Eternal Fires

  “It would be if we did it alone,” she admitted. “We need allies, and we’ll be asking the witches and shifters and dissatisfied vampires of Europe to join us. It will take everything we have, everyone we can convince to join us…and maybe more.”

  “Is there a plan?” Steffan asked. “I’m all for ending the domination of the O-Seven but others have tried, and the elders slaughtered them.”

  “I have ideas. Nothing as grandiose as a plan. We need all of you to help us make one.” Ari still saw mostly doubtful faces. “It’s true that the witches have fought against their minions—the lesser vampires, werebears and raptors—for hundreds of years. The blood has flowed freely on both sides. But for most of that time the elders have stayed safely inside, untouchable, drinking their wine and blood far from the battlefield. No one has taken the fight to them…inside the castle walls. I think we’re in a unique position to do that.”

  “You’re going inside again? Can I repeat—suicide?” Ryan looked for Andreas and confronted him. “Do you agree with this?”

  “Indeed I do.” Andreas strode toward Ari, the crowd parting to allow him through. “We didn’t want this fight, but the elders have been relentless in pursuing us. Our best…no, our only defense…is to take the fight to them. I don’t know if we’ll succeed, Lieutenant, but what’s our alternative?” He looked at Ari. “We’ve made our decision.”

  She forestalled another protest from their friends. “We’re not asking you to follow us to Germany, but in case we fail, you’ll need to defend Riverdale…and our daughter. If we work together, coordinate everything…I think there’s a chance.”

  “It’s a dangerous idea,” Andreas admitted. “If any of you want to leave now, we’ll respect that and understand you have your own obligations. If you stand with us, the most we can guarantee is a good fight.”

  Gabriel pushed his way to the front. “I’m going to Germany with you. This isn’t just your fight. None of us are safe. The elders won’t stop short of ruling the world—unless somebody stops them.”

  Others began to nod in agreement, and Ari’s heart filled with emotion.

  “You know we’re with you.” Emma, the high priestess of Ari’s home coven, and her coven sisters stood as a solidified group. “We’re ready wherever you need us.”

  “I too will go to Germany.” Prince Daron moved forward out of the center of the crowd and placed his hand on Andreas’s shoulder. “The elders should have been challenged long ago. Our new coalition will stand with us. I wouldn’t be surprised if we can raise a sufficient army to make this an interesting fight.”

  Some were more enthusiastic than others, but no one left. Even Claris asked what she could do.

  “I have a very special job for you.” Ari took Claris’s hands. “I want you to take Rayne, raise her if necessary. I hope Ryan, Gabriel, and Steffan will all be here to help you.” Claris was shaking her head, but Ari forged on. “They can teach her how to fight and stand up for herself—she’ll need that—but you can show her how to love.”

  Claris’s eyes were wide with alarm. “You sound like you aren’t coming back.”

  “Of course we’re coming back. But just in case…”

  Claris’s eyes grew misty, and Ari swallowed hard. To think of never seeing her child again—or her friends—was almost unbearable. But Rayne’s safety was all that really mattered. She squeezed Claris’s hands. “I’m counting on you.”

  Claris clung to her until Ryan gently pulled her away. “Come on, I’ll take you home. Ari has a lot she needs to do.” He gave his partner a pointed look. “But I’ll be back to plan the defenses for Riverdale. Protecting this town is still my job.”

  They cleared the club’s tables, and Ari brought out maps of Castle Verdammung and the surrounding portion of Germany’s Black Forest. She explained her loosely conceived plan for an attack on the stronghold and pointed out the only access road and the rugged terrain. Those who had seen the castle—Andreas, Gabriel, Ari, and Prince Daron—added sketches and notes of the castle’s entrance and exit points and the guard stations manned by wereraptors. Large red circles designated the werebears and the trolls that patrolled the forests.

  “We need several secondary plans to handle the various locations, plus the defenses here at home. Why not split into smaller groups for these initial steps?” Daron suggested.

