“-its ok, its ok,” Ragon cooed, and instantly Ari calmed down. “Thomas is fine. He had to hang out in the forest for a bit longer than he wanted to, because he wanted to make sure that Sandra was ok. He had to move her to the construction site on the outskirts of the campus.”
Just then a small noise came from Lea’s bed, and everyone looked up. Riley was stirring, though her eyes were still closed. Even with the three pink scars across her neck and her wild hair being matted with nettles and other bits and pieces from their forest escapades, Ari still thought she looked beautiful. The moment Riley moved, Clyde leaned down close to her, and touched his hand to her forehead; instantly Riley’s eyes shot open. She stared up at Clyde in confusion, until her shaking hands felt along her neck. She traced the area where slash marks should have been, feeling only small scars. Her face was set in confusion, until she looked up at Clyde and saw his blood stained shirt. Slowly her eyes traced up his shirt and to his collar, where three sash marks were healing before her eyes.
Perhaps it was the unnatural speed at which Clyde was healing, but after that Riley sat bolt upright. She swayed on the spot and then raced from the room, clutching tightly onto the jacket that Clyde had covered her in hours ago. Just before she left, Riley glanced down at Ari, whose mouth was open in surprise. In that moment Ari knew that Riley had seen what she had done. Her ability to freeze time was no longer a secret.
“That’s twice I have saved your life,” Clyde called playfully after her. “You’re welcome.”
At Clyde’s remark, Riley did not stop, rather continued to race from the room without a backwards glance.
Chapter 22 – Resurrection
The next morning when Ari’s alarm clock rang, she woke sluggishly. Creeping from her room, careful not to wake Ragon, she moved along the hallway towards the shower, carrying with her a large fluffy white towel, which she used to cover her bandaged hand.
Ari was relieved to find that the bathroom was deserted, and moved to the last shower, pushing the door closed and then locking it. Turning the taps on, hot water spilled from the shower head and she jumped under it, before wincing and then reaching gingerly for her bandaged arm. With one fast motion she pulled the dressing off, muffling a scream as she felt the hairs and newly healed tissue that was stuck to the sticky dressing, come away with it. Looking down at the wound, Ari thought that it wasn’t as bad as it could have been; it definitely didn’t look as bad as it felt. There was a single cut that ran from the point of her wrist to her elbow. Bright red tissue surrounded it, and Ari hoped it wasn’t infected.
She shook her head determinately and pushed her arm out of sight; she didn’t have time to worry about it now. This morning she had her parasitology exam re-sit. It certainly wasn’t the best day to have an exam, following a waere and witch attack, but what other option did she have? She could hardly run to the Vice Chancellor, Jack Phillips, and say she’d had another vampire-related drama, so needed a supplementary for her already postponed re-sit.
Ari frowned; she was trying frantically to recall all the information she had taken in over the past few days in preparation for her exam. It was hard work; the trauma from last night kept replaying in her head, and she kept feeling sharp phantoms pains along her wrist, distracting her.
As soon as she had washed the conditioner out of her hair, Ari turned the taps off and raced for her towel. She had only just dried herself, wrapped her towel tightly around her body and was leaving the cubicle, when she heard the door open.
Great, Ari thought, who was this? Quickly she swung her toiletries bag so that it covered her arm. Normally she would have brought clothes with her, but she had been so anxious about the exam that she had completely forgotten them. She glanced down at the little pink bag which contained her toothbrush, shampoo and conditioner. It only just managed to mask the cut mark down her wrist. With the bag against the wound it was painful, but hopefully whoever was about to use the bathroom wouldn’t notice it; she couldn’t bear to think what conclusions someone might make if they saw it. Adjusting her towel tightly around her body, she emerged from her cubicle.
But it wasn’t a stranger; standing in the doorway, her hand clutching a large purple towel, was Lea.
“Hey,” said Ari, smiling in relief as she lifted the toiletries bag away from her injured arm. “What happened to you last night? When I came to, you were gone.”
“You know, you could have a little more regard for your own life. It’s kind of hard justifying protecting you, when you go around cutting yourself so that vamps can drink your blood. What the hell were you thinking?”
Ari’s mouth fell open; it took a moment for her to recover herself but finally said, “I never asked you to protect me.”
“I’m a witch; it’s kind of what we do.”
“Well your witchy friends didn’t seem too upset that they were hurting me,” Ari countered; she couldn’t understand why Lea was so angry with her.
“They didn’t try to hurt you; it was the vampires they were trying to ward off.”
“Why did you help Riley then?” asked Ari, her hands on her hips. “She’s not a witch.”
“I helped her because you asked me to. I never agreed to help vampires. You put me in a very difficult situation last night with my circle.”
“Not all vampires are evil,” Ari whispered.
