The hooded figure moved closer. "Drink, child. Before the others notice your... reluctance."
All around us, eyes watched. If I refused again, they'd know I suspected.
I raised the cup, taking the smallest possible sip. The liquid was sweet, cloying, with a bitter aftertaste.
The seer's hood nodded in satisfaction and moved away.
I had to find Varkolak now. Had to warn him.
But the room had begun to tilt. Sounds stretched and blurred. My lips felt numb.
Too late, I realized my mistake. Even that tiny sip had been enough.
I tried to stand, to call out, but my legs wouldn't support me. The cup fell from my fingers, shattering on the stone floor.
As darkness crept into the edges of my vision, I saw the council members approaching, faces impassive.
"Take her," one ordered. "To the purification caves."
Hands lifted me. The ceiling swirled above me. Then nothing but darkness and the sensation of movement.
When consciousness returned, I was being carried through a narrow tunnel. My body felt impossibly heavy, my thoughts thick as honey.
Glowing crystals in the rock walls cast eerie blue light on the procession. Ahead, I glimpsed a chamber with a pool of black water in its center.
The purification caves.
I tried to struggle, but my limbs wouldn't respond. Could only watch as they carried me toward whatever ritual would tear Varkolak from my heart.
The last thing I saw before darkness claimed me again was the black water rippling, as if something beneath its surface was waking up.
CHAPTER 8
Varkolak
I returned from the hunt, blood still warm on my hands. The mountain goat had been swift, but I was swifter. My shadows had stretched across the rocky terrain, cornering it against the cliff face. A clean kill. Aya would be pleased, she always appreciated fresh meat, though she prepared it in strange human ways that fascinated me.
"Aya?" My voice echoed through our cave dwelling.
Silence answered.
Something felt wrong. The air was too still, too empty. Her scent lingered but it was hours old. The fire pit that should have been burning had cooled to gray ash.
"Aya!" I called louder, moving deeper into our home.
The bed furs were disturbed, as if she'd been pulled from them. Her worn leather boots remained by the entrance, she never left without them. My chest tightened, a sensation I'd rarely felt before meeting her.
I dropped the goat carcass and inhaled deeply, searching for other scents. There. Beneath her familiar fragrance were others. My kind. Several of them.
My control slipped. Shadows burst from my skin in tendrils of rage, darkening the cave until even my night-vision strained. The walls cracked where my darkness touched them.
"Who took her?" I snarled to the empty room, knowing the answer already.
The Elders had threatened this. Warned me that bonding with her would never be tolerated. I'd ignored them, believing my position as lead hunter would protect us both.
I'd been wrong.
I found Umbra at the sacred pools, his liquid shadow form barely distinguishable from the dark waters. Of all the Council, he'd been the most vocal against my union with Aya.
