Gabriel and Embry looked at me with concern, but I couldn’t reassure them. I couldn’t breathe. It felt like my heart was breaking.
“Did he do something to you?” Embry asked.
“Donovan is taking a jet from Salem,” I felt the street going blurry and fought it long enough to tell them we were momentarily safe, before I slipped away…
“What is this?” Annabelle asked Henry, holding very old pages in her hand. I wanted to warn her when she said it with curiosity rather than suspicion, but then I saw the look on his face. The smile he looked up at her with had gone dark, the sparkle disappearing from his eyes as his jaw set.
“You weren’t supposed to find that,” he said, coming closer. With every step he took in our direction, I got more afraid, until he got close enough to take the paper from her. She flinched, and though she didn’t know what she was afraid of, I did. Henry reacted to the flinch as if she slapped him.
“A few words on a piece of paper and already you’re afraid of me?” he asked, hurt.
“A few words combined with a lot of secrets, long absences and I question how well I know you,” she argued, taking a step back. “The heart of the Bearer of the Crescent Moon?” she pressed.
“An ingredient in the ritual I was put on this world to complete,” he admitted.
“A ritual for what?” she asked. Annabelle was disgusted more than afraid, but I was terrified.
“To become more powerful than anyone else on earth,” he said with a hint of hope, like this might entice her.
“Like a king?” she asked, but she knew that wasn’t it. With the magic Henry was capable of, he was already more powerful than the men who held powerful positions in this country and every other.
“More powerful than all the kings and rulers and everyone else put together,” he said with a gleam in his eye, which had never looked so cold before.
“All it takes is my heart?” she asked, remembering the first time he mentioned it, after the wedding. Annabelle wondered the same thing I did; had he perhaps glimpsed the birthmark on that first day, before he decided to intervene on her behalf?
“Don’t look at me like that Annie, this ritual is why I am here on earth,” he pleaded, so unlike what I expected from Donovan’s master.
“You’ve always had these grand ideas, always needed more instead of being happy with what you have.”
“I don’t want more, I need it. I need it, or I die trying. That’s the way it has to be.”
“Says who?” she asked. We were nearly in the doorway now.
“Death shall not claim me while I am on the chosen path,” he admitted.
“What?” It sounded like he was repeating a passage from a book rather than giving an answer.
“There are people put on this world to accomplish certain tasks. I was put here to complete the ritual, and as long as I am still working on it, until I have achieved it, I cannot die. You can pierce my heart as many times as you like and tomorrow, I will wake up as if nothing happened. I’ve done it at least a dozen times before.”
“You’ve died?” she asked, trying to process this new information, that went far beyond the little bits of magic he did with her. I was shocked it wasn’t hundreds of times, based on how dark his eyes had become.
“You’d be surprised how many people choose to stand in the way of others accomplishing their dreams, rather than helping them along the way. Not to mention those who have the same dream and are jealous because I am the only one to find a way.”
“A way to do what?” I noted the fear in her voice, as she failed to recognize the man she married.
“To rule the world. Once the ritual is complete, nothing will be able to stop me.”
“And my death is a price you are willing to pay?” I could feel her heart breaking as if it were my own.
“Your death would most likely be temporary, my love. I would be so powerful that the laws of heaven and hell, death and resurrection would mean nothing to me. I could bring you back.”
"Your eyes. I should have known as soon as I saw your eyes,” Annabelle realized.
"They sometimes get a little darker when I die, but it is hardly anything to…"
"A little darker? It was no accident, Henry, not a small price to pay for coming back to life. The darkness is spreading, and evil is devouring your soul. That is what is happening to your eyes. You're becoming a monster!" She was in the middle of the last word when his hand shot up and collided with her cheek. I felt the sting before she brought her hand up, more as a reflex than from the pain. All Annabelle felt was numb.
"Watch your tongue,” he warned, the hatred in his voice doing nothing but prove her right.
"Or maybe you already were a monster, and I was too blind to see it."
"I am offering you the world on a silver platter. You dare question me when you should be showing gratitude and promising me your everlasting devotion? I will be a god,” he believed it, but he also knew she wouldn't feel the same; it was evident on his face.
"You will be a demon. Some vile creature that sacrifices whatever it takes to stay on top, a sad excuse for a human being, let alone a god." She turned and headed for a room to our left. I could hear the baby crying.
"Where are you going?" Henry yelled after us.
"I am taking my daughter and getting as far away from you as I possibly can. You dare come after us, or I see you anywhere near her…" She called out of the room, stuffing piles of cloth into a bag while trying to soothe the tiny infant in the crib.
"You can't leave me. You were nothing when I found you. About to be raped by common thieves. You leave now, and you can never come back,” Henry threatened. “You are shocked, this wasn't how I planned to tell you, but if you walk out that door, you are no longer my wife, you are just the Bearer of the Crescent Moon…"
I could feel a chill down my back, knowing what those words meant, but Annabelle pushed the fear aside and lifted Margaret from the crib. “I assure you; I want nothing more than to be rid of you,” she told him once we were out of the nursery, heading for the door without even looking at him.
