"Hello?" Visena questioned again tentatively.

"Visena?" The voice on the other end of the call sounded exhausted. Hollow.

"Yeah, it's me, Gideon. Are you okay?" Her voice wobbled along with her bottom lip.

"Why are you asking me if I'm okay? Are you okay? Visena... How did you even get this number? Where are you?" Gideon became more awake with each question.

"I've been all over the place. I'm in the Vampire Council's penthouse right now, I think. Mihnea Rău."

Gideon's sharp intake of breath made her pause.

"He's not here with me. But he's trying to help me out of here, I think. He's in a meeting with the other Council members, but they need proof of Zeir's plans before they can do anything."

"Why would he help you?" Gideon's voice held both curiosity and concern. It obviously wasn't common for Vampires and Wolves to work together—especially the leader of the Vampires.

"I don't know. The Witch Council said something about a prophecy. Did Calypso do something? They didn't like me mentioning her and-" 

"Visena, my love, breathe. I'm here. I'll be here until you have to go, okay?"

Nodding to the empty room, Visena replied breathily, "Okay."

"Do you have any other news?"

The Fae wiped a shaky hand across her brow and started pacing the tiled floors letting her feet soak in their warmth. "Oh yeah, I think Zeir is waiting for the Blue moon to try the forced bond again. I don't know where, but Yrsa said I would be 'taken care of' then. Mihnea said he would follow us to get proof, and then we could kill Zeir and his witch. Legally I guess." 

That was all, right?

Gideon was silent for a few moments. 

"Are you still there?" Visena couldn't bear for him to go yet. She thought she had been coping pretty well, sleeping alone in her concrete box and getting pulled in all directions by the most influential leaders of the Supernatural World. However, after hearing his sweet timbre, the ache in her chest returned with a vengeance, seemingly offended by their distance. Hina, please just chill!

His soft breathing caressed her ears before his words did. "I'm still here, love." She could almost hear his brain ticking away through the phone. "The pack's been training hard and working alongside Praelia, and we've even had a few Malum defectors pledge to us. Whatever Zeir is doing is alienating his pack."

That news didn't surprise her. She had hoped the Malum wolves would escape after feeling the bond between them. They were in Zeir's pack, but they weren't mindless puppets.

 "Cal has been working on the Witch Council, but they're resistant, and they don't make it easy on her either. After their last conversation about their Witch Bible thing, they stopped replying. I'm assuming that's after your meeting about the prophecy. Their main issue is they don't like the wolves, and they don't like change, and whatever comes from this could change everything."

"I'm sorry, Gideon. It's all my fault." With a hollow feeling in her chest, Visena realised her dreams of escape depended entirely on a stranger. And a Vampire at that. 

"Don't, my love. Just find a way to get back to me. I have eyes on Zeir here. If he makes a move, we will know Vi. I'll find you."

"I know." The mate bond ached between them. His words of promise added fuel to the burning heat in her heart. "What about the other packs? Have you contacted any of them?"

"Yes, but most of them aren't prepared for war, Visena. I don't think any will join us, but they would have to fight against us if the Council asked them. If Yrsa knew we had been trying to recruit them, she would have Invictus destroyed in a second."

"It's okay. We just have to hope we've all done enough. It's just one wolf, after all. Right?" The silence between them amplified the dread in Visena's gut. A cloud of foreboding settled over her shoulders like a shawl. "I'll go and-"

A steady, faint chiming sound drew her attention to the elevators. Someone's coming.

"I have to go now, Gideon. I love you so much." She hung up and shoved the book and phone inside the drawers just as the elevator doors opened.

It was Mihnea. This time he was not alone. He had Svend and Ambrose with him, all of them looking somewhat irritated to be sharing each other's company, even if only for a few minutes.

"Time to go," Svend growled low in his throat.

"No."

Everyone seemed mildly taken aback by the Fae girls' tone.

"I am going to eat a proper meal, and then I will go with you," Visena bit out, turning towards the fridge. A hand clawed around her bicep roughly, and she snarled at it. Her canines elongated as she stared Svend down. "Back off." Visena's voice was guttural and animalistic. Noone was going to get in the way of her next meal—even a leader of the Wolf Council.

Svend released his grip with a hearty scowl and watched as she retrieved the dish of lasagne.

"I wonder who took off your collar," Svend remarked obnoxiously.

Visena dug around and finally found a fork. "You don't need to worry about me, Svend. I'd be more concerned about your partner in crime. In fact, I'm surprised to see you here and not Yrsa. She seems to be controlling everything. I wonder what Zeir has offered her," Visena finished the thought and shovelled a load of pasta into her salivating mouth. 

Ambrose sat opposite Visena and stared at her curiously, fingertips pressing together in a steepled position.

"Ugh," Visena groaned. "I'm trying to eat, Ambrose." He turned his head away, embarrassed. His necrotic eye pits winced. It was objectively disgusting, but she suddenly felt guilty for her confronting remark. "Oh, sorry. That sounded rude. But you really need to ease up on the staring." She forked more food into her mouth to stop the talking.

The three men stood around awkwardly while Visena ate. Finally, she finished the whole dish and returned to the fridge for dessert.

"You're pushing your luck," Svend grumbled. He had been uncharacteristically quiet after Visena's musings about Yrsa.

"Honestly..." Visena bit into a giant golden peach, and her eyes fluttered shut. "Mmm... Oh yeah. Shut up, Svend."

Mihnea snickered. The ancient Vampire, probably the first Vampire ever, snickered because of Visena. She chuckled slightly from the honour, which turned into a full chortle when she saw Svend's mortified expression. Ambrose joined in, too, until Svend finally snapped. "Alright, shut it, you old bastards." He walked over to the floor to ceiling windows with folded arms. Visena could basically see the steam escaping the wolf's ears.

She finished the peach and discarded the seed. "So, what happens now?" The question wasn't directed at anyone, but Mihnea answered first, giving a knowing look. "You go back to your cell and wait for your official trial in three days. If you can convince the entire Council you aren't a threat, you could return to Invictus. If you can't, you will be taken to a currently unnamed location and put down."

Put down? One hell of a euphemism. Sickos.

"So nothing has changed?" The question was loaded despite its innocent appearance.

Mihnea nodded as Ambrose whispered, "Everything has changed, child."

Svend grunted and stepped forward, a familiar metal ring poised in hand, unaware of the hidden conversation between the Vampire and Fae. "I'm going to need to put on your collar, girl."

"No. You won't. If you try, you will regret the outcome." Visena rounded the counter and headed for the elevator. "Who's coming?" 

~~~~

A/N

Let me know if you see any errors/ repetition or inconsistency in the chapter, I'm tired af, trying to post this after a long day at work.

Thank you for reading, I will update again in a few days. I've actually almost finished writing so I could upload as often as people like :)

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Until next time xx