Cold seeped through her body as her fingers dug deeper into the bark. “I have to see. I’d know if she’d found him.” She turned to him, her tone more pleading than she would have expected. “Wouldn’t I?”
In his eyes, she saw the truth she felt within herself. She’d already known the second Braith had left her; there was nothing else for her to know anymore.
Terror rolled so rapidly through her mind that it caused her head to spin, and for one disconcerting moment, she thought she might actually fall out of the tree.
A sob lodged in her throat as Goran stopped at Sabine’s side and handed her something. Aria couldn’t tear her gaze away as Sabine turned back to the palace walls and lifted something in the air. It took her a minute to realize that Sabine held a brown cloak. On the back of it was the golden wolf insignia of the king that the king’s guard wore, but this one also had a crown above the wolf’s head. Aria didn’t have to see it up close to know it had belonged to Braith.
“Braith lost it in the battle when they attacked us,” she murmured.
“Come on, let’s get out of here,” William said and tugged at her shoulder again.
She refused to move until she knew what was going to happen next. “Not yet.”
“A cloak is no proof!” Gideon called from the wall.
“It is the king’s cloak,” Sabine said with a smirk. “I can have it brought to you if you would like.”
“I can see it’s the king’s cloak, but it’s easy enough to lose one of those in a fight or to simply leave one behind!” Gideon replied with a laugh. “I, myself, have done that a few times after spending some time with a lady!”
Beside him on the wall, the king’s guard all nodded enthusiastically and a few chuckled. Aria admired Gideon’s unruffled and brazen demeanor. Sabine would make him pay for it if she ever got her hands on him, but he would not back down from her, no matter what happened.
Sabine’s fingers went to her lips as a smile curved them. An uneasy feeling settled in Aria’s stomach. Sabine was too smug right now, too sure of herself. There was more; there had to be. She should get out of this tree, right now.
She found herself unable to move.
“Then I will show you more proof,” Sabine said in a nearly singsong voice.
“William,” Aria whispered as the hair on her arms stood up.
His hand constricted on her shoulder as Sabine turned to Goran. From within his cloak, Goran removed something, but Aria couldn’t see what it was from her angle. Atop the wall, a murmur ran through the crowd as those closest to Sabine and Goran got a glimpse of what it was. More than few of the king’s guard took a startled step back.
“Aria, come with me, now,” William commanded and pulled more firmly on her shoulder.
She was unable to move even a centimeter, never mind the fifty feet or so it would take to get out of this tree. Sabine turned back to the wall, her smile so big, Aria could see the glistening points of her fangs as she lifted something into the air.
“How about his head?” Sabine taunted as she lifted a head high into the air. She had her fingers entwined into its thick black hair as she proudly displayed it for everyone to see.
Aria’s vision blurred. Black hair and the open eyes of the head were all she saw before the world plummeted out from under her.
CHAPTER 26
Melinda
All around them, sobs erupted. Melinda remained unmoving as she gazed at the head in Sabine’s hand.
“Holy shit,” Gideon whispered from beside her.
Chaos erupted in the courtyard. Those gathered below couldn’t see what Sabine held, but they had heard her proud declaration and seen the reaction of the king’s guard on the wall. She could taste the metallic hint of their terror on her tongue, hear the increased pounding of all the human’s hearts.
Her hands pressed against her stomach as she stared at the head swaying in the breeze. The face was distorted, the color off, but then it had been cut from his body and Braith had been dead the last time she’d seen him. She didn’t want to believe it was him, but she couldn’t deny what her eyes were telling her as she gawked at all of that black hair and the swollen, broad cheekbones.
“Oh no,” she moaned.
Before this, there had been hope that Braith would rise again. She hadn’t realized how much she’d been counting on that happening, until the shattered pieces of all that hope scattered about her feet like broken glass. Her brother was dead.
Tears burned her eyes, but she kept them suppressed. Despite this new revelation, they had to put on a brave front, had to act as if they could still defeat Sabine without their king.
His black hair glinted in the light filtering down around Sabine as she continued to hold the battered head high in the air. Melinda tore her gaze away, unable to look anymore. He hadn’t known he was going to be an uncle. She choked back a sob as she wrapped her arms around her belly. Braith had sought to protect all of them, and they had all failed to protect him.
Her gaze went toward the town. “Aria,” she whispered.
Odds were her sister-in-law was close by, watching to see how everything and everyone here fared. She had probably heard this, had probably seen this announcement.
Calista shoved her way through the dumbfounded king’s guard on the wall to stand beside Gideon. “Did you know about this?” she demanded.
“How was I ever supposed to know about this?” Gideon retorted.
Calista bared her teeth at him. “Did you know Braith was dead?”
“No,” Melinda said. It wasn’t a lie; they hadn’t known for sure. Braith had passed, they had known that, but there had still been a chance he’d return. “We didn’t know.”
“That means we have lost our queen too,” Calista said. “She won’t survive without him. The humans will panic.”
“Not necessarily,” Gideon replied. “Aria will hold on and do what must be done.”
