by Rain Oxford
“Don’t shout?!” she shouted. “Don’t shout?!” she yelled louder. “I came up here because you were supposed to meet me in the dining room an hour ago to find you passed out on the floor and these two protecting you, not even telling me what happened, and you tell me not to shout?! Of course I’ll fucking shout!”
Henry growled. I was still on the floor and someone had stuffed a pillow under my head. “I had a rough vision, that’s all. Sorry I missed you at dinner. Did you see your attacker?”
“No, and my father just returned. Vincent blabbed that I was attacked, and now my father is ready to kill them all.”
I grabbed my chair to help pull myself up. After a moment, the world stopped spinning. Remington was at the door, no longer fighting to get in, Darwin was by his desk, and Henry was between Remy and me.
“Let me take a look in your head and we’ll work on finding him before your father kills everyone.”
She grimaced. “I hate it when you do that.”
“Or…” I said, turning to Henry. “We can leave it up to the sketch artist.” He considered it before nodding. “Great, you do that, I need to go talk to Vincent.”
I left the room without waiting for a response. By the time I made it outside, I was feeling much better, and the cool breeze helped even more. I searched for the library this time instead of Vincent, since I knew he would return to it eventually.
With this method, I found the set of stairs that led to the library easily. When I entered, he was nowhere to be found, so I decided to look at the books. After about half an hour, I turned around and made a sound of surprise I would forever deny.
Vincent, standing only two feet away from me, frowned, but didn’t comment.
I cleared my throat. “You shouldn’t sneak up on me.”
“I will try to remember to bang some pans and stomp my feet when entering the room next time.” He went to his desk and sat on the desk instead of in his chair. “We need to talk about Keigan.”
“I say we let the shadow man have him.”
His eyes widened with surprise. “Really? What brought this on?”
“I had a vision. Langril is the reason the shadow man is the way he is.”
“What do you mean?”
“I saw when the shadow man was a child. He went by Kea, but I’m ninety-five percent sure it was him.” I told him the story, making sure to use the nickname so that Krechea didn’t overhear us. When I was done, Vincent looked thoughtful.
“That was it? That’s all you saw happening between them?”
“Well, I haven’t been at the visions thing as long as you, so yes. I know there’s more because he went after Langril’s daughter, but I don’t know how much. So, what do you want to talk to me about?”
“Keigan has something very dangerous planned. He has come up with a way to block me from seeing his plan, though. We need to have a way to stop him no matter what he does. I don’t propose we kill him or let the shadow man kill him, but we need to be able to if he tries to do something horrific.”
“I take it you have something in mind?”
“Remember how I told you Logan once stabbed him in the chest and it didn’t hurt him?” he asked. I nodded. “I think that’s because he missed the heart. I thought Keigan was just figuratively heartless, but I’ve done a lot of thinking and reading. I think he actually removed his heart to gain immortality.”
I gaped. “That doesn’t make sense. You can’t live without a heart to pump blood to your organs.”
“A human cannot. Dothra wizards can vanish into shadow. There is nothing earthly about them. In fact, this particular act has been theorized quite a lot. Supposedly, the gods could do it. I imagine Keigan would take that as a challenge.”
“You think he removed his heart so that he couldn’t be stabbed?”
“I think he cannot be killed no matter what happens to him. If he did accomplish it, then only by destroying his heart can we defeat him. This is the darkest magic I have ever heard of, taking blood magic to a new low. It requires tremendous sacrifice.”
“After what I just saw, I wouldn’t be surprised at all. That doesn’t mean I’m going to side with the shadow man, because he’s pretty sick as well, but it was Langril who made him that way.”
“Then we need to find his heart. Can you find it with a vision?”
I shook my head. “I’m visioned-out. That last one caused my familiar to show up, which probably meant my own heart was in danger. Can’t you do it?”
“Like I said, he’s doing something to block me.”
“Why you and not me?”
“Maybe for the same reason he tried to draw me into Draumr.”
“Kadin.”
“What?” he asked, frowning.
“He pulled you into Kadin, not Draumr. Didn’t you see the symbol on the door?”
“Of course, but his intention was to bring me to Draumr. He mistook the doors. He chose Draumr and tried to take me so that no one could get to him.”
That’s what Langril said, but how did Vincent know that? “You don’t remember anything that happened from the moment he took you through the door to the moment you appeared behind me?”
“No. I remember it being very bright and then appearing back in front of the tower with you, Heather, and those vampires.”
Then Langril didn’t tell him about the mix-up. “So how do you suggest we find out where his heart is? And that is probably the weirdest question I have ever asked. Would Heather know?”
“I doubt it. His heart will probably be enshrined somewhere only he can get to.”
“Like his castle in Dothra?”
“No. He wouldn’t risk any of his followers turning on him. If only he had someone he absolutely trusted.”
“Like, someone who owed him something?” I asked.
He studied me for a second. “I take it you saw something?”
“Last semester, when he was training me to fight the shadow man, I had a vision using his red foam ball. In it, I saw him make a deal with Heather’s mother when she was a little girl. I don’t know what the deal was for, but she must have meant something to him since he had a child with her.”
