Descent (The Immortal Chronicles Book 1)

by Sloane Murphy

  We stand and talk with the guys for a while and they play stupid drinking games, all in the name of celebration, and I don’t hate the night as much as I expected to. I start to feel a bit woozy, which is weird because I haven’t drunk much.

  “Ty, I’m going to head back to my room. I don’t feel great,” I say to him, and a look of relief washes over his face.

  “Thank god, I can’t wait to get you alone. I’ve been waiting all night,” he says to me before grabbing my hand. We say our goodbyes to the group and head outside.

  “I think something’s wrong with me Ty, I feel really weird,” I say to him before I stumble. He picks me up, and I can’t feel my legs. I start to worry, I have no idea what’s going on, I only had a few drinks and I’ve never reacted like this before.

  “I’m sorry Addie,” Ty whispers to me as he starts walking towards the forest, rather than to the dorm.

  “What’s going on Ty? Where are we going? I need to go back to my room, or to the med centre.”

  “I’m so sorry Addie, but they said if they could have you they’d leave everyone else alone. That it was you they wanted.”

  “Who the hell are they Ty? Where are we going?” I nearly scream as we head into the forest. His legs are so long that we’re crossing the ground so much quicker than I’m used to. He doesn’t answer me, and I can’t fight him. My body betrays me in its uselessness, and I’m left fully alert knowing that whatever’s coming isn’t going to be good.

  “Ty please. Please don’t do this. Whatever this is. There has to be a better way!” I start crying at the futility of it all, of my boyfriend, and best friend, the person I fell in love with betraying me in the worst way possible. We get to a clearing and he lays me down in the centre of it, then paces back and forth while I can do nothing but lie here.

  I have no idea how much time passes, when I see them; Kaden and his shades. The same ones that took Livvy & Logan from me.

  “You coward Tyler, how fucking could you! You should be ashamed of yourself. Logan and Liv would be so ashamed of you right now you absolute prick!” I cry out. He turns to me with anger all over his face.

  “Well they’d both still be here if it wasn’t for you, you little bitch. So shut your mouth and deal with it!” he shouts back at me. We’re so deep in the forest, I don’t think anyone is going to hear me screaming.

  “Well, isn’t this delightful. You did well Tyler, making her fall in love with you was a great plan. She questioned nothing, because her emotion blinded her. You will be rewarded for your loyalty and your success.” Tyler nods and walks up to him to shake his hand.

  “Thank you Kaden. I hope I have proven myself to you. I will go back to the dorm now and infiltrate the Red Guard, as you planned.” He bows then walks away leaving me here.

  “Ahhhh Miss Tate. We meet again. Now unfortunately for you, this meeting won’t end as well as the last one did my dear, this time we’re going to take a little trip,” he sniggers to me, and I feel pins and needles in my arms as the feeling comes back into them. I push myself up into a sitting position so I can at least look at him without lying at his feet.

  “I don’t know what you want with me, but I will never go with you,” I spit at him. The wind picks up and I hear the clock tower chime, marking midnight.

  He laughs at me, and I can hear the shades sniggering as they circle around. Kaden flashes towards me and suddenly he’s in my face, that’s when I feel a sharp prick in my neck.

  “Now then Princess, that should make you sleep for just long enough to take you back to my master,” he says to me and I scream as loud as I can, while I can. Darkness starts to creep in, and my head gets stuffy as everything blurs. I hear my name being yelled, but my vision turns hazy, before I fall back to the ground. Everything goes dark and I hear the sound of metal on metal, and an unnatural roar fills the air.

  I have no idea how much time passes as I fade in and out of consciousness, all I know is that I’ve been picked up and we’re moving. I try to cry out but I have no control over myself as I pass out again.

  I come round and I’m stiff all over. My head is pounding and the swirling in my stomach makes it hard to keep whatever’s in there down. I start by moving my fingers and toes. The concentration it takes is excruciating, but I keep my eyes closed while I do it.

  I have no idea where I am, and for right now I want to make sure I’m not broken, before I start dealing with whatever fresh hell I’m in right now. Once I know that I can move my arms and legs, I turn my head and slowly open my eyes. I’m surrounded by darkness, which I’m instantly thankful for. I open my eyes further as I take in my surroundings. I can’t see much through the blanket of darkness that surrounds me, but I can see enough to know that wherever the hell I am, is not somewhere I recognise.

