Chapter One – Evangeline
“Why do you keep staring at me like that?” Why was everyone staring at me like that?
Caden’s feet stalled as he regarded me for an intense moment, the silent internal argument visible behind his jade eyes. A large, feathery snowflake landed on the furrow between his brows, holding its unique design for only a second. More snow fell from the cover of clouds above to join the thick white blanket already on the ground. “No reason,” he finally said. “You just … look different.”
“Isn’t that what happens?” I asked with apprehension. I certainly saw the difference in Veronique and Julian the second I woke up, imperfections I hadn’t noticed before smoothed over. By the lingering gazes of Caden, Sofie, and the others, I knew they weren’t the only ones. I had also gone through a visible transformation, becoming an immortal. But exactly how different, that remained the question. Given the cement mine was full of nothing but old tracks and broken wood, it would be a while before I found a mirror to see for myself.
“Yeah, it’s just …” He paused, his eyes roaming my face. “It’s nothing.”
A spark of panic ignited. “It’s obviously not nothing, Caden. Is it bad?” Reaching up, my fingers grazed over my nose, my cheeks, my mouth. They felt slightly off as compared to the face I’d known for eighteen years—the ridge on my nose more flush, my top lip fuller—but they were all still there.
So, what could it be? Did the Fates curse me with pointed ears? Horns?
“What are you doing?” Caden’s eyes trailed my hands with a mixture of amusement and curiosity as I sized up my features.
“Nothing,” I mumbled, laughing at myself.
Caden roped his arm around my waist. We picked our way through the snowy path, my eyes scanning the woods, taking in the snowy graveyard of rusted tools and dilapidated wooden sheds. We were less than two hours away from a bustling metropolis, but one would never know it, the quiet almost eerie.
“This reminds me of Ratheus,” I murmured.
“There was no snow in the jungle, Eve.” Caden’s arm tightened around me, though not to provide warmth, even in the frigid December temperatures.
Because I would never be cold again.
Even as the thought circulated through my head, as I experienced the reality of it, trekking through two feet of snow in nothing but a light knit shirt, it still didn’t register.
“I meant this decaying state,” I countered. This cement mine had long since been abandoned. Now time was challenging it, leaving rubble in its wake. According to Sofie, it made the perfect “safe house” for us. “Do you think this is really necessary? Wouldn’t it make more sense to be in New York City right now?”
“Not until we have a good grasp of where the witches are, where Jonah is. Where Viggo is.” Caden’s teeth cracked with that name, his hatred for the ancient psychopath only amplified after witnessing Viggo break my neck. “No one will expect us to be holed up in a place like this. It’s exactly what we need right now. Besides, I have a feeling we’ll be back in the city before long.” He paused, hesitating. “Evangeline, about that …”
Caden’s mouth twisted. “We should make good use of the time that we have here.” I had the distinct impression that he wanted to say something else, but his mouth suddenly pressed against mine in a hard kiss. And, just as suddenly, he took off, his lean, strong body carving soundlessly through snow banks and brambles.
With barely a thought, I chased after him, my new muscles flexing as I sailed through the snow, my eyes and reflexes working in tandem to avoid tree trunks and bushes. I didn’t see how I would ever get over the thrill.
I closed the distance in time to watch Caden scale a vertical wall of rock, some thirty feet tall. A row of arched openings lined the bottom, blocked off by iron gates, likely to keep the less cautious trespasser from climbing in. He perched himself on the edge, legs dangling over the top. Even from down here, the bluish-green of his eyes sparkled like jewels buried in snow.
“Are you gonna leave me up here alone?”
“You make that look so easy.” I surveyed the wall again. The far right side had already collapsed into a heap at one point. Holes mottled the surface where chunks of stone had tumbled down.
“It is that easy.” He leaned forward, a hand beckoning me, a sly smile on his face as three more hunks thudded to the ground. “Come on. It’s a nice view.”
My new sinewy muscles propelled me upward so fast that the stone didn’t have a chance to crumble beneath my weight. In seconds I was next to Caden, his arm slung over my shoulder while we gazed out over the quiet valley and the streak of pink across the dusking sky.
“You’re right. It is a nice view.”
I couldn’t believe it. It was only months ago that I’d stumbled over that fancy urn of Sofie’s back in Portland, Maine, and onto a roller coaster that seemed to threaten my life every day since. It wasn’t over. It was far from over. But, finally, I sat next to Caden, knowing that my mortality was no longer a barrier for us.
“So …” One of his fingers tucked a strand of blond hair behind my ear. “How are you feeling?”
I didn’t know how to answer that question. “Completely uneven, though my balance is better than ever,” I admitted. How long would it take to get used to the new me? Would I ever? Drawing breaths out of habit rather than necessity? The air still pulled in and out of my lungs, though I no longer needed it to survive. If I made a conscious effort to stop the repetitive act, no pressure built in my chest, no dizziness threatened my consciousness.
I would never grow old or die by natural means. My face, my hair, my body would never change. Not again anyway.
“Is it a good feeling?” Caden’s fingers clasped my hand, his thumb rubbing over the meaty part of my palm. I closed my eyes and tipped my head back, reveling in the sensation, like an all-consuming itch finally scratched. Since waking, the urge to be in constant physical contact with Caden had been almost overwhelming. It was as if my skin had been stripped back, exposing every nerve ending. Only it didn’t hurt.
Far from it.
It was a euphoria I’d never experienced and I couldn’t get enough.
Cracking an eyelid to peek at him, I caught a smirk that told me he could sense my reaction to his touch, though I knew that’s not what his question referred to. “I don’t know. How am I supposed to feel?” My new life had begun mere hours ago, when I woke on a dank dirt floor to a world of possibilities. And unpleasant anticipation. “I guess I’m just … waiting for the inevitable.” For the uncontrollable urge to kill to hit me.
Despite other distractions competing for my attention, that anxiety lingered like a vicious thorn. Sofie promised me that it was only a matter of time until the first human crossed my path and tested my control. And she also promised me that I would have none.
I dreaded that.
I desperately wanted to skip over that part. Heck, I wanted to not need any blood to survive at all. I wanted to be immune to it.
