by R. A. Gates
She pressed her wrist against her
stomach and wrapped the end of her
shirt around it to staunch the bleeding.
Prince Sebastian's eyes widened
as they focused on her. “Leviena, you
are alive.” He sat up and reached out his
hand toward her straight, bottle-blond
hair, but she jerked back.
Garren stepped in front of
Sebastian and smacked his hand away.
“Don't touch her.”
She was shocked at the intensity
of his words. Her heart pounded as she
stood behind him. A glaring contest
commenced
between
vampire
and
mortal. Standing up to an Eradicator was
one thing, but Garren was way over his
head facing a vampire.
She needed to diffuse the tension
if they had any hope of getting out of
there uneaten. “I'm not Leviena. I'm her
great, great, great, great, great, great—”
“Ivy, they get it,” Thane said. He
stood against the wall next to the
trembling woman who came in with Zoo.
Nodding in understanding, she
continued. “I'm her great, however many,
granddaughter. She's still dead. Um,
sorry for your loss.”
Sebastian dropped his head,
black hair falling around his face like a
curtain. An
uncomfortable
silence
saturated the room.
Awkward. She stepped back,
pushing Garren with her toward the exit.
Maybe if they were discreet, they could
get the heck out of there before the
vampires noticed.
Garren wrapped a possessive
arm around her waist as they slunk back.
His racing heart pounded against her
back. They only had a few more feet
until they crossed the threshold.
“Leaving so soon?” Zoo asked,
standing next to the prince still slumped
on the bed.
Sebastian’s head snapped up. He
turned
the
full
power
of
those
beseeching, black eyes on her. The pain,
desperation and fear on his face struck
right to her heart. She was always a
sucker for a sad case. Maybe Athena
was right.
She quickly shifted her gaze to
Zoo. If she kept looking at Sebastian, her
resolve would melt away and she’d find
herself taking him in like every other
pathetic creature to cross her path.
“You two have a lot of catching
up to do, so we’ll give you guys some
privacy and wait out here.” She and
Garren spun around and marched toward
the door. They only managed to take two
steps when Zoo popped up in front of
them.
She gasped and skidded to a halt.
I hate when he does that. “Remind me
to buy you a bell to wear around your
neck.”
“You're not going anywhere,”
Zoo said.
“Oh, yes I am. Why didn’t you
tell me he was a vampire?”
“Would you have broken the
curse if you knew?”
Never in a million years. “I
might’ve. Anyway, it doesn’t matter
now. He’s awake and sharp as ever,”
She lifted her arm still wrapped in the
bottom of her blood-soaked shirt as
proof. “You don’t need us anymore.”
She tried to step around him but
he stuck his hand out to block her path.
“Unfortunately, that’s not true. Madame
Rita, if you will.” He motioned for the
woman to come further into the room.
Madame Rita shuffled closer, a
large carpet bag clutched to her chest.
The
woman’s
face
wasn’t
recognizable, but there was something
about her, about her magic, that was
familiar. “Do I know you?”
A dull pain throbbed in her head.
It was like all these missing pieces to a
puzzle she never knew she was working
on suddenly showed up. Now she
needed to put them all together and
discover the big picture.
“Not exactly,” Madame Rita
said. “Your mother paid me a visit when
you were a baby. She needed a spell
cast that would destroy your magic. I
can't do that, of course, but was able to
dampen your magic and hide your
signature from those that can sense it.”
She dropped her gaze to the floor as she
shifted from foot to foot.
Ivy’s anger spiked to new levels.
Her mother knew what she was all along
and never said anything. “So, what
happened? Why did my magic burst open
like a freakin' fireworks show?” She
tried to keep her voice low and even, but
failed miserably.
The woman flinched at the
outburst. “I had to anchor the spell to a
Bane, your mother, for it to work
properly. Did she die?”
Ivy nodded, fearing her voice
would crack as images of her mother
lying still on the ground flashed before
her eyes. Her whole world flipped
upside down after that.
“While
this
is
all
very
interesting,” Zoo said as he yanked her
away from Garren. “We have more
serious matters to attend to.”
“Leave her alone,” Garren
growled as he launched himself at the
vampire. He conjured a shield and
blasted Zoo across the room.
