by Patti Larsen
The Empress gestured with her left hand and again the crowd parted. This time it was Sunny who appeared, glared at and hissed upon by the queens lining her path. My power reached out to her but the Empress’s magic caged her tight.
Do not attempt to free her, the ancient vampire warned me with a hint of regret. I will not allow it.
Then don’t do anything stupid, I shot back. I won’t allow it, either.
For the first time anger appeared in her tone, sharp as a blade, as old as the earth. I have been patient, Sydlynn Hayle.
You have no idea what patience is. My vampire spoke for me, icy cold fury crackling back at her. Sunny is our friend and innocent of wrongdoing. And I will defend her personally. You have my word on that. You might not fear Sydlynn, though you should. But fear me, Moa. The Empress jerked slightly in shock. Yes, I remember your primitive name. And the power I gave you, I can take away.
The old vampire’s presence retreated just slightly. You wouldn’t. Fear. She was afraid after all.
I would, my vampire sent. Though I love you like my very own, I will not permit you or anyone to harm this vampire queen for doing as I decree.
The Empress’s black eyes darted to Sunny and back to me, but she didn’t comment again. Movement to my right turned my head and, for the first time, I caught the smirking, gloating face of Piotr watching me.
He’s dead, my demon growled.
Later, Shaylee sent. We’ll make it look like an accident.
No one will ever find the body. My vampire’s anger still sizzled like white flames in my head.
Nah, I sent. Why wait?
Best thing I heard all day, my demon snarled. Fire’s a good way to kill.
But before the rest of my egos could chime in, the familiar touch of Sunny’s mind met mine.
Syd. Her power, subdued by the Empress, vibrated with tension. Please, stay out of this.
I won’t let them hurt you. I’m sure my jaw was locked from clenching my teeth.
Nor will I, my vampire sent.
There’s nothing you can do, she sent. I’m begging you to leave it be.
Not a chance. I cut her off as Sarameia stepped past me, seeming to have recovered some of her poise as she focused her vitriol on my friend.
“Teresa Wilhelm,” she said in a voice that rang with indignation, carrying through the massive hall, “you have been accused of betraying your blood clan to further your own power by tainting your magic with that which has altered you forever. How do you plead?”
Sunny’s clear, warm voice didn’t hesitate. “Guilty,” she said with pride swelling her magic so bright she glowed like a small star. “And I would do it again to ensure the safety and growth of all vampires.”
They didn’t like that, nope nope. I almost pushed past the red haired queen, but the Empress was on the case, her shell of protection holding the others back as they lunged for Sunny.
“I have no choice,” the ancient vampire said with real regret in her young voice, “but to strip you of your blood clan and award your throne to your challenger. Piotr Wilhelm, step forward.”
He did, with an eagerness that turned my stomach. I wanted to claw the satisfied smile from his face but held still as Sunny’s blue eyes locked on mine and forced me to hold still with her gaze alone.
Power rose from her in a spinning column of white, ghosting up from her feet to the top of her head, forming a pulsing cloud just beyond her reach. She sighed and slumped ever so slightly as the magic of her blood clan hovered, the sound of soft weeping falling from it like crystal tinkling. She raised her chin, shoulders back and nodded to the Empress who slowly nodded in return before gesturing.
The magic of the Wilhelm family slammed with solid force into Piotr, sending him back two steps, gasping though he needed no air to breathe. From the discomfort on his face, the power Sunny relinquished wasn’t giving him an easy time of integration, though after a moment he shuddered and relaxed.
“My first decree as king of the Wilhelms,” he said, “is the immediate draining and beheading of Teresa, fallen daughter of our blood clan, to ensure her taint never damages our family again.”
***
Chapter Ten
No one had a chance to react because I was already in motion. My power hit the Empress’s hard, dividing her shields in half, wrapping around Sunny with a fist of rainbow light. She stared at me in horror, shaking her head, but it was too late.
“She’s under my protection,” I snarled.
