Anomaly

by K. A. Tucker

  “And I’m sure you never told anyone about that, did you, my dear Sofie? You would have lost their attention. It would distract them from your big plan to save the world. But perhaps, if you had told them, then it would have been harder for me to do this—” The screen suddenly switched to a new scene—a window overlooking the city skyline. The angle rotated, taking in desks, lamps, and filing cabinets.

  Until it settled on a female with blond ringlets, hunched over in a chair.

  “Amelie!” Julian cried out. The camera zoomed in on her limp body, her limbs coiled in a strand of merth, tied upright to the chair by regular rope.

  Sounds of despair filled my ears, my suspicions proven true. Viggo had killed Galen. Viggo had captured Amelie. And Jonah must have been helping him because there was no other way he’d manage with that silver cord.

  I guess Jonah had since worn out his use.

  The camera angle moved back to Viggo. “To be fair, I was trying to get my hands on her brother. You know, because I figured that would hurt the treacherous little Evie the most.”

  Oh no …

  “I don’t know how you managed to revive her, my dearest Sofie. After all, I felt her little bones snap like twigs. But you obviously must have. I figured that out quickly. There’s no way you would care about fledglings if your little obsession had died like she should have.”

  Viggo’s shoes scuffed along the floor as he paced, the camera still on him. “I almost had him in the blood cellar. Unfortunately, I missed my opportunity by mere seconds.”

  Unease roiled inside me. I knew it! I had felt his presence. Why had I dismissed my senses so quickly? I should’ve burned the rest of the building down. Burned him on the spot.

  “I have to thank Mage for giving me the foresight to your plan, actually,” he said, the twinkle in his eye enough to make me want to destroy the screen with a bolt of fire. “I remembered her telling me once that had she been able to do it over again, she would’ve dropped a bomb on the city that bred the beginnings of the demise. So, it was only common sense that she would counsel you, Sofie, on that strategy. And of course you would listen because you are a weak, uncreative leader who cannot make her own choices.”

  Shifting the camera again, Viggo leaned over Amelie’s shoulder, both of their faces in the screen, as if about to take a close-up. Amelie’s emerald eyes stared back at us, filled with terror.

  My stomach clenched.

  “Would you go through with it, if the beloved Amelie’s life was at stake? For sure you suspected me all along, Sofie.” Again, the eyes around me weighed upon my conscience. Viggo turned to Amelie. “Don’t you wonder? Should we find out?” He paused, as if waiting for an answer. “Yes, let’s find out, shall we? We’ll leave you here, in this Manhattan office building.”

  Another gasp sounded, this one Julian’s.

  Viggo planted an amiable kiss on her cheek and then stood, patting her shoulder. “If Sofie doesn’t go through with it, then here’s the address. You can come get her.” He captured a plaque on the wall with the broker firm’s address on it. “And if that vixen Mage manages to whisper sweet nothings of destruction in Sofie’s ear and she goes through with it, then, well …” The camera took one last shot of Amelie. “Say goodbye to this beautiful little face, folks. I figure the nuke will be coming from the Atlantic. Maybe Amelie will get to see its approach.”

  Fiona moaned behind me but I couldn’t pry my eyes away from the pretty little vampiress in the chair, my own heart—having held onto a shred of hope—now breaking. We had our answer. Isaac had unleashed a sizeable bomb on New York City. Manhattan was at the epicenter.

  Amelie would never have survived the blast of fire.

  The screen changed to a scene I recognized. Firefighters battled flames spurting out from the gaping hole in Second Avenue, shouting about the heat and the fire’s resilience. I knew it was resilient. It was my fire and it would burn for hours.

  “It’s a little hot here, don’t you think?” Viggo’s voice called out in the near background. The camera angle turned to take in a blond, wide-eyed Kait, a metal rod through her chest, sapping her of her fight. “Let’s make this quick!” Without further preamble, Viggo shoved Kait’s body off the edge. We watched in horror as she tumbled into the flames.

