Disclaimer: see chapter 13

A/N: Okay again not much to say, sad there have been only one review, thanks Serious Fan, but life goes on. Hope you guys like this chapter and hope I get no dead cats thrown at me. Please review.

Chapter 20: Kidnapped

Just over a month had passed since the arrival of the twin hybrids and the two were growing normally, although still small, having been six weeks premature. Selene however was a different story. Still weak, she at least was able to eat normally. Her body had returned relatively to her pre-pregnancy state, with less muscle mass. She was also not getting good regenerative sleep, being woken up every hour or two by the cries of one or both of her infant children.

The mansion was quiet and empty, since most of the pack was still gone with Michael, and the sun had only just set. Selene and the twins were still asleep, having been awake not even an hour ago. She was sleeping in later than she used to and lately her hearing had calmed and lesser noises outside of the room did not wake her. However it was not by her own will, a noise, or a cry that woke her. Instead, she was pulled from her bed, thrown to the floor and pinned, face down, by someone's knee.

She grabbed the knee, sinking her extended nails into the flesh, drawing blood. It was cold and smelled of vampire. Fear struck her heart as she flipped the captor off her back and sprung to her feet, realizing that her nose had not failed her. There were six of them in her room, four of them she knew as death dealers that she had served with. The fifth one she had met when the twins were born. Trevor, only now he was dressed in death dealer leathers and armed with two holstered semiautomatic pistols, and a bloodied, unsheathed sword. The final, the farthest from her, was dressed in a fine tunic and the same leather coat that Selene had seen all too many times before. It was an elder's coat. Same idea as Viktor's only different, made for Marcus, the current and only living elder.

Two of the death dealers were standing by the bassinets; one was on the floor back against the wall, clutching his bleeding knee. Marcus stood calmly by the door while the final two stood poised, ready to react to Selene's next move. She was prepared to fight, but knew with her guns on the dresser and still not at full strength, the odds were stacked against her. Suddenly, Delano let out a scream when lifted from his bassinet, distracting Selene.

The window of opportunity was seized. The female death dealer lunged, grabbing Selene's arms, and wrenching them behind her back so she could no longer move or attack. Her daughter's cries soon joined her brother's as she too was lifted from her bassinet. Selene made a futile attempt to get back her children, and as punishment for her attempt, her arms were pulled even tighter behind her back, almost to the point of snapping. She could feel the blood run down her arms where the nails of her warden had pierced her flesh. "How did you find us?" she asked through gritted teeth, holding back her pain.

"Through pure deduction my dear. I looked for a place where Vampires and humans did not frequently go. Not too far from civilization, but secluded enough to not be noticed. It would need to be secure, and large. It only took us this long because we couldn't believe a group of lycans would think to come here, a place of their enslavement. But they didn't think of it did they? You did," Marcus deduced. "Trevor, take Selene from Elena and escort her to her transportation. Elena help Darien. Thomas and Marian take those to the cars as well," Marcus ordered, turning to leave.

Selene hissed with her fangs elongated and her normally brown eyes blue and glossy from unshed tears as Trevor sheathed his sword and took Elena's place as her captor. He led her through the castle, but with less brutality than she thought Elena would have used. There were dead lycans and vampires around the ground floor, killed by swords, knives, and claws. No guns were used, proving that the vampires had always intended to ambush the place. There were others, alive but captive, silver swords at their throats, preventing escape and noise. Selene felt pangs of guilt for sleeping through an attack, allowing her family to be captured and possibly killed.

Trevor took her to a car just inside the outer wall. Grabbing strong titanium cuffs, coated in silver, he bond her hands behind her back and placed her in the car, as if she were under arrest. Trevor got into the car next to her, and waited for the others to join them, so they could leave. "Is he going to kill them?" Selene asked in an almost inaudible volume. She never looked at him, merely stared out the window at the place she had learned to call home.

"Excuse me?" he asked politely, not having understood what she said.

"My children, is he going to kill them?" she asked again, a little louder.

"I don't know," he admitted. Looking over at the previously loyal death dealer, he caught sight of a glimmer on her check. He had heard stories of her cold, unfeeling methods of slaughter, yet there she was crying. 'A mother's love runs deep,' he thought, looking forward again. Two others joined them in the front, and the car sped off towards the mansion Selene once called home.

