by Holly Hook
I took a breath as the dust cleared. "There's no way to go but forward," I said, taking the lead. Down here, I couldn't bring the weather to my aid. I might not even be able to heal.
But then again, I was supposed to be powerful.
Going forward would be a gamble.
But staying here would mean waiting. For what?
I continued. "We only have Mr. Olsen to deal with. The rest of you, see if you can start moving these boulders." Dragons were still strong. The Boers, Steve, Ed, and Ellie were still on the other side and they had all of Ted's men to help them.
No one protested. "I'll set to work," Mr. Boer shouted. "Men, I may need your hands."
I eyed Sven. He couldn't see me in the pitch dark, but our gazes met.
"Whatever happens," he said, taking my arms. He ran his thumbs across my bare skin.
"Don't sacrifice yourself," I said. "Please."
"I'll do what I need to. You have a long life ahead of you. Felicia, you deserve to see the world."
"And you deserve to live," I said. The truth choked at the back of my throat. "You're not a Slayer. I don't think you ever were. You didn't realize it yet."
"Can you two find a room?" Sofia asked. "We have another mile or two to cover. The faster we take that treasure back, the faster Mr. Boer can prevent us from dying down here from thirst."
She was right. Lingering and talking about our emotional problems would not get us far. Hand in hand, Sven and I led the way with Sofia, who turned on her flashlight again and kept it trained on the floor. She also checked out the ceiling and walls every couple of seconds, making sure there were no traps. Every step I took was caution. I tapped the floor with my toe before setting my foot down.
And there were no more plastic covers over pressure plates.
We left the shouts of Ted's men far behind. Ted himself marched with bravery, crossbow ready.
At last, the flashlight beam landed on open darkness ahead. "I see something," Sofia said. "We must be close to the mountain. This tunnel turns into a big opening ahead. This must be where the trucks unload the treasure."
"I recognize that place," Ted said. "We would always get out of the trucks in a big underground chamber. One Slayer would open the vault and we'd carry in the treasure for them. The big chamber had electric lights hanging from the ceiling, but it looks like they're off right now."
"How did they open the vault?" I asked.
"There was some kind of wheel on the front," Ted said.
"Like a bank," Sven said.
An ominous pause stretched out as we continued to walk. If we didn't know the combination—
"Ted, you've watched them turn the wheel, right?" I asked.
"Yes. They turn it two ticks to the left, and then one to the right, and then four more ticks to the left. They pull it open after that. I've seen it plenty of times."
"Then the Slayers must have stolen more than just dragon treasure," Sven said. "There might even be human treasure in there. If Ted's helped unload it that many times, and there aren't that many dragons left in the world, then that's the only explanation."
"I'm not surprised," Sofia said, even though she sounded it.
The tunnel opened into a vast chamber big enough to house a supermarket. Ted was right that large, electric lights hung down, but they were off. Stalactites pointed down at us like giant teeth. Carved stone pillars held up the ceiling. I shuddered when I thought of the labor involved to carve out this space.
And at the other side of the chamber was a stone ramp leading to a vault door big enough to fit an SUV. As Ted predicted, there was one of those wheels on the front. This one had a red Gem mounted in the center like an evil eye. Anger filled me. Stolen dragon treasure. If I got close to it, it would glow.
"This is it," Ted said as Sofia shined her flashlight on the metal door. I watched her sweep it through the chamber and over stone pillars.
"The room looks clear," she said.
"Let me check it to make sure," Ted said. He left us, pacing around the room as his footfalls echoed off the rock walls. "Clear!"
"I see no one," Sven said. "Check for traps, and then we're cracking this thing open. Even taking some of the treasure might lend Mr. Boer more magic. Right?"
"I don't know how it would work," Mrs. Macher said. "Dragons have never had the chance to take back their treasure before."
"I doubt there are traps here," Ted said. "My men have been all over this chamber."
Sven strode up to the vault door, throwing caution to the wind. Nothing activated. We seemed to have passed them all. He placed his hands on the wheel. "Remind me which way to turn?"
