Sacrificed

by Anna Applegate

  Copyright © 2017 by Anna Applegate (Anna Hagarman)

  Cover Photos and Design: Jennifer Durfey at Cover Me Pretty and Shutterstock.com

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  For my husband & biggest fan, Matty, and my incredible children.

  And for those who have stuck with me till the end, thank you!

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  Stillness. Calm. Peace. Amidst images of war and fighting, I looked all around me and yet, all I could feel was a quiet calm. There should have been noise. There should have been terrible, dreadful sounds. I could see the death, hear the shouting, and observe the pain and struggle. But, there was nothing to it. I could not even hear the sound of my own breathing. That is, I think I was breathing.

  The images around me were blurry, but I knew I was in a dangerous place. Figures came in and out of my vision, clearing briefly and allowing me to see a face in one moment, then completely vanishing in the next. Slowly, my eyes focused until I could see my friends running towards me, fear reflected in their eyes, as if they were witnessing the worst possible scenario in front of them. It made no sense. They were looking at me with panic-stricken faces, but I was somehow away from the danger surrounding me. Nothing could touch me.

  I admired the elegance with which the three of them moved as they fought. Nick and James warded off the hostile wolves like it was all a horrific yet beautifully choreographed dance number. They moved in sync with each other, but always kept their eyes on me. Not once did a wolf manage to break their collective stride.

  James ended the eerie dance, moving rapidly towards my peaceful bubble. I smiled as I looked at him, wanting him to be as safe as I was.

  I started to take a step closer to him, but was stopped. I could not move. A slow trickle of sensation traveled down my arms until my body froze like ice. I frowned, failing to comprehend the unfamiliar feeling as I looked down to see where the touch was coming from. A hand held me in place. I shivered. There was only one person who could manage to chill my body like that with her touch, freezing it like ice.

  Audrey.

  She smiled as I turned to look at her, and I caught the unmistakable gleam of victory in her eyes. She twirled a knife in front of my face as I tried to move away again, this time with more alarm, only to be gripped tighter.

  Loud noises finally flooded into my ears. All the tortured screams and battle cries I once thought I managed to avoid came rushing in.

  Audrey grabbed my chin, tilting my eyes to meet hers.

  “You were never meant to survive,” she hissed, thrusting her knife into my side as I screamed.

  “Ariya, Ariya! Ariya, wake up!” My body shook, and I opened my eyes, reaching for my side where I expected to find an open wound.

  “Ariya,” my favorite voice in the world was anxiously trying to reach me.

  My breathing grew deeper, yet shakier as I sat up, observing my surroundings.

  The double-paned windows of the master suite were letting the sunlight in, but not as brightly as it should have been. I looked down at the king-sized bed I occupied to see my pillow soaked with sweat, or maybe it was tears. Instinctively, I brought my hands back up to my side and felt it more carefully. There were no marks. And no knife wound.

  It was just a nightmare.

  I’d been having them more often lately. Sometimes, I was back at Audrey’s; other times, I was in a field somewhere, a war zone, like I was last night. It all usually ended the same way, and my subconscious kept telling me that I was not meant to survive. I would have assumed after having so many of the same recurring nightmares, waking up to find it wasn’t real would have become easier and quicker to realize, but instead, it just made me feel worse each time. Every time I awoke, it took a little longer for my senses to realize I was truly safe.

  “Ariya, it was only a bad dream.” A hand stroked my cheek and I closed my eyes, letting the tender touch bring me back to the present.

  I breathed in deeply again, more evenly. “I’m okay.” I still refused to make any eye contact with him. Not yet.

  He brought his hands gently to the sides of my face, steadying it in front of his own. I looked up into the only eyes that could look inside my soul and calm the pain.

  James.

  “Do you want to tell me about it?”

  “No,” I said, clearing my throat and trying to smile. “I’m fine.”

  I was pretty sure I must’ve looked like the Joker, plastering on a smile that was so fake; but smiling was what people were supposed to do when they said they were “fine.” Right?

  “Do you think it’s Audrey again?”

  I shook my head, gathering up my explanation as to how I knew. “It feels different. I think they are actual nightmares, not necessarily her creations.” It wasn’t a very satisfying answer, but I couldn’t put how I felt into words. I could not articulate the reason I was so convinced they were my own mind’s doing and not put there by her.

  Audrey, James’s mother, was presumed to be dead by everyone until she kidnapped me a few months ago. She had also mastered the art of entering my mind and making me believe things that weren’t real. Her intent for kidnapping me and controlling my thoughts was to persuade me to help her with a crazy plan she conceived to dominate the supernatural world. And the control she had over me was no small thing. I felt powerless against her mental intrusions, and I never knew when she was just toying with my brain, or if the memories she’d placed in there were even real.

  Thankfully, a breakthrough occurred when a good witch named Ingrid teamed together with the vampires, my vampires. She helped me when I came back after being rescued by my friends. Anyway, as for my current nightmares, I knew they couldn’t be Audrey’s doing, because Ingrid had protected me from ever giving Audrey the control or ability to access and enter my mind again. Naturally, I trusted her and the protection she so generously granted me.

