Awakening, The

by Nicole R. Taylor

  "Technically he's a hybrid...half and half."

  "Ahh," he said thoughtfully. "A vampire fairy." He turned back to the laptop and typed it into the search engine.

  Zac gave Gabby a look and said, "ADD."

  "First things first," she said with a small laugh. "We need to find Katrin's grimoire. Then we'll worry about finding someone to turn. No use worrying about that bit until we have the spell."

  "It could be anywhere," Aya said, rubbing her temples.

  "Katrin gave me a memory. Not a very pleasant one, but one that would link me enough to the grimoire in order to be able to scry for it." The hybrid glanced at her with a frown. "I need a map."

  "What kind of scale are we talking here?" Nye asked. He was still sitting at the desk, the laptop in front of him, fingers poised to type.

  "Well, I think it'd still be in the UK, yes?" Tristan asked. "It was where she lived and died. The Coven didn't spread much further, so it stands to reason that it'd be here someplace. Historians are a funny lot. They don't like to see things leave the country."

  "That's if someone actually kept it," Gabby countered. "It could be buried some place, in another country. Hell, another witch could have it and then we'd be stuffed."

  "We won't know until you scry," Aya said gently.

  Gabby nodded and turned to Nye. "Print out a map of the UK and Ireland."

  "Ah, taking a punt that it's close to home. I like it." The spy winked and a moment later, the printer came to life, spitting out a black and white map.

  "You don't have to scry now," Zac said. "You're worn out."

  Gabby could hear the unspoken words in his voice. Regulus has just died. Your heart is broken. You haven't slept for days. You just went into the land of death to speak with the greatest betrayer of witch-kind. She couldn't hold it against him, or any of them, for trying to take care of her, but there was always going to be a part of her that felt like she didn't deserve it after the stunt she'd pulled faking the Roman's death.

  "He's right, Gabby," Aya agreed. "You should get a good night's sleep, then I'll help you in the morning."

  "Here you go," Nye chortled, handing the map to Gabby with a flourish.

  "I'm doing it now," she said to the vampires. "I won't rest easy until I have, so stop trying to wrap me in cotton wool like I'm about to break." That, she'd do behind closed doors. Continuing Regulus' work defeating the Tuatha was the only thing keeping her together. Once it was done…she would lay down and mourn her lost love. She'd made a promise and she never broke them.

  Ignoring the vampires, she got up from the chair by the fire and stretched out her aching muscles. Running her fingers along the bookshelf where the grimoires sat, she found the bowl of crystals at the end, propping up the ancient tomes like a bookend. Holding each in her palm, she knew that they had once belonged to a different witch. The rose-quartz that sat in her hand had a dull signature on it, a presence that was a telltale sign that it had bee used before. Whoever she was, this witch's grimoire must be sitting on the shelf right in front of her.

  What was Regulus doing with all of these relics? Maybe they'd all been witches in his employ that had died or been murdered. Maybe he'd had them killed? Shivering, she set the crystal down and plucked out a shard of citrine that had been set into a silver clasp with a matching chain. Gabby held it close, the orange and white crystal feeling just right against her skin. Citrine symbolized good fortune and it seemed fitting for their situation.

  Turning back to the desk, she shooed Nye out of the chair and sat, laying out the map. Closing her eyes, she tried to clear the weariness out of her bones and focused on the memory Katrin had given her. It was difficult not to get caught up in it again and feel the pain the founding witch had felt. Concentrating her thoughts onto the grimoire, she held up the crystal over the map and let it swing in a wide circle.

  When she'd scried for Aya months ago, it had been easy. She'd already had a personal connection with the hybrid, so getting a fix on her location was simple, but this was much more difficult. A grimoire, no matter how magical or special, was an inanimate object. It didn't have the same kind of presence as a living, breathing vampire or human. Her only saving grace was the fact that it was made with a physical part of Katrin herself. Without the memory and without the knowledge, there was no hope of this working.

  Gabby's eyes snapped open as the crystal dropped like it weighed a million tones.

  "Where is it?" Nye asked like an excited child.