  The screen cut over as Lilly’s scream echoed through the dark, empty mine.

  “And, if Sofie wasn’t such a deceptive, secretive creature and had warned you that I was near, it certainly would have been harder for me to do this,” Viggo called out as the camera panned over the scene in the mine. It couldn’t have been taken that long ago. The wolves lay silent, already dispatched. Cecile and Brian lay on the ground, their arms coiled in merth.

  Mage hissed as we watched Jonah appear on camera, holding a red tank over the two fledglings. The mutant poured gasoline over them, even smiling as he struck the match on the stone wall and tossed it carelessly. The two burst into flames.

  “Why, thank you, Jonah!” Viggo’s blue eyes suddenly appeared again, dancing with vicious delight. “He’s been a real help. Mage, you trained him well. And for that … my gift to you.” The camera jostled slightly and when it came into focus again, it was on a gloved hand holding out a heart, Jonah’s body in a heap in the peripherals. He tossed the heart into the fire.

  “But my biggest thank-you of all is to whoever left the bag with the GPS tracker here.” My insides churned with dread as the camera captured a form with long, curly brown hair and olive eyes. Veronique, bound by merth and curled in a ball. “I knew I’d get to her eventually. I just didn’t think it’d be this easy.”

  Caden hung his head, his jaw clenching against the realization that, by leaving the knapsack in the mine, he’d led Viggo straight here.

  “I’m sorry, dear old friend.” That teeth-grinding smile was meant for Mortimer who, by the way his eyes squeezed shut, had already watched the entire video. “I was never a gracious loser. I figure, with enough time, she’ll come around.”

  Viggo set the tablet down, angling it to capture him approaching Veronique. With a long stick, he tore off the merth, latching on to her arm before she had a chance to run. She struggled, twisting and turning, kicking at him, but he held tight. “Now, now, Vee. You’ve seen what I’ll do to get to you. Don’t put up a fight now. It won’t end well for you, or anyone else. Do you want to see any more of your friends hurt?”

  What little I could see of her face, my poor sister was playing the scenarios in her head and quickly deduced that she couldn’t win. Slowly she rose to her feet. We watched in silence as Viggo slipped an arm around her waist. Her shoulders pulled in as she recoiled. He didn’t seem to mind, leaning in to lay a long, lingering kiss on her mouth. Mortimer looked like he may be ill.

  “Take care, all of you,” Viggo purred, so proud of himself. “If you haven’t figured this out, you’re better off staying as far away from Sofie as possible. She can’t be trusted with anything. Be smart and break whatever allegiances you made with her. Save yourselves before she gets you killed.” His face suddenly morphed from the façade of a jovial man to show the true demon beneath, full of raw loathing.

  “And Evangeline …” A chill ran down my back at the sound of her name on his lips. “I had hoped to see you here. Where, oh where did Sofie hide you?” Viggo winked at the camera. “Don’t worry. I haven’t forgotten how instrumental you were in helping Veronique make her choice. Or how you betrayed me. Don’t think I’ll forget that. Soon, I’ll make sure you pay. Until later … Caden.” With that, Viggo gave Veronique a light tug and walked leisurely down the tunnel as if out for a night’s stroll on a sidewalk, until they disappeared from sight.

  Mortimer launched the tablet at the rock wall. Plastic and metal exploded in every direction. “So, Veronique is just … gone!” He screamed. “After everything we’ve been through, we led him right to her!” A pause and then, “What do you have up your sleeve that we aren’t aware of? Another wraith? More tribal men?”

  For o
nce, I wished I had a secret to share. But I didn’t. “Nothing. I have nothing.”

  “Then find something,” he growled. “Fix this, Sofie! Find her! Cast a spell, ask the Fates, I don’t care!”

  I laughed bitterly. Ask the Fates. That was funny. “I will not be casting any more causal enchantments. Ever. It does nothing but feed their entertainment.”

  “Then there is no reason to remain with you any longer.” The words rattled in my chest, the depth of them somehow cutting.

