The Fallen One (Sons of the Dark Mother, Book One)

by Lenore Wolfe

  Ophelia shook her head, confused herself. “I don’t think Dara would want to feel like that.” She gestured toward the humans.

  Conrad nodded. “Between you and me, I don’t think Dara would want to give up the part of her she shares with Dracon.”

  Ophelia frowned at him. “You think she would choose to remain a vamp?”

  He hefted the bag off the table and set the bag’s strap over his shoulder. “That was the other reason we didn’t say anything.” He picked up the blowgun. “First, we won’t know what will become of these humans—or how they will respond to this vaccine. Sufficient testing had not been done to know the full effects of these shots.” He looked at Ophelia. “And second—even if the memory loss were the only side effect, we don’t know if it’s permanent.” He started to walk toward the truck, and Ophelia followed him. “But third,” he said as they walked. “Dara shares Dracon’s world because they are both vamps.” He set the bag in the back of the truck. “Do you really see her giving him up—and going back to her world?”

  Ophelia knew he had a point.

  Justice followed Constantine. He had been following him ever since he left that roof. He watched, now, as the old vamp entered a building on the pier.

  Justice followed on silent feet. He was aware that Constantine knew he was following. He knew. And he led Justice to where they would have their final battle. However, Justice wasn’t convinced that the old vamp would, in the end, allow a final battle to happen.

  He was sure that Jes was correct—and the old vamp had a much bigger agenda in mind. So he followed. Time would tell what the aged battle vamp was really up to.

  The vampires were under control. Constantine knew that this particular war was done—for now. There would be another—but not until Constantine had found a way to, once more, have the upper hand. But at the moment, the vaccine had proved too much of a threat to him to proceed forward with his plans.

  He would find a better time.

  Constantine was the only one left for them to deal with—and he knew it. Justice had been waiting for this battle for a long, long time. But somehow he had the feeling that Constantine would find a way to leave it for a better day—when he was the one in the position of power.

  And yet, first, he must save face.

  He could not leave without first putting on a good show.

  He could not leave without it appearing that he had put up a fight. And the opportunity for that good fight—meant they still had a chance.

  It was with some anticipation that Justice stepped inside the door.

  Chapter Fifty-Four

  Killer

  Constantine was waiting when Justice entered the room. He and Justice circled one another warily. They both knew they stood before a respected foe. Justice respected Constantine because his prowess was legendary: the stuff passed down over centuries.

  Justice had gained Constantine’s respect because, after last night, Constantine had come to realize that though he may be young, he was the Prince of Fire—and he had found a way to destroy Constantine’s well-built empire.

  He had underestimated his foe, and the cost had been high. Justice circled his foe, and was rewarded when Constantine moved in quickly to slash at him with his razor-sharp sword.

  The peal of steel hitting steel rang through the morning as they each tried to get the upper hand.

  After a moment, the old vamp pulled back with a laugh. “Not bad, Prince of Fire.”

  Justice knew that it was time. They would only have the attention of the old battle vamp until he lost interest.

  Justice slipped out of the room like a shadow.

  Constantine laughed. “What? Leaving so soon, Prince of Fire? Don’t you want to find out what happened to your sister?” Justice knew that Constantine circled the room and neared the doorway. His voice was louder when he said, “I take it you want me to follow you?” He laughed again. “I suppose that you have a trap planned for me.”

  Justice felt him shrug. Constantine wasn’t even trying to shield himself, and this worried Justice more than anything else he could have done. Either Constantine wanted Justice to know what he was doing, so that he could set his own trap—or he was just that sure—that they could do nothing to him that he didn’t allow.

  “Okay, Prince of Fire,” he said. “I’ll bite.”

  Justice stepped out of the building and made his way down the pier.

  Jes and her sisters had come to the pier. They had followed the princes in their mind, to where Constantine would likely put on his last big show.

  He knew that his armies were destroyed.

  The other vamps—the ones who had joined him for this battle—had simply disappeared when the fledgling vamps were so easily removed from Constantine. The rumors of the vaccines had proved themselves true, and the risk—at the moment—was simply too great.

  The Fae army followed them to make sure they would not cause any more trouble. But the rogue factions appeared to head home.

  Everyone knew how likely the reverse would have been true—if they had not found the vaccines in time.

  The Sisters of Three quickly put up a circle and watched Conrad, where he stood by the water. Dawn had broken the horizon, and they were attracting the attention of the early-morning joggers, and others who had come out to greet the new day.

  The sun, breaking the horizon, didn’t seem to faze the old vamp.

