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“This is a crazy idea,” Mila said as she pulled onto the road that led to the compound. “We should have let Jax and the others know where we were going. They should have come with us.”
“I know it’s crazy, but it just feels like the right thing to do,” I explained. I also wasn’t sure why, but I got the feeling that if Jax knew, he would’ve tried to talk me out of going to the compound. And I wasn’t about to let anyone talk me out of it. I was doing this, with or without his or anyone else’s help.
She glanced over at me. “I’m glad one of us thinks so.”
“You didn’t have to come with me, you know. I could’ve borrowed my mom’s car and drove up here myself,” I pointed out, even though I wasn’t entirely sure of how true that was. I’d borrowed my mom’s car for short periods of time, but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to take it for that long. I really needed to get my own wheels, but it was low on my to-do list right now. I had to focus on getting my sister back before I could even think about finding the money to afford a car.
“I think it’s crazy, but I’m not about to let you come here alone. That would have been a suicide mission.”
I snorted. “Everyone always seems to think that Demetrius might kill me, yet I’m still here.”
“Yeah, but we’re not sure if Zoe is,” she pointed out, shooting a nervous look at me.
I swallowed hard, knowing she was right. That was the whole entire reason I’d needed to come here. I had the feeling that if anyone had answers about that phone call with my sister, it would be Demetrius.
Mila pulled up to the front gate of the compound. A deep male voice came over the intercom system. “May I help you?”
“We’re here to see Demetrius. I’m Mila Sherwood, and I’m with my friend, Camryn Ev—”
“Please proceed,” the voice said before Mila even had the chance to finish her statement. She glanced over at me nervously, and I knew she was probably thinking the same thing I was: was Demetrius expecting us?
She inched the car forward, and I was pleased to find that there weren’t any additional security guards we needed to get past, which was surprising, considering it was night. I would’ve thought they would take additional measures to make sure that no one made it in – or out – of the compound.
Neither of us said anything as she continued the road to Demetrius’s. The air was thick with the nervousness we both felt.
When she pulled into his long driveway, Mila unbuckled her seatbelt.
“Are you coming inside with me?” I asked, somewhat surprised. I half-expected her to stay outside, the same way her brothers had the last time I’d been to Demetrius’s manor.
“Well, I can’t very well save you if I’m outside, now can I?” she said. “Not that I think I’ll be able to save you inside, either, but I’m not about to let you go in there alone.”
“So, if I die, you’re dying with me,” I said with a nod.
“Totally.” She pulled her keys out of the ignition and slipped them inside her purse. “Are you ready?”
I glanced up at the mansion that stood in front of us, a feeling of dread taking over. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
Swinging my car door open, I stepped out onto the black pavement and began my way up to the front porch, Mila following close behind me.
As I reached out to ring the doorbell, the front door was pulled open and I was greeted by a familiar face.
“Hello, Nikolai.”
“Hello, Camryn,” he said warmly. He nodded at Mila. “Please come in. Demetrius is waiting for you.”
Aha. So he did know we were coming. Of course. It was almost like I could get nothing past him, which sort of made me nervous. If I did agree to try to kill him with Enzo, how would we make it work when Demetrius seemed to always be two steps ahead of me?
I stepped into the house, taking in the scent of fresh lavender, and glanced over my shoulder at Mila. Most of the time, I was sure that she could hold her own, but she looked nervous as hell being inside my father’s house.
It made me wonder what she knew about him that I didn’t know.
“He’s waiting for you in his study,” Nikolai went on, leading us down a hallway. He motioned to a loveseat that was in a room with a fish tank; it reminded me of a waiting room. It was decorated too stiffly to feel like a home. “Mila, you can take a seat here. Demetrius would like to see Camryn alone.”
“No. I’m not leaving her alone,” Mila insisted.
“Mila, it’s okay,” I assured her. “I’ll be fine.”
She didn’t look entirely convinced, but she gave in, anyway. She plopped down on the loveseat. “Okay, well, I’ll be right here. Just yell if you need me.”
“I will,” I promised, taking a deep breath as I followed Nikolai toward the door of Demetrius’s study.
He knocked on the door. “Camryn is here, Sir.”
“Thank you. Send her in.”
Holding the door open a little wider for me, Nikolai shot an apologetic glance in my direction. I stepped into the room, and he slipped back into the hallway, closing the door behind him.
Demetrius glanced up at me and the hint of a smile touched his lips. “Camryn, have a seat.” He motioned to the two chairs in front of his desk.
Slowly, I walked over and sat down in one of the chairs. I crossed one leg over the other, uncomfortably. It was uncomfortable being in a room with him, especially when I was alone.
He set down the pen he held in one hand. “I’m happy to see you.”
“What happened to Zoe?” I asked.
His lips drooped, a serious expression crossing his face. “What makes you think something happened to her?”
“She called me.”
Demetrius frowned. “She’s not supposed to call anyone during the four day honeymoon period.”
“Well, she sounded terrified,” I told him. “I think she may have been killed.
“Oh, that.” He folded his hands in front of him.
I narrowed my eyes at him angrily. “What do you mean ‘that’?”
“Rest assured that it’s just a normal part of the honeymoon process,” Demetrius explained. “Male werewolves tend to get a little... rowdy... before it’s over.”
“It’s one thing to get rowdy. It’s another thing to sound like you might be murdering someone,” I insisted, shaking my head.
