Den of Sorrows (11 page)

B
ethany shuttered as the door slammed closed behind her. The absolute darkness wrapped around her body, stealing her breath and every bit of sight she had. If she had ever wondered what it was like to be blind, she’d found out by being down here. Her breathing sounded unusually loud to her ears as all other noises were shut out. She knew she was deep beneath the ground, the cool, moist air made that clear. But how deep, that was a question to which she didn’t know the answer and, honestly, she didn’t know if she wanted to. It wasn’t her first time in the hell that the vampires so affectionately called the maze. She’d been in it many, many times but no matter how many times she visited, the fear never abated. Even though Bethany knew exactly what was hunting her, knew that she would get no sleep as long as she was down here, she was still terrified.

Her head snapped around when she heard the low growl she’d come to dread. She fought the instinctual urge to immediately sprint away from the sound. She knew that fleeing only urged the creature on. Instead, she began to back away in the opposite direction. Her feet moved slowly as, step by step, she put space between her and the monster hunting her. Bethany heard scratching along the walls and cringed at the awful sound. She’d seen the claws that made this noise and knew them to be at least three or more inches long. Like all the times before, her eyes were trying to give her something to see, but there just wasn’t any light for them to draw on. The one time she had seen anything at all, it had been because she’d come face-to-face with the beast and his glowing eyes lit up the area in front of her like a neon sign. She decided then that she preferred to not be able to see.

Her hands ran along the cold walls, guiding her back. When her left hand suddenly met air, Bethany knew that she’d come to the first turn. She eased her body to the right as she began to back her way down the new corridor. The growl came again and the nails against the walls continued to grate. Despite the cool air around her, sweat was beginning to form on Bethany’s neck and back.

“Don’t lose your cool, Bethygirl,” she told herself, using the nickname her father had called her. She remembered him calling her that, but it had been so long ago that she no longer remembered the sound of his voice. She pushed that thought away before it could take root and bring emotions that didn’t need to be clouding her focus.

She remembered another corridor just ahead, and, just as she was about to turn down it, she heard another growl. Her breath froze in her lungs. This one was coming from the wrong direction.

“You have got to be kidding me,” she muttered under her breath as she continued backing down the corridor, skipping the turn she normally took. She passed several more turns before finally taking a left. Her feet had turned her around and she was now walking forward as her hands continued to guide her along the wall. These walls didn’t feel familiar, as odd as that sounded. She’d been in the maze so many times over the years that her hands had practically memorized the texture of the walls. But the walls she was touching now were not ones she’d ever touched before.

So they’d added a second beast and made the maze larger.
Bully for them,
she thought to herself. Perhaps, they thought two monsters would be double the fun. Regardless of the vampires’ reason for upping the terror factor of the maze, Bethany now had two creatures she would have to evade for the duration of her time down here. She paused on that thought. Why did she have to evade them? She’d told the vampire king that she’d rather be dead than continue her miserable existence—the existence she’d endured since she was seven years old. For eleven years she’d been the sickos’ food source, and there were many times, as she was lead to his chambers, she’d prayed that it would be the time he finally drain her completely. But he never did. She thought the only way she could die would be by his fangs on his terms. A smile spread across her face as Bethany realized that she had another option and it was death on her terms—sort of.

Naturally, at the thought of allowing the beasts to catch her, the survival instinct that was inside every living being lunged forward. There was a part of her that didn’t want to die. She wanted a chance to have a life. She wanted to get away from the monsters and forget all about the world that Sincaro had exposed her to. She wanted to build her own life. She didn’t know if she’d ever be able to have children because of all that she’d been through, but she at least wanted her own place, to be able to pick her own meals, and to even decide when she needed to use the bathroom. But she didn’t think that day was ever going to come.

“What’s the point in continuing to fight if I’m never leaving?” she asked the darkness. Bethany took several deep breaths as she allowed herself to come to terms with her decision. She was going to die. She was going to choose to end her miserable existence and finally have peace. Though there was a natural instinct to fight for her life, she pushed it away as she heard the beasts getting closer. Any second they would be upon her. She closed her eyes and stood rigidly in the middle of the corridor, dropping her hands to her side. She heard the growling and clawing moving closer. She faced the direction of the sound and waited.

