The Chosen Ones

by Brighton, Lori

  “Please,” I called out. “I need help! I escaped—”

  Suddenly, something tight clamped around my ankle and jerked me upward. A scream ripped from my throat as the world around me turned sideways. I was flipped around, and found myself hanging upside down, the ground below me wavering back and forth, as I swung. Dizzy from the sudden movement, I barely understood what had happened.

  Frantic, I tried to bend upward, using what little stomach muscles I had to look above. A rope held me from a thick tree branch. My stomach muscles quivered from the exertion, and I fell back down, hanging there like a fish on the end of a line. “Thane!”

  But Thane didn’t come. Instead an old man stepped from the woods and into the clearing. He carried what I knew immediately had to be a long gun of some sort. “Who the hell are you?”

  “Jane.” I blinked my eyes, trying to focus, but his weathered face was all a big blur. “I was a chosen one who escaped.”

  “Liar.” He lifted the gun and pointed it directly at me. “What do you really want?”

  Where was Thane when I needed him? The guy had probably dumped me here and high-tailed it back to the mainland. Raven started toward me, coming closer…closer.

  “I promise, I mean you no harm. I’m here because I need help.”

  “I know you didn’t swim here, so how did you find me?” He shoved the end of his gun into my belly, making me grunt. I swung backward from the force, turning in a whirl that made the dizziness worse. “What do you want? Truth, girl.”

  I swallowed hard, trying to ignore the pain of the rope burning around my ankles, the thrum of blood rushing to my head, and focus on the man who was upside down. Or was I the one upside down? I couldn’t really remember anymore. Good God, I was going to pass out. “They’re getting worse. The attacks on the mainland. The beautiful ones are out to destroy us. We heard that you might know how to stop them.”

  “I know nothing and want nothing to do with them, or you.” He leaned forward, his face a few inches from mine. The deep wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and around his mouth fascinated me. The yellowing of his teeth and general scent of decay that hovered around him proclaimed to all that he was ancient. Stunned, I could merely stare at him. This Raven was the oldest human I’d ever seen or heard of.

  He lifted the gun again, pointing it at my head. “Now get off my land before I kill you!”

  Suddenly Thane appeared shoving Raven back and stepping in front of me. “Harm her, old man, and I swear you’ll regret it.”

  Thane’s appearance startled him enough that he froze in indecision. The pale set of his wrinkled face showed his fear. “Using her as bait, dhampir?”

  “No.” Thane turned his back to the man, pulled the dagger from the sheath on his thigh and cut the rope. I fell into his arms with a thud. He caught me easily, settling me gently upon my feet. It happened so quickly that the scenery around me still spun and for a moment I thought I might get sick.

  Fortunately he didn’t let go. “You okay?”

  I nodded. Yeah. I was all right. I was starving, cold, had almost been shot, and my ankle throbbed, but Thane hadn’t left me, he hadn’t set me up so he could escape. So I figured I was doing better than I could have been.

  There was a soft click as the man lifted his gun once more, pointing it directly at Thane this time. “You have ten seconds before I start shooting.”

  Thane stepped in front of me, placing himself between me and the old guy. Still off balance, I had to press my hands into his back and use him as support. “Calm down. We don’t mean you any harm. But she’s right. We need your help.”

  “As I told her, I don’t have anything to do with the beautiful ones. I want no war with anyone.”

  Thane released a harsh laugh. “You think the war won’t find you? You think you’re safe here, old man? We know you’ve been working on a way to destroy them once and for all. We need your help.”

  “Leave.” He turned and started back toward the trees. “I have nothing to offer.”

  “At least he didn’t kill us,” I muttered.

  “Whether you want a war or not, it’s coming, Raven,” Thane called out. “They’ve been asking after you. Slaughtered good people trying to find information. You’re no better than the others kept in compounds, hiding out, blind to what is truly going on around them.”

  He spun around to face us. “Shut your mouth, boy.”

