by Myers, J. L.
“She was to be executed next,” Marcus said with an expression that betrayed no emotion. “But as feared, the guardians did rebel. They rose up, creating a bloodbath—and the woman escaped intact. That fateful day was the beginning of the War of the Races. The day the guardians turned against us and became our sworn enemy.”
Marcus reached out, covering the tremble of my hands with his. I didn’t pull away, his touch somehow easing the uncontrollable shake. “Do you see why you can’t be with him?”
My eyes grew wide. Marcus knew about Ty? I tried to cover my stunned expression while struggling not to hyperventilate. “W-what do you mean?”
Marcus leaned in, his shoulder grazing mine and lips brushing against my ear. “The wolf… It’s the reason you’re here. Isn’t it?”
Instant nausea rippled through my gut. I freed my hands and clutched my tightening stomach, struggling not to gag. Caius would never have revealed such delicate information. There was only one other person here who knew. The ability to control my breathing vanished. I began to hyperventilate. “Kendrick told you?”
“No.” Marcus shook his head, looking irritated. “Your reaction to the story said all I needed to know.”
The room began to spin and my lungs ached with shallow breath. I’d just endangered Ty.
I wanted to run from the library to call and warn him. But Marcus’s hand tightened over mine, keeping me frozen in morbid fear. His eyes rose. “Amelia, I won’t tell anyone.”
I almost choked in disbelief. Then my suspicious mind kicked into overdrive. What would it cost me for him to keep such delicate information? I was a turned vampire, a nobody. I had nothing of value to offer. “Why? What do you want from me?”
Marcus looked wounded, and I questioned his sincerity. “Amelia, it’s not like that.” He ran his tongue over his teeth and sighed. “I’ll keep your secret for one reason and one reason only.”
“And what might that be?”
At my narrowing eyes a thin smile played across Marcus’s pale lips. “Because we share a connection… You felt it too, didn’t you?”
Vulnerability scrawled across his face as I stared at him, stunned. He’d felt it? I forced myself to nod. “I did.”
Marcus released my hands and clenched his jaw. “Just understand the consequences of affiliating with one of theirs. If The Council finds out…” A muscle in his cheek ticked. “History has a way of repeating itself.”
~
The sun beamed down, heating what felt like coarse sand beneath me. I arched up into a sitting position, tucking my knees under my chin. The intensity of a mid-day sun warmed my icy skin, while inside I remained frozen to the bone. The movement of water reached my ears then. It wasn’t the plunging of a waterfall, or the swirl of a river. Instead it was the crushing repetition of rolling waves.
Trying to force the blur of sleep and the blinding light from my eyes, I squinted. The surroundings slowly cleared, like a camera lens coming into focus. Everything around me appeared illuminated. Ocean swells and rocky sand dunes all glowed as though they were a reflection of the sun. A dizzy spell rolled through me and forced my head to tip against my knees. Where was I?
A shadow grew in front of me, striking out the warmth of the sun. “Are you okay?”
Forcing my face up with my hands, I met a familiar face. “Ty!” I jumped to my feet and instantly wished I hadn’t. Blood rushed to my head and I staggered, threatening to crumble.
Ty caught my arm before I fell, and lowered me back to the blistering sand. Leaning into his body, I rested my head against his chest. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.” I peered up into his face, which appeared gripped with worry. “I just feel…cold.”
The intense sphere behind Ty created a heavenly glow around his tan body. My breath caught in my throat. He was the picture of perfection, an angel cast down from heaven.
Ty wrapped a strong arm around me, rubbing the chilled skin of my bare arm. His voice was soothing. “Tell me about your day.”
I thought back, but my brain felt like it was packed with sludge. All I could see were foggy snippets of events. I rubbed at my temples.
The concern in Ty’s voice grew. “You can’t remember?”
When I thought harder, my brain throbbed against my skull. “I met a…vampire.” The pieces of my memory slipped in and out of focus, a puzzle refusing to come together. I could see the book-lined walls of the library. There I had met a guy for the very first time. Marcus. I scanned my memory again, trying to recall the rest of the day. What else happened? When did I go to sleep? The wind was knocked from my lungs as the terrifying story Marcus had told me resurfaced. “The War of the Races,” I choked out.
