I slipped my arm from hers. “It doesn’t matter. It’s not as if anything’s going to happen—or can happen for that matter. In a few weeks, I’m supposed to become this divine killing machine who’s destined to spend the rest of her life eradicating the demons and vampires from this world. So yeah, no time for imaginary relationships.” Slipping, I glanced at Max, relief flowing through me when I saw him leaning against a stone pillar, talking to my brothers, not watching me like he had been during dinner.
I sucked in a sharp breath when his gaze darted to me, our eyes locking as if a magnetic force were at play.
Quickly looking away, I focused on Lana, who was staring at me with a knowing look, which quickly turned to pity. “You’re probably right. Then again, you’re uncharted waters and no one knows what you’ll become, only that you’ll lead us all.”
I barked out a laugh. “Yeah, like that’s going to happen. No one will listen to me now, so why would they change?”
“Because your ancestor will rise within you, morphing with your soul, fulfilling your destiny.”
3
My mouth fell ajar as a shiver ran down my spine and my heart stopped. “What are you saying?” I finally managed to ask.
Lana frowned as if I were asking the facts of life. “I’m saying she will rise in you.”
Eyes widened, I stared at her, frozen in fear, unable to understand. More so, not wanting to understand. Of course, I couldn’t leave it at that. “It sounds like you’re telling me I’m no longer going to be me, and I’m going to give my soul and shell of a body over to this ancient…whatever. I’m going to cease to exist. My body will still be here, but my soul won’t be.” My head spun, and I began to hyperventilate as I tried to wrap my head around my impending death.
Lana placed her hands on my biceps and forced me to look at her. “Breathe.”
A tremble ran through me as my head started to sway, my eyesight turning white. It was clear to me I was going to pass out if I didn’t get a grip on myself—fast. But no matter how much I didn’t want to make a fool of myself by collapsing in front of hundreds of Society members, it was quickly becoming a reality.
Pain exploded across my cheek, snapping me out of my hysteria. “Did you just hit me?”
“Slap,” Lana said. “I just slapped you. If I hit you, you would’ve been knocked out.”
Rubbing my cheek, I stared at her in astonishment.
“You’re welcome, by the way.”
I blinked hard, ready to unleash a tirade against her. I mean sure, she’d saved me from making a fool of myself, but was it really necessary to hit me? A shake would’ve done just fine. I opened my mouth but quickly closed it again when it dawned on me that I now had the perfect excuse to retreat to my bedroom.
There were only a matter of weeks until I went through the change, and if I thought I was determined to save my family before, I now had even more reason to rescue them because I couldn’t trust that my father would be safe once I was no longer alive.
My heart pounded against my chest at the mere thought of what was going to happen, and I had to force myself to breathe. I didn’t have time to dwell on my life—or death for that matter. My father needed me—even if he didn’t know it. I couldn’t leave his life in the hands of my brothers when neither one of them was prepared to break the rules.
Sure, our father was a drunken ass, but he was still our father and the only parent we had left.
The apparition of my mother once again slammed into my thoughts, taking my mind hostage as her desperation consumed me, churning my stomach and leaving my heart aching for her.
Tears pooled in my eyes, threatening to spill. I squeezed my eyes shut then opened them again and swiped the lone tear that had escaped.
Lana frowned. “It wasn’t that hard.”
It took me a second to remember she had slapped my face. Lifting my hand to my face again, I ran my fingertips across my cheek. “I think I need to lie down.”
She glanced around the crowd then nodded. “I’ll take you back to your room.”
I shook my head. “No. You stay here. I’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?”
I nodded. “I’ll be okay,” I reiterated.
“Okay then.” Lana looked uneasily in her parents’ direction. “If anyone asks, I’ll tell them you weren’t feeling well.”
Refraining from frowning, I wondered why she thought I was lying. After all, she had needed to slap me out of the hysteria I’d been drowning in.
Not giving her a chance to change her mind, I gave her a weak smile and retreated inside, subtly glancing over my shoulder to make sure no one was following me.
When the coast was clear, I quickened my pace, making my way up to my room. Once inside, I stripped out of the ridiculous gown and slipped into something more comfortable. Something that would allow me free movement to run my ass off, which was pretty much every item of clothing I had in this place. The hunters didn’t believe in fashion, and I had no idea where they’d gotten tonight’s gown from.
Making a quick mental list, I tried to figure out what I would need. A bottle of vampire blood would’ve been ideal, but of course, none of the hunters thought that was a good idea. They probably figured I was easier to detain if I weren’t at my full strength, because I was pretty sure I could’ve taken any of them down when I was pumped up on the demonic essence.
I would have to take the bus because stealing one of the hunter’s cars on a night like tonight would be impossible. The place was like Fort Knox. Getting out would most likely prove a challenge. Especially when almost every single person in this facility was stronger and faster than I was. I would also have to leave my phone at home because I was damn sure they would’ve put a tracker on it by now.
Yeah, they trusted me big time.
I entered the walk-in closet, put my foot onto the lower shelf to hoist myself up, and searched blindly on the top shelf for my secret weapon.
