by Tara Brown
Lucas tried to reason with her. “Baby. Aimes is your best friend in the whole world. She is the sister you never had. Christ, she is the sister I never had. She would never hurt you on purpose, never. If she swore to keep you safe and alive to your da—Dorian, she just kept that promise. We don’t know what the baby could have done to you. We don’t know what happens when fae have a baby with Nephilim. I'm not willing to risk it.”
“B-b-but I'm immortal.” She sniffed.
“So was my aunt. My cousin lived and my aunt didn’t. There’s something not right in the soul of a baby that never came from God.”
She cried into him. His shirt muffled it.
I winked and ended up in Sam's room. He wasn’t there. The bathroom light was on. I tapped on the wooden door, making it swing open slowly. In case he was in there.
He wasn’t but I took a step back. My hand came up to my mouth. He was there holding a towel in front of himself. I pointed to the bathroom. “Someone has been murdered in here.”
He paused and moaned his answer, “Welllllll, no. Uhm. Me and Hanna had a situation—”
“Oh God, stop. I don’t want to know. That’s a lot of blood. I just wanted to talk. I'll come back.” I winked. My heart did the controlling.
I stood, staring out over the Nærøyfjord. Sam was there within seconds.
“I chose this place to be alone,” I muttered.
Aleks strolled up to us, looking confused.
“So much for being alone.” Sam laughed.
“I saw Luke,” Aleks shouted as he paced toward us.
I wanted to say something but I couldn’t. Nothing wanted to come out. My heart was broken and having one of his lectures wasn’t going to improve things for me.
“She’s pissed, but she'll come around.”
“Ari?” Sam folded his arms. “What's happening?”
“Aimee took the baby out of Ari.”
Sam's nose scrunched up. “Oh wow. How? Where?”
“I don’t know, Aimes?” Aleks paused with a raised brow. “I guess you did the suck thing, and ate it.”
“Ugh.” Sam gagged.
“I hate you guys.” I wrinkled my nose too. They started laughing, bitterly. I didn’t even know why they were laughing. It was sick and gross. “I never ate it. It was like a spirit abor—”
“Stop.” Sam put a hand out. “I give, please. Stop.”
“You know you saved her from whatever little monster Lucas put in there,” Aleks said through his chuckles.
“You're both sick.” I shook my head in disgust.
They laughed harder.
“Why are you laughing? She hates me. I got Dorian killed and killed her baby and you two assholes are laughing. Why are you laughing?”
Sam shook, he laughed so hard. After a minute, he had calmed down enough to say, “Aimes. Babe. Come on. It’s crazy. Think about what you're saying. You sound nuts.”
I winked back to Marcus’. Ben was in my room. “What's going on?”
“Giselle. She isn't into me the way I am her.” He sulked. “She just wants flings.”
“I’m sorry.” I pulled his huge body into mine and hugged. “Wanna cuddle?”
“Spoon?” His grin made me almost say yes.
I shoved him again. “No.”
He shrugged. “I gotta try.”
We climbed on my bed and he wrapped his arms around me. I stared up at the ceiling. “Did you talk to Luke?”
“Yup. He’s so relieved. Ari's still sick but she’s coming around so they think the poison was in the baby, I guess. Lillith and those bad witches did something to the baby to make it kill her. You saved her. Don’t feel guilty.”
“I do though. She begged me not to.”
He kissed the top of my head. “Aimes, you saved her.”
“I got her dad killed too. Worst friend ever.”
“No. You're the best friend ever. You sacrificed your friendship to save her life. You made her more important than yourself.”
Lorri burst in. “We gotta go. That place in Ireland we were at—the old castle—Lillith’s there with Phillip and Trist. He turned eighteen at sunset.” She stared at us and shook her head. “I don’t even wanna know.”
“It’s not what you think,” I said but she was gone. Ben’s grin was too cheeky so I winked us to the living room without telling him. He gagged, shooting me a fierce look. “Dude. Warning.”
Grinning, I snapped my eyes at him and went over to where Lucas sat. “I'm sorry.”