  I’m lying on a bed, still in my prom dress. Jeez, prom that feels like forever ago already. I stretch my arms out and I can’t reach either side, the sheets are almost silky soft. Not exactly what I was expecting. I slowly push myself up to a sitting position, hissing at the pain that courses through my body at the movement. I’m going to fucking kill Ty when I see him next, but I can’t focus on that right now, all I can do is hope I’m somewhere safe, but I’m not going to hold my breath for that.

  I lean over to the table that’s placed beside the bed, and turn on the lamp that sits there. It illuminates the room with a soft glow and I gasp at my surroundings. The walls are bare stone brick, with cast iron candle holders attached at various places across the walls, each holding a blood red candle. The room is pretty bare, other than the bed and the table. I can see three doors to the right hand side of the bed, and floor to ceiling black velvet curtains cover the entire wall to my left.

  I swing my legs over the side of the bed, the pain is excruciating, but I can’t just helplessly lie here. My legs hang over the edge of the bed; I must be about four feet up in the air. Scooting further off the bed, I try and make the fall a little softer, and then fail miserably. There’s a loud thud as I land, pain shooting up my legs making me want to cry out. I bite my lip to stop the scream that threatens to break free and taste blood as it splits.

  I grasp onto the bed and try to pull myself up, my limbs shaking from the exertion, before padding over the thick carpet to the door closest to me. I open it and find a bathroom, I flick the switch illuminating the room in a harsh white light, making my eyes water. Creeping into the room I see a giant mirror covering half a wall behind the sink. I don’t want to see my reflection but it’s hard to miss, so I turn and focus back on the room.

  There’s a corner bath to the back right of the room, with a separate shower stall to the left. The floor is covered in huge stone coloured tiles that seem to go up the walls that house the bath and shower too. I turn from the room avoiding the mirror as best I can again, to continue exploring.

  The next door I try is locked and I’m too weak right now to try and fight it. Admitting defeat, I head to the last door and find a massive walk in closet. I don’t spend long in here, just long enough to know that it’s full of someone’s clothes; that I’m in someone’s room. I just wish I knew who that someone was. I feel my strength waning, what little I had when I woke up has deserted me and I feel exhausted. I fight through it, and walk across the room to the wall of black velvet and look for a separation in the fabric. I find it and tug it as much as I can, revealing floor to ceiling windows overlooking the biggest lake I have ever seen, surrounded by thick forest.

  It must be the middle of the night because the sky is inky black, illuminated by a full glowing moon reflecting across the lake, making it look like the light is dancing across the water. It’s beautiful. I sink to the floor staring out of the window, the fact that I’m no longer at the Academy sinks in. It’s all I can do not to cry, because this can only mean that wherever I am, is where Kaden wanted me to be. The overwhelming sense of dread settles bone deep, making my already weary body deplete of all energy. I rest my head against the velvet curtain and close my eye
s, hoping it’s all a bad dream.

  I hear the door open and the rustle of material as someone walks into the room. I keep my eyes closed and remain deathly still. I figure if they think I’m asleep or passed out over here, they won’t kill me right? No fun if there’s no reaction, and I’m too weak to fight them right now.

  “Pretending to be asleep isn’t going to help you, you know? I’ll drag you into the shower either way,” a husky voice laden with venom and hate says to me. I open my eyes to see a woman with long red hair and piercing green eyes. Vampyr I think to myself, except she doesn’t look like a shade, just like Kaden. I’m beginning to think they skipped something in our History of the races class, because something just isn’t adding up. I lift my chin defiantly and meet her eyes. Hatred pours from her like a tsunami and washes over me. I have no idea why this bitch hates me so much, but I sure as shit am not going to let her know it bothers me.

  “Yeah, I’d like to see you try,” I reply. Way to go Addie, taunt the Vampyr. Super idea. I face palm internally. Not letting her bother me is one thing, but antagonising her is a whole new realm of bad idea.

