Thorns of Fate

by Hayley Todd

  He’d barely gotten a full day with his long lost mother. I was sure that broke his heart. I was sure it broke her’s. Gabrielle had stayed very quiet since Will had been taken. She didn’t seem like the same eccentric aunt that I remembered. She doted on her daughter, but otherwise seemed to always be thinking, and I was sure that those thoughts were of Will. Now she sat behind me, her head tilted toward the glass much like myself, her eyes a vision of reminiscing.

  I know you’re out there Will. I’m coming for you. I thought, pushing the words out and into the air with my desire alone. Nothing happened, but I hoped that he somehow knew that I was thinking of him.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  The boutique wasn’t entirely what I had expected. The outside of the building was decorated with lavish modern style, all silver and black. There were story tall advertisements along the walls with different images of jewelry. The front of the building was glass and I hoped we’d have some sort of relief from the sun.

  It felt odd to be in the daylight after such a long time away from it. I hadn’t consciously lapsed into a night schedule, but it had happened anyway. I felt surprisingly awake considering this was something like 3 a.m. for me. The sun burned down, though we didn’t feel any discomfort in the SUV. I asked Carson about it and he quickly assured me that the windows had special UV resistant plating to allow us safe travel.

  We pulled along the curb and filed out of the vehicle. As my skin entered the sun, I immediately felt the burn of daylight. Carson’s hand clasped my wrist as he urged me forward into the shade and away from the damaging rays of light. My mother followed close behind, her head tucked low with her sister and niece on her heels.

  Carson opened the glass doors, allowing us to enter. We were immediately greeted by Lady Stark and Liam and I noticed Liam’s eyes shift cheerily to Kellic’s. She smiled widely at him and greeted him, her hand held aloft in his as he pressed a kiss to her knuckles.

  She actually blushed. Kellic actually blushed.

  I wanted to snap a picture and hold it hostage but couldn’t even overcome my shock.

  “Lady Kellic,” he greeted and I considered that this might’ve been the first time I had heard him speak clearly. His voice was laced with a British accent and though it wasn’t as pronounced as Lady Stark’s it was definitely there.

  “Liam,” she responded in kind, burying a giggling grin.

  We were met by a saleswoman, who shuffled us to a sectioned off part of the room, dozens of mannequin heads lined up on a long table with various designs of tiaras atop their heads. She guided me down the hall away from that sitting area and Carson stayed close on my heels. My mother stepped forward, producing the garment bag that she had brought along.

  She gave me a small smile and touched my arm, explaining. “We have to be able to see it all together.” She joined Gabrielle and Kellic, finding their sits in the sitting area.

  I took the garment bag and followed the saleswoman into a room off the hall. The inside of the dressing area was equally lavish. The seats were lined with black leather cushions and they hooks were made of solid metal, drilled well into the wall. It was obvious just from a look around that the room was high class. The door was a real door and closed fully in the frame, no gaps, no holes.

  Carson followed me into the room, standing stoically before me as I slipped my clothes off and scooped them into a pile on the bench. His eyes roved over my nearly naked body and I had to swallow hard to keep pink skin from forming on my cheeks.

  As I reached for the dress, he stepped forward, crashing into me and kissing me hard. I returned the kiss, letting his warmth encompass me. He was breathing hard as his kisses roamed my neck and chest. I had to fight not to stiffen when his lips grazed his favorite place to bite.

  He drew back, pressing his forehead to mind and breathing hard.

  “Excited are we?” I asked, playfully, gazing up into those liquid green eyes. He grinned down at me, though his smile was troubled. I flattened my hand against his chest. “Are you okay?” I asked him.

  His jawline tensed as he took a deep breath. “No, I’m not.” He replied. He pulled my dress from the bag and ran his fingers carefully over it. He helped me get my legs into it and shimmied it over my hips.

  “Can I help?” I questioned.

  He gave me a look with dark, needy eyes. “You could. But not here.” He smiled.

