The Kingdom Journals Complete Series Box Set

by Tricia Copeland

  The room quaked again. “I think we need to get out of here.”

  Alena fit her arm around my back. “Sounds like a good plan.”

  “I can make it.”

  “This is no time to start having an ego. Just because you saved the world doesn’t mean you can walk out of here by yourself. But, if you want, I can get Will to carry you.”

  Another spasm shot through my side as I took a step forward. “No, this works.”

  Another tremor shook the building, and a swoosh of cold wind took out the candles. The witches that could fly took to the air. The rest of us filed out as the rock trembled under us. The stairs seemed endless, and my torso spat blood with every step. The passageways above were empty, and we made our way and onto the lawn.

  Beyond the manicured grass, green orbs lit the meadow. “What’s going on? Did the souls turn green with envy?”

  “I think you need another shot of vampire blood. Those are faeries.”

  “What?” I tried to focus, but shapes blurred.

  “Whoa, big guy.” Will caught me. “Try some of this.”

  He held out a white plastic bottle that we used to store the vampire blood in. I guzzled half of it in on shot. Buzzing of wings caught my attention, and I realized Titania approached.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Hunter, I told you the faeries—” Alena started.

  I slid her hand from around my back and stood upright. Straightening my back caused a burning sensation to shoot through my right side, but I steeled my jaw.

  “You aided our troops?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why would you come help us?”

  “I have a soft spot for teens on a suicide mission.”

  “Teens? How old are you?”

  “Let’s just say I have a couple hundred years on you. I heard the witches were scared. I haven’t ever known the witches to fear anything. I figured if they felt threatened, we could be next.”

  Will motioned to the faeries behind her. “Titania’s soldiers captured a good number of Sonia’s troops with their poison darts.”

  I placed my hand on my chest. “Thank you. We’re in your debt.”

  “There is no debt when we fight for each other.” She held out her hand.

  Locking my palm around her forearm, I smiled. “Until we meet again.”

  “Until we meet again. You know where to find me.”

  “Can’t I get your cell number or something?”

  Titania straightened her jacket. “It will be light soon. You’ll excuse us to take our leave?”

  “Of course.” I dipped my chin to her.

  She bowed and flew away. Her troops followed, and within seconds, the forest was dark.

  A tremor rumbled through the earth beneath us.

  “We have to get farther away.” Alena tugged at my shirt.

  “I can’t believe it’s over.” Camille stared at the dark structure. “Do you think Sonia is dead?”

  “The curse is broken. She is over two thousand years old. I doubt her body survived the loss of those immortal souls.”

  “What of Theron and Thanatos? Can you sense your brother’s presence anymore?” Camille lifted my arm over shoulder.

  “I feel nothing. Not you, not Alena, nothing.”

  Alena hooked her arm under mine. “It’s going to be okay. We’re going to fix you.”

  A huge cracking sound emitted from the castle, and the ground shook. Alena locked her arms around me and jumped. Seconds later, we landed on the road beyond the wall. The towers swayed and crumbled upon themselves. With a roar, the peninsula gave way and fell into the sea.

  We hobbled backward, watching the waves take the thousand-year-old structure. We turned and lumbered to the buses. A few feet from the door, Alena froze.

  “Gregor.” Ducking from my grip, she bolted to the old vampire, flinging her arms around him.

  He picked her up and spun around in a circle. “Oh, it’s good to see family.”

  “Does my mom know?” Alena asked as he set her down.

  “We called your mother. Gregor—” Jacob held out a phone “—you should call Sarita.”

  Will steadied me as I pulled myself up the stairs and into a seat on the bus filled with coven and vampire refugees. They briefed us on Anne’s plan to get everyone home as our caravan snaked through the dark Italian countryside. At the airport, we parked in a hangar filled with tables holding laptops, a staff person at each terminal.

  “We should get you to a hospital.” Alena pointed to the medical team.