  She waved him off and pulled the crystal aside. It was stuck to a point north-ish from London, but the map was too small to say exactly where. It looked like it was near Oxford, but there were so many smaller dots around it from neighboring villages, towns and suburb, she wasn't sure. She didn't like it one bit, because she knew someone who lived there and that someone didn't need to be dragged into this mess.

  Turning back to the laptop, Gabby printed out a map of Oxford and set it on top of the desk, hoping with everything she had that she was wrong. Focusing, she let the crystal swing in a circle. This time, it wasn't long until she felt the same pull and the tip of the crystal stuck to the page right over the spot she was dreading. Oxford University. There was probably a library vault full of ancient books and the grimoire was most likely one of them.

  "Oxford," Gabby said, an uneasy feeling rising in her gut.

  "Why does that sound familiar?" Zac asked.

  "Isobel," she said, reluctantly.

  "Isobel…"

  "Alex's sister."

  "Oh, shit."

  "Yeah, shit. She's a student at Oxford University. I can feel a strong connection with the grimoire there."

  "Convenient," Aya said. "Isobel could get us in. Give us information."

  "But…" Gabby started, but she knew it as much as everyone else did. The last thing she wanted was to get Alex's sister involved in all of this, but the greater good and all of that.

  "And she's human," the hybrid said.

  "No," Gabby hissed, standing up. "I won't allow it."

  "We might not have another option."

  Gabby ignored Aya and scrolled through her email, an uneasy feeling in her stomach. She'd sent Isobel a couple of Christmas cards and letters over the years in exchange for a few stories about the places she'd travelled and was sure she still had her address saved somewhere.

  When she finally found it, she began to feel sicker, her skin tingling. Alex would never forgive her and he was definitely one person she didn't want added to the list of people she'd disappointed. Isobel had been a few years ahead of her in school, so outside of hanging out with Liz and Alex, she didn't know her that well. And by the time she was old enough to have something in common with her, she'd gotten a scholarship to study overseas. Isobel was the kind of person who was just good at everything. It didn't surprise Gabby in the least that she was doing her Masters Degree in Sociology and Anthropology and whatever else caught her interest.

  But the bottom line was, Isobel knew nothing about vampires, witches and especially not the Tuatha. There was no fancy degree in that and turning up on her doorstep with crazy stories about supernatural blood feuds…shit, she'd think they were all on drugs. Dragging her into it more than that was out of the question. Isobel was their way into the University and nothing more.

  "Okay, I have her address," she said with a sigh. "Let's get going if we're doing this."

  "We can wait until mornin'," Tristan said.

  "Yeah, it's only an hour or so away," Nye agreed.

  "We're on the clock," she replied, shaking her head at the vampire's inflated sense of time. "There's no time to rest with an insane hybrid on the loose. It's now or not at all."

  Zac sat in the back of Nye's car, squashed between Aya and Tristan. If there were anymore of them, they'd have to look into getting a minivan. Gabby's sense of urgency had rattled them all and secretly, he agreed with her. Better to tackle this one now than wait any longer, especially since they didn't have a plan outside of the grimoire
and certainly no way of killing or incapacitating everyone's favorite psycho hybrid. If it meant waking up Alex's sister, Isobel, in the middle of the night with a crazy ass story, then so be it. He certainly wasn't above compulsion and knowing Aya, she'd probably get to it way before he could.

  Nye was driving and Gabby was beside him, staring out the window. Zac peered at her in the darkness, trying to understand why she kept pushing herself. She'd run herself almost into the ground and it worried him. After everything she'd been through with Regulus then Katrin…he was amazed at her drive, but that might be the only thing that was keeping her going.

  The darkness slowly morphed into the orange glow of the city of Oxford. As they drove through the streets towards the address Gabby had given them for Isobel's apartment, the buildings became older and the streets narrower. It was late out, but there were still a lot of people hanging around. Christmas decorations hung across the streets and the remnants of a festive looking market were being packed away.

  Nye pulled the car into a space in a back street and killed the engine. "Last stop," he said, opening his door.

  The vampires piled out and Gabby pointed to the block that housed Isobel's apartment. "This is the building. We want number eight."