“Even if she doesn’t, Jack is now the king. Tell that to the people in the crowd,” Ashby said to Calista. “Make sure they know we still have a member of the royal line, and a rebel to lead us.”
“You want me to tell them the youngest of the three brothers, the one who left out of here over a year ago and hasn’t returned since, the one who was never supposed to rule is now their king?” Calista demanded. “We don’t know where Jack is! She could have killed him too.”
“No, she would have said that, and she would have brought his head as well,” Ashby replied. “Whatever happened, Jack managed to get away. I want you to tell the crowd that and tell them the man who went against his insane, brutal father and aided the rebels, became a rebel and fought side by side with the humans for years, is now their king.”
Her eyes narrowed on him. “The vampires will love that.”
“They’ll like it better than the alternative!” he spat. “You’re a politician, Calista, put a fucking spin on it.”
Melinda squeezed his hand. He was normally so calm and unruffled, but he’d been rattled by this development. Struggling to calm down, he ran his hand through his hair and tugged at the ends of it. He looked at her before lowering his hand and focusing on Calista once more.
“Every vampire in here has unfailingly followed Braith. If they think Sabine is going to let them out of here alive, they’re delusional and we have to make sure they know that. We have these walls. We have the advantage right now,” Ashby said more calmly.
“We will be right down to help you with everything,” Melinda said.
Calista cast Ashby and Gideon a scathing look before turning away from them. Melinda watched her walk away before focusing on Gideon. “Despite what Ashby said, there is a good chance Jack is dead too if she found Braith.”
“I know,” Gideon replied. “But they can’t know that, and unless Sabine brings out Jack’s head, there’s no reason for anyone here to suspect that possibility, and don’t forget, there’s always Aria.”
“A bloodlink does not survive without their othe
r half,” Ashby replied.
“And a blood slave does not become a queen, but it happened. If anyone can pull it together to do what must be done, it is Aria. Everyone loves her. She may not remain a queen without Braith, but she will lead and they will follow.”
“You’re right,” Melinda agreed.
“You two must go down and calm the crowd. They’ll want to see a royal face amongst them. I will stay here to get the guards rallied and prepared for battle,” Gideon said. “We will fight until the end.”
Melinda placed her hand on her stomach again. She would do everything she could to keep her child safe. “We will fight until they’re dead,” she said and strode away from Gideon with every bit of confidence she possessed. She may not actually be a descendent of the pure vampire line, but she was a royal and she would be everything they needed her to be right now.
***
William
William caught hold of Aria’s arm when she toppled from the tree. His gaze returned to the town as Sabine and her soldiers moved further down the road, spreading out through the buildings. They had to get out of this tree now.
Aria stirred in his grasp; she jolted when she saw her feet dangling above the earth. Then she went completely still. Her head tilted back to look at him as her feet touched down on a branch beneath her. Behind the black lenses of her glasses, her eyes burned like hot coals as they met his. William swallowed the lump in his throat at the sight of those volatile eyes.
“Let me go,” she said, and he barely recognized the flatness of her voice.
“No.”
“We have to get out of the tree. Let me go.”
“You’ll go after her.”
“No, I won’t.”
He glanced back at the vampires coming closer and closer to them. Right now, he didn’t have much of a choice. She stood below him. He couldn’t get her up here to throw her over his shoulder, and even if he could, she would never allow him to carry her from the tree.
“Let me go.”
“Stay with me?” He’d meant it to be an order; it came out as a question.
“I will.”
He could feel the riot of her emotions as she held his gaze, but Aria had never lied to him before. He had to trust she wouldn’t start now. However, he wasn’t entirely sure about anything she would do from here on out. She’d been broken again. There was only so much a battered spirit could take before it fell apart completely, and she was on the edge, if she hadn’t already been pushed over.
Opening his hand, he released her shirt. The second he let her go, she scurried down the tree. Forgetting all about the fact that, even if the fall didn’t kill him, it would hurt like hell, he followed her down the tree so fast he was on her heels when they both hit the ground. He lunged for her, wrapping his arms around her waist before realizing she hadn’t tried to take off toward the palace.
Her lip skimmed back to reveal her fangs, and her eyes burned hotter when she turned to look at him. Tempest’s brown eyes stood starkly out against the pallor of her skin when she met his gaze over the top of Aria’s head. Xavier moved closer to box Aria in if necessary. Tempest and Xavier may not have seen Braith’s head dangling from Sabine’s hand, but they’d heard her proud declaration, and they knew Aria was a powder keg waiting to go off.
“Must go,” Aria said in a clipped tone. “Now.”
William reluctantly released her, took hold of Tempest’s hand, and fell in beside Aria as Xavier remained close against her other side. They moved through the woods, briskly eating away the ground between them and the safe house. Aria abruptly drew up outside of the barn. Turning away, she walked deeper into the woods before sinking onto a rock out of view of any of the peepholes.
“What are you doing?” William inquired.
“I can’t go in there,” she murmured.
“Aria—”
“I can’t go in there, not now. I’ll kill them all!” Aria spat.
