We didn’t go far from the stronghold. Tristen had extra warriors patrolling the woods, a stark reminder that the Master knew I was alive and living at this stronghold. I wanted to stay close for Nate anyway. I couldn’t make myself stop caring, even if he was a demon now. That would be a betrayal of the memory of the wonderful man who had raised and loved me. The vampires had taken him from me, but they would never take that away.
When I came back from my walk, I discovered that as much as I wanted to be close to Nate, I could not bring myself to go back into the building. I spent a few hours at the menagerie and then wandered around the grounds. Maybe if I kept moving, it would keep the terrible pain in my chest from suffocating me.
Nikolas found me walking by the river, and as soon as I