  Dracon was standing on the pier, and Justice was standing by the bonfire on the beach, when Constantine stepped out of the building.

  Conrad raised his arm and a wall of water came up to tower over the men.

  Jes closed her eyes as she watched from the walking trail. The city would not have missed that one. She swallowed hard and looked back to see who might have noticed. She couldn’t have hoped that it would be missed.

  She stared in horror at the gathering crowd.

  Of course they hadn’t missed it. That would have been too much to hope for!

  It was then that she saw Justice raise his hand. Suddenly a wall of fire separated her from the men, and she could see no more—only the fire.

  The humans gathering looked simultaneously shocked by the fire, which appeared to burn from nothing but the sand, and disappointed—since they couldn’t see the men anymore.

  Well, Jes thought, at least they won’t witness any more than they already had.

  That thought was short lived when Dracon appeared—hovering in the air.

  Jes groaned.

  She looked at the growing sea of faces that now stared at Dracon in a mixture of shock—and awe. Then the ground shook and a great crack raced toward the crowd, who ran screaming, trying to escape.

  The wall of fire dropped, and she saw Constantine drop into the ground. The ground rapidly began to close behind him. And she stared in shock at who was controlling this power.

  Jared!

  Someone could have knocked her over with the slightest breath of wind. She couldn’t have been more stunned. She wanted to rub her eyes, or blink, or anything that would set straight what she was seeing.

  But she knew that nothing would.

  Jared was the Prince of Earth!

  And now that the four princes were together, nothing could stop them. Not even Constantine.

  The ground swallowed Constantine and, for a moment, she felt a great relief that it was over, hoping that the ground could hold him—and knowing that nothing likely could.

  And then, Constantine shot up out of the last fissure in the rapidly closing ground, immediately proving what she already knew—what all of them had already known.

  He hovered above the melee for a long moment, laughing—and then… he simply disappeared.

  The ground closed and the lake rolled in, covering up all signs that any of this had taken place. Jes stared at the men. She stared at where the earth had held a chasm only moments before.

  She swallowed back her deep disappointment, but they had all known there had only been a slim chance—t
hat they would actually take the master himself.

  Dara and Mira called her back to the shade of a tree, where Dara would be in the shade—though Dracon had given her the same shot that he’d had—so that she wouldn’t be at risk to the sun. Each sister took one of her hands. She heard Dara tell her what to chant, within her head, a line ahead of each line they spoke out loud.

  As the water covers the earth

  To cleanse away her scars,

  We call the Fae

  Be with us as Sisters of Three

  To wipe away from those who should forget…

  what has taken place this day.

  As we will it,

  So mote it be.

  And so it was written in history that Constantine was beaten back, once more. At least it was written in the Land of the Fae—for it would be some time before the humans would be ready to write such things in their own history books.

  They had to embrace the spirit inside them first. They had to embrace the spirit around them before they, once more, could embrace what they already knew, deep inside, if they only would allow themselves to remember.

  But first, they had to remember how to believe.

  And they had to open their hearts to embrace their brothers in the Land of the Fae.

  The Fae awaited this with anticipation, for this would be a time of great rejoicing—a time when the Earth could finally heal—a time when Her children walked as one—once more.

  In the meantime, Constantine had met his enemy—and he had found that the Four Princes of the Dark Mother were brought together, in time, once more.

  No doubt he would bide his time, looking for another chance—another opening. But the princes, Justice’s sisters, and the Sisters of Three knew this.

  And they would be waiting.

  Chapter Fifty-Five

  Power of Three

  They held a ceremony for Jes that night—for her to take back her name. They had all dressed in ceremonial garb. Many of them were wearing capes of deep red, trimmed with gold. Justice stood by her side. The Queen of Darkness stood before them. She placed a mantle of shimmering stars around both of them.

  She gave a small smile as she looked at Justice, and then at Jes.

  “Your name is Shira,” she stated clearly.

  Jes looked at her in surprise. That was the name that Morgi had called her when she called the light. She had forgotten all about that, after they had been knocked unconscious by it. But it was more than that. The name had sounded very familiar—as it should, she realized, if she had been called the name as a small child.

  But if she had been surprised by that, she was even more so when the Queen of Darkness called out Morgi, herself, to give her an amulet.

  Only she hadn’t called her Morgi.

  What had she called her was Morrigan.

  Jes knew that her mouth fell open. Morrigan? The Morrigan.

  Heaven help them!

  She stared at Morgi—or the Morrigan—as she came forward. She was dressed in the most elaborate battle garb Jes had ever seen. The same symbol was beaten into the breastplate as been when she had first shown herself in their ritual room. Jes realized it was a raven.

