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And then, after forcing Samia to admit the superiority of her beast, Vivienne had collapsed to the ground, shifted back to human form, and remained in an almost comatose position as, apparently, she’d had a vision. He hadn’t even known that she could do that. Conall knew of some witches who had premonitions, but he’d also heard they were rare. He’d held her with fear in his heart, praying she’d blink and her eyes would focus on him, and when seconds trickled by, he’d begun to shake her. When the vision passed, she’d been frantic, screaming about her sister, her mother, going to the safe house, and Maximilian Cronin’s trackers. Conall had immediately rushed her back to his house, where she’d dressed in record time as he quickly assembled a team. Minutes later, Vivienne was seated across from him in the convertible, and Sloan was at the wheel of the SUV, following.
“Did you see anything else?” he asked as he switched lanes to go into Brooklyn.
Vivienne released a breath, and shook her head. He felt her frustration, her fear, and briefly removed his hand from the gear stick to squeeze her cold hand.
***
As soon as Conall pulled up to Evelyn’s safe house, Vivienne leapt from the car and ran to the front door of the tall brownstone. Conall, Sloan, Raoul, and other pack members whose names she couldn’t remember, or didn’t know, followed on her heels. The door was closed but not locked, and her heart thumped as she stepped inside. Immediately she recognized the staircase down which her sister had run, the balcony upon which her mother had been drugged.
“Mom!” she screamed, knowing it was pointless but doing it anyway. She’d telephoned her mother and sister after rushing back to Conall’s house, praying what she’d seen was just premonition or a really bad daydream. Something that could be prevented. Evelyn didn’t answer, which terrified Vivienne even more, as Evelyn always kept her cellular phone close. Cassie had been the same. No answer.
“Cassie!”
Vivienne took the stairs two at a time, coming to the balcony, and then heading down the hallway. Bedroom doors were open. Shattered glass lay against the carpet. There were dents in the floorboard and walls, as if a huge fight had taken place. Her heart thumped even harder, raced even faster.
It was real. Somehow, she’d seen the moment her sister and mother had been abducted.
She found a room that smelled of Evelyn, and stepped inside. It was untouched, signifying no interference with the room. The next room she entered was the exact opposite. The bed was against the wall, as if someone had tossed it there, and there were char marks on the cream carpet. Although it smelled of her sister, she also scented others. Trackers.
They’d obviously been after her sister, and Evelyn had come to Cassie’s defense. How had they known where to look? Her mother’s safe houses were close to undetectable. She felt Conall behind her, and then his hand landed on her shoulder. He was trying to comfort her. Leaning back, she closed her eyes and let him take her weight. The last time trackers had taken someone she loved, she hadn’t seen him again. Max. And now her mother and sister. She didn’t know the first thing about finding them. Where was Maximilian Cronin’s home? Would he keep them there?
“We’ll find them, alainn,” Conall said firmly, giving her shoulder an encouraging squeeze. She could feel his anger wafting off of him, but couldn’t even revel in it. She felt…alone.
Vivienne shook her head. “How?”
“I know where Cronin keeps his covenant. I also know that he’ll try to contact you shortly.”
“Why?”
“Because he wants you both. At the Council meeting, he tried to claim kinship for you and your sister.” Conall’s voice was cool and level. As she practically melted in fear for her family, he took control. “He’s going to either send his trackers after you, or try to convince you to go to him.”
“How can you be sure, Conall?” Her voice was soft because it took so much effort to speak.
“Because he needs you both. At least, that’s what he thinks.”
She nodded weakly against him, and Conall’s free hand slipped around her waist, turning her so that she faced him.
Lifting her chin, she looked into his eyes. She saw reassurance. Determination.
“I promise you, Vivienne, we will find your mother and sister.”
She wanted to believe him, and hoped he was right, because her pain was growing larger by the second. Her entire body hurt. It was as if she were missing a limb, like someone had cut off a body part, and with the pain and the hurt pulsed the darkness inside her.