Piotr flashed his fangs at me, actually nervy enough to take a step toward me, the pathetic, whining creepsalot. “Release her,” he said. “This is none of your concern.”
“Like hell,” I shot back. I spun on the Empress who glared at me with renewed anger. Maybe she would have released Sunny after all, but no way was I taking that chance. “You want a war?” I pushed hard against her. “You want to see just what I can bring to a fight? I’ll give you a battle you’ll never win.”
“You’ve made enemies here tonight, Sydlynn Hayle,” the Empress said, cold rage clear in her voice and her power, all touch of friendliness long gone.
Boo freaking hoo. With friends like her, who needed enemies? “So have they.” I jabbed a finger at the collected queens who hissed at me like the pack of rattlesnakes they were.
Oh, no they didn’t.
It wasn’t often I was in a position where I could—or would—let my power out to play. Sure, dribs and drabs of it, enough to get the job done. And less often lately, my old acts seeming to give me the advanced warning I needed to keep those opposing me in line. Tonight, though? Tonight I was feeling the urge to let it all hang out for once. Maybe it was the blatant resentment of the queens, the way they seemed to look down at Sunny, their judgment of Charlotte and Sage. Their lack of respect for everything I’d done to save their wretched hides from death and destruction over the years.
Yeah, maybe. More likely I just couldn’t stand being threatened by yet another sect of know-it-all paranormals who hadn’t a freaking clue what was really happening out there in the wide Universe.
The vast well of magic I held inside me often remained unseen, unfelt, because I really wasn’t much for showing off.
Time they experienced just who they were dealing with.
Syd, Sunny sent in a choked mental voice as I tapped my power. What are you doing?
What she needs to, Charlotte cut off the former queen. To save your ass. Be still.
I’d never heard my werefriend use that tone with Sunny before. But it gained the silence she’d demanded. And left me to my own devices. For good or ill.
As the rainbow light of my maji power emerged, I pushed at my physical form, growing in size and height, the magic within me flaring outward, filling the entire giant foyer with the song of its combined energies. Green, blue, white, red, amber and black, all swirling in waves of pulsing light, pushing through the vampire queens, through the Empress, not harming them but allowing them to feel the immensity of what I controlled.
Heady stuff, out in the open like this. I was so used to keeping it all bottled, contained, tied neatly in a bow. I forgot just how amazing this power I controlled really felt. Grinning grimly, I straddled the center of the room, staring down at them with two balls of vibrating light in my hands, so bright the whole mountain must have glowed from it.
“Hear me,” I said, voice booming, shaking the entire peak. The queen’s squeals of fear brought me no satisfaction despite how good it felt to let my full power out to play. Nor did the fear of the Empress, though she hid hers far better than they did. “Your day of change is coming whether you like it or not. The very Universe is shifting, and if you choose not to change with it, your kind will perish.” I glared down at them, filling my magic with stern dominance. A few fresh meeps erupted in response. “Do you understand?”
Are you threatening me? The Empress’s question held no malice, to her credit, her fear more awe-filled, but with a tremor of doubt running under her mind. Doubt? A
bout what?
No, I sent. I’m being honest. You already know of the evolution of the werewolves. She sent the affirmative. And the deaths of the witches by the hand of the Brotherhood. Again she sent she did. All the paranormal races must come together, must be willing to work as one, including improving and evolving themselves, to guarantee our safety in the future.
There is more going on here than you have said, she sent. Again with the doubt, aimed inward. Was she second guessing her decision about Sunny? But no, it felt far more important than that, as though her very existence depended on it. But when I pushed for answers, she deftly blocked me, side stepping my probing mind. I wasn’t about to coerce her—the very idea made me want to throw up—but there was much more to her reaction than she was letting on.
I wasn’t the only one holding back.
There is, I sent. The very Universe is in danger. And I fear Sebastian’s disappearance has something to do with that.
Understood, she sent. You can come down now. Her fear faded, awe still in place, though a touch of amusement ratcheted up my opinion of her almost immediately.