Pulling up in front of Ordoghaz, her heart stopped. It had been almost a year since she had laid eyes on it. It was the same, but now it was not home, it was prison and almost certain death for herself and her twins. Almost failing, she held back tears at the thoughts that the vampire mansion brought. Trevor got out of the Jaguar and gently coaxed Selene out as well. She was reluctant until hearing Delano scream. She bolted towards the sound, but was stopped by Trevor's strong hand. "I promise they will be fine," he whispered. It did little to allay her fears, but she did not struggle, knowing that would do no good either.

"He's scared," she cried, a tear falling down her almost dry cheek.

"He will be alright," he assured her, leading her inside and to a place she had been many times before, an interrogation room. Trevor sat her in the cement chair and locked her wrists in the shackles. "Some one will be here soon to question you," he said leaving her alone in the room where she could no longer hold back the tears.

After a time, Selene regained control, knowing that crying would not save her children. She brought her head close enough to her hands to wipe away the tears. She could not believe what had happened. Here she was back in the one place she never thought she would be, at least not like this. The last time she had been here, a lycan had sat where she now was and she was the one angrily asking the questions, hissing and degrading the creature. But not now, now she was the one who would be degraded and tortured.

The door slowly opened and she steeled herself against what was about to occur. Three death dealers, all ones she had served with, came in. The first one was Armon, an older vampire, but still not as old as herself. He was high ranking when she was still a death dealer, so she had the feeling he was running things. Next was Marnina. She was on the younger side, but tough and good at what she does. And finally there was Gorgon. He was a large vampire. Strong with fast reactions, a deadly combination. She noticed they didn't mess around with whom they put on her interrogation. 'This is going to hurt,' she thought as they stood opposite her against the wall.

"Well, we meet again. We are here to ask you some questions. You act appropriately and we won't hurt you, much. You struggle and resist, this will become much more painful," Armon began. He was using Selene's old lines. Her blood ran cold at those words coming back to haunt her. "Let's start with something easy, name?"

"You know my name," she answered through gritted teeth.

"Pretend I don't, name?"

"You know my name," she growled.

"Tell me your name?" he asked, a bit louder and pushier.

"You know my name," Selene repeated.

"Name!"

"You know my name." Selene did not get louder or softer, merely continued to repeat the same phrase in the same way.

"Tell me your name!" Armon demanded.

"You know my name." Selene knew that this had nothing to do with her saying her name. It was a battle of wills, and would take a lot more than yelling to persuade her to give up so easily.

Armon turned from his subject and looked at Gorgon. Gorgon nodded back in response, knowing what to do. "I told you if you cooperated, this would be relatively painless. But apparently, you are taking the harder road."

With those words, Selene knew what was coming next. Gorgon walked over to her and backhanded her across the cheek, breaking her cheekbone. It hurt like hell, like her eye was being sucked out through the roof of her mouth, but Selene refused to give them the satisfaction of yelping in pain, though her eyes did water.

"Name!" Armon repeated.

"You know my name," Selene said, looking Armon for the first time in the eye. Neither vampire was going to back down easily.

Armon nodded again to Gorgon, who stepped forward, this time removing a knife from his coat. He placed it lightly against her throat. "Name?"

"You know my name," she repeated.

Gorgon pressed the knife harder against her neck cutting into her flesh allowing blood to slowly drip. "Name?" Armon asked, calm once more.

"You know my name," she growled, pain shooting through her throat as she talked.

With a frustrated growl, Armon looked away. He nodded to Gorgon who removed the knife from Selene's neck, much to her relief. For a brief moment she thought she had won, that they would just put her in a cell with her twins and leave her there, until they decided to try again, or just keep her as bait, but that moment disappeared faster than a card house in a tornado. Armon looked at Marnina and motioned towards the door. "Apparently your own life means nothing to you, but I think I know something that will make you talk," he said in a smug tone. Marnina returned with a tiny bundle Selene knew all too well, in his arms was her daughter, Isadora. Holding the child in her left arm, she held a knife in the right, not at the child but out for Selene to see. "Now I will ask a final time. Name?"

Fear struck Selene's heart at the sight of her infant in such danger. "Selene," she whispered, looking down.

"Excuse me?" Armon asked, as if he could not hear her. Marnina moved the dagger closer to the child.

"Selene," she repeated, much louder this time.

