by J. A. Saare
“Stop!” I screamed louder, rushing to them. “That’s my family. That’s my family!”
Reaching them, I grasped at Aidan’s waist, pulling at his shirt, though it did no good. My father’s deranged hisses and gurgling were so disturbing, I shuddered and released Aidan’s shirt. I started pounding on his back with my fists, hitting him with so much force my knuckles started to ache.
“Let him go!” I screamed as loudly as I could, aware of the warm tears streaming down my face. “Let...him...go!”
A quick movement caught my attention as my mother barreled off the stairs and into Aidan, sending him and my father through the front door and onto the porch. I collapsed to the ground as I was jarred in the process, dropping the phone when my head slammed against the wall. The mass of their bodies broke the door jamb, causing several of the glass frames along the door to crack and break. Glass flew both in and outside of the house, landing in the hallway and on the wood just outside the door.
I crawled in their direction, unable to find my balance.
Aidan made it to his feet at the base of the stairs when multiple gunshots sounded, the loud cracks echoing into the night. I watched him frown and shake his head before staggering drunkenly. He lost his footing and stumbled, going onto one knee before he fell off the porch. He tried to stand, but each movement was uncoordinated. He lifted his head, blue eyes glowing white as he looked at me. His massive body fell forward, into the gravel along the driveway, and he stopped moving.
“Loup-garou are fascinating creatures,” Decimus said, stepping forward, and dropped a gun onto the ground. His movements were as fluid as water, each step almost too perfect to be real. He started to eradicate the distance between us. “It took empirical methods to bring their weaknesses to light, but as you can see, they do exist.”
“What did you do to him?” I resisted the temptation to run outside and see if Aidan was alive. I only had one defense left—the sanctity of the house. To step across the threshold would be inviting death to take me.
Decimus laughed and the sound was as ethereal as his voice. “Come to me Luca and Lily DeViard.”
I watched my parents cross the short distance to Decimus through teary eyes. They stood by his side, their faces becoming empty, their eyes seeing nothing.
“You will stay here,” he ordered. They stopped, appearing like statues. “Reap what you sow.”
He left them behind, stepping forward once again.
“Why are you doing this?” I croaked.
“You should have accepted your fate, Emmaline Hope Johnson. Had you done so, none of this would have been necessary.”
“Why—”
“I am the prince!” he screamed, stopping directly across from me on the porch as I scrambled back, crab walking on my palms and heels. “It is my discretion to rule as I deem fit. These are my people, and they abide by my laws. You have brought anarchy into my domain and created discord among my kind who would question my sovereignty.”
“We don’t want anything from you.” I carefully avoided looking into his eyes as I spoke. “Why can’t you just leave us alone?”
“You and those who care for you so deeply have shamed me. I seek retribution, and I shall have it.”
The phone starting ringing and I shoved my feet underneath my body, intent on finding the source. I had to tell Caleb what was happening. I needed him here if I hoped to survive.
“Before I leave, I want to present you with a parting gift, Emmaline Hope Johnson. Think of it not only as my last gift to you, but also your last gift to someone who will carry the memory for an eternity.”
He stepped forward, and I continued moving away from the door, until I felt the staircase at my back. The phone stopped ringing, leaving nothing but an eerie silence.
“You cannot enter here,” I snapped, fear and anger combining.
“You’re correct. I cannot enter your domain.” He smiled, flashing rows of perfect white teeth. “But my gift can.”
It felt as if I was trapped in a nightmare I desperately wanted to wake from when Trent’s familiar frame entered the doorway. His head was bowed, his bright blond hair vividly reflecting the porch lighting.
“I will give him that which he would not take for himself. He will always remember, and he will always know, that it was he who eclipsed your light. His regret will serve as punishment for an eternity, a remembrance of the penalty for acting against his kind.”
Trent’s broken voice entered my mind. “Can’t...stop. Emma...run...”
