by Emily Shore
Heath stepped forward to take Caroline's hand, half-gloved in delicate lace, and kissed the back of her knuckles while she commented, “Yes, Heath, quite the charmer as a boy if I do recall. It seems little has changed.”
“My other son.” Dad swept his gaze to Brian, who simply bowed his head, which was the customary and impersonal way to greet a Le Couvènte monarch.
“Aurora's pride and joy, to be sure,” acknowledged Caroline.
Finally, it was my turn. My eager heart fluttering, I twisted my way around Brian and stepped forward. Dad didn't even get speak before Caroline remarked:
“And the daughter who needs no introduction at all.” Caroline seemed just as eager when she strode toward me, cupped my shoulders, and kissed my cheek. She smelled like rose oil. “Reina Elizabeth Caraway. Even though I only saw you once just after your birth, I feel like I know you with how much your parents talk about you. I look forward to learning more.”
I tried not to show my surprise at how personal and unexpected her greeting was. Everything I'd rehearsed didn't suit the situation, so I went for something classic and timeless instead. “Thank you. I wish I could say the same, but Council meetings are secret. Hopefully not too secret for me in the future…”
Caroline glanced at my mother and chuckled a little. “I see she inherited your undaunted tongue.” Caroline opened her hand. “Would you prefer to talk inside or outside? I’m flexible.”
“We have a lovely, little path that goes through our woods just behind our house,” I suggested; I always felt more comfortable talking while walking.
“That does sound lovely. My husband will remain behind to question your family along with Enton while you and I enjoy a stroll.”
I nodded and proceeded to follow Caroline down the porch. This was going to feel awkward no matter what. One with foresight such as her, the queen knew everything I would say. Perhaps she could just summarize it all for me. But I also knew words and actions could change at the drop of a hat.
“No, I won’t summarize our meeting, Reina,” Caroline shifted her gaze to the trees, almost leering at me.
I heaved a sigh and followed her past our tree swing and to the wooded path. Talking to the most powerful precog in Le Couvènte was already frustrating, especially as a human.
“I assume Guardians will be following us?” I inquired just as we stepped onto the path.
“And monitoring the area, yes. But you won't see any. I know where they are, that is enough. And before you address me as queen, I prefer if you called me Caroline or Lady Caroline. To answer your next question,” she chuckled at my expense and I bit the inside of my lower lip, uncertain whether to laugh or groan as she continued, “my foresight does not extend to long-term events. Only more recent ones. And yes, events can shift as thoughts change actions.”
I opened my mouth to ask who trained her when Lady Caroline interrupted, “I was trained by one of the Founders and learned much under his tutelage. He confided in me a great deal and shared many of his predictions because he knew I had the makings of a queen.”
Truly annoyed now, I blew frustrated breath out of my nostrils.
Before she could answer my unspoken question, I blurted out, “This Founder wrote the prophecy and recorded it in the annals?”
“Indeed.” Caroline smiled, playing coy. Oh, sure now, she clammed up. I inhaled and parted my lips to speak, but she chortled. “Yes, I do know everything you’re going to ask. But I’ll stop teasing you now. It’s something I enjoy with first-timers.” Guess I couldn’t fault her for that.
“Cruel joke,” I commented as she maintained that knowing simper. “I don’t suppose there’s any chance of securing a visit?” I returned to the subject at hand.
Caroline shook her head. “Unfortunately, no. Not even with my escort. But I will answer your questions as best as I’m able if you will do the same for me.”
“Even if you know my responses?”
Caroline touched a nearby tree before removing her glove to cradle the bark with her fingers. “Indulge me, Reina. May I call you Reina? Oh, very well. Rin, then. Sorry, it comes so naturally.” She threw her head back, laughing.
I chuffed a tragic sounding laugh. “Do you have whole, one-sided conversations with your husband?”
“Sometimes. It’s quite fun! But I promise, I’ll let you speak now. Mostly,” she didn’t hesitate to add because…it came naturally.
