“True,” Asher said from behind me, “but we don’t count it as a way just because it doesn’t work on all of them. But if you can use it, by all means, do so.”
“What about guns?”
My grandfather shook his head, “Bullets don’t kill. They may stop a vampire for a few moments, but even a shot to the heart will not kill one.”
I nodded, looking back down at the knife as I pulled it out of the sheath. It was small, but deadly. “It’s a dragon. My guardian.”
“I have others, too. When you go hunting, you will need more than just that one with you. They all belong to you now, as the Jackson huntress. I will show them to you at another time, and we will move them to your room so that you will always have access to them. From now on, you go nowhere unarmed. Understood?” When I nodded, he smiled, “Good. Now it’s time for you to get some rest.”
“When do we start hunting, Papa?” I asked, slowly sliding the dagger back into its sheath.
“Soon. This town has been without protection for too long.”
“What do you mean?” Grandfather didn’t answer right away, and I could tell that he didn’t want to. “Papa?”
“He means that there have been no slayers around here since you left, Blayke,” Asher said quietly. “We have all shown up over the past year or two, but none of us have actually been hunting yet. We’ve been training…waiting.”
“Waiting for what?”
“For you,” he said simply.
“I don’t understand,” I insisted. “You are slayers. Why wouldn’t you do what you could to protect the people of Angel’s Pass?”
“Because they need someone to lead them, Blayke, and your mother refused to,” my grandfather finally said. “After you left, my daughter’s world fell apart. She stopped hunting, refusing to join the fight against our cause. She said all that cause had done was take from her everything that she loved. Nothing I said could change her mind.”
“So, she let innocent people die rather than fight against the vampires? When they were the reason I was sent away in the first place? Why would she allow that? Why wouldn’t she do everything in her power to rid this world of them so that she could bring me home?” Unfortunately, I thought I knew the answer to that question. She didn’t fight against them, because if she did, she would have to fight against my father.
“I have no idea, Blayke. I’m sorry. All I know is that your mother hasn’t hunted since you left Angel’s Pass.”
“How many people have died because of her selfishness?” I demanded in anger. “How many more people have to die before she steps up and performs her duty as a huntress?”
“I don’t know, sweetheart,” grandfather responded, rubbing a hand over his face tiredly. “I honestly don’t know if she will ever fight again.”
“Do you know who my real father is, Papa?” I was almost afraid to ask the question, but I had to know the answer.
Grandfather’s eyes widened in surprise at the change of subject, but he shook his head. “No. Alyiah refused to tell us. She said it wasn’t important. That it was something that just happened, and that it was over.” When I didn’t respond right away, he reached out and placed a hand gently on my arm. “It doesn’t matter who your biological father is, Blayke. All that matters is that you are here today, with us.” His eyes misted with tears as he whispered, “I never thought I would see you again, sweet girl.”
I smiled weakly and returned the hug he gave me, but inside I was trembling. He said it didn’t matter who my father was, but if he only knew. A shudder ran through me as dark red eyes and fangs flashed through my mind. I couldn’t wait any longer, I decided. I had to talk to Alyiah.
It took me two more days to get Alyiah alone, and several minutes after I finally found her, to work up the courage to talk to her. She was standing down by the edge of the lake, her arms wrapped tightly around her waist in the cold November air. Finally, I could wait no more. Squaring my shoulders, I made my way down the slight incline toward her. I was going on my first hunt soon, and I needed answers. For all I knew, I could be facing off against the man who haunted my dreams, and I needed to know who he was before that happened.
“I wondered how long it would take you to seek me out,” Alyiah said with a sigh, as she looked out over the calm water.
