We just had to hope that whoever this Sea Witch was decided to align herself with us and not Prime. We could use any and all help to fight the storm I could feel gathering on the horizon.
Chapter 11
Watching the sun sink into the sea, I marveled at its consistency. It rose every day and set every night. It could be relied on to do the same thing each cycle, never changing. Nothing was as it seemed, and I was finding that the ground I had anchored my feet to wasn’t all that solid anymore.
There had been so many revelations the previous day, and even more in the past week. Hell, the entire month had been nothing but surprises, my multiple deaths, and running for my life.
What had I become? I wasn’t a monster…or a human.
I was possibly both.
Pure vampire venom pumped through my veins, invested in my survival, and gave me abilities I didn’t want, no matter how safe they kept me. Power was never neutral. It was either used for good or evil. I had no idea how powerful the venom in me was, or whether or not it could make me do something I wouldn’t ordinarily do.
The ocean spread before me as the sky changed to blackness. The moon was hidden, which seemed to make the stars shine brighter, as if they could somehow make up for its absence. Wet sand squished under my bare feet as I took a deep breath of the salty sea air. Jameson had returned to the ship to fill in our friends and left me alone on the beach with my thoughts. I had no idea where Solomon had gone, but I knew he would remain close.
I needed the time alone, but I also dreaded it. So many emotions were swirling inside me that I thought I would burst. How was I supposed to process any of it? It was too much for any one person to handle. If Jameson was with me, he would have assured me that I wasn’t just anyone, but that didn’t make anything better. I wanted to be normal more than anything in the world in that moment.
Realizing soon after that I wasn’t going to solve any of my problems by wallowing in them on the beach, I headed back to the ship. As my feet stepped onto the wooden plank that connected the deck to the vessel, my gaze fell on Jameson. He waited for me there, holding out a hand to help me back on board.
“It took everything I had not to come for you.” He smiled, showcasing the dimples I loved so much.
I laughed for the first time in days. “I’m quite proud of you for restraining yourself. I had it handled.”
His face turned serious. “We don’t know anything about this island, or if we’re even safe here. I think we should head back to Port Valor. Ruth might not have all of the answers, but she has a group of trained hunters that can better fight against Prime. We don’t stand a chance if he finds us here. It’s not exactly what I hoped to find.”
Apparently, he had also been doing some thinking while I was gone. I knew he was worried. There was little hope we’d be able to escape Prime a second time. The next time we faced him, we needed to be prepared to defeat him, or we risked getting ourselves killed.
“Will you ask Solomon to come with us? There isn’t anything left here for him now that he’s sent the town away,” I asked. Even if he couldn’t protect us on his own, he still had answers we would need as we continued on our journey.
“If that’s what you want. I wasn’t sure how you would feel about it. We haven’t really talked about how you feel seeing him again and knowing he’s been alive all this time.” Jameson brought me closer to his side as we walked toward our quarters on the second level of the ship.
I waited until we were settled in the room before I spoke again. It gave me a few minutes to think about my response. I wasn’t really sure how I felt. I had gone through a gamut of emotions since realizing Solomon was Tobias—anger, sadness, betrayal, relief, happiness, and everything in between—but I had also done a decent job of compartmentalizing it all. Though he was my father, he was also a man whose help we needed to survive, and living seemed like the bigger deal at that moment.
Realization hit me then. If we separated from him now, there was a good chance I would never see him again. When that thought fully registered with me, I decided that wasn’t something I wanted. He might have lost the privilege to be called “father,” but I wasn’t ready to walk away from him so soon after finding him, and not just because of what he could do for us.
“I’d like to stay at least a few more days if Solomon doesn’t want to leave with us. I’m not ready to say goodbye just yet,” I finally answered, my voice thick with emotion.
Jameson’s hands cupped my face. “I understand. A few more days rest for the crew will be good, and we can properly stock the ship.”
