The Sanguine Door

by Genevieve Grey

  The sweet scent of Arina’s power filled the room, blanketing it in a heavy fog. She gripped Luka’s hand, digging her blunt nails into his palm. It was intoxicating, her golden glittering Magic unfurled, spreading from her chest.

  She was all orange and gold, like the sun. It was impossible look away.

  Arina finally exhaled, the colour returning to her cheeks.

  Cheers sounded in the room and Loral ran up and wrapped her in a hug. Judas was next in line, he lifted her off the gurney. Her small hand still gripped Luka’s. An alien feeling tightened his chest. He watched closely for any sign that she was losing control. Her eyes were tight but they hadn’t changed colour. Her skin was no longer clammy and pale, instead healthy colour had returned.

  Luka knew he shouldn’t have been able to see her Magic. He doubted anyone else in the room could see it. Still, it soaked the room around him in a wondrous, glittering show. It was how he had tracked her to Galway, the glittering strands seemed to trail her where she went. They called to him, coaxing him closer to her and brushing against his bare skin.

  “Thank you.” Arina bowed her head to the healer. Luka hadn’t heard what she had been saying but there was palpable emotion in her eyes. She cleared her throat.

  “I need to come clean about something,”

  Luka stood straighter and shot her a worried look. Loral had a smug smile in the corner. Would they turn on him? Had she found a way to break the bargain without being killed? Before he could snatch her, she spoke.

  “I have lived my life in fear for too long.” She wiped her hands on her track pants, looking down at the floor. “I’m sorry for lying to you all. I’m not a Fire Mage as I claimed when I first arrived.”

  None of the small crowd looked confused. Arina seemed uncertain, the words stuck in her throat, until Stella stepped forward.

  “Lilith is a Blood Mage, like me.”

  The majority of the group didn’t raise a brow. It was easy to see Loral had been telling everyone behind her back. Judas was the only one to take a small step back. His face crumbled. Luka didn’t like it, he sneered at the man.

  “Let’s celebrate!” Loral intervened before Arina could see his reaction.

  Arina seemed oblivious enough. She looked up and recaptured his hand. Luka found he didn’t mind the contact. The group surrounded and congratulated her. Eventually they made their way to the dining hall. Everyone cheered when Loral pulled out some old bottles of champagne, passing around the cups.

  “True Rebellion never dies!” Sylvie yelled over the boisterous crowd.

  “True Rebellion never dies,” Luka found himself parroting back with the group. The words felt new in his mouth. He snatched two cups from Loral and filled them to the brim. He needed a drink. It had been a long, sober eight weeks. Luka handed a cup toward Arina. Her return smile was forced. He could see her eyes scan the room for the one person who wasn’t there.

  Chapter Eleven

  Somehow, despite my horrible luck, we reach the lake. The forest parts a few yards from the bank, which slopes down into the fairly stagnant water that stretches on for at least a quarter mile in each direction. I try to be grateful that we’ve come this far, that we’re so very close to my aunt’s house, but now this new daunting problem hangs over my head.

  Jett, Forkie and I stare at the murky water for nearly a minute in silence. My mind races as I try to come up with a good solution, but I can’t find one. I don’t know how to swim, and even if I did, I don’t trust this water. It could be cursed, for all I know. We could go around, but that would take far too long. I’m so tired of walking.

  “Let’s make camp here for the night,” Jett says finally. “We’ll make a plan in the morning.”

  As much as I hate to agree with him, it will be dark soon. By the time we got halfway around the lake, we’d have to stop anyway. It’s better not to be thrown off course.

  We sit back in the shade of the trees, watching the remaining light creep across the water and slowly fade away. Forkie entertains us by chasing his tail for ten minutes straight, before curling up on Jett’s lap and letting out a little yawn.

  “Look who’s playing favorites,” I whisper.

  Jett grins and pats our dragon’s head. “He has good taste, I guess.”

  “Yeah, yeah.”

