Wicked Sun: Vampires & Vices No. 3, page 19
“No, Eva. This isn’t a fairytale, and you’re no princess,” Mangus corrects. “One mistake here and you’re dead, so let me do the talking.”
I nod once.
“And for God’s sake, whatever you do, don’t eat anything.”
The ground shakes. I’ve never experienced an earthquake before, but this is exactly what I imagine it would feel like. Adrenaline strikes through my veins and my knees weaken as I try to keep steady. Something shoots out of the ground a few paces away from us, rising up like a small mountain. The ground calms, and upon further inspection, I gasp. It’s a cottage. Exactly like one you would see in a fairytale.
“Isadora is an earth fae witch,” Mangus explains. “She’s also a guardian of the portal, making sure people like us turn back if we do happen to make it this far.”
Adrian frowns. I can tell he wants to say something, but he stays silent.
The front door to the house creaks open. “Back so soon?” A wispy voice floats from inside. “And you brought company this time.”
I swallow hard.
“Please, come inside.”
“We’re good out here,” Mangus says, shooting us a look that says do not go in that house under any circumstance.
The voice sighs. “Very well, I’ll come to you.” The woman is not what I’m expecting. In my mind, an old crone would step from the earthen hobble to make deals with us, but in reality, it’s a gorgeous fae who glides toward us. She’s petite and pointy, with a slender waist and sharp shoulders, cheekbones, and of course, pointed ears. Her white-blonde hair flows in tight curls all the way down to her knees, and her olive skin glistens with emerald green undertones. She wears a tight gown resembling moss, and as she moves closer, I realize it actually is moss that’s clinging to her body. She’s gorgeous and earthly and terrifying all at once, and bright amber eyes flash to me as if sensing my fear.
“We’ve come to strike three deals with you,” Mangus says.
“One deal,” Adrian quips, glaring at his brother.
“Three deals,” Mangus repeats, and I’m confused. We’re here to make a bargain for magic to seal the council into a blood bond and force the vampires to follow the rule of law. That’s what I agreed to. And it’s a great plan that will take one bargain with the fae witch, not three.
What is Mangus up to?
“Did you not appreciate the last bargain, vampire?” Isadora’s smile spreads across her face like a sunbeam, her beauty amplifying tenfold. I don’t trust it, even though it draws me in. Glancing at my companions, I suspect they’re feeling the same way. Their eyes are pinned to the fae, their faces are soft, and their bodies are unnaturally relaxed.
“Your spell to release me from my maker’s blood bond worked, but had unintended consequences,” Mangus says darkly. “My wife was killed in the process.”
Isadora pouts and traces pointy fingers along Mangus’s cheek. “You poor thing. Do you need consoling?”
“Enough––” Adrian cuts in. “We’re here because we need you to recreate a vampiric blood bond similar to a master and a prodigy.” All eyes turn on him as he explains what’s needed. It’s an intricate plan, but a good one, and by the end of it, Isadora seems impressed with the ingenuity.
“I can do it.” Isadora’s amber eyes flash gold with mischief. “But it’s going to cost you a great deal.”
“Name your price,” Adrian says.
She turns and grins in my direction. “I’ll take the girl.”
CHAPTER 32
I freeze, readying my stance. If I have to fight this woman, I will, but I don’t know what kind of magic she possesses besides the earthquakes, so I doubt I’ll win. The tree from the graveyard is several paces behind us, and I prepare to make a run for it. If it doesn’t send me back through the portal, I don’t know what I’ll do.
“You’re not touching her.” Adrian glowers at the witch. His rage is a growing inferno, and he has no problem putting himself between me and Isadora.
“Oh, relax,” Mangus drawls, “nobody is going to hurt your little angel.” He smiles at Isadora. “As I was saying, there are three things I’m here to bargain for.”
“Mangus––” Adrian hisses.
“There are actually two blood bonds that need addressing,” Mangus continues unperturbed, “the one Adrian described, and the one that strips Eva here from having any control over my kind.”
