A slow trickle of water echoed in the chamber. The damp-filled silence of their prison was getting to Mar. She ached—deep in her chest. She ached. Her brain hurt from the onslaught of memories. From struggling to recall more hiding at the edges of her consciousness.
The door at the end of the hall creaked open. Four guards entered, followed by Jason Tanner. Her beloved uncle. Ache turned to quiet courage.
Mar kissed Alex on the cheek. “It's time. Don’t fight this.”
“What are you talking about?”
“They're coming for me, bestie. For my magic. It's what they've always wanted. It's how they win.”
“We're here because they want Collum.”
“They get him by using my magic.”
Alex gripped her shoulders and shook her. “You look at me. We can fight this.”
Mar twisted away. “No. You can't. Stay out of whatever's about to happen. I mean it.”
“She's right, Alex. It isn’t my intention to hurt you. I actually like you,” came a reply from the end of the hall. “Step away from your friend.”
Jason sounded almost regretful. Mar wished it was enough. The key scraped in the lock. Mar smiled at Alex. “Don't fight them. You don't have your power right now and it would kill me if they hurt you because of me. You still might make it out of here.”
Alex grasped at her arm. “I'm not letting them take you.”
As the cage door swung open, Mar pushed Alex behind her while begging Jason, “give me a minute.” After his nod, she turned back to her friend. “I've been running from this shit my entire life. They took me for a reason. It's time to face mommy dearest and get this over with.”
“No. We stay together,” Alex cried.
Mar sighed. “Nah, we don't. Not this time.”
Mar pulled away, tightened her fist, and smashed it into Alex's jaw. Her friend slumped to the ground. Mar caught Alex before her head hit the cement and laid her on the moldy cot.
“You're a good friend,” Jason offered.
“Yeah, well, I don't need her getting killed trying to fight off your goons.”
He sneered. “Follow me. I want your magic before sundown.”
As Mar crossed the threshold, a spark of magic flittered through her chest. She forced a nervous bubble of anticipation back down her throat. The familiar tug of her ancestor’s magic butted up against the power holding them apart. Hope lifted her chin. She would face this as she faced everything in life—with fucking style.
“Wanna let me in on the plan, Stan?” Mar asked.
Jason stopped in front of a large metal door and turned to answer her. “Yes. You should know. Today we transfer your magic into your mother. It's why you were conceived.” His eyes glazed over. His voice passionate as he intoned, “She who is born of magic will be sacrificed to the vampires. Her blood shall make the queen.”
Agony stole Mar’s breath. The fist in her gut was back. Smashing into her. Stealing air. She doubled over. Struggled for her sanity through pain. “Isabella knew when she conceived me?”
Jason stroked her hair. “Your father was but a tool. The prophecy foretold his seed would bring forth the child. You are also a tool. Nothing more.”
Too stunned to move Mar let Jason pet her like a dog. “Your mother is the true prophecy. She would bear the half-vampire child. She is the one true queen.”
Mar wriggled her fingers, grasping at sparks of energy flittering to her. She forced her mind to stay in her body. To stay aware. To ignore the pain. She'd known pain before. This was no different. She righted herself. Flinched back from his petting hands. Mouse bones and gravel crunched beneath her feet as she shifted her stance.
“So, I only exist because of a prophecy?”
“Indeed. When I found Isabella she'd already learned of the prophecy from a banished sorcerer.” He clapped his hands like a child. “You mother is brilliant. Her intelligence and thirst for knowledge. A worthy companion for me. We were meant to rule. She would bear the child and walk with the undead. Then, once you were old enough, strong enough, she’d take your magic into her to complete the circle. You were always meant to serve a purpose.”
Bitterness choked Mar. “How long did it take to convince you to turn her?”
He glared at her. “There was no convincing. I'm in charge here. Isabella is made by me and so must follow my every word. Together we will rule.”
