by K.N. Lee
“Who did this? Who?”
“Listen to me. This isn’t mine.”
She was so covered in blood that he couldn’t understand how she wasn’t the one injured. It was on her face, her hands. If her dress hadn’t been black, he knew he’d have seen streaks of red in it. There were droplets in her hair, along with something more solid looking that he didn’t want to contemplate.
“Fiona. She’s dead.”
“Leighton killed her?”
Marradith told him everything then. Her plan with Kieran. How Leighton came downstairs just as the killings were done. And how Fiona was caught in the gunfire.
“This was your plan?” he yelled. “This is what you didn’t want to tell me?”
“I wasn’t going to sit back, and let him trade me off like a damned dog! I don’t care what you, or he, or anybody has to say about it, I will not be treated like that. If Leighton loved me, he couldn’t do this to me. He’d understand!” She raised her fists, shaking them. Her eyes were drawn with angry tears. “And I’m sorry about Fiona, but you have to remember that she’s part of the reason Leighton was doing this. It was an accident, but she shouldn’t have been here! She shouldn’t have been pushing him to do this. I am sorry she died but I am not going to let anyone stand in the way of me having my life.”
“We could have worked together. Obviously Rafi was willing to help us too. Why did you do this? Now we’re all going to have to pay the consequences…”
“Because,” she spat. “In the end, it’s always me. When my parents died, it was supposed to be me and my brothers together. And then they left me here, with him. And I was by myself. And he did things to me. And no matter how much power I would wield as Pack Mother, none of those men would ever really belong to me, because you’re the one that I want. All Leighton has ever wanted was to separate the two of us, and he was going to have his wish. So I couldn’t wait for you. Or Rafi. Or whoever thinks they can save me. Because in the end, I’m alone, and it’s my life. So I was taking care of it myself.”
“You never told me that…” Justin exhaled, and tried hard to breathe in. “Honey why didn’t you tell me?”
“He’s your Sire. And he’d kill you.”
“How long did that go on? Marradith?”
“Not long. Maybe twice, soon after Scott and Danny left. I learned how to hurt him, without killing him. But enough that he would stay away.”
Justin trembled. He wanted to scream. More than that, he wanted to kill.
“Don’t ask me anymore questions about it,” she said. “We have other problems. Leighton thinks,” Marradith paused, “…that you were in with Kieran on what happened tonight. So you can’t let Leighton see your face.”
“I don’t care,” Justin said. “He’s lucky to still be alive, but that fortune is soon going to run out!”
Marradith shook her head. “There’s something else you have got to know. About Fi.”
“What?”
“I don’t have time to explain the details,” she said. “But Rafi was married to Fi once. And he’s not going to take this well.”
“Consequences?” Rafael said. “You had better not be talking about what I think you are.”
Adam laughed. “Of course I am. Didn’t I try to warn you, that no good would come of telling that child anything? Your wife is dead now, and you did nothing to help her. So worried about someone else’s family, you missed what was right in front of you.”
“That’s not true,” Rafael said. “She can’t be.” As he spoke he felt a hollowness, like cold water moving through his lungs. He reached for Fiona, centering on her with his magic. He found a lifeless form; wearing white, with a wound in her abdomen.
“If this is true I’ll destroy you,” Rafael vowed. “It doesn’t matter how many dimensions I have to follow you through.”
“Well, I suppose that could be entertaining,” Adam said. “You’ll still have to figure out how to deal with Marradith.”
“What are you talking about?” Rafael screamed.
“She’s been the bane of my existence,” Adam replied. “I have tried everything I can to kill her. And yet, every time I do, it seems that only the people around her die.”
Rafael lunged at him, but he was gone, leaving behind a layer of ash across the doorway.
Leighton roamed through his house, mourning, screaming. His Wolves were gone. There were others that he’d made, but these dead were the core of his pack. He had chosen them all carefully, and it had taken the better part of his life to obtain and train them into the kind of men he wanted to serve him. In a few spare minutes, Kieran had laid waste to all of it. Many of them would have died fighting for the privilege of taking Marradith. But that was an honorable thing. Being attacked in their sleep was hardly a fitting death for Wolves that had lived as these had. Kieran. He was glad that Marradith had covered his body. Kieran was a traitor. He would not be buried with the remains of the others.
After a time, he looked out the windows and realized that the sun had come up. The clouds were invisible, the sky a thick, watery gray. Wiping his face with the back of his hands, he sighed. There would be practicalities to consider now. His Wolves would have to be taken care of. And Fiona.
Crossing back into the kitchen, he got a towel and washed his face with it. He cursed when he realized that he’d stepped on something sharp. It was one of the shards of the Fiona‘s bowl. He picked up the broken pieces and tossed them in the trash, along with the carton of ice cream that was on the counter, a melted strawberry mess. When Leighton stood up, he met his son’s eyes.
Justin stood in the open door, with his arms crossed. Leighton was shocked to realize he’d not even felt his approach. They stood silent, staring at each other for a time. Leighton was a mess, full of dried blood and blood spray from having shot Kieran. He’d managed to rinse some of it away, but what remained stood out like cuts against his skin.