“No.” He shook his shaggy dark head and stood up. “You've got nothing to be sorry for. You made the right choice for her. She'll see it one day.” His green eyes sparkled. “I owe you big time.”
“Getting fixed anytime soon? ‘Cause I didn’t want to do that again.”
“Already done.”
I whispered, “You got neutered?”
An offended look crossed his brow. “I'm a man, not a dog. What the hell?”
“You know what I mean. It’s all the same surgery. Ask the vet next time you're there.”
“You’re a dick.” He grabbed my head and pushed it down. I backed up, laughing.
“What's up with you guys? Everyone is laughing and enjoying themselves lately. Something's up.” Lorri crossed her arms and stared me down.
“Yeah, you’re right. And even you’re kinda happy, Lorri. Something is up.” I glanced at us all. The tension was cut. Even Marcus had pants on. The kids were gaming and the house felt content.
“Jonathan’s dead,” Giselle said as if that was the obvious answer. Like we were too stupid to see it. “That’s been a pretty big deal to everyone. Aimee killed him. That’s pretty much the most important thing to happen yet.”
“No, that's not it.” I narrowed my gaze.
“No, it’s not,” Sam spoke as he walked to stand beside me. “Henry,” he whispered.
Marcus snapped his head around. “He’s cast something on us.” He looked down at his pants and muttered, “I'll kill him.”
Giselle pointed at the pants. “No, this is an improvement. I was about six seconds away from tackling you with a garden hose.”
Shane laughed. “You were pretty funky, man.”
“Where is Henry?” Ben asked.
“He left obviously. After he cast the happy cloud over us.” Luke snorted.
“ENOUGH!” Lorri shouted.
We all snapped out of it.
She frothed a bit. “We have to get out of this house.”
Everyone but Ari came into the room one by one. Lorri spoke to Marcus, “Stay here in happy land with the kids and Ari, if you want to.”
“I'm not staying.”
We all swung around to see Ari in military boots and skinny jeans.
I swallowed hard. She met my eyes and then turned away.
Luke shot Lorri a glare. “She should stay.”
Ari glowered right back at him. “You don’t get to have a say in every aspect of my life, Lucas.”
“Okay, everyone calm down.” Aleks stepped beside Luke and put a hand on him. “Take a breath,” he whispered.
“Whatever,” Luke muttered. “Let's just go.”
“If she isn’t well, Sam, she comes home. We don't have time to worry right now.” Lorri held up her phone, flashing a photo. I grabbed Giselle, Shane, and Ben and winked fast.
“That was awkward,” Shane said.
“Yup.” I nodded. “Super awkward.” I pointed up the bright green hill. “We're going this way, toward that garden area. If she’s doing the magic now, she’s outside. She’s stronger outside.” I remembered Henry saying that once. Witches had a stronger connection to the earth outside.
Hanna and Sam winked up to us. “I sent my dad and Roland a text. They're heading to Marcus’ right now to stay with the kids,” Hanna said quietly.
“Why, where’s Mar—never mind.” I glanced at Marcus in my peripheral. He was beside Lorri looking pissy. “Someone put on pants and decided to leave the house.”
“
He came?” Shane questioned.
“Yeah.” Hanna nodded. “He’s pretty mad about the lab.”
Sam laughed. “He just wants to kill some people.”
“Apparently, those are his sassy pants.” I rolled my eyes.
“I’d say big boy pants.” Sam winked.
“Anyway”—Shane pointed up to the wall around the castle—“it’s lucky he came. Look.”
“Frig. Reinforcements.” I cringed. “That’s a lot of people.”
Lorri growled as she winked closer to us with Marcus. “Where did you think they all were? The whole army’s here. I’m starting to wonder if that stupid snow globe was glamour and she never really left here. I’m not sure she was ever in Alaska.”
“Yeah.” I didn’t say I had a terrible fear Jonathan told us the truth: the only thing stopping her from taking over and destroying everything was him.
Aleks cocked an eyebrow. “Thanks for the heads up.”
