Shadow Realms- The Complete Series

by Kelly Carrero

  Max turned away from her as he continued to down the contents until every last drop was gone and slammed the bottle onto the bench.

  “You idiot.” Lana punched him in the arm. “That was my last bottle. The new batch won’t be ready for another day.”

  Max shrugged. “Why didn’t you tell me? I wouldn’t have drunk it all.”

  Lana scrunched up her nose and hit him again before snatching the bottle off the bench and taking it over to the sink.

  Max winked at me, making my insides turn to mush. I almost forgot Kade’s arm was still around me and I had a chunk of meat in my mouth that I really didn’t want to swallow.

  Slipping out from under Kade’s arm, I spat the chewed-up meat into my hand then quickly disposed of it in the bin before Lana turned around.

  Lana wiped her hands on the tea towel. “If I knew you liked Kombucha that much, I would’ve started making more for you years ago.”

  Max stared at her, trying to hide his shock. “More?”

  A grin crept across her face. “Yep. I’ll get started on another batch just for you.”

  Lana wasn’t kidding. She strode over to a cupboard, pulled out a massive pot, and filled it up with boiling water. She then pulled out sugar, measured it, before pouring it into the pot. “Max, grab me a silicone spoon.”

  His face slumped as he grabbed the spoon from the drawer and handed it to Lana.

  I took the opportunity to quickly wash my hands, ridding them of the smell of meat.

  “Thanks.” She stirred the sugary water. “Now you can get the tea.”

  Doing as asked, or more so ordered, Max retrieved a box of tea bags from the shelf and placed it on the bench next to her. “Which flavors?”

  I glanced at Kade, who bit down on his laugh. He was obviously enjoying Max’s discomfort way too much.

  Lana put down the spoon and rummaged through the teabags until she found the ones she wanted. “Can you put the box away?”

  We all knew it was another order, not a request, and Max obliged. Everyone seemed to be so afraid of falling out of line or going against the grain. What Lana said, people did. She had an authority about her that was inspiring. And even though I was supposed to be the top dog, I doubted I’d ever get to her level.

  Plus, she had the whole legacy thing going on and parents who were currently staying with us, which seemed to make everyone a little bit more obedient.

  Lana plopped the teabags into the pot and hung the tags over the edge. “That should do it. Now let’s go have something to eat.”

  Of course, Lana brought a spread of approved foods to the table, but she was the only one who touched it. The others were taking full opportunity of the free pass she’d given us. I, on the other hand, picked at the pasta, my body still high from the effects of the vampire blood and the adrenaline from the crash. I was itching to get up and do something, but I kept my ass planted on the seat, wondering when Finn would call with an update. Because even though I had heard the steady beat of their hearts, I didn’t know if there was any bone damage or internal bleeding. My father hadn’t been buckled in, and I hoped it was true that drunks rarely had major damage since their bodies were usually limp during a crash. But that didn’t mean to say he didn’t have any spinal damage or internal bleeding that couldn’t be seen from the outside.

  The thought of that coupled with my aversion to food made me want to gag every time I put something in my mouth. But I needed to keep up the appearance in front of Lana. Since her parents were staying with us, I needed to be careful what I said to her.

  “You’re not hungry, Kali?” Lana asked, drawing me out of my thoughts.

  I dropped the piece of pasta onto my plate. “I’m just a little worried. Finn hasn’t called.”

  She picked up a kale chip, void of any salt or oil. “Which makes you afraid something has happened to them.”

  “No news is good news,” Kade said.

  “Except when everyone is unconscious and taken to the hospital after a bad accident.” Max said what I was thinking.

  Kade shook his head. “You shouldn’t worry. They’re probably all fine, and Finn’s just teaching you a lesson about what it feels like to not know what’s going on with someone you care about.”

  I raised a brow.

  He grinned. “It’s something Finn would do.”

