by Eva Brandt
“I’m sorry, Alpha Brooks,” Carlyle said. “This will hurt, but we have no choice.”
They lunged at me and, after that, my world turned to blood and darkness.
* * *
Ulysses
I sensed the moment the demon attacked Xander. Our new bond allowed me to connect with my mates more deeply than I ever had before. It was amazing, but it also meant that the blow he received almost knocked me out too.
One moment, I was perfectly fine, talking to Imogen and Veronica, going over the list of supplies we still needed for our lair. The next, pain erupted through me, my thought processes hijacked by the creature who’d assaulted Xander.
I dropped down to my knees, clutching my forehead and feeling like my brain was about to explode. Imogen was by my side, a thin trail of blood flowing from her nose. She was doing a little better than me, but not by much.
“Ulysses!” she said, and her hand shook when she reached out to me. “W-What’s going on?”
“Something’s up with Xander,” I replied between gritted teeth. “He needs help, Genny.”
I couldn’t do it on my own, couldn’t figure out what had happened to him. But I was not alone. Imogen was with me, and together, we could figure this out.
Veronica knelt next to us, glancing from me to Imogen and looking as white as a sheet. “What do you need?”
“Get the healing chambers ready,” I replied. “See if you can send a message to the witches. And gather some people. Talk to Gypsy. We’re sending a patrol to provide Xander with some reinforcements.”
My instincts were screaming at me to go myself, but in my condition, I would just be slowing them down. Besides, I had another method I could use to reach Byron. Hopefully, it would be faster.
Veronica wasn’t happy with my suggestion. “But I can’t just leave you,” she protested.
“We’ll be fine,” Imogen insisted. She understood my reasoning, although she wasn’t happy about it. “We’re not the ones truly in danger here. We have to bring Xander home.”
It was easier said than done. Byron was with Xander, and he’d have intervened himself if the attack had been physical. Very few things could bypass the defenses of the White Wolf of the Brooks pack. I assumed Byron must have been affected too, just like me and Imogen. But Trent and the others were still there, as were the rest of the Alphas from the meeting. We could use our connection to anchor ourselves, and that might allow everyone who was with Xander—and possibly Gypsy’s patrol—to intervene.
Thankfully, Veronica obeyed. She left the office, moving faster than I’d ever thought she was capable of. That left me and Imogen alone, struggling through our pain on our own. Together, we shoved back our own discomfort and we did our best to reach for Xander. It was slow-going and much more difficult than it should have been. Half the time, I felt weighed down, as if the bond itself was fighting me. There was fire everywhere, threatening to burn down my very sense of self. The demon must have done something to hijack our connection, although I had no idea how that was even possible. But both Imogen and I persisted.
We were too slow, much too slow, and we couldn’t stop the tragedy unfolding in front of our eyes. Through a haze of shadow, we watched as Xander inexplicably turned on our own people. He almost killed Alpha Cantrell, but Byron intervened, drawing Xander’s ire. Normally, Byron and Xander were more or less evenly matched, but these weren’t normal circumstances. Byron couldn’t understand what was happening. He was in pain too—I could feel it—and he was reluctant to attack his mate.
He shifted into his human form and dropped his guard at the wrong moment. The almost feral Xander pounced on him. In the blink of an eye, he buried his claws in Byron’s chest. But that was when Xander felt something was wrong. Maybe he’d sensed Byron’s agony. Maybe he’d smelled Byron’s blood. Or maybe he’d finally heard me and Imogen screaming at him. Either way, he hesitated and didn’t deliver the finishing blow.
Byron saw it too. And at that moment, I knew we had only one solution. “Shift,” I told them both. “Shift into our other form.”
Byron was barely alive, but he took refuge in my words. As Xander staggered back, away from him, he forced himself to changed shapes, turning into his third form. Xander couldn’t hear me as clearly as Byron did, but Byron’s example helped him. He understood what he had to do. He trusted Byron, even when he didn’t trust his own mind. And on some level, he was still aware enough of himself to understand what we wanted.