  I brought my fingers to his chin and pulled his lips to mine. He smiled against my mouth.

  “What’s bothering you, handsome?” I chimed, as he gestured for me to turn and zipped up the back of my gown. It draped across my skin as it had when I had tried it on. It still looked gorgeous.

  He hesitated before responding. “Henrick,” he growled the name, “I’m feeling...impotent.”

  I looked him up and down with a playful grin. “Not in my experience,” I replied.

  I think he may have actually choked. He emitted a sound somewhere between a cough and a gasp before spluttering his response, “Not what I meant.” He smiled fondly at me so I knew he wasn’t upset but I understood his struggle.

  “I know what you mean,” I replied, more seriously. “I can’t get my mind off Will.”

  He looked me over, his gaze soft. “I don’t know how to protect you. He’s trying to break a mythical bond that would kill us both. I know Damien has a plan but until he makes a breath through or locates more of Henrick’s brood, there’s nothing to be done.” He sighed.

  I turned to him, fully dressed now and gently touched his face. “You’re doing what you can,” I said, though I know it provided little solace.

  “I just wish I could do more,” he said on another sigh. I pecked his lips with a kiss and followed him back out to the sitting area.

  We’d barely returned to the room when my mother and aunt started fawning over me. They both leapt from their seats, feeling the fabric, and discussing the cut. My mother insisted that it perfectly accentuated my curvaceous frame.

  I had to choke down a laugh at that. Carson eyed me.

  Kellic swept forth, two tiaras already hoisted aloft in her hands. One of them had an almost purple metal and an assortment of clear gems. The other was bronze in color and sported a smattering of ruby gems.

  She lifted the purple one and placed it on my head, twisting my hair up and around the arms. She gestured toward the multiple mirrors swept around the corner of the room. I stepped forward, and was surprised.

  Stunned might be a better phrase. My eyes bulged. The dress looked magnificent, hanging from my body in a way that made me look slim but also accentuated my curves. The crown atop my head glistened, reflecting the overhead lights.

  In that moment, I truly looked like a princess for the first time. It also occurred to me that this was the first time I’d truly looked at my appearance since turning.

  My skin was a pinch too pale but my cheeks were flushed. My eyes were bright, even brighter than they had always been. My lips were plump and a lovely pink and my body had slimmed and hardened. I hadn’t been chubby or anything but any extra poundage had vanished.

  I could see Carson in the mirrors reflection and watched his eyes rove over me. We were a pair. Both of us sported dark hair though mine was darker. His playful green eyes, now hardened by stress, were a beautiful compliment to my own.

  He caught me gazing at him and smiled.

  I couldn’t help but to smile in return.

  Kellic produced the bronze tiara but it didn’t have the same glowing compliment to myself and the dress that the purple one had had. It was quickly discarded and taken away.

  Her next round of crowns seemed more my style. One was a simple silver circlet, the other was a dainty but elegant circle, lined with colorful gems.

  She placed the circlet on my head and while I loved the simple look, it got a bit lost in my cascade of dark hair. It was a look I’d probably prefer when I wasn’t making my grand entrance to vampire society.

  The other one, however, was perfect.
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br />   And gleamed from beneath my hair, both enhancing and embracing the dark locks. The gems that ladened it shined and cast shadows of color about the room. It came to a gentle point and the top of it erupted from my hair.

  I stared at myself in the mirror, assessing how well this tiara complimented my dress.

  Kellic mirrored the response by squealing beside me. She’d been uncharacteristically silent since Will had vanished and it was lovely to hear the chime of her laughter again. “Now that,” she said, pointing at the glass, “is a princess.”

  I turned to her, nodding eagerly.

  “We’ll take it!” She announced to the saleswoman who walked away happily to ring the item up. Her happy gait made me realize I honestly didn’t know who was paying for this. We were fairly well off with our inheritance. I hadn’t considered the idea until now. Was my father well off?