  Max ripped a chicken leg away from the thigh. “He can be a little melodramatic when it comes to you.”

  Kade snorted. “This coming from the guy who wanted to kill you even though you hadn’t displayed a single bit of blood lust.”

  Max glared at Kade, and if looks could kill, Kade would be dead. “I didn’t know.”

  “Now, now boys,” Lana said. “Max has learned his lesson and is making amends.”

  Was that all Max was doing? Making amends?

  The thought of him spending so much time with me just to make himself feel better made me sick to my stomach. Then again, what else could I expect? Being the one didn’t change what I’d done—what I was prepared to do.

  That would take a whole load of time to get over—if at all.

  I believe in you. His declaration replayed in my mind.

  I shook my head. The effects of having all this energy from the vamp blood and having no outlet was making my thoughts do crazy shit. I needed an outlet.

  Pushing my chair out, I stood. “I can’t sit still anymore. I’m going for a run.”

  “Best not to with an injured leg.” Lana popped another Kale chip into her mouth.

  I waived her off. “It was barely a scratch. I’ll be fine.”

  “Consuming the vampire blood will accelerate the healing process, but it would be best if you get it checked out before you exert yourself.”

  My jaw dropped. “How…?”

  She grinned. “How did I know you’d drank vampire blood?”

  I nodded.

  Lana pointed to my mouth. “The slightly longer fangs kind of give it away. Plus, you’ve got the whole blue-eye thing going on.”

  I jerked my head back, wondering how the hell she could see those tiny specks from across the table.

  “Your eyes are changing.”

  I looked between Kade and Max, who both nodded in agreement.

  Letting out a frustrated breath, I grabbed my phone, opened the camera, and switched it to selfie mode.

  My breath caught in my throat as I stared at my image on the screen. Sure enough, I had the whole fang thing going on, but the blue swirling through the brown of my eyes was what took my breath away. It wasn’t like it had been earlier that night when Mason had brought it to my attention and there were just specks of blue.

  “And no one thought to mention this to me before?” I looked pointedly at Max then briefly at Kade and Lana.

  Max shrugged. “I thought you knew.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “This is a first,” Lana said. “The last time they remained brown. You’re changing.”

  “You think she’s going through the transition early?” Kade asked, locking me with fear.

  Lana furrowed her brow then slowly shook her head. “I don’t think that’s possible, but you can check with Orphelia before you go for your run.”

  “I’m not going to see her,” I said a little too quickly. “She freaks me out.”

  “Well, you better get over it, because she’s requested your presence.”

  15

  Climbing the stairs as slowly as I could, I tried to shake the ice crawling up my spine with every step I took toward the conjurer. Orphelia had a presence about her that made my skin crawl at the best of times, let alone after I risked the fate of the world to save my father.

  I wouldn’t have gone if I hadn’t known I would be okay. After the way I took down all those vampires during Mason’s rescue, I knew I would make it back alive.

  But try telling that to the Society.

  Lana’s parents treated me as if I was of no value to them. Well, that was true. Me, the soul, the one wi
th feelings, emotions, and dreams was nothing to them. All they wanted was my body, the perfect host for the huntress.

  I made my way across the short platform, took a deep breath, released it slowly, and knocked on the door.

  The door swung open with a force of its own, revealing the freakish, old, pale woman sitting in the middle of a black misty circle on the ground, head tilted back, staring through the hole in the roof.

  Gray clouds swirled above, further inciting the dark energy stirring inside of me.

  “Come, child. Sit,” she said, her face still pointed toward the sky.

  Trying to squash the nerves rolling through me, telling myself I was silly and Orphelia was there for my protection, I made my way across the room and sat in front of her, just outside of the circle.

  Her head slowly tipped forward, her gaze landing on me as the circle spread, enclosing me within its dark, misty walls.

  An electrical current spread through my body, further lighting up the fire burning within me; the very fire that erupted whenever there was danger nearby.

