~ Salvay entered his home, shrugging out of his jacket. Before the tailor-made Italian masterpiece touched the floor, his butler was there to catch it. He entered his living room, where a fire was burning in the hearth. He didn’t bother to roll up the sleeve of his shirt as he pushed his hand into the fire to press a button hidden by the flames. His hand came away, neither shirt nor skin seared. Without a sound, a section of the wall to the right of the fireplace slid open.
The door closed behind him as he made his way down the stairs concealed in pitch-blackness. Pushing open the door at the foot of the stairs, he entered a lit room. Inside was Passerini, making notes on a chart. The man looked up for a second, acknowledging Salvay’s presence before he went back to his work.
“Should the process take this long?”
~Marx followed Roan away from the rest of the group. The noise of the festivities grew distant as they moved to the western edge of the village. The initial wariness of the people shifted to curiosity as they followed the example of their leader and gave the vampires and the werewolves the benefit of a doubt. War and death marred their past, but their future, though on the verge of another war, would see them standing as allies, come what may. “Where are we going?” “To our Shaman,” Roan answered. “For what purpose?” Roan stopped to face him. “Do you know how werewolves and vampires came to be?” Marx shook his head. Celeste had imparted much knowledge about her world, but mostly she pretended that side of her life n
~Marx felt slightly foolish sitting in the tent, legs folded underneath him. He wanted to ask what this all should achieve, but each time he spoke out of turn, the Shaman chastised him. Now he sat there in silence, eyes closed, talking to himself. The room was now a haze of incense that tickles his nose, and he was sitting closer to the suspended fire than he would have liked. "You are the man, the alpha, and the wolf," the Shaman said. "Open your eyes." Marx did, and before he could ask a question, he saw figures in the cloud of incense. One was a man and bounding over to him was a wolf. He accepted the wolf, and the two became one. Another figure formed. This third figure was a werewolf. Instead of accepting it as the man had the wolf, they remained divided. "Roan said I feared the wolf."
~Garrick changed back to human form, the process painful. He had never felt pain while turning before. Since his mother turned him, changing was as simple and as natural as breathing. Now, as his body mass adjusted, his skeletal structure snapping back in place, he was in agony. Ava was the one who heard him and came running. When she knelt beside him, he held onto her for support. They were both shocked at their ability to make physical contact, but at that moment, with Garrick writhing in pain, it did not matter. She stayed with him until the change ended and the pain ebbed away. Sweat had his clothes clinging to his skin. “You changed.” Ava helped him to sit up. “Never thought I would say this, but I’d prefer not to do that again.” As the pain cleared from his mind, Garrick looked at Ava. “How am I
~Shea sat uncomfortably in the middle of the four pairs of eyes that regarded her. She could hear running feet and men shouting orders outside. That was where she wanted to be. Out there with the pack. Preparing for the danger that was coming for them. The four leaders before her were cool and collected, considering that an unknown threat was heading their way. “Do we need to do this now? I should be out there.” “Living on the verge of war is now our reality. We need to know the enemies we are up against, and you have information that could assist in our efforts,” Vescovi said. “You are helping just as much in this room as you would outside these walls—maybe even more,” Roan added, his voice to Vescovi’s reasoning. “And Marx?” she knew they had a point, but she
~Shea held her side as her wound healed. She stood between her past and her present, confused about how it could be possible. Barabbas was supposed to be dead. She had watched him die. His life had drained from his eyes, leaving them lifeless glass windows to a vacant soul. She knew it was him by scent, tainted by the smell of death. Though he fought the others, his primary focus was on her and Ichiro. Shea bit back a sound of distress. The foolish man had come to her aid. Barabbas scored his pound of flesh. Zigor was with Ichiro trying to stop the bleeding. There was so much blood. Barabbas was proving to be too much for the inexperienced members of her pack and the natives that came to join them. She threw her head back, howling, calling for Daniel and Helick. Bryan came running in with Yuri. “Get t
