CHAPTER 236

CHAPTER 236
AMARA

I slipped into our room just long enough to grab the small backpack 

I’d stashed under the bed days ago. My hands trembled as I opened it, double-checking the few pathetic items inside: a change of clothes, some cash I’d quietly withdrawn, and the burner phone Jesse had slipped me in the garden.

I hesitated, then reached for the small knife I barely knew how to use. 

The blade was compact, cold, and far too light in my palm. I turned it over once, staring at the dull gleam under the lamplight, and let out a soft, bitter laugh that sounded more like a sob.

Yeah, that’s really going to make the father of all vampires quake in his boots, I thought sarcastically. 

One good stab and he’ll probably just yawn, pat me on the head, and ask if I brought anything sharper than a nail file. 

The absurdity of it burned. 

Me — half-human, half-something-else, armed with a glorified pocket knife and pure desperation — walking into the ancient monster’s den. 

I dropped the knife back into the bag, zipped it shut, and slung it over my shoulder. 

Every beat of the clock in my head grew louder, more frantic. 

Tomorrow night was the deadline Jesse had given, but waiting even that long felt like signing my adoptive parents’ death warrant with my own name. 

Master wasn’t patient. 

The nightmare had already invited itself in, and I had to answer tonight — while Alaric was still locked in strategy meetings and the pack was distracted.

The smile I’d forced for Alaric lingered on my lips long after I left the hall, but it cracked the moment I turned the corner into the quieter wing of the pack house. My steps quickened, heart hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird desperate for escape. 

Every second I wasted here was another second my adoptive parents spent in Master’s grip.

The black lace bra he’d teased about this morning hung heavy in the back of my mind — something I’d never get to wear for him tonight… or maybe ever again. 

The vivid image of him sprawled on our bed, eyes dark with hunger as I rode him slow and deep, flashed hot and painful through me before I shoved it down hard.

No time for fantasies.

Not now.

Not when every second I delayed could cost the only parents I’d ever known their lives.

I was surprised — and internally screaming — to see Alice and Cassie waiting right outside my room when I finally made it back upstairs. 

They were leaning against the wall, chatting in low voices, but the second they spotted me both of them straightened with matching bright expressions.

What the? I thought, panic spiking.

Of all the nights for a surprise girl gathering, why tonight? I’m trying to run away here, not host a slumber party.

“We were waiting for you!” Alice said warmly, already moving forward.

Before I could even open my mouth, she pulled me into a tight, heartfelt hug, squeezing me like she never wanted to let go.

“We saw Zara,” she murmured against my hair, her voice thick with emotion. 

“You have no idea how grateful we are. All of us. Thank you… she’s like a brand new, healthy little girl. Laughing, running around, no more seizures. It’s a miracle. You gave her back to us.”

“You’re welcome,” I mumbled into her shoulder, my voice smaller than I intended. 

The guilt that had been simmering in my chest flared into an inferno. Here they were, thanking me, hugging me, while I was secretly planning to slip away tonight and walk straight into Master’s hands like a sacrificial lamb.

Cassie hovered nearby, grinning ear to ear, but there was a softness in her eyes I wasn’t used to seeing.

“Yeah, what she said! Zara’s been asking for ‘the pretty lady who made the hurting stop.’ You’re officially her hero now.” Cassie shook her head, eyes wide with disbelief. 

“I still can’t believe I’m standing in a freaking werewolf mansion talking about miracle healings. Like… what even is my life anymore? Yesterday I was stressing over midterms and bad Tinder dates. Today I’m besties with a half-witch, half-werewolf who cures terminal kids with a drop of blood. I feel like I fell into a paranormal Netflix show and forgot to read the fine print — and the plot is trying to kill me.”

Her excitement was so genuine it made my chest ache worse. 

She looked like a kid who’d just discovered magic was real. 

Which, technically, she had.

“I’m really glad she’s doing better,” I managed, forcing a smile while internally screaming please move, please leave, I need to disappear right now.

That was when Dominic appeared from around the corner, hands casually tucked in his pockets, wearing that trademark lazy, trouble-making smirk of his. 

He sauntered over like he had all the time in the world and the apocalypse could wait.

Oh, for goodness sake. Why is everyone suddenly obsessed with me tonight? I’m trying to quietly walk to my doom here, not throw a damn block party.

“Wow,” Dominic drawled, voice dripping with sarcasm as he stopped beside the girls. 