But nothing I wanted had ever come easy so there was no reason to believe it would be different now.
“Yeah, so am I,” Caden whispered under his breath, a hint of wariness in his tenor. He followed it quickly with, “But how do you feel?”
How did I describe this? “Alive? I guess? Like I’m bursting with energy? Like I could run forever.” This strange bubble of something had taken up residence in the pit of my stomach. A ball of energy or thrill or eagerness. Or all three. I didn’t know what it was exactly but I was keenly aware of its presence, almost a tangible force inside, ready to explode. Perhaps that was the impending hunger?
I turned to study Caden’s sculpted features, as mesmerizing as they were the first time I laid eyes on them. “Is that how you felt when you transformed?”
Scratching the back of his neck, Caden admitted, “Honestly, the first few days after were a fog. Almost like a trance. It wasn’t until I broke free of it that I was even aware of what had happened or what I might have been like.” Caden shook his head. “You haven’t seen a fledgling before, Evangeline. I’m sorry to tell you this, but once you smell human blood, it’s not going to be pretty.”
“But I have seen a fledgling, remember?” I tempered my tone. “When I first brought you back from Ratheus?” When Caden lunged for me. When he almost killed me.
Caden’s head dipped. Leaning in, I eased the bitter memory with a light kiss against his cheek.
“Yeah, that was bad,” he agreed solemnly. His face ducked in to steal a quick kiss. He sat upright with a deep inhale. “But it wasn’t nearly as bad as what a true fledgling is like. Trust me on that.”
My internal dread only blossomed with his words. “What do you mean exactly?” Because that was pretty bad; I had nightmares for weeks after. Was there more to this than anyone had warned me about? “What should I expect? Tell me everything. Maybe it’ll help.”
“It won’t.” He twisted his mouth, as if choosing his word carefully. “You remember that night in France, after the attack, when Bishop’s head was all messed up from that spell, and then we found Nathan …”
Of course I remembered. Finding out that one of my best friend’s memories had been corrupted by the Fates to the point where he was sure we were a couple was bad enough; then I discovered that I basically had Death as a bodyguard. What a nightmare.
“… and you got drunk?”
He chuckled softly with my groan.
“Well, it’s kind of like that night. You’re aware but not really, your inhibitions gone. You will do anything for blood. You’re like an addict. You’ll barely acknowledge me.”
“So, I’ll be stumbling and slurring and ignoring you for a few days?” I expected worse.
“Not exactly.” He sighed and then added in a mumble, “You’ll find out soon enough.” His attention drifted to something in the distance. “Do you hear that? Over there.” He let go of my hand to stretch his arm ahead and to the east, toward a distant ridge some two hundred yards away.
My ears immediately perked up, listening intently. And then I heard it. “Crunching?”
“Yeah.” Caden studied me as his arm relaxed its grip. “Feet, breaking through the snow.”
A slight grimace creased my brow as I waited, curious. A loud crack sounded, a branch snapping under pressure. Heavy feet.
“It’s a black bear. I’ll bet there are a few around these parts.”
Bear? I felt my eyes widen. “Should we be worried?”
Caden snorted and then frowned at me. He paused, still watching me keenly. “Can you sense anything else?”
Obviously I was supposed to. Tightening my face with concentration, I leaned in and listened harder, struggling to quiet that voice in my head that struggled to remember what the rules were for black bears: Play dead, or run? And how fast were bears? Could I outrun it?
And was asking that question normal, or was it a residual of my former human self, lingering as I adapted to the new me?
There.
I heard it.
A faint rhythmic throb. “A heartbeat,” I whispered, in awe.
With each passing second, the heartbeat grew louder, stronger, until I could feel it pounding in my throat. I had to swallow.
“And …?”
And? “What?” I pressed, just as a light gust blew by, carrying with it a strange, sweet scent my nostrils flared to absorb.
I heard the pull of air through Caden’s mouth as he inhaled sharply. An inhale of expectation, perhaps. Seconds later, the air pushed out and he mumbled, “Weird,” under his breath.
Alarms bells rang in my head. “Weird … why?” There wasn’t supposed to be any more “weird” and “huh” and “I wonder what that means?” comments as it related to how I may be impacted by someone’s magic. Between the curse that Sofie had inadvertently placed on me at birth, and the toxic magic coursing through my veins thanks to the Death Tribe, every day up until now had brought some new surprise, some new terror. I’d had enough of “weird.”
This was supposed to be standard.
As standard as being a vampire was, anyway.
“Shit.” Caden pushed a hand through his golden brown hair, sending it into appealing disarray. “Relax. It’s nothing, just …” A mixture of disappointment and worry lingered in his expression, telling me that it was not nothing. “You should have gone after that, Evie.”
Had I just failed a test? “But, it’s not human.”
His gaze shifted out to the tree line. “I know, but an animal that large should have had you running for it. The chase is half the fun.”
I had failed a test. Maybe a big one. Then again, I’d rather be sitting here with Caden than chasing wild animals through the woods. Still, the fact that Caden seemed upset bothered me.
Pulling me into his chest, he wrapped his arm around my shoulder. “You’re still in shock. That’s all it is.” I had the feeling his convincing words weren’t meant for me.
“Yeah, maybe. There’s so much going on right now, I don’t know what to focus on: the new me, the chaos in New York …” I let the fear linger in solemn silence as I rested my head on his shoulder.
The end of the human world.
“It’s actually happening, isn’t it?”
“Sounds like it,” Caden whispered. “I didn’t have the pleasure of seeing the beginning. Amelie and I lived on a ranch in the middle of the country. By the time the chaos reached us, it was already out of control.” He sighed. “I’m so sorry. If we hadn’t come here, then—”
“It would’ve happened eventually,” I interrupted his attempts to lay blame on himself, though I knew the guilt sat heavily on his shoulders. It also sat heavily on mine. “You heard Sofie and Veronique. The witches had been planning this for months. We’d be no better off, had you not come.” That wasn’t entirely true. Veronique would still be in her marble tomb, there’d be no fledglings running around, ravishing the city. Viggo would not be on a rampage. I didn’t need to highlight any of that.
