Bianca De Lumière : High Suspense Urban Fantasy Romance (The Re'em Prophecy Book 1)

by Lisette Prendé

  Sheena stared up at her mother, wide-eyed.

  Sunder sighed. “Marjory, Sheena is dead. As are your husband and Stella.”

  She stared at Sunder like he was a moron. “Don’t be stupid. They’re standing right there!” She turned to look at them. “Stella honey? You okay?”

  Stella didn’t respond.

  “Stella?”

  Sheena leaped up from the ground with a piercing shriek and pounced on her mother. Marjory wailed as Sheena bit into her pudgy neck. The rifle fell from her hand, landing with a thunk and sending off a shot.

  Sunder fell to the ground.

  “Sunder!” I called, running to his side. He clutched his abdomen with both hands, blood seeping between his fingers.

  “It’s fine, Bianca. Behind you!”

  I turned. Broken from their trance, Stella and her father approached me. They were ready to fight like their maker—who was still injecting venom into her mother.

  I tried to focus my mind but it was only on Sunder and his wound. Taking a breath, I dug into their minds. But there were two. Two separate auras to penetrate. Unlike the beasts I’d encountered in the forest, these were Pre-Skads; still semi human. Their minds still whirling with aura, flurrying with color and emotion as they tried to fight the impending nothingness. I couldn’t focus. They moved closer towards me.

  A ball of fire flew through the air, sailing between me and the Pre-Skads. It fell to the grass, and large flames separated them from me. They backed away from the fire. Another fireball flew through the air, hitting Sheena in the back. She shrieked and wailed, releasing her mother’s neck from her jaws.

  Marjory slid to the ground and lay motionless, her eyes wide.

  I looked towards the house and saw Fae with another ball of fire between her hands. She took aim and threw, hitting Sheena’s father in the face. He hissed and screamed, slapping at his burning face. The Pre-Skads slowly retreated. Sheena hissed as she wrapped her claw-like fingers around her mother’s arms and began to drag her limp body towards the forest.

  I ran to Sunder’s side. “Sunder where are you hit? Show me!”

  “I told you it’s fine! Where are they?”

  “IT’S NOT FINE!” I yelled. Tears welled in my eyes. “You were hit. Right in the gut. You’re bleeding!” I ripped open his shirt. Dark red blood flowed like a torrent from a large gaping wound. “Oh my god! This is bad!” Tears rolled down my cheeks. “We need to get you to a doctor.”

  “Bianca! Where are they?!”

  “I don’t know.” I looked across the smoking grass. Three figures ran into the trees at the edge of the pasture. The third was dragging a fourth.

  “They got away.”

  “Into the forest?”

  I nodded. “Into the forest.”

  Sunder cursed under his breath.

  “Sunder! You’re hurt. Don’t worry about them right now. We need to call an ambulance!” I sobbed.

  He ignored me and went on muttering. “Now they have access to the whole town via the forest! They can go anywhere! Infect anyone!” His hands were in tight fists. “I’ve failed.”

  “Sunder! You got shot. You didn’t fail. Sunder, please…I can’t lose you!” I sobbed. “I love you!” The words came out of my mouth so quickly. I hadn’t processed what I’d said until I saw Sunder’s expression.

  He looked up at me, his aura flickering in a mixture of flattery and surprise. He reached up and placed a hand on my face, wiping the tears from my cheeks. “Bianca, please don’t cry.” He smiled. “I told you. I’m fine.”

  “YOU CAN’T BE FINE! You’re bleeding! So much!”

  He placed his hands on top of mine. “Bianca, you do remember centaurs are immortal?”

  I hadn’t. At all. I looked down at my hands pressed against his bare, bleeding stomach and my face flushed with embarrassment.

  He chuckled at my reaction. “As soon as the bullet is removed, the bleeding will stop and the wound will heal.”

  A lump of humiliation had formed in my throat. “Oh,” I said, lifting my hands from his torso. “I thought that was only that Chiron guy,” I replied, remembering Mr. Warren’s enthusiastic speech in classics class.

  “Yes. He and all his descendants. Myself included.”

  “I thought you were dying,” I said numbly.

