Of Blood and Passion

by Pamela Palmer

  “Magic,” Zack corrected. “I’m a sorcerer.”

  “We both are,” Lily said with a look of bemusement.

  Quinn stared at her. “You, too? How…?”

  “Octavia, the vampire who saved me and took me in after I escaped Castle Smithson, used to be a powerful sorceress before she was turned.”

  Zack nodded. “Did you know that only a sorcerer can enter Vamp City on a sunbeam? So all those humans who have…”

  Quinn gaped at him. “There must be dozens of them.”

  “You’re the only Blackstone sorcerer left, Quinn,” Lily clarified. “The rest of us are all Levenach heirs, without any magic.”

  But if Escalla were destroyed… Goosebumps raced the length of Quinn’s body.

  “Octavia and a couple of her vampire friends—William and Maxwell—are able to spot the heirs, Sis. They’ve been collecting us. Octavia’s been building an army, teaching us what to do if our magic comes back, if you manage to free us from the curse.”

  It was Quinn’s turn to feel stunned. “So the group you just arrived with. You’re all sorcerers?”

  “Yup,” Zack said. “Even Jason and his wife. Heather, is Octavia’s best friend.”

  Quinn’s gaze jerked to where Jason stood a couple of yards away, his arm hooked around the waist of an attractive woman with curly blonde hair. How he’d survived, she didn’t know, but she was so thankful he had. And… “He found his wife.”

  Zack grinned. “Yeah. It was pretty epic.”

  Quinn shook her head, trying to take it all in. “You’re both sorcerers, too.” All those years of feeling so strange, so alone. With a laugh, she hugged Zack and Lily and they hugged her in return.

  “It’s time to go,” Arturo said, dragging her back to reality. “We don’t have much time.”

  Quinn nodded then turned back to her brother. “I’d love to ask you to stay out of the battle.”

  Zack smiled a man’s smile. “And I’d love to ask you and Lily to do the same.”

  Quinn’s mouth twisted ruefully. “I guess none of us are going to get our wish, are we?”

  Zack squeezed her shoulder. “We’ll be careful.”

  She supposed that was all the assurance she was going to get. Quinn turned to Arturo who was holding her horse, and mounted. She met his gaze and saw his own joy for her in his eyes. His pride in her. But in those dark depths, she saw, too, a stoic courage and the knowledge that death rode with them into battle. They would not come out of this without losses. Possibly losses too terrible to bear.

  But Cristoff must be stopped.

  The Healer and the Snake led the resistance together into a battle none of them really believed they could win.

  Chapter 45

  Quinn rode beside Arturo toward the Focus where Cristoff worked his vile magic. The sky was veined in blood, the world holding its collective breath.

  On either side of them, and close behind, rode Savin and the six vampire masters who’d now aligned with them. As they neared the Crux, in the very center of which was the small domed Focus, Arturo continued the discussion of battle plans begun in Neo’s kitchen.

  “What if he’s still in the Focus?” Fabian asked. “None of us, but the sorceress, can breach those walls.”

  “Driving him out of the Focus is our first task,” Arturo agreed. “And it might be the most difficult one we face. Geert, when you’re in range of Cristoff, attempt to exert your mind control to draw him out.” Arturo had told her a little about each of the vamp masters earlier and Quinn recalled that Geert’s mind control was far stronger than Arturo’s own power of persuasion. There were few of any race, including vampire, who could resist it.

  “Von Essen, we’ll need you to attempt to pull Cristoff’s power.”

  “Will do, Mazza,” the powerfully built male said. Apparently both Sakamoto and Von Essen possessed the ability to steal another vampire’s power, much as a silver noose might. But while Sakamoto had to be touching his victim, von Essen didn’t. And that was a powerful advantage since the only vampire in Vamp City who could walk into that Focus was Sheridan, one of Phineas Blackstone’s sons. Whether von Essen would be able to hold onto Cristoff’s great power when he did steal it, was a question they did not know the answer to. They’d have to be careful that they didn’t trade one tyrannical monster for another.

