“I don’t want to argue. You’re here. We’re finally all back together.” Alena pressed her lips to mine.
Her warm soft skin and the feel of her body against mine had me wishing we could forget all the mayhem surrounding us and more so the tens of people trying to ignore us making out in front of them.
Ending the kiss, I pressed my lips to her forehead. “I’m glad you’re okay. Let’s not repeat that with Theron, okay?”
“I won’t, but—”
“Stop fighting.” Camille wrapped her arms around Alena. “Everyone’s safe.”
Seeing my mother and grandparents enter the garage, I jogged to them.
“Hunter.” Mom hugged me. “It’s been so long. I was worried.”
“Everything’s good. I’m fine.” I hugged Grandma and Grandpa.
Anne said Mom had been taking care of DJ, and my first question for her was about him.
“He’s struggling.”
“I want to see him.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea.” Mom caught my sleeve as I walked away.
“I need to know.” Alena, Camille, and the rest of them followed me inside and to the medical ward.
“Hunter—” Mom wrapped an arm around my back, explaining how he—or the spirit controlling him, I guessed—tried everything to escape: faked a seizure, choking, ripped the furniture apart, and started hurting himself. “We’ve had to keep him sedated for his own safety.”
DJ sat comatose, leaning up against a padded wall, drooling from one side of his mouth where a tube exited his mouth and was taped to the side of his cheek.
“What are you doing to him?” I demanded.
“He won’t eat. If he rips the feeding tube out again, we’re going to have to knock him out and put him on an IV drip.”
“This is unacceptable.” I pounded my fist into the wall across from them.
My bones cracked, and I wrapped my other hand around the bloody digits, forcing magic into my broken fingers.
“Hunter.” Alena ran her hand down my back.
“This isn’t right. We have to do something to help him.”
“We will.”
“I have to go to the covens and help them see they have to stop Sonia.”
“That isn’t even a remotely acceptable plan. Sonia will eat you for dinner. Don’t you remember what happened in Mexico City?” Alena shook her head.
“The tides are turning. We’re gaining momentum. A small coven was reported missing. Vampires are getting smarter about their tactics. Witches will be swayed. We just have to find the right ones.”
Alena paced in front of me. “So, we wait for them to come to us then. If you make me a full witch now, we break the curse. Then, Sonia won’t have any more souls to harvest from Sheol.”
“If your father hadn’t warned Hunter against it, I would side with you.” Camille stood beside Alena.
“What if we make a list of all the witches Chalondra and Orm know, call them, talk to them via phone or video conference?” I asked.
“Still too risky. If one of them is aligned with Sonia, she’ll know we’re making a move against her.” Alena shook her head.
“She has to know we’re going to make a move. We need more muscle. I can go back to the faeries.”
Dimitri cracked his knuckles. “We can amass vampires. The unregistered ones don’t care about killing witches.”
“We can’t have unchecked vampires in my facility.” Anne spoke for the first time since the beginning of the conversation. “My army will have to be enough.”
“Mom, you want more vampires to be highjacked? Abducted?”
“No, I agree something must be done. This is not your problem though. It’s a vampire problem. I will contact Sonia, go to Italy if I have to.”
“Mom, you’re not going anywhere without our protection.”
“We have our suits.”
“That’s the key.” I jumped from my seat. “Vampires with the crystal-clad suits. Can we make more?”
“The cave is a protected landmark. We can’t mine more, but we can repurpose the crystals we have. Perhaps make lighter suits with modern fabrics. I can put some of my researchers on the task.”
That afternoon we started training with weapons, learning to use our muscle rather than our magic. Alena, Jude, and the vampires had an advantage when it came to speed and strength. Camille, Tyler, and I had to be in top fighting form.
Alena’s weapon of choice became a bow and arrow. I liked that she could be of use from a distance. Her speed and strength were an advantage at close range, and it seemed the arrows rounded out her skills. Camille chose a long lightweight sword and became skilled at throwing it a good distance. The days ticked by, but my mind wouldn’t focus enough to figure out what worked best for me.
As keeper of the lance, it would always be at my side, but I needed something more.
“What?” I demanded of Orm.
He scuffled across the floor and, pointing at a blade fixed to the wall above his head, levitated a sword to me. The grip covered my palm, and the wide blade had good weight. I wrapped both my palms around it and sliced the air in front of me.
“It suits you.” Orm smiled.
“Where did this come from?”
“It is believed to be King Arthur’s sword.”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“That’s the thing about legends. They only matter to those that believe.”
I tightened my hold on the grip and slashed the punching bag in front of me. “It’s sharp.”
Orm shrugged. “All of Anne’s weapons are in perfect condition.”
Sparring with Dimitri, I worked my muscles until they seared with wear and sweat poured from my forehead. Although the vampires rallied around the call to arms, our efforts to gain more support in the witch community failed. In the plus column, Anne’s researchers engineered a lighter magic-blocking suit, but they only had enough crystals for two hundred. We estimated Sonia’s army to be five times that.
I poured all my frustration into my workouts, and by week’s end, even with his speed, I could best Jude.
