White Nights: A Vampires of Manhattan Novel
Page 20
“Olly!” Finn hissed. Her expression softened. She almost looked like the old Finn. But Oliver had to harden his heart against her. That had been his mistake, all along –deluding himself into thinking she could be redeemed.
“Here,” Oliver said to Lily, lifting her out of the boat and onto the sand her hem trailing through the water.
“No, Olly – you don’t understand,” said Finn. “I’m trying to rescue Lily, not trap her. Please believe me.”
“I don’t.” Oliver clung to Lily’s hand. He wasn’t sure how he could get her away, or where, but this was why he was in the forest tonight. Not to reconcile with a demon, but to save an angel.
“Please,” Finn pleaded. “You have to believe me. It’s true that I asked for Lily to be brought here, and that I wanted to bring her up as my own.”
“Your own Silver Princess,” Oliver snapped at her. Finn had gone too far. She could choose her own corruption, but not impose it on a child.
“But I changed my mind. I swear, Oliver – when I saw how scared she was, and how desperately she wanted to be with Schuyler and Jack, I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t drag her down with me. You have to believe me! Everything changed for me in that instant. Help me get her away from here. This is the only boat I could find. The battle’s closer than you think, and I don’t know – I really don’t know who’s winning.”
“My mom and dad will win,” Lily said, her voice clear and true. “Angels always triumph over Lucifer.”
“That’s right, Lil,” said Oliver, squeezing her hand.
“And I know you’re right, Lily,” Finn said. “But for now, we need to get you out of harm’s way. You and I both know what we saw there, back in the trees …”
“My mom killed a lot of demons,” Lily whispered to Oliver and he smiled at her. He could imagine Schuyler slashing her way through a whole army of demons if her daughter was their captive.
“We need to take her away now,” Finn insisted. “No Silver Blood or Neph will question anything if they see I’m with her. We’ll get her to Dalmarna and take it from there, OK?”
“Oh, I don’t think you’re going anywhere,” said a voice behind them, and Oliver turned, still clinging to Lily’s hand. He’d know that voice anywhere.
Christian.
Axel’s human conduit stood on the grass, a sharp blade in his hands. The goofy, benign expression was gone. In its place was a scowl.
“You!” Christian snapped, pointing the blade at Finn. “You don’t think we saw you creeping away? Stealing the child.”
“Please let her go,” Finn pleaded. “I’ll come back with you, but please let her go.”
Slowly Christian shook his head. He looked at Finn with contempt.
“You chose your side,” he said, “and you promised us an angel. The Silver Bloods want their princess.”
“I’m their princess,” Finn said, her voice desperate, and Christian scoffed. Oliver had no weapon. There was nothing remotely close to hand but the boat oars, and Christian could hurl the blade at him in a second if he made a move.
“You’re the most beautiful princess in the world,” Christian said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “But this child is the daughter of Abbadon, the Angel of Destruction. Her mother is the daughter of Gabrielle, the Uncorrupted. She is a piece of heaven here on earth, isn’t she? Far more important that anyone in any Coven. And our lord wants her – in hell. You’re to come with me, now.”
“But the battle was lost,” Finn said quickly. Good girl, Oliver thought – playing for time. “Wasn’t it?”
Something about Christian’s face told Oliver that Finn had hit a nerve.
“Either you come with me now,” he said, his voice like ice. “I’ll kill the child right here and now. And you’ll have to answer to our lord for that. After all, I’m just a mortal. You’re the one with eternal life.”
“No!” Finn cried, so plaintive that Oliver ‘s heart stirred. The past wasn’t the past. He still loved Finn. They all to get out of here alive. There were stones in his pockets, he remembered – stones! He dropped Lily’s hand and lunged forward, hurling a fistful at Christian’s snarling face.
With a roar of pain Christian buckled and Oliver jumped onto him, wrestling for the blade. Neither of them could get the upper hand, and all Oliver could feel were slicing cuts, the sting of wounds all over. He ground Christian’s face into the dirt, trying to ignore the pain pulsing up his right arm.
“Go!” he shouted to Finn. “Take Lily – save yourselves!”
He wasn’t important anymore. He’d never been important, even when he was Regis and fancied himself the most important man in the world. For the past year he’d been looking for the chance to redeem himself, and here it was: giving Finn the chance to step back from the darkness, and to save Lily, their own angel.
But Finn was listening to him. She was tugging at Christian as well, kicking and punching him, trying to loosen his grip on the blade. The conduit roared with rage and lashed at Finn, leaving a red slash across her stomach.
“Go!” Oliver shouted again, but she refused.
“I’m not leaving you again. This is all my fault,” she said, wincing with pain. She doubled over, and Christian kicked Oliver away, stomping so hard on his ankle that Oliver heard it crack. Then Christian, staggering back towards the boat, lifted his blade high: he was aiming directly for Finn’s head. He meant to kill them all, Oliver thought. Or at least Finn and Oliver – so he could steal poor Lily away to hell.
There was an almighty thud and Christian reeled. Lily stood above him, balanced on the end of the boat. She’d smacked him over the head with one of the oars! She was her mother’s daughter, that was obvious.
Christian staggered again, and dropped the blade onto the sand. At last Oliver had the chance he’d been waiting for. He plunged the blade into Christian’s rib cage and pushed: he kept pushing until Christian was impaled, gasping and flopping on the shore like a fish. Christian’s eyes bulged and his hands clutched at the blade, unable to budge it. He tried to speak and a bubble of blood emerged from his mouth, like the blood gushing from his wound. Then his head dropped back and, with one last, cracked gasp, he died.
It was Oliver’s turn to collapse now, sinking onto the sand where the yellow grains stuck to his blood-soaked hands and legs. The slashes Christian had inflicted on him burned – down his arms and legs, across his shoulders. He felt dizzy, and it was a huge effort to keep his head up. Vaguely he was aware of Finn lying nearby, breathing in jagged pants, her white dress black with blood.
“They’re coming!” Lily shouted, blurring in and out of focus. “My Mom and Dad, and other people! They’re here!”
“Sky,” Oliver murmured. He could hear her voice, calling to Lily – the joy in it, the relief. “Sky …”
He dropped his head back onto the sand. He had no energy left to speak. Lily’s small face loomed over his, her dark eyes warm and loving. The ribbons from her flowered garland fluttered in the breeze, brushing his face. Oliver tried to keep his eyes open, but it was almost impossible. The sun was rising, warming the sand around him. Midsummer had passed, and he was with Finn again. She was safe. Lily was safe. It was a miracle, sent from heaven, the redemption he’d hoped for. They were together at last. And they were all still alive.
END