Yuri staggered to stand, finally recovering. His face was bloodied, but he was rallying. “Yes,” he urged. “Please let her go.”
Rourke released her and took a step back. She dropped to the ground.
Alana stood for a second, a lopsided grin on her face, and then she began to clap like a little girl. She gazed at me. “Bravo! It is exactly as I had hoped it would be. Your blood is like an ocean of power coursing through my veins. I’ve waited so long for this. Oh, how I can see again! It’s like a miracle, only not really, because, of course, I knew this was going to happen.”
I tried not to show my surprise by her complete 180, or her predictions. “How is it that you can cast spells?” I asked, ignoring the comments about my blood. Having it running through her veins was not at all optimal. I had no idea what she would be capable of now, or if we’d be linked, and I really didn’t want to think about killing her. One thing at a time. “Are you related to the Queen by blood?”
“Of course I am,” she replied. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“That’s not really an answer,” I pointed out. “If you’re both related to the Queen by blood, that means”—I turned my head toward Yuri, who looked agitated—“you married your cousin.” I glanced back at Alana. “I’m right, aren’t I?”
“Yes,” Yuri said quietly. “We are distant cousins.”
I turned back to Alana. “What are you? You were turned into a vampire, but you were supernatural already. If Eudoxia could defeat Vlad as a fledgling, and she can cast spells, you both have to be something more.”
Alana sized me up, still grinning. “We are fae.”
23
My mouth hung open. Fae had not been the answer I expected. I don’t know what I’d been expecting, but possibly something along the lines of nymph or pixie. “Fae have been rumored to be extinct for centuries. There hasn’t been a single sighting of one since before the birth of my father,” I said, still feeling slightly astonished. “How can this be?”
Alana strode from the wall and Rourke shot his hand out in warning. She stopped. “We are half fae, if you must know,” she said, “which you do, so I will tell you. Long ago our race was in threat of dying out and we were forced to breed with humans or become extinct. We chose humans with wealth and power, naturally, and kept our existence well cloaked.” Her hair had darkened considerably, and her cheeks had become a more palatable color than dead, bleached bone. Her eyes were now a luminous brown, not glowing pewter.
She appeared … strangely normal.
Not someone who’d spent eons as a spooky ghoul locked in a cell. She continued. “I am telling you this because it will aid you later. Much later. But we are running out of time and you must go or things will shift once again.”
Shift? “I’m sorry, but I’m not going anywhere until I understand what you’re talking about,” I said firmly. “You’re a seer and blood-kin to the Queen, but she kept you locked up. Why did you continue to aid her?”
“It was necessary,” Alana replied. “After hundreds of years of cruelty at the hands of Valdov, my mind had shattered. A newly made vampire starved for blood becomes damaged beyond repair, but a fledgling vampire who is also a seer who is also half fae is irrevocably lost. Because the Queen is powerful, and my kin; she alone could coax me into intermittent sanity. But she could not stay with me twenty-four hours a day.”
I nodded, not because I understood, but because it was all so insane. “So the Queen knew Valdov was a spy.”
“Of course,” she said. “She knew his true nature when she found out about us. But she needed to keep him for this very day. So he lived.”
“The Queen orchestrated the events today. Why?”
“Valdov and Eudoxia would’ve ended you together if you had come when your oath demanded. When you showed up early and unannounced, it put their plans askew. She came down to consult with me once you were granted entrance into the mansion. I told her what must be done.”
“She wants my blood.”
“She needs your blood,” Alana said, holding up a single finger. “There is a distinction.”
My eyebrows arched. “She needs it like you needed it?”
“No,” she answered. “Your blood has cured my madness. It was necessary and the only thing that could bring me salvation, but your blood will bring her to godhood.”
I was stricken to silence.
“Vampires can’t attain godhood,” Rourke growled. “You’re lying. A god must be born, not made.” Vampires were “made” into supernaturals by powerfully magical blood, while shifters, witches, and most of the others were born.
Alana smiled. “Ah, but she was born a supernatural, was she not? Eudoxia’s destiny is vast. But what she does not know is … I have lied to her. Repeatedly. It was a shame, but necessary. If I had not, her path would have turned very dark, and even in my madness I still loved my niece.”
“Godhood?” I said. “No wonder she’s on a rampage. A vampire in line for true immortality is very rare.” Once a supe reached godhood, which only very few could, it meant the coupling of vast power and true immortality. A regular supernatural could live for thousands of years but could be killed a number of ways.
It was almost impossible to kill a god.
“Fate weaves a path for you at your birth, as it does for us all, and thus far you have stayed true to yours.” She stepped closer and I nodded to Rourke that it was okay. “If you continue to choose the right course, it will lead you to greatness. If you do not, it could be detrimental to us all.” She peered at me, her eyes hooded, like she was trying to see into my soul. “It is unclear how this will end, which is puzzling.”
That wasn’t exactly comforting. “How am I supposed to know which one is the right path?” I asked, frustrated. “That’s a lot of pressure, especially since making the wrong choice could be detrimental to all.”
