“There,” Isaiah announced suddenly, pointing through a small copse of trees. The four Hunters didn’t hesitate. They darted forward. The threat lay in that direction and it wouldn’t get through them.
Drawing their stakes as they ran, Quinn was astounded at how in sync they were, as though they were four parts of the same whole. The six vampires who had found them were not expecting the attack. No doubt they were mere scouts, searching the area for any sign of the group that had escaped the City. Whatever their intentions, they would not live to report back what they had discovered. It took less than five minutes for the Hunters to eliminate them all.
When they returned to the others, Quinn noticed her father watching her carefully. The wolves resumed their human form and the others let out a collective sigh of relief as Daniel informed them that the danger had been taken care of.
“We should keep going,” Daniel announced finally, and the exhausted group shuffled onwards.
In the end, it took three full days and nights to reach Lenora’s home. The wards barely slept, save for a few hours here and there when they stopped to rest, but the Guardians stayed awake the entire journey. Quinn had never known such exhaustion, both mentally and physically, but she pushed on, knowing that her own wellbeing was secondary to that of the precious travellers they guarded.
Lenora travelled with them only at night, and it warmed Quinn’s heart to see her interacting more and more with Isaiah. To his credit, he seemed to be adjusting to having her in such close proximity, although he held himself in a permanent state of tense self-control. He feared he would hurt her again, but Quinn could clearly see that his fears were unfounded. She would bet her life on the fact that Isaiah would never harm a hair on Lenora’s head. She only hoped that one day he might realise it himself.
“How is she doing it?” Quinn heard Lenora ask, and she emerged from her private thoughts to find she had drifted close to them while walking. Isaiah chuckled and Quinn followed the line of Lenora’s gaze to see Evangeline walking nimbly across the rugged terrain. “I mean, she’s blind, right?” Lenora pressed.
“She is,” Isaiah confirmed.
“Then how is she doing that,” Lenora waved her hands toward the faery to emphasise her point.
“I honestly don’t know,” Isaiah shrugged.
“It’s freaky,” Lenora mumbled. She let the topic drop, but Quinn caught her staring at Evangeline more than once after that.
They did not encounter any other vampires along the way, and, as they got closer to their destination, they felt content in the knowledge that they had not been followed and were unlikely to be found any time soon.
They arrived an hour before sunrise. Drake hadn’t been lying when he said Lenora’s house was isolated; they had not seen any other dwellings for miles. Nestled in the most glorious piece of countryside, the house was enormous and the grounds immaculate. Fields of green stretched as far as the eye could see, beautifully tended and spectacularly colourful for the home of a vampire. A tudor style mansion, the house itself was painted white with a classic black trim. It was a grand home, with high pillars, large bay windows and an air of grace. Liam let out a low whistle as it came into view. They were close enough to see, despite the cover of night.
“Be it ever so humble....” Lenora teased as they reached the front lawn. “There are stables around the back,” Lenora told them, as the door opened to reveal what Quinn could only assume was a butler. He was young, incredibly handsome and very much human.
“Welcome home, Miss Lenora,” he smiled with genuine pleasure.
“Thank you, Dylan,” she replied fondly. “These are my guests and they will be occupying the east wing. If you could see these gentleman to the stables, please?” she gestured at Kellan and Velkan.
“Yes, Ma’am,” Dylan replied smoothly. If he was surprised to see a herd of unicorns, several bedraggled humans and over a dozen faeries gathered on the front lawn, he didn’t show it. The epitome of calm, he descended the steps, beckoning them to follow. A second later he gave a yelp of terror as the Orochian descended onto the perfectly manicured grass, Monique grey with fatigue on its back. Camouflaged by the black night, Dylan had had no warning of the dragon’s arrival.
“Oh, for goodness sake, Dylan... it’s only a dragon!” Lenora snapped irascibly.
“Yes Ma’am,” the young man apologised, before scuttling around the side of the house with Kellan and Velkan leading the herd behind him.