Long lost memories, covered in dust in the corners of her mind, suddenly came barreling to the forefront of her consciousness. She remembered her mother and her kind eyes. She remembered her father and his playful demeanor. She thought about the bedroom she had not seen in eleven years and remembered lying in bed staring at the stars through her window. Then her thoughts shifted to all the things she would never have. She’d never finish high school, go to college, or get married and have a family. She would never experience having a child or being a mom. She would never love and grow old with a man she’d given her heart to. She would never look into his eyes and see that he’d given his heart to her as well. All of those things had been stolen from her by the vampires. The only thing she could ever have was peace.

When the growling got closer she opened her eyes and saw two sets of the yellow, glowing eyes. They moved slowly toward her and the closer they got, the more she was able to see. The large beasts looked like an unnatural combination of two apex predators. The huge creatures walked on all fours, moving like wolves, but had the round boulder sized heads of grizzly bears. They were terrifying, and yet they would be her salvation.

She closed her eyes once again and felt their hot breath on her face. Bethany readied herself for the claws and fangs that would soon pierce her skin. The creatures roared in unison, and the girl jumped violently and fell back, striking her head on the hard ground. Just before the darkness swallowed her, she heard a beautiful voice speak into her mind.

“I am sorry, my child, but it is not yet your time. There is much for you to do in this life and many people who will love you. You must endure a little longer.” The voice faded along with her consciousness.

Chapter 7

“I keep thinking that at some point I will no longer be surprised by anything in this world that Jacque, Jen, and I have found ourselves in. But then, as if the universe is laughing at me, it blows my mind again. ~Sally

J
en clapped her hands once as she followed her mate into Vasile’s office. “Please tell me that we’re going to let the pregnant chick chase after vampires. I’m dying to see her waddle along while holding a stake.”

“Thanks for that,” Jacque retorted.

“It’s what I do, Red,” Jen said with a wink.

Jen didn’t miss the tight look on Fane’s face. It was very obvious that he was totally not on board with his prego mate hunting vampires.

“I’ve decided to leave it up to the mated pairs when it comes to who will be traveling to the US,” Vasile announced.

Jen could tell by the looks on Jacque and Sally’s faces that they were just as surprised as her, especially since Jacque carried his first grandchild.

Peri materialized in the center of the room. “Good, everyone is here,” she said as she looked around the room. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

Vasile made a motion for the fae to continue. Jen folded her arms across her chest as she waited to hear Peri’s news. She attempted to brace herself for whatever horror the fae might reveal.

“Alston, Nissa, and I visited Phoenix last night. Turns out that Phoenix is the location of the largest vampire coven in North America.”

“How do you know?” Decebel asked.

“The pixies have been helping us out. They’ve been tracking disappearances across the country. Phoenix has the largest number of missing children in the US,” Peri explained.

“So is that where we’re headed first?” Sally asked, earning her a frown from her mate.

Jen nearly snorted at the scowl on the handsome bartender’s face. This was going to be fun, she decided. Driving her mate crazy was one of her favorite things. Getting to watch her two besties drive their own mates insane was just icing on the cake.

“At first that is what we thought,” Peri agreed. “But then we realized that we couldn’t just go in and declare a war on a coven of that size without revealing ourselves to the humans. It was decided that the best option would be to drive our enemy out of hiding. We will start by taking out the smaller covens. My bet is that since Phoenix has the largest coven they probably have the oldest and most powerful king as well. He’s not going to stand by while his people are being killed off, especially not by me and the wolves.”

“Sounds like you’ve run across this king before,” Costin pointed out.

Peri shrugged. “I’ve been alive a very long time. There are very few supernaturals that I am not acquainted with in some way or another.”

