I fell back on the bed. “But they’ve destroyed their lamps. That’s impossible.”
Gatsby jumped on my bed and then onto my stomach. He walked up so that he was looking directly into my eyes. “You’re speaking with a talking cat. All sorts of impossible things become possible every day. A hundred years ago no one believed there would be a phone you could carry in your pocket, allowing you to speak to anyone from anywhere around the world, yet the impossible has happened.”
I leaned on my elbows so we were almost cat nose to vampire nose.
“Seven thousand years ago Sharra had her twin sister Silindra killed. Once she was gone vampires with wings no longer walked the Earth and it was believed they never would again. Yet here you are.” Gatsby blinked. “Nothing is impossible.” He jumped off me, went to the window, and landed on the sill. His yellow eyes studied me. “There is one other thing… but it’s complicated and may not work.”
“Whatever it is, tell me.” I kneeled in front of him.
“Maleficent cursed the brothers. If she removed the curse, then everything would go back to the way it was. The brothers would no longer be genies, which means they would no longer be demura.”
I fell back on my butt. “Isn’t she dead? I mean, it’s been two thousand years.”
Gatsby shook his furry head and licked one of his paws. For a cat, he was adorable. “I’ve been around more than two thousand years.”
“No way.” I snorted, reaching out to scratch under his head.
He batted my hand away with his paw. “You were born of seven magics with the blood of Snow and Dorian. How can you question such things? I’m quite sure Maleficent is alive.”
“Okay, where do I find her?”
“I suggest you ask your genie. He should know.” Gatsby jumped out the window, into the darkness. I squealed, worried he would get hurt, but the cat was gone. Something told me Gatsby was less cat and more something else, but I didn’t know what.
I closed the window and went back to bed.
“Nothing is impossible.” I thought about all the different stories I’d learned about the creatures of Sharra over the years. I thought about the story of Envy, the unicorn who gave her life to save Silindra and my mother. I thought and thought until I fell asleep.
***
That night the shadow man visited my dreams again. This time he took me into the forest of Sharra. It was surprising that he knew of my favorite place. We seemed to walk for a long time. I let him do the talking. He spoke nonstop, but I couldn’t understand what he said. At first it was frustrating, but after a while, I relaxed, focusing on our surroundings.
When we arrived at a clearing, he suddenly had a large quilt. Then he unfolded it and placed it on the ground.
And suddenly I understood his words. “I took her into my arms, sank my teeth into her warm neck, and drank my fill.”
I turned to him, trying to see past the shadow. “You’re a vampire?” The question left my lips before I realized I’d spoken.
“Oh, Jasmine. If only you would allow yourself to see.” His arms were around my waist. I knew he would kiss me, just as before, and I didn’t fight it. Instead I sank into the kiss, allowed myself to enjoy it. Since this was a dream, and it was the only romantic action in my life, I kissed him back.
After a long while, he pulled back. “That was exquisite, Jasmine.
I sighed, unable to speak. The kiss had been amazing.
A sudden movement pulled my gaze from him.
There were several bound humans lying on the quilt. Their faces twisted with fear. Cameron was one of the prisoners. His dark eyes shone bright with betrayal. To him I was a monster. Shame burned my face.
“Drink from him first,” the shadow man commanded.
I screamed.
Chapter 24
Laeddin still hadn’t come back when I woke the next morning. His bedroom door was open, his bed still made. I dressed in jeans and a teal t-shirt, put my hair in twin tails, and put on a pair of teal Converse. They were my mom’s favorite shoes. I’d seen her closet and the sixteen pairs she kept in there. She never wore them anymore, but she still loved them. I’d tried a pair on and immediately understood why. They were super comfortable.
When Laeddin took me shopping at Bloomingdales, I knew I had to have a pair.
For some reason wearing them made me feel closer to her.
When I got down to the kitchen I opened the fridge thinking there probably wouldn’t be any blood, but it was there—a full glass of the red stuff.
I drank it and then picked up my backpack. How was I going to get to school?
Finally I decided there was no helping it. I needed him.
“Laeddin,” I called.
He appeared immediately. “Jasmine,” he said. He sounded tired. He looked haggard.
Even though the scent of his blood immediately entered my nose and made my mouth water, I ignored it and put a hand on his back. He flinched, but didn’t push my hand away.
I decided to tell him what I knew. Between the two of us maybe we could figure out how to bring back his brothers’ lamps. “Laeddin, I know about your—”
“You’re going to be late for school.” He held the door open.
We walked to the car. I tried two more times to tell him what I knew, but he wouldn’t let me finish. “I have a lot on my mind, Jasmine. Can we talk after school?”
He pulled up to the front doors. I got out. “Sure. See ya, Laeddin.”
As I watched him drive away, for the first time I wasn’t thinking about myself, but him. I hoped he would be okay.
Cam stood by the front door. He looked a little better than yesterday. The whole school seemed quieter, more subdued. Everyone was also dressed in black. I kind of stood out. Then I remembered that humans wore black to mourn death. Ugh. Stupid. It was too late to do anything about it though. Luckily my jeans were dark.
