Sloane hesitated, her fists tightly clenched at her sides to keep them from trembling.
She glanced over her shoulder, to where Isla watched from the shadows. Her lips tilted.
Sloane's eyes glinted with unshed tears.
She should have known.
A vampire like Isla couldn't be trusted.
Now, for the second time since venturing into Evernight, she was being used as bait.
Sloane had only figured it out at the last moment, when Isla slowed to a stop, and her own feet kept moving... against her will.
Isla wasn't just in her head...She'd done something to her...
Something sinister...
Sloane's hands trembled as she struggled to resist Isla's influence. But her muscles didn't feel like they were hers anymore.
Just an extension of Isla's.
Somehow, her mind knew exactly what Isla wanted her to do.
Infiltrate the wards around the cabin. Lure out Isla's target.
A strong, ominous energy pulsed around the cabin.
She couldn't have known anything about magic wards, or even felt it, if Isla wasn't pulling something sinister that made Sloane nothing more than a puppet in her hands.
Was this an aftereffect of Isla's bite? Or something worse?
The hair at the back of her neck stood on end. And the part of her mind that was still in her control, little as it was, screamed for Sloane to turn back around and run as far away as she could.
And she wanted to. By the Creator, she did!
But her limbs now had a mind of their own and they just kept going. Step, after step, till she stood at the entrance of the cabin.
A deal with a vampire...
A bargain with a monster...
How had she ever thought it would go any differently? What had she gotten herself into in her desperation?
From this distance, Sloane could hear loud moaning, and sounds of skin slapping skin.
It was coming from inside.
"Who's there?!" A deep, husky voice grunted.
Sloane froze up.
Whoever was on the other side, they had already sensed her.
The door swung open and Sloane's heart shriveled.
But her limbs still carried her into the dimly lit cabin, like a puppet on a string.
Her eyes widened at the sight she met within.
A discarded red cloak, a girl with her dress rolled up to her waist, gasping and moaning.
She was pressed up against the wall by a man with dark red hair, her legs wrapped around his waist, as his hips moved in rapid thrusts, eliciting pleasured squeals from the girl.
Sloane recoiled. She would have given anything for Isla to have stripped her of awareness too.
The girl's eyes met hers. Sloane recognized her instantly.
It was the daughter of Alpha Bronte of the fury pack. The bully who'd hurt Denna and stolen her satchel.
Sloane averted her gaze immediately.
Was this what Vice Chancellor Hannes had meant when he said the prey would have to submit to predators for protection?
What happened to all the calming pills she stole? Why did she still end up...
"Wait your turn." The man's eyes were almost rabid as his head tilted slightly, eyeing Sloane with glinting red eyes.
Sloane winced.
He was completely different from the two vampires she'd met earlier. Armenia and Ciaran.
It was then she realised it.
This vampire...he was berserk.
A primal vampire!
Everything in her screamed to run for the door. And then keep running until she was world's away from this terrifying monster of a man.
But it was too late.
The door slammed shut with a finality that echoed in Sloane's heart.
And when her limbs began moving again, she wasn't headed away from him. She was doing the exact opposite!
Sloane desperately hoped Isla would stop now.
Sweat beaded her forehead as she fought against Isla's control, but nothing she did made any difference.
Her limbs still covered the distance between her and the crazed vampire, and to her horror, her hand moved to rest daintily on his shoulder.
Her throat burned as words that didn't belong to her forced their way out of her lips.
"Why wait, Atticus..." She purred,
The voice was undoubtedly hers, but it sounded foreign even to her own ears.
The vampire turned its crazed eyes on her. Even in this state, she could see the suspicion shining in his eyes. "You... know my name?"
She didn't. She shouldn't have.
Yet...
"I can't wait..." Sloane felt her lips tilt invitingly. "It's now...or never. Your choice, Atticus."
Deep down, she knew, even when she shouldn't have that despite his caution, he was a man to let his pride get the better of him.
It was like she'd known him for much longer than a measly few minutes. And loathed him for even longer.
But none of these feelings were hers. None of it!
The crazed vampire smirked. "You're a bold one, aren't you?"
She returned a smile. Tilting her head expectantly.
"You, go wait in the corner." He pulled away, letting the Bronte girl down, and pulling his pants up, despite her protests. "This should be more fun."
"You little bitch!" The Bronte girl snarled. "Atticus chose me first! I'll kill you!"
Sloane flashed her a smirk. "This is Evernight, darling. Winner takes all."
The words felt bitter in her own throat. This wasn't who she was. This wasn't something she wanted to do. But she couldn't form the words she actually wanted to say.
Instead, she took the vampire's hand, guiding him towards the door of the cabin. "Why hide in here? There's nothing a man like you has to fear, is there?..."
Her mind had a purpose of its own now. And she was merely a bystander.
Watching herself lead a crazed vampire out into the woods. Her gut was knotted in terror.
The moment they crossed the treeline, the vampire's hand snuck around her waist, pulling her flush against him. "Do you really think I can't smell the deceit on you?"
"Luring me out? Did your backer fail to tell you that I'm of noble blood?" He sneered, "You must have a death wish."
He knew.
In that moment, the haze abruptly shattered.
Sloane's world spun.
One moment, she had no control of her limbs, but the next, she was dangling mid air, gasping for breath as sharp claws cut off her airway.
The vampire's grip was crushing.
Sloane clawed desperately at his hand, her lungs struggled and failed to take in air, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head.
"Atticus Beaumont..." Isla's voice echoed from the shadows. "Your reckoning is here."
Sloane didn't see her move. But now, she was right behind the crazed vampire.
Sloane watched in horror as Isla's hand went around, covering his lips, and then her fangs pierced straight into his neck.
The vampire's eyes widened. Sloane could see the myriad of emotions that flashed through them in that moment.
Shock... realization... horror...
His grip around Sloane's neck loosened, and she dropped to the ground like a log of wood.
She broke into a coughing fit, desperately gasping for breath as Isla fed on her fellow vampire, her eyes gleaming in the silvery moonlight.
After what seemed like forever, but must have only been a few seconds, the vampire Atticus, dropped to his knees limp, and only then did Isla pull away.
Her gaze shifted to a gasping Sloane, as she lifted a thumb to catch the trail of blood that slipped out the side of her lips.
She kicked Atticus's body and it fell to the ground, limp.
Was he...dead?!
"One Beaumont down." Isla smirked, taking a step towards Sloane. "Three more to go."
Sloane clutched her throat, backing away frantically. "You...you... what are you doing...?"
Isla's smirk widened. "Hunting predators."
She crouched down, "And you my dear, are coming with me."
Terror crawled down Sloane's spine.
What had she done? What had she unleashed on Evernight?