Revelation (League of Vampires Book 5)

by Rye Brewer

  He barreled on. “For example, your little girlfriend. You know, the one who’s pregnant with a baby she shouldn’t even be having. A hybrid baby that will only complicate all our lives. A baby who might even cost Sirene her life, seeing as how she might not even make it through the delivery. Meanwhile, our mother’s body is out there—she might even still be in there, for all we know—and you’re busy with a witch! But you’re going to give me advice?”

  I held my breath, waiting to see how Fane would take this. If I were him, I’d throw Scott into the water and leave him there. Fane’s hands curled into fists, but only for a second before relaxing again. More of a reflex than an actual intention.

  “You have a choice to make, son.” He sounded every inch the domineering father just then.

  I could imagine him ruling his clan, keeping everything in line while keeping his children in line, too.

  “You can either be a man and handle your feelings like one, or you can be a child and fall apart over this. It’s up to you. If you’re not man enough to carry on, I’ll go with Anissa and find your mother. You can go home. As I said, it’s your choice.”

  His words were simple, to the point, but there was so much more behind them. And the way he spoke, with such cold, calculated, barely-under-the-surface rage, it even made me want to fall in line and obey him. I could only imagine what it would be like to hear him speak to me like that.

  Scott was clearly pouting, though he did everything he could to hide it. What other choice did he have but to agree with his father and move on? Anything else would be tantamount to admitting that he couldn’t handle his emotions. “Fine. I’ll deal with the Sara situation when we get home.”

  I didn’t much like hearing my sister referred to as a situation, but I let it go.

  Fane smiled slightly. “That’s good to hear. I’ll create the portal, and we’ll be on our way to Shadowsbane.”

  “Hold on for just one minute.” Scott stood, facing his father. He wasn’t as large as the older man, but he drew himself up to his full height nonetheless and stared at him. “There’s something you never told us, and I would like to know before we go any further. We’re about to do something which, if you’ll pardon me, sounds extremely crazy. And I’d like to know for my own education before we go—in case I don’t get to ask you again for any reason.”

  “What is it? Let’s make it quick.”

  Scott took his father’s impatience in stride. “Who are you now? You went from being a vampire on the run to being Fane. This mystical creature who can create portals. Since when can you create portals? What changed? How did it happen? And what else can you do?”

  They were all good questions, ones which I wouldn’t mind having the answers to. It was downright unsettling, not knowing what had transpired to change Fane into who he’d become. How did something like that happen?

  Fane frowned, looked as though he wanted to dismiss his son’s questions—but didn’t. Instead, he sighed, looking out over the moonlight water. It sparkled like diamonds, and I touched the ring Jonah had given me without thinking about it.

  “In the interest of keeping this brief, I’ll give you the shorthand version,” Fane decided, still looking away from us. “I understand why it’s important for you to know, so I’ll tell you—but then we must go.”

  “Fair enough,” Scott agreed. I stayed silent. It wasn’t my place to speak up.

  He took a deep breath, and when he spoke, it sounded like the memory pained him. Like he had never spoken it aloud before, and was out of practice.

  “After I lost Elena, I lived on my own. I did what I had to do to survive. I’m not proud of those desperate, lonely days, but I lived through them. And what I wasn’t aware of at the time was the fact that the cave I hid out in was just outside a witches’ realm.”

  He sighed and continued. “A lot of time passed, but I couldn’t begin to know exactly how much. Days blended into each other. I was in such a haze of pain back then. When the attack started, I almost welcomed it. I wasn’t sure I wanted to live anymore at that point. A group of men, all of them wanting nothing more than to kill me. I could see the murder in their eyes. I fought as hard as I could, for what felt like forever.”

  Fane’s face mirrored how difficult those times had to have been.

