As fast as I was, this vampire was faster. It was strange really. Older vampires had an air about them. It wasn't something anyone could name, but you could just feel the enormity of their age and power. This vampire had none of that. If it wasn't for him matching my strength and speed, I would have guessed he was less than 100 years old.

He met my leap head on, grabbing for my neck but I let my momentum carry me past him, sliding past his fumbling grip as he tried to find purchase. My feet slid along the asphalt of the alley and I almost tripped over the girl he had discarded on the ground. Already, he was on the move again, lunging towards me. I dodged nimbly. His fist collided with the wall behind where my head had been, pulverizing the brick to dust.

The grin I gave him just enraged him more. Every time he grabbed me, his fingers couldn't curl to trap me in his grasp before I would neatly twist out, slippery as a snake. I wasn't sure what gave him the speed and strength he possessed, but his movements told me just how inexperienced he really was. He was fast yet slow at the same time, his movements sluggish and jerky and his reflexes slow. He didn't know the first thing about putting up a real fight. It sort of reminded me painfully of Anthony. My smile only widened. He was no match for me, but I enjoyed playing with him. I should have called for back up, Simone or Noah, but I wanted to crunch him myself.

He shrieked and lunged again. I was so enthralled by my small victory of staying out of his grasp that I had forgotten about the girl lying on the cold, hard ground. I took a step back to escape him. This time, his fingers grazed my cheek instead of my neck, his ice cold touch sending a strange spark through me. My foot slipped, stumbling over the girl's leg and I tumbled backwards, too shocked by the thrill his touch sent to catch myself. Was it possible he could have frozen my brain? It certainly felt like it for a moment.

His laugh was triumphant and his grin was akin to that of a madman. He threw out a hand, not to hit me, but to shoot ice from his palm. The ice stabbed through my arm, through flesh and concrete, pinning my arm to the ground. I let out a scream of pain that turned into a snarl. I tugged at my arm, trying to pull free despite the cold pain, but the ice held fast, controlled by his power. "You fucker!" I yelled, looking at the tears and bloodstains on my shirt. "You ruined my shirt!"

"I've got you now," he hissed between his teeth. Underneath the growl in his voice, I detected his slight Russian accent. Anthony said he and his uncle had tracked him across upper Asia. And Russia. "The shirt is the least of your problems."

"So you've got me," I snapped, still trying to yank my arm free against the frigid ice. "Now what? Are you going to smile me to death?"

He gave a dry chuckle. The alley was dark, but his back was to the street where there was plenty of light flooding in, surrounding his head in a soft glow as he glared down at me. Like with the first time we had met, under similar circumstances funnily enough, I thought about how ruggedly handsome he would be if the hate wasn't warping his features. I wrinkled my nose in disdain, sneering at him like he was the one on the ground and I was the one looking down on him. Like he was inferior to me. "You have fire," he said. "I like that. It's part of why Sebastian admired you so. It's almost a shame to have to kill you."

He didn't seem very sorry that he had to kill me, despite him saying it was such a shame. "It would be a shame to die," I said flatly.

Something in my voice made the smile slide from his face, baring his teeth again in a flashy show of dominance, but I wasn't fooled. "Unfortunately, it will be a slow and painful death for you. I'll draw it out, teach you a lesson." His smile became cruel. "I like to play with my food before eating it."

The ice pinning my arm kept the wounds open and fresh, now the ice was slick with my blood, allowing it to slide easier and work my arm free. "Well unfortunately for you," I said slowly, "I have no plans to die today." He only had time to give me a snarl and a quizzical look before I wrenched my arm free with a ragged cry of pain and lurched to my feet. The ice cracked under my movement, still struggling to hold in place under his control. The result was bit of ice still sticking out my my arm, but I tried to pay them no mind for the moment. The movement was so sudden, that he stumbled a step back. He regained his composure quickly, but it was too late. He was mine. "You aren't the time not one who likes to play with food before eating it."

Like before, I threw my mind at him. This time, it hit him so hard that he actually stumbled several steps back. Normally I didn't use my power like this, but this asshole deserved it. I was tired of his games. It ended now. I would get to the bottom of it, no matter what.

The thought was invigorating.

He grunted, trying to fight me but my power brought him to his knees. I surged into his mind, ready to tear it apart like before. Instead, I was met with the same, swirling, inky blackness. There was no thoughts, no memories, nothing. It was like he was only the shell of a person, subjected to do his puppet master's bidding.

