by K. A. Tucker
I frowned, not comprehending.
The male Fate explained, “If you choose human, then you die. If you choose vampire, you live.”
“What do you mean? Right here, right now? You’re going to turn me?”
“Is that what you want?” he asked.
I wasn’t prepared for this. I hadn’t expected it. But … “Yes! Yes!” Tears of happiness rained down my cheeks. Could it finally be coming true?
As if this answer pleased him, the Fate reached out to cup my chin. “So it is done. We will honor our arrangement with Sofie. Your wish is granted.” He smiled at me, a smile of familiarity and adoration. When he leaned down to plant a kiss on my forehead, he whispered, “I am so proud of you … my child.”
***
A hot, searing sun scorched my eyes, set fire to my blood, and charred my skin to a black crispy ash. It penetrated through my muscles, deeper and deeper, its flaming tentacles snatching my vital organs, ripping them out of my body.
My senses tumbled in disarray. Sounds waffled and blurred yet I heard everything. Sofie’s wails, screaming my name over and over … Caden’s pleading whispers.
“Please survive.”
“I love you.” A thousand times over.
Images hazed over and quadrupled and yet I saw everything. Street lights and snowflakes and crowds of pedestrians. Bodies lying in the middle of the street. Julian’s body slung over Amelie’s shoulder. Veronique, cradled in Mortimer’s arms. Running …
The world was still and spinning at the same time. Churning, twisting, flying by.
A thousand-pound weight crushed my lungs, paralyzing them. I couldn’t breathe. I could see the air floating around me—a solid form—and yet I clawed and heaved and wheezed for it, only to have it out of reach. Time passed by in leaps and bounds and not at all.
And through all of this, deep, consuming agony, as if I’d been stuffed into a blazing fire and purposely kept alive to forever endure the pain.
***
The smell of sour, wet soil flooded my nostrils. I welcomed it eagerly, letting its coolness envelop my entire body.
“I think she’s awake.” My eyes flew open at the sound of Caden’s voice to find him hovering over me. I noticed a flash of surprise across his face before he smiled. I inhaled deeply, soaking up his magnificent scent—the mixture of ocean and forest crushing me with overwhelming desire. I let it absorb into my pores, circulate through my body, hungry for it. For him.
I thought about kissing him and the next thing I knew, my mouth covered his, adoring the sweet taste of his lips. So much sweeter than ever before. I wanted to touch the deep ridges in his chest, and the next thing I knew, my fingernails tore through his shirt, as though made of tissue paper, to reach his sculpted chest below.
“Jeez, Evie,” another male voice muttered behind me. “Thirty seconds back from the dead and you’re already mauling him. Get a room, will ya? Or at least another dark hole to hide in …”
Bishop! With a surprised gasp, I whipped around to find Bishop grinning widely at me, his arm hanging over Fiona. Fiona! I stared unabashed at her, my jaw gaping wide. She really had risen from the dead! With a giggle, Fiona threw me a wink and then squeezed Bishop’s torso as if she’d never detach from him again.
My memory slammed into me. “Viggo killed me and the Fates brought me back. They turned me.” A long pause. “They turned me?”
“Yes,” Caden’s fingertips slid along my cheek, the intensity of his touch sending shudders through me, almost too much to handle now, so powerful my attraction to Caden. Like a feral animal with no discretion, I wanted him. I looked at him, at that gorgeous face, and I could see he felt it too.
“How do you feel?” a French croon interrupted our private moment. I jumped, quickly zeroing in on Sofie, leaning against a wall to my left.
“Fine, I think. I don’t know.” I had no idea. Was I okay? Glancing down at my arm, I found them unblemished, healed. Perfect. “I feel … different but the same?” I looked at her questioningly. “I thought I was supposed to be going crazy for blood right now.”
She smiled sadly. “Your body is still in shock from the transformation. That, and there are no humans down here. But it will come. Soon.” A million questions whirled through my head but I silenced them, focusing on the most important.
“You made this happen, Sofie. You fixed us.” I stared pointedly at Fiona. “You brought Fiona back. You saved me, Sofie. Thank you.”
She offered a tight-lipped smile and nod. “I bartered and won two requests. Fiona was one. Giving you the choice to become vampire was the other.”
A mixture of relief and happiness exploded inside me. My eyes danced around the space, landing on Lilly, standing near an iron gate off to the side. She smiled shyly at me. I had the urge to hug her. In a split second, I found myself with my arms wound around her tiny frame.
“We can be forever sisters now,” she whispered, gazing up at me with awe. Had I still been human, I would’ve cried. But I already sensed that no more tears would stain my cheeks and so I smiled instead, nodding.
“Forever sisters.”