I went up to Cam and put an arm around his shoulders. “You hanging in there, Cam?”
“I’m—I can’t go inside. Every inch of that school reminds me of Abby.” He worked hard to fight back tears. His lips twitched and he kept wiping his eyes. Cam wore all black today too. Black pants. Black shirt. Black shoes.
“You can,” I told him. “I’m here.”
Some random girl walked by. She whispered to her friend. “That’s the girl who was with Abby. My father said they sent Gant and Vick to question her.”
They walked through the door into the school, but I could still hear and see them. The girl’s friend looked back. “Do they think she did it?”
The girl shrugged. “They aren’t sure.”
“Well look at her, she isn’t even wearing black today. Totally cold.”
“You’re kind of squeezing too hard, Jack.” Cam tried to push my hand off his shoulder.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Just upset.”
“Don’t let them get to you. The truth is I came to school today for you. I have a feeling there’s going to be another witch hunt and you’re the witch.”
I gasped. But noticed that all of the students were looking our way. Cam was probably right.
“Great. Should I go home?”
He shook his head. “The best thing to do is stand up to them. Don’t let them know they’re getting to you.”
“Okay.” I grimaced.
Peter and Zoe came up the stairs.
“Hey Cam. We heard what happened. We’re so sorry.” Zoe wrapped an arm around me. Peter patted Cam on the shoulder.
“We heard you were the last to see her,” Zoe said to me in a whisper.
I nodded, twisting some of my hair around a finger nervously. Cam and I gave each other a look. We’d decided to get to know more about the two of them.
Cam rolled his shoulders and pulled the door open. “Thanks guys. We’ll see you at lunch?” He tried to give them a smile.
“Sure.” Peter took Zoe’s hand and they walked away together.
“They’re so in sync. It’s like one can’t b
reathe without the other.” I gave Cam a disgusted look.
He wasn’t watching me but staring after Peter and Zoe. “That’s when you know it’s true love. Those two will still be together fifty years from now.” He sniffled.
I stared after them. It was true. The love they felt for each other was like a living thing. Almost visible. Definitely tangible. Intense. It almost reminded me of…
No way. Impossible.
***
As I sat through Creative Writing, one thought kept creeping into my mind: The demura said it would go after those I cared about. It had known about Abby. Would it go after Cam next?
Being friends with anyone was probably a bad idea.
When class ended, I made my way to the locker room. I’d forgotten gym clothes again, but the ones Abby found for me were still in her locker. The inside smelled like her. I sat on the bench and tried not to cry.
Sydney came in. She glared. “Did you kill her?”
“Of course not.” I bit the inside of my cheek. Anger filled my veins with a desire for revenge. “Did you?”
Of course I knew she hadn’t killed Abby. The demura had. But something told me she knew more than she was letting on.
She threw her hands in the air. “Whatever.”
The other girls in the locker room were more focused on us than changing.
I went over to her. She turned away, but I forced her to face me. “You know something. I can see it in your eyes.”
A brief flicker of fear danced across her face. “No, I don’t. You’re a liar. Freak.”
Ugh. Name-calling. It was so juvenile, yet still seemed to work even in high school.
I quickly changed. There were several sets of eyes on my back, my tattooed wings, but I didn’t bother to give a crap. They could look all they wanted. I had too much to worry about.
Today the teacher just had us walk around the gym because she understood we were hurting.
I walked alone, which was fine. I had a lot I needed to think about. Gatsby had said anything was possible. Internally I made a list of questions.
How do I bring back the destroyed lamps?
How do I keep Laeddin from becoming a demura? Is stopping it even possible?
How did I make sure the demura stalking me didn’t go after Cam or Peter or Zoe?
The questions seemed hopeless. When the bell rang I was still no closer to finding any answers.
I took extra long in the locker room, which meant I would be late to my next class. But I didn’t care. Normal high school life wasn’t working out the way I thought it would.
“Jasmine, I need to talk to you.” Laeddin suddenly appeared in front of me.
I squealed and covered myself with my shirt. “What are you doing in here?” My cheeks burned hot.
Laeddin’s eyes perused my undressed body.
I glared.
He turned around and I quickly put my clothes on.
“What do you want?” I asked when I was dressed.
He turned and his eyes softened. “Come on.”
In the blink of an eye we were gone from the locker room and back in our living room.
Chapter 25
Laeddin pulled me into a hug. “We need to talk.”
The scent of his blood lit my throat on fire. Not to mention the way his skin smelled and felt. And the way he looked in his jeans and button up shirt. He was beautiful in every way.
I pushed him back. “I tried to talk to you several times this morning, but you wouldn’t listen.” I crossed my arms.
“I know. But there is something about me, about my family you need to know.” He sighed. “It has to do with the demura.”
I twisted some hair between my fingers. “Go on.”
“You’d better sit down. It’s kind of a long story.” He led me over to the couch.
When we were sitting, he began, “Many years ago—”
“You mean two thousand years ago, don’t you?” I crossed my arms and leaned back against the cushions.
Laeddin’s face lit up with surprise. “How do you know that?”
“Well, old man, if you would’ve let me talk this morning, I would’ve told you that I know everything.”
