“I don’t know anything about her,” I whisper. It’s true. Silas never told me anything about the little girl that grew in our hearts.
“So, they are testing if she is that creep’s daughter?” Nova considers. “Did I get that right?”
“Yes. Vampires can’t sense blood relations,” I say quietly. “They are very powerful, but they don’t have bonds like we do.”
“That could be to our advantage,” she muses. “It buys us time.”
“We need a plan,” I say. “I want to return to Lori as soon as possible.”
“She has to be worried sick,” Nova says quietly. “Poor Lori. After all the trauma she went through, we put her through another one.”
“Julianus, too,” I point out. “I bet it’s driving him crazy that you aren’t with him.”
“It’s different for him, I guess,” she says, a hint of sadness in her eyes. “He is very kind, don’t get me wrong, but the bond works differently for vampires. It takes time. For him, I am just his new girlfriend.”
“No, for him, you are the woman who fully accepted him despite his faults and his past,” I point out. “Don’t underestimate the feeling of hope you gave him. I know what it did to me when I met Isla, and she instantly looked down on me. No mate bond made me feel better. And then Lori came along, and she neverjudged me. It’s not just the bond to her that made me feel better about myself, it’s been… her.”
Nova looks at me, swallowing thickly. “I want to make sure to return to him,” she says quietly.
“Then, let’s ensure we don’t make them wait for too long!”
Nova tilts her head, furrowing her brows. “Say, isn’t it weird that they didn’t inject us with wolfsbane?” she asks.
“You are right.” I frown. “I still have all my senses. To them, we are probably nothing but dirt under their shoes. They think they are above us in terms of strength and wit.”
“Whatever the reason, we have our senses. My wolf is fully on alert,” she pauses. “Could we use that to our advantage?”
“But how?”
She frowns slightly. “Maybe we can give them a show…”
I furrow my brows, sinking deep into my thoughts and slowly feeling an idea forming. “You need to get out,” I say. “We’ll find a way for them to release you and only keep me.”
“So, I am supposed to let you rot here?” she asks with a frown.
“Exactly. We have no chance when we are both stuck here together.” I look at her intently. “You are the beta of your pack. You know it. Between you and me, you are the better strategist. They will highly underestimate you. So, if we look at it from the outside, if we pretend it’s not both of us but two strangers stuck here, what would you tell them to do?”
She sighs. “I would tell the girl to pull off a show so she can get out of the cell. As a female, they will underestimate her.”
“Right!”
“I don’t like it,” she admits. “But it’s worth a shot. My parents always wanted me to be a little princess, the alpha’s sister. At least for once, I can make their wish come true.”
“Get off me!” Nova yells, tugging at my shirt and trying to push me off her.
I slap her hands away, pushing her to the ground before straddling her hips. “You stupid s-“ I want to say slut, but can’t bring myself to do it. “Bitch,” I add.
Nova rolls her eyes at me.
“Someone help!” She yells, whipping around like crazy. Man, she is good. I actually have to fight her for real to keep on top of her. No surprise her brother wanted to have her as his beta. Nerves of steel. It’s almost scary. “No, please, someone help!”
She lets out a scream so loud I am scared my ears might explode. Before I can even realize what’s going on, the door flies open and a guard rushes inside, pulling me off Nova. Tears spill out of Nova’s eyes, and she looks clearly shaken. “Thank you,” she whispers while clinging to the guard who just helped her. “Thank you.” Sobs shake her body. “I thought he would…”
“We don’t allow such behavior here,” the guard snarls in my direction.
Nova clings to him. “Please,” she begs. “Don’t make me stay with him. I… I… my older brother is an alpha, he will do anything to get me back.”
She looks completely helpless and desperate. The guard looks confused and anxious, raising his head when another man enters the cell. He is taller and looks more sophisticated. He must be of higher rank. “Get the female into a room,” he commands. “Our guest rooms should be good enough for an alpha’s little sister. Guard it well. I will inform Lord Aloysius.”