“Well then where do we strike first?” Jen asked. She heard Decebel growl beside her and she leaned into him, allowing her nearness to comfort him. He didn’t want her going, but he knew arguing with her was futile. Where her man went, she went.

“The smallest coven the pixies were able to find is in the city of Little Rock, in the state of Arkansas. It’s a smaller city but has a large enough population and such a high crime rate that they can still operate inconspicuously.”

Jen looked over at her friends and smiled. “Looks like we’re going back to the South ladies. Good food and tons of trucks—with yummy cowboy drivers.”

Sally and Jacque laughed.

“Would you like for me to change my attire?”
she heard Decebel’s voice in her mind.
“Perhaps, I could wear one of those ridiculous hats and a pair of boots.”

Jen pictured her mate in a cowboy hat and boots.
“Babe, you’d look hot in anything, especially just boots and a hat.”

Her grinned widened when she felt his hand on her back, but as it moved lower the grin faded and she began to feel a different emotion. “Behave,” she whispered.

“You started it, minx,” he growled back.

His hand stopped low on her hip and Jen let out a relieved sigh. His touch affected her in ways that were best kept behind closed doors.

“A good Southern meal sounds amazing.” Jacque smiled wistfully.

“Any meal sounds good to you,” Sally pointed out.

Jacque looked at the brunette and growled.

Jen couldn’t help the burst of laughter that jumped out of her. “Did you just growl at one of your best friends? Damn girl, pregnancy doesn’t agree with you, or your butt.”

“If I hear one more wisecrack about how wide my butt has gotten, so help me Jen, I will do things to you in your sleep that will make most of your pranks look like child’s play.”

Jen smirked. “Kinky much? I didn’t realize Fane was into sharing you.”

Vasile let out a loud sigh, drawing Jen and the others’ attention. “I’ve forgotten what it’s like when the three of you get in a room together. It’s exhausting.”

“All the more reason to get this party started,” Jen told him. “When do we leave?”

“We won’t be dividing up like we’ve done in the past,” Vasile explained, ignoring her question. “Fighting vampires will require our combined efforts. Some of you might have some experience with them but most of you do not.” Vasile glanced at Costin and then Drake—Decebel’s third. “We will leave at first light. And our first priority will be to locate where they are nesting.”

“Nesting?” Sally asked with a furrowed brow. “You make it sound like they’re a flock of birds.”

“It’s what they call their home. A group of vampires is called a coven, and where they congregate is called a nest,” he explained.

“We aren’t going to find a bunch of slimy eggs hanging from the ceiling right?” Jen asked.

Jacque rolled her eyes. “You watch way too many movies.”

“Dude, with the past year and a half that we’ve had, can you really blame me for asking?”

“Point,” Jacque conceded.

“Don’t worry about packing clothes. Only pack weapons. The fae will assist us with changes in attire when we need it. Any questions?” Vasile asked as he looked around the room. When no one spoke up, he offered, “Comments?”

Just as Jen spoke, she heard Jacque mutter. “Did you really have to ask that?”

“Maybe we should get a group picture,” she suggested. “We can hang it on the wall and title it,
The Fellowship Rides Again
.”

Jacque grinned mischievously. “When you say ride, is it going to be anything like the time Decebel woke you up and informed you—”

“I’m not above growling at a pregnant female,” Decebel interrupted.

If Decebel noticed the subtle way Fane maneuvered his giggling mate slightly behind his body, he didn’t acknowledge it. Though Fane was chuckling himself, he was as protective of Jacque as Decebel was of Jen.

Jen glanced around the room as she bit back her own laughter and noticed that the others, even Alina, were trying to do the same.

“Get some rest. Meet back here at 0500,” he said with a dismissive wave. The group filed out of the room, all except for Cypher and Jacque who stepped to the side and started talking. Jen knew her redheaded friend was asking about her mom. Jen was actually surprised that Lilly wasn’t there. She imagined Cypher was every bit as protective as the wolves, maybe he’d tied her up or something. She laughed to herself, picturing a spitting mad Lilly tied to a tree. She hoped for the sake of Cypher’s man parts that he didn’t tie her up.