I would need to be quick.
“How clear is the prophecy?”
“Quite clear.”
She didn’t offer anything else, but she continued to regard me, grin spreading while tracing the branches around us. My first-timer status must have given her great pleasure. It felt…amusing in its irritancy.
“Can you give me any more clarity?”
“Hmm…” She tugged her glove back on. “I’m afraid not. My tutor was quite specific in wanting to conceal the matter. His first lesson was never to tell someone about their future. Carrying my own is heavy. Carrying another’s is even heavier. All I will say is that you are a rarity. If you continue to embrace your individuality, then your future will be bright. I have a vested interest in your abilities. Please tell me more about what has happened to you over the past couple of days.”
“But you know―”
“About your encounters, yes. But I’d enjoy acknowledging your feelings.”
“It was…”
“Settle on one,” she urged. “That’s a rush of adjectives your mind keeps switching between.”
“Inexplicable.”
“Good one, but it doesn’t convey your feelings.”
“It didn’t feel wrong.” Just different.
She tapped her jaw. “Neither do your bruises.”
“Are you going to tell me?”
She grinned again with no words, and I resisted the urge to huff. I could only imagine they weren’t the work of another’s hands, otherwise it wouldn’t make sense for her to keep that knowledge from me.
Sunlight shafts cascaded through the trees, but Caroline knew how to avoid the slant of each one. “And Raoul Kelley just happened to be in the vineyard the first time to return you home.”
I paused in mid-stride. “What do you mean 'happened to'? It's not abnormal for Raoul to hunt early in the mornings.” His bitten vampire status conflicted with most borns, so he hunted opposite their schedules.
“Be that as it may, it strikes me as odd that he happened to be in the exact locales just after the unfortunate occurrences.”
“What do you mean 'occurrences'? I thought there was only one murder.”
Caroline took a step forward again so I was following her this time. “The body was discovered early this morning, conveniently just outside the southern border of Le Couvènte. You seem to have a knack for showing up in the same locations as the murders.”
“And they were both human?”
“Yes, both human. But their states were quite different. The first was undoubtedly a vampire attack. Blood drained. But the second was mauled. The body was so mangled, it was difficult to identify. The only thing the victims had in common was their gender: female and they were both individuals living alone with no next of kin.” She lifted a gloved finger. “Whoever murdered them knew how to profile them and knew they would not be missed. The murderer also knows how to block my foresight, which is unsettling.” I could imagine, given what she’d already displayed today.
“And one more thing: a calling card. The killer left a red rose in the same area as the body. One thing I saw was you picking up the rose the morning in the vineyard.”
Imprinted with the image of the rose from my nightmare, my memory returned to that morning, to that fresh rose. The killer was leaving roses?
I shook my head, wondering something else, “Do you think the murderer is living in Le Couvènte or could it be an outsider getting past the border?”
“No breaches. Our Guardians maintain a secure force. And one whose identity I cannot reveal for thei
r own protection has a particular talent for knowing whether or not someone has crossed.”
“But someone had to,” I protested, narrowing my brows, perplexed. “The first body was found along the border of Le Couvènte. The second was outside the border. That means someone had to cross.”
“Imagine my position dealing with this conundrum.” She waved a hand and swept an evergreen branch, its needles just kissing her cheek. “I am faced with the realization that someone within our Guardian ranks is a traitor, perhaps even a singular-gifted vampire. Your good friend is both a Guardian and possesses a unique ability of deception.”
“Raoul would never do something like that.” A defensiveness rose inside me.
“Perhaps. And he will be questioned. What I need to know from you, Rin, is if you can recall anything suspicious from either of your episodes?”
Episodes. Great. People did think I was a mental case.
Caroline touched my shoulder. “No, no one thinks you’re crazy. But you do have something to share with me…”
“I don't know if it'll help you.” I sighed at how her eyes twinkled in response. “But you do. When Charlotte DuBois found me, she had blood on her skin.”
