by Rye Brewer
“You mean, was she still a vampire?”
“Right.”
He waited a long time before answering, and I held my breath in anticipation.
“No,” he finally replied in a quiet voice. “She would never stop being vampire, you understand, but after feeding from my father for so many years, his blood changed what she needed. Just the way I’m still half-vampire but have no need for blood. It was the same for her.”
I felt a sadness I couldn’t describe. I didn’t even know why I should be sad. My mother had survived. She hadn’t just survived, but had found love again. And she’d had a baby to love, too. But she’d lost part of herself in the process—and she’d lost her daughters.
Why didn’t she ever reach out? I knew it was something Allonic’s memories could never show me. She must’ve had a reason, deep down in her heart.
For some reason, I thought of Gregor. My heart ached for him, too. I needed a parent just then. I had so many feelings to process and yes, I knew I was old enough to deal with them on my own. I shouldn’t have needed their guidance, but a little advice and understanding would have been nice. I’d never felt so alone.
I missed Gregor. It was so strange. How could I miss somebody I barely knew? But I did. I wished I hadn’t shut him out. I was sure he’d be too angry with me to ever accept my apology. Too angry and too disappointed.
I opened my mouth to tell Allonic how I felt—but when Steward sat up and lunged for Allonic, anything I would’ve said was lost to the melee that ensued.
17
Anissa
“Stop this!” I fell backward from where I’d been crouching beside Steward, pushed aside when he went for Allonic’s throat. Just as I had threatened to do not long before then.
I watched as they scuffled, rolling back and forth across the ground, grunting and growling and hurling what I was sure was curses in another language at each other. Steward did most of the cursing, really. I could only imagine how furious he was.
“Stop, I said!” I took my life in my hands by throwing myself between them. “Please! We don’t have time for this. Settle it later.” I got up, brushing myself off, and was deeply relieved when the other two followed along.
“Where is Jonah?” I asked Steward. “Please. We have to get to him.”
He nodded while rubbing the back of his head. “You’re right. I’ll take you to him, but we need to port.”
“Okay. Let’s do it.” Poor Jonah. He’d been waiting for so long for me. He had to be frantic by then.
“I need to use a spiritwalker in order to take you there.”
“Ha! Not a chance.” I folded my arms.
“Excuse me?”
“Have you already forgotten what happened the last time you tried to use a spiritwalker on me?” I asked. “That’s what got us into this situation—you with a lump on the back of your head.”
“I can’t just take you there. I don’t want to run the risk—”
I rolled my eyes. “I know. You can’t run the risk of my running away or doing something I shouldn’t. While I don’t blame you for not trusting me, I need you to believe that I don’t do things like that when the stakes are this high. I wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize Jonah right now—or your security. I swear.”
“I’ll bring her with me,” Allonic offered. “I’ll take care of her as we cross over. You don’t have to be concerned.”
Steward shot him a deadly look. “We have a lot to settle.”
“I know we do, but like she said, this isn’t the time.”
Steward let out something between a snarl and a sigh. “As you wish, then.” He opened a portal, there in front of us.
It shimmered and shone, and I wondered what it must be like to have such power. To be able to open a portal anytime, anywhere, leading anyplace.
“Come.” My heart took off at a gallop as Allonic pulled me under his cloak, pressing me close. I wrapped my arms around his waist and went with him, stepped as he stepped.
Just like that, the sounds of the forest were no more. No owls, no crickets, no bats. No breeze in the trees. Nothing. And no light, either. Allonic pulled his cloak away and I found myself in a room just as dark as it had been under the cloak.
The room was also empty. No Jonah.
“Where is he?” I asked, looking from one of them to the other. “I thought he was here. You brought us here and said it was where Jonah was.”
“Enough,” Steward said. “Enough. I need to think.” He was angry. Deeply, deeply angry.
I could feel it around him, like he wore an aura of anger. He walked to the open door carved into one wall, looking out. He turned around, and his face was set in tight, rigid lines.
I looked around again, taking in the walls, their smoothness. Almost supernaturally smooth. Who created it? How long ago was it created? And why did he choose that place, of all possible places, to store Jonah while he looked for me? I could just imagine Jonah in there, all alone, wanting to find me but being trapped.
“What do you think happened?” Allonic asked.
“I don’t know. How should I know? I left him here because I knew he would be safe here. No one ever comes here. It’s all but forgotten.”
A high-pitched laugh, one which reminded me of the chiming of bells, rang throughout the room. But instead of making me smile, it sent a cold chill down my spine.
I turned to find where it had come from and saw that Steward already knew. He stood at attention, every muscle in his body tight.
“What are you doing here?” Steward muttered.
He wasn’t talking to me. He was talking to the tall, willowy brunette who stepped out of the shadows.
She was beautiful. Stunning, actually. Her eyes glowed like green fire. They reminded me of Steward’s in a way. Her ruby red lips curved into a smile as she walked over to him.
