more well suited than anyone to remain an active agent.”
Carden’s low laugh bounces off the walls of the crude cavern, grating my nerves. “More well suited, is it? Unless you’re talking about that getup you wear to splash about in the waves, I can’t say I agree.” I jerk away from him, but he only grins, his hand wrapped around my arm like a manacle. “Fret not, pup. I’ve got things covered on the Isle.”
Things … He means Annelise.
“I’ve taken her as a mate,” he adds with a smile.
“By accident.” My retort is instant, my hostility foolish, but I can’t help myself. When she’d come back from that first mission bonded to Carden… My rage boils at the memory. I’d sensed my feelings for her before then, but the moment I knew I couldn’t have her? That was when I realized I couldn’t live without her. “She was the one who bonded the both of you,” I manage. “Unintentionally, as I recall.”
Such disrespect against any vampire other than the easygoing Carden would’ve meant my immediate death, but the Scotsman only grins and gives a playful slug to my arm. “I think our young Ronan is just sore I’ve got the better job.” The murder in my eyes grows as he broadens his smile. “I think the whelp would like to hit me.” He slings a rough arm around my shoulder then, speaking to me in a consoling tone that makes my jaw clench. “Don’t get yourself into a lather. You know I’ve a true affection for the chit.”
I give a sharp tug to my arm, breaking free at last from his grip. “What is this, the eighteenth century? Annelise isn’t a…what’d you call her…a chit ?”
Finally, I see Carden’s eyes go cold. “Easy, boy,” he says, seizing my shoulder. “You’d do well to mind your affections. Aye, she’s no chit. Trust me, I know better than any how Annelise is a woman.”
His words tighten around my chest like a vise. I say through clenched teeth, “She thinks you love her.”
“And love her I do.” The coldness in Carden’s eyes has been replaced by something unreadable. “But I won’t let my feelings about her cloud our most important goal. We must triumph over the Directorate. Whatever the cost. Drew would be the first to agree.”
“You think? I’d have guessed you’d list her safety as the primary goal.”
“It’s called honor, boy. We learned it in forty-five.”
“The year 1745 was a long time ago, McCloud. Your Scottish honor has nothing to do with vampires.” I give him a peremptory smile. “We’re friends with the Brits now, you know.”
“I’ll tell you what I do know,” he says, and I can see the smirk in his eyes already, damn him. “I reckon you’ve got a puppy crush on a lass, and it’s got your knickers in a bunch. You young bucks are all the same.”
That’s where he’s wrong. I was raised in isolation, weaned on savagery. My body might be nineteen, but my soul is old as the cave we stand in. In my heart, I’m as ancient as any vampire.
“Older doesn’t always mean wiser,” I say, and before Carden can respond, I turn to Freya. I choke down my anger, forcing myself to remember why I’ve allied with one set of vampires to take down another. Carden might be a son of a bitch and Freya power hungry, but Alcántara’s Directorate is an evil I could never destroy on my own. “I’m young, it’s true. But I’ve served you well.”
“Don’t speak to me of serving ,” she snaps. “The time has come for you to obey .”
I don’t flinch because I know I obey nothing but my own heart. And my heart tells me nobody can protect Annelise like I will.
Freya’s eyes harden on me. “Perhaps you need a lesson. Shall I tell you of Sonja?” I recognize the name instantly, from the runes Annelise found carved into a cliffside. I don’t know much about the inner workings of the Directorate, but one more piece has fallen into place. “Must I tell you how Sonja, my… sister ,” she spits, “my spoiled little sister, turned
Carden’s low laugh bounces off the walls of the crude cavern, grating my nerves. “More well suited, is it? Unless you’re talking about that getup you wear to splash about in the waves, I can’t say I agree.” I jerk away from him, but he only grins, his hand wrapped around my arm like a manacle. “Fret not, pup. I’ve got things covered on the Isle.”
Things … He means Annelise.
“I’ve taken her as a mate,” he adds with a smile.
“By accident.” My retort is instant, my hostility foolish, but I can’t help myself. When she’d come back from that first mission bonded to Carden… My rage boils at the memory. I’d sensed my feelings for her before then, but the moment I knew I couldn’t have her? That was when I realized I couldn’t live without her. “She was the one who bonded the both of you,” I manage. “Unintentionally, as I recall.”
Such disrespect against any vampire other than the easygoing Carden would’ve meant my immediate death, but the Scotsman only grins and gives a playful slug to my arm. “I think our young Ronan is just sore I’ve got the better job.” The murder in my eyes grows as he broadens his smile. “I think the whelp would like to hit me.” He slings a rough arm around my shoulder then, speaking to me in a consoling tone that makes my jaw clench. “Don’t get yourself into a lather. You know I’ve a true affection for the chit.”
I give a sharp tug to my arm, breaking free at last from his grip. “What is this, the eighteenth century? Annelise isn’t a…what’d you call her…a chit ?”
Finally, I see Carden’s eyes go cold. “Easy, boy,” he says, seizing my shoulder. “You’d do well to mind your affections. Aye, she’s no chit. Trust me, I know better than any how Annelise is a woman.”
His words tighten around my chest like a vise. I say through clenched teeth, “She thinks you love her.”
“And love her I do.” The coldness in Carden’s eyes has been replaced by something unreadable. “But I won’t let my feelings about her cloud our most important goal. We must triumph over the Directorate. Whatever the cost. Drew would be the first to agree.”
“You think? I’d have guessed you’d list her safety as the primary goal.”
“It’s called honor, boy. We learned it in forty-five.”
“The year 1745 was a long time ago, McCloud. Your Scottish honor has nothing to do with vampires.” I give him a peremptory smile. “We’re friends with the Brits now, you know.”
“I’ll tell you what I do know,” he says, and I can see the smirk in his eyes already, damn him. “I reckon you’ve got a puppy crush on a lass, and it’s got your knickers in a bunch. You young bucks are all the same.”
That’s where he’s wrong. I was raised in isolation, weaned on savagery. My body might be nineteen, but my soul is old as the cave we stand in. In my heart, I’m as ancient as any vampire.
“Older doesn’t always mean wiser,” I say, and before Carden can respond, I turn to Freya. I choke down my anger, forcing myself to remember why I’ve allied with one set of vampires to take down another. Carden might be a son of a bitch and Freya power hungry, but Alcántara’s Directorate is an evil I could never destroy on my own. “I’m young, it’s true. But I’ve served you well.”
“Don’t speak to me of serving ,” she snaps. “The time has come for you to obey .”
I don’t flinch because I know I obey nothing but my own heart. And my heart tells me nobody can protect Annelise like I will.
Freya’s eyes harden on me. “Perhaps you need a lesson. Shall I tell you of Sonja?” I recognize the name instantly, from the runes Annelise found carved into a cliffside. I don’t know much about the inner workings of the Directorate, but one more piece has fallen into place. “Must I tell you how Sonja, my… sister ,” she spits, “my spoiled little sister, turned
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