“What’s going on?”
They all looked at me, and Oliver held his hand out. “Let me see your pentagram.”
“Why?” I narrowed my eyes at him. “I want to know what you’re talking about first.”
Merick crossed his arms. “Ira wants to negotiate further, no weapons, no magical items, and that would go for both sides.”
“I’ve given up my gun; I’m not giving up the blades or the pentagram.” I looked at Levi. “This is sounding more and more like a trap. He sent Oliver to talk to you?”
Levi nodded. “Your Uncle is betraying us, Abigail.”
“I’m not getting into it right now. Oliver, why the pentagram?”
“Because I don’t actually expect you to give it up, but there’s one more thing I want to add to the protection that your mother left you.”
I tried not to glance at Levi. “From?”
“From Hannah, Abigail, walk with me?”
“You can say what you need to in front of me,” Levi stated. “Abigail is going nowhere with you; you’re working for him.”
“You want the truth, Levi?” Oliver turned to face him, and I’d never seen such hate in his eyes. “Ira is planning on having Hannah use her magic to bring Abigail down to her knees and start driving her insane. He wants to make sure that she remembers every little fuck up Lizzy and you did. From the moment he fed from her as an infant to when his crazy creatures almost ate her alive, the death of her mother.”
I’d never heard so much venom from my uncle before. His calm demeanor melted away. “I’m putting a protection spell on the pentagram to keep her from that.”
“That doesn’t sound very pleasant, but I’m not aware of how magic can do that.” I glanced at Merick. “Can you confirm that?”
Merick nodded. “Think about it as a trace spell, just specific to your memories and in your mind. It’s dark magic, but since Hannah doesn’t really have a soul to worry about, I doubt she’s concerned with it.”
He had a point. Oliver held his hand out. “There is also something that Ira plans on having Hannah undo.” He glanced at Levi. “And I suggest you let me protect Abigail from that happening.”
I had a feeling I knew what he was talking about, but I wasn’t ready to come clean with what I knew. Not right now when tensions were so high. I took the pentagram off and handed it to Oliver. “I’m trusting you here.”
“I would never truly betray you, Abby. Your mother would come back and haunt me.” He wrapped his hand around it. “May I borrow your chamber so I can use the circle?”
I nodded. “Yeah, go ahead.”
Levi didn’t look happy, but he couldn’t argue. “None of this is going to end well.”
“You should have thought about that before you made an agreement for me to see Ira.” I looked at Merick. “You prepared for this?”
“I am, I think that me being here instead of Mario will lean things in our favor.”
“The spell on the pentagram, will you be able to tell if Oliver did anything malicious?”
“I think you’ll be able to tell, but yes, I’ll sense it if you let me touch it.”
I looked at Levi. “I have my bases covered, do you?”
“Mario and I will be out of the building, but we won’t be far. If you’re in danger, I’ll know it.”
He didn’t say he’d come running to save me, and his face was carefully blank.
“And if I need help?”
“He has to break the truce first.”
For fuck’s sake. “Stupid vampire politics.”
Merick laughed, and Levi shot him a nasty look. “You better not put her in any extra danger.”
“You’ve put her in plenty yourself already.”
I held my hand up. “Now is not the time to argue. Tonight’s focus is survival. We survive, and we’ll all have a nice little chat after.”
Levi raised a brow. “You act like there’s a lot to talk about.”
“Let’s just say it might need to include wine instead of coffee.” A lot of wine. Maybe something stronger.
Oliver came back upstairs and handed me my pentagram back. He met my gaze. “Remember what I’ve said, Abby. I promised Lizzy I’d protect you always.”
Something occurred to me as I handed Merick the pentagram to check. “Oliver, are you his second?”
“No. I’m not. I’m nothing compared to Hannah, according to Ira. Besides, he thinks Hannah will give him the advantage. I won’t perform the spell that she’s going to try. Too dark for me.” He tugged on his shirt. “No, I’m going to tell Ira that the negotiation failed. Then, I’m going to go back home and wait for a call that says you survived.”
Levi actually rolled his eyes this time. “I am not sending her to her death.”
“Yeah, well that’s what it feels like.” I shook my head. “Okay, so no new negotiations. Now all there is left to do is wait.”
Merick handed me back my pentagram. I put it on and felt the magic flow over me. I closed my eyes for a moment and let it settle over my aura. Whatever spell it was, it was strong, but it didn’t feel evil or malicious. I looked at Oliver; I’d never really seen him perform magic meant to protect before.
Oliver pulled me into a quick hug before heading out. I remembered what I saw in the trace spell, and my mom’s words came back to me.
“So much blood. Death at the hands of vampires,” I whispered.
Levi turned to me. “What?”
“Clarissa saw something in her cards a few months back. She said that the reading was so strong that it gave her a vision.”
I looked at Levi. “There are so many ways to interpret, but I’m hoping tonight is not the night she saw. Because I really don’t want to die by Ira or Hannah’s hands.”
I took a deep breath as I walked into the main room. Merick was at my back, a few feet away as to not give the illusion he was there to protect me. Ira and Hannah were waiting there already. Ira was lounging in Levi’s throne, one leg thrown over the elegantly carved wood and his back against the other arm.
