by Jones, L. A.
"Is this the one who tried to hurt you?" Roy asked Aradia while growling menacingly.
Aradia nodded.
Dax then hissed like a cobra ready to strike. He and Roy both began to move towards Korrigan, eager to punish him for Aradia's distress. When Dunc and Tavis appeared once again, and grabbed a hold of them from behind. Roy dug his claws into Jaxon's arm, and tossed him away. Dax jabbed Tavis hard in the stomach with his elbow. He took advantage of him stumbling in pain, and crouched on to one foot. He then tripped him, straightened up again in a mere second, and kicked him into another tree.
However, as impressive as they were in their fighting the defense Roy and Dax mounted was not that effective. Soon all of the McAlester brothers were back together, on their feet, and growling menacingly at Dax and Roy who stood protectively in front of Aradia.
"Who the hell are you and what do you want?" Roy snarled.
"Take a wild guess mutt!" Korrigan snapped with a nod in Aradia's direction.
Dax looked at Aradia, and then back to them.
"What do you want with her?" he demanded.
Tavis laughed. "Ever heard of the witch rule? Whoever has the witch ends up making the rules!"
"Yeah," Dunc said cackling, "So why don't you do yourselves a favor and get the hell out of here while we collect our prize!"
"We are not leaving here without Aradia!" Dax snapped.
Tavis stared past him and at Aradia.
As soon as he did so, he looked back at Dax and said sneeringly, "Well then I guess you are not leaving are you? At least not alive!"
Chapter Twenty-Three
Korrigan hurled himself at Dax who stepped out of the way, grabbed Henry's arm, and threw him into a nearby tree.
Dunc extended his claws longer, larger, and growled fiercely. "This is for the scratch you gave me!"
He then dashed towards Roy.
As Dunc got merely inches away from him, Roy curled his paw into a fist, and socked him from below his chin. Roy then dug his claws into Jaxon's right shoulder, and threw him over his own! Only Tavis was left and he nervously looked from Dax to Roy. Although his brothers were now injured and unable to help him, Tavis still made his move. When he finally did, Dax and Roy were ready. At the same time, they raised both their fists, and punched Tavis hard in the face! So hard that he flew back over a hundred feet, landed on the dirt, and skidded to a halt. He then scrambled up, and ran away with his brothers following him limply.
"What do you suppose that was all about?" Roy asked as he shifted back into his human form.
Dax shrugged and shook his head and then turned to look at Roy.
As he sized him up from head to toe, Dax decided to ask. "Out of curiosity sake mate, how many clothes do you actually own?"
Roy looked down, and noticed his torn clothes. He then began to advance toward Dax, extremely irritated.
Aradia stepped in between them and said, "Look guys thanks for the save! I really appreciate it."
Dax smiled down at Aradia. "No problem love."
Roy nodded in agreement.
"However," Dax added, "Do you mind telling me what the hell that was about?"
Aradia shrugged. "The one who attacked me called himself Korrigan McAlester so I can only assume that the other two are his 'brothers' so to speak. All three of them are vampires. What is worse is that one who tried tried to rape me says he's part witch!"
Dax and Roy both gawked at her.
"Are you sure?" Dax asked Aradia.
Aradia nodded and then turned in Roy's direction. "Remember the night where he first tried to attack me?"
Roy nodded. Upon realizing what Aradia was trying to say, he started opening and closing his mouth in shock.
"But...how…” he finally managed to sputter, "Your people were supposed to have been killed off years ago."
Aradia shrugged. "According to him, he was turned before the genocide and since he is now technically a vampire I guess the law of the genocide did not apply to him."
"I guess they thought why bother with him because the only way he can reproduce or make more witches is with a pureblood witch and they definitely killed off all of those," Dax muttered.
"Except for me," Aradia murmured.
Dax just stared.
Roy, however, shook his head and threaded his fingers through his hair. "But why would they want to come after you?"