When Justin spoke, he made sure to keep his voice level. “I am sorry about Fiona and the others.”
“Are you?” Leighton said.
“Yes. Mari told me that you think I was somehow behind this.”
Leighton shrugged. “And?”
Justin shifted in the doorway. Leighton saw the sunlight shine on the blade of the knife that he carried. “Father,” Justin said. “I want to make sure you understand a couple of things. I had no reason to do this. I did not fear any of these men. Who knows what Kieran was thinking? But he’s gone, and so are the others.”
“Where exactly is Mari?”
“I’m glad you ask, because that’s the next piece of business that we must discuss. She’s going to be my bride. From today until our wedding, she is my fiancée. That means she will live in my house. And after the ceremony, we’ll be moving on to new territory. That is, unless you prefer to leave here and go elsewhere.”
“She’s at your house, is she?” Leighton shook his head.
“It can’t be a surprise,” Justin continued. “And even if it were, it’s my place now.”
“I’d like to see her one more time, at least,” Leighton said. “To say goodbye.”
“I will relay that message. It will be up to her to decide whether or not she prefers to see you.”
That made Leighton laugh. “We shall see then.”
“I’ll help you with the bodies,” Justin said. “We should start.”
Once Marradith was alone in Justin’s house, she got a pair of scissors and cut herself out of her dress. She showered, scrubbing her skin until it stung. Taking her time, she shampooed her hair. Once she was clean, she stood under the water for a while longer, watching the water seep down the drain.
In Justin’s closet, she found a pair of her jeans and a sweater. Over the years she had accumulated a separate wardrobe of clothes that she kept at his house. Some were clothes that Justin bought her, others were things that she had left behind on nights when she slept over. There was enough that she wouldn’t have to go back to Leighton’s to get her thi
ngs for quite a while. Her stomach grumbled, and she remembered that she hadn’t eaten anything since the day before.
She went in the front, and found Rafael sitting there, waiting for her.
“Rafi…!”
“Good morning,” he said.
“How did you get in here?”
He shrugged. “Doesn’t matter.”
“Justin said you were right behind him when you heard the shots, and when he turned around, you were gone.”
“Yes. That’s true.”
“You already know what happened at Leighton’s?” Marradith asked. She stretched her wide eyes and blinked.
“I want to hear it from you,” Rafael said. “I want to hear what you had to do with it, and then I’ll think about how sorry you are about it.”
According to Leighton’s suggestion, he and Justin began to dig a ditch to place the dead members of the pack. “I’d like Fiona’s ashes buried closer to the river,” Leighton mused. “She always loved the water. We’ll have to burn her remains, too. But separate from the others.”
Justin nodded. He wondered what Rafi would think about that, but didn’t comment.
They worked in silence. Justin was sweating. Despite the cold weather the digging took so much energy. The ground was hard, unyielding.
“We can stop now,” Leighton said.
“Are you sure?” Justin mopped his brow with the back of his hand. “I don’t think this is deep enough.”
Justin sat down on the edge of the hole. Leighton, who was inside the hole, remained standing.
“It’s enough for what we came for,” Leighton replied. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a flask. He took a drink before offering it to Justin.
“No, thank you,’ he said.
“Come on, Son. Just this once.”
Justin wasn’t sure why, but he took the flask, and drank a sip of it. It was island rum. The warmth spread through his chest.
“Didn’t know you still drank that,” he said.
“Now and again. Reminds me of when you and Kieran were young Wolves and we lived on Kitanya. You remember? Caroline would order cases of it every month.”
“I haven’t forgotten,” Justin replied.
Leighton smiled, but Justin saw the tears in his eyes. “You know, there comes this point, for all of us. Things are changing. You’ll be with Mari now. And everyone is gone. So, it will just be me.”
Something in the sentiment of his words reminded Justin of what Marradith had said to him earlier that morning.
“Yes,” Justin said.
“My hope is that you will take care of Mari. I love her in a way that no one else can.”
“You love her in a way that no Father should,” Justin spat. “Great-grandfather, whatever the hell your relation to her really is.”
“She told you?” Leighton said. “She must really love you.”
“You’re not even going to deny it? Fucking pig…”
“It wouldn’t change anything, Son,” he said. “There’s something else that I can do that will put your mind to rest on this. But this is not the topic I want to dwell on. You can do whatever you want with the house. Burn it, if that would be easier. Marradith will soon be a very wealthy woman. Neither of you will have to worry about anything.”
“What are you talking about?”
“What I was saying about Marradith; I wasn’t talking about the physical. I know her mind, because it’s very much like my own. Kieran didn’t do that killing on his own. She forced him to do it. She has ways to control Wolves. I’ve seen her do such things before, on a much smaller scale. She’s grown up, and her powers have grown as well, changed. You don’t understand, but I love her more than anything. My pack is gone. And so is she. So I’m leaving.”
Leighton pulled the revolver from his jacket, and Justin tried to move backwards, sure that he was about to be shot. Instead, he put the muzzle of the gun into his mouth and pulled her trigger.
