“See, he understands,” Wesley murmured, rubbing my muscles deeper. My head dropped forward and I had to fight the urge to drool.
“Of course I do,” Marshall laughed. “I will help you the best that I can.”
“Thank you, Marshall. I knew I could count on you,” I said to the boy.
“It’s going to be weird,” he said softly.
“What is?” I asked as I closed my eyes and enjoyed the soothing muscle massage.
“Being on this side. Going against those people who I knew,” Marshall sighed. “I suppose there is a first time for anything.”
“Try not to concern yourself with who you will be facing,” I suggested.
“You know, if she attacks in the night, it might be best to get the vamps hydrated. If it’s hard for them to fight now, imagine how it’s going to be if they are hungry,” Marshall suggested.
I closed my eyes and sighed. The boy was right.
“All right, you two get me six barrels of water and a bag of cups. Let’s get this over with.” I pushed myself to the end of the bed and let out one last heave. So much for being rested.
Chapter Ten: Preparations
“All right.” I clapped my hands together as the hungry vampires looked at me with apprehension. They had noticed the water that had been delivered and looked at it, confused.
“You do realize that isn’t going to do anything for us?” one of the windvamps said, his face contorted oddly as he looked inside the water barrel.
“Dude, just hush. Trust her,” Paul said, coming up to the front of the room, his head held high. “If it wasn’t for her I would have smoked today.”
“Thank you,” I said as Wesley started setting up plastic solo cups on the table in the corner. I had reserved the back entertainment room as soon as I had come up with the plan.
Marshall smiled as I placed my hands around the barrel and closed my eyes. I knew that I could get four barrels out with little to no problem. However, turning six could turn out to be slightly problematic. I had to do it, they were counting on me.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please do not rush the warden once she has completed her work,” Marshall said. I could hear the fear of being caught in a stampede in his voice.
I muffled a laugh and went back to concentrating. I heard gasps and cries throughout the room as the barrel changed. Opening my eyes, I saw that all six barrels had changed at once. I looked around, confused, till I saw my mother standing in the doorway. She flashed me a smile and motioned for me to exit the room before the ravenous vampires attacked.
“My children, please remain calm. We will get everyone fed in time, do not worry,” I heard Edmund say as I left the room to stand across from my mother.
“How do you think I was feeding them before you came into your power? Only thing is I did it a bit differently.” She nodded at the barrels. “That gives them something to fight over. I individually portioned out what they needed. Instead of using tap water I tend to use the rain barrels if they are full. If they aren’t, it only takes one call to Krista and we fill them.”
“You had a whole blood production company and I didn’t even know it.” I shook my head. “I thought that it was Rose that had the water-to-blood gift.”
“She could do it, I mean the girl does blood rain. People weren’t too happy when she did that though. She’s been trying to tap into her mother’s gifts, but, well, Mona had some hard ones to come by.” My mother laughed to herself. “Let Edmund take it from there. You have proven yourself.”
I turned to leave when I heard a throat clear behind me. I turned and Edmund was staring at me with a knowing look on his face. He reached down and grasped my cheeks, planting the most delicate of kisses on my lips. I nearly passed out as the intensity of it.
“You,” he winked. “I have been waiting for you to return.”
“Yeah,” I said breathless. He smiled at me, letting my face go. I stood there looking after him as he walked back into the room to keep the peace.
“What was that all about?” my mother asked, grabbing me by the arm and twisting me around to face her.
“Do what?” I looked at her, dreamy-eyed until the spell wore off. “Long story.”
“You are already starting to sound like Shawn,” my mother groaned as she led me away from the room and further into the barn house. “Has he told you the story of him, a girl, and a rooster? It’s quite interesting.”
“I do not follow,” I said, crunching my eyebrows together and looking at her, confused.
“Of course not.” She shook her head and stopped out of earshot of anyone else.
“Listen, your father and I know what is going on around here. We know that you and Wesley have started to spend more time together.” She sounded nervous about this conversation.
“It’s been a day,” I said, my throat getting dry.
“It’s not just that. You two are drawn to each other. You are the spark, he is the moth.” It sounded like she wanted to say something but was dancing around it.
“Just say it, Mom,” I demanded, crossing my arms.
“Be careful. He’s not the same boy he was when he disappeared. There have been substantial changes. There will be more of them as the different bloodlines in him fight for dominance.” She was seriously warning me about him being different? I was avoiding being alone with him because he looked like my Wesley, smelled like my Wesley, and even sent the same spark through my body like my Wesley. But my Wesley was dead. His body was left somewhere in New Mexico.
“I think I am well aware of the changes that are in him,” I said, tapping my foot. “Is that why you pulled me away? To give me a pep talk?” I asked as she looked back at me, confused.
“We want you to be careful,” she said softly, putting her hands on my shoulders and rubbing them in that mom fashion.
“I think Wesley is the last thing you should be worried about.” I laughed softly to myself.
“Aaron is gone, Dawn. If you are holding out for a chance to make amends with him it isn’t going to happen.” Why did she just jump on that train? I wasn’t even thinking about Aaron.
