“The Shade?” they both asked in unison.

Not wanting to tell them anything about the island, I said the words that left a bitter taste in my mouth.

“Sofia is Derek Novak’s lover.”

Silence followed as both hunters let the statement sink in. My eyes remained locked on Reuben, watching as the blood rushed to his face, his knuckles growing white from the way he was clutching the armrests. After what felt like forever, he managed to react. “Lover?” The way he said the word made it sound foul and disgusting. “How could something like this happen? How does my own daughter fall prey to a Novak?”

I was surprised by the anguish I saw in his face. The anger increased how menacing he looked, yet a deep sadness was mingled with the fury.

“I was trying to protect, keep her hidden from vampires and hunters and all this bloodshed. What they’d do to her should they find out that I’m her father…” He rose from his seat and began pacing the hardwood floor in front of us. It did little to ease the tension.

I couldn’t keep myself from speaking my mind. “Protect her? What the hell are you talking about? You abandoned her!”

“To keep her away from all this! She was safer without me…”

“Safer?” I scoffed. “Really? You mean like she is now? Safe as that vampire prince’s slave?”

“Slave? I was under the impression that she went out of her own free will…” Something dark and foreboding flickered in Reuben’s eyes.

I knew then without a shadow of a doubt that Reuben would willingly burn down the entire world if it meant he could keep Sofia away from Derek Novak.

That’s what earned him my trust. That’s what made him my ally.

I drew a deep breath. “You don’t know Sofia. She’s naïve. She trusts people too much. You must’ve heard about what was happening when the hunters came to take Vivienne from Sofia. It was almost like the vampire was brainwashing or hypnotizing Sofia. I don’t know… they did something to Sofia on that island. She’s fiercely loyal to Derek for reasons I can’t even comprehend. After we got back from The Shade, I tried to reason with her as best as I could, but it was of no use. He had her. I don’t know if there’s anything we can do about that.”

Fierce determination deepened the lines on his face as he sat back on the recliner. “We’re going to get my daughter out of there, and you’re going to tell me everything you know about The Shade.”

CHAPTER 40: DEREK

1509

A slight drizzle had begun over the thatched roofs and stone walls of our small village. The fresh air of the countryside was a welcome change to the city atmosphere I’d grown accustomed to since joining the hunters. However, even the comforting sight of our beloved and closely-knit farming community failed to ease the heavy burden I brought with me upon coming home.

Though our neighbors greeted me with nods and smiles, I could tell that they were wary of me, some even fearful of me. After our mother was murdered inside our own home two years ago, I was written off as having gone mad, because I was convinced that a vampire took my mother’s life. It didn’t take long until I couldn’t bear working our farmlands anymore. I had to get away. Rumors were circulating about an order known as “the hawk”. They were hunters, determined to rid the world of vampires. I found them and I joined them. Of the several times I went home since I joined the hunters, this homecoming proved to be the most difficult, because along with it came a mission I was afraid I didn’t have in me to accomplish.

Upon reaching the thatched roof and brick walls that made up our home, the first person I wanted to see was my twin. Vivienne joined me during my first year of becoming a hunter. She didn’t become one herself, but she assisted me in more ways than one, given her premonitions and ability to see into the future. She eventually had to go home, however, due to an illness she contracted during one of our travels. Expecting her to greet me by the door, I was surprised to find our older brother instead.

It was midday, yet it was obvious that Lucas had been drinking. He had his arm over a giggling, sparsely clothed bar wench and a cask of wine in one hand.

“Where’s Vivienne?” I asked him.

He blinked his eyes several times, unsure if he was really seeing me. “Derek?”

I brushed past him and entered the house, eager to see my sister. “Vivienne!”

“She’s not here.” Lucas swallowed hard.

I knew then that something was very wrong. “Where is she? What happened?” My pulse began to race, my heartbeat doubled. Something’s wrong.

He rubbed the back of his neck with a hand and motioned to his wench to go away. Even in his drunken stupor, guilt was evident in the way he was conducting himself.

“What have you done?”

“I haven’t done anything!” he defended himself, arms raised in the air in surrender. “Derek… you must understand… There was nothing we could do about it…”

“Do about what? Understand what? Where the hell is Vivienne?!”

“Lord Maslen asked for her. She was brought to their estate only this morning.”

Blood pounded in my veins at the information I was given. Lord Maslen was baron of the lands we were living in. His eldest son, Borys, had his eye on Vivienne for years. She told me many times that she couldn’t stand the thought of being with him. It made me sick to my stomach thinking of what they could possibly want from Vivienne.