“I won’t let them die,” Quell said.
“And they won’t. That is the reason I’m here.”
“I give it freely without obligation. That is best for them and her.”
“But it will not be the best for me or our Seethe. Your Seethe. You must learn loyalty. Your betrayal of and wavering dedication to it is the reason Michaela, your creator, is dead. Skylar is the one who killed her. Will you allow that to go without some form of retribution after all I’ve done for you?” Demetrius’s accent, usually masked, had eased into his words, indicating he was losing control.
Who knew what he’d done for Quell, but Quell’s eyes were vacant, his body still as he stood in deliberation. Ruby stained his arm and the cut closed. My eyes darted in David’s direction, taking in his paling complexion.
“One of you do something!” I snarled, my hand clenched angrily at my side.
Unaffected by my outburst, Demetrius kept his eyes locked on Quell. His voice was soft, somnolent, and mesmerizing, as if he was trying to usher Quell into a pliant state. He eased farther into the room with a graceful assurance, his magical companion close behind.
“Remember our bonding. You are to treat me as your creator now. I expect the same deference and respect. The same loyalty and love.” I didn’t know what type of bonding ceremony vampires had. Switching creators, allowing another to act as a surrogate, had to differ from mating. Demetrius had invoked that odd link and blind loyalty vampires had to their creators, but the way Quell looked at the Master of the Seethe wasn’t the same way he’d regarded Michaela. He’d had an almost hypnotized adoration and veneration for her that she hadn’t deserved—it couldn’t be broken.
“Quell,” Demetrius said, firmer, more commanding.
Looking at David’s colorless face, his bloodstained shirt and gaping wound, and then looking at Trent, Quell twisted his face into a grimace.
He held my eyes, sighed, bit into his arm, opened David’s mouth, and let blood seep into it. He fed David until he had the strength to raise his arm and pull Quell’s wrist in closer, drawing in more blood. Quell stopped him and gently removed his arm from his lips. He moved to his feet, went over to Trent, and again offered his arm.
I kept a steady eye on Demetrius, who seemed unmoved by Quell’s disobedience. He wore a rueful smile as if he were resigned to the fact that Quell would not follow him blindly or grant him the same power Michaela had held. He dealt with the defeat in silence. When Quell finished, he moved away from Trent. Trent’s eyes widened; he had to be feeling some of the benefits of vampirism. Small meshes of scar tissue formed around David’s wounds. They weren’t totally healed, but they looked a hell of a lot better. Slight color was coming to his face, and pain didn’t seem to overtake him. As I watched them heal, I took comfort in Demetrius’s immobility. Then there was a barely visible flash. Before I could comprehend his motive, Demetrius had grabbed the sword at David’s feet and struck. In one clean, sweeping arc, he’d beheaded Quell. The body and head didn’t have time to drop to the ground; they exploded into ash that lingered in the air.
Demetrius stepped back with malicious confidence as he took hold of his magical companion and disappeared. I looked at the bloodstained, ash-filled spot that Quell had left behind. That quick moment replayed in my mind a hundred times over in the minutes I stood frozen, paralyzed by sorrow and anger. Tears coursed down my face—streams of them like a river—and I couldn’t stop them. He had killed Quell. It felt like he’d punched through my chest and twisted my heart. Bile rose in the back of my throat and my vision blurred with my tears.
He killed Quell. My head pounded and my heart ached. I needed to make it stop.
I grabbed the sword and headed for the door, ignoring Ethan and Cole, who called my name. Fueled by vengeance, anger, and sorrow, my body ran on autopilot. All I wanted to do was kill. I wanted to kill Demetrius and make it the most painful thing he’d ever endured. I nearly ran into Sebastian on my way out the door. He grabbed my arm.
“Sky,” he said, concerned.
I yanked my arm from him and kept going.
He grabbed it again and whipped me around to face him. “What’s the matter?” he demanded.
My throat was too tight, sawdust coated my tongue, and I couldn’t get the words out. I’d reverted to something so primal and bloodthirsty that communication wasn’t something I could manage. It was too much of a higher-level activity. I was driven by bestial, ravenous rage. I could taste it, feel it, smell it. It dwelled deep in a place where darkness lived, and I couldn’t drag myself out. I pained at the thought of doing so.
