Across the Stars and Ashes (Guardians of the Night Book 3)

by Pixie Lynn Whitfield

  “So you just let her go?” he was in a near shout with his new-found brother.

  “There would’ve been nothing we could have done. You saw we were outnumbered. And Zarah told us to back off so we had a fighting chance, too.” Draven watched as Seth took a seat at the desk and began shuffling through papers. He sighed, tired and annoyed.

  “Yeah, okay. I guess you’re right. Who was the Fallen that was leading though? You’re sure he can be trusted?”

  “His name is Zeke, and yes I’m quite sure. He’s our cousin. Doesn’t like me too much, to be honest, but you and him used to be best friends. He’d do anything to help the Exiled when possible. So don’t worry.”

  He didn’t say another word and finally turned to leave the room, prepared to go take his rest and get away from Seth.

  “And Draven?” Seth’s icy voice cut through the air as he opened the door. He stopped again, averting his eyes backward to the strawberry-blonde haired male. “Don’t come talk to me again until you start getting any memories back.”

  Chapter Eight

  Zarah

  “Checkmate.”

  “Shit! You always win.” Zarah stared at her brother through narrowed eyes. The temptation to throw the chess pieces at the annoying smirk plastered on his face right then was at the back of her mind, and she clenched her fists to refrain.

  “Oh quit being a sore loser. And language, dear sister. Language.” He tsk’ed before starting to laugh. That time she did pick up a piece, a rook she caught a brief glance of, before throwing it across the table at his head only for him to duck. The black wood shattered somewhere behind him.

  Zarah’s senses became clearer. She noticed things seemed hazy. Dream-like. And she began to panic as everything came back to her. She shouldn’t be there playing chess with her brother. This wasn’t a memory. Or even a dream. This was a visit.

  “Thomas?” Her voice hitched. “I’m still captive. What is this? How are you here? Please… don’t tell me you’re dead…. Don’t.” She began to clutch at the table, briefly frowning at the strange, fuzzy reality around her. She felt the soft squeeze on her hand as he reached out and tried to offer comfort. When she met his gaze again, she only saw a reassuring smile.

  “No. I’m perfectly safe.”

  Zarah let out a whoosh of air and tightened the grip on her brother’s hand. She nodded, relieved. She could’ve jumped up from the chess table and pulled him into a crushing hug but was afraid to move much.

  “I’ve finally just mastered one of my skills apparently, that’s all. Been trying to for days now.”

  “I didn’t know you could do this at all.” She thought of their mother and father and wondered if they’d had this gift as well—especially since both of their spirits visited in her dreams also. Except they had been dead. It was hard trusting Thomas at the moment that he was alive somewhere.

  “You don’t look so hot, sis.”

  She mustered up a smile and shrugged. “I’ve had worse days, probably. I’m surviving.”

  “Do you know where you’re at?”

  “Yes. Lucas—he’s the Fallen Master—is running the show. He and the President are allies, Thomas. You need to let as many Vamps know as you can. Something bad might be happening soon. I don’t know what, but if it does… it’s not going to be good for us or humans.”

  “You can explain more later. We’re trying to get there, but need to know where there is first.”

  “No! It’s too dangerous! I don’t want you anywhere near here.” She snatched her hand away from his and slammed a fist down on the table. The chess set rattled. Thomas narrowed his eyes and the scenery around them flared, a red light above flashed angrily to match his own emotions.

  “And you being there is safe?” he started with a bitter tone. “Don’t be a fucking martyr, Zarah. We’ll come get you, and kick some ass while we’re there.”

  “I’m not being a martyr. But if you all show up with guns blazing, it’ll just be more trouble. Probably even a trap. The last thing we need is to get broadcasted even more as the evil ones. I have help here. Don’t worry.” She forced a reassuring smile, calming her shaking hands. Her brother frowned in confusion.

  “Help?”

  “I can’t explain right now. And I think it’s time you let me go from this vision or whatever before someone walks in to find they’re unable to get me to wake.”

  Suddenly it was as if a light dawned above her brother. His eyes sparked. “You said the President? I know exactly where you’re at then.”

  The panic rose in Zarah’s chest. “Thomas, no—” But it was too late. He’d cut her off. Everything went dark around her in a blink, and seconds later she was gasping awake back inside her small prison.

  Chapter Nine

  Zarah

  “And who is Thomas again?” Zeke asked, confused. He’d conveniently come into the room within a few minutes after she was awake, sneaking in a bottle of water. She’d immediately launched into her dream-meeting details in hopes to try and get Zeke to intercept the situation.

  “My brother.” She refrained from shouting by hissing through her teeth. Of course he knew who her brother was, but he seemed a bit distraught sitting beside her on the mattress. “And I’m fairly sure he’ll bring Draven and Seth… however many he can get to come along so they have hope for a fighting chance.”

  “It’s not a bad idea really.”

  “What? You mean you agree? They would be outnumbered here.” She stared at him in shock. He turned to her with a shrug.

  “Ethan and I could help. I’m not going to risk asking anyone else, even if I do suspect others of rebelling. But we could arrange a meeting somewhere to make a plan. Maybe during one of your talks with Lucas so that you’re already out of this room. I don’t know. We’ll figure it out.”

