9. Strange Allegiances—Evangeline
The city highways traded off for rolling snow-covered hills and quiet country houses. Lilly never slowed once, clearly heading to a specific location, one she didn’t divulge to me. When we turned into a driveway with an arched entranceway and a low stone wall a half hour later, I had chewed off every last one of my nails—even with a throbbing jaw. By the bronzed crosses on stone pillars comprising the entrance gates, I could see we were entering a cemetery. Suddenly, I was sitting stiffer, my eyes wider, my senses keener, thoughts of my pained jaw falling to the background.
“Why are we here?” I hazarded to ask.
A tiny, almost shy smile. “We have something in common, human. Let me show you.”
Something in common. In a cemetery. I inhaled and exhaled slowly. Repeat: In. Out. In. Out. I focused on the pretty trees, the blue sky. Anything to keep my imagination from sending me into a frenzy. As long as she had something to show me, she wouldn’t be killing me.
The sports car rebelled as Lilly forced it through the fresh snow, sliding this way and that and spinning its wheels as it struggled to climb a small slope. By the acres of rolling hills and mature trees, I could tell this was both an ancient and large cemetery. Full of thousands of bodies … possibly one more after today.
Lilly continued edging the car along in silence, winding along the narrow path, moving deeper and deeper into the land where the trees became larger and older, and crypts began cropping up like hay bales in a farmer’s field. Then, she stopped and got out. I watched as she circled the car and I briefly toyed with the idea of jumping into the driver’s side of the car and speeding off. No … there was no point. She stopped in front of my door and waved her hand forward, as if inviting me in from the cold.
Warily, I pushed open the door and climbed out. The air seemed chillier here than it had in the city. Perhaps it was the open fields and lack of buildings or anything else for miles. Nothing but the dead. I checked the area for witnesses, someone to call to. I almost expected to see Max tearing down the path, ready to save the day.
But there was no one. Not a soul, supernatural or otherwise. I was here at Lilly’s mercy. There was no point in trying to escape, I realized, remembering the gash she had given me the day before, in a room full of prepared vampires.
“This way,” she prompted, trudging toward a weathered stone crypt set back amongst a grove of oversized spruce trees.
Taking a deep breath and layering on a brave face, I followed Lilly up four steps to a steel door secured with heavy chains and a stately padlock. Lilly fished out an antique-looking key from a chain around her neck and inserted it. With a click, the chain unraveled and clanked to the ground. She pushed open the door and beckoned me in with a wave of her dainty hand.
It was dank and dark inside, exactly as expected. Four small windows around the top of the crypt allowed enough daylight in to display the odd-looking steely gray coffin sitting on a concrete block in the center of the little room.
“Cast iron,” Lilly explained, as if that meant something. “It’s heavy.” Taking hold of two sides of the lid, she braced her feet against the gritty floor and pushed. With a loud scraping sound, the lid slid. I held my breath, half of me wondering what was in there, the other half terrified of what might come out. With a casual movement, Lilly threw her legs over the edge and hopped into the coffin. She disappeared. “Coming?” her voice called out from somewhere below.
I turned back one last time—at the entrance to the crypt, at the car, its keys hanging in the ignition, ready to speed away. Curiosity took over for fear. Gingerly, I stepped closer and peered down to see an opening, leading into darkness far below. Grabbing hold of the sides of the coffin, I hoisted myself up, not nearly as easily as Lilly had. Swinging my legs in, I carefully took one step, and then another.
“I can’t see,” I said.
“Right … humans.” A moment later, a flashlight beam illuminated the narrow, dark staircase for me. Holding onto the sides tightly, I began the descent.
Lilly was waiting for me at the bottom. The stairs led to a tunnel, musty with moisture and cold, reeking of earth and age. I said nothing as we walked along the low-ceilinged path, my arms wrapped around my body, feeling the walls closing in on me. The small space didn’t seem to bother Lilly, though. In fact, she seemed at home here. For all I knew, this was her home.
About a hundred yards in, we reached a gated door. It protested with a loud creak as Lilly pulled it open. Beyond it, the ground sloped downward at an awkward angle. I had to take my time, taking sideway steps and using the dirt walls for support. We rounded a corner. The light from Lilly’s flashlight caught something up ahead. Without a word, she disappeared and I heard the flick of a lighter. In moments, several lanterns were lit, illuminating a chamber of maybe twenty-by-thirty feet and average height. It was empty except for six coffins in a circle around one in the center. Seven coffins, buried in a secret crypt beneath the crypt.
I swallowed hard as I watched Lilly walk past the coffins, her child’s hand running along their surfaces. Whoever was in these coffins was important to Lilly.
“I lied earlier,” Lilly said calmly. “About killing you.”
My heart and stomach raced to see who could make it to the cold, hard ground first. She’s going to kill me and bury me here in one of these coffins and no one will ever find my body.
The terror must have been splayed across my face because she spoke again quickly. “I have no intention of killing you, Evangeline. I never did.” She smiled. “Well, maybe not never but … not since I realized Viggo has no interest in you.”
As if on yo-yo strings, my organs snapped back to their rightful places. My lungs felt like they would collapse as the air released out of them. “Why did you bring me here, then?”
Lilly circled the coffin in front of her and weaved through the space in between to make her way to the coffin in the center. It reached almost up to her chest, sitting high a pedestal. It was more elaborate than the others and darker in color. She brushed a hand across the top affectionately.
“I can’t read you,” she began, “because of this magic that Sofie speaks about. This poison that runs through your blood. Yet, I could sense your hatred for Viggo that night we met.”
My snort escaped before I could stop it. “I don’t hide that well, do I?”
She gave a little shake of her head, a tiny smile creeping across her lips. “And then, when Sofie showed me those visions, she showed me what Viggo did to you … to your mother.” Burning fingers of agony trailed along my spine with the reminder. “Is it true?”
I nodded silently.
Lilly’s head turned to land on the center coffin once again. “I’m sure you’ve noticed my … dislike …,” her face twisted into something far beyond dislike, “for Viggo?”
Curiosity got the better of me. “I was told you hated his guts and wouldn’t help us because of him.”
“Yes. That is an apt assessment. But …,” she peered up at me sheepishly, her next words coming out in a raspy whisper, as if she were afraid to speak them, “I’m terrified of him. I know what he’s capable of.”
We did have a lot in common. “You’re smart to be. He’s a scary vampire and he’s capable of vile things.”
“Yes, he is,” she agreed. We shared a silent look. Her gaze screamed heartache, rank with turmoil, begging for love and attention. In that moment, there was no millennia-old vampire standing in front of me. There was a young, broken girl. There was a child I wanted to wrap my arms around, to tell her it would be okay. She would survive.
“This is my mother’s coffin,” she explained, her hand sliding along the top. “Up until yesterday, it was empty. Now, I have my mother back.” The urn … the one Viggo begrudgingly parted with. “Do you know who put her there to begin with?”
I nodded. “Viggo.”
“Viggo,” she echoed, his name ricocheting off the wall like a stray bullet, looking for someone to maim. Walking slowly around the coffin, her hand never leaving its surface, she began confiding. “My mother was the original vampire. She was thirty-five hundred years old when he killed her. Not as old as Mage, from what Sofie showed me. They were a couple. Soul mates, Mama used to say.” Lilly stopped to fumble with a brass handle at the end. “Mama wasn’t my real mama, of course. I grew up in England. My real parents were poor. We lived in the back of a barn. My dad used to hit us … and other stuff.” Her eyes drifted to the floor with shame.
“But one day, Mama saw me while at the market. My real dad was selling some stolen grain. I guess Mama wanted a child of her own.” Her fingertip traced a symbol near one of the hinges. “She told me that when she saw the bruises on my arms and legs, she got so angry, she sent Viggo to rescue me. So he came and snatched me out of there.” Lilly’s back was to me now. “He made me. I was his gift to Mama. I guess you could say he was my new father.”
I shuddered involuntarily, the idea of Viggo as a father figure equal parts repulsive and horrifying.
“We were happy for hundreds of years—the three of us and Mama’s advisors,” her arm swept over the other six coffins. “They were all nice to Mama and me. Very loyal. We were like one big family, protecting each other. They were all older than Viggo. He was the youngest of them all, aside from me.” Lilly paused to swallow. She moved to draw her finger along the top of another coffin. Even under the dim light, I could see the floral pattern she was drawing in the thick layer of dust.