  “I’ll be okay. We have to figure out what to do with all these people.” Sharp pains shot through my midsection, and I chuckled. “A witch, a hybrid, and a human sit down at a bar.”

  “Okay, you at least need orange juice.” Alena led me to a stretcher.

  I drank the cool liquid as instructed and let them bandage my side. Then, I swung my legs over the side. “I’m not sitting here like an invalid. These people need help.”

  Making my way to the first desk, I sat down in front of a computer. One by one, we arranged for the vampires to return to their homes. Hours later, I surveyed the empty hangar.

  Seeing Grady approach, I smiled. “You must be happy. Our mission was successful, and both of your children are alive and well.”

  “I have you to thank for that.”

  “We all played a part.”

  “Yours may be just beginning.” Grady motioned to an exit.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Come with me.” He fit his hand under my arm and hoisted me up.

  My chest muscles felt sore, but the shooting pains dissipated. “I think I’m actually healing.”

  Grady opened the door to a crowd of witches. “Michael’s coven, waiting for you to lead them.”

  I shielded my eyes from the rising sun. “What do you mean? My powers are gone. I’m not a witch anymore.”

  “You are by blood. Your birthright is to lead this coven.”

  “Birthrights are archaic. They need to choose their own leaders.”

  “They’ve chosen you.”

  “It can’t be. I don’t know how to lead a coven. I’m not even eighteen. Tell them to go home to their families.”

  “The coven is their family. Without binding leadership, everyone in the coven will lose their powers, and Michael’s line—nay, the whole witch species—will end.”

  “That can’t be right. Why are you telling me this?”

  “It’s true. You know it is. Orm told you without a coven, isolated from other witches, powers fade. If Michael’s coven loses their powers, so will all the other lines. Children born of these witches won’t have access to their heritage. Witches will cease to exist.”

  “Maybe that’s the way it should be. Those who created us were punished for a reason.”

  “What of the balance of nature?”

  “Humanity will balance itself out.”

  “What of Lucifer? You’ve witnessed his power, and now he has Sonia, Thanatos, and Theron. You think they will stop trying to regain what was theirs?”

  “You think Sonia and my brother and father are still alive? This is all too biblical for me right now.”

  “Sonia, Thanatos, and Theron still exist. In what form I am not sure. Are you talking to me about being biblical? The guy who thrust a bone dagger into his chest because he believed it belonged to Adam and should be returned to Adam? This may also help you regain your powers. Don’t you want them back?”

  I shook my head. Part of me missed the feeling of being invincible, capable of anything. Even though I’d tried to deny it, I knew it all along. With Michael’s powers coursing through my being, I could do anything. And I missed the warmth of being one consciousness with Alena and Camille. The loss of that connection felt like someone had ripped a chunk of my soul away. Still, for six hours, I’d sat and arranged flights on a computer, the normal human mundane way everyone else did it. I felt more connected to humanity than I ever had. Did I want
to go be a supernatural being again?

  “The jury is still out on that one.” I clapped my hand on Grady’s shoulder.

  Grady shook his head. “You have a duty to fulfill.”

  “Are you Hunter?” A boy reached out and touched my arm. Warmth radiated from his palm.

  “Who are you?” I focused on a face that couldn’t have been much older than fourteen.

  “Forgive me, but you are Hunter, the one of the trinity? Descended from Adam? I felt it when I touched you.”

  Broadening my shoulders, I held his gaze. “Yes, I am Hunter, one of the trinity of the Children of Light.”

  The boy motioned to me. “It is him.”

  Silence fell over the group, and I cleared my throat. “I can’t imagine the emotions you may be experiencing. The legacy my grandmother, father, and half-brother created is not one that I could support. I’m sorry for my part in the trauma of last night and the decimation of your home and the loss of your leaders. We are all of Michael’s line, but I am not of your coven and have no powers now.”

  A woman stepped forward. “We do not accept that. The boy, he knew who you were. You are of us. We understand that you do not know us but give it a chance. We are like stars hurling through the abyss of space without a true leader.”

