Page 26 of Eternally Bound
No, not true,he realized. No matter what her instructors said about her, Kadence had always been extremely intelligent. She’d always been eager to learn and more inquisitive than most of the more submissive females in the stronghold.
Because of her spirit, he’d believed Logan to be a fine match for her—one he suspected she didn’t want—but she had remained silent about the arrangement. Having grown up together and gone through all their training together, Logan was one of his best friends. Logan would be strong enough to keep her safe. He also cared for her and knew her well enough that Nathan didn’t worry he would want to break her spirit. Kadence had to be married, but he’d be damned if it was to someone who would try to crush her.
But then, after this, he may throw her in a cage himself. If he ever found her!
The idea of her out there, completely unprepared for the world and all its horrors, was a lead weight around his heart. He’d failed to prepare her for what resided beyond their twenty-foot-high walls and sprawling, secluded property, but then he’d never thought she’d be out therealone.
Had she fallen into the hands of the vampires? He couldn’t think of a more horrifying and cruel fate for her. She was willful, but she also had one of the biggest hearts he’d ever encountered. The vampires would abuse her until there was nothing left of the Kadence he knew.
And she was alive. They’d always been close; he’dknowif she were gone.
He kicked himself in the ass again for taking off after Joseph like he had and leaving her behind. He’d just been so determined to destroy the monster himself, that it had been his only thought. When he’d recalled that Kadence had unexpectedly arrived in the club, he’d abandoned his pursuit of Joseph and returned to the alley.
By the time he made it back, the humans were swarming all over it and there had been no sign of Kadence in the alley or club. The humans had also already roped off Jayce’s body. It had taken some maneuvering, but they’d been able to steal his body this afternoon. Thankfully, Kadence’s body hadn’t been in the morgue with him.
He spun on his heel and stalked back the other way. No matter how pissed off and concerned he was about her, he had to admit Kadence was resourceful. She was also more determined than he’d realized to see their father’s killer brought down. If she’d been born a man, she would have been a strong asset out in the field.
He glared at the wall as he marched toward it. Why hadn’t he known what she’d been planning? He should have known the show of obedience she’d been giving recently was an act. He should have known she was up to something.
They had shared the same womb, they had spent the early part of their childhood playing together, and they were the closest of friends as well as siblings. Then, he’d turned ten and left his boyhood behind to embrace his hunter training.
Kadence, on the other hand, had resisted her training every step of the way. She’d been a constant thorn in her instructors’ sides. She’d never wanted to accept her lot as a woman within the stronghold. Their father had believed she’d outgrow it; Nathan hadn’t been as convinced, but he’d kept that opinion to himself.
When they were younger, Nathan was amused by her antics of skipping classes, setting her cooking on fire, catching and putting a couple dozen frogs and snakes into the schoolroom, and flat out refusing to do as she was told. He’d believed she wasn’t ready to leave her childhood behind. That amusement faded to sadness as it became increasingly obvious his sister was truly unhappy with her designated future.
Then, their father had been killed. Over the years, Kadence had always known things, so he hadn’t been surprised to find her waiting for him when he returned with their father’s body. Many had tried to keep her from seeing it, but she succeeded in getting past all of them to stand beside their father as he was carried into the mourning chamber.
She hadn’t cried or demanded revenge. She’d simply… retreated was the only way he could think to describe it. Her docility had been out of place. He’d believed it was because of the weight of her grief, but he realized now she’d been plotting.
He should have known better. The loss of their father wouldn’t have broken Kadence’s willful nature. However, he’d been so happy she finally settled into her role, that he hadn’t looked past the façade. And he’d lost her because of it.
Nathan slammed his fist into the brick wall running the entire length of the nearly three square miles that made up the stronghold property in this rural area of Massachusetts. Pain lanced through his hand and up to his elbow, but he barely acknowledged the cracking of one of his knuckles. The broken bone would heal soon enough.
That rapid healing ability, along with many of his other enhanced senses, had been what made him the leader upon his father’s passing. There were other male hunters here with more experience than him, but his bloodline had led from the beginning and would continue to do so while it survived.
The older hunters accepted this, just as they had accepted he would be bringing his own men with him on the hunts. The men who had fought closely with his father continued to hunt, but they were no longer the seconds-in-command to their leader. He still asked them for their guidance and advice, but the new generation was rising, taking over now.
Besides, his father had been over a hundred years old when he’d been killed, as were many of his friends. They all still had many good years in them, but it was time for the older ones to start stepping aside. Sometimes, Nathan took some of the ones in their fifties and sixties with him on hunts, but last night he hadn’t expected to encounter so many vamps, or to have Kadence show up.
He wanted to wring her neck as badly as he wanted to hug her.
“Nathan.”
Nathan turned to find Logan crossing the grounds toward him. “Has anything new been learned?” he demanded.
Logan stopped before him. “No, nothing.”
“She’s not dead.”
Logan nodded, but his eyes were distant. There had been so many vamps in that alley. Yes, they’d chased many of them away, but there had also been thoseothers. He still couldn’t explain them, and he didn’t care to. They were vamps and they would die, especially if they had hurt his sister.
“I wouldknowif she were dead,” he insisted. Where was she though? What had happened to her? If she wasn’t being held by vampires, then why hadn’t she called? Nathan paced faster. “Get everyone together; we’re going out in full force tonight to find her.”
“Nathan—”
“She’s alive!” he snapped.
“I believe you, but I think we should leave extra enforcements here, just in case.”