  Zarah was silent for a few minutes, thinking over his suggestions. Maybe it could work. She sighed. “I just don’t want anyone risking anything over me.”

  “That probably would happen anyway.” He smiled.

  “It already has. Too much. Keep them away from Lucas. That obstacle will be for me.”

  “I can do that.” He started to get up and walk toward the door. “Already showing off your hero side, I see,” he added jokingly. Zarah snorted at the ridiculousness of it.

  “No, it’s called survival.” And that’s exactly what she intended to do. Fight and live.

  Chapter Ten

  Draven

  Draven panted, his sword ringing loudly against the steel of Seth’s in a defensive block. When they pulled apart, he dropped the weapon and gripped his wrist where muscles were tender from the bending and twisting of the training.

  “I can’t do this,” he panted and took a step back to rest against the wall. The older, larger brother laughed with amusement, and Draven sent a glare his way.

  “Oh come on. You’re doing fine. But I do think you need more rest when you’re not training. Where are you staying now?” Seth put his sword on the table and began removing his protective gear. Training was done for the day it appeared.

  “I have a small apartment on the west side of the city. Mom said it would be good for me to live a more human life.”

  His brother stared at him for a long silent second, blinking, before nodding in understanding. “She’s right. And how is she?”

  Draven shrugged. “Good, I guess. Every time I try to question her about anything though, she changes the subject. I gave up.”

  “It’s probably just for your own protection. You don’t need to know everything. You’re not one of us, bro. She isn’t either.” Seth had refused to look him in the eyes. Draven could feel his shame.

  “I know. I’m only trying to inquire about this Vampire I’ve been working with recently. I want to make sure he’s not going to be trouble for me later.”

  Seth spun around, shock clear on his face. Sometimes their physical differences were so far off that one wouldn’t be able to tell the connection between them. Then othe
r times, anyone could tell by a simple expression they shared.

  “A Vampire? Who? How did you meet a Vampire?” The questions blurred together almost furiously, but Draven knew it was out of concern. The Fallen rarely associated with vampires in any kind of friendly or working manner. Mostly they were just the enemy from what he’d learned while growing up.

  “William. Uh… William Duncan and his wife, Kathleen. I was out one night, and I don’t know, I guess they sensed what I was? Started a conversation with me and before I knew it, we were exchanging information and I’d agreed to do some scientific research work with William.”

  His brother rushed forward so fast that he’d barely had time to flinch. When he was pinned against the wall, he looked up in shock. Panic was clear in Seth’s dark gold eyes.

  “Do not ever mention them again. Lucas can’t find out… Tell me you understand this.”

  Draven nodded vigorously as Seth released him and took a step back. He’d never seen his brother look so on edge before.

  “So I’m not crazy, then. Kathleen is a…” Draven started with a nervous swallow, only to trail the question off. Seth would know what he was asking.

  “Yes. And she’s the most wanted fugitive on the list Lucas keeps.”

  “What about her son and daughter?” Draven asked with a frown.

  Seth met his gaze again and shook his head in disbelief. “They’re not supposed to exist. Take me there tonight. I want to see and speak with them.”

  When Draven hesitated, his brother let out an annoyed huff of air. “I swear by our Brotherly Bond there’s not going to be any harm. I sincerely just want to speak with Kathy. You can trust me at least. Warrior or not.”

  He was right, Draven could trust him even though he was a part of the Warriors commanded by Lucas—their father. Seth was different from most of them. He wasn’t an entirely emotionless monster, and wasn’t as old either so he still could feel human-like feelings like sympathy and empathy, sorrow, and happiness.

  “Alright. Meet me at the city park about six this evening and you can ride over to their house with me. But you better make sure you’re not followed.”

  “Of course. I’ll see you this evening. And this training session has been fun,” Seth replied with a punch to Draven’s arm, only reminding him where a few bruises were already forming.

  “Yeah. Right.” He was positive the sarcasm wasn’t missed as he left and he and Seth parted ways for the remainder of the afternoon.

  Chapter Eleven

  Zarah

  Meeting with Lucas again didn’t take as long as Zarah had expected. He strode in to her room less than twenty-four hours after Zeke left to go set their plan in motion with Ethan. This was probably bad. There hadn’t been enough time to get anything together. She doubted her brother and the others were out there somewhere already.

  Lucas was followed in by several of his Warriors for back-up. She smirked. Good. He still feared her enough to feel the need for guards despite her weakened state. She let him know, too.

  “Oh come on. You think you need all this for little, bitty me?” She met his glare with a taunting smile. Then he began to grin slowly.

  “Just for insurance. We’re going to try some things out today because I’d like to know a bit more about you.”

  Zarah sucked in a sharp breath. She didn’t like the sound of his tone. When he opened his blazer and pulled out a needle filled with a clear, reddish liquid, her hands began to shake. She didn’t want to be another guinea pig.

  “What is that?” she squeaked, not caring that all bravado had left her.

  “Rogue blood.”

