Crumbling Control (Helena Hawthorn Series Book 3)

by May Freighter

  Clutching her heart, Lilia groaned. “The vessel is unhappy.”

  “Lilia, I beg of you to stop!” Horus pleaded.

  “You are only saying that because the gods will not be pleased you lost a charge,” she said.

  “Finish this,” Reaver urged. “The curse will take time to lift, and we don’t know how much longer the vampire will last.”

  “You’re right.” She mouthed an apology to Nadine and placed her palm above the girl’s chest.

  The saint’s high-pitched wail shook the room as golden energy lit her body and gathered under the fate’s palm. The angel kept begging the fate to stop, but it was too late. A ball of light, which Lucious assumed was a soul, gathered in the middle of Nadine’s chest and was ripped from her body, hovering inches above her motionless shell.

  “Forgive me, child,” Lilia whispered.

  Lucious focused on the link again. “Helena, come back to me!”

  Lilia’s fingers tapped the fragile surface of the soul, and it shattered into tiny glimmering particles. They cascaded around Nadine and faded from sight.

  Horus had tears streaming down his face. Next to him, Michael bowed his head and said, “We’re being summoned.”

  “I know!” the angel barked, and both of them disappeared.

  Lilia turned to Reaver and pressed her palm against Nora’s chest. She did the same procedure only, this time, the ball of light was guided to a new vessel on the table. Once it sank in, Nadine gasped for air. No, the saint was gone. Reaver had claimed a new body.

  “The deed is done.” Lilia’s knees buckled. “I can’t restrain her any longer…” She pointed to Reaver’s new form. “Take care of the rest.”

  Sitting under the willow tree, thin branches formed a protective shield above Helena as the wind gently made them dance. Peace washed over her while she rested on Lucious’ lap and enjoyed the view of the poppy field. It almost looked like a sea of blood, but she did not care. He was there with her, always.

  His fingers combed through her hair, brushing away a stray leaf that landed there with the breeze. “You seem happy.”

  “I can’t explain it. It’s so perfect here.” She cupped his cheek. “You’re here with me, after all.”

  He chuckled. “I would never leave you.”

  She was content. Letting her eyelids close, she enjoyed the feel of his muscular thigh under her head. The faint smell of leather from his jacket mixed in with musk brought a smile to her face. Nothing could go wrong when they had one another.

  “Helena…”

  She looked up at him. “What?”

  Lucious shook his head. “I didn’t say anything.”

  She accepted his words and relaxed. But then, she heard his voice distinctly in her head. “Helena, please…”

  Sitting up rod-straight, Helena touched her racing heart. Why was Lucious speaking to her through the link when he was right there with her?

  “Is something the matter?” Lucious asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

  “I don’t know…”

  “Come back…to me.”

  Another frown formed on her face. She contemplated the message behind those words. He was right there with her, wasn’t he? She cast a glance over her shoulder to find him studying her with concern. This was her Lucious, wasn’t it?

  A dull headache made her massage her temples. She scooted away from him and his touch. Until she was certain of what was happening, she couldn’t trust this peace. That one word made the whole scenario seem like a mirage. They never had a peaceful moment. Being like this felt impossible.

  “Helena, what’s wrong?” he asked, rising.

  She crawled away, glaring at him. “Who are you?”

  His perplexed expression caused her to question her immediate judgement. “What are you talking about?”

  “Stop it! You’re not him!”

  Lucious combed his hand through his ebony hair that, over time, changed to brown. A minute passed, and his body looked like a mirror image of her.

  “You could have stayed so happy here,” the doppelganger said.

  “What did you do? Why can’t I remember the last thing that happened? Where is he?”

  The doppelganger gazed at her with pity. “So many questions, child. You shouldn’t fight this. Relax and let peace take you.”

  Helena paced around the tree, seeking a way out of this prison.

  “Helena, stop!” she said, pleading this time. “You will die if you keep on this path. I can save you, help you avoid it.”

  “How would you know anything about the future?”