  Ari looked at Andreas. “Fine. Andreas and I will take the elders and consult with my coven sisters and others as needed.” She turned to nod at three men as she named each of them. “How about Daron, Gabriel, and Steffan as our field generals for the rest?”

  “Do I get stars on my lapel?” Gabriel asked.

  “As many as you want, but you have to share them with Ryan. I want the two of you preparing for the defense of Riverdale. If we fail in Germany, the elders could attack here in a matter of hours or days.”

  “Daron and Steffan can coordinate with the various coalitions both here and in Europe,” Andreas said. The two men nodded.

  “Then we have our groups.” She looked around. “Where would you like to start?”

  Daron spoke up. “Any good campaign starts with knowing your enemy. With that in mind—and if there is no objection from the other, uh, generals—let us talk about our opponents a few minutes. I can give you an overview, and perhaps others can fill in the details.” He settled a hip against the table behind him. “Their forces are composed of several elements: mercenaries, like the trolls, who work for money, the werebears, who jealously guard their own home territory in the forests, and the wereraptors, who simply like to kill. The vampires inside are a mixture of cutthroats and thugs, young vampires sired by the castle’s inhabitants, and adventure seekers…”

  As he continued to talk, Ari slipped to the back of the room. Andreas joined her there.

  “Whatever happens, the dice are thrown,” he said. “Doubts, fears?”

  “Of course, but they don’t change my mind. And you?”

  He touched her cheek. “I fear anything and everything that might separate us, but we’ve been headed down this path for years. It’s time to discover what’s at the end.”

  * * *

  The following morning Ari was woken from a sound sleep at 7:00 a.m. by the ring of the phone and Steffan’s excited voice. “The wizard’s awake. They say he’ll fully recover.”

  “Oh, that’s terrific.” Ari grinned and scrubbed the sleep from her eyes. A good omen to start the day. “Have you told Ryan yet?”

  “My very next call.”

  Energized by the news, she popped out of bed as soon as Steffan rang off. Scooping Rayne from her crib, she hummed to herself as she changed the baby’s diaper and hurried downstairs, headed for the fridge and the coffee pot. She began to run over the list of tasks she had on her agenda for today.

  “Sorry, kid, from now on you’re a bottle baby, and I’m back on caffeine.”

  Rayne looked at her, waved her little fists in the air, and gave her a crooked smile. Another good sign. Ari was pumped.

  For the next ten days, the band of conspirators met almost daily, often with Prince Daron on speakerphone from Canada, where he was making his own preparations. They’d talked with potential allies on both sides of the ocean. Prospects were looking good—especially for defenses on the North American end—but time was growing short. They’d set November fifteenth as their target date, a mere eight weeks after Rayne’s birth. They were already down to twenty-five days. They needed more time to get ready, but the largely unspoken threat of the O-Seven acting first and catching them by surprise constantly dogged their steps.

  Ari and Andreas practiced their magic together every night. They spent as much time as possible with Rayne, but Kyra took over at nightfall to allow them to work uninterrupted. Ari’s coven often acted in a supportive role, making suggestions, providing extra magic when needed, filling in for the German witches who would be present at the actual assault in Germany.

  The Magic Council reached out to contacts all over t
he world, and a group of ten wizards, whom Merlin hoped to lead—he was recovering rapidly now—would have a big role in containment and illumination of the battle scene. Daron was talking in secret with rebel vampire forces in Europe, and Steffan was wooing various bands of shifters, particularly the German wolves who’d nearly been eradicated by the O-Seven in the 1500s.

  Despite these efforts, talks were going slowly. The Europeans were skeptical, cautious, some might say afraid—not surprising given the O-Seven’s bloody reign of torture.

  Arranging forces to confront the werebears was an especially gnarly problem. The bears had no natural enemies. The large species of werecats were the only creatures who’d even consider taking them on. Lilith and Russell pursued those contacts.

  But Lilith’s greatest contribution was the message that was hand-carried by the witches to Grogan, the German tree troll. He’d given Lilith a virtual IOU for saving a child from his clan last year. She’d called it in, and he’d agreed to keep his people neutral during any conflict with the elders. Lilith intended to reinforce the troll’s hands-off position once they were in Germany.

