“You need to calm down, Ava,” she says.
Her voice is cool, quiet, and it entrances me. I nod, feeling suddenly at ease.
“Yes, Mamá,” I say.
I blink, and I am seated again, but the moment she looks away, breaking our gaze, that feeling is gone. Fear rises in my chest, settling in my heart. It pricks at me, puncturing flesh until I bubble with worry. I want to shriek, to get her essence out of my body, for now I understand the link and its purpose. Mamá will use her power over me to keep me in line, to do her bidding and follow her commands.
Before I can respond to this invasion of self-control, Liv rushes in, dashing to Abuela’s side quickly. She whispers something in her ear, and I watch as the color drains from her face and her eyes become fiery pits.
When Abuela catches my attention, she smiles at me. It does not meet her eyes. The sinister glare she is giving me forces me to look away. I hate that I am a descendant of her blood. I do not want to be privy to such innate evil.
“What is it?” Mamá asks, frowning. Her voice is laced with concern.
“It seems we have visitors,” Abuela says, her gaze fluttering from my mother to me. “Come. We shall greet them together.”
When we step outside, I am assaulted by the cold night air. Lip quivering, I shiver, wrapping my arms around my body. The others are wrapped in thick winter garments, but Will and I are dressed in the clothes we were wearing last night. The outfits offered plenty of protection for a vampire, but for witches, we are welcoming hypothermia.
Intentionally keeping Will and me back, the witches are blocking our sight. We cannot see our visitors, and the rush of wind blowing through the trees makes it hard to hear. My teeth clatter together as a gust works its way through my loose T-shirt.
I close my eyes, focusing intently on the conversation being had mere feet from me. Why is it so hard to hear, so hard to focus? I glance at Will, wondering if he is struggling with our transition as much as I am.
“Bring them forward,” Abuela shouts loud enough for everyone to hear. Someone grabs on to my arm, squeezing it tightly. I gasp in response as pain rushes down my limb as my attacker digs in her nails. I wince, grinding my teeth as I stumble away from Will.
I am shuffling forward, moving so quickly, I trip over my feet. When I reach the forefront of the witches who surrounded us, I understand why Abuela had such malicious intentions. This is her moment to shine, her pride in what she has done to me, her only grandchild. This is the moment she can watch the repercussions unfold, for I am no longer a vampire.
Even when I was sacrificing everything to aid the witches, I still chose my new allies over my former coven. And now, the vampires can witness the birth of something else. Will they accept me as I am now? Abuela must not believe so. She wants to witness their rejection.
I make eye contact with Jasik, and the world slows. All I hear is my heart in my head, and all I feel is the burning desire to be wrapped in his arms. I want his love, his devotion, his protection. I want him. I want the life I lost, the life I took for granted.
“Jasik,” I whisper.
He frowns, brow furrowing in his confusion. No doubt, he senses something is…off. I probably do not smell the same or sound the same or look the same. Not anymore. My irises are not crimson, my skin is not perfect and smooth, and I probably smell like heavenly meals on wheels.
He cocks his head, gaze scanning my frail frame like he does not quite recognize me, and I completely shatter. A pathetic screech escapes my lips as tears burn behind my eyes. In a desperate attempt to control my emotions, I bite my lip so hard, I break skin.
I smell nothing, taste nothing, but the immediate reaction from the vampires tells me they sense my change. Their eyes widen—from fear or wonder or curiosity, I will never know. But this is the moment they truly understand just how different I am now.
“Ava?” Jasik whispers, and I fear this is the last time I will ever hear my name grace his lips, so I cherish the moment. I close my eyes, playing the sound of his voice over and over again in my mind, imprinting the way he looked at me before I became…this.
“What have they done to you?” Hikari says, seething.
Her disgust is evident in her tone. I do not need to see it on her face, but I look anyway and see shock strewn across her face. The look she gives me is just plain…ugly.
I hiccup through my breaths, silently pleading with the vampires to accept me. I cannot stay here, and I beg them not to leave me with the witches, but words never escape my lips.