“What happened?”
Her mouth curved into a frown. “I don’t think Viggo was ever in love with my mother. Well, maybe he was for a short time. But when he found out that Mama used to be a witch and she could compel vampires, things changed. He was jealous of her power.” Lilly walked back around. “That, or he was afraid she had compelled him in the past. Or perhaps he was simply crazy. Whatever the reason, he kept up the pretense for a while. Mama didn’t notice the change like I did. It must have been my child’s intuition that saw the way he looked at Mama after that.”
A momentary smile flashed across her dainty face as if she remembered something fond, but it promptly fell off with more morbid memories. “One night, he ambushed my mother and the other members, killing every last one of them. He came after me but … I escaped.” Lilly left the coffin’s side to walk over to me. “He stole Mama’s body, thinking I’d come for it, but I hid. For a few hundred years, I made sure I was nowhere he would dare be. I created a new group of advisors, a new family for myself. Kait and Gavin, they’re my family. They’ve been by my side for almost a thousand years. They take care of me. I take care of them. They’re all I have, especially now that we have this venom issue. Not that it would matter.” She held her hands out to her sides, palms up. “Look at me! I’m a child forever. I have no interest in a mate. I don’t even know what that means, other than what I’ve seen and heard. I want venom back so I can create friends and family. The family I have now … I won’t risk Viggo taking that away from me. I want to stay as far away from him as possible.”
I nodded sadly. “So that means you won’t help us?”
“I didn’t say that.”
I stifled a groan as I looked down at her. Vampires and their cryptic answers. “Sofie wants you to pledge allegiance. Will you do it?”
She gave the slightest shake of her head, crushing the spark of hope within.
“But Lilly … she won’t trust you otherwise.”
“I know.” A shy, childlike grin slid onto Lilly’s face. “But she would if I pledged my allegiance to you.”
Dead silence filled the underground cavern. “I’m sorry … I heard you wrong.” I blinked repeatedly, wincing from the pain radiating from my swollen jaw. It had to be affecting my hearing.
“I said that I will pledge my allegiance to you and then Sofie will trust me.”
Now I stared blankly at her, looking for a sign that this was a joke. But only innocence stared back, waiting. “You can’t do that!”
“Of course I can! I can do whatever I want!”
“But … but …,” I sputtered.
“But what?”
“But … why?” Why would this ancient vampire want to bind herself to me? A vampire would need to be crazy to commit themselves to a human, Mortimer had said. Was a crazy vampire asking to bind herself to me?
“Because I won’t bind myself to Sofie and yet she needs to trust me. I’m not stupid, Evangeline. I know this is serious. If Sofie’s asking me for help, then I know it’s got to be serious … Besides,” Lilly shifted a rock with her feet, “I like you. You’re … nice and … honest. I can tell.” Definitely crazy and clueless. Lilly walked back over to her mother’s coffin. “And you’re not that much older than me in human years. I always wanted a sister. Mama and I found the perfect one just before Viggo killed her.” She turned back. “The girl—her name was Rebecca—she was tall and blond like you.”
In a flash, Lilly stood inches from me. “I can trust you, right?” Those blue irises begged for the right answer. So like a young child, unsure of herself but willing to trade pride and risk of hurt for a glimpse of what she wanted.
“Of course you can trust me. I’m the one who shouldn’t trust you, remember?” I yanked up my sleeves to reveal my injured arm.
Her eyes shot to my stitches. “She hasn’t healed it.” As with most things, this wasn’t a question.
“No … She told you she couldn’t.”
Lilly’s top lip curved into a sarcastic smile. “And you know as well as I that Sofie would make a champion poker player … I had to be sure.”
“Couldn’t you have done something a little less dramatic and painful?”
“It had to be something dramatic enough that Sofie would heal if she could … Sorry. Sometimes I forget what it’s like not to heal instantly.”
“That makes one of us,” I said, cupping my hand against my sore face.
Lilly stood silently then. She was pledging her allegiance to me. I still couldn’t grasp the meaning of this whole “allegiance” concept except to understand that it was huge—monumental—to have her support and protection. I would have an ancient vampire—no, more, I would have a posse of ancient vampires—protecting me, listening to me. Because I didn’t have enough protection … I have a stronger guard than any queen with her army.
I fought to hide the cautious excitement unfolding inside me. This would be unprecedented according to Mortimer. Man! Would his jaw hit the ground when he learned about this! But what would I need to do? What did this require of me? Did I need to give her orders? I didn’t know how to scheme and plot like these shifty vampires.
“Would you do whatever I asked?”
Lilly shrugged and I caught a glint of wariness in her eyes. “Yes, I suppose so … But it doesn’t mean I’m your slave.”
I was already shaking my head. “No, no … of course no.” But I could ask her to do things that I couldn’t do, like gather information secretly … that, I could ask her to do. “Okay,” I nodded after a moment.
Lilly’s giggle carried down the hall. “You’re granting me permission to give you my allegiance? You think that’s how it works?”
“I don’t know how any of this works. And I’m tired of all the bullshit.”
“Fair enough.” Lilly stood straight and faced me. She was a full head shorter, her brow reaching my neck. Again, another shy smile and tilt of her head. “I’m not exactly sure how to do this, either. It’s not something most of us are willing to do. You’re my first.” I watched as her smile disappeared and her expression turned solemn. Bending down on one knee, like she was proposing to me, she reached up to take my hand in hers. Her skin was silky soft. I felt uncomfortable, checking the shadows around us, wondering if anyone could be watching. But Lilly wasn’t nervous or awkward. Her head angled back until I could see her face, candlelight casting a dim shadow across it.
“I, Lilly Hamlin, pledge my allegiance to you. Trust me with your life. Trust my descendants with your life. I will protect and serve you as you wish. I am yours until death.”
A pause and then she was on her feet, her face beaming proudly. “There!”
I frowned. “Really? Nothing feels different to me.” Nothing at all.
“It worked!” Lilly’s eyes were wide with genuine seriousness. “I can feel it.” She grinned. “So … now what?” Did I believe her? Was I supposed to feel anything?
“You don’t believe me, do you?” Lilly’s grin plummeted.
“It’s not that I don’t believe you …” No, I don’t believe you. I sighed. Was what she did enough? “Sofie always says I’m too trusting and that I need to be a bit more guarded,” I explained.
“Sofie’s probably right,” Lilly conceded. “But either way, you have my allegiance. Tell me what you need me to do to prove it to you.”
Here we go. I wasn’t any good at telling people what to do. I sure as hell didn’t have any idea what to tell her to do about this war. Sofie was the one who knew what she should do, not me! And that gave me an idea.
“You need to listen to Sofie.” Lilly’s face twisted with displeasure. She opened her mouth, ready to protest, but I quickly interrupted her. “You wanted to know how to prove it to me. Well, that’s how. Listen, Lilly. I don’t know the first thing about wars and battle. My manipulation skills suck. Sofie, though, she knows these things. I trust her completely. You need to trust her too. You need to do as she asks. Listen to her, Lilly.”
Lilly’s lips pressed together. “I had a feeling you’d say that.” She pulled out her cell phone as she began walking back down the tunnel toward the exit. “Come on. We’d better get you home. Sofie’s liable to torch everyone otherwise.”
I trailed behind, deciding that when I knew I could trust her, Lilly would be my means to rescuing Veronique.
***
When the gates creaked opened for Lilly’s car, we found Ivan and a horde of his wolves standing guard just inside. It took another few minutes for the car to struggle up the winding, snow-covered driveway. When we reached the loop in front, a crowd of stern expressions had already gathered—vampire, human, and werebeast.
Amelie landed at my feet the second the door opened, throwing her arms around my neck. “I’m so sorry, Evangeline!” she cried out. “Oh, thank God! I couldn’t get to you! I couldn’t move! I’m so sorry!” she gushed. “By the time I broke free, you were already gone.”
I offered a small smile, wincing from the growing throb in my jaw. “It’s okay, Amelie. I’m fine.”
Her eyes darted to my jaw, eyebrows raised. “Uh, have you seen your face? You look terrible!”
“Okay, maybe not fine, but I’ll live.” I had no idea what I looked like. I’m not sure I wanted to know. I definitely didn’t want Caden to see me like that. Speaking of which … I took in the faces around me. Everyone was here. Everyone except Viggo and Caden. For a moment, a stab of pain poked at me, wondering where he was, wondering why he wasn’t concerned enough to be waiting for me, but I pushed it aside, remembering he was likely with Bishop.
