by Kelly Oram
“I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a really creepy room with Gabriel sleeping on an altar. I just hope we got here before the blood sacrifice part.”
“I meant, Danielle, that we do not know if Councilor Mason is alone.”
“He was alone in the vision.”
“Yes, but we do not know when the vision will take place. Right now he could be down there with a legion of resistance members. Stay close behind me and be as silent as possible.”
The Councilor closed the magical door behind us and the room went pitch black except for the faintest flicker of light coming from the bottom of the staircase. We moved slowly and when we reached the bottom of the stairs I recognized the large round room. My view was obstructed by a thick stone pillar, but I knew that just a few feet away I would find an altar and most likely Gabriel would be there lying in a magic-induced coma.
I tugged on the Councilor’s sleeve and whispered, “Give me your hand.”
“Do not tell me you are frightened, Danielle.”
“I’m not scared.” I refrained from calling the Councilor a nasty name. It wasn’t easy. “I’m a Seer. A little magic might come in handy here in a second.”
The Councilor stopped. “I will deal with Robert,” he said firmly. “He is an extremely powerful warlock and I do not wish to risk your safety more than is necessary. You just worry about freeing Gabriel.”
Before I could respond, the Councilor and I were ripped apart by an invisible force. I was thrown across the room and pinned up on the wall. I was tossed with just a bit too much force and smacked my head hard enough to rattle my vision.
“Sorry about the bump to your head there, Dani. Didn’t expect you to be with the Councilor,” a voice sang out from below me. Not just any voice though.
“Alex?” I called into the dim light. “What are you doing here? How did you find out about this place? Have you found Gabriel yet?”
“Gabriel’s fine.”
“Great. Let us down before Robert finds us. The Councilor is on our side. I promise. We’ve got to get out of here.”
“Robert is not coming, Danielle,” the Councilor said in a strained voice.
I followed the sound with my eyes and found him pinned on the wall opposite me. His body was trembling from the way he was trying to fight the magic holding him there. That’s when I realized Alex wasn’t there to help us. He was standing in the middle of the room, deep in concentration and starting to break a sweat as he held both the Councilor and me frozen. At his feet was a sleeping Gabriel, lying on the stone altar I’d seen in my vision.
“It’s you?” It was so impossible I couldn’t believe it.
Alex sighed. “I’m very sorry you had to find out about this, Dani. You and Russ were never supposed to know.”
“But—” I had so many questions running through my mind I wasn’t sure which to ask. I started with, “How did you find us?”
Alex laughed ruefully. “I’ve had a tracking spell on you and Russ since the first time Deputy McHale brought you home in the back of a squad car. I will always know where you are. I have to admit you snuck up on me though. I wasn’t expecting you to find me quite this fast. Of course, I didn’t think you’d go running to the Councilor either.”
I was a whirlwind of emotions and for the moment anger was winning out. “Gabriel was kidnapped! He was going to die! What was I supposed to do?”
“You were supposed to choose Russ!” Alex shouted.
I’d never seen him so angry. It was overwhelming enough that I finally realized what his being here meant. What he was trying to do. What he was going to do to Gabriel. “Alex this is crazy! Why are you doing this?”
“Because of Kate,” the Councilor said.
“Because of all humans!” Alex roared. “Kate was the strongest of them all and the truth drove her mad! She tried to kill her own child! You were right, Valois. I should have listened. Humans are worthless.”
“How can you say that?” I gasped. “My parents are human.”
“Your parents are idiots. If it weren’t for me you’d have grown up to be utterly useless.”
“But you’ve always been so nice to them. My mom and dad are your best friends.”
“Your mother and father had something I needed.”
“But—but—”
That’s when the betrayal sunk in. My eyes started to burn, but I refused to cry in front of Alex. He thought I was weak, raised by incompetents. Well he was going to be sorry. If I changed forms on my own once, I could do it again.
“The Angel of Death, Alexander?” the Councilor asked. “Leading the resistance to start a war between supernaturals and humans?”
