Brent jabbed at my chest with his right fist, and I leaned back, letting his fist sail past my left shoulder. I reached up and grabbed his wrist and spun up and under it, coming up behind Brent and popping his shoulder out of place. My foot slammed into the back of his thigh, and his leg crumpled beneath him as he dropped to the ground. Before he could get to his feet, I kicked him between his shoulder blades, and he skidded to a stop in the dirt with a groan.
He sat back and watched me with his dark eyes, and I waited for him to do something. After a second, he looked away from me, and he popped his shoulder back into place in a well-practiced manner. He’d obviously been injured like that before. “How did you do that? Doesn’t it hurt?” I asked, curious.
Brent shrugged. “It hurts more to leave it popped out like that. Once you get it back to normal, it feels so much better. The pain vanishes almost instantly. Especially for those of us that heal faster than the average person,” he said, grinning. “Why? Want me to teach you how to do it?”
I nodded eagerly. “It seems like it would be a useful thing to know.”
“It won’t do you much good, because you’ll be sitting out of the fighting all safe and sound,” Quinten said, looking at me. He was helping the new dhampirs with their training, but he’d been watching the entire fight, ready to jump in and intervene if he felt like he had to. “Alanna, you can’t honestly believe that anyone here is going to let you fight.”
“I am fighting,” I said stubbornly. “You will not all be fighting for me while I sit around all safe and sound, hidden away out of danger. Quinten, I’m the one with the biggest reason to fight.”
Quinten sighed exasperatedly. “You do realize that you could get hurt, or even killed, right? If you die, so do these kids that everyone else is willing to fight and die for. You have to think about what’s best for everyone, not just your pride.”
“I have thought of it. Quinten, I’m trying to keep as many people alive as possible. In our current situation, one fighter could be the difference between victory and defeat, between life and death. If I can help out, I will.” He shook his head but didn’t argue with me anymore. He seemed to realize that nothing he could say would change my mind or my decision. I was determined to help out as much as possible, despite what anyone said.
Training continued while I took a seat in the grass and watched. Quinten joined me, wordlessly sliding his arm around waist and pulling me closer. We watched Brent and Nolan help train the dhampirs and the Council’s wolves. Jenna and Darren watched with interest, taking mental notes of everything that Brent and Nolan showed them. I hoped they were fast learners, because they were two of the most unnatural fighters I’d ever seen. Even though Darren had improved greatly since starting, he was still going to need someone to watch his back during the fight. If they couldn’t get the hang of everything, they wouldn’t last long in a fight, and it would be better for them to sit out instead of me.
Dera called every hour on the hour, looking for a status update on the pregnancy. After her fourth call, I was ready to bite off someone’s head just for looking at me the wrong way. I had to force myself to be cordial and polite while talking to Dera on the phone, but the second she hung up in her brisk and efficient way, I was feeling ready to rant and rave about every word she’d said. Finally, after the fifth phone call, Jenna brought me into the kitchen to help her start dinner.
Cooking for so many people was incredibly difficult, and it took several hours to prepare enough. Surprisingly, Jenna let me handle the second half of dinner while she worked on two very large cakes. When I asked her what the special occasion was, she just smiled, shook her head, and continued baking. While she decorated them, I spread out the food over the kitchen counter and the kitchen table. People drifted in to gather up a plate of food before heading outside to eat around a small fire that Ray had made. When I peeked out the window, I noticed that the group around the fire was incredibly segregated. The dhampirs sat on one side of the fire with Violet, Maria, and Quinten, while the wolves sat across from them. Jax sat beside Darren–who I was pleased to see was sitting next to Jonathon–and Ray sat beside Jenna. His arm was around her waist, and he winked at me as I sat beside Quinten with my own massive plate of food.
Brent saw the amount of food on my plate and laughed, causing everyone else to chuckle with him. I shrugged it off. “I’m eating for three. Leave me alone,” I said with a grin. Nobody argued with me, probably because they’d all most likely noticed my mood dip with each Council-related phone call, and they knew I was ready to tear into someone about my current circumstances.