Armon could see true fear in the formerly loyal death dealer's eyes, genuine fear. "That's better. Now, see how easy that was." Gorgon gave her a small whack on the back of the head after Selene gave Armon a death stare. "Now, I now the number of beasts we have locked up is not the whole pack. Where are the rest of the curs?"

"I don't know," she answered.

"Really, you don't?" Armon asked. Marnina, who had previously lowered the dagger from in front of the child's face, once again aimed the knife at the infant's heart.

"I don't know," she yelled, the desperation in her voice telling that she was not lying.

Armon pushed anyway. "You are telling me that you have rutted with one of them, and yet you do not know where they went? Where are the curs Selene?" he demanded.

"Michael is not a cur!" She retorted, lurching forward but being held back by the restraints. Gorgon grabbed her shoulder, pushing her back in her chair with such force she could hear her own collar bone snap. She bit back a yelp, her eyes watering from the pain. Marnina placed the knife to the child's flesh, making a scream erupt from Isadora's mouth. Selene looked at her child's captor, her eyes pleading with her to let her daughter go. But her eyes showed nothing but cold unfeeling determination to know what they wanted. "They are somewhere in Europe that is all I know. That is all they told me; there was no need to tell me more. I don't even think they were sure where they were going."

"Alright," Armon answered, his tone was not believing, but accepting. That question would likely come up again. This time Marnina did not relax, instead he left the knife poised above the child.

"So I guess we should cut to the chase," Armon began. "Why did you do it Selene, why betray your family?"

"Because my existence here was nothing but a lie. The elders have lied for centuries on many things. My eyes were opened," she explained. "Viktor deserved his fate." She spat the words as though his name was poison and anything associated with it was as well. Gorgon quickly backhanded her again, on the other cheek, this time not breaking anything. She shut her eyes against the pain, a small tear falling down her cheek, as her eyes continued to water at the pain.

"That I think is enough for today. I will see you again soon. Take her to her cell," Armon ordered. Gorgon unlocked the shackles binding her wrist to the chair, but had a firm grasp on her broken collarbone, keeping her from misbehaving.

"What about Isadora and Delano?" Selene asked as Armon began to walk out, Marnina, who was still holding Selene's month old daughter following close behind.

"What? Oh yes, your abominations. What of them?"

Selene fought back the urge to attack the vampire. "They will need to be fed soon."

"I guess they will have to skip a feeding for now. Marcus will decide their fate. You better pray he has a merciful hand today," he said, whipping back around and leaving. Selene caught a last glance of her frightened child before they took her to who knows where.

Gorgon took her to a holding cell, one of the old lycan slave quarters. It was small with nothing in it but a pallet of old hay and a bucket for a toilet. He shoved her inside and locked the door. If you behave, we might arrange for you to see your children. Just do as they ask, stop fighting," Gorgon said. It was obvious that he pitied the ex-death dealer, and wanted to help, if only a little.

"Thank you Gorgon," she answered. He said nothing more left her to tend to the wounds she had acquired during the interrogation.

She walked over to the pallet and sat down. Her arms and neck had already begun to heal, but her cheek and shoulder still hurt like hell. She let out a yelp as she snapped her collarbone back into place in order to heal. Knowing the only escape from her current situation was sleep; she laid back on the pallet, trying to ignore the pain. Gently she grabbed part of the shirt she wore and sniffed it. She was wearing Michael's shirt and his sweat pants. She had gotten use to wearing them when she slept especially after he left on his escapade around Europe. Even after being washed, his sweet smell lingered on it, calming her. Her thoughts drifted to him and the twins as she fell asleep, if only for a brief time.

Michael's phone rang, pulling him from his thoughts. He had been thinking of his family back at castle Corvinus in the brief time he had before they were to leave again. They were in Hungry, on their way home. They were maybe a day away and Michael could not wait to see his mate and children again.

He eagerly answered it, hoping it was Selene calling, as she did each day. He missed them so. But where he answered, it was not the vampire mother of his children, instead it was another vampire he knew all too well. "Michael, it's Felicite," she said.

"What's going on?" he asked. Her tone alarmed him.

"We have a problem Michael, I hope you guys got reinforcements," she began.

Michael's heart began to race with panic. "What's happened?" he asked, praying against hope that maybe his family was still safe.

"Selene and the twins have been captured, by the coven," she admitted.