  As Arturo laid out the plan and led the discussion, Quinn watched him with pride. Kassius had once told her that Arturo didn’t see himself as a leader, and didn’t really care to be one, but his friends had always known it was a mantle he’d been born to. She had to agree.

  A whiff of diesel teased her nose, a scent breaking through from the real world.

  As they reached the edge of the Crux, Arturo held up his hand and pulled up. While the others stopped, he rode forward a few steps, then turned his mount to face his army.

  “Sakamoto will lead you into battle. Protect the Healer and drive Cristoff from the Focus, if he’s still there. Kassius, Micah, and I will pretend to join Cristoff’s forces. Fight us, do not kill us, and we will not kill you. When the time is right, we will strike together.”

  It was a terrible risk, letting an entire army know of the subterfuge, but there was no choice, given that the three would be openly fighting beside Cristoff. All must understand that the only betrayal was to Cristoff.

  Arturo turned to her, his expression fiercely tender. “We will prevail, amore.” Then he turned and galloped off to join Cristoff’s army, Micah and Kassius close on his heels.

  Quinn watched him go, hating that they would fight this battle separated. Up until this moment, she’d comforted herself with the thought that if the ground began to rumble, she’d pull a massive bubble through Arturo and protect them all. But he was no longer in reach, and soon wouldn’t even be in sight. For all she knew, his cover had already been blown and Cristoff would slay him the moment he rode up. Anything might happen.

  But she couldn’t think like that. She had to stay focused on the task at hand which, for her, meant rallying the troops around Sakamoto now that Arturo was gone. Sakamoto motioned for her to proceed. To lead them.

  How had she come to this, leading an army of vampires and werewolves? With a bemused shake of her head, Quinn started off. Sakamoto followed, his mount a half a length behind hers, the others trailing them both.

  In the distance she caught sight of the colors of the Focus and knew immediately that something had drastically changed. She’d often thought the Focus looked like a landed aurora borealis, its colors swirling in a confined dome about the size of a two-car garage. But what stood in the middle of the Crux now was something entirely different. Green, gold, and black lights shot out in every direction, like lightning bolts shot from the earth.

  “Is Cristoff in the middle of that?” Quinn asked. They were still too far away for her human eyesight to make out those kinds of details.

  “He is,” Sakamoto confirmed. “The lights are coming from him now.”

  Quinn glanced at the vamp master. “Why does he stand in the Focus to create his world? The Focus was the center of Blackstone’s. He could stand anywhere to create his own, couldn’t he?”

  “I do not know the answer to that, sorceress. All I can surmise is that the one who has now drunk of the power of the Black Wizard’s heir finds more of that power in the dense magic of that space, a magic created by another of the Black Wizard’s heirs—Phineas Blackstone.”

  As they drew closer, Quinn could see the dozens of Gonzaga guards circling the Focus, defending their master. Only about a dozen were mounted, the rest on foot.

  “Do you see Arturo, Micah, and Kassius?” she asked.

  “Yes, sorceress. They’ve been enfolded into the heart of evil. We need but to draw Cristoff out of his protective dome and they will fall on him.”

  It sounded so simple when put like that.

  Suddenly, beneath them, the ground began to shake.

  Chapter 46

  Quinn’s eyes went wide as t
he earth rumbled violently and a warm, stinging breeze whipped up out of nowhere, ominous and unnatural. The sky, shot through with red cracks, almost appeared to glow. Her heart seized, terror drilling down deep inside of her, because she was all but certain the sunbeams were about to break through again. And she no longer had the magic to protect any of them. The vampires…Turo…were all going to die.

  Pushing away the fear, locking down her emotions, Quinn stilled, closed her eyes, and fought to find the magic to call up a bubble. But it wasn’t there!

  Instead, she struggled to reach for her connection to Arturo. Perhaps, even from a distance, she could pull the magic through him. But her senses connected, not with Arturo, but with something else, a strong, pulsing, powerful warmth, like a glowing ball of light. Energy shot through her, latching onto her and Quinn’s pulse leaped, but not with fear. There was something about the energy that felt…benevolent.