Finally, Sleeping Beauty graces us … Max was stretched out on the floor in one corner. I dove on top of him, giggling hysterically as he grunted in mock pain.
“I’m sorry for keeping you in the dark and being a royal pain, Max,” I apologized, giving his head a fierce kiss. He grumbled in response. I could tell he was happy.
Rolling off him with the grace of a feline, I landed in a squat next to a grinning Julian and Amelie, their hands entwined, and another wave of delight bowled over me. “You look different, Julian.”
His eyebrow raised knowingly. “So do you.” We smashed into each other in a fierce embrace. “It was a package deal. No one bit us. We just kind of … fell asleep.”
So my choice was their fate. “You okay with it? I know how much you love vampires.”
A quick check over his shoulder at Amelie and he whispered, “I’ll get used to it.”
Brilliant green eyes appeared suddenly as Amelie dove in, throwing herself at me. “I’m so glad you’re back! We were worried. You took forever to wake up! Like an entire day! Julian and Veronique were conscious in an hour!”
I grabbed Amelie’s wrist. “Where is she? Where is Veronique?”
“Here,” came the melodious voice. My head whipped around to find two forms strolling in, arm in arm. I gaped openly. Veronique—a mass of bruises and burns and stringy clothes—was now healed and spectacular, her shiny ringlets cascading down her back, her figure full and supple.
Veronique, Julian, and I, transformed. Veronique safe and with Mortimer. I sighed. I don’t believe it! Sofie had fixed it. Caden said she would, and she did. Never again would I doubt her.
“There is nothing you can’t do, is there, Sofie?” Dark glances flittered about the room. My scalp prickled. Something was wrong. I scanned everything again, analyzing further. Broken chunks of wood, narrow halls carved out of dirt surrounded us.
“Where are we? Where is everyone else? Where’s Mage and Kait, and Max’s brothers? The wolves? Wait!” I spun around, in search of my shadow. “Where’s Wraith?” I promised myself then and there that I’d stop being a jerk to him. I wondered how he handled apologies.
“Wraith’s gone, Evangeline,” Sofie informed me softly. “He was here to protect your mortal life. That is no longer an issue.”
“Oh.” A trace of regret gnawed at me, one that surprised me. I never got to say goodbye.
“And the others are out, trying to … contain the situation.”
I frowned, earning a sigh from Sofie. “A lot has happened in two days, Evangeline. Right now, we’re in an old mine outside the city.”
“Why? To keep us from human blood?” I forced a laugh. “This is a little dramatic, don’t you think?”
“It’s temporary, but it was the best form of safety we could find while we waited for you. No one will find us down here.”
“Who’s lo
oking? We won against the witches, right?” No answer.
A gaggle of knowing looks connected and passed over my head. Like a domino of disaster, it finally hit me. We had bigger problems than witches and Sentinel.
“Veronique chose Mortimer,” I said.
“Veronique chose Mortimer,” Sofie echoed, her hands folding over each other in front of her face, as if in prayer. I turned to see matching masks of guilt painted on the loving couple’s faces.
Swallowing the terror bubbling up from the pit of my stomach, I whispered, “What has Viggo done?”
Sofie’s stare bore into my soul, gripping it with icy fingers. “All paths will lead to one fate.” She said it as though quoting someone. Maybe she was. “Viggo has started the war.”
###
Stay Tuned For The
Fourth and Final Book In
The Causal Enchantment Series,
Coming in 2013
Acknowledgements
I’m still not sure how I ended up here, writing an acknowledgement page for my third book, but I am forever thankful to those who have helped me along the way. First and foremost, to my readers, you are the reason I continue this madness. Without your words of encouragement, your tweets and Facebook posts, and your excitement, I would have run out of steam long ago. To the book bloggers out there, thank you for your endless support. You are an author’s army of angels and I could not do this without you.
To my beta readers behind this latest tale, Mindy, Jaime, and Misty, there’s a special kind of heaven for readers who see past the million typos, poor grammar, and downright awful sentences of a draft and provide sound, critical feedback to strengthen a story. You three are made of solid gold in my eyes.
To Heather Self, Texan and author-extraordinaire, you may not know what Canadian Smarties are but, man, can you name a character! Lilly is the perfect addition to this series and I couldn’t have made her whole without your help.
To my editor, Jenn Sommersby, who saved me from a mild coronary and helped make Allegiance shine. To my proofreader, Ami Johnson, who gave me peace of mind.
To my family and friends who support me and accept my reclusive behavior. To Gina, for joining our family and saving my sanity, day after day after day…To my two girls, I want you to grow up in a house where you believe anything is possible if you work hard enough. Last, but certainly not least, to Paul, I promise you, there’s no such thing as too much KD.
