Page 14 of Awakened Light

“Let’s not panic,” I said. “We all know Annella. Maybe she met some guy on her way out of the club. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if she pops through that door any minute and tells us all about the new hottie she spent the night with.”

There was a universal agreement throughout the room, but worry still weighed heavily on us. It was like Annella to hop off with someone she just met, but it wasn’t like her not to let us know she wasn’t coming home.

“Try her phone,” Lothaire said to Mark.

Mark took out his phone and pressed the screen then held it to his ear. After a few seconds, he shook his head. “Straight to voicemail.”

Emilia sat up out of Aiden’s arms. “Maybe her battery died?”

“Maybe. Or maybe she lost her phone?” Mark said.

Lothaire looked the least convinced, and I hated to admit the knot in my stomach telling me something was wrong had me as worried as he looked. Annella was tough, tougher than all of us despite her tiny innocent appearance, but that didn’t mean she was invulnerable.

The large knocker slammed against our front door, and we all spun to look. Lothaire flashed to the door and opened it, and we all walked up behind him.

A timid-looking vampire stood in the doorway, shaky hands holding an envelope. “I’m sorry. Please don’t hurt me. I’m not any part of this, but they made me. Said they’d kill me if I didn’t deliver this to you today.”

“Who?” Lothaire growled as he ripped the envelope from the young vampire’s hands.

He didn’t answer, instead, flitting away before Lothaire had the chance to read the words.

“What does it say?” Grizella asked, leaning over his shoulder.

Darkness clouded Lothaire’s eyes as he read the letter, and I could feel anger like I hadn’t felt in centuries pulsing off him in waves.

“Lothaire. What’s wrong?” I asked, stepping forward.

“They have her,” he ground out.

“Who has her?” Aiden asked, his eyes flickering with concern.

Lothaire lifted his head and narrowed his amber eyes. “Clan Lennox. They have Annella.”

“What?” Mark gasped. “What do you mean?”

“They’ve taken her hostage. They said they will kill her at week’s end if we don’t give them what they want.”

“What do they want?” Emilia asked, her voice quaking with fear.

There was a long pause as Lothaire tightened his fist and crumpled the note into a tight ball.

“My head.”

“What?” we all echoed at once.

Grizella stepped forward in front of Lothaire. Her confident eyes shone true fear for the first time since I’d met her. “What do you mean your head?”

“I mean, Leith Lennox wants to take power, and they’ve required my death by Friday night, or they will kill Annella in my place.”

“Then we have to find her!” I shouted, rage making my blood boil inside my veins. “And kill every last one of those motherfuckers.”

Aiden stepped to my side. “I’m with you.”

“And me.” Mark joined us.

“We don’t even know where she is,” Lothaire said. “And I’m not willing to risk her life for mine.”

“Lothaire!” Grizella took his hands in hers. “You are not going to die. We will find another way.”