I frown, questions spinning me to dizziness. What is he talking about? Does he mean he doesn’t want me to have power from the venom anymore? But that has nothing to do with control over his kind. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say, “but I don’t consent to whatever the hell it is you think you’re doing, Mangus.”
Both men turn on me. “So you really don’t know?” Adrian asks.
“Of course she knows,” Mangus snorts. “It’s quite obvious.”
Know what? I know that the venom has made me strong enough to survive their kind, but that’s about it.
“Let’s get this done. We don’t need her consent for this anyway.” My breath hitches, and he shoots a sly grin at the witch. “What else do you want?”
Isadora’s eyes squint as she looks me over, but I’m more confused than ever. I don’t understand what I’m missing. Everyone knows about the venom already, so what else could they be talking about? “I already gave my terms. I want the girl.”
“I’m not for sale.” I glare and step back.
“Nobody is touching Eva,” Adrian agrees.
“Fine,” the witch huffs. “Then I’ll take the next best thing.” Her bottomless eyes pin me in place. “Her blood.”
I shake my head.
“Only a thimble-full. You won’t miss it.”
“Can’t you take something else?” Adrian growls. “You can have my blood. As much as you want.”
The witch hisses. “I don’t want your dirty blood, vampire. I will change the blood bonds, but this is my payment. Take it or leave.”
My heart thuds in my chest. I don’t want to give her my blood, but I want the vampires secured under Adrian’s new government. It will save countless lives.
“Let’s not forget the third request.” Mangus steps forward, voice growing desperate. “Bring my wife back. She was wrongly accused of my death because of your spell.”
That’s new information . . .
“Even if I could bring a vampire back, I wouldn’t,” the earth witch hisses. “Don’t ask for that abomination.”
“Please, I’ll do anything.” His eyes flash violently to me, and I’m certain he’s about to offer me over, but when our gazes meet, something inside of him crumbles. Can he do it? Will he? Would I do the same if I were in his position?
“Enough,” the witch’s booming voice breaks through the forest like a crack of thunder. “I will spell your blood magic, but l will not perform necromancy.” She points to Mangus. “And you will give this up. Even if you were to find a fae dark enough to bring your wife back, she wouldn’t be the same. She’d be a shadow of herself, and she would hate you for it.”
His head falls, but he nods solemnly. I feel bad for him except for the part where he seemed mighty willing to hand my life over in exchange for Katerina’s.
I turn on the vampires. “I’ll do it, okay. I’ll give a thimble of my blood to your witch, but I have some terms of my own.”
“Don’t do it.” Adrian surprises me. “Let’s go. We’ll find another way. Your blood is not worth what––”
“Let her speak,” Mangus cuts him off. “We came this far.”
I take a deep breath and draw on my desire to do the right thing, even if it costs me. “I’ll help with the blood bonds if you promise that you’ll do everything in your power to keep me and my friends and family safe from vampires.” My heart aches to think of what this will mean for my romance with Adrian. As much as I want him, I think of Mom and Felix, Ayla and Seth, and I know it’s for the best if we part ways before this goes any further. “You have to promise to make sure vampires leave us alone.”
They’re going to make up two of the council members and have more control over their own kind than they ever before. It’s the least they can do for me.
“Is that really what you want?” Adrian’s throat bobs, and his eyebrows furrow.
The truth is, my head and my heart want completely different things, but this isn’t about what I want anymore. This is about what I need. “Yes,” I whisper.
He takes my hand, squeezes it, and then drops it. “Alright then.”
“Done,” Mangus promises. “You have our word.”
I peer down at my shoes and then up at the witch before I lose my nerve. “Do it.”
Her mouth quirks. “You know, most people wouldn’t give up the kind of control you currently possess,” she says, “which leads me to believe you don’t know what you have.”
“Control?” My mind reels. “I’ve never had control. Not once. Not in all my life.”
