He had changed.

The Stick I remembered had been tall and skinny, a ragged scarecrow with straw-colored hair and frightened, watery blue eyes. The person in the doorway, surrounded by four armed vampires and two humans, was still tall and thin, but he wore a business suit and carried a suitcase in one spidery hand. He wasn't nearly as skinny now, and his hair had been cut short and combed back, replacing the shaggy nest I remembered.

But the biggest change was in his eyes and the way he carried himself. Back in the Fringe, Stick had cringed and skulked his way through life, relying on me for survival. He was afraid of everyone and everything and often got picked on because he expected me to save him instead of standing up for himself.

Now, he carried himself tall, his tone and expression clear, almost arrogant. But maybe that was because of his entourage, the two humans and four vampires surrounding him with guns and crossbows, smaller versions of the one Zeke had given away. Seeing him, I felt the last piece of something inside me-hope, stubbornness, disbelief-shatter and die. I'd always wondered what had happened to Stick, if he really had sold me out to the Prince once he knew what I was. I'd been hoping, deep down, that it wasn't true.

But here he was. Salazar's personal aide, staring at me as if he'd just seen a ghost.

"A-Allie?" His voice was a choked, horrified whisper, and the guards stared at him, and us, in rising alarm. "No. No, it can't be you. You're supposed to be dead!"

"Stick," I said, taking a step forward. But Stick threw himself backward, into the hall, pointing wildly.

"Stop her!" he screeched to his guards, who immediately pulled their crossbows and aimed them at our hearts. Jackal cursed and shot out of the chair, and Zeke tensed, going for his gun. "Stop them all! She's here to kill me!"

"I'm not here to kill you!" I shouted, holding up my hands. Several wooden darts were leveled at my chest, making me cringe inside. Dammit, if I didn't get a handle on this, we'd all be skewered like rats. "Stick, wait!" I called desperately. "I didn't come for you. We want to see the Prince, that's all! I didn't even know you were here."

He peered into the room again, eyes cold and suspicious. "I don't believe you."

"Believe what you want. I'm telling you the truth." I kept my hands raised as he edged back into the room. "We're not here for you, or anyone. We just want to see the Prince."

He eyed Zeke and Jackal, then glared back at me. "You're not supposed to be here, Allie," he accused, sounding like his old sullen self. "Master Salazar said you were dead, he promised you had been killed. You're not supposed to be here."

Irritation, and something darker, flared. "Sorry to disappoint you. But I'm still alive."

Stick's gaze narrowed and an ugly look crossed his face as he turned to the guards. "Arrest them," he barked, and the guards straightened. "They want to see the Prince? We'll take them to see the Prince. I'm sure the Master will be very interested in meeting them."

I swallowed the growl as two vampires came forward, reaching for me while the others kept their weapons trained on us. Dammit. What now? We couldn't fight our way past the Prince's Elite, not with a whole tower of vampires between us and the exit. Even if Jackal and I got out, Zeke would be torn apart before we reached the front desk. And if we did manage to escape, we'd never be able to get back in. Stick knew I was here, and soon the Prince would, too. I glanced at Zeke and Jackal, wondering if they had any brilliant ideas to get us out of this, but they looked as grim as I felt. No way out. We were caught.

I clenched my fists as one guard grabbed my katana and drew the sheath over my head, barely stopping myself from breaking his nose as he took the blade away. I felt naked without it. The other guard pulled a pair of black metal cuffs from his belt and reached for my arms. "This isn't necessary, Stick," I said as the vampire yanked my arms behind my back and snapped the bands around my wrists. The weight of the chains dragged at me, thick and heavy, obviously designed for vampires.

"It's Stephen now," Stick corrected, his voice smug. "Mr. Stephen. And I decide what's necessary around here, Allie." A faint smirk twisted his lips as he raised his chin. "No one tells me what to do, not anymore."

I could only watch as Zeke and Jackal were stripped of weapons and cuffed, as well. Jackal rolled his eyes and seemed annoyed with the entire event, but Zeke looked pale as his gun and machete were removed and the shackles were locked in place. He met my gaze, and I could see the resignation on his face, the expectancy that he wasn't going to make it out alive.

I'm sorry, Zeke. I didn't mean to drag you into this. I'll get us out somehow, I promise.

When we were restrained, Stick gave a self-satisfied nod, his pale eyes lingering on me. "This way," he stated grandly, as if he was announcing a tour. "Prince Salazar is expecting us."

A guard nudged me in the shoulder with the crossbow, and I went, following my former friend into the halls of the vampire tower.

