We arrive at the SUV, and although she was once snuggled up to me I can hear the erratic beating of her heart. The only explanation I can think of is she thinks I am her Soulmate, but none the less I have to stop the panic. I can't have her screaming for help, because they will find us quickly. It is a good thing that I have the leftover chloroform from Sadie, and with cloth in hand, I cover her mouth before she even knows what is happening.
"I won't hurt you if you just behave. We have much to do my dear, Emmaline." I am now holding an almost lifeless Emmaline in my arms. Kaleb opens the door and I deposit her into the back seat of the SUV. I don't have time to think about my crew, but going into this situation I knew they were all disposable. My next move is to get to the warehouse with her. I decide not to text this time, because talking is faster. I have a lot to explain to Bethany.
Bethany picks up on the second ring.
"Yes," she says clipped.
"I’m on my way." I am cut off in mid-sentence.
"Yes, why are you disturbing me with this idiocy then?" Bethany asks in true bitchy Bethany form.
"Well, if you would have taken more than five seconds to listen to me then I would have explained," I spit back just as snidely.
"Speak then!" she says angrily but with a boredom that is Bethany.
"My crew followed instructions as told, but ...." I am cut off again, mid-sentence, and I’m beginning to lose my patience.
"I've never heard anyone complain about their crew doing as instructed," she says.
"Bethany! Shut it! This is important,” I say with a snarl and I think I have her attention now.
"Listen vampire, I can just as easily leave you to find another witch. Talk to me like that again, and that's exactly what will be done. Now, speak. I'm listening," she says and I know I have her full attention.
"As I was saying, my crew followed instructions as told but in doing so they have allowed the Keeper and Soulmate part of the Ceremony to be completed. Is that going to be a problem?" I ask apprehensively, because I think I already know the answer to that question.
"You imbeciles! Yes, that is going to be a problem. By allowing the Keeper Ceremony to take place, her Keeper can put a locator spell on her. By allowing the Soulmate bond to take place, her Soulmate can communicate with her telepathically. Yes! We now have major problems to contend with," she says and pauses.
I take this as a cue to start asking questions.
"Can the spells not be undone? Can they not be unbound? What can we do to fix this?" I ask anxiously with a rapid fire of questions.
"Listen carefully to my instructions and follow them exactly. Maybe I can salvage what you idiots have let transpire. Maybe, just maybe, this isn't as bad as it seems. Can you do as instructed?" she asks in a condescending tone.
"Yes, Bethany," I say in an impatient tone, because I'm quickly losing my temper with this witch. I could easily just snap her neck at this particular second, but I need her.
"Here's my list. 1 - I will need to come to you, because I need to do a cloaking spell so that her Keeper won't be able to find her with a locator spell. I will also have to put a ward on the place you will be keeping her to keep out unwanted supernaturals. 2 - Gather up everyone that is allowed in and out of the place she will be held so that they can be present during the casting of the spell. 3 - Keep her blindfolded if she awakens. Don't let her know where she is going or where she is at, because she can telepathically communicate that to her Soulmate. It is going to take at least 48 hours or more to rid her body of his blood, so that she can accept yours. I am hoping that it is just 48 hours, because you said that you have her Healer captured and she will turn seventeen soon but we don't know the exact time. Even though they aren't bound, her healer, being fae, can heal her and her natural instincts will kick in shortly after she receives her powers on the hour of her birth. I would suggest that either your Healer make an elixir that will keep Emmaline sedated or I will have Haven and a few of my more powerful witches make the sedation elixir. 4 – In exactly 48 hours we will meet at this warehouse as planned, and if all goes well, and then our own binding ceremony can proceed. Any questions?" she asks.
"I will text you the address of where I am holding her and the healer captive. I will round up the crew members that are allowed to be there, as you said. I think that it will be best if Haven and your more powerful witches bring the sedation elixir. I don't necessarily think that my paid healer has that kind of ability. I am hoping that it only takes 48 hours to rid her body of his blood, and of course, I will meet you at the warehouse in exactly 48 hours," I say confirming that I have understood her instructions, and that I really don't have any questions. I already knew as much, and now all I can do is hope for the best.
"Oh, and Jasper."
"Yes."
"Good luck. I am hoping the sedation elixir will work, because the binding part of the Soulmate ceremony states that without him she can live, but she will be in excruciating pain. He can't live without her, because she has now become his life force. That may work to our advantage though, because he can't feed and will be weakened."
"Is it possible to make a pain elixir for her?" I ask worriedly.
"Yes, it is possible. The problem is that it will not reduce the pain much; in fact it won't even take the edge off. So ready yourself for at least 36 of the 48 hours to be plagued with screams of agony."
"Whatever," I say and hang up the cell. The abrupt end to the call is for two reasons. One of them being that Emmaline is waking up, and the second being that the information that was just given to me bothers me. I can't let the others see that it does though, because they will think I'm weak and that is something I will not tolerate.
Emmaline is now struggling in the back seat; so again, the chloroform is used to subdue her. As she quiets down, I can't help wonder who made it out of that battle alive. Who will end up at my place? It dawns on me that the crew doesn't know about the new developments in the plan.