His grip on my arm tightened as I tried to move away. He repeated my name, a hard command for me to respond. And I did. I snarled. A growl reverberated in my chest as I bared my teeth and tried again to snatch my arm away.
His eyes locked on mine and narrowed; they were overtaken by molten amber. His growl was deeper and more aggressive than any sound I could ever make. An undeniable ripple of power emanated from me as he exerted his dominance. I didn’t cower. I met his challenge, so fueled by fury that I didn’t understand dominance, rank, or pack rules. At that moment, I didn’t give a damn about them. I couldn’t grasp consequences. Only revenge. Only death. I held a hunger that would only be sated by killing Demetrius, which I had every intention of doing. My emotions had reached the darkest recesses of my being, where feelings I’d attributed to Maya lay, but she’d been subdued into silence. This was solely, undeniably me.
Sebastian pulled his eyes away from mine to assess the scene in my living room. His grip remained tight as he gently pulled me closer to him. He nodded at Dr. Jeremy, urging him to go in while we stood just outside my front door. When he spoke, his voice was soft and warm. “Sky, you have to stay here. This is a command. Don’t make me force you.”
I kept blinking, trying to push tears of virulent anger back. My thirst for blood ravaged my body beyond logic. I didn’t have a plan. I just wanted to get to Demetrius and cut, strike, and punch.
Sebastian’s thumb lightly stroked my cheek, wiping away tears. “Whatever you’re planning will fail. Right now, you’re not driven by anything other than rage. You’re unfocused and more of a danger to yourself than anyone else.” He reached for the sword and waited for me to release it to him.
I didn’t.
“Hand it to me.” There was a gentleness to his command, even a hint of sympathy. “Now, Sky. I won’t ask you again.”
I gave it to him, and he placed the palm of his hand against my back and urged me back inside. I stayed in the kitchen, unable to look in the living room as Dr. Jeremy worked on Trent and David. I tried to keep my mind blank and block out images of Quell’s death and the haughty look of contemptuous entitlement Demetrius had worn as he’d taken my friend’s life so freely.
CHAPTER 17
David and Trent were taken into the pack’s infirmary, and Dr. Jeremy treated whatever the vampire blood hadn’t fixed, which wasn’t much. Their wounds looked dramatically improved from when I’d first seen them. I couldn’t look at Trent and David without remembering Quell’s death and feeling unbearable anguish. It wasn’t a death—it was a murder. I slipped away to the room I always went to whenever I was in the pack’s home and needed an escape. The room where I’d first been introduced to them after vampires had attacked me. After Demetrius had attacked me.
Forcing myself to focus on something else, I directed my attention to the view outside. It didn’t help. The ambient golden glow of the setting sun was a reminder that it wouldn’t have been possible for Demetrius to destroy Quell if the pack hadn’t done the spell that had lifted the vampires’ restrictions. As dusk draped over the area, I looked out to the woods and focused on the trees, longing to go for a run and find comfort in my animal. I really needed an escape—a reprieve.
“I can feel the thirst for blood and violence radiating off you,” Gavin said. His voice sounded closer than I thought he was, but I didn’t bother to turn away from the window to see. �
��Sky, are you okay?” He sounded concerned, really concerned, and I wondered how I appeared to everyone else. Did I look as vengeful and out of control as I felt? Did I seem blindly driven to violence?
Gavin’s presence overwhelmed the space we shared. He eased past me and relaxed into the corner next to the window, and I shifted my eyes to look at him. His usually foreboding, cool, and distant eyes were warm and sympathetic. “When you feel anger and hate this deep, it’s never good to act on it.”
Really? I was about to get a “stay calm” lecture from Gavin. What, am I encroaching on your trademark behavior?
“Did Sebastian send you up here to talk me into being a good little wolf?” I snapped and immediately regretted it. Sebastian probably couldn’t care less about me not seeking revenge. We had more important issues to deal with. We had to fix Josh, find the Faeries, and recover the magical objects. The last thing we needed to deal with was the Northern Seethe and, depending on the potential backlash from Demetrius’s death at my hands, perhaps the Southern Seethe as well. The reality of it didn’t make my ire any less fiery.