There it was. He’d sensed the savagery in her, sensed her unraveling, but she’d been keeping it restrained and hidden from them. Now, it was on full display.
“Death. Blood. They’re the only things that will make the pain stop,” she murmured.
William turned to Tempest and took hold of her shoulders. “Go inside.”
“No,” she said.
“I have to know you’re safe. Please, go in.”
“None of us are safe anymore, William. I’m not leaving any of you out here.” She stepped closer to him. “Aria needs those who love her right now.”
He couldn’t argue with that, but how did he tell her he wanted her safe from Aria right now. Atticus had lost his mind and Aria was coming apart before his eyes. She was a new vampire, a turned vampire, but he didn’t think it would matter. If she attacked, she would be lethal and only death would stop her.
“We sent Daniel, Max, and Timber back to that cave,” Aria said. She tilted her head back to look up at him. “We sent them to their deaths.”
Xavier knelt before her. “You do not know that.”
“She had his head, Xavier,” she whispered. “She held it so… so proudly.” Her voice broke on a sob before she straightened up and dried her tears. “If it’s the last thing I do, I will cut that bitch’s head from her neck.”
The unpredictable sway of emotions had William protectively stepping in front of Tempest. Xavier rested his hands over Aria’s. She jerked her hands away with a hiss that caused the hair on William’s nape to rise. He’d never seen her like this before, not even when her bond with Braith had first been severed had she been like this.
“Easy,” Xavier murmured. “I won’t touch you again, but let us be here for you.”
“For me? Who am I anymore?” A strange laugh escaped her as she bowed her head and placed her hand against her forehead. “I’d really expected him to come back to me. I didn’t dare to hope it was possible, but I did hope, more than I’d realized, and now…”
Her shoulders shook with her sobs as she released a sound that tore at his heart and reminded him of a wild animal. William stepped toward her, but she recoiled as if he were going to strike her. Her hands flew up in front of her face to ward him off.
“What am I? Who am I?” In the next instant, she once again stopped crying. “Sabine will die.”
Madness, William could feel it seeping out from her as her thoughts became more jumbled and her emotions more chaotic. Xavier’s head bowed; he reached for her again before lowering his hands.
Releasing Tempest, William knelt before Aria. He didn’t rest his hands on hers as he wanted to, but kept his fingers on the ground before him. “You are a rebel, who became a blood slave, who became a queen. That’s who you are.”
Aria’s fingers rubbed at her temples, her nails scratching her skin until she drew blood. William grasped her hands, ignoring her snapping fangs as he held them firmly in her lap. “I won’t let you hurt yourself.”
Tears spilled from her eyes again. “There is nothing left of me to hurt. Don’t you understand that?”
“Yes, I do.” Sitting on the rock beside her, William draped his arms around her and pulled her close.
Aria stiffened in his hold, and her tears once again ceased as her fangs sliced into her bottom lip. His heart felt as if it were being squeezed in his chest. Aria hadn’t been the only one who believed Braith would come back to them. They’d all been trying to get her through the days until he returned, and now there was no more getting through, no more waiting. He was gone. It was over.
“I also understand that you want your revenge, and we will help you get it,” William vowed.
“Now, I want it now,” she said and began to laugh again.
CHAPTER 27
Max
Max’s stomach rumbled as the fading daylight filtered through the roots above them. They’d remained as unmoving as possible within the hollow throughout the day. Only rising to ease their bodily needs while they patiently listened for more sounds outside.
He did
n’t speak with Maeve again, but when she drifted asleep a few hours later, she did so without the knife in her hand, though she remained tucked into a protective ball. She was a fellow blood slave, one who had also had it pretty bad judging by her scars and current sleeping position.
When she woke again after an hour of sleep, she blinked up at him and jerked back against the wall.
“Easy,” he soothed when she glanced wildly around the hollow. “You’re safe.”
“I’ve never been safe,” he thought she murmured, but couldn’t be sure as she’d spoken so low. “Any hint of them?”
“No. We may be able to make a move at nightfall.”
She brushed back a strand of her black hair. “Where will you go?” she inquired.
“We have a friend we must meet with.”
Her eyes slid toward him. “Sounds important.”
“It is, and judging by the vamps around here, we may already be too late.”
“Then why not turn back?”
“There is no turning back, not for us, and not for this.”
“Is this about the upcoming threat the queen has been gathering humans and vampires to defend against?”
“You know about that?” he asked.
“I know where the safe houses are, so of course I know about that. It’s all anyone can talk about. That and the growing rumors of humans vanishing and vampires being destroyed in nearby towns.”
“And are you planning to fight?”
“I’m always planning to fight,” she replied. “It is the only way to survive.”
“For a while it wasn’t.”
“Maybe not for you, but in these woods, we’ve always known we would have to return to what we once were.”
“No,” Max said firmly. “If we win this, there will never be the need to return to fighting. We will know freedom.”
“Until the next threat.”
“There will be no more.”
“How can you be so certain?” she inquired.
“I have to be.”
“How do you have so much faith after what you’ve been through?”