“Some of us are actually losing sleep over Master’s next apocalyptic-level tantrum, and you three are having a full-blown hallway girls’ night. Heartwarming. Truly. Should I grab popcorn? Maybe some fairy lights? We can paint our nails and gossip about boys while the original vampire overlord sharpens his collection of torture devices.”

Cassie didn’t miss a beat. 

She turned to him with a perfectly arched eyebrow and a matching sarcastic smile.

“Oh please, Mr. Brooding Immortal,” she shot back, folding her arms. 

“You’ve been undead for what, a couple centuries? You’ve had plenty of time to get used to world-ending drama. Meanwhile, I found out werewolves and witches are real like three days ago. Cut me some slack. I’m still processing the fact that my best friend can heal with her blood and my boyfriend turns into a giant fluffy murder machine on command. Let me have my emotional support girl time before I have a complete existential meltdown. At least we’re not lurking in dark corners being dramatically mysterious and calling it ‘vampire charm.’”

Dominic clutched his chest like she’d staked him. 

“Ouch. Right in the ancient, undead heart. You wound me, little human. And for the record, I don’t lurk. I elegantly brood. There’s a difference.”

Alice laughed softly, still holding onto my arm like I was her personal anchor. 

“You two are ridiculous. But seriously, Amara… thank you again. If there’s ever anything we can do for you—” 

Alice started, still holding my arm like I was made of glass.

“No, no need,” I cut in gently, my voice tighter than I wanted. My skin felt too tight, like it was stretched over a screaming void. The backpack strap burned against my shoulder like a guilty brand.

Every second they kept me here was another second closer to my parents screaming.

“Really,” I added, forcing the corners of my mouth up. 

“But I… I actually need to sleep. It’s been a long day. I’m just going to head back in, crash early, and try to clear my head before things get crazier.”

Cassie tilted her head, studying me with that sharp, best-friend scrutiny I usually loved. 

Today it made me want to crawl out of my own skin.

“You okay? You look a little pale…” Her gaze dropped. 

“And what’s with the backpack?”

Oh, you know, I thought bitterly, just a knife I barely know how to hold, some cash, and a burner phone so I can go offer myself up to the original vampire like a fucking happy meal.

I shrugged, trying to look casual. 

“Just some stuff I got together for Zara. Clothes, toys… a couple other things for her. I told her I’d drop it by today, but I might as well do it later. I’m really exhausted.”

I lied so smoothly I almost believed myself, stretching my mouth into what I prayed passed for a normal, functioning-human smile.

Dominic eyes narrowed—not in annoyance, but in that ancient, predatory way that said he was cataloguing every micro‑expression I made. 

Like he was peeling back my skin with his gaze just to see what I was hiding underneath.

For one horrifying heartbeat, I was sure he was going to call me out.

“Uh‑huh,” he said slowly, hands sliding into his pockets. 

“You look tired… but you also look like you’re in a hurry.” His head tilted, assessing. 

“I’m on door duty tonight. No one gets in or out without me knowing.”

What? No. No, no, no.  

Of course the immortal pain in my ass was guarding the exit tonight. Because the universe clearly woke up this morning and chose violence.

But I smiled wider, cheeks trembling with the effort. 

“Well, okay… anyway, see you guys later.”

I hugged Alice, waved at Cassie, and gave Dominic a casual nod that probably looked more like a neck spasm.

I turned back towards my room.

The second my back was to them, the smile died a violent, twitching death.

My eyes drifted down the hallway—slow, unwilling—and dread pooled in my stomach.

The corridor stretched ahead like a sentence I hadn’t agreed to serve.

Twenty —no, thirty—guards stood stationed along the walls, silent and immovable.

Alex stood by the eastern door like a human monolith, arms crossed, eyes sweeping the hall with military precision.

These were the exact men I’d have to slip past if I wanted even the slightest chance of getting out.

Shit.

My stomach plummeted.

My pulse thundered so loudly I was convinced someone would hear it and tackle me on instinct. 

The backpack on my shoulder suddenly felt like it was filled with bricks. The knife inside? Useless. Laughably, pathetically useless.

But I didn’t have a choice.

I had to get out. Tonight.

Before Dominic’s suspicion sharpened into certainty.  

Before Ales noticed the way my hands shook.  

Before the walls closed in completely.

No matter what it took.

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