“I have nothing to do with the resistance. As soon as I’ve raised Addonexus, my next item of business will be stopping them. They nearly killed my son. They will pay for that.”
“This is not the way,” the Councilor said. His voice sounded so full of pity that it caught my attention. His next words shocked me. “I am sorry about Kate, Alexander. Truly. All I ever wanted was to spare you that heartache, but let us not waste her death. Come back to the council, friend. Stop this nonsense and release the Seer. With our differences resolved we can create a peaceful world for our people together.”
“Our differences will never be resolved, Jacque. You made sure of that when you destroyed my wife. Kate is gone because of you, and now you’ve turned my children against me. You’ve taken my family from me.” Alex looked down at Gabriel with a hint of regret and muttered, “Eye for an eye.”
“Alex!” I cried. Tears began pouring from my eyes even though I’d promised myself I wouldn’t cry. Seeing this side of him hurt me. “How can you even think about doing that? Gabriel is innocent! You wouldn’t even let me kill Simone when she hurt Russ.”
Alex’s bitterness returned. “Only because we can use Simone. If it had been anyone but her they would have all been dead. I’m sorry Dani. I would let you keep Gabriel if I could, but we need a sacrifice.”
“For what?” I asked. “Why would you want to raise Addonexus?”
Alex narrowed his eyes at me. “I’d love to explain it to you but I’m afraid I just don’t trust you enough right now.”
Apparently I could add Alex to the list of people whose hearts I’d broken in the last twenty-four hours. When I’d chosen Gabriel, I’d chosen him over not just Russ, but Alex too, and it really hurt him. He’d done a good job of hiding it until now.
“You are a fool if you believe you can accomplish this task,” the Councilor hissed.
“And you are a fool if you think you can stop me.”
I tuned out Alex and the Councilor as they bantered back and forth. Their argument was the perfect distraction for me to try and do something. “Concentrate, Dani,” I muttered to myself.
I could feel the magic Alex was using to hold me in place licking the surface of my skin. It was warm and prickly and it called to my inner warlock. I tried to grab on to it. Tried to use it to pull my own magic to the surface and for a brief moment I felt Alex’s grip on me waver.
Alex felt the pressure too. His head whipped back my direction and it felt like a wall slammed into place against my entire body. “Not so fast Dani,” he said, chuckling. “I love that you’re really starting to get a handle on those powers of yours, but you need to hold off just a little while longer.”
Alex snapped his attention suddenly back to the Councilor and shouted some word I didn’t understand. The Councilor went smashing back against the wall again. I noticed he didn’t receive any apology for the nasty bump he’d soon have on his head.
“You can’t hold both of us forever,” the Councilor said. “You will exhaust yourself soon and all of your efforts will be wasted.”
“Well you’re very right about that, unfortunately.”
Alex sighed and then looked back at me. I could see now how much he was struggling to hold his spell. His brow was sheen with sweat and his chest heaved severely. His skin was growing pale and there wer
e even dark circles forming beneath his eyes. He didn’t have much longer.
He met my eyes and smiled at me, that same endearing fatherly smile I’d known forever. It broke my heart in two. It hurt because I hated him for being able to still look at me like that, and yet I was relieved to see his affection for me.
“Sleep, Dani,” he said—almost cooed—warmly. “And when you wake up everything will be as it should be.”
Alex muttered an incantation and I immediately felt another warm rush of magic swirl around me. I was gently lowered to the floor and as I dropped I could feel the effects of sleep taking over me.
I realized I was going to end up taking a magical nap with Gabriel, just like Romeo and Juliet. I appreciated the irony, but it turns out tragedy isn’t quite as beautiful when it has your name on it. I couldn’t let Gabriel and myself share the star-crossed lovers’ fate. We could not die today. Which meant I couldn’t pass out. I had to fight the spell.
I tried to stay awake, but it felt like I’d swallowed about eighteen bottles of NyQuil. It was too big an effort to breathe, much less make my way to Gabriel.
