Frost Bite

by S A Magnusson

  In my head, the sense of her fluttered to me. She wouldn’t want this for me. While I didn’t know if she even wanted me to be connected to the magical world, I knew she didn’t want me to be harmed, bound to vampires, and tormented. That sensation came through clearly.

  Fight it.

  That came from me. It was the part of me that rebelled. I had suffered when I was young, the kind of hurt I never spoke about, keeping it to myself, wanting nothing more than to mask it, never letting anyone know what I’d been through. And Kate had imbued me with the spirit of rebellion, so I would fight—I wouldn’t be hurt like that again. Never again.

  That sense raged within me, filling me, pushing against the strange power the vampires were using on me. I was determined to overcome it, determined to fight, and all it would take was more pressure.

  I continued to focus. The more I did, the more certain I was that I could overcome this.

  I was vaguely aware Donovan was saying something else to me, but I ignored it while trying to overcome this great pressure upon me, his technique of trying to overpower me with whatever magic it was the vampires possessed—the power of persuasion, maybe? That I could tell, but what else was there to it?

  He wanted to force me to serve the vampires; that was the overriding emotion rolling through me, but I intended to do whatever I could to ignore it, to oppose the power of the vampires, and to find myself.

  “No.” The word came out as a whisper. At least, I thought it had.

  Donovan cocked his head at me. “No?”

  “I know what you’re trying to do. And it seems I don’t have the Mark you want.”

  He watched me, and I wondered if he was growing angry because his magic had failed on me. I was angry I’d allowed him to use it so effectively for as long as he had, but I remained determined it would no longer be that way.

  “From what I understand, you did have it. Is it your intention to withhold the Mark from us?”

  “Why would I do that?”

  “A valid question. Why would you do that? Unless you know what that Mark means.”

  “I think you need to consider me ignorant when it comes to that sort of thing. I have no idea what that Mark means. If you want to tell me, I’m more than happy to listen, but seeing as how all of this makes no sense to me, I can’t help but feel you’re being intentionally obtuse.”

  “Obtuse? You would challenge us like that?”

  “I wouldn’t challenge you like anything. All I’m saying is I am doing everything I can to tell you what happened, and your people are the ones who came in and attacked me. The Mark—whatever it is—came from a man I saved.” I hesitated, meeting his gaze for a moment. “I’m going to go to the police with this.”

  “The police?” The vampire leaned forward, watching me. There was something almost amused in the way he did so. “What is it you believe the police will be able to do for you, Ms…?”

  “It’s Doctor. Dr. Stone. And the police will come after you for abducting me like this. I have friends.”

  “I’m sure you do. And I’m sure you have alerted your friends to your current predicament, but do you think your friends will be able to do anything to assist you?”

  “Why do you keep saying it like that?”

  “Saying it like what?”

  “Like I don’t actually have friends.”

  “Well, do you not have any friends?” A wide smirk crossed his mouth. He was taunting me now. This was a cruelty I’d vowed never to put up with again, yet it seemed so oddly funny at the same time. I didn’t know whether to be annoyed or amused by the way he continued to push me. It was almost entertaining, and if it wasn’t for the fact I was a captive there, I might have given way to snickering. “Oh, I do have friends. Some are quite powerful.”

  “Indeed?” He glanced at the woman. “Did you see any such powerful friends?” There was mockery in his voice again, and his brow was raised.

  “Well, there was a mage. We managed to suppress the attack he attempted.”

  The vampire turned his attention to me, cocking his head and smiling. “See? Not so powerful, are they?”

  “I’m not so sure you want to challenge Barden like that. I don’t know him particularly well, but I have a sense he doesn’t play nicely with bullies.”

  “Barden Leifan?”

  I nodded.

  Donovan turned to the other vampires, watching them. “You attacked Barden Leifan?”

  “We didn’t know who he was. He claimed he was part of the Council, but dark mages don’t sit upon the Council.”

  “In that you’re wrong,” Donovan said, turning his attention to me and steepling his fingers together. “Dark mages didn’t sit upon the Council, but much has changed recently, and not all of it for the good.” He stared for a long moment, as if a debate waged behind his eyes. Finally, he flashed a predatory smile. “It seems I must decide what to do with you. Do you have any thoughts?”

  “Besides releasing me?”

  “I was thinking of something a little different.”

  “I get the sense you know what kind of person Barden is,” I said. “And if that’s the case, then you know he’s not going to sit by and allow you to attack me like this. Barden will come after me.”

  I wasn’t certain it was true. After all, Barden had surrendered me to the vampires, doing nothing to stop them taking me when they’d attacked—though how much of that was because he didn’t have a choice? If he had been outmatched, it was possible—even likely—he would have waited for the right opportunity, whatever it might be.

  “I know exactly what kind of person he is.” His smile never changed, and I shivered. It made me uncomfortable, though I suspect that was his intention. “I wonder, Dr. Stone, if you know what type of person Barden is.”

  “I’ve been around him often enough to know,” I said.

  “Indeed? Then you know how he has schemed to position himself upon the Council?”