  Forkie lifts his head to look at me and offers that lopsided smile of his as an apology. I laugh and shake my head at him, realizing that there’s no way we could abandon him now. My gaze rises from his shining black eyes to his antlers, which seem to shimmer gold.

  “Jett, look at this,” I murmur.

  “Unbelievable. His antlers glow in the dark!”

  Forkie gives a proud yip, soaking up the attention like a fluffy, smiling sponge.

  As the darkness of night rolls across the sky, the moon comes up over the horizon and casts its reflection down on the surface of the lake.

  “It’s my turn to take watch,” Jett says after a little while.

  After last time, I’m not sure it’s such a good idea—but of course I don’t say so. I adjust the blanket and lie back against a tree, suddenly wishing that Forkie would cuddle with me instead. As if reading my mind, he squirms from Jett’s arms and lays on the ground between us, his eyes gazing up at mine expectantly.

  I giggle. “Hi, Forkie.”

  Forkie’s nose twitches and he grins. I let my eyes fall shut and stroke his fur sleepily, my thoughts floating away one by one until there is nothing.

  Singing.

  This is what I wake to.

  It is the sweetest, most perfect sound I have ever heard, like the whispers of bells or the care-free voice of a giggling river. I am frozen in a deep stupor that I cannot pull myself from, nor yet give in to. I am in a place between sleep and wakefulness, listening to the inhumanly beautiful lullaby that plays through the air.

  All at once, everything slides into focus. My eyes snap open and I struggle into a sitting position. The darkness makes it difficult to take in my surroundings, but after a few blinks I make out the silhouette that stands at the edge of the lake.

  “Jett,” I whisper. “What are you doing?”

  The song continues, and I scan the area to find the source. My eyes land on a curvy shadow that lingers in the shallow water, and my breath catches in my throat.

  Only the girl’s shoulders and head are visible above the water, as if she is kneeling down. Her skin is as pale as the moonlight that envelops her, strongly contrasted by the onyx hair that runs straight down her back like ink. She smiles at Jett shyly, and continues to hum her song.

  What is she? I think sleepily. Is this even real?

  The girl puts out a hand to Jett, and he takes a step forward.

  My heart jumps in surprise as I understand the situation, and I scramble to my feet. Forkie startles at the sudden movement and lets out a low growl, and I suddenly wish that he was full grown.

  “Jett,” I exclaim, and grab his arm to pull him back.

  The girl in the water hisses at me, and her lips pull back to reveal multiple rows of fangs.

  Jett doesn’t seem to notice my presence; his eyes never leave the girl. “She’s calling to me,” he whispers.

  “She’s just trying to lure you in to eat you,” I say quickly, panic rising inside of me.

  The girl’s frustrated eyes leave mine and lock on Jett’s. Her smile returns, and she gestures for him to follow. She dives beneath the water, and her long, webbed tail splashes the surface before she disappears.

  Jett starts forward, and I tighten my hold. “You’re in a trance,” I explain hopelessly. “Snap out of it.”

  “Let go of me,” Jett growls, and shoves me out of his way. I stumble back, and my stomach drops in horror as he leaps into the lake.

  Tears pool in my eyes and I my heart squeezes in anxiety. My mind racing as I try to think of some logical way to save him.

  I can’t think of one. I take a deep breath, and dive in after him.

  For some reason
, I assumed that swimming would come naturally to me. It only takes a few moments to realize that I was terribly wrong.

  I flail around for a while as I try to find my bearings, but there is nothing but darkness on all sides. The water seems to be working against me; I kick my feet and thrash my arms without any signs of movement.

  All at once my lungs have run out of oxygen and they’re burning, and my mouth quivers as I struggle against the urge to breath. I feel something slimy and thin against my foot and cringe away from it, but after a moment I realize that it’s only some sort of underwater plant. This means that I’m close to the bottom, which also means…

  I gather my remaining strength and kick off from the ground, which is further down than I anticipated, but still aids me in my acceleration. My head breaks the surface and I gasp for breath, kicking frantically to keep myself up.

  Get ahold of yourself, I command.

