"No, No, please." One of the abducted soldiers let out a terrified scream, terror shredding his voice as the tree witch's branch dragged him closer to his companions.
They were tangled in thick twisting branches, eyes pure white, bodies limp as the tree witch extracted the essence of their souls.
Fen seethed inside as he watched.
The reality of his pathetic weakness against Azael ignited his rage.
All of this and even getting that Elana girl, to pull one man down.
He needed more than this, more than numbers. He wanted to face Azael himself—not strategize like a coward.
Dusk was approaching.
He had been waiting to hear from Eira, but he hadn't.
The uncertainty clawed at him as he had been readying himself to face Azael, especially now that his territory was wounded.
The lycans dragged the bodies away as the tree witch withdrew her branches.
Night had already begun to swallow the forest.
"The need in your eyes is feral," the tree witch whispered. "Your intoxication with wanting to be on his level…wanting to be more demon than man."
Fen's jaw tightened. "I want a sorcerer. There aren't many. My chances are almost non-existent against Azael's power."
"Perhaps fate is weaving its thread in your favor," she hissed, her branches lifting his face to meet her endless black eyes.
"The girl is not in my possession yet," Fen said, disappointment clawing at him.
"Not the girl!" She snapped. "Hunt tonight. Preserve your prey."
"Yes, mistress."
Fen's heart hammered, alive with the thrill of the next piece in the puzzle—one he hoped a puzzle would finally help him outmatch Azael.
**
Zane gritted his teeth, fingers brushing toward Elana—but she flinched, curling away to the far side of the car, trembling.
The confrontation with Cara had left its mark deep in her bones.
He didn't want the situation to become messier than it already was, but they couldn't be careless—especially with the risk of those damn vampires.
He looked out the window again as Caesar drove.
Night was covering, but something about these parts looked familiar.
The air felt tainted, heavy with smoke and gunpowder.
"You sure about this route, Caesar?" he asked, eyes sweeping for any cue that might confirm his suspicion.
"Yeah. I'm sure," Caesar replied, his voice oddly calm.
Zane's eyes caught the gates of the destroyed refuge of Lumere.
There was no mistaking it—these were the outskirts of the city.
Initially, he'd been wary of Caesar's intentions.
Especially with his uncertain movements but if Caesar truly wanted to help Elana escape, they wouldn't be driving back here especially after the display with the wolves—and with Azael circling close.
"I have to take a leak," Zane muttered.
He had to be smart about the situation, but he also had to figure out how to get Elana with him.
"Read my mind," Caesar answered almost as the car stopped.
He got down.
Zane held Elana's hand briefly, though she was reluctant.
"Come, Elana. Come stretch your legs."
"Cara," She whispered, her voice breaking under the strain of crying.
"I'll make sure you get to meet her. Just trust me." Zane said.
The reluctance in her hands softened—almost heartbreaking—because he didn't fully understand the situation either, yet he was willing to protect Elana with his life if he had to.
Immediately, they got down, Zane noted that the other two cars following behind had stopped as well.
Only two men out, holding their rifles close.
"You too, Elana," Caesar said with a sly smile, his eyes dropping to where Zane held her hand.
She clung to Zane tighter as if she could sense the unsettling danger in Caesar's voice.
Zane forced his voice steady. "She'll need privacy."
Then Caesar met Zane's eyes, the infuriating smile cutting across his face didn't waver.
"You can be more than just a human, Zane. I resonate well because we are the same. Bruised egos—always being pushed aside to stay subordinate to these men who exploit power handed to them on a platter of gold."
Zane's hand gripped Elana's tighter.
The smell of gunpowder hit worse than before.
"What are you saying?" Zane asked, eyes navigating for an opening to slip into the already dark forest. "This wasn't an escape?"
"I like to think of it as retribution," Caesar said, cool as ice. "For all men, including the ones like Azael, who underestimate people like us."
"What's the catch?" Zane hissed, trying to contain his rage.
No one could be trusted—not Caesar, not Cara.
"She's right beside you," Caesar replied.
Elana's hand froze, but Zane held on, his gesture assuring her that he would not let go.
"Why do I have a hunch about where all of this came from?" Zane asked, ears on edge as the footsteps of the men at the back drew closer.
"And I have a hunch you guessed right," Caesar replied.
Immediately Zane felt the cold tip of a rifle press against his back.
"You're either with me or hand her over," Caesar said, as one of the men handed him a rifle.
Elana clutched Zane tighter, her body trembling with fear and confusion.
As he stared death in the face, every decision counted—because he knew Caesar would not let him leave with Elana.
Zane's conscience pricked him for bringing her out of safety straight into the same danger they were running from.
His mind hated to admit it but the reality was humans have always proven more monstrous than actual monsters.
Azael had protected. Caesar had backstabbed.
Only one looked like an obvious monster.