The shift helped both Byron and Xander, but not as much as I’d hoped. Their minds cleared of the demonic curse, but they were in even more pain than before. I was grateful when Alpha Carlyle and the others intervened. Xander suppressed his instincts to retaliate and allowed them to knock him out. Once that happened, Byron’s consciousness faded too, and Imogen and I were propelled back into our bodies.
“This is awful,” Imogen said, tears trailing down her cheeks. “How is it possible? I haven’t felt Daimon attack me again since you claimed me.”
“I don’t know, Genny,” I replied, “but demonic magic is a strange thing. I don’t completely understand it. Rossi is one of the oldest demons on Earth. He undoubtedly has some tricks up his sleeve that we weren’t prepared for.”
Imogen clenched her fists in fury and frustration. “I should have killed him when I had the chance. I should have done more. If I hadn’t been so afraid of him…”
I stood up on shaky legs and offered Imogen my hand. She took it, and her palm felt much too hot against mine. “It’s not your fault,” I told her. “You can’t blame yourself for the damage Daimon is doing. You did your best. You saved me, remember? You couldn’t have known this would happen.”
She nodded, but she didn’t look convinced. I’d have liked to say more, to reassure her properly, but there was no time for that.
I was still a little nauseated, but less sick than I’d been when I’d felt the echoes of Xander and Byron’s pain. And even if I trusted Veronica to provide medical assistance to anyone in need, I had to do my best to help my mates.
“Come on. Let’s go to the healing chambers. You need to lie down and I have to get ready for when the others bring Xander and Byron in.”
Imogen didn’t protest and we made our way to the healing chamber. I ran into Veronica and Elder Page when I was halfway there. “Ulysses!” she exclaimed. “Thank the moon. We were coming to get you and Imogen. Are you feeling better?”
“A bit. But this isn’t just about us.”
“Byron? Alpha Brooks?” Elder Page asked. He didn’t much like Xander, but even he knew that now would be a horrible time for the pack to lose its leader. And Byron was his son. No matter how much their relationship had suffered, Edward Page had always cared about Byron.
“Xander is hurt, and so is Byron. But we have to have faith that they’ll be okay.”
I didn’t believe my own words, but I also couldn’t afford to have every single member of the pack panicking. And so, despite my misgivings, I allowed my Omega power to flow over both Veronica and Elder Page. Manipulating their emotions like this felt too much like what Daimon was doing, but I didn’t have any choice. I had to prioritize my mates, and because of that, I didn’t have time to take the long route with anyone.
Elder Page took a deep breath, his panic visibly subsided. “Right. Byron is strong. Everything will be fine.”
If I’d been able to feel any kind of amusement, I would have smiled. There was nothing more powerful than the mind, and Elder Page was so easily manipulated. He wanted to believe what I was telling him, so he would never argue with me.
With Veronica, it was a little tougher, since she understood how more power worked. If she realized what I’d done, though, she didn’t comment on it. Instead, she chose to prioritize, just like I had. “What happened? Another vampire attack?”
“It’s the demons this time,” I replied. “Or at least, that’s what I think. It’s too soon to tell. We need to get Xander and Byron here before we can truly s
ee what’s going on.”
Luckily, Trent was almost as efficient as Byron had been. With the help of the other Alphas and Gypsy’s patrol, he brought Xander and Byron back in no time at all. But that was where our good fortune ended. As soon as I saw them, I knew there was very little I could do to help them.
Their bodies were emanating demonic magic. It was so thick I had to take a step back and pull Imogen aside with me.
“Ulysses, what is it?” she asked. “We have to help them.”
“I know. But in this case, we might help them more by staying away.”
Byron had been injured already, during Roman’s attack. He’d only recovered recently. The witch healers had sworn up and down that the strange gangrene hadn’t left any side-effects, but I was terrified that he’d relapse, now that he’d taken an almost lethal blow from Xander.
As for Xander… No magic I knew could make a werewolf turn on his mate. Even if Byron did recover, the mental attack on Xander was a problem I just didn’t know how to solve.
