MASON
Shouting commenced as the doors to the stone castle shoved forward with great force. Standing there were two hooded figures, both of them imposing. Both of them… evil.
Everything about them felt wrong.
It felt… other.
My mom approached them, blood on her hands, her face pinched with worry and fear. My father stood behind her, his hand on her back.
“We can’t…” My mom covered her face with her hands. “We fight amongst ourselves as much as we fight amongst the other immortals. They challenge us as king and queen. Every few years, we lose more and more of our armies. Our son has a sickness, one he was born with. It keeps him bound to his bed. My husband needs an Alpha to step in.”
The hooded figure took a deep breath then rumbled in a low voice, “So, you’ve sought my help?”
My mom nodded. “I’ve heard what you can do.”
The hood dropped from his face.
I swore as black hair fell around carved cheekbones, and one single strip of red placed in the front framed his angelic face. “Have you now?”
The person next to him laughed darkly.
Father held out his hand. “We have money, resources—”
“A favor.” Bannick grinned menacingly. “All I ask is for a favor. I swear to you, you won’t even be alive to follow it through.”
Anxiety washed over me as my father held out his hand and shook Bannick’s. “A favor. You have my word.”
“I know.” His grin was cruel, and then very slowly he tilted his head, closed his eyes, and breathed in before jerking his attention directly at me and whispering it again. “I know.”
I backed away.
I could feel his stare through every inch of skin, bone, muscle.
“What you’re doing…” Bannick slowly turned his attention back to my father. “…it is… not accepted.” He pointed up to the ceiling. “It may get you killed, or your son, but if it works — war will stop. You’ll have someone too strong, too powerful to challenge. An Alpha who is a hybrid like the world has never seen.” He opened his mouth as if to say more then shut it. “Come, Gadreel. We’ll need to hunt.”
Father nodded. “I’ll help.”
Bannick outright laughed. “We can catch a silly vampire. It’s getting them to agree that’s the problem. But we have our ways… Everyone has a price, and I’m thinking I know just the vampire who’s willing to do just about anything to have a child.”
Time moved ahead of us in rapid succession as my body chilled. I reached for Serenity’s hand only to discover she wasn’t there.
I did a slow circle.
Completely alone, except for Cassius. He gave me a sad look. “It’s not fair.”
“What isn’t?”
“To allow others in on our innermost fears, our thoughts.” He put a hand on my shoulder. “I sent them back to the present. Let’s see what they bargained for with the devil.”
In the next scene I heard screaming first.
So much screaming.
It was my mother. She was hovering over me. “There’s too much blood!”
“Not enough blood,” Bannick said in a bored tone. “He needs to be bit a few more times.”
The vampire glanced at my mother with green cool eyes and then continued attacking my small body.
I screamed at the top of my lungs as he took more blood.
“Stop.” Bannick held out his hand. “Gadreel, come here, won’t you?”
Gadreel stepped forward and then moved to his knees.
Bannick held a silver dagger in front of him. “If you ever fall, my brother, know that you will still exist in the next life stronger than before.”
Gadreel peeled back his hood.
I wanted to turn away.
I wanted to run.
His eyes were ice blue.
His face matched mine exactly.
His hair was black with streaks of red, but other than that, he was an identical twin.
He smirked like he could see me.
I gripped the wall with my hands, clawed at it to keep from collapsing, and then Bannick shoved the blade into Gadreel’s heart as silver blood spewed from the gaping hole onto the sharp weapon.
He held out the blade to my body and slowly dripped silver blood onto each bite wound, allowing the vampire to seal the blood in.
My small body convulsed as I moaned in despair.
It hurt.
Like being reborn.
Fire in my blood.
Ice in my brain.
A headache that refused to go away.
And a pulsing in my gums that begged me to ask for more.
Kill for more.
So confused.
My dark eyes darted toward my parents. The trust was broken. Gone. In its place only fear.
Fear that I’d somehow not been good enough. Strong enough.
And they’d do something so abysmal in order to make me…
Better.
Maither turned away and cried into my dad’s chest as he gave one final nod to Bannick.
His blade slid into my chest with precision.
Piercing my heart.
“Break the heart. Knit the blood. Feed the soul,” Bannick whispered in an ancient tongue. “Your true identity will be forever hidden until her.”
The blade left my skin.
I didn’t bleed.
Every single bite healed immediately.
I sat up straight. I looked murderous.
I went to grab the boy, the small boy who looked ready to kill the world, but Cassius held me back.
A crack of lightning lit up the room.
Followed by thunder.
Gadreel stood. “Looks like we pissed him off again.”
“It’s what we do best.” Bannick shrugged. “At least then, we have his attention. We’ve been ignored too long. No more, brother. I’ve got plans for us. Big plans.” Within seconds, they were gone.
The vampire finally turned toward us.
He looked familiar.
He gave his head a shake and then whispered in the air, “My want has blinded me.”
Within minutes, another vampire walked in with a small child. “She’s beautiful! The angels have stayed true to their promise!”
The girl immediately started to cry.
“What should we name her?” The male vampire held out his arms.
My mother chimed in. “Death. Name her death. For there is only death here.” She collapsed against my father.
“She has only fainted,” he explained, “and your daughter is beautiful. Name her something that means peace.”
The vampires nodded.
Seconds later, Sariel the archangel appeared.
And nothing was ever the same again.
Cassius gripped my shoulder. “There is nothing left to see that we don’t know.”