Decimus’s tone lowered an octave, becoming both deep and enchanting when he ordered, “Take that which I have bestowed upon you, Trent Balman. Take it now.”
Chapter 20—Caleb
She was safe.
Those three words personified everything in my life with vivid clarity.
The instant I heard Sammie’s frenzied voice through the phone, I knew things would be different. I was doing what I was always meant to do, becoming what I was always intended to be. Now my family was complete, unified, and whole.
Emma.
The mere resonance of her name in my mind, those two simple syllables, changed everything I was. Closing my eyes, I envisioned her calling Sarah and Derek to share the news, talking in rushed sentences with her delicate voice and the devastating smile that always brought me to my knees.
The truck staggered beneath me, coming to a stop in front of the sheriff’s station, as I opened my eyes. I jumped easily over the bedside, landing on solid feet. I didn’t hesitate as I moved toward the building, too eager to see Sammie. The little girl I read stories to at bedtime, the little sister who came to me with her childhood fears and skinned knees.
The bright bulbs inside the building momentarily marred my vision as I reached the clear glass door. I pulled it open and stepped inside, scenting the air, searching for...
Sammie.
My nose piloted my eyes, and I located her tiny silhouette huddled against a bench along the white concrete wall. Her dark hair was knotted in snarled tangles over shoulders that were hunched. She bent over knees defensively, as if she needed to be prepared to protect herself. The scent of terror oozed so strong it burned my nostrils.
Her tiny head lifted and a set of tortured blue eyes met mine. She launched herself from the wall, arms extended, her tear stained face showing a small trace of the relief I always strived to provide her. I caught her as she reached me, lifting her into my arms.
“Emma?” she whispered raggedly, keeping her voice so indistinct only I could hear. “Where is Emma?”
“She’s at home,” I answered quietly, closing my eyes and holding her against me.
She began thrashing, pushing at my chest and shoulders, struggling to untangle her body from my arms. She spoke in harsh whispers, so frantic it made her impossible to understand. Reluctantly, I released her, reminding myself that while she had been gone for over a week, we still didn’t know why. She needed the opportunity to speak.
My mother and father opened their arms to embrace her, but Sammie was inconsolable, slapping their hands away while mewing pitifully.
“Calm down,” Mom said gently, attempting to pacify her, brushing nimble fingers along her hair.
“You don’t understand!”
Sammie’s loud wail caught the attention of the deputy at the desk. He rose from his chair and came over, adjusting his ridiculously large belt buckle along the way. Dad quickly intercepted him, speaking in quiet tones to diffuse the situation.
Sammie’s hand wound in to my shirt, and she twisted the material in her clenched fingers. She brought my face to hers, pressing her nose flush against mine.
“This was all planned, and I was the bait.”
My hands acted of their own accord, grasping her arms forcefully in a panic that threatened to consume me.
“What are you talking about, Sammie?” I asked the question, but deep down, I already knew.
God help me.
I already fucking knew.
“He’s here,�
�� she sobbed. “Decimus is here.”
The beast unhinged, roaring loudly in my ears and causing the world to bleed, covering everything in shades of exquisite red. I hit the door running, shifting as I went. The truck was fast, but traveling on four legs in a direct path was faster.
Chapter 21—Full Circle
I didn’t have time to run or to move. The speed in which Trent crossed the threshold of the door and came to me was instant. His body crashed into mine, knocking me into the wooden stairs and shoving my spine into the slats. He grasped my arms, yanking me forward as his face came down.
“Halt, Trent Balman,” Decimus ordered.
Trent’s face stopped inches away, his always beautiful lips pressed back, displaying the teeth designed to pillage and destroy. His blue eyes were vivid and bright, lingering just above mine. His warmth and humanity was gone, affection and adoration replaced by something else all together.
“I give you one opportunity to embrace life, Emmaline Hope Johnson.” Decimus spoke from the door. “Turn your back on this life, transcend to what you are intended. Come with me of your own free will and embrace what I extend to you. No one need die or be harmed this night.”