"Because," Aradia stated, "You heard what Tavis said 'whoever has the witch ends up making the rules' apparently Tristan was right about people seeing me as a political tool and those guys," Aradia added while pointing in the direction where the McAlester brothers had taken off. "Are no exception."
Dax inhaled deeply. "And I will bet what you did to Lupe helped to not only give them proof about how powerful you are but also strengthen their resolve to have you!"
Aradia exhaled a weary breath.
Dax then said, "You do realize what this means don't you?"
Aradia looked up at him confused.
"It means," Dax began solemnly, "That you have to cancel the club events, the promoting amelioration thing, and from now on keep a low profile."
"But why?" Aradia demanded.
"Because Aradia don't you see?" Dax argued, "If you keep using your powers you will also be proving to them not just how powerful you are but how invaluable you are as well. In other words unless you stop drawing attention to yourself more people will keep coming after you!"
Chapter Twenty-Four
"What do you mean the McAlester brothers failed to capture her!" Keon screeched.
The scrawny vampire that was kneeling before him just trembled in response. Keon did not wait, he merely turned away from his messenger, and began to pace. Saul leaned against the wall, and watched him. He watched as Keon's face grew taut, and his expression more twisted.
"How hard?" Keon snarled under his breath, "Can it be for three battle-hardened warrior vampires to capture one scrawny, little, inexperienced witch?! Huh? How hard? Answer me that!"
He turned to Saul as if demanding an explanation, but Saul merely shrugged. Amazingly, it seemed like Keon's question had intended to be a rhetorical one because he did not even bother to notice Saul's bodily response. He also dismissed the messenger vampire with a swift backhand that sent the poor kid flying into the door of the lair! Stomping straight to the window, Keon threw open its panes with a loud boom of annoyance.
"I guess if you truly want someone to be dealt with" Keon growled, "Find a much more efficient way to do it!"
He then took a few steps back from the window, and paused. After a few tense seconds, he raced straight to the window, and jumped out like a swan diver above a pool! His entire form then transformed into that of a giant black bat, and began to fly into the night sky. Saul followed his lead, guessing where they were heading, and already feeling guilty about it.
"Are you sure of this?" the Sovereign cried out.
Keon nodded, and then looked to Saul for confirmation.
Saul's eyes were still on the ground as he nodded. The Sovereign then turned away from both Keon and Saul.
"So if both yours and Rome's reports are true?" the Sovereign started in a slow highly irritable voice. "About her courting several men from all types of the hidden and the human race, this thing about promoting 'amelioration' amongst the hiddens, and now three vampires moving all the way to Salem trying to acquire her for the sake of power then..."
The Sovereign clasped his hand to his forehead still hidden in his black hood, and shook it in frustration.
"This is getting way out of hand," he finally said after a moment of pondering. "I mean its bad enough she survived when the rest of her people were killed, but to now view herself as a political figure capable of wielding power..." He shook his head yet again.
"What shall we do Sovereign?" Keon inquired eagerly.
The Sovereign sighed. "How many times have these McAlester brothers attempted to capture her?"
Keon was stunned by the question,
but answered it nevertheless. "I believe three times Sovereign. The first two times were by Korrigan all on his own, and the third time was by all of them together."
"Did they fail?" the Sovereign inquired.
Keon nodded.
This caused the Sovereign to pause, and try to formulate a plan.
It only took a few minutes for him to do so.
A cruel smile then appeared on his lips right before he issued his orders to Keon and Saul. "Allow the McAlester brothers at least three more chances to try to acquire Aradia. We all have heard legends and stories about the power of a witch's blood, but in truth no one knows for sure. If the McAlester’s kidnap her they will probably attempt to drink her blood, and then we can see if the legends are indeed true. Most especially, if it has negative effects then we will deal with them."
"What if the McAlester brothers become too powerful to deal with?" Keon dared to ask the Sovereign.