“She is one of us now,” Mamá says as she steps forward. “A witch, reborn.”
“As you can see, there is nothing for you here,” Abuela says.
Everything happens in slow motion. My vision is spinning as I fall to my knees. The impact of the frozen earth penetrating my jeans sends a rush of pain jolting through my legs. I slump forward, catching my fall with my palms. My flesh is numbed by the frosty ground.
I glance up, meeting Jasik’s confused gaze, and pretend the look he is giving me does not completely destroy my heart. I want him to see me as I was when I was his. He looked at me with devotion and longing, like he could not wait to unravel my layers, uncovering my personal quirks. But that look is gone, and I cannot bear what remains.
“Please, it is me. I am still me,” I whisper, but my voice is so soft and the wind is so strong, I fear no one hears me. I have to wonder if I ever even spoke at all. Maybe this is all in my mind. Maybe I am asleep and my imagination is overtaking my sanity.
But I know that is a fool’s wish.
I sit back, resting my bottom against my sloppy, wet heels. Jasik takes one cautionary step toward me, but Malik stops him. With a firm hand wrapped around his younger brother’s shoulder, he silently warns him of impending danger. He fears this could be a trap, and for all I know, it is.
Jasik nudges his brother’s hand off him and takes another step forward, never breaking my gaze as he closes in on me.
He reaches for me, moving far too quickly for my mortal eyes to bear. He flashes before me, and I close my eyes, welcoming the inevitable.
I know I should be scared. If I am a witch, then I am mortal. Vampires feed on the living. I am bleeding and scared and weak. I am the perfect prey.
But I do not fear for my life, because even a death at the hands of vampires is a fate far better than what the witches plan to bestow upon me.
Chapter Two
Jasik crouches beside me. I stare at the ground, hair shielding my vision from seeing the uncertainty in his eyes. I cannot bear to look at his crimson irises any longer. I hate that he must see me like this—so weak, so unlike the girl he saved all those months ago. I imagine I look nothing like her now.
My hair is dull, frizzy, and lifeless. My skin is imperfect and dry. My eyes are likely murky, a muddled brown color so drastically different from their usual crimson glow. I squeeze my eyes shut so he does not have to look at them, wishing I could get the vision of me out of my mind. Even I do not want to look at the mess I have become, so why would he want to see me this way?
I feel his fingertips grace my skin, and I hold my breath. After several seconds pass, I choke out a gasp. I open my eyes to find him tucking loose strands of my hair behind my ear. He moves so calmly, so quietly, and he touches me so softly, as if he is afraid he might harm me with just his fingers. I imagine I probably do look that weak to him. After all, I am broken, feeling shattered beyond repair. I feel lifeless and frail. The fire within me that attracted him to me has been smothered, and all that is left is its smoky remains.
Gnawing on my lower lip, I glance up at him. Even when he kneels beside me, he towers over my cowering frame. I flinch when he moves quickly, and I watch him frown, his eyes pained by my reaction to him. I know he would not hurt me, and I hate that I made him think I might worry about that now.
“Ava…” Jasik whispers my name; it almost sounds like a plea. He sounds as broken as I feel.
“For Christ’s sake, wha
t have they done to you?” Hikari says. I steal a glance, finding her closing the space between her and Will. She crouches down, resting her hand on his back. Her black pixie hair is spiky and shiny. The moonlight reflects off each pointed strand, betraying her overuse of product. She looks greasy, but something about seeing her this way reminds me of life at the manor.
“We need to get out of here,” Jeremiah says. My gaze finds his, and I see sorrow in his eyes. Why is he unhappy? Does he wish he would have aided me last night? I shake my head, hoping he can understand my meaning. The only reason Will and I survived is because we are—were—hybrids. Jeremiah would have died last night if he attempted to help me. And I could not live with myself if we lost him too.
Jeremiah tears his gaze from mine and remains focused on the witches. His hands are balled into fists at his sides. His knuckles are ashy, and his usually deep, dark skin is coated in a fine dust from winter’s cruel, dry weather. I scratch at my hands, feeling my own desire for a rich lather.
