‘If she’s gone, she would have had good reason to do so. And she would also have had her reasons for not telling you.’ He wraps his arms around me, his warmth comforting. ‘I’m sorry,’ he continues. ‘But wherever she went, she probably won’t want Raven guards following her, either.’ Still so gentle. I know he’s right. And I hate that.
‘She’s myfriend.’ My throat aches with unshed tears. I glance back at the apartment door, up at the shuttered windows.
‘She’s also human, in a world that isn’t kind. Come on.’ He keeps his arm around me as we walk back through the town square. I lean on him, loss stinging my chest. How stupid I was, to think we were friends. What other option did she have, when the heir approached her? She probably felt she couldn’t turn me down. But I swear there was true joy between us, laughing among the stones at Stonehenge, watching the road unfurl as we talked, sharing our hopes and dreams.
We turn down a side street, taking a shortcut through an alleyway that will bring us to the main road, where we can catch the bus to Dark Haven.
‘Shit.’ Michael tenses, his arm tightening around me as we run into a small crowd of people, all in the process of getting into the back of a battered-looking van. Before we can retreat a guard dressed in Raven camouflage prods me in the back.
‘Get in, now,’ he hisses. ‘Raven have already made it hard enough for us. We don’t have time for stragglers.’
‘But—’
‘Keep your head down,’ Michael mutters. ‘I’ll get us out of this.’
I obey, tucking my face into the curve where his neck meets his shoulder, breathing in his smoky butterscotch scent. The last thing we need is for me to be recognised.
‘We’re not with this group,’ I hear Michael say.
‘Stop fucking around.’ A rough hand grabs my arm, pulling me from Michael and shoving me into the back of the van. ‘Get in, or I’ll shoot.’
I stumble, sitting heavily on a seat. I hear Michael shouting, then the door opens again and he’s pushed in, sprawling on the floor. I glimpse a gun in the guard’s hand before the door clangs shut. I also spot something painted on the alley wall, like a sign. A red flower.
There’s a rumble, the van swaying as it starts to move. I help Michael to one of the rough benches running either side of the interior, panic curling in my stomach. There are half a dozen humans in here, and every one of them is staring at us. I go to knock on the driver’s partition, but Michael pulls me back.
‘Sit, girl,’ a woman says, her tone admonishing. ‘You know better than to disturb the driver. We’ll none of us get out of here if you do that.’
I swallow, then sit down. Michael puts his arm around me. I lean my head on his shoulder, trying to quell my rising fear.
‘Nervous, is she?’ A man opposite nods at Michael. ‘Ah well. It’s not an easy choice, is it? But it’ll be worth it when we get there.’
‘When we get where?’ I whisper. ‘What the hell is happening?’ Everyone in the van is dressed in outdoor clothing, fleeces and cargo trousers and padded jackets, as though we’re going for a hike. Oh God. My breath comes faster and faster. I try to relax, but I can’t.
I think we’re about to be hunted.
I know there are humans who enjoy the challenge, and the money they earn for their families. They feel as though it lets them choose their death, and if they can take down a few vampires in the process, even better. God and darkness. Michael kisses my brow, but I can feel he’s as tense as I am. I dig in my pocket for my phone, and realise to my horror it’s on my dresser at home. Wherever we’re going, we’re trapped. I huddle against Michael, going through every move I’ve ever learned from Varin in my mind. It helps, a little.
‘We’ve stopped,’ Michael murmurs, a while later.
Adrenalin spikes and I’m instantly alert, my heart pounding.
The doors open with a clang, revealing the guard who shoved me into the van. ‘Everyone out.’
I hang onto Michael as we climb out, everyone staying close together. The guard closes the door and jumps in the passenger side, then the van leaves, so quickly it sends up a spray of dirt.
I look around. Our surroundings don’t fill me with confidence. We’re in a forest clearing, the surrounding trees dark and impenetrable. The sky is purple, a few faint flickers of golden sunset remaining. Floodlights spill bright white light across the clearing, as though we’re on a stage. It makes it even harder to see beneath the gathered trees. To see what, or who, might be there.
The other humans are wide-eyed, but I can’t tell whether they’re afraid or excited. It’s possibly the first time they’ve been anywhere outside the Safe Zone. Pain flickers in my chest. I suppose if we’re all going to die here, at least they have this brief moment of freedom. It seems a pretty poor return for their lives, though.
‘Do you still have the knife?’ I whisper.
Michael nods.
‘Do you have any other weapons?’
He glances down at me, one corner of his mouth lifting. ‘Another knife, tucked into my boot.’
‘Can I have it?’ Screw this. If this is a hunt, I’m not going down without a fight.
