The guards don’t give us much water, so to keep up appearances, I cup my hands together to pretend like I’m drinking. I don’t let the water enter my mouth. With mold growing on the shower floor, who knows what’s being picked up by the water before it falls out of the showerhead. I shiver with the thought of how dirty I am now when it should be the exact opposite.
Turning off the water, I step out of the shower and move on to the next ruse. Without a towel, I brush as much water off as possible. Allowing myself to air dry for now. Man, I wish I could just skip this whole charade...not much longer. When Cecily gets here and I know I can protect her, I’m so out of here, and I’m taking all of the prisoners with me. Especially her best friend.
Moving my clothes to the shower rod, I get on with using the clippers left on the sink. I’d be surprised they allowed us to trim up if I didn’t know how much Silas hates facial hair. He doesn’t like his artwork of bruises and cuts to be covered up after a beating. There’s a special thrill he gets out of coming back to inspect his handiwork after the fact. Maybe I’ll decide to grow a beard. Hopefully, Cecily will be on board with the idea.
I shave my head first, then my beard until it’s stubble-free. With all of my tasks completed, I just wait around, trying to look like I’m dreading the thought of going back to my cell. There’s a weird vibration going on under my skin... must have something to do with how close Cecily is getting to being back here. The bond knows she’s close and urges me to find her.
My glamour shifts and seems to consume my mind for a few minutes, like it’s trying to manipulate my thoughts as if I’m an outside observer. I can feel it poking and prodding. Thoughts of how I would be feeling if my circumstances weren’t all an act come up, as well as thoughts of my brutal hatred for Silas. Shrugging it off, I pull on my wet clothes.
Having completed everything possible to burn up my time in here, I knock on the door to alert the guard I’ve finished. Immediately it swings open, making me suspicious of them actually watching me in here, instead of it just being a paranoid precaution. The guard snatches me up again as if I don’t always come willingly.
Silas is in my cell waiting when we get back. “It’s about time you got back here. I’ve been waiting far too long. I need some more. You know what to do, boy! Don’t think about keeping me waiting.” Before he even finishes talking, a sharp knife and bowl are being thrust into my hands. I’m so used to him being here every day, with the same words, I don’t even have to think about my movements.
Putting on a show, I allow my hand to shake as I pull the knife against my skin. The cut splits apart and blood begins to well on the surface before I tip my arm, allowing it to enter the bowl. Silas only pauses long enough for a swallow to accumulate in the bowl, before he’s snatching it from me. I’ve learned long ago to place the needed spell in the bowl before the blood even enters it. He won’t gain anything from drinking my blood.
The flinch of disgust I have with the sound of his slurping is real. No matter how often I hear it, it doesn’t get less puke-worthy. He’s developed an addiction to the euphoria he gets from drinking the blood from shifters. Just because he doesn’t get the benefits from my blood, doesn’t mean he doesn’t get it from the other prisoners held in the dungeon.
He swoops down and grabs the knife, before exiting with the bowl still held in his grasp. The cell door bangs shut behind him, and a sudden eerie emptiness crushes me beneath its heel. My heart achingly pounds in my chest. Silas was the only one to leave my cell, but it feels like so much more is missing now, like he wasn’t alone. Fuck, that’s an odd sensation...
Like clockwork, a guard comes in seconds later with a cup of the tea he forces everyone to drink to strip us of magic. I know this tea worked on me once upon a time—Silas had tested it on me long before he used it on Cecily. Although I didn’t realize what he was trying to test at the time. Just add it to my long list of signs I missed, for what Silas was up to.
At some point, the tea stopped working for me though, because the next time he had me drink it, was when I became a prisoner. It tastes the same as the first time I drank it, but the draining of my magic doesn’t occur. I pretend like it does though, to make sure everyone stays oblivious to the truth.
With my tea gone, the guard once again exits my cell. Thank Fates! A quick sweep of my magic alerts me there haven’t been any changes in my cell since I was escorted to the shower. Can’t be too careful. Now I’m able to use my magic to actually clean myself off and dry my clothes.