  For one long moment none of us said a word. I inched around Thane, peeking over his shoulder. The old man looked like he might start foaming at the mouth as he stood there stewing in his righteous anger. Thane had certainly made an impression, although I wasn’t quite sure if that was good or not.

  “They are coming,” Thane finally spoke again. “And I have a feeling they’ll be here soon. Very soon.”

  Raven lifted his lips in a growl, holding his gun high. “Then let them come.”

  “It doesn’t matter how many guns you own,” Thane snapped. “They will overpower you.”

  Slowly, he pointed his weapon at us once more. “You’re one of them. Why should I trust you? Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you.”

  “Because,” Thane said, stepping aside and leaving me out in the open, alone and vulnerable. “She’s your granddaughter.”

  Chapter 13

  I stared into the fire, watching the flames jump and dance, taking comfort in their warmth. But as much as I enjoyed the fire, it made me think about the others. Jimmy, and how much he would love the warmth. Kelly and Tony, and how they’d be snuggling by the flames. And Will…Will, who could have sat by and kept me company, making me think about anything other than my torturous thoughts. Yet, one of them had betrayed us, if Thane was right.

  It wasn’t Will. I knew that for sure. Tony was the obvious choice. It certainly wasn’t Kelly…was it? If I went by the books I’d read, it was always the sweet one, the one you’d least expect who was the culprit. Which would mean…Kelly. I rested my head in my hands, curling onto my wooden chair. No. Not Kelly. Not Will. I hated that Thane had done this to me...hated that he had made me distrust my friends, the very people who had saved me.

  I heard the door to the cabin open, the thump of his feet as Thane moved down the steps and toward me. He was being loud on purpose, so he wouldn’t catch me off guard. When his sweet scent hit me, I had to resist the urge to breathe deeply. His mere scent could make me weak-kneed and only reminded me of that dream I’d had this morning.

  “What do you want, Thane?”

  “He wants to meet you. To talk.”

  I couldn’t help myself and studied that cottage. My grandfather. My father’s father. The lights in the window shone brilliantly against the evening sky. I’d been sitting out here for hours, unable to go inside, unable to be near the old man without wanting to cry, hit something, scream. I had a grandfather. It should’ve meant something. It meant nothing.

  Then again, I had brothers and a sister and felt little more than mild affection for them. Why should I feel anything for this old man? Because, I realized, this was different. He was an adult, an adult who had knowingly left his own grandchildren to be tortured and killed, yet he had done nothing to try and save us. Where were the loving families I’d read about in my books?

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked, staring at the cottage. It was a home. An actual home set amongst a fairy-tale forest. My grandfather had lived here for years, perhaps decades without fear, without war or strife. Safe and comfortable.

  “I didn’t know.”

  I jerked my gaze toward him. If he hadn’t known, then why had he repeatedly placed himself in danger to save me? I’d assumed, as I sat here lost in thought, that he had used me to get here.

  “I could only smell the similarities in your blood in that field.”

  “I see.” My mind spun. Thane hadn’t known I was related to Raven, yet had saved me anyway. Why? “And Will?”

  He shrugged. He didn’t fidget, didn’t shift uncomfortably. “If he k
new, then obviously he realized if anyone could talk Raven into helping, it would be his granddaughter.”

  I released the breath I held, my shoulders slumping. Just as I’d thought. It was Will, not Thane, who had been using me. Anger, hurt and frustration swirled within, burning as bright as the fire. I picked up a stick and jabbed it at the burning logs, watching the sparks fly into the air, and wishing I could release my anger up into that dark sky. The joke was on him, because my grandfather probably didn’t give two figs that we were related.

  “Was he using me?” I demanded, knowing Thane had the answer. “Pretending to care just so I’d come here?”

  Thane sighed. “No. He wasn’t.”

  I dropped the stick. “How do you know?”