  The general plan for the assault on the stronghold was set. The wizards, witches, and the ground forces—mostly vampires and shifters from both continents—would encircle the castle to keep the elders’ minions occupied; Ari and Andreas would deal with the O-Seven from inside Castle Doom. Filling in the details and putting their plan into action would be the hardest part.

  * * *

  Ari slipped on her jacket, opened the Victorian mansion’s back door, and stepped into the night. She automatically turned right to stroll through the garden. Well-tended fall flowers nodded in the moonlight, and she took a deep breath of the fragrance drifting from the sweet autumn clematis vines. She needed a few minutes to pull herself together.

  She’d left the nursery in tears, unable to maintain her composure after putting her child to bed for maybe the last time. They were leaving for Germany in a few hours, and she wasn’t fooling herself. Even if they succeeded in destroying the O-Seven—a long shot at best—their plan might not be survivable. They would still have to get away alive, and the chances of successfully escaping the castle were…well, they weren’t good.

  The back door opened and closed. Andreas. She’d felt his magic long before she could see him.

  “You’re unsettled.” He stopped beside her and lifted a hand toward the moon. “I’ve seen over two hundred years of moonrises and never tire of the sight. It is enough for me to know my daughter will stand here after me.”

  Ari swallowed hard. “But without us.”

  He folded her in his arms. “She will always have us, Arianna. We are a part of her.” He rested his chin on her head. “She has the perfect godmother to guide her.”

  “Claris will make sure Rayne knows we loved her.”

  Andreas nodded. “She will.”

  Ari pulled away and wiped her tears. She was being self-indulgent. Andreas acted so pragmatic, but she could tell he was struggling with the coming separation from Rayne as much as she was.

  “I still have packing to do.”

  “Can it wait? Come sit with me.” Andreas motioned toward a marble love seat. “Time is moving swiftly. The next ten days in Germany may not allow us a moment alone. I would like to spend some time with you.”

  She took his hand, and they strolled along the path. When they reached the bench, he gestured for her to sit, but he remained standing. She looked up, but his eyes were too dark to read in the moonlight. “What is it, Andreas?”

  “Do you regret loving me, marrying me?” he asked.

  “Never, not for a minute.” She tugged on his hand, and he sat beside her. “Why would you ask me that? Are you sorry?”

  “Cara mia, how could I be? But I never meant to fall in love with you or entangle you in the affairs of the vampire world. It’s too dangerous for loved ones, especially a wife and child. If I had listened to my head instead of my heart years ago, none of this would be happening to you.”

  “That’s not true. I’d still be the guardian. The elders would still feel threatened, and they’d still be a danger to Riverdale.” She reached up both hands to capture his face. “Even if that weren’t true…Andreas, I love you. I wouldn’t change any of my time with you.” She smiled into his eyes. “And we wouldn’t have Rayne, the most precious gift in the world.”

  He kissed her then. They sat in the garden for more than an hour, sometimes talking softly but mostly just holding on to each other.

  Three hours later, their bags were packed, and they prepared to leave for the airport so that Andreas and Gabriel were settled on board before dawn. Ari and Andreas stopped in the nursery for one last good-bye. Kyra hovered in the background with tears dampening her eyes.

  Ari cradled her daughter and fingered the charms on her bracelet until they tinkled and caught the infant’s attention. She wanted Rayne to have the protective charms someday. They’d been given to Ari by Great-Gran. They belonged in the family, and where she was going, they might be lost forever. She toyed with the clasp, then looked up and met Andreas’s eyes. He knew what the bracelet meant to her. It had always been her good-luck charm. If she left it behind, she’d be admitting she wasn’t coming back.

  Her gaze dropped to Rayne. The infant cooed at her. Ari smiled and brushed her lips against the tiny hand. “You be a good girl until mama and papa get home.”