Dammit, this was not the way I'd wanted to meet Salazar: arrested and in chains, unable to defend myself and those around me. Things had gone very wrong, but there was nothing I could do but try to bluff my way out when we met the Prince. I wondered if Jackal was already working on a plan, some kind of speech or con to get us out of this alive. He was the one who knew about vampire politics, not me. Of course, he was part of the reason we were in this mess to begin with.

I wanted to talk to him, and Zeke, too, but the guards to either side of us made that impossible.

We came to a pair of elevators, working ones, at the end of a hall, and Stick eyed us warily as the doors opened.

"Take them to the top floor," he told the four vampire guards, and stepped toward the other elevator across the hall. "I'll meet you there."

Coward, I thought, as Stick went into a box with his two human bodyguards, smiling and folding his hands before him as the doors slid shut. Doesn't want to be in a tight space with the vampire he stabbed in the back, I guess.

The guards drew their weapons and herded us into the elevator, standing at the corners as we huddled in the center. The doors glided shut, plunging the box into darkness, and the lift began to move.

I tensed, gritting my teeth. I'd been in an elevator before- a rickety, jerry-built one that had crackled and jerked and spit out sparks, making me afraid it would fall at any moment. I didn't like small, tight spaces with no way out-they made me very twitchy. The guards stared straight ahead, weapons drawn but not pointed at us, paying no attention. Experimentally I yanked at the chains around my wrists. If I could just get my hands free, I'd be prepared should an opportunity to escape arise. Unfortunately, the cuffs held. I wouldn't be going anywhere.

Jackal leaned in, his mouth close to my ear. "You didn't tell me about your little friend," he murmured, and if the guards heard him, they didn't care. "That would've been a nice tidbit to share, going into the Prince's tower."

"I didn't think I would see him here," I whispered back. "And it doesn't matter now. I hope you have something in that twisted head to stop the Prince from ripping it off."

"Working on it."

"Faster would be nice."

The guard closest to me gave the evil eye and curled a lip in warning, revealing fangs. I bared mine in return and faced forward, watching the numbers light up over the door-10... 12...14...16... How far up did this thing go? With every floor, we were getting farther away from the exit and closer to the lair of a Master vampire.

"Allie," Zeke murmured, barely audible even as close as we were. Despite our situation, and the vampires surrounding us on every side, his voice and expression were calm. Too calm. "If we don't make it...I'm glad that I found you. It was good to see you again."

I growled and bent toward him, lowering my voice. "Don't you even start with that, Zeke," I hissed, not knowing if I was angry or terrified at his words. "You have people waiting for you in Eden. You are not going to die here."

"It's all right." Zeke managed the tiniest of smiles. "I'm not afraid to die. I just wish..." He trailed off, a flicker of pain crossing his face, before he shook that off, too. "Never mind. It's not important now. I just... I want you to promise me one thing."

I didn't know how well I'd be able to keep any kind of promise now. I really hoped he wouldn't ask me to go to Eden and inform his family if he was killed. I wasn't sure I could do that, even if we made it out of here. But this was Zeke; it was hard to tell him no. "What do you want me to do?" I whispered.

He held my gaze, blue eyes solemn and intense. "Don't Turn me," he whispered, sending a spear of ice through my stomach. "Even if I'm dying, don't make me one of them. Just let me go."

"Zeke." My throat suddenly closed up. Zeke leaned forward, resting his forehead to mine, closing his eyes.

"Please," he whispered, his breath warm on my cold skin. "I don't... I can't spend eternity as a vampire. I can't. Promise me, if it comes to that, you'll let me go."

"Let you die?" I choked out. My first instinct was to refuse. The sudden thought that I could lose him tore a raw, gaping wound inside, which both shocked and terrified me. I'd distanced myself from everyone to avoid these kinds of attachments. In my world, people died. The only way to survive it was to numb yourself to loss and keep going. But Zeke... I couldn't lose him. If he was dying, and I could keep him here, if there was the barest chance to save him, I would take it. Even if I wasn't a Master vampire, and my attempt to Turn Zeke would likely spawn a rabid, there was still that chance. Or I would get another, stronger vampire to do it. Kanin, perhaps. Kanin was a Master, though he considered his immortality a curse and would likely be reluctant to Turn a complete stranger. I didn't care. I'd convince him, somehow. I couldn't let Zeke die without trying to save him.

Then I realized how selfish I was being.

You would really attempt to Turn Zeke, even though he hates and fears becoming a vampire more than anything? Kanin gave you a choice. He respected you enough to allow you to make that decision.

