Grady sat down at the table and pulled a metal box towards him. Stowing it under his arm, he stood. “It’s not much of a place. There’s a shower, and we’ll find you a blanket. You’ll have to sleep on the cot.”
“Better than a tree.” An image of the cell I’d rescued Camille from flashed in front of my eyes.
“We have food.” Grady opened the cupboard to reveal several cans of soups and beans.
“I have some food in my pack. So, we’re safe here?” I spun around, surveying the entry points.
“Magic proof, sound proof.” Grady swirled his index finger in the air.
“Good. Do you want to shower first?”
“No, you go ahead. I’m going to call Tyler and Janine. There’s probably something that will fit good enough up in the bedroom. Tyler’s about your size, so once we get to Iceland we should be able to find you something better to wear.”
“Thanks.” I took the stairs two at a time.
I showered and brushed my teeth with the supplies in the medicine cabinet. I washed out my wet outfit from the castle and hung it over the shower bar. Every single action—the shower, brushing my teeth, cleaning my clothes—had me wondering what Camille was doing. Was she lost in the forest looking for us? Had we fled too soon? Had they locked her up in a cell again? My stomach clenched as I thought about her being captured by Sonia. Forcing my legs to carry me down the stairs, I took a seat beside Grady.
He punched a few keys on a laptop, and depressed the enter button. “We are booked on a flight to Reykjavik first thing tomorrow.” He slid a passport to me. “Good thing you have dark hair like Tyler.”
My heart palpitated, and I rested my hand on my chest, wondering what my body was telling me.
Grady’s eyebrows shot up. “You okay?”
“Yeah, probably need food.” I raised my bag to the table and felt inside for the cured meats and bread I’d packed.
“You have to help me convince Janine and Tyler this threat is real. Janine is very evidence based, so she won’t be easy to persuade.”
I shook my head. He hadn’t given Camille the choice to embrace a magical world, I wouldn’t take away Janine and Tyler’s. “I won’t use mind control on them.”
“That’s not what I mean. I’ll need you to show off your magic. I don’t seem to have mine back yet.”
“You got in this place.”
“It’s more of a magic print than a spell.”
“Well, I can do some tricks then.” A yawn escaped my lips.
Grady rose and retrieved two blankets from under the counter. Taking them, I tossed them onto the cot.
“Okay, well, I’ll see you bright and early.” Grady pulled the cord, turning off the bulb, and took the stairs two at a time.
Lying on my back, I let the heaviness of the last two days sink in. I’d lost Camille. I rubbed my arm where she’d made me cut it the first time and huffed. Not one to be emotional about much, I wondered at how she’d worked herself into my heart, or more like how I’d pulled her into mine. Remember, Jude, she wanted nothing to do with you. She thought I was a spy out to kidnap her. Camille had finally realized I wasn’t, told me she loved me, and I abandoned her. I didn’t deserve her love. I should have stayed with her. Even if she hated me for it, I should have gotten her out, right then, without her dad. Tears formed in my eyes. No. I swiped them away. If there was one thing I knew about Camille, she was a survivor.
I told myself this over and over as my body pricked with the strain of the past forty-eight hours. Vacillating between cycles of berating myself and thinking about what state Camille might be in, I finally succumbed to my exhaustion.
The alarm sounded at five. Through the bathroom window, I noted a heavy bank of clouds. Slapping my cheeks after a shave, I forced thoughts of Camille out of my brain. I’d go crazy if I allowed myself to imagine what she might be going through. Downstairs, I stuffed a couple of the sandwiches I’d stolen from the castle in my bag. I followed Grady to the street where he had a cab waiting. My passport indicated I was a US Citizen named Thomas Smith. It held stamps for Iceland, Italy, France, England, and Spain. Grady also had US driver’s licenses and credit cards to match the passports. I guessed he was a pro at aliases and wondered how much the documents cost him. Then, I realized magic could get you anything.