As Lilly stepped out from the driver’s side, Amelie instantly lunged at her, her claws dangerously extended. “You bitch!” Luckily Mage was there to intercept the attack, securing Amelie in a partial headlock before she reached the tiny kidnapper. Lilly didn’t flinch. In fact, I’m pretty sure I saw her smile.
“We leave you two alone for a few hours …,” Sofie began in in a cold, hard voice as she walked forward, her light touch caressing my jaw, making a tsking sound. “Why must you decide to act like a rebellious teenager now, Evangeline? You were such an obedient child, always following the rules. Now that you’re in the most danger, you’re continuously doing stupid things!”
“Yeah, well, look where being obedient got me.”
Sofie paused to consider me. She said nothing, though, turning to Amelie. “And you! I thought you were smarter than that.”
“Here we go again! Seven hundred years old and I’m being scolded twice in one day.” Amelie crossed her arms over her chest.
“You deserve to be.” Julian stepped forward from just inside the door, his chocolate face screaming worry as he looked at me.
I offered him a small smile. “It’s not Amelie’s fault. I begged her to take me out. We wanted to get some Christmas presents.”
“I didn’t think we were being watched!” Amelie exclaimed.
“We’re always being watched, you twit!” Mortimer scoffed from his corner.
Sofie’s eyes drifted to Lilly. “I’m not sure that we were … until now. Someone may have tipped them off.” Her tone was thick with accusation. Was she accusing Lilly of being the informant? No! That couldn’t be. She was the one who saved me!
“It’s not her fault,” I said. “I wanted to go. I needed to get out. We both did …”
Silence met my admission of guilt. “What’s done is done,” Sofie stated, exhaling. “You can tell me all about it later. For now,” she turned to Lilly, “can I assume you’re willing to join us?”
Lilly’s mouth twisted in thought. “Perhaps.”
“Lilly,” I coaxed lightly, “remember what we agreed to. No more games. There’s too much at stake.”
Her face smoothed over with a nod. “I have pledged my allegiance to Evangeline. She’s asked that I listen to you as it relates to the war, and so I will.”
By the flash of surprise on Mortimer’s face and the open-mouth gape on Amelie’s, it was clear that Lilly’s declaration caught everyone off guard.
My, my. Aren’t you building a little empire, Max said sarcastically. You know, one of these days, you’re going to be sorry you keep tricking me …
I gave him an apologetic shrug.
Once the initial shock subsided, Sofie spoke up. “You are okay with this, Evangeline?”
“I’m …” I was unsure of how to say this without offending Lilly. “I’m okay with it. But I don’t feel any different, so …” I’m not sure I can trust her, Sofie. Read between the lines.
She nodded slowly. Maybe she understood me. If not, I’d ask her if she could confirm it later, when we were alone.
“Has the witch given us any details?” Lilly asked, switching gears.
I frowned. The witch … the witch! They kidnapped her? They must have!
“No, though Kait and Viggo are still interrogating her,” Mage explained simply. “They’re almost finished.” Finished because they’d gotten their answer or because there wasn’t much left of her? I decided that I’d rather not know.
“Well,” Sofie said, pausing. “Good. Now that that’s settled, please, won’t you come in? We have a lot of work to do.” We followed her into the massive foyer. “Mortimer, why don’t you take Lilly to Kait?” With a nod, they vanished. “And Evangeline …” I turned, expecting her to tell me I was grounded for life. Instead, she wrapped her arm around my shoulder. “I need to tell you something. It’s important.” She hesitated, her mouth bending into a weird half-excited, half-nervous smile. “I figured out a way to free Bishop.”
Joy exploded inside me like fireworks on the Fourth of July. “Seriously?” Of course Sofie had fixed it! Sofie could fix anything! “Seriously?” I parroted and looked over at Amelie, expecting a matching grin. She stood there with a strange expression on her face. I couldn’t read it. She was definitely happy but there was also a glimpse of something … pity, perhaps? “Where is he? When can I—”
Sofie cut me off. “Now, I don’t have a lot of time to explain.” She paused, listening to something in the distance, off to our right. “Damn it,” she muttered under her breath. “They’re coming.” They … Bishop and Caden! My heart started to race. I turned to gaze down the hall, waiting excitedly. Sofie’s hand waved furiously at Amelie. “Go stall them for a moment, please.”
Something about that tone … it unsettled me. Amelie disappeared in a flash. “Why the need to stall?” I asked warily.
Sofie was suddenly in front of me, seizing my hands tightly, pale eyes holding mine as if compelled. “Okay, remember how Mage’s compulsion erased all memory of Earth for Caden and the others?” she said in a low whisper.
I nodded.
“Well … it gave me an idea. It took some thinking and a little request of the Fates …”
Oh God … the Fates. Prickles of worry nipped at my toes. So far, any mention of them usually spelled disaster for me. “But Bishop is back to himself now,” she assured me. “Except for one key difference.” She was rambling. Sofie doesn’t ramble. “There was only one way to do it. I had to erase all memory of her,” she whispered, her eyebrows rising suggestively with her.
Sofie’s words didn’t register at first. “What do you mean?” I asked slowly.
“She does not exist in his memory. Nothing about her. Nothing about being bound up by magic over the last few days because he wanted to avenge her death. The Fates altered it all.”
“Her? You mean F—”
Sofie’s hand flew to my lips, clamping on tightly. I moaned in pain but she ignored it, rushing with her whispers now. “We’ll talk about it later, but whatever happens, you cannot mention her name. As long as no one mentions her name, we’re golden. If he hears you mention it again, the spell is broken and he’s back in Merth. Understand?”
Not mention her. She didn’t exist. I felt as if she had just walked up and walloped me across my injured jaw.
“Understand?” Sofie prodded.
I nodded, dumbstruck. “So, if he doesn’t remember … her … what does he remember?”
Pity flashed across Sofie’s face—one hundred percent unveiled pity. It sunk my insides to my feet just as a loud, jovial voice sounded from our right. Bishop’s voice.
All thoughts and worries vanished. My heart melted, my body gravitating toward that beautiful sound. I turned just as Bishop appeared, grinning broadly, his gray eyes twinkling in that playful way. He scooped me into his arms and spun me around. I giggled excitedly. Just like old times … like happy times. Like—
Bishop’s lips closed over mine, pressing against them. At first I thought it was show of friendly affection. But when he didn’t pull away, when the kiss became deeper, more intense, when his hands slid to my back, running along my contours, I knew something was wrong. It was a kiss I’d seen him secretly give Fiona countless times.
Alarm paralyzed me. I felt my cheeks blaze with embarrassment. What the hell was going on? Why was Bishop kissing me? Bishop pulled away, his jaw tensing angrily as he appraised my injured face. “They sure did a number on you.” I heard myself make some sort of guttural sound, unable to speak, unable to move—as stiff as a stick within Bishop’s arms.
Sofie swooped in, shaking his arms loose from around my body. “Yes, you probably shouldn’t get that close until she’s cleaned up. You’ll need to be cautious with your affection for a while. That must have hurt …” She turned my face to feign investigation of my injury, all the while pleading with wide eyes. Sorry, she was saying.
In all honesty, I was so stunned, I hadn’t felt the pain of his kiss against my mouth.
Bishop squeezed the bridge of his nose. “I’m so sorry. I was just so excited to see you. I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever,” he whispered, pulling me into an embrace. That’s when I saw Caden standing behind us, glaring at Amelie, a slight shake of disapproval. Caden! Oh my God! Oh my God! I’m cheating on him, right in front of him! He watched Bishop kiss me! What would he do? What would he say?
Jade eyes locked onto my face.
He smiled.
What? What the hell was going on? I pleaded silently with my stare, to him, to Amelie, to Sofie. Why was Bishop like this? He was acting like we were together! I looked back at Caden in time to see him mouth, “Everything will be okay.”
No! Everything will not be okay! I felt my teeth grit painfully. This was wrong! All wrong! I must’ve had a wild look of panic because Caden turned away, squeezing his own eyes shut for a moment, a pained expression marring his face.
Great, I have to deal with another one, Max groaned. Do you want me to bite him?
I stared at him, thankful for our secret communication. “What do you mean, Max?”
Bishop believes you are a couple. The Fates have filled his head with all kinds of false memories. It’s their twisted way of giving Sofie what she asked while complicating things. It’s how they roll, Max said.
