Between Darkness & Light

by Theresa Van Spankeren

  I sat back, taking a moment to process what I had seen. I have mourned Adam for the past few years. I had done it alone, but my grief had gotten to a point where it didn’t consume me all the time. There were moments like this where I felt his loss acutely, but it would fade.

  A bitter smile touched my lips as I also realized Sandro had been right. All of us were still healing. I doubted any of us were conscious of the paths we had taken toward that goal, but I was starting to see where progress had or had not been made. Although it had seemed contradictory at the time, Matthew removing himself from the ka-tet had given him the ability to work through his emotions concerning me. However, it seemed he hadn’t confronted the loss of his soulmate, whereas I had processed my loss. Mary Anne had taken the same route concerning me, albeit in a more direct way. And Samuel . . . well, that I didn’t know.

  I shook myself out of my reverie. “I would like that, Matthew,” I said, thinking it would be good not to dwell on these matters anymore. I followed him into the group of dancers.

  Chapter 23

  Most of the guests had retired to their rooms or left by the time the trouble arose. About a dozen of us were still dancing when one of the guards interrupted us. “Matteo, there is someone at the gate for your sister-in-law.”

  I looked at Matthew quizzically.

  He frowned. He glanced at Christina.

  she replied.

  Apprehension filled me as I followed them out the door and down the long path to the entrance. On the other side of the gate stood my nightmare come to life and three more Hunters. A smirk lit his face as he saw me. “Il Medici ora sta unendo con i demoni?”

  Confusion flooded the faces of the guards at the question. I couldn’t blame them. How often do you get asked if your master is consorting with demons?

  I looked at Matthew.

 

  Although I was terrified, I took a deep breath and said,

  Matthew gritted his teeth and spoke to the guard closest to us. Neither he nor the guard looked happy as the man took the other two with him and withdrew closer to the villa.

  Truth be told, I wasn’t sure what I was doing. I just remembered what little Kali had told me about possession and knew there would be no better place or time to find out answers. They couldn’t come in, which was why we were standing at the gate in a stalemate.

  Gregory’s smirk turned into a lustful sneer. “Juliana, such a beautiful gown you are wearing. Almost the color of a wedding

  dress . . .” he purred.

  I flushed but said, “Voglio parlare con Stefan. Adesso.”

  Gregory scowled as his fellow Hunters showed the same confusion the Medici guards had earlier. “Stai già parlando con lui.”

  “No, I am not talking with him. Gregory, I want to speak to the original soul of this body. Now!” I repeated in English.

  A minute later, it was just the three of us standing at the gate. Gregory sighed and his eyes lost some of their lewdness. “What do you want?” he asked in broken English.

  “Stefan?” I asked. Although I saw a shift in demeanor, I had to be sure. He nodded as hate darkened his irises until they were almost black. “Do you know what happened to you?” I asked.

  The man in front of me grinned. “Sì. My ancestor and I made a deal. He teaches me about the vampires he despises and I capture you.”

  “Do you have any idea what a monster Gregory was?”

  He curled his lip. “Your kind is worse. Your kind murdered my cousins as they did Gregory so many years before. He has told me all about you.”

  “Did he tell you how he murdered his own daughter?”

  Stefan frowned, but said, “He said he had to so she wouldn’t become a demon like you.”

  “A lie,” I countered and tried to explain what had really happened. “He is not who you think he is. If he genuinely hates vampires why does he want me alive?”

  He grinned again, but his eyes were unfocused. “He still loves you. He wants to purge the evil from you so you can be with him again. He wants to kill the fiend who took you from him.”

  I shivered at his words. I didn’t know what his kind of ‘purging’ entailed, but it couldn’t be good. “Your ancestor was a cruel and heartless husband and father. I am sorry for what happened to your family, but all vampires are not like that. Gregory is just using your misfortune for his own twisted means. You need to drive him out and go back to hunting vampires who deserve it. Trust me, there are plenty around.”

  “No. He has helped me so much. I will fulfill my end of the bargain with him. You can’t stay here forever, Julia.”

  I stepped away from the gate. I had my answer. Stefan may have been manipulated by Gregory, but the man had fully embraced the spirit. He had been willing to let him in. He was not an innocent pawn in this. “Grazie, Stefan. Our conversation has been insightful,” I murmured. “Call back the guards,” I said to Matthew and headed back to the villa.

  ***

  I turned in a slow circle, recognizing the path and gardens that had made up the landscape of the in-between before. Light did not illuminate the flowers this time, nor was it night. Instead, dark storm clouds eclipsed the sun. I could feel the rumble of thunder reverberate through my body as the sky rapidly exploded into flashes of purple and blue light.

  “May?” I called out, searching for any sign of the woman in white. I couldn’t shake the ominous feeling the environment gave me. The rose buds were tightly closed against the impending storm. As I took a few steps down the path, a jagged white flash and deafening crack announced the fall of one of the trees in the distance.

  I winced in pain, clamping my hands over my sensitive ears. The wind picked up, causing my ivory dress to billow around me. I scanned the area again, searching for shelter. I didn’t see any. “May!” I shouted again and headed back the way I had come to get away from the trees.