Maybe we could be friends after all.
I slowly shrank, accepting the soft apology in her mental touch, returning to my normal size and pulling my magic back in. I felt oddly cleansed from the experience and wondered if I should let the kids out and about more often.
“Where are Frank Hayle and Chambrelle Strait?” I wasn’t leaving without them. My uncle and Sunny’s human servant would be in grave danger if Piotr managed to get his hands on them.
“At Wilhelm Castle,” the Empress said.
“They are also under my protection,” I said. No one argued with me. Smart of them. Though, from the belligerent look on Piotr’s face, he wanted to fight me.
Just try it, I sent directly into his mind.
He backed off. Smart boy.
“Take Teresa,” the Empress said. “But know that she is not welcome in any blood clan from this moment forth.” Forgive me, she sent as she spoke, mental voice overriding her spoken words. I will work on them, but it will take time. I believe, one day, the one you call Sunny will again rise to be the best of us.
Unfair, cowardly and the epitome of frustrating. But it would have to do.
I turned to Charlotte and Sage. “Go get Uncle Frank and Chambrelle,” I said. The werewolves nodded before tearing open the veil and leaving. The vampire queens watched with whispers of shock and I fought to keep my temper.
“You resist evolution,” I said, “and give up so much in the denial of it.” I pointed to where the werewolves had gone. “They have embraced their destiny. You call them unclean.” I let them see just what I thought of that estimation in my face, in the whole set of my body judging them right back. “But they, at least, are willing to grasp change by the throat and make it do their bidding instead of hiding like poisonous spiders in dark recesses, spitefully complaining about matters that are of zero consequence to the rest of us.”
No reaction aside from spiteful rage. Still. Hoped that hurt.
Sunny was shaking as I joined her, fury on her face. I knew how she felt.
Be well, Sydlynn Hayle, the Empress sent. I hope to speak to you again.
I didn’t respond. I let my slicing open of the veil speak for me, pulling Sunny along with me.
We hit the back yard a moment later, the motion sensitive light flashing on as we landed on the soft grass. I turned to Sunny to hug her, relieved at least she was alive and well, only to stagger back when her personal power hit me full in the chest. If I’d been expecting the blow I probably wouldn’t have felt it, but I was so surprised by the attack she managed to shove me away two steps before I caught myself again.
“Damn it, Syd!” Her hissing fury carried barbs of disgust. “I told you to stay out of it!”
“They were going to kill you, Sunny.” It was hard not to react with anger of my own. She’d been through a lot. I really needed to stay empathetic.
“I had it under control!” More power flared, the veil opening to disgorge Charlotte and Sage, Chambrelle and Frank bursting out into the yard and the middle of our fight.
“Sunny!” My handsome, blond uncle tried to embrace her but she was too wound up. He gaped at her as she stabbed the air with her index finger, pointing it right at me.
“This is your fault!” She vibrated with fury. “You’re meddling where you’re not welcome. You’ve handed my blood clan over to the Brotherhood, Syd. And there’s nothing I can do to save them now.” She stepped away from me, shaking, head down, panting. “Nothing.”
She so did not just blame me for this. But she didn’t allow me time for a rebuttal. In a shiver of shadow, Sunny fled. Uncle Frank shot me a tragic look.
“She didn’t mean that,” he said.
Whatever. I let him go, shaking from the residue of my anger as Chambrelle sighed and shook her head.
“Thank you,” she said, pale green eyes full of sorrow. “My queen is simply at wit’s end and has been for some time. I assure you, we know none of this is your doing.”
I waved off the Amazonian normal who served Sunny and Frank. “Just take care of her,” I said. Sage offered his hand, Chambrelle taking it as the pair went after the two vampires. Leaving me to stare into Charlotte’s empty blue eyes and wonder if I really was to blame.
“You did the right thing,” she said, before stomping through the yard and to the driveway, leaving me alone.
