Vanished Sisters The Lycan King's Slave Island novel Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Davelina’s POV

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The cold bit through the thin gown like teeth.

Here I was again.

I stood before the gate, bare feet numb against stone that felt like ice. Behind me, the long corridor stretched back toward light and warmth and safety–things that no longer belonged to me. Ahead, beyond the bars there was only darkness so complete it seemed to have weight.

From somewhere in that black, I could hear breathing. Slow. Deep. The kind that moved through a chest the size of a wagon.

My hands were shaking. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to hold what little warmth my body still produced, but it was useless. The gown Madam Victoria had dressed me in was practically transparent–thin white silk that clung to every curve, every hollow. I might as well

have been naked.

This is it. This is where I die.

The thought should have terrified me. Maybe it did, somewhere deep down But mostly I just felt… tired. So tired I could barely stand.

I took a step closer to the gate. The bars were as thick as my wrist, but they looked flimsy somehow. Like they’d been bent before. Straightened.

Bent again.

Behind them, the darkness shifted.

Two red lights appeared. Eyes, Burning like coals in a forge.

They fixed on me, and every muscle in my body locked.

Dear God.

“I’m here,” I whispered. My voice sounded so small in the vast space.

The eyes blinked. Once. Slow.

And then I heard it.

Footsteps.

Not from the darkness ahead of me. From behind.

Running footsteps, echoing down the corridor I’d just walked.

No.

No, no, no-

I spun around, and my heart stopped.

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Chapter 24

Natasha.

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She was running toward me, her servant’s cap slipping off her head, her fage streaked with tears. “Davelina!”

“STOP!” The scream tore out of me so violently it hurt my throat. “No-”

She froze mid–step, her hand still reaching toward me.

For a moment, we just stared at each other.

She looked exactly the same as the day we were taken. Same rumpled uniform. Same desperate eyes. Same stubborn set to her jaw that meant

she was about to do something incredibly stupid.

My little sister.

“What are you doing here?” I choked out. “You–you can’t-”

“I needed to see you!” Her voice broke. “I’ve been going crazy down there! Three days of not knowing if you were–if they’d already- She took a shaking breath. “I just needed to see your face.”

Behind me, from the darkness, came a low rumble. The breathing had changed. Faster now. Interested.

My blood turned to ice.

No. She can’t be here. Not now. Not when he’s-

“You need to leave,” I said, forcing my voice steady even though every part of me was screaming. “Right now. Turn around and-”

“I’m not leaving without seeing you!” She took a step forward.

“Don’t come closer!” I held up both hands, palms out, as if I could physically stop her from where I stood. “If you touch me–if your scent gets

on me–he’ll smell it.”

My throat closed up.

Natasha’s hand fell to her side. “I don’t understand. Why does it matter if

“Because you’re not supposed to be here!” I was shouting now, barely holding back sobs. “You’re supposed to be safe! You’re supposed to stay hidden and keep your head down and live, Natasha! That was the plan!”

Behind me, something scraped against stone. Claws. Big ones.

Natasha’s eyes went wide, fixed on something over my shoulder.

‘Listen to me,” I said urgently, stepping forward until I was as close to her as I dared. ‘I’m alive. I’m still whole. But I have to go in there now. And you can’t follow me. You can’t.”

“This isn’t fair!” Her voice cracked. “Why do you always have to sacrifice yourself? Why can’t I—‘

“Because if I don’t, I cut her off, my tone turning vicious because I needed her to understand, “they’ll realize their sacrifice is missing. They’ll

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Chapter 24

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come after you. You know what they’ll do. You’ve heard the stories. You’ve seen what happens to girls in this place.

“I don’t care!” She was crying now, tears streaming down her face. ‘Let me take your place! I’m stronger, I can-

“No.” The word came out flat. Final. “You’re my little sister. You do what I tell you. You always do what I tell you. And I’m telling you to go

From the darkness came another sound. Not breathing this time. A low, continuous growl that made the hair on my arms stand up.

Natasha’s gaze darted past me, toward the gate, and her face went white.

“I love you,” she whispered.

My vision blurred. “I know,” I said softly. “I know you do.”

And then–thank God–I heard more footsteps. Running. A girl’s voice, high and panicked.

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