"Damn you, Zeke," I growled. "You're really going to ask me to stand there and watch you die?"

Zeke opened his eyes, his face just a breath away. In my mind the guards disappeared. Jackal vanished. It was just me and Zeke now, facing each other in the dark. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I know it's selfish, but I'm not like you, Allie."

Hurt, I drew back and curled my lip, showing fangs. "You mean evil and soulless?"

"I mean, I'm not as strong as you are," Zeke went on earnestly. "I can't do what you do, what's required to be a vampire. Please." His gaze turned pleading. "If it comes to that, let me die as a human. Promise you'll let me go."

"You can't deny him that choice," Jackal muttered behind my shoulder, shocking me again. "It takes a certain mindset to be one of us. If you Turn someone who can't handle it, they end up destroying themselves, going out to meet the sun. I've seen it before. Better to let the little bloodsack die, if that's what he wants."

"Damn you both," I muttered, turning my face away. Zeke's gaze still hadn't left me, and I squeezed my eyes shut. "All right," I whispered. "If that's what you want, Zeke. I promise I won't Turn you. But that means you can't give up." Opening my eyes, I glared at him. "You can't roll over and die. Promise me you'll keep fighting, for as long as it takes. We're not dead yet."

Zeke gave the smallest of grins. "Technically, you are," he whispered, and if my hands were free, I might've smacked him. "But you have my promise, vampire girl. I don't intend to give up. I'll fight beside you for as long as I can."

The elevator stopped with a ding, and the doors slid open. Stick greeted us on the other side, smiling like a cat with a bird. His human bodyguards waited impassively behind him. "This way," he sang as the vampire Elite pushed us out. Zeke stumbled, barely catching himself, and I bared my fangs at the one who'd shoved him, my gaze flicking to the katana still looped around his shoulder. His face remained impassive as he jerked his crossbow down the hall, motioning us forward.

This hallway was more ornate than the ones on the previous floors. Thick red carpet lined the dim corridor, with electric lights set into alcoves on either side. Large paintings hung from the walls: a peaceful countryside, city streets filled with light and people, horses grazing within a fence. Scenes of a world I'd never known. The painting of a mountain range caught my eye, snowy peaks tipped with red and pink, a sunrise that I would never see again.

At the end of the hallway stood two massive double doors, a vampire guard on either side. As we approached, Stick held up a hand and turned to us with a smile.

"Wait here a moment," he said. "I will inform the Prince of your arrival." His watery gaze shifted to the guards at our backs. "Make sure our guests do not move from this spot. If they try anything, shoot them if you have to, but don't kill them." He smiled at me then, secure in his authority. "We don't want to deny the Prince his amusement."

At one time, I would've been angry, but right now I just felt numb. What's happened to you, Stick? I wondered as he strode away, snapping his finger at a guard, who pulled the door open for him. Do you hate me that much for leaving? Or did you always despise me, even when we were Fringers together?

"Well, he's a real charmer," Jackal muttered as the door closed. "You two must've been such great pals. I hope you don't mind when I say I'm going to rip his tongue out through his nose and make him eat it."

Zeke moved closer, brushing my shoulder with his. "You all right?" he asked softly, watching my face. I nodded. I couldn't think about Stick. I had to focus on Salazar, what I was going to say to him once we went through those doors. What would he want? What could I say that would appeal to the vampire Prince? His city was falling apart around him, so maybe he would be interested in what we knew about Sarren and the other lab. Did he know Kanin was so close, right below his tower? And if Kanin was somewhere beneath us, Sarren was probably here, too.

My skin crawled at the thought of Sarren being nearby. If he found us now...

Dammit, I wasn't going to die here. We'd come too far. Salazar was a Master and had us completely at his mercy, but I was not ready to stop living. I would not let Kanin or Zeke down, either. Whatever it took, we were all going to walk away from this.

The door creaked open, and Stick emerged, wearing his ever-present smile. "Bring the prisoners forward," he called, and I clenched my fists behind my back. "Prince Salazar will see them now."

Well, this is it.

As the guards prodded us through the doorway, Zeke's gaze met mine, solemn and grim. Remember your promise, he seemed to say, and I swallowed the lump in my throat. It wouldn't come to that. I wouldn't allow it.

The doors creaked shut behind us.

I didn't get a good feel for the room at first, only that it was very large and dim. Nearly the entire opposite wall was glass, showing the night sky and the other two vampire towers silhouetted against the black. A huge desk sat in front of that wall, dark and shiny, but the man standing before the desk, leaning against the wood, demanded all our attention.