A grin crept across my face when my fingers touched the cold metal of the daggers. I grabbed them and hopped off the shelf, my eyes lighting up with morbid fascination the moment I laid eyes on the daggers. I may not have had the strength I’d had when we rescued Mason, but I still had the desire to see those demonic monsters’ lives end by my hand.
With a bounce in my step, I made my way back into my room and froze.
“Mason,” I said, my voice coming out raspy.
4
Wearing a cocky smile, Mason sat casually on the edge of my desk. “Where do you think you’re going?”
For a moment, I was happy to see him back to his old ways when I’d feared he would’ve been ruined after what he’d been through. Then I remembered I had daggers in my hands, I was no longer wearing the evening gown, and I was preparing to bust out of this place. “Nowhere.” I moved the daggers behind me, as if he would forget they were there if he couldn’t see them.
Mason raised a brow. “Really? Then would you care to explain why you’re holding those weapons?”
I frowned. “Care to explain why you’re not outside with Finn?”
He glared at me then pushed off the desk and strode toward me. “I want in.”
I scrunched up my face in confusion, my heart hammering against my chest. “In what?”
“Don’t treat me like I’m stupid. I know what you’re planning, and I want to help.”
I barked out a laugh. “I’m not planning to do anything.”
“You’re a shitty liar,” he said, calling me out. “We don’t have much time to argue before someone notices I’ve been gone for too long and comes looking for me. I’m pretty sure you don’t want them finding me in here.”
Glaring at him, I tried to figure out what I should do. The last thing I needed was to waist more time trying to deny my intentions. Mason was as stubborn as they came, and he was used to getting his own way. I’d thought his time with the vamps may have changed that particular attribute, but it appeared it was still as strong. “All I’m doing
with this thing is getting a little practice in because if you couldn’t tell, I was having a pretty lousy time at the party when I really should be spending my time training.”
Mason held my stare. “I’m going with you.”
I raised a brow. “You want to train with me? That’s Finn’s job, not mine.” Moving the daggers into one hand, I headed over to the door and opened it. “Now, if you don’t mind…”
Mason sauntered over to the window. “So how are we doing this?” He peered outside. “Do we make our escape this way, or do we brave the halls?”
“There is no we.”
He spun around to face me. “He’s my father, too.”
My mouth fell ajar, and I quickly closed the door, careful not to make too much noise. “This isn’t your fight.”
He shook his head. “Nope. You don’t get to make that call.”
“Oh, don’t I?” I holstered my blade. “Because I’m pretty sure you’re supposed to listen to me.”
“I never listened to you before, so why do you think anything’s changed?”
Breathing out harshly, I tried to refrain from tying him up so I could make my get away. The only problem with that plan was Mason was now stronger than me.
Damn the hunters and their reluctance to keep feeding me vampire blood.
“Look, Kali. I’m going with you or without, but I think we’d have better luck working together. There is no way that I am going to stay here while people I care about are out there without any idea that they’ve got a target on their heads. As soon as the vampires figure out what you are, they’re going to come for everyone you care about. Everyone I care about. And there’s no way I’m going to let them die when I have a chance to save them.”
My thoughts exactly.
Mason and I hadn’t had much of a chance to talk since we rescued him because he’d spent most of his time attached to Finn’s side, trying to learn everything he could about the hunters and the Shadow Realms. But by the sounds of it, he had the same viewpoint I did about not hanging people out to die because heavens forbid that anyone should find out hunters exist.
Under different circumstances, I would’ve loved to find out where he truly stood on the matter. But I didn’t have time, and there was a good chance Finn was using Mason to spy on me. After all, that was Finn’s style. Overprotective bastard who was trying to retain control over me while he still could.
Of course, that didn’t happen until the vampire blood was out of my system and my abilities had returned to that of a normal human teenager.
“Look, Kali, isn’t it safer for us to work together to save them?”
I bit my lip, trying to stop myself from admitting the truth. Fat lot of good that did. Two seconds later, I said, “I don’t have time for this. And you’re not trained enough. You’ll just be a liability.”
Mason’s steely gaze locked onto mine. I’d hit a nerve. “I thought you of all people wouldn’t go there after the hard time Finn apparently gave you when you came here. Look how that turned out. You’re the one they’ve been looking for all these years. They had you—and almost lost you because an overbearing sibling was trying to wrap you in cotton wool.” He raised a brow. “Does that sound familiar?”
Now he’d struck a nerve. I was doing the exact thing I’d hated Finn for doing to me.
Mason rested his hands on my shoulders and lowered his head so his brown eyes were in line with mine. “What do you say?” When I didn’t answer, he added, “I’ll even give you some of my blood.” He smirked.
I couldn’t understand how he could so willingly give up his blood after what he’d been through. But there he was, offering what I needed. Actually, it wasn’t exactly what I needed, but it would do.
“I’m not letting anyone take your blood. You’ve been through enough.”
He dropped his hands to his side. “See, that’s the thing. I don’t want what I went through to be in vain. Especially if I can save someone else from having to experience a bunch of blood suckers slowly draining them. This is my body. That was my experience. You have no right to tell me what or how I should feel. I’m not going to let Mom down, and I’m not going to let Dad down, either—even if he is too drunk to know what’s going on.”
