Desired by Morgan Rice Page B

thinking.
    Kyle knew it would be a shock. It was an unexpected plan.
    Which was precisely why it was bril iant. The savage seven, he knew, were some of the most vicious vampires to ever walk the earth.

    They had not belonged to any coven, and they had been captured in Paris centuries before. They sat rotting in jail, in the bowels of the Bastil e. If unleashed, they could wreak endless havoc. Exactly what he needed.
    But they were also a liability: they were just as likely to turn on Kyle and his men as they would on the humans. They were machines of destruction. It had taken hundreds of years to catch them, and both the vampire and the human races were happy to keep them where they were.
    Which was precisely why Kyle would free them. They would never expect it. And it could create exactly the sort of diversion he needed.
    “We wil free them,” Kyle commanded. “And then we wil attack. And your people can also have their revolution.”
    “Even if we wanted to,” Napoleon said, “it is impossible.
    They are deep in the Bastil e. There are legions of guards surrounding them. And I hear they are contained in a special cel , unbreakable.
    It’s better for us to wait,” he added. “I have infiltrators in Versail es. A spy, who reports back to me.
    She wil tel me al I know. We just need to wait for her.”
    “I have an infiltrator there, too,” Kyle said.

    “Who is yours?” Napoleon asked.
    “Who is yours?” Kyle asked.
    Neither answered, both distrusting of each other.
    “It doesn’t matter,” Kyle final y said. “We wil not wait for them. We never wait. We initiate.
    This is our war to begin.”
    “I don’t like it,” Napoleon said.
    Kyle stepped forward, bearing down on him with his ful height.
    “Wel then I’m glad you’re not the one in charge.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN
    As Caitlin walked through the fields, heading back alone to Caleb’s castle, she felt the world fal ing out from under her.
    She was in a daze, barely paying attention to where she was going. She barely glanced at the sea, barely heard the crashing of the waves, barely noticed that Ruth skipped alongside her, craving attention. Caitlin was oblivious to it al . Once again, she had let her guard down, had been ready for love, and had let Caleb back in. Once again, her heart had been broken.
    She was so mad at herself. How many times would she al ow herself to become vulnerable, only to be crushed again? When would she ever learn her lesson?
    And how had it al fal en apart so quickly?
    Caitlin wondered why her life could never just be normal.
    She felt as if she were always ascending to the highest peaks, only to be brought down to the lowest depths. Al she wanted was a normal life, a steady relationship, a place to cal home. And she had thought she’d final y found it.
    This place had seemed so imperturbable; it had felt as if nothing from the outside world could ever reach them here.
    And then, like lightning in a clear blue sky, that awful bird had appeared, carrying that letter.
    From Sera. In her awful handwriting. It was so unfair. It made her want to scream at the world.
    As quickly as Caleb had taken her to that hil top, in that beautiful moment which she thought would never end, he had just as quickly departed. She remembered watching him flying off, his huge wings flapping, heading off to Sera.
    As if he couldn’t wait another minute to be with her.
    Maybe she wasn’t being fair. Of course, he had said it was to be with his son. But had he real y meant it?
    And did that even matter? After al , he would be seeing her, regardless. He would be running to answer her letter, the second she came cal ing.
    It was hard for Caitlin to know what to think.
    It just wasn’t fair , Caitlin thought again, as she bunched up her face, flooding with anger.
    Just as quickly, her anger morphed to sadness, as she felt fresh tears streaking down her cheeks.
    Where would she go now? What would she do? She had embarked on time travel