Curling into his comfort, I added, “And I’d just be alone. Or dead.” Selfish, yes, but after all I’d been through, I needed to be selfish, even for just a little while. That meant blocking out worries of my impending blood-crazed state and the end of world, because apparently the Fates had already decided how that would play out. That meant focusing on the here and now.
“Do you regret coming? Having to go through all this again? Everything you were looking forward to is going to be gone. You’ll be back in ratty clothes and living in a cave soon enough.”
Caden smirked. “I never cared about any of that. I would’ve stayed in that hellhole for eternity as long as it meant you were staying with me.”
“I guess you’re going to get your wish because this will be a hellhole soon enough.”
Caden lifted my chin, meeting my eyes, and whispered, “Can we not talk about that for now?”
I nodded. Leaning in, I let my lips settle slightly parted against his jawline, inhaling the scent of his skin, a thousand times more intoxicating than any scents or thrill of pursuits. If anything could make me lose control, it was the guy sitting next to me.
His muscles shifted beneath my mouth. “Is my shirt going to survive this?” The laughter in his tone was unmistakable as he stretched the front of his black shirt to highlight the eight long gashes, courtesy of my razor-sharp fingernails and overzealous urge in the moments after waking. “See? I’m already in ratty clothes,” he joked.
“That was an accident,” I murmured, adding a quiet, “Shut up.” The teasing should’ve turned me scarlet—it always had—but I felt no heat in my cheeks. I grinned. “Hey! I won’t blush anymore!”
Caden pushed me back into the snow, fluffy snowflakes landing and melting on my new thick, long eyelashes. I sensed the dampness and chill beneath me, as well as the instability of the wall itself, but none of it challenged my comfort. His bottom lip brushed against one eye and then the other to catch the flakes before pressing his forehead against mine, his arms settling on either side of my head.
“I’m going to miss that,” he admitted with a hint of sadness, grazing my cheek with the backs of his fingers. “I’m going to miss all of your little human tendencies.”
The smile slid off my face as that reality settled in. Caden had fallen in love with the human version of Evangeline Watts, with her naiveté, her insecurity, her honesty. I wasn’t human anymore. Would that change his feelings for me? Would he decide that I’d changed too much?
He must’ve sensed my worry because he quickly settled his mouth over mine in a slow, deep kiss. “But I’ve got so many other things to look forward to.” He rolled against me, settling into the space between my thighs. I wanted to be closer, though. As close as we were back in France. He shifted into me as my legs coiled around his hips. The sound of rocks tumbling to the ground below barely registered, my focus riveted solely on this creature hovering over me as he pulled my shirt up and over my head.
*
“How was the hunt?” Sofie’s Parisian lilt carried through the forest as she approached the kiln. I shouldn’t be able to see her in the darkness but I could, as if it were daylight, her deceptively delicate frame cloaked in a long, black coat, her red hair a flame against the white backdrop. Max peered up at us, his three hundred pounds of black canine muscle enough to terrify any sane person.
That’s right. Hunting. That’s what we were supposed to be doing for the last few hours. Caden and I shared a look. What would Sofie say when she found out that I hadn’t so much as batted an eye at the black bear, or the two deer that followed? I could blame Caden for distracting me. That would only work for so long, though. As soon as the delivery from the blood bank run arrived, my irregularity would be obvious to anyone watching.
Or maybe my natural urges would suddenly kick in and all this worrying was for nothing. I had to count on that.
“Fine,” Caden lied for me. “How are plans coming along?”
I sensed the atmosphere around us shift in a way I never could as a human, the prickles spiking along my neck as if a presence had invaded the short peace we’d found. “That’s why I came out. Things are escalating faster than we’d anticipated. It’s time to come back inside.”
Her last words hadn’t escaped her lips when Caden’s arm suddenly roped around my waist, surprising me. We flew off the top of the kiln and sailed through the air, landing softly in front of Sofie and Max. Despite the somber mood, I smiled at the grace in which my kind could do that.
Sofie spun on her heels and started back toward the mine.
“When are we heading back to New York?” I asked.
She looked over her shoulder, holding me with her pale mint-green eyes for a long moment, before shifting to Caden. “Tonight.”
Caden tightened his grip on my hand as we pushed through the snow.
So … Why’d you lie to Sofie about the hunting? Max’s deep voice rumbled within my head, interrupting my ability to follow along with external conversation.
“I didn’t,” I answered warily. How did he know?
Now you’re going to lie to me?
“Who says I am?” It was the one-sided conversation of a crazy woman to anyone on the outside, and I was thankful for it. I was so happy that I’d retained ranks of “master” over Max, that I hadn’t lost my ability to communicate with the werebeast. His friendship had preserved my sanity. It would’ve been devastating to lose our special telepathic connection. And, right now, this wasn’t a conversation I wanted Sofie to hear.
Remington. He was out hunting. He said you two didn’t leave the top of that kiln for hours.
“It was quiet.”
Except for the giant bear and two deer.
Of course. One of Max’s brothers was always on a hunt. Those four beasts were chronically hungry and ready to kill.
“I was saving them for you,” I retorted, checking to see that Sofie and Caden were still deep in their own conversation.
You scared them all away, with all that noise you two were making.
Oh my God. This was another moment I’d be as purple as a beet, if capable. “Why would I do that? You’re dreadfully grouchy when you’re hungry.”
He harrumphed but said nothing else as we passed over the ridge, the entrance to the mines within sight.
*
A flurry of harsh words and threatening tones swirled from the tunnel as we trailed Sofie back into the mine, the entrance a forty-five degree slant with a low overhang. There were no lights, no fires—nothing to illuminate the cavernous space—and yet with this new eyesight, I could easily distinguish every form, every face, every scowl.
As usual, Mortimer’s was the most ominous. “We need to stop this now!” His demand ricocheted off the chiseled stone walls.
“She’s overreacting,” Galen said with a sideways glare toward Mage.