"That could be a trap," I said, "if you get it wrong. Get away from the vault door."
Sven fixed me in a sad gaze. His guilt still ate him. He had to be the one to return the dragon treasure. That monster inside him wouldn't rest until that happened. He might be human, but his eyes gave off everything I needed to know.
"Two ticks to the left," Ted said.
Sven obeyed.
"One to the right."
Sven grunted and turned the wheel. It make a clicking noise. The red Gem glowed with my presence as I drew close.
"Four to the left."
Sven nodded at Ted and obeyed. Transfixed, I watched.
A click followed.
He pulled at the door, but nothing happened.
"What gives?" Sven asked.
I grabbed his arm. "It's not opening," I said. "We need to think of something else." I looked up, expecting to see the ceiling opening from a trap, but nothing had changed.
The lights in the chamber came on instead, blinding me for a second.
"Only a full Slayer can open this vault. It's magically protected. And you, Sven, haven't yet killed a dragon. What a coward you are."
Still holding Sven's arms, I whirled.
He followed.
Mr. Olsen stood at the tunnel entrance, brandishing his shield and Beowulf's sword. He wore his iron helmet and chest plate. Intense blue eyes locked with mine for a split second.
Shock overtook me. How had Ted missed him? It was as if someone had blocked Mr. Olsen from his mind—
In one horrible flash, I understood.
This, and the fact that Sven hadn't seen the secret road.
Principal Adler stepped out from behind another pillar to stand beside Mr. Olsen.
"Felicia," she said. "Thank you for helping the two of us with our quest. But now, your role has ended, and so must you."
Chapter Nineteen
I stared at Mr. Olsen and Adler, who weren't trying to kill each other, for what stretched into an eternity. Sofia trembled as she trained her flashlight on the two. Ted raised his crossbow, but neither of them moved.
"Adler?" I asked. "I thought you were working to protect the den."
"And you," Sven said to his father. "I thought you hated dragons?"
"Sven," Mr. Olsen said. "You know nothing."
"Obviously," Sven said, quaking with rage. "It looks like you're both liars. You're working together?"
"This doesn't make sense," I said, facing Adler. "You were telling me to fight the Society and now you're standing here with its leader?"
"With most of the dragons now gone, I didn't need them anymore," Mr. Olsen explained. "They all wanted a big slice of what me and Marianne have worked for the past thousand years to obtain. They would have gotten in the way of our plan."
"You ordered your Slayers to stay in their positions at the blast site so they'd get killed by the dragons?" Sven exploded. "And then you ran away? What is going on here?"
"The past thousand years?" I asked, looking from Mr. Olsen to Adler and back again. "The two of you?"
Adler placed her hand on Mr. Olsen's shoulder. The red glow in her eyes showed itself, revealing the monster within. I wanted to vomit as she curled her fingers lovingly around the Society leader's flesh.
"Wiglaf and I go back a long time," Adler explained.
"What?" Sofia ask
ed. "You're saying that our father is—"
"But Wiglaf lived a thousand years ago, and he was human," Sven said.
"What is going on here?" Dirk asked, hanging back.
"I'd like to know," Mr. Macher added.
I knew I should shift and fight, but my magic still felt confused. Blocked. If I tried it now, the two of them might attack during my vulnerable period. And I had to know the truth. Adler had taken a vow to keep everyone who had hurt me away from me. Even now, she didn't approach. But if she was working with Mr. Olsen, why had she made that vow in the first place? Why save me?
"Wiglaf here might have had his life extended by a powerful dragon's magic," Adler said. "A dragon who wanted to be with him."
Then I remembered.
Mrs. Macher said my mother could greatly extend lives.
And if she loved Wiglaf at one point—
This was him standing here.
The killer of both my parents.
And he was with Adler.
I stepped forward. I wasn't sure who to hate more. Adler must have helped betray my mother. "You," I said, an inferno filling me with so much intensity I might spit fire without shifting first.
"Felicia," Sven said, stepping in front of me.
He would put himself between me and this. I pulled him back.