“But … why?” I asked, aware that my voice had taken on an annoying whine.
Bishop pulled away from me. “Why what?” he asked softly, his hand reaching up to affectionately graze my jaw.
“Oh … nothing. Max just asked me a silly question.” Another wave of anxiety tore through me with his touch. On instinct, I pulled away, taking two steps back. “I need to go lie down for a while. This morning took a lot out of me.” I gave a furtive sidelong glance to Caden. Follow me, please …
“That’s a great idea,” Sofie chirped, walking over to place a hand on Bishop’s forearm. “Bishop, do you think you could help Mage clean up the mess in Paris?”
“Yes, I definitely could use some help with that,” Mage stepped in without missing a beat. “It’s already made the news. Hopefully, we can make it blow over as a terrorist attack but we should head out now. We should be back in a few hours.” She looked at me. “Enough time for you to get cleaned up and take a rest.”
For days I begged Sofie to fix Bishop, and now I could kiss Mage for taking him away.
“Of course!” Bishop boomed happily, his famous crooked smile beaming. “Can we take Lilly’s car?”
Mage nodded. “I’m sure whomever she borrowed it from won’t mind.”
“Do you need me?” Amelie offered.
“No, you’ve done enough,” Mage answered quickly, giving her own look of stern disapproval.
Amelie had the decency to duck her eyes and look contrite for a second. Only a second, though, and then her expression changed to one of mischief as she glanced behind her at Julian leaning up against a wall.
“Come,” she beckoned, offering her hand. As they began walking down the hall, Amelie turned back to give me a sly smile and a wink. Her hand reached down and pulled out a strap from beneath her shirt. Black lace.
“Great … you managed to get that,” I mumbled to myself, my hand going to my forehead. A deep headache was forming behind my right temple.
I needed to warn Julian before Amelie ambushed him.
I needed to talk to Caden about this whole Bishop thing.
I needed to talk to Sofie about Lilly’s allegiance.
I needed to talk to Veronique to explain things, to relieve my guilty conscience.
Just when I thought things couldn’t get more complicated, my world was spiraling downward, out of control.
Bishop leaned over to lay a gentle kiss on my forehead. My back instantly stiffened. “Be back soon and we’ll pick up where we left off,” he whispered in my ear, and then he was off with Mage, sauntering out the door as lazy as a lion on a sweltering day. A voice screamed inside my head, Where did we leave off?
The second the door clicked into place, I let loose. “What the hell?” I screamed, wincing as a sharp pain shot through my jaw.
Caden was beside me in a second, pulling me to his chest in a tight embrace. “It’s okay.”
I shoved him back. “No, it’s not! What did you do to him?” I hissed, my anger directed at Sofie.
She sighed. “I told you what I did. Apparently the version of Bishop we get is a little bit different. It’s not me. It’s the Fates. But at least he’s not in the Merth, right?”
I was already shaking my head, looking at Caden. “I don’t want that. I don’t want him, I don’t—”
He silenced me with two fingers to my mouth, careful not to touch my injured jaw. “I know. I know. Believe me!” He paused. “It looks like this is as close to the old Bishop as we’re going to get.”
“But she erased all memories of—”
“Ah!” Sofie warned sharply, her finger held up in warning. “Never say her name, even when he’s not around.”
“Of her …” I adjusted. “It’s like she never existed.”
“I know … but we all know she did,” Caden whispered, looking down at me. “None of us is going to forget. But she’s gone, and we have a choice of accepting it and moving on with this version of Bishop or losing both of them. I don’t know about you, but I have better things to do than sit by my best friend while he suffers, bound with Merth.” His hand grazed my cheek.
“I know but … if he thinks we’re together, then …” You and I can’t be, I finished in my head, unable to say the words.
“For now. Just for now.” Caden pulled me into another embrace.
As my head rested against Caden’s chest, I stared at the front door. He was the old Bishop, but still the wrong one. This was so much worse than having Caden think I’d been with Julian. So much worse …
“When this is all over,” I said.
“When it’s over, we’ll remind him of her,” Sofie agreed. “For now, though, with this war coming, we need all the help we can get. We can’t worry about him making things worse, causing scenes in public venues.”
Her mention of scenes brought me back to the attack, and Lilly. “Lilly will listen to you, Sofie. I told her to defer to you. I don’t know how to plan a war.” I had my own internal war to deal with.
“Good. She’s smart as a whip, that one.” Sofie said. “Dangerous and conniving, but smart. Watch out for her, Evangeline. She’s sworn her allegiance to you. That means she won’t harm you and she will do as you ask, but that doesn’t mean she can’t stab you in the back in some roundabout way. I wouldn’t doubt for a second that she tipped off the Sentinel, just so she could go in and save you … to earn your trust. Kidnap you without kidnapping you.”
I snorted. Surprise, surprise. Can’t trust a vampire. “Do you think it’s real? Or is she tricking us?”
“I’ll go find out. You, though,” her gentle fingers reached up to prod at my fat lip, “need to go get cleaned up. I see a cut there, but … no … it doesn’t need stitches, thank goodness. I’ll get Ivan.”
“No,” Caden interrupted. “I’ll do it.”
Sofie opened her mouth to object, but Caden brushed it off. “It’s okay. I’m okay. I’ll take all the time with Evangeline that I can get.” He turned me down the hall with one hand wrapped protectively around my shoulder, the other holding my hand. We walked to the main bathroom in silence—the one where Ivan had stitched me up last time. The little medical case still sat on the counter.
“I should just move in here …” I said as Caden flicked on the light switch.
I gasped. The left side of my jaw was a sickly purplish-red and twice the normal size, outsized only by my lip, which was blackish-purple and easily three times bigger than usual. Dried blood had caked around the corner of my mouth, down to my jawline. Even with all the vampire bites and gashes on my hands and arms, this was by far the worst-looking injury I had acquired to date.
Lifting me under the arms like I weighed no more than a large piece of cotton, Caden gently positioned me onto the counter beside the sink. I trembled under his touch.
“So you decided to risk a war in the streets so you could go Christmas shopping?” He popped open the case and pulled out some antiseptic, cotton balls, and salt.
“When you say it like that, it sounds pretty lame,” I looked down at my feet, feeling the burn in my cheeks. “I just needed to get away for a while. Things have been hard lately.” And they were about to get a whole lot harder with this new Bishop issue …
Caden lined the items beside me on the counter. Reaching up, he gently gripped the coat zipper under my chin and unzipped me. His hands slid inside my jacket to my shoulders and pushed off the coat, sending fire to the butterflies already fluttering around in my stomach.
“What’d you get me?” he teased.
I grinned broadly but then winced. “Who says I got you anything?” I wondered if that expensive watch in my inner pocket survived the whole ordeal unscathed.
Caden chuckled as he saturated a cotton ball with antiseptic. He gently dabbed at my cheek and my lip. I winced from the sting and he stopped. “It’s okay, keep going,” I whispered. I watched him silently, gritting my teeth against the bite, distracting myself by visually tracing the lines of his beautiful face. His expression, suddenly more somber, his voice dropping an octave or two.
“I guess Amelie got something for Julian?” There was that tinge of bitterness again.
“Yeah. Does it bother you?”
He shook his head. “Does it bother you?”
“No.” Yes, but not for the reason you think, Caden.
He moistened another cotton pad and began smoothing it over my jawline, down along my throat. It didn’t hurt so much here. It was soothing. “They did a great job on your face,” he muttered.
“I’m collecting scars.”
That earned a small snort, followed by a shake of disapproval. “There,” he whispered, looking down into my eyes and I remembered then, again, how I could lose myself in them. Filling a cup with cold water from the tap and sprinkling some salt into it, he handed it to me. “Rinse.” After I did so, he leaned in and planted the lightest kiss on the unmangled side of my face.
I groaned. “What are we going to do about Bishop?”
His lips curved into a sad smile as his hands dropped to my thighs. “Nothing. Play along.”
Play along? “I can’t!”
“You have to,” Caden urged. “Remember how I had to do the same with Rachel to keep you safe?”
I groaned again, more loudly. Those were the longest days of my life, watching Rachel molest him like a cougar in heat. Before I knew how he felt, I was purely jealous. After … I wanted to rake her eyeballs out. “But it’s not the same! This is Bishop! He’s my friend!”
