by L. Danvers
He narrowed his brown eyes, not buying any of it. “Weren’t you in the hospital when she first ditched you?”
“Actually, I was here.”
Nathaniel placed his hand on my shoulder. “How are you healing, by the way?”
I lifted my shirt, revealing my abdomen. Nathaniel leaned back, cocking his head to the side. “That looks gnarly.” He shivered. “So, anyway... we were talking about Grace. You said that she came back to tell you that she was leaving again?”
“No, she planned to stay. But then some guy named Xander showed up and told her that his uncle was in the hospital. Then she got all weird and left.”
“An uncle, huh?”
“No, really. His uncle is that travel blogger in Quarter Square. Apparently, he’s an old friend of Grace’s.”
“Wait. You don’t mean that blogger my mom is all googly-eyes over?” Shaking his head, Nathaniel got up and helped himself to a beer in my fridge. He brought one over to me, too. He took a long swig before setting it down on the coffee table and resting his hand on his knees. “Have you texted her?”
“She lost her phone.”
He looked at me for a moment as if he were debating what to say. I knew the whole thing must sound stupid from his perspective. I trusted Grace, though.
“How much do you really know about this Grace girl anyway?”
“What are you getting at?” I asked, a defensive tone rising in my throat.
“Madison said she just showed up at the Sunny Side Grille out of the blue one day.”
“So?”
He shrugged. “Maybe it’s nothing.” He started tapping his finger on his kneecap. “Have you stalked her on social media?”
“That would require me using social media, remember?”
“Oh, right. I forget you’re still living in the Dark Ages.” He pulled out his phone. “What’s her last name again?”
“Addington.”
He typed in the name and frowned. “She’s not on Facebook.” He began pulling up other apps, too. “Or Twitter. Or any other social media site.”
“Maybe she’s not into that stuff either.”
He shot me a look, then got back to typing.
“What are you doing now?” I asked, growing bored with sitting and waiting for him to find whatever it was that he was looking for.
“Googling her.”
“Seriously, Nathaniel?”
“You can’t just date someone without looking up everything about them. What if she’s some sort of psycho?”
I was starting to get angry. “She is not some psycho. She left to go visit someone in the hospital. She’ll come back.” I snatched the phone out of his hands. I was sick of this. I cared about Grace, and I didn’t need to Google her past to prove that she was trustworthy. But the first search result caught my eye when I jerked the phone from Nathaniel, and I couldn’t help but read it.
“What?” he asked, leaning in closer so that he could see, too. “What did you find?”
“Oh,” I gulped, “just about a hundred articles about a missing person who perfectly fits the name and description of my girlfriend.”
Grace
“That’s impossible,” I said breathlessly. My head was spinning. I’d killed him myself. I’d watched him die.
And then it hit me.
Back in Quarter Square, I’d read about something in one of the grimoires...
But it couldn’t be. That was downright evil, even for Reed.
Or was it? My disgusting excuse for a father was evil incarnate.
“What did you do to Nick?” I hissed, fighting now with all my might to break free from the restraints. The chair rocked from side to side, its legs thumping against the wooden floor. Yes, I had my powers. And now, I finally remembered how to use them. But I needed my hands in order to cast spells.
Reed just smirked. “You know, I was impressed when I learned it had taken Sofia two vials of powder to wipe your memories. That’s my girl.” He winked. “I had your memories wiped to get you out of the way. But I have to admit it’s so much more enjoyable now that you’re fighting back, Grace.”
“What did you do to him?” I hissed.
He cocked his head to the side. “I think you already know.”
“Body jumping.” I shook my head in disgust. “You switched consciousnesses with Nick, didn’t you? That’s why you were mumbling to yourself as I killed you! You were casting a spell!”
Reed only eyed me, enjoying watching me putting the pieces together. “I did warn you about the prophecy, didn’t I? Carlisle twins—one good, one evil. One destined to kill the other.”