“There is one path for each of us.” She held up a finger. It was free of wrinkles, but the nails were still yellowed. “But it comes with many detours. Some will circle back and some will not. It is fluid, yet set. The true mystery lies in all of us and what our hearts desire.”
“You mentioned salvation,” I said. “I need to know if my father will survive.”
She cocked her head. “His salvation depends on another. But it is ultimately up to you.”
“That wasn’t exactly helpful—”
Something rocked the mansion from the outside and the storage shelves clattered and dust fell from the rafters.
“It begins now,” she said, shuffling away from me. “We must part.”
“But you haven’t answered my question yet,” I complained.
“I can say no more.” Alana moved toward the far wall. “Just know that everything is up to you. And you must make choices true to your heart; if you do not, you will suffer the consequences.” Another explosion hit the ground. “Quickly, you must exit through here.”
I strode toward the grate she had just pulled open. “You want us to crawl through the venting?” I asked.
“It is necessary,” she said, her voice firm. Yuri had come to stand by her side. It was hard to disagree with a seer when my father’s life was on the line.
I turned to Rourke, who was already leaning in to take a look. “This must be a shortcut to the main part of the mansion.” The house shook again. We could feel the vibrations, but they weren’t direct hits. If they were, the walls would be coming down around us. That meant the Queen had put up her ward. I hoped my father made it in. It was time to get out of here. “We may as well take it. It looks maneuverable.”
“Okay,” I said. “Let’s do it.”
He eased his large frame into the small opening.
I turned to follow, right as Alana laid a hand on my arm. “Eudoxia will be resistant at first, but she must perform one last task before she is worthy of the power required. Make sure she agrees to it.”
“I’m tired of crawling through tunnels in this place,” I growled, because I could. “T
here has to be an easier way back to the main rooms than taking old venting units.”
Rourke was ahead of me, his massive body barely fitting through the narrow passageway.
“The moment the demons spot you, this battle will start in earnest,” Rourke said. “We have to be methodical about this.” He’d been going over strategy since we started our crawl. The sun had set. We’d spent too much time with Alana and Yuri and now it was time to start planning. “We regroup with everyone and hope they have Ray.” He stopped moving. “I see something with a knob ahead. Let’s try it.”
A whispery voice hit my eardrum. “No, not that way.”
“Hey, where did you come from?” My head hit the top of the tunnel in surprise. “Ow.” It was the same ghost who had stayed with me in the mausoleum. I rubbed my head. “I thought you left with the rest of them.”
“What?” Rourke said. “I’m not leaving.”
“You must stop him,” it said. “That is a gate, not a door. It will lead to agony.”
Rourke started shouldering the small doorway. “Rourke, wait! Don’t open that.”
“Why?” He craned his head toward me. “Let’s see where it leads. If it’s not the right one, then we can keep crawling.”
“It’s not a door. Apparently it’s one of those gates. It could open us up to something shitty, like more Trows.”
“How do you know? I can’t smell anything dangerous.” He leaned his head toward the portal, inhaling.
“Um … a ghost just told me.”
Rourke snapped his head back at me. “What ghost? I thought you said they all left.”
“I have stayed,” it whispered, “because you are still in danger.”
“It says I’m still in danger, so it stayed,” I relayed. “Tell me something I don’t know, Mr. Ghost. So where do we go?”
It brushed by my ear. “You must climb.”
“Climb? You mean up? We’re in a four-foot-square tunnel that happens to be running horizontally.”
“How do we go up?” Rourke maneuvered himself to his back and examined the top of the tunnel. He grabbed on to the flimsy sheet metal of the venting and tore. It opened to expose red brick. “It’s solid above us.”
“The passageway is above you.” The voice was soft and muffled, like it had drifted through the stone as it talked to me.
“The ghost says we have to go up,” I said. “Honestly, I don’t know if we should trust it. But this is the same ghost who aided me with Naomi, and we’re kind of out of options. And this vent is making me edgy. Why did we agree to crawl in here again? I think Alana slipped us some of her Kool-Aid. There’s no other explanation.”
“Fine, we go up,” Rourke grunted. “The reason we’re in here is we believe she’s right.” Without any more discussion, he rammed a powerful fist into the ceiling above our heads. “And she had better be right.”
The old bricks cracked immediately, crumbling down around us.
The top of the tunnel sounded hollow. I covered my mouth and nose as dust flew around the small confines of our space. “If she’s not right, I say we track her down and string her up by her skinny ankles.”
“One more time should be the charm.” Rourke smashed through the stone in another stellar hit and more chunks and debris came crashing down around us.
Once everything settled, there was a hole, but it wasn’t big enough for us to climb through. “Here, let me help. I can use my legs to open it up,” I said. “You’re too big. I can angle myself in a better position than you can.” He slid forward and I rolled once, scooting myself into place. I brought my legs up. They almost touched the top of the tunnel. Give me some juice, I told my wolf. My legs bunched under my skin and I shot them upward. They busted straight through the rest of the loose stones, making the hole big enough for us to fit through in one go. I coughed, twisting my body to kneel, ducking my head through the hole to take a look. “It’s an old elevator shaft.” That was a surprise. “And it smells stale. Nobody’s been in here for a long time.”