Across the room I could see that a battle of magic had begun between the Councilor and Alex. I could see them flying about and hear their crashes and angry shouts, but I couldn’t focus on them. I couldn’t tell what they were doing or who was going to win. I could barely keep myself awake enough to remember Gabriel was near.
I started to crawl toward the middle of the room but the more I tried to move, the more tired I became. I only got half way before I felt my eyes close. I was so tired that the second I stopped moving it felt so nice to give up that I relaxed and let the sleep come.
Instead of the world turning black around me everything faded to a pure blinding white light. I shielded my eyes and a figure came into focus. Just a silhouette at first, but as the figure drew near I could see the outline of a woman. A girl really—no more than twenty.
She was as short as me, but sturdy—a drumstick to my toothpick. She had dark leathery skin and short dark hair. She looked fierce but smiled at me with the most serene countenance. Her dark eyes sparkled in that same glossy way that Gabriel’s did. It made me feel that I liked her, that I could trust her.
“Sister,” she said when she greeted me.
“Are you the Creator?” I asked. “Am I dead?”
The girl smiled. “Just sleeping. Dear friend, the Mother Creator is proud of you, but it is not time for you to return home yet.”
“I know you.” I wasn’t sure how, but this girl was more than a figure from my dream. She was a memory. “You’re the Oracle. You’re Joan Of Arc.”
The girl’s eyes sparkled and she smiled. “I knew you would remember me. In time, you will remember more, but for now you need only remember your quest.”
“The prophecy!” I gasped. Somehow, in this strange place, I’d forgotten all about it. “Gabriel!” Remembering him made me frantic. “Where’s Gabriel? Send me back! I have to help him!”
The Oracle shook her head and with a playful sigh said, “I see some things never change.”
Her words were confusing, but they stirred something within me. Like when my forms fought with one another, something deep inside my mind was struggling to reach the surface. “I don’t understand.”
“Not yet,” Joan said. “But you will remember. Now that you and Gabriel have been reunited you will both begin to remember.”
I could feel my eyes bug out as her meaning sunk in. “We knew each other before?”
The Oracle rolled her eyes and laughed. “I’m surprised it took you this long to find one another.”
I gasped. “You mean we’re like soul mates?”
“Quite literally, Danielle. You volunteered for this quest together. I believe this short life is the longest the two of you have been apart since the beginning of time. In fact the Creator was worried you would find each other before you were ready.”
“Why did we have to be separated?”
“Everyone has their weaknesses. My brother is such an optimist. He refuses to see the bad in anyone.” The Oracle laughed again. “That’s why they had to send me to stop the war last time. Gabriel’s not built for battle. Too much faith in people. He gets too stuck on the idea that there can always be a peaceful solution.”
Wow. She really hit the nail on the head with that one. “So what’s my weakness?” I asked.
“Gabriel, obviously,” she said with another roll of her eyes. “You needed to be strong before being reunited or his influence over you would be too great. There are decisions still to be made, Danielle. Decisions my brother could never make. He has an important destiny to fulfill, and he will need you by his side to accomplish it. Now you must go back. Wake up and make sure my brother lives to fulfill his destiny.”
“But how can I save him? Maybe we did find each other too early. I don’t know how to use my powers yet. I can’t change forms.”
The Oracle gestured to my necklace. “Use the amulet. Draw from its strength. You must defeat Addonexus. If you do not, all that the Creator has accomplished will be destroyed.”
“Geez, no pressure or anything.”
The Oracle smiled at me again. “Look to Gabriel and you will find your strength. Now go, sister.”
I blinked and I was back in the circle room beneath Princeton. The first thing I noticed was the two men locked in battle. Both were dirty and bloody now with torn clothes. Alex, it seemed, had the upper hand because the Councilor was pinned against the wall, clutching at his throat as if he couldn’t breathe.
“You were given the position of Supreme High Councilor because you bear the name of Valois, but the Devereaux family always held the stronger magic.”