“The problem with magic,” Rafael said quietly, “was that I could see Fiona was dead. I didn’t have to go to the house. I knew. You don’t have the experience to know what I felt for that woman. I don’t care what you say about Justin. You haven’t been with him long enough to know every dark thing about him, and still love him.”
Marradith bit her lip. She paused, taking a long breath before speaking. “That may be true. But I never intended to hurt Fi. Leighton picked up his gun, and…..”
“Of all the things that we can blame on Leighton,” Rafi cried. “This one is going to you. How could you not have thought there could be complications? You made sure Justin was safe here. Why couldn’t you have made sure Fiona was out of the house?”
“Because I couldn’t trust Fiona! I know that you’re hurting. You don’t want to hear this, but the Fiona that lived here was a different woman than the one you remember. She’s not the person you fell in love with. I couldn’t risk that she would go running to Leighton and tell him everything.”
“There were other ways.”
“Alright. Maybe there were.”
“You just didn’t care!”
He got up, and reaching out his hand, he blew her backwards with a burst of energy. She slammed backwards into a wall, falling like a rag doll.
“Come on bitch,” Rafael screamed. “Get up!”
Justin scrambled backwards, staring at Leighton’s dead body.
“Well goddamn,” he muttered beneath his breath.
He went back into the house and grabbed a box of matches from the counter, along with a bottle of vodka.
“Bastard,” he said under his breath, and poured the liquor over his sire’s crumpled form. He wondered about Marradith, and how she would react when he broke this news. What should he say? That the old man was sorry? That he knew what she made Kieran do, and he was devastated that she would turn against him and his men? That sounded like another guilt trip. A way to make her beholden to him from beyond the grave. What would be easy for her to believe? That Leighton tried to attack him, and he’d had to defend himself? It seemed as likely. He would be lying, but only in the interest of protecting Marradith. She had enough scars. Besides, Leighton had said he should take care of her. He would be doing that.
Justin lit a match, and threw it into the ditch. He stood transfixed for a time, watching the fire. As the smoke came up, he heard a voice.
“How about that? He made it easy on you this time.”
Justin looked up, to see a figure standing on the opposite side of the flames. An old, wizened man, wearing a black hat and a coat that hung from his body like that of a scarecrow. He lifted his dark eyes to Justin, and he cringed; the irises were swirling pools of fathomless black.
“Who…how did you get here?”
He smiled. “I am sorry. My dear Granthem. I travel so much, that sometimes I forget. You have not met me before in this timeline. But we have met elsewhere. You and your kin have crossed paths with me, in other places.”
“What are you?”
“One who observes,” he said. “But you may call me Adam.”
“I’ve heard of creatures like you before, but I never believed it. You’re a destroyer.”
“Who knew? A Wolf with more than two brain cells to rub together.”
Justin sneered, barring his teeth.
The sound came from a distance. The boom of an explosion, and then vibrations, shaking the earth. Justin looked skyward as the gray skies shimmered, first stark white, and then darkened into blood red. “No!” Adam cried, lifting his hands into the air. “No, this can’t happen!”
Adam’s body began to disintegrate, turning into ash before Justin’s eyes.
Marradith was startled. She felt Rafael’s power flow through her like a cold wave. Stumbling to her feet, she ran to the door.
“No!” Adam commanded.
The knob was wrenched from her hand. She was being pulled backwards by the pulse of energy that surrounded her body.
“It wasn’t my fault she died!”
Marradith screamed. “And she wasn’t your Fi, anyway!”
He paused. It was just an instant; long enough for her to fire a blast of electricity at him.
The strike did not hit him, but melted against the force of Rafael’s power, a shield of magnetic energy that protected him. He aimed at her, another burst of his own energy. The shield morphed and grew as they both aimed at each other. It became an orb, a swirling blue light, moving away from them both and lodging into the center of the room.
“What are you doing?” Marradith yelled. A roar filled the space between them, so loud that it was almost deafening.
“I am not doing anything!” His hands fell to his sides. “What…what did we do?”
The orb grew bigger, slowing as it spun. The forces of their elements merged, creating something that neither could control.
The blue energy was drawing things into itself. Metal. She ducked as picture frames and silverware lifted and flew into the orb. It grew so big that she could not move. Rafi was pinned to the other side of it. He was transfixed, and at first, she didn’t understand why; she realized that she could see images inside it.
Rafael watched as the orb moved. He could see images of his old life.
“What do you see when you look?” he asked Marradith.
“My life,” she said. “This is my life on the side you come from?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
Tears formed in her eyes. “What if this is what Adam wanted from you? For us to kill each other?”
“It makes sense. Either this is the way out,” he said, squaring his shoulders. “Or I’m going to die.”
“Rafi…!”
He smiled, the only comfort he could give her. “Promise me you’ll be vigilant. You’ll know Adam’s work when you see it next time. Keep Granthem. It’s part of what Adam wants to separate you.”
And with that, he closed his eyes, and jumped.
Marradith watched as everything around her turned red. The earth quaked beneath her feet.
And then, blackness.
