Anything else would have been a dead giveaway that I wasn’t who I’d claimed to be.
“Wow,” she said as I made my way inside the cramped attic. “That was impressive.”
“I told you it wouldn’t be a problem.” I looked out the window as she closed it, making sure the vampire guards hadn’t followed us.
The streets were clear.
Confident that we’d gotten away, I relaxed and looked around the room. When I’d first seen the lone window on the top of the building, I’d assumed it was going to be a dusty old attic. And while it was an attic—the low ceilings nearly brushed the top of my head—it had been transformed into a cozy book nook. There was a shelf packed with books—both new and old—and blankets strewn about to create a spot for reading.
“Where does that look out to?” I glanced at the window on the opposite side, which was blocked by curtains.
Annika smiled—so big that it reached her eyes. “Come,” she said, making her way to the other end of the room. “I’ll show you.”
She opened the curtains, revealing an incredible view of the palace on the mountain.
My prison.
“It’s beautiful.” Her eyes shined as she gazed up at it. “Don’t you think?”
“It’s full of vampires,” I said sharply.
“You hate them,” she observed, turning to look at me.
“Yes.” I didn’t need to think about my answer. I hated vampires—and I hated that I was one of them. “Don’t you?”