Trigger Warning: Slut-shaming

I don't remember exactly what happened because almost immediately Wes ripped Sylus off of me, threw me a silky red robe, and scooped me up into his arms while he ran out the door. I heard some screams and saw a lot of blood but nothing was really connecting. I was still high from the vampire kisses. 

My eyes wouldn't focus on everything around me. I was confused when I was pulled into a van with Ezra, Griffin, Sylus, Adel, and other mysterious men. One of which, was driving the long vehicle with the utmost haste. 

"Where are we going?" I asked, voice slurring. I touched my mouth, unsure of why it was turning out that way, but Wes pulled my hand away. His face was stoic, but when his eyes met mine, they softened. 

"We need to get somewhere safe," he answered. 

"Safe?"

Wes nodded. 

"Yeah, while you were shacking it up like some whore, we were being ambushed," Ezra sneered. I glared hatefully at him.

"How dare you! Your whole species are whores!" 

Ezra's eyes hardened considerably. "At least I'm not the one with mate. I don't have a romantic obligation. I can fuck who I please. Yet you...you come here, begging everyone for help to find your idiot lover when really you just want to fuck everyone."

"Enough Ezra, that was uncalled for," Wes snapped. 

But I didn't say anything. What could I say? He was right about one thing, I was being a whore. An unfaithful little whore. I looked at Sylus's bored expression, wearing a red robe himself. The color blended perfectly with his hair, and it was disheveled in a sexy way. 

He caught me staring and smirked slightly, showing a bit of fang which made me shiver involuntarily. 

Griffin's eyes narrowed in Sylus's direction and with a deep steely voice he growled, "Your father is going to hear about this."

Sylus didn't look phased by the threat, only pleased by my reaction to him. 

"Do you think we lost them?" Adel asked one of the unfamiliar men who nodded in response to the question.

"There is another Estate not too far from here. Granted, it's not as large, but it will be enough to put us up for the night."

"No," Griffin said. "They'll know we took him there. We need to go farther and somewhere that is not connected to the Royal family."

"Yes, Lord Griffin," the man replied.

The one driving made a sharp turn down a dark path with no civilization.

"What about my car?" Ezra whined.

"Just buy a new one," Wes sighed. 

"But it was custom painted!"

"It was black."

"It was a custom black!"

Wes rubbed his face in aggravation before simply ignoring Ezra all together. Ezra whined and complained the entire ride until we came across this run down town. The driver stopped at an Inn which looked even worse than the town. 

"Are you sure it's safe here?" Eron asked uneasily. 

"Would you like me to find a new location, my Prince?" 

Sylus shrugged and got out of the vehicle, while Griffin rolled his eyes and followed. I glanced at Wes and Ezra to see if we would follow. Ezra sighed and got out of the van and Wes scooped me up in his arms, sliding out also. I wanted to tell him that I could walk on my own, but I wasn't too sure that I actually could. 

The effects of the vampire kisses were still running through my system. I buried my face into his neck, feeling the warmth of his tiger brush against the surface of his skin. It was comforting and I felt protected. 

"We'll occupy three rooms please," I heard someone say. I tried to look around and get a feel for my surroundings but my vision kept blurring and my head wouldn't stay upright. Eventually I gave up and relaxed against Wes. After a while, I felt my back sink into warm but rough sheets. I fought to open my eyes, but they were still glued shut. 

"What are we going to do with him?" I heard Ezra say.

"Once the high wears off, we'll continue our journey to the Land of Forbidden Spells," Wes answered simply. 

"You still want to take him after what he did? How do we know he's even telling the truth? If he were so in love with this Ryker guy, he wouldn't be sleeping with the Prince of Vampires! Aren't you pissed off?" Ezra sneered. 

"Of course I am upset, but I know how hard it is to resist a vampire's allure. They are very seductive creatures."

Ezra tsked.

"What do you have against him? He said himself that you didn't need to take him; that he'd go by himself." 

"I don't know. I just dislike him, but I feel responsible for him, like I have to stay with him."

The bed dipped beside me and a warm body slid beside mine. "Good grief, look at his body. He's covered in bites and hickies," Wes swore. I felt the fabric of my robe pull apart. 