“Even if he had, I wouldn’t,” he admitted sourly. “Personally, I think you should seek revenge. I think you should make him hurt. But fighting him—and I’m sure you wouldn’t win—won’t be as satisfying as actually fucking destroying him. Instead of standing here and grieving, put that anger and those emotions to better use. Figure out how to destroy Demetrius. Death is easy and killing isn’t nearly as satisfying as watching someone try to live through a devastating storm of your creation.”
He pushed up from the wall, stepped closer to me, and hesitated a moment before resting his hand on my shoulder. I knew he was probably uncomfortable doing it. I decided to intensify his discomfort. I attempted to hug him. With a startled noise, he stumbled back, nearly crashing into the wall. He hissed. Gavin hissed like a startled, angry cat. I expected him to arch his back and raise his hackles. I shouldn’t have garnered so much pleasure from his reaction, but I did.
“What’s with you? Stop trying to feel me up,” he said as he slipped past me, his ordinarily tawny face red and twisted into a ruddy scowl. He was at the door by the time he looked back over his shoulder to snarl at me.
I simply smiled. “I thought it was a hug it out moment!” I yelled after him.
No less than five minutes later, Kelly knocked softly on the door. She greeted me with the consoling smile she was known for. Her cheery personality wasn’t contagious now.
“I’m fine,” I said before she could ask.
“I figured you would be. But I caught Gavin in the hallway mumbling about you needing a hug and how you’d accosted him. And then he nearly ordered me to come up here and hug you. I think his exact words were, ‘Someone needs to fix her. She’s accosting anything within ten feet of her.’”
I laughed, louder and more hysterically than intended. But navigating through the darkness had consumed me for more than two hours, and I needed that veil lifted, if only temporarily.
“Mr. Dark and Broody doesn’t like to be touched, does he?”
She grinned and gave me a sly look. “Oh, he likes to be touched.”
Sky, you walked right into that one. I had a feeling if I didn’t change the subject fast, it would devolve into us talking about how “delicious” Gavin smelled. I’d learned my lesson from our last conversation about him. I didn’t say anything, and her taunting grin mirrored the one I’d had after I’d attempted to hug Gavin.
“David and Trent are doing very well, except for the side effects of consuming vampire blood. Trent is downstairs trying to arm wrestle anyone who neared him. His ankle wasn’t broken, but sprained. He’s bouncing up and down on it like he’s getting ready to enter the boxing ring. He challenged Winter to a fight. It didn’t end well for him.” She chuckled. “I see why you like him and David.”
“They’re very brave and great friends.” That pain and heaviness returned. This time I refused to give in to it. I just couldn’t. I was in a weird place. Anger had numbed me, and the thirst for revenge left me distracted. Neither was something I needed at the moment. David and Trent were safe. Now I needed Josh to be safe as well.
For fifteen minutes, Kelly remained with me. I was at one end of the room, and she was at the other, lingering in case I needed to talk. “Being human in this world is hard, and no matter how strong you are, something will happen that makes you feel utterly vulnerable,” she confessed earnestly. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, and I knew she was remembering the time she’d felt the most vulnerable—when she’d been a victim of Dexter’s machinations. A long, pregnant silence followed. “When confronted with defenselessness, your instinct is to do whatever it takes to never feel it again.”
She chewed on her lip for several more moments, withdrawing into her thoughts as if she’d forgotten I was in the room. “David and Trent have vampire blood in them. They don’t feel weak anymore. I have a feeling they will do whatever it takes to continue feeling that way.” She didn’t elaborate, but I understood what she was saying. They would probably seek out this feeling again and try to find a way to obtain vampire blood again. I couldn’t let that happen.
I nodded in understanding, and eventually, she started out of the room. I was just a few feet behind her. I needed to see them. Ethan was ascending the stairs as I descended them, and we met halfway.
“I’m okay,” I said, not giving him the chance to ask.
“I know you are.”