When Jenna disappeared back inside the house and came back out with a cake, everyone turned to look at me. As one group, Ray, Jax, Darren, Quinten, Jenna, Brent, and Violet all broke out into a sloppy verse of ‘Happy Birthday’, startling me. When they finished singing, I just sat there slack-jawed and surprised. “It’s my birthday?” I asked quietly.
Ray chuckled. “You forgot your own birthday? It’s not every day you officially stop being a teenager.” He got a faraway look in his eyes as he smiled. “Twenty years old. I remember that time in my life. You know we were gonna wait until this was all over to celebrate, but we figured that we could all use some good in our lives right now. What better way to celebrate life and what we have than with a birthday cake and friends?”
Jenna cut up birthday cake and dished out pieces to everyone in the group. Even the Council’s werewolves took slices, and I could feel the tension lighten up all around the fire. They would probably never be comfortable around one another, but if we kept training together, I figured they would at least be able to stand each others presence.
And that was a step in the right direction.
Chapter Eleven
After everyone settled in for the night, Quinten and I decided to go for another walk. Jax and Darren were on patrol in the woods, and would keep an eye out for any dangerous forces. I was surprised that we hadn’t been attacked since the night Ilene nearly killed Ray, but instead of seeing that as a blessing, Ray said it meant that Roger was biding his time until he was sure he could easily wipe us out. With the help of the Council, I wasn’t sure if it would be as easy as Roger believed.
Quinten gripped my hand tightly, threading his fingers through mine and pulling me closer. He liked to be alone, because he felt like he could be as affectionate as he wanted to be without being judged by the Council’s wolves and anyone else who may have disapproved. It was easy to tell who was happy for us and who was just using us as a potential way to stop the fighting from both sides. My family, Jenna, and Darren were the only ones that seemed to be happy for us, while Violet was clearly using us to get her revenge on Roger Mason for the death of her mate. The Council wolves were probably just tired of fighting and wanted an excuse for it to all end.
No matter what their reasons for being here were, it didn’t matter to me. I was just happy to have someone else on our side, someone like Dera that could greatly affect the outcome. If she wanted us to succeed, there was a chance that we could.
When I looked over at Quinten, I was surprised to find him looking around at all of the trees with an amazed smile on his face. When I elbowed him gently, he grinned sheepishly at me. “I haven’t seen a tree like that in years. All of those red, orange, and golden colored leaves are beautiful. It still amazes me every time I find something else I missed being able to see. It’s always the small things, things you would never think of.”
“Like what?”
“I missed not being able to look into someone’s eyes while I talked to them, like with you, Ray, and my grandmother.” His face twisted into a grimace at the thought of his grandmother. “I haven’t talked to her since after she moved into that assisted living facility. I didn’t wanna risk contacting her when Roger could find out and use her against me.” My stomach clenched painfully with guilt. “Don’t worry about it, Alanna. She probably doesn’t even realize I’m gone.”
“I bet that’s not tr
ue.”
He shrugged. “I’ve known she’s been going downhill for years. It’s not like it happened overnight. I can handle it.” He went silent for a minute, and I got the feeling he was trying to keep himself composed. “You know, I also missed looking at a sunrise, or the moon and the stars. Simple things that normal people take for granted that I never will. Not as long as I live. Then there’s the look on your face when you wake up first thing in the morning, right before everything in our lives hits you. You just look so peaceful and happy to be lying there next to me.”
I butted his shoulder with mine and smiled. “You’re so weird.”
“Oh, you’re an immortal being that can take the shape of a giant wolf, you’re pregnant with half-vampire offspring, and there’s about to be a massive fight to the death because of your life choices, and I’m the weird one? Yeah, that makes total sense to me.”
Laughing, I smacked his shoulder playfully. “I never said I wasn’t weird, but you’re even weirder than I am. You notice such strange things. Like the look on my face when I wake up in the morning? Normal people don’t notice those things.”
“We’re not normal. We’re far from it.”