“Yes,” Caden’s hands lifted to my shoulder, leveling me with a lecturing look. “Your friend who you don’t want to be imprisoned—your friend who you don’t want suffering in silent agony.”
“But …” My rebuttal died on my lips. I had already lost the argument. Caden was right. Still … “Doesn’t it bother you?” I whimpered.
Caden shut his eyes. He inhaled and exhaled slowly, his nostrils flaring slightly. “You have no idea … I wanted to put my fist through a wall earlier, when he was kissing you. But then I have to remind myself that this guy is not just any guy. He’s Bishop and this is only temporary. Besides, it’s way better than knowing you and Julian …” His voice drifted, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down.
I dropped my gaze, another guilty dagger in my heart over my deception. We sat in silence for a moment. “What if I can’t do it?” I asked softly. “What if I accidently mention Fi … her? What if—”
Caden’s hand lifted to the good side of my face. “You won’t,” he whispered. “And you can do it. Sofie and I already talked. We’re going to convince him you need space with all this stuff going on. Something like that. Sofie will take care of it.”
I nodded and stifled a yawn. The poor sleep and the various attacks were wearing me down. “Stay right here,” he whispered and then he disappeared, returning about fifteen seconds later with a bag of frozen peas in his hand. Before I could move, he scooped me into his arms and we were sailing upstairs to my room. I was under the covers in twenty seconds.
“Sleep now.” He pushed the hair off my face. I had to admit, the bed felt especially welcoming at this point, as my muscles relaxed into its softness.
“Stay?” I pleaded softly. He paused and I figured he was deciding how he would deny me this time. But instead, he swung his legs onto the bed to lie beside me. He leaned forward, elbows and hands on either side of my pillow.
Pressing his forehead against mine, he whispered, “Just for a little while.” My breath hitched as his lips grazed mine, first as soft as a feather but then growing with fervor. A little too fervently. I tried not to flinch, but of course, Caden caught it, instantly shifting his mouth to the side of my neck. His nose trailed against my skin behind my ear, tickling me.
“You should ease up on the Bactine.”
“I had an amateur nursemaid,” I murmured, delighting in his closeness. Why the sudden change in him, I couldn’t say, but I wasn’t about to question it. I wouldn’t utter a word. I would simply enjoy. I slid my arms around his chest and pulled him down to lie on top of me with all the strength I could muster.
“No, no …” Caden chuckled, reaching behind to peel my arms off his torso, much to my protest. “You need to sleep.” He gently flipped me onto my side and slid in to spoon me, snuggling close. A cool hand pushed my matted hair off my face. I felt the lightest kiss near the nape of my neck, igniting my insides. It was extinguished quickly with a bag of frozen peas against my face. The icy chill brought almost instant relief to the throb, numbing it to the point that the pain almost disappeared. And it was like that, held safely in Caden’s arms, that I somehow drifted off to sleep.
Familiar prickles sparked through my body as I struggled to focus—the sign that I was now sharing Veronique’s body with her, seeing the world through her eyes. Fortunately, I had left my mangled face and stitched arm back in France. Unfortunately, Veronique had plenty of injuries to make up for them. My entire body ached right down to the bone, like someone had whipped, burned, and beaten me within an inch of my life.
I wasn’t in a dark, dank cell this time. I wasn’t strapped to a metal table, either. I was now in a quiet little room with dove-gray walls and ethereal curtains. A single bed with a simple crocheted quilt sat to the right of the armchair where I rested. I could see that my tattered, bloodied dress had been replaced by a long white cable-knit sweater and white leggings with lace at the bottoms. Dappled yellow and blue skin peeked out from the cuffs at my wrists. God only knew what lay beneath my sleeves.
Slowly, holding my breath against the twinges of pain, I leaned forward to inspect my feet. A thick layer of white gauze protected them, wrapped around so fully that they looked mummified. I shuddered, memories of that blowtorch sending an icy shiver running along my neck and shoulders.
“Allo … Evangeline?” Veronique’s voice called out, moving my lips.
My short hairs spiked. She knew I was there. I could no longer play the silent observer. “You can tell I’m here?” I asked timidly.
“Oui. I feel tickles.” Her voice sounded much firmer than the last time.
“How are you?” This back and forth feels so strange! For anyone witnessing it, they’d quickly write Veronique off as a mentally disturbed young woman.
“I have been better. One of the witches put a special salve on my burns to help,” she explained. “They say they can’t heal my feet. I don’t know why …”
I know why, Veronique. But I’m not sure I want to tell you just yet.
Would she transform into Walking Death as well? Maybe not. Maybe she’d be like Julian. “It sounds like they’re treating you better,” I said instead, forcing the disturbing questions from my head, thanking God that we didn’t share our thoughts like we shared her body.
“Yes … they brought me up to this room and gave me food and water. And they’ve left me alone for some reason.”
An inkling of suspicion pricked me. Why would a group of witches hell-bent on setting fire to her to get her to speak just a day ago now feed and care for her? Especially when they knew they had an occasional intruder coming to watch? Something didn’t make sense.
What are you up to now, Cruella? I swallowed. “What have you told them?”
A pause. “Everything I know, which isn’t much. But everything.”
A painful lump detonated in my throat. “What exactly is everything?”
“How the vampires had no venom and how Sofie was trying to fix it.”
I sighed heavily. “Yeah, that’s a pretty big one.” Now the Sentinel and the witches knew. They knew they needed to strike while the vampires’ numbers were low. My eyes roamed the room again. “So you’re still in the same place?”
“I guess so … I’m not sure. I was unconscious for a while after …” Her voice choked off. No matter. I knew what she was referring to. “Why hasn’t Sofie come yet?”
Chunks of my heart tumbled, hearing her shaky voice, rank with the belief that her sister had abandoned her to this, that she was allowing this. I couldn’t do it anymore. I couldn’t lie. Not about this. I took a deep breath. “Because she doesn’t know you’re out, Veronique,” I answered softly.
“What?”
I had no idea how to explain. Where to begin? What to tell her? I didn’t even know how much time I had. Likely only minutes, in which case I needed to get as much information as I could from her. Carefully, though … I couldn’t tell her anything that could harm us if the witches decided to have another run at torture. She had already proven easily persuaded to divulge information.
“Listen, Veronique,” I began, “we probably don’t have a lot of time and I need some information from you. I’m going to get you out of here, I promise.” If we can figure out where you are! “But I need to know a few things.”
She paused hesitantly. “Okay …”
“Okay … how many witches and Sentinel have you seen?”
“Oh … I don’t know,” she answered, thinking. “Hundreds, maybe.”
Wow. “Okay. Do you know how people are getting in and out?”
“Uh … I don’t know, Evangeline. I’m sorry. I’ve been locked up the entire time.”
I sighed. Tortured prisoners didn’t make good insiders. “Do you know who that dark-haired one is?”
“Oui!” she answered quickly, excited to have an answer. “Her name is Imogen. She is not nice.”
That’s an understatement. I could see how everyone took Veronique for a sweetheart. “Has she said anything … interesting? Given you clues of any sort?”
I felt my brow crease as Veronique gave it some thought. “No …,” she answered slowly. “But she talks into a little gray box a lot. It makes a funny sound. Like ringing.”
Little gray thing … little gray thing … I scowled, with frustration. What could she be … her cell phone! Veronique had never seen a cell phone!
“Does it sound like she’s talking to someone here, in the building, or somewhere else?”
She nodded. “Definitely far. She said something about flying to England. What did she mean, ‘fly,’ Evangeline?”
Despite the dire situation, Veronique’s innocent questions made me chuckle. “In a plane.” This was crazy! “I’ll explain later. There’s so much to learn. For now, stay safe and try not to tell them anything.”
“Wait! Don’t go yet!” I heard the desperation in her voice.
“I can’t help how long I stay, Veronique. It just happens. But I’m still here for now.”
A pause. “How long was I in that statue for? The world has changed so much, from the little I have seen.”
“About a hundred and twenty years.” I felt like I was delivering a fatal diagnosis.
With a strangled gasp, Veronique’s hands flew to cover her mouth. I said nothing, allowing her to absorb the news that she had essentially woken up from a one-hundred-and twenty-year-long coma.
“And Mortimer and Viggo? Have they moved on? How are they?”
I snorted. “They are still your number-one fans.” I hesitated. “They’re fine. They don’t know you’re out, either.”
“You must think horribly of me … in love with two men,” she said and I felt heat creep into my face with her embarrassment.