“No.” I whimpered, closing my eyes to block out Trent’s face. I wouldn’t remember him like this. I pictured his aqua eyes as they were the night he told me he was leaving, so deep and brilliant, not deadly and merciless.
“Do not be unwise, foolish girl!” Decimus snarled, his voice becoming a deep husky baritone. “There are no other options at your disposal, and you are perilously short on time. Servitude is not terrible when compared to the alternative. Do not be so precipitous. I make the offer once more but I will not ask again.”
“No.”
Decimus chuckled, using a different strategy. “Think of Trent Balman. Imagine the pain he will experience after he has torn through your tender throat and bleeds you out. His love for you will torture him for centuries after you have passed, and he will carry the burden of knowing it was he who caused your death. The pain will be unbearable, and you will be the origin of it.”
“He knows it’s not his fault,” I whispered, finding myself in some strange area between fear and acceptance. The shaking and terror evaporated, replaced by a strengthening inner calm.
“Does he?” Decimus asked. “He will carry the memories of the bite of your flesh under his teeth, the way it gave way and punctured. He will remember the softness of your skin as he took it into his mouth to swallow. And he will remember the taste—your taste. That most delicious sensation of your blood cascading down his throat as he drinks you dry will remain with him forever.”
“He will remember everything?” I opened my eyes and gazed into the face before me.
“He will. Do you want to be responsible for the burden he will carry? For the remorse he will never escape? I can assure you, the misery he will experience will be limitless.”
“No,” I said quietly, reaching out to Trent’s messy blond hair. I smoothed the strands, trailing my fingers through the thick pieces that felt like silk. “I don’t.”
“So you will come with me of your own free will and spare him the agony? It is a most selfless sacrifice, there is no better kind.”
I looked into the glaring blue eyes trapped in Trent’s face and took a deep breath, feeling my stomach somersault and churn at the gravity and finality of what I was about to do. Grasping that snarling visage, I pulled on his head, bringing him closer.
He was magnificent, even like this.
“I forgive you,” I told Trent, knowing he was buried somewhere inside, forced to listen and watch as he was maneuvered like a puppet. I cleared my throat and spoke louder, saying the words in my head and aloud, fighting back tears that blurred my vision. “I forgive you. This is not your fault.”
“You are imprudent, foolhardy and reckless,” Decimus snapped in a fit of rage.
“And you are just like everyone else.” Anger overcame any remaining fear. “You only want what you can’t have.”
“So be it,” he retorted angrily. “Perhaps Trent Balman will receive the good fortune of being ripped apart by Caleb Nathaniel Blackney when he finds your lifeless body. Or better still, maybe they will kill each other in their despair. Each of them will pine for your loss, suffering the most painful throes of anguish, and it is you who are responsible for it. Say farewell, your time on this earth is no more.”
His voice shifted, spilling down the winter chilled hallway as his footsteps carried him off the porch and away. “Drink Trent Balman, ease your thirst.”
Trent snagged my arms, forcing my shoulders forward. His chin shoved my face to the side as his teeth scraped down my neck and sank into my throat. The sharp agonizing stab caused me to cry out, my body reacting adversely to the intrusive, searing pain. I struggled against him, knowing it would do no good, knowing I had nothing to fight him with.
Desperately, I shoved my fingers into his nape, feeling the slightest hum of energy under the surface. I dragged it into myself, thinking of the times we had practiced in the thick lush grass of the back lawn on my parent’s estate, remembering what he had taught me. Lightheadedness clouded my vision, making my head spin. I pressed my hand into his chest, picturing the energy releasing rapidly, and forced it out in one focused burst.
His teeth tore my skin as he flew back. His body crashed into the doorframe. I didn’t wait to see if he moved, lurching to my feet, and stumbled to the basement. I reached the stairs, grasped the door, and forced it closed behind me. After I unlatched the piece of wood used to keep the door in place during inclement weather, I slammed it in place, barricading myself inside.
