by Shayla Hyde
I shook my head, placing my hand on her shoulder for comfort. “I can’t let you do that,” I whispered, “I just can’t. If something happened to you, I would never forgive myself.”
“I feel the same way,” Iris argued, wiping her eyes again. “If something happens to you, I will never forgive myself for not fighting for you.”
“Nothing is going to happen to me,” I whispered back sharply. I wasn’t sure if I was reassuring her or myself. “But if something did happen to me, it wouldn’t be your fault. There is nothing you can do at this point, Iris. This is beyond you. You can’t help.”
Her bottom lip quivered, and she dropped her head in defeat. I placed my index finger under her chin and lifted her gaze to mine again. I forced a small grin and softly said, “It is all going to be fine. By this time next week, we’ll be back at Gemstone eating their freaking amazing ice cream and having not a single worry in the world besides high school.”
She chuckled softly and dropped her gaze again. “I hope you’re right.”
“I am always right,” I smiled, taking her forearm in my hand.
Before Iris and I left my house, I snuck into my father’s room. He was getting ready for bed. His PJ’s were on and his box fan (that he will not sleep without) was positioned at the foot of the bed, blowing on him. Standing in the doorway, I knocked softly on the wall. He
noticed me and grinned his trademarked goofy smile. I couldn’t help but smile back at him, the man whom I was blessed enough to call my father.
“You heading out?” He asked when he noticed the bag hanging on my shoulder.
“Yeah, we are about to,” I nodded, repositioning the bag, “I thought… I thought I’d come say goodbye.” I ached at the thought this really could be “goodbye”.
He rose from the bed and came to me with a grin on his face. I knew
he was coming to give me a hug, and I wasn’t sure that I could emotionally handle it. I fought the strong urge to cry when he wrapped his arms around my shoulders in his ever so comforting bear-hug.
“Have a good time, Eve,” he told me, patting me on top of my head,
“I love you.”
I pulled away, fighting my tears back with everything in me.
I fabricated a smile and whispered the words, “I love you, too, Dad.”
CHAPTER THIRTY:
We got to Iris’s house, and thankfully, her parents were not there. I wanted to meet them, of course, but tonight was not the night. Outside, the trick-or-treating had begun. I heard kids excitedly shouting and running down the street.
Iris wasn’t speaking much, and neither was I. There was nothing much to talk about besides what could go wrong and what could go right. I sat on her couch alone while she passed out handfuls of candy to the occasional child. Each time someone knocked on the door, it
scared me out of my wits. Finally, when nine o’clock rolled around, Kaden arrived for me.
Knock, knock, knock.
Iris hesitantly opened the door, and instead of a Halloween costume, I caught a glimpse of Kaden’s boots standing on the front porch. Everything was still as I rose from the couch. While I approached the door, I was utterly numb. Each step I took, I wondered how I was even standing on my own.
I paused in the doorway and looked at Iris. She was seconds away from crying again. Before she could, I tightly wrapped my arms around her shoulders.
“Don’t,” I said softly, “it will all be okay. Remember what I told you.”
She nodded against me, embracing me tighter.
I glanced over her shoulder at Kaden. He was staring at the concrete porch, his jaw clenched. He was ready to go, and I was as ready as I would ever be.
I pulled away from Iris and forced a convincing smile at her. She took a single step away from me, a tear finally spilling over and rolling down her cheek. “Be careful,” she whispered to me.
I nodded, “Of course.”
She wiped her tear away and bobbed her head.
“Ready?” Kaden softly questioned me.
“Yes,” I whispered, slowly stepping outside.
I followed him out onto the crowded street, and I could feel Iris’s eyes glued to the back of my head the entire way.
As we made our way down the street, I met eyes with a few strangers.
Everyone around us, even adults, was wearing some sort of costume.
We stood out, Kaden and me. We were the only ones in casual clothes.
The entire way to the clearing, I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching us. The strong possibility that there might actually be someone watching only intensified that nagging feeling.