Beneath me I kicked away errant bricks and rose, lifting my head and shoulders through the small space. There were wooden beams directly above me, and I dug my nails into one to get some leverage. As I continued to pull myself through the hole, I felt Rourke’s hands begin to slide down the length of my body, ending at my hips, where he grabbed on and hoisted me through. “Resorting to cheap feels?” I chuckled.
“At this point, I’ll take what I can get,” he growled. Once I was up, I splayed my feet across one side and made room for him to join me in the small shaft. He started through the hole, knocking away more stone so he could fit. “All these adrenaline jumps are making me nuts. My cat wants a release yesterday.”
“I couldn’t agree more.” I started to climb. I’d gone only a few feet when Tyler’s voice shot into my brain.
Jess, where are you? His tone was frantic.
How could I explain where I was? We’re inside the mansion, trying to find a way out. Did you find Ray? Please tell me you found him.
Yes, we found him. Relief swept through my body so clearly I almost lost my grip. He was locked in a crypt and is pissed as hell, but there’s more trouble. The sorcerers have set up summoning rings around the perimeter. But that’s not the worst part. The Screamer is loose.
What do you mean it’s loose? It’s fully corporeal?
Yes, and Ray has already fought it once. I’ve been trying to reach you for a half hour. Where have you been? I was about to go balls out ripping down walls in this place.
We ran into an important … complication. Too much to explain. Tell me about the Screamer. I don’t get why Ray is involved.
It’s after you, Jess.
What do you mean, after me?
It’s linked to your blood somehow and it’s trying to find you. Naomi says it craves your power and it needs more. It’s like a possessed banshee. Everyone is running.
Stay away from it. Once we get out of here, we’ll find you outside.
Jess, it’s in the house.
In the house?
Tyler, don’t worry about me. I’m concealed right now. If the Queen has fueled the new ward and it’s protecting us from the demons, our priority is still finding Dad. I’ll get out of the house as soon as I can. Start searching the grounds—
“It comes too soon,” the ghost cried. “Climb!”
Before I could react, a hand shot through the wall and grabbed me by the neck like a homing pigeon.
“Jessica!” Rourke bellowed as my skull crashed into the wall.
At the thing’s touch, a current of pure electricity shot through me, so strong I couldn’t breathe.
In the next instant I was in my Lycan form.
I thrashed, but it wouldn’t let go. Its hand was generating more electricity and it held on like a clamp. I lost my footing and dangled in the air as the Screamer continued to bash me into the wall.
A fierce screech hit my eardrums.
I took hold of its forearm, painful currents washing over me, and tried bracing my legs against the shaft so I could rear back, but its hold was unyielding. It bellowed at me and gave one more huge thrust. My body crashed through the rest of the wall, splinters and broken wood raking my body.
Once it had me on the other side, it tossed me onto the rug.
We were in some kind of parlor.
Then it turned and picked up an armoire like it was nothing and smashed it into the opening, dropping it right over my howling mate.
“Well, hello, Conan,” I said from the floor. “It’s so nice to see you again.”
24
This wasn’t the adorable Conan I knew and loved. This was Conan meets Hellboy. “I will drink you dry,” it moaned as it advanced on me. I scuttled backward on my arms and legs. “And feast on your entrails.”
“It cannot be stopped,” came a panicked whisper in my ear. “It has manifested itself.”
“I can see that,” I muttered. “It’s kind of hard to miss.”
“Y
ou must leave here,” the ghost urged.
“I’m working on it.” My back hit a wall and I immediately shimmied to the right. There were windows directly on the other side of the room. It was the only viable option. Conan had shoved furniture in front of the only door. It would take too long to dismantle it.
The Screamer had gobbled up so much of Conan there was only a shell left. Its eyelids drooped, its fangs bit into its lower lip, blood leaked down its chin, and its hair was falling out. It resembled a zombie vampire as it shuffled at me.
It was dead, but in a whole different way.
It was double dead.
“It seeks more power.” The ghost pushed against my body, trying to move me.
“I know that. Listen, if you don’t have any helpful advice to give,” I told the ghost, “then do me a favor and keep your breathy comments to yourself.”
Before the Screamer could reach me, I snatched up an end table and hurled it.
It batted it away like a mild irritant.
“What makes them so strong?” I asked. “It’s like the Hercules of the Undead.”
“They are fueled by raw energy,” it whispered in my ear. “It cannot be defeated.”
“Bullshit,” I retorted. “If that were true, Screamers would be running around all over the world eating people’s souls. This thing is going down. We just have to figure how.”
It kept hobbling at me with single-minded intention as I inched my way along the wall. It was a good thing it was slow. Let’s try and knock its head off and see if that works, I told my growling wolf.
“That won’t work.”
“Hey,” I accused. “Stay out of my brain. How do you do that anyway?”
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