Ty’s comforting hand ceased traveling across my arm. “Ah.”
Surprise caused me to curve. Ty was staring with vacant eyes at crashing waves on the sandy shore. “You’ve heard of it?”
Ty nodded, but there was pain in his expression. He was clearly trying to hide it, but I could see that it cut deep. “A war, forged out of love…”
Something triggered within me. His reaction was more than just recalling the bloody tale of how our races had become mortal enemies. It was deeply personal. “Ty, what aren’t you telling me?”
Ty’s chest rose and fell with a deep sigh. “You’re not gonna like this. And I wasn’t keeping it from you. We just…” He broke off and shook his head. “The lycan that caused the revolt… She was my great, great, grandmother.”
My jaw dropped and my mouth felt like it was stuffed with cotton wool. “You’re part…vampire?”
“Barely…” A thin smile tugged at Ty’s lips, returning some of the animation to his expression. “The lycanthrope mutation is more prominent in a hybrid. So each generation has diluted that part of us. Well, so long as we partner another lycan.”
I thought of the family portrait in the dining room at Ty’s house. The woman in the picture, his mother, had in almost every way resembled a werewolf. Her hair had been raven black and her skin as tan as Ty’s. There had been only one distinct difference: her eyes. They hadn’t been reminiscent of lycans or even vampires. They had been a marrying swirl of green, blue, gold and silver. The varying shades of a sun-speckled ocean.
“The portrait. Your mother was part vampire.” Ty nodded, but there was one part of this revelation that didn’t quite add up. “Then why is your father so against me, against us?”
“Because…” Ty’s gaze returned to the crashing waves. “My mother didn’t die of natural causes, or through an unavoidable accident. She was hunted down for being a half-cast, and murdered. Her killers were vampires.”
I groaned. “No wonder your father hates me so much. I’m not just his sworn enemy, I…” I broke off at the tightening of my chest. It felt like my ribs were strapped by solid metal plates pulling tighter by the second. Ty was part vampire, maybe only a small part, but still what he called a half-cast. Was he already at risk of being hunted like his mother? Was being with me only further endangering him? I understood then why Ty’s father feared me—maybe even more than he hated me. I was a risk of history repeating. Marcus had said the words so plainly, but I hadn’t understood their magnitude. Now I couldn’t ignore it. I curled my arms around Ty, pressing myself against him. “Ty, I would give anything to be with you. But…”
As I tried to rise, to move away, Ty’s arms tightened around me. “Amelia, it is not up to you to save me. And I would rather die a thousand deaths, than live without you.” Skillet’s song ‘Never Surrender’ rose in the sea breeze, as if to prove the depth of his feelings. “But if you don’t feel the same…”
With a quick raised finger to Ty’s lips, I stilled his words. “I do. But I can’t risk you, Ty. I won’t.”
“You’re not,” Ty said sounding a little exasperated. “With or without you I’m already on the wanted list. I may have so little vampire in me that I don’t even require blood for sustenance, but that doesn’t matter. I’m stronger than either race, a threat.”
At my stubborn look, Ty went on. “Look, it wasn’t royals who took my mother’s life. And the War of the Races was centuries ago. Things have changed a lot since then. The wolves are their own people now. We only interfere with vampire business when your elders don’t take action. And you’re not a royal, Amelia. You may not be entirely free to make your own choices, yet. But they can’t harm either of us for being together.”
A chill gripped my spine, liquefying my insides. Madam Rosalie’s words rang in my ears. He will alter the path of your life. Deliver you unto danger. You must accept the light. It’s the only way to save him.
Danger, light… What does it all mean? A wave of fear pierced my heart, one that I tried to ignore. She was nuts. It means nothing. My arms coiled around Ty. There was one thing I knew for sure—whether or not my fears were real, I wasn’t strong enough to let him go. “I hope you’re right.”
~
The phone rang, tearing me from the dreamscape and Ty. I fumbled in the dark for the receiver and knocked it to the ground. “Shit!” With my eyes refusing to focus against the room’s darkness, I searched the ground blindly. Finally my fingers grazed the phone. “Sorry, hello.”