“Thank you,” I whispered before pressing my lips to his.
Taking my time with the kiss, I savored the taste of him as his tongue tangled with mine. Pushing against him, a soft moan escaped from me. Passion quickly took over as my vampire abilities heightened to new levels, and I suddenly had no control. As my breathing became labored, I lost my balance and fell back onto the bed.
Without conscious thought, laughter slipped out, and it quickly turned to hysterics. Tears fell down my cheeks as my emotions stormed through me, causing everything to rage. Whatever passion I felt just mere moments ago was overrun by my hysteria, and I decided to close my eyes, letting go of everything. I stopped trying to fight whatever was happening to me, and for once, I embraced it. I was tired of being afraid.
The weight of Jameson’s body pressed against my side, and he whispered comforting words to me, trying to ease whatever was causing my odd behavior, but little did he know, I was finally accepting it. Words weren’t going to ease what was happening within me.
When my mind and body finally tired, I succumbed to sleep. Dreams and nightmares assaulted me all night, so vivid that, when I woke the following morning, I was even more exhausted than the night before.
I dreamt of my mother; her image came to me effortlessly. Next came a vision of me with Prime, standing by his side with a horde of vampires at our backs. The dreams and nightmares rotated until it ended with the worst one of all.
My dream-self stood over the body of a young girl. At first, I didn’t recognize her, but then the golden curls and round cheeks registered in my brain. Nettie. I cried out, yelling at myself to do something. Nettie couldn’t be dead. I didn’t want to live in a world where her innocence didn’t exist.
As I fell to my knees, weeping over the loss of that sweet girl, a bright light caught my attention. My head snapped up to find a dream-version of me crouching over Nettie with both hands pressed against her chest.
“Live!” my dream-self yelled over and over again.
Watching in absolute fascination, I saw the twitch of Nettie’s arms and the bend in her legs. Then, it hit me. My dream-self was bringing her back to life. As much as I didn’t want Nettie dead, it wasn’t natural to bring her back. I screamed at myself to quit, but instead of stopping whatever was happening in the dream, I woke to the real world, drenched in sweat and chilled to the bone.
“Lavinia,” Jameson’s worried voice finally broke through. “Lavinia, wake up.”
My eyes snapped open, and Jameson’s widened in something akin to fear, but also awe. “What is it?” I asked, startled.
“Your eyes. They’re not blood red like when they usually change, but they’re not hazel either.” The pads of his thumbs rubbed my temples. “They’re a mix of the two. The red is bleeding through the hazel in a swirling pattern.”
Pushing away from him, I stood and rushed to the glass window. I needed to see my reflection. Jameson’s words caused fear to course through me after all of the dreams I had experienced. Tucking the loose strands behind my ears, I leaned closer to the glass. My breath hitched as the image of myself became clear. The swirling red was more maroon and not bright like the red eyes I had seen on other vampires.
Jameson brought a lamp over, casting a light across my face. An audible gasp left my lips as I took in my entire appearance. My once-golden skin was now pale, as if I hadn’t seen the sun in months. Closing my eye
s, I scrubbed my hands over them, trying to rid the image from my mind. It wasn’t real. My appearance hadn’t changed overnight. It wasn’t possible. Right?
“Breathe, Lavinia. It’s going to be all right. As soon as your emotions calm down, I’m sure everything will return to the way it was when you passed out last night.”
I groaned, having forgotten about my bout of madness the night before, which had led to the odd dreams. A sudden urge to see Solomon engulfed me. I needed more answers, and he needed to have them before I lost my mind.
“We need to find Solomon. Maybe he knows something about this.” My steps took me to the wardrobe to grab a dress. I didn’t even pay attention to which one I grabbed—my mind was still reeling from my changed appearance.
“Whatever you need, just try to calm down. We will deal with this together.”
