“In the Underveil, each species assume the jobs for which they are most suited. Slayers are law enforcers. Elves create. Shifters use their unique attributes to their advantage. I move fast. Bovine shifters… Well, they are calm, and the Master…” Her voice dropped off.
The hackles stood up on the back of Elena’s neck. Bossy and bigoted. She thought back on all the shifters she’d met. Yep. Bears were guards. Dogs were stable boys. Mice were servants, and cows were…food?” Nuh-uh. No way. Elena grabbed the towel and wrapped it around her body with shaking hands. Rage billowed inside her like flames as she thought about the poor boy in the barn, his life taken so young. “No!”
Lilian scampered back a few steps. Elena hadn’t meant to scare her, but damn, she was mad. That bastard had locked her up and taken off like nothing mattered but himself. “That’s it!” She grabbed her clothes from the floor and ripped her pants on. “He’s not keeping me here.” This level of anger was not normal for her, but somehow, it felt empowering and liberating. She’d saved his ass. After fastening the halter on, she leaned against the side of the tub and pulled on her boots. “Unlock the door, Lilian.”
Shaking her head rapidly, hands wringing, she backed up. “I’m sorry, miss. I can’t. I won’t.” She froze and closed her eyes. “Kill me now if you must.”
Holy shit. Elena couldn’t kill someone. Well, unless her life was in danger…or her baby’s…or Nik’s. Did she look like a killer? A glance in the mirror confirmed she did. All in black leather with crazy wild markings on her skin and her newly acquired lean muscle and red-tinged eyes, she looked like a killing machine. Horrified, she slumped into a stool in the corner.
A howling sound came from outside the door. The girl immediately morphed into a mouse, leaving a horrifying pile of human skin behind, and scampered under the armoire. More howls. Then screams.
She had to get out of this place. Rescue Nik, displace Fydor, end this war or whatever was brewing, and try to break free of this untenable existence. She couldn’t live like this. No one could. Human cattle, dead boys, oppressed women. Just, no. She gripped the door handle right as another howl sounded, and she froze. It was a human sound, but animal also.
She felt more than heard a change behind her. He was back. She didn’t even have to turn to know. “What is out there?” she asked, leaning her forehead against the door.
“Your rage.”
Now, she did turn. The vampire stood in the middle of the room, covered in blood from his chin to his waist. She shuddered.
He pointed to the bed. “Sit.”
Like the dog shifters in the barn at Aleksi’s command, she obeyed.
“This is not your fault. It is mine. I should have explained. So much in our world is taken for granted, and I failed to see the implications from a human perspective—a downfall from living too long as an immortal. We forget what it’s like above the Veil. How short sighted and prejudiced you can be.”
“Short sighted and prejudiced?” She leapt to her feet, and he held up a palm.
“If you lose your control again, I will have to kill more of them, so please refrain. I’ve grown fond of them, despite their shortcomings.”
What an ass.
“Not really. When you lose your temper, the vampires housed here feed off your emotion and react accordingly. They have been isolated from inciting forces until their training is complete and they can either be released or destroyed. All here were slated for destruction.”
She gestured to the blood on his chest and face. “What happened to you?”
His smile was bittersweet. “The better question is what happened to them.”
No. No, no, no. He did not just kill the vampires she saw in the big room when they arrived.
“Indeed, I did. Not all of them, though. Some passed the test, which was unexpected.”
“Are you telling me my anger got them killed?” Her insides roiled and she covered her mouth.
“No. Their lack of self-control got them killed. You simply helped me along. I was in that dungeon so they had not been tested a second time yet. It should have happened long ago.” He took a deep breath. “Do not let it trouble you. I will explain it after I clean up. Please, I beg of you, remain calm until I return.” He disappeared without a trace or sound.
Oh yeah. Stay calm. He just slaughtered people in his own home because of her. No biggy. Welcome to the Underveil, the freaking gateway to hell.
Chapter Thirty
Nik stretched his back and wiggled his fingers to bring them back to life. Fydor and Commander Mihai had been conferencing for what felt like hours, right outside his cell door. The bear shifter guard growled when he flexed his fingers again, and he growled back. The first thing he planned to do when he was free from these bindings was kill that fucker.