Normally, Omegas were healers, but our main abilities were mental. People like Veronica didn’t possess the power to just will away someone’s injuries. My skills were a little different, but this time, it wasn’t a good thing. I was worried that, just like in the case of the undead attack on Byron, my demonic affinity—as well as Imogen’s—might hurt our mates.
It was suspicious of me to act this way, of course, and I half-expected Veronica to call me out on it. She didn’t. Instead, she gave me the perfect excuse. “He’s right, Imogen. You were attacked too and there may be traces of lingering demonic magic on you.”
Imogen hated not being able to help as much as I did, but she couldn’t do anything about it. She allowed Veronica to usher us both outside. I did my best to monitor Xander and Byron through our bond, but it was difficult.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Gypsy came in to see us. “Mother Dora is here,” she offered. “She’s ready to see Alpha Brooks and Byron.”
Oh, thank fuck. I wasn’t crazy about the idea of resorting to her help after the argument we’d had about Imogen, but she was the only option at our disposal. The Committee might have sent us assistance, but they were too far and I couldn’t rely on them, not right now.
“What are you waiting for then, Gypsy? See her in.”
“She said…” She shot Imogen an awkward look. “She doesn’t want Imogen to be here.”
That bitch. Of course she’d force irrational conditions on us. She knew very well that we had no choice but to comply. Imogen took a deep breath and stared at the wall, struggling to calm down. “I guess I had that coming. I shouldn’t have lost my temper and shouted at her that time. It was reckless.”
Yes, it had been, a little, but Mother Dora had been the one who’d started the argument in the first place. “Genny…”
“It’s fine, Ulysses. I’ll go. You can keep me posted through the bond.”
I nodded. I was still worried about her, but Xander and Byron’s recovery was more important than Imogen’s hurt feelings. Still, as I watched my beautiful mate turn away from me and leave the healing chambers, I felt so very useless, more useless than ever before.
Thankfully, Mother Dora didn’t leave us hanging. Mere minutes after Imogen left, Gypsy led her in. “I know we’ve had our differences, Mother Dora,” I told her, “but please help them. They haven’t done anything to deserve this.”
“I will do what I can,” she replied. “But I can’t promise anything. Some things are beyond my power.”
That didn’t bode well, and I got the feeling she already knew what was wrong. It was right there, in her voice, in the way she looked at me. But I didn’t ask, because we couldn’t afford the delay. I had to hope that she’d be able to fix this.
Mother Dora was many things. She was the ultimate double-agent. She preferred to stay out of conflicts and played both sides. But if she said she would try to heal someone, she would do it. Her pledge to Mother Earth was genuine. I might not trust her as a person, but I trusted her loyalty to the powers she served.
Time passed while I waited for Mother Dora to emerge from inside. I felt the bond stir, shadows of pain, fear, and grief clawing at my insides. Occasionally, Imogen would reach out to me and I tried to reassure her. It didn’t really work. The bond between us was great, but it also meant she could feel my anxiety. The end result was a constant circle of dread, as my panic ended up feeding hers and hers added to mine.
At last, Mother Dora emerged from the healing chamber. Edward and Veronica were still inside the room, and I instantly knew it wasn’t just because my mates needed people to keep an eye on them. “Can we talk in private?” she asked, confirming my suspicions.
I didn’t have to be told twice. “Of course. Come this way.”
I directed her to an empty healing chamber and locked the door behind us. Once we were safely away from indiscreet ears, Mother Dora shot me a stern look. “I have some good news and some bad news for you, Ulysses. I’ll start with the good, because you look like you need it. I can certainly help your Beta lover, at least physically. His injury is serious, but he will recover. Despite his insanity, your Alpha managed to somehow avoid delivering a lethal blow. Quite remarkable, indeed.”
I let out a sigh of relief, even if Mother Dora had only mentioned helping Byron with the physical wound. “And everything else? Xander?” I whispered.
“With the rest of it, it’s a little more complicated.” She grimaced and dropped her hood. “I’m very sorry about this, Ulysses. I should have done something sooner. I did warn you, but that wasn’t enough. I see that now.”