Lea shook her head. Several times she opened her mouth and closed it, as if chewing on her words. Finally she turned around and made to leave the bathroom. When she had reached the door, Lea spun around and locked eyes with Ari.
“You know,” Lea said slowly, “those witches are my friends. Emily did what she did because she thought I was being lulled by the vamps, by your boyfriend. Crossing them the way I did… I did that because of you, because I know that I am meant to help you.”
Ari stood, staring at Lea in shocked confusion, trying to think of something… anything to say to her. When it was obvious that Ari couldn’t find the words however, Lea turned around and exited the bathroom, clearly haven forgotten all about having a shower.
After that Ari raced all the way back to her room, changed into the first things within reach, kissed Ragon goodbye and sped to her exam. She was still reeling from what Lea had said to her, but knew that if she wanted to pass, she had to put her encounter with Lea to the back of her mind.
Ari thought that it was strange for her re-sit to be in the Vice Chancellor’s office, rather than with one of the course co-ordinators, but her lecturer had sent her an email explaining that all the other potential examiners would be in class, and that the Vice Chancellor had kindly agreed to oversee her re-sit.
“Hello,” Ari called out from behind the Vice Chancellor’s office, as she knocked once on his door.
A few seconds later and Professor Jack Philips held the door open while she walked inside.
“Hello Ariana,” he said warmly.
“Um, hi.”
“Please, have a seat,” he said, indicating a small desk that he had set up for her in the corner of the room.
“Thanks professor,” Ari mumbled as she sat down, retrieving her student ID and pencil case, then placing them neatly onto her desk.
“I have told you, please call me Jack,” he said, reaching over and placing her exam paper face down.
“Sorry, err… Jack,”
“And how is everyone?” asked Jack, looking at Ari intently.
Ari’s face dropped… everyone? Did he mean Ragon and the rest of the coven?
“Um yea,” she said, looking down at her paper, “everyone is fine.”
“That’s good,” he said, and Ari was pleased to see that he didn’t look particularly interested in her answer. “Now can you please hand me your phone and any other electronic devices on your person.”
Ari looked a little surprised but reached into her bag and retrieved her cell phone. She’d never had to surrender over her phone before, but then again, she’d never sat a supplementary exam in a Vice Chancellors office,
nor had she missed an exam due to vampire-related dramas.
“Now, we really should make a start, you have two hours. Good luck.”
When Ari left the Vice Chancellor’s office, two hours later, she was feeling fairly confident about passing her exam.
“Hey Ari.”
Ari spun around to see Cambridge. She had been thinking of the answers to some of the more difficult exam questions, hoping that it might deflect the horrible look on Lea’s face that was still hovering in the back of her mind from her encounter with the girl, earlier in the morning.
“Jesus,” she said, holding her hand to her heart, “Cambridge, you scared the shit out of me!”
“Sorry,” he said, letting out a large booming laugh that if anything, made Ari feel more uncomfortable.
“What’s up?” she asked.
“Do you think we could have that chat now?”
A chat? Cambridge had come to see her days ago, wanting to speak with her, but she had completely forgotten.
“Sorry, I forgot. I have been so busy studying for an exam,” she said hurriedly.
“So would now be ok?”
Ari looked longingly at the cafeteria but nodded. Depending on how long Cambridge wanted to talk for, she might still be able to get some lunch before the cafeteria closed, otherwise there was always dinner.
With her stomach grumbling loudly, Ari said, “Sure.”
Cambridge smiled appreciatively and led her past Cruor halls and towards the campus club. At first she thought that was where they were going, until he directed her to a parking lot and indicated his car.
“Where are we going?” asked Ari, while Cambridge held the door to a green SUV open for her.
“I have a place rented just down the road,” he replied, closing the door behind her and jumping into the driver’s seat. “There’s something I need to show you.”
Ari didn’t argue but tried to get comfortable as they drove out of the Pasteur Institute, feeling her stomach grumble.
Cambridge’s house was less than 15minutes drive from the university. It wasn’t a large house but it was cosy looking, with odd little red and white gnomes lining the front garden; a feature Ari was certain Cambridge was not responsible for. When Cambridge pushed the front door open, he allowed Ari to walk in first and quickly followed behind. The house was dark, with large heavy block-out curtains currently pulled shut, so that the only light came from the remnant burning of coals in a small fireplace. Ari’s eyes fell on the burning red and orange embers, until Cambridge directed her to the living room and turned to face her. Behind him was a large box and Ari’s eyes fell on it curiously. There was something strange about its long hexagonal shape.
“What’s going on,” she asked, peering closer at the box.
Cambridge looked down at the box also and stepped aside, and Ari suddenly realised what it was- a coffin.
“Ari,” Cambridge began to say, as his eyes rested sadly on the coffin.