"What happened to you?" I heard myself whispering.

The roguewas now on his hands and knees in front of me, heaving for gasps of air that he didn't even need. "Please," He said, his voice ragged and strained. "Please, stop," he begged.

I still held him in my thrall, digging deeper and poking for more than just blank nothing. Then again, there was that small kernel of white light. I eased my mind towards it, but the moment I did, I felt resistance. Not from the rogue, but from whatever, whoever was holding him in this power. The blackness shifted, tugging my mind back, but I fought it, pushed through. It was a battle of wills. Who's mind was stronger, mine or this foreign power? So far, I was winning, but it was taking a toll of the vampire. He was begging me to stop, pleading and sounding more human than I had ever heard him before. Pain laced his features now instead of rage, and it made him seem soft and venerable. In that moment, I pitied him.

The closer I got to that small speck of light in his mind, which I was guessing must be his conscious, the most inner essence of himself that couldn't be corrupted, the harder his mind resisted and tried to shove me out. I gritted my teeth. If I could reach the center of his mind, all the questions would be answered, I just knew it.

I was so close, mere inches. The darkness pulsed, still trying to throw me out, but his mind was also getting clearer. I saw flashes of his life pass by so quickly that I didn't even know what I saw.

"Seline!"

The name echoed through my head, forced on me by his thoughts, but he had also yelled the name out loud. "Seline, Seline, Seline." He kept chanting the name over and over, but I had no idea who Seline was or why he was calling her name. Perhaps it was a former lover. Taking advantage of my confusion, the darkness pulsed again and shoved, this time succeeding in sending me out. With the shove came the echo of a female grunt that certainly didn't come from me or him. I was too shocked to move, gazing down at the vampire before me. He was breathing in great pants and seemed just as shocked as me by what had occurred. He didn't ponder it as long as me. He gave me a look that was part hateful and part confused before he jumped to his feet and disappeared into the night.

"What the fuck," I muttered. Looking at the girl on the ground, I pricked my finger on one of my fangs before retracting them. Blood welled up on the small cut before it healed over, but it was enough. I rubbed the small bit of my blood on the two teeth marks on the girl's neck and watched them seal shut. Confident that she wouldn't remember anything, I straightened up and left her in the alley to wake up and stumble home on her own.

Luckily, my car was where I left it in the street and I hurried home. One look at my appearance was all they needed when I crossed the threshold. The rips in my my shirt and the blood smeared across my skin from the wounds that were now thankfully healed.

"What the fuck happened Belle?" Devon called from the couch, arms around Luke. They took a wide eyed look at me and slid over on the couch to make room for me. I didn't want to sit and instead stood between them and the television.

"I was attacked." I said. That drew Simone from the kitchen and Noah from his room. We were all gathered in the living room now, the tv on mute.

"Attacked?" Simone asked, giving me a knowing look.

I nodded. It was time for me to tell the others. "Yes. There's a rogue vampire in town. I came across him again tonight and confronted him."

"Wait, wait, wait," Noah said, coming around the couch to stand next to me. He folded his arms across his chest, all business. "Again? You've met him before?"

"Yes," I sighed. "A few days ago. I saw signs of another vampire and I went looking for him. He found me and attacked, but got away."

"From you?" Devon scoffed. "How could he get away from you?"

I took a calming breath and slipped my royal mask of indifference over my features. Dracula used to call it my "Queen's face". "Something isn't right. I broke into his mind but there was nothing there except blackness. The first time, I wasn't ready and the blackness shoved me out, after, I heard a woman's laughter. This time, I fought harder and seemed to get far enough into his mind to the real him. He was begging me for help." My voice cracked a bit and I cleared my throat to continue. "He was in pain. And still, he kept calling a name over and over again: Seline. Does that name sound familiar to anyone?"

My eyes darting around to Simone and Devon who were shaking their heads, to Noah who was frowning in concentration, brow furrowed, as if he was trying to work out a puzzle in his mind. Catching us all by surprise, it was Luke who spoke.

"Seline is the name of a witch." His voice was soft, almost like he was afraid of speaking out. Maybe he was. I'm not sure what kind of life he had before Devon found him. Lillianna didn't strike me as a very pleasant person and I'm guessing she hadn't been a very loving mother. I got the impression that Luke had been yelled at a lot, and that's what made him so quiet.