“Well, you did, but it’s too late now,” she laughs, snatching my hand in hers so fast I almost don’t see it happening. Her fingernails are long, pointed, and the same color as her mossy gown. She drags one along the top of my index finger, slicing a small incision into the skin. A crimson bead rises to the surface and she squeezes.
Part of me wants to pull away, to go back on my word, but I can’t move. And it’s not because I’m afraid, although I am, it’s because I’ve become immobilized by her power. I gasp as earthy roots wrap around my arms and limbs, they move just as fast as she does.
“Almost done,” she whispers, “Don’t worry your pretty little head. It’ll all be over soon.”
“What do you want my blood for, anyway?” I whisper back, but she doesn’t answer. Whatever it is, it can’t be good, and maybe Adrian was right. But if doing this gets the vampires off my back and allows me to live a somewhat normal life and keep my loved ones protected, then it’ll be worth any cost. “What did you mean about giving up control?” I ask instead.
This question, she does answer––an answer that guts me down my center.
“Looks like you took possession of the royal bond from Brisa,” she says with a little cackle. My ears ring, and my throat itches. I can hardly believe what I’m hearing. “Your friends figured it out. Too bad they didn’t tell you.”
If they’d told me, everything would’ve been different.
“Of course, I sensed it the moment the three of you broke into my domain. And to think, you could’ve bossed around these princes. Ha! Wouldn’t that have made you queen?”
“Stop talking, witch,” Mangus growls from behind me. “You’ve done enough already.”
And Adrian says nothing.
I try to look over at the men, but the vines hold my head in place. I can hear them, but I can’t see them. The night goes eerily silent as Isadora’s confession sinks into me like a knife––a blade of betrayal that I can hardly believe, but that I can’t deny has sliced me clean open.
“How long?” I whisper.
She smiles. “Long enough.”
It definitely wasn’t a thing when I was at risk for being turned because Adrian didn’t help me, so it must have solidified later. I revisit the interactions I’ve had with vamps over the last twenty four hours and realize they’ve done everything I’ve asked. But how was I to know? I’ve been running from vampires and hiding out alongside nephilim with so few opportunities to tell a vampire to do anything. Did Tate know? Did Camilla? I don’t think so. If they had, they would’ve been much more forceful with me. Or maybe they did know, maybe that was why they were trying so adamantly to get me on their side. No. Because they would’ve made me ask Adrian about the Gateway outright, which I never did.
“Don’t worry, little angel, I’ll make sure they stick to their agreement with you.” The witch pouts, but she’s not sorry at all. Her eyes gleam with delight. “I do feel a little bad about this, you know. I’m no dark witch, I do have a heart.”
I glare. “Could’ve fooled me.”
She dramatically clasps her hands to her chest. “No really, I have a heart. Only dark fae give up their hearts for power.”
She rattles on, but my mind drowns her out, the revelations spinning through my head. I had everything I needed to change the entire world, and now it’s all gone.
She finishes squeezing the last of the blood into her thimble and caps it off with a lid, tucking it into the moss of her gown. I expect her to release me from the vines, but she doesn't. I’m stuck, and panic begins to bubble. I suck in quick gasps of air as my eyes fill with hot tears.
She begins to speak in a language I don’t know, the consonants longer than anything I’ve heard before. A wash of peaceful warmth trickles through me, allowing me to relax just a little, but it’s quickly replaced with an empty nothingness.
They’re talking now. Somewhere behind me. They’re talking. She’s telling them that I have no more power over them. She’s saying that the binding of the vampire council’s bond is temporary until they complete her spell. She’s saying that her magic only goes so far and will require some work on their part. I’m too overwhelmed to catch much of their conversation, and the harder I try, the harder it is to listen.
“Breathe,” I say softly to myself. “Just breathe, Eva.” This is important. Somehow I know I need to be listening in, catching every last detail.
“And when do we do the ritual?” Mangus asks.