  I fill my lungs with a deep gulp of air, before plunging back into the depths of the murky abyss. Though it burns, I hold my eyes open and turn my head wildly from side to side, hoping for some sign of Jett’s whereabouts. For all I know, he is in that creature’s stomach by now.

  I ignore the burning sensation that rips through my chest and use my arms to push the water behind me. Even when I begin to understand how to navigate through the darkness, I know that it’s no use. I can’t see a thing, and every second I waste could be a second too late to save Jett.

  A bright, golden glow crashes through the water a few feet away. After a moment I can make out Forkie’s form, and hope surges through me. I return to the surface for another breath, before splashing back down to follow my dragon’s light.

  At first, there is nothing but the dark fog of dirt pooling around my head.

  Then I see them.

  Four of the monsters circle Jett, growing closer each second and snapping their teeth teasingly. Jett’s eyes have glazed over. He doesn’t struggle, and the blank look on his face makes me want to scream.

  Forkie zooms past me like an arrow, kicking his legs and pushing through the water like a natural-born fish. The creatures look up at his approach and cover their eyes, emitting screeches that echo through the water. As we grow nearer they cringe away, avoiding the light as if the very sight of it is burning them.

  I take this opportunity to swim down the last few feet and grab Jett’s arm. He’s lighter in the water, and I manage to pull him to the surface. I can barely keep my head above the water, let alone his.

  Forkie surfaces a few feet away, and he paddles over to help. He grabs hold of Jett’s shirt with his teeth and pulls him along as he swims. The three of us reach the other side of the lake, and Forkie leaps up onto the bank.

  “Pull him up, buddy,” I command, and Forkie does as I say. He drags Jett up onto the shore, and I let out a breath of relief. I begin to heave myself onto the bank as well, when something locks around my ankle and yanks me backward. I inhale sharply just before the water crashes over my head. I thrash hysterically as one of the creatures pulls me deeper and deeper, and soon her friends join in on the fun. I can feel them on all sides, poking and prodding as my head grows foggy. One grabs my arm and bites down into my wrist with those razor-sharp teeth, and I can barely contain the cry of pain that rises in my throat.

  Another snaps at my ankle, and I only manage to twist away for a second before one of them plants her hands on my back and shoves me against the bottom of the lake.

  The last of my air is knocked from my body, and water floods into my lungs as I recoil.

  It’s hopeless.

  I give in to the pain. I let it engulf me in all of its agonizing fury, peaked by each bite that sends searing pain through my nerves and each breath that brings me closer to death. I barely have the energy to close my eyes. My body is numb. I don’t feel anything.

  Every human has to die, my mind whispers sleepily. That’s just how life works.

  My heart shudders, and I am ready for death.

  Every human…

  My eyes snap open, and my body fills with energy that has no source but that of my soul. I smile, and wind fills my lungs with air.

  I am not a human.

  I struggle to fend off the creature that has me pinned against the ground, gnawing on my shoulder like it’s a slab of meat. She only bites down harder, but rather than weakening me, it fills me with powerful rage. My fingers find a jagged rock from the floor beside me, and I force it as hard as I can through the creature’s eye. She shrieks as the water surrounding us pools with blood, and through the chaos I manage to squirm away. I push off from the ground and swim to the surface, my heart pounding with exhilaration. I pull myself up onto the bank where Forkie sits beside Jett, who is still unconscious.

  I stand there for a moment, dazed. Then I collapse.

  Chapter Twelve

  “Lilith! Come join us for lunch,” Valerie yelled from the dining room. She was so bright and cheerful. It grated on my nerves.

  Valerie had first shown us to the group. Originally I had thought her to be no older than sixteen. She was so innocent and pure. But she had corrected me when I asked her about schooling. She had said that she was actually twenty-one, only one year younger than me, yet it felt like I had lived a lifetime more. Her eyes were filled with trust and there was no regret keeping her awake into the early hours of the morning. Her sunny personality made me jealous for a life that I might have had. I found myself keeping my distance from her and her friends. They were hard to be around.

  I walked to the table and joined the group with a stiff smile. I needed to eat between torture sessions with Stella.

