by E. J. King
Grace saw my reaction and laughed. “He means literally. We had a battle against a group of Undead and I used my powers to save him and the other Blackwood vampires.”
“Your powers?” I asked wearily.
“My super-charged blood lets me control supernatural creatures. It’s why the Guardianship is so desperate to find me.” She folded her arms tighter around her chest. “I don’t know what exactly they will make me do, but I’m sure their first order of business will be to bring down William and the Darkness.”
“They aren’t going to rest until they find you. How do you intend to fight them? They’re human.” I had killed dozens of vampires, but never a human. “Could you kill fellow Hunters?”
“If I have to, I will,” she said, almost sounding like she meant it. “The Darkness is my home now. I will fight to defend it.”
William interjected, “If you have any thoughts on how to stop the Guardianship, we’d love to hear them. You’ve got first-hand knowledge of how they operate and what information they have about the Darkness. That could be crucial to helping us fortify our barriers and proactively defend against future attacks.”
“I can try to help, but leadership didn’t really tell me any details. I do know where they have set up their headquarters if you are interested in a field trip.” I made the offer mostly as a joke, not expecting either of them to think it was a good idea.
“That would be incredibly helpful,” William said and Grace nodded enthusiastically.
“Do you think you could get us inside?” she asked.
I held up my hands in a defensive posture. “Whoa, slow down. We need to strategize this. I could probably get you in the door, but that would essentially be like leading a lamb into a den of lions. I think it would make more sense to keep you as far away from the Guardianship as possible.”
Grace glowered at me. “Cole, I’m not going to keep running and hiding from those jerks. If they want a piece of me, they’re going to have to fight to take it. I’m not scared of the Guardianship.”
“You should be,” I said. “I don’t know a lot about the Guardianship’s plans, but I do know that their primary reason for existence isn’t to kill vampires. They don’t want to destroy the supernatural world, they want to control it.”
“Why?” Grace said.
“Because if there is no supernatural world, there is no need for the Guardianship. It’s self-preservation,” William said.
“I would have said the same thing a few weeks ago.” I lowered my voice even more and said, “Grace, I found your father’s journal.”
She stared at me, unblinking. “Found it?”
“I took it from your bedroom. Don’t look at me like that.” I tried to ignore her indignant expression. I had engaged in necessary snooping. “Have you ever read his journal? The whole thing?”
“No. I never could bring myself to read it. Why? What’s in there?” Grace sounded nervous. She had a preconceived image of her parents and what I told her now could alter that forever.
“Your father was a well-respected member of the Hunter community. He had a lot of contacts– one of those being an Oracle.” I paused, noticing the tension in William’s face. “You know about the prophecy, I assume?”
He nodded. “I know that Grace is the Mulier Fortis.”
“What does that mean?” Grace demanded.
“You haven’t told her?” I cocked an eyebrow at William, silently wondering why he had chosen to keep that part of the prophecy to himself. “Grace, the Mulier Fortis has been prophesized about for half a century. She is the woman that has been embued with enough strength to defeat even the worst types of evil.”
“And I’m her?” She looked to William. “Why didn’t you tell me this? I remember Drake called me that when he brought me before you and the Council. If they all know, why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because that’s a lot of pressure for one person to endure,” he said. “I wanted to protect you from your fate for as long as possible.”
“You could’ve gotten her killed,” I said. “It was bad enough that the Guardianship knew about her, but your vampires also knew. It’s amazing that only one of them has tried to kill her so far.”
William gave me another of his withering looks. “I would never do anything to put Grace in danger.”
“Maybe not intentionally,” I said, softening my tone a little. I wasn’t going to get very far if I pissed off Grace’s boyfriend. “How much do you know about the other prophecy?”
“The one about Grace destroying the Darkness?” William said.
