Vampire Nights (Vampire Wishes Book 3)

by RaShelle Workman

  He nodded and continued, “The guards threw Rayne down here with me. Rather quickly, we figured out we can understand each other. She can speak to and understand both the gargoyles and me, so I explained to her what had happened. She, in turn, tried to tell the guards, but they wouldn’t listen.” He sighed heavily, frustrated. “I’m sure my dad and brother are freaking out.”

  “They are,” I said, feeling his hope and allowing it to fuel my own. Troy had told me about Cole, about what had happened. Cole’s disappearance weighed heavily on Troy and Professor Pops too. Both of them had been trying to find Cole for months.

  Cole’s eyes squinted shrewdly. “How do you know my dad and brother?”

  “I’ve known Professor Pops for years.” I rested my hand on his knee. “I met Troy several weeks ago. They’ve been looking for you. Troy’s been having a really hard time. He misses you terribly.”

  Cole’s brows furrowed and he leaned forward. He gave me a half smile. “They’re looking for me?”

  “Of course. They haven’t stopped since you vanished.”

  Cole smiled bigger. “If only the gargoyles would let me explain. They might have a way of getting me home. Us home.” He took another ragged breath and it sounded like rock grating against rock.

  I wanted to reach out and hug him. It would be great if we could get him back to Troy, but first we needed to find the second piece of the fairy crown. “Why are you in here?” I asked Rayne.

  Instead of answering, Rayne turned away, her back against Cole’s arm. That wasn’t peculiar at all.

  “She wouldn’t tell me either,” Cole said, giving me a sorrowful look.

  “Are you from this realm?” I tried again, leaning over and trying to get a glimpse of her face.

  “I am,” she whispered.

  “But you don’t look like the others.”

  “That’s because I’m a mutt—only half gargoyle, like Cole.” She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her head on them.

  “Is that why you’re down here then? Because you’re a mutt?” I guessed there was more to the story than that, but thought it was a good jumping off point.

  “Don’t talk to me.” She turned again so that her back faced me.

  Cole shrugged apologetically. “Can you give her some space?”

  “Sure.” I went over to the door, frustrated, and shook it. “Let’s us out! Right now.”

  “Hey, it’s okay,” I heard Cole whisper to Rayne in between my wasted shouts. “You don’t have to talk. Not yet. It’s okay.”

  “Maybe we should get some rest.” Laeddin came over and put a hand on my arm.

  “You could get us out of here, you know.”

  “I could, if you wish it.”

  “Ugh, I don’t wish it,” I yelled, throwing up my hands. “Why can’t you just do it so that we can find the piece of the crown?”

  He went over and fell against the same wall Cole and Rayne leaned against, without responding, which frustrated me even more. And the raunchy thing was we were stuck in the small cell. I couldn’t get out of this freaking place so I’d be stuck with him for the foreseeable future.

  “I swear it’s like looking in a wonky mirror,” Cole said. He’d come over, his hands tucked into his front pockets.

  “Why’s that?” I asked, wrapping my fingers around the bars and sticking my face through the space between. Well, as much of my face as would fit, which wasn’t a lot.

  “I did the exact same thing for probably two days’ straight.”

  “What?”

  “Exactly what you’re doing.” He started to laugh, but grabbed hold of the wall, stumbling backward. “Oh, man.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  He closed his eyes and planted his feet, trying to steady himself. “Nothing really, just hungry.”

  “Don’t they feed you down here?”

  “Not in a long while,” he admitted.

  “It’s been weeks,” Rayne chimed in, jumping up and coming to assist Cole.

  How are they not dead?

  “Let me help.” Laeddin waved his hand and I thought acidly that his actions seemed like the new normal, helping anyone but me. “Hang on.” He tried again, waving his hand in a small swirling motion. I’d seen him do that same movement many times before in order to activate his magic, but this time nothing happened. He snapped his fingers, trying for a third time. The tattoos around his wrists sparked, but it was as though his magic had short-circuited.

  “What’s the matter with you?” I came over to him and took his hands. They felt warm and my fingers tingled with the remnants of a spell.