A knock sounds from the wall behind me. I give a light pattern of knocks back to sound the all clear, and Thea enters my cell. “Do you have a timeline of when they’ll get here? I want to make sure we’re ready to expect anything.” She’s bouncing on her toes in excitement.
“If nothing comes up, they should arrive at the castle any time now. They were just reaching the outskirts of town when I was woken up. I’m going to give a couple of days for things to go back to normal before sneaking out to find her. You know how Silas has everything amped up when visitors come to the castle.
“Thea, I really believe things are going to start going back to normal for all of our people! I can’t wait for Cecily to hear how we’ve been working behind the scenes to help her people when she hasn’t been able to!” My words speed up with mounting excitement as I’ve been talking. Thea has been looking forward to this day almost as much as I have.
She finally loses her battle of self-control and starts jumping up and down. “EEEEKKKKK, I’m going to see my best friend!!!!” Okay, Thea needs to calm down.
Chapter 2
Cecily
Present
My heart is beating an erratic rhythm, pounding harshly against my ribcage. I know what’s on the other side of this door. Or rather who is on the other side. I’m not sure how this is even possible. Maybe my mind is playing tricks on me, or an even bigger possibility is I’ve gone crazy in my soul form, after having been alone for five hundred years. Yep, I’ve gone crazy. It’s the simplest explanation.
I look to my side where Marcus is standing, ever my protector. My eyes know he’s standing here, my brain concurs... but the bond tugging on my heart says he’s on the other side of this door. What is even happening right now? My worst fear could be coming to fruition. This seems like it could be leading toward a second betrayal...
The only way for my questions to be answered is to open this door and find out for sure if I’m right. There’s only a sliding lock holding the door secure, an oversight if you ask me. Who has a dungeon full of doors with subpar locks? Damn, my thoughts are trying to stray.
Taking in a deep breath, I shore up my strength and borrow some from my four mates surrounding me. My arm shakes as I lift it to the sliding lock... another deep breath in, hold one, two, three, release... I’m ready.
A snap of the lock sliding out of place echoes in the hall and the door swings inward on silent hinges. With the gust of the door opening, I’m smacked in the face with the smell of spearmint. Memories come rushing back, linked to his spearmint scent. I’m overwhelmed with the flashes of them, scenes of us together when I was naive to the coming betrayal. Like brutal lightning strikes, each memory startles me. I see us watching the Indian tribe; him using his body to shield me when they come too close. There’s flashes of special moments under our tree, sharing pieces of ourselves. My heart flutters with the reminder of the few times he held me in his arms, and the strongest image of all is our first kiss. I knew he smelled like spearmint, but I thought my memory was wrong with Marcus smelling like peppermint.
Who’s the man standing next to me? Why would he pretend to be someone he isn’t? Is he some kind of imposter? Why is this happening again? I’m filled with nothing but question after question crashing into me, not leaving a split second to surface for a breath of air.
“Long time no see, Darling. I sure have missed you.” There’s no doubt in my mind. This is the man who I fell in love with five hundred years ago. This version of Marcellus is the one who shattered my heart and betrayed me. At least that’s what I’ve thought happened all this time. The dream I woke up from not too long ago showed me a different version of how things happened.
Well, not exactly different, more like from his perspective. How he wasn’t in control of his body and felt even more betrayed than I did at the whole situation. He’s had to live with the pain of knowing I thought he chose to kill me.
“Marcellus?” My voice cracks and his name is breathed out as more of a pleading question. He smiles and takes a step toward me. Before his foot hits the floor, Marcus’ arm is in front of me, pushing me back at the same time as two hands grip my hips and drag me even farther away. Marcus stands in front of me, then Alex and Derrick join him, leaving Klaus with his arms wrapped around me, holding me back.
“Who the fuck are you? What kind of ploy is this?” Marcus bellows at his mirror image. His shoulders are tense, fists clenched at his sides. He’s barely holding himself back from attacking before receiving any answers.
