Lilith’s POV


    Lilith fumbled with the silver handcuffs in the darkness, her fingers shaking so badly she dropped the key twice and kept having to start over. Finally, the metal fell away from her wrists with a quiet clink. She rubbed at the raw skin, wincing, and stood just as the cell door creaked open.


    A woman stepped into view, dressed in a guard’s uniform. She was young, maybe thirty, with brte hair and blue eyes. She reminded Lilith of E. A little too much for her liking–Lilith didn’t want to consider the idea of her daughter being in a ce like this.


    Lilith took a step back on instinct, but the woman offered her a faint smile that set her nerves at ease.


    “Are you ready?” the woman whispered, to which Lilith nodded. “Okay. We need to move. Now.”


    Lilith didn’t argue. She slipped out of the cell and followed the woman down the hallway. The woman moved quickly but quietly, and Lilith tried to match her steps, sticking to the woman’s shadow. They passed other cells, most of them empty, and climbed a set <b>of </b>stairs that led to a maintenance corridor.


    Neither of them spoke as the woman led her through a series of narrow passages. The walls were damp and the air smelled like damp earth.


    Lilith realized, about halfway, that they were taking the tunnels beneath the packhouse–the tunnels typically used for transporting bodies back during the days when tuberculosis ravaged the territories<b>, </b>back before Lilith’s parents were in charge. They hadn’t been used in decades.


    Or so she thought.


    Finally, the woman stopped in front of a heavy metal door. She pulled out a key and unlocked it, then pushed it open. The smell hit Lilith immediately.


    Blood. Old blood, coppery and tinged with the scent of rust and rot.


    “What is this?” Lilith asked, wrinkling her nose. She prepared to shift, just in case she had been tricked.


    “The morgue.” The woman stepped inside and flicked on her shlight, illuminating rows of rusty metal cupboards. The air was frigid, but the morgue looked like it hadn’t been used in a very long time. “I need you to do something when you get out. If you want Richard to be put to a stop for good, that is.”


    Lilith’s stomach turned as the woman walked over to a table at the center of the room<b>, </b>where a single stic sheet was covering something small and round. She gave Lilith an almost apologetic look, then removed the stic sheet.


    The room spun.


    Lilith recognized him immediately. Even in death, with his head separated from his body, she still saw the little <b>boy </b>she once knew. The boy who used to pull on her pigtails on the yground. The boy who shared lunch with her and threw paper wads when the teacher wasn’t looking.


    Daniel LaRue.


    Dead.


    Decapitated.


    Just a head sitting on a metal table.


    “Richard killed him three days <b>ago</b>,” the woman said quietly. “Shot him in his own home and had his warriors <b>clean </b><b>up </b><b>the </b>mess. They buried the body, but kept the head. Not sure why. Maybe something to do with Margaret’s sick rituals<b>, </b>or maybe <b>just </b>because he’s <b>a </b>cruel bastard.”


    +25 Bonus


    “I’m guessing thetter,” Lilith whispered. Her throat tightened. “What do you expect me to do about this?”


    The woman pulled out a pair of scissors. To Lilith’s horror, she snipped a piece of the old man’s wiry gray hair, then slipped it into a small baggy and handed it to Lilith. She then reached into the inside breast pocket of her uniform and pulled out another baggy. This one contained a bullet.


    “The casing has a serial number on it,” she exined as Lilith took the two bags. “Take both of those to the Alpha King. Everything should be traceable back to Richard.”


    Lilith looked up at her. “Why not do this yourself?”


    The woman snorted. “My allies were attacked. Many were killed. The rest scattered and went into hiding. The point is, we’re not exactly in a position to be doing this right now. We need you to help us, Alpha. You know what to do.”


    She was right. Lilith nodded curtly and slipped the baggies into her pocket. She shot onest nce at the table as the woman carefully covered Daniel’s head again, then turned and followed her out of the room.


    The woman led her back through the corridors. They climbed another set of stairs and emerged into a storage area near the back of the packhouse. Through a window, Lilith could see the forest. It was still dark out.


    “There’s a car waiting for you about half a mile into the woods,” the woman said. “Keys are in the visor. Go straight to Ashw and don’t stop for anything.”


    “What about you?”


    “I’ll be fine. I’ll say you overpowered me. The rm is about toe on, so brace yourself.” The woman opened the door, and the rm suddenly started ring, making Lilith jump even though she’d been expecting it. “Hurry!” the woman shouted over the noise. “Before theye looking!”


    Shifting mid–stride, Lilith burst through the door and into the night. Behind her, she could already hear shouting. Lights wereing on in the packhouse, dark silhouettes moving within. When she looked over her shoulder, she could see someone osting her ally, but she didn’t stop. She couldn’t.


    The forest was dark, but Lilith’s eyes adjusted quickly. She dodged between trees, leapt over fallen logs, pushed herself harder than she had in years. Her lungs burned. Her legs ached. But she couldn’t stop.


    She kept running until her legs gave out, and then she copsed behind a tree, shifting back.


    She stayed there for what felt like hours, waiting for the sounds in the distance to fade. When she was sure no one was following


    her, she got up and started moving again. Slower, but still vignt.


    She found the car exactly where the woman said it would be–a beat–up sedan with mud–sttered sides hidden amongst a copse of trees alongside the road. The keys were in the visor, just like she had promised. Lilith climbed into the driver’s seat ind started the engine.


    The drive back to Ashw went by in a sh. Lilith broke multiple trafficws, racing along the winding roads at breakneck speeds, but never slowed. She kept checking the rearview mirror, expecting to see headlights following her, but the road stayed empty. The baggies felt heavy in her pocket.


    Evidence. Real<b>, </b>concrete evidence that could finally bring Richard down.


    By the time she pulled up to the house, the sun had risen and the time on the dashboard read seven o’clock. She killed the engine and sat there for a moment, trying to gather her strength. Her body ached everywhere. The bruises on her face throbbed.


    But she was alive.


    She climbed out of the car and walked up to the front door. It was unlocked, which was strange. Alexander usually kept it locked.


    The house was quiet, which wasn’t unusual for this hour. But what really stood out to Lilith was the fact that E’s car wasn’t in the driveway.


    And when she stepped into the foyer, the acrid smell of smoke hit her nostrils.


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    <strong>Sara Lili</strong> is a daring romance writer who turns icyndscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of d’s breathtaking cold.