  Suddenly she was aware of someone striding toward her, the woman Zack had accompanied to Neo’s. The sorceress-turned-vampire, Octavia.

  “Quickly, sorceress, take my hand,” Octavia said, reaching for her. “We can protect them together.”

  Quinn stared at her for only a moment before grabbing the out-stretched hand. The second their fingers touched, that same energy poured up into Quinn’s arm, flowing through her body in a tingling, almost pleasant, buzz. Suddenly, the others who’d accompanied Zack swarmed around Quinn’s horse, joining hands like some new age prayer circle.

  “Quinn.”

  At the sound of Zack’s voice on her other side, she turned and found him reaching for her other hand, Lily at his side. Quinn took her brother’s hand, completing the circle that flowed out around the front of her surprisingly accepting mount.

  Quinn glanced at her brother, catching his bemused expression, one she suspected matched her own.

  “Now what?” she asked, turning back to Octavia.

  But at that moment, she felt the sunbeams breaking through and all she could think about was protecting the vampires. Her will flew outward, wishing for a bubble to enclose them all.

  No bubble formed. But suddenly, darkness blanketed the Crux, blotting out the red sky and all the sunbeams.

  “It’s like some kind of giant umbrella,” Zack said quietly, his voice filled with awe.

  Quinn turned to Octavia with wonder. “You did this.”

  “We did this, Quinn.”

  “But…”

  Octavia smiled softly. “You are a magnifier. You may have lost much of your own power, but you are able to magnify the little I have left.”

  It was similar to what Arturo was able to do for her. “What about Zack and the others?”

  “I’m connected to them, as are you, now. Their power is untapped, yet it is there, lying dormant within them. Between your ability to magnify my power and my own to connect with the power within others of Levenach’s line, we were able to form the shield that now protects our comrades.”

  “How long will it hold?” Zack asked.

  “Long enough.”

  Quinn peered at her, stunned, excited. “What else can you do?”

  Octavia once more smiled that small smile. “We shall see, shall we not?”

  Behind Quinn, vampires and others murmured and exclaimed. When she glanced back at them, many bowed their heads to her in gratitude.

  Quinn nodded back, then turned to Octavia. “Are you really a Levenach sorceress?”

  “In a way. He was my brother.”

  Quinn gaped at her. “You’ve been around a long time.”

  Octavia chuckled. “I have indeed, little sister.”

  Quinn blinked at the term, then gave a small laugh. She’d been so focused on her ties to the Black Wizard that she’d almost forgotten she was descended from Levenach, too.

  “Disband and fall back into line,” Octavia said, then turned to Quinn. “I suggest we start this war.”

  Quinn nodded and turned to Sakamoto. “Ready?”

  The vampire grinned, then gave a piercing war cry, kicked his horse into gear, and galloped forward, lifting his samurai sword high. The wolves snarled and followed. Vampires blurred all around her, leaving only the humans, fae, and Traders to catch up at their own, slower, speed.

  From atop her horse, she had a good view of Cristoff’s troops and frowned as they made no move to meet the oncoming attack. Moments later, she understood why as vampires and werewolves began to hit some kind of invisible wall…and began to scream. The rest of her troops pulled up short, uncertain what had just happened.

  Cristoff’s soldiers began to laugh.

  In her head, she heard Arturo’s voice. He has infused the force field that encircles us with dragon fire, tesoro mio. I did not realize it until just now or I would have warned you.

  “Stay back!” she yelled. “The force field is made of dragon fire!”

  Those who hadn’t already, now backed up, making Cristoff’s guards laugh even harder. But at the sound of her shout, Cristoff whirled within the Focus to stare at her. Apparently, he hadn’t realized…until now…that she’d survived his attack.

  Quinn waved at her nemesis, getting great pleasure from his knowing he hadn’t actually killed her. He was too far away for her to see his expression, but she felt his surprise and a disquiet that contained a small thread of something that felt like fear. While the thought might be misplaced, it pleased her tremendously to think that the terrible, all-powerful, Cristoff Gonzaga was just a tiny bit afraid of her.