It was such a genuinely sweet reaction to the situation, I couldn’t help but instantly like her. Except for her poor taste in mates.
“No, I don’t, Veronique, but …” What do I say? You’re in love with a psychopath who would slaughter newborn babies if he felt so inclined? I couldn’t say that, and yet, I had to say something … what if she chose him over Mortimer? I swallowed my fear. She had to know. There was no sugar-coating this. “Don’t trust Viggo, Veronique.”
A prickle of wariness tickled my neck. Veronique’s neck. “What? That’s silly!” she exclaimed, a little too loudly. She gasped and looked at the door, waiting. When no one entered, she lowered her voice to a whisper. “Why would you say that?”
Let it out, Evangeline. Tell her … tell her the truth, a part of me screamed. A selfish, spiteful side that longed for the ultimate triumph for all the misery Viggo had inflicted upon me, upon Sofie, upon Mortimer, upon Max … upon mankind.
“Because he murdered my mother, Veronique, for no other reason than he was mad at Sofie.” My voice was low and cool as I delivered my revenge. “Because he murdered Lilly’s mother. Because he has tortured and would have killed your sister a million times. Because he was ready to kill me.”
Her head shook side to side, her brow furrowed so tightly, it pained my facial injuries. “Non … You must be mistaken. Surely.”
“I would not make a mistake like this, Veronique. Please believe me. You must choose Mortimer.” My voice was surprisingly calm and steady—strong even.
“I don’t know who you are or why you are here. You are telling me lies. Maybe you are the reason I am locked up in here with these witches.”
“You know what? You’re right! I am the reason you’re in there. But it’s not for any reason you could guess. I can’t tell you anything else because it’s too risky. What I can say is that you know your sister, Veronique. She will either get herself killed coming to save you or she’ll start a war that will end in ruin. So as appalling as it is, know that for every day she doesn’t know you’re out of your statue, you’re saving lives. Countless lives.”
As the words rolled out, I felt an internal scale tip. I was doing the right thing.
Silence cast an inescapable shadow within the room. Silence, sadness, and doom. And that is exactly how I left Veronique, that hollow ache coming back with me to my own tumultuous life.
I found myself back in my room at the chateau, a presence lying behind me. He stayed! Excited, I rolled over.
“I thought you’d be—” My words ended in a croak.
“Good nap?” Bishop asked, grinning as he reached to brush a strand of hair caught in my lashes.
“I … I …” I couldn’t form two words, so startled, the muscles in my neck tightening into hard balls of tension. What the hell was Bishop doing in my bed? Sofie was supposed to convince Bishop to give me space. This wasn’t space! This was alone in my bedroom! This was as far from space as we could get! Sparks of rage swirled in my gut.
Insecurity in Bishop’s eyes quickly doused them. I forced myself to smile. “You’ve been acting strange since you came back, Evie … is everything all right? You know, between us?”
Still, that fake smile held, even as horrid wrongness twisted and danced inside me. Between us? There is no “between us.”
“Yes. I mean, no. I mean …” I fumbled over my words, swallowing several times.
“Well, then …” His body leaned forward until his arm stretched over me and his giant muscular torso pressed up against my chest. Dipping his head, I felt the softest caress of his lips against my collarbone. It was hesitant and gentle and it stirred feelings that I shouldn’t have.
I slipped my arm in between our chests to break the contact and then, with a forceful push, I rolled away and scampered to a sitting position. Pressing my hands to my belly, I searched for Max who had mastered the art of intrusion. My disappointment swelled. He was nowhere in sight.
What was I supposed to do now? How would I convince Bishop that “we” did not exist without hurting his feelings? That was the last thing I wanted to do! Sliding off the bed, I walked over to the mirror and peered at my face, partly as a stalling tactic, partly because I wondered if my jaw had improved at all. To my pleasant surprise, the swelling had decreased. It hurt like hell, but at least it wasn’t too unsightly. I guess the frozen peas did the trick.
I turned back to find Bishop stretched out on his back across my bed, his intense gaze boring into me. Had it not been for Caden—and Fiona—I had to admit that I may have fallen for Bishop. I mean, there was nothing about him not to swoon over. From his thick mane of blond hair to his wide, full lips, always parted in a grin, no one could argue that he wasn’t appealing. If his looks weren’t enough, his easy charm that lit up rooms, that made people want to tail after him, surely was.
But he wasn’t Caden.
I swallowed. “Bishop,” I began. He bolted upright, flinching as he watched me intently. “Nothing’s wrong. I just … I don’t know what’s happening to me.”
“Tell me how I can fix it. Let me fix it.”
“You can’t fix this …” I interjected softly. “With this Tribe magic coursing through me, I’m feeling weird. Not myself at all.” I was grasping at straws. “Something’s changing inside me …”
Pain flickered in Bishop’s eyes. “For me? Your feelings for me?”
My head was shaking furiously, my heart throbbing as I continued the lie. How many times could a person’s heart break in one day? “My feelings for you have not changed.” That was the truth. They just weren’t the feelings he thought I should have. And then it hit me. I did have the perfect excuse. The truth. “Any day, any moment, my touch will kill you.” I delivered it with such clarity, with such conviction, without a waver or a stutter, there was no way he could think it was anything but real.
His face twisted. “What? Why?”
“Do you remember the Tribes?”
“Yeah, I remember them,” he said. I struggled to keep the surprise from my face. What exactly did he remember?
It took me a minute to gain my composure. “I’m changing. Morphing. Can’t you sense it?”
His chin furrowed. “Yeah, I can. Sofie said not to worry about it.”
I couldn’t stop my eye roll. “Every day, I’m a little bit more like Walking Death. If this continues, then a day will come—soon—when my touch will kill you. I can’t bear that thought, Bishop. I’ll die.” My voice, cracking with emotion, carried the purity of truth with it. I would die if I killed him, or Amelie, or Caden. Even the thought produced a well of tears. “So we need to keep the physical contact at bay. Please. For me. For my sanity.”
He groaned and flopped back into the bed, his hands flying to his face and sliding through his hair. “You’re killing me here! I’ve been waiting a month for you to come back from the mountains!”
Again, I struggled to keep the shock from my face. If he didn’t remember anything about F—her—during that month, what did he remember? “Yeah … that’s a long time. What were you doing during that time again?” I walked toward my dresser to pull out fresh clothes, trying to appear as casual as possible.
Bishop’s arms folded around his chest, his words dry. “You know exactly what I was doing, Evangeline … I didn’t have a choice! I had to get over my bloodlust after I almost killed you!”
My feet froze mid-step. Bishop almost killed me … not Caden. Bishop. Bishop waited for me while I was in the mountains … not Caden. A theory formed in my mind. A dark, twisted theory that brought my level of disgust for these master puppeteer Fates to a new low. I turned on my heels and headed back over to the bed. I perched myself at the edge of the mattress, forcing a relaxed smile.
“Wasn’t Ratheus simpler? Remember those days, swimming, fishing … and that tunnel in the water we went through?”
A lazy grin stretched onto Bishop’s face as he reminisced with me. “Yeah … I remember that. We could have gone above ground, but it got you close to me.” I held the smile on my face. I held it, even as it brawled with my emotions to slide off and allow shock and horror to take its place. The Fates had plagiarized Caden’s memories and planted them in Bishop’s mind! All of our private moments were now Bishop’s memories. That meant …
The air left my lungs in a rush as Bishop’s eyes trailed the length of my thigh, up my arm, over my body, heat igniting within. Without thinking, I hunched my shoulders inward to protect myself from his appraisal. But … how had they managed to contort his memories and erase Fi—her? I didn’t dare even think her name. There had to be some disconnect, some complete fabrication in Bishop’s poor lobotomized memories.
As curious as I was to find out, I knew that poking around in there was like punting a ticking time bomb. And I wasn’t going to be the one to swing my leg. “We should go downstairs. Find out what’s happening.”
He nodded, reaching out to grasp my hand. I allowed the affection for a few seconds, not wanting to pull away too quickly. But eventually, I stood and shook his hand off. “We can’t risk it, Bishop.”
He nodded, a pout curving his lips downward. My throat closed up.
I walked over to my dresser while silently cursing the Fates for making me hurt him so. Then I remembered the alternative. Suck it up, Evie. You asked for this. You asked Sofie to fix him. Rifling through the top drawer to find a sweater and a pair of jeans, I turned to find Bishop still watching.