“Overreacting?” Several quick steps brought Mortimer and Galen facing off with a mere foot of space between, their stances confrontational. Except for their looming size, they couldn’t look any more different—Mortimer, dark-haired and dressed in a tailored suit, Galen with a blond brush-cut and military fatigues. Mortimer’s arm shot out, his finger pointing at me. Past me, in the direction of the mine opening. “If this continues, the city will be lost within days.”
“Not likely,” Galen argued. “Jonah is the only one with enough control to breed and how many new fledglings can he create in a day? So … a few thousand are killed.” Galen shrugged but he didn’t back down. “We go in, we rid the city of him and his little army. It’s hardly cause for talk of hydrogen bombs.”
My eyes widened. They’re considering nuclear warfare already? Not even forty-eight hours had passed since the slaughter at Viggo and Mortimer’s Fifth Avenue building!
Galen continued, “Besides, fledglings aren’t causing this mess. They’re not nearly controlled enough. That psychopathic friend of yours is. If we should be hunting anyone, it’s him.”
“We have never been friends,” Mortimer spat back, but then paused to dip his head, tempering his manner in the act. “But I agree. He must be stopped.” I could only guess that they were talking about Viggo.
“What has he done now?” Caden called out.
Several heads turned to regard us. “You mean besides rampant murder and pillaging?” Galen answered.
I already knew about that. Unfortunately. Apparently, Viggo hadn’t wasted any time. Soon after he learned of Veronique’s release from the statue and that she had chosen Mortimer, he left a trail of bodies throughout Manhattan, terrorizing the city. News reports talked of a Christmas serial killer.
“Two hours ago, he walked into a press conference with national coverage and murdered the city’s mayor on live television,” Sofie explained.
Oh.
Caden pulled me against him as voices rose again, clamoring to be heard. Lilly’s rancorous council member, Kait, screamed something about being trigger happy; Mortimer bellowed about being na?ve fools. Even little Lilly, who normally remained composed, counted issues on her fingers. Only Mage and Sofie stood silent, watching the fury unfold.
“I thought they had a plan in place,” I whispered to Caden.
He offered me a guarded smile. “I guess they’re ironing out a few details.”
And yet we already seem to be at war, Max grumbled from his place beside me.
“Where is everyone else?” My eyes roamed the mine. It reminded me much of the caves of Ratheus. Only these were manmade and not as picturesque. Also, I assumed there was no oasis to swim in.
“Bishop and Fiona are on their way back from a blood bank,” Sofie said quietly, her eyes never leaving the commotion ahead of us, the displeasure over the entire scene visible on her striking face. “The wolves are forming a perimeter. Isaac and the others are scouting in New York.” I knew of Lilly’s other advisors besides Galen and Kait—three vampires who looked like they belonged in the military—but aside from a handful of moments, I hadn’t seen much of them. “Amelie is with Veronique and Julian in the haulage tunnel, feeding. You should take her there, Caden.”
Mage remained calm and unreadable, her slight form so still, she appeared frozen. That is, until her black, almond-shaped eyes shifted to Sofie. I saw fire in them. A silent exchange passed between the two women—the strangest of friends.
And then Mage exploded.
“Enough!” The trill of her voice caused a sharp pain in my eardrum. Silence fell as everyone turned to her, the most lethal being in the room. More lethal than Sofie armed with all of her magic, perhaps.
“Allow me to explain, seeing as you’ve never watched the demise of a human world before.” Mage stepped forward, though her normally smooth cadence was now laced with sharpness. She smoothed her long, poker-straight, jet-black tresses. Such a feminine thing to do and such a contradiction to the discussion at hand. “Jonah started building his little army weeks ago, the second he escaped. I’m sure he was stupid enough to think he could control it. Regardless of whether he continues creating more—and I would hope that he doesn’t, given he knows what the risk is—I would bet my existence that there are at least a hundred of our kind running through the streets already.”
“A hundred against a population of over eight million. Yes, I see the need to obliterate the entire city,” Galen interjected. How Lilly kept him around as her advisor—and, truly, like family—I had yet to figure out. I certainly hadn’t found a single redeeming quality in him, aside from his devotion to Lilly.
“With an endless supply of humans,” Mage continued, ignoring Galen’s doubt, “they will feed and kill with crazed abandon. Though we haven’t seen more than a few fledgling attacks to date, it will certainly come. And it will come quickly. The mere chaos will feed into their frenzy.”
“So we go and kill them. They’re fledglings! Ripe for the plucking!” Kait exclaimed, her arms raised in exasperation.
I felt the air in the room shift as a muscle in Mage’s jaw twitched, her patience wearing thin. Though I had yet to witness it, Caden had explained the speed and ruthlessness in which Mage was known to dispatch those in her way. If we didn’t need Galen and Kait, their hearts would likely have been torn from their chests by now.
“The army, infiltrated with People’s Sentinel, will be called in to take aggressive defensive measures shortly.” Mage’s severe brow arched as she took in the circle. “They will fight with guns that shoot explosive bullets because, thanks to the Sentinel, they are already well educated that they can kill us with fire. That’s when the fledglings will sense the true threat.” A delicate hand raised, two fingers held up. “And that’s when two things will happen: the fledglings will flee. Like vermin, they will scurry to safety. And, then … they will begin to evolve. Much more quickly than anything you’ve ever seen.” Mage’s every step was followed as she began to pace. “They will stop solely feeding and they will begin to breed.”
“Seven hundred years has skewed your reality,” Galen cut in. “Fledglings don’t evolve that rapidly. Go and take a look at those two back there to remind yourself.” He jutted a thumb deeper into the mine, piquing my interest. Was he talking about Julian and Veronique?
Mage moved so fast that, even with my new reflexes, I missed her close the distance. The next thing I saw was Galen on his knees, a gurgled cry escaping his gaping, bloody mouth as Mage tossed what appeared to be his tongue onto the ground.
I involuntarily curled my tongue, stealing a look Lilly’s way to see her watching with wide eyes. The entire ordeal lasted no more than three seconds, and then Galen was back on his feet, wiping the blood off his chin with his sleeve, his tongue having reformed itself in his mouth.
