Chapter 0166

"Who are you?" I demand, my voice hoarse from days without proper rest.

"Genevieve," the woman answers, her eyes darting toward the chaos around us. "Now move, Guardian. Your secret dies with me." She emphasizes the title—the only name anyone here knows me by.

I nod my thanks before scanning the area. Pure pandemonium. Hunters chase fleeing vampires while others load survivors onto trucks. Slipping from the vehicle, I weave through the shadows until the tree line swallows me whole. Then I run.

Three days of relentless flight. Streams have washed away the stench of blood and captivity, but starvation claws at my insides. Without Valeria to hunt for me, weakened as I am, prey escapes my grasp. Berries and edible roots barely sustain me—certainly not enough to outpace the ghosts on my heels.

Nights find me curled in hollow logs or perched in towering oaks, praying predators and rogue vampires pass beneath me.

The rising sun guides me south. My family had ventured north years ago—straight into vampiric territory. I don't know where the coven stood relative to our capture point, but south promises ocean. If I live to see it.

Today's march leaves me swaying on my feet. A day without water. Countless since real food passed my lips. I'm sinking to my knees when a sound freezes my blood—a hunting wolf's howl. Not just any wolf. A predator closing in on prey.

More join the chorus.

I bolt.

Trees blur as I zigzag through the undergrowth, lungs burning. Maybe a river could save me. Maybe—

The forest spits me into a moonlit clearing. Three massive wolves materialize from the opposite tree line. I whirl—only to find two more cutting off my retreat.

"Please." The word tears from my throat. Not for mercy. Not for life. Just not another cage. "Don't—"

Exhaustion wins. The world tilts. Darkness rises.