A Bond of Blood (A Shade of Vampire #9)(26)

Although I was still dubious, I placed the flashlight between my teeth and started crawling through the hole. Sharp rocks ripped my jeans and grazed my palms. I heard Abby breathing heavily behind me. She was right at least that this tunnel wasn’t long. I reached the exit and stood up, wiping my palms against my jeans. Abby was standing by my side a moment later. We both gazed around at the small enclosure we’d emerged in.

“Hm,” I muttered, spotting two more passageways to our left.

This place was so big, we could be searching for hours before we ever found them. I wasn’t in the mood to waste any more time, so regardless of what the consequences might be for us, I began shouting the names of my family at the top of my lungs.

My voice reverberated around the chamber and echoed off the walls. I shouted until my voice was hoarse, pausing for a few seconds in between.

Abby gasped and squeezed my shoulder. Her lips parted, her blue eyes wide. “I hear someone calling,” she whispered.

I could hear nothing still. She walked toward a tunnel to our left and ran through it. I followed her, pushing my legs to keep up with her speed. She gripped my hand as we passed through tunnel after tunnel, pulling me forward in the darkness. Finally, she stopped short and listened again.

Now even I could hear it. A distant shouting. A female voice.

Abby lurched forward again, towing me after her. The louder the voice became, the more I realized I didn’t recognize it.

Abby slowed down as the voice now sounded like it was in the next chamber. We both reached for our guns and held them out in front of us. Of course, in a sense, holding up these guns was stupid. They would only be of use on vampires, and I knew what we were up against was far more powerful than any bloodsucker.

Still, it was the only thing we could think to do.

Abby and I stood either side of the entrance to the chamber. She took a deep gulp, then nodded. I turned the corner first, Abby following closely behind.

Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw in the center of that room.

If there ever was a time I doubted my sanity, it was then.

Chapter 24: Corrine

I was sure that by the end of all this, I would finally look my age. The strain that was upon my shoulders not just with Rose’s but now also Ben’s disappearance was sucking me dry.

I paced the floor of my bedroom, racking my brain as to where Ben could have gone. I replayed the last moments I’d spent him in my mind.

My palms sweaty, I rushed to my bookcase and reached for the atlas I’d just remembered scribbling in. I flipped through the pages and stopped abruptly at a page that had been torn out. I ran my fingers along the rip, a bitter smile forming on my lips.

Well, now I know where that disobedient boy has gone. Back to Hawaii.

I vanished myself and reappeared at the Port. The last submarine was gone.

Of course.

He’d made it no secret how restless he’d been. He just couldn’t help himself from going, even despite everything.

I shuddered to think that he might have arrived already, while I was bound to this island—now more than ever. Abandoning it now would mean abandoning all the humans and vampires who still depended on me. I couldn’t do that. No matter what, I had to stay here.

I checked the stretch of beach near the port just in case the submarine had been parked somewhere else, but it was wishful thinking. Ben was truly gone and, thanks to his uncle Xavier, he knew how to navigate a submarine as well as any of us.

I walked back along the jetty and headed back toward the Sanctuary. To do what, I didn’t know.

“Corrine!” a soft voice called out behind me.

I whirled around. “Rose!” I gasped.

Rose was climbing out of the hatch of a submarine that had just emerged from the waters near the jetty. Following her out was Xavier, Vivienne, Claudia, Yuri, Eli… vampire after vampire crawled out along with all the witches, and one elderly human I’d never seen before. They all looked battle-worn, their clothes ripped and bloodstained.

My heart sank when I realized that Ibrahim wasn’t among them. Derek, Sofia, Aiden and Zinnia were also missing.

My heart doubled its pace as I raced toward them. Rose threw her arms around me and buried her face in my neck.

“What happened?” I gasped, staring at all the ashen faces surrounding me.

Vivienne walked up to me, placing a hand on my shoulder, her face written with worry. “Let’s go inside and sit down first.”

I had no patience to walk, so I vanished us all to the Sanctuary.

Once we were all seated around the dining table, Xavier began, “We were all trapped on Caleb’s island. The witch there… Annora. She’s something else. She overpowered us all.”

“What did they do to you?”

“We were locked in a dungeon. They didn’t do much else to us while we were there, but as for what they were planning to do… we still don’t know.”

“Where’s Ibrahim? Derek and Sofia?”

Xavier heaved a sigh. “Ibrahim, Zinnia and Aiden fell behind as we were escaping. As for Derek and Sofia, we don’t know what happened to them. We discovered that there is another portal in the dungeon of that castle, leading to the supernatural realm. Where exactly in the supernatural realm we have no idea. But since Anna wasn’t anywhere to be found in Caleb’s castle, Derek and Sofia assumed that this was the only place Anna could have been taken.”