I didn’t reply at first, letting my gaze wander slowly over the clear glass water in front of me. It had taken a while, but I finally felt at peace with what happened with my mother out in the middle of the lake. I would always miss her, my heart would always ache with her loss, but I now understood that she was with the Goddess, and would someday be back on earth with a new chance at life. Asher had made it sound so simple when he said that if he died, he hoped the Goddess would grant him the honor of having his soul reborn again to continue the fight. To me, it wasn’t as simple, but I was beginning to understand why the others felt the way they did. Personally, I wasn’t sure that I wanted to live a life like this again, one full of fear and fighting. A normal life sounded so much better to me.
“I had a dream one night,” I finally began slowly, searching for the right words. As many times as I had confronted Alyiah in my mind, actually doing it in person was a whole other story. Even though she was my birth mother, I felt awkward and uncomfortable around her. I wanted answers, but I wasn’t sure how to ask for them.
“Yes?” she prompted, even though I could tell that she didn’t really want to. I was about to force secrets out of her that she had managed to keep for years, whether she was ready or not to share them.
“It was the same dream I had been having for many nights before that,” I continued, “except this time there was more to it. Way more.” I paused, running a hand through my hair before saying, “I was in my bedroom, and there were flames everywhere. I was screaming for you, and I could hear you yelling my name, but you never came. Suddenly, there was a man in my room.” I heard Alyiah’s gasp, and her quiet plea to stop, but I chose to ignore it. “He saved me, jumping right out of the window with me in his arms. Later, you were in the dream. You told him you were sending me away. He got really angry.”
“Blayke, please, don’t go on,” Alyiah whispered.
Once again choosing to ignore her, I said, “His eyes changed from the same exact color of mine to a dark red. His teeth,” I shuddered at the memory, “grew into what could only be called fangs, and were so long and white.”
I looked over at Alyiah, and was surprised to see tears streaming down her cheeks. Pain radiated off her, and I could hear the whisper in her mind over and over again. Alexander, Alexander, Alexander.
“He is my father, isn’t he?” I asked quietly. A sob tore from Alyiah’s throat as she nodded. “He’s a vampire?” She nodded again, and I watched as she began to shake uncontrollably. “I think it’s time you tell me about him,” I said, reaching over to place a gentle hand on her arm. It was hard to stay angry with her when she looked so lost and broken.
Alyiah nodded, grasping my hand tightly in hers. “You have a right to know,” she agreed.
I hesitated briefly before asking, “Am I the only one you should be telling this story to?” When she looked at me in fear, I said, “I wasn’t sure if Papa and Grandma needed to hear it, too?” Grandfather had said that Alyiah refused to tell them anything about my real father, but I couldn’t help but think that it was something they needed to know now. “What if my father finds out that I’m back? What if he senses me or something? Can vampires do that?” Alyiah gasped, her hand covering her mouth in shock. “I’m thinking it could be a possibility,” I said softly. “They need to know, Alyiah, and so do the others. This could affect them, too. They all need to be aware of any danger that could be coming our way.” As much as I did not want my new friends to know that I was part vampire, I knew I didn’t have a choice. They needed to in case they had to protect themselves in the future.
Alyiah’s eyes clouded over, but she nodded in agreement as she wiped at the tears on her face. “You’re
right,” she whispered. “Everyone at The Manor has a right to know what they could be up against if Alex finds out you are back.” Turning toward the house, she sighed, “Let’s get this over with.”
I walked back to the house with her, and then left her sitting on the edge of the couch in the living room, trembling in fear, while I went to find my family and friends to let them know we were going to have a meeting. Soon we were all gathered in the large room, waiting for Alyiah to speak. Brielle and Dahlia shared one of the chairs, while my sister sat in the other one, with my father standing behind it. Asher and Eben leaned against the wall, their arms crossed casually over their chests, but I knew from experience that they were both anything but casual. Grandfather stood off to the side watching Alyiah closely, and my grandmother crossed the room to sit beside her daughter. When Alyiah stayed silent, staring down at the cream-colored carpet, I went over and sat on the other side of her. Meeting my grandfather’s gaze, I inhaled deeply and started with what I knew, “Years ago there was a fire at our house.”