It was a good thing I was patient, and that I was a good mother. "What can you tell me about her Luke?" I asked gently.

He looked to his mate for confirmation and Devon nodded. "Not much," He stammered. "I just know that she's a witch and she lives on the other side of the bridge, mostly keeping to herself."

I nodded, the wheels in my mind turning. Noah was on the same trail of thought. "We need to find this rogue," he said. "Subdue him and bring him to the witch. I don't know what her part on all this is, but if we can find the link, we can figure it out."

Simone nodded in agreement, her eyes bright. Any sign of her heartbreak from earlier was mostly gone. She would heal, in time. Right now, it was best to act normal, and her version of normal would be to kick some vampire ass. Devon nodded too, but he was looking worriedly at Luke who was staring at his hands like he was a child who was being punished for swearing. Noah looked thoughtful.

"How do you know about this witch?" Simone asked Luke.

He blanched, but Devon gave him an encouraging smile. Like still didn't seem to want to share, so I spoke up. "We're all a family here, Luke," I said. His gaze found mine. "I took you in and gave you a place in my family. You can speak freely around us."

Hesitantly, he spoke up. "After I became Mated to Devon..," he started off slowly, "I found out I was loosing a lot of blood due to..." Luke paused and blushed. Devon looked unashamed. Becoming a Mated pair was wild at the start, so I had heard. I'm sure Luke and Devon had engaged in many amorous activists since the , but that was t my business, so I featured him to continue. "Devon feeding on me," he amended, "was causing a lot of blood loss. I had gotten wind of a witch and she made me some potions to help replenish my blood faster so we could.. you know..."

I nodded. "Thank you for telling us Luke. Do you know where exactly she lives?" The last thing I wanted to do was show up uninvited to a witch's doorstep, but it was our best option.

Luke nodded, biting his lip. "Yes, I could show you."

That's all I needed. We lasted into silence, all lost into our on train of thoughts. I almost didn't say anything. I almost let them walk away, but if we had a chance of succeeding, we would need Anthony. "There's something else," I said hesitantly and all eyes turned to me. "The night I met the rogue, I met someone else too. A human." I heard an intake of breath from Devon. "A hunter. Not a very good one but I've been... training him..."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Devon shouted suddenly, causing Luke to jump. It wasn't like Devon to shout. "Please tell me you are fucking with us Belle. Are you out of your mind? He's a hunter. He's raised to kill us and you're helping him along?"

"Shut it Devon," Simone snapped, making me grateful that I had told her first, in private. "She's got her reasons. You don't have a right to question her."

"I have every right to question her," he snapped, his head swiveling between Simone and I. "This is my safety she's putting on the line, and my mate's. I won't stand for it."

While his reaction was understandable, it was unwarranted. Simone had my back though. "When has Belle ever not protected you? When has she ever failed you? How many times has she put our needs before her own, to keep us safe and happy? If she has a reason for sparing the human and helping him, then that's her choice."

"Her choice effects us all." This time, Devon met my gaze. "She knows that."

"She's also our Queen, and she knows that," Simone hissed, that wild temper of hers flaring. "We have to trust that whatever choices she makes are benefiting us all."

"Kill it," Noah said. His voice held a commanding tone, similar to mine.

Devon opened his mouth to argue some more, but I snapped. "That's enough. We won't get anywhere if we're bickering among ourselves."

That finally got them quite. I saw Luke slide his hand onto Devon's leg and give it a squeeze, pouring strength into his mate. That calmed my brother like nothing else did.

"I've made mistakes in my time, things I've regretted. I know I should have mentioned all this sooner, and I'm sorry for that, but it's time for me to take my place. It's time for me to be who I was meant to be, and that means you all need to start respecting my decisions. We're a family. We need to work together for this to work. Overthrowing a king is no easy feat."

"Are we really going to overthrow him?" Simone asked.

I met her gaze. "Yes. I've been running from my fate for too long. It's time I faced it instead. I'm ready. I've been ready, I just didn't know it until now. First we find the rogue and get him to the witch. Hopefully, that will lead us in the direction of killing the king." That brought a smile to everyone's faces except Luke's. He looked pale. "It's time to get down to fucking business. I'm not playing games anymore. The fight is on, and it's one I intend to win."