  “I’ll let you take your time waking up,” James said, softly, and left the room.

  After awhile longer, I sat up in the bed that I didn’t want to get out of and stretched. My legs were tangled in the sheets, and my hair was sporting quite a few tangles of its own. I yawned, exhausted, and maneuvered my feet from beneath the sheets, swinging them over the bed. These past few days had taken their toll on me, and though I wished we could be hopping back on a plane and heading back home, our job here wasn’t done. It wouldn’t be done until we found a way to ensure Audrey’s demise.

  We had been staying in Germany for five days now at the most immaculate hotel I’d ever seen. Going back out to Hartenfels Castle, where Christiane Eberhardine, the first of my bloodline, once lived was on the schedule for today, yet again. Christiane was my ancestor and the first in my bloodline to have a spell cast on her by a warlock named Ivan. He granted her the power to save paranormal creatures from death with her blood.

  I c
ombed through my hair with my fingers while at the same time wondering how today would go. Would we be more successful? Would we find what we needed? Surely our efforts would eventually turn up something to help us exterminate Audrey.

  I shivered at the thought of what could happen if we didn’t. I’d been in her clutches before, for fifty-three days to be exact, and I didn’t feel like repeating that. If Audrey managed to get ahold of me again, she would have an indestructible force at her fingertips. I am sure she would use me to continuously heal her minions and army, hell-bent on fulfilling her mission of taking over the world. And not just the paranormal world, either, but the “human” world as well.

  According to Ingrid, Germany is where the story of my bloodline first began. She believed there was something in Hartenfels Castle that was once buried away by Ivan, and that something was the key to destroying Audrey once and for all; hence, our reason for being here.

  James reentered my bedroom after a short knock. He must have showered because he still had droplets of water clinging to the hair at his neck and dripping onto the collar of his shirt. We stared at each other for a moment, the silence between us so punctuated that I could hear the ticking of his watch. I swallowed uncomfortably and dropped my eyes to my lap, studying the tiny flowers on my pajama shorts.

  No more than twenty feet separated the two of us, but it might as well have been a whole continent. The distance seemed rather unbreachable lately; that is, when he wasn’t comforting me post-nightmare. The tension was there, as always, but the connection we usually shared was lacking and nearly impossible to feel ever since we were reunited that first night in Germany.

  He made himself busy immediately, checking the locks on the windows and staring out, looking for any signs of trouble, just like he always did. He was eternally on guard, and always protecting me.

  I shifted, attempting to get up out of bed.

  “We’re almost ready to go for the day,” James said, professionally and without any emotion.

  “Am I the last one getting up?” I asked, heading towards the washroom.

  “Yes. We’ll leave whenever you’re ready.” James turned his head and smiled at me briefly before leaving me alone in my room.

  I wondered if James was finally as frustrated as I was at our obnoxiously on-again, off-again romance. Maybe his frustration and annoyance were what was blocking our usual connection. I knew I was frustrated. Then again, my big mouth was the reason that caused the rift in the first place. Sometimes I hated being so emotionally crazed. Especially since I couldn’t excuse my tendency to become overly emotional on my “curse.” Now that I was wiser (at the ripe, old age of twenty-two), I was supposed to be beyond the emotional roller-coaster life I formerly led. One of the side effects of this gift was feeling utterly out of control with my emotions, at least up to the twenty-second birthday. However, that date had happily passed, although there were plenty of times when it didn’t seem much better. Or maybe that’s just what love does to a person.

  Staring into the bathroom mirror, I saw a completely different person than I was only a few short months ago looking back at me. I’d gotten looped into this whole revelation of another world during the past year, which makes it hard to believe so much has happened already. My best friend is a vampire. She and her boyfriend, Nick, as well as James are all vampires. Even thinking James’s name at that moment hurt my heart. James is my personal Protector. As with all members of my bloodline, we must be watched over and well-guarded since we possess the gift of reanimation. We can revive any paranormal creatures that get killed. Actually, we were formerly only aware that the blood worked for vampires. It wasn’t until we witnessed my blood revive Devon, a pawn of Audrey’s and a werewolf, the sworn enemies of vampires, that we knew my gift extended beyond what was believed for so long. No one had really tested the theory out on other creatures, and I didn’t care if we ever did. My knowledge of warlocks, vampires, and werewolves was quite enough for me at the moment.

  As my Protector, James put my life above even his own, which was why it hurt so much just thinking of him. We had something that neither of us could ignore. Despite how wrong it was for us to be together, disobeying the Protector-and-Protectee rules and all, we couldn’t help our attraction toward one another. However, after being held by Audrey last year, I was petrified to let my guard down and relax with him again. We once had a relationship, and I thought after I returned from being kidnapped, it would naturally continue. However, the constant threat of Audrey hurting James, if only to get to me, kept weighing on my mind, and I reacted by doing the unthinkable. I ended our relationship.