“Nick was good—in spite of you! He was good. And you... you...”
He cackled. “Who said I was talking about Nick?”
I gritted my teeth so hard they ached. “You killed him, not me. You were the one who was supposed to die that night.” And then the reality that I’d spent four entire years thinking this monster before me was my twin set in. How had I not put the pieces together sooner? “How did you do it? How did you keep the act up for so long? And why are you giving yourself away now? Is this the part where you rattle off some ridiculous monologue before you kill me?”
“I never said anything about killing you, Grace,” he said coolly. “You’re the one who broke into my office. You were the one rummaging through my things. Believe me, if I wanted you dead right now, you’d be dead.”
“Then what’s the point of all of this?”
He laughed. “Now that you’re the last of my bloodline, I have rather big plans for you. But that’ll come much later.” He clasped his hands behind his back and paced, smiling in amusement at my current situation. “As for why, well, it won’t hurt to share that with you now. I needed to keep you from opening the portal. At least, until I was ready for it to be opened.”
“Why? What difference does it make to you? You already outed the supernaturals. You already won.”
He snickered at that. “You think that was the end of my plan? Oh, Grace. I’m just getting started.” He stopped short and rubbed his chin. Turning toward me, he asked, “Did I ever tell you about what happened to my father?”
I shook my head. Between him making up stories about stupid prophecies, vowing to bring down the Blood Heirs and starting a war between the supernaturals and humans, it hadn’t come up.
Paying no mind to the look of contempt on my face, Reed continued with his tale. “I know it might be hard for you to understand since you weren’t raised within the coven—”
“Because you threw me aside like I was a piece of garbage.”
“Because I was trying to protect Nick from you,” he hissed. “You were stronger than him, even as a baby. The Carlisle men are the ones who are meant to lead.” His eyes flashed, but then an eerie calm took over. “As I was saying, once, the Carlisle and Albright covens were united. But thanks to Claudia Albright casting the spell that turned the siblings, our covens became bitter rivals. Once Claudia died, her coven was overwhelmed with guilt. They created the boundary around Crescent Cape—even sent their witches to live with the Blood Heirs. Meanwhile, our coven committed ourselves to actively working against them. Centuries passed, and then my father came into power. It was his dream to reunite the covens. We’d never been able to take out the vampires and werewolves on our own. But perhaps, if we formed an alliance with our rival coven, together we could be the undoing of the prince and his siblings. Anyway, my father had arranged to meet up with Jonathan Albright, the leader at that time, at a designated spot in the woods. But when he arrived, Prince Aiden was there waiting. He killed your grandfather.”
He said that as if that was supposed to mean something to me. I never knew my grandfather, and I already had a million other reasons why Aiden was not one of my favorite people. “And?”
“You asked me why I’m doing this, and I’m telling you. I was just a boy when my father was killed. It took years for me to build up my coven to the glory of what it once was. It took ye
ars of secret meetings with the Albrights to earn their trust. It took years of conspiring with witches in other realms to unleash my wrath upon that wretched family. And I’m just getting started.”
I feigned a yawn, not willing to give him the satisfaction of reacting to his big reveal of what was undoubtedly a diabolical plan. “And?”
“Torturing the family was for my amusement. And I must admit, it did bring me great joy. But now, I will get the ultimate revenge. I will undo them.”
My brow wrinkled. “Undo them?”
“I believe I have discovered a way to lift the curses of vampirism and lycanthropy. To strip the vampires and werewolves of their power. To make them human. Not just the Blood Heirs and Julian—all of them. And then,” he said, flashing a bright white smile, “when they are at their weakest, when they have no choice but to beg for my mercy, I will get my revenge.”
I balled my hands into fists. I could feel my blood boiling. Reed was downright psychotic. And idiotic if he thought for one second that I’d let him lay a hand on any of my friends. Anger swelled in my chest and spiderwebbed through my veins.