  “My magic isn’t working,” Laeddin said. “It’s like it wants to, but something is tamping it down. Peculiar.” He spoke like a scientist methodically discovering different possible hypotheses. It made me want to smack him. He gave me a wry look before glancing over at Rayne. “Any idea why, young one?”

  “How should I know?” She looked away again, avoiding his gaze.

  I watched their exchange, curious about why Laeddin had asked her that. My fingers found the wooden bear charm and stroked it, absently. What did the genie know that I didn’t? It occurred to me, not for the first time, that Laeddin knew so much more about our situation than he would ever reveal. With that realization came clarity. As much as I cared for Laeddin, even loved him, it wasn’t the kind of love one built a relationship on. I believed he would keep me safe, but I couldn’t entirely trust him. I took a deep breath, searching for the particular scent of his blood. It still smelled amazing, but no longer breathtaking, like when I’d first met him. Laeddin had been an infatuation, my first crush.

  “Damn, I feel woozy. I’d better sit back down. Sorry.” We helped Cole back to his corner and into sitting position.

  I felt terrible that I couldn’t do anything to help him. “No need to apologize, Cole. I promise you that when we leave this place, we’re taking you with us.” I glanced at Rayne. “Both of you.”

  “Thank you,” Rayne mouthed, but didn’t meet my gaze. I wasn’t sure if her reluctance to speak to us came from the imprisonment or was part of her personality. She was either very shy or hiding something.

  Cole rested his head against his knees. Rayne rested beside him, rubbing his back in soothing circles, making it evident the two of them had grown fond of each other. They almost looked like siblings. Though Rayne wasn’t quite as bulky or as tall as Cole, her hair, eyes, and complexion were identical. Their dress wasn’t all that dissimilar, either. Cole had on dark jeans while Rayne wore clothing like that of the other gargoyles we’d seen. I couldn’t help but wonder what she must’ve done to end up in prison. That was sure to be a story.

  “I’m going to get some rest,” I said, and moved to curl up in the corner on the far side of the cell.

  Twenty-One

  It felt like several hours later when I heard a commotion on the stairs, followed by shouting and more yelling. Two of the voices sounded familiar and I ran over to the door, curious who it could be. Several gargoyles were holding two people captive. Smoke swirled in front of them, looking like it came from one of the prisoners’ noses. On top of that, his skin seemed to ripple like…

  “Troy? Is that you?”

  Both prisoners stopped fighting and looked in my direction.

  “Professor Pops?” I blinked several times and pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.

  “Pops! Cole was suddenly next to me. “Troy!”

  “Jasmine.” Troy seemed more surprised than I was. “Who’s that with you?”

  A smile spread across my face like wildfire. “It’s Cole.”

  Pops and Troy looked at each other.

  “Cole,” they said together. I’d never seen two people so happy.

  My insides swelled with joy. They’d found each other. Finally. A myriad of emotions swirled through me. The initial reaction was happiness. But then I remembered how Troy and I had left things because of the way he’d reacted to the prospect of more origin
al vampires, more creatures like me. I’d had time to recognize it could be a bad thing to have more original vampires, but it still hurt that he’d been so adamantly against it. Seeing him though, there was no doubt both my body and mind were excited to see him.

  Relieved that Professor Pops and Troy had stopped fighting them, gargoyle guards quickly tossed them in the cell with us.

  “Good riddance.”

  “By the goddess, I hope we never have to lay eyes on them again.”

  I gasped. Would they really leave us down here to die?

  Before the door had slammed shut, Troy and Professor Pops were on Cole. Hugging him, clapping him on the back, and talking to each other all at once. I watched them with tears in my eyes, grateful the three of them had been reunited, even if it was in jail.

  Rayne seemed unsure about what to do. I went and stood beside her and Laeddin, occasionally wiping my eyes with the back of my hand. I’d never seen men cry and it was a sight I’d never forget. The sheer happiness in that cell seemed to increase the light in the room.

  Once the initial hugging and expressions of delight were over, they lowered their voices and talked, their words rushed as they tried to catch each other up on all that had happened. I didn’t interrupt. Nor did I use my abilities to listen in. They deserved some private time together.

