“This is different,” I said, and then as quickly as possible, I told them about Samael and his plan to use the wolves to open the Hell Gate.
As I spoke, their faces grew paler and paler.
“We’re going to try to stop Samael before he can open the Hell Gate,” I said once I’d told them everything. “But it’s not a given that we’ll succeed. And if the demons get out, you need to be as far away from here as possible.”
“But there’s no way out anymore.” Jill shook her head and took Laura and Rachel’s hands in hers. She finally looked as scared as she should have felt this entire time. “The last plane has already left.”
Stephenie
I paced around my quarters as I sipped a fine red vintage mixed with blood, unable to get rid of the sense of despair crawling over my skin.
I couldn’t stop thinking about everything Alexander had told the citizens of the Vale. At the time, I’d stood proudly with Scott to the side, unwilling to give up my home so easily.
Vampires had ruled the Vale for centuries. This land was ours. The wolves had willingly given it to us in the treaty.
Why should we run away the moment they tried to rebel and take it back? If we did that, we would always be seen as cowards. As weaklings.
But Alexander’s words continued to tear through my mind without relent. War was coming. The wolves outnumbered us—not only that, but they were fighting for a cause they believed in with their hearts and souls.
They were going to destroy us.
And here I was, waiting for death because I couldn’t give up my pride.
I’d never been a particularly emotional person. But as I looked around my elegant quarters and out the window as the sun peaked above the snow-capped mountains, it hit me that this beautiful place that I’d called home since being turned into a vampire decades ago was about to be destroyed.
Everything I owned would be torn to shreds.
Not like it would matter, since I would most likely be dead.
But I wasn’t dead yet. And I didn’t want to die.
And so, I placed my glass down, left my quarters, and hurried down the hall toward the wing of the palace where the witches lived. Guards watched me pass, but no one stopped me.
There were only six rooms in the witches’ wing. Camelia had the largest quarters—the only ones with a double door entrance.
I sneered at those doors, furious at the witch for abandoning us when we needed her most.
The other five doors were plain and simple—they were where the other five witches lived. The ones who were currently upholding the boundary around the Vale. The sun was rising, which meant they should be in their rooms getting ready for bed.
I didn’t know which of them lived in which room. I just stepped up to the closest door and knocked.
There was no answer.
I knocked again, figuring she might not have heard me. Still, nothing. So I moved on to the next door. Same thing.
I knocked on all five doors, but got no answer at any of them.
This was ridiculous. Normally, I would ask a guard in the palace to find out where the witches had gone, but I didn’t want anyone to know that I was looking for a witch. They might start asking questions, and questions were the last thing I needed.
So I removed a pin from my hair, stuck it inside the lock, and started to fiddle. I’d initially learned how to pick locks because it was the best way to spy on any of the guys I was dating who might be cheating—but the skill had proven itself handy in other situations too.
The locked clicked into place and I swung the door open.
As suspected, no one was inside. But hangers and clothes were strewn everywhere, as if whoever lived here had haphazardly packed for a trip at the last minute. One peak in the bathroom showed that all the essentials—toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoos, and such—were gone too. And the room still smelled like perfume. Whoever had left had left recently.
The departure was perfectly timed with Alexander encouraging citizens to follow him out of the Vale.
I picked up the closest hanger and threw it across the room with so much force that it dented the wall. But then I took a few deep breaths and looked in the mirror, trying to relax. After all, I was trying to leave the Vale, too. I couldn’t blame the witch for doing the same thing that I was doing myself.
Luckily, there were still four more witches left. But I went from room to room, finding the same thing in each one—a whirlwind mess that signified a quick departure.
They were gone. All of them.
My conniving brother must have convinced them to go with him. He must have sneaked them onto that last flight without warning Scott or me.
There wasn’t a witch left to transport me to the Haven.
More importantly, there were no more witches here to uphold the boundary. The Vale was exposed. There was no way out. I was trapped, surrounded by bloodthirsty wolves who were going to destroy my home and kill us all.
There was nowhere for me to go.
I dropped down to the floor and screamed.
Karina
The sun rose in glorious pinks and yellows above the palace of the Vale.
I marched behind rows upon rows of wolves, with a bag full of necessary materials on my back and my sword strapped to my side. Noah walked on one side of me and Marigold on the other.
The wolves were still in their human forms—they were careful to shift only when necessary, to help them hold onto their humanity. The longer they remained in wolf form, the more their animalistic tendencies took over.
I should have been excited—this was the moment we’d been waiting for. However, each step I took toward the Vale filled me with dread.
I wanted to call out to the wolves to stop. But who was I to do that? I was a stranger among their kind—I owed them everything for accepting me into the pack so easily. And even if I did try to stop this, they wouldn’t listen to me.
“Are you okay?” Noah asked from beside me. His eyes were kind and full of worry—my feelings must have been splattered all over my face.
