by Hayley Todd
Kellic pulled the finished bag of popcorn from the microwave and shook its contents into a metal bowl. “I thought so,” she said with a laugh. She added another bag to the machine.
“How are you transitioning?” She asked, leaning back and crossing her arms. She looked so at ease now. She had always been quick to adapt and this didn’t seem to be an exception. Vampirism was becoming on her.
She looked at me sharply, analyzing. “Is he good to you?” She asked. The words stung. I knew what she meant. She was referencing a past relationship that she partially blamed herself for.
I smiled like a lovesick teenager. “He is,” I replied. “He protects me, he...loves me. And I might love him. I couldn’t ask for better.” I smiled gently as Carson’s countenance entered my mind.
She gazed at me, her face lighting up when she finally decided that I was okay. She clutched me close, pressing her face into my hair. “I’m happy for you, Ky. I trust him.”
I pulled away, staring at her for a long moment. “So, what exactly have you been doing in my absence?” I asked, scrutinizing. She seemed occupied with her thoughts for a moment before sighing. “So much has happened. But let me start from the beginning.”
Kellic made quick work of recounting the events of that night. She had spent nearly the entire day at the club, testing speakers, scrubbing water spots from the last of the glasses, checking that all the toilets functioned. While I pounded my frustration out with Will, she once, double, and triple checked the smallest aspects that could still present a problem if they went awry.
I hadn’t been aware that she had been so obsessive compulsively looking after the club before I had even arrived. My heart swelled with appreciation. She had no true stake in the club other than knowing how it had appeared in my dreams.
“I was lingering with a man. John,” she explained, giving me a playful look. “The night has begun to dwindle to a halt and I helped Sean wrap up the music. When I rejoined the bartenders—Anton mysteriously absent—they spoke word that you hadn’t been seen since right after your announcement. My belly has filled with the icy stab of panic. I call you and called you and eventually found your phone in your purse in your office. I went to the alley, checking every surface for you. There was nothing. The outside of the building was silent. I had seen the damage to the dividing wall but other than that, there was no blood, no evidence.” She pulled the second bag of popcorn from the microwave, adding it to the metal bowl and starting a third.
“You were missing for an entire week before Carson came to me. I had been searching for you high and low. I had reported your absence to the police and Will and I made a habit of checking the local hospitals and wandering the streets. Obviously, this wasn’t entirely helpful since Damien had you sequestered in some private hospital of his.
“Almost exactly a week after you had gone missing, I had been making my way down the street a block from the club, mindlessly wandering for clues. Your paramour quite literally dropped in front of me. I think he’d been watching from the roof. But he landed in front of me, asking if I knew you. I know my response was desperate when I’d replied that I did and that you were my best friend. Carson told me to call Will and gave us the address of the hospital.
“He met us there that night. At first I was furious. It was Damien’s fault that we’d been kept in the dark for as long as we had. He’d assumed someone who was at the club that night had been the one to tip off the witch. He had been fighting to hide your existence since your mom...since we thought your mom had died. His plan was that if no one could find you, they couldn’t expose you to this life and make you turn.” She sighed. “It was pretty much the only thing he could do and still allow you to live you own life.”
“When Carson led Will and I to your hospital bed, I was stunned. I was disgusted. And as soon as he told me what had happened, I was furious. He had literally carried you to the hospital. He was the reason you lived. He had to fight not to give you blood while your life danced on the line of existence. To give you blood meant that you would heal, but it also meant taking away your choice. I don’t know how he resisted you either. You were a bloody mess. That monster had broken your arm, snapped the bone in two, your pelvis had been cracked, your chest cavity caved in, several bones in your face broken and distorted. You were a mess. You know now how you feel with the bloodlust. He fought that feeling with you in a heap of blood and skin for two months, Ky. Every day for two months, he had to fight the urge to drain you dry. I couldn’t do it. After I made the change I made a point to avoid you unless necessary. It was like a prime rib in front of a starving man. I wish I could say I’d been stronger but I hadn’t.”
She paused for a long moment, her fingers pressed to her lips, her face tense. It was as though she were watching that thing that barely qualifies as human again. Like she were watching me again. Her eyes were dark, troubled.
She finally looked back up to me, dropping her hand. “I don’t know how he was that strong. He did it for you. He never let you be alone. Either he or your father were by your bedside nearly every moment. That temptation plagued them both.” Her eyes were vacant for a moment, considering Damien and Carson.
I hadn’t considered how much it would have hurt them to be there. I imagined Carson or Kellic laying in a hospital bed, broken and bloody and me wanting to support them but fighting the overwhelming urge to tear out their throat. My stomach throbbed with a pang of hunger even in my imaginings. I had wanted him there. I had recalled him there, his warm skin helping to draw me away from the darkness. I had never told him what an impact he had made. I suddenly felt deeply ungrateful.
“It was obvious even just after I’d met him that he loved you. None of us would take that risk or fight that struggle if not.”
“What about Will?” I asked, grabbing a finger full of popcorn and tossing it into my mouth. The kernels were crisp and salty and felt delightful in my mouth.