~“You need to take it slow.” “Don’t tell me to take it slow!” Sven roared. He had woken to find out that days—weeks had passed since Penny dispatched him at the portal. Sven could not remember how long it took him the first time to come back, but it had not felt like an eternity had passed. Then again, the first time had been unexpected, and he was not in the middle of his plot for Lansguard. Upon realizing that his most trusted lieutenant—Barabbas—was dead, Sven went over the edge. “It makes no sense pushing yourself like this when you are not at your full strength.” Sven, in anger, lifted the bed he woke up on, flipping it over onto its side. It was the only thing between him and Passerini who was trying to pacify him. Sven grabbed the vampire by the neck, slamming him into the nearest wall and pinning hi
~Penny had to be smart about moving through the city. She stuck to roofs, staying out of sight in the morning, picking up her hunt at night, sticking to the shadows. In her pursuit for Sven, Penny followed the tiny residues of shadow magic to the source. Though faint, the trace was the newest lead she had in finding Sven. She followed it to the heart of the city. To the heart of Pentorium. Whomever Penny found would have had contact with the man recently. She stayed in the shadows and waited. A man came out of the building, rushing down the steps to the sidewalk as he spoke on his phone. He wore a sensible black business suit and carried a silver briefcase in his free hand. There was a town car parked at the curb and waiting by the open passenger door was the driver. Penny turned her head to the side, her ear in the man’s direction as she listened. “Tes
~ From her talk with Barabbas, Shea knew some changes took longer than others did. Ichiro was back in the house now after Penny pumped his system with her venom. They had no idea how long it would take for the change to start or for it to end. Everything was watching and seeing how it all turned out. If Ichiro turned at all. Martha had the cure for the poison on standby, but the added factors of the situation had her chewing her nails to the quick. “His body is undergoing so much stress,” she told Ava. They were standing out in the hallway. “His heart could give out before the change even finishes.” Ava shushed her. “Shea needs this. Whatever happens, just do what you can.” Martha nodded and went back into the room. Ava ran a hand over her face.
~ Marx stood looking at the carbonated lump that used to be four people he knew. Four people he loved. Ava, Lochlan, Zack, and Dempsey. Around him, the grass had grown again. The earth showed no signs of the battle that raged there. Mother earth had healed, but he had not. None of the others had. The world was safe, but a gap remained in their hearts that could never be filled. Around the base of the carbon memorial, laid fresh flowers. Every day for the past six months, Martha came with a new bouquet. Today was no different. He arrived as she did. “You came,” she had said to him when she saw him. In her hands, she had more than a dozen bulbs of tulips. Her summer dress fluttered in the breeze, strands of her now brown hair escaping her ponytail. The smile she gave him out shunned the sun, and Marx, for the life
~Marx was leading the last assault; one meant to be a distraction. Ava moved her palm away from the wound on her side. Bleeding still felt strange to her. Martha was the only one with whom she could go into details about her plans. “Penny has the last rune. All she has to do is plant it on him. When she does, we have only a few minutes to get our part done,” she said to Martha. “What is our part?” “I’m going to use you like an amplifier. I know how it sounds and yes, it is dangerous. For me more than you.” “Then we can’t do it,” Martha said. “If you’re going to get hurt—” “I have a contingency for that as well.” “Ava—” She
~Rea and Cale launched direct attacks on Kunz while Ava tried to unravel his protections. Each layer she pulled apart revealed another was more entrenched and more intricate than the one preceding it. She almost got another layer undone when she heard Cale shout— “Look out.” Ava had enough time to react, the death rune crackling through the air towards her. She split the force in half, saving herself by a hair. In the duel that ensued, Cale made the ultimate sacrifice. Rea tried to stop him as he ran straight for Kunz. Ava threw up a rune between Cale and the King; it was too late. Like dust, Cale disappeared. A self-satisfied smile lifted the side of Kunz’s lips. “Come now Avana. You cannot hope to defeat me. Even with all the knowledge at your disposal, I have spent years perfecting my craft.”