"Wes, I know you have some little crush on him, but taking off his clothes and checking him out while he's unconscious is kind of creepy."

"I wasn't checking him out," Wes huffed.

My robe was tied back together and the rough blanket was pulled over me. I sighed; rolling closer to who I assume was Wes. His body was so warm and soft, it made up for the uncomfortable bedspread.

"Now he's all over you in his sleep. He's a little slut."

"Ezra!" Wes snapped. 

"Whatever," Ezra mumbled. 

It was silent for a while and that is when I was finally able to fall asleep. 

I woke up feeling absolutely awful. My head was pounding and my ears were ringing. I squinted my eyes, trying to adjust to the brightness of the room. A heavy weight draped over my torso. I looked down to see Wes laying on me, holding on to me tightly. I let out a soft breath, running my fingers through his long mane of hair. 

"So you're up?" 

I looked over and saw Ezra sitting on the other bed staring at me. His eyes were narrowed dangerously. 

"What's your problem now?" I sighed. 

"No problem. I just want to hurry up and get you to your lover then return to the comfort of my home in Collis. That's all."

I rolled my eyes and tried to slide from under Wes, but he weighed a ton so that didn't work out too well. I had to wait until he woke up on his own.

Ezra curled his lip at me before gracefully hopping out of bed and sweeping out of the room. A few minutes later, Wes woke up. He lifted his head and looked down at me. With a sheepish grin, he rolled off and I was free to move around. Immediately, I got up and took a shower. Due to the fact that I left all of the clothes at the Estate, I had to wear the robe again. 

Wes was waiting to take a shower after me, but handed me a plastic bag first which held briefs, boots, a black leather vest, and brown leather pants. I breathed a sigh of relief, dropping the robe to dress in the new clothes. 

I was still drying my hair when Wes emerged in an outfit similar to my own. Ezra chose that moment to return with paper bags of food. Wes dished out our plates and gave it to us as we ate our breakfast in silence. 

"Adel said the charm was ready, we can set out in an hour," Ezra said. 

I nodded my head, finishing my meal. I tossed my trash away and began to make the bed. I knew that I didn't have to but it was a habit of mine. Ryker never use to make the bed so I was always forced to do it. Just thinking about him made my chest hurt. I can't believe I betrayed him like that. With Sylus of all people. 

I must have been under some spell because I didn't like him and he didn't like me. Sleeping with him was like sleeping with Ezra. I can't imagine anything more awful no matter how good he is in bed. 

I rolled my sore muscles and inspected the bruises on my body. There were bites and hickies everywhere. It was impossible to cover them. 

I sighed in frustration. 

"Noah, let's head out," Wes called to me. I nodded, following him out of the door. 

To my surprise, Eron, Griffin, Sylus, Adel, and the three other men were waiting for us. "Are they coming with us?" I whispered to Wes. 

"Apparently. They need to keep on the move so it'd be safer for them to travel with us."

"The Land of Forbidden Spells is most certainly not safer. They may not be witches, but the forbidden land is dangerous for all creatures."

Wes shrugged. 

"Are you done conversing?" Sylus asked in a bored tone. 

I glared at him which in turn made the three unidentified men tense up. 

"Who are they?"

"Their guards: Gavin, Sloan, and Varik." 

And Eron was Griffin's servant...

"Let's go," the one named Varik said stoically. We all nodded and filed into the car once again. Adel leaned forward and grabbed my hand putting an object in my palm before closing my fingers over it. 

It was Ryker's ring. 

I felt like I was putting back on an important piece of clothing when I tied it back around my neck. I felt naked without the ring. It was my last connection to Ryker. 

Adel spread out a piece of paper that looked like a map. On one of the lines was a glowing yellow dot. Then a little ways away from it, was a glowing red dot. The red dot continued to move forward in a straight line but the yellow dot stayed in place.

"That's Ryker right there. He hasn't moved, so I can't tell if he's alive or dead," Adel gestured to the yellow dot. My chest tightened. 