  “Not today.” He chuckled again, making me feel even more foolish. I’d told him how much he meant to me and all he did was laugh. “You could help me get the bullet out though,” he said, sitting up.

  I stood up and narrowed my eyes at him. “Do it yourself.” I stomped away.

  “Bianca, wait,” he called. “Come back. Let’s talk about this!”

  I ignored him and kept walking, knowing full well he couldn’t come after me, as he was busy digging around in his own insides for a bullet. Let him dig.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  The grass was blackened where Fae’s fireballs had landed. A light haze of smoke hung in the air. I found Fae leaning against the side of the small wooden shed.

  “Fae? Are you okay?”

  She looked at me, tears rolling down her face.

  “Fae, what is it?”

  “I’m so sorry, Bee. It’s all my fault,” she sobbed. “Mrs. Slater waited until my back was turned then ran out the backdoor. She locked me in!”

  “Oh Fae, it’s—”

  “And now Sunder’s hurt and they got away!” She buried her face in her hands.

  I crouched down and sat next to her. “Fae, that wasn’t your fault at all. To be honest, you saved my life.”

  “I did?”

  I nodded. “I couldn’t focus on both of them at once. You intervened at just the right moment.”

  “Thank god you’re okay, Bee.” She smiled.

  “And don’t worry about Sunder,” I added, my jaw tight. “He’ll be just fine.”

  Fae stumbled and pitched forward. I caught her in my arms. “Fae?” Her face looked pale and she didn’t respond. “Sunder! Help!”

  Sunder appeared around the corner of the shed in a second. His tattered shirt was bloodied but the bullet wound was now a faded red mark. His eyes were wide with concern. He looked at Fae and then nodded in understanding. “Bring her inside.”

  “What’s happening to her?” I yelled, as he carried her into the house. “Has she been bitten? Please don’t tell me she’s turning!”

  He laid her on an old faded couch in the living room. “No,” he said. Relief rushed through me like a wave. “She’s in auric shock,” Sunder said, as he moved into the kitchen.

  “She’s what?”

  “She’s used too much of her glow at once,” he said, opening the fridge and pulling out a bottle of SunnyD. “It probably didn’t help that she hadn’t used it in so long.” He pulled a mug from a shelf and filled it with juice, then opened the pantry door, rifling through the contents. “It’s like running a marathon without training for it.”

  I nodded in understanding. I couldn’t imagine even attempting one without at least six months of dedicated training.

  “Is she going to be okay? What are you making?”

  “Aha!” He pulled a bag of white sugar from the top shelf of the pantry. “In the realm, there is a fruit known as the golden apple. It is unlike any apple in the human world. It’s incredibly sweet and very bitter, and it is used to relieve creatures of the realm from illness and fatigue.”

  “But this…” I pointed to the sweet juice concoction. “This is just SunnyD and sugar. I don’t even think there’s any fruit in it.”

  He smiled. “Indeed. But we are trying to trick her body into thinking it’s receiving the elixir of the golden apple. Just enough to keep her functioning until we can get her to Cendrine.”

  “Will it work?”

  Sunder shrugged. “It has before. If nothing else, th
e sugar will revive her.”

  He held the cup up to Fae’s mouth while I lifted her head.

  “Fae,” I said softly. “You need to drink.”

  She didn’t respond, but her mouth opened. Her lips pressed against the rim of the cup and she gulped the liquid down. As she did, color flooded back into her cheeks. She stopped and stared into space for a moment. Her eyes focused, then blinked. She looked around the room and then at me. “Bee?” she said, a puzzled expression on her face. “What happened?”

  “You used too much of your light.”

  “Perhaps if you had been training regularly…” Sunder shook his head. “As soon as you are feeling up to it, Fae, we need to move. We have much to do. We’ll need Hyssop to fortify the borders of the town to contain the Skadhavar. Preferably before dark.”

  Fae took another sip of the juice mixture and winced.

  I opened the front door just in time to see a car rolling up the long driveway. I pushed my aura out to them. The familiar twinge of two auras I’d already encountered today: Agents Jeffries and Peters.