  I hated myself for feeling that way in her presence because it just proved I wasn’t ready to take the demon world on my own if I feared the one who vowed to protect me—to protect the people I cared about.

  My fangs elongated, having a mind of their own and ratting me out in the process. The last thing I needed was for Orphelia to see first-hand the effects of my deception to the Society.

  Her gaze darted to the tips of my fangs pressed against my lips. “You have betrayed the Society of the Shadow Realms by attempting to save the life of an insignificant human, risking the fate of this world even after you were ordered not to.”

  Rage coursed through me, her words like daggers being driven into my soul. “That insignificant human is my father,” I said, no longer fearing the wrath of her scorn. “I had no choice—”

  “There’s always a choice.”

  “If Peter and Gina had agreed to send someone to collect him, I wouldn’t have had to do it myself.”

  “Defiance is an unfavorable trait, one that could not only have gotten you killed but also damned the world to a fate worse than death.” She lifted her balled hand, fingers up, holding it between us. She slowly opened her hand, revealing a murky cloud encompassed within.

  “What is that?” I barely got my question out before the murky darkness shot toward me with unfathomable speed, slithering its way into my half open mouth.

  My eyes widened as the dark energy spread through my body, attaching itself to my soul. I gasped for air as my vision started to sway, blurred until there was nothing left but the deep, endless darkness that enveloped me, dragging me under.

  I tried to resist it, but the stronger I fought, the faster it moved, succumbing me to the depths of unconsciousness.

  16

  As I groggily fought to open my eyes, a haze of bright lights assaulted my senses. Groaning, I rolled onto my stomach and covered my head with my arms, blocking out the iridescent light shining down on me.

  My body ached, and my skin was covered with a thin layer of goose bumps. Hunger like I’d never experienced took hold of my soul as I shook with a feverish chill. A thick, wet film covered the right side of my face and crusted over my lips.

  I licked my lips and almost gagged at the taste of dried up bile mixed with something else I couldn’t pinpoint.

  My vision swayed as I opened my eyes again, trying to focus on something, anything. But all I could see was the bright light shining down on me, making me want to shrink back into the depths of oblivion.

  Fighting the pull, I lifted my hand to my eyes but ended up hitting myself in the nose, pain ricocheting into my head, making my eyes water.

  I lifted my hands a little higher and rubbed them over my eyes with the dexterity of a newborn. Eventually, my gaze began to focus, and it became painfully clear what they’d done.

  Rising to my knees, I stared at the all-too-familiar surroundings of the cage.

  Anger coursed within me, wanting to find the one responsible, but I could barely move and I wasn’t sure I had any vampire blood still in me. The thick, black-marbled blood covering the floor next to where I lay confirmed my fears.

  In a rush, it all came back to me as to how I got here.

  “Orphelia.” Her name was like poison on my tongue. I could feel the sting of her deception and the betrayal from the Society.

  With shaky hands, I pressed my palms against the floor, trying to steady myself as I scanned the empty darkness beyond the cage, hoping to find a smiling face, or at least someone who could tell me what the hell was going on.

  But the seconds ticked by, and although I couldn’t see anyone, I knew I wasn’t alone. There was a force hiding in the shadows, watching me.

  Something wasn’t right, and it wasn’t me being locked in a cage. There was something else at play, and it grated my nerves.

  Minutes turned into hours as I sat on the cold, hard floor of the cell, trapped with my own thoughts, waiting for someone to show their face. My patience level was at zero, and I wanted nothing more than a chance to come face to face with Orphelia and squeeze the ever-loving life out of her.

  Standing, I was relieved to find I was able to put one foot in front of the other without falling on my ass. I reached the glass barrier and spread my hands against it, wishing I had the strength to bust my way out.

  I could still feel an energy within me, only it wasn’t as strong as it was before. Whatever Orphelia had done to me made sure I was no longer a threat to the Order.