He pushed the heavy door open to expose a stark white room filled with medical equipment. A polished marble floor glistened beneath her feet as Mar entered the space. Two metal gurneys were pushed together against the far wall. Her mother lay on one of them with an IV in her arm.
Jason waited patiently for Mar to look her fill. A group of nurses stood in one corner prepping what looked like a surgical tray filled with various instruments.
Confusion crinkled the corners of her eyes. “What is this?”
Her mother's toneless voice carried to Mar like death. “Your blood. It must be passed from you to me. Once Jason begins the spell, the transfusion will begin.”
“Like shit,” Mar said.
As she backed away an armed guard blocked her retreat. Tingles raced up her arms and into her chest. Magic re-entering her body felt a bit like pins and needles after your leg fall asleep. Fear of bringing attention to herself kept Mar from shaking her arms. She could wait. She’d bring these bitches to their knees. An unconscious smile crossed her lips.
Isabella smiled back. Her eyes darted from Mar's hands to the nurses. Mar followed her mother’s glance. The nurses were terrified, she realized. They were human.
“What are Pollyanna and Little Sue doing here? Don't have any decent vamp docs?” Mar taunted.”
“You're of human descent. Isabella thought it best to take precautions and invite human nurses to be part of this historic event,” Jason said.
Mar raised a mocking eyebrow. “Invited?”
“Yes. Invited and paid handsomely I might add.”
An assessment of the room showed little to no options for escape. Until her magic was up and running again, Mar was a sitting duck. Or a stuck pig, depending on what they were planning.
Isabella spoke from the bed, effectively dousing Mar’s enthusiasm. “We are aware your magic is returning. This space is free from the spell cast over the rest of your accommodations.”
Her eyebrow raised again. “Accommodations? I'd like an upgrade. I prefer five-star.”
Her mother ignored her. “If you try anything to help your elemental friend, she will suffer the consequences. Do not try.”
Isabella’s dark hair cascaded like a poisoned river across the gurney she lay on. An overwhelming urge to yank it out by the roots filled Mar.
“You know what, Mother. Fuck you.” Mar turned to Jason. “And fuck you too, errand boy.”
His blow knocked her off her feet. She landed on her hip on the marble floor. Blood dripped from a split lip. Jason towered above her. Rage contorted his face. Gone was the ruffled librarian.
“I'm nobody's errand boy, little girl.” He signaled to his guards. “Put her on the table.”
From her place on the floor, Mar turned questioning eyes on her mother. “How many times throughout my childhood has this happened? How often did you let him abuse me?”
Isabella’s stricken voice carried across the room. “You don't understand.”
“I don't understand? Me? You bitch!”
Before her mother could answer, Jason gripped Mar’s hair, forcing her face up. He slapped her. Hard. With an open palm. The ring on his hand sliced her cheek open. He licked his lips before bending down and licking blood from her cheek.
“You are a tool,” he warned. “And you will respect your mother, or I'll break you until you do.”
An image of Neeren's
grinning face flashed through the black dots swimming in Mar’s head. His outrage at the idea of hurting her. Him crooning to his ridiculous dog. Filling a breakfast plate for his mother. Laughing with Alex.
Mar slumped forward as the guards lifted her. Hair shadowed her face. Her only hope lay in breaking the spell. She searched her memory banks for a spell to isolate and block powers. Raced through a maze of magic in her mind. Flipped through spells like one does a paperback novel.
A hand gripped her chin yanking her face upward. Jason ran a finger across her bloody lip, smearing the blood along Mar’s jaw. “Pay attention. The only freedom offered you is in this room. Don't put Alex's life in danger. One wrong move and my men have orders to put a bullet in her brain. Not even a great fire elemental can survive that.”
Without thinking, Mar swung her fist, connecting with his jaw. His head snapped back.
She glared at him. “You're a piece of shit.”
A cold smile cut across Jason’s face. He rubbed his jaw. Something dark flickered in his eyes. He stroked his hand over her shoulder. Gripped her ribcage. “Do you want to play, little girl.”