  She barks out a laugh and crosses her arms. “He said you were feisty. I like feisty, it’s more fun when you break. Now get in the damn shower, you smell like vomit,” she says pulling a face, then turns on her very pointy heel and leaves the room, slamming the door. I flinch at the very loud bang, and the creaking of the wood. I don’t hear the click of a lock, so I assume she’s my new guard dog, stood outside waiting for me. I don’t stink. Do I? I lift the fabric of my dress to my face and gag. What the hell! I strip faster than a ghost can say boo and dart towards the bathroom.

  I flick the switch and my eyes bounce from the giant tub, to the shower. It takes me a minute to realise I don’t want to sit in my own stench and decide on the shower. I turn on the water, steam rising almost immediately, before searching for towels and jumping under the powerful jets.

  I step out of the shower and wrap myself in the towels I found, and stare in the mirror. I think I might be in shock. My face looks pale, well paler than normal, and surely I should be freaking out right around now. I mean hell, Tyler has completely sold me out, and I’m now being held by the guy who killed my best friend in front of me. But I’m numb. I literally can’t feel a thing. There’s no anger, no sadness, no betrayal, and I’m not sure if I like it. I like that I can function and think clearly, but I know I should be afraid. I should be afraid that I’m here, I should be afraid that I don’t feel anything, but I just, can’t.

  I walk back into the bedroom and sit on the bed. The curtains have been opened, and the light from the moon illuminates the room.

  The door opens again and Kaden strides into the room like he owns the place, I guess he kind of does, with a smile adorning his face. He looks me over, taking his time, like he’s the predator and I’m his prey. He freaking wishes! His blonde hair brushes his shoulders, and his blue eyes pierce me. It’s like he sees through me. He’s tall, somewhere over six foot, and he is built like a house. His black t-shirt hugs his chest and arms and tapers off at his waist, but I can still clearly see his defined torso under it, with his worn blue jeans enhancing his strong legs. Why do the jerks always have to be so pretty?

  “Adelaide, how lovely of you to join us, in your finery no less,” he chuckles. Dick.

  “It’s not like I had much choice in the matter asshole. What the hell am I doing here?”

  “Oh Addie, patience is a virtue you know. All will become clear in time. Now my dear, please make yourself at home in here. I’m sure you’ll find something comfortable to wear in the closets. Celeste, the redhead you met earlier on, isn’t she delightful! Well, she had a wonderful time making sure the room would be ready for you.” He grins again and I just want to wipe the smug smile off his face. Apparently I don’t have any feelings generally, but he can push all of my annoyance buttons.

  “Oh, remind me to thank her,” I say, sarcasm dripping from my words. “And while I’m at it, I’ll ask her for a mani-pedi. We can have some real girl time, maybe she’ll be my new bestie, ya know, since you killed my other one.” I swear I see him flinch a little, but it’s probably a figment of my imagination. This guy doesn’t give a shit about anything.

  “That wasn’t me Addie. You had a chance to save her, remember that. Just try to remember that not everything is what it seems,” he sighs, and I almost feel bad for him, except apparently my anger is back, because my skin feels on fire. Had a chance to save her my ass!

  “A chance to save her?! You’re kidding right?” I spit out at him jumping to my feet. He sighs and walks towards me. He lifts his hand towards my face, and tucks a stray strand of hair behind my ear. His movement shocks me and I slap away his hand. “Don’t you dare touch me!”

  “I’m not the bad guy here Addie, maybe one day you’ll see that,” he sighs, and turns away walking towards the door.

  “Kaden, you are the bad guy. You are the definition of the bad guy, and if you can’t see that then you’re deluded.” His eyes flash at my words, a mixture of anger and sadness.

  “Believe what you want to Addie. You’ll understand one day. Now please, get dressed and come downstairs for dinner. Celeste will escort you, and don’t keep me waiting.” He closes the door behind him and all I can hear is my shallow, heavy breaths from the anger built up inside. I close my eyes and lie back, trying to control my breathing to long deep breaths, trying to dampen the anger swirling inside me. He wants me to go down for dinner? It’s the middle of the freaking night! Is he insane? I decide I don’t want to eat, but head over to the closet I found earlier and rummage through the drawers, until I find a pyjama set of shorts and vest. He was right; they’re exactly my size and still have tags on. I don’t want to accept a thing from him, but right now it’s that or naked, and I want clothes. I rip the tags off and slip into the set before heading to the vanity section, where there is a variety of hair brushes, hair dryer and straighteners. Anyone would think I was a guest if they looked in here, not a freaking prisoner. I sigh as I sit down and work through the knots from my freshly washed hair, before drying it. I look in the mirror and I almost look myself again. Almost. Something’s not quite right, but I can’t put my finger on it.