“Trust me, Camryn. This is perfectly normal. I would know. I went through it with your mother.” His eyes fell on mine, and I could’ve sworn there was a look of sadness in them. “During the second and third days of the honeymoon, the male is unable to change out of his wolf form. Things can get a little dangerous, but she’ll be okay. Trust me.” He shot me what seemed like an attempt of a reassuring glance from across the table.
“Okay.” I wasn’t sure why, but for some reason, I believed him. Though I knew I couldn’t trust Demetrius, for some reason, I just knew he was telling the truth – the same way I knew he’d been honest about not spiking Jax’s drink.
As if reading my mind, Demetrius asked, “Did you ever find out who gave Jax the Memory Serum?”
“No. Do you have any idea who it could’ve been?”
He shook his head. “No, I can’t think of anyone who would’ve wanted him to lose his memory. Perhaps you’d better go over his list of enemies with him.”
“I doubt he has any enemies,” I said.
Demetrius snorted. “How cute. You’d be naïve to think that someone who’s been in this world as long as Jax doesn’t have enemies.”
“Are you one of them?” I asked, mostly because I’d been curious all along. I hadn’t gotten the impression that the two of them got along that well. Actually, it seemed like they hated each other, but I wasn’t sure if they hated each other hated each other.
“I wouldn’t say we’re friends.” His green eyes clouded over with a dark look. “Anyway, moving onto other topics, we need to talk about the wedding.”
I just stared at him, wondering why he was trying to change the subject so swiftly. “What about the wedding?”
“I know you’re angry with me,” Demetrius said. “And I apologize for that.”
“Yes, I am angry with you,” I agreed. “I don’t understand why you forced Zoe to get married.”
“Because, Camryn. I had to.” He shot me a serious look. “Do you think I actually wanted to force my eighteen year old daughter into getting married against her will? Of course I didn’t!”
“Then what made you do it?” I asked. I doubted that this powerful Alpha had many people bossing him around.
“Salvatore’s father, Antonio, has been making a lot of threats to our pack for a while. He plans to release some secrets – secrets that could make a lot of other people in the werewolf world pissed off enough to try to kill us.”
“Why don’t you just kill Antonio, then?” I questioned. “There had to have been another way, besides forcing Zoe into marriage.”
“I can’t kill him because he’s the Beta of our pack. It would outrage everyone.”
“Why did you make him a Beta if he threatens you?”
“Do you think I knew that when I made him Beta?” Demetrius asked. When I just stared back at him, he continued. “Of course I didn’t know he would threaten me one day or that I’d have to force my daughter into marriage just to keep peace.”
Call me crazy, but I couldn’t help but think that he sounded genuinely guilty about forcing Zoe into marriage. But it didn’t make any sense, considering he’d seemed genuinely amused by it earlier. “Why did you make it seem like a joke when I saw you in the woods? Why didn’t you tell me that you were going to force Zoe to get married?”
“Because I wanted you to have that outburst,” Demetrius replied. “I wanted the whole thing to seem... real.”
“But it is real, isn’t it?” I asked. “Or is there something you can do to stop it?”
“Unfortunately, there isn’t anything I can do,” he replied. “Tomorrow afternoon, Zoe and Sal will get back from their honeymoon, and they’ll form their bloodline. Will you be there for the bloodline ceremony?”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” I replied. “I guess that means that Mila and I will be spending the night.”
Demetrius wrinkled his nose. “Mila Sherwood is with you?”
“Yes.” I paused. “Didn’t you already know that?”
He shook his head. “No, I wasn’t informed.”
“But you were expecting us,” I pointed out.
“No, I was expecting you. And the reason for that is I figured you would be back eventually to make sure I’m still willing to take part in our agreement.” He met my eyes. “Which, I am. As long as you’re willing to spend a week with the werewolf who I’ve chosen to be your suitor, I’m still willing to let you make a decision between him and Jax.”
“Perfect.” I grinned, feeling more than a little relieved. If our agreement was still on, that meant there was a chance that I would live – and that I could be with Jax. It suddenly felt like everything was falling into place.
“Good. I want you to come here on Sunday. You may leave on Saturday.”
“I can do that,” I agreed, remembering that Roxy’s party was on Saturday and that I hadn’t gotten the chance to pass out the invitations for her party. I was going to need to call her to let her know that someone else needed to do it.
“Okay.” Demetrius glanced down at his watch. “It’s getting late. I think I’m going to turn in. You should probably do the same. Tomorrow’s a big day.”
“Yeah. Goodnight.” I rose to my feet and headed for the door, thinking. I still needed to come up with a plan to intercept the bloodline ceremony and fast. I had less than twenty-four hours to come up with a plan.
As I stepped out into the area where Mila was waiting, she glanced up at me. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Is Zoe okay?” she asked.
“She’s fine,” I replied certainly. I may not have known it for sure, but I was pretty confident that Demetrius had told me the truth.
“Are you ready to go home?” Mila asked.
“Actually, no. I’m spending the night,” I told her. “If you want to leave, you can.”
“Girl, you’re crazy. I’m not leaving you here.” She rolled her golden brown eyes. “I’m not exactly thrilled about staying here, but I guess we’re having a sleepover in one of the creepiest houses ever.”
“Thanks.” I shot her a smile, relieved that she was staying with me. I wasn’t sure if I would’ve been able to handle staying at Demetrius’s by myself.
“You’re welcome. But if we’re going to stay here, we’re going to need to let my brothers know.” She shot a worried look in my direction, and I knew she was thinking the same thing I was.
Jax was going to be pissed.