I heard Trent’s feet on the floorboards, walking purposefully in my direction. A loud crash coincided with the shaking of the door as he made contact, attacking the wood from the other side. The frame started to splinter, the loud sounds of oak giving way echoing through the basement as each new volley rattled the hinges and loosened them from the wall.
I rushed down the stairs, losing my balance along the way. I crashed to my knees as I stumbled down the final two. Lifting my head, I surveyed the room. There were no weapons in sight, leaving one option—escape. I ran for the only window, a tiny one used to air out the room. It was too high to reach without assistance. I stepped over to the couch and knocked the lamp from the end table as I tugged the heavy piece of furniture across the carpet.
Each shudder of the door as it started to give increased my panic. My fingers were shaking as I climbed onto the table and reached for the worn latch. I flipped it open, pulled the window in and up, and used the metal joint inside to keep it ajar. Pulling with my arms and kicking off the table, I thrust my body into the window and started climbing out.
My hands met the frozen ground, and I dug my fingers into the earth, feeling the chunks of dirt spreading along the space under my nails. I thrashed from side to side as I pulled myself through, kicking my legs frantically. Each desperate grasp of my hands brought me closer to freedom. When I made it through the window, floundering on the ground, a loud crash came from inside the house.
My heart raced inside my chest, throbbing painfully as adrenaline traveled through my system. I hesitated, trying to think of which way to go. Deciding it was best to avoid the front of the house where Decimus had stood, I ran for the forest.
Taking off in a dead run toward the trees, I was terrified when I realized the noises in the basement were gone. Each step brought everything into focus, my eyes seeing the path clearly in the dark. I followed the area of grass that had been killed from numerous ventures into the woods by the Blackney family, knowing where it would lead.
I heard someone approaching from behind, and I didn’t turn around, taking shelter in the trees. The branches caught wisps of my hair, yanking several strands out at a time, and I fought to keep my balance as I shuffled between the tree trunks. Trent’s ragged snarls were closer now and I surged ahead, moving faster.
Locating the camp spot dire
ctly ahead, I ran as quickly as I could, socked feet slapping against the cold, hard ground in painful thuds. I reached the outside of the circle and produced a burst of newfound speed to make it across the clearing.
Trent barreled into my back, sending us both into the leaves and dirt, knocking the breath from my lungs. I struggled, trying to pull free as his arms reached around and flipped me onto my back, handling me as if I was nothing more than a baby.
“Don’t—”
His teeth sank into my neck again and I cried out, raking my fingers into the freezing ground. He settled over me as he gorged, swallowing loudly, pulling the life from my body. Pushing against his solid chest, I reached for my only defense, pulling his energy into my body for a second time even as my arms became heavy.
I sent the power back out, unable to focus on where the energy released. His body flew up and to the right. I heard the impact as he connected with trees and branches and twisted my body around, until I rolled onto my stomach. I swayed on unsteady legs as I rose, unable to run, too weak from the blood loss. Blood trickled from the oozing wounds in my throat, pooling down my neck and shoulder, spreading into a decorative red stain in my cream-colored sweater.
My shaking legs carried me to the fire pit when I felt the brutal impact of my assailant’s body as he brought me to the ground. I crashed into the cold earth, unable to brace myself. His large hands flipped me over a second time. He pulled me into his arms and yanked at the back of my nape until I revealed my neck. His teeth scored my throat a third time, the sensation as agonizing as the ones before, and the fight was over.
A deep sigh escaped me as he ravaged the skin on my neck, his teeth stretching the skin painfully, his mouth and tongue sucking at the wounds that would kill me. My gaze flittered to the dark sky above, and I mentally detached from the chill that had settled inside me, no longer suffering the bite of the bitter cold as the winter air and the frigid ground sapped away my body heat.
The stars were out, the clouds giving them a reprieve for the night, twinkling and bursting in the sky. The blue surrounding them was familiar somehow.