“Maybe she does know.”
“But Miranda is dead.”
“Right, but if she made a deal with Keigan, then it would have been for her soul. Do you know where we can find something of hers?”
“The red ball belonged to her. It was important to her. Are you thinking she’s in Dothra and that we can find her?”
“Whether she is or not, I don’t plan on bringing her back. The dead should stay dead. I have something else in mind.”
My instincts told me this wasn’t going to be good.
* * *
Without explaining, Vincent asked me to get the ball and meet him in the infirmary. I made my way back to the dorm room without paying attention, which was why I ended up being slammed against the wall. My instincts probably would have warned me if it weren’t someone I saw very often.
“Stay away from Remington,” Alpha Flagstone growled, twisting my arm.
“What the hell are you talking about?” It couldn’t be helped that my response wasn’t very intimidating, since my face was pressed quite firmly against the stone wall.
“It’s not that difficult a concept! She’s mine and I don’t share.”
“I really wish she was here to hear you say that.”
He twisted my arm again until I was certain he would either dislocate my shoulder or break a bone. Then a jaguar’s roar echoed in the hall, a sound much more dangerous than a wolf’s howl, at least in my opinion.
Flagstone released me, turned to the threat, and shifted. An instant later, shredded clothes littered the ground beneath a massive black wolf. I didn’t see Henry, but I sensed movement right before my invisible friend crashed into Flagstone. Wolf and jaguar growls filled the stone hallway. Darwin ran around the corner, saw the scuffle, and skidded to a stop.
“Why is Henry attacking a
professor?” he asked worriedly.
“Because Flagstone attacked me.”
“Oh. Get him, Henry!” He held out his hand. “Give me your mobile and I’ll phone in an alibi.”
“Hold on,” I said. “Henry, let him up.”
The jaguar suddenly became visible as he backed away from the wolf. Flagstone stood tall, even though his right foreleg was bleeding. “Alpha Flagstone, you attacked first, so you’re going to have to shift first if you want him to change back.”
Flagstone growled, but shifted.
“Henry, shift,” I said. He snarled. “Henry!”
Finally, Henry relented and shifted. “Why did you attack Devon?”
The wolf addressed me instead of the jaguar. “Remington and I had a fight.”
“And you were with Hunt when Vincent told him she was attacked and I was with her.”
“Yes.”
“Great. That’s exactly what I need right now. If you have a problem with your relationship with Remington, you figure it out with her. As long as you two are still together, I’m the last person you have to worry about. You should be working out who attacked her, not attacking me.”
“I know,” he said.
“Then why the hell did you attack him?” Darwin asked.
“Because he wanted to fight and he can’t fight with Remy,” I answered.
“That’s completely illogical!”
“He’s an alpha wolf shifter. You should understand, since you are a wolf as well,” Henry said.
“That’s actually not just wolf shifters,” I corrected. “When some people get upset, they just want to fight, and they have to find someone who can take it.”
“But Dad’s a wolf shifter and he never takes his frustrations out on his friends.”
“Your father punishes his pack members when they do wrong, but none of them are strong enough to take it if he doesn’t pull back,” Henry said.
“Did you get a sketch of Remy’s attacker?” I asked.
“I did. She took it to show her father.”
“Okay. We need to get back to the room and get Langril’s red…” I stopped when Darwin held up the ball. “Okay then. Alpha Flagstone, I suggest you go help your girlfriend find who attacked her.”
He looked like he wasn’t sure whether or not to argue. He probably didn’t believe me that I wasn’t trying to take Remington away from him. Then again, Alpha Flagstone was usually very level-headed. I suspected there was a lot more to their fight than he said. In fact, Hunt might have had a hand in it.
No matter how Flagstone and Remington worked out, it sucked for both Flagstone and Hunt. Dating any one would be difficult for Flagstone as Hunt’s familiar, let alone Hunt’s daughter. As great as they were together, I could see it going up in flames and creating a horrible rift between all three of them.
“Devon?” Darwin asked. I realized Flagstone was gone and I had been lost in thought.
“We need to go meet Vincent in the infirmary. Henry, let me know if someone is close enough to be overhearing us.” On the way, I explained to them everything that had happened in my vision, followed by Vincent’s theory that Langril was able to remove his own heart. I finished just as we reached the door to the infirmary.
“I don’t think we can trust Langril or the shadow man, but it seems to me that Langril has changed,” Darwin said. “If you have to choose one or the other, would you rather side with the one who was a level-ten bad and is now a level-five, or the one who was a level-one and is now a level eight?”
“The one who isn’t trying to kill people.”
“Then I’d bet on Langril, because we know the shadow man has killed. At the same time, prevention is better than reaction.”
“So you suggest we give him a reason not to cross us?”
“Yes. I think you should go through with the plan, but did you notice that Vincent---” he was cut off as the door opened.
“Devon, come in. You two might want to wait outside.”
“Nah,” Darwin said, slipping past him into the room.
The infirmary was set up as usual, except that the exam tables were against the wall and there was a circle made of dried roots and herbs on the floor. Dr. Martin set five fat black candles inside the circle and then wrung his hands with nerves when he was done. “I haven’t done this before,” he said.