His vicious glares didn’t stop Mage from continuing. “It’s a natural reaction for our kind when faced with a real threat to strengthen in numbers, to preserve the species. It’s instinctual. Even you, who are impotent, must understand.” Only the slightest of smiles divulged Mage’s pleasure with the barb against those in the room incapable of transforming humans.
Galen sniffed with disdain but said nothing. I assumed he’d learned his lesson.
Her comment sparked another question—I had so many questions, it was hard to focus on what was being said here—was I impotent? Or was my venom intact? Did I even have venom? I slid my tongue along my incisors, imagining myself sinking my teeth into someone. I winced. No, that didn’t appeal to me at all.
Mage turned her back to us, her eyes now on the night beyond the entrance to the mine. “For every five humans killed, one new vampire will be born. It will quickly be two to one. The world is already watching New York. There are already countless reports of vicious animal-like attacks. Pictures and videos of Viggo and Bishop slaughtering the Sentinel are already floating around the Internet.” If only the witches hadn’t taken down the illusionary wall, then such obvious proof wouldn’t exist! “Today, people don’t believe what they’re seeing and hearing. They think it’s a hoax. Doctored images. By tomorrow, people will begin to panic, asking themselves if this is a virus turning people into savages, wondering when it will spread to their cities, to their homes. In mere days, worldwide pandemonium will erupt, just as our kind establishes itself for a countrywide sweep. Once that happens, it cannot be contained.
“If we wait, we will not be able to stop this. If we do not take drastic measures, we will not be able to stop this. I have seen it. I have lived it, firsthand. I know. And, as much as I wish I would be wrong in this, I have not been so far.” She paused. “It’s the city or the entire world. There will be no in-between.”
No one uttered a single word.
I leaned in to Caden for comfort. This all sounded both drastic and impossible. But if these last few months had proven anything to me, it was that nothing was impossible.
Turning to Sofie, Mage pushed, “It is your call. Do we act now or wait?”
Sofie’s pale eyes locked on a spot on the wall, her face its natural stony mask as she pondered the grim options. Like soldiers waiting for direction, no one said a word, the entire group waiting on Sofie to give the order.
Did she like being the leader in all this? Back when she was more focused on the urgent need of freeing her sister, she’d demanded everyone’s allegiance—binding promises of loyalty. Only a week ago, everyone here was at odds with everyone else, ready to attack and kill at the slightest provocation. Would those allegiances hold tight, with what was to come?
That allegiance certainly hadn’t kept one vampire from betraying Sofie. The vampire who, in his seething hatred for me after discovering I’d hidden Veronique’s dire situation at the hands of the witches, had killed me. If not for Sofie’s deal with the Fates, I would not have come back.
“What will we do about Viggo?” I said, pulling every eye to me, that same mix of curiosity and wariness in them that I’d seen since waking up.
“Good question,” Mortimer said. “We know that he is out there and he will not go quietly.”
“He thinks Evangeline’s dead. Let’s keep it that way,” Sofie spat.
But Mortimer argued anyway. “You think his need for revenge has stopped at her? You know him as well as I do. He will hunt each and every one of us, one by one.”
“So let him come,” Galen retorted. “I’ll be ready.” From what Lilly had told me, Galen was their tactical expert. While other immortals, Viggo and Mortimer included, had enjoyed lavish homes and private jets, Galen prided himself in infiltrating various high-level military groups to learn what he could about weapons systems and classified capabilities. He had the knowledge and means to get us into almost any human defense system.
A mirthless smile touched Mortimer’s lips. Those two would never get along. “And will you be able to defend both yourself and Celine at the same time? Because hurting her to destroy you will be Viggo’s end goal.” Near-black eyes swept over the group. “All of you would do well to remember that. I, for one, am terrified. There is a maniac somewhere out there with a hit list and all of our names are on it. The love of my life is on the top of it. Viggo will not think twice about killing Veronique for revenge.” He cleared his throat twice, one of Mortimer’s few tells that his emotions were getting the better of him. “I have half a mind to take her and run to the most remote spot in the world to live my life in peace.”
“I am well aware that we have not seen the last of Viggo. I will deal with him when the time comes. Quickly and without mercy,” Sofie snapped. “Let’s focus our efforts on the real issue at hand.”
From the corner of my eye, I caught Lilly’s lips purse. There was a long list of people who wanted to deliver Viggo’s death to him. Sofie, for a hundred and twenty years of misery. Lilly, for the murder of her mother and theft of her ashes.
And me, for my mother’s murder.
But Sofie was right. Stopping the fledglings was probably more critical than exacting revenge on Viggo right now.
Mortimer’s long finger jabbed the air. “Fine, but if there is so much as a hint of him, I am taking Veronique and I am leaving. Understood?”
Sofie blinked once. I supposed that was the only answer she’d give.
I heard a faint clank of metal behind me and my head instinctively whipped around, timed perfectly with Caden’s. I smiled. Finally, we were in the same league.
The two figures standing side by side at the mine entrance widened my smile. Not because their arms were laden with metal coolers from their blood bank run, but because these were two friends who I’d previously lost and who’d since been returned to me.
Though the Fates had saved me at the hour of my human death, Fiona had been left in a charred heap in Viggo and Mortimer’s Fifth Avenue palace after the first sorceress attack. It was only because of Sofie’s deal with the Fates that my friend was now watching me through those mesmerizing violet eyes.
“Everyone’s out. Every last blood bank in New York City has been tapped,” Bishop announced, his muscular arms bulging through his light T-shirt as he held the metal cooler in the air. Fiona held an identical cooler. “We’re better off hitting up the hospitals outside of the city. Their supply is pathetic, but it’s better than nothing.”
Bishop winked at me as they passed, already having forgiven me for my part in the deception back in Paris. Thank God all those perverse delusions had been wiped out of his head the moment the spell had been broken. I had yet to ask him if he’d told Fiona. I worried what she might do when she found out that her very attractive eternal boyfriend had kissed me and had wanted to do a lot more. Would it damage our friendship?
Another problem not worth worrying about right now.
My ears picked up on a strange and very irregular heartbeat behind me. Spinning around, I saw Kiril standing in the entranceway in his human form. “Is that normal? His heart, I mean.”