  “Only they never stopped coming at me,” he said in a tight, strained voice. “I couldn’t understand how they kept multiplying. They were hurting me—with silver, mostly, and though burn after burn covered my body, still I fought on. I didn’t know until later that the group’s leader was a warlock. An illusionist. His men, the ones attacking me, weren’t real. They were part of his illusion. But nonetheless, they could kill me. An army of his own creation. In my frenzy, I killed that warlock along with the rest of my attackers. I fed on him.”

  I raised my brows because of the way he said that, but he was so caught up in his story, he didn’t notice my reaction.

  He chuckled mirthlessly. “Naturally, when I did that, the rest of them disappeared as though they’d never existed. My wounds still existed, of course, since the damage they’d inflicted was real. There was something else on top of that: the fact that I’d fed on the warlock without knowing he was a warlock at the time. I’m not sure that I would have, if I’d known. His blood… did things to me.”

  “Things?” Scott prompted.

  “I went crazy, or so it seemed. I began creating random creatures, like the ones who had attacked me. I threw portals, when I’d never been able to do anything like that before. I was in a living nightmare. Worse than hell, even. Alone. No one to turn to. No idea why everything had suddenly turned upside down… until a witch came along.” His voice softened. “Of course, I thought she was just another one of the phantom creatures I’d been creating and killing, so I attacked her. She managed to fight back long enough to explain that she meant me no harm. She was there to help me, if I was willing to accept her help. As long as I didn’t kill her. Naturally, I agreed. What choice did I have? She was offering to free me of my torture.”

  “So, she said a few words I didn’t understand, waved her hands with her eyes closed. I was unfamiliar with all of it at the time. All I knew was, whatever she did freed me. I no longer created those attackers. I was no longer throwing portals at random. I felt peace for the first time in longer than I could remember.”

  “It was Sirene,” Scott concluded.

  “It was Sirene. She saved me.” He turned to his son. “She taught me to control the powers the illusionist’s blood had given me. Including the ability to throw portals. Without her, I might have lost my mind for good. I might have let those attackers I was creating kill me. Who knows? There’s no telling. I know she saved my life, and that’s all I need to know.”

  There was nothing I could say.

  Even Scott seemed mollified. He remained silent, as did I.

  Fane observed our reaction and seemed satisfied with it. “All right. Now that you know, it’s time for us to get to Shadowsbane.”

  36

  Felicity

  It was good to be home, to smell the fresh air and feel the presence of so much lush beauty around me. Only when I traveled outside of Avellane could I fully appreciate its beauty.

  Gregor took a deep breath and smiled broadly. He was happy, too, for reasons far different from my own. I couldn’t help but smile when I saw him that way. He was like a different man. Yes, he still strode with purpose, with his head held high, arms swinging like a man determined to get where he was going. That would never change. But there was a lightness to him that hadn’t been there before. A joyfulness. A spring in his step. He was a man in love.

  I followed behind as quickly as I could, both of us heading for the entrance connecting Avellane with the human world.

  “What do you plan to do now?” I asked. It wasn’t unusual for me to ask probing questions, though I’d never asked one as personal as this. There had never been reason to.

  Gregor chuckled, shrugging. “Whatever
she wants. I have her back now, and that’s all that matters. This is much more than I was ever able to hope for, you understand. It would feel like—I don’t know—asking for far too much if I dared try to control what happens next. All I know is, I would like her to stay here.”

  “In Avellane? Permanently?”

  He nodded, not bothering to look over his shoulder to where I struggled to keep up with his long strides through the tall grass. I had traveled that way with Allonic, I realized, outside the thickest growth of trees where we made our home. Only I hadn’t been close to an all-out run at that time.

  “Do you think she’ll want to?” I asked, more out of curiosity than anything else.

  I had no doubt she’d be accepted among us—not only did Gregor’s word mean about as much as any law ever could among my people, but they’d all be as glad as I was to see him happy. And Tabitha was so lovely, so gentle and sweet. She would fit in perfectly.

  “I don’t know, but it’s worth asking,” he said with a hearty laugh.

  I was so unaccustomed to hearing him laugh like that.