"Did you help betray my parents?" I asked. "You're just like Tasha. A backstabber. I thought you and my mother were BFF's."
"We were," Adler said. "But she wanted to take the love of my life." Adler pressed closer to Wiglaf. "She did take the love of my life, the only love I ever had. You can't imagine that kind of hurt, Felicia."
"I can," I said, fixing her in a glare. She would spill the entire ugly truth and drown in it. I wanted her shame laid bare. "You like to erase memories and mess with peoples' minds."
Behind me, Sven remained silent. Adler could restore his previous state and he wouldn't know. Sofia, too. She could even use her mind magic on Ted. I had to keep her talking until I figured out how to attack her and Wiglaf. The sight of Beowulf's sword sent that shiver through me.
It had killed dragons before and it would do it again.
It was no wonder I feared it.
"Dragons," Adler explained, "Mate for purpose and not for love. I had a few mates more than a thousand years ago and I did my duty producing offspring. It was loveless. Work, and nothing more. But Wiglaf introduced me to something new. He showed me true love and understanding, but then your mother caught his eye. He went to her. I tried to separate them, but she wouldn't allow that to take place."
Mr. Olsen looked at Adler and I expected him to step away from her. Who liked having their memory manipulated? But he didn't. This must be old news. They'd resolved their problem already. A thousand years was a long time.
"So you had her killed instead?" I asked, balling my fists. The surrounding air heated. The others stayed quiet, allowing this to play out.
"You can't imagine the pain she inflicted on me," Adler said. "Her happiness came from my pain. Your mother was a monster. I got introduced to a new world, and she ripped it away. After I failed to keep her away from Wiglaf, I had to show him her true nature, so I arranged for a slave to steal her egg. We didn't even harm you, but your mother went into a rage. She torched three villages, killing all the inhabitants."
"She wouldn't have done that!" I shouted.
Mr. Olsen nodded. "I saw her with my own eyes, unleashing fire on innocents. And then she killed my best friend, who tried to stop her. I took Beowulf's sword, and I did what I needed. You can't imagine the carnage. The blood. The burned bodies—"
"Stop!" I shouted. The heat within me died. Icy terror flooded me. My mother was a healer. Not a killer.
"Marianne showed me the truth," Mr. Olsen continued. "I made a mistake and allowed myself to fall in love with a monster. After it was done, we made a vow to each other. We would ensure that this never happened again. The two of us would orchestrate a war between humans and dragons, a war that would continue until the dragons were gone and the two of us could take their place and keep the world safe under our watch. That war is almost complete."
"Then why did you save me?" I turned to Adler.
"I had no choice," she said, stepping in front of her man. "Before Wiglaf, I made the vow to your mother that I wouldn't let anyone who meant to harm you come near you. She asked me to do it." Adler sneered at me. "It was before she showed what a monster she was. I could not break it even after Wiglaf did what he had to. The vow forced me to protect you. So we planned to have you help destroy the rest of the Slayers and bring us closer to the end of this war. And you did. I called Wiglaf here when I knew you were close to maturing and told him of the hoard."
My stomach turned. Dizziness swept over me and I wanted to pass out. Now I knew why Adler didn't mind sacrificing Steve. Why she'd stayed behind to face the Slayers when that didn't work. And now I knew why the people of Olivia hadn't noticed anything strange. Why she hadn't attacked the Manager's House herself. She'd shielded that to protect Wiglaf. And she might have helped get the police and firefighters out of the situation, too.
"What...but Adler tried to eat me," Sven said to Mr. Olsen. The tone of his voice broke my heart. "Why did you even keep us?"
I faced him. Though strong, Sven's knees buckled. His sister held his other arm. The two of them were trying to hold each other up.
Mr. Olsen turned his rage on his son. "I needed to monitor you in case you caused trouble. I even had hope for you. But you're just like all the other children I've had over the centuries. They were cowards, just like the ones who refused to fight and allowed Beowulf's death. I have no tolerance for cowards. Then Adler told me you love the daughter of the monster I had to slay. It would have been better if your half-brother Jens had survived instead. He had bravery."
