Chapter 56
Viviane
I spent the first thirteen years of my life in the Bloodstone territory, yet I’ve never seen an inch of the free territory. I knew only the pearl farms and the river which swept us to freedom.
I’ve imagined it a thousand different ways, always assuming the blood money they wrought from the flesh of mermaids afforded the pack lives of unimaginable luxury. I wasn’t wrong, but I certainly didn’t picture this. As the truck rumbles through the city, I remain glued to the back window, trying to memorize the streets, the landmarks and route on the off chance we actually manage to pull off an escape. Luckily the shifters don’t seem to believe we’re capable of even contemplating saving ourselves, because they don’t try to stop me.
My memory is incredibly sharp and if I can focus on navigation, I might stand a chance. However it is difficult, because everywhere I look my eyes want to leap out of my head. The bloodstone capital seems to have been built on the side of an active volcano. Silver bullet trains move through the terraced streets, carved out of glittering black rocks and dotted with huge crystals which have been left like decorations in the mountainside, as if to show the pack is so obscenely wealthy they don’t need to harvest these jewels.
It’s night, and the entire city glitters in the moonlight. It's beautiful and horrible all at once, as if someone decided to build a city of dreams in a den of despair. Everywhere I look the buildings and people shine with riches, riches I know would never exist without the enslavement of the girls huddled in the back of this truck with me. There are pearls everywhere, on all the neon advertisements and billboards, in all the shop windows, sewn into people’s clothing and jewelry.
It’s a stark contrast from Asterion, where pearls are rarely seen and fetch such high prices because they are banned from modern production. The only people who own them can either afford antiques created before the ban was instated, traveled outside the territory to procure them, or got them from some black market vender like the ones to whom I sell. Here people are drowning in them, and still they want more.
One of the traffickers, the same gnarled looking man who hasn’t taken his eyes off me since we met, is watching my face as I take in the sights. He seems thoroughly amused by my disgusted expression, leering at me with a cruel grin. “Welcome to Sangville, Luna.”
Caspian
“Alright Kiera, now tell us everything you remember about your first visit to the settlements.” I instruct, trying to show patience I do not feel. The little lynx is seated next to Chase on the sofa, sullenly tucked under his arm and leaning into his warmth despite her initial objections to being so near him.
Kiera haltingly shares the story: from Viviane’s initial interest, to getting separated from Marina and running into Mordred. She explains how she rubbed soot on Viviane and went out to face the wretched man on her own - a detail which has Chase growling in her ear and Keira squirming nervously against him. “We never figured out who he was working with,” She finishes weakly, “only that he was involved with the trafficking somehow.”
Marina sits in the armchair on their left, her head cradled in her hands as she tearlessly weeps for her daughter. It hadn’t been easy telling her what happened, but I also hadn’t been thrilled to learn she’d taken part of the first visit to the settlement. “Why did you go back?” She moans to Kiera, “How could you, after seeing Mordred?”
“I’m sorry.” Kiera repeats for the thousandth time, “I tried to convince her not to go -”
I interrupt before she can continue explaining. We’ve heard all this, we don’t need to hash it over again. We need new information. Still, a strange detail latches in my brain. “How did you get back into the house?” Someone certainly would have noticed my mate returning covered in soot and dragging her catatonic mother.
Both women look suddenly very guilty, exchanging glances and keeping their mouths tightly shut as they stare at the ground. “Kiera.” Chase rumbles menacingly.
She visibly shivers, peeking up at him from beneath her lashes then immediately dropping her gaze again when she sees his harsh expression. He leans over and murmurs something in her ear, too low for me to hear. Blushing scarlet, Kiera blurts, “It was James!”
“James?” Chase and I snap in unison.
“Yes, he showed us one of the secret entrances into the house.” Marina explains hoarsely, “in exchange for a favor from Viviane.” My poor mate’s mother has barely been able to get out of bed over the last week, yet now she’s here among us, once again bea ring the weight of the world on her shoulders. Part of me wants to be angry with her for allowing any of this, but I know she only went out of concern for her daughter.
“What favor?” I demand, my voice like gravel.
“He said it was his to call in when the time was right.” Kiera supplies softly.
“And she agreed?” I exclaim in horror.
“She didn’t have any choice.” The lynx argues.
“I’m sick of hearing that.” I cut her off, “She had a choice, trust a man who kidnapped her and has done nothing but cause problems in the pack, or take responsibility for her actions and face the consequences.” Even though she’s in mortal peril, I’m more furious with Viviane than I’ve ever been before. This all happened the day she finally accepted me as her mate, the day I claimed her once and for all… and mere hours before she was facing down death and didn’t say a word. When I find her, I’m going to kiss her silly and then I’m going to teach her a lesson she won’t soon forget.
Kiera’s accusatory voice draws my thoughts back to the present. “What, so you could make her your permanent prisoner?” She sasses, earning herself a swat on the hip from Chase.
“If I had she would be home safe right now instead of in the hands of ruthless traffickers.” I snarl, making the feline immediately retreat.
She glances at Chase from beneath her eyelashes, obviously begging for a rescue - but he gives her none. “He’s right, Kiera.” My beta rules coldly, “going to the settlements was bad enough, but the moment Mordred and James got involved…” He shakes his head in foreboding.
“Wait a minute.” I insist, the gears turning rapidly in my head as I begin to pace back and forth across the small room. “Mordred and James… Modred and James,” I mutter under my breath. “Who else would know how to break someone out of the prison, but a member of the family?” I think aloud. “James has been up to no good for months now: He tried to rig the pack games, he kidnapped Viviane, he’s done everything in his power to undermine me.”
Chase is on his feet too now, clearly catching on to my train of thought. “James has the money, power and connections to work with the Bloodstones. He had no moral compass, inside access to the packs lowest criminals, and the leverage to force them to work for him.”
“Modred escaped just after James was kicked out of the pack house.” I remind them all, “Why was my cousin even near the house that day, when he had no business being here.”
“All this time Viviane and I have been asking how Mordred might have gotten involved with the traffickers.” Kiera muses, “And the timing of James’s rescue was more than a little suspicious.”
“This is all just speculation.” I caution, my wolf growling up a storm in my head. Speculation or not, the moment I heard these two monster’s names together in the same sentence, a feeling deep in my gut told me they were somehow connected. “We need evidence.”
“I think it’s time we pay James a visit.” Chase agrees.
“What?” Kiera balks, jumping to her feet and grabbing her mates hand, then abruptly releasing it the moment she realized what she’d done. “You can’t, if he’s really involved in this he’s probably working with Damien himself.”
Chase smirks down at the lynx, “Don’t worry baby girl, we’ll be safe.” She hisses at the moniker, but my friend only smiles wider, “You forget, he doesn’t hold rank in the pack because he’s never been up to the challenge. We can handle him.”
“I’m going to brief my father.” I grumble, hating the idea of stopping for a single moment, but knowing he needs to know about my suspicions. If I’m right, my mate may not be the only thing in danger. “Then we find out what my cousin is up to - once and for all.”