“The next full moon.” If the new moon was yesterday, then the full moon will be here in a few weeks. I want to scream at Adrian for the position I’m in, but I keep my mouth shut. It’s almost like I’m forgotten by all of them, trapped in these blasted vines, facing a gold and silver forest while they chatter like I don’t exist.
The gold . . .
It calls to me, a reminder of who I am and what I can do. If I can just pull my angelic light to the surface, I can get out of here. I can break free, and they’ll wish they’d never underestimated me when I turn that light on them. All of them.
“You’re not the only vampires to have found me,” Isadora says, knocking my focus away from golden light to what she’s saying instead. “But I do hope you’ll be the last. We don’t care for your kind here. If you fail to complete the spell, don’t come back. There will be no second chances.”
The vines snap away, and I fall to my hands and knees. I expect pain, but the earth is soft, as if it’s caressing me. Consoling me. Is this Isadora’s doing? Maybe she doesn’t hate me like she hates the vampires. Maybe she really does feel sorry for me. Before I can question her, Adrian’s familiar arms are lifting me, and his mouth is whispering against my ear, “Thank you.”
CHAPTER 33
We leave the same way we came, hurtled through time and space, returned to our realm in the blink of an eye. The magical forest is gone, replaced by the foggy graveyard. We land next to each other among the tombstones. This time, the ground is not so forgiving. I hit it hard. It knocks the wind from my lungs and rattles my bones.
Get up, get up, get up . . .
But my body doesn’t want to comply. My thoughts are a riot. My heart is numb. I’m still floating in that awful emotionless void, still stunned by everything that just happened. Adrian lifts me into his arms again, and then we’re flying, up and away. The night is pitch-black, but he seems to be in a hurry anyway. I blink through watery eyes, noticing that Mangus is flying right next to us. He looks the same as I feel––utterly broken. He really must have thought he’d be able to get his wife back.
We don’t go back to the old farmhouse. We fly over a city and land on the roof of one of the tallest buildings in the city’s center.
Where are we? I think, but when Adrian answers, I realize I’ve spoken aloud. I hadn’t meant to. My thoughts and my words are mixed together, and I wonder what else I’ve been saying during our flight here.
“We’re in Dublin,” he says. “The coven here are our friends. They’ll house us for a day or two until we can get back home.”
Back home. It doesn’t seem real.
Mangus drops his face into his hands. “And where’s your home?” I ask him boldly. A fire has reignited within––he’d used me tonight.
But Mangus turns away, and Adrian is the one to answer. “Mangus doesn’t have a coven, so he’s coming back to New Orleans until he figures out his next step.”
So that’s it then. They got what they wanted. At least I’ll be able to return home, but it won’t change the fact that the De Lucas will be waiting for me. Everything that happened with them still stings. It hurts that I can’t trust them. My own family.
My own family . . .
Something about that rings alarm bells in my head, but then it slips away as Adrian stands me upright and I take in the glittering city lights and the beautiful Georgian-era buildings. I have no trouble with my vision, so at least I didn’t lose the abilities the venom gave me.
“I haven’t been here in over a hundred years,” Adrian breathes. “So much has changed, and then some things look exactly as I remembered.”
Mangus nods.
“But what I do remember is that the coven here is ruthless. Has that not changed? Are you sure they’re our allies in this?”
“They voted for our plan,” Mangus says.
They discuss their plans while I walk to the edge of the rooftop to admire the view. It’s truly spectacular, and I’d give anything to be here under different circumstances. “Another bucket list item to check off,” I grumble. But I won’t. This doesn’t count.
I hear mention of the full moon and Isadora’s name, and a shiver runs down my body. What will she do with my blood? I don’t know anything about fae, and I have no idea what to expect, but since they seem to stay in their realm and we stay in ours, I hope that whatever she does won’t affect me here.
I swing around to say something to the men, but they’re already strolling toward the rooftop doorway without me. Mangus swings the door open and Adrian walks through. I’m so startled, I almost let them go. “Hey, wait,” I call. “You’re just going to leave me here?”