“It was the last time we saw you,” Grandma said quietly. “You were taken away in the middle of the night after I cast my spell to help protect you, and to prevent you from remembering your past.”
“Yes,” I said, my gaze slowly tracking around the room. “It was also the first, and only, night that I saw my father.” I paused at my sister’s swift intake of breath, correcting myself quickly, “My biological father.”
“It’s okay, Blayke,” Dad said, with a small smile. “You are my daughter in every sense of the word. You don’t have to worry about how I will feel if you call him your father, too. I know you love me.”
“Thank you,” I said softly, grateful that he understood. “My father saved me from the fire that night,” I went on. “He came in through the window, and we left the same way. He took me somewhere safe, and we waited until Alyiah came to get me.”
“I don’t understand,” my grandmother said, grasping Alyiah’s hand tightly. “Why haven’t we ever met him before if you have? And why didn’t he bring you straight to us that night? We were so worried about you!”
“Not only that, but how the hell did he get in through your window?” Grandfather demanded. “You were two stories off the ground. There were no trees near, nothing to use to crawl up the house.”
Glancing over at Alyiah, I said, “I will leave that up to Alyiah to tell you.”
Alyiah slowly pulled her gaze from the carpet to look at first me, then her father. I could see the fear in her eyes, and her thoughts came to me loud and clear. He will hate me when he finds out what I did. I can deal with that, but please Goddess, please don’t let him hate my daughter.
My heart opened slightly to Alyiah when I realized that even though she was about to tell her parents that she had betrayed them years ago, that she had started a relationship with the very thing that she was raised to hate, her only worry was for me. She didn’t want her parents to hate her child. She didn’t want them to consider me part demon, because she had loved a vampire with all her heart, and she loved her daughter as well.
Laying my hand on top of hers, I said softly, “It’s okay, Alyiah. Tell them.”
“I can’t,” she cried brokenly, bowing her head in shame. “I couldn’t bear it if they all turned on you because of my choices.”
“I will deal with that if it happens. Right now, my main concern is keeping everyone here safe.”
“But, Blayke…they could hate you. Deny your right as a Jackson.”
“We pledged our loyalty to your daughter, Alyiah,” Asher said, stepping forward. “I know I speak for all of us when I say that we stand by that pledge no matter what.”
Alyiah looked at Asher, turning her hand over and clasping mine tightly in it. “No matter what?”
“No matter what,” Asher vowed. “Even if the devil himself is her father. It doesn’t matter who he is. He is not Blayke. She is her own person, a good person, and we will stand by her.” The rest of my friends agreed as one, their promise and loyalty showing in their eyes.
“That goes for us, too,” my grandfather said gruffly. “I have a feeling you are about to tell us that he is either a vampire or a shapeshifter. Whichever one it is, it doesn’t matter. She is my granddaughter, and I will always love her. She’s family. You don’t turn your back on family. I thought I taught you better than that, daughter?”
A shapeshifter? This was the first time that word had been used in my presence, and I wasn’t sure what it meant. All of the books I studied so far were on vampires. A shiver ran up my spine at the thought of other paranormal species out there.
Alyiah stiffened, and she looked one more time at each person individually, probably trying to guess if they were being sincere before beginning. “I met him one night while I was out hunting. I came upon three vampires stalking an innocent. I was able to take out the first two, but the last one was older and way more skilled. I was concentrating on him, and didn’t see one that I had missed coming up behind me. He grabbed me by my neck, and held me off the ground, laughing at me.” I saw her shudder, and her eyes glazed over at the memory. “The older one got me with his claws, across the chest and down one leg, while the other one held me. He was playing with me, and he almost killed me. He would have if Alex hadn’t appeared out of nowhere killed them both. I passed out from the pain, and was unconscious for a couple of days.”
“I remember that,” Grandfather said, cocking his head to the side in thought. “You were gone for almost a full week that time. We were unable to get a hold of you at first, but you eventually called us and said you were still hunting and would be home in a few days.”