“Do you mind?” I asked, dipping my head toward the door.
“What?” he exclaimed, an appalled expression on his face.
My heart flipped, my cheeks burning. “It’d be less tempting for us both if you didn’t watch.” I turned my back to him and waited, unable to face his disappointment.
I finally heard the bed creak with the relief of his weight. “I’ll be downstairs when you’re ready,” he mumbled, closing the door behind him.
***
A large crowd had congregated in the glass room. Twelve vampires, a Secret Sentinel member, two werewolves in human form, and four werebeasts, all talking over one another. This is my Christmas Eve. If the situation weren’t so bleak, I may have laughed. But there was nothing to laugh about here. Lilly stood between Sofie and Mage, sharp, wary eyes like a cat secured on Viggo. I noticed her shifting her weight from one foot to the other, appearing torn between bolting for freedom and leaping over the furniture to attack.
Lilly’s group squabbled with Mortimer; Amelie was in the midst of a heated arm-waving conversation with Ivan, likely over her earlier deception. Julian stood next to the bookshelf with his arms crossed. His lips were moving. I figured he was having a one-way conversation with Max, who sat beside him. I had to assume Amelie hadn’t succeeded in her quest earlier. That was one shred of good news. Still, I needed to warn him …
Max’s brothers stood like sentries around the room, equidistant apart and appearing disinterested, though I knew they were far from it. Viggo sat in an armchair next to the fire, amusement on his face and poker in hand, a favorite position of his, I was beginning to learn. He caught me studying him and he smirked. I briefly pictured driving the hot poker through his eye, but I knew I’d have to get in line behind Lilly.
All in all, it was a regular supernatural circus.
I found Caden leaning against a window, watching the scene unfold, a crooked smile on his face. When he saw me, he nodded his chin, gesturing me over. Though I wanted to skip across the room, I moved slowly to check for Bishop. Thankfully, he was nowhere in sight.
“How are you feeling?” Caden lifted my chin with a finger to get a better look at my jaw. “The swelling’s gone down.”
Just his touch had me beaming like an idiot, only to wince in pain a second later. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.” Suddenly, the room quieted. I turned to find everyone staring at me, as if they had just noticed my entrance.
“The turmoil inside her is unnerving,” Lilly said, with a curious flash in her blue irises. Beside her, Mage nodded in agreement.
My skin prickled, knowing the entire room was now trying to break through my magical shell to see what kind of mess existed underneath. I couldn’t help but thank the Tribe’s magic for shielding me from the scrutiny. I’d never have been able to hide all these deadly secrets without it.
“It’s more than that, though.” Sofie frowned. “Do you sense it?” When no one answered, she looked to Mage, asking in a more insistent voice. “Do you? Do you feel that strange … pull around her?”
Panic rolled inside of me. “Pull? Magic? What does that mean? Sofie?”
Sofie didn’t answer, her full attention on Mage who studied me. I averted my gaze to Caden, to the ground, to the tree, to anything that would make me feel like I wasn’t standing naked on a stage.
Mage finally answered, shaking her head. “I don’t, but … that doesn’t mean you don’t. It could have something to do with your magic.”
I looked back at Sofie in time to see the fear sweep across her face. “I don’t know. It’s likely nothing …”
“I haven’t gone deaf, you know! And your reaction is not ‘nothing,’ Sofie. Stop talking about me like I’m not here, and tell me what you’re thinking, damn it!” I said. “I’m sick of you guys sweeping these Tribal magic consequences under the rug! Tell me if I’m going to turn into a hideous monster! Tell me if I’m going to kill everyone I love with a touch!” I was shouting now and I didn’t care. “I’m tired of waiting! I’m tired of wondering! I’m—”
“I don’t know, Evangeline!” Sofie shouted back, her voice cracking. She didn’t sound angry. No, she was weary and afraid and … drained. The room fell silent, its occupants watching the two of us teeter on the edges of our own nervous breakdowns. I felt a hand slip over mine, close over it, clasp it tightly.
“Your touch can’t kill me yet,” Caden offered soothingly. When I couldn’t return his smile, he pulled me to his chest, his one hand sliding up under my hair to cup my neck.
“Bishop…” I whispered.
He smiled softly. “I’ll watch for him.” That’s all the reassurance I needed. I burrowed my face into the ridges of Caden’s chest and inhaled his heavenly scent wishing everything else in the world away but this moment.
“See? I told you … rage!” Amelie said. “She went all crazy on the guy at the store before too. Pulled a knife on him. I was sure—”
I spun around to throw fiery daggers at Amelie, my cheeks blazing. Of all times to expose my earlier psychotic behavior, this was not that time. Amelie immediately clamped her mouth shut, having the decency to look away.
“Continue, please … Kait,” Mortimer spoke then. He sounded unimpressed that my entrance had thrown such a wrench into their conversation.
“They’ve infiltrated the army, the government, the police …” Kait went on. “We believe their army is in the tens of thousands. We have yet to locate their main stations. I don’t know how many of them I’ve coerced to talk. We get bits and pieces of info but nothing terribly useful. We know they operate in sleeper cells. We’ve found a larger presence in certain areas—Rome, Israel, England …” Veronique had mentioned England. “They’re so tightly connected, their reach so close to deadly force. We can’t just storm them, Mortimer. Attacking one contingent is setting a chain reaction that you want to avoid.”
“And it would trigger that chain reaction, without a doubt,” Mage interjected.
“Well, that scene today didn’t help matters,” Mortimer scoffed, adding, “seeing a child rip seven full grown men out of a van and snap their necks has people asking questions.”
“Bishop and I went out to compel the reporters and witnesses. We confiscated their phones as well. Everything we could think of. It’s hard in a viral world,” Mage acknowledged. “Someone’s personal pictures or video will surface in the next few days.”
“What else would you suggest I do?” Lilly asked with indignation. “Had I not acted quickly, I assure you that you’d never have seen her again.” I felt Caden’s fists tighten their grip on my sweater.
A brief moment of silence. “And what about that witch? Did you get anything from her?” Mortimer asked Kait.
“Nothing but moans and a mess. We won’t be getting any more from her.”
I shuddered, visions of Kait in a full leather outfit standing over a table with sharp, scary tools and a sadistic grin too scary to focus long on.
Mortimer took a seat on one of the couches. “Today’s attack, coupled with the events from New York, is leading right into this war whether we like it or not. The blood bank and that debacle at the night club is old news. These new gruesome attacks, though, care of your friend Jonah …” Mortimer’s head shook with disgust.
Mage’s mouth twisted as if she had bitten into a lemon. “Yes, he’s certainly leading it, but … there’s too much going on to be just him.”
“So he’s made others,” Sofie acknowledged.
“Yes, he’s building his army. Against me,” Mage answered smoothly. Her next words sent a cold shiver down my spine, solidifying in my memory that as nice as she may seem, she was still the most lethal of killers. “He knows I’m coming for him soon.”
“When will that be exactly? He needs to be dealt with, and quickly,” Viggo piped in from his corner, outside of the conversation. “I’d be happy to do that.”
“That means you’ll be leaving for home immediately?” Lilly chirped without missing a beat.
Viggo answered with another of his evil grins. “What a grudge you hold, little Leelee.”
I never thought I’d see a vampire’s face burn red hot, but there it was—Lilly, as crimson as a fire engine, her claws clenching and unclenching as she glared murderously at her father figure. I couldn’t lie. I’d be happy if Viggo stood and waved goodbye right this instant. The further away he was from us, the safer we all were.
“We don’t have a home anymore,” Mortimer reminded everyone.
Someone singing at the top of their lungs disrupted the group again. Caden’s arms dropped from my body and he took a step back. Sure enough, a tall, lean body rounded the corner with a relaxed gait and a bottle in his fist. Stopping to take in the atmosphere, he grimaced.
“Well, this looks like loads of fun … it’s Christmas Eve!” he yelled.
“I see you’ve found the wine cellar,” Sofie said as he took a long, sloppy swig from his bottle. “I believe that’s port. It’s meant to be a digestif, not for guzzling.”
“What can I say … it’s going down well!” He took another lazy drink, earning a giggle from Amelie and an eye roll from Kait.
Like a wolf with a newborn calf in its jaws, Mortimer yanked the topic back to task. “So then, where should we attack first?” The word attack sparked a new flurry of debate, full of shouts and vehement objections. Back to chaos. I sighed, silently wishing I could sneak off and hide in my room. With Caden …
Bishop caught my eye then. He smiled and winked, holding the bottle in front of him in an offering gesture. “Wash away your worries with me.”