  “I’m immune. Nathanial said I couldn’t turn again once I’d cured. It’s the Fallen bloodline.” Her voice stammered, interrupting. To be honest, she didn’t know what to believe. Could she turn again? The fear chilled her down to her toes.

  “Ah. But you haven’t learned everything entirely. Your bloodline may have cured you, but it doesn’t make you immune to direct injection. Your body will treat it like an illness and fight off the Rogue virus. You will likely recover. Though it’s undetermined how long it will take.” He advanced on her before she could cry out in protest. She pulled her hands out of the cuffs, not caring whether or not he saw that she’d been unlocked the entire time, and tried to fight the oncoming needle. It was no use. He made a simple gesture with his hand and three guards rushed forward to restrain her, one with an electric rod pointed at her cheek while the buzzing rang loud in her ears.

  The needle plunged deep in her thigh only seconds later.

  Chapter Twelve

  Draven

  Draven snapped awake. Something was wrong. His hands shook and for a few long minutes, he laid in bed unable to move, paralyzed with an unexplainable fear. Then the pain struck. One minute it’d been silent in his small apartment as he’d listened to the ticking of the nearby wall clock and tried to gather his thoughts together. The next, an inexplicable and torturous pain ripped through his skull, causing him to pull out of his paralysis and grip the sides of his temples. As the seconds ticked by, the pounding increased until he began to scream and claw at the side of his head while turning onto his side to try to get some relief. It felt as if a fire slowly burned its way through him…

  Somewhere in the distance, he thought he heard stomping and slamming, but couldn’t be sure over all the additional pounding in his ears. His eyes were clenched out of fear of opening them to more pain from the bright lights above. He felt his throat going raw from the screaming as he continued to grab at his head. When it began to spread down into his chest and stomach, he blacked out again.

  *********

  Unaware of how much time had passed, Draven rolled over with a groan. The blinding pain was gone this time when he opened his eyes, with only traces of a dull, aching throb at his temples and sore muscles in his chest. His throat remained raw and dry from the earlier screaming, but at least things had subsided for the most part.

  “Nice to see you awake. I was getting worried.”

  Draven turned his head in the direction of the familiar voice and frowned. So, he hadn’t been imagining the slamming door and stomping feet earlier after all. Thomas sat in a nearby chair with his gaze fixed on him, eyebrows raised.

  “I’m not sure what happened.” He finally replied. His voice was hoarse and the back of his throat itched for liquid when he spoke, causing him to wince. Slowly, he sat up and rubbed at his temples as Thomas handed him a bottle of water.

  “Repressed memories, maybe? Seth said they could start after knowing—” His friend began to pace, thinking.

  “No. I don’t think so, anyway.” Draven interrupted after guzzling half of the water. “This felt different. I feel different.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Thomas stopped walking around the room and stared at him in confusion.

  “Like I lost a piece of my soul. I’m not whole anymore.” Draven tried to hold his gaze, but cast his eyes down to hide the forming oncoming tears. What was wrong? He was experiencing a whirlwind of emotion at once: a blend between sorrow and fury.

  “Shit. Not good, not good, not good.” Thomas suddenly said in a panic and began to rush around the room, throwing open drawers. Now it was Draven’s turn to be confused as he looked back up and wondered why the guy was turning out everything of his.

  “Thomas…”

  “No time to explain, dude. Get dressed, go grab you some blood, and you and Seth meet me in the main office in thirty minutes or less. We’re leaving out as soon as possible.”

  “Leaving out where?”

  “To get my sister.”

  Draven froze. He’d been in the middle of throwing on a fresh pair of cargo pants when Thomas answered him on that at least. The news shocked him actually.

  “You know where she is? How?” He nearly shouted. The sound of his rising voice made his head start pounding again. He swayed, but used a nearby shelf for support and ignored the urge to crawl back to the bed.
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  “I’ll explain on the way… For now, let’s say we weren’t supposed to be leaving just yet, but plans have changed now. So hurry the hell up.” The last sentence ended on a growl, pushing him to dress faster. He could honestly say he trusts Thomas.

  As Draven was starting out of the room to go to the kitchen, he turned to see Thomas still searching around for something and frowned.

  “If you tell me what you’re looking for, I could tell you where it is.”

  Apparently lost in thought, his friend jumped before turning to face him. “That flash drive. The one from the night Nathanial turned you.”

  Draven nodded. “It’s in the locked box there on the dresser. The key is tucked in the right foot of my old set of boots in the closet.” Thomas waved his thanks and headed into the closet, emerging with a battered looking key attached to a chain a few seconds later as Draven quirked a curious eyebrow, glancing one more time over his shoulder before leaving the room.

  At the very least, Draven didn’t have to go far to look for Seth. The Fallen, all of the Fallen Exiled Warriors to be exact, were right there in the kitchen when he entered. They’d been having some heavy conversation from what he could tell before the door was pushed open, talking in hushed tones amongst themselves, only for the room to become silent once his entrance was made.

  “Please, don’t let me interrupt your little meeting.” Draven was still staggering a bit as he forced a path through to the refrigerator. He rolled his eyes. Of course, Seth would be the freakishly giant one leaning against the counter right beside it. The Fallen frowned and crossed his arms over his chest as he approached the cold box.