  We reached the entrance, and Gregor stepped through without hesitation. I decided to follow him through, though he might have wished I wouldn’t. I didn’t want him to be alone just then. There was nothing worse than being alone. He would simply have to put up with my questions, because I couldn’t quell my curiosity.

  He paced impatiently, shaking his head, muttering to himself. “I don’t like this. It’s taking too long. I should’ve gone with her.”

  “She’ll be all right,” I assured him. “ShadesRealm is her home, after all. There’s nowhere else she’d be safer.”

  “She’s not a shade,” he reminded me sourly.

  “She has shade blood in her now,” I countered.

  Her skin wasn’t nearly as dark as Allonic’s, but it was darker than Anissa’s. The difference was obvious.

  “That doesn’t mean anything to a shade,” he muttered. “I’ll be much happier and more satisfied when she’s safe in Avellane.” It wasn’t easy for a man like him to be at the mercy of outside forces. He always had to be in control. It was the only way he knew how to live.

  I held my tongue and agreed silently that things would be much easier when she was there, safe, under his protection. One less way for him to drive me crazy.

  A figure approached from the distance, and the way Gregor froze in place told me he thought it might be her.

  It was clearly not—this was a man, a tall one, with much darker skin than Tabitha’s. My heart skipped a beat, and my cheeks grew warm.

  “Who’s that?” Gregor asked. “Allonic?”

  I nodded. I didn’t trust my voice.

  “Hmm.” There was humor I had never heard before in that simple sound. “It seems as though he has an effect on you, doesn’t it?”

  I glared at him in panic, ready to beg him to keep his teasing to himself, but there was no time to say a word. Allonic was already upon us, having coursed his way across the landscape.

  “Hello.” His eyes glowed as warmly as ever, and my cheeks burned even warmer.

  Gregor cleared his throat. “Allonic. I’m sorry to break in on this moment, but I wanted the chance to greet you properly. I didn’t have the opportunity earlier.”

  “No,” Allonic agreed in that deep, rumbling voice of his. “You seemed to be in a rush to speak to Anissa, if I remember correctly. You nearly pulled her from the room before we had the chance to become acquainted.”

  Gregor nodded, looking embarrassed. “It was a surprise, seeing you, the way you resemble your mother. I knew right away that you had to be her son, but that made no sense at the time—I thought she was dead, you understand.”

  “Of course. I’m sure it was a shock.”

  “To say the least. I owe you an apology, then. It was terribly rude of me.”

  That was something new. It was rare for Gregor to admit wrongdoing, and even rarer still for him to ask for forgiveness. Tabitha had truly helped him turn over a new leaf—or, more likely, had helped him rediscover part of himself which he’d buried in the wake of losing her.

  Allonic merely smiled. “Not at all. You were gracious enough not to expel me from Avellane the moment you discovered my presence, and I owe you a great debt of gratitude.”

  Seeing them getting along so well pleased me in a way I couldn’t put my finger on. Gregor wasn’t my father. He was barely even a friend. Only someone I worked alongside, somebody I advised. But we had been together for a long time, and it was inevitable in the face of such a span of time that some sort of bond would form. He was the closest thing to family I’d had in a long time, too. It meant a lot, watching them speak so warmly to each other.

  Gregor extended his hand to shake Allonic’s, which Allonic accepted. “I want you to know something. As Tabitha’s son, and Anissa’s brother, you’re always welcome in Avellane.”

  I could’ve exploded with happiness then—and the way Gregor’s eyes drifted toward mine, the way one corner of his mouth quirked up in a little smile, told me he understood.

  “Thank you.” Allonic looked at me as well. “I have the feeling I’ll be a frequent visitor.” I hoped the chills which ran up and down my spine at the sound of that weren’t obvious, but had the feeling they were.