  But that hardly did her, or her team, any good. Not when they couldn’t even reach Cristoff’s forces, let alone Cristoff himself. Her gaze moved to Arturo who stood with his back to the Focus, along with Micah and Kassius. Cristoff’s personal guards. She was terrified Arturo would decide he was their only chance, and decide to attack Cristoff on his own. He’d been unable to beat his master even before Cristoff had come into his power. As it stood now, he didn’t have a chance.

  But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t try.

  As she watched, one of Cristoff’s guards strode forward and cut off the heads of three of the vampires and one of the werewolves writhing in pain on the ground. She heard the crack of gunfire and saw the big vampire jerk back once, then twice, then a third time. She’d handed her gun to Jason before the battle, after he’d admitted to being an expert shot.

  “Jason got him,” Zack said. “Right through the heart, yet the sucker’s not going down.”

  “You can’t see that far,” Quinn countered.

  “Actually, I can.” Together, brother and sister watched the guard turn with a sneer and walk back within the protective force field to stand beside his mercenary brothers. “We’re fucked.”

  And they were that. They’d been concerned about getting Cristoff out of the Focus. Now they had two barriers they had to find a way to break through in order to reach him.

  Quinn turned to Octavia. “You don’t have any force field-zapping powers, do you?”

  The ancient sorceress looked at her thoughtfully. “No. But you might.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Octavia reached for Quinn’s hand. “I felt something within your magic.” As her cool fingers closed around Quinn’s warm ones, the woman closed her eyes. When she opened them again, moments later, satisfaction lit their depths. “You possess the ability to draw the life force from a person.”

  “Yes. My death touch.”

  “It is useful for more than killing. You can draw the life out of that field of energy.”

  Quinn’s eyes widened with alarm. “Draw the dragon fire into me?”

  “No, you won’t have to touch it, just get close enough to consciously draw it to you. Those of us connected to you, now, will help you. As you pull that tainted power, I will send it deep into the ground where it can harm no one.”

  “How close do I have to get?” How much did she really trust this woman? Then again, Octavia had used Quinn’s power to create the shield. And did she really have any choice but to tru
st? They had to disable that force field.

  “Close. Within six feet, I believe. You’ll have to be careful not to touch it. And be forewarned, Cristoff’s guards will come after you.”

  “Of course they will.” Nothing was ever easy. Quinn dismounted and strode to where Sakamoto’s werecats stood. She looked at Davu and Dera. “Any words of wisdom?”

  Eyes grave, they shook their heads. “No visions.”

  “Maybe that’s a good thing.” She turned to Fabian. “I might be able to disable that force field, but I’m going to have to get close to it, and stay there for probably several minutes. Can you put together a team to defend me?”

  “Of course, sorceress. Can anyone be between you and the field?”

  “It shouldn’t matter,” Octavia said, joining her. “She does not need an unimpeded path, simply close and sustained proximity.”

  Fabian nodded. “Let’s go.”

  Quinn followed him through the throng of fighters. At one point, he stopped and said quietly to those around him, “The sorceress has a plan, but will need protection.”

  All those who heard followed, swelling her heart. She clung to the belief that she would succeed, hoping that Arturo would feel it and release any thought of attacking Cristoff just yet.

  As Quinn feared, the moment she and her band approached the edge of the force field, Cristoff’s soldiers moved toward them. Swords were drawn on both sides. But this time, her side stopped short, forcing Cristoff’s mercenaries to leave their protective dome to reach them.

  Closing her eyes, Quinn lifted her hands and felt for that wall of dragon fire-laced energy. At first she felt nothing. Then suddenly, that odd connection stirred within her again, her connection with Octavia and the Levenach heirs. And suddenly the wall tingled against her senses. It appeared in her mind’s eye as bright orange fire and she marveled at its terrible beauty for several moments before finally gathering the courage to call it to her. Her body tensed for the possibility of pain, but as the energy rushed into her hands, she felt nothing but a prickling, tingling flow of electricity.