“Yeah, all of them sound like that. It’s good. That way you won’t accidently bite them,” Caden said with a sly smile, “because they bite back.”
I watched the werewolf march past to stand behind Sofie.
“Someone is one step ahead of us with the blood,” Lilly mused. “The question is, who? The Sentinel? The witches? The fledglings certainly don’t need it.”
A second of worry flickered across Sofie’s face. “Please take that back to the haulage tunnel,” Sofie ordered Bishop and Fiona. “We have it set up with a small generator to keep the refrigeration working, should it last long enough. Evangeline,” she turned to me, “go with them.”
I nodded but stayed my feet as they passed by, my interest in the dire situation more compelling than a cooler of blood. If Sofie noticed, she was too preoccupied to say anything.
“Is nuclear warfare even an option?” Sofie asked.
“Galen, how long would it take for Isaac and the others to get into a missile control center?” Lilly asked quietly, her baby-blue eyes darting back to meet mine for a mere second. Sofie had alluded to Lilly’s stealthy connections in the past but it still baffled me how the little vampiress—a thirteen-year-old child to anyone who didn’t know better—and her group had ways to get into the most highly classified areas in the world.
Her military advisor didn’t miss a beat. “There’s a ballistics submarine a few hundred miles off the coast. It’s fully loaded. They can appropriate it within four hours.”
Four hours. We could blow up New York City in four hours.
A hiss from Caden had me glancing down to see that my nails were embedded in his forearm. “Sorry,” I mouthed, rubbing the wounds away until they healed.
Sofie paced. Though I couldn’t imagine her giving Lilly the go-ahead to destroy the entire city of New York, Mage was adamant, and Sofie seemed to trust Mage’s opinion.
“The Fates have the power to stop this at any time but they won’t. They want the human world to fall, they want their game to play out, so they can move on to the next world, the next source of entertainment.” Her lips furled with disdain. She had remained silent about her encounter with the Fates but, from the hardened glare every time they were mentioned, I quickly deduced that Sofie’s meeting was far more confrontational than mine.
“And they will get what they want, if we wait any longer, Sofie,” Mage reminded her.
Sofie’s deceivingly dainty hand pushed through her mane of wild red hair, the weight of this decision visibly wearing on her. I’d never seen her look so anxious. “Where are the witches?”
“There’s a faction in Boston but they’re harmless,” Lilly answered.
Kiril’s gruff voice filled the room, the words lost to me in his native tongue. They weren’t to Sofie, though. “Apparently not so harmless after all … The Witches Order boarded planes yesterday from London and St. Petersburg. They might cause additional problems.” I’d never heard of this “Witches Order” before but I assumed they were the more powerful ones. Sofie snapped her fingers at Kiril. “Send ten wolves down there and put a tail on them. I want to know what they’re up to at all times.”
The tall blond werewolf nodded curtly and marched away, his thumb already punching numbers on his cell phone.
Watching him disappear, Sofie’s jaw tightened with resolution. “We go in. We exterminate every single one of these fledglings. Burn their bodies and all evidence, without pause, without mercy.” Her nostrils flared. “And without worrying about collateral damage. They will still be traveling in packs. If we have not stopped the spread by sunrise …” She turned cold eyes on Lilly. “We eliminate the city.”
A rash of nerves fluttered inside my stomach. Was I ready for this?
Lilly nodded curtly. Though she had pledged her allegiance to me, I had in turn demanded she follow Sofie’s guidance as it related to this war.
I hoped Sofie knew what she was doing.
Sunrise couldn’t be more than twelve hours away.
“Let’s get ready. It’ll take at least an hour to get to the city on foot.” Everyone mobilized.
“Wait …” Kait and Galen stepped forward, exchanging hard glances. “There’s a matter of a deal,” Galen said.
“Oh, for God’s sake! We don’t have time for that,” Mortimer objected harshly.
“It takes seconds,” Galen insisted.
“And what will they feed on? We don’t have enough to feed five fledgl—”
Kait’s shrill screech drowned out Mortimer’s objections. “I’m not leaving here until I know Brian is safe!”
Brian?
Sofie’s eyes flickered to Mage, who shrugged and said, “A deal’s a deal.”
Sofie heaved a sigh. “Where are they?”
“At an inn, in town. Ten miles away. We didn’t want to bring them near with the fledglings,” Kait explained, throwing a look of disdain my way, as if I were leprous.
“Bring them here and Mage will do it. But you and Galen are coming with us and we are leaving immediately after.”
“And what? Leave them unguarded? No,” Galen argued.
“They will not be unguarded,” Sofie snapped. “But we cannot lose time waiting for their transformation. I need every able body.”
“We’ll come after they’ve transformed.”
“You will come immediately after and that is an order!”
I didn’t hear the rest of the argument as Caden led me in the direction that Bishop and Fiona had disappeared.
*
“Nothing at all? Still?” Caden yelled over the generator, its loud roar amplified by the long, narrow tunnel. Dark and dank, it smelled of cold earth and stale air. Far from comfortable.
Caden’s and Amelie’s intense gazes drilled into me. Waiting for my reaction. For my pupils to dilate, for the whites of my eyes to turn crimson, for the veins to throb.
For the eyes of a ravenous vampire to appear.
I shrugged, more concerned about what had happened to my friend and the delicate Veronique. The last time I saw them, upon awakening, there were smiles and an exchange of words and affectionate touches. Now the two sat hunched over their small coolers like coyotes over a corpse, their backs to me, empty medical bags tossed haphazardly to the ground. I couldn’t see their faces but I heard the small grunts and groans.
One word replayed in my head: feral.
It wasn’t a state I ever wanted to be seen in.
“I can smell it.” I inhaled as if to make my point. “It smells like …” Human blood certainly hadn’t had a scent before. Now, it smelled deliciously sweet. There was no mistaking a burning desire growing in the pit of my body. If I were human, perhaps it would inspire hunger pangs. “… like something I’d like.”
“Something you’d like?” Amelie’s springy blond curls bounced as she cocked her head, her emerald-green eyes dissecting me. Apparently there was something wrong with me, though I wasn’t too upset about it. In fact, if anything, I was relieved. Elated!
