We didn’t have time to get mad about our little mishap. In front of us were large bushes, taller than Juda, looking well-trimmed and shaped similarly to vases you would put tall flowers in. It was almost like they were hiding something from the rest of the forest.
Nova moved forward first, digging her hands in between two of the bushes, pushing them apart so she could see past them. She turned to look at us; her lime green eyes sparkled with the small crack of sunlight piercing its way through the treetops.
“There’s a cottage on the other side,” she said, looking at me, hoping I would know if anyone lived out this far from the villages. If there was someone who chose not to live within the villages, no one stopped them, but they were required to give an estimated area of where they would be so if something like a murderer was on the loose, they would be easy to find and warn. It wasn’t exactly my job to know these things, but I did tend to snoop into matters that I shouldn’t be getting my nose into.
“As far as I know, no one lives on the west side,” I answered. “Like I said before, this is hunting ground.”
“Don’t you think it’s strange a random cottage is out here hidden behind perfectly trimmed bushes and they never told the council about it?” Juda asked, looking up at the bushes almost like she was intimidated by their height. It wasn’t like she wasn’t tall herself.
“We don’t know for sure they didn’t notify the council,” I said. “Just because I didn’t see any documentation during my snooping doesn’t mean they didn’t go through the proper channels. However, the fact they’re trying to hide makes me suspicious.”
Kota took a step closer to the bushes; a noticeable chill ran through her body. We all saw the way her knees shook. She put her hands on the dark green leaves covering each of the bushes, and then she flew backwards. Thankfully, Deja and Juda were there to stop her from falling all the way to the ground.
“What was that?” I asked, concern covering my face as we all checked to make sure Kota was okay.
“There’s a cloaking spell,” she said as she stood up straight. “I don’t understand why we can see the bushes or the cottage. There’s also a barrier spell. That was what sent me flying backwards.”
“What does this mean?” Deja asked.
“It means I’m positive whoever lives here is not a vampire,” Kota said confidently, looking towards the bushes again, trying to get another read on them. They circled the entire cottage almost like a fence. “He’s a sorcerer.”
“A sorcerer living in vampire territory?” I smirked. “Why would they want to be away from their own kind?”
“Luna, think about it…” Juda stopped me before I could say anything else. “They’re away from their own kind, which means he doesn’t want his energy traced. Vampires wouldn’t be looking for him. None of the other territories would be looking for him actually. He’s also in the middle of the forest, where anyone rarely goes except for hunting, but what are the odds they’d actually come out this far?”
Nova pieced it together quicker than I could. “Are you saying this is where the assassin has been hiding all this time?”
Juda frowned. “I obviously can’t say that for sure. I have no proof, but it makes sense, doesn’t it?”
“That still doesn’t explain why we can see past the cloaking spell,” Deja pointed out.
“You’re right,” Kota agreed. “I have no idea why it’s not cloaking the cottage from us.”
“You’re sure it’s a cloaking spell?” I asked, not because I doubted her but because I wasn’t able to confirm it myself.
“I’m positive,” she said confidently. “This is definitely a cloaking spell; one I’ve seen several times before. It’s the barrier spell that concerns me.”
“Can you take it down?” Nova asked.
“I’m not sure,” Kota shook her head. “But I guess we’re going to find out.”
Chapter Seven
Kota walked up to the bushes and placed both of her hands against them. We watched as her expressions changed; most of them appeared to represent doubt. I questioned whether we were doing the right thing, but if we brought the alphas into this, they would force us back to the castle and then return on their own to investigate. I was not going to let them have this. We’d searched the west end and found the cottage. We would be the ones to search it, and then we would tell the alphas about it. I had no idea if this cottage belonged to the sorcerer we’d been looking for all these years, but my gut told me there was something here that would help us, if not give us answers.
“What are the odds she’ll actually be able to bring the barrier down?” Juda asked, watching Kota with concern. We all watched from a few feet away, trying to stay out of the her way while she worked. I had my doubts as well, because Kota was not as experienced. She was probably just as strong as her father, but he had control and she didn’t. If they had been training her on her spells the way they had been training us to fight, she would probably be able to bring the barrier down without breaking a sweat.
“She can do it,” Deja answered. “She just needs some time.”
“We don’t have all day,” Nova reminded us. “Eventually, whoever lives here is going to come home. And even if that doesn’t happen, the alphas will find us sooner or later.”
“Let’s hope it’s later,” I muttered as I focused on Kota. She was struggling, but her energy was still strong, which was a good sign. She was mumbling something under her breath over and over, but I wasn’t able to make out the words. I wouldn’t be able to understand it anyways. It all sounded foreign. Only the sorcerers seemed to think it was normal.
“What are we going to do if she can’t bring it down?” Nova asked. Kota’s face was looking more strained than it had just a moment ago.
“We can’t think like that,” I said.
“We have to,” Deja agreed. “We need to be prepared to move if the owner of this cottage comes back. We can’t portal, because Kota hasn’t mastered that yet, and she’s going to be too tired after all the energy she’s wasting right now.”
“How do we even know if whoever lives here isn’t watching us right now?” Juda wondered as we argued amongst each other. “It’s not like we were able to check.”