“I know,” I said sadly. “Sometimes I wish we weren’t so different from everyone else.”
“I don’t,” he said, surprising me. Seeing my puzzled look, he shrugged his shoulders. “Alanna, I don’t get to spend just one lifetime with you. I get to spend the rest of eternity with not only you, but with our children as well. Not to mention your amazing family. I couldn’t imagine a better way to spend my existence.”
“Well, listen to you, sounding all romantic.”
He chuckled. “It comes easy when I’ve got inspiration like you. You make me feel romantic.”
“You know, the two of you happen to be so love struck it makes me want to puke,” Elias said.
In a quick movement, Quinten dragged me behind him and crouched down into a defensive position. A low snarl built up in his chest, and I could see his hands clench into dangerous fists at his side. “Alanna, run back to the house.”
“No, I’m not leaving you here,” I said, putting my hand on his back. “Quinten, he’s only got one hand. The two of us could take him, but only if we stay together. Besides, Jax and Darren will be here any minute. We just have to wait him out.”
“Your mongrel bodyguard and his freak lover are off chasing their tails. Well, one of them is. The other doesn’t have a tail to chase. So, we’ve got a few minutes before they stumble across our little meeting. I led them on a chase through the trees and across that lovely little river and over to the cliffs; I didn’t want us to be interrupted while we spoke.”
The news that Jax and Darren weren’t close enough to help had my gut clenching painfully. I was nearly positive that Quinten and I could take him together, but I would have liked Jax and Darren to be with us. “What could we possibly have to talk about?” I asked through clenched teeth. “Would you like to start with how you tried to rip my unborn children out of me by force? Or would you like to back up a bit and explain how we ended up at the Arena to begin with? Or maybe you’d like to go back even farther and explain why you tried to kill me as a child. Hmm?”
Elias stepped out of a patch of shadow and my heart froze at the sight of him. He was as cold and handsome as I remembered him, standing there in his black jeans, boots, and leather jacket. All of the black clashed with his pale, white-blonde hair that he’d cut recently. It no longer fell to his powerful shoulders, and instead stopped just above his chin. His almond-shaped eyes were the same shade of icy blue, and his body had that same lithe, feline-like appearance with his tight and coiled muscles.
One of his hands was hanging at his side, and the other was tucked into his jacket pocket. I hadn’t really gotten a good look at him when Roger attacked him in that alley weeks ago, so I wasn’t sure how much of his hand was left. He could have been missing a few fingers, or it could be little more than a jagged stump. Part of me was curious in a morbid kind of way, but a bigger part of me didn’t want to see it.
“Well, I believe I told you while you were my guest at the Arena that my mate and I had a taste for children,” he said lightly, ignoring Quinten’s warning hiss. “Your father saved you, killed my mate, and then he wounded me. News travels fast around our little community, Alanna. When I heard that Roger Mason had his eyes on you, I wanted to make sure I could get my revenge on Ray before Roger got what he wanted. So I had my Seekers following you for a while, waiting for the right moment to strike.”
“So Roger had nothing to do with us being abducted.”
Elias shook his head. “Nope,” he said, popping the “p”. “I was hoping to have my fun with you, and then I was going to have some more fun by video taping your death and sending it to Ray. That would have devastated him, and I would have finally gotten my revenge.”
“Too bad for you that my dad showed up to rescue me. He and his friends freed me and the other prisoners you had locked up like animals in those dungeon cells. He beat you again.”
Elias threw back his head and laughed, sending shivers down my spine. “Too bad daddy didn’t show up soon enough to save that poor little boy you murdered,” Elias taunted.
I clamped down on Quinten’s shoulder to keep him from lunging at Elias. “He’s baiting us, Quinten. He’s trying to get you to do something stupid and leave me exposed. Now calm down.” I looked up and met Elias’ eyes. “You forced my hand, Elias. I saved that boy from more pain and torture at your hands. It was a mercy killing, and I’m over it,” I said, knowing that wasn’t true. My most frequent nightmares didn’t even involve Roger or Elias, but instead the children I’d killed–including those that had died when Violet’s apartment caught fire.