The bricks cracked when he
slammed into the wall but was unharmed
himself. A wicked smile spread across
his face as he brushed pieces of mortar
and dust off his shoulders. “How sweet.
The warrior’s defending his damsel in
distress.”
“Hey!” Ivy said, not sure why he
was insulting her.
Garren placed himself directly in
front of her, blocking both vampires. He
held his hand out to summon a shield if
needed. “She did her part. She kissed
him and broke the curse. Now it’s your
turn to help us. Tell Thane how to fix the
wards around Salmagundi and we’ll be
on our way.”
Sebastian’s brow furrowed as he
watched the exchange between his friend
and Garren. The gears in his mind
seemed to be working overtime to put
the pieces together. “How exactly did
you break the curse?”
What an odd question. She and
Garren shared a glance before turning to
Thane for the official explanation.
“I theorized that because Ivy is
the closest person in genetics to Leviena,
she could break the curse with True
Love’s Kiss. And I was right.” Thane
stood up straighter with a gleam in his
eye.
/>
Sebastian sat silently for a
moment as he regarded the three of them.
His gaze stopped at her. “Thank you. I
can imagine how… unpleasant it must
have been for you.”
You have no idea . “Don’t
mention it,” she said, suddenly becoming
shy under his stare.
“We’re wasting time,” Zoo said
to Sebastian before nodding to the old
woman.
Madame Rita immediately went
to work clearing a space where the
dresser used to be. She then placed
black candles in a large circle on the
floor while chanting something under her
breath.
Dark magic.
Ivy’s pulse quickened. “What is
she doing?” Her eyes darted from the
woman to each vampire.
Sebastian attempted a genuine
smile though it didn’t quite reach his
eyes. “I still require your assistance.
Because I have both wizard’s magic and
vampire magic living inside me, I
need…” He doubled over with a groan.
Zoo ran over to his friend to
keep him from falling over. After a few
deep, slow breaths, Sebastian sat up.
Zoo held him up with a tight grip on his
arm.
“Apologies. To stay alive, I must
bind myself to a powerful witch—
blood, magic and soul— and only drink
from her. Leviena was my bondmate, but
now…”
Cold realization trickled down
her spine as she stared into his eyes in
disbelief. “Y-you want to bond with
me?” The thought of being bitten by this
monster on a regular basis for the rest of
her life soured her stomach. It was all
she could do to keep from hurling all
over the floor.
“If there was any other way I
would not ask this of you. There are
benefits for you as well: eternal youth,
immunity from illness, and an increase in
your magical power.”
“More magic?” she shouted, still
guarded by Garren’s protective stance.
“I don’t want the magic I got and you
want to give me more?” The absurdity of
the whole situation made her giggle. I
must be having a nightmare. Wake up,
Ivy!
“This is crazy,” Garren said. He
took hold of her injured arm and then
pulled her toward the door, making her
stumble after him. “You can’t have her.”
“It does not have to be a
permanent arrangement,” Sebastian said
quickly.
She halted to listen. With a huff,
Garren stopped but didn’t ease up on his
grip of her elbow.
“Once
we
are
back
in
Salmagundi and the wards are reset, we
can dissolve our connection and I can
bond with another. You are the only one
who can help me now.”
She groaned. Why is it always
me?
Sebastian’s body trembled as he
sat waiting for her answer.
Thane merely shrugged. “We
need his help.”
“Don’t do it,” Garren said.
“We’ll find another way.”
“But what if we can’t.” She
sighed as the weight of the world
pressed down on her shoulders. “All
those people could die because of me.”
That was why they came, wasn’t it? To
save everyone?
“No,” he said as he turned her
around to face him. “It’s not your fault or
your responsibility. Now, let’s get the
hell out of here.” He tugged on her arm
again as he headed towards the exit, only
stopping when Thane blocked his way.
“Why did we come all this way
if we’re only going to give up now?”
Thane asked with a rare edge to his
voice. “She’ll only be bonded to him for
a little while. Don’t screw this up.”
Garren glared at his stepbrother.
“Get out of my way, Thing. I’m not
letting her bond with this bloodsucker.”
Her irritation grew watching the
guys argue over her fate as if she wasn’t
even in the room. She pulled her arm out
of Garren’s grip. “Don’t I get a say? It’s
my blood he wants.”
“And soul,” Garren added.