The Sovereign, however, merely chuckled. "Even if they drain the witch dry in seconds it will take them god knows how long to figure out the powers they have acquired from her and by that time..." he trailed off grinning.
Keon grinned as well but then asked, "What if the McAlester’s fail?"
The Sovereign shrugged. "If they fail then we shall deal with her ourselves!"
"And in the mean time?" Keon inquired, "What should we do about her and her strange attempts to change things in Salem?"
The Sovereign turned his back to him and declared, "Things like hatred and intolerance has lasted amongst the hiddens since the creation of our species! What the hell makes her think that she, a mere witch, the lone survivor of a massacred people, can change that?"
Chapter Twenty-Five
After losing the battle with Aradia, Roy, and Dax the attacks had escalated to Aradia's human friends. Rhonda had almost gotten into a terrible car accident when she and her mother had been out driving and her mother had suddenly swerved to avoid hitting a redheaded man. Felix's house had almost caught fire thanks to a mysterious tank of gasoline they had found outside their house. Calvin's car had had bricks being thrown at it! As for the Best Buy where Everrett's uncle was the head manager, it had been completely ransacked!
Her friends knew nothing about the hidden race and so had not been able to name her as common denominator. Aradia, however, could easily guess who the culprits were and why. As she lay on her bed, she thought about all that had happened. She knew that Dax had a point about keeping a low profile. If she continued her behavior, and acted that in spite of the McAlester brother’s attacks nothing had changed things probably would get worse. At the same time ignoring their behavior, and seeing them smirk at her at school every day and knowing she could not report them to the authorities...Basically letting these thugs think that they could do whatever they wanted with no consequences bothered Aradia, a assistant D.A's daughter, something fierce.
The thing of it is though, Aradia asked herself, what I am going to do about it? On the one hand, she, Dax, and Roy now knew that they could take the McAlester brothers on. Doing that again, however, would mean starting a vicious, violent, no holds barred fight with them and Aradia was not willing to risk that! Another option was to give in to their demands, and leaving with them but she was not willing to do that either.
So what can I do? She speculated, I could run and lead the McAlester’s away from Salem and my loved ones. Aradia shook her head, rejecting that option as well. If she started running from them, the chances were she would never stop running, and she could not live the rest of her life as fugitive.
So what can I do? Aradia asked herself again. She heaved a huge sigh and turned on her back. Aradia was struggling to hold back her tears of frustration; she did not know what she could do or what she was going to do.
"My God," Keon growled as he leaned against a tree outside Aradia's house. "How long can it possibly take for three vampires to snatch away a witch and drain her dry damn it?!"
Saul shrugged, not knowing what to say. He stood outside with Keon, sitting on a branch, and staring into Aradia's window.
"I wish they would hurry up and do it. I am getting impatient! I mean this chick should be dead and buried by now!" Keon muttered, clenching his fist.
"You know," Saul pointed out, "Maybe her being alive and around is not such a bad thing."
For the past six months, he had listened nonchalantly to Keon's ranting and raving of Aradia's existence. Now, Saul finally decided to venture his own opinion.
"She has managed to help bring a lot of hiddens together. Fewer fights are breaking out because of her influence you know. Although she has been trying to change things she has not been trying to seize power thereby creating social unrest amongst the hidden community either. In all honesty Keon, I think her being in Salem is a good thing."
Keon turned his head slowly to look at Saul who had barely anytime to blink before Keon pinned him against the tree by his throat. Saul gasped, feeling Keon's claws grip his throat. Vampires did not need to breath, but their throats helped to circulate the blood they drained into their systems. Therefore, if Keon were to rip out Saul's throat, he would die within seconds.
"Keon," Saul croaked hoarsely. "Please."
"See?" Keon growled, "See how bad her influence is? Before you never would have stooped so low as to beg your life but now...now you have gotten soft and weak. She is the cause of it! Her poisonous influence has tainted not just you, but everyone else in Salem too! Well no longer! I will put an end to her destructive ways! I will get rid of her! And I will do it now!"