I begin to shake, the reality of the bitter cold sinking in. I think Jasik mistakes my shudder as something more, because he pulls away from me again. The separation between the two of us is almost too much to bear. My body aches for him, and I am desperate to hold him close. I want to feel safe again. I want to feel strong.
I look at him, but he is looking at something in the distance. I take this moment to consider how these events have altered the course of his life too. Will he ever feel comfortable around me? When I look from vampire to vampire, they all seem uneasy. I assume it is because they are surrounded by their enemy, but what if it is something more? What if things never return to normal?
Malik, Jasik’s biological older brother, is watching the witches. He does not look at me. As my trainer, I wonder if I have upset him. This is why he pushes me to the very edge of my limits and then watches as I fall off the cliff. He wanted me to be strong enough to survive any attack, and I did the exact opposite. I walked into the witches’ trap with a smile on my face and a song in my heart. I was too stubborn and hardheaded to see what the vampires saw the moment they met my coven.
Malik has his dagger drawn, and he traces circles in the leather-strapped handle. His gaze lands on each witch, and then he repeats the process. He never lingers for too long on any one witch. Always the warrior, I know he is cultivating a plan right now. I am just not sure if saving Will and me is part of it.
The only vampire I cannot bear to look at is Jasik, my sire. I hate that his eyes reveal his disappointment. I fear the harshness of his words and cannot handle another betrayal, so I do not even ask him to take me with him.
I squeeze my eyes shut so tightly, I draw tears. With one slow, overdrawn exhalation, I open them and meet my sire’s gaze. His crimson irises sparkle in the darkness. Should I be scared of being so close to a vampire? I haven’t any way to protect myself if he chooses to lash out.
“My Ava,” Jasik whispers. His thumb traces the edge of my jaw, lingering at the center of my chin. He presses slightly, firmly into the divot there, and smiles at me.
I fall against him, relishing in the feeling of being so near to something so safe, so loving, so true. I burrow my face in the crevice of his neck and pretend we are not at Mamá’s house. We are not surrounded by witches. We are not on the brink of yet another war.
We are in the manor. We are home. We are safe.
“Time to go now, love,” Jasik says, and I fall deeper into the depths. He smells like mint and the winter breeze and…blood.
I open my eyes, inhaling deeply as I take in his essence. I grab on to him tighter, wanting to take in his scent. He holds me, cocooning my body in his embrace, as if his arms alone could shield me from my hellish life.
“Step away from her,” Mamá says. I did not hear her approach us, but I do sense her anger. Like Abuela, she wanted me to suffer. She wanted to witness the vampires abandon me just as the witches had.
Jasik tenses, his arms turning to impenetrable shields of pure steely strength. I do not fear for Mamá’s safety, but I know she should.
Jasik releases me and stands. I follow suit, facing him as he stares down at the witches. They attempt to corner the vampires, to encircle them in some magical binding. I know nothing would make the witches happier than allowing me to watch the vampires die a brutal, fiery death, but the vampires are far too smart for their feeble tricks.
“We are leaving,” Jasik says.
My sire slides his hand against mine, interlocking his fingers with my own. His skin is cold, and I wonder how I feel to him. Do I feel the same? Jasik does not acknowledge the changes in my body, but I certainly do.
I glance at Will, who is being aided by Hikari. While her back is turned, Jeremiah is watching the witches carefully. Prepared to defend his pack, he is a hungry wolf ready to strike. Will falls against Hikari’s much smaller frame and lets her guide him away from the witches. She is able to successfully retrieve him because their attention is focused solely on me.
“You are not taking her anywhere,” Mamá says.
Jasik’s eyes narrow, his grip tightening around my hand. If the witches pooled their air magic and attempted to yank me free from his grasp, I fear I would be dismembered right before his eyes.
I glance over my shoulder and say, “Por favor, Mamá, no hagas esto más difícil de lo que tiene que ser.”