“You know how to do it,” Vincent insisted.
“Do what?” I asked.
“Did you bring the ball?”
Darwin pulled it out of his pocket and tossed it to Vincent. Vincent stepped into the circle, placed it in the middle, and stepped out. “We’re going to ask Miranda where Keigan’s heart is.”
“You want to… what?” Darwin asked.
“Andrew has a better skill than medicine,” Vincent said.
We all looked at the nervous physician. “The reason Keigan had to save me from Dothra was because Necromancy creates a sort of aura. Only a certain type of person can be a necromancer, but all Dothra wizards seem to think they can become a necromancer just by killing one of us. It’s not a type of power so much as a type of soul. We use magic just like them, but we are different.”
“You’re a necromancer?” I asked.
“You sleep with dead people?” Henry asked incredulously.
“No, that’s necrophilia,” Darwin corrected.
“So you’ve never slept with a dead person?” Henry pushed.
Dr. Martin paled. “Well… death is subjective. I mean, you’re mortal, so you are a little less alive every day. One or more of you could die in the next minute. Since you don’t know your expiration date, you might as well be dead already.”
“And you’re not dead because you’re immortal?” I asked.
He scoffed. “Of course not. I know the exact date I will die and it isn’t tomorrow. I don’t know how I will die, as that would take the surprise out of it. I’m alive because I know when I’ll be dead.”
“So if someone stabbed you in the chest tomorrow, you wouldn’t die?”
“No. Either they would miss or it wouldn’t be a fatal wound.”
“So you have, or you haven’t slept with a dead person?” Henry asked again.
Instead of answering, Dr. Martin motioned with his hands and the candles lit. The other light in the room instantly went out. Instead of slowly melting like normal, it was as if the candles were bleeding. Red blood poured over the sides of the candles and pooled on the floor. Even as the blood became about an inch deep, it didn’t cross the circle of roots and herbs.
“Are we really doing this?” Darwin asked. “I feel like I’m gonna get in trouble with my dad.”
“Only if your dad is Hades,” I said. “Bring out that soap-stealing, wild side of you we heard so much about.”
He blushed. “For the record, when something goes wrong, it’s not my bloody fault this time.”
Dr. Martin was obviously ignoring us as he focused intently on his task. His eyes were closed and his hands were spread in a gesture of offering. When the candles started emitting smoke that flowed upward and towards the center, my instincts warned me of danger. Darwin took a few steps backward until he was standing between Henry and me.
The smoke formed into what looked like a ghost. It wasn’t until it started to form color and facial details that I recognized the woman. With her long, straight, gold hair and slim figure, she looked so much like Heather. I almost overlooked the fact that she was wearing a blood-soaked t-shirt that reached her mid-thighs, until I realized all the blood was coming from her neckline. It was way too similar to Heather’s death for my comfort.
Her eyes were closed and her form, though solid, swayed slightly. “Miranda Anne, open your eyes.” Her big, light brown eyes were vacant. “Ask your questions. The link is very weak.”
“Miranda, where is Keigan Langril’s heart?” Vincent asked.
She didn’t react to his question at all. “She doesn’t know,” Dr. Martin said. “She knows you’re asking about his heart, but
she doesn’t know where it is. He’s done something to her memory.”
“Can I try to see into her mind? Maybe there’s something he missed.”
“You can try.”
“You have a mental link to her, right?”
“Yes, because I’m summoning her soul here.”
“Then I can do it.”
“Devon, I don’t think you should be looking into the mind of a dead person,” Darwin warned.”
“I know I shouldn’t be, but I don’t see too many options. Where’s my ring?” He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to me hesitantly. He was wearing his gloves, so I didn’t worry about touching his skin. “I’ll try really hard to only see the part about the heart and not the place she’s at now.”
When I unleashed my magic into the room, I felt the minds of my roommates and the closed off minds of Vincent and Dr. Martin. Although I couldn’t read Dr. Martin’s mind and I couldn’t feel Miranda on her own, I was able to sense her presence through the doctor/necromancer.
Not allowing for a moment of doubt, I honed in on that presence and slipped on my ring. I felt like I was being pulled under water. I tried to open my eyes, stop my magic, and take off my ring, but none of it worked. Even though I could breathe, I felt like I shouldn’t.
I realized right then why both the shadow walkers and the people with the key to the tower could disappear into shadows; they were both using the shadow pass. Although Dothra wizards couldn’t open one of the doors of the tower without a key, the shadow pass was some kind of neutral space between life and death, and somehow, Dothra wizards could instinctively use that.
The sensation faded a little and light flooded my mind. It took a minute to realize I was staring up at the sky. I was seeing through Miranda’s eyes in the back seat of a car. Her thoughts were pretty much what I expected a little girl’s mind would be like; chaotic. She was excited, afraid, and tired, all at once. She daydreamed about things like winning money, getting all kinds of exotic animals, and living at an amusement park. When she glanced up at the front seat, I saw the woman who was driving.
Miranda looked away when her mother met her eyes in the review mirror. There was tension there, but Miranda didn’t want to think about it. “Things are going to be better now,” her mother said quietly.