  “I see you have not come to your senses. As you wish. Go. We will meet again soon enough.”

  Reaver cleared his throat, drawing Lucious’ attention to him.

  “I believe it is time to lift the curse.” Flicking the fringe out of his eyes, Reaver added, “What is the name of this witch?”

  “I didn’t stop to ask before I snapped her neck.”

  The warlock tapped his chin. “Nico, get the men to clear the table out of the room and take care of our uninvited guest. Someone broke through the perimeter.”

  “There is no need to worry. It’s a vampire who came along with the fate. He will not be able to get in and the sun should easily take care of him.”

  Nora clapped her hands with giddiness. “Nico, you did well. Papa is pleased!”

  “You know I hate surprises,” Reaver interjected. “Take Nora and make sure nothing else disturbs the area.”

  The spell around Lucious retreated. Finally able to move his arms, he set the bone in his leg back in place. His clenched jaw ached and the veins on his neck and face popped to the surface as he tried to keep the sharp pain contained in his throat.

  Reaver cringed and offered Lucious a handkerchief. “Want to bite on something?”

  “I will end your existence first!”

  “That would be unwise, especially since I am the only person willing to remove that pesky curse for you. But, without the name, it’s tricky business…”

  Helena stirred. Relief washed over him when a pair of hazel eyes met his.

  “You’re okay?” Lucious inquired.

  She rubbed her temples, managing to sit up the rest of the way. “What happened?”

  “Nothing important, I assure you,” Reaver responded.

  Helena’s mouth hung open. “Nadine?”

  “No. This is my new body, young lady. I am Reaver.” He smirked. “And I am at your service, as always.”

  Lucious stomped on the urge to cuss the warlock into the oblivion. Her not remembering the events soothed the panic in him. How was he going to tell her the truth? She even protected people that were against them. Telling her she had a murderous fate sleeping in her was on a different level of insanity.

  She crawled across the floor to Lucious and flung her arms around his neck. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

  He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her close.

  Reaver cleared his throat. “I’m all for reunions, but we don’t have time to play. Helena, do you know the name of the witch who cursed him?”

  Separating from Lucious, she said, “Gwen Campbell.” Her words then entered Lucious’ mind. “What happened to Nadine?”

  The question almost took him off-guard. Lucious managed a smile and kissed the top of her head. “Reaver used a spell to control her.”

  She smiled back and helped him to a nearby seat.

  Three men entered the room. Each one lifted a piece of furniture, clearing the centre space in no time.

  Reaver took a piece of chalk from one of his servants and drew a perfect circle on the hardwood flooring. He added runes and a large pentagram in the middle then winked at Lucious. “Your blood is the key to this.”

  Lucious bit into his wrist. He outstretched his hand, allowing Reaver to collect the liquid with a porcelain cup.

  Starting a Wiccan chant, Reaver pointed to the pixie sitting on the windowsill who sprung up a barrier around him with
little effort. He paced around the white circle, and tension gripped their shoulders.

  Reaver let the last words of the chant leave his tongue. He dipped his fingers in the blood. A drop at a time, he let the red liquid slide off his index finger onto the outline of the markings. He put the cup aside and muttered, “Gwen Campbell, I summon you. Hear my call and answer.”

  The air in the room grew thick with energy. The chandeliers above Reaver’s head swung on their fixtures, making the crystals clink against one another.

  Lucious stood, putting most of his weight on the uninjured leg. He pushed her behind him, in case something went wrong. The old wood in the walls creaked under the pressure, and a ghostly-pale woman appeared in the confines of the chalk outline.

  “Warlock,” Gwen screeched, “how dare you trap me!”

  A vase flew off the stand at the far end of the room and darted in Reaver’s direction. It smashed the instant it hit the barrier the pixie had created.

  “Restless soul, remove the curse you’ve cast, and I’ll let you go in peace,” Reaver said.

  Gwen cackled. “Do you take me for an idiot? I won’t remove it, and you can’t do anything to me. I’m already dead!”

