But Lennox was still in there.
“How much longer is your spell active?”
“We’ve got until early tomorrow afternoon.” Her brows pinched.
“Why?”
“We’re getting Lennox out tonight, but we need to hurry.” A plan came to life in my mind. “You and me, we’re going to go back in.” I met Luce’s dark gaze. “You‘re going to glamour me to look like Nol. When they bring Lennox back, we’ll leave. It will be harder with the fire almost out; we might need to fight our way out, but we can do it.”
Luciana mulled over my plan; I could see her calculating every possible outcome. Finally, her silver eyes met mine. “Let’s do it.”
With the fire still blazing at the opposite end of the building, we made it back inside easily, only coming across a couple of guards, who we killed with minimal effort.
“This is it,” Luce whispered as we neared a large metal door. She made quick work of the lock before ushering us inside and closing it quietly behind us.
Luciana locked the door before erasing her marks with her water magic.
“So this is where Lennox has been living?” The room was dark, illuminated by one flickering lantern. There were no windows in the cell, and the ceiling was low, making me feel like I needed to duck as I walked. The cell had two mattresses pushed against the wall, otherwise, the cell was empty.
I tried to keep my rage at bay. She was fucking High Queen and she was being treated this way.
“Yeah.” Luce sighed deeply. “But?—”
We both jumped as the lock shifted on the door. The door slowly swung open, revealing a dark-haired male carrying an unconscious Lennox in his arms.
Lennox.
“What did you do to her?” I demanded. I forced myself to stay calm, even though every protective instinct roared to life inside me.
“She’s fine, Adreona thinks the magic was too much, so she passed out. They’ll continue again tomorrow.”
“Continue what?” Luce pressed. “What is she doing to her?”
My eyes didn’t leave Lennox’s limp form as the guard moved into the room, placing her on the bed. Her face was pale, her golden hair limp on the mattress. I balled my hands into fists, resisting the urge to touch her until the guard was gone.
“Continue altering her memories.”
I ripped my gaze from Lennox to the guard instead.
“What do you mean?”
“They are altering her memories. Making her hate her vampire mate so she’ll cooperate.” The side of the guard’s lip tilted up.
I squeezed my eyes shut as I tried to control myemotions. I didn’t even hear the door close as rage thundered in my head.
“Luka.” Luce’s touch was gentle on my arm, but still, I jumped.
“I’m fine,” I lied.
“I’m sure whatever they did, I can find a way to reverse it.”
“Yeah, sure.” I still didn’t face her as my eyes stung. I reached for Lennox’s hand, taking it in my own. I flipped it over and brushed my thumb across her marriage mark. “They can never take her from me.” I placed a kiss to the center of her palm, over the mark. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”
Luce dipped her chin. “I’ll get started on the spell.”
I stayed by Lennox’s side as Luciana began drawing markings on the door once again.
Her hair was matted against her forehead; I brushed it away from her face, letting my touch linger on her cheek. I had been waiting for the moment I’d get to hold her in my arms again—I never imagined it would be like this. That she wouldn’t even know I was here. What if she didn’t wake up?