“What have you been eating? Magic muscle food?” Jude doubled over, panting.
“Gotta channel this frustration somewhere. I’m going to go crazy if we don’t make a move soon.”
“You think that’s wise before Alena is a full witch.” He blocked my shot.
I forced his sword to the ground. “Alena’s not going anywhere near Sonia, Theron, or St. Maurice’s sword.”
“You’re going to try and keep her out of it?”
“Anne will back me on it.”
Spinning away from him, I caught sight of a weight ball connected to a thick chain. Beside it, a net of metal chain hung on a hook. Abandoning our match, I studied the wall of weapons. That was it; these were the key.
“Look.” I pointed to the instruments. “If we fashion ropes out of the crystal-studded material, we could incapacitate an enemy, make them unable to perform magic. And all it took was one crystal the size of a dime. We could fix the crystals to arrows.”
“You’re brilliant.” Jude dropped his sword.
We wound through the halls to Anne’s office and then followed her to the research lab. The top guy halted his machines.
“This is major. We’ll have to do some testing, but . . . brilliant.” He slapped me on the back.
“Okay.” Anne folded her hands together. “We’ll look forward to testing those in a couple of days. I do have the results of the carbon-dating on the lance.”
She motioned to a conference table and we sat down. “My scientists tell me that the blade is actually bone dating from approximately 150,000 to 300,000 years ago.”
I swallowed. “Bone? What type of bone?”
“Human, most likely a rib judging from the size.” Anne folded her hands on the table.
“Isn’t that when the first homo sapiens appeared?” Jude stared at me.
My stomach soured at the thought of me holding a human ri
b. “Where would Longinus have gotten something like that?”
Jude shook his head. “This just gets weirder and weirder by the day.”
“Well, that’s as much information as they could get on it.” Standing, she motioned for us to follow her. “We’re gathering for dinner in an hour. You should clean up.”
Making my way to my quarters, I wondered about the dinner event. Our training had been so intense, the cafeteria staff worked round the clock, and we grabbed food as we got hungry. After showering, I found a long table set for a formal dinner in the dining room.
“What’s going on?” I whispered to Alena.
“No idea.” She hooked her arm through mine.
We sat around the table with Anne, Jacob, Will, Aaron, Dimitri, Chalondra and Orm, Camille and Tyler, their parents Janine and Grady, and my mom. I could feel it, an undercurrent of change, and it pricked at my nerves as we ate. As the dessert dishes were cleared, Anne set her napkin on the table and cleared her throat.
“We’ve decided you’ve had enough training for a while, and you need to go back home.”
Alena jumped from her seat. “You’re kidding, right? What about Sonia and Thanatos?”
“They’ve had every opportunity to come for you. It’s not like we’re sending you there alone. You’ll be well guarded. We just believe you’re due for some teenager time. Go back to school, go to prom, graduate with your friends.” Anne rose and paced behind us.
Camille laid her napkin on the table. “I’m not leaving Alena and Hunter. Iceland is too far away.”
“You won’t be going to Iceland. You can go to school with Alena,” her mom said.
“Graduate from high school? Like normal people.” Alena rolled her chair back.
“You kept up with your classes at the compound in Mexico. It won’t take you long to catch up again.” Anne laid her hands on her hips.
I pushed my chair back and stood. “So, we go back to high school, like nothing is wrong? We’re making progress here. The weapons will be ready in a week, and we can attack Sonia within two. This is urgent. DJ can’t stay like this. Sonia can’t be allowed to amass more troops.”
“Mom, we decide our path, not you,” Alena insisted.
Chalondra cleared her throat. “Perhaps some background is in order. We think you’ve lost sight of what this all means, are caught up in this rivalry with Sonia, and forgotten who witches are supposed to be. You’ve heard Anne’s story and her experience with Sonia as well as Orm’s viewpoint on living in a coven, but most witches have lived among humans for centuries, happily and peacefully.”
Chalondra proceeded to tell us her father went to college and became a doctor, healed wounds and illnesses otherwise untreatable. Her mother served as a midwife, helping deliver babies and sometimes saving infants. Born June 21, 1899, Chalondra wanted to teach history.
“On my seventeenth birthday, the visions of Longinus and the lance began. My family circumvented the globe, searching for information about the prophecy and the other two of the trinity. We found where each was buried, one succumbed to a mysterious illness none could heal, and the other took her own life after going mad from the visions.”
Returning to the United States, they traveled west and settled in Los Angeles. “I found Eden and Fahim there. I helped unaffiliated vampires and other souls come to terms with their gifts and tried to guide them to use their potential for good as Eden and Fahim did.”
I shifted forward in my seat. “What other type of souls do you mean? Do you know others who may help us?”
“Underground werewolves mostly. Elves sometimes. But these types of beings are hard to find and unstable at best. They couldn’t be trusted.” She rose. “This is not the point of the story, my family lived among humans, helping where we could, finding joy in sharing our gifts. My destiny became helping souls like us find peace. This work benefits vampires, witches, and humans alike.”
Frustrated, I sprung from my chair. “But we can’t ignore the threat from Sonia. What she’s doing isn’t right.”