  Valerie sat with Nick and Maddie. The shifters liked to hang together. I wondered how they could stand to be in the confined spaces for so long. It was getting to me and I didn’t have to shift into giant wolf every few weeks. They couldn’t stay in human form forever. Loral had told me they had joined the rebellion once the Elect had destroyed their homes in Galway and left them no choice.

  “You look so much better already,” gushed Maddie. We had celebrated her eighteenth birthday last week. “What can I get you?”

  “I’ll get it.” I rose from the table and begun to fill my plate with bread and baked vegetables. Valerie’s father must have cooked. It was better than the peanut butter sandwich I usually had.

  “Where’s Noah?” Valerie asked me. She wasn’t very good at faking casualness. My eyes narrowed. It looked as if she was blushing.

  “I’m not sure. I haven’t seen him since before breakfast.”

  I had a good guess where he was. He had been spending more of his time in the gym, but I wasn’t going to give her any ideas. Watching Luka shirtless, slick with sweat was enough to make even the purest have dirty thoughts. If Valerie got wind of his workouts, he would be performing for a crowd.

  “How long have you two known each other?” Maddie added.

  “A long time. We met through bounty hunting.” I ate my food quickly, the personal questions made me uncomfortable. The more questions they asked the easier it was for someone to trip us up. I had to make sure Luka knew what I told them.

  “He knows what you are and still stayed friends with you?” Nick sputtered, shocked. He was young, only fifteen, and didn’t know how to bite his tongue yet. Valerie smacked him behind the ears.

  The bread hovered in front of my mouth. I was taken aback by his question. It was easy to forget the stigma surrounding Blood Magic living in my bubble. Even though Stella had lived here for some time it was clear a majority of the group found her uncomfortable to be around. Hundreds of years of hate couldn’t be undone quickly.

  “My Magic is just like everyone else’s, Nick.”

  “Everyone else doesn’t steal power.”

  His sister looked at him, wide-eyed. I swallowed my temper. He was a child, a stupid ignorant child. Maddi grabbed Nick around the bicep and pulled him from the table.

  “Have a good lunch.” Maddi smiled in my direction and yanked Nick from the
room. No doubt he would be getting an earful once they were alone. He didn’t look happy at being shoved around by his older sister. Valerie cleared her throat.

  “Noah said that when the two of you were on a bounty together, he saved your life from a goblin. Is that true?” She finished her meal and leant over the table on her elbows. Valerie’s eyes sparkled with interest, her friend’s earlier transgressions so quickly forgotten.

  Is that what he had told her? That he had saved my life? I laughed. Of course he had twisted the story to make himself the hero.

  “Hardly,” I scoffed. “Have you ever seen a goblin?”

  She shook her head, eyes wide. I put my fork down.

  “They’re the size of a horse and mean as a snake,” I exaggerated. “If I hadn’t used my Blood Magic, he would have been squished like an ant.”

  I brought my fist down onto the table for dramatics. She gasped.

  “But he said he captured the most dangerous bounties.”

  “He was the best in the business.”

  I wasn’t lying. Luka had tracked and found even me. He had hidden from my rune Magic and snuck up on me. I should ask him how he did it.

  “Lilith? Are you and Noah…” She paused, clearly embarrassed.

  I quirked an eyebrow.

  “You know.” She grabbed my plate and went to wash up. The deep blush on her face was evident as she rushed away from me.

  “Bumping uglies?”

  The plates clattered in the sink. I had to restrain a laugh. I had swallowed my first choice of words. She would have had a heart attack.

  “No, ah yes. Together, I mean.” Her voice was quiet.

  I leant back on my chair.

  What did I say? Had Luka laid plans that I wasn’t privy too? Valerie seemed so young. I should spare her the heartbreak. This felt like a conversation I would have had, had I been to middle school. Loral thought we were together already. But what about Judas? Would he feel betrayed? Why did I care anyway? He hadn’t spoken to me since the collar had been removed. No matter what I said, the group would know by dinner time. There wasn’t much to do underground but gossip.