My lips twitched at the words. I felt like shrinking under the weight of her stare, knowing that her admonitions were gentle compared to what I deserved to hear from her.

“…but I’ve seen firsthand that you are better than the choices you sometimes make. I don’t think that the man portrayed in those pages is the same man who woke up in my time.”

I looked into her eyes and saw sincerity and hope… hope on my behalf that I could still have some good in me. At that moment, I adored her more than I ever did any other woman in my lifetime. I doubt she had any idea what her words did to me when she said,

“You can be better than this.”

When she leaned closer and her lips touched mine, I couldn’t bring myself to believe it. After recovering from the initial shock, however, I responded with gratefulness and passion. I held her waist and drew her closer, practically carrying her so I could plant her on my lap as I once again partook of the pleasures those sweet lips of hers provided.

That night, at the lighthouse, everything else faded away in the background and my entire world became Sofia Claremont.

CHAPTER 39: BEN

I sat rigid over the circular couch, staring at the charismatic, confident gait of the man calling himself Reuben Lincoln. Zinnia was sitting on the same couch I was, a bright curious look in her eyes as she shifted glances between the two men she was with. Reuben, on the other hand, was sitting across me on a leather recliner, his posture relaxed as he leaned against the seat’s backrest, his elbows propped up on the recliner’s armrests.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Mr. Hudson,” he noted.

“That’s because I think I just have.” Bitterness was in my voice. That I could still be hurt on her behalf as I stared at the father who abandoned her for eight years was a cold reminder that Sofia still meant more to me than I was comfortable to admit. “You’re Aiden Claremont.”

I was expecting him to deny it, so I was surprised when a smirk showed on his face and he said, “I figured you would recognize me. You were old enough to remember.”

“Remember what? That you abandoned your own daughter?”

Zinnia shifted uncomfortably on her seat. I wondered if she even knew that their revered leader was actually Sofia’s father.

“I really don’t have to answer to you, Ben.” He responded without even batting an eyelid. He retrieved a cigar from the back pocket of his suit and took out a lighter. He was about to light it when he looked at me. “Do you mind?”

“Yes. I mind.”

He scoffed. “Good thing I don’t really give a rat’s ass.” He lit the cigar and took a puff. “I was only asking out of courtesy.”

“How courteous of you…” I responded through gritted teeth, irritated by his entire demeanor. “So you’re Reuben Lincoln now?”

“To the hunters, yes. That’s how I’m known. To the rest of the world, I’m still Aiden Claremont.”

“Which of the two identities is really you?”

“Both” came his immediate response. He gave it a moment’s thought. “Neither.” He shrugged. “Does it matter?”

“Sofia needed you.”

His lips tightened as he placed his cigar on a nearby ash tray. He then glared at me with intensity that I never before saw in Sofia’s green eyes. “As I said, I don’t need to answer to you, boy. Let’s cut to the chase. Why do you want to become a hunter? Why are you here, Mr. Hudson? How did you come to know Eliza? And how was she able to tell you about me?”

At the mention of the name, Zinnia gasped. Her brown eyes began to burn through me with anticipation. She was obviously hanging on my every word.

Distracted, I asked them the first thing that came to mind. “Could you tell me more about Eliza? I’m curious.”

“We really don’t have time for this.” Reuben was obviously growing impatient.

“She was my older sister,” Zinnia admitted.

I looked at her in surprise. “I’m sorry...”

Tears blurred her hazelnut irises. “She’s gone?”

I nodded solemnly. “I barely knew her, but she felt like a kindred soul. She could’ve tried to escape without me, but she risked helping me out. I truly am sorry, Zinnia.”

She smiled bitterly, wiping her tears away. “We all lost someone to the vampires. If not, we were – like you – victims ourselves. That’s why we’re hunters.”

Reuben must’ve realized that I wasn’t about to let go of the idea of finding out how Eliza came to be in Cancun, and gave me the information I wanted.

“Eliza was always rather hard to keep a rein on. She was so eager to prove herself to us and was far too impulsive, acting before thinking things through. We sent her to Cancun mainly as a way to get her out of here. It was supposed to be a treat, a vacation. The last time we heard from her, she was asking for backup because she discovered a vampire from the Novak coven. We told her not to do anything about it, that she should wait for us, but I guess she put matters in her own hands. We haven’t heard from her since that night.”