  An unsettling grin spread on Reaver’s face, and Helena shuddered. Lucious wrapped his arms around her, becoming her shield. As he did so, the truth of Lilia’s words stung. He was incapable of letting her go. Regardless of what was right, he remained bound to her heart and soul.

  “Lucious, you’re shaking…”

  “I’m fine. As long as I can, I will protect you and you alone.”

  She buried her face in his shirt, and he studied the proceedings.

  Reaver slipped the silver bracelets from his arms, placing them around the chalk circle. “Last chance to remove the curse, Gwen.”

  “Curse you!” the witch shouted.

  Reaver overturned the cup with Lucious’ blood, covering one of the metal bands. They emitted a sonorous echo that had Gwen clawing at her ears.

  “What is this?” she yelled, “It hurts! It hurts!”

  “Forgive his sins and remove the curse,” Reaver repeated.

  Gwen’s eyes gleamed with her fury. “Curse you to the depths of hell, warlock!”

  The ringing increased, making Lucious wince. His sensitive eardrums ached, so he placed his hands over Helena’s ears. When she lifted her eyes, filled with worry for him, he shook his head to her silent question.

  “I’ll be fine,” he mouthed.

  “I’ll do it! I will remove it!” Gwen screeched after a long minute.

  Reaver kicked one of the bracelets aside and the ringing stopped. “Be my guest.”

  With a venomous expression, she begrudgingly mumbled foul words under her breath. Her eyes settled on Lucious. “The price you’ll pay will be in the afterlife, vampire…” Taking a deep breath, she spat out, “I release you.”

  At first, Lucious didn’t feel any different. Yet, after a few seconds, the dark vines around his hands and wrists retracted. Even the pains in his chest and joints slowly dulled. He drew away from Helena and rolled up the sleeve of her shirt. The curse was truly gone. They were free.

  “Thank you, Gwen.” Reaver erased the edge of the outline with his foot. The circle broke, and the witch vanished with it. He grinned, adding, “My friends, it seems everyone got what they wanted in the end.”

  “I will kill you the next time I see you,” Lucious said, fighting to remain standing.

  Helena pulled his arm over her shoulders, letting him put some of his weight on her. “What happens to Nadine?”

  Reaver tilted his head to one side. “He didn’t tell you? A naughty boyfriend you have there. She’s no longer here, Helena. You killed her with your own two hands.”

  “No…” She stumbled away from Lucious. He had to grasp the back of a chair to keep from falling without her support. “I didn’t—”

  “You did,” Reaver corrected her. “And you enjoyed it!”

  “Stop it!” Lucious shouted, and Reaver’s smile waned. “She didn’t do this. Stop lying to her!”

  Blinking away the tears, she stared at him. “I didn’t, did I?”

  Lucious staggered to her and engulfed her in a hug. She struggled to breathe, but he didn’t care. He wouldn’t let her out of his sight, not until he figured out a way to get rid of Lilia and Michael.

  “Call me when you need help again.” Reaver winked. Having a slight skip to his stride, he left the room with the pixie hovering next to his head.

  “Helena, do you trust me?” Lucious asked.

  She sniffled and bobbed her head. “I do.”

  “Good. Just ignore his words and let’s go back to Byron and Alexander.”

  “Alexander!” she yelled, squirming out of his embrace. “He’s somewhere around here. God, I hope he’s okay.”

  The intruder Reaver’s men talked about earlier had to be his best friend. He took her hand and stumbled over to the door. As they turned the corner, a pair of legs came into view. His heart jumped with worry. Lucious picked up speed and found an unconscious Alexander resting against the wall.

  “Did they put a spell on him?” Helena asked.

  “If he spent such a long time outside, he is asleep.”

  Lucious picked Alexander up. Noticing his strained groan, Helena draped Alexander’s free arm over her shoulders, taking on half of his weight.

  “Let’s go home,” she said.

  “I couldn’t agree more.”