  Looking up at the facade, Zac noticed a light illuminating one of the top windows. Someone was at home and still awake. As they walked across the street, Zac tugged Gabby back into his side. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, glancing at the other vampires who'd kept going.

  "I can't stop, Zac," she whispered into his ear. "I made a promise and I have to keep it."

  "Not if it kills you. I don't think he would want to see you die because of this."

  "Someone's gonna die, but it's not me."

  He gave her a small smile and pushed her gently forward. "Go on then, Tabitha. I've got your back."

  The entrance to the block of apartments was a tiny door set into the stone facade, leading into a dark foyer with a rickety looking staircase. There were two doors at the bottom, numbered one and two. Zac supposed they had to go right to the top. Aya went first, followed by Gabby and then the three male vampires. They moved as silently as they could, not wanting to tip off anyone who might be inside that they were coming.

  Gabby paused on the landing before the last flight of stairs, her brow furrowed. "I can sense Isobel, but…there's someone with her, but I can't sense them."

  "There's a vampire in there," Aya declared, her lip curling in a snarl.

  "Aed?" Tristan asked, his jaw stiffening.

  "No, it's not Aed," Gabby said.

  "Then he's got a lackey," Nye declared. "Who else would want to suck a poor little University student into their web?"

  "We'll hang back," Zac said, gesturing to Tristan and Nye. "We can't get in without an invite, but we'll be here if they come out."

  "I'll come with you," Aya said. "If things get ugly, I'll end it."

  They climbed the last flight of stairs and he hung back with Tristan and Nye, waiting to see what would happen.

  Gabby stood at the door at the end of the hall and Aya stopped beside her, just out of direct view of whoever was inside. Raising her fist, the witch knocked. A moment later the door opened and Zac caught a whiff of someone very human.

  "Gabby?"

  Zac gathered this must be Isobel, even though he couldn't see her. Her accent was very American, with a little twinge of British which gave away that she'd lived here for a few years.

  "Hey, Izzy," Gabby replied. "Um, surprise?"

  "What are you doing here? In Oxford, I mean."

  There was the sound of fast moving air and Isobel let out a surprised scream. Gabby put out a hand to stop Aya from moving forward, but the hybrid peered around the corner into the apartment.

  "You know a fucking witch?" A male voice said, low and angry. "He said nothing about a witch."

  Gabby still motioned for them to stay back, but Zac was having none of it. Stepping into the doorway, he saw what all the fuss was about. A man had his arms wrapped around a woman with the reddest hair he'd ever seen, a look of pure anger on his face. Anger at being interrupted, apparently. One look at the guy's changing eyes confirmed what he already knew. Vampire.

  All Zac had to do was brush his finger against Aya's and she knew exactly what he wanted. Before anyone could react, she was inside, across the room, her hand on the vampire's head. She pushed him away from Isobel and he let out an annoyed roar, but it was cut short as she snapped his neck.

  Isobel stared at Aya in shock before her eyes flickered down to the vampire who was lying on the floor, his neck at an odd angle.

  Nye drew in a deep breath, spreading his arms out wide. "That, my friends, is the scent of victory! I like this being good thing. The good guys get to win more often. I like it."

  Isobel stumbled backward and as her knees hit the edge of the sofa, she fell backward into it. "You killed him," she stammered.

  "I didn't kill him," Aya said with a sigh. "If he were dead, you'd need a bucket of bleach."

  "Aya," Gabby hissed at the hybrid, who just shrugged. She stepped inside and sat next to Isobel, who didn't quite understand what was happening. "She's been compelled."

  "Obviously," the hybrid said with a roll of her eyes.

  "What's going on?" Isobel asked, glancing between the vampires. "Gabby, who are these people?"

  "I'm sorry to show up like this, Izzy, but it's important. This is Aya," she said, pointing to the hybrid. "Those fools out there are Zac, Nye and Tristan."

  "Why are they standing in the door like that?"

  "They need to be invited in."

  "What?" Isobel looked at her like she was mad.

  "You say, 'come in' and then we...come in," Nye said. "Easy peasy."

