Chapter 99

Candido looked toward the door. “I’ll be there soon.”

I heard whoever it was walking away from the door then he turned to the cabinet to pull out clothes.

“What about me?”

“You should get some more rest,” Candido said as he tossed clothes onto the bed for himself. “You’re still a bit too injured to be doing much of anything.”

I grit my teeth. “You’re doing it again. You… You can’t push me out of this or protect me from it. We’re in this together. I’m going, and your aunt said you need more rest!”

He licked his lips and turned his head. His eyes flickered with light as they dragged over me.

“You… are a distraction,” Candido said, his voice low and rough, more of a rumble than anything. “Right now, I can’t afford distractions. Stay here, Hedy, and get some rest.”

I set my jaw. “I’m going, Candido.”

He sighed and turned around. “Why do you feel the need to?”

“Were you listening to anything I said? I…” My shoulders slumped, so tired of explaining this. “I want to be by your side. I want to be the queen you need, but you keep—”

I gasped, stumbling back as he seemed to dart across the room. My back hit the wall and he loomed over me. He licked his lips.

“Candido—” He pressed a finger to my lips and hushed me.

“You… Every word you speak is a temptation,” Candido said, staring into my eyes. “I don’t think you understand what that means.”

I thought back to my dream and my heart started hammering. My gaze dropped to the tent in his towel. I could almost feel it pressing against me. If he was just a bit closer.

“Stop,” he said, lifting my chin on the edge of his hand. “No.”

I set my jaw. “Don’t expect me to stop tempting you.”

His eyes narrowed and he smirked. “Be careful with what you plan to do next, little girl. I’m already contemplating all the ways I’ll punish you for this stunt you pulled.”

He leaned close. “You didn’t even pick up my size of condom.”

My face flushed as he pulled back and turned back towards the bed. “I can see that you’re going to be difficult about this… Perhaps I’ve spoiled you too much, but I will concede, this once.”

I watched him. Feeling like he was being patronizing, like he was still treating me like a little girl. It was a bit exciting that I didn’t know which way he would go at any moment, but I knew that I couldn’t let him win this.

I couldn’t if I wanted him to really start to struggle with keeping his hands off me.

I turned. “I’m taking a shower.”

He let out a needy growl, and I scurried into the bathroom, closing and locking it behind me. I could feel him on the other side of the door. I could feel his heat radiating through the door as if he was pressed up behind me.

He let out a frustrated growl. “You are doing this on purpose.”

“Maybe.”

“… when the time comes, Hedy,” he said gruffly. “A bathroom door won’t keep you from me. Do you understand? When I have you… it will be so much more than those dreams, so much more than you can imagine. You won’t have a place to run. There will be no secrets between us… To be my queen, is to be mine in ways you can’t even imagine. Think about that… because it is your fate no matter if it frightens you or not.”

I couldn’t answer, but I knew he understood that when that time came, I likely wouldn’t even think to lock the bathroom door. There was nothing in that future that frightened me.

I would be with Candido, and that was all I wanted. It was all I had ever wanted.

“I love you,” I said softly. “More than you could ever think.”

He chuckled. “Don’t underestimate me.”

He retreated from the other side of the door, and I wondered if I should take a cold shower too.

After I was showered and dressed, we met outside the room. Candido was leaning against the wall rather than waiting in the room. Our gazes met for a moment before he offered me his hand. I took it, and we headed to the meeting room.

Francium was there and looked at us before lowering his gaze.

Vanessa was there and there were several maps spread out over the table that were all marked up.

“Glad you could join us,” Vanessa said. “Francium was just giving me an explanation of the packs that have been infiltrated.”

I sat beside Vanessa. Candido sat across from me and Francium took a deep breath and started talking about the maps as far as he could remember. The vampires had been infiltrating the packs for a while, but he wasn’t sure how long. Most of them were lower-tiered and smaller packs around the Red Moon territory. I recognized a lot of the names and the fact that they had gotten more land from the Red Moon Pack over the years.

I glanced at Candido as he reviewed the information nearest to him.

“How?” Candido asked. “The borders are all watched and we’d notice if they were coming in droves from Red Moon’s border.”

“They use the cave systems,” Francium said, tilting his head. “It’s… different than the way New Moon uses them, but it’s similar. I don’t know how far out they go or what else is down there, but it’s huge. They’ve been using them to get between the territories…”

“And doing what?” I asked. “The attacks on the malls were new, but that was recent.”

“They’ve been targeting people of awakened bloodlines for years; I couldn’t say for how long for sure, though.”

I frowned. “Targeting?”

“Some to kidnap and… use. The others to kill as they were too strong.” He grimaced. “I was approached the way many others were. They offered power and help, but I know now that the people that were approached like I was weren’t suspected to be of awakened bloodlines.”

“Why do you say that?”

“They… changed,” he said. “I didn’t. The pills they offered me were supposed to give me powers like someone of an awakened bloodline. Most of them have died or gone missing by now.”

“Could you give us a list?” Candido asked.

Francium slid a list towards him.

“We’ve finished the analysis,” Vanessa said, handing a folder to me. “Those pills are… quite an interesting invention. It’s mostly highly concentrated vampire blood.”

My stomach turned as I opened the folder and looked over the notes.

“The only reason Francium hasn’t changed or died yet, and may not, is because he is of an awakened bloodline, most specifically the New Moon line, which is more vampire than werewolf anyway.”

I nodded, setting the folder down as Francium looked at the pages in front of him.

“I didn’t know that it would kill them… I still don’t know if all of them are dead,” Francium looked down. “He wasn’t forthcoming on the information, but he used the pills to keep us all in check. We’ve all seen what it’s like when you don’t take them regularly the way you’re supposed to.”

“What happens?”

He went pale. “You lose it… Your body starts to decay and turn to dust. He showed it to us about a month in when it was too late to stop taking them before the damage was irreversible.”

“Nothing is irreversible,” Vanessa said. “My team is working on an antidote. It may take some time, but it’s possible.”

Francium nodded. “Thanks.”

“Do you know what they were doing to those they kidnapped?” Candido asked.

He shook his head. “I wasn’t a part of that. He just said that they all had uses. He never explained what.”

“And you let it happen?” Candido asked. “You stood by and did nothing?”

Francium looked at him. “Why would I help anyone who would not help me?”

I sat back and looked at Francium, then at Candido.

“I want to lure the leader of New Moon here to get more information,” Vanessa said. “Do you know who that is?”

Francium scoffed. “My mom?”

“She’s your mother?”

His lips twitched. “I know. Hard to believe. I’m… still wrapping my head around it. She’s most likely long gone with the rest of New Moon. She probably won’t surface again for a long time. It’s the Red Moon Pack they should worry about.”

I swallowed. “Why?”

“Because they have a closer tie to the vampires than anyone,” Francium said. “I’ve seen Norton in their hideout often enough, but he hasn’t seen me.”

I thought back to the vampire prince who had been with Sibyl.

“I—”

The alarm began to screech overhead. Boots thudded down the hall, and the door was flung open.

“We’ve been found!”