A pain-stricken cry echoed into the night, and my thoughts jumped to Ben. He’d drank Xander’s blood earlier today. If he died with it in his system...
I shot daggers at Reed with my eyes and narrowed them. I unleashed a surge of power from my fingertips. I’d thought my magic wouldn’t do me any good while I was tied up, but I didn’t need to attack him—yet. I needed to get free.
Grace
Flames singed the ropes that bound my wrists, and their ashes fell to the ground. My wrists were raw and red and oozing with blood, and I could smell my burning flesh, but I swallowed the pain. Shoving the chair back as I bolted upright, I channeled all of my anger toward my father.
I thought of how he had abandoned me as a child, all while keeping my twin as his own. I thought of how he had tormented my friends. I thought of how much death and destruction had occurred because of his supernatural war. I thought of what a coward he was to have swapped consciousnesses with Nick, making me murder him instead—his own son. I thought of the years he spent keeping up the charade, manipulating my emotions. I thought of how he had thwarted my quests to obtain faerie dust—the one ingredient I needed in order to unseal the portal and get Danielle back. I thought of how he had robbed me of my memories and tortured Xander. I thought of all the time he had stolen from me. And finally, I thought of how much I hated him.
Reed might be powerful, but so was I.
Letting my rage fuel me, an overwhelming surge of power coursed through me. A flash of energy escaped my palms, and Reed slammed against the door.
I thought about making a run for it, but I realized that if I had any hope of interfering with his plans, the best way to do so was to get my hands on the magical objects he stole. I didn’t have time to search his whole office, but I was betting I knew where the most valuable of them was hiding.
While Reed was getting to his feet, I darted for the filing cabinet and pulled out the safe. But I felt a strong force thrash against my back, knocking the air out of me. The safe thudded on the floor as my chest caved. I struggled to breathe.
Just then, the office door burst open. Witches filed into the room, curious to see what the commotion was about. Reed told them the situation was under control, but I wasn’t going to go quietly. Channeling the storm of emotions brewing within me, I swished my hands while I uttered a spell, making the air in the room swirl like a tornado. Strands of my blonde hair whipped wildly against my cheeks, and some of the other witches in the room reached for the tables and bookshelves—anything they could hold on to. One wasn’t so lucky and got swept up in my windstorm. She flew through the air and hit her head on the ceiling before falling swiftly to the ground.
Two more figures emerged from the shadowy hall, the taller one covering his face with his forearm to shield himself from the wind. Thinking at first that it was more witches rushing to Reed’s defense, I readied myself to blow the winds in their direction.
But then a familiar voice called out to me. “Grace!”
Xander. My heart jumped. I wanted to tell him that I had my memories back. That I knew exactly who he was now—and that I remembered how much he meant to me. I remembered our friendship, our history. And I was so sorry for how I’d spoken to him in recent days. If I’d only known...
As he stepped forward, I realized something was lodged into his chest. A wooden stake. Devastation washed over me, and I let out a shriek. The winds fell silent, and the papers, books and trinkets that had been swirling overhead came to a sudden halt and rained down upon us.
“I take it that I was right,” was all that Xander said as he reached for the stake that was wedged in his chest and removed it, groaning as blood gushed from the wound. As soon as it was out, he held the scarlet-stained weapon in his hand and twirled it, aiming the sharp end toward the person he thought was my brother.
How was that possible? He’d said he was stronger than most vampires. But how could a vampire take a stake to the chest—and live?
The witches linked hands while Reed just stood there smiling. They began chanting, and all at once, the glass window behind me shattered. A gust a hundred times stronger than the one I’d used against them thrust Xander, Ben and me out the window. We slammed into the rough gravel and broken glass. There was blood everywhere, and it felt like I had a thousand needles piercing my skin. My head was throbbing, and my surroundings faded in and out. I knew I was losing consciousness, but there was nothing I could do to stop it.
Reed was cackling like the maniac he was. As his minions circled behind him, he stepped forward, daring Xander—who was already back on his feet—to make the first move.