  James’s biggest fear in our relationship was always his concern about everything I would have to give up in order to be with him. After all, he is a vampire and I am a human. There could be no version of family between us because vampires can’t procreate. James was utterly convinced that I would eventually regret choosing him and never having a family one day. I knew when I said I needed to think about that sacrifice a little longer, I hurt him, confirming his worst fears; and I deliberately used that against him to force him to give me more space.

  The thing is: I didn’t need anymore time to think about us. I didn’t need anymore space from him. James was the only person in the world who could make me feel safe. He was the only calm from the constant crazy that seems to fill my life now. He is the only one who truly understands me, and brings me true comfort and solace to my fears. But that is also why he would be the first one that Audrey would go after in order to get to me. He risked his life enough already for my sake, I didn’t want to add more reasons to an already long list of why the capture of James would ensure my complete cooperation. Plus, James’s father, Marik, unexpectedly appeared after my return from being kidnapped and confirmed all my fears. He told me point blank that my being with James automatically put him in great danger. How could I selfishly stay with him? Even after knowing if anything happened to him it would be my fault!

  I watched myself in the mirror for a few moments as I finished getting dressed for another trip out to the castle. I was definitely different. Sometimes I felt weak and terrified. But every once in awhile, I was stronger. I became filled of bravery, enough to stop Audrey and protect everyone that I cared about. Once in awhile, I believed I could stop my recurring nightmares and make sure that my fate did not include Audrey winning. That was how I felt while watching myself now. These moments usually didn’t last very long, but I soaked them up whenever they did arise.

  Smiling at my reflection, I walked out to meet the others. I was anxious to return to our search for the weapon that could rid the world of Audrey.

  Three days ago, when we first drove up to the palace, a flood of emotions stirred in me that I never expected. It felt as if I were walking back in time, going towards a memory of my own. I looked in awe at the beautiful structure I saw before me and felt as if I belonged here, and was chosen to experience what those at the beginning of this supernatural story felt. I remember entering the castle for the first time and thinking I could almost see Christiane. I knew that Ingrid was right. I was destined to come back here and find a way to end the evil that had grown so widespread around us.

  James’s voice snapped me out of the memories from only a few short days ago. "All right, Ariya, you're with me today. Riley, you go with Caroline and Nick. We are looking for anything that seems off in the rooms, anything at all. Take your time but don't draw any attention to yourselves." He was all business, fully immersed in Protector mode.

  My hand twitched to salute him, but I restrained the urge and kept it down. He didn’t seem to be in any mood to appreciate me teasing him. I doubt he was ever fond of me joining a large group of people since it would automatically put him on high alert for threats. He became even more uptight than normal every day we remained here in the daylight. At night, when we came back to explore the parts of the castle that couldn’t be seen while it was open to guests, he was usually more relaxed, but still very focused
.

  I wondered if people who worked here would start wondering what we were doing every day. James always managed to get our tickets in advance somehow. At this point, I needed to stop wondering how he could always be so painstakingly prepared and just accept the fact that he simply was and always would be.

  The front entrance to this magical place was astounding. It never ceased to take my breath away each day we arrived. The castle itself was a light cream color with red rooftops. It looked like it was plucked straight out of the fairytale books I was so fond of reading while growing up. It was absolutely massive. This castle occupied more land, space, and grounds than I could ever imagine anyone needing. Enormous, stone figures were carved out and stood in the grand hallways, the courtyard, and rooftops. Marble statues and archways stood so regally, inviting one to step back into history as they passed through all of its magnificence.

  My jaw dropped open in the courtyard the first morning and I stood there, gaping at the free-standing stone staircase that spiraled up and out of sight into the sky above. James took my arm lightly.

  "At least you look the part of a tourist." A smirk on his face betrayed the softer side he sometimes showed me. I liked the softer James, not the emotionless Protector. I grinned back at him as we walked forward on the uneven cobblestones.

  James turned me to the hallway on the right, and we continued through the main castle doors, while Nick led the others to the hallway on the left. Looking back over my shoulder, I saw Riley wink at me before taking up a mock march behind Caroline and Nick. I couldn’t help giggling. I found it difficult to keep up with James today as he walked briskly towards the rooms we were supposed to inspect. We intended to finish a sweep of the second floor. But even though we had been searching for a few days, we seemed no closer to finding anything of significance than we were when we stepped out of the car that first morning.

  It’s not like I was helping much either. I was constantly distracted by the torches illuminating the walls, and all of the artwork. Nameless faces kept staring at me as we moved from room to room, and the adornments shone in places that looked like they hadn’t been moved for centuries. It was as if time couldn’t really touch them here. It was just so hauntingly beautiful. I couldn’t help wondering what it must have been like to live here when it was first built. Every once in awhile, I caught James watching me. He simply smiled at my impressed reactions to the stunning beauty of the palace.