“We said our farewells,” I said candidly, hoping she didn’t hear anything in my voice.
“Yes I heard about your farewells,” my mother grumbled, pushing it aside. “He is your brother-in-arms now. On the battlefield, he will be there to protect you. Just like Adam.”
“Yeah, Adam,” I said longingly. My best friend hadn’t said more than twenty sentences to me since I got back. He wouldn’t even look at me. If I entered the room either he walked to the other side or he exited completely.
“I know something is going on there. I don’t know if it’s the fact that he still blames Wesley for what happened to you last December or if there is something totally different happening.” My mother shrugged.
“I think it’s a little bit of both. He blames Wesley for the pain that I went through. Yet he also has other issues going on right now.” I tried to remain off the subject of Adam. We had come this far without my parents knowing of our short tryst in Dallas two months earlier.
“Well, you will figure it out,” she said, looking to her right. I could tell by the look on her face that someone was approaching. It was either Wesley or she just wasn’t happy to see my dad for once. “You kids have fun. Get some rest, big day tomorrow.”
“Good night Mrs. Weathers,” Wesley said as he advanced.
“Wesley, if I have to tell you again it’s Angie I’m going to hang you by your toes from the top of the barn,” my mother threatened before she patted him on the shoulder and walked away.
“I figured she wouldn’t want me calling her that, all things considered,” he said, watching her walk off.
“My mother doesn’t hold grudges. Let’s not forget she loved your mother,” I said softly.
“My mother was a stellar woman,” he admitted, and I saw the sensitive boy whom I fell in love with for a split seco
nd. I reached out and touched his face hesitantly.
“Sometimes I forget how beautiful you are,” I said, my voice catching in my throat. Waves of emotion began to run through me and I found myself longing for him to wrap his arms around me.
“Sometimes I forget how utterly strong you are,” he said softly, putting his forehead to mine. “I’m sorry for all of this.”
“What do you have to be sorry about?” I asked, closing my eyes.
“If only I had taken my time and not rushed into being with you maybe this could have all been avoided,” he said, and I felt that he meant it.
“This would have happened whether we were involved or not.” I repeated the words I had heard before. This wasn’t our fault.
“We wouldn’t know.” He laughed softly and I felt the boy I knew slip away as another part of him took over.
“So now what?” I asked, pulling my face away from his. He looked lost but shoved the expression to one side, replacing it with a crooked smile.
“This could be our last night together,” he said softly.
“Get your mind out of the gutter for ten minutes at least,” I groaned, smacking him on the shoulder playfully.
***
I returned to my room not long after I kindly declined his offer to spend what could have been our last night in each other’s arms. Not that it didn’t sound like a lovely idea. I just couldn’t. It didn’t feel right. Things were already muddied in my head. I thought of Aaron and wondered if he was thinking of me. How easily I had pushed him aside for my own selfish reasons, only to find myself thinking of him now.
I’m sure that my mother had called and told the incubi what had occurred. She was not one to keep something like this to herself. She was going to want reinforcements and backup. She was going to want to make sure that our forces were covered. No holes in the line; a strong group of different bloodlines. I already knew they were tough. They didn’t even want to take me as prisoner.
I remembered the discussion I had overheard in the back of the car while they drove me, bound and gagged, to their secondary camp. Wanting to stop and toss me lifeless from the car. However, the standing orders were that Wesley and I were brought in alive.
I laid down on my bed and stared my ceiling. I wished for sleep to come but I found it hard to find a comfortable position for rest. Not to mention that, when I closed my eyes, I could see the vision of Miranda and I facing off in the blood rain.
Recently my mother had reached out to the world councils to see if similar cases were appearing on other continents. So far Europe and Australia had seen increases in activity, though nothing like what was going on in the States. I supposed that, if you took the world power down, the rest would fall neatly in a line.
Will you just go to sleep? I heard Shawn’s voice in my head and I smiled.
Why are you listening to my thoughts? I laughed to myself.
It’s hard when your angst comes through loud and clear. You did well. You said no to something a month ago you might have said yes to. He was trying to make me feel better about my choice.
I suppose that just fixes everything, doesn’t it? I felt cold all of a sudden.
Listen, the tables have turned. We no longer have the advantage. Trust me, we aren’t the first good guys to have this happen. I could sense Shawn’s annoyance.
All right, big brother. I will go to sleep. I gave in, closing my eyes.
What time is it anyway? I was shocked he didn’t already know.
After midnight, I thought, rubbing my eyes.
In that case, happy birthday. I suddenly felt annoyed. He had baited me and I had fallen into his trap.
Yeah, thanks. I severed the connection and squinted my eyes closed. Rolling on my side I stared at the wall for a moment, purposefully keeping my mind blank. Sleep came about ten minutes later, washing over me and whisking me away to an unknown world.
***
Battle.
It’s hard to explain the smell in the air. It’s a mixture of iron and fresh grass. The sky is dark, though I know it is only midafternoon. I hear the clang of weapons, the screams of the fallen, and the sounds of feet on the soft earth. My sword feels comforting in my hands as I spin it freely.