“Well, that’s not something you see everyday,” Braddon drawled and, despite their exhaustion, Quinn and the others burst out laughing.
Chapter 11
Tristan sat in his usual seat at the council table, surrounded by vampires. He cursed the fact that their best laid plans had been thwarted. Things were supposed to have ended when the vampires attacked, with all the other Guardians dead, or gone, leaving no threat to the new regime. Now, despite the fact that he was surrounded by a veritable army of vampires, he could not sleep easily, knowing that Quinn and the others were still out there.
He had known the second he had learned he was to become a father that he could not live as a Guardian should, putting the City first, before his blood. Why should he? Why should the wards come before his own children? But, once a Guardian, always a Guardian... there was no backing out of this life. And so, instead, he had decided to change his own fate.
Tristan had loved his human life. He had been popular and successful and he had owned an upmarket penthouse apartment in a vibrant city. There had been no shortage of women clamouring for his attention. The world was his oyster until the day the white tattoo had branded his wrist and he had had to give it all up. Like the others, he had initially been captivated by the thrall of the Guardianship and honoured to trade that life for this one. He had met Quinn and their romance had blossomed, but secretly, he envied her strength and her talent. Quinn was brave and determined, but she would never put Tristan on a pedestal, like so many human women had before her. Avery, so like her sister, but softer and more insecure, had done just that. She had adored him and Tristan had chosen her over Quinn because she reminded him of his old life; a life that he had begun to miss. He couldn’t help but compare the tiny one bedroom cottage in Summerfeld with the opulence of his penthouse in the real world. Years of discontent had festered, clashing violently with the oath he had taken, until one day he discovered he was able to do the impossible.
He had come across two vampires on a routine assignment, and, for the first time, he had hesitated. What was the point of it all? Spending an eternity delaying the inevitable? He had seen enough to know that the balance would never be restored and he knew the war would never end, so he had made a choice to end it – the only way he knew how. Tristan no longer cared who won; he just wanted it over.
Charlotte had sensed his weakness that day and she had preyed upon it. It hadn’t taken long for them to make a deal; one that would finally allow the vampires to gain the upper hand. Tristan had made a deal with the devil and he would see it through, no matter what. But his plans had gone awry. Quinn had not come around as easily as he had hoped. Then she had killed Caleb who had been working with Charlotte. Lenora had warned the Guardians of the attack, and finally, Drake had chosen to protect Quinn over the Quest. The vampire was obviously in love with her, but Tristan had believed Quinn too loyal to Summerfeld to reciprocate his feelings. He had underestimated both of them.
If anyone was more enraged by Drake’s feelings for Quinn, it was Charlotte. Unlike Tristan’s feeble attempts at seducing Quinn, Charlotte had given her all to ensure that Drake fell for her charms, and she had had no doubt he would serve her loyally for as long as she needed him. It stung her pride that he had chosen another over her, both because she found herself so attracted to him after all these years, and because it made her look bad in front of Aleksei. The vampire King was everything Charlotte had dreamed he would be – strong, ruthless, and contemptible. Charlotte wanted nothing more than to be in his favour, but he
held her at arm’s length, reducing her to a grovelling servant. Worse still, Sloane was determined to continue their affair, his lust fuelled by Charlotte’s victory. He found her newly-elevated status almost as attractive as he found her body and this increased his interest in her. Charlotte detested the weak-willed vampire, but she needed to keep him sweet until she had eked out every last iota of his usefulness.
She contented herself with watching Aleksei adoringly as he issued instructions from his seat at the head of the table.
“What progress have we made?” he demanded, his pale blue eyes glowing with purpose.
“We have eliminated the gryphons and most of the firebirds, my Lord,” Dimitri replied. Charlotte wondered how she hadn’t seen before how the others deferred to Aleksei. Thinking back to their meeting at her home, she realised that they had been discreet, but it had always been there. They had looked to him for answers and he had called the shots without it being obvious.