Lorri shrugged. “Wouldn’t have helped. I have the Asian Roses and the African Roses coming now. The European ones are already here.”
“I feel like the Power Rangers,” Ben muttered and phased midair.
“You totally stole that from my lips.”
He sniffed at me and ran up ahead to hide in the bushes. I tried not to let the beauty of the castle and grounds overwhelm me.
We were at a huge brick and stone castle with a wall all the way around it and turrets. The extensive grounds lead up into the hillside which turned into a thick forest. It was stunning the way it was surrounded by emerald green.
“This castle was built in a forest the fae believe is guarded with magic. They believe it is where the fae originally came from. If Lillith is evil, she has tricked the strongest of the fae,” Marcus said skeptically.
We followed Ben into the woods.
Lorri started the lecture, “The army’s inside. Shifters, fae, witches, vamps, Nephilim, and God only knows what else. There will be no Ari, Aimee, Hanna, and even the succubi aren’t like Giselle. But everything else exists inside there. This is the real deal.” She pointed to a turret. “The other side of the castle is where everyone else on our team is hiding in the woods. I don't think Lillith is expecting us. They likely think Jonathan has finished us off or tricked us once again. If we catch them off guard, we should be able to take them down before the sun sets completely. And we all have to assume Henry joined the ranks of the deserters.”
Hanna pointed to the castle. “What if Lillith’s good and there’s something else in there?”
Lorri snapped, “We take our chances. No matter what, we end this today.” She flashed a picture of where Lucas and Ben were from, but I remembered it all. “We’re going to get the wolves; Sam, Aleks, me, and you.” Her eyes darted to mine.
We winked to where the whole council was ready. We each grabbed our maximum and flashed them back. At least fifty, maybe seventy-five shifters filled the woods around us. The chatter grew with all the new people. They shifted quickly. I glanced at Ari and grinned. “Yay. Janine’s here.”
She burst into laughter. “I'm pissed at you. Don't make me laugh.” I grabbed her and pulled her in.
“I love you and if I die I want you to know that.”
Ari sighed. “I know. I still hate you. I get to hate you for like ten minutes.”
“I'll be dead in ten minutes.”
“Five minutes.”
“Dude, think about the world we live in. All those Nephilim kids are orphans, weird little orphans. It’s no life for a kid. Besides, what would we do without you?”
“Shut up.”
“Okay.” I pulled away. “Five minutes. Then we wrestle.”
Shane poked his head into the conversation. “In Jell-O?”
Ari grinned. “I don't actually like Jell-O. I ate lots of it at the orphanage.” She shivered. I hated when she spoke of her other lives.
The lighting was perfect. Most of the things that went bump in the night saw better in the dark. Ari, Hanna, Giselle, and I didn’t.
“Is this the powwow for girls who don’t fit in?” Hanna and Giselle walked up. I laughed. “Pretty much.”
“Stay close to each other, okay?”
Giselle took a deep breath. “I just want you guys to know if we die, I love you bitches. This shit was the best shit that ever happened to me.”
We stared at her like we might laugh but the imminent death lingering in the air forced us all into a big group hug. It felt fake. I still disliked Hanna in a twisted way, but we hugged nevertheless.
“Henry healed me before he left,” Ari whispered.
We all stared at her. “What if he hurt you?”
She shook her head. “He told me he was healing me because he could feel the pain inside me and he felt sorry for me. He said he knew what they had done to me and it wasn't kind. He seemed disgusted. He said that the poison they put in me was slow to kill. They wanted to get my power or learn to control me. If they couldn’t, I would have died anyway. If not for Henry. He also said he had met my mother. Even knew her a little.”
“What?” My insides clamped up.
She nodded. “He was there. He was there when I was born. He went with Marcus. Marcus knew Dorian had reproduced, even though Dorian didn’t. Marcus had to see me; he knew I would be different. He was the reason my uncle left with me. He convinced him to take me and run away. He saved my life. Henry was there with him.”
“He could have saved your mother?” Hanna said, astonished.
