Dark Hunt: Division 4: The Berkano Vampire Collection

by Nicole Zoltack

  “If you think,” she said, forcing the words out despite her tongue feeling two sizes too big. “If you think that Antoine will ever be with you—”

  Cathrin slapped her. “Do not dare say his name.”

  “Antoine. Antoine. Antoine!”

  Catherin waltzed around behind Seraphine and kicked the back of her knee. She crumpled to the ground.

  “Kiss my boot,” Cathrin said.

  Instead, Seraphine forced herself to gag. She compelled her body to violently bring up blood all over the previously shiny boot.

  Cathrin shrieked. When she tried to kick Seraphine in the face, she didn’t realize the vampire hadn’t the strength to remain on all fours. She had fallen over, and the kick missed her by inches.

  “You’ll pay for that,” Cathrin shrilled.

  “With my life?” Seraphine muttered.

  The two of them were in the executioner’s room. Queen Lyon didn’t want the treacherous Seraphine in her dungeon, in her castle. Seraphine had overheard the invitation for another vampire to take her cell.

  “You are invited in, but if you dare to lift a hand against me, if you plot against me, the invitation is revoked. My knowledge of your attack or your plotting notwithstanding.”

  Honestly, it was genius on the part of the queen. Seraphine hated to give that spiteful, hateful woman any credit, but damn, was she cunning and wise.

  A loud commotion started outside. A protector slammed a fist on the door, which had been spelled so only Cathrin could open it for the duration of Seraphine’s incarceration.

  Cathrin opened it a crack. Seraphine willed her foggy mind to focus. Slowly, the words she heard sounded clearer in her head even if she only caught a few here and there.

  “Antoine… gone…”

  “The queen…”

  “Where?”

  “We don’t know.”

  “What should we do?” Cathrin asked.

  Kill her and then hunt Antoine down… if the queen hasn’t killed him already.”

  Seraphine’s heart raced. She’d been so pleased Antoine hadn’t come to rescue her. It meant he hoped or even believed her strong enough to fight her way free, but she was furious that he might have the chance to kill the queen without her aid. She wanted to gnaw on the queen’s neck, poison be damned!

  Cathrin stepped back, yanked the hood from its hook, and shoved it and Seraphine toward the vampire executioner.

  “Go on, Sergio,” Cathrin said. “I’ll be right there.”

  Compared to Cathrin, Sergio treated Seraphine like a princess. He marched out through the crowd. The people, mainly comprised of witches, booed her. Some threw stones, but the moment one hit Sergio, he came to an abrupt halt.

  Seraphine’s heart raced. She needed to break free of these shackles and now!

  Focusing on her fear and worry did not help. They were only three feet from the death platform.

  Two feet.

  Hurry!

  Focusing on hope for the future didn’t help.

  There’s no time!

  One foot.

  Her mind kept thinking about Antoine and her fear of losing him. It didn’t help.

  Sergio led her to the stairs and began to climb.

  A tear streaked down Seraphine’s cheek. Giving in but not giving up, she concentrated on Antoine and her love for him.

  She yanked the chains apart, but the material cut into her wrists.

  “I love you, Antoine,” she whispered.

  “Come on,” Sergio grunted.

  “I love you, Antoine,” she repeated, trying to break the shackles again.

  “Shut your trap.”

  “I love you, Antoine!” she shrieked.

  Finally, the shackles ripped apart, twin chains dangling from each.

  The now-loose shackles slid off her wrists. In seconds, she shoved the vampire executioner up on the frame. Her foot held him in place as she yanked the waiting axe. She sliced the rope.

  The blade came down.

  The head rolled.

  Before any of the witches could react, Seraphine had disappeared.

  31

  The queen’s shock at seeing Antoine in her tower gave him enough time to grab her and flee. Yes, he had jumped out the window with her. His great speed allowed him to race alongside the leaning tower. Who knew that the castle being broken and falling apart could aid him?

  As he ran, he struggled to remove the queen’s necklace, more to distract her than actually trying to ditch the charm.

  Because she was fighting back, both physically and magically, Antoine had to take the abuse. He couldn’t stop and defend himself. Not until he could reach a safer location. One far from witches. One where humans wouldn’t interfere.

  Yes, near where the vampires used to dwell.

  Antoine arrived and threw the monarch down with a flourish. Now that she had stopped attacking him for a few seconds, his wounds had the chance to start healing.

  But the queen was already standing on her feet, as tall and regal as ever.

  Rain, fire, hail streaked down from the heavens all around them, but neither of them were affected by the weather.

  The two rounded each other in a circle. Antoine sought a weakness. He was faster than the queen and physically stronger, but the queen was more powerful with magic. Plus, the one-sided battle and race to get her here had already left him at a serious disadvantage.

  “Antoine, Antoine. What a coward.” The queen shook her head. Disappointment, disgust, and dismay all colored her words. “I regret ever knowing you.”

  “Why? Because I’ll be the one to kill you?”

  “I’m afraid you won’t have that honor,” another voice said.

  Both he and the queen spun to see the newcomer.

  “Seraphine,” the queen hissed. Her surprise matched her hatred. “You’re supposed to be dead.”