  “I’m not sure you could say he schemed it all.” Then again, I wasn’t sure about anything when it came to Barden or the magical world. Maybe he had schemed his way onto the Council, though from the sound of it, everything he’d been through over the years had made it so his presence on the Council was valuable. He probably deserved to be on it, too.

  “If only you weren’t so ignorant.” The vampire turned his head, looking behind me, staring toward the door. Something troubled him, but I didn’t know what.

  He turned his attention back to me. “You will let Barden Leifan know that Donovan Icahrn released you of his own accord. And if you are telling the truth—and you did not kill the elder—you will turn over the Mark.”

  “I’m not sure I will let him know anything.”

  The vampire stood, leaning over his oak table, glaring at me. “You will let him know I released you of my own accord.”

  “Fine.”

  A strange rumbling came, almost like thunder, and Donovan turned his gaze to the door again before changing his focus to me. When he did, I realized what was taking place.

  “Barden is here, isn’t he?”

  “So, it seems as if your friendship with him is genuine.”

  “And it seems to me you fear him rather more than you let on.”

  “We don’t fear him.” He flashed another smile. “Perhaps respect, yes, but vampires do not fear.”

  Donovan made a motion, and the other woman got to her feet, grabbing my arm and dragging me from the chair. At the door, we paused.

  “You are responsible for the elder. Regardless of Barden’s involvement, we will finish this.”

  I shivered, unable to stop it. “He’s not dead. I saved him.” But I hadn’t saved the second vampire. What if he was the one they were referring to? The attack had come after I had found him, not after finding Mr. Rorsch. It was possible the elder vampire wasn’t as old as the title suggested.A hint of fear washed through me. I would have to figure this out later. For now, I was just thankful Barden had come.

 
The rumbling persisted, and Donovan nodded. The vampires dragged me along the hall, back out the way we’d come in, and when we reached the door with the two massive bodyguards standing on either side, they didn’t pause before shoving me into the back of the van. The woman got into the driver’s seat, unmindful of the fact I was no longer confined as I had been earlier. She slammed hard on the gas, lurching us forward.

  “What is this all about?” There was more here than I understood. I’d first thought it was a desire for revenge for the loss of someone important, but that didn’t seem to be what this was about. If it was, then why were they letting me go—assuming that was what they were now doing?

  No. I felt sure something else was taking place, and though I might not fully understand it, I knew I needed to.

  “I told you. You have the Mark of the Elder.”

  “So?”

  “It means you were—”

  She cut off, jerking the wheel off to the side, and we went careening before screeching to a halt. She glanced over her shoulder at me, but never had the opportunity to say more. The passenger door slid open, and Barden was standing there. Energy crackled in the air, leaving the hair on my arms standing on end.

  “Dr. Stone. I think it’s best we leave.”

  “What is this, Barden? What this all about?”

  “There will be time for that soon enough. For now, it’s best—and safest—for you to come with me.”

  6

  I sat in the front seat of a Lexus, my legs pulled up so my heels rested on the front of the seat, my arms wrapped around my knees. We were moving quickly, and I was more thankful than I should have been that I could see out of the window. After what the vampire had done to me, I couldn’t help but feel thankful to see anything.

  “You’re safe, Dr. Stone.”

  “I’m safe now,” I whispered.

  “I was never going to leave you.”

  “You could have fooled me,” I said. I didn’t look over at Barden. I didn’t trust myself to do so. He had allowed me to be taken, seized by the vampires, and whether or not that had been his plan, I didn’t know. All I did know was I’d been taken away from where I wanted to be, and because of that, I had nearly died.

  Maybe I was being a little dramatic. It wasn’t that I had nearly died. It was more that I had almost become a slave to the vampires, left to their whim. That was worse, though I doubted Barden would understand.

  “I understand you feel a certain way, but trust me when I tell you I was not going to leave you behind.”

  “Where were you going to leave me?”

  “Dr. Stone, we needed reinforcements in order to get to you safely. I knew it was the Icahrn family who had come for you, and had no intention of leaving you with them.”

  “It felt to me as if you were.”

  “They needed to feel that way, too.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “No. And it seems as if I might have been wrong in thinking you could stay out of this world. I don’t know whether it will allow you to stay out. Instead, I think it’s time for you to gain a better understanding of what it means to be connected to the magical world as you now are.”

  “But I’m not.”

  “Unfortunately, as vampires came after you, looking for their Mark, it tells me you are.”

  “What were they looking for? What is that Mark?”

  Barden frowned, shaking his head. “I don’t know. Whatever they were looking for must be valuable. Do you know what it might be?”

  I hesitated, debating whether or not to answer, but Barden had come for me. “The older vampire I saved gave me a coin as a way of thanking me. That’s the only thing I can think of.”

  “That doesn’t sound as if it would be what they are after. Could there have been anything else?”

  “I don’t know, Barden. I don’t know about any of this.”