"You misunderstand me, Annabelle. I will let you walk out the door, because that part of it is a test, but I won't let you leave." We froze and I could feel my heart pounding in my ears, but I could have sworn it stopped altogether.
"You come anywhere near my daughter and I will kill you,” we turned to face him, Annabelle standing her ground now that her daughter was involved.
"She is my daughter as well,” Henry fumed. "I have just told you that you can stab me or do what you want but I will not stay dead. I will come and find you."
"You might not be able to die, but I can,” Annabelle threatened, taking out her dagger.
"I don't need you to be alive to rip your heart out,” Henry warned.
"But I'm guessing it puts a damper on your plans if the heart in question has a dagger in it." I envied her bravery more than anything as I felt the tip of the cold blade on my chest. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that she would go through with it.
"You wouldn't kill yourself,” he argued.
"Try me,” she kept his stare. "Take one step closer and I will drive this through my heart."
"I will find you. I will hunt you down and then I will cut your heart out of your chest while you still breathe,” he threatened, shocking her with his hatred.
"Haven't you already done that?" Annabelle asked before walking out of the house.
She kept the point of her dagger against her breast, right above her heart. Once we were a few houses away, she brought the dagger to her side, but she kept it out until we were safely at a church. I was amazed at how calm and confident she was when she told the priest she needed a carriage to get to Boston, even more so when he lent her his personal one. Once we could no longer see the church in the distance, Annabelle broke down and let the emotions out. “Until the next town,” she said under her breath. That was how long she gave herself to dwell on it before she was going to gather herself, m
ake a plan, and be strong, like her daughter needed…
Chapter Twenty-Five
I woke up with tears pouring down my face and no idea where I was. The crash occurred only a few streets from the villa, but I was still surprised I was out long enough for them to bring me back to what I assumed was Embry’s. The closet of the master bedroom by the looks of it.
I went to the door and pounded on it, but nothing I did moved it in the slightest. I took the moonstone necklace in my hand and tried to see Embry, or Gabriel, but it was like something was blocking me. I could make things float inside the room, but the metal doors did more than keep the outside world from getting in.
I tried not to panic, telling myself the guys wouldn’t just leave me in here. I had been so curious about Embry’s ‘treasures’, but at the moment I didn’t really care. If I let my mind wander it went straight to Henry, who seemed so sweet, but was actually the Big Bad who has been hunting my family for centuries. I wanted to believe that the guys didn’t tell me because they didn’t know, but I wasn’t that naive.
I tried to find some kind of secret passage, or an alarm I could pull to let them know I was awake. I pulled every single book on the shelves, but I guess that only works in movies. If Donovan wasn’t on his way to us, I could have spent hours reading each of the antique books, but I needed to find a way out.
There was a sheet covering what looked like frames in the corner, but I lifted it, to be sure. The first one was a life-size portrait of Annabelle, with Embry’s initials in the corner. He used to bring me paintings when he would visit, or an easel and canvas he could fill while I read by the creek. He tried to get me into it as well, but it wasn’t long until we discovered that painting was not something I excelled at. I could make really advanced kindergarten-level paintings that never went outside the lines, but that was about it. Embry, on the other hand, made Annabelle completely life-like, in every aspect. I would guess that he painted it from memory, or before Annabelle left for Salem, because there was no way she could keep such a carefree smile after finding out she was married to a monster.
I could sort of see what Grams meant about the smiles letting you tell my ancestors apart. The next frame held Rosalind, but I could tell it was her even before I recognized her dress. Cassie was next, looking absolutely elegant, but also fierce. The last painting was of Beth, looking at the world with as much love and happiness as on her fifth anniversary with Embry. I wonder if she knew who we’re all descended from.
There was nothing else there besides a few landscapes. When I grabbed the sheet to throw it back onto the frames, I knocked over some papers, revealing a red panic button. Since I was already in the panic room, I would assume it was designed to alert the authorities. Knowing Embry and the type of dangers he might need the room for, I didn’t think his worked the same.
I pressed the button, expecting an alarm to go off, but nothing happened. I pressed again and was beginning to think it wasn’t connected to anything when the metal door opened to reveal Gabriel.
“Good, you’re awake,” he tried to come close, but I took a step back.
“I’ve packed your things and we’re ready to go,” Embry started talking as soon as he got close, before finally looking at me.
“We’re not leaving,” I argued.
“You told us Donovan was on his way. That gives us six hours, tops,” Gabriel reminded me.
“He’s on his way here, where he will find Charlie and Eric, defenseless. We can’t keep running away and letting other people deal with the consequences.” My hatred wasn’t exactly directed at them, but I wasn’t going to let Charlie and Eric join the ranks of Terrence, Caleb, and Sam so I could get away.
“I understand that you’re upset, but sacrificing yourself doesn’t protect anyone,” Embry said gently.
“It actually protects everyone, but I wasn’t planning on dying. Considering Donovan is coming alone, I was under the impression we were going to stop running. To stay here and fight. Or was that a lie too?”