  “The vampires have all found transportation home. Come inside and we’ll figure this out.”

  A man stepped forward. “What of us? We were not of the coven of Thanatos. We only joined them because of the betrothal of Marianna and Theron.”

  “What is your name?”

  He raised his chin. “I am Iliad, leader of my coven. We are more than two hundred.”

  I offered him my hand and experienced the same sensation I had with the boy. “You made the covens one, and as it stands now, you are the same. I believe you are their leader now. We can discuss what happens moving forward later.” I stood back and opened the door to the hangar. “Come.”

  Inside, I found Alena, Camille, and Jude huddled over a computer terminal. “Guys, we have to find somewhere for Michael’s coven to stay.”

  “Is it true?” A girl weaved to the front of the group. “Is Theron gone?”

  Puffy red eyes met my gaze. “Yes, he is gone, are you—”

  “I am Marianna. We were engaged. You are his brother, right?”

  Alena wound round the table and wrapped her arms around the girl. Bloody tears pooled in her eyes. “It’s going to be okay. You’re going to be fine. We’ll make sure of it. Your family is here?”

  Alena’s words pricked at my psyche. I knew she felt something for Theron. We hadn’t talked about his loss yet, and I could see that it grieved her. There were so many more things to process from that night, and they swirled in my head. I was human. The curse ended. What of the vampires? What about Lucas?

  “Jude?” A man pushed through the crowd.

  “Dad?” Jude jumped the table and hugged the man.

  We listened as he explained he’d been in the complex before it fell into the sea. He had no memories of the past eight months. The last thing he’d remembered was calling his parents to warn them to get to their secret bunker.

  “I saw you last fall in Sonia’s castle. You appeared to be a willing participant.” Jude paced.

  “I don’t know what to say. I spoke with my father in late August and then found myself in the castle tonight. They must have put a spell on me.”

  “Either that or switched your soul out for another.” Jude balled his palms into fists. “I can’t believe I didn’t realize it.”

  Camille wrapped her hands around Jude’s fist. “There was nothing we could have done.”

  “He’s too strong a witch for them to have switched out his soul in an instant. There would have been some pain, a realization that something was wrong.” Grady shook his head. “It had to be a poison, a spell of some sort. It was probably broken upon Sonia’s death.”

  “We don’t know that she’s dead,” I warned.

  Alena tapped her foot. “Please don’t ruin what we accomplished today. What you sacrificed for.”

  “Sorry.” I hugged her to me.

  “Hunter.” Will motioned for me to join him at a computer monitor. “These witches were loyal to Sonia. How can we know they’re not a threat?”

  I rubbed a hand down my pant leg. “I guess we don’t.”

  “Anne wants to send them to the compound in Mexico until we can figure out what to do.”

  “Hold them hostage? No. We’ll think of a different way.”

  “But what do we do with them now? You trust that all of them will be loyal to you? You said it yourself. Sonia may not be dead. Thanatos and Theron are still a threat even if the sword has been destroyed.”

  “Fine, take them to Mexico. I’ll travel to LA with Alena and Camille and then meet you there.”

  “I think you need to be the one to tell them.”

  “Argh.” I kicked the table leg and winced from the strain on my side. “I hate this.”

  Approaching the group of witches, I called for their attention. Mumblings broke out among the group as I announced the plan. Two white-haired women teetered to me.

  One held out her hand. “I am Anastasia, and this is Guinevere. We are elders of the coven. Guinevere is also a seer of truth. May she take your hand?”

  Why I didn’t hesitate to take Anastasia’s hand, I didn’t know. I shouldn’t have let any of them touch me—the boy, Iliad, or this strange woman. I’d become human again, frail and powerless. I could have been dead in seconds. But no part of me feared them. I trusted that even my human self could sense danger.

  I held my other hand out to Guinevere. She wrapped both her palms around mine. My skin warmed as she closed her eyes. “He is true. The child is pure.”