“Are you suggesting we’re walking into a trap?” Nova asked her.
Juda rolled her eyes. “No, I’m just saying if we’re coming up with plans we might want to come up with one for that while we’re at it.”
“Will you guys cut the shit?” Kota yelled. “I can’t concentrate with you bickering like this.”
“Wouldn’t you know by now if you’re able to bring it down?” Juda asked her, assuming it was okay to address her since she’d spoken to us first.
“It’s weakening,” she grunted. “I just need a little more time … and maybe borrow some of your energies.”
“What?” Nova squeaked.
“The alphas have done that,” Deja remembered. “They drop their hands on Uncle Alex’s shoulder and share their energy. Will it work the same way, Kota?”
“It should,” she struggled. “It will weaken you but not a lot. You’ll be able to regain your strength much faster than I will.”
I walked over to Kota and dropped my hand on her shoulder. The footsteps coming towards us followed my example, all of us waiting for whatever happened next. There was an unnatural heat coming off of Kota, and even though I thought it was because of the spell, something didn’t seem right. I’d never felt this kind of heat whenever Uncle Alex did a strong spell. When I ducked my head down to get a better look at Kota’s face, I noticed blood dripping down her chin, coming from both nostrils.
“Is this safe for you to do, Kota?” I asked; my own anxiety increased just at the sight of her.
“I’ll be fine,” she assured me. “I just need some help.”
“Do it,” I told her, giving her the okay to take whatever she needed from us. I hoped this cottage had something useful inside; otherwise all of this would be for nothing.
But now was not the time to think like that. Why do I have to be this way when something gets hard? Another thing to add to the list of things I needed to improve on.
My chest tightened up, revealing a sensation that I had never felt before. Even though my body felt like it was caving in on itself, I was still able to breathe normally. It wasn’t comfortable but I was able to stay calm. Kota started mumbling again, heat slowly working its way into my chest, adding to the tightness that I had just gotten used to. I noticed Kota’s legs shaking and wondered how much longer she could do this. Uncle Alex would’ve had this barrier down by now.
It seemed odd to me that we could see through the cloaking spell, but we weren’t able to walk through the barrier spell. All things that only a sorcerer would understand. It would all go right over my head if someone tried to explain it to me.
I looked straight through the barrier only to see it flash a few times as if someone were shaking it. Whatever Kota was doing seemed to be working. She was lower to the ground than she was the last time I looked at her. Her knees were going to buckle at any minute, but if I moved, would it ruin her concentration when she was so close to succeeding? I had no idea what I was supposed to be doing.
I buckled over right after Kota’s knees hit the ground. She screamed so loudly I swear the trees shook. It felt like someone had punched me so hard that their fist went all the way back to my spine. That was the most uncomfortable part about this whole thing.
I looked over at Kota, who was visibly sweating and huffing hard. Nova, Deja, and Juda were all buckled over just like I was, all of us looking and feeling weak. I reached my hand forward to where I’d seen the barrier flash and realized it was no longer there. Kota did it. I wasn’t sure if we were in the best shape to be searching the cottage, but after all that effort we weren’t going to turn back now.
“Are you okay?” Deja asked as she wrapped her hand around Kota’s arm, pulling her back up to her feet.
“I’ll be fine,” she answered softly. “I just need a long nap.”
“Can that nap wait until later?” Nova said as she pushed past the bushes, exposing herself to whatever was on the other side. Juda had a good point about the owner of the cottage being on the other side watching us attempt to bring down the barrier. If, by some miracle, they didn’t know we were there, they definitely did now.
“Nova!” Juda shrieked. “We should talk about this first.”
“Talk about what?” She turned around to face us. “Let’s go search the cottage and then go home. Kota’s exhausted and the rest of us are weak. Quit wasting time.”
I rushed after her without thinking, regretting it the second I reached her side, feeling vulnerable as we walked towards the cottage, like I was a wild animal carrying a sign that said ‘eat me’ on it. This must be what the animals felt like when we hunt. I didn’t do it very often, but I suddenly had a new point of view.
There was more space on the other side of the bush fence than I originally thought. Deja came up behind me, startling me just when I thought my fear was at max capacity. I jumped simultaneously with a small squeak leaving my mouth. I turned to face her, glaring at her angrily. She smiled back. If I wasn’t so focused on the cottage and not getting caught, I would’ve broken her nose.
The closer we came to the cottage, the farther apart we moved, trying to cover more ground. We stood in front of the rustic structure, and then circled the area, looking for something out of the ordinary. It appeared to be normal. The grass was dark green, stone tiles leading up to three steps. The porch had a two-seater bench off to the left side with a window just as wide right above it. To the right side was the door, painted dark blue. There were a pair of boots sitting off to the left side of the entrance that caught my interest, but I continued to hesitate each time I attempted to take a step towards the cottage. I was startled by the girls reappearing from the other side, returning with nothing interesting to report.
“I don’t know if anyone is here,” Juda said as she reached my side. “I looked through some of the windows in the back and I didn’t see any movement.”
