Chapter 3

Ethan' s security guards found me at a small motel near the city limits.

They weren't gentle.

He forced me back to the condo.

"Tiffany needs you," he said, his voice devoid of warmth. "Your presence soothes her. When you left, she got... agitated."

So, I was a human tranquilizer now.

He believed my "aura," as he called it, was some kind of cure-all.

Then came the demands.

Tiffany was "weak." Tiffany needed "support."

Ethan, guided by some quack doctor Tiffany found, decided my blood was the answer.

He forced me to give transfusions to her.

The first time, I fought. He had his men hold me down.

The needle slid into my vein, and I felt a piece of myself drain away.

Tiffany watched, a smug look on her face, as my life force was literally pumped into her.

After several transfusions, I was weak, dizzy, and filled with a cold rage.

My phone, which Ethan had allowed me to keep after the first week, buzzed.

It was Elijah, his voice frantic, breaking through a bad connection.

"Anya... they' re tearing it down... the sacred ground... I tried..."

The call cut off.

I had to go. I had to help him.

I tried to leave the condo.

Ethan blocked the door, his face a mask of irritation.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Elijah needs me. Serenity Glen..."

He laughed, a harsh, ugly sound.

"That place and Elijah were filling your head with archaic nonsense! It' s for the best."

He paused, a flicker of something unreadable in his eyes.

"Besides, I ordered the demolition. It's prime real estate."

A memory surfaced. Years ago, during a visit to Serenity Glen with me, Ethan had developed a severe infection. Elijah, with his herbal remedies, had saved him from a life-threatening fever.

"He saved your life once," I whispered, my voice trembling. "Don't you remember?"

Ethan shrugged, his indifference a physical blow.

"He got paid for his troubles, didn't he?"

The ingratitude, the sheer callousness, it was too much.

My hand moved before I thought.

I slapped him, hard.

The sound echoed in the opulent room.

Then, the world tilted.

Weakness from the blood loss, the stress, the rage – it all crashed down on me.

I collapsed.