Hearing her name struck a chord to my heart. I was being a hypocrite, and Mason knew it. How could I be so pissed at Finn for trying to keep me safe yet do the very thing that I despised the most to Mason?
I let out an exaggerated groan. “Fine.”
A grin broke out across Mason’s face, lighting up a piece of his soul, evident through his eyes. The kid lived for competition, and I just prayed I wouldn’t regret my decision.
Finn would kill me.
I would kill me.
The Society would be pissed and probably throw me back in the cell where I’d spend the rest of my days as little ol’ me, until I went through my transition.
It was worth it.
As long as Mason wasn’t hurt.
That would be my priority, and if it meant I had to take some of his blood, then that was what I had to do.
I withdrew the dagger from its hoist. “How do you want to do this?”
Mason’s gaze locked on the shiny blade that somehow looked as if it were illuminated, a small replica of the one in the gym room. He swallowed hard. “Now?”
“Better for me to have it in my system now before I need it, as it might be too late to save your ass if we do it later.”
He breathed in deeply, then released his breath slowly, preparing for the inevitable. “Do what you have to do.” He held out his hand.
5
Rolling my eyes, I swatted Mason’s hand away. “Why does everyone instinctively offer their hand for blood? Because it’s pretty stupid if you think about it—unless you heal of course. But you don’t, and you’ll probably want the use of your hand tonight. So, give me your arm.”
What I was about to do was wrong in so many ways, but I wasn’t one to play by the rules where my family was concerned.
Resting the tip of the blade against his forearm, I gently pushed down until a prick of blood appeared then slipped the dagger back into the holster.
Mason glanced at his wound with brows furrowed. “Is that it?”
“Well, yeah. I only need a few drops—maybe even one—but I can cut you more if you want.” I feigned reaching for the dagger.
“No, no,” he said. “Only take what you need.”
The smell of his blood drifted into my nose as I lowered my mouth, hovering just above it. The temptation wasn’t there like it had been when I’d smelled the vampires. Their blood was intoxicating. Mason’s wasn’t. It held a stench about it that was kind of repulsive. I hadn’t remembered the woman I’d stalked in the alley’s blood smelling like this. I had no idea if it were the fact that vampires had been feeding on him that made Mason smell this way, or if it were because I had since tasted the good stuff and anything else became like cheap cask wine.
Whatever the reason, I wasn’t the slightest bit enticed.
Closing my lips over the droplets of blood forming on his skin, I ran my tongue over it, drinking from Mason’s soul, allowing it to entwine with mine, feeding me, morphing me into the creature I’d once feared. The one I now knew to be the divine being that would rescue the world.
I almost spat his blood out as a laugh bubbled up my throat at the thought of what I was to become. I still had serious doubts as to whether I truly was the one the Society had been looking for, and wondered if they felt the same way and that was the reason why they weren’t willing to feed the beast before I turned.
That was silly. There was no doubt in any of the Society’s minds—only in mine. It was a distant, niggling feeling of not being good enough. It probably had something to do with the fact that I was willing to do the unthinkable to them to get what I wanted.
Maybe that was part of what made me, me. I was prepared to drink my own brother’s blood to save our drunk-ass, good-for-nothing father.
Pulling away, I relished the way my body instantaneously morphed into that of a beast. Heightened awareness and hunger for blood coursed through my soul. But it wasn’t human blood I craved. I wanted to feast on the blood of vampires.
I had to remind myself that tonight was about my father, not destroying the lives of the dead.
That day would come, but for now, I would lay low and try to remain undetected. At least, that was the plan.
Mason stared at me with a mixture of fear and shame. I could taste it in the air.
I smiled, trying to ease his nerves. My eyes widened as the tips of my fangs pushed against my lower lip, reminding me I wasn’t like him and I was most likely scaring the crap out of him. His scars had barely healed, and I was about to take him out into the savage world where he could once again become a vampire’s pop-top.
That was never going to happen. I would die before I’d let them take him again.
Plus, I had a plan for if I came across one of the monsters out on the streets. I just hoped it would only be a lone monster, easy to take down without his friends.
Trying to ignore the stench of his fear, I said, “Stop stressing, Mason. It’s just me.”
A nervous laugh escaped his mouth. “That’s what scares me.” He quickly added, “Not that I think you’re going to attack me. It’s just weird seeing you like… them.”
I smiled again. “Well, I can safely say I in no way find your blood appealing.” I made my way over to the window. “We better get moving before someone comes looking for you.”
Opening the window, I sucked in a sharp breath as the distant smell of the demonic creatures wafted into my room.
I shoved my desire to track down the monsters to the back of my mind and tried to focus on what we needed to do.
Not so carefully, I climbed out of the room, landing on the roof with the grace of a vampire. Mason, however, was the typical human, trying to be quiet and failing miserably. How on earth I made it out of there on my own last time without being caught was a mystery.
Circle of Embers (Shadow Realms Series Book 2): A vampire hunter novel Page 3