“No.” I hesitated, processing his revelation. “Actually, maybe. The way John wrote about it, it’s not specific to the Darkness though. The prophecy as it was written says that a force is conspiring to open the gates of hell, setting free the demons on the other side. Grace is the only one that can close the gate once it is open.”
Grace’s arms dropped to her side and she sucked in a sharp breath. “The gates of hell?”
“So the legend goes.” I shrugged. “No one ever said the Hunter life is easy, Wick.”
“Does this prophecy say anything about when the gates of hell are going to be opened? Or where? Or how? Or how I will stop it?”
“I don’t think you understand how prophecies work,” I said with a smirk. “We don’t get all the details. I do think the Guardianship knows more about the prophecy than your father did. We might be able to find something useful at headquarters.”
“All the more reason we should go,” Grace said stubbornly.
I shook my head. “No, all the more reason you should stay here in the Darkness with William. I will go alone.”
“Like hell you will,” she said, looking like she was ready to physically fight me. If the situation weren’t so serious, it would have been cute. “You can’t go back there alone. I’m sure the Guardianship has been keeping tabs on you and realizes you are missing. They’ll be on the lookout for you.”
“They still think I’m one of them,” I insisted. “I’ve given them no reason to doubt my loyalty. If I show up alone, they will let me in the door. If I show up with you and a vampire, they will probably kill me on the spot.”
“I’m not planning on ringing the doorbell,” Grace said snippily. “Look, it’s too dangerous for you to go alone. Not to mention, how do we know we can trust you not to turn on us and lead them back to the Darkness?”
It was as if she had slapped me in the face. “I would never do that!”
“I know that, but how can you expect William to believe that? He just met you.” She gave me a smug look and I knew that I had been played. There was no way now that William would let me leave the Darkness on my own.
“Fine. We’ll come up with a plan.” I sighed loudly. “You’re more conniving than I remember, Wick.”
“I’m not the girl you remember, Sanders,” she said seriously. “But I think you’ll grow to love the woman I’ve become.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
WILLIAM
When Cole finally left, I watched Grace pace the length of the room. She completed at least ten laps without saying a word.
“Grace, are you alright?” I asked tentatively from my seat on the edge of the bed.
“I’m great. I just found out I’m supposed to close the gates of hell and save the world.” She gave me a blank look. “Is there a reason I shouldn’t be alright?”
“Fair enough.” I leaned forward with my elbows on my knees. “Want to talk about it?”
Grace stopped pacing and glared at me. “No.”
“Okay.” I dropped my head and rubbed the back of my neck. I wasn’t sure what to say to Grace and I hated feeling helpless. When I lifted my head again, I was surprised to find her standing right in front of me.
“I’m going to be fine, William,” she said, putting her hands on my shoulders. “Cole’s news about the prophecy was a surprise, but I’ll deal with it.”
“You know this doesn’t change anything, right
? I’m still not going to let anything happened to you,” I said.
She smiled. “It sounds to me like I’m going to be the one that saves you.”
“That wouldn’t surprise me,” I said, running a hand over her thigh.
“There is something you could do for me,” she said as her heartrate ticked up.
“What’s that?” I inched my hand higher, sliding it under her robe.
Her hands moved away from my shoulders and she slowly untied the robe. As she let it fall open, she leaned down. Her hair fell in waves around us as she said, “Let me return the favor. I want you to drink from me, William.”
“Grace–” My protest was cut off by her lips on mine. I could still taste the sweet tang of my own blood in her mouth. With great effort, I pulled away an inch and said, “You don’t owe me anything.”
“I want you to feed on me in the way that you described one time, where it’s pleasurable for both of us. I want to experience that with you.” Her blue eyes were imploring. “Please, William. I trust you.”
“If that’s really what you want, I’ll do it.” I could never say no to her when she was looking at me that way.
“It is what I want,” she said confidently. “I want you, William. All of you.”
Before I could talk myself out of it, I quickly removed her robe and laid her on the bed. Our bodies moved together like always, in perfect harmony. Looking into her eyes, I said, “Are you ready?”
