"ANYTHING ELSE YOU can think of?" Brax asked, arching an eyebrow.
I rubbed my hands together as I stared at the bodies, feeling like the worst sort of traitor. "Yeah, my downstairs neighbors talked to her before she left. She told them she was calling in a favor and to let me know that not all is as it seems."
I left out the part about how those same neighbors weren't exactly human and how they'd shielded her from detection when Brax and Sondra had paid me their little visit. Those were not my secrets to tell.
"It's odd she would tell such a thing to a stranger," he said, his eyes never leaving my face.
I shrugged. "He's a charming guy."
In every sense of the word, I suspected.
Clay stepped back into the alley. "I sent a couple of wolves to check out the high school. We should know something soon."
"I don't suppose you'd let me speak to the wolf Caroline savaged," I said, lifting an eyebrow.
Brax studied me before sliding a sidelong glance Liam's way, asking without words for his thoughts. Liam's arms were crossed over his chest, his face inscrutable. He looked dark and dangerous, the kind of man whose very presence threatened your piece of mind—the bogeyman with the face of a fallen angel.
"She may see something you missed," Liam said after a long pause. "She's shown a certain talent for this sort of work."
"More like she's a trouble magnet," Nathan said, his lazy humor peeking through for a moment.
"Either way, I don't see how you have much choice at this point," Liam said. "The city's master isn't going to be happy about this latest turn of events, and he'll hold you responsible since Caroline's one of yours."
Brax's face darkened, but he didn't argue. He looked resigned, determined.
Sondra paled, her eyes going to the bodies before coming back to me. There was something in her gaze, something I almost thought might be pleading. That couldn't be right, though. Sondra was a fierce warrior. Self-assured and confident in her abilities. There was nothing I could do that she couldn't do one hundred times better.
There was subtext here that I just wasn't getting. Frustration at my lack of knowledge ate at me.
"I can bring the pup around tonight," Brax said.
"Not tonight," Liam responded, looking up at the sky. "We'll be here a few hours longer, which will put us too close to dawn. Bring them tomorrow, first thing after sunset."
I started to protest. If catching Caroline before she did any more damage or went insane was so important, then we should do anything that might find her a priority.
Liam silenced my protest with a cutting look. "Unless you'd like to take blood straight from the vein."
I closed my mouth and hesitated. My gaze falling on the bodies.
"I thought so."
It was the last line I hadn't crossed. The few times I'd drunk from Liam didn't count. He was a vampire, and it was unlikely that I could kill him should I lose myself in the taste of blood.
"I'll do it," I said, not looking up. "I'll drink from the vein."
I crossed my arms over my stomach to hide the tremble in my hands as I stared at the bodies. There were times you had to bite the bullet and do the things that were hard. When you screwed-up as badly as I had, it meant sucking it up and doing what needed to be done, sacrificing if necessary. It was the only way to make amends.
"From Thomas. You'll take blood from your sire's vein," Liam said, making his demands clear, his gaze drilling into the top of my head.
My head lifted in surprise, and my mouth parted in denial before I bit it back. "What would be the repercussions of such an act?"
His expression softened. "Does it really matter?"
Did it?
My lips firmed. "No, but I still want to know."
Caroline was worth the sacrifice, and if it meant I didn't have to stand at another scene like this one, I'd take the chance.
"It will strengthen you and give you the ability to stay awake longer while the sun is up." He hesitated before continuing. "It will deepen your connection with your sire—bring it more into line with what it should be."
"Will he be able to control me?" I asked through numb lips. "I've heard that a sire can compel their yearlings."
Liam's gaze went to Brax and his wolves.
"I'll bring Lisa by before sunrise," Brax said before stalking off into the night, his two wolves shadowing him.
Liam waited until the three were well out of hearing range before answering me. "It might, though you have shown a surprising resilience to any form of influence."
The way he said that made me think he’d tried at some point only to fail.
"Most sires form some sort of connection with their yearlings; the form of that connection depends on both the sire's needs and the yearling's strengths."
"How much control did your sire have over you?" I asked, my voice calmer than my mental state, which had turned into a gibbering fool begging me not to consider this.
"I was not a typical case," Liam said after a long pause.
My gaze went to Nathan. "How about you?"
Nathan looked from me to Liam. "He could compel me to act against my will if necessary."
"Still? He could do that still?" I asked, not looking at either of them.
"It would be much harder than it would have been a few centuries ago," Nathan said. "But that is not how the relationship is typically handled between sire and yearling. Most only use the compulsion to help the yearling gain control in the first few years."
"But not all?"
There was another hesitation. "No, there are cases where such a relationship is abused."
That was the way of the world. The strong taking advantage of those who couldn't protect themselves. I never thought I'd be the one who couldn't protect myself.
I looked at Liam, fear in my eyes. "You're asking me to trust someone who has never shown me he deserves it. If I drink from him and he gains control, there is nothing preventing him from taking over all aspects of my life."
He could force me into a clan, get me to quit my job. Hell, he could force me to kill my family, and there would be little I could do to stop it.
"I know you don't believe me right now, but Thomas isn't like that. I can't guarantee he'll never compel you, but he'll do it only when it's in your best interests."
That was little comfort. I hate when people say “it's for your own good”. That's like saying you're too stupid to know what's best for you. Maybe what I've chosen, while not the smartest way, is the way that works for me. My entire life I've been a square peg trying to fit into a round hole, and I'm tired of it. Going my own way, while difficult and often dangerous, was still better than giving up who I am for a false sense of safety.