  After a while, I sat down, pulling Laeddin with me. Rayne had already returned to her corner and appeared to be sleeping. She must’ve realized Cole needed time with his family too. “Can you sense the crown?” I whispered, even though Laeddin had told me yesterday that he couldn’t.

  “No. My powers still don’t work down here.” He seemed impatient with me.

  “Okay,” I said with a sigh.

  He turned his eyes on me. “I know your feelings for the boy are strong. Even without magic it’s obvious, but I don’t believe the two of you belong together.” He pursed his lips like he wanted to say more.

  Anger boiled in me. “I guess it’s a good thing I don’t care what you believe.” The words came out like a quiet hiss.

  “Fine. Whatever.” He crossed his arms and turned away from me.

  I closed my eyes, resting my head against the wall, trying to empty my mind. There was so much that needed to be done, and without a way out of this cell, it didn’t seem likely we’d accomplish anything.

  “Jazz,” Troy shouted.

  Startled, I opened my eyes just as Troy picked me up and swung me around, before encircling me with his arms. “Jazz,” he said again, this time softer. He had a dazzling smile on his face. His lips found mine, kissing me soundly. I wrapped my arms and legs around him tight, kissing him back, happier than I’d been in a month.

  “I’ve missed you,” he said after several minutes, letting me down, kissing my forehead when my feet touched the ground.

  “Missed you too, Dragon Boy,” I said shyly. Now that we were no longer kissing and my body wasn’t in control, I remembered the others in the room.

  “He’s a dragon,” Rayne asked, her dark eyes glinting with tired excitement.

  “Half dragon,” Troy corrected with his trademark smirk. I wanted to kiss it off his face. I allowed the bubbling excitement at my surprise to tamp down the feelings of hurt. He stuck out his hand and Rayne took it. Troy lifted her off the ground. “I’m Troy.”

  “Rayne,” she said.

  Professor Pops came over. “I’m Adam Henry.” He’d taken out his reading glasses and proceeded to clean them, probably in an effort to ignore Troy and me kissing. He put them back in his pocket without using them when we finished. He wore his usual attire: slacks, a sweater vest over a button-down shirt and loafers. His leathered face was handsome. The few wrinkles at the corners of his eyes made him appear grandfatherly. As a vampire Hunter who’d lived during the time of Joan of D’Arc, he still looked exceedingly young.

  “Rayne,” Rayne said again, taking his outstretched hand.

  As we made introductions and small talk, I thought about Laeddin, who didn’t look a day over eighteen with his thick black hair and wrinkleless skin.

  Cole crossed his arms, his expression surly as he glanced between Troy and me. “You two are a thing?”

  Troy and I peeked and each other uncomfortably, making it obvious we weren’t sure what to say. Finally, I blurted, “We’re friends.”

  “Right,” Troy added. “Friends.” His smirk turned into a half scowl, but it wasn’t like he’d asked me to be his girlfriend. He’d pretty much made it clear I was too terrifying to exist, so “friends” was a good place to start. Didn’t change the fact that he was as handsome as ever in his standard jeans and a dark green tee shirt, the short sleeves tight against his biceps.

  Rayne pressed her teeth together. “Sure, if that’s what you want to call it.”

  Cole smacked Troy on the back. “You sure you aren’t half dog instead of half dragon, you sly dog?”

  Troy made a face, while Professor Pops laughed. “All right, Troy, I want to hug my granddaughter.” He playfully shoved Troy out of the way with some little effort, opening his arms. “Hello, Jasmine, how’s my girl?”

  I fell into his hug, enjoying the familiar smell of old books and peppermint that he was known for. “Grandfather.” I squeezed him tightly. After a good long time, I pulled back. He looked at me fondly. “I know why Troy and I are here. We came to rescue Cole, of course. But what brings you and the genie here?” He indicated Laeddin with a nod.

  We briefly explained our situation and asked if they’d be willing to help, if we ever got out of here.

