Nika's heart thundered in her chest as she came to a halt at the edge of the forest. Her mouth was dry, palms sweaty, stomach flopping like a fish out of water. She drew in the air through her nose, steadying herself. But to anyone who watched, she was only catching her breath after a trek through the meadow.
The scraps of a plan had been falling, but she knew it was pointless to take control of this situation. All she could do was keep her phone on, so that Ren knew of her location at all times.
Glancing back toward headquarters, she searched for his figure among the dawn-dripped gardens. But he was nowhere to be found.
Good, she thought. He's going to see Elliot. That's exactly what I wanted him to do.
But she found herself staring at the gate to her father's property, hoping he would emerge and tell her there was another way to save Lu and stop the Volkari's rebellion. That she didn't have to do this alone.
She waited, but he never came.
With another breath, Nika turned around and entered the forest, rehearsing the things she planned to tell Dante. Then a familiar figure appeared from behind a cluster of trees, and her mind went silent. Cinnamon-soaked eyes gleamed as morning light blanketed the forest, and a slashing grin made Nika nauseous.
"Have a nice chat with your boyfriend?"
Nika forced out a mocking laugh. "Romanovich isn't my boyfriend."
Not yet, anyway. There was still much discussion to be had about that particular subject.
Dante stopped an arm's length away. Nika restrained the urge to punch his pretty face. Repeatedly.
"You two looked pretty cozy earlier."
"He's a little attached. After my vacation to Tatiana's cave, I needed a blood fix, and he was conveniently within reach of my fangs." The lie dripped from her tongue like honey, sweet and smooth and never to be questioned. "We may have gotten a bit carried away, and one thing led to another. Now he thinks we're bloodmates or something."
She watched Dante's reaction carefully. While the effortless smirk remained, his nostrils flared at the word bloodmates, and she didn't miss the way his eyes dipped to her neck—as if he was searching for bite marks. It wasn't exactly confirmation of Ren's suspicions, but Nika had to wonder if Dante's flirtatiousness and attentions were driven by things other than the pack's agenda.
"He watched you leave. Does that mean he knows what you are? And why we're meeting?"
"I told him that you're taking me to Lu and made him promise not to tell a soul."
"And he believed it?"
"He's all muscle, no brains. Plus, I told him I've got you wrapped around my finger and you're willing to do anything for me. He was more focused on the fact that I might have to seduce you to get Lu back."
Dante laughed. "Ruthless. I'm impressed."
He searched her face, and Nika prayed her keeper's mask concealed her true sentiments. She would say and do whatever was necessary, but there was a line she wouldn't cross. Seducing Dante into giving up Lu—that wasn't an option. Not just because of Ren and how it might rip open the wounds they'd healed only minutes ago, but because Nika had too much respect for herself to sell her body in that way.
She wouldn't harm an innocent either, or trade Lu for the Ministry's secrets, for neither her conscience nor her father would survive those circumstances. A delicate balance was imperative. Give him enough but never too much.
"Well," Nika said, cocking her head, "are we just going to stand here or can we get moving?"
Dante's eyes narrowed. "You're truly ready to accept my invitation?"
"Yes."
"And you aren't going to do anything stupid, are you?"
"Define stupid."
"Snaring me, for instance. Taking me to a Vigil prison and interrogating me."
Nika stepped forward, holding his gaze. "Why would I do that? You'd just tell them that I'm a wolf, and then they'll arrest me, too."
When he reached for her head, she leaned away and seized his wrist. All instinct, no thought. She dropped his arm and created some distance, hoping he couldn't hear the rise in her pulse.
Dante frowned. "I wasn't gonna hurt you."
"Sorry," she muttered. "You just surprised me."
"If you don't trust me, then why are you here?" It was almost a growl.
Nika refused to let the panic set in, refused to let this go awry when it had only just begun.
Lu Lu Lu
Reminding herself of the mission, she said, "You offered me something that no one else has—a place where I belong, every tainted bit of me. My whole life has been endured in ridicule and hatred and accusation, and I'm sick of it. I want the people who've hurt me to be punished. I want them to suffer just as much as I have."