My headache started to overwhelm me. I closed my eyes. Ben was shouting for Xander to stop, but Xander let out a feral sound, and I knew he wasn’t just going to walk away.
I tried opening my mouth to call out his name, but I was in too much agony. I forced my eyes open, watching in anticipation and terror as the world went all wibbly-wobbly around me.
Not one to back down, Xander stumbled forward. His shirt was saturated with blood now, but his wound had started to heal.
I didn’t understand—I thought wooden stakes were fatal to vampires. But he was still very much alive. Well, as alive as a vampire could be...
He charged toward Reed, his brow furrowed in such determination that I had no doubt he’d rip all of the witches’ hearts out—and enjoy every second of it. But then he slammed into an invisible force so hard that it knocked him onto his back.
“Xander,” I managed to call out, my voice uncharacteristically weak as I free-fell into darkness.
Xander
I pounded my fist against the gravel, a guttural growl exploding from my lungs. The Carlisle witches had cast a boundary spell around their compound. But this wasn’t the same kind of boundary spell that once enveloped Crescent Cape, merely hiding it from the outside world. I could still see them as plain as day standing in that mess of an office with stupid satisfied grins on their faces.
Nick padded forward, shaking his head. “Tsk Tsk Tsk. Looks like a nasty wound,” he said, gesturing with his head toward Grace, who I now realized was sprawled across the ground, passed out cold. Uncle Ben was curled into a ball on the ground, and I thanked my lucky stars he was still breathing. Since he’d ingested some of my blood earlier today, if he’d been killed, he would have begun to transition. And he’d hold that against me for the rest of his immortal life. “I suggest you tend to her before it’s too late.”
“Why would you let us go?” I asked, throwing my hands up in the air. “What’s the point of all of this? Why not just kill us now?”
He threw his head back in laughter. Then an eerie calm came over him, and his blazing blue eyes narrowed. “Oh, Xander. Believe me, when I want you dead, you will be.” He shooed me away like a fly. “Go on, now.”
Everything in me wanted to beat the living daylights out o
f that little rat, but I’d been around long enough to know when it was time to stand down. With Grace unconscious, there would be no way to get through that boundary spell.
Ignoring the witches’ snickering, I marched over to Uncle Ben and helped him to his feet. “Can you walk?” I asked.
He winced as he nodded. “I’ll be okay. It’s just my arm.” He jerked his head to Grace. “Go get your girl.”
I let out a heavy exhale as I walked toward her. It was a strange thing to see Grace unconscious—she looked so helpless. I crouched down and scooped her up in my arms. She had a nasty gash across her forehead, and shards of broken glass had scraped her cheeks and hands. Her leather jacket had shielded her from the worst of it at least. She needed help, but not here. Not where her demon-spawn brother and his henchmen could see. I didn’t want to give them the satisfaction.
“Xander—” Uncle Ben started in an urging tone.
“Not here.”
“Then go ahead. I’ll catch up.”
I hesitated, not wanting to leave him out here with these people. Who knew what they would do to him?
He motioned for me to go. “Save her.”
I nodded in appreciation and told him where to meet me. It was a spot not too far from here, but far enough out of sight from the witches.
Using my supernatural speed, I fled through the forest carrying Grace in my arms. I found an opening in the trees where the silver moonlight splashed across the ground as if shining a spotlight in the place where I laid her. “Grace,” I whispered, cradling her face in my palm.
Knowing what I had to do, I willed my fangs to emerge from my gums. They ripped through them, and I sank my needlelike teeth into my wrist until the blood began to flow. I pressed my finger to Grace’s soft lower lip and pressed it down. My finger trailed down to her chin, and with the right amount of pressure, her mouth opened. I clenched my fist, making the blood pour faster. Vampire blood ran slower than humans’ did, but it flowed all the same. “Come on, Grace,” I said, even though she couldn’t hear me. “Wake up. Please.”