She sighed, looking sad for a moment before continuing. “Will had been furious when we found you. He held a grudge against even Damien and Carson for a while. He was pissed that you’d been gone for a week before we ever found out where you were. He somewhat befriended Anton until he learned who he was to you. Even then, he can sometimes be an alright guy. And now maybe you won’t be married anyway.”
My eyes shot to her face, a thrill running through me. “I may not marry him?” I asked, confused. Something tickled my memory like it made sense with what she was saying but when I reached to grab it, it slipped away.
She swiveled her round blue eyes to my face. “Yes, did Damien not tell you?”
“Tell me what?” I cried, desperate to know.
“You may not be getting married anymore. Henrick betrayed the realm and disowned his son.” She lowered her voice conspiratorially. “Anton told Will first. Henrick tried to convince Anton to get you to sleep with him. That way he could get you knocked up. And if you were knocked up, there were indivisible blood ties between those two families. Solidifying his presence in the court, no matter what happened to him. His line wouldn’t end. Anton refused, finding first Will and then the two of them found Damien. Damien’s people are trying to hunt Henrick as we speak. He’s super old though and with contacts all over the world. It may be a while before they find him.”
This shed a different light on Anton for me. Part of me was disgusted at even the suggestion. Don’t get me wrong, Anton was model gorgeous but I didn’t love him. I barely even knew him. I’d been half kept away from him since I turned. Then I concerned the situation more. He could have tried something. He could’ve pleased his father and also taken the crown from mine. But he didn’t. Instead he betrayed his own flesh and blood. He betrayed his only blood relative. And he therefore put everything he had hoped for on the line.
I chest twisted for him. All I had ever been to him was flippant. But when it mattered, he had defended me.
“Anton betrayed Henrick,” I breathed.
Kellic nodded vigorously, a
thoughtful expression on her face. “He may just be a good guy after all.”
“What on earth made him turn away from his dad?” I gasped.
Kellic paused before continuing. “He didn’t say so, but I’m pretty sure it was Will. I know they got to talking about you and the future and how it affected you. Will was, of course, against the wedding from the get go, not wanting to see you lose your freedom to a man, especially against your will. Anton isn’t evil. I think he just listened and realized that what his dad was doing was wrong. It probably doesn’t hurt that he’s actually gotten to speak to you since you woke up.”
I glanced away from her guiltily. He had been trying to talk to me and I had not made it easy for him. I had been snarky and standoffish. Hell, put us side beside and he probably looked to be sweeter than me.
“Damn,” I hissed, bringing my gaze back to Kellic. “I have not been kind to him,” I breathed.
She gave me an understanding glance. “I’m sure he understands. You’ll get a chance to talk to him at some point soon.”
I hoped she was right. I needed to apologize. I hoped he’d hear my apology.
Kellic gathered up the metal bowl while I collected the empty popcorn bags. I found a large trash can at the end of the counter and dumped them inside. I followed Kellic back to the other room, staying close, worried that I’d somehow get lost again.
But the inside of the room was not how we had left it. The room had been ripped apart, blood splashed across the wall that the projector shot onto in a ribbon of red. Furniture had been shattered into splinters and I was baffled at how we hadn’t heard the commotion. Carson was unconscious, discarded awkwardly across the back of the couch. His knuckles dripped blood on the carpet, casting a deep red haze across the floor.
Otherwise, the room was empty.
“Where’s Will?” Kellic gasped, dropping the metal bowl. It bounced on the ground, spilling popcorn across the floor.
I inhaled deeply, breathing in the scents of the room. The blood beneath Carson was all his but the blood splashed onto the wall was not. But the scent didn’t trace back to an origin. Will wasn’t here.
“Where’s Will?!” Kellic’s voice had escalated into a shriek of panic.
I launched to Carson’s side, shaking him until he started to stir. He blinked surprised green eyes up at me. “Where’s Will?” I begged him, lifted him into a sitting position. He leaned against the back of the couch he had been stretched over, looking around the room and rubbing his head.
Then his face twisted into a vicious snarl, and I took an unconscious step away from him.
The words he growled deep in his chest made my skin go ice cold. “Henrick has Will.”
Chapter Sixteen
After my mother had died, I became withdrawn. I was young only six and felt entirely lost without my mother. I found myself only opening up to Will and Kellic. It was at that point that they became my only friends. I became silent, exchanging meaningful gazes with my grandmother but only truly speak to the two of them. They were my defenders, my protectors, of my feelings, my heart, even my voice.
My emotional crisis and new kid status at my school opened me up to a lot of teasing and torture. Fortunately for me, my best friends were a defensive lot and stayed with me always. But equally unfortunately, this didn't prepare me for the odd time when I did get cornered alone. This became a problem as I got older. Other girls seemed to find joy in calling out the quiet one.
Lynn Sturgis was my mortal enemy. She and her pet witches slammed my shoulders against the cafeteria wall, the brick digging into my skin. She locked her forearm over my collarbone, keeping me from sitting up. She screamed profane names at me while I wrinkled beneath her onslaught.
It was Will and Kellic that found and rescued me. Kellic actually decked the girl and cracked her jaw. Will took a couple of blows, refusing to hit back but eventually scaring them off by not backing down. All the was left was a cowering Lynn Sturgis.