I went to bed, heart hurting, stressed and worried, to find Quaid still wasn’t home. I really could have used his strong arms around me. Instead, I curled up in our cold bed and stared into the night for a long time before finally falling asleep.
And yes, there were a few tears involved.
***
Chapter Eleven
I woke to bright sunlight and a grumpy disposition. From the cool freshness of my husband’s pillow, Quaid hadn’t been home at all through the night. Way to add to my bad mood as I spun scenarios in my head going from bad to worse—as simple as him falling asleep in his office chair to dying a horrible, flaming death at the hands of some enemy. Of course, the touch of his power as steady as ever disproved my worrywart ways, which only added to the irritation I felt he wasn’t there for me to question about his absence.
Rather than contact him mentally and overreact so badly I ended up screaming at him across the plane, I stuffed down my annoyance and began my own day. A shower helped somewhat, the hot water washing away some of my old anger and frustration. But it was the touch of my mother’s mind that made me jump and drop the soap with a squeak of shock.
Sydlynn. I could tell from her faint amusement she’d caught a flash of where I was.
Mom. I threw a mental snowball at her. Don’t do that.
Sorry, sweetheart, she sent. But I thought you’d like to know we’ve been invited to a World Paranormal Council meeting this morning in Hong Kong. I figured you’d want to be there.
I grumbled under my breath, ducking for the slippery bar before answering. I’ll be ten minutes.
Meet you there, she sent and was gone. I set the bar down on the ledge and rinsed my hair before kicking myself. I should have taken the opportunity to talk to her about the shadow council. Oh well, it could wait. Not like there was a lot of forward movement on the issue right now anyway.
Faint curiosity drove me to towel off quickly and dress in something more than my usual t-shirt and jeans. Still, I refused to be typecast in a velvet skirt and silk blouse. Instead, I opted for the one suit I owned, dark blue with a pale cream shell underneath. High heels and I weren’t exactly friends, but I’d managed to find a pair that didn’t try to kill me every time I wore them. Their flashy red soles made me grin for some reason, so I was happy enough to slip my bare feet into them and add a couple of inches to my height.
Who would have guessed I’d look so good in a power suit? I skipped breakfast all together, not even bothering to go downstairs for coffee. I could hear and feel Shenka moving aroun
d on the first floor and reached out to her as I tore open the veil from my bedroom.
Meeting, I sent. Be back later.
She didn’t respond, still cold with me, but I knew she got the message so I left it alone. I probably should have gone down to talk to her directly, but Sassafras’s little chat yesterday reminded me she probably had her own things to work out. She’d come around and we’d find a way past this. If I’d learned anything from my fight with Sunny last night, it was to back the hell off when I wasn’t wanted.
Heart still hurting from that stinging accusation from one of the people I loved most in the world, I stepped through the veil and crossed the continent and an ocean, exiting the other side of the world in Hong Kong.
The view of the huge city and harbor beyond the giant glass windows of the top floor stopped me in my tracks as it always did. I adored this place, with its cultural diversity. Once a British colony, recently returned to the control of China, Hong Kong retained its multilayered feel, still welcoming business from around the world to its towering skyscrapers and banks. A source of the normal’s global economy, the entire city thrived on the unique flavor of Chinese heritage mixed with the norms and conventions of Western mega cities.
I strode down the hall, the bank of windows on my left, mingling with the last few arriving dignitaries to the meeting. A small grin pulled at my lips as I softly grasped the large man in front of me by his very muscular arm and pulled him around. Danilo Moreau, king of the werenation, grinned down at me with a mutter of happiness, sweeping me into his broad chest for a lusty hug. I groaned at the squeeze, all the breath leaving me, while watching his beautiful wife smile indulgently. One of her slim hands rested over her round belly, the protruding presence of the next baby in their growing brood safe under her gentle touch.
“Sydlynn.” Yana Moreau kissed my cheek gently, leaning over her very pregnant middle to do so. “Dani, you could have broken something.” But she was still smiling, glowing as women in her condition did.