  The Morrigan came forward and placed a medallion in her hands and closed her fingers over it. She did the same with Mira—and then Dara—her eyes were serious, but her face showed that she was proud of the Sisters of Three.

  And when Jes opened her hand—it was to find the Triquetra.

  She smiled and closed her fingers over it once more—letting the coolness of the metal embrace her heart.

  They were the Sisters of Three.

  When it was over, Justice stepped forward and gave her a gentle kiss—as the crowd roared their approval. Mira and Dara also hugged her. Their faces were flushed with happiness.

  When things had settled down, and the Queen of Darkness had called for the celebration to begin, Jes rounded up her sisters for a private talk.

  “Were either of you as surprised as I was to learn that Morgi—is the Morrigan?”

  Mira laughed. “I know. Nothing surprises me here anymore, but you could have knocked me over with a feather when she came walking down at the Queen’s pronouncement.”

  Even Dara nodded at this.

  “Wow!” Jes said. “Why would she help us?”

  Mira nodded. “How did she help us?” She tapped her finger on her chin, much like they had seen Morgi do on that first day. “Hmmm. I wonder if that’s more what Amar meant by a couple of worlds removed?”

  Jes’s eyes widened. “You mean….”

  “As in time?” Dara finished for her.

  Mira nodded. “Time is—an illusion,” she reminded her sisters.

  “How amazing is that?” Jes said, trying to wrap her mind around the thought.

  “Isn’t it though, granddaughter?” they heard Amar said from behind them.

  The three of them turned and hugged Amar.

  “So she is the Goddess Morrigan?” Jes asked, smiling her excitement at actually meeting a Goddess.

  “Well, the spirit world has a somewhat different view of what the humans mean by Goddess—but—yes, she is the Goddess Morrigan,” she finished.

  “Wow!” Jes said again. “I’m—just—blown away! I don’t know what to say!”

  “You say—thank you for your help, Morrigan,” Amar said with a huff. She smiled at her granddaughter. “Come now, Shira. Come granddaughters, the Queen of Darkness has given you a celebration. She would be affronted if you hide away from the entertainment she has provided.’

  Laughing, Mira exclaimed. “Oh, now, we wouldn’t want to do that!”

  And they all four went out to enjoy the celebration.

  Late the next day, they had all sat down to rest in the main room at the main house of the compound. They were all enjoying a quiet evening. They had even turned on the TV to watch one of the humans’ movies. Jes was cuddled up with Justice on one of the sofas, but she couldn’t concentrate. Her attention was continuously drawn to Mia, who wasn’t paying the movie any mind at all.

  She was too busy staring off into space.

  Her usual bounciness and springiness were gone. Gone, also, was her ready smile.

  Jes realized that she was only getting worse, not better. They had seen something in the sphere, something she needed to explain. It was time to get to the bottom of what was bothering her. And who better to do that than the ones she loved.

  She got up and switched off the TV.

  Everyone stared at her like she’d grown horns, until she gestured impatiently at Mia. Jasmine and Ophelia realized what Jes was about and took up a seat on either side of Mia, each of them putting their arm around their sister.

  “Okay,” Jasmine said gently to Mia, “It’s time you told us what happened to you.”

  “Yes, baby sis,” Ophelia said, just above a whisper. “You’re scaring us all half to death. We’ve never seen you like this.”

  Jes sat down in front of Mia. Justice grabbed a chair to move closer, too. When he did, Dara, Dracon, and Mira moved their chairs around him, until they were all around her. Even Micah and Roman gathered around. The only ones who were missing were Lucius, who was off in another meeting with the Queen of Darkness, and Conrad, who was running his bar. Caesar had gone with him to help. He was talking about becoming a full partner with Conrad.

  Mia looked around at them all with tears in her eyes. “Is this an intervention?” she asked with a watery smile.

  They all laughed a little, but nodded.

  “You could say that, baby sis,” Justice said quietly. “We’re all very worried about you. And we’re not going to wait until you drown—to try and save you.”

  She smiled and nodded. “Well,” she said. “Constantine did bite me, but….”

  Dracon was frowning. “Then why didn’t it affect him?” he asked of no one in particular.

  Justice was frowning too.

  Mia shrugged. “I don’t know. I know it made him sick. But it didn’t
do much else to him. But—you see, he didn’t just bite me….”

  Justice was frowning hard now. “What do you mean, baby sis?”

  Jes took both of Mia’s hands. “Why didn’t you tell us before?” she asked gently.