“Excuse me, Miss Lamont. Lord Caius Bathory requests your company for dinner,” a woman advised before the line went dead.
My vision cleared as I adjusted to the dark shadows of my room. I peered at the antique clock beside the bed. It was already 4AM. The vampire day was coming to a close. Where had the hours gone? I rubbed at my forehead. Somehow I had lost the remainder of the previous day. I still couldn’t recall anything after my tutoring session with Marcus. Any recollection of going to sleep didn’t exist. And I couldn’t understand why I had only just woken now, more than a day since my last memories.
A loud gurgling sounded as my insides squeezed with the nausea of being totally empty. Apparently I was starving. With Uncle Caius waiting, I tried to push my memory concerns to the back of my mind. I threw on the discarded clothes that lay across the foot of my bed. They were the same jeans and t-shirt I had worn two days ago. When I darted into the bathroom to splash cold water over my face, something caught my eye. It was a packet of triple choc biscuits and another note: I miss you. Unmoved and starving, I scoffed a few biscuits then ran out the door.
Downstairs, the smell of delicious food hung in the air. It made my stomach groan with desperate hunger. With a single knock, I entered Caius’s office to see a platter overflowing with colorful food. Caius peered up from behind his desk, dressed formally in a sharp, black suit. He rocked back in his leather-padded chair.
I took the seat opposite my uncle. “Good evening, Uncle Caius.”
He smiled, causing the lines of his middle-aged face to crease. “Roast pork, compliments of our chefs.”
There were cuts of pink meat, roasted vegetables and applesauce with crackling on the side. The sight made my mouth water. “It’s looks amazing.” I filled my plate with hungry eyes and began eating without pause.
Caius chuckled quietly, and I glanced up to meet his watching gaze. “My dear, you would think we had been starving you.”
Self-conscious, I slowed my eating to an acceptable pace. “Sorry,” I managed between bites. “I forgot to eat lunch.” And now I’m lying. But how could I explain missing more than a whole day? Anxiety seized my filling stomach. Does he know I missed my tutor today?
Caius motioned to the goblet waiting beside my plate with an instructive nod. It was made from solid brass and encrusted with sparkling, multicolored jewels. “A drink should help wash it all down. Though it is a rare drop, so savor it, my dear.”
Overwhelming thirst quelled my anxiety with a deep bodily need that I couldn’t ignore. When did I last drink blood? I grasped the goblet in both hands, absently noticing the dark blue veins that ran up my arms. A warming against my chest caused me to pause. My eyes glided down to the amethyst pendant. Why am I still wearing this stupid thing? Ignoring the warmth, my mouth watered with expectation. I raised the cool edge of the jewel-encrusted cup to my lips, taking a long, slow sip. A rich, metallic taste exploded on my tongue. It coated the walls of my mouth and throat. It felt as though the blood was absorbing straight through the soft flesh of my mouth. With an uncontrollable cough, I slammed the goblet back down on the desk. Ice-cold tingles followed, cascading down my body.
Caius chuckled. “I do forget how rich this blood is.” He took a sip from his own goblet. “My senses have grown accustomed to its effects, as yours soon will too.” He nodded back to my drink with raised brows.
Obediently, I picked up the cup and took another tiny sip. I braced myself as the same cold-metallic taste coated my mouth, and iced tingles gripped my body. My throat constricted as I fought the need to cough. “What kind of blood it that?” I choked out.
Caius paused between mouthfuls, arching one eyebrow. “Ancient vampire blood.” When my eyes grew wide, imagining royals slaughtered for their rich blood, Caius laughed. “Amelia, we are not barbarians. Centuries ago, Pure Bloods bottled their own blood and stored it to age like a fine wine. Some of us still do today.”
A fragmented memory that I couldn’t quite grasp teased the corners of my mind. Ancient vampire blood… My brain began to pulse against my skull. Where have I heard that before? A question formed on my lips. “Why would we drink another vampire’s blood?”
Caius relaxed back into his office chair, regarding me with narrowed eyes. “I thought Marcus would have already schooled you in this.”
Marcus. My pulse rose. I tugged harder at my memories. Still I couldn’t recall a thing Marcus had taught me. I could only remember his face. It had been ageless and still somehow mature beyond his seventeen years. Why couldn’t I remember?