“What’s funny?” Decebel asked as he led her from the room.

“Just picturing Cypher tying up Lilly,” she told him.

Decebel pinched the bridge of his nose. “Do I want to ask why you are thinking about such things?”

“Probably not,” she teased as she nudged him with her shoulder. “Let’s get home so we can spend some time with our girl before we have to leave.” Jen couldn’t keep the worry from her voice.

“You don’t have to go. You could stay with her,” he told her gently.

“I know. But I also know where I’m needed and I know she’s safe here. I trust our female pack mates to care for her. I go where you go. If I was worried about her safety, then I wouldn’t leave her. But, then again, you wouldn’t either. We agreed from the start of this” —she motioned between them— “that we were a team. We stick together no matter what, yeah?”

He pulled her to a stop and turned her to face him. Cupping her face he whispered, “Yeah.” Then he pressed his lips to hers.

“Besides, how long could you really last without getting to kiss me like that?” she asked when he pulled back.

“Not very long,” he admitted without shame.

“Good. Remember that when we are on our little quest and I do something to piss you off,” she said and then took off at a run, avoiding the hand that reached out to smack her rear. Her laughter carried down the hall as she heard his feet hitting the ground as he pursued her. She knew he needed this. He needed the closeness, the touching and playing, to take his mind off of the danger that they would be facing. Well, that and he just liked to chase her. She’d never admit to him that she loved being chased by him.

“Like I didn’t know,”
she heard his growling voice in her head.

Jen picked up the pace as she pushed open the front doors and nearly plowed into Peri. The fae grabbed her arm and, looking past Jen, gave Decebel a wave before flashing them both away.

“You’ve got amazing timing,” Jen said breathlessly as they appeared in the Serbia pack mansion.

Peri shrugged. “It’s one of my many talents. Now, I suppose I should go back and get your mate?”

Jen shook her head. “Naw, let’s make him work for it.”

Peri laughed and waved to her before she flashed.

“You coming home, B?”
she asked through their bond.

“Maybe,”
he huffed.

She laughed.
“Don’t be a sore loser.”
She flashed him a few images from her mind. And loved the low rumble that he sent to her.

“Wait for me in the foyer,”
he ordered and the urgency in his voice made her grin widen.

“Maybe, or maybe I’ll be playing with little Thia and you will just have to wait.”
Jen knew it was cruel, but then she never professed to being sweet. She sent him a few more images that she knew would drive him insane and then closed the bond just enough that they could still feel each other, but that she wouldn’t be able to hear his growling. She practically patted herself on the back as she headed in the direction of Thia’s room.

She knew Decebel wouldn’t let her get away with teasing him, but his payback would be well worth it.

“
I
don’t want to argue about this,” Fane said as he and Jacquelyn entered their suite.

“Good,” she answered him. “Then don’t argue.”

Fane growled. He knew that the argument was unavoidable. His mate was so stubborn that he was pretty sure her face was next to the definition in the dictionary.

“We need to discuss it,” Fane told her, attempting to keep the anger from his voice. He knew his own anger would only spur hers on.

“There’s nothing to discuss. You aren’t leaving me here,” Jacquelyn informed him.

“It’s not like I want to leave you. I want to protect you and our unborn child,” he said, practically snarling the last part. He couldn’t help it. The idea of his mate and child in danger made him crazy.

“Do not pull the unborn child card on me,” Jacquelyn snapped back. “I know that I’m pregnant. I don’t need you to remind me as if I don’t give a crap about the safety of our child.”

“Of course, I don’t think that. I just don’t understand why you would want to put both of your lives in danger. What if something happens to you and you lose our baby? I don’t want you to have to go through something like that.” Fane hated to bring up something so horrible, but he desperately needed her to see why it was so important that she not go.

“Then you should stay here as well,” she countered.

Fane was surprised by her response. He hadn’t been expecting her to suggest something like that. And he was a little insulted that she would think he needed protecting. “You don’t believe I am capable of defeating our enemy? You find me to be weak?”