Taking a deep inhale, I nodded and finished getting dressed. Once we were both ready, Jameson led me outside. The fresh morning air assaulted my senses like never before. I could taste the salt from the sea on my tongue, feel the condensation settled on my overly-sensitive skin, and hear the soft blowing wind in my ears with roaring clarity.
“Jameson, I think I’ve fully transitioned. Everything is heightened. I don’t know what happened, but everything is different.”
His steps faltered, but he recovered quickly and gripped my hand tighter. “We knew it was bound to happen eventually. If you truly have, at least you didn’t have to die for it to happen, and if this means you never have to perish again, then I’m more than thrilled with the change.”
He had a point, and it made me realize that whatever was happening was a good thing. Like Solomon had said the day before, the venom wanted to protect me. Maybe now that I had more understanding, it deemed me ready for whatever came next.
Keeping my head down, I avoided eye contact with any of the crew we passed on our way to find Solomon. I didn’t want anyone to see the changes; at least, not until I had answers to the questions I knew they would ask. When we were off the ship, Jameson glanced at me, probably checking to see if I had gone back to normal, but I could tell by his pinched brow that nothing had changed since we left the room.
When I took a deep breath, I was overwhelmed by the smells. I wanted to try and locate Solomon on my own, but apparently, some heightened abilities took practice to use properly. Jameson led the way, and I gladly followed.
We arrived at the house we had been in yesterday morning, which surprised me. For some reason, I pictured him sleeping in the forest beyond the town. He opened the door before I could knock, and his lips stretched into a smile as he took in my appearance.
“Do you know anything about this?” I waved my hand in front of my face.
He shrugged. “Just more theories. You’re the first of your kind, Lavinia. I can only assume that whatever magic is at work here, it has its own agenda. I can’t pretend to know anything for certain about these changes.”
That wasn’t the first time Solomon had referred to my vampire side as magic. It had my mind reeling with what that meant. Taking a seat on a wooden chair on the porch, I leaned my head back and soaked in the morning sun. I knew that direct sunlight made vampires uncomfortable and weaker, but it eased something inside me.
Maybe I hadn’t fully transitioned.
A deep breath made its way through my lungs, and I let the thoughts soothe me.
Jameson and Solomon spoke to each other while I only half-listened. If Solomon didn’t know why or how I had changed overnight, then I wasn’t in the mood for talking just yet. Their attention returned to me when I stood from the chair.
“I want to train,” I announced.
They both stared at me with awestruck faces.
“What?” I glanced around, wondering if I had missed something.
“Your skin is golden again, but your eyes are still the same,” Jameson replied.
Lifting my arms in front of me, I inspected my hands first. Sure as the sun was bright, my skin appeared just as it had the night before. Closing my eyes, I checked my hearing and smell. After hearing the rustling of the crew on the ship and smelling the blood from an injured animal in the forest, I confirmed that nothing else had gone back to normal.
The urge to ask why it had happened filled me, but I didn’t waste my breath. If Solomon had known, I was pretty certain he would have said something instead of standing before me like he was seeing a ghost for the first time.
Jameson opened his mouth to say something, but the bells from the crow’s nest on our ship rang loudly. My body tensed, and I focused in on the crew.
“Somebody is coming!” Robert yelled, and I didn’t hesitate.
Strength and speed consumed me as I made it back to the ship in mere seconds. Robert almost fell from his post when I suddenly appeared in the crow’s nest next to him.
“Sorry,” I mumbled as I stared out into the ocean. I didn’t need the spy glass he held to see the approaching ship. It had white sails and a grey flag with four interlocking circles that made me breathe a sigh of relief. I apologized to Robert once more for scaring him, then made my way back down to the deck.
Jameson and Solomon were waiting for me near the mast, each with a grin on his face.
“Why are you smiling like that when we could be in danger?” I asked whoever wanted to answer first.
Jameson took a step forward. “Because you’re incredible. What did you see up there?”
I described the ship I had spotted. “Should we be worried?” I asked Solomon.