She was breathless. The words had come with so much force that Nika almost believed them herself.
Dante's stare stripped her down to the skeleton. And perhaps that was exactly what it had been—a secret she'd hidden in the dark for nearly eighteen years.
He held out his hand. "Give me the gun." She blinked, and he tapped his nose, explaining, "Belabane bullets. They're pungent to us. You'll see what I mean when you learn to control your senses better."
Nodding, Nika removed the weapon in her waistband and gave it to him. He emptied the chamber of bullets and threw them into the forest, then tossed the gun in the opposite direction.
He dusted his hands. "You seem very reluctant to join us."
She shrugged. "Can you really blame me? Your people did torture me."
"That was Tatiana."
"You expect me to believe that you didn't know her plan?"
A sigh. "It wasn't difficult to suspect. But I couldn't defy my alpha without facing severe consequences."
"And here I thought you were fighting to end tyranny."
Excitement sparked across his face, along with a smile. "Exactly." A breathy laugh. "I'm glad you're here, Nika. I'm glad I found you."
She said nothing. A strange fellow, this Dante Azzara. A curious side of her wanted to ask him questions, observe everything he said and did just to solve the mystery behind his persona, but the keeper within told her to focus on the goal.
"So . . . " she said. "What now?"
Dante beckoned and turned around, and Nika followed with caution concealed by haste, all the while recalling what she could of Ren's advice. Before long, they reached the highway that ran through the mountains, and parked on the side of the road was a yellow sports car.
"Did you steal this?" she asked as Dante sat on the driver's side.
"Maybe."
A flashy, loud vehicle was the last thing Ren would expect him to drive. Nika didn't know if Dante was incredibly stupid or an absolute genius, but she got inside anyway.
"Where are we going?" she asked, watching the forest blur past.
Her chest tightened with every passing minute, making her more and more aware of the distance that grew between herself and safety. It was as though she'd left her heart behind.
"Somewhere far," was all Dante said.
"Now who's the distrusting one?"
A sideways smile. "It's a surprise. But you'll be happy to know that Lu is there."
Thank the Oldbloods.
It was a good thing Nika was sitting down; otherwise her knees might have given out. Perhaps luck was what she owed credit to, not the Oldbloods. He would take her straight to Lu, and together, they would figure out how to escape a pack of vengeful Volkari. They might even be home by tomorrow.
She shut down those hopes. Wishful thinking only wasted time.
"If you won't tell me where we are going," she asked Dante, "at least answer a few questions."
He gave her a puzzled look but nodded.
"Why did you kidnap Lu?"
"She's a Serafi. A witch. We need one to break the moon curse."
"But you already have Tatiana."
"Tatiana's power isn't reliable, not even with Asteroth's help. She's only with us to teach Lu magic and perform the spells alongside her."
"And Konstantin's journal—it tells you how to break the curse, doesn't it?"
He frowned. "How'd you know?"
"I have my methods," she said with a wink. "Then you also know that it talks about Konstantin and Tatiana, how they knew each other hundreds of years ago."
Dante gaped. "Yeah."
Before he could inquire about her source of information, she said, "She was entombed and kept in a magical sleep. How did you wake her up?"
A beat of hesitation. "I don't know. Alpha did it himself. He thinks keeping secrets gives him more respect."
"Is that dissatisfaction the reason you're playing both sides of this war?"
The question slipped out, a product of curiosity and resentment. Nika's face heated as she realized the mistake. She should have just stayed quiet.
But Dante didn't seem fazed. Nor did he detect her panic when he said, "The only side I'm playing is my own."
She wanted to ask what the hell that meant, but Dante turned the dial on the radio and warned, "Enough questions."
Music drowned out the ensuing silence, then her thoughts drowned out the music. And as they drove toward the human territories speckled with cities and towns, an anxious tapping took control of her foot, and all that soothed her nerves was the thought of saving Lu.