“She didn't say how she got the blood.” Caroline confirmed and folded her hands behind her back. “Thank you. That may help even if it turns out to be a misunderstanding. I'm considering loaning one of my personal Guardians to monitor your house. This murderer is targeting humans, and if he or she lives in Le Couvènte, they certainly know about you. As it is, I'm surprised you are still alive.”
“I don't know if this would help either, but―”
“I will speak to your father about how they couldn’t track you,” she finished for me, and I did groan then, but Caroline glided past me, squeezing my arm light. “You’ll get used to it.”
“Will I?”
“Yes, we will see each other again.” If she wasn’t so charming, I’d be more frustrated. “But you have another question for me.” She paused before me and dropped her hands to her sides, palms open and inviting.
“Do you like being Queen?”
Caroline smiled before clasping her gloved hands and responding, “More than anything I've ever done or ever will do in my life.”
Chapter Eight
Spying
Naturally, high school at Le Couvènte was...complicated. I couldn’t do gym. One wrong move and I would be crushed. It extended to my home life. When it came to my brothers, I missed out on so many wrestling opportunities. When I was five, I antagonized Heath and Brian until they caved, but it ended with me in Le Couvènte Hospital with a broken rib.
This was the first time I’d snuck my way into the woods to spy on the training field. Today was special since it was the beginning of the last quarter. A time for potential recruits of clans to prove themselves. Sports were different at Le Couvènte High. Up and coming members of wolf packs pitted against one another while vampires combatted through their abilities. Matched by instructors of course. For once in my life, I was determined to witness the action. And I could be safe-ish.
I turned on the special odorizer that cast a circle of foreign odor around my person. Kind of like one of those mosquito shields. It should be strong enough to overlap my scent. That and the evergreens shielding me. With both races running at full adrenaline with their senses heightened, this was dangerous at best and life-threatening at worst, which only thrilled my blood all the more.
From here, I had a better vantage point of the wolves. Several instructors oversaw multiple or one-on-one combats. My brother was one such instructor. Looked like he was dealing with the Minnelli and Olivier packs. The Minnelli was the second strongest pack in Le Couvènte. Two betas sized each other up, circling, testing each other’s weak spots. In the background close to the tree line, the superior Alphas observed. Older than high school and the strongest of their packs, they’d taken time out of their day to scrutinize their new members and potential members.
First, I focused on my brother. How he navigated back and forth on one side of the two wolves, judging each one’s skill. Unlike Heath, Brian wasn’t exactly a leader, but he could lead betas since he was a higher-ranking beta. For obvious reasons, I didn’t get to see my brother in wolf form too often. He’d grown stronger. More muscle in his haunches and prowess in his stance. More fur, too thanks to the stubble he’d sported over the past few weeks.
Before the two wolves rose up on their haunches, Brian predicted it, dodging them just in the nick of time. When one’s powerful jaws seized the other by the throat, I recognized his familiar growl. A warning. No fatal bites allowed. Brian marked the two battling wolves as they tousled and wrestled, each one retreating and advancing, almost mimicking one another. Brian seemed bored. This wasn’t adrenaline-pumping enough for him. Probably why he wanted to join the Sierra Packs where they spent more time as wolves than as humans. As it was, I had no idea what the Canis Order did. Like Brian had explained, it was a secret gathering, but I still wondered if it was some secret cult as Heath had joked. The thought of my brother entering into that world…the thought of losing him…
As the wolf battle made its way down the field, closer to the tree line, I hunkered down, making myself smaller in the bushes that offered me more cover. Reveling in the way the earth shifted, bullets of dirt shooting up in the air, I inhaled deep, wondering what it must feel like. The pounding of paws on the earth. The ability to smell flesh from miles away. Everything sharper. Including teeth and power in the jaws.