“Most of the firebirds?” Aleksei looked displeased, and Dimitri bowed his head.
“Some managed to escape, Sire.” The fact that they could fly seemed a perfectly reasonable excuse for this, but Aleksei was unforgiving.
“Hunt them down... every last one. What about the others?”
“We are dealing with the dwarves as we speak, but the Giants are proving more difficult to kill than we thought,” Dimitri continued nervously. Aleksei sighed, as though the conversation was becoming tedious.
“There is a prophecy that the Giants cannot be killed by the Gods alone,” his tone made it clear that by Gods, he meant vampires, “but that they can be killed with the help of a mortal.”
“A mortal?” Dimitri turned automatically toward Tristan.
“He is not mortal,” Aleksei snapped. Technically, this was true... a Guardian could be killed, but they would live forever, otherwise. “I am referring to our human counterparts. They have weapons that can take care of the giants for us. That is, of course, if you can handle it?”
“Of course,” Dimitri nodded, “I will find what we need.” Satisfied, Aleksei granted him a reprieve, turning instead to Sloane.
“You will take up this task,” he instructed.
“Me?”
“Yes, you,” Aleksei sneered. “Or do you feel it is beneath you to serve your King directly? My sources tell me you stayed well out of the fighting when the City was attacked. Are you perhaps too valuable to risk your life in my service, Sloane?”
“No, my Lord,” Sloane simpered pathetically. “I simply thought it prudent...”
“Do not think, Sloane. I will do that for you. For now, your sole purpose is to get me the weapons I require to destroy the winged beasts.”
“Yes, Sire.”
“What of the merfolk?” Aleksei asked Dimitri, having shamed Sloane enough to warrant continuing.
“We have not seen any sign of them, my Lord, but there are only a handful of lakes within the City that could sustain them.”
“They’re in Lake Avalon,” Tristan interjected, “at the base of Dragon’s Peak.”
Aleksei turned triumphantly back to Dimitri with a questioning look.
“Knowing their location brings us no closer to finding them,” Sloane pointed out.
“You don’t need to find them,” the words dripped off Aleksei’s tongue, “just poison the water.”
Charlotte smiled sadistically, leaning toward him in her desire to be as close as possible, but Aleksei barely noticed.
“So that leaves the dragons?” he asked, and Dimitri hesitated before providing an answer.
“They are impossible to reach. The few hunting parties we have sent to the peak have not returned.”
“Before Summerfeld was created I eradicated entire species,” Aleksei mused, “even spread across the globe as they were. And yet you cannot seem to do the same, despite the fact that the Guardians have conveniently confined them to a small area.” His voice oozed with disdain.
“We are doing everything we can, Sire...”
“No, you’re not!” Aleksei roared, and every person at the table cowered in the face of his rage. “The City has fallen and yet the creatures within it still survive!”
Tristan listened to the conversation with only half an ear, gazing at the stone grooves on the altar. He had not told Charlotte the location of the Rose Gate, claiming that, like the Hawkstone, the Guardians did not know where it was. He kept this secret purely for altruistic motives. He might be working with them, but he didn’t trust the vampires and this was the leverage he might need later if they decided not to uphold their end of the deal. Charlotte had promised him two things in return for his help: his safety and his children, and Tristan intended to make sure she didn’t renege.
“The dragons have always been your failing,” Tristan interjected. Unlike the vampires seated around him he had been taught to despise Aleksei, and though his objective had changed, he did not fear him as they did. “A thousand years ago, you slaughtered entire species, yes... but you did not defeat the dragons then, and you will not defeat them now, not in such a short space of time. You have waited a millennium; surely you can wait a few more weeks?”
Charlotte held her breath waiting for Aleksei to react, but, to her astonishment, he regarded Tristan with newfound respect as Tristan continued boldly.