She nodded and reached up to touch my face. “Now. Do it now.”
I kissed my way along her jaw and down to her neck. The urge to drink was so overwhelming that I had to use all my concentration not to move too fast. I wanted Grace to enjoy it. Slowly, I grazed her soft skin with my fangs, a gentle tease for both of us. I could feel her pulse racing against my lips.
Unable to resist any longer, I penetrated her skin. The blood rushed over my tongue, making my head swim. I heard Grace moan, a sound of pleasure and not pain. I sucked gently, careful not to take too much blood. When she gasped loudly, I retracted my fangs but I let my lips linger on her neck. She still had my blood in her system and the two tiny puncture holes would heal almost immediately.
“William,” she said, her fingers tangling in my hair. Her chest heaved as she struggled to catch her breath.
I lifted my head. “Was that okay?” I asked timidly.
“Okay?” She laughed. “William, that was amazing. How in the world have we not being doing that this whole time?”
“I couldn’t reveal all my tricks right away,” I said with a relieved smile. It was getting easier to control myself with her. “Grace, I need you to know that I don’t have to drink your blood to feel pleasure. Just being with you is enough.”
“I know,” she said, stroking my cheek. “But after what Cole said, it’s obvious that we are about to face a really hard battle. You need to be at full strength. I’m happy to give you as much blood as that takes. It’s just a nice bonus that you can make it feel so amazing.”
I leaned down to kiss her cheek and kept my mouth close to her ear when I said, “I’ve never done that with anyone else.”
“What?” She turned her head toward me. “What do you mean? I know you used to drink from humans, William. And I know you weren’t a virgin.”
I smiled softly. “I mean I’ve never drank from a human while we were being intimate. That was always a line I refused to cross.”
“Until now?” she asked.
“Until you.” A familiar tightness ached in my chest. “I never wanted to be with any human that way until I met you.”
I didn’t notice the light shifting in the room until I heard footsteps racing toward the room. I sat up abruptly and covered Grace with a blanket. “Something is wrong,” I said as she stared at me in shock.
There was an urgent knock on the door and in less than five seconds, I had pulled on my sweatpants and opened the door.
“Sorry, brother,” Alexander said, stepping into the room without waiting for an invitation. He glanced at Grace, but was too distracted to comment on her nakedness. “There’s been an attack.”
“I saw the light,” I said, gesturing to the ominous red glow outside the window. “We need to get back.”
“It’s too late for that,” he said. “A few vampires were able to escape during the attack and made it up here. They said that the coast has already been overrun.” Alexander gave me a pointed look. “It’s the Guardianship, brother.”
I said, “Get everyone to the vehicles. We need to leave right away.”
Alexander nodded and hurried away. When I turned back to Grace, she was already getting dressed. “We have to go back,” she said. “Norah is there.”
I flew around the room, repacking our things at lightning speed. When I was done, I grabbed our bags in one hand and Grace’s arm in the other. “It’s time to go.”
“William.” She tried to dig in her feet, but I was stronger. “William, stop. We have to go back for Norah.”
“We can’t,” I said, pulling her down the hallway. In an ideal world, I would never have to be so forceful with Grace, but we didn’t have the luxury of taking our time. “Grace, if the Guardianship has already arrived, it’s too risky for us to go back.”
“I can’t just leave her,” Grace said, nearly yelling in exasperation.
“Gracie, it’s okay! I’m here!” A very petite girl stepped into view at the end of the hall. Behind her, more vampires and humans were gathered, waiting for my command.
Grace gasped. “Norah?”
“I’m here.” Norah gestured to a solidly built vampire on her right. “Knox freed me just before the Guardianship got to the Capitol. He brought me here on one of those weird car/airplane things.”
I took a step forward, placing myself strategically between Grace and Norah. I didn’t expect Norah to attack, but I wasn’t going to take any chances. “Knox, take Norah and the others outside. We must leave now. Head for the Washington estate and we’ll regroup there.”