Before Cambridge could go on however, a strong breeze blew violently inside the house, and Ari swung around to see someone appear out of thin air. The man was tall and thin, wearing a long black cloak which swept across the floor. Ari couldn’t see anything of the man’s face, but there was something oddly familiar about his presence, a feeling that sent a shiver down her spine.
“Hello Ariana,” said the cloaked man.
“What the hell is going on?” said Ari. “Cambridge?”
Cambridge looked down at his feet and mumbled, “I’m sorry.”
The combination of the coffin in the living room and the appearance of a cloaked man, made Ari fling her hands up and freeze time. She didn’t know what the hell was going on, but she did not have a good feeling. Next to her Cambridge froze like a statue, deep wrinkles forming around his sad eyes and creasing his chocolate skin.
What have you gotten yourself into? Ari thought.
It was then, when she was just about to race to the door, that the cloaked man spoke.
“You needn’t be afraid of me.”
Ari’s mouth fell open in surprise and she watched as the stranger lowered his hood. Letting out a small scream, Ari backed away; she had seen him before. He was the wraith who had been there when the Triad had taken her and Ragon; the one who had fought through Lea’s protection spell.
As she backed away, Ari looked at the man cautiously. He was a bald, tall and skinny, with pale skin and a long nose. His eyes were a pale blue, but the blue was almost entirely discernible, so that it looked as if his irises had no colour at all. His face was hard and slightly wrinkled, and there were scars on his cheeks and forehead.
“What’s going on? Are you controlling Cambridge? Why am I here?” asked Ari, still facing him though she back closer towards the door. “Why haven’t you frozen?”
“No my dear… nothing like that. I came at Cambridge’s request.”
“But then why?” she asked, staring in confusion at Cambridge’s frozen form.
“You will see, but I assure you no harm will come to you because of it. This is something that Cambridge wants. I made him a promise if he could ensure a meeting between us.”
“Why haven’t you frozen?” she asked again, staring at him strangely; Ari knew that her powers did not seem to work on waeres, but this man was a wraith, and her powers normally worked on Chris.
It was then that she realised there was something fluid about the wraith’s form. Though there was no doubt that he was standing in the room with her, he was oddly transparent, like a ghost.
“I have come to you as an echo,” he said. “Wraiths are capable of transporting themselves and others. I have simply altered that power so that I can talk to you, without you harming me.”
“Does that mean that you can’t harm me either?”
“That is correct. I come here with an offer,” he said.
“An offer?” scoffed Ari.
“Yes, the Ancients wish to offer you a truce in exchange for your help.”
Ari felt the blood drain from her face. The Ancients… they were still alive.
“Oh,” said the wraith, cocking his head to the side as he considered her. “You believed that you had killed them? Well… I am sorry to disappoint you. They are, more difficult to vanquish than other vampires.”
“What could they possibly want from me?”
“There is a powerful force nearby… a blood hunter. The Ancients want you to kill it,” he said.
“And why would I help the Ancients?” said Ari. “In case you have forgotten, they tried to kill me.”
“The Ancients keep their promises; if you do this they will not attack you again,” he said. “They have learnt their lesson.”
“And why should I trust you or them?” said Ari, raising an eyebrow.
The wraith smiled at her. It was an unnerving smile that revealed many small narrow teeth.
“Unfreeze Cambridge and I will prove that I am a man of my word.”
Ari looked back at Cambridge and the coffin he was standing protectively over. The fact that Cambridge had lured her to this place, to meet with a wraith, was heartbreaking. She had no idea what he could have been offered in order to betray her and the coven like this. Ari felt her power of Cambridge wane, just as time restarted.
“Cambridge,” said the wraith, pointing to a small vial that was sitting atop the coffin. “Drink that.”
Cambridge moved over to the tiny brown glass ampoule and decanted it.
“Don’t,” said Ari. “You can’t trust him.”
But her warning was ignored. In one quick motion, Cambridge threw the contents into his mouth and swallowed.
“Now, remove the lid,” said the wraith, his eyes glowing brightly as he pointed to the coffin.
Cambridge hesitated but then pushed the lid away. Instantly Ari felt sick. She took one quick glance inside and felt her heart race, just as bile burned the back of her throat. In the coffin, with her hands folded over her chest, was Larissa, or what remained of her.
&
nbsp; “Cambridge, no,” whimpered Ari, tears beginning to stream down her face.
“I’m sorry Ariana,” said Cambridge. “But you can’t imagine how empty I am without Larissa. But this wraith can bring her back for me.”
“But…” Ari began to say, desperate for him to see reason, “but you can’t! It’s not right. Sandra wouldn’t want it.”
“Now bite into your wrists and hold your hand over the body,” said the wraith.
Ari looked back at the echo of the wraith in disgust.
“Why are you doing this?” she asked.
“This is what he wants,” he said simply, a manic smile spreading across his face.
Blood Hunter (The Grandor Descendant Series) Page 34