“Abigail, Abigail,” Ira taunted, “Oh Abigail.”
I felt powers brush up against my aura and I smiled as his influence didn’t find its way through me. He sat up abruptly and stared at me.
“Surprised?” I asked, walking a little closer. “I had some help getting your influences out of me. Seems my mother had a little spell for that.”
Hannah smiled as she ran her hand over the back of the throne, her perfectly manicured nails stood out against the black. “A talented witch, even in her death.”
I wasn’t going to rise to her bait in this. I was in control here. We were on Levi’s grounds, Merick was at my back, and we’d already surprised Ira once. We could do it again. “Why did you want this meeting? You seemed to have given me all the information you could when you assaulted me at Hannah’s.”
“And were you able to confirm my suspicions?”
I raised a brow. “What I’ve learned is not up for discussion here.”
“Did you know something, Abigail? Have you ever heard the story about how and why Levi was turned?”
I didn’t answer him. He stood and held his hand out for Hannah. “My dear brother was caught robbing our maker. I had gone along to stop him. We were both changed; both turned into killing machines. Taught that we were superior. That we would rule the world. We had the same goals, the same ambitions.”
I shook my head. “Levi is nothing like you.” But even as I said it, I knew I was trying to lie to myself. I’d seen the trace spells; I’d seen that he knew about the experiments, and hints that he’d participated and even approved of it, but I didn’t want to believe it.
“Lies, I can hear the hesitation in your voice. The rhythm of your heart stuttered, and your breathing caught. You don’t trust him any more than you trust me. Or you would have chosen him as your second. As it is you have a member of the Cult standing at your back.”
I didn’t know what to say. I hadn’t known Levi wa
s really an option as my second. “Whatever it is that you’re here for Ira, just get on with it. I’m growing tired of vampire games and politics.”
He rushed me and stopped right in front of me. I almost went for my knife but thought better of it. He was just trying to scare me. “This is your life, princess,” he hissed at me. “I wanted to offer to turn you because I know Levi won’t. Give you a chance to be a real princess of vampires.”
Hannah giggled, and I felt her magic start to press against me. My pentagram warmed against my skin. “No, thank you, I rather like being a witch. Hannah, I suggest you pull your magic back, or I’ll consider it breaking the truce.”
“Magic for us wasn’t off the negotiation list. You can’t do that Abby.” There was that condescending tone again.
I nodded and motioned to Merick. “It wasn’t off limits for him either. Are we done here?”
He wasn’t going to be able to get what he wanted, thanks to Oliver.
Hannah put a finger to her lips. “Can I?” she asked, and I wondered who she was asking.
“Go ahead, Hannah.”
What the fuck? I pressed my lips together, trying to decide what to do.
Hannah strolled up to me and reached her hand out. I moved back. “Don’t you fucking touch me.” I put my dominant hand on the hilt of my blade and flinched.
Neither of the vampires missed it.
“Poor Abigail, wounded in the line of work?” Hannah’s hand went toward my shoulder, and I grabbed her wrist with my other hand. “Step away.”
She giggled and turned so she was gripping my wrist. It was a mistake. Her touch burned. I jerked away, but it was done. The magic crawled through me, the pentagram heated to the point where I swore it was burning into my skin.
I cried out, but I dared not take it off. That’s what she wanted. Merick touched my shoulder and the burning faded. I snarled. “Pretty sure that counts as harming me.”
Hannah tilted her head to the side. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I took a deep breath. “If there’s nothing left to discuss, I’m done with this meeting.” I spun away from her and started toward the exit.
“Don’t you want to know what happened to your mother, Abigail?” Ira called after me.
I froze in my steps. I would not give in. I would not give in.
“You do, I can tell. You’ve been putting in all this effort to figure out who killed her. Negotiating with the Cult for information on her death by helping them with translating runes. Runes that Tobias already had translated.”
I stiffened and glanced at Merick. “My father,” he whispered, and I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
“I don’t want any information from you.” I took another step forward, and he appeared in front of me.
“I loved your mother before I introduced her to Levi and they betrayed me and my vision. You. You are that outcome, Abigail. You are what I’ve always wanted to create. A perfect hybrid.”
I growled. “I’m not a hybrid. I am a witch, through and through. I do not crave blood; I do not need it to survive. I am a witch. My mother would never love a monster like you.”
That was it. His eyes flashed red, and I didn’t see his hand coming until it wrapped around my throat. He broke the truce. I smiled even though my air supply was being cut off.
“I fucked your mother enough that you could have been my child.”
I spat on him with everything I could muster. He threw me away, and I landed at Merick’s feet. He helped me up, and I tried not to show any pain. “Get out of our territory.”
Hannah’s magic crawled around me again, and I raised my own. The fireplace was lit, giving me something to use if I needed to. She walked around me while Merick kept his eyes on Ira.
“Abigail, Abigail, you’ve stolen the heart of my fledgling.”
I raised a brow. “Really? Is this still about jealousy? Pretty sure you pinning me with your magic was revenge enough.”
