“You know as well as I that witches—especially witches with powers like yours—are rare,” she said.
I nodded again, since this was common knowledge. Centuries after the original vampires had come into existence, they’d become such a plague upon humanity that the angels in Heaven had come down to Earth to give birth to a new race of creatures—the Nephilim. Or hunters, as our kind preferred to call them. The purpose of the Nephilim had been to protect humanity by ridding the world of vampires. They’d killed Laila’s sister—one of the seven original vampires—and the six remaining originals had fled to the different continents. With the help of a few witches, they’d gone into hiding, to the locations that had later become the six vampire kingdoms. Vampires either joined the kingdoms, or were killed by hunters. Rogue vampires rarely lasted long in the wild before being hunted down and killed.
Then, a few decades ago, the most powerful witch in the world had been born—Geneva. It was rumored that there was no spell she couldn’t do—that she could grant any wish desired. As what usually happens to those with great power, she was revered, but also feared. When the Nephilim had gotten word of her powers, they’d changed their mission from not just hunting vampires, but to hunting witches as well.
The majority of the witch population had been slain in the years that followed.
It had looked like the Nephilim were going to win. But the six vampire kingdoms and the witches had banded together, even bringing the wolves to their side. In the Great War that had followed, the three supernatural races managed to work together and rid the world of the Nephilim forever.
But like most wars, there had been many casualties. That was why not many witches remained today.
It was why I was so valuable to the Vale.
“You will need to find a suitable witch to replace you,” Laila said.
“Do you have anyone in mind?” I asked. “I’m sure if I approached them, they would be thrilled to have the job.”
“I do.” Laila twirled a strand of hair around her finger, her eyes slanted with mischief. “As I’m sure you know, the wolves have been becoming… less and less cooperative as of late. Just last week, one of them broke through the boundary and had that old lady for lunch.”
“That wolf was killed for her actions,” I reminded Laila. “The treaty has existed for centuries. The wolves know their place.”
“They did,” Laila said. “But they’ve been getting restless. This land was originally theirs, and now that we’ve turned it into a thriving kingdom, they’re jealous. They want it back. I suspect it won’t be long until the problem escalates into something we won’t be able to hide from the public any longer.”
“And you need a witch to keep them in control,” I said, since wolves tended to respect witches more than vampires. Likely because both witches and wolves were natural creatures, whereas vampires were created by a spell.
“Not just any witch,” Laila said. “I want Geneva.”
“Geneva?” I repeated, my eyes wide. “But that… that’s impossible.”
“It’s not impossible,” Laila said. “Just highly difficult. And I would hope that you—as someone who claims to be worthy of being betrothed to Jacen—is up to the task.”
I watched her, dumbfounded, waiting for her to say that this was some kind of joke.
She just stared at me, waiting.
I couldn’t believe this.
Because Geneva had survived the Great War—her powers had been hugely helpful in winning. But after a few years, she’d grown restless. She’d wanted to do more with her powers. And she’d become convinced that she could perfect the immortality spell—the spell the original vampires had performed on themselves when they were witches. The spell that had gone wrong and made them dependent on the blood of humans for the rest of their immortal lives.
She was going to perform the spell on herself.
The witches wouldn’t hear of it. Geneva was powerful, yes, but what if the spell went wrong? What if it resulted in something worse than vampires? Or what if it made her more powerful than she already was?
It was far too risky.
And so, the witches had banded together. They’d used their powers to lock Geneva’s spirit inside a powerful stone. A sapphire ring. Then they’d hidden the ring in place that no human could find, and that couldn’t be accessed by any magical creature that existed on Earth. It was called the Crystal Cavern, and many other magical objects that posed too much of a threat to the lives of all creatures on Earth had been stowed there as well. Throughout the years, some darker witches had tried to lead humans there to fetch the objects, but all of the humans had ended up dead.
“The Crystal Cavern doesn’t allow supernaturals inside,” I reminded Laila. “And it kills the humans who enter.”
“There has to be a loophole,” Laila said, tapping her pen on her desk. “I was a witch once. If there’s one thing I know about spells, it’s that there’s always a loophole.”
“Perhaps if we found an exceptionally strong human,” I suggested. “They might be able to fight whatever’s guarding the objects inside the cavern and retrieve the ring.”
“That sounds like a good plan.” Laila nodded. “Although you will be the one in charge of finding the human—not me. I trust this is something you can handle?”
“Yes.” I swallowed, wishing I could feel as confident as I sounded.
“Excellent.” Laila smiled and placed her hands on her desk. “Now, be on your way. And the next time you come to me, I hope it’s to re-introduce me to my old friend Geneva.”
Jacen
I awoke as the last rays of the sun set below the horizon, opening my eyes to see someone standing next to my bed—Laila.
“Good evening,” she said, dangling a glass of blood in front of my face. Unlike the refrigerated blood I kept on my nightstand, this blood was warm—fresh.
I went to take it from her, but she held it out of my reach and backed away. She watched me, her eyes full of challenge, and she took a deep breath and smiled, as if enjoying the fragrance of the blood.
“Did you come in here to tease me?” The scent of the blood filled my nose, my mouth watering as my fangs pressed against my gums. I wanted nothing more than to yank that blood out of Laila’s hand and pour the blood down my throat.
But Laila was the queen, and it was up to her to decide when I would be free of the palace. She was testing me—I knew it.
I forced my breathing to become shallow so I wouldn’t have to inhale the intoxicating scent of the blood. Every bone in my body itched to run for the glass, but I pushed the urge down. I had to control myself. I have to prove myself.
“Well?” I asked once I’d regained control, making sure to look at Laila’s face and not at the tempting glass of liquid in her hand.
“I came in here to talk to you.” She stepped closer and handed me the glass.
I took it from her and finished it in a few gulps.
She watched me the entire time, her face a mask hiding whatever thoughts or emotions might be flying through her mind.
“How have you been feeling each evening upon waking?” she asked, perching on the side of my bed.
“Hungry,” I said, since it was the truth.
“But the hunger has been improving since you were first turned, has it not?”
“It hasn’t,” I said. “But my control over it has.”
“I see that.” She glanced approvingly at the now empty glass. “You wouldn’t have been able to resist that blood even a week ago.”
“I’ve been practicing.”
“Very good.” She smirked, and I had a feeling that whatever she wanted to talk to me about, I wasn’t going to like it. “Because I have a proposal for you—one that won’t just be good for you, but will benefit the entire kingdom.”
I stilled, getting the feeling that this might be trouble. “I’m listening,” I said.
“Good.” She laughed. “Because now that you’re gaining control over your bloodlust, there’s something important we need to discuss.”