  37

  Allonic

  When I had my power—or, rather, Valerius’s power—nothing could stop me from taking my rightful place among my kind. And no one would dare stop me from making my life with Felicity. Looking at her, when Gregor offered an open invitation to Avellane, and her eyes lit up, left no doubt in my mind that she was the one I needed to be with for the rest of my life.

  The only problem left was a small one, almost amusing, but no less critical: my lack of experience when it came to courting a woman. I had never done it before. Even if there had been anyone special, they would never have taken me seriously as a suitor. I had been content with my work, convincing myself there was nothing else necessary to live a fulfilling existence.

  I was wrong then. How could I ever have imagined that life without someone like Felicity would be worth living?

  Her eyes shone as she looked up at me, and my heart was fuller than it had ever been. Full of words unspoken, words I wanted so very much to share with her.

  But I couldn’t, not in front of Gregor.

  “May I have a moment of your time?” I asked, suddenly tongue-tied.

  I sensed his gentle amusement, so different from his attitude when I first woke up in the Hermitage.

  Felicity hesitated, shooting a look Gregor’s way.

  He chuckled, waving us off. “Go, go, both of you. Have your time together. I’ll be fine right here.” He was still chuckling as Felicity took my hand and I coursed away with her before there were any more interruptions. I’d never felt quite so embarrassed and elated all at once.

  She squeezed my hand tightly as we coursed, and I wondered what it was like for her to discover an entirely new world. Was she experiencing the same joyful, wild, wonderful excitement I was? I tried to observe what was so common for me through her eyes, flying over the landscape, the world melting away behind us as we did. It was like seeing it all again for the first time.

  It would be morning again in a matter of hours, but we had plenty of time. Nobody would be awake to find two strangers seat on the roof of a barn on a hill, looking out over the land. I had noticed it on the way in from ShadesRealm and immediately thought of Felicity. It wasn’t quite like the sort of natural beauty that was such a vital part of her world, but it was a start.

  “This is remarkable!” She turned in a full circle, smiling from ear to ear. If I could only keep her smiling like that every day, all day, my life would mean something.

  And she was right. It was remarkable. From our vantage point, rolling farmland for miles in every direction was visible to us. In the distance, a silvery stream cut through the lush, green grass and sparkled in the moonlight. Even the trees looked like silver from where w
e sat, shimmering a little whenever a breeze stirred the leaves. Farmhouses dotted the landscape, here and there, and the deep, vital scent of life hung heavy around us.

  “See? There’s beauty outside of Avellane, too.” I’d wanted to take her to Manhattan, to show her buildings even taller than the tallest trees in her realm, to see the flashing lights reflected in her eyes, but she would seem out of place there.

  “I suppose there is,” she admitted with a chuckle. “I never would’ve guessed.” Once she was finished taking everything in, she sat beside me.

  I was intensely aware of her—the warmth of her body, even though we weren’t touching. The way her dress brushed against my skin. The enticing scent of her.

  When she turned to smile at me with her eyes so full of life and light and warmth and even hope, there was nothing I could do but stroke the side of her face as I bent to touch my lips to hers.

  Even the slightest contact sent a thrill through me and made me understand why love was so highly regarded. I’d never understood before I met her. Nobody else could’ve made me understand.

  She was smiling softly when our kiss ended. I wondered if she understood even a fraction of what was happening inside my mind. Was it the same for her? Was that even the sort of question a man asked a woman? I was so new, fumbling hopelessly even as I attempted to affect an air of calm.

  “I have something to ask you,” I whispered, reaching out to tuck a strand of white hair behind her ear. It was so soft.

  “What is it?”

  I took a deep breath. It was important for me to do things right. I didn’t want to make the wrong move and ruin anything between us. I had to get this out of the way, even though my heart nearly burst from apprehension. “May I court you?”

  She blinked. “Court me?” One eyebrow arched.

  “Yes.” She had no idea how she was crushing me.

  She couldn’t possibly. Just as she couldn’t possibly know how much courage it had taken for me to ask. I could slay monsters, but asking this tiny woman to let me court her had put me in a quite a state.