  Weariness overcomes me again and I almost fall to the floor as I stand. I lean onto the wall to keep me upright, while my legs stop shaking. This is exactly why I’m not going down for dinner at stupid o’clock. I slowly work my way back to the bed and slip between the sheets, looking out over the lake as sleep takes me.

  “Where the hell is she?!” I roar. “I have two critically injured Elite, one possibly dying, one student in chains, but no one can tell me what the hell happened to her!” I slam my fists down onto my desk and I hear the wood split. My rage washes over me and I struggle to rein in it, if anything happens to her I swear, Kaden will beg me for death.

  “It’s just like I told you Xander,” Dimitri explains to me, “I saw her leave the party with Tyler, and something didn’t feel right, so I followed them. I kept my distance in case it was nothing, but I saw him pick her up and knew something wasn’t right, so I called for Lex and Bray. They got Ali and Gunner, then found me. By the time they reached me, there was almost nothing we could do. Tyler had basically handed Addie over to Kaden. She had been drugged, so she couldn’t fight back. He had a few shades with him visibly, but there was another few dozen hidden in the forest. By the time we had fought through the shades, Kaden was gone and so was Addie. Gunner hunted down Tyler and took him straight down to the cellar, Ali took Lucius and Gabe to medical, and I came here to you.” I can see his anger threatening to burst through, it is rare for my kind to lose their control, but we are both close, and that is dangerous, for us, and for Kaden.

  “We need to do some recon D. Send out the strike team, everyone needs to go out and speak to their people. We need to find her, as quickly and quietly as possible. No one can know about this you understand? No one!”

  “I get
it Xander, but what is so important about her? Don’t get me wrong, you know how I feel about her, but what makes her so important?” he asks me. I have no idea how to tell him, without telling him. She has to know first. She has to know about everything.

  “D, I can’t tell you much, but you need to know that she’s different. Special. One of a kind special, and Kaden cannot have her. You know where she’ll end up, who she’ll end up with if he has her for long. She’s too important for that to happen, so much could go wrong. She needs to know the truth, the real truth.” I tell him, and his eyes go wide. It was agreed after the war that some things would be kept from the humans, for their own good, each leader made a blood oath on behalf of their houses, the Vampyrs for their syrelines, and I for those of my kind that are led by me.

  “What the hell! We can’t tell her. She is human, that breaks every decree we ever agreed to.”

  “She’s not human D. That’s as much as I can tell you, but we need to get her back. We need to get her back before too much damage is done. Damage even I can’t undo.”

  I can see him reeling from my admission, but I don’t have time to worry. If I’m right, we only have days to get her back before it’s too late. The cloaking spell will start lifting, and without the right guidance, I don’t even want to think about what could happen. They could poison her against us, and with the lies she’s been told, I wouldn’t blame her for believing them. I know Dimitri has understood the gravity of the situation from the stance he’s taken. He is the warrior from the great war. My second in command. My brother.

  “Please brother. Help me.”

  “Of course,” he says, before nodding and leaving the room. I punch the wall and the stone shatters around me. I compose myself before making my way down to the basement. This little shit has pissed me off for the last time. I knew I didn’t like him before, but now, betraying her the way he has? He is going to regret it for as long as I see fit to let him live. As I work my way down the spiral, stone staircase I try to calm my temper. The boy cared for her, I’m sure of it, so there has to have been some reason for his betrayal, not that I can think of anything worthy enough to betray someone you love. I reach the bottom of the staircase and look down the long stone corridor. It was created to intimidate, that much is obvious, the damp grey space is dimly lit by torches through its entirety. It’s cold and bleak, and each footstep echoes creating the sound of four steps for each one taken. I take a deep breath and try not to imagine the sort of place that Addie is in right now, I need a clear head before I go in there. God Dammit! Why wasn’t I here? The guilt washes over me again. Fuck it. This son of a bitch isn’t going to know what’s hit him.