“Don’t forget that part.”
Oh, right. She was so distracted
by the idea of being bitten by a vampire
every day that she totally glossed over
the whole soul binding thing. “I know.”
She glanced back at the vampire
slumped over on the bed, some of her
blood still smeared on his chin. That
wasn’t a sight she wanted to get used to.
But would sacrificing herself to Prince
Sebastian be enough to get karma off her
back? Could she really have a better life
after he found someone else to bond
with?
“All is ready,” Madame Rita
said, standing outside the circle of
candles. Her posture was stiff with her
hands clasped in front, portraying more
courage than her eyes held.
Prince Sebastian scooted to the
end of the bed and gingerly placed his
feet to the floor. He leaned into Zoo as
he shifted his weight to his legs.
Wobbling slightly for only a second, he
stood upright and on his own. “Shall
we?” He gestured toward the circle on
the floor.
Ivy hesitated, doubts rooting her
feet to the floor. I’m not ready for this.
She met Garren’s gaze, hoping he’d give
her a way out.
He held his hand out to her.
“We’re leaving.”
That was good enough for her.
She clasped his hand, taking comfort in
the way his warm palm molded perfectly
with hers.
“That
is
enough,”
Prince
Sebastian snapped, the fury in his tone
stopping them in their tracks. “I have
indulged you quite enough. You will
enter the circle and complete the
bonding ritual of your own free will or
he will die.” His intense glare directed
at Garren left no doubt who ‘he’ referred
to.
“Don’t listen to him, Ivy. He’s
too weak to hurt me,” Garren said. He
turned to lead her out of the room when
his fingers slipped through her grasp.
In a blur of movement, Zoo
zipped across the room and then pinned
Garren against the wall. The vampire’s
forearm
pressed
against
Garren’s
Adam’s apple. “But I can hurt you.”
Garren pushed against Zoo’s
chest. He couldn’t breathe. It wasn’t
working. The vampire was too strong.
Ivy’s heart practically exploded
in p
anic. She needed to help Garren; to
tear the vampire away from him. She
quickly surveyed the room, searching for
anything to use as a weapon.
Thane attempted to pull Zoo
away from his stepbrother but he had
about as much effect as a fly trying to tip
over a cow.
On the other side of the burning
circle of candles sat a small heap of
splintered wood that was once a chest of
drawers. Even if the pieces of wood
weren’t sharp enough to actually impale
and kill the vampire, they might cause
enough pain to get Zoo to ease up. She
pointed at the pile and sent her magic to
each piece. The pseudo-stakes vibrated
as they lifted inches off the ground. It
was working. She didn’t have time to
celebrate the fact that her magic was
obeying her on the first try. With a swish
of her hand, she sent the weapons flying
across the room.
Just before they hit the sweet
spot—the quickest route to the heart,
right under the left shoulder blade—Zoo
spun around and used Garren as a shield.
Ivy gasped and waved the
projectiles off to the side instead. The
wood slammed into the wall and then
clattered to the ground by Garren’s feet.
He heaved air into his lungs now that his
airway wasn’t being crushed. That was
too close.
Zoo stood behind her friend, one
arm loosely wrapped around his
hostage’s neck, as he spoke to her over
Garren’s shoulder. “Impressive. But try
that again and I’ll simply snap his neck.”
Garren coughed as he shook his
head while holding her gaze. “Don’t,” he
croaked out. “Don’t do it.”
Is he serious? How could she
not bond with Sebastian if it meant
keeping Garren alive? At that moment,
she’d gamble her soul for his safety. She
racked her brain for another way out, but
her mind was blank. Resigned to her
fate, she stepped closer to the totally
aggravating, but positively captivating,
guy so that only inches separated them.
She wanted to make sure he could see
the resolution in her eyes. “I can do this.
He’ll fix the wards and then find
someone else to bond to.” She turned to
Sebastian. “Right?”
He nodded. “Of course.”
“See? I can do this,” she said,
trying to convince herself as much as
Garren. She jutted her chin out and freed
her bloody wrist from her shirt, pulling
out a few hairs that were stuck to the
fabric with dried blood.
Garren struggled to get out of
Zoo’s grip, with no luck. “Ivy, no!”
Zoo tightened his arm around
Garren’s neck, putting him in a headlock.