At the airport, with no luggage to check, we went straight to the security line. I slapped my leg, waiting to show my identification. When my turn came, I handed the guard my passport and ticket. He looked at me, then down at the document and returned it. Breathing a sigh of relief, I followed Grady to the gate.
When the airplane took off, it entered the cloud bank before we got high enough to see Sardinia. Part of me had wanted to see the island, hang on to the connection of at least being in the same country as Camille. The other part of me pushed thoughts of my betrayal away. How could I be abandoning her like this? I’d told her I would stay with her, we’d figure things out together.
Grady grabbed my arm. “There’s no other way. Give your knuckles a rest.”
I turned my fingers over, realizing they were nearly raw from rubbing them on the armrest.
As the minutes and then hours ticked on, my chest grew tighter and tighter, my breathing more labored. My arms developed chill bumps, and I stuffed my fingers in my armpits to keep them warm.
“Just a day in Reykjavik and then we’ll be back,” Grady assured me as he handed over a second cup of hot tea brought by the flight attendant.
“I’ll be fine.” I sipped the tea, forcing calming breaths in and out of my lungs.
Landing in Iceland, we waited in the security line. My vision had grown hazy, and I struggled to keep upright. When we made it to the front, the guard took our documents. His eyes cut from the pages to me.
“You okay there?”
Grady wound an arm around my shoulder. “He has asthma. Dry air on the plane is never good for him. We forgot his medication. But he’ll be good as new once we get him to a pharmacy.”
“I see.” The man stamped our passports and handed them to Grady.
“How much wimpier could you have made me look?” I asked as we walked to the exit.
“He doesn’t care.”
“I do.” I coughed as the cold air hit my lungs.
“You’re not looking so good, but I’m surprised you made it this far,” Grady said as we took seats on the shuttle bus.
I sucked in another breath. “How do the coven members live with this burden? I mean if they can’t travel freely, they’re basically prisoners.”
“Ah, that is the catch. The leader of the coven, Thanatos, dictates your status and thus your freedom. I am guessing you were given a very short leash. They probably assume you’re already dead. I’m surprised you’re not.”
“Well, that’s something.” It was a sobering and yet freeing notion. If they assumed I’d died, they would be less likely to expect a rescue attempt. I’d have to use that to my advantage. I wondered if my vampirism helped sustain me.
It was a short ride to Janine and Tyler’s hotel. Grady squeezed and released his fist as we made our way to their room. I speculated as to which of us dreaded this meeting more. Grady had years of lies to make up for, but it was me who’d left her vulnerable.
“Did you tell them about Camille yet?”
“No.” Grady’s brow furrowed.
“Do you know what you’re going to tell them?” I thought Grady would have at least told them I was coming and something about Camille, but I guessed he thought it better to tell them in person.
Grady pushed the button for the elevator. “The truth.”
“Maybe I should start first.” I rested my back against the wall. My feet felt like dead weights, and I couldn’t catch my breath. “It is sort of the beginning of Camille’s story. It might be better than you coming out with ‘I’m a witch.’”
“What line are you?”
Feeling a surge of pride, I broadened my shoulders. “Gabriel’s, I’m a messe
nger. As you said, a herald.”
“That you are, Jude.” He slapped a hand on my back. “I will use your council in this matter.”
When Grady rapped on the door, Tyler answered. His eyes narrowed as they landed on me. “What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be with Dr. Antos and Camille in Italy.” He looked to his dad. “Dad, why is he with you? Where’s Camille?”
“Tyler.” Janine appeared behind Tyler, and her eyes bore into mine. “Jude?”
“Can we come in?” Grady took a step forward even though Tyler hadn’t budged from his position in the doorway.
“Grady, Jude, where’s Camille?” Janine’s voice rose an octave as her eyes cut between the two of us.
“We’ll tell you everything inside.” Grady motioned into the space.
I checked the hall behind us and followed Grady into the small room.
“Where’s Camille?” Janine demanded as I propped against the desk.
I looked to Grady, whose eyes were trained on the floor. I would have used my mood control, but didn’t want to waste my energy on little things. “Let’s sit down.” I motioned to the small table and chairs beside the window.