“Abby,” Merick shouted just before Ira took me to the ground. I hit the ground with a grunt and Hannah’s magic spread out. But Merick muttered something and raised his hand, a black circle appeared around Hannah, forcing the vampire to stop in her steps.
Ira grabbed the pentagram but cried out as if it burnt him. He dropped it but kept me pinned to the ground. I wiggled and gripped my knife in my boot, pulling it out and attempting to stab him.
Ira jumped off me before my blade could meet his flesh. I flipped up and dropped into a defensive stance. I was no match for him wounded, but my god I was going to go down fighting. I held my other hand out and called for the fire from the fireplace.
It came to me, forming a ball above my palm and I gave a wicked smile. Ira laughed. “I thought you were an elemental the night at the lab. Seems you have much better control now than you did then.”
It helped that I wasn’t drugged up. “I’m going to tell you again. Get out of our territory.”
Magic crashed around us, and Merick cried out as his circle shattered and Hannah stalked towards him. He was trying to recover. I snarled and threw my hand out casting a fire circle around Hannah.
The bitch walked right through it.
“The thing you don’t understand, Abigail, is that I am so much stronger than you think. Not only do I have magic, but I’m a vampire with the ability to make you feel safe. To get you to obey me.”
Something crawled through me, and I knew that it wasn’t her magic, but her vampire ability. My body started to relax and my magic boiled down. I tried to hold on to it, but I couldn’t. My mind started to slip, and I knew I’d do anything she would ask of me.
This wasn’t right. I wrapped my arms around my stomach, and the pain from the wound started to bring me back. It grounded me. I called on my magic and commanded the fire to surround Ira. This wasn’t a magical circle, this was a pure circle of fire. I dared them both to walk through.
My body was aching from the amount of energy I was using, but I was riding high on the magic. “You’ve broken the truce. Leave. If you want to talk further, renegotiate.”
Ira laughed, but they both disappeared. I waved a hand, the fire disappeared, and I let out a deep breath. I could still feel my magic humming through me, and I flexed my hands. I never wanted to feel that helpless again.
Merick looked at me. “Abigail?”
“I’m okay, don’t worry.”
“I can feel the magic crackling around you. Don’t lose control. Rein it in.”
I would. All I needed was a moment to gather my thoughts. Levi appeared, a worried look on his face.
I couldn’t help myself. I gave a wicked grin. “Hello, Father.”
Chapter Fifteen
“What are you talking about?” Levi took a step toward me but hesitated. “Abigail, what happened here?”
Mario appeared just a moment later, and my gaze flickered to him and then back to Levi. “Ira attacked me.”
“He broke the truce.” Levi looked around. “Merick had your back?”
I nodded. “You and I have a lot to talk about.”
Levi shook his head. “We have nothing to talk about.”
“Like hell we do, Your Highness,” I snapped, my magic swirling around me.
Mario cleared his throat. “Merick, I think it’s time for you to go.”
“Yeah, I don’t think I want to be here for this conversation.” Merick gave me a knowing look. “Find your calm, Abigail.”
I nodded and tried to remember how to find my calm and my center, but my anger kept driving my magic forward.
Levi stared at me for a moment when Mario and Merick left. I walked over to his throne and sat down, my hands running over the smooth wood as I tried to find my calm. Wrapping one hand around my pentagram, I prayed that I would calm down and find the right words.
“When I turned eighteen, we promised each other no secrets.”
Levi hadn’t moved from where he stood. “We did.”
“But you’ve broken t
hat promise.”
“To protect you, Abigail, everything I’ve done has been to protect you, and it has failed.” His normally carefully blank face crumpled, and he hung his head. “All I wanted was for you and Elizabeth to be safe. To not have to worry, and then someone slaughtered her and Tobias and thrust you into my world.”
“You could have given me to Oliver.”
“No, I couldn’t have. I told Elizabeth that I would take you and that I would do everything in my power to keep you safe. And it worked, until your case with Devon.” He shook his head. “Your uncle decided he had to come back into your life, against my wishes, because we caught a rumor about Ira overseas.”
“Life magic, Levi. The only reason I’m alive is life magic because you and Ira wanted to create a hybrid creature.” I shook my head. “You used my mother to try and create a monster.”
His head snapped up at that. “No, no I didn’t. I loved your mother; I loved Elizabeth with everything I am. It was her choice to use the spell to save you. She asked Oliver for help; I didn’t even know until I came to visit the hospital that night.” He rubbed his eyes. “Elizabeth…her face lit up the moment she realized she was carrying. The moment you were born she held you so close because she knew what was happening.” His voice broke a little bit. “You were so tiny and helpless, and the doctors gave you less than twenty-four hours to live.”
I leaned back in the throne and watched him. “Why hide it? Why not tell me when I was older?”
“Because we decided it was best since I had just become king. And with Ira knowing, and his jealousy…”
“We all see how that worked out.” I shook my head. “Now what? Now that the truth is out there, Ira will share this far and wide.”
“We go on as normal. We keep it under wraps, you keep your job at PIB, and continue to be by my side when I meet with the council.”
“Does the council know?”
He shook his head. “No, they know you’re adopted and nothing more than that. This doesn’t change anything Abigail; you just happen to have my blood in you is all.”
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