“Vampire blood,” Caius went on, “especially a Pure Blood’s, holds healing properties. It helps rejuvenate, and in centuries past was used to assist the healing of mortally injured guardians.”
My stomach turned, threatening to crawl up my throat. Guardians? A rush of words, followed by a gruesome fiery image, spun through my mind. My heartbeat took off. The War of the Races. The werewolf and vampire lovers… In that moment, I recalled the entire grisly tale and my following dreamscape with Ty. How had I forgotten?
“Is everything alright, my dear?” Caius’s voice shook me. “Did you not find your tutor lessons informative?” He forked a piece of pumpkin, vibrant-blue eyes watching me intently.
I swallowed, pushing down my rising stomach. “I did…” I think. “There’s just so much to learn. I guess I’m a bit…overwhelmed.”
“Well, you still have many lifetimes ahead of you.” He collected a huge, diamond-cut paperweight from his desk, passing it from hand to hand. The solid crystal caught the desk lamp’s light, reflecting a flash of brilliant white. “Now, I would like to further discuss the situation that brings you here.”
My heart sank and my memory issues became a distant second thought. Shit! I had gotten off light on arriving. Still I knew this had to come up sooner or later.
“Amelia, my dear, you must understand that your affiliation with that creature cannot continue,” Caius declared. His tone was level and devoid of the disgust my mom and Kendrick had displayed. “He will die before you’ve even lived out a tenth of your life.”
My lips moved without permission. “I understand that. But I love him.”
My uncle’s jaw tensed, the vein across his temple throbbing. He took a deep, steadying breath. “I understand how you feel, Amelia. Once upon a time, I too was in love. Though you must understand that love does not come without sacrifices.”
“You were in love?” In all my life I’d never seen Caius even look at a woman. Well, apart from Mom. But that was different. “With who? What happened?”
Uncle Caius’s eyes dropped. “I would rather not reminisce.” He sighed, tilting his face up. “Amelia, please consider this. Saying goodbye to that boy now seems unbearable. But how much more destroying will it be when you lose him, forever? When nature takes its cou
rse and he grows frail with age while you do not. Will you be able to stand at his side? When the time comes, will you have the strength to watch him die?”
There was no response I could offer to my uncle’s question. He didn’t appear to expect one. Unable to eat anymore, I pushed my plate away. The reality of one day having to watch Ty die filled me with uncertainty and a dark-seeded dread. My heart squeezed so tight that I struggled to breathe through the pain. How can I watch him die? I rose to my feet, unable to look my uncle in the eye. “I need some time to think.”
“Of course.” But as I reached the door, Uncle Caius cleared his throat, “One more thing, Amelia.” I turned to view my uncle’s steady expression, his eyes set on mine. “I understand that your friendship with Kendrick is still strained, though you must realize his actions were out of concern for you. In any case, I know you will mend and strengthen your relationship. You will become even closer than you were before.”
Having barely heard my uncle’s words, I raced up to my room. I needed to talk to Ty and hear the certainty of his deep voice. My limbs felt weak though, inexplicably unstable. I tripped on the last stone stair to the second floor. But that didn’t slow me down. I flew through my room’s door and grasped my iPhone from the bedside table. The phone’s incessant ringing as I held it pressed against my ear made my heart squeeze tighter. I threw my hand into the bedside drawer and pulled out a mint biscuit, chomping into it. Please pick-up. Disquiet rose up my throat as I stared out into the darkness beyond the window. A dusting of ice-flakes fell, settling on the outer rail and sill.
A gravelly voice answered. “Amelia?”
Breath escaped my lungs and my tongue tied up with biscuit crumbs.
“Do you know it’s only five in the morning here?”
“Sorry,” I croaked, swallowing to find my voice. Sweat dampened my palms and I swiped them against my jeans. “I forgot, I just…I had to hear your voice.”
“Amelia, what’s happened?” Worry tainted Ty’s words. “Is everything okay?”
“I just…” Unsure of what I actually wanted to say, I closed my eyes. The image of Ty frail and struggling through his last, dying breaths, flashed across my eyelids.