  Mortimer vanished.

  “At least she’s not dead.” The hollowness in Julian’s words was as opposite as one could get to Mortimer. I didn’t have to look at him to see agony written across his face, an everlasting, raw pain that he would carry for decades. Centuries, even. I knew firsthand what it felt like.

  I’m sure Julian had memorized that address. I’m sure he would be running back into the city as soon as the flames died down, a shred of hope keeping him going as he searched for her.

  He wouldn’t find her, though, I was certain.

  Because I had killed her.

  Chapter Fifteen – Evangeline

  I didn’t know what to do, where to turn. Did I drop to the ground to hug my friend, crumpled in a heap after learning that the girl who he would’ve spent eternity with—literally—was dead? Did I wrap my arms around Caden, who had just lost his sister, so distraught that he accused me of scheming against him? Did I go to Fiona, whose legs wobbled as she leaned against an equally somber Bishop, trying to come to terms with the loss of their best friend of over seven hundred years?

  Or did I curl up into a little ball and nurse my own suffering? Though so much had happened, the night that I dove into the icy waters to pull Amelie from certain death remained fresh in my mind. I may not have been a long-standing fixture in Amelie’s life, but she had become an indispensable part of mine.

  A part that Viggo had torn away. A man who despised me.

  It didn’t end there, though. If what we’d gone through with Bishop earlier was any indication, I’d just lost Julian as well. Still, I couldn’t decide if those losses were more upsetting than Sofie decimating my trust in her judgment. How much of this could’ve been avoided if Sofie had kept her promise? If she’d been honest from the start, we could’ve been more cautious of our surroundings.

  Instead, Sofie unwittingly led us right into Viggo’s trap.

  The decision of what to focus on was made for me when Julian suddenly bolted, disappearing down the tunnel. I knew exactly where he was going. Everyone knew. None of us would ever forget the Manhattan brokerage firm’s address.

  But the city would be in a crippling toxic state. Though I was not intimately familiar with the effects of a nuclear bomb, I could guess that what was left was sure to challenge Julian’s healing capabilities for at least a few days.

  He’d never make it all the way.

  I ran down the tunnel after him, but he was fast. Faster than me. I’d never catch him.

  I could feel Caden’s presence at my back as I tailed Julian a mile through the mine, over rickety cart tracks, through a half-submerged spot, all the way until a faint light appeared at the tunnel’s exit.

  “Julian! Stop!” I shrieked, wanting him to stay with us, sure that once he escaped the mine, he was as good as gone.

  To my surprise, he stopped.

  I almost stumbled to slow down before I plowed into his back. He didn’t turn, he didn’t acknowledge me. He simply stopped.

  “Julian …”

  “She might have gotten out.”

  I wanted to agree with him. But the sooner we faced reality, the better for all of us. “I’m so sorry, Julian.”

  His head dipped. “I wish I’d never met her.”

  “You don’t mean that.”

  After a pause. “I know. I don’t. It’s just …” His voice cracked. “It hurts so much. I didn’t know it could hurt this much.”

  Of all of us, Julian had lost the most. First his parents—two shameless criminals who deserved it, but nonetheless—and then his sister, Valentina, whose only mistake was stepping foot into the atrium, giving the witch Ursula a chance to possess her body.

  And now, Amelie.

  Caden stood silently behind me as I reached out to wrap my arms around Julian’s sides, folding my hands together at his chest. Whatever I was feeling myself was no doubt nothing compared to the sickness churning inside my friend right now. So acute, my body hummed with his devastation. Like a dark rot coursing through my limbs, I wanted to stem the flow to keep it from poisoning any more. Reroute it until it folded into itself and vanished.

  I wanted to heal Julian.

  That same energy deep within my core since my transformation bubbled and roiled with anticipation, the same quiet energy that came to life with Dixon and with that little boy, now sparked again.

  I let it consume me, intrinsically knowing that it was the right thing to do.