"He's not our cousin?" Sofia asked.
"My siblings died over a thousand years ago. Your mother destroyed them." Wiglaf pointed his sword at me.
"So who's our mother?" Sven asked. "It's not Adler, is it?"
Dirk gagged.
"No," Adler said with disgust. She grasped Wiglaf's arm. "Your father...wanders sometimes. Your mother's some simple retail worker in Pennsylvania that your father met at a party one night. She's no one special. That's all." She tightened her grip on his arm. She breathed jealousy and control.
Wiglaf shrunk back.
Adler was the one in charge here.
It was no wonder he loved to control others. It was the only way he could feel like a man.
"Marianne." Mrs. Macher stepped forward. "Once the den hears about this—"
"The den dies here," she said. "This is where it ends. They'll get through the barricade, but we'll wait for them. By then, you'll all be dead and the world will be safe."
"You're a traitor to your kind!" Mr. Macher added. "What did you expect Felicia's mother to do after you stole her egg? Any of us would have done the same. It's instinct. You knew Felicia was rare. You forced her mother to act."
"And did you kill my father, too?" I asked. Tears filled my vision. I imagined them turning to lava and burning Adler.
"I freed your mother from her duty," Mr. Olsen said. The sword trembled as he held it. "And she thanked me by destroying my best friend and my family."
"Adler got you into this," Sven shouted. "She manipulated you! You're just her puppet!"
"Silence!" Mr. Olsen roared at him.
"She warped you," Sven said. "The two of you let this turn you into monsters. You're greedy and now you want the world. You've killed more people than you have dragons." He stepped forward, wrenching out of my grasp.
"We're protecting it," Wiglaf said. "You weren't there. We can't let another dragon devastate people again. And I will not allow any more cowards to let them."
"My friend got more out of hand than I expected," Adler added. "I didn't know she would kill so many."
She was lying. I could read her. Adler knew how my mother would react. She'd known she
was sacrificing all those people.
"Keep telling yourself that," Sven said, drawing his sword. "How many of your own children have you killed? How many have you let Adler destroy? You won't even stand up to her, you coward. Answer me that, right now!"
"Sven!" I shouted.
Adler advanced on him. She'd destroy him and his father would stand back. Maybe then, Sven's guilt would go away.
Stepping forward, I pulled him back. As I did, Adler backed into the wall, maintaining her vow. She growled, glaring at me with red hatred deep in her eyes. It was a problem to her but it might keep us all alive.
"Let go," Sven said. "I have to resolve this."
But I held him in place.
"Marianne," Mrs. Macher said. "Just because you didn't love your mates doesn't mean that all dragons are that way. My husband and I love one another. Even Felicia's parents loved each other in the early days. The Boers are happily married."
But her words hardened Adler's gaze into a mask of pure jealousy and hate.
This war came from that, lies, and secrets.
I wouldn't be part of that.
"Or maybe your mates didn't love you," I said, "because of how you are. Nobody likes a backstabber." I turned my gaze from Beowulf's sword. We outnumbered the two of them. "Maybe Wiglaf doesn't even love you anymore. You like control just as much as he does. Or maybe you make a great couple." The fire exploded within and I let go of Sven. It gathered in my heart and I knew what was coming. "Sven, stay back."
"Felicia," Sven said, seizing my arm and standing tall like a true warrior. "You have my permission to kill Wiglaf. And I'm going to slay my first and only dragon if it kills me."
I eyed Sven. "You are not going to die doing this."
"Let go. I don't deserve you. I'll do what's right."
I grabbed his arms and pulled him to me. There was only one thing that might stop him from sacrificing himself and it was the truth. "Jens. Sven, it was me. Before I knew what I could do, I had to defend myself. I killed him. We already deserve each other."
Chapter Twenty
Mr. and Mrs. Macher stepped in front of us, offering precious seconds. Wiglaf paced to the side, waiting. Adler remained where he'd been standing a moment before.