“Hello to you, too,” she murmured, running a fingertip along his jawline.
I heard him growl dangerously before he recoiled like her touch burned.
“Where is Jonah? What have you done with him?”
She didn’t answer his question, probably because she was too busy looking at me.
I felt her eyes burning into me, sizing me up. She had hurt Jonah. I was sure of it.
I glared at her, willing her to make a move if she thought she was strong enough. I might not win the fight, but she would remember me.
“Who’s this?” she asked, pointing at me. “My replacement?”
Replacement? Suddenly, the finger down his jaw made sense. And I lost control. I didn’t know why. It might have been because she wasn’t telling what she knew. It might’ve been because I was desperate at that point to find Jonah and make sure he was safe, with me, where he belonged. Maybe because I didn’t like the way she looked at me and most definitely didn’t like the way she pointed. No matter why, I threw myself at her for all I was worth.
Then, I was flying across the room and slamming into the wall behind me. I never even reached her before she cast some sort of spell. She was a witch, clearly.
I didn’t care. Instead of cowering against the wall the way she clearly wanted me to, I lunged at her again. This time I intended to rip her throat out if I had to. I must have taken her by surprise, because I managed to get my hands around her neck. The force of our collision knocked her against the opposite wall.
Steward’s hands clamped down on my shoulders and pulled me away. I roared in protest—I had to destroy her.
“Remember how you felt when I couldn’t tell you the thing only I knew,” he reminded me.
I thought about how it felt when he was unconscious and unable to tell me what I wanted to know, and he was right. I relaxed, but just a little.
He turned his attention to the witch. “Where is Jonah, Marianelle?”
She only shrugged, which enraged me more. I lunged for her again, but Steward’s grip held me back.
“Tell me,” Steward continued. “Where is he?”
“Not here
,” she replied.
Oh, I wanted to kill her.
Evidently, Steward was starting to lose his patience—one of his hands left my shoulder and reached for her like he was about to inflict harm.
She flinched away from his grasp. “All right,” she gasped. “His presence was desired.”
“That’s all?” I asked after she fell silent. “His presence was desired? That’s not an answer, you disgusting bitch! And you know it! You know what he’s asking and you deliberately play word games like this when you know we don’t have the time!”
“Anissa,” Steward warned. “Don’t lose yourself like this.”
“But she knows! I know she knows!”
“So do I,” he replied in a deadly tone.
I looked up at him, and he looked at her.
I needed him to get through to her, and it wasn’t working so far.
“Who desired his presence, Marianelle? And don’t play with my words. Tell me. Who was it?”
All the while, Allonic stood off to the side with a detached expression on his face. He hadn’t said a word until then. It almost surprised me when he cleared his throat.
“Fane,” Allonic said.
18
Philippa
I never knew anger had a smell before, but the smell hung heavy in the air as I stared at Vance.
The overhead lighting still worked—they hadn’t broken that, though they probably would have if I hadn’t stopped them—and it cast part of Vance’s face in shadow. I wished I knew what he was thinking. Didn’t I already wish that before?
“I mean it,” I said. “I need to find my brother, and I need you tell me how to do that.”
“It’s not that easy.”
“I don’t see why not. I mean, before I saw you standing there I would’ve thought it was impossible to get in here if you weren’t a Bourke. But here you are. You have your ways, right?”
He smirked. “This goes beyond a little sneaking around.”
“All right. So what happened, really? Do you know or not? Telling me where he is and actually taking me to him are two different things.”
We circled each other like wary predators, eyeing each other up as we did. The fight with Sledge hadn’t hurt him one bit—I remembered the abrasions and bruises on Sledge’s face.
Vance looked like he could go another few rounds if it came down to it.
I raised one eyebrow as I smirked at him. “Unless you’re too much of a punk to follow through on your promises.”
“I didn’t promise you anything. I didn’t have the chance. We were interrupted, remember?”
“How could I forget? I’m the one who has to pay for the damage.”
A rueful grin spread across his handsome face. “Sorry about that.”
“Let’s not change the subject.” But it was so easy to when I was with him. It was exhilarating, matching wits with somebody at least mostly as intelligent as me. It had been too long. What I missed most about him was his mind. I had always loved talking with him, playing word games, bantering. Sometimes it was hotter than anything else we ever got up to.
“Oh, right. You wanted to know about Gage.”
We stopped circling and stood still.
“Yes. I want to know who kidnapped him.”
“That’s easy.” He folded his arms. “Nobody.”
“What?” My jaw nearly hit the floor.
“He hasn’t been kidnapped. He’s hiding.”
I had to sit down. I found the nearest chair they hadn’t broken and sank into it. “Hiding?” I asked breathlessly. “From what? From whom? And where?”
“First thing’s first.” He pulled up another chair, turning it around backwards and straddling it in front of me. His tall, strong, sure body moved as gracefully as a cat’s.
It wasn’t easy to pry my eyes from him and focus my thoughts.
He raised a brow, then said, “I know this because it was my father Gage went to.”