He wasn't even that far away. We could catch up to him in a few days if he didn't move from that spot. And thank goodness, he wasn't in the Land of Forbidden Spells. At least, I didn't think he was. I couldn't tell by the lines on the map. 

"Don't get your hopes up, Noah. He could still very well be dead," Ezra deadpanned. 

I stiffened at his words. Trust Ezra to rain on my parade, but I wasn't stupid enough not to heed his words. 

"I know," I whispered, clutching the ring tightly in my hand. 

I know that it was still a possibility that he was dead, but I didn't want to lose faith. My heartbeat still sputtered on rapidly and that was enough to keep my hope going. I felt like he was alive, still hell bent on getting that spell. I can feel his determination, that that was the only thing keeping him alive. 

God, why are you so stubborn Ryker?

Why wasn't I enough to make you stay?

Didn't you love me at all?

"You're doubting yourself. I can see it in your eyes," Griffin noted, speaking for the first time in a while. "Why is it so important that we find this lover of yours?"

I raised a brow as if it weren't so obvious.

"He's my lover, my other half. Of course I would search high and low for him. I am prepared to die for him if it comes to that," I answered. 

Griffin's eyes hardened at that, but he didn't say another word. I left him alone to his thoughts. The last thing I wanted to do was continue to lead him on. I messed up with Sylus and even with Wes. I won't be unfaithful anymore. 

"So how long do you suppose this would take?" Ezra asked Adel.

Adel pursed her lips, staring intently at the map.

"Two days, maybe less. I can't guarantee that it will be that long or not, but if he does end up moving, that's good news all the same. It would mean he's alive."

"Or someone could be dragging his dead body off," Ezra muttered. 

I whimpered and Wes elbowed Ezra sharply making the nymph glare at him then at me. I didn't care about him though. He's proven to just be a sore. 

"I'm sorry for dragging you all into this. Thank you for helping me."

Adel shook her head, "Nonsense, it is our pleasure. Plus you are helping us in return. The prince needs to stay on the move."

"Why is that?" Wes asked. "Who were those people that attacked us?"

"There is someone at court who wishes to kill Sylus. There were a few death threats, but now they are trying to actually fulfill their plan. What I'm trying to figure out though, is who could possibly know that we'd be at the Beltomhyde Estate. Especially the day we arrived," Griffin informed. 

I glanced at Eron who kept his expression blank. 

Something was suspicious about him. I don't know what it was, but he just didn't rub me right. 

"Why would anyone want to hurt the prince?" Wes asked. 

"Who knows? It might help if we knew where he had gone these last few months when he disappeared without a trace. He won't tell anyone," Griffin muttered, glaring daggers at the prince who continued to stare out of the window with a bored expression, ignoring our existences completely. 

"You think he might have caused some trouble?"

Griffin shrugged, "It's a possibility. You see, Sylus wasn't always this quiet and brooding. Before, he was an obnoxious child that liked to disrupt the Royal court on a daily business. Then he disappeared for about six months. When he came back, he was like this. No one knows where he's been or what happened to make him this way, but a lot think that this is just the sign of maturity. I don't. Something is way too fishy about it."

Griffin stared at the prince suspiciously. The prince, who found the outdoors more exciting than the conversation about his secret journey, remained silent. It actually started to intrigue me. 

Where had he gone?

For what purpose?

And how dangerous were the people after him?

I couldn't have anything thwarting me from my mission to find Ryker, I've been distracted enough as is. If one more thing got in the way, I think I'd go crazy.

Throughout the entire conversation, I kept my eyes on the servant. Usually my instincts weren't wrong and I had the strangest feeling about this one. 

Could he be a spy of some sort?

But what would be his motive?

And how would he have been able to reveal the location of the prince so quickly?

What am I thinking? Of course it was possible that he could've called someone or something. I haven't been with him to know what he did twenty four seven. 

I don't know this man; all I know is that I get bad vibes. 

Would Griffin be upset that I was suspicious of his servant? 

Eron's eyes met mine and they narrowed ever so slightly. It was a warning. One that told me that I should be wary. 

Well there is my proof. 

There is something definitely up with him and I was going to find out what it was. I refuse to let him be the reason I can't get to Ryker.