Keon immediately released Saul from his deadly grasp.
As he turned to leave, Saul gasped, "But remember the Sovereign's orders. It was to let the McAlester brothers handle her and you don't want to disobey the Sovereign do you?"
Keon stiffened. He may have been a battle hardened and bloodthirsty vampire warrior who had seen thousands of innocents and guilty parties slaughtered like sheep, but even he had fears and there was nothing he feared more than the Sovereign's temper!
Keon stomped his foot in frustration making the branch creak a little from his strength. However, with one last glance at Aradia's window, a cruel smile played upon his lips. Saul gulped for he knew what that smile meant: Keon was working on a plan.
"Are you serious?" Tavis asked Keon who nodded.
Korrigan, Dunc, Maurice, Saul, and Keon stood facing each other in the Night Shadow clan's lair.
At first, Tavis just gaped at him astonished.
After running his fingers though his dirty blonde hair he finally asked, "Why are helping us Keon?"
Keon shrugged impatiently and said, "Can’t I do a favor for an old comrade?"
"No," Tavis replied without missing a beat.
A tense awkward silence now filled the room.
"Look," Keon snapped, "Do you want help catching the last witch or don't you?"
"What makes you think we need your help?" Dunc muttered.
Keon looked quickly at Dunc and said, "The fact that you have tried to capture her three times and have failed miserably!"
Insulted, Dunc advanced towards Keon who just grabbed him by the shirt and shoved him down onto his knees.
"Now look you three incompetent, insignificant, insufficient pieces of vampire filth! Either you follow my plan to capture the last witch or so help me I will kill all of you right here and now and find someone who can do what you three obviously lack the intelligence to do!"
"But what's in it for you?" Tavis asked.
Keon grunted and let go of Dunc.
"I want her out of Salem, and out of my life! Period!" Keon snapped.
Tavis scoffed and said, "Surely that can't be all you want!"
"It is enough!" Keon thundered, "Now do we have a deal or don't we?"
Tavis turned to his brothers for assurance.
It was Korrigan who finally spoke. "What have we got to lose? We have already tried three times, and failed! I am tired of waiting. I want Aradia and I want her no
w!"
"Follow my instructions and you will have her," Keon roared, "Now I ask you one last time. Do we have a deal or what?"
Humbled by his yelling, Tavis stepped closer to face Keon. After a few seconds of tense silence passed, he slowly held out his hand. Keon smiled as he took it, sealing the pact, and Aradia's fate.
Chapter Twenty-Six
"Hey are you doing anything Saturday night?” Tristan asked as he suddenly appeared at Aradia's side.
She slammed her locker shut, and turned to look at him.
"Actually yeah I am," she said, "I am planning on avoiding you like the plague!"
Tristan scowled as she smiled.
She would have left Tristan in the dust if he had not stepped in front of her.
"No you stupid bitch," he snapped, "I am not talking about asking you out on a date..."
"Thank god," Aradia interrupted muttering.
Tristan scowled deeper. "There’s a meeting of all the hidden elders this Saturday night."
This definitely piqued Aradia's interest. "Why?"
Tristan rolled his eyes as if he were amazed at what he thought was further proof of her naïveté.
"Just like humans have leaders who meet and discuss things on a regular basis so do hiddens," Tristan explained, "I figure that since you are officially recognized as the last witch and are now considered a hidden, you should attend."
Aradia hated to admit it, but Tristan had a point.
Still she couldn't help, but raise an eyebrow. "Why are you telling me this?"
Tristan shrugged and said, "I have my reasons."
"None of them good I suspect," Aradia muttered.
"Look you going to be there or what?" Tristan snapped.
Aradia paused, and thought about it. She knew Tristan was not the type of guy to volunteer any type of information to anyone unless he had something to gain from it. On the other hand, if what he said was true... like Tristan had pointed out she was a hidden now and it seemed only fair that she participate in some of their law-making activities.