When we arrived at the clearing, I saw Elizabeth and Sebastian were starting a giant brushfire in the dead center of the opening. I winced at the sight of it.
“Where are the others?” Kaden stopped and interrogated them, opting to keep his distance from the flames.
“They are on their way,” Elizabeth explained, throwing some large sticks in the blaze. “Everyone decided to get one last bite before battle.”
I noticed the fresh blood droplets that were drizzled on her chin and winced again.
“What about Adelaide and Ava?” Kaden squinted. “Are they still with us?”
“Of course, we are,” Adelaide’s voice echoed from behind us. “You should know we wouldn’t miss this opportunity for the world.” I peered over my shoulder at the sisters. As usual, they were dressed in ankle-length white dresses that practically glowed in the dark.
“Wonderful,” Kaden said beneath his breath. He briskly walked to the left edge of the clearing, and I followed at his heels.
“Where are you going?” I desperately tried keeping up with his insanely quick pace.
“Gathering some things,” he explained, urgently taking my numb fingertips in his strong hand.
We reached our earlier campsite soon after, and he rummaged through each of the tents until he found what he was looking for. Kaden
threw a large backpack that was stuffed full of… something… over his wide shoulders.
“What’s in the bag?” I lifted my eyebrows at his dark silhouette.
“More stakes,” he told me, grabbing my hand and pulling me again. Suddenly, he came to a complete stop in the center of the woods and gazed down at me.
“Wha-what are you doing?” I stared up at him, puzzled.
“I- There’s something I have to do because I’m afraid if I don’t do it right now, I may never get the chance to,” he quickly stammered.
“Oh, okay. Wh- what is it?” I anxiously inquired.
“I…” he trailed off, pressing his hand against my cheek. He scanned my face, his eyes stopping on my lips.
I knew what he wanted. My heart started racing in my chest. I longingly stared into his eyes, and when he didn’t act, I leapt on my tiptoes and looped my arms around the back of his neck. He leaned into me, crushing my lips with his. My eyes closed instinctively as his cool, soft lips moved perfectly against mine. His kiss left me feeling breathless, and butterflies flapped wildly in my stomach.
When he pulled away, he had a smile on his face, and so did I. “I had to,” he whispered against my moist lips. He took my hand in his again, his smile fading, and he pulled me back to the clearing.
Victor and Jake had returned before we did. We joined them, and I noticed they were all sporting backpacks like Kaden’s.
“Are all of your backpacks full of stakes?” I questioned them, glancing around the group.
“Nah, they’re full of Halloween candy,” Sebastian seeming irritated, snapped at me.
“We don’t have much time,” Victor said, pacing in front of the fire.
“Yep. I hope you guys had nice lives,” Sebastian muttered under his breath.
“Why are you even here?” Jake suddenly growled, “at this rate, we’re better off without you.”
Sebastian scoffed, “To prove a point,” and glanced at Kaden. Kaden clenched his jaw, but he kept quiet.
Victor stopped pacing and said, “and it better stop right now. We need to focus. We don’t have time for this.”
Silence. The only sound to be heard was the cracking of the sweltering fire.
I stared at the blazing flames, wondering to myself how many charred bodies would be liquified in it before the end of the night. I shuddered anxiously, my heart palpitating in my chest. I pulled my sweaty palm from Kaden’s cool grasp, and I felt his eyes shift over to me. I pretended like I didn’t notice.
Suddenly, the snap of a twig set us all on edge. A line was formed on each side of Kaden and I in a matter of seconds, and everyone focused intently on the forest ahead of the fire. They all had one hand on their backpack openings. I gulped.
Soon, a dark shadow exited the tree line, and I gasped.
“Jane? Jane Wilson?” I squinted at her. “What are you doing here?
The reversal spell won’t work, remember?”
She grinned at me, approaching us all. Everyone relaxed a bit.