“I’m fine.” I forced a small smile. “Just worried, that’s all.”
“Rumors say you’re an incredibly lethal fighter,” he said. “You honor my people by siding with the pack. And… your support means a lot to me, too.”
Despite the fact that we were marching into war, my heart gave a small flutter at his statement.
I got ahold of myself a second later. Now wasn’t the time to be acting like a young schoolgirl with a crush.
Now was the time to focus on keeping myself—and Noah—alive.
“Stop!” Marigold called out to the crowd.
On cue, the wolves stopped marching, turned around, and faced her. She was so short that I doubted most of them could see her, but they waited for her command anyway. As they looked toward her—toward us—there was one common thing I noticed in their eyes.
Hope.
“Remember—go for the vampires first!” Marigold called out to the pack. “Ignore the humans. The humans are insignificant, since it’s the vampires the Savior needs wiped from this land. From your land.”
Nods of approval scattered throughout the crowd, and the wolves shifted in place, clearly ready for battle.
“Are you ready to get your land back?” Marigold was screaming now, her hand raised to the air as she commanded her army. “Are you ready for your Savior to rise?”
A chorus of “yes” and “we’re ready” sounded from the crowd, many of them raising their fists to match Marigold’s stance.
“That’s what I thought.” She smiled in approval. “Now, it’s time to shift into your true selves. It’s time to take back what’s rightfully yours.”
The soldiers shifted into their wolf forms. One of them howled, followed by another and another, until their angry howls echoed across the mountain.
Noah shifted as well, letting out a howl of his own.
It wasn’t long until Marigold and I were the only ones le
ft in human form.
“Go!” Marigold called, her eyes gleaming in excitement.
I shivered at the sight of how much glee she was getting from this.
“Have no mercy!” she continued. “And remember to leave no vampires alive!”
The wolves howled again, and then they ran toward the town to attack.
Marigold
I’d been fighting the demon for so long now.
No matter what I did—no matter how hard I tried to gain control—his hold on me was too strong.
Fighting him was exhausting.
I watched as he used my body to lead the wolves toward the palace to murder the vampires, and it was too much. I couldn’t continue on like this, as a puppet in my own body, observing the atrocities I was being forced to commit and being powerless to stop them.
The worst part was knowing that this was only the beginning.
There was so much death and despair to come. I couldn’t bear the thought of watching my own hand take so many lives.
It was time to face what I’d known all along—that fighting off Samael’s hold was impossible.
It was time to give in.
And so, I sank deep into my soul, fading into darkness and allowing him to take over completely.
Annika
The girls found Jacen and I some fresh clothing, and we’d just finished changing when we heard the cacophony of howls.
Fear rushed through my body. The wolves were here. And from their angry howls, they were ready for war.
“You need to take cover,” I told the girls. “Gather everyone else who stayed in the Tavern, and go somewhere safe.”
“Where?” Fear shined in Laura’s eyes, and she and the others watched me expectantly.
Her question gutted me, because I had no answer. Nowhere in the village would be safe from the wolves.
But they were scared enough as it was. I couldn’t tell them that.
Still, I had to say something.
“Close all the windows and lock all the doors.” I tried to sound confident, despite how much I feared for their lives. “Then bring everyone upstairs and stay as still and as quiet as you can.”
It wasn’t much—and I knew it wouldn’t be enough—but I still prayed they’d be okay.
“What are you going to do?” Jill asked.
“There are witches in the palace,” Jacen said. “We need to get to them and have one of them use a tracking spell to find Marigold.”
“Wait.” Jill focused on Jacen, her eyes apprehensive.
“What?” he asked.
“You don’t have a weapon,” she said. “You have two sheaths, but no weapon.”
I glanced at the empty sheaths—they’d used to hold the daggers he’d used to blind the sea creature. But the daggers had sunk along with the creature and the rest of the boat.
“There are plenty of weapons in the palace,” he said. “I’ll find more there.”
“Perhaps,” she said. “But just in case something happens…” She hurried over to a bed and reached under the mattress, pulling out a gleaming dagger. “Here.” She held it out to him. “This belonged to one of the girls who left. You should have it now.”
“Thank you.” Jacen accepted the dagger and placed it one of his sheaths. “I promise to repay this kindness.”
“Repay it by stopping the wolves.” Jill’s voice was strong as she re-joined the other girls. They looked terrified, but as much as I wanted to comfort them, we couldn’t stay here any longer.
“I’ll transport us to the palace,” I said, taking Jacen’s hands in mine.
He nodded for me to go ahead, and I closed my eyes, imagining the palace and thinking about how much I wanted to bring us there.
The ground dropped from under me, and my stomach fell. Just like last time, the floor reappeared beneath us in seconds.
I opened my eyes and found us back inside the attic of the Tavern.
“What?” I looked around in frustration. “I was picturing the palace.”
“Try again,” Jacen said.