  Well, he was a king who lived in a manor with dozens of servants, armed escorts, and a ton of cars. I think I could reasonably believe he were wealthy.

  Kellic rushes off to “help” the poor saleswoman and my mother approached me. She folded me in her arms and gestured me towards the changing room.

  “May I?” She asked, gesturing inside. I followed.

  I hadn’t seen my mother in eighteen years and yet it felt so serenely normal to go shopping with me.

  I turned around, allowing her to unzip my gown and help me pull it off. She hung it back on its hanger within the garment bag and placed it over her arm while I dressed again.

  “So,” she began quietly from behind me. She had turned away and was facing the door now. “You just turned and you’ve already gotten a mutual imprint and started showing signs of powerful magick. I close my eyes and eighteen years have passed and my little baby girl has grown into a stunningly beautiful woman.”

  I unconsciously grimaced at the words stunning and beautiful. When I looked up again, my mother stood before me, tears pricking her eyes. I stepped forward, pulling her nearer to me. She immediately wrapped her arms around me and let out a sob.

  “I’ve missed so much,” she cried, pulling away to look me over.

  My eyes burned.

  I took a deep breath. “But you’re here now,” I replied after a long moment.

  A smile stretched across her tear-laden face. “I’m here now,” she repeated, seemingly soothed. “So, you inherited the lightning?” She asked as though she was deciphering how the weather was today.

  I held my hands out and stared as though they would spontaneously combust. “Yeah. If being a vampire wasn’t good enough, that would be,” I said with a laugh.

  She grinned, static building in the air around us. “It’s truly something is it not?” She formed a ball of magick over her palm like I had held when I had found her. She gazed at me while the ball morphed into a variety of shapes, including a long, thin whip that I had seen somewhere before…

  “What all can you do?” I asked her, staring at my own non-glowing palms in disappointment.

  She took a deep, excited breath. “There’s not much a Magick can’t do with the right mind set. It takes some imagination and a strong will but it can be achieved. How much do you know?” She twisted her hand in the air and the magick pooled along the back of her hand, sliding around her skin as she moved her arm as though it were liquid.

  I noticed that from this distance, her magick wasn’t the same color as mine. Her’s was a step closer to periwinkle than the solid royal blue of my own.

  I looked up at her, eager. “Essentially nothing,” I replied.

  She looked at me, confused, while she straightened her hand and returned to a lookalike of me with my light.

  I ran my hand up the back of my neck. “I don’t really know how I did that. It just kind’ve happened.”

  She stared at me with wide eyes.

  “What?” I asked.

  She took a quick breath and relaxed from her stiff position. “This level of manifestation is rare. To be so in a newborn is even more exceptional.” She suddenly stepped forward, taking my hand and stepped beside me. “Feel the living electricity in the air,” she coached and I watched her draw into focus.

  I knew what she had meant. I had felt that buzzing liquid fire that filled the air around us. I could feel the particles vibrating about me. It call to me, begging to be touched. And oh did I want to oblige…

  My mother’s eyes were trained on my face. She had evidently just finished repeating herself. And if missed both declarations.

  “What?” I asked, apologetically.

  She smiled sympathetically. “I know what it’s like. Magick isn’t something you let go of once you’ve gotten it. It’s okay to touch it. It’s okay to hold it and use it. Just draw slowly. It doesn’t take much.”

  I did as she bid, feeling back out to the live wire around us. I could feel the vacancy of particles she left around her as she pulled. I could feel movement like a shift beneath a blanket, subtle, cast over my awareness.

  When it reached out, I didn’t push it away. It touched my skin, sending pleasant tingles up my spine. I drew it in, feeling it build within me. I stopped pulling after a moment and guided will to my palm.

  A small globe appeared there, casting its eerie blue white light around the room. I felt the circular structure begin to solidly, becoming more durable.

  Then I felt energy begin building within my belly. With no other outlet, it surged down my arm and into the figure on my palm. The ball expanded to almost two feet across and then dissipated with the crash of thunder. It shook us down to our bones.