  My hair blew into my face, obscuring my vision, so I crouched down to brush the snarled tresses aside. When I looked up, the girl who referred to herself as May stood in front of me. Her black hair and white gown were both dancing in the wind. Her expression was grim as she reached out to me. “Julia,” she said simply.

  I grasped her hand and climbed to my feet. “What is going on here?”

  “Things are out of balance,” she replied enigmatically. “I am sorry to bring you here now, but I needed to talk to you.”

  “You couldn’t have just come to my room like before?”

  Another brilliant flash lit the sky around us. She shouted to be heard over the roar that followed. “I could not risk being overheard there! The last time we spoke you asked me a question I was not allowed to answer. That has changed.”

  “Why?” I asked, shivering as cold rain started pelting us.

  She gestured at the weather around us. “Because he has gone too far.” I was about to question her, but she continued talking. “Your friend Matthew found you some answers. The power that allows us to communicate is extremely rare. You are the first vampire in hundreds of years to possess it. With help, you may be one of the few to control it.”

  “Few? Didn’t all the vampires who had this gift control it?”

  She shook her head. “A couple of them were killed before they got to an age where they could and another was so afraid of it he took his own life.”

  “Sounds promising already,” I muttered.

  May smiled. “You are already much stronger than they were. You were seeing the dead within months of being tu
rned. It was years before they did.”

  “Gregory,” I said. A bolt of lightning struck a short distance away, leaving my ears ringing. I grimaced in pain. It almost seemed as if someone or something was angry hearing his name.

  “Yes.” The woman in white sighed. “Being able to speak to the dead gives you options you wouldn’t ordinarily have. We can console, give information, or guide you. Alternately, we can scare you as well. However, the dead are not supposed to say or do anything that affects how the destinies of the living unfold. We are not supposed to change it.”

  I stared at her as the storm raged around me. “Someone did.”

  May dropped her gaze to the flooded ground. “When Gregory first appeared to you all those years ago and taunted you, he was working within the restrictions of how things are. However, when he started entering your dreams and eventually your waking thoughts, he crossed a line. He interfered.”

  “Wait a second. My waking thoughts?!”

  She nodded. “That was why you started hearing the voices from your dreams while you were awake. He manipulated you and set into motion events that no one could have foreseen.” A slight scowl crossed her face. “And then you nearly gave him the win by trying to kill yourself.”

  “Do you have any idea how painful it was to hear the accusation that I was once again betraying those I care about?”

  “Very painful, I imagine. But dying is not going to save those you care about. Your death alone isn’t going to satisfy him.”

  “What does he want from us? What does he want with me?” I implored. I wrapped my arms around myself to suppress another shiver. The thunder wasn’t as loud now but the rain and wind continued to lash us.

  May touched my arm. “He is obsessed with power and control. You escaped him and he wants to punish you and everyone involved. He had the perfect plan five years ago. He convinced you that your powers had deserted you, that you were weak. You became his weapon against the others he wanted vengeance on.”

  I closed my eyes, remembering the dreams, the voices. “I didn’t recognize the voices as his. They were distorted. But it was Valentino who tampered with my memory. I think. Did he know Gregory . . . ?”

  She shook her head. “He might have sensed the darkness, but he had no idea Gregory had been there. Valentino just used his power as he has many times before. It was simply tactical planning on Gregory’s part for it to coincide.”

  “It was you that saved me. Your voice.”

  She shrugged. “Someone had to do something. Your destiny reader was only a small child at the time. I simply helped you remember. You made the choice to stop.”

  “Why can you tell me this now when you couldn’t before?”

  “He must be stopped. The danger to you and your ka-tet is still great. He still sees you as a potential weapon. You are strong. Stop weakening yourself in a misguided attempt to punish yourself. He is going to come after you with everything he’s got, both physically and psychically. You need to be ready.”

  ***

  I awoke in a cold sweat as thunder rumbled outside the villa. My latest encounter with the woman in white put me on edge. I had some answers, but more questions as well. Her description of his manipulation seemed uncomfortably close to possession, although Kali had said it wasn’t.

  As soon as I was dressed, I sought out a quiet place where the three of us could talk without being interrupted. Between the events of the night before and my visit with May, we had a lot to discuss. Once we were situated in a corner of the library, I explained everything to Christina, feeling the young vampire needed to know what she had gotten herself into by staying with me.

  She was the first outside the ka-tet I had ever confided in, and although I was nervous, I was also tired of trying to figure it out all by myself. I also allowed them to see the memory of my latest encounter with the woman in white. It was easier than trying to remember everything said. She took it very well, considering it was a possessed Hunter after us.

  Matthew sank back in the chair, looking troubled. “This is very strange.”

  Christina gave him a wry glance. “Which part? The one where a spirit is causing havoc to destiny or the one where he had the nerve to come here and claim the Medici family is plotting with demons?”

  “Both. Maybe even more concerning is the fact that it sounds like the Hunters have barely been pursuing other vampires at all. So what have Amita and the rest of Rome’s group been doing? We haven’t seen them for weeks now.”