Kaleb is driving me, and he has been right by my side the entire time. After he took the Protector down, it was his job to make sure that Emmaline and I got out of there safely as possible. He did his job, well.
"Kaleb, we are going back to my place."
"Yes, boss. I heard."
I remember he has vampiric hearing. "Text the others and fill them in on the new developments." I give an exasperated sigh.
"I'll take care of it. No worries, boss." His fingers hurriedly type out a mass text to everyone. Who will show up is yet to be seen.
Chapter Twenty Five
Liam
I take out the massive wolf, but it is no easy task in doing so. Once I am finished with that particular part, it is my job to ensure everyone else gets out safely. I look around to see that I have failed in this endeavor. There are bloody bodies strewn everywhere. Some are vampires, wolves, and witches but I see that Jasper and Kaleb have disappeared with the Chosen, so at least that part was accomplished.
Drew is lying nearby me in a heap with a wooden stake driven through his heart. I know he is no longer with us so I move on, looking around me to see if I can find any more of our crew in the same predicament. I find that Chase, Daniel, Sarah and Joseph have all met the same fate as Drew.
I see the High Priestess and a few other people from her coven in the middle of the circle. I can only assume they are witches. They are holding hands and chanting something that I can hear loudly, but I can't understand the words. The clouds are darkening, rain is starting to fall heavily, thunder crackles loud in the distance, and lightning is striking all around us taking down trees. The storm is taking on a rotation to it, and I know that the powerful magic they are conjuring is creating a tornado, a massive one from the looks of things. Rain is pouring down so hard it is making it difficult for me to move.
I see tears streaming down the Keeper’s face, and I know that parts of the tears are being shed because the Chosen has been taken. Looking down I see another reason for the tears. The High Priest
ess that initiated the Keeper in this ceremony is lying at the Keeper’s feet. I can tell by the way that the skin at her neck has been ripped into, and the fact that her body has been drained of blood that this is Drew's handy work. She lays lifeless on the ground, and her eyes hold no light as they did before the ceremony began.
It's at this moment that I realize why I am teamed up with Jasper. What kind of person, Immortal or not, Vampire or not, could do this to a person? A woman that has lived a life of goodness from what I can tell, during the little bit of the ceremony I saw, now lies on the ground dead; because we can't control ourselves when we see the sight of blood.
The storm is worsening by the minute, and golf ball sized hailstones has been added. I am pelted with stinging rain and painful hail. The wind has picked up, and it is increasing in speed with every rotation. I know that it is time to vacate the clearing, and I turn to my left to give the signal to what's left of our crew, letting them know to move out. My eye catches something that breaks my heart. The beautiful girl that had caught my eye during the casting of the circle lies at my feet. I can tell by looking at her neck that this wasn't Drew. That particular bite came from Sarah, and I know from the lifeless eyes that stare up at me that the world has lost a beautiful soul.
This girl was not much older than me, and it is as if destiny or fate is laughing at us, like it has a sense of humor. Sarah the vampire has murdered Sara the beautiful witch. I had watched this girl the entire time I was here. Her long strawberry blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, petite frame, and beautiful angelic face had me mesmerized. The blue cocktail dress she wore that hugged her every curve called out to my vampire senses, but now I am just disgusted to see it under her ceremonial robes that have been ripped from her body leaving the dress that was once beautiful, soaked in blood from the bite. It was only soaked at the top though, because Sarah drained the rest of her blood for her own satisfaction.
I am standing here about to weep over this girl that I had become infatuated with over the short period of time I stood and watched the ceremony. I think about how pissed off Jasper will be when what is left of us returns to him. I am distracted by a chorus of texts. I hear everyone's phone chirp, thanks to the ever so sensitive hearing of vampires, because this storm is something fierce now. Bodies are starting to be lifted off the ground by the wind. I search in my pocket for my phone, in haste, to see what Jasper's instructions are, because I know it is him texting us.
I don't get a chance to read that text though, because the phone is snatched out of my hand. I feel an agonizing stab that pierces into my back and a fierce push, as someone plunges a wooden stake through my back into my heart. With my last breath, I manage to get the signal called out to alert everyone that it’s time to retreat. The last face that I see when I look up, as the light fades into darkness, is the Soulmate. He is sneering down at me with a hatred that is almost unfathomable. I should be sad, I should be scared, and I should have regrets, but as I fade away, all I feel is overwhelming peace that this monstrous existence is over, and maybe I can tell Sara that I am sorry for what happened to her. That is if I am going to the same place that she went when she died.
Chapter Twenty Six
Dravon
I watch as chaos ensues all around us in a puzzled state of shock at first, until I realize that Emmaline has been taken. I start to panic about Emmaline when bodies catch my eye. The first is James, and I see a lot of blood. The second is James's mother holding his father’s head in her lap, again with massive amounts of blood. Panic takes up residence in my body. I am in a state of shock, and pure terror threatens to make me hysterical. I am at their bodies in a second. I check for a pulse and find one, so I move on to other casualties. I feel a presence at my side and look to my right at Ren.