  The vampire swung the axe in a circle around her head. “If it’s any consolation, the guillotine did claim someone. Just not me.”

  A streak of fire bolted from the sky. It struck where Seraphine had been standing, but she was already racing toward the queen, axe raised above her head.

  The queen’s lips never stopped moving. With one hand toward Seraphine, she sent out a wild gust that barreled her over. The witch had actually altered the course of lightning from the storm, so the bolt seared through the air toward Antoine.

  He dashed out of the way and lunged at the queen. Seraphine did likewise. No matter which attack they tried, him magically, Seraphine physically, they could not come within three feet of the evil monarch.

  Despite their speed, she was just as fast.

  And then it hit him.

  “You drink vampire blood,” he said, straightening, no longer circling her.

  The queen cackled. “Do you want a prize for discovering that tidbit?”

  Seraphine started toward the queen but was yanked to the side.

  The queen hadn’t attacked her.

  Cathrin had.

  The protector had emerged from the shadows of a vampire house. “You killed Sergio. You stole Antoine. You’ve ruined everything!”

  She took another long stride toward Seraphine.

  From everywhere, vampires appeared. They pulled the shrieking witch away. Her cries turned into a death shrill. Soon, peaceful silence settled over the land.

  Except for the still raging storm, of course.

  “A shame,” the queen snapped. “It’s impossible to find good protectors these days.”

  A ball of fire flew toward the queen. She tried to spell it away.

  Antoine did his best to keep the fire on its current course.

  Seraphine darted forward once more.

  The fire seemed to favor the witch and landed on the ground near him.

  Pierrette Lyon was stronger than them both. She diverted the fire, and the blaze streaked toward Seraphine.

  The vampire darted out of the way in time, but the wind was so fierce that it dismantled a nearb
y house. A large chunk of the roof collided with Seraphine’s head.

  The vampire hesitated.

  The queen blasted her with more wind.

  Antoine yelled. He had to be faster. He had to remove the necklace. He had to kill her!

  But the queen turned toward him at the last moment, gripped him by the throat, and lifted him into the air.

  “Don’t you see?” she taunted. “I’ve already won. I have the strength of a vampire and the power of witches.”

  She stroked her amethyst stones with love.

  “Witches,” she repeated.

  Another spark dawned in Antoine’s mind, and he knew another of her secrets.

  “You killed your mother and seized her power.”

  “That I did. I confess. And now I’ll do the same to you.”

  32

  The rain had slowed to a trickle but still beat against Seraphine’s throbbing head. A constant pitter-patter was enough to drive her mad. She couldn’t concentrate on anything other than the storm.

  One sound echoed, strong at first but swiftly fading.

  A heartbeat.

  Antoine’s.

  It was slowing too much.

  Despite the pain, despite her worry, despite her vulnerability, Seraphine stood. Her legs wobbled, but she did not falter, did not fall. With each step, she grew surer, braver.

  The queen was too preoccupied to hear her slow approach, too focused on killing Antoine. Maybe the din and uproar of the storm helped conceal any sound she made, or the queen was only listening for movement of a swift approach.

  One more step. Another. Another.

  There.

  Seraphine yanked on the chain of the queen’s necklace. It burned her hand, but she persisted until the necklace broke.

  The queen shrieked and spun around. Seraphine was already dragging Antoine away. He shoved something hard and cold into her hands, and Seraphine was back to the races.

  Antoine had spelled the wind to give Seraphine extra speed. She shackled the mad queen, preventing her from using her magic. When Seraphine stepped back to admire her handiwork, something crunched beneath her foot.

  The necklace. She had stepped on it and shattered the stones.

  “No!” the queen shrieked. “No! This cannot be!”

  Antoine approached the evil witch and picked up the axe. He handed it to Seraphine.

  “You can have the honors.”

  Seraphine grinned and accepted the weapon.

  “Hold still,” she instructed the queen and winked at Antoine. “Off with her head!”

  And the queen’s head rolled onto the muddy ground.

  It was done.

  It was finished.

  They had been successful.

  Against all odds, they had won.

  33

  The axe had just dropped from Seraphine’s hands when Antoine hurried back to her side. He kissed her all over. Yes, he was hurt and bleeding and had almost died.

  But the queen had been killed, not them, not him, and not her.

  His trembling hands brushed Seraphine’s hair back. He kissed her on her forehead, the tip of her nose, her eyelids, cheeks, and lips, again and again, her lips.

  When he pulled back for air, Seraphine nodded and smiled.

  She’d given him a small pocket dagger to prick her neck when he was willing to drink from her again.

  He was more than willing now, but only if she drank from him.

  Antoine offered his throat, and quickly realized he couldn’t wait. He pricked her skin gently, and they drank simultaneously.

  Before, he hadn’t realized, hadn’t known. He had never known about vampire blood to recognize the difference. Now that he’d tried Baltasar’s, he could distinguish the subtle variances.

  He recognized the taste vampire-human blood.

  Antoine waited until she had her fill to lean back. She kissed him deeply and then licked her lips.

  “I can’t believe… What is it?” she asked.

  “Have you ever wondered how you could go an entire week without blood? Other vampires can only last at most three days without going feral.”