  I visualized that agony in Julian shrinking, shying away from me like a cockroach skitters with a beam of light to hide within the recesses. To remain out of sight. Out of mind.

  I stood in silence, my arms still around him, my head resting against his shoulder blade, feeling the tension slide from his body.

  “What …” Julian’s voice drifted off as he turned to me. “What did you do to me?”

  “I think I just … healed you?” Even saying the words felt impossible.

  Behind me, Caden muttered faintly. “What?” I was so in tune with my own thoughts, I pushed his voice out. I had just healed Julian. It wasn’t enough that I could heal physical wounds. I could rescue people from the crippling emotional heartache too! Even Sofie wasn’t capable of doing that! I knew because she’d tried for Bishop and ended up having to rely on the Fates. That had proven disastrous.

  How was I doing this!

  “I think you did. I mean,” Julian paused, his eyes squinting, “I still know she’s gone. I still miss her but …,” he inhaled deeply and then exhaled, “that agonizing pain just disappeared.” Pausing again, his face twisted with displeasure. “I’m supposed to suffer. This is like I don’t—”

  “But we all know you do, Julian,” I interrupted him. “Remember Bishop and how distraught he was after? It was dangerous for him to be in that state. Just as it’s dangerous for you to be in that state right now. We need you to keep it together, and if that means using magic—” I gasped at my own words.

  Magic. That’s what this had to be. Of course it was! But how? And why would the Fates give me magic? What were they up to?

  A strong hand around my bicep tugged me back until I was facing a stern-looking Caden. “The compelling is one thing but this … What the hell is going on, Evie?”

  “Magic.” How else did I explain it? With the facts. I described the events of the night. When I was finished, Caden stared blankly at me.

  And then he swore under his breath.

  “What?”

  He shook his head. “Why? Why would the Fates give you this kind of magic?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “What does this mean?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Is it going to hurt you somehow?”

  “I don’t know!” I yelled. I was sure they were all rhetorical because I would have no better idea what the fates were up to than Caden would. Still, knowing there was something off was one thing. Having someone else fuss about it was entirely different.

  Caden slid down the wall to the floor, his hands pushed through his hair. “I’m sorry. It’s just … Amelie’s gone. I can’t lose you too.”

  She was. And if Viggo had reached his first target—Caden—then I would be the one who wanted to die. I would never admit it to anyone, but a part of me felt such relief—and then near-crippling guilt.

  But Caden needed my attention now. Turning to Julian, I took his hand and said very clearly, “You can’t go running off. You need to stay here.”

  “I won’t,” he promised. “
For now anyway.” I couldn’t tell if I’d just compelled him to say that or if it was of his own volition, but I believed him. He was calmer. Stable. Enough to be left alone anyway. He looked down the tunnel. “I’m going to find Max and the others. But, Evangeline …” His brow furrowed. “I can’t be around her anymore. Not after this. Not after how she lied to us.”

  I didn’t need to ask whom he was talking about.

  I dipped my head because in truth, I didn’t know what else to do. I hadn’t wrapped my mind around our new reality. How could I be around her if this was true? How could I ever trust her again?

  “Sorry for earlier.” Julian gave Caden’s shoulder a gentle slap as he passed and then, he slowly wandered back toward the haulage tunnel.

  Even without focusing on Caden, I could feel the raw pain swirling around him, like a windstorm, and my instincts urged me to fix it. Because I could. Dropping to my knees, I reached forward to place my hand over his chest. I closed my eyes as I focused on the turmoil, letting the heat build inside me.

  A cool hand clasped my fingers. “No.” The single word pulled my eyes open. “I need to feel this right now.” He pulled me into him, his forehead pressed against my temple. “Please, just … stay here with me.” His voice turned hoarse as he pleaded, “Just stay with me for a minute.”

  “I’ll stay as long as you want.”

  I did. Forehead to forehead, we sat in the silent darkness. The minutes turned into hours. And I had to fight hard not to save him from his pain.