  Christina looked at me. “Could Lane have killed them all?”

  I shook my head. “I think he would have mentioned it if he had killed their entire group.”

  “What could they be doing? Still trying to hunt him?”

  “I don’t know,” I replied. “Maybe they decided to leave the city.”

  “That would be good news for Lane,” Christina said. She looked at Matthew. “Julia’s ghost girl said something about this Gregory using psychic attacks. How can we defend against them?”

  “Telepathic shields. A stronger version of what you put up to keep everyone from reading your mind,” he replied.

  Christina arched an eyebrow. “So you’re telling me we should be taking lessons from Samuel.”

  We stared at her for a moment. Strained laughter finally broke the silence. “He or Kali would be ideal to have as teachers for this. Sadly, we’re on our own.” Matthew rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Let’s get practicing, shall we?”

  The drills were quiet by comparison to some of our other exercises. No one in the residence was the wiser as we spent the next few hours building our own defenses and trying to take out the mental defenses of the others. I blocked every attempt to penetrate my thoughts, but doing so left me fatigued. I was the one to call the training to a halt, which led to a lecture from Matthew about how depleted I had made myself.

  “Please, no more reprimands. I already got one from May during our encounter,” I sighed.

  “I don’t want you to hurt yourself anymore, Julia. It’s not worth it,” he replied, walking over to roll up the sleeves of my dress to check each wound. I stared at my wrists when he undid the bandages. The deeper wound was still healing.

  “She’s only fed once since we got here. Maybe we can feed here?” Christina asked.

  “At one point that might have been an option, but I don’t want to risk that now after Gregory’s spectacle last night. The guards are still rattled,” Matthew replied.

  “Gregory’s waiting for us to leave. That’s why he said I couldn’t stay here forever,” I warned.

  Matthew swore and complained, “This would be easier with an intact ka-tet.”

  “It is intact,” I countered. When I concentrated on it, Samuel felt distant, but the ties still seemed strong.

  He scowled. “You know what I mean. United.”

  “Julia’s right. We’ll undoubtedly be walking straight into a trap if we leave.”

  “If we don’t, we are forced to feed from the humans here or starve. Neither is a very good option.”

  I pondered a moment. “The last of the guests are leaving tomorrow evening. I suggest trying to slip out with them. Maybe the Hunters won’t notice us.” The other two nodded, but I didn’t fail to notice the worry etched across their faces.

  Chapter 24

  I slept fitfully that day and woke as the sun was setting. As I finished dressing in one of the simplest black gowns I had, I wished we weren’t in a mortal’s dwelling so I could dress and arm myself properly for the fight that was certainly going to find us. I was armed with only a long dagger.

  About an hour later we departed in the company of the other guests under the guise of going to a nearby play. We stayed with the mortals for as long as possible before separating from them to find dinner. Soon we saw a group of four humans heading toward a tavern down the way and wasted no time acquiring them as our meal for the night. Matthew had wanted me to feed from two humans to replenish my strength. I also didn’t bypass the opportu
nity to relieve one of those humans of his short sword, with the intention of dropping it before we reached Villa Medici.

  The Hunters attacked while we were still a couple of streets away from the villa. Gregory and ten others stood on a dark stretch of road. At first, I thought their position was to our advantage, but realized their strategy when Matthew cursed. He can create fire, but it took more power than being able to utilize one that was already burning. Gregory smiled. “Come to me, Juliana, and I will spare your friends."

  “No!” I yelled and tossed my dagger to Christina in preparation for their onslaught. I figured she would need it since I had my ‘borrowed’ sword.

  As they swarmed over us, I expected to be the primary target. Instead, I found I was only battling three of the eleven attackers. Christina was fighting another two, and the rest had gone after Matthew. Clearly, Gregory had identified him as the greatest threat and didn’t want to give him any chance to use his fire abilities. Matthew was skilled with a sword, but it was obvious who had the upper hand. The Hunters were better armed and had him outnumbered.

  I saw two of his opponents stumble and fall as he pulled on the ka-tet’s power for help. Quickly, I did the same to neutralize one of my own opponents. It wouldn’t keep him down for long, but it gave me a second to track Christina as she dove under a wagon parked on the street to avoid being stabbed.

  My standing opponents came back at me with a sword and a stake. Parrying both, I slammed the short blade into the side of the one with the stake and ripped it clear of his body. He might have thought he was being sneaky coming in right behind the one with the sword, but it was a predictable move. As he collapsed to the street, I couldn’t help but smile. My smile widened as I saw the wagon tip over, trapping the Hunters attacking Christina. She immediately went after the one I had stunned.

  The moment was broken by Matthew’s scream. I pivoted toward the sound and saw one of the Hunters had driven their blade through his abdomen. Realizing I had only seconds to help him, I seized my newest ability and slammed power into the mind of that attacker and two closest to him. Guttural cries accompanied their falls as Gregory and the others turned to face me. “Leave him alone,” I snarled and focused the energy again, this time at the possessed Hunter’s mind.