  17

  Dead Weight

  Stepping into the afternoon sun, Helena struggled with Alexander’s dead weight on her shoulders. He needed to lay off gym or something. She couldn’t feel any fat on the guy where she held on. For every foot they progressed, she heard a wince from Lucious. His leg brought him near to tears as he hobbled along. They managed to get to the archway. A dozen metres more, and they would reach the safety of a car.

  Around them, the fog dissolved. Did it have something to do with Reaver leaving the vicinity? Lucious let out another groan and fell forwards onto the grass, pulling Alexander and her with him.

  She struggled to climb out from under Alexander’s body. Breaking a sweat, she finally managed to separate from them and stood up. Helena ran to Lucious, shaking him by the shoulders. “Lucious? Wake up.”

  He didn’t respond. She sighed and dragged him over to the birch tree. Using the dagger Alexander had given her, she cut open her wrist, wincing as it sliced through her skin. She opened his mouth and let the blood drip inside. After a long minute, she cut his thumb and rubbed his blood over her wound, letting her flesh knit back together.

  Helena dragged Alexander to them and rested his back against the tree. Her breaths came in pants. She plopped on the grass between them and searched Alexander’s pockets. He didn’t disappoint. She fished out his phone and dialled Byron.

  “How did it go, Alex?” he asked.

  “Not Alexander, sorry. But it went better than expected,” she admitted, wiping the sweat from her brow.

  Byron chuckled. “That’s exactly what those two would say. Are you on your way back?”

  “We’re a bit stuck. Lucious broke his leg, Alexander is clocked out, and I can’t drive to save my life.”

  “Ah.” Byron whispered something on the side. Helena guessed he was talking to Sinead. “I’ll come by to pick you guys up. Where am I heading to?”

  She quoted the address and relaxed against the tree. Of all the things that could have possibly happened to them, they ended up cursed. But, Reaver’s words didn’t sit well with her. Although Lucious denied her involvement in Nadine’s death, she knew something was amiss. His denial was too forced as if he was hiding something.

  She pulled his hand into her lap. “You might not hear this, Lucious, but keep me sane.”

  As Byron drove them back to his home, she stared out the window. For once, her head was empty. She didn’t mind it and enjoyed the view of the ever-changing scenery of the estates and fields to the Guns and R
oses CD Byron blasted through his stereo.

  “Do you want to talk about it?” Byron asked.

  “Not really.”

  “You know, when Sinead and I got together, the world seemed like it was going to gobble us up. Maybe there were no curses involved or as many vampires, but I’m sure you’ll pull through.”

  “How did you end up dating a human?”

  Byron winked. “Lots of perseverance.” His tone changed from playful to serious. “When I was still Lucas’ Ius, the hunters managed to sneak up on our private meeting and pump some mercury rounds into me before I could create enough of a distraction for the other pack members to get out. Eventually, I escaped. Sinead was heading for her shift at the hospital when she found me, half-shifted, bleeding to death on the side of the road. Thankfully, she didn’t call animal control and patched me up. That woman is a hero in my books.”

  “She didn’t freak out when she found a beast?”

  “Oh, she did, at first. Once her professional instincts took over, she more or less started treating me like a puppy instead of a werewolf.”

  “Still, that’s an awful way to start a relationship…”

  “We’re in a world where it’s kill or be killed, Helena. No one but you and Sinead seems to think differently. Don’t forget who your real friends are and who the enemy is.”

  “I don’t see the hunters as bad guys,” she replied, settling back into her seat. “They’ve lost people, too. Their lives were ruined, or they were taught to kill from birth. I cannot see someone like that as evil. I see them as being used.”

  Byron remained quiet for the remainder of the song. He ruffled her hair with his massive hand, saying, “You’re an interesting girl. No wonder Sleeping Beauty back there likes you.”

  Helena laughed. “Alexander thinks I’m naïve.”

  “He’s jaded. It’s easy to close yourself off to the world after you lose the ones you love. But, opening back up? That’s a true challenge he must face one day. Maybe not in this century, though…”