“That could’ve ended badly for you,” Sebastian grumbled.
“I don’t think you want to mess with me,” Jane boldly barked back, then redirected her attention to me. “Grandma told me to come help you guys. She said I need you just as much as you need me. She told me I would find you all here.”
I shook my head, “But Jane, what if you get hurt?”
“Don’t worry about that,” she shrugged, “I have been practicing nonstop since your visit. I am ready to use my powers. I am ready to help you.”
I swallowed hard, giving her a respectful nod, “Okay, well, thank you, Jane.”
“Did you happen to see anyone on your way in?” Victor questioned her.
“No,” Jane admitted, “only your allies. Eve, I have something I need to quickly discuss with you in private.”
I gaped at her as she stepped away from me and the others. She reached the tree line and glanced back at me. I hesitantly followed her into the forest. She dropped to her knees and slung a small leather satchel onto the leaf-covered ground. She separated the strap with a Velcro tear, and out fell a solid black book.
“There is something I’d like to try,” she explained. “Grandmother tells me you have discovered your solis shield.” I gawked at her. How did Ida know about that?
“There is a spell in this book that, if we merge our powers together, will protect us all,” she explained, quickly flipping through the pages.
“How do we do that?” I chewed on my fingernails, dropping onto my knees beside her.
“Just follow me in chant,” she whispered. She stopped flipping and glanced up at me through her thick dark hair. “Okay?”
“Okay,” I muttered breathlessly.
“Repeat after me,” she ordered, trailing a sentence in the spell book with her pointer finger. “Clipeum, parce nobis. Auxilium to defendant, merge potestate nostra.”
I stuttered the phrase to the best of my ability, sounding foolish in the process.
“Again,” she demanded.
She read the spell to me repeatedly until I had it memorized and resting on the very tip of my tongue. Just as she started to repeat it once more, I joined her in chorus.
“Clipeum, parce nobis. Auxilium to defendant, merge potestate nostra,” the words flowed from my lips.
The air surrounding us was full of static electricity. I felt the hair on my head start to lift upward on its own, and I noticed Jane’s was doing the same.
“What is going on?” I brushed over my hair with my fingertips and was softly struck by it.
“This is a great sign,” Jane whispered, glancing up at her hair as it flowed above her head. It looked almost like it was floating underwater.
“We need to return to the others.”
I nodded in agreement and shoved myself from the ground. As we walked toward the clearing, I noticed I was feeling a lot lighter than usual. It was like someone else was carrying my weight forward. I wondered if Jane was feeling the same way, but I didn’t ask.
Back at the clearing, everyone gaped at us as we approached.
“Were you two struck by lightning while you were gone?” Sebastian chuckled, examining our current hairstyles. Elizabeth punched him in the arm.
“It’s temporary,” Jane barked, “but this is what it looks like when you undergo a merge.”
“Ah,” Victor exclaimed, clearly impressed. “A capability merge.
Excellent thinking, Jane.”
“Thanks,” she grinned, her cheeks dimpling. “Just make sure you all keep your distance from us because the charge is intense.”
Elizabeth cleared her throat. “How long until you are fully merged?” “Soon,” Jane admitted, the smile suddenly fading from her lips. “Soon? How soon?” Sebastian asked in an irritated tone.
“Thirty minutes, tops,” Jane snapped back at Sebastian.
Sebastian folded his arms, “we don’t have thirty minutes!”
Kaden rubbed his forehead in obvious frustration before snapping at
Sebastian, “Will you please shut the hell up?”
Sebastian shifted his stance, dropping his arms to his sides. An amused spark lit up his face, “And if I don’t?”
Kaden took a step toward him, his jaw clenched angrily, “You really want to find out?”
Sebastian laughed, “Yes, I would love to. What are you going to do?” Kaden sprung forward in a flash, and the next thing I knew, Sebastian was on the ground. There was a harsh crack as his back contacted the rigid forest floor. He didn’t move for a moment, but when he did, he sat straight up and apathetically popped his shoulder blade back in place. Pop, pop, pop. I winced at the painful sound.