“The dragons will reduce your numbers catastrophically. And, in the unlikely event that you manage to get to them, they will flee. It would take months to track them all down, not to mention drawing attention from mankind. Those weapons you speak of could just as easily be turned on you. The Guardians are still out there... I think your resources would be put to better use hunting down the greater threat.”
After the others had filed out of the ruined Cathedral, Charlotte remained seated.
“That Guardian will not live to see his children again,” Aleksei mused when they were alone. “When all the others are dead and the Rose Gate is destroyed, he will follow them to the grave.”
“As you wish. He should have known better than to correct you.”
“Oh he was right,” Aleksei smiled evilly. “We will leave this place shortly, dragons be damned, and we will find the Guardians who have eluded us.”
“Leave?”
“The City is worthless. The battle is won. My men will finish what we have started here and you will find those who escaped.”
“Aleksei,” she spoke his name reverently. He had granted her permission to use it, but she did so only in private, “if there is anything else you might need... anything at all,” she added suggestively, “I would be more than happy to indulge you.”
Aleksei could hear the desperate longing in her voice and he took pleasure in punishing her by refusing her advances.
“Have I ever told you about my wife?” he asked cruelly. Charlotte’s disappointment was tangible as the conversation took a turn for the worse.
“No.”
“Her name was Selene, and she was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. We were together since the beginning of time. When Julian was murdered, Selene was devastated. Her heart was broken and her grief consumed her.”
“She died of a broken heart,” Charlotte murmured. She was familiar with the story, but, in truth, she thought Selene had been weak.
“No, she didn’t,” his cold eyes bored into hers. “My wife, despite her grief, tried to dissuade me from seeking revenge on Eldon. She did not want us to go to war. She felt that further killing would not bring Julian back and that we should mourn him in private.”
“She... what?” Charlotte had heard many versions of the story of Selene, warped through the passage of time, but, in every one, Selene had died broken-hearted.
“Sadness did not kill Selene... she was far too strong for that. She died because I drove a stake through her heart.” He spoke without regret. “I loved my wife with every fibre of my being for thousands of years. She was my true love, my soul mate, but she challenged me when I would have my vengeance. She defied me.”
Charlotte drew in an astonished, shaky breath. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because,” he sneered, “you have made it clear that you wish to gain my favour. I thought perhaps if you knew the truth you might stop humiliating yourself and focus on serving me in ways that matter... like finding those Guardians,” he added menacingly.
Chapter 12
After their long journey, the Guardians wanted nothing more than to rest, but there were things to be done before they could indulge themselves. Mairin, for one, needed a proper burial. Lenora could not accompany them, bound to the house as she was in the daylight, but she did instruct Dylan to assist them.
The Fae believed in returning their remains to the earth, and so, once everyone had cleaned up, and with Lenora’s permission, Isaiah and Kellan immediately set off to find a suitable spot. Isadora was in no state to do so herself, and now that they were out of immediate danger, Micah had finally given in to his own grief. The Fae couple clung to each other, pale and shaking, as though a blanket of cold had descended upon them that they couldn’t shake off. It concerned Quinn that they were dry-eyed, as though their tears had simply dried up inside. They were in a state of subdued shock, but their eyes were hollow, making them look as lifeless as their only child. She was even more concerned for the wolves, who, although they had no tangible bodies to bury, had lost almost their entire pack in the battle of Summerfeld, including Rafe’s sister, Rayna. Rafe and Dominic were in a state of mourning, but Channon seemed to be holding herself together with almost inhuman strength. There was no doubt in Quinn’s mind that Channon felt responsible for what had happened. She had chosen to fight. She had led her pack into battle instead of hiding out in the Fae homes. So many members of the Fae had survived because they had opted for flight over fight, and Quinn could sense Channon second-guessing herself, wondering if, had she only told them to flee, her people might still be alive. Determined to set her mind at ease, Quinn approached the werewolf Alpha.
Guardians of Summerfeld: Full Series: Books 1-4 Page 62