Prince Salazar regarded us curiously as we came in, like we were some kind of strange new insect he'd found on his floor. Even leaning against the desk, he was well over six feet in a perfectly tailored black suit, his inky hair tumbling to his shoulders in waves, not a strand out of place.

"So," Prince Salazar said, gazing directly at me, "you are Kanin's daughter."

He knew who I was.

Prince Salazar, the Master vampire of New Covington, the one who hated Kanin so much he'd kept a citywide manhunt going for weeks when the vampire was in the city, knew who I was.

Things didn't look good for me.

"Don't bother to deny it," Salazar said, his voice rich and deep, with the faintest accent I couldn't place. "Your friend Stephen has already told me everything about you. Where you lived, where you slept, the other members of your small gang. Rat and Lucas, I believe their names were? All Unregistered. Not in my system."

I spared a quick glance at Stick, standing off to the side, his gaze solely on the master. His face was slack, almost adoring. My stomach turned, and I forced myself to face Salazar again, who still watched me with no hints as to what he was thinking.

"Nothing to say?" he asked, raising a thin, elegant eyebrow.

"What do you want me to say?" I challenged. "You seem to know everything about me."

Salazar smiled. Turning, he raised a hand and gestured to one of the guards standing rigid beside us. "Release them."

The guard snapped to attention, and Stick jerked, glancing at me and then Salazar, who watched everyone calmly. "Master, are you sure that's a good idea?"

I was stunned, too, and stared at the Prince as a guard moved up behind me, inserting a key into my shackles. Salazar plucked a wineglass of blood from where it sat on the corner of his desk and swirled it thoughtfully.

"They are newcomers to my city," he stated as the cuffs dropped away and my hands were freed. "I do not wish to appear rude. The law states that I meet visiting kindred as guests unless I deem them an obvious threat. And they are not a threat to me. I do not need them in chains if I wish to destroy them."

Still shocked, I watched as Jackal and Zeke were released as well, Zeke rubbing his arms as the shackles were taken away. My gaze strayed to my katana, still looped to a guard's back, tempting me to lunge forward and snatch it away from him. I desperately wanted my sword, but getting it would be hard. There were the four armed vampire guards to contend with and, worse, there was Salazar himself. I did not want a fight with the vampire Prince of the city, as Kanin had showed me just how powerful a Master could be.

"Mr. Stephen," the Prince said as Stick continued to look sullen. "Please inform the guards outside the room to wait in the elevator hall. Inform them that, unless there is a lifeor-death situation, I do not wish to be disturbed by anyone. Is that clear?"

"Of course, Master."

Stick bowed and left the room, shooting me an unreadable glance as he left. His two human bodyguards followed him out. I heard him speaking to the sentries outside before the door creaked shut and they were gone. The four armed vampires in the room, however, stayed.

Salazar straightened and walked around his desk, dropping into the chair behind it. "Sit, please," he said politely, nodding to a trio of chairs. With nothing else to do, we sat, and the vampire Prince smiled. "I would offer you refreshments, but I'm afraid I have a bit of a situation here, and our blood supply has been...compromised. I do apologize for the state of my city. Rest assured we are doing all we can to bring it under control." His gaze went to Jackal, and then Zeke, sitting to either side of me. "I'm afraid you have me at a disadvantage," he said, turning to Jackal. "I know of the girl, but I don't yet have the pleasure of your name."

"Jackal." Jackal crossed his legs and leaned back in the chair, looking perfectly at ease. "Former King of Old Chicago."

"Ah." Salazar nodded, giving him an appraising stare. "Yes, I have heard the rumors of a vampire who ruled a city entirely of humans. They say he was raising an army to take out the other vampire lords, only it didn't work out the way he'd hoped." Jackal raised his eyebrows, and the Prince smiled. "I like to keep tabs on my competition," he explained, and his smile turned dangerous again. "Assess possible threats before they grow too big to ignore. You are welcome here, raider king, so long as you remember who the Prince is." His gaze flicked to Zeke on the opposite side, turning slightly predatory. "And who is this...human?"

I stiffened, but Jackal broke in before I could speak. "He's no one," the former raider king said dismissively. "One of mine. In case I get hungry, and because he's actually a pretty good shot. Not the sharpest tack in the bunch, but he's amusing, for a pet. So I let him follow me around."