Will stared down at her as Kellic whispered reassurances into my ear. Lynn furious panic in her eyes and glared up at him. I never knew what he had said, but she didn't bother me after that.
That was who will was. He defended the weak and just wanted to have a good time. He enjoyed sitting and playing on phones as much as playing beer pong with twenty friends. He was innocent. He was kind. I was almost one hundred percent positive that Will was the best person I had ever met.
Though we hadn't ever gotten a chance to talk about it, I knew Will had to have his reasons about why he hadn't chosen to turn. Will wouldn't leave someone to protect themselves lightly. I would've guessed he would've snatched up the opportunity to live forever and be imbued with the ability to do good. But he hadn't.
And standing there shell shocked in the projector room, I begged the question in my mind again and again, not sure what Henrick was planning to do to him. Damien and Carson were speaking in front of me. It was like a game of ping pong, even if I couldn't actually make out the words.
Kellic stood beside me with Gabrielle, speaking in hushed tones. My mother stood behind my father, watching his and Carson's brief take place. I tried to focus in on their conversation, knowing it was important, but couldn't. My mind was foggy and couldn't understand their words right now. Don't misunderstand, I could hear them. But their voices sounded like those parents in Charlie Brown.
Wah, wah, wahhh.
Wah wah, wah.
My mom occasionally looked over to me, fear splattered on her face. I felt like I was that little kid again. Instead of losing my mommy and gaining a best friend, I had kept my mother and lost my best friend.
My father and Carson discussed some more, finally breaking apart. Damien took my mother and led her out the door, yelling to men in the hallway. Kellic and Gabrielle followed, right behind them. I stood there, pain jabbed through my chest, freezing me into place.
Carson was in front of me now. I couldn't understand what he was asking me.
A blonde head peered around the doors, then made his way over to us. He and Carson argued for several moments before he looked deeply into my eyes. His eyes were like golden embers. He grabbed my upper arm.
The world came swirling into focus again, the pain in my chest receding little by little. Anton dropped to his knees in front of me, losing grip of my arm. Carson gripped him and helped him to his feet.
“Kyra, are you with us?” He asked, stepping closer to me and snapping his fingers in front of my face. My eyes shot to him. He recognized the clarity and continued. “Henrick is on the run. He has Will. We’re going after them. Are you coming?” He ticked each sentence off as though he were reading off a list.
“Yes,” I croaked at last.
His eyes were troubled as they ran across my face, but he reached for my hand anyway. I took it and he, Anton, and myself made our way out to the front of the house. Damien, my mother, Kellic, and Gabrielle beat us there and were coordinating with dozens of figures dressed in black.
Carson jogged up to them, Anton’s hand at my back. I felt cold but I managed to move my legs, one after the other, in some semblance of footsteps.
“...out into the woods. His vehicle is still here,” a tall muscular dark haired man was speaking hurriedly with Damien. Damien’s eyes flicked to me and then to Carson. Carson lowered his head to my dad’s ear before speaking, but I still heard him.
“He’s keeping her on her feet,” he whispered glancing to Anton. Damien nodded and huddled back with the man.
“Follow the scent trail into the woods with one team. I want everyone else scattered throughout the house and remainder of the woods. He has my nephew. You will recover him. Safely.” The words were growled through a tense jaw.
The man rushed away, gathering a handful of people in black, leading them into the forest.
My dad’s eyes swiveled to mine. “Kyra, can you handle this?” He asked slowly. “I can’t let you go if you can’t,” he said the words almost sadly as though he were counting on me.
Anton removed his arm from my back and stepped past me. “What do you want me to do?” He asked Damien. The wounds on his face had finally healed.
My father looked at Carson. They shared a meaningful look. My father nodded. “Carson and Anton, go with Kyra. Guard her with your lives. Kellic hang back near the house and look for wounded. Gabrielle, Naomi, and myself will head into the woods.” He looked up and at us all, sharing a gaze with each of us. He lingered on my mother. Then he cleared his throat and growled, “Let’s go.”
I dashed into the woods, feeling a dark energy building there. Carson and Anton kept pace behind me, not hesitating. I flew across the ground, my feet light. I gazed around, the world whipping by.
Anton sidled up beside me, keeping pace. He took a look at my expression and laughed. “And so the baby vamp spreads her wings for the first time,” he chuckled.
I stared at him the world bending into a blur behind him. It was simultaneously a solid color and crystalline clear to my vision. The sensation was glorious.
Carson ran along my other side, lithe and quick. He glanced at me, graced me with a small smile, and sped ahead. I struggled to keep pace with him.
I was fast.
So fast.
But still, he was faster.
We broke through the line of trees as streaks of shadow and leapt deftly through the underbrush. Though the path was no longer clear, I could feel the right steps as I took them. We launched through the forest faster than I imagined anything else could.
The dark energy shifted to the lift so I altered my course. As though we were one, Carson veered with me without a word. Anton caught up after some somersaulting maneuvers.
Ahead through the darkness, a cloud of black hung in the air. I dashed closer.