This was not something he had expected, or that he could understand in any way. “V-Vera? What? What are you doing?”
Vera smiled and stepped into the room. For the first time, Ward realized her clothes were covered in blood. “Wow, I really love that expression on your face. Dismayed heartbreak always did look best on you.”
“I... I don’t understand.”
Vera stepped closer to him, completely ignoring Teresa’s choked whimper. She didn’t immediately reply, not until she reached Ward’s side. “Of course you don’t,” Vera whispered against his cheek. His nostrils were invaded by her familiar perfume, made cloying and ghastly by the coppery scent of blood that mixed with it. “You never did. No matter how hard I tried, you didn’t see me.”
She gripped his chin, her fingernails digging hard into his skin. “You saw everyone else except me.”
“Vera, I don’t understand,” Ward couldn’t help but blurt out. “What did I do?”
“You didn’t love me.” Her hold on him turned gentle, a mockery of a caress that made his skin crawl. “But we can fix that, can’t we?”
“Of course I love you,” Ward blurted out, torn between shock, befuddlement and complete and utter panic. “You’re like my sister.”
“I don’t want to be,” came the reply.
Ward stared at her, wondering when things had gone so wrong for him. Was Vera... in love with him? That wasn’t possible, right? Yes, they were close, and had been for a long time. They’d all grown up together—Ward, Vera and Teresa—and that had fostered an affection between them that had never disappeared. Still, Vera hadn’t reacted that well to news of Ward’s homosexuality, and that had driven a wedge between them. Slowly, they’d fixed their relationship, but now Ward couldn’t help but wonder what he’d ever done to earn this type of love from a woman he’d only ever seen as another sister.
His confusion must have shown, because she caressed his hair with that same surreal gentleness. “Don’t worry about a thing. I see now that people will always keep us apart unless I take drastic measures. Once I handle that freak in your house, we’ll be able to end all this.”
“Vera, you can’t be serious,” Teresa piped up, panting. “You need to let us go. You’ve already hurt enough people, and you need help.”
Vera snarled at her so-called best friend, and Ward could easily imagine her lashing out at Teresa. In Teresa’s condition, that could have terrible consequences. He had no idea what Teresa thought she was doing by antagonizing Vera, but he needed to do something to distract their crazy kidnapper.
“Vera, wait,” he called out softly. “Come closer.”
She froze half-way to Teresa and turned toward him. “What is it?”
Ward struggled for something to say, something he could ask that wouldn’t sound threatening. “I... I want to smell your perfume.”
The smile she shot him was painfully familiar, and Ward hated it, because it was also a memory of a time when things had been better. “How can I say no to that?”
She hugged him, and Ward did his best to relax into the embrace. Even if she was obviously crazy, she wasn’t stupid and there was still a hefty dose of doubt in her stance. He made a show of inhaling the scent of her hair, and it must have worked, because she released a sigh of contentment.
“You see? We can have this every day.”
Ward didn’t reply. He didn’t think he could find a lie convincingly enough. Struggling for composure, he reminded himself Mathias wouldn’t abandon him. Vera might be planning to hurt Ward’s lover, but she didn’t know Mathias was a werewolf. She couldn’t possibly be prepared for that.
The sound of a ring tone snapped him out of his trance. Vera pulled away and retrieved her phone out of her pocket. She didn’t pick up any call, instead skimming the screen with avid eyes. A message, then.
Her lips twisted into a smirk when she finally set the phone aside. “Show’s about to start. I’ll be back in a bit, Ward. Time to take care of your so-called mate.”
Every muscle in Ward’s body went rigid.Freak. Mate.Vera had used those words in reference to Mathias. Ward hadn’t paid any attention to it the first time, but the mate thing was a little hard to ignore.
“What are you talking about, Vera? What is this?”
She smiled brightly. “Don’t you know, Ward? I’m here to save you. Those evil creatures can’t have you. You’re mine, and I’ll make that monster burn for daring to touch you. I’m told silver is particularly efficient in that regard.”
Ward’s vision went blurry. This wasn’t possible. How could Vera know about werewolves? What made her so sure that she could get rid of Mathias? Who had sent her that message to begin with?
There was more to this than Vera’s insane affection for him. In hindsight, it was obvious, because no ordinary human could have avoided Mathias’s protective spells. Unfortunately, Ward didn’t get the chance to dig deeper. Vera turned on her heel and stalked out of the room. The door closed behind her with striking finality, and Ward was left alone with Teresa and his glum thoughts.
“She’s crazy,” Teresa murmured. “She killed Peter. She’s insane.”
Ward ignored his sister. Dwelling on the same facts—no matter how shocking—wouldn’t help them. “We have to get out of here. We have to get out of here now.”
A wave of anger, terror and love flowed through him, coming through his connection with Mathias. Ward wished he had some way to give his mate the information he’d learned, but he didn’t, so instead, he just willed Mathias to understand, to be cautious.