  “I know,” he snapped, almost as if annoyed. “Because whether you want to admit it or not, I am a man and I know what guys think. He liked you.”

  Startled, I looked up at him. It was the first time I’d seen Thane lose control of his emotions. Was that an actual flush to his cheeks? He spun around, pacing away from me and facing the woods. Why now, of all times, did he choose to act so human?

  Did this have to do with my relationship with Will? I took my lower lip between my teeth, lost in thought. Will cared about me. Will, who I cared for as well, but who I might never see again. I glanced toward the trees into the direction where I knew the shore lay. Could Will and I have possibly had some sort of relationship like I’d read about in those books? Tony and Kelly had something. But thoughts of Tony and Kelly made my stomach churn. One of them was a traitor. And if they had survived, Will had no idea what his friends had done.

  “Why didn’t you tell Will that someone in the group might be a traitor? Is it because you think Will is the one working with Bacchus?” Yeah, my tone came out angry, but I couldn’t quite help myself. I was tired of the secrets and I cared for Will.

  “No. Will is blindly allegiant to the cause—he would never betray his followers. It’s one of many weaknesses.”

  One of many? I frowned, annoyed. It was easy to pick on someone who wasn’t here. I wondered what Will would say in response to Thane’s comment.

  “Come in.” Thane faced me. “We can talk. There are lots of questions he can answer. It’s warmer in there and he has food.”

  Food? That caught my attention, although reluctantly. I stood and followed Thane’s broad shoulders toward the cottage. I’d been so stunned, so angry, that I’d refused to enter. But there were times to set your bitterness aside, and this was one of them. Up close I realized the cottage was actually a lot worse off than I’d first thought. The wooden shingles were hanging off, some missing. The stairs creaked and groaned under our weight. Part of my anger wavered. What was it like to live here on this island completely alone, only the occasional rabbit and deer to keep you company?

  Thane pulled open the door and stepped aside. When I entered I was amazed to see it looked like the homes I’d read about. He had windows with curtains, and shelves with trinkets; shells, animals skulls, books. Two chairs flanked a fireplace and what looked to be a kitchen stood against one side. Even more surprising were the two doors that interrupted the far wall, as if he had bedrooms. It was an actual home. Not like the compound where personal objects were frowned upon.

  I took in the jars of rocks and shells, the animal skulls sitting on the shelves, the many, many books. This was my grandfather…a man of science and learning. A man I obviously took after. A man I would have probably enjoyed talking to in another life.

  “Sit,” he said gruffly as he settled in a chair he had somehow made of branches and leather.

  Impressed, I sat in the similar chair across from his, while Thane paced to the windows and stared out into the evening. A fire burned brightly in the fireplace and I was struck by how free he was here. Free to live as he wished.

  “Why did you come?” he demanded, his grip tight on the arms of his chairs.

  So much for the happy reunion with my grandfather. He obviously didn’t want me here. “Why did you let us rot in those compounds?”

  “What?” He snatched a glass from a small side table he’d made out of a cut log and drank deeply. “Did you think I should risk my hide to travel across the state to rescue you? I didn’t live this long by doing stupid things.”

  Anger made my cheeks flush. My own hands gripped the chair as I resisted the urge to leave again.

  “They say you know how to stop the beautiful ones,” Thane interrupted, which was definitely for the better as I was about to tell Grandfather exactly where he could stick his information.

  He slowly swooshed the drink around and around in his glass, lost in his thoughts. “Why would they believe that?”

  Thane was quiet for a few moments. “You are Raven?”

  Grandfather took another drink. “Why would I help you?”

  “Because Thane is on our side,” I explained. Yes, even I was shocked by how loyal to the dhampir I suddenly felt. “While you have been doing nothing all these years, he’s been fighting for us.”

  Grandfather released a harsh bark of a laugh. “There are ways of helping other than killing and fighting.” He tapped his head. “You can’t beat the beautiful ones by strength.” He glared at Thane. “You should know that. You’ll never be strong enough to fight them. You need to use your brains, girl.”