  “We’ve got company,” I called to Sunder, who was helping Fae out onto the porch.

  Sunder stopped and sighed. “We need to leave. If they find you here, Bianca, it will look very bad.”

  I nodded, thinking of the blood and smashed windows in Stella’s room. It wouldn’t look good at all. Especially considering they hadn’t seemed satisfied by my alibi for the night Sheena was killed.

  “Out the back door,” Sunder said. “Before they see us.”

  “But what about Terence?” I asked. “They’ll know I’ve been here.”

  “Yes. They will. But the last thing we need right now is for them to arrest and detain you.”

  Sunder carried Fae out the back door. “But Sunder!” I called, running after him. “Where are we going?”

  “Where do you think?” he replied. “We need to get back to Pentacle don’t we? The best way is through the forest.”

  We ran past the wooden shed and towards the line of trees where the forest began.

  “But that is miles! It will take us forever.”

  Sunder turned and smiled. “On these legs, yes.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  The wind hit my teeth as I whipped through the forest. Branches cracked and pine needles scattered in my wake.

  Sunder galloped behind me. He was fast. But I was faster. A nicker flew from my lips. I pressed my head forward and dug my hooves into the sloping ground. Sunder hadn’t seen anything yet. I could run faster than he ever imagined. I am a Re’em, I thought to myself. I’m a goddamn magical unicorn.

  The land started to taper and flatten. I bolted through the trees, gaining speed again. I felt like I was flying. Perhaps this was my true form after all.

  I threw a fleeting glance behind me. Sunder loped along behind, like a man riding a headless horse; his hands holding invisible reins. With each gallop, his muscles flexed. But his face looked stern, irritated. Was he annoyed I was faster than him? Was he put out that a girl was kicking his ass? The thought made me push forward even harder. I fought my way through the trees with more force. You call this fast? I’ll show you fast!

  I panted furiously, willing my legs into a faster rhythm. Purum, purum they drummed against the earth. There’s nothing wrong with a bit of playful competition.

  I shot another look behind me, smiling inwardly. Sunder was yelling something. What was it? I looked down at his body and then I remembered Fae. Her small hands were wrapped around Sunder’s neck. She was holding on for dear life. I was going too fast. A wave of guilt hit me. Fae was too weak to hold on and I was going too fast. I felt foolish.

  I slowed, allowing Sunder to catch up.

  When he neared me, he was still yelling. “Bianca!” he screamed. “Bianca! Don’t stop!”

  Confusion struck me. What is it?

  “Bianca,” Sunder yelled again, nearly reaching my side. “Skadhavar! Behind us!”

  I was puzzled. I couldn’t feel anything. There was no cold spot. No hollowness. No black hole of dead aura. The forest was as it should be.

  Sunder galloped past me with Fae holding on tightly. “Run, Bianca! Run!”

  Then I saw them. Two this time. Their black and festering forms bounded towards me. There was no doubt about it. They were Skadhavar. But they didn’t feel like Skadhavar. And why hadn’t we heard them coming?

  I didn’t wait around to figure it out. I ran after Sunder, riding just behind him. I needed to keep myself between the Skadhavar and them. I needed to keep Fae safe. She was in no shape to fight.

  Sunder had drawn his spear from its holster and was using it to hack away branches as he ran. I bolted through the forest behind him, hugging the path Sunder had cut for me.

  I felt a chill chasing my tail. I turned again and sure enough, the Skadhavar were on my heels, their vile mouths open, panting loudly. They were close. Very close. But I felt only a tiny tickling chill down my spine.

  I let out a wild neigh. Fae turned. Her eyes grew wide. She yelled something to Sunder, who took off, running faster.

  The hideous beasts behind me gurgled, choking on the venomous bile in their throats. I pushed harder and harder. If I slowed for a moment, they’d be upon me. Their claws in my flesh. I knew I could outrun them. I could run like this for as long as it took. But I needed to get them away from Sunder and Fae. I needed to do something.

  Sunder was at least ten feet in front of me, veering around a large tree. The Skadhavar were hot on my heels. I took a chance and darted left, leaving Sunder’s path. I held my breath, praying that both Skadhavar would follow me. I shot a glance behind me. Sure enough, the two dark, festering beasts still followed me. Thank god.

