*Ainslee*My arms are sore. Every time I move one of them, it hurts. But I am home, sitting on the couch, drinking some warm water and nibbling one of the last pieces of bread.I shouldn’t be. My family will need it when I’m gone. Though, my stepfather did remind us all on the way home that anyone who has a family member chosen for the culling receives an extra 100 vlads per week as a gift from the king. That’s probably meant to provide plenty of food to make up for that person’s absence, but as I discussed with Zeke, that’s not the case in our village.“How are you?” Mom sits down next to me and lovingly strokes my hair. Standing outside in the damp weather has her coughing again. I should’ve insisted on holding Sinead, but my sister only wanted her. Now, Mom is not doing well, and I feel miserable.“I’m okay. I thought they were going to kill me,” I admit.She sighs. “You’ve got to watch that mouth of yours, my love. I know you come by it naturally. Your father was the same way. Bu

*Rafe*My horse whinnies, and I pat his neck to steady him. He’s not a fan of wolf shifters. I can’t say that I blame him. It’s not like he’s been around a lot of them, and even though these folks are all in human form, not wolf, it still makes him uneasy to be around savage predatorial beasts.Gazing through the trees, I see malnourished, dirty young people and almost laugh at myself for ever thinking to describe them that way. They are not a threat to my horse or me.The urge to go closer, to further inspect them, is overwhelming, but I fight it. I’d just as soon stay in the shadows and let my advisors and guards handle this business. They’ve all arrived here in plenty of time to prepare for the culling tonight the best they can. My understanding from talking to King Axel is that I just need to make sure that every village sent at least twenty people and that no one runs away before this thing begins. I have guards stationed everywhere throughout the forest and around the transport

*Ainslee*Prince Rafe.How the fuck did I not know? It all makes perfect sense now. I’ve been so angry for so long, I haven’t been thinking clearly. When I thought of the royals, my mind went to King Axel’s daughters—Sophia and Riley. They are the only true royals besides the king. But Rafe was made a prince long ago so that he could become next in line to be king. Then there are some dukes and lords and other such titles that the king has around him. They were mostly given those titles because they served the king at one point or something. I’m not sure. Obviously, this is not my area of expertise.Prince Rafe is making his way to the center of the meadow. Not to address us as we all initially thought and stood up for. At least, that’s not what he’s doing at the moment. Instead, he’s speaking to Kris about something, a few guards standing around them, and he doesn’t look happy. I am up now, and I don’t want to hurt my full belly by sinking back down, so I look around and see the moon

*Ainslee*Prince Rafe commands my attention while he speaks, but as he fades away into the shadows, and my thoughts return to what is about to transpire, I will myself not to think about him anymore. I have to concentrate on getting through the woods and out the other side.Three hours.We have an extra hour. When Nelson and Travis hear those words, they actually chuckle with glee. “We can do this,” Nelson whispers, and I nod. I know the boys won’t wait for me because it’s too much of a risk. I’ll be slower. My legs are shorter, and I’m just not as strong. But they’ll leave me footprints I can follow to the church, so I am confident I can find my way there.Although, I might not stop. I might just keep right on running for freedom. I know that Prince Rafe said that the vampires will be pouring in from all sides, a rule he says he couldn’t alter for whatever reason, but I have a stronger advantage when it comes to smell than most of these wolves seem to have. I always know when a vampi

*Ainslee*Every hair on my body stands on end, a sheen of sweat forming on my otherwise freezing skin. My head swivels in the direction the voice has come from, but I can’t see anything at all, only darkness.Did I imagine it? Perhaps my fear of being caught by one of the vampires is messing with my mind.No, I definitely hadn’t imagined the voice that had greeted me as I’d slid into this confined space. “Who’s there?” I whisper into the void my mind has me convinced must be empty. The idea that we are in a small carved out space beneath the church where just about anything could be hiding, including all sorts of creatures, even the dreaded faepires, has me recoiling, trying to put some distance between myself and the inky blackness where what might even be a disembodied voice originated.My fingers tremble at my side as I consider reaching over to feel through the darkness, but I don’t dare move. I can’t, even if I want to. That panicked paralysis that had held us all at the starting