  They agreed whole-heartedly. We’d all sat again, this time in a circle so that we could face each other. Cole had Rayne’s hand. And I noticed Professor Pops kept glancing at her. He seemed curious to know more about her, which didn’t surprise me since he was a professor by trade and also Cole’s surrogate father.

  “I still can’t believe you guys found me,” Cole said for probably the twentieth time. His expression was still full of surprise and wonder, as though he half believed he might be dreaming.

  “We never would’ve stopped looking,” Professor Pops returned.

  “Agreed,” Troy added.

  Watching the three of them together made me long for my mom and dad. I shuddered, worried about them. Laeddin peered at me with a question in his gaze, but I shook my head. I didn’t want to talk about it.

  “How’d you do it?” Cole asked. “Find me,” he added to clarify.

  Pops chuckled lightly, taking his handkerchief from his pocket and wiping his eyes. “You know me, I researched in a lot of books, went to speak with a lot of peculiar people and creatures.” He looked at Troy. “I even tried to find your father and ask him if he knew of a way to locate Cole with a spell, since the dragon pretty much knows everything, but I couldn’t find him.”

  Troy raised an eyebrow, but didn’t look surprised.

  Professor Pops continued, “Finally I went to Polonias and spoke with Cindy who recommended I talk to Gabe.” His eyes filled with tears once again and it occurred to me how difficult it must be to live an immortal life, especially if you chose to care so deeply for those around you, as Professor Pops did. Gabe had become something so completely different than what Pops had believed for him. As a chayot and the son of the old chayot ruler, he should’ve taken his father’s place. Instead he’d sacrificed himself for Cindy. It must’ve been incredibly difficult for Professor Pops to watch.

  Pops cleared his throat. “Anyway, Gabe told me of a spell I could use that would allow me to find you, so here we are.” Professor Pops hugged Cole again.

  “Yeah, man. You gave us quite the scare,” Troy added.

  Cole smiled, but I noticed his already pale face go white.

  “What’s wrong, son?” Professor Pops asked. He took hold of Cole, helping him remain sitting.

  “Nothing. Just a little hungry,” he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck.

  “I got you, man.” Troy opened his backpack. “It’s jerky. That ought to help.
”

  Cole took the bag. “Thank you,” he said between bites.

  We watched him devour the dried meat in silence.

  After several minutes, Cole looked up, then at Rayne. “Hey, I’m so sorry. Here.” Cole handed her a piece.”

  She took it timidly, giving Cole a small smile, refusing to meet anyone else’s gaze.

  Troy patted Rayne on the back. “So, what’s your story? Why are you in this cell and how the hell do we get out?”

  Rayne’s smile vanished. “My story?” She growled. “My father promised me that if I would spend time in the cell with Cole and get information from him, then he would tell me about my mother. Who she is and where she is.”

  Cole had been about to put another piece of jerky in his mouth, but he stopped, shocked. “You’re down here to spy for them?” He pointed in the direction of the door, but we all knew he meant the gargoyles. “You—” He let go of her hand. “You were just using me?”

  Professor Pops seemed to already know that was the case. “Not to worry, son. I believe we can work this out. Right, Rayne?”

  She seemed surprised. “You aren’t angry?” she asked Pops.

  “Anger won’t solve anything.” His eyes were full of sympathy as he spoke.

  She gave him a small smile in response. “Thank you.”

  Troy looked angry.

  Cole looked like a wounded animal and I immediately felt sorry for him. His feelings for Rayne went deep. That much was obvious.

  I wasn’t surprised either. “Laeddin?” It appeared he’d already known she was up to something too.

  “What? It was obvious,” he said.

  “Not to me,” Cole bellowed. The ends of his hair turned white and dark lines appeared on his face.

  “Easy, son.” Pops patted him on the shoulder.

  But Cole wasn’t having it and stood, going over to the door and pounding on it. “Damn, I want out of here.” He stopped, leaning against the wall.

  “Rayne, why don’t you tell us exactly what your errand is so we can help you accomplish it? Then we might be able to get out of here.” Pops gave her a look that said he wasn’t angry, but he wasn’t to be trifled with either.