  My route sent me through a thick patch of trees. I fought through them, trying to keep pace. The creatures snarled behind me. Forcing my way through the thicket, I found myself on the edge of a small drop. I jumped, leaping through the air, landing with a thud. Pain ripped through my front leg as I crumpled to the ground. I screamed a violent neigh that echoed through the forest.

  The Skadhavar were approaching the small cliff edge. I willed them to stop but they jumped too. As I scrambled to my feet, a current of pain shot through my body. I tried to run, but my leg collapsed beneath me.

  The two beasts landed one after the other. One of them released a snorting chuckle. There was something different about these Skadhavar. Then I realized their horns were gone. Atop their heads was a gnarled stump where the horn used to be. No wonder I hadn’t heard them approaching, but why hadn’t I sensed them?

  “Re’em,” came a snarling voice. “Don’t you see you are no match for us?”

  I tried to get to my feet. Again the pain in my leg brought me to the ground.

  The Skadhavar’s throaty chuckles filled my ears. The smaller of the two responded in guttural grunts but the larger one spoke more clearly.

  “The master warned us of your power, but you are weak, Re’em. We could finish you right now if we pleased.”

  “What are you waiting for!” I spat.

  The larger Skadhavar approached me slowly. “Soon, Re’em,” it hissed. “Very soon she will drink you dry. Then we will turn everyone you love and this world will be ours.” The beast roared and a vision was forced into my mind. My mom, Fae, Cendrine and Sunder. All pale and lifeless, black venom oozing from their mouths.

  I released a wild scream. “Never!” I leaped to my feet. Pain ripped through my front leg as I aimed a hind kick at the beast. It caught the Skadhavar in the throat, penetrating its rotting flesh. The Skadhavar let out a bubbling hiss, swiping at me with gnarled claws that cut through my flesh like a burning hot blade.

  A whinny erupted from my lips as my vision turned white. My forehead tingled as I forced my aura outwards. My ears filled with a resonating hum. Both Skadhavar wailed in pain a
nd fell to the forest floor. Again my vision blanched and the eruption repeated itself over and over until the creatures were left twitching, motionless on the ground. With a painful limp, I approached the larger one and stared down into its black eyes.

  “Go well into the light,” I said, dipping my head. I plunged my horn into the creature’s chest, piercing what was left of its rotten heart. The Skadhavar writhed in pain. It began to shrivel in front of my eyes, black, bubbling bile emanating from its eyes and mouth. Soon it was a pile of pulsating slime, shiny and slick. Almost beautiful. The mass began to shape itself into a form, the black fading into flesh. A naked young man with pointed ears lay on the forest floor in front of me, a deep wound in his heart, the last traces of darkness leaving his face. He stared up at me, his eyes no longer black, but violet.

  “Thank you,” he whispered before he closed his eyes and relaxed into the ground. His body shimmered, then slowly turned to dust.

  I released the other Skadhavar in the same way. A middle-aged woman appeared out of the slime, also grateful to be free. She smiled at me and reached out a shaking hand to stroke my nose before relenting into a peaceful death.

  I sat in a slump on the forest floor. I was in pain; physically and emotionally. How many beings from how many worlds were trapped as Skadhavar? I had to free them. All of them.

  Tears rolled down my face. I wiped them away with a hand, realizing I was human again. I looked down at my arm. It was swollen and red. I tried to move my fingers and a bolt of pain shot up to my shoulder. Broken.

  I got to my feet and gasped at the pain in my thigh. I looked down. A trail of silver tricked from my leg. I dabbed at it. Sure enough, it was flowing from my skin. My heart hammered in my chest. Was it venom? Had I been bitten? I needed to get home. Quick. But I couldn’t shift; my broken arm wouldn’t let me run as a unicorn. This would be a slow, naked, and very human walk home.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  It was getting dark by the time I made it out of the forest into my backyard. I managed to open the door to my bedroom and collapse into bed, pulling the blankets over my bare body. I closed my eyes and sleep took me. Thick and heavy.