~They came through using three portals. Cale and Rea helped Ava to create one large enough to transport all of their forces. On the other side, they emerged on the field of battle in Hedgewood. The ground was scarred black. Trees toppled over and uprooted. It looked like a nuclear weapon went off, turning black everything in its path. The familiarity of the scene had an itch running down Marx’s spine. This place was either where they would claim victory or where he would walk over the corpses of the people he loved. He brushed his somber thoughts aside. Victory was their only option. To Ava, who stood on his right, Marx said, “Your handy work?” “I may have caused a patch here and there.” She bobbed her head from side to side. It was such a human gesture Marx found he had an urge to smile. He allowed his amu
~ Storming Hedgewood had to wait. Ava’s ‘problem’ required a second’s more thought. So close to the end, Marx was growing impatient. They needed to strike while they could and delays after delays were shifting the advantage square into the enemy’s hands. He folded his arms across his chest, keeping his face void of his emotions as he listened to Ava. “He has layers of protection wrapped around him like a shawl,” she was telling them as they stood inside the lobby of Anax Corp. Having the conversation on the outside felt too open. While they conversed, the last of the civilians and the injured were being ushered to the safety of the Mountain. Those left behind were there to fight. Marx found he was itching to fight. Ava continued. “We got through three of them before we had to retreat.” “Kunz spent years perfectin
~The sky was a battlefield. Above Pentorium, spreading out for miles, the shadows fought amongst themselves. Those made from the spirits of dead vampires clashing against those created from werewolves. Marx had control of the latter. It was surreal watching it all unfold. Anabella came to stand by Marx as he stood gazing up at the result of his power. Power he would never have dreamed of having. Explaining to the others what he could do would have paled compared to the scene unfolding over their heads. “This is what Sven wanted from her,” Anabella said about Sven and his sister, Marx’s mate, Celeste. “And when he couldn’t take it, he planned to break the seal on the portal.” “I can’t imagine having that man’s thoughts inside my head,” Marx said. “I rather
~Vescovi’s head throbbed as if a drummer band was marching across his forehead. Making his way through the tunnel with his men, a blast came out of nowhere, knocking them down and rendering them unconscious. He woke up in a crumpled heap with his men, all in various stages of recovery. It took him several tries to get to his feet and stay there, the drumming in his head growing louder with each movement. Walking straight was a task, but it was urgent that they get to Xavier and the others. They were delayed enough as it was getting the remaining civilians under Anax Corp ready for transport to the Mountain. Pentorium was under an evacuation order. He paused when he saw that the panel leading out of the tunnels was open. It was plausible that Xavier had left it like that since it was their way in and out, but Vescovi could not ignore the prickle at
~Martha moved to run to Nico as a shadow took possession of his body. Four steps in his direction, she stopped. Nico faced her direction, his eyes twin pools of swirling mist. The thing inside of him had his lips turn up in a smirk. With hot tears streaming unchecked down her cheeks, Martha clutched her fingers into tight fists. The words came from the pits of her stomach. The ground under her feet undulated, rippling with energy as she spoke them. Nico charged in her direction, his face twisted in rage. Martha held up her hand, palm open, continuing the chant, repeating it with fervor and a new understanding. Death fueled shadow magic. Hate. Anger. All the dark things that sullied the world. The spell was the most powerful she had ever attempted since Ava infused the revenant soul with hers. She had to release control to it. Allow the magic to ru
~Martha couldn’t breathe, her anxiety tightening her chest. Through her link with Nico, she could feel his growing distress. It urged her to move faster as she sprinted through the hidden tunnels leading down into the subway. Back at Anax Corp, Vescovi was assembling a team, a process that was taking longer than was comfortable with her. Nico and the others needed immediate help. Communications, already spotty, had gone dead. Not a single response, only the constant frying of static. Unable to stand around doing nothing while the man she loved probably laid gutted and dying, Martha snuck off when no one was looking. None of the others knew what she was planning to do. If they did, they would have tried to stop her. She was the passive one. The one who chose not to fight. For a werewolf, her reliance on that part of herself never went past her prim