“Lucian?”
That was almost more shocking than finding out he was hiding at all. Why would he go to the head of the league for sanctuary? What had he done? Or what was he afraid of having done to him?
Vance leaned closer, and it took a feat of will to push away any lingering feelings I had for him. I tried, hard, to tell myself there was nothing between us, but that wasn’t strictly the truth. I still cared for him. More than cared. I wanted him. Just being near him was enough to send my body into overdrive, even when my brain was consumed with other things.
Now, I couldn’t control the way he made my pulse speed up. I couldn’t keep my skin from tingling or my palms from sweating. I only wished I could. I hated that he was able to break me down like that.
“Yeah. He went to my father and said he needed help. That’s all I know.”
“And this was when?”
“Not long ago. Between the league meeting and now.”
“After the bloodbath,” I murmured, remembering the horror I had seen. As a vampire, I was used to the sight of blood. Still, what I’d seen in that room had turned my stomach. I wouldn’t forget it anytime soon.
“I guess so.”
“He must have been running from whatever happened, then,” I surmised.
He shrugged. “I don’t know about any of that.”
“He’s safe, then?” That was something, anyway.
“Yes. For now. At League headquarters.”
And I had just been there. We had probably crossed paths. “Poor Gage. He must be terrified, taking a risk like that. Going to your father. I mean, nobody does that. It just isn’t done, Vance.”
“You don’t need to tell me that,” he snickered.
“Well, I have to see him.” I stood, resolute.
“That’s not going to happen.” He stood, too, and reminded me just how much taller he was than me. I refused to back down in front of him. I wouldn’t let him intimidate me.
“Oh, no?”
“Listen. This is great and everything, the way you want to save your brother, but it’s not a good idea. If I lead you to him, my father will know it was me who did it.”
“Oh, and you wouldn’t want to get your father upset, would you?”
He frowned, deep lines creasing his forehead. His icy eyes hardened. “You know I don’t want to, and I don’t appreciate the way you’re trying to make it sound like a joke, either.”
“All right, all right.” I held up my hands. “I just didn’t know he had you under his thumb like this.” I stepped backward, shaking my head.
He only chuckled. “You think you’re so smart, don’t you? Like you can talk me into anything by using that reverse psychology stuff.”
I shrugged. “It’s not like it hasn’t worked before. I remember more than once being able to talk to you into things you didn’t want to do at first.”
“Yeah, well maybe I wanted to do them all along but wanted to know how much you wanted me to do them.”
“That… makes no sense.”
He laughed. “You know what I’m trying to say.”
“Has anything between us ever been completely honest? I mean, no games, no word play, no testing? Just… us?” Where did that come from? I guessed I needed to know if I was willing to blurt it out like that.
“Sure. Don’t you remember?” He took one step closer to me, then another.
Damn him.
He knew how to tear me between wanting more and wanting him to stop.
My heart raced and my blood hummed and I very much wanted to know what he had in mind, even as my brain told me it was the stupidest idea anyone could ever have and I needed to run screaming from the room before things went too far.
“I’m afraid I don’t,” I whispered, hoping he wouldn’t choose to remind me.
“Well, we’ll have to do something about that.” He backed me into the wall.
I slid past him, walking back to the center of the room. I heard his dry chuckle behind me.
“I don’t think we need to. We don’t have
a lot of time, after all, and I need to see my brother whether you plan on helping me get to him or not.” I grinned, turning to face him. “Come on. You know me. You know I’ll leave as soon as I’m free of you and course straight back to the cathedral.”
“You would, too, wouldn’t you?” He shook his head, grinning.
“Absolutely.”
“I’m afraid I’m going to need something in return, then.”
“Oh, come on. You mean you won’t do me a favor for old time’s sake? You don’t think you owe me that much, at least?” I shook my head. “I’m disappointed in you.”
“Old time’s sake doesn’t mean much to me—no offense. What I care about is the here and now, as in the fact that we are both right here, right now.” He smiled, approaching again.
And again, I backed away—only this time, when he pinned me against the wall, I didn’t try to get past him. The dangerous side of me, the side he’d always managed to unleash, wanted to see where this would go.
He smiled victoriously, like he had me just where he wanted me—trapped, nowhere to go, no way to resist him.
And that smile snapped something inside me. In a flash, my fangs were bared. I pushed him away from me.
“You want to know what you get in return? You get to live. How’s that sound? I could just as easily call my clan in to take care of you for me.”
He was too fast for me, taking my wrists in his much larger hands, holding them above my head.
“I want a kiss.”
“Get out of here,” I spat, turning my face away, even as my heart raced and I struggled to breathe.
“Come on,” he whispered. “You used to enjoy my kisses.”
I wriggled, trying to free myself. “Yeah, well, I didn’t have many good qualities to choose from, did I?” The hoodie he wore barely concealed his strong, hard body, but when I inadvertently pressed myself against him as I fought to be free, my knees went a little weak.