Sebastian rose to his feet unharmed and unfazed and rushed toward where Kaden was standing. I stupidly jumped in the middle of the brawl before he could reach him. Sebastian ran directly into my shoulder, sticking to me like glue. His body convulsed against mine as I involuntarily electrocuted him.
“Oh my gosh! What do we do?” Elizabeth exclaimed, watching us with a horrified expression.
“He will be okay. You can’t interfere or you will be electrocuted, too,” Victor told her coolly.
Jane silently nodded, agreeing with him.
I tugged my arm, trying to force it free of him. It wasn’t until he started foaming at the mouth that I was finally able to get him off me. He did a nose-dive directly onto the ground and let out a deep grunt.
I bit my lip guiltily and tossed my backpack on the ground. Sebastian rolled over on his back and sighed deeply, “Alright,” he said, “that’s enough fighting for today.”
“Not exactly,” Adelaide exclaimed from somewhere nearby. Her footfalls came our way until her body was illuminated by the fire. Her face was grim. “The Abominations that are keeping look-out on the west edge of the forest have spotted them. The Primevals are coming, and they are close.”
The breath left my body.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE:
The sound of marching filled my eardrums, and my body filled with terror. Jane grabbed my hand in hers and tugged me toward the fire. “Listen, we have not yet completed the merging process. We have to hold on a little while longer,” she sharply whispered to me.
I stared ahead. Kaden, Sebastian, Victor, Elizabeth, and Jake were ahead of us and in formation. They, side-by-side, created a straight line. A soft whimper left my lips, and Kaden glanced over his shoulder at me. He had that expression on his face again; sad, but angry.
Determined. He shook his head as if he were saying, “Don’t cry”. I wanted so desperately to go to him, but Jane held me tightly in place. My lips trembled and my breaths came out shaky. Kaden stared into my tear-filled terrified eyes.
The forest was eerily silent until Elizabeth whispered, “I… I see someone.”
My eyes frantically scanned the forest lining ahead of them, but I
couldn’t see what she was seeing. I wondered where Adelaide, Ava, and the rest of The Abominations had gone off to. We needed them.
Now.
I heard footsteps, multiple of them, coming from the woods ahead. I gulped as four figures dressed in familiar dark cloaks appeared from the trees. They stopped on the furthest edge of the clearing. I tightened my grip on Jane’s hand, and I could feel the conjoined electric charge coming from our palms.
“Brother, I just want to take a second to say I am sorry,” Sebastian whispered just below his breath. “Before we die…” Kaden shook his head, “Not now, Sebastian. Shut up.”
Sebastian scowled at him, refocusing on the clan in front of them. One of the cloaked figures stepped forward a few yards, leaving the other three behind. I carefully watched their movements until they stopped just ten feet away from our battle line. The figure grabbed each side of the hood, pulling the cloak from their face. It was the face of my nightmares and the leader of The Primevals, Calvin. He pushed his long silvery hair out of his face and smiled menacingly at Kaden. He lifted one hand, signaling someone else forward.
“Amelia, come. Step forward, and show me the Marked One,” he demanded, his Eastern European accent thick and haunting.
One of the cloaked figures came forward, pulling the cloak from her face. Victor’s body tensed at the sight of his ex-girlfriend. Her golden hair was pulled back, and she stared through the army line, finding me quickly.
“There,” she pointed at me.
Calvin followed her finger until his eyes were on mine, then my throat, “I see. Thank you, Amelia.”
Amelia nodded and retreated to the others.
Calvin paced the ground horizontally, to-and-fro, “You see, there is just one thing I don’t understand. Why are all of you willing to challenge me? Don’t you see that you are protecting a killer of your own kind? Someone, tell me why that is.”
“She has killed no vampires,” Victor spoke up, correcting Calvin’s assumptions.
