Chapter Seven – Aaron
How could he have missed the signs? Aaron's fingers drummed against his thigh as the van raced from the city, wishing that he had paid for a vehicle with a little more speed. The guards he had called to come with him as he went after Sofia were sitting all around him, silent as they glanced askance at him. He ignored them, praying that Sofia was safe.
Of course she wouldn't have accepted his decision to let the magic run its course and turn him human. Not when they didn't know what would happen after he became fully human. If their situations were reversed, he never would stand by and watch. Why had he expected her to?
If Gloria hadn't phoned him to tell him about this crazy plan, would he have ever guessed Sofia was doing this? But it was too late to stop Sofia from leaving. Was it too late to stop her from going to the swamp?
"We're here," the driver said.
Tires screeched as they came to a stop. Aaron was thrown from his seat, though a dozen hands instantly reached to support him. He pushed them off.
"Go."
They ripped open the doors and jumped out of the van. Aaron wanted to lead the charge but forced himself to stay still as he watched the others stream out. Right now he'd only slow them down. As soon as they were out, however, he jumped from the van. Flashes of light burned through the dark swamp, and he ordered his men towards it.
Aaron watched for a moment, waiting with the two guards who stayed with him, but he soon realized he couldn't just stand here and do nothing. He started after the others. A smell of ozone soon filled the air, making him gag. The flashes of light grew brighter. Within minutes, he found himself in the middle of a battle zone. Sofia and her friend hid behind a tree while all around them witches sent spells at them. His guards chased at the witches, dodging spells.
The king grabbed his wife around the waist and pulled her back towards the edge of the swamp. "Drive them off," he ordered the guards. "Get rid of them!"
The vampires broke their tight formation around him and charged the witches, agilely dodging spells that flew at them. The witches fled into the forest. Sofia fought against him as he tried to pull her away. Soon the only sound in the dark swamp was that of her cursing.
"Let go of me," she spat, clawing at his arms. "I'm not going to let you die, Aaron!"
"Stop struggling." Sweat broke over Aaron's forehead. "I can't hold you."
Gloria stood still, watching them with wide eyes. She cleared her throat. "I'm pretty sure that's the point. Not being able to hold her, I mean."
Aaron sent her a glare, but at that moment Sofia jabbed her elbow into his sternum. An unexpected pain blossomed from the point of impact, making Aaron stumble. He released Sofia and fell to one knee, pressing a hand to his chest. There was a strange thudding pain in it, something clawing at him that made him gasp for breath. Blinding pain shot through his chest. Sofia pressed in against him but he fended her off, trying to catch a breath.
"What's wrong? Aaron, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hit you that hard."
The king closed his eyes as the pain started to ease. A strange tingling filled his body out to his fingertips. He swallowed down the bile that rose in his throat. The thudding in his chest was still there, bringing up half-forgotten memories.
"It's not you," he managed to say to Sofia. "It's my heart. It's started beating again."
Sofia's eyes rounded. She put her hand on his chest and shook her head. "We don't have much time. Gloria, we have to get to the toadstools now!"
"No," Aaron said. He straightened. "No. We are going back to the palace. You were already attacked."
"The vampires have driven them off."
"And there could be more. No, Sofia. You can't put our child at risk."
Sofia swallowed hard. Her hands drifted to her stomach and tears filled her eyes. "And if we don't do this? I want our baby, I want to protect it, but I need you. I can't let you die. How am I supposed to be a mother that a child can rely on if I don't do everything I can to save you?"
"The toadstools aren't far," Gloria added. Her eyes were locked on Aaron with a strange gleam in them. Her hands twitched. "But I agree with him. We shouldn't do this, Sofia. You're being selfish. What kind of mother can you be when you will kill your own child for the off chance that you can stop this transformation?"
Aaron growled at the witch, fury building in his belly at her words. How dare she say such awful things about his queen? He'd never liked Gloria, hating the way she spoke to Sofia, but this was extreme even for her. He stepped forward and opened his mouth, but Sofia beat him to it.
"I don't care what you say, Gloria. I am doing this. Now show me where the toadstools are, or I am cutting you off. I will not be your friend. I will not give you more gifts, and I'll start charging you rent for the house I bought for you."
Gloria's jaw dropped. "Sofia!"
"I mean it." Sofia crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "Now show us the way!"
Gloria glanced at Aaron again. A brief flash of regret shone in her eyes before she turned and pointed. "It's this way. And I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I just don't want you to get hurt, Sofia."
Sofia ignored her as she headed in the direction the witch pointed. Aaron ground his teeth and pulled a gun from his belt as he followed. There was no changing Sofia's mind, it seemed. And he might be useless as a vampire right now, but magic couldn't stop a witch from dying when a bullet was in her head. He could still offer some protection to his wife.
They reached a small clearing soon enough. Sofia put the flashlight between her teeth as she pulled the spell book and a thermos from the backpack she wore. She started working at once, slicing up the mushrooms into the thermos while consulting the book regularly.
"Hurry," Aaron urged.
"I'm going as quickly as I can," Sofia said. "If I get anything wrong, the potion could kill you."
A flash of blue caught his eye. Aaron turned just in time to see a ball of the lightning fly at him. He threw himself to the ground, grunting on impact, and rolled back to his knees. A woman strode through the trees, stretching the crackling blue energy between her fingertips. Aaron rose the gun and let off a few rounds.
A cry of pain. The lightning blinked out and the woman fell. Aaron got to his feet unsteadily. Sofia stared at him for a moment before shaking her head and bending over the potion again. Gloria, however, backed away from him, her gaze locked on the gun in his hand.
"Why did you bring that? Vampires don't use guns!"
"We don't have to," Aaron grunted. He scanned the trees, but there didn't seem to be any more witches around. "But I'm not a vampire anymore. I might not be able to fight like I used to, but that doesn't mean I'm completely helpless."
Gloria shuddered, making Aaron frown, but she turned to Sofia before he could question her on it. He turned back to the forest, gun up and ready to fire at anybody who dared approach. The swamp was still around them, not even the sound of crickets or frogs breaking the silence.
"Here, let me help you," Gloria said, reaching for the potion.
Sofia grabbed it and pulled back, shaking her head. "No! If anybody else touches it besides me, it will transform into poison. You know that as well as I do. Just help Aaron keep watch."
The king's nerves tingled. Maybe it was just his ongoing transformation, but there was something that felt wrong. Too silent, maybe. Too dark. With the full moon in the sky, why were the shadows so deep around them? He stepped a little closer to Sofia.
"Why would a potion require one specific person to make it?" Gloria said. "Come on, Sofia. I'm better at this than you. You can't even read the full recipe. It's smudged! For all you know, you could be making a poison that will kill him the moment you drink it."
"I drink it?" Sofia's voice rang higher pitched than normal. "It doesn't say anything about me drinking it."
"You had to drink the other one, it only makes sense for you to drink this one. Sofia, please. If you do this, you're going to die too. You can't save him. But you can save yourself."
Aaron turned from the trees to look down at Gloria. In contrast the darkness around them, she seemed to glow. A chill ran down the king's spine as the witch shook her head, a strange blue light coming from her eyes. Something niggled at the back of his mind. This wasn't ordinary magic…
"I didn't want it to end like this, Sofia. You could have had a happy, human life. But I guess now I have to kill you both."