  Anastasia lifted her palms. “Then it shall be so.”

  Iliad stepped forward. “And I will accept this also then.”

  “Thank you. I do not wish for anything to happen to our people.”

  Illiad studied me. “You mean for the vampires to exterminate us?”

  “That was never an option. That is not how Anne operates. That is not the kind of person she is.”

  “But she is not a person.”

  I straightened my back. “We are all people, some human, some witch, some vampire—”

  “Don’t forget the faeries.” Alena slid her hand in mine.

  Camille stood beside me. “Or any of the other beings of this realm.”

  “And so, it shall be.” Iliad dipped his chin.

  The garage doors opened, and a large jet rolled in. Jacob and Will rolled a staircase to the plane, and I greeted each of the five hundred fifty-two coven members as they approached, trying to commit names and faces to memory.

  Puffy-eyed, Marianna stood last in line. She craned her neck, looking back around the space. “I can’t believe he’s gone. I mean he’s been away before, but this time I can’t feel him. There’s no connection. It’s like he ceased to exist.”

  I reached out and touched her shoulder. “They told you what happened, right? That Lucifer took him?”

  “Yes, but I can’t wrap my brain around it. Lucifer? As in the dark angel that resides in Sheol? A physical body can’t pass to Sheol, so he is dead, right?”

  These were questions I hadn’t let myself ask yet. For as much evil as my father and brother had done, I’d never wanted them dead. I wasn’t ready to deal with that.

  “It’s been a long day. I’ll visit you soon, and we’ll say goodbye together.”

  Huge tears pooled in her eyes. She swiped them away and nodded. Lifting her chin, she ascended the stairs.

  “You did good today.” Alena wrapped her arms around my middle.

  I cringed at the pain rippling through my side.

  “Sorry.” She slid in front of me.

  I hugged her to me and kissed her head. Pushing up on her toes, she pressed her lips to mine.

  “Seriously, we can’t take you guys anywhere!” Camille’s voice
cut into my snippet of paradise. “Our plane is ready.”

  “Be there in a minute.” I glanced over my shoulder and then back to Alena. “I can’t believe it’s over.”

  “It all seems so surreal.” Alena shivered.

  “Are you okay?” I tucked her hair behind her ear and ran my hands down her back. “I know you cared for Theron.”

  “And you must have some major denial going on.”

  “I’m looking forward to seeing my mom and DJ. I’m so sorry. Can you forgive me for leaving you? I shouldn’t have done it. You were right. You always are.”

  She shook her head. “But you’d do it again?”

  I dropped my chin to my chest. “Yes, anything for you. I mean, what if—” I gasped for breath. “What if I’d lost you?”

  Her hand landed on her hip. “Well, because you seem so repentant and super sweet, I’m not going to yell at you today. I’m just glad we’re all okay.”

  She bit her lip, and I took her hands. “But what? What aren’t you saying?”

  “I thought . . . I don’t know.” She rested her forehead on my shoulder. “The curse is broken, and—”

  “Your dad.”

  “Yeah, I thought he might come.”

  Running my hands down her arms, I took her hands. “He will. I don’t think he’s free to roam as he pleases.”

  She wriggled from my embrace and stomped her foot. “See, that’s not even fair. You shouldn’t know more about my father than I do.”

  “Guys!” Camille’s voice sounded over the roaring engine. “This is our plane. We can go home now.”

  “Come on.” Alena pulled me to the plane. “I can’t avoid my mom’s wrath forever.”

  “Why? What did you do?”

  “You think getting away from Chalondra, Orm, and Tyler was easy? I’m pretty sure I’m going to be grounded for a long time.”

  “We have a lot of classes to catch up on.” My head swum at the enormity of work I’d missed. Graduation was in a week. As a witch, maybe I’d be able to pull it off, but human me needed a month at least.

  “Again, you’re exhibiting some major psychological distraction behavior. We can’t think about school right now. Let’s just figure out how to process everything that happened today.” She handed me my backpack.