I glanced over at Kota, who was eyeing the cottage. She shook her head as she broke her concentration, turning towards us as if we didn’t see the trance she was in.
“What is it?” Deja asked.
“I’m positive this is the same energy I felt in the barn,” she told us, looking back towards the cottage as if to convince herself one more time that she had experienced this sensation before.
“You’re sure?” I asked. I didn’t want her to think I doubted her, but it seemed odd that she’d encountered the same energy in two different places within a short timeframe.
“I’m sure…”
Juda rolled her eyes. “That wasn’t convincing.”
“I have a bad feeling,” Kota responded. “Something about this energy is off. Just like in the barn, there’s something missing, preventing me from figuring out why it doesn’t feel right, but I don’t think it’s a good idea that we search the cottage alone. I wish I had details that could help me explain, but the only thing I have is a gut feeling.”
“We’re not calling for back p,” I sighed. “If we do that, then not only are we going to get a lecture about leaving the castle, but they’ll also take credit for whatever they find in the cottage. I refuse to let that happen.”
“All I’m saying is I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Kota repeated.
“After all the work and energy you’ve put into this already, are you seriously going to back out now?” Juda asked, her face scrunched as she shared her annoyance with the group.
“If we get in trouble, I’m blaming you guys,” she said, pointing towards the four of us. “I warned you and you’re ignoring me.”
“We get it.” Nova shook her head as she turned to face the cottage. She turned her head back and said, “Should we knock?”
“We’re being polite towards a murderer now?” Juda asked, appalled that Nova had even asked. Her sass had increased ever since Kota had brought the barrier down. We all had our moments, but Juda seemed angry, and nothing had happened yet that would justify her change in attitude.
“We don’t know whoever lives here is a murderer,” Deja reminded us. “Just because we suspect doesn’t mean we’re right.”
“I’m pretty sure it’s him,” Kota countered.
Deja spoke through her teeth as her cheeks turned pink: “Until we have proof, we need to assume that whoever is on the other side of that door is just a normal vampire living in isolation.”
“We need to work on your definition of normal,” Juda said as she pushed past us towards the porch. “What kind of a normal vampire has a magic barrier and cloaking spell surrounding their cottage?”
She slowed her pace as soon as her foot reached the wooden step, taking each step slower than the last as if she was convincing herself to turn around. I was the next one to reach the porch, frustrated by Juda’s hesitation. We stood next to each other as the girls followed us, my attention back on the boots sitting next to the door. A thick red liquid was smashed between the porch and the shoes. I wanted to pick them up, but my gut told me to leave them where they were. Instead, I took my finger and dabbed at the blob, bringing it up to my noise to confirm my suspicions.
“Blood,” I muttered before showing Juda my finger. “It’s not animal either.”
“Are you able to determine which races it is?” Nova asked as she stood on the step just before the porch. I bent down and picked up a little more on my finger, hoping it would be able to tell me something useful. I wasn’t getting anything concrete, but there was more than just vampire here. I was one hundred percent sure of it.
“I can’t be completely sure,” I lied to my sisters. “It’s definitely not just one race, but I can’t determine if it’s all five.”
There was definitely vampire and shifter, but I couldn’t determine if it was sorcerer or fairy blood with it. It could be both but there was no way to
know for sure. Putting all of that aside, it meant someone was either dead or severely injured.
“So, do we knock?” Nova asked again. Juda and I turned to face her, glaring at her for bringing it up again. Juda reached towards the knob. She turned it slowly and then walked through the door as if she lived here. Her hesitation was gone, curiosity taking its place.
It was surprisingly organized inside, although I didn’t really have any expectations of what it would be like inside. I guess I wasn’t expecting it to be so clean. Juda walked straight while I veered off to the right down a hallway. There was nothing on the walls except for cream colored paint. I came up to an entrance with no door, leading to a kitchen with windows that looked out at the opposite side of the cottage. The bush fence caught my eye as if I was expecting something else to be there.
It was actually rather cozy in here even though I was convinced the cottage belonged to a murderer. After growing up in the castle with maids and butlers around everywhere, it seemed like it might be rather nice to be in a spot where it was just you. Sure, I would be fending for myself if I lived in a place like this, but maybe that wouldn’t be so bad. This place made me think of Ivy and her farm, trying to picture her childhood home and wondering if it was as cozy as this cottage.
I could hear the footsteps of my sisters as if they were right next to me; it was much louder in here than I was used to. I’d never considered myself to have sensitive hearing, but it sure seemed like it now.
I should’ve been looking around for anything that might explain the blood on the boots outside, or even the magic spells that tried to prevent us from finding this place, but I was too lost in what life might’ve been like had I grown up in a cottage like this instead of the castle. Declan grew up in a cottage and he seemed happy. Well, maybe not completely happy. His family had issues just like everyone else, but he didn’t seem unsatisfied with how he grew up or where. His cottage was bigger than this one and was more luxurious, but it still wasn’t close to the kind of luxury of the castle. Sometimes I felt ashamed when I thought about all the things I grew up with compared to others in the territory. My parents made sure my brothers and I knew that we should be grateful for the life we had but standing here in the middle of the cottage did more to my perspective than my parents’ words ever did.
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