I saw Zeke briefly clench his jaw, as if struggling not to say anything. Jackal caught my eye, one corner of his mouth twitching, and I bit my tongue. You are such a bastard, I thought, though I understood what Jackal was doing. Ignore the human, he was telling the Prince. The human isn't important. If Salazar knew who Zeke really was, where he really came from... No, it was better that the Prince think of Zeke as a nobody, unimportant. Jackal had been right to shift the Prince's focus away from him. Though he didn't have to look so damn smug about it.

"Hmm." The Prince nodded and, much to my relief, appeared to lose interest in Zeke. "Well, enough pleasantries," he went on, and his piercing stare centered on me once more. "You have come for Kanin."

I gripped the edges of my chair, feeling Zeke and Jackal tense. "What do you know about that?" I asked. The Prince's smile grew, showing fangs.

"Because he is being tortured in the lowest level of my tower," he continued, matter-of-fact, "and his pain calls out to you, his offspring. Because you dream of him, starving, going mad with Hunger, clawing at the chains around him like a beast. Because he is screaming for salvation, and you cannot resist your sire's call. It drew you here, to my city, and it compels you to find him. But you cannot save him now."

I swallowed hard. Salazar had Kanin. But how? How had he gotten him away from Sarren? Had he killed the psychotic vampire, or had Sarren simply lost interest and left Kanin for the Prince to find?

I shook myself. None of that mattered. Sarren was gone, and the Prince was the one we had to deal with now. "Why are you doing this to him?" I whispered. "He was trying to find the cure for Red Lung and Rabidism. He was trying to save everything."

"He betrayed all our kind when he went to the scientists." Salazar's voice was suddenly hard and terrifying, his eyes gleaming with hate. "He turned on his own kin, allowed the humans to experiment on those who would be their masters, and he is responsible for the abominations outside the city." Salazar sat back, composing himself, though his voice was no less scary. "What he allowed those humans to do to our former brethren is unforgivable. What he helped create has damned us all to the darkest pits of hell. Kanin will suffer for his crimes. I have all eternity to watch him writhe and scream and become that which he created. A fitting end, I believe." Salazar's gaze sharpened, cutting into me. "Perhaps you would care to join him."

I had to be careful. One wrong word or action, and we'd be down there with Kanin, chained to a wall and waiting for Hunger to drive us insane. "There has to be something we can agree on," I said cautiously. "Something we can offer for Kanin's life."

"Oh?" The Master vamp raised an eyebrow, amused. "Tell me, then, Kanin's daughter. What do you think his life, and the billions of humans and vampires he helped destroy, is worth?"

"How about your city?" Jackal broke in, and Salazar turned to him in surprise. "How about the knowledge of what's really going on out there, and the name of someone who can stop it?"

Very slowly, the Prince sat back, regarding Jackal with intense black eyes. "I'm listening," he said in a low, controlled voice.

"It's not just a random plague," Jackal went on. "Someone created the virus inside your city and released it into the population. It's too similar to Red Lung to be a coincidence. We know who did it. He's the one you really want, because he's the only one who has the cure."

Cure? I wondered how much of that was truth and how much Jackal was making up. We really didn't know if Sarren had a cure or could create one. We didn't even know if he was still in the city. But Salazar stood, looming over us, his expression cold and terrible. "Let's say I believe you," he said. "What is the name of the person who unleashed hell upon my city? Who is this creature who will soon regret he was ever born?"

"If we give you his name," I said, "will you release Kanin?"

Salazar regarded me with blank, scary eyes. "You are in no position to bargain with me, Kanin's daughter," he warned in a quiet voice. "It is only my will and my own laws that have kept you alive this long. One word from me, and you will share your sire's fate. So perhaps it is your own life you should be bargaining for, not his.

"However," he went on, "the fate of my city is more important than the existence of one vampire. Even one as cursed as him. Give me the one responsible for this chaos, and I will... consider...releasing Kanin to you."

I looked at Jackal. He nodded. "Sarren," I told the Prince. "His name is Sarren. You might remember him-he came to your city several months ago, looking for Kanin. Tall, bald, scarred-up face, a little on the bat-shit-crazy side?"

"Sarren." The Prince's voice was flat. Turning, he walked to the window, gazing out on the city. I watched his reflection in the glass, serious and pondering, and waited impatiently for his response.

"Serious accusations," the Prince said, turning back. His voice was grim as he turned his head, facing the corner. "What do you have to say to this...Sarren?"

"I would say," a cold, terrifyingly familiar voice hissed out of the darkness, "that some little birdie is lying to you."

P/S: Copyright -->www_novelfreereadonline_Com

***