  My mother and I exchanged a panicked glance.

  And then burst out in laughter.

  The door came flying open as Carson stuck his head in, only to find my mother and I giggling teary-eyed. A small grin graced his face.

  My mother and I separated. “We will have time soon, and I will teach you,” she assured me, leading us back out to the lobby.

  Kellic joined us in the sitting area, carting a large square velvet box. She handed it to me and I opened it, seeing the gorgeous silver tiara on a cushion. She reached into the box and lifted it out, setting it atop my head again.

  I turned back into the sitting area, taking a long look at the way the blue gems complimented my eyes. The tiara was lovely and no doubt expensive. I worried over losing it, even as it sat atop my hair.

  It was getting dark outside, and I could see the twinkle of city lights blinding out the stars reflected in the mirror. I could also see with first hand perspective, the line of black clad figures facing off against our security detail. Three were locked in hand to hand combat but six or so more stood in the straight, hands raised, muttering something.

  It was only that glimpse that explained to me why the shop suddenly exploded into microscopic shards of glass.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  I was tucked neatly behind Carson’s back before I fully registered what had happened. He had thrust my mother back down the hall and shielded me with his own body. Glass crashed in a wave across us, cutting and breaking where it found a chance to. The room was an order of chaos around us.

  “Stay down,” Carson commanded.

  I crouched, staying low.

  He lowered, crossing to the other side of the lobby slowly. He flicked his hand and my mother and I scurried along behind him.

  The bay of windows was a fog, dust and chunks of glass taking some time to settle.

  I could feel tiny cuts erupting with blood across my body. Carson stopped behind a counter, leaning low and gesturing for us to do the same.

  We obliged.

  He turned to me quickly looking me over. His eyes were hungry. He lifted his thumb and wiped at a cut on my forehead. It stung.

  His eyes turned dark.

  Silhouettes started appearing all along the window bay until I could barely see the starlight seeping through. I didn’t see Kellic or Gabrielle anywhere.

  Carson lifted a finger to his lips in a gesture of silence. It wasn’t hard to
obey.

  We leaned against the counter in silence for what seemed like eternity. There were crunching footsteps advancing across the store. I clutched Carson’s hand in mine.

  So he immediately knew when a hand crept across the counter, snatched me by my hair, and yanked me over. He squeezed my fingers as I was pulled but after a painful tug, my hand slipped through his.

  He was over the counter in an instant, light on his feet and furious. He walked calmly around the corner and faced down my assailants. Both of the figures around me were hooded and looked to be masculine. One had my head yanked back by my hair and the other held my arms behind my back.

  Carson didn’t stop. His speed increased. By the time the goons could react, he had smashed their heads together and caught me before I could fall. He was fast. Two figures approached from the debris, hoods drawn.

  He rolled me off of his arm, into a sitting position, gently, then dashed forward. He crashed into the chest of one, knocking him into the other. Both of them lost their footing and tumbled into a heap.

  He leapt back to me, helping me to my feet. “Stay close,” he breathed, taking slow steps into the fog. I mirrored his every step, cautiously easing into our blind spot.

  Up ahead I felt something.

  A tingle on my skin.

  Something familiar.

  I grabbed Carson’s arm. He turned to me. “Magick,” I hissed in a frantic whisper.

  He looked forward again, then nodded, taking it slowly. I’d given us enough time to stay clear of the purple white bolt of energy that zipped past.

  Carson frantically snatched my wrist, increasing our speed toward the exit. The next bolt didn’t miss.

  Searing pain shot across my arm. I screamed. I hadn’t meant to, but it was that gut wrenching, burning kind’ve pain that just, sort of, drags it out of you. I clasped over the wound with my other hand, trying to hold onto the sting of pain.

  Carson watched me, his eyes wide, still ushering me forward. He suddenly veered off course, pulling me behind him and another bolt shot wide of its target.