I stood frozen to the ground, unsure of what to do, unwilling to leave Caden’s side but afraid to continue rejecting Bishop’s efforts. When raw pain flashed across Bishop’s face, I realized I had waited too long. My waffling was tearing him apart. I felt a gentle nudge on the small of my back—Caden’s hand prodding me forward—and I knew I had no choice. Forcing a smile onto my face, I stiffly walked over to Bishop.
“Looks like you’re not going to kill me just yet,” he whispered softly, holding his arm out.
“I’m not.” I hooked my arm within his, assuming that’s what I was supposed to do. It felt strange. It felt awkward. It felt all kinds of wrong, all the more so with Caden standing behind me. Casually tossing my hair over my shoulder, I stole a peek at Caden. Nothing but stone on that beautiful face of his. Nothing to give away his thoughts. I needed to be strong like that. For Bishop, for Caden, for me. With a deep inhale, I turned back with a giant smile for Bishop’s benefit.
“Let’s blow this popsicle stand!” he joked, towing me out of the glass room and into calmer territory. I knew that with each step forward, I was moving deeper into the charade, deeper into the deception, deeper into the world that I was not made for and yet was being molded to. Lies, treachery, false relationships. I wasn’t a victim of it anymore. I was now a contributor, a key contributor, some may argue. I didn’t think it possible and yet I could feel my intestines tighten into stronger knots.
Suddenly, the sight of that bottle in Bishop’s hand, the urge to drown my worries, overpowered me. I yanked it from his grasp.
“Whoa, there, little one,” Bishop laughed. I answered by bringing the bottle to my lips and tilting it back. Sickly sweet syrup poured down my throat, its flavor so potent that I cringed. I forced it down and took another long draw for good measure, impatiently waiting for the numbness to take hold.
“No one’s going to let you step foot off this property but we can at least go for a walk around here, okay?” Bishop asked. With a tiny noise of approval, I checked behind me and started with relief when I saw both Max and Caden shadowing us. I thanked them with a smile. In my peripheral vision, I saw Julian and Amelie trailing behind, arm in arm. My smile grew bigger. They were my friends. They wouldn’t make me go through this alone. We would face this together.
The six of us sauntered down the empty halls. “You’re still acting weird, Evie,” Bishop whispered, worry dampening the joy in his eyes. Unsure of how to deny it, I said nothing, biding my time with another long gulp of port. Bishop seemed more concerned about me falling out of love with him than about me turning into a yellow-eyed demon that would kill him. It just went to show how important it was to keep up pretenses.
“Don’t worry, Evie … I’ll give you your space, like you asked.” Bishop stared ahead but when I turned to peer at him, I caught the trademark grin. “That is, unless you come on to me.”
Burgundy liquid shot out of my mouth and nose as I choked, splashing the pristine white walls. My cheeks skipped hot and went straight to “on fire.” I instantly knew what he was referring to. That first night with Caden, after he had professed his true feelings for me, he had teased me, saying that I had attacked him. Damn those Fates for plucking the most intimate of personal moments and perverting them.
Bishop buckled over, laughing. “Nice art, Evie. Sofie’s gonna love that.” With the quickest peck on my cheek, he took off ahead of us, grabbing a mask off a suit of armor and placing it on his head. He raced down the hall, filling the air with maniacal laughter.
“Was he always this crazy?” Amelie giggled as I wiped some of the port off my chin.
Crazy. That’s a good word, Max echoed. I said nothing, hugging the bottle to my chest, its warm burn now trickling through my body, reaching out like tentacles to dissolve my worries. I could get used to this feeling. Then I could add alcoholism to my list of issues. Fantastic …
Caden sidled up behind me—not too close—and ushered me on with a gentle squeeze of my hip, sending lightning bolts of yearning through me. I so desperately wanted to turn and throw myself into his chest but I couldn’t. It was too risky to this whole twisted illusion. I couldn’t let Bishop know who really owned my heart. So I simply soaked up his eyes. Pure torture …
We continued down the hall in silence, passing by the panoramic view of the courtyard, all of us lost in our own thoughts and worries. Rounding the corner, I walked smack into a waiting, grinning Bishop, his mask pushed to sit on top of his head, a fresh bottle of port in his hands.
This spot … again. That same eerie familiarity from before set my hair on end, just as it had the first night. In this exact spot. This couldn’t be mere coincidence … I felt my brow furrow deeply—focusing was becoming a bother, thanks to the port—as I studied our surroundings, looking for clues. The pictures, the statues, the lights, the floor, the door …
The door?
I blinked repeatedly and then squinted. Yup. It was still there. A single red door behind Bishop. “That door wasn’t there before.” I stepped closer to it.
“What door, Evie?” Bishop asked slowly, as if speaking to a child who insisted there were monsters under her bed.
“This door!” I exclaimed, pointing to it matter-of-factly. His head moved from me to the door to me again, a weird quirk bending his brow.
“Maybe you should slow down on the booze … port doesn’t normally make people hallucinate.”
Hallucinate? No … I frowned. There was no way. My free hand flew out ahead of me, gesturing angrily at the door that could not possibly be missed. “The red door. It’s right here!” Still, Bishop’s expression didn’t change. Looking to the others, I saw the same concerned expressions.
“Bishop’s right about laying off the port for a bit, Eve,” Julian echoed.
“I’m fine!” I snapped. “I’m not seeing things. It’s right here!” I looked back to where my hand was pointing, my finger only inches away from the red paint. Sure enough, it was still there. A bright red door with a brass door handle that hadn’t been there before. I was sure of it. Are they playing a joke on me? I reached forward, my hand feeling the smooth metal handle. “See?”
“No, we don’t see, Evie. Quit it! You’re starting to freak me out!” Bishop said.
A door that no one but me could see … this involved magic.
It had to be Sofie’s work, and the fact that I could see it had to do with the Tribe’s magic. I was undoing her magic again. I could see beyond whatever spell she had cast.
But what could Sofie be hiding behind a secret door in Nathan’s chateau that she didn’t want anyone to know about? What would happen if I dared venture past … could I even? What would be waiting beyond it? Visions of a three-headed serpent in a dark pit flashed into my head. My curiosity quickly pushed it away, unwilling to believe Sofie would have need for such an abomination, desperate to know exactly what she did have need for.
Before I could change my mind, my hand molded over the doorknob, sending prickles through my spine. I turned the knob and heard the click of the door catch releasing.
“Oh my …” Amelie gasped as I stepped across the threshold. There were no dark gray concrete walls and cell bars, no pit, nor were there chains holding back a three-headed demon. It was someone’s living quarters. Normal living quarters, a little on the luxurious side. Rich brown and gray textures and colors called this out as a masculine residence. The only odd thing about the entire space was the lack of windows. A hall stretched off the opposite side of the room. Maybe there were windows down there.
Bishop accidently stepped on my heels as he followed me in. I barely noticed. “Are you seeing this?”
“Yep …” he answered, dumbfounded.
“Told you there was a door,” I added with smug satisfaction.
A subtle breeze behind me, followed by a light pinch of my elbow, warned me that Caden had entered. He surveyed the area. “Maybe we shouldn’t be in here.”
Max’s long snout appeared in my periphery. “Who’s Sofie hiding in here, Max?” I demanded to know.
I have no idea.
“Right. Since when don’t you have the 4-1-1 on everything?” I gave him a doubtful glare. “You’re lying.”
I swear it! I’m as baffled as you. His nostrils flared. Looks like it’s empty. Whatever was here smells like it died long ago.
“That makes no sense. Why would Sofie be hiding an empty room? And why the lit fire?” Above the mantle hung a painting of Sofie in the arms of a handsome dark-haired man. There was only one man it could be. “Is that Nathan?” I asked.
Yup. They made a nice couple, didn’t they?
“Yeah.” I wandered forward, Caden and Bishop in tow. Running a finger along a stack of magazines, I pulled it back and found a thick layer of dust coating my skin. The couch cushion had a worn spot in the center, as if someone had sat there for so long that his or her body imprinted into it. Someone had certainly lived here at some point.
“Who are you?” a voice suddenly called out, startling everyone, including Caden. I whipped my head around to find a man standing in the doorway of the hallway. I gasped.
It was the same face from the painting.