  She handed their daughter to Andreas. He kissed her chubby cheek and passed her to Kyra. They walked out the door with the charms still jangling on Ari’s wrist.

  * * *

  Ari stood to stretch her legs. The flight to Frankfurt had grown long and tiring, even in the luxury of the jet. Andreas was absorbed on his laptop, so she stopped to watch Steffan, Gabriel, Russell, and Lilith playing poker. She marveled at how animated Gabriel was. About an hour ago, she’d seen for herself how time zones affected vampires. They really were tied to the sun. Andreas and Gabriel were sound asleep on board when the plane lifted off around 8:00 a.m., but they’d woken quickly as soon as the flight entered the European zones where it was dusk.

  “Want to play?” Gabriel asked. “I’ll take anybody’s money.”

  She glanced at the pile of pennies, nickels, and dimes in front of him. “The stakes are too high for me. I’m more a jellybean kind of player. I think I’ll get a glass of wine instead.”

  Andreas looked up and closed his laptop. “I’ll join you. Why don’t I get the drinks and meet you in the back?” He stood and crooked an eyebrow. “We should talk.”

  Now what? A private talk in the back bedroom? Ari didn’t get the impression this was a romantic interlude. She sat on the end of the bed to wait. He entered just moments later, with a bottle of pinot noir—one of her favorites—and two glasses. He poured and handed her one.

  “What’s up?” she asked.

  “Exactly what I’d like to know.” He pulled up the only seating in the room, a small bench that did double duty as a luggage rack, and sat down facing her. “You’re tense, which isn’t unexpected, but you’re uncertain too. I’ve seen the doubts in your eyes, and you’ve avoided discussing your sessions testing different strategies with your fire magic. It’s time we discussed the details of confronting the elders. Has something gone wrong? Something you’ve neglected to mention?”

  “We have talked about details,” she said defensively. “The defense of Riverdale, the ruse to get us inside Castle Doom, what the wizards and wolves and others will be doing outside. And your teleportation spell to get us out.”

  “But nothing about the elders. Every time I bring it up, you do just what you’re attempting to do now—change the subject. Do you even have a plan or do you expect to use your magic like a flamethrower?” His voice was gently chiding. “These are the elders. You’d never get them all that way before they get to us.”

  She looked at her hands. “I thought I could summon the fire spirits and command them to surround and destroy the elders. But the magi
c isn’t instantaneous. I’ve practiced and practiced. The flames don’t spread far enough or fast enough to trap all of them and protect our flanks. I’ve been looking for an alternative.”

  “By yourself?” He stood and ran a hand through his hair. “Arianna, you should have told me. This is the crux of the entire plan.” His eyes settled on her face. “If we cannot control the elders’ chambers, this really is a one-way trip.”

  “Not yet. I’ve got ten days to figure it out.”

  “Have you consulted anyone? The Magic Council, Moriana, Zylla?”

  “All of them, including the lab.”

  His brows shot up. “Without once mentioning it to me?”

  She stood and spread her hands across the front of his shirt. “I wasn’t being secretive—not really. We’ve both been so busy, and I didn’t know what to say. Actually, I didn’t tell anyone there was a problem, just that I was looking for enhancements. I kept thinking I’d solve it…but, well, I didn’t.” She turned and took a few steps away. “I know there’s an answer. I sense it just out of my reach. I keep thinking what Moriana said about remembering details.”

  “What details?” he asked a little stiffly.

  “That’s just it. I don’t know. When I was in St. Louis, we found a missing heirloom by helping someone recall a memory from his past. At the time Moriana told me to take note of that. I kind of shrugged it off, but I think she was pointing me to a way to defeat the elders.”

  “In a memory from your past.”

  “If I’m reading it right.”

  Andreas gave an impatient wave of his hand. “Why don’t you just ask her?”

  “Well, I did, but her psychic knowledge doesn’t always come with specifics. She knew a memory would be important to me but not which memory or why.”

  “Not exactly helpful.” He came up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “It is time for some practical decisions, Arianna. Until we find the plan, let’s work out an alternative, using the spells and potions that we know.”