I’d known Mother Dora for many years, ever since I’d first come to live with the Brooks pack. She was among the few people aware of my demonic background. Over time, she’d given me advice on how to use my abilities. She’d been disapproving of my tendency to reject that side of me, but in our own way, we’d worked well together.
And yet, throughout all this time, I’d never seen her drop her hood. I didn’t think she ever did it, outside her coven, at least. The sight of her lined face shocked me so much that I couldn’t come up with an immediate answer.
“You bonded with her, didn’t you?” she asked. “With… your huntress?”
I nodded, since I didn’t see any need to deny it. “We did, yes. Why?”
“Can’t you see it, Ulysses? This is all because of that bond. A mortal person cannot sustain a connection with a demon. It’s physically impossible. The three of you have done well so far, which I suspect might be because you have genuine feelings for one another. But feelings aren’t enough, and at one point, magic becomes more powerful than anything.”
I was baffled. Surely someone like her couldn’t believe Imogen was a demon. “Imogen does have some demonic skills, yes, but she’s not a demon. She’s still a human.”
Mother Dora shook her head. “I know that’s what you think, but it’s not true.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but she barreled right over me. “I know she can hear this. She is probably following this conversation as we speak. And I’m aware she didn’t ask for this, but she deserves to know. Because at this rate, she will keep hurting the people she cares about, even if she doesn’t mean to.”
“Mother Dora…”
“Let her speak, Ulysses,” Imogen murmured at the back of my mind. “I want to hear what she has to say.”
I didn’t. I wanted to tell Mother Dora to shut up, but it was too late. “Did you ever find out the true purpose of Daimon Rossi’s ritual?”
“We know it had something to do with him finding a mate. He’s obsessed with Imogen being his bride.”
“That’s sort of true, but it’s not the whole story. You see, the ritual he used that day is the soulmate summoning ritual. It is very difficult dark magic to cast, but to put it in simple terms, it has three large requirements. One is a person of enough power who can shoulder the burden of the ritual. In our case, we have Daimon Rossi. Second, it requir
es a vessel. In our case, that vessel was Imogen Julius. Finally, it requires a sacrifice, the soul of the vessel.”
“I don’t understand,” I said, feeling numb.
“I think you do. Ulysses, that day during the ritual, you were too late to save the huntress. Imogen Julius died at Daimon Rossi’s hands. Her soul was used as a sacrifice to bring a different soul into our realm. The soul of a demon. And it is that soul that currently inhabits the huntress’s body. You haven’t bonded to a human huntress, but to a demonic soul.”
Chapter Twelve
And so it is done. Tonight, I will kneel in front of the blood gods and bring praise to those who have blessed me with these powers. The magic of shadow and death runs through my veins. I will ascend into eternity with my master, and no one will be able to stand in my way.
The ritual is tonight. The rest of the acolytes and I have gone through our cleansing already. We have made sure our bodies are pleasing for our masters. The blood count will come at midnight, and he will choose his next servants.
I believe I have a good chance to be picked. I am strong and, out of everyone here, I alone deserve to stand at his side. I have prepared for this moment all my life.
There are many who claim vampires cannot have soulmates. I know better. I know Count Vladimir and I belong together. Tonight, I will convince him. Anything is possible, through the magic of the undead. I will prove it.
- The Diaries of Yuli Fedoro, July 1542 –
* * *
Imogen
“You haven’t bonded to a human huntress, but to a demonic soul.”
I sat in the quarters I shared with my mates and felt Mother Dora’s words echo through me like a sentence. I couldn’t believe my ears. This wasn’t possible. She was wrong. I was Imogen. Wasn’t I?
Doubts stirred inside me, bitter and sharp, slicing into my very soul. For a while now, I’d felt alienated of my—of Imogen’s—past. I felt very little for Imogen’s family, only shadows and echoes of affection and betrayal. Alan had been very close to his sister, and yet, the bond just wasn’t there. I’d thought it was just because he’d tried to kill me back at the compound, but could there have been more to it?