  "We're the good guys, Izzy," Gabby added.

  "And who was he meant to be?" She pointed to the dead vampire. "He did some freaky thing with his eyes and…I just told him things. I couldn't stop it…Gabby, who is he? Who are you? He looked at you and was afraid."

  "She is rather bitchy at times," Zac said from out in the hall, a little tired of being left out of the action.

  "Ignore him," Gabby said. "That guy on your floor is a vampire. He's not dead, not really. He'll wake up soon enough."

  Isobel looked at the vampire, then to Aya and back to Gabby. "A fucking vampire? Are you on drugs?"

  Aya let out a snort of laughter. "I wish I was on drugs right now. That's how well this conversation is going."

  "Shit, Aya," Gabby hissed at her again. "I'm trying the gentle approach."

  "Vampires?" Isobel asked again. "They're vampires?" She was pointing at the vampires out in the hall and Zac gave her a little wave.

  "Nice ones," Nye said and Tristan kicked him in the shin.

  "Can we come in yet? We're not going to eat her," Zac put in.

  "I have to invite you in before you can come inside a human's home," Isobel said like she was working out a puzzle. After a minute, she looked up at Zac. "Show me."

  "Show you what?" he asked, frowning at Gabby, who nodded.

  "Show me that you can't get in."

  With an exasperated sigh, he kicked the fresh air that was the opening to the apartment and his foot hit right at the threshold as if there was a pane of glass where the entrance should've been.

  "No way," Isobel said, her eyes wide. This time it wasn't shock, but curious surprise. "Do it again."

  "No," Zac said. "Just invite us in so we can get this show on the road."

  Isobel turned to Aya. "How did you get in? Did you do that crazy ass eye thing, too? You snapped that fucker's neck like butter."

  Knowing the compulsion that had been put on her by the guy on the floor had broken the moment she'd snapped his neck, Aya just shrugged. "I thought this one was going to be annoying for a while there," Aya said, grinning at Gabby. "I think I might like her."

  "How'd you do it?" Isobel asked again. "Are you the girl Alex has a crush on? You're THE Aya, right?"

 
Aya might like her, but Zac was starting to become very annoyed. "Uh, she's mine," he called out.

  "Oh, fucking come in already," Isobel said with a laugh and the vampires came into the small apartment, Tristan closing the door behind them.

  "You're taking this very well, Izzy," Gabby said. "Most people freak out."

  "Um," she began. "I have a little confession."

  Zac glanced at Gabby, starting to become a little concerned.

  "Alex sent me an email, months ago now, asking about some crazy stuff regarding the vampire myth. There was one reference I gave him that was so obscure, I didn't think much of it. Not until I dug a little deeper."

  Zac knew exactly what Isobel was talking about. He remembered it like it was yesterday. When he thought Aya was dead and Arturius came fishing around for Gabby, he'd called Aya by a strange name. Alex had mentioned it to Isobel in hopes that they might find a clue about Aya's heritage. Isobel had come back with an obscure reference, 'Aericura, the raven-haired star, her purity taken by devils'.

  "I've been working on it for months," Isobel continued. "But I never thought any of it was real. I mean, this is fucking crazy."

  "She swears a lot more than Alex," Aya said.

  "Are you her?"

  "Who's her?"

  "Aericura."

  Aya glanced at Zac.

  "You are," Isobel said like it was the greatest discovery of her career.

  "Listen, Izzy," Gabby interrupted. "We're not here for a research session. We came because we need your help."

  "My help? For what?"

  "We're looking for a grimoire and we believe it's in your University," Aya said.

  "I know it's there," Gabby said. "Without a doubt."

  "A grimoire? You mean a witch's spell book?" Isobel asked, looking at Gabby.

  She held up her hand and shrugged. "Witch."

  "No fucking way," she exclaimed. "What do you need it for? I'm guessing you're in some kind of supernatural trouble or something. Wait, if you're in deep shit and this guy shows up..." She pointed at the dead vampire. "Then someone else wants the same thing."

  "We're hunting a three thousand old member of the Tuatha De Danann royal family, who was turned into a vampire."