“I think you’re lying,” Elias said snidely. “You caring do-gooder types always take personal failures too seriously. You let them bring you down and ruin your lives instead of moving on. A girl like you will hold that death against yourself for the rest of eternity. You’ll force yourself to remember it every night before you go to bed, and you’ll probably even relive it in your dreams. It’ll gnaw away at your heart until you can’t take it any more–”
“Shut up!” I screamed, startling Quinten. “I don’t wanna hear what you have to say.”
“That’s because you know that I’m right,” Elias pointed out. “Now that we’ve exchanged pleasantries, how about we get down to business? I did come here for a reason, you know.”
“And what reason would that be?” Quinten asked with a sneer.
“Well, I was actually thinking of offering you and your group a temporary truce,” he said, looking at us like it was the most obvious thing in the world and not a crazy suggestion. “We both have a common enemy on our hands, and if we were to team up, we’d be able to take care of him more effectively.”
“Then what? We just let you go on your merry way?” I asked, smiling thinly. “And what makes you think anyone in our group would agree to a truce, however temporary it might be? You had us kidnapped and you forced us to fight to the death in some crummy football-style arena. You’re the reason I have nightmares. You’re the reason Quinten is a vampire now.”
“But I’m less of a threat to you than Roger Mason is,” he said practically. “He’s the one you have to look out for now, am I right? Like you pointed out to your precious lover boy moments ago, I only have one hand now. I’m much less of a threat. I may not even be able to handle Roger Mason on my own. He’ll kill me and then come back to you.”
“You deserve to die for what you did to his family. You made him the monster that he is.”
Elias smiled. “Yes, I did turn him into a monster, didn’t I? I take full credit for that. It was one of my finer nights. Normally I would just kill a mother and her child, but that night I had an entire smorgasbord to choose from. His youngest daughter tasted particularly delicious. My mate and I just couldn’t help ourselves. After we were done with her, we just had to try the rest of
the family.”
“You’re so disgusting.”
“Perhaps, but it’s in my nature. Just as it’s in your mate’s nature. Have you ever seen him feed on a human being?” His smile widened at the expression on my face. “I can see that you have. Well, it’s not very pretty, is it? But it’s what we are. It’s how we’re made.”
“Vampires can give pleasure if they want,” Quinten said, startling me. “I’ve fed from Alanna several times to keep from hurting others. She and I both get something out of it. You choose to cause as much pain and suffering as you can. You play with your victims before putting them out of their misery. I would never do something like that.”
Elias’ eyes narrowed at me. “You should take my offer now while it lasts. When I leave this place, you and I will officially be enemies. I can help you deal with Roger Mason, something you apparently can’t do by yourself since he’s still gathering power and friends to fight by his side. Trust me when I tell you this: you and I would be much better off as friends than enemies.”
He’s an ancient vampire, probably the second oldest on the planet, but he’s only got the one hand. He’s not at his best; I can see it in his eyes. He must be desperate to come to us offering a temporary truce. If he’s here waving the white flag, it means he’s worried he can’t take us. Jax and Darren should be here any minute…can Quinten and I hold him off until they get here?
I tapped Quinten’s shoulder lightly. “You’ve caused us far too much pain and suffering for us to ever trust you, even temporarily. We can’t accept your offer, Elias. You’re afraid that Roger Mason will come and finish you off to exact his revenge, and that’s why you want our help. But you know what, I say let Roger have you. Then, we’ll have one less enemy to worry about.”
Elias’ face twisted into a harsh grimace. His lips peeled back revealing long, sharp fangs and the fingers on his remaining hand curled into dangerous weapons. Before either of us could react, he threw himself at us, slamming into Quinten’s chest. They fell to the ground in a heap of flailing limbs and loud snarls. Lightning fast, Elias struck, sinking his fangs into Quinten’s flesh. The only thing that saved him from having his throat ripped out was his own reflexes, and instead Elias got a mouthful of shoulder muscle.
Arena Wars Trilogy Page 47