  “I just figured my self-control was stronger than theirs.” She shrugged. “Why are you asking me this now?”

  “Weren’t you cuffed?” He held up her wrists. They were whole and perfect now, but he had noticed how bruised, swollen, and bloody they had been during the battle.

  “I was.”

  “How could you have gotten free? They’re engineered so…”

  “So vampires can’t break free, but I did.” She shook her head. “What are you getting at?”

  He tweaked her nose. “Maybe I’ll start calling you Half-Fangs. Or just Fang. Not Fangs.”

  “I’m a half-breed?”

  “Part vampire, part human. Yes.”

  “That’s… in-insane,” she sputtered.

  “It doesn’t change a thing about who you are or what you’ve accomplished,” he said firmly, taking her hands in his. “Seraphine, I love you. I’d like to say I loved you from the start, but we both know that isn’t true.”

  She laughed. “Likewise.”

  “Will you marry me?” he blurted.

  Seraphine hesitated and glanced over at the slumped over, headless corpse of the queen.

  “This is such a romantic spot for a proposal.” She chuckled.

  “Why wait? We can spend the rest of our lives together, starting right now.”

  “It’s just…” She took a deep breath. “People might oppose us being together.”

  “Technically, you aren’t a vampire. Only half. And you killed the mad queen. Besides, when did you start caring about what others think?”

  A slow grin formed on Seraphine’s face. “All right. Why not? I guess I’ll marry you.”

  He tickled her until she squealed. She doubled over, clutching her side.

  “Yes, yes. I’ll marry. I would love to marry you, Antoine.”

  34

  The horrific rain storm ended three days later. Homes demolished or partially devastated counted in the thousands. It would take a long time to rebuild, even with the help of vampires and their great speed.

  After four days, they experienced a rare and beautifully sunny day. Typically, during the rain season, one storm rolled into the next, and when the sun beat down, it was too strong for most vampires to stand.

  The humans and witches had pitched in together to create a large awning, and the vampires were gathered under it. Many of the humans and a few witches stayed as well.

  Today was to be Seraphine’s wedding day.

  With the queen dead, anyone could waltz in and out of her former castle. Most didn’t. Before the storm died, the place had been devastated almost to ashes, in far worse shape than any other building in the division. A few looters had picked through the rubble. As if the storm itself had been conspiring against the mad queen, most of her necklaces were now destroyed.

  Lucie, the tall female who had been one of the original humans to join the cause, offered Seraphine a gown. The two of them went to Seraphine’s old house. Who knew where she would be calling home after the ceremony. She and Antoine hadn’t discussed it.

  Home. She had never had one before. She hadn’t even considered this place anything more than her dwelling.

  I always knew this place wasn’t meant for me.

  “I don’t know if you’ll want to wear it or not,” Lucie said.

  “Why not? It’s beautiful.” Seraphine ran her hands over the soft material. The skirt was full even without metal hoops.

  “Because of where I got the material to make it.”

  “From where? The queen?”

  “Bits and pieces of her gowns were found throughout the ruined castle. I remembered back in the old times, some people took trophies of their kills. I don’t know if you like it or not. If you don’t want to wear it, I completely understand.”

  “Lucie.” Seraphine hugged the woman. “It’s beautiful. Thank you. Honestl
y, I don’t really have anything else suitable to wear. A plain black shirt. Loose-fitting black pants. I’ve never had a lot of clothes.”

  Seraphine put on the gown, and Lucie had to alter it slightly, taking it in a few inches.

  “I guessed at your measurements,” Lucie mumbled around pins.

  Nadine arrived and fiddled with Seraphine’s light brown hair. Somehow, she finagled it into an updo. The two humans murmured to each other that Seraphine was glowing. She didn’t care and didn’t even bother to look in the mirror Nadine offered.

  The women walked ahead of her as Seraphine touched the bracelet Noella had fashioned for her. It had been designed so Seraphine could walk in the sun without it killing her.

  Not all vampires could wear one and survive, but since Seraphine wasn’t a full-blooded vampire, it was suitable for her purposes.

  She trailed behind Lucie and Nadine, and the women claimed their seats. Head high, Seraphine walked down an aisle between those gathered and halted beside Antoine, who stood at the northern point of the awning.

  He’d never looked more handsome. His dark brown hair was brushed back, like always. His strong jaw jutted out slightly as if he were proclaiming to the world that she was his. His dark eyes sparkled as she approached.

  “You amaze me,” he whispered.

  “I love you.”

  Antoine motioned for her to turn around, and he draped a jeweled piece around her neck. She glanced down and touched the shimmering diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, opals, and amethysts.

  “Don’t worry. None of them have any witch magic in them. Only gemstones,” he assured her.

  “I have a present for you as well.” Seraphine nodded at Carlos.

  Dutifully, the young man approached and handed Seraphine the queen’s stein.

  Seraphine, in turn, gave it to Antoine. “May you have happy days and joyful nights. May you enjoy many a drink with friends and family.”

  “May you never lose hope,” he said, serious but content. “And may you realize you are the light in any storm.”

  “My love for you will never die.”

  He repeated the vow.