I beg her not to make this harder than it has to be. There does not need to be bloodshed. No one has to die today. The witches won. I am no longer a hybrid. Now they can let me go.
“Cállate, niña,” Abuela says. “Perteneces con nosotros.”
I swallow the knot that forms and listen to her admonition.
I belong with them.
What she really means to say is I belong to them.
“You are never going to let me go,” I whisper. “I will never be free.”
Jasik soothes my fears with the touch of his hand. He caresses my skin with his thumb, drawing circular motions to root me in place. I look to him, and silently, he tells me everything will be okay. And I believe him.
With one final glance, he tears his gaze from mine and looks at the witches. The outrage I see in them makes me shudder. I cower beside him, terrified of what he will do next. My sire will stop at nothing to protect me—this I know to be true.
“Let me make myself very clear. I will kill everyone you have ever met if that is what I must do to save her,” Jasik warns. “Either you will die tonight or you will live tomorrow. The choice is yours, but you will not keep her here any longer.”
I gasp, shocked by his admission, by his threat. The vampires are outnumbered, but they offer a clear warning. Until now, they have obeyed my request to maintain peace. They have only used the strength and skill necessary to survive battles, but they have not maliciously targeted my former coven. In spite of everything the witches have done to them, to me, the vampires have allowed some semblance of peace simply because I requested it. Now that I do not, and now that I fear for my very life, they will not yield.
I should feel sad. I should be outraged by the mere thought of losing my family. I should be saddened by Mamá’s impending death. But I am not. She created this new, desensitized version of her daughter when she muted my better half. She made me numb to most feelings, and that includes the part that would mourn her demise.
“Do you truly believe you can overpower a coven?” Abuela asks. “Are you that sure of yourselves?”
“We have been training for these very moments far longer than you have been alive, lady,” Jeremiah says.
“I think a better question is if you think you are strong enough to beat us,” Hikari says.
Will is standing beside her, holding himself upright. He eyes me cautiously, a silent warning. We are weakened by their spell, but we are not powerless. We might not be able to call upon magic—yet—but we know basic tactics. We can beat them. We just have to be smarter. And I like to think that we are.
Malik passes Will a weapon. The dagg
er is sleek, with a slightly curved blade, either intentional or from years of battle. The shiny silver betrays the countless hours he has sharpened its edge. As Will takes the weapon from Malik, I see the worn leather handle, dulled by years of being held by a strong, defiant hand.
I remember my stake. It is snug within the inner breast pocket of my military-style jacket. Silently, I thank Mamá for returning it to me, but a pit forms in my gut when I think of how I plan to use it.
Years of fighting has granted me expert precision. I can slice the pointed tip through the air with such velocity, it will penetrate the thick sternum of muscle and bone to pierce the heart. This is an awful way to kill a witch. I will be forced to watch her fear, her pain, and her agonizing death. Why can’t witches die as quickly as a vampire? Their painless combustion from form to ash seems unfair.
“If you think we are not prepared for this fight, then you are sadly mistaken,” Abuela says.
She eyes another witch. The shift in her vision is so brief, I almost miss it. I am sure the vampires notice the break in her focus, but quickly, her gaze lands back on them. I have seen this same look in her eyes many times before. Except, back then, I was never the target of her wrath.
Everything happens so quickly, I do not have enough time to warn the others. My grandmother nods, and a blast of unified elemental witches assaults my frail frame.
My hand is ripped from Jasik’s, and I am flying. I soar through the air, body limp, as I allow the elements to carry me where they wish, for there is no point in fighting. The vampires withstand the brunt of the attack, using their superior strength to fight against the torrential waves of magic and power.
My allies skid backward but remain upright until the blasts of energy cease, and the witches clasp hands. We are centerfold now, encircled by my coven, awaiting the best they can throw at us.
I slump against the ground, a jagged edge of something sharp stabbing me in the back as I fall into a heap of brush. Something crunches beneath my weight—perhaps something icy or maybe a pointed branch—and the sound radiates all around me. Instantly, I am overcome with fear. I begin my mental check.
Dark Spell Page 2