“No.” Janine squared her shoulders.
I drew in a deep breath. “First,” I started, “we believe Camille will not be harmed.”
“What?” Janine turned to Grady.
“Hear him out,” Grady motioned to me.
“Just tell us where she is,” Tyler interjected.
“She’s still in Sardinia.”
“With Dr. Antos?” Janine’s eyes bore into mine.
“Yes, with Dr. Antos.” Pulling the chair from under the desk, I lowered myself to the seat. “This is going to be hard, but I need to start at the beginning.” I told them how I’d had reoccurring hallucinations every couple of years. Looking back, they seemed to form a pattern. Every two to three years, always as my birthday neared, they’d become more intense until they broke into my daily life. Each time, my dad would clear his schedule for a week and we’d move. He’d tell me maybe the change in surroundings would help, and it always seemed to, until the last episode the prior summer.
“That’s why I sought out M…”—I almost said Miguel—“Dr. Antos, and came to the camp here in Iceland.”
“Where you met Camille,” Grady supplied.
“Yes, where I met Camille.” Reviewing how we’d bonded over our similar issues, I told them how I’d rolled the heater towards George with my mind. Glancing between them, I tried to gauge their reactions.
“You mean like with magic?” Tyler asked.
“Yes, I realized I could do things with my mind that others couldn’t.”
“Like the characters in Camille’s visions? You believe you can do magic? What does this have to do with Camille?” Janine threw up her hands.
I held my palm out. “I know this is hard. Camille and I can do magic. Dr. Antos held those camps to find kids with our abilities.”
“This is crazy.” Tyler bolted out of his chair.
Figuring there wasn’t any other way, I twirled a finger in the air calling to the wind to levitate the pillow from the bed. The pillow rose and hovered in front of Tyler, rotating slowly.
Tyler ran his arm under and over the floating sham.
Janine turned to face Grady. “Why are you with Jude?”
“Miguel’s, or Dr. Antos’s, coven—”
“A coven?” Tyler’s voice broke mid-word. “That term rolled off your lips like you’d known it all your life.”
Wiping his face, Grady looked at his son. “I am an archeologist and a witch.”
“You’re a witch?” Janine’s words came out barely a whisper.
“Yes.” He pointed to the other sham, and it joined the first, hovering a few feet off the floor.
I let mine drop. “Grady was abducted by Dr. Antos’s coven so he wouldn’t be able to rescue Camille. My dad is still held by the coven.”
“In Sardinia?” Janine backed to the bed and sat on the edge. “And they have Camille, that’s what you’re telling me. You got out, but she didn’t.” Her head bobbed up and down, and I worried that she might go into shock.
I knelt in front of her. “Camille is a strong witch. She is special, and they won’t harm her.” I left out that they probably needed her alive. I didn’t want the idea that her life might be in danger sitting in Janine’s mind. It was a heavy enough burden for me, and I wouldn’t impose it on Camille’s mom.
“All these years”—Janine’s eyes traced to Grady—“you kept this from me. That our children could be witches?”
Grady’s eyes dropped to his lap. “That’s why I travel. Witches are cursed. We’re not allowed to live in one place for more than two years. I didn’t want that for Camille and Tyler. If they didn’t join a coven by their eighteenth birthdays, they could live a normal life.”
Putting her hand to her chest, she sucked in a deep breath. “All these years, Camille’s hallucinations, the moves?”
Tyler’s knee bounced and he shot out of the chair, finger aimed at Grady. “What is this? Some extortion plot? Where is Camille?”
Grady’s eyes cut between his son and Janine and then to me.
I pushed off the desk to a standing position. “Camille is in Sardinia, in the compound we went to under the guise of getting extra help with our schizophrenia. Camille went there willingly, knowing she was a witch. She is special because she was born on the summer solstice. She is known as a child of light because she, along with her friends Alena and Hunter, will bring freedom to enslaved beings. She believed they held Grady, and she was right.” I motioned to him. “It’s my fault she is still there. I left her to go free Grady. When I came back, she was gone.” I hung my head to my chest.
