Ilena

17

I place my hand over his, "We've got to go." I say urgently and get up, help him up and then pull my sock and shoe back on.

"Wait, what happened? Why are you crying?" He asks sounding confused and worried as he picks up my bag from the floor.

"They are coming. I'll have to explain later. You have a cabin in Canada right, where?" I say as I go and grab three of my warmest coats, there basically the same coat in different lengths, ones a trench, one goes to just under the knee and the other falls to mid-thigh. I take them over to Nolan and trade him for my bag and sweater, throwing them on and start to head out to the living room but he doesn't seem so convinced. "There's no time, we have to go now." The panic in my voice gets him moving and we rush out into the living room. "Get your things. We need to leave." I call out and they all get moving, all except Kent who moves a little closer but seems suspicious. He must be the one to call them, he's the only one that hasn't been here and doesn't know what's really going on. Nolan pulls out the map on his phone showing me where his cabin is located.

Just as they start gathering around me and Nolan, the throbbing pain pulls me back. Before it was ebbing because I was giving it what it wanted but now I won’t be able to until we are sure we are safe. I hold Nolan's hand tightly and try to pull the power forward just as my front door is ripped from its hinges and the Guard start flooding in. I send out a blast towards them and focus the power to take us where we need to go.

The cold crisp wind tells me we’re in the right place, I open my eyes to see the deep white snow surrounding me and weakness over takes me and I drop to my knees, the cold and wet seeping into my jeans. His warm arms wrap around me and bring me back to him.

"Are you alright?" He asks through the ringing in my ears.

"Yeah, it just takes a lot out of me." I only half lie, I am drained from the magic but it’s not only that, I am completely and decidedly done, emotionally drained more than I ever have been before. Mating is problematic, keeping us all alive is becoming harder by the hour and I still haven't even said a word to my new...father, as weird as that sounds.

But it worked and well enough that even two of the guard ended up coming with us, I try to go after them but Evan and Charles are already on it and dispatch them quickly. Nolan takes my bag and hands me one of the coats, handing the other two to Sarah and Cara, turns out I got the trench. I slip it on but Nolan won’t give me back my bag and throws it over his shoulders.

"What the hell just happened, where are we?" Kent yells as he climbs out of the snow.

"I don't think it’s a good idea to tell you where we are and as for what happened, why don't you tell me?" I ask commandingly.

"What are you talking about?" He says but I'm not convinced, he's too edgy right now for his normal self, it’s a dead giveaway that he's is hiding something.

"You called them and told them where we were." He stares at me in fake astonishment, "Ok, I'll play. I'm not going to call them, I'm the one there after, and there for Nolan won’t call them, Sarah, Cara and Charles are all in the same boat so unless they made a deal, which the vampire government doesn't do that would be a bit counterproductive. It might be characteristic of Johnny or Sims but since the vampire queen just declared war on all Titans that would be a stupid call. Fritz might since he's the prince but he helped us escape so why betray us now when almost nothing has changed, oh and he's my uncle. I sired Blake and he is loyal to me so it wouldn't be him. So that just leaves you, the only one that just got here and has no idea what's going on. Now please tell me you’re not the one that betrayed me. Tell me why I just saved your life." I explain logically but I can’t seem to keep the anger from coming through.

"I made a deal, that if you showed up and I gave you up quickly that they would spare your life. I was trying to protect you." He tried to explain, he sounded genuinely concerned but it was a very stupid move for one so old. "How did you know you were saving my life, you didn't even let them show intent before bringing us here, however that happened." He says starting to sound angry, which had Nolan growling, I placed my hand on his chest stopping him and turned back to look at Kent.

I couldn't hold back anymore.

"I know because I saw you die, all of you die before my very eyes, in agony and despair. They gave you no quarter, they cut off your head without even a word. The queen will leave no one alive that may know even a crumb of what is the truth." I yelled at him, I didn't mean to but he didn't see what I saw, feel what I felt and tears were streaming down my face without my consent. "If I hadn't seen..." Pain flooding through my emotions, "You killed us because you were too stupid to learn the truth...Give me your phone." I command and slowly he hands it over. I pull out the sim card and zap it with my spark but only after breaking in half twice and then I throw his phone, it crashes into a tree a ways off and shatters. "Look, if you’re going to be with us, then stay but if not and I find out you betray me or anyone here again I will kill you myself. Other than that...I can’t..." I say turning away and waving my hand, basically saying what my mouth wont right now. If I was done emotionally before now I'm at the point of breaking and if I wasn't immortal, I'm sure my body would be in tatters as is I feel worn and very tired.

I take three steps, moving the snow as if it isn't even there and someone grabs my elbow and spins me around, Kent closes in on me until he’s less than half a foot away.

"Ilena we have to talk about this, where will you go?" He asks demanding an answer, I look down at his hand like it’s an insult on my body and not a moment later Nolan is removing it from me. He's growling loudly again sending shivers down my spine.

"Do not touch her again." Nolan growls but Kent just shrugs him off and pulls me back once again as I go to walk away. But as Kent goes to say something else, Nolan grabs him and pushes him several feet away, "She is no longer yours to touch." he growls at him,

"Touch her again and you will no longer have hands to touch with." Nolan growls again and turns back to me, making sure I'm alright.

"Charles and I are responsible for her life, which begs the question, who are you?" Kent calls angrily as we try to walk away once again.

"She is mine." Nolan turns back growling at him. Kent, takes a deep breath sniffing the air and studying us before he smiles.

"Not yet, you aren't mated yet." Kent replies smugly.

"Give me an hour." I call, the comment has both of their heads snapping in my direction. But what they don't know is the constant throbbing pain that is tearing through my body with every passing second, it dissipated some when I used that large amount of power to get us here but it wasn't enough. It’s hard to think about that right now, after everything that has happened or almost happened, I need him there's no doubt in that but without the pain I might just sleep for a couple of days.

"Titan's and vampires cannot mate." Kent states firmly.

"That is enough Masters, she has made her choice, now get behind her or leave. We don't have time for your petty jealousy when you already knew that one day this would happen. Now choose!" Charles demands, trying to talk some sense into his friend.

"Yeah, I'm with you." He says begrudgingly, but I don't stay to see it, I brush Nolan's arm letting him know I'm going and start off into the snowy wood. Nolan seems to get the hint but waits a moment before he follows. I don't hear any other footsteps, it’s as if they think I need some space, or maybe that we need some space.