“What did you see?” There was a hint of fear in their voices. I wondered if they knew exactly what I found out or were trying to figure out which of their many lies I was referring to.
“Lucy…” Gabriel pressed.
“Don’t Lucy me,” I warned.
“What happened?” He didn’t back down.
“The Big Bad.”
“He’s here?” Embry was horrified.
“Part of him.” There was venom in my words, and in my blood, as the anger coursed through me. The fear didn’t leave their faces until they understood what I meant, and even then, they didn’t own up to it.
“We don’t…”
“You know exactly what I’m referring to. You’ve known all along,” I reproached. “I’ve been seeing her memories. Annabelle’s. After she left you guys, she moved to Salem on her own, where she eventually met this guy, Henry, who saved her from a group of thugs on the side of the road. He was the one who showed her that she had magic. He taught her how to use it and eventually, he married her.” By now there was no denying it.
“Luce…” Embry tried, but he couldn’t meet my eyes.
“Did it slip your mind that the evil man we’re running from, who hunts my family, and caused Sam’s death was my great-great-many-times-great-grandfather?”
Embry opened his mouth and tried a bunch of excuses before deciding to reason with me. “How would that help you?” he asked.
“You didn’t think I deserved to know?” I asked instead. “What kind of person…I never met my dad, so I don't know if this is standard father-daughter behavior, but there has to be something entirely messed up about us if we come from that. He has to be a psychopath, and that stuff is genetic,” I was angry at everyone who kept it from me, at Annabelle for not seeing through him, at him for being evil… I felt dirty.
"There is nothing wrong with you Lucy. Henry is a horrible man. Annabelle realized that and brought her daughter away from him to keep her safe. He is Margaret's father, yes, but I raised that little girl, and there was nothing evil or psychotic about her, just like there is none of that in you,” Embry said with an intensity I usually associated with Gabriel.
"How could you not tell me? When I started having the dreams, you had to know I would eventually find out,” I felt betrayed and heartbroken. I wanted to get angry, to have any other emotion overwhelm the pain that kept making me cry.
"It's not like he had any paternal instincts towards you. Bringing up the connection would not have made him treat you any better. It would just make it harder for you to do what you have to in order to get away from him."
"Because I'm weak?"
"Because you have a heart. You care about people. We couldn’t risk you coming face to face with Henry and letting him kill you because you couldn’t harm a twisted kind of father figure,” Embry corrected.
"Is that why Annabelle let herself die? Because she couldn't fight him, and she couldn't let him have her?"
"Annabelle would have killed him if she had the chance,” Gabriel sounded so sure of himself, but I don't think he ever actually saw them together.
"Annabelle didn’t fight the conviction, and she let them burn her at the stake because she knew it was all done on Henry's orders. If she fought it, or waited for a trial, it would give him enough time to come find her and Margaret. She admitted her guilt and let the flames take her so he would not get what he needed. I think she thought it ended with her.” Embry looked to Gabriel for confirmation on the last part, and he nodded with conviction.
“Not even close,” I shook my head, biting my bottom lip.
“Let’s get in the car and talk about this,” Embry suggested.
“There’s nothing to talk about. You’ve been lying to me my entire life and it never ends. I don’t need to hear your lies because I don’t believe them. I don’t trust either of you anymore.” They’d both stepped towards me, but I crossed my arms and took another step back.
“Lucy, everything we h
ave ever done was to keep you safe,” Embry pleaded.
“That’s what you tell yourself,” I shook my head. “But you were just lying and hurting me.” I couldn’t even look at them. “I need to clear my head, and then we are going to face Donovan and stop acting like cowards.” I tried to channel Annabelle’s confidence as I walked past them to exit the panic room, but my insides felt seconds away from a meltdown.
Chapter Twenty-Six
I wandered around the property for a bit before finding myself in the stables. I got some treats from the bucket and was feeding Rudolph when I heard someone come up behind me. I knew it wasn’t Donovan yet, so I debated whether I should yell at Embry and Gabriel to go away or hear them out. When I turned around, it was Charlie.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said when I jumped. “You’re not planning on riding out in the middle of the night, are you?”
“Of course not. I was wandering around and found myself here,” I tried to give him a convincing smile. “Trouble sleeping?”
“I came to turn off the lights. I was going to leave when I saw you, but you looked like you could use some company. I’ve been told I am excellent at listening, if ever you want to talk.”
“Not really,” I admitted, but I didn’t want to be alone either. “You could tell me more stories, if you don’t mind?”
“Are we trying to avoid talking about something else?” he asked.
“Yes,” I chose honesty.
“I know all about these. I’m supposed to find a way to tell a story that perfectly reflects what is going on with your life now, so by the time the story is over, you know what you need to do.”
“That would be quite the skill,” I gave him a small smile. “I don’t think there’s much I can do about the fact that the people I trusted the most lied to me.” I didn’t want to talk about it, but the pain and anger were so close to the surface. It wasn’t even that I was mad...I felt betrayed and alone, like I didn’t know anything anymore.
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