Grady held his palms out toward Janine and Tyler. “Our best hope for getting her back is finding Alena and Hunter. They will have the resources to rescue her. We came here to make sure you were safe. It is likely that Michael’s coven will try to take one of you as leverage against Camille.”
Tyler ran his fingers through his hair. “This is seriously freaky. My birthday is the same as Camille’s. Am I like her?”
“You may be a witch and a herald like Jude.” Grady explained my role as herald.
Tyler shook his head at me. “So, you seriously failed Camille then?”
I sat down in the desk chair, drawing in labored breaths. “Yes.” I dropped my head to my hands.
Looking up after some seconds of silence, I noticed Janine’s head continued to move in slow bobs. She jerked it up to face Grady. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she yelled. “I slammed a horse tranquilizer into our daughter’s thigh.” Janine covered her mouth with her hand and ran to the bathroom.
Tyler’s gaze landed on me. “What’s wrong with you?”
Turning over my arm, I explained about the brand. The toilet flushed and Janine returned. “My dad hid that he was a witch from me too,” I told them.
“I’m eighteen already. Does that mean I missed my window?” Tyler walked to the window and back.
“I don’t know.” Grady shook his head.
“Don’t even think about it.” Janine pointed her index finger at Tyler. She turned to face Grady. “So, we find Alena and Hunter and get our daughter back, right?”
“Yes.” Grady nodded, and his shoulders relaxed for the first time since we entered the room.
Tyler spun around. “Wait? So, if Camille’s visions were real, does that mean vampires exist?”
“Yes,” I confirmed.
Tyler’s hands went to each side of his head. “I can’t believe this. Someone wake me up from this crazy dream.”
“Okay, so we’re going to Los Angeles to find Alena and Hunter.” Janine crossed to her suitcase and started tossing things in it.
Grady rung his hands. “It’s not that easy. We need Jude’s mark off first. We’ll go back to Italy, have the brand removed, and then go to LA.”
“Can you go to Italy and we go to LA?”
Janine flung clothes into her bag.
“You wouldn’t be safe. I came here to get you, to take you with us, so you and Tyler would be safe. No matter what you think, especially after all this.” Grady waved his hand around the room. “I love you. I always have. And I love Camille and Tyler.” Tears formed in Grady’s eyes.
There was a good minute of silence, and I looked between Janine, Tyler, and Grady, wishing I hadn’t had to be part of their intimate moment.
Tyler stood. “When do I start training?” He picked a backpack off the floor and started stuffing clothes in it.
“In Rome.” Grady pulled two more passports from his bag. “Here, I already have flights reserved for this evening.”
“You assumed we’d go with you? I have a life, a vet practice.” Janine stopped packing and put her hand to her hip.
He got up and crossed to her, helping her fit shoes into the suitcase. “It won’t help Camille if something happens to you.”
Tyler heaved his backpack onto his shoulders. “You don’t have to tell me twice. Let’s get this show on the road.”
The weight of the mark and lack of food had me wiped out. Not that I would have admitted that weakness to anyone. I ordered a huge plate of sushi at the airport, which stabilized my energy level. Feeling vulnerable had me on edge. It’d never been a comfortable feeling. The more unstable things were at home, the more time I spent in the gym buffing up, or in the library making sure I was faster, stronger, smarter than the next guy. Before the Iceland camp, I’d been a dude wearing a huge ego, a tough-guy persona, harboring an equally large fear of never being enough. The perfect psyche of an addict, I probably would have followed in my mom’s footsteps if not for Dr. Antos’s intervention. At least I had Miguel to thank for that. The camp offered me a chance to shed the chip on my shoulder long enough to bond with someone. Not that I didn’t have friends. I did, lots of them, but none I would have let my guard down with. My grandparents were great, but the whole absent-mother-and-father thing had played a number on me.
Grady sat down beside me as we waited at the gate. “How are you holding up?”
The Kingdom Journals Complete Series Box Set Page 52