Ari shook her head. “No. He said she was dead already when they got there. He had seen her before. When she was pregnant. She was newly pregnant then. Dorian didn’t know but Henry could tell. They broke up before she ever told him she was pregnant. He said Dorian really liked my mom. Not love, but he really liked her a lot.”
“You okay?” Giselle asked sweetly.
Ari added, “It made me feel better.”
“Ladies, is this too boring for you?” Lorri snapped her fingers. “Let's do this.” She held her hand in the air with three fingers.
One.
Two.
As she lowered that third finger I grabbed Giselle, Hanna, and Ari, and winked. We stood on top of the roof of the castle where the guards were roaming. “Them.” I pointed to the men on the wall of the castle.
I winked us again. We started the fight fast.
Fists flew at me.
A gunshot hit me in the gut.
I groaned and ripped souls fast.
Blood sprayed and splattered.
Giselle was wooing and leading a group of them like a pied piper. As she walked them to me I flashed my hands past and ripped their souls out. Ari was doing the same by pinning the men to the stone walls.
Only Hanna was just ripping heads off and tossing bodies down below. Shots were fired at us. I pulled an arrow out of my thigh. My black blood spilled into my red boot. I growled at the archer and winked behind him. Killing him didn't take the blood out of my boot.
Screams were everywhere. The shifter fae bit and gnashed. Lorri tore out throats. Several of the shifters were hurt. I couldn’t see if it was Ben or Lucas. Things like Shane were everywhere. He and Marcus fought like it was the UFC.
Hordes of vampires attacked Marcus. He screamed and they knelt, switching teams and helping us.
Nothing disobeyed him.
Aleks was with Sam. They were doing the ever-annoying winky-flashy-fighting-thing that pissed everyone off.
The Asian Roses were obvious. Beautiful vampires and Nephilim. One girl made a light with her hands and blinded a group of people, until one of the witches shot lightning at her from a window. The ground rumbled beneath my feet. I winked into the window and ripped out the witch's soul, just as spikes shot up from the ground. Lightning struck everywhere. There was dust and chaos and blood in every direction. The last bit of daylight was gone and, as if strengthened by it, the vampires and wolves started going savage. I could see less and less. I snapped my fingers, making bursts of light.
There was a flash of something.
I ducked against the wall and waited. Someone was in the hallway with me. I winked out to the roof again and then instantly back in. I grabbed and spun the person. Aleks planted a huge kiss on my lips. “Ass.” I shoved him. He flashed us again as light filled the dark hallway.
“What was that?” I whispered from the corner where we hid.
“The witches. We need to stop them. They'll help Lillith and Tristan.” He grabbed my face. “If one of us dies—God, let it be me—I need you to know, I love you. I have loved you for a while.”
“I figured.” I nodded.
“If I die I need you to know that I am there. The warm breeze will always be me. Holding you and loving you.” He pressed his lips into mine, and I had a sinking feeling he knew he was going to die. He flashed us back to the dark hallway.
“Damned Nephilim. They keep winking.”
I froze. I knew the voice.
“Phillip,” I mouthed. Aleks nodded. He flashed and came back holding Phillip in a headlock. Phillip struggled. I looked out the window and winked us to where Ari held some men against a wall.
“Push him!” I shouted.
She pushed Phillip and knocked him out.
Aleks dropped him and winced. His arms were covered in dark spots.
“What's that?”
He shook his head. “It's his thing. He can push darkness into you. To poison you.”
Ari grabbed his arm. “I watched him do it to someone at the witches’ village. It'll kill you.”
“That speech better not have been real.” Annoyance covered my face.
“Just epic timing.” He laughed. “Nothing can kill me. Nothing but you.”
In my peripheral, a man was about to decapitate Shane. I winked and sucked the man as Shane spun. He stabbed his hand into the man's chest as the man died.
“I had him.” He grinned. His face was covered in blood, red and black.
“Whatever.” I winked to the group.
Hanna was carrying the dead body of a man with her. I looked harder. It was a guy we had all met.
“Oh my God,” I heard someone shout.