“I don’t know. If your portrayal is accurate, then it sounds like one of the ships that left here with the townspeople. They should be halfway to the mainland by now. Something must have happened to make them turn back, and I don’t see how it could be good.”
Alice and Henry joined us. She took one look at me and moved back a step with wide eyes. My heartbeat faltered, realizing that I had scared her, and I turned away in shame. She had previously assured me that it didn’t matter what I was, but I could immediately tell that wasn’t the case any longer.
A warm hand settled on my shoulder. “I’m sorry, Lavinia. It just took me by surprise. Please, don’t hide from us. Be proud of who you are.” She pulled me toward her and wrapped her arms around me.
“Thank you,” I murmured into her hair. She was a good friend, and I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions when she was taken aback.
When we pulled apart, Jameson was already explaining what I saw and what Solomon knew about the ship.
“So, what are we going to do?” Henry asked.
Solomon stepped forward. “We need to gather your crew and weapons, then prepare for a worst-case scenario. I want to hope that there are still good people on that ship, but the likelihood of that is nil.”
Alice’s hand wrapped tightly around mine. She shook with fear, and I joined her. I wanted more time to train, but it appeared I wasn’t going to get what I wanted. When my eyes met Jameson’s, I knew he also felt uncertain about what we were about to face, but like all of the situations before this one, we just had to figure it out together.
Chapter 12
The crew moved faster than ever before, and I was proud to have them on our side. Jameson estimated we had less than an hour to get set up in the trees and hidden from whoever was coming into port.
Solomon already had three areas for us to settle in that he had prepared on different parts of the island, prior to our arrival. We separated into groups, which I didn’t like, but I also understood it was necessary. Jameson, Solomon, and I were each in charge of one. A pure vampire to lead each group. I wasn’t sure what I thought about being classified as a vampire, but I just needed to get used to it, because there was no way to deny it any longer or change it.
Alice was in my group, and we were positioned on the eastern side of the beach—located in front of the town. We sat next to each other quietly, but our silence spoke volumes. No words could express how much I appreciated that, no matter what happened since we
met, she and Henry had been there. They were supportive and accepting of Jameson and me. It gave me hope that they would continue to have our backs, regardless of how much I changed. Unfortunately, everyone had their limits.
The ship that pulled into the bay was larger than the one we occupied. From the size of the town, they would have needed at least three ships to get everyone off the island.
As the vessel weighed anchor in the bay, I could see the deck. It appeared deserted. The sun had sunk low in the sky, ready to disappear and let darkness rule in its stead. My enhanced hearing was trained to Jameson’s and Solomon’s groups, just in case they relayed any information that we would need. Except for the occasional word spoken, the area had been silent.
Finally, after the sun disappeared and the sky turned crimson, I saw movement on board the ship. People bustled around the deck, but there were too few to be a full crew. A shiver raced down my spine, and I narrowed my eyes, looking for anything on the ship that would point to them being friend or foe. A deep breath made its way into my lungs, but I didn’t smell anything that gave me pause.
I was getting frustrated that I had these new abilities, yet no idea how to use them properly. It was beyond time that someone trained me. Either Jameson or Solomon, I didn’t much care which.
The gangway was dropped onto the planks of the pier with an audible thud. Seven men descended from the deck, by my count. They looked ordinary enough, but I heard Jameson’s sharp inhale from across the beach. I wondered at it but didn’t have time to ask when I saw Solomon stroll out into the open.
“Joshua.” He greeted the man in the lead, and my eyes caught sight of Jameson. He stepped out onto the sand and made his way toward them as well.
“Stay here, Alice,” I cautioned before following the others.
No one noticed me as I quickly made my way toward them. When I was still halfway from them, the wind shifted, blowing from behind me. Jameson glanced back at me when he caught my scent. Then, seven pairs of red eyes turned my way, making the breath hitch in my chest.
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