Alyiah nodded, her gaze once again falling to the carpet. “I stayed with Blayke’s father that week, while he nursed me back to health. After that, I continued to see him.” She shrugged, lifting her head to look at her father. “We fell in love. Until him, I had no idea that there was even such a thing as a good vampire.”
I saw my grandfather tense, and he gritted his teeth as he said, “Go on.”
“When I became pregnant, we talked about running away, but we knew it wasn’t really an option. As much as we wanted to raise our child together, there just wasn’t such a thing as a vampire and a hunter getting married and having a family. It was unheard of. When Blayke was born,” Alyiah paused slightly, “when she came, we separated for a while so that I could try and give her a normal life, but it was hard being apart.”
“He was a vampire, Alyiah,” Grandfather snarled, “what was so hard about it?”
“He was the man I loved!” Alyiah cried, rising to her feet and fisting her hands at her sides. “The man I wanted to spend my life with!” A sob tore from her throat as she rasped, “He was a good person. The father of my child. The man I shared all of my hopes and dreams with. He was my everything.”
“Alyiah,” my grandmother said quietly, standing and putting an arm around Alyiah’s waist, “is he the reason you refuse to hunt?”
Alyiah’s eyes met mine and she whispered raggedly, “I can’t fight against him. I won’t.” He’s too powerful. He would kill us all.
“What do you mean he’s powerful?” I asked softly, knowing I was giving away the fact that I had heard her thoughts, but unable to stop voicing the question. Alyiah shook her head, burying her face in her hands. “Is he an older vampire?” I tried again. “Alyiah, you have to tell us. What if he finds out I am back and comes looking for me?” My brow furrowed as I thought of that night so long ago. “He told you that he would never give you up. I remember. Where is he?”
“I don’t know.”
I heard the honesty in her words, but it didn’t make sense. “I saw how angry he was. He let us go that night, but he said he would be back.”
Alyiah lowered her hands and looked at me, shrugging helplessly. “I waited for him to come back, but he never did. I’ve missed him so much, and a part of me wanted to catch just a glimpse of him, but I honestly don’t know where he is. He never
returned, and I never went looking for him. I was afraid to. Blayke, you don’t know how powerful he is. Or what his family is capable of. I stayed away to keep you safe. To keep everyone safe.”
“Just how powerful is he, daughter?” Grandfather demanded. “Who is he? Who is his family?”
“You don’t want to know, Daddy.”
“Alyiah,” Grandfather growled, “you will tell us. Now!”
Alyiah walked over to the window on the far side of the room. Placing a hand on the glass, she waited a moment before turning back to face us. “His name is Alexander Christoph, son of King Alec Christoph and Queen Bronwyn Christoph. He is the prince of the vampires.”
“Oh, my Goddess,” my grandmother whispered, her hand going to her throat. “Alyiah, what were you thinking?”
“I was thinking with my heart,” Alyiah said softly.
I stood at the bottom of the stairs, looking up at the sign that read Angel’s Pass High School, wondering why I had told my father that I would rather go to school than be homeschooled with everyone else. It would have been so much easier to be taught at The Manor by my grandmother, but I wanted to have a normal life, or as much of a normal one as I could.
The front doors opened and someone stepped out, quickly coming down the stairs toward me. I sighed deeply, hitching my backpack higher on my shoulder as I pulled my gaze away from the sign. I was already late, but I couldn’t seem to make myself walk up those stairs.
“Don’t worry, Sis. We’ve got this.” I heard Chandler’s voice, but couldn’t believe she was really there. When the subject came up the week before, she hadn’t expressed any interest in going to the local high school with me. She’d actually ignored my conversation with my dad and grandparents, going so far as to leave the room to go work on her magic spells. I thought I was on my own.
My eyes widened in surprise as I looked up and saw her standing just two stairs above me. She was dressed in jeans and a dark green sweatshirt, a brand-new backpack slung over one shoulder. “What are you doing here, Chandler?”
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