Satisfied with the explanation he offered me, I steeled myself and set aside what personal biases I had against Reuben. This was business. I began to unbutton my shirt as I spoke. “As Zinnia already implied, revenge is the main reason I want to become a hunter. I want revenge on the vampire who did this to me.” I showed them the scars on my torso. “Eliza was captured by that same vampire. She tried to help me escape, but we were caught. The vampire’s name is Claudia.”

Reuben’s ears perked up at the mention of the name. “Claudia? She belongs to the Novak coven just like Eliza messaged us?”

“Yeah… I guess… Derek Novak was their prince or something… He was the one who killed her. Claudia offered her to him as some sort of tribute…”

My voice trailed off, realizing that they were staring at me in stunned silence, trying to take in what I just told them.

I began to question my judgment in revealing to them so much already. I barely know these people.

“We want you to tell us everything you know about their coven, especially where they are. You’re the first person in hundreds of years to ever have been captured by the Novak coven and come out alive. Most of them just disappear… no bodies even… never to be heard of again.” Reuben sat on the edge of his seat. “Go ahead, Ben. Tell us what you know.”

I shook my head. “No. I’ve already said enough. Incidentally, I don’t trust you, Aiden. Not after what you did to Sofia. I’m not telling you anything until I get answers.”

The man gave me a murderous glare. “Look, boy. I’m here for one reason and one reason alone and that is to find Sofia. I don’t care what you think of me. The last time you and my daughter disappeared, I practically turned the world upside down trying to look for her. I arrived at one dead end after another, and then you two little juveniles show up out of thin air, giving authorities this crap story about running away – no explanations, no records… nothing.” He began swearing loudly. “And now she’s gone again right after a private conversation with Vivienne Novak!” Another swear word escaped his lips. “Vivienne Novak! After centuries of not even seeing a trace of her or anybody from her clan, she shows up and she goes after my daughter. If you don’t want her to end up the way Eliza did, you’re going to tell me everything you know.”

He looked nothing short of intimidating and Zinnia looked absolutely terrified of him, but his outburst only made me relax. I leaned back on the couch and cocked my head to the side. His reaction just showed me how important I was to them. “Don’t you have Vivienne in your custody?” I replied nonchalantly. “Why don’t you just ask her what you want to know?”

“You’ve obviously never tried to break a vampire,” Zinnia muttered.

I raised one shoulder. “I’m willing to learn.”

“Now’s not the time.” Reuben was reeling in his anger. “Tell me where my daughter is.”

“She returned to The Shade.”

“The Shade?” they both asked in unison.

Not wanting to tell them anything about the island, I said the words that left a bitter taste in my mouth.

“Sofia is Derek Novak’s lover.”

Silence followed as both hunters let the statement sink in. My eyes remained locked on Reuben, watching as the blood rushed to his face, his knuckles growing white from the way he was clutching the armrests. After what felt like forever, he managed to react. “Lover?” The way he said the word made it sound foul and disgusting. “How could something like this happen? How does my own daughter fall prey to a Novak?”

I was surprised by the anguish I saw in his face. The anger increased how menacing he looked, yet a deep sadness was mingled with the fury.

“I was trying to protect, keep her hidden from vampires and hunters and all this bloodshed. What they’d do to her should they find out that I’m her father…” He rose from his seat and began pacing the hardwood floor in front of us. It did little to ease the tension.

I couldn’t keep myself from speaking my mind. “Protect her? What the hell are you talking about? You abandoned her!”

“To keep her away from all this! She was safer without me…”

“Safer?” I scoffed. “Really? You mean like she is now? Safe as that vampire prince’s slave?”

“Slave? I was under the impression that she went out of her own free will…” Something dark and foreboding flickered in Reuben’s eyes.

I knew then without a shadow of a doubt that Reuben would willingly burn down the entire world if it meant he could keep Sofia away from Derek Novak.

That’s what earned him my trust. That’s what made him my ally.

I drew a deep breath. “You don’t know Sofia. She’s naïve. She trusts people too much. You must’ve heard about what was happening when the hunters came to take Vivienne from Sofia. It was almost like the vampire was brainwashing or hypnotizing Sofia. I don’t know… they did something to Sofia on that island. She’s fiercely loyal to Derek for reasons I can’t even comprehend. After we got back from The Shade, I tried to reason with her as best as I could, but it was of no use. He had her. I don’t know if there’s anything we can do about that.”