“Enough,” Isabella said from the bed. “No more.”
With what seemed like herculean effort, Jason released her. Blood red eyes burned into Mars. The only thing keeping her safe was Isabella’s word.
Guards dumped Mar unceremoniously on the bed. Secured her hands and feet with metal bands. As the cold metal bit into her flesh, revelation exploded like a bomb. No matter what Neeren was, he'd never do this. Not to her. Not to any innocent. Mar knew it as surely as she knew to breathe.
The next thought came furiously on the heels of the first. Could she somehow reach him? He was close. With any luck, he'd gotten her message and contacted Collum. Neeren, she knew in her gut, would come. Her head swam with the memory of his kiss. The love he'd shown his sister. He'd come no matter what.
Once more she flipped through spells in her mind. Blocked out Jason yelling at the nurses to find a line and prep for a blood transfusion. She focused only on finding a locater spell. A way to find Neeren. The needle pricking her skin nothing more than a gnat. She shook off Isabella's cold fingers trying to grip her hand.
From above, Jason said, “All her blood comes out. Every drop goes to Isabella.”
Focus was needed. If Mar let herself think about what was happening she'd falter. She allowed her conscience to float above the woman about to bleed out on the gurney below.
Isabella’s insistent fingers rubbed against her. A sense of urgency crept into her subconscious. Mar flipped spell pages until a beam of light highlighted one spell in particular. Triumph jolted through her as she realized the simplicity of the spell required. Of course. She needed only to show him the way. Mar silently mumbled words calling forth an ancient magic to spin a strand of connection between herself and Neeren. She unraveled a roll of thread in her mind. Like she was sewing, or fishing. Threw the line again and again. Pictured Neeren.
Beneath her breath, Mar intoned, “He who will find me, be found. Let this thread light the way.”
She gasped as the spell struck true. A wave if intense sorrow and anger flowed into her so fiercely a tear fell from her cheek. Whether it came from him or herself she didn't know. A vision of Neeren sitting on her hotel bed, holding her leather jacket overtook her senses. His head jerk up as their internal eye connected. Power surged through Mar, arching her back off the bed. His roar pulsed in her mind. She smiled. They were connected now. Alex would be safe. He would find her. Neeren never gave up.
~ ~ ~
Mar re-entered her consciousness to Jason's rhythmic chanting weaving an ancient spell. She thrashed against her bonds. Whipped her head back and forth, fighting against the icy feeling penetrating her veins.
Isabella’s gaze catching her own. Mar swore anger flashed in her mother’s eyes the briefest moment before being replaced by Isabella’s stoic, half insane gaze.
The click of a machine sounded like a battering ram in the sterile room. A thick brown band pulsed around Mar’s arm. Squeezed. Released as it milked her. Blood circulated through her veins into the tube. One pulse per second. Sixty pulses per minute. The sound of her death sentence. She fought against despair. They wouldn't steal her life.
A soft voice entered Mar’s mind. “Give yourself a chance. Slow the flow of your blood.”
Startled, Mar gazed at her mother. Isabella's face remained impassive. Barely recognizable. Weakness settled over Mar’s bones.
“It's time. Concentrate. You can do this.”
Isabella’s voice was kind, insistent, raw. The voice of someone who fought for her child once a long time ago. An image flashed behind Mar’s eyes. Of her mother holding her as a child. Kissing her cheek. Stroking her soft hair, as wet warmth lingered on her cheeks.
Mar fought through the haze in her brain to reach back telepathically. “I can't do this, Mommy.”
“Yes, you can. Remember the games we played as a child. The hiding games. The breathing games. Breathe, Maria. Disappear into yourself and all the pain stops.”
More images flowed in unchallenged. How had she forgotten? Every time father left the house, she and mother practiced protection games. Sometimes pain had been involved. Her mother always saying, “We do this now so you'll know how when it's time.”
Was it time? Mar felt herself fading. Her fingers and toes were numb. An ache cascaded into each joint.