  The worst part was I knew he was right—not that I would admit as much.

  “How do you know you can trust him?” My grandfather nodded toward Thane, as if he wasn’t standing right there. Of course Thane didn’t look the least bit offended. I doubted he cared what anyone thought about him.

  I shrugged. “He’s had plenty of opportunities to kill me, but he hasn’t. In fact, he’s saved me upon many occasions.”

  The old man frowned at Thane, as if he expected trickery, or maybe didn’t believe me. Finally, his blue gaze shifted to me. “What do you know?”

  Was that actual curiosity I heard in his voice? I had the sudden feeling that he wanted to talk, that he was eager to share his knowledge. Perhaps he was lonelier than he pretended. “Very little.”

  “Jane has only been out of the compound for a little over a month,” Thane explained.

  Fortunately he didn’t add that half that time I was out of my mind insane. Some things Grandfather didn’t need to know.

  “I see.” He nodded slowly and stood, heading into the kitchen. “Then I’ll start at the beginning.” He picked up a bowl and spoon and scooped some stew from a large pan. My stomach grumbled, my mouth watering. “Humans ran this world over two hundred years ago. The beautiful ones, or vampires as they used to be called, kept to themselves. They were a mere myth.” He shook his head. “A myth that humans wrote about, made movies about, something to scare children and titillate women.”

  I frowned. “Movies?”

  He waved aside my question and shuffled toward me. I didn’t miss the way he favored his right leg. “Not important. But one of those vampires decided he was sick of living that way. Why should they, he wondered, when vampires were so much more evolved than humans?”

  I had to admit my grandfather could spin an exciting tale. If it had been mere fiction, I might have been able to curl up and enjoy the story. But no, it was a horrifying reality. The fire crackled, warming my left side. Shadows leapt and danced across the cottage walls, as if reacting the tale and adding to the eeriness of it all.

  Grandfather handed me the bowl. Grateful, I lunged toward the food, my wariness fleeing as quickly as it had come. My hands shook with need as I took the meal, holding it close and breathing deeply the erotic scents. I wasn’t so proud that I’d turn down food, not when food was the link between life and death, health and illness. The first spoonful was like heaven. Chunks of meat, potatoes, carrots and herbs I couldn’t identify. Dear God, I’d never tasted anything so wonderful.

  “And so they began to attack,” my grandfather continued. “Small, sly attacks at first, testing how far they could push the humans. Peopl
e were afraid. They said aliens were invading, they claimed it was the devil, demons, and a variety of other ridiculous notions. As people started mysteriously dying, their throats ripped out, humans panicked. Cultures started fighting amongst themselves and the vampires realized they didn’t have to work at all. The human’s fear would destroy them. Then, as vampires became more confident, they took over cities at a time. Within a decade, humans were rounded up; some taken in as servants, others kept in compounds as food.”

  I still shivered at the thought. “What are they? Are they demons?”

  He stood and hobbled toward a shelf. It was obvious he had a bad leg or hip. I wondered how old he was and how much longer he could possibly last here alone. Who took care of him when he grew ill? I wondered mostly why he had never tried to save me or my siblings. Did he really place his own life so far above others? At the compound we’d been taught to work as a whole, put others first. But here he worried only about himself.

  He pulled a book from a shelf. “You see this?”

  Taking in the many novels, my appetite shifted from the food to the books. He started toward us, the large novel in hand. “We believe that thousands of years ago humans and vampires shared a common ancestor.”

  He placed the book upon the small side table next to me. Notes were written between sentences, while drawings covered any white area. I didn’t quite understand the scribbles and not for the first time I wondered about my grandfather’s sanity.

  “The vampires were merely a different branch, a more evolved branch. Their senses are better, they’re stronger, and they’re faster.”

  “And they feed off blood,” I whispered. The same information Thane had already said. If we already knew as much as this old man, why were we here?