“Do I sound that unbelievable when I lie?” I teased.
He laughed and nodded. Warm lips pressed against my forehead. “Eu gostaria de poder melhorar isto por ti.” I wish I could make this better for you.
He didn’t wish he could bring Quell back, but I truly believed he wished I didn’t have to go through the pain.
“May I ask a question?”
I nodded.
“What did you do to Gavin? Whatever it was, don’t do it again.” He grinned. “He’s ranting about you attacking him and how the pack has changed. Apparently, I need to help you control your urges. We are a pack of puppies and kittens, and before we know it, people will be scratching us behind our ears. He’s not happy at all.”
I snickered.
“Sky, stop messing with Gavin,” he playfully scolded me, as he backed down the stairs and followed me to the infirmary. Josh lay in a bed on his side so Dr. Jeremy could monitor the ward over his mark. It seemed to be in the same condition as when the witches had first put it on.
David and Trent were sitting up in beds on the other side of the room and didn’t look like they’d been near death just hours ago. Despite being physically better, David looked wary and overwhelmed. He worked up a smile as I approached.
“Hey, pumpkin,” he offered weakly. I pushed the guilt down, but not far enough to keep it from resurfacing.
I smiled. “How are you?”
“Fine. But if I have to deal with that for much longer, I’m not sure what I’ll do.” He rolled his eyes and jerked his head in Trent’s direction.
Suppressing a laugh, I looked at Trent. He was bouncing around on his once injured leg, in awe of his recovery, movements, and enhanced abilities. His coltish body moved more gracefully than ever.
Winter stood in front of him, a cordial smile on her face, but it was fading as her patience thinned. “You’ll be stronger and faster than you can imagine for a couple of days, maybe even weeks. Don’t get used to it.”
“I won’t. Is this how you feel all the time? It has to be amazing to move this fast and see everything so clearly all the time.”
Kelly was right. They were being seduced by the benefits of vampire blood. Well, Trent was. David was pensive. Winter might not have meant to be intimidating, but it was hard not to see her that way when her eyes were vertical slits that bored into Trent. Her voice dropped, low and grave. “Vampire blood is good for a quick fix, and you needed it to survive. It’s not a long-term solution and never should be.” She looked over at David, giving
him the same stern look. She’d go to her grave denying it and would probably threaten bodily harm to anyone who mentioned it, but she was concerned for them. “It can quickly become an addiction, and you’ll sacrifice more than what you will get in return. Do you understand me?”
Trent nodded.
“I need to hear it.”
“I understand.”
She moved closer, and her tone lost its rough edges. “I will show you how to protect yourself, and you have the pack here if you need us. Don’t ever use vampire blood again.”
Winter shot David a look. He nodded and made the same promise as Trent.
With great effort, her scowl lifted into a smile. “Now sit down,” she ordered Trent. “You're hopping around like a bunny and it’s annoying me.”
“Of course, cupcake.” He hopped back on the bed.
Shooting him a dagger stare that was full-on snake, she said firmly, “No.” Trent retreated, but I could see the challenge in the wayward smile he gave her. It wasn’t the last time he would try it, and if his persistence was anything like David’s, he’d win the battle.
I turned my attention back to David. “Do you remember what the people who came into my house looked like?”
Sebastian, Ethan, and Cole appeared next to me before I’d completely gotten the question out. David remained focused on me, most likely repelled by their intensity.
After several moments of concentration, he finally said, “I don’t know.” Full awareness of the situation overtook him. “It’s like the memory was taken away. I don’t even remember how we were injured. All I remember is going into your house and the fight, but I can’t picture the people we were fighting.” Staring past me, he struggled to grasp memories he couldn’t retrieve. Frustration contorted his face into a rigid scowl.
“It’s fine. Why don’t you lie down for a little bit and we’ll bring something for you all to eat after you’ve rested. Both of you,” Winter said, glaring at Trent, who was again springing around the room. In a dramatic movement, his body twisting and wavering, he dropped back onto the bed, allowing his hand to fall over his head he closed his eyes. He opened one to peek at her. She mouthed, “I hate you,” which no one, including Trent, believed.
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