  We continued driving, heading into a section of the city I had been to several times before, but I didn’t understand why he was guiding me to it. He said nothing, and as we drove, I glanced behind him, looking at the cars following us. There were several, though most tried to be somewhat discrete. They weren’t successful.

  “How many?”

  “How many what?”

  “How many people did you bring to rescue me?”

  “I brought enough.”

  We continued to make turn after turn, and I shook my head. “They’re afraid of you.”

  “They should be.”

  “Why?”

  “I am not someone they understand. I have accumulated enough wealth to rival the vampires, and enough power to rival the Council.”

  “I don’t understand that.”

  “Because you don’t know anything about this world. I would change that if you’re interested.”

  Was this what I wanted? For so long, I would have said no. I wanted to know nothing about it, being content with just an understanding there were powers out in the world, ones I needn’t fully grasp.

  In the back of my mind, there came a sense of warmth. It was a strange sensation to have, but stranger still, I knew exactly where it came from—and what it meant. It was Kate, making her presence known even from a distance. She was there, reassuring me she would help however possible, even if she wasn’t right there.

  “I wished I didn’t have to do this,” I whispered.

  Barden glanced over at me. “There were many times, when I was first learning about my magic, where I felt the same way. I didn’t want to use a forbidden power but didn’t have much choice. I wished I could ignore the magic, but it flowed within me. It demanded I respond to it, acknowledge it, and draw upon it.”

  “But I don’t have magic like that, Barden. Even if I do have magic, as you say.” And for some reason, I wanted to deny I did, but it was difficult to ignore the things he claimed. If I did have that power, then why shouldn’t I understand it? Why should I hide from it? All that mattered was magic existed in the world, and I was a part of it. “I’m not sure I use it in the same way as someone like Kate.”

  “I would never expect you to use it like her.” Barden looked over at me before turning his attention back to the steering wheel. “She has a unique sort of magic, Dr. Stone. The magic you possess may not be as powerful, and may not be as unique, but that doesn’t mean the magical user is any less… special.”

  “That’s almost… sweet.”

  “It wasn’t meant to be sweet. It was meant to be truthful. You have potential and I hate to see those with potential denying that about themselves. When I first started using my magic, no one would have claimed there was anything special about me, but the longer I used it, the more I began to understand the nature of my magic. Perhaps the same will be said for you.”

  I shook my head. “I wasn’t always the greatest student.”

  “From what I understand, one does not simply become a doctor through ignorance.”

  “I didn’t say I was ignorant. I’m smart, but I have to work at medicine more than some.”

  We drove for a little while longer before the Lexus slowed. Barden glanced over at me. “Are you comparing yourself to Dr. Michaels?”

  “I try not to, but it’s difficult. We’ve been friends ever since school, but it’s come easily to her, where it’s come more difficult for me.” Despite that, we’d ended up with similar grades in school. I’d just had to work a whole lot harder than her.

  “What if I told you magic is not at all like medical school?”

  “I wouldn’t be surprised. But from what I’ve seen, practicing magic involves understanding spells and things like that, and I know myself, Barden. I know how much work it’s going to require from me to be able to master those things.”

  “Do you fear work?”

  “What? No. I just told you, I’ve worked hard to get to the point I’m at.”

  “So, you don’t fear it.”

  “No.”

  “And if you don’t fear it, then there is no reason for you to
fear magic. Understanding magic takes a healthy amount of work, but also requires a little bit of fear. If you rush into it unafraid, unwilling to recognize that magic can be dangerous, then others will be harmed.”

  “Was that your experience or someone else’s?”

  “Unfortunately, it was someone else.”

  “Who?”

  Barden glanced over as we pulled into a garage stall. “My wife.”

  When the car came to a stop, he jumped out, quickly heading into the warehouse. I’d been there a few times before, but always with Kate. This was the headquarters Barden and his Dark Council used, and I knew there was more about this place than he’d let on to Kate.

  We passed rows of computers, massive banks of them, and I stared for a moment at the people working at them, wondering what tasks they were busy with. A couple of places, I noticed people studying what appeared to be the same kind of runes I had seen. I wanted to pause to see if there was anything to help me understand the markings on the vampire, but Barden was moving quickly, not giving me any opportunity to observe. We headed into a back hallway, and from there he guided me to a lounge I’d been in a few times before. Once inside, he gestured for me to take a seat on one of the plush leather sofas.

  I hesitated, and Barden studied me a moment. “Would you prefer I return you to your home, Dr. Stone?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “The door has been repaired, as have the protections. I will not hold you here if you don’t wish to be here. What I’m offering is an opportunity to understand, nothing more. I don’t have any interest in forcing you to do or be something you dislike.”

  “I know.” I looked up, meeting his gaze. Warmth and concern were etched on his face, and it was somewhat surprising to see this from him. But then, every interaction I’d had with Barden had encompassed a certain sense of warmth. He wasn’t the terrifying man he wanted others to believe. Despite his flirtations, he was more fatherly… or even grandfatherly. I think Kate would have said the same.

  Sinking onto the sofa, I leaned back, closing my eyes. “What sort of magic do vampires have?”