Once the Minnelli wolf pressed his paws to the Olivier wolf, causing the latter to crash to the ground, the earth shook beneath my form. Just about twenty-five yards away. So close. Probably too close. That’s when Brian flicked his head up, muzzle shifting in my direction. Despite how I shrunk even lower, his eyes practically nailed mine. He blew through his nostrils as if frustrated, but he didn’t let on and turned back to the dueling wolves. Covering for me.
Speaking of duels, on the other side of the field, two vampires were doing the same. A male and a female. But without touching. Too far away to tell the one’s power, especially with the other blocking my view, I could at least see the effect she had on him as he crumpled to his knees, eyes strained. Pinching my own, I determined she was a sucker as the high school crowd called it. Astrid, I concluded. She was the most powerful sucker on campus. With one stare, she could drain your blood energy. At least if you were a vampire. No way of telling what she could do to a petty human like me. And my disturbed mind yearned to know.
Other vampires were locked in combat with a variety of different instruments. Some spewed out fire, others metal, which vampires blocked with shields both mental and elemental. Or they simply avoided via vampire speed. No vampire had wraith shadowing like Heath.
Across the field, I picked up on one familiar vampire, who had selected three machines at once. Fire, bullets, and even electricity. Every single time, the challenges ignited, he persuaded them all to stop one-inch shy of his body. The action was not lost on the crowd who studied him, including Council members. In every sense of the word, he was majestic and deadly―confident as a king. Skip’s concluding act was to vaporize the obstacles. His persuasive power was unlimited. Even to the earth shakers who would form organic barriers and even crack the earth beneath him. He conquered every obstacle. No vampires sought to fight him in one-on-one combat.
I would. Curse this human flesh. It wasn’t fair that my parents had trained me in self-defense from an early age, but other than my own family members, I never could test my abilities.
Too distracted by the vampire battle, I didn’t even notice what had happened to Brian. Both lower betas had him pinned apparently tired of fighting each other. All other alphas were further down the field or preoccupied with each other. Brian and the betas were closer to the tree-line. Closer to me. And if they did deal a fatal bite, one of them would become second in command. One beta kept Brian pinned. The other’s jaws closed in. Without thinking, I clamber
ed out of the bushes, shouting my brother’s name.
At once, the two wolves turned on me, rising to their haunches. I gulped, cursing my courageous stupidity. Defensive but not backing down because that was the worst thing to do with wolves, I held out my hands. “Get back!” I warned, but judging from their swollen pupils like engorged ticks, they were more bloodlust than anything in this moment. Not daring to take my eyes off the foes licking their chops, I could just make out the blurred Brian scrabbling to all fours, snarling threats to the betas, his nostrils huffing like a dragon.
Maintaining my stance, I started digging in my pack for one other precaution. Wolf pepper spray. Just as one began to pounce, I lit up the air with the spray, causing them to retreat a few steps, nostrils snorting out the irritating particles. More sting than burn. Just enough to hold them off. Or hold one off because Brian attacked. Apart from death strikes, he didn’t hold back, barreling his muzzle into one wolf so my attacker’s body launched into the air and came down, shaking up the earth around my feet. On instinct, I stepped back right before the wolf’s dilated pupils marked me. He snapped his jaws in my direction, but I was prepared and unleashed the rest of the wolf pepper spray into his mouth, stunning him. He whined, retreating and I grinned back at Brian who snorted at the wolf.
Brian and I both had tunnel vision. The other wolf had recovered from my initial pepper spray attack. Somehow, he’d managed to circle me without us realizing. By the time I spun my head around, he’d already leapt, jaws open and ready to ambush my throat.
Chapter Nine
No Pressure
Before the wolf could even get the chance to tackle me, a vampire’s cold arms wrapped around my waist. I recognized those arms even before he launched into vampire speed, shooting forward and away from the trees. Five seconds later, we were inside the high school close to the entrance and well away from the training fields. Still, I could see them through the window. Could just make out Brian pinning the other wolf to the ground, jaws locked in a chokehold.