I did, but this time, we didn’t even move.
“It’s not working.” I cursed myself for not having had more time to practice using my new abilities.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“I’m sure,” I said. “It’s like I’m anchored to this place in the Vale.”
“So I guess we’ll just have to get to the palace the old fashioned way.” He was standing by the window before I could blink.
“Which way do you mean?” I asked.
He smirked, looking more than ready to take on whatever this upcoming fight would throw at him. “We’ll run.”
He jumped out of the window, and I rushed over to it, following his lead.
Annika
The humans who remained in the village wandered into the streets in panic.
I wanted to stop them, tell them what I’d told the girls in the Tavern, and personally help get them to safety. But I didn’t have time for that. Instead, I yelled instructions as Jacen and I ran down the streets, hoping that as many of them as possible would hear me and listen.
Soon, we crossed from the human village to the vampire town. The streets were empty compared to the human village, and I wondered if more vampires had gone with Alexander than we’d initially thought.
More likely, their enhanced hearing had allowed them to hear my instructions that I’d been screaming in the village. Hopefully, they’d listened.
We ran a few streets up toward the palace, making sure to keep in the alleys. That was when we saw the first bodies. There were only a few of them, but it was a gruesome sight—mangled limbs, heads ripped off at the neck from the wolves’ teeth, and blood pooling on the streets.
Suddenly, I smelled the woodsy scent of wolf.
Both Jacen and I stopped in our tracks.
My hand was at my sword at the same time as the wolves appeared at both ends of the alley. There were only two of them, but they had us cornered.
Jacen and I stood with our backs together and weapons out, ready to fight.
“We’re not your enemies.” I stared down the wolf ahead of me, hoping to help them see reason before this turned ugly. The creature was still—although still on guard—so I continued. “My companion is a vampire, but I’m not. I’m an angel. And I’m here to tell you that the witch named Marigold has tricked you. She told you that your Savior is coming to help you, but she’s lying. There is no Savior. She’s possessed by a demon named Samael who’s using you to help him open a Gate to Hell.”
The wolves growled—I took that to mean that they didn’t like what I had to say.
They ran toward us and were on us in seconds.
I took on one and Jacen took on the other. I wanted to turn around and make sure he was okay—after all, he only had one dagger to protect himself—but I had my own wolf to beat.
My wolf kept trying to jump around my sword to go for my neck, but I moved out of its path each time. The wolf was fast, but I was faster. I was also nimbler.
If we kept this up, I had no doubt that the wolf would soon tire and I’d be able to get in an easier blow.
“I don’t want to kill you!” I said between breaths. “Look at my eyes—they’re gold. I’m an angel. I’m telling you the truth.”
The wolf only growled and ran for me again, although there was less force behind its pounce.
I moved out of the way, but pain slashed across my arm—the wolf’s claw. I saw my golden blood in the corner of my eye. I wanted to reach for the wound, but I knew better than that—I had to stay on guard. Plus, it was already nearly healed.
The wolf circled me, studying me—more specifically, studying my eyes.
A whimper and the ploof of someone falling to the ground sounded from the other side of the alley.
The wolf I was fighting stopped in place, its eyes wide as it looked behind me.
I used the moment to tackle the wolf to the ground, my knife at its throat. A quick glance behind
me showed that Jacen was safe—he’d thrown his dagger straight into the heart of the wolf he’d been fighting—but I turned back to the wolf I was holding down, not wanting to give it a chance to escape.
“I don’t want to kill you,” I repeated, slower and calmer this time. “But I need you to listen to me.”
The wolf shook underneath me. In our current position, I could see she was female, and she was clearly scared. She was making no move to fight back. It was almost like when Jacen had killed the wolf she’d been with, something had broken in her.
She glared at me, which I took to mean she was listening.
“I just want to find out where Marigold is,” I continued. “Like I said, she’s possessed by a demon named Samael, and to open the Hell Gate, Samael needs to be on a mountain soaked with the blood of supernaturals. He’s gotten into your minds—he used Marigold’s magic to plant the visions into your heads about your Savior—and he’s turned you against the vampires so you’ll do his dirty work for him. But the vampires and wolves need to work together to stop him. Samael can’t be allowed to open the Hell Gate. If he does… the demons will come to Earth and destroy it.”
Suddenly, the shape of the wolf blurred. Fur became skin, and she shifted into human form right under my grip.
Holding onto her was impossible.
Jacen whizzed around to the other side of her, his knife up and ready.
But she was vulnerable while shifting, and I pounced on her before the shift was complete. I grabbed onto her arm, using my weight to pin her back down to the ground.
I was looking straight into the terrified eyes of a blonde girl who looked to be around my age. I was also relieved to find that she was fully clothed in what appeared to be animal pelts—apparently wolves were able to keep their clothes on while shifting.
She squirmed, and I tightened my grip on her arm, refusing to let her go.
The Vampire War Page 8