Alex clenched his hand into a fist and as he raised his arm the Councilor’s feet lifted off the ground. His face turned a deep shade of purple.
Surprisingly, I wanted to help the Councilor.
I was sluggish still, but I had enough energy to clutch the amulet around my neck. I could feel magic pulsing from it, and, like the Oracle promised, it gave me strength. As I grew stronger, Alex lost a little of his grip on the Councilor. The amulet was borrowing his magic.
I pulled a little harder and Alex dropped the Councilor. The Councilor fell to the ground coughing violently while Alex whirled on me. “Damn it Dani! How did—”
Alex didn’t get to finish his question because he was hit with a spell so hard he went flying across the room and smashed into a large stone pillar. He fell to the ground unconscious and blood trickled from his forehead.
The Councilor limped his way over to Gabriel and me and I clamped onto his hand without asking permission. The magic I’d been desperately trying to call to the surface flared to life, and with one simple thought I shook off the spell that had been hindering me.
I looked down at Gabriel’s sleeping figure and whispered the words, “Wake up.”
It took a moment, but the color rose to Gabriel’s cheeks and his eyes fluttered beneath their lids.
“Gabriel, wake up,” I said again and kissed his lips lightly.
Gabriel’s eyes didn’t open but his lips turned up into a smile. “It is my soul that calls upon my name: How silver-sweet sound lovers’ tongues by night, like softest music to attending ears.”
“He’s fine,” I said with a laugh.
Gabriel opened his eyes and smiled at me. “You found me.”
“Of course,” I said airily. “I am way too young to be a widow.”
I leaned over to kiss him and the Councilor huffed, “We do not have time for that!”
I pressed my lips to Gabriel’s for just a second longer and then stepped back. The Councilor took my place beside Gabriel. “How are you son? Are you hurt at all?”
“I am not hurt. But I do not believe I can move.”
“That’s odd,” I said. “You should be—”
That’s when I realized that the Councilor and I couldn’t move either. I looked around for Alex, but he was no lo
nger lying unconscious on the floor. I closed my eyes to wish myself free of Alex’s spell but I’d switched forms again when I’d kissed Gabriel. When I figured that out, I said a word that would’ve made Russ very proud of me.
Gabriel shouted something a lot less vulgar. “Councilor!”
His warning came too late and all either of us could do was scream as we watched Alex shove his long silver dagger through the Councilor’s back. The tip came all the way through his chest. He gasped, coughed twice, and then fell to the ground dead.
Then Gabriel gasped my name too and I felt a searing pain run through my gut. It hurt so badly I couldn’t even scream. I followed Gabriel’s gaze to where Alex’s long silver dagger was now sticking out of my stomach. “Heal,” I commanded myself, but without being a warlock I couldn’t grab the magic enough to do me any good.
“Alex?” I gasped.
“Try not to move too much,” Alex said as he carried me across the room.
I was confused because he cradled me like he really did love me but he’d just stabbed me.
“Don’t worry. This wound is meant to be painful but it’s not fatal. I’ll heal you just as soon as we’re finished.”
“Alex.…” I was in so much pain and shock that I couldn’t manage to think anything past his name. “Alex....”
“I’m sorry, but you’re just too powerful. I need you to stay distracted for a few minutes.”
Alex pushed my hair back with a gloved hand as he laid me on my side on the floor. I pinched my eyes shut unable to look at him. I was ashamed that I was crying. Ashamed that after all he’d done I was still surprised that he would now hurt me physically.
Alex read the expression on my face and said, “I am not betraying you. I’m helping you, Dani. You just won’t be able to see that for a while.”
“You will not solve anything with this,” Gabriel spat as Alex returned to his side and began readying the altar for the summoning.
Alex smiled at Gabriel, but it wasn’t meant to be a comforting gesture. “I would let you stay awake for this, but I’m sure that would upset Dani and she’s going through enough right now.”
Alex put Gabriel back under his sleeping spell and went to work lighting candles and chanting whatevers. When he finished his incantation for the first candle, wind started blowing in the room.