“Maria!” Her mother’s voice blasted in her brain, drowning out the machines beeping, the nurse’s voices, Jason chanting. The sound jolted her awake. Mar concentrated. Breathed like she'd been taught.
Slow breaths. In all the way to your belly. Out through your nose. Count to ten. Count to twenty. Count to thirty. Each breath longer. Draw it out. Slow your mind. Slow your blood. Mar remembered it like a ritual. Her mother’s younger voice, repeating it over and over. Making sure Mar held each breath longer. There was a song they sang. Mar hummed it under her breath. “Thick like wax. Thick like oil. If my blood does leave, it does spoil.”
Mar’s blood heated. Thickened like lava. A spark returned to her chest. Around her, nurses scrambled. The band on her arm squeezed. The machine beeped erratically. Her blood thickened in the tube.
Forty Seconds. One Minute. Keep breathing. Thick like wax. Thick like oil. One minute, twenty seconds.
Jason's voice bellowed in the space. Bounced off walls. The chant became a battle cry as he desperately fought against the protection spell Mar weaved. Her blood became glue. Stuck to her bones. Like wax. Like oil. Coated. Coagulated in the tube.
Jason grabbed her shoulders. Screamed into her face. His frantic eyes scalding her. “Stop what you're doing.” He shook her. “Look at me! Stop this or your friend dies.”
Two minutes. Breathe. Hold yourself. Her mother's voice was loud, like a song in her blood. “Weave protection around you. He can't stop you.”
Jason slapped Mar’s face. Punched her shoulder. Spittle flew from his mouth as he screamed, “Stop, you stupid bitch.”
Chaos exploded behind the door. A roar as loud as thunder shook the walls. Screams followed.
Mar opened glowing eyes. Magic flowed through her every pore. She stared in to Jason’s terrified eyes and let her breath out.
Neeren was there.
Chapter 18
Neeren rammed the full five-hundred-pound weight of his panther body against the door to the basement dungeon. A swath of recently deceased undead now black dust behind him. Their decayed blood covered the walls and coated his black hide. Next to him, Collum removed the head of the last vampire guarding the door.
The moment Neeren connected with Mar back in the hotel room, he'd begun running, bellowing for Collum to read his thoughts and follow him. Even before they reached the alley behind the hotel, his body had split. Bones breakin
g and knitting back together. By the time the transition was finished, his voice was little more than a guttural growl.
Neeren in warrior form was five hundred pounds of muscled black panther, with silver spikes on his back, and claws as long and thick as Kukri Machetes. Those claws tore meter long slashes in the roads as he and Collum raced to reach their women.
In this form, Neeren’s control over water was at its strongest. He channeled the element as they ran. Called on rain to cover the five blocks directly around he and Collum. Blanketing himself and Collum in cloud coverage. At top speed, they appeared like nothing more than shadows in clouds.
The storm raging inside him was less easy to control. Neeren fought to keep his rage from locking on to any unsuspecting human. Filled his mind with thoughts of Maria.
He followed the glowing thread leading him to Maria with a singular purpose. Legs, with muscles as thick as tree trunks, propelled him to an abandoned church in old Madrid. Lighting spun and flickered around the yellow slits of his feline eyes. Knowing Collum had his back, he didn't bother with recon. The glow from Maria was weakening. Neeren’s heart pounded outside of his chest. His claws easily tore the church door off its hinges.
He and Collum were met by ten undead. A laughable number. Neeren used his claws, his spikes, his teeth. Whatever was necessary to destroy anything in his way. Collum, half-shifted to his dragon form scorched the remaining few.
This was easy work—sending their enemies to hell. As undead fell, dust coated the pews. If the human's God did exist, he would judge only vampires for desecrating his hall.
Neeren launched himself against a thick oak door leading to the basement. The glow showing him the way flickered once, then twice. Agony ripped out his chest in a roar as he launched himself again. The door shook, and with an audible groan, gave way.
Magic Born Page 12