I see that Sara has been bitten and it looks as if her body has been drained of blood, and standing over her is one of the newborn vampires that I have been watching. I'm furious that this has happened, and before I can process what I am doing I have snapped off one of the oak tree branches. I remember Molly telling me that this place had magical protection against unwanted supernaturals or one's that mean them harm. I have every intention of staking this newborn vampire but before I get to that part Ren has already staked him. He uses his last breath for a loud sing song whistle, and the last thing that this vampire sees is my sneering face as he fades into darkness. He doesn’t look frightened to die, he almost looks relieved.
The whistle must have been a signal to leave, because I see what few vampires that are left retreating from the clearing. The storm that the witches have conjured is massive, and it is gaining more violence as they chant. I am trying to make it to the center of the circle where they stand holding hands chanting, but the storm is so powerful I can hardly move. The rain, hail, and winds are pushing me back with every step I take. Ren is with me and we advance very slowly towards them, and it is no use trying to scream because they would never hear us over this storm. They need to know that the danger is over, so that we can assess the damage, and finish the ceremony. It's more apparent that it needs to be finished now than it ever has been.
We have made it a few steps when we come across yet another body. It's the body of Johen. He was a part of the circle casting so therefore, an elder of the Coven. He has a different mark to his neck, and it looks as if whoever drained his blood was trying to be neat about it.
I immediately know the vampire who did this is dead, because I drove a stake through her heart. I think her name was Sarah, because as I was causing her to meet her untimely demise, one of her crew alerted her to my presence telling her to be careful. She called back to him saying "Chase, behind...." but that was the last words she spoke as I drove the stake through her heart. I feel sick to my stomach that I had to do such a thing, but they were attacking and killing people.
As I looked to the right, the guy named Chase that she tried to warn is on the ground. Ren has taken him out the same way I took Sarah out. Ren looks just as pained as I feel, but at Chase's feet is one of the coven members who obviously met the same death as the others. He wasn't part of the circle casting ceremony so I don't know his name.
Ren and I continue to make it to the middle of that circle before these witches take out everyone in the city. I am almost brought to my knees by her voice.
“Dravon, we have to go back. We can't leave them! I won't run in the face of danger. Put me down.”
“Emmaline, what? Where are you? What are you talking about?”
Ren has stopped because I have abruptly hit the ground on my knees holding my head. What kind of Soulmate am I that I didn't even check to see if she was alive, hurt, or anything? Apparently someone is carrying her, and she thinks it's me.
“Emmaline, Do you know who has taken you?”
"Oh my God, Ren, someone has taken Emmaline!"
"Are you communicating with her? Son, find out who has her, where she is at. We must stop at nothing to find her," Ren says as calmly as possible.
"She told me that we have to go back. We can't leave them! I won't run in the face of danger. Put me down. That is all I have heard. She hasn't answered any of my questions. It's total silence," I say panicked.
"Dravon, we need the witches to stop this storm first. I will call Asher and explain the situation. I am sure that Molly can do a locator spell on her."
There is a new determination in my step as we make it to the center of the circle where the witches stand. We know they won't be able to hear us, so Ren and I grab a few and we furiously pull them apart, causing them to lose grip of each other’s hands. The chanting stops as they look around to assess for danger, but the storm still rages on.
"Molly, the danger is over. They have retreated, and unfortunately, they have what they came for. Please put a stop to this terrible storm, so that we will be able to find her," Ren says
"Ren, how many casualties are there?" Molly asks shaken.
"Molly, please let's focus on one thing at a time," Ren says wi
th a small reassuring smile.
I think he purposely left out the fact that Emmaline has been taken, so that they can focus on stopping the storm they've created. He also avoids the question of how many casualties there are. I am struggling to stay upright now that the adrenaline has worn off. I need to feed, but since the binding ceremony has taken place Emmaline has become my only source of food.
“Emmaline, can you tell me if you are hurt? Where are you? Who has you? Emmaline, please speak to me. Please be okay!”
She doesn't answer me, and it feels as if a hole has been ripped in my heart. The storm is dying down. The witches have been in the circle chanting while I was trying to communicate with Em. Once the storm stopped its rotation, Molly flicks her wrist as if to dismiss someone. I am astonished because she didn't dismiss anyone. She dismissed that storm with just a flick of her wrist. How bad ass is that?
I suddenly notice through all the pain I am feeling from not being able to feed, and watching Molly dismiss a storm that three people have now joined us. James, his mother, and father are standing at our sides, which is very impressive considering all the blood pooled around their seemingly lifeless body just a few minutes ago. I am doubled over with pain when I try to speak to them. It feels like I haven't eaten in days. My heart feels like it is being ripped from my chest, and it's excruciatingly painful.
"Whoever did this took out my entire pack or they would've come to help. Does anyone know what they wanted? Or what happened?" Grayson asks.
"They have Emmaline. She has communicated with me, but so far hasn't been able to respond since the first communication," I say and hear gasps as I'm collapsing