Still, he was certain it was Azael's shadow that had put Elana in danger.
Two gunshots rang behind them.
The noise and the grunts of the men distracted the group, but Zane seized the moment, diving with Elana into the forest.
Caesar fired cautiously, trying not to hit Elana as she screamed from the gunshots ringing through the open night air.
"Damn it!" Caesar's cursing rang out.
Zane pressed on, moving deeper into the trees.
"Forget her! The priority is the ginger." Caesar's orders rang. Zane's steps grew faster, hands gripping Elana as he sought cover.
He was now certain Cara was the one who shot. He spotted a thicket and quickly bent, hiding himself and Elana in the small space.
Zane's guilt built as he registered her reaction—shaking, confused, definitely as betrayed as he felt.
"I'm sorry, Elana," he whispered, caressing gently where he held her hands.
"Why is he doing this?" She sobbed quietly, brushing dirt slightly from her gown.
Zane's ears caught footsteps again, closer this time.
"Sssshhh." He whispered to Elana, who froze her sobs immediately.
He squatted, waiting to at least take down one man and retrieve a rifle for defense.
The sound of twigs snapping under approaching steps reached them.
Zane was ready.
Elana pressed her hand to her mouth, eyes tightly shut.
Two gunshots rang out again.
The footsteps retreated for cover.
This time the shots came from the angle where they hid but farther from their spot.
Zane saw Cara before she hid again behind the thick bark of a tree just ten feet ahead.
He ducked lower as bullets zipped overhead.
Elana buried her head in his arms, her profusely shaking form worsening from the exchange.
Zane clenched his jaw. He had to help Cara. But he would be useless without a rifle.
"Cara, baby," Caesar called. "There's no need for anyone to die. We can all start over. You never knew her until that prison.
It shouldn't be that hard to hand her over—we've been friends longer."
No reply.
Zane watched the tree where Cara hid, waiting for either of them to attack first.
He needed distractions on both sides to move to Cara's position.
Even if he didn't make it, Elana would be safer with Cara, who at least had a weapon.
As if on cue, Cara peeped out and shot at Caesar and his men again.
This time Zane saw both her hands; she held two rifles, firing as if her brain was in sync with his.
Zane moved immediately, bending low, protecting Elana as they scurried amidst the chaos to the tree Cara hid.
He steadied Elana first before Cara stopped shooting, returning to the tree, shoving one of the rifles at Zane.
"You alright, flower?" Cara whispered, squatting next to Elana.
"Cara!" Elana hugged her, muffled sobs breaking gently.
Zane's guilt deepened at the sight.
"I'm sorry." Zane swallowed. "I didn't…"
"It's fine, Zane," Cara said, gently rubbing Elana's back. "I'm sorry too."
Cara pulled herself away from Elana, taking out a handful of bullets from one of the pockets of her gown, cursing at the dress she handed them to Zane.
"Load up," she said, cocking her rifle. "We have to move and stay alive long enough to kill that traitor."
Zane nodded, obeying his General without question.
**
Azael watched the King and the boy's futile struggle from his throne.
Their desperate attempts to escape, entertained him.
He had risen the cast himself, trapping the king deliberately, baiting the sorcerer loyal to Lumere.
If not, a slow, torturous death would claim the King, either from hunger or the injuries he had suffered.
Azael admired the little boy's courage—but it was his doom.
The moon was high tonight, and the sky was fully recovered.
His bats basked in it; perhaps he could visit Sirence and taste Elana again, feed his ears with her soft, tiny defiance.
She was the reason his empire trembled, yet he could not control the pull she had on him even while she remained in Sirence.
The cast was up.
He would leave the land to recover and visit Sirence instead.
He looked forward to seeing the corpse of the two-timing King of Lumere when he returned.
The bats he'd sent to Lumere fed him fragments of nothing; they hadn't spotted the Sorcerer either.
Of course, the coward could hide behind magic and remain unseen from afar.
Azael summoned his bats back.
They flew over the forest, some within the trees.
His eyes caught movement—a subtle invisible force shifting leaves in a corner.
Bloody sorcerer.
How long did he think he could hide?
Before he could take a closer look, half preparing himself to grill the bastard once and for all.
Another bat fed him its vision: Six men running in the forest, shooting ahead.
Lycans prowled in front of them.
He immediately recognized Caesar among the men.
Had he left Sirence?
Their target crouched behind thick Juniper undergrowth.
His monochrome vision could not activate from this distance.
Before he could properly access it, Cara rose, shooting back at Caesar's men before disappearing again.
Azael felt something sharp and unfamiliar press into his chest.
Anxiety.
He didn't think, didn't calculate before directing his bat lower toward the exact spot Cara had exposed.
And then he saw her.
Elana.
Silent. Terrified. Held close by Zane.
Azael's jaw tightened as rage spread through him like fire.