Then again, if I wasn’t a blood-crazed fiend by now, then what was I? Had the Fates found a way to perverse things yet again?
Amelie thrust a bag into my hands. She’d always been the exuberant one of the bunch. “Maybe you just need to taste it for the first time,” she said, her voice raspy, goading me like a puppy. “Go on … try it!”
Caden’s hand held mine. “Maybe we should talk to Sofie about your … differences first.”
My fingers gently squeezed the bag of red liquid. And then I looked at Veronique and Julian again. If I tried the blood, would I morph into a feral creature with the first taste? “How long will they be like that?”
Amelie’s eyes followed mine. “It should ease up after a few days, but …” Her face fell. “I miss him already.”
“They’ll be fine soon,” Caden said, his hand rubbing gently against the small of my back. “It’s a blink in our time, really.” I knew what he was really telling me. It’s not forever. I would be fine. Eventually.
I gritted my teeth with the thought of Caden seeing me with those eyes, the bag in my hand suddenly feeling like a lead weight. I’d be hideous. But, there was no point in stalling this any longer.
Shaking my head, I muttered, “Let’s not bug Sofie.” With everything else she had on her plate? She worried more than any biological mother ever could. “I want to get this over with.” My attention was on the red bag but I didn’t miss the sharp look between Caden and Amelie. I was probably the first reluctant fledgling in all of vampire history. I was probably also the first one to question how gross this might taste. “How do I open it?”
Amelie smirked. “Just bite it.”
“But I don’t—”
“Just bite it!”
Trusting my friend—a seven-hundred and fifty-odd-year-old vampire who knew more about this than I obviously did—I held the bag to my open mouth. With wary eyes on Caden, and a glib mumble of, “See you in a few days,” I sunk my teeth in, anticipating resistance.
My teeth sliced through the thick plastic and liquid burst out unexpectedly, rushing into my mouth, a small amount trickling down along my chin. Trying to stem the sudden flow, I took several long drags of the sweet liquid. It was like nothing I’d expected and nothing I could describe. It reminded me of a high-quality maple syrup, but without the sickly sugariness. I certainly couldn’t guzzle a bottle of maple syrup and yet here I was, draining the bag with little effort, my mental conflict dissolving as I felt the thick fluid flow down my throat into … where? How did this new body of mine process it?
Within seconds, my muscles felt stronger, my mind felt more alert. I felt more alive.
When nothing but a flimsy pouch remained, I pulled it away from my mouth.
“So?” Caden’s brow furrowed deeply. “How do you feel?”
“Fine. Great, I guess. Stronger?”
“Here.” Amelie tossed me another bag. It came fast and to the far left and yet all I had to do was think about catching it and it was in my hand. I drained four more bags in under five minutes and waved Amelie away when she moved to toss me a sixth, earning a hard look from her.
“What? I’ve had enough.” I wiped the blood from my chin.
Amelie and her brother exchanged another raised stare. One that finally spiked my irritation.
“Would you two stop doing that? I get it. I’m not normal! But you’re starting to freak me out!”
Amelie gestured at Veronique and Julian. “Those two haven’t so much as looked up to acknowledge you since you stepped in here, and yet you just waved this away with a ‘no thanks’?” Her ringlets whipped through the air as her head spun back, scowling. “And your eyes! They didn’t change.”
“Uh … I’m sorry?” I said a silent prayer of thanks.
Amelie’s pretty face pinched in thought for a long moment. I caught her swift movement a second before a snapping sound followed by sharp pain rocketed through me.
“Amelie!” Caden roared through my cry as Amelie dropped my arm. It hung limply next to my body, my forearm bone protruding through my skin.
“You broke my arm!” I shrieked in horror. “Are you insane?” No sooner had the last word crossed my lips than the bone began to fade. Before my eyes, it vanished and the wound sealed itself. Mouth agape, I flexed my hand to test my strength. Perfectly normal, once again.
“At least we know you can heal like the rest of us,” Amelie explained.
“And what if she couldn’t?” Caden snapped.
“Well, then, I guess she wouldn’t be jumping in front of any bullets now, would she!” Amelie retorted. “But you’re right. We should tell Sofie about this.”
“Tell Sofie about what?” a voice called out behind us, making me jump. Even with my new abilities, I guess the woman was still capable of sneaking up on me.
“Nothing,” flew out of my mouth. I gave Amelie and Caden a stern look. Whatever the reason for my lack of blood-crazed desire, I hadn’t crumpled in a fit of agony or died when I consumed it. We needed to focus on New York City and not my personal issues. For once.
Unfortunately, Sofie was always on DEFCON One alert status as it related to me. “Why aren’t you feeding, Evangeline?” It sounded like an accusation.
“I’m just taking a break.”
“Taking a break?” Her stunning, delicate features pinched up. “No fledgling takes a break once they’ve started. That’s simply …” Sofie’s eyes flashed wide. She muttered something in French that I couldn’t understand but, by her tone, I knew she was upset. Turning hard eyes at Caden, she exploded. “She didn’t hunt, did she? You lied to me!”
“I’m fine, Sofie!” I cried out but she wasn’t listening, her hands finding their way to Caden’s chest, shoving him against the wall.
“Don’t worry about me, Sofie. You should worry about—” My words cut off as thin purple ropes sprung from Sofie’s fingertips. I followed them with my eyes as they coiled around my body, the ends disappearing into me like cool little fingers slipping into my flesh. Not painful but certainly not pleasant. “What are you doing?”
A pause. And then the tentacles retracted. “You can see those?” she hissed, her eyes even wider than a moment ago.
“Yes. I can feel them too,” I clarified, repeating my question. “What were you doing?”
“You shouldn’t be able to see it.” The long tendrils appeared again. They reached out for me, more cautiously this time. Part of me wanted to run but I stayed, curious as to what she may discover.
I stayed still while she prodded around my body, her face a mask of consternation. After a few moments, they finally retreated.
“And?” Caden and Amelie asked in unison.
“And … nothing.” She frowned. “I found nothing unusual.”
“Does that mean she’s fine?” Caden pushed. “Are you worried?”