“Where’s Cole?” Grace asked.
When I scanned the room, I noticed he wasn’t the only one missing. My sister was also nowhere to be found. As the others began filing outside, I turned to Grace. “Wait here. I’ll find him.”
“We’re here, we’re here!” Kathryn came flying down the spiral staircase, a large duffle bag over her shoulder. A few feet behind was a weary looking Cole. “Sorry, we didn’t hear the commotion.”
“Sure, you didn’t,” Grace said. She was smirking, clearly enjoying Cole’s embarrassment. “You must have really been distracted.”
“You have no idea,” Kathryn said with a big wink. “Liam, we’ll ride with you and Grace.”
“Goodie.” I took Grace’s hand and pulled her toward the door.
Most of the other vehicles were already gone. The red light illuminating the Darkness had grown even deeper until the sky almost seemed to be bleeding. None of us spoke until we were airborne, headed rapidly away from our home.
“What will happen to everyone that didn’t make it out?” Grace asked quietly as she stared down at the Darkness.
“I don’t know,” I said.
She reached over and put her hand on top of mine. I opened my palm to her and she threaded our fingers together.
“The Guardianship will kill the vampires,” Kathryn said. “The ones they can find, anyway. I’m sure they’ve all fled into the forest.”
“What about the humans?” Cole asked.
No one answered. The truth was that we didn’t know how the Guardianship would treat the humans that had been compelled. They wouldn’t leave the Darkness willingly and it might be more of a fight than the Guardianship would be willing to tolerate.
“I saw Mirella in the crowd,” Grace said. “That’s good, right?”
“Yes. We will have her enhance the protective barriers at the estate.” I always kept protective wards around all my homes, but they wouldn’t be strong enough for something like this. Mirella would need to aug
ment them, and fast.
None of us felt much like talking, so we finished the flight in silence. I could feel Grace’s anxiety, but also a feeling of resolution. She had known that we wouldn’t be safe forever. Part of her had probably been expecting this moment since her first day in the Darkness.
“How did they find us?” Grace asked as the Seattle skyline came into view. My home was north of the city.
“I have one guess,” I said, glancing in the rearview mirror.
“I didn’t tell them how to find the Darkness,” Cole snapped. “I couldn’t have. Drake compelled me so I couldn’t remember how we got there.”
“I don’t think you told them, I think they had someone following you or they were tracking you in some way.” I started to prepare for landing. “I’m sure Drake was too careless to take the right precautions.”
Kathryn interjected, “Wait, why would the Guardianship be tracking you?”
“Because I’m one of them,” Cole admitted. “They assigned me to Grace a year ago to keep an eye on her. Obviously, that didn’t go so well. It’s pretty logical that they didn’t trust me to find her and bring her back.”
“Does Drake know about this?” Kathryn asked.
“Partially. He knows that I was friends with Grace and that I am a Hunter. I told him I had information on the Guardianship that I’d gleaned from other Hunters. Drake doesn’t know that I was working for the Guardianship when I met Grace,” Cole said.
We landed in the empty field in front of the estate. The last time I had been on this land, we’d waged a war against the Undead. It was also when Grace had discovered her powers for the first time and used them to win the battle.
As we walked the few yards to the house, I said, “Kathryn, can you please make sure Grace and Cole get settled in. I need to meet with the Mirella and the Council.”
“Sure. I’ll figure out sleeping arrangements for the other vampires. I don’t think we’re going to have enough rooms for everyone.” Kathryn gestured to the large crowd waiting for us at the house.
About a dozen vampires, the same amount of weres, and twenty humans had made it out of the Darkness. One of the first things we needed to do was set the humans free. It wouldn’t be safe to keep them around under such conditions. We’d also have to secure a large blood supply to hold us over until we could plan a more permanent setup.