I can hear the war raging, yet I cannot make out a single face in the blobs of warriors. I stand there spinning, looking for something familiar in the crowd. Then I see her, standing on the other side of the field. Her face is in a scowl, her hands gripping her sword. She is drenched in blood from head to toe. She spots me over the battle and her face contorts.
“Prudence!” she screams at me.
I lift the sword and see myself in the reflection of the blade. Blonde hair, blue eyes circled darkly with black eyeliner. Lowering it I notice that she is running towards me. I step back, ready my sword, when I feel a sharp blast through the side of my head.
I reach up and touch the area where the pain resides, pulling my fingers back. Blood. Her arms wrap around my waist as she takes me to the ground. Her hands are on my face, forcing me to look at her. Her eyes clear and her expression changes as she realizes the trap. I reach my sword up in the air and plunge it through her back but I’m still too late. As I watch her take her last breath I find my own life has ended and the world fades into blackness.
I wake up screaming.
I feel hands. More screams. I claw at them, pulling myself further and further away from them. My room smells moist, like fresh falling rain.
Rain, water, wet, cold, so cold.
“Rose?” I said, my voice strained. I had somehow managed to contort myself into the corner of my bed.
“I heard you scream,” she said softly. I was shocked. Of all the people to come to my aid it was her.
“I’m sorry for waking you.” My heart was pounding and I was still scared; I could still see my life fade before my eyes.
“No, I was already up. Had a dream of my own,” she sounded just as frazzled as I felt.
I softened and freed my legs from the mess of covers and scooted to the center of the bed. I sighed and, putting my face in my hands, felt the moisture of tears on my cheeks.
“I’m too scared to ask,” I said to her, noticing that she hadn’t moved.
Our heads shot up as we heard two identical screams coming from down the stairs. Both of us were on our feet and sprinting to Krista’s room. The door was locked. Rose looked at me, confused.
“Krista never locks her door,” she told me, her eyes flaring to a shade of blue I had never seen before. She turned her focus back to the door. I felt the air turn damp as she shot a wall of ice at the door, shattering it to pieces.
We stepped into the room, ready. What we saw sent a chill up my spine.
“No!” I screamed as John’s image faded quickly, a sinister smile on his pale face.
Wesley and Adam appeared side by side, both of them with sleep in their eyes. Wesley’s hands searched my face and wrapped me in a hug. I fought to get away.
“Krista! Helen!” I screamed.
Adam was already flipping the light switch and I fell to the ground, my hands gripping the carpet. Relief! Huddled together on Krista’s bed were the two wardens. Their eyes stared back at us. Krista’s were gray and Helen’s were black, their wings tucked tightly behind them.
“Did you see him?” I heard Krista’s voice, weak and strained.
“Yes.” I pulled myself to my feet and sprinted to her side, wrapping my arms around both of them. Rose joined us as we all sat on the bed and cried.
“Was that him?” Adam asked. I knew he wasn’t talking to me so I continued to comfort the hysterical girls.
“Yeah,” Wesley said. “But yet it wasn’t.”
“What do you mean?” Helen asked through her raspy breaths.
“It was a projection. He cannot get past the protection spells but he has someone who could project him. He can see everything but cannot touch,” Wesley frowned. “I watched Miranda pull t
his same move with a compound in Arizona. Their protection spells were strong but she was able to figure out the weakest point.”
“Are you saying they are looking for a weak entry?” I asked, running my fingers through Krista’s hair.
“I don’t know,” he said, upset. “I didn’t see this.”
“The visions only come when they want, right? You can’t just touch something and instantly have an image. So how could you possibly know anything about this?” I sighed.
“I could, but I’m not sure.” He ran a hand through his ruffled brown hair. Adam looked at him, bewildered. “When did you get so chiseled, choirboy?”
Adam wrapped his arms around his body and glanced at me, his eyes warming, then turned to Rose as quickly as he could.
“This isn’t going to get easier is it?” I groaned, feeling Krista wrapping her arms around my waist.
“No, I’ve seen too many small towns fall because of this move. It’s not going to stop until she has what she wants,” Wesley explained, his voice strained, his eyes switching between the many colors of his sires.
“What does she want?” Helen stuttered. She was still shaking from the image of John in the room.
“Right now she wants revenge. She wants to watch each of you suffer,” Wesley admitted.
“But we didn’t do anything,” Rose interjected.
“Maybe not you directly, but your forces attacked her base. She’s not going to stop until each of you is dead.” Wesley didn’t like to give this information, that much was evident. Still, he had to, it was the only way the others were going to understand.
“What happened in the mountains, Dawn?” Helen asked as she attempted to calm herself.
“Not good things. It wasn’t puppies and butterflies, it was death and carnage,” I frowned.
“So what do we do now?” Krista asked softly.
I felt for her. The twisted emotions that must have been going through her mind at that moment. Seeing him there, beside her, when she had let him go when his strength had returned. Maybe now she understood that there was nothing that could be done to bring her John back.
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