“Everything?” He smirked.
“Well, smarty pants, I know about your eleven brothers. I know about your father and Maleficent, and the lamps, and the strange creature changing your brothers into the demura. And worst of all, I know you’re next.” My stomach fluttered like nervous pixilettes danced inside. I didn’t know much about Laeddin, but I wanted to. And I definitely didn’t want him to become a demura.
“Okay, you do know everything.” His face turned serious. “Do you happen to know how to stop them?”
Before I had a chance to answer, he continued, “As soon as I realized what was happening to my brothers I started searching for a way to change them back, but so far nothing’s worked.” He ran a hand through his hair.
“What about Maleficent?”
He gave me a strange look. “What about her?”
“Well, she’s the one who cursed you to become a genie, right?”
“Yes.” Laeddin leaned forward.
“What if you convinced her to remove the curse?” I clasped my hands between my knees, trying to remember all Gatsby had said.
He seemed to consider my words. “So your suggestion is find her…”
“It’s been two thousand years. She’s probably forgotten about her reasons for cursing you in the first place. I bet if you asked her to remove it from you and your brothers, she’d do it.” I cleared my throat. “And if your brothers are no longer genies they can’t be demura either.”
Laeddin stood. “That’s not a bad idea, but I don’t know…”
There was Gatsby’s other idea. “Can I wish your brothers’ lamps back? Undestroy them?”
Laeddin shook his head. “That sounds like a great idea, but it wouldn’t work.”
“Why not? All I’d have to do is say I wish—”
Laeddin placed a hand over my mouth. “Stop.”
I pulled his hand away.
“You have to be careful with your wishes. If you wished that, time could reverse, or volcanoes could erupt. The world could split. Everything could change.” His eyes were frightened. “Don’t ever make a wish unless you talk to me about it first. Okay.”
I sulked; irritated by the way he scolded me—like I was a silly child.
He huffed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude.”
“But why would all of those things happen? It’s just a simple wish.”
“No, actually. It isn’t. Destroying a genie’s lamp, it takes the greatest of power. I’m sure my brothers had to move Heaven and Earth to obey the command of that creature. And reversing it could kill more people than we would ever hope to save.”
“Okay. Okay. I get it. I’m sorry”
Laeddin came forward and took my hands. “I’m sorry. I appreciate the thought.” He shook them and then dropped them. His mind was obviously elsewhere, working on things he wasn’t sharing with me.
“So let’s go talk to Maleficent. The sooner she removes your curse the better.”
Laeddin began to pace. “Give me a second.” I tried to fathom what he was thinking, but I had no idea.
I picked up my phone and texted Cam. We were supposed to meet for lunch, but since I was no longer in school I didn’t want him to worry.
Hi Cam. I went home. Sorry. Didn’t mean to make you worry.
He texted back immediately: Don’t ever do that to me again!
Sorry, I texted back.
Will you be here tomorrow?
I thought about that. Who knew how long it would take us to find Maleficent and get her to remove the curse? And then once the curse was removed…
I slapped my forehead. If Laeddin were no longer a genie, how would I get home? And if he were no longer a genie, would I remain wingless and without the seven magics? When I first made my wish, becoming wingless had been what I w
anted, but not forever. Just for a little while. Or, if Laeddin were no longer a genie, would my wish stop existing? Would I automatically return to the way I was? That would mean never seeing Cam again, or Peter and Zoe. I supposed I could live with that last part as long as they were safe.
Jack??? Answer me.
I don’t know, I quickly texted back.
Okay. Keep me posted.
Will do. I felt bad, but I would feel much worse if the demura took him over. So I didn’t say anything more. Instead I went back into the living room. Laeddin was no longer pacing, but seated on the coach. He looked miserable.
“What’s wrong?” I wasn’t nearly as excited as I’d been a few minutes ago.
“I still think your idea is great. It’s just…”
I sat beside him on the coach. “If you’re no longer a genie, will I stay as I am now or will I go back to the way I was before?”
He became more miserable.
Had he not thought about that?
“The only way for you to return to the way you were is to wish it.” He turned to face me. “Have you already tired of normal?”
I snorted. “Not much has been normal since I arrived here.”
“That’s true.” Laeddin smiled. “Perhaps you’ve gathered that normal is a relative term.”
“Yes, I suppose I have.” I leaned nearer to Laeddin, drawn to his scent.
“Well the easiest way to handle this would be to have you wish to return to the way you were and then once you’ve returned home, I can go to Maleficent and ask her to remove the curse.” He began pacing again.
“Actually that won’t work at all.” I grabbed his hand, a strong need to comfort him overwhelming me.
“Why not?” he stopped and gave a wry smile.
“Well because.” I pulled him down on the couch. “What if she tells you no? Then what? The demura will still feed on humans and you’ll most likely become one too.”
“But it isn’t your place to worry about humans. There are the chayot, an angelic—I” He shrugged. “And if you only use two wishes, I’ll continue to be bound to you. The only way the creature can change me is if it becomes my master.”
Vampire Lies (Blood and Snow Season Book 1) Page 12