“Hunter.” My mom caught my arm. “That’s not what we’re asking. You can’t go after Sonia until the army is ready. Meanwhile, go back to LA, finish high school, go to prom, be a teenager. You’ll never get this time back.”
I shook my head. “Or, we can because our lives will span a thousand years. High school is nothing compared to that. This is too important to ignore.”
Anne stood. “We agree, Hunter. But your mother is right. Nothing can be done until Alena is made a full witch. That’s seven weeks away.”
Clearing his throat, Grady drew our attention. “I grew up much like Chalondra did. My family lived among humans. Being healers, we sought to help when it made sense. My father was the town doctor, and I in turn went to medical college, earning my degree and joining my father in his practice. I fled when vampires killed my parents and siblings, living much like a gypsy until I met Janine. When Camille started seeing Alena and Hunter, I knew she had to be protected. I thought if I left, and never exposed her to magic, she would be safe. I realize now that you cannot avoid destiny. You three are the chosen ones, and I believe you will know when the time is right. Do you feel that now?”
I patted the lance, thinking it ludicrous that I considered this thing at my side a being unto itself. “The blade feels content with me.”
Grady looked between Alena and Camille. “And what of you, are you at peace?”
“Not with more vampires being taken each day.” Camille rolled her chair back.
Alena wrapped her hand around mine. “But, they’re right. The vampire army is our best shot. We have to wait for them to be ready. We have no idea what’s going to happen when we break this curse. I’d like to see my friends again, have some closure.”
I balled my hand into a fist. None of us would be safe until Sonia and my father were gone. “Unless we use Lucifer’s army. We could march tomorrow. Are we really going to allow Sonia and Thanatos to remain alive after what they’ve done? Didn’t you learn anything by Sonia’s last imprisonment? It wasn’t enough.”
Camille studied Jude. “I vote for going back to school. I know it probably can’t be in Iceland, but at least I’d get to text and email my friends back home. Let them know I’m okay. Say goodbye.”
“You can come to school with me. All of us can go to school together.” Alena jumped up, her ponytail bobbing on her head.
I pictured her in her cheerleader outfit and couldn’t deny that I’d much rather be in school than dealing with evil body-snatching witches. The voice in my head twitched. I needed to save DJ. Why give in? Make them listen to you. No, I thought, I am doing this the right way.
“Fine, Tyler can come to school with me and Jude with Alena and Camille, make sense?” I dropped to my seat, defeated.
“I already finished high school,” Tyler scoffed.
“Hunter can’t be left alone,” Grady noted.
I hated that it was true, but if Sonia or Thanatos came after me, I’d need backup.
“You got your degree in Iceland. You may need a US diploma for school in the States anyway,” Janine offered. “It’s only for a few weeks.”
“Maybe you might even make a friend.” Camille made bug eyes at her brother.
“I had friends in Iceland. Lots of them before all this craziness happened.”
“It was your choice to join us.” Camille bumped her shoulder to his.
Anne arranged condos for each family in her high rise, and the next morning, we boarded a jet for LA. Alena weaved her fingers through mine as we took our seats. “Who are you going to call first?”
“Layla and Jacob. They are going to freak when they see the condo.”
Alena stared at me. “You know you can’t bring them there. It’s too dangerous.”
“My whole life is too dangerous.”
“Good thing you’re a powerful witch god.” She smiled and planted a kiss on my lips.
Snapping my seatbelt in place, I pictured how I migh
t ask her to prom. With only one week to the event, I needed to think fast. Perhaps Jude and I could team up and help each other. I figured he’d want to take Camille. My phone dinged, and I picked it up.
What are you thinking about? Alena’s text read.
Why are you texting me?
Because it’s fun.
I laughed. You’re a ding bat.
No, I’m a vampire bat. She added an emoji of a female vampire.
On the flight, I brainstormed ideas for the big prom-ask video. By the end of the flight, I had my lyrics, as amended from Pilot’s Magic, circa 1975. I remember my mom playing the song while she cleaned and telling me it reminded her of my grandma doing housework.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, you’re magic, I know
I won’t ever believe it’s not so
You have to be magic, I know
I have to believe it’s just so
Never been to prom
Never seen a dance so big
Thinking about you today
Thinking that maybe you’d like to come
Dance with me at the prom
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, you’re magic, I know
I won’t ever believe it’s not so
You have to be magic, I know
I have to believe it’s just so
So tell me straight
Am I too late
Cause thinking of you
I have to know
Please, will you be my date for prom?
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, you’re magic, I know
I won’t ever believe it’s not so
You have to be magic, I know
I have to believe it’s just so
Okay, yes, it sounded a bit hokey, but those things were supposed to be that way. I just had to conjure myself a decent singing voice.
The sun sat high in the sky as we touched down in LA. Winding through the palm-tree-lined streets, I remembered my life prior to this circus. It made me think of DJ and how he might never see his friends again. Really, I had no right to claim him. We’d only known each other for a couple of weeks before he’d been soul-jacked. Still, I felt this unmistakable connection to him. He was my blood, and I would make things right for him.
Kingdom of War (Kingdom Journals Book 4) Page 16