  Hanging my head, I wondered how Mason, my father, and Ashley were. I hated myself for hurting them. Regret ate away at my insides like acid. It was my fault they were in the hospital. It would be my fault if they didn’t walk away.

  I shook my head as the image of my mother standing on the road burned in my mind. She hadn’t been there. I shouldn’t have grabbed the wheel. But I had. And their current state—whatever that was—was my fault.

  Letting out a harsh breath, I wished Finn had called before I’d gone to see Orphelia. But he was just as stubborn as I was, and he didn’t think I deserved to get off so easily.

  Well, he’d be pleased if he saw me right now. Stuck in the very cage I’d been put in when I first came to this place, unable to place myself in harms way any longer.

  The sound of the door opening snapped me out of my thoughts. I slowly lifted my head and watched through hooded eyes as Lana strode toward me, pulling at the sleeve of her shirt—something she would never normally do.

  In her hands was a green smoothie and a ziplock bag filled with what appeared to be zucchini chips. “You must be hungry.” She gestured to the food she’d brought.

  Starving actually. But not for the crap she brought me. “What am I doing here? And where’s Finn?”

  “Finn’s fine.”

  “I didn’t ask if he was fine. I asked where he is.”

  “He’s still at the hospital.” She quickly added, “Your family and friend are all going to be okay.”

  I nodded, unsure if I should believe her. After all, she was an Osmond, and it was because of them I was put in this cage. “Why am I here?”

  Lana walked over to the door of the cage and released a latch that opened up a small slot at the bottom, only large enough to fit the smoothie through when tipped on an angle then placed it on the floor. “Take this.”

  I glared at her. “Why? So you can poison me again?”

  She raised a brow. “I didn’t poison you. Orphelia did what the Society deemed was best. You only have yourself to blame.”

  I breathed out my frustration, knowing I needed to keep my cool if I wanted to convince Lana to get me out of there. “I only did what I had to do. I asked—pleaded—for your parents to send a group of hunters to bring in my father, but no one thought it was necessary. No one thought his life mattered.”

  “The only life that matters here is yours.”

  “Yeah, so I can hand it over to be possessed by som
e demon huntress that we hope will save the world, when in reality she could be the very thing that destroys us all. I mean, how well do you know the stories of the huntress? She could just be another lie the demons have manipulated us into believing.”

  The corner of her lips tipped up, and she shook her head. “The stories are true no matter how much you want to believe they’re not. I get that you’re afraid, but you running off isn’t going to help anyone.”

  “And you think locking me in a cage is the right move?”

  “It doesn’t matter what I believe. I follow the orders—”

  “Even if they’re wrong? Putting me in this cage doesn’t make sense. Making me go without vampire blood doesn’t make sense. Drugging me with some evil spell doesn’t make sense.”

  “You’re attempting to understand something completely foreign to you. You’re bound to question. It’s only natural.”

  I stared at her, unable to understand how she could so blatantly put her faith in the Society without questioning anything. The truth was simple. Lana was one of them, and I didn’t trust her one single bit.

  The more I thought about it, the more it didn’t make sense. Why put me in a cage? Why cut me off from the world? Why deprive me of the very thing I craved if it was not to keep me oppressed?

  Orphelia scared me the very first time I met her, but I had attributed it to her freakish looks. Now, I had a gut feeling it was so much more.

  Why didn’t the hunters go after every vampire they came across? Sure, Lana had said that it would only entice the vampires to make more. But was that really true?

  I couldn’t trust anything they said.

  “I need to speak with Finn,” I said.

  She smiled sadly. “Sorry. I can’t let you do that.”

  I narrowed my eyes at her as she further incited my hatred for the Society. “You can’t keep me a prisoner.”

  “You’re not a prisoner,” she said. “You’re under protection.”

  “In a cage where I can’t make any contact with the outside world? Do you even hear how that sounds? I don’t even have a bed or any other basic human necessities.”