An odd, soft smile touched Sofie’s mouth. “I’m always worried about Evangeline.”
“You don’t need to worry about me anymore,” I said.
Her hypnotic green eyes twinkled. “And yet, I will never stop.” I smiled because I knew it was true. Most would call me insane for accepting Sofie’s offer of employment and climbing into a plane with her, only twenty-four hours after stumbling into her café. I had nothing to leave behind at that point. Except loneliness and sad memories.
Little did I know at the time that I was no stranger to her.
She had been watching over me since I was days old.
Since that time, after all the secrets and lies and motives were finally revealed, one painful layer at a time, Sofie had become like a mother to me. A super-powered, overprotective mother with more escape routes than one could fathom.
I was stuck in a moment of reflection when Mortimer appeared, trailed by Kiril.
“It’s done. We’re ready.” Not batting an eye, Mortimer strolled over to Veronique, his cold brown eyes instantly warming. He leaned down to whisper, “I’ll be back before you even know I’m gone.” His light touch on her shoulder earned him a growl and a sideways glare, and I caught a glimpse of those hideous eyes for the first time. I cringed. It was ironic that vampires were designed to be such irresistible creatures to their prey, and yet their weakness—their lack of control around human blood—revealed their true hideousness so noticeably.
Mortimer chuckled, his eyes still on Veronique. “You’re going to be awfully embarrassed when I tell you that you growled at me.” Murmuring in French, Mortimer leaned down to place a quick kiss on her head before stepping away, a nostalgic look on his face. He’d waited so long for a chance to see her again, with the hope that she would choose him over Viggo. And she had. Despite our tumultuous past, I was happy for him.
Finally, Mortimer’s attention shifted to me. “Why aren’t you feeding?”
That is the question of the day, isn’t it? Max said from behind me, having slinked in.
“I already have,” I responded evenly, tired of this line of questioning. There was a war coming. There were more important things to focus on.
Mortimer glared at Sofie, his thick, dark brow furrowed with accusation. “Why isn’t she like them?”
“I don’t know, Mortimer,” she bit back crisply, taking several steps toward the end of the exit tunnel. “You can ask the Fates if you’d like, but I’m not going anywhere near them again. Besides, we have a war to deal with and we’re wasting precious time.”
I turned to follow them out.
Sofie stopped abruptly and spun around on her heels. “I knew it!” she hissed. Now it was Caden’s turn to receive an accusatory glare. “You didn’t tell her, did you?”
I eyed him guardedly. “Tell me what?”
With a heavy sigh, Caden averted his eyes. “You’re not coming with us, Evie.”
What? “You’re not leaving me here!” After all we’d been through, I wasn’t going to sit in this mine while the rest of them put themselves in danger. I wasn’t going to be separated from Caden. Again!
“We need you to stay here, with Julian and Veronique, and we don’t have time to argue,” Sofie cut in. “Plus, now we need someone to make sure that Celine and Brian have a bag of blood in their hands the moment they awaken.”
“Who are Celine and Brian?”
“Kait’s and Galen’s humans.”
Right. The deal. Turning their humans for them. That’s what they’d been fighting over earlier. “Kiril can do that,” I objected. “Right, Kiril?”
Kiril’s bushy brow arched.
“No, he can’t. They may get confused and bite him,” Sofie said.
But … “I’m not fragile anymore!” I was running out of arguments, my voice sounding whiny. I hated whiny. I also had no interest in being a babysitter.
Sofie grabbed my hands, her hard mask softening for just a second. “We cannot bring fledglings in to fight fledglings. We can’t watch over any sitting ducks. You’ll be fine here. Safe. And we will see you soon.”
Sofie was impossible to sway, so I didn’t bother. I simply whispered, “Keep them safe. Please.”
“We’ll all be fine. Fledglings are easy to kill. It’s just as matter of finding them,” she assured me. With a pursed lip, she vanished, followed by Mortimer.
“She’s right,” Caden whispered, pulling me into his taut body. Amelie strolled over to Julian, presumably to say her goodbyes. She got the same savage growl, along with a hand swat.
I made my last attempt on Caden. “I understand why they can’t go but I’m not like them, Caden! I haven’t lost control.”
“Not yet,” he corrected, shaking his head. “I hate leaving you here but I can’t worry about you out there, Evie, and that’s all I’d be doing. Plus, do you really think you’re ready to go into New York City and hunt down a hundred fledglings and kill them? Do you even know how to kill someone?”
I buried my face in his collarbone, absorbing the feel and smell of him one last time before he left me, the very thought a hollow ache in my core. He was right. Though it was apparently now part of my DNA, I didn’t know the first thing about killing. Truth be told, I had no desire to exterminate anything. Except perhaps Viggo, and even then, I wasn’t sure if I had it in me to actually pull the trigger, so to speak.
Having me there could endanger everyone. Including Caden.
“Promise me that you’ll stay here?” he whispered.
I nodded in silence, knowing the fight was lost.
He lifted my face to meet his jade eyes. “We’ll be back before you know it,” he assured softly. “Don’t worry. You’ll be fine. Bored, maybe. But fine.”
“What if an unsuspecting human comes out here and I accidently kill them?”
Caden gave me a one-shoulder shrug. “Then we’ll know you’re normal.” My flat glare made him chuckle. “No one’s going to wander into these mines in the dead of winter and if they do, Max and the wolves will scare them away.” Pressing his lips to my cheek, I felt a cool, hard object placed within my grasp. A cell phone. “Galen may be an ass, but he’s a smart one. He’s got us all set up. The guy thinks he’s a Navy Seal.” Caden’s smirk fell from his mouth after a moment. “If you need to call me for anything, then call. And if I don’t answer, don’t worry. We’re just busy, is all.”
I wrapped my arms tightly around his shoulders. We’d waited so long, been through so much to be able to stand here like this, and now that we could, I was afraid it would be taken away from me. Would that be the finale to the Fates’ sick game? Would they take Caden away from me? Would it be at Viggo’s hands, as Mortimer predicted? I didn’t want the world to fall apart but living in a world without Caden, forever, felt even more unbearable.