Hope Is Powerful

Delilah

 

“Let me get this straight,” Cain started over breakfast three days later. “You’ve got some crazy Mexican witch in the back forty sacrificing a yak, or some shit, in order to get visions of what might happen, doing this either to put your minds at ease or so she can tell you what you’ve got to stop. You’ve got six other witches, my mate included, chanting over a bowl you hope will guide you to the leader of this mess. You’ve got a lock on one, and maybe five other, training camps that, right now, teams of immortals and mortals are setting up to go in and take down. And if any of this is successful, it’s going to seriously anger the enemy. You’ve also got a vampire you trust who’s cornered an enemy vampire, rescuing the concubine he was set to rape and murder but detaining him. Because of that, even though the security in this place is so tight it’s a wonder anyone can breathe, you’re planning to put The Three in danger to take all of them over two thousand miles just so Abel can interrogate this guy. A guy, mind you, who might not know anything or anything you can use.”

He took in a breath, his eyes scanning the people at the table, which included all of The Three, the rest of the family, Gregor, and Yuri, but none of the witches.

Then he finished, “Do I have that right?”

“You do,” Abel, sitting beside me, confirmed.

Cain’s eyes narrowed on his brother. “Are you insane?”

I felt Abel get tense so I put my hand on his knee and squeezed.

“No,” my man clipped.

“You are, brother. You’ve totally lost it,” Cain returned, and I squeezed harder.

We’d learned, not surprisingly, that Cain was born first.

And we were now learning, also not surprisingly, that even though he was about fifteen minutes older than Abel, he definitely had big brother tendencies.

“What do you suggest we do?” Abel shot back.

“I don’t know,” Cain retorted. “But not that.” He shook his head in frustration. “Dammit, you got all of me, why didn’t I get all of you so I could go instead?”

I understood this.

Cain didn’t have Abel’s mind-control abilities.

That was just for the last of The Three.

“I wouldn’t want you in danger either, brother,” Abel bit out.

“Yes, well, I didn’t spend a century keeping you safe, and the century before that watching our parents do it, for you to go on a suicide mission,” Cain bit back.

It was me who got tense at that.

Needless to say, when Abel shared this plan with me, I wasn’t gung ho on it either.

But he was my man, my mate, the one destined for me.

I had to have his back.

This meant at the current juncture, I had to keep my mouth shut.

Abel felt my tenseness. I knew it when I heard his voice get tight as he said, “It’s not even close to a suicide, man. We’ll be covered.”

“You sure about that?” Cain returned.

Abel’s voice was still tight when he answered, “Nothing’s sure in war. That doesn’t mean you sit back and wait for devastation to occur before you do shit about it. We need as much information as we can get, considering we don’t have that much of it, and even if this guy doesn’t have much either, what we get will be more.”

“I understand that, so have the people who’ve got him work him,” Cain suggested.

“They are,” Gregor butted in. “Cosmo and Stephanie are both skilled in interrogation. They just aren’t succeeding.”

“So bring him here,” Cain said to Gregor.

“They’re chipped,” Callum told him something that Cain, having been fully briefed on the situation, already knew.

“So?” Cain asked. “A chip is not going to erase what he knows on his way across the country.”

“If we move him to this location, they’ll know we have him. Currently, he’s being kept in his home, which won’t arouse suspicion,” Lucien pointed out.

“And I’ll repeat, a chip is not going to erase his memory,” Cain stated.

“Yes, but if he is, indeed, important, whatever he knows and can share they’ll also know, and they might make moves to change plans if they believe he’s been compromised,” Yuri put in. “We must know what they’re planning, not what they planned and aborted because we captured one of their men.”

Cain sat back in his chair and I watched his jaw get hard.

It was a little freaky seeing the spitting image of my man, who was sitting beside me, also sitting across the breakfast table from me. I knew I’d get used to it. It didn’t make it any less freaky.

There was a sharp rap on the door and all eyes went there. But before anyone could call the invitation to come in, the door opened and a vampire stood there.

He was looking at Gregor.

“Sir, if I can have a word,” he called.

“Nothing you say cannot be heard by those in this room,” Gregor called back, circling a hand in front of him. “Come in, Terrance.”

The vampire stepped in and started to close the door, but he also started talking before he accomplished that feat.

“We’ve had a communication from Gastineau,” he declared.

I pulled in a breath and leaned closer to Abel, who, in return, draped an arm on the back of my chair.

“His rescue attempt of Serena was unsuccessful,” the vampire Terrance went on.

“Oh no,” Sonia whispered.

“Phantom losses were significant,” Terrance stated. “He’s requesting reinforcements.”

“So he found her,” Gregor noted, tossing his napkin on the table and pushing his chair back.

“Indeed,” Terrance agreed.

“Did he report that Etienne was at that location?” Gregor asked, moving along the table to the door.

“No, sir, he didn’t report that. He didn’t report anything except their failure and his desire to make another attempt. He’s on Skype right now. He wishes to speak directly to you.”

Gregor nodded, not looking back to the room as he said, “I’ll return with news.”

He walked out the door, followed by Terrance, and Terrance closed it behind them.

“Not good news,” Leah murmured.

“Phantom losses were significant,” Cain stated in a way that got everyone’s attention.

But his attention was solely on his brother.

“Do me a favor,” he went on quietly. “Wait. A day. You want to give me a gift, wait two. See if that witch gets a vision. See if the others can locate the leader. Just wait, give it a little time, so maybe we’ll know what we’re facing, or when you go in, you’ll have a target that’s worth the risk.”

“The Three have to agree,” Abel replied, and I felt something loosen inside me.

Maybe he was giving in.

Cain pushed back his chair, his gaze moving around the table, before he said, “Then you’ll all be doing me a favor. I finally have my brother. I don’t want to lose him.”

On that, he tossed his napkin on the table and stalked out.

“Shit, I need a cigarette,” Jabber muttered, pushing his chair back.

“I’m with you, brother. It’s time for a smoke break,” Hook stated, getting up to follow Jabber.

Moose did the same.

Poncho stayed seated.

“Any way you can get your auntie to speed things up?” Abel asked him.

“Not good to interrupt her when she’s working,” Poncho answered.

I sighed.

Abel’s jaw got hard.

“Is she really sacrificing a yak?” Leah asked.

“Ox,” Poncho told her.

Her eyes got big and they turned to me.

I gave her a lip curl but shrugged.

“I would agree with Cain,” Lucien interrupted his bride’s and my nonverbal communication. “A day, two, we can wait. Cosmo is working that vampire. Perhaps he’ll break him.”

“Abel?” Callum called after Lucien finished giving his vote.

And when Abel gave his, I knew it not only came from the fact that he wanted to give his brother this, but he also wanted to give it to me.

“Two days. Then we go,” he said.

“Agreed,” Callum finished it.

It didn’t escape me that they didn’t ask for Sonia’s, Leah’s, or my opinion, but since the vote went the way I wanted it to, I kept my mouth shut.

“We should train,” Abel announced.

“There’s little else to teach you, brother,” Callum told him. “By the fates, you’re a natural.”

“Then we should attack each other to blow off some steam,” Abel returned.

Callum held his eyes and nodded slowly. “All right, Abel.”

The men pushed back, including Lucien, his eyes to Xun, which meant they were training too.

Considering I didn’t think I was destined to karate chop my way to saving the world, I stayed where I was and reached for the silver coffeepot.

I had it by the handle held up in the air when I felt Abel’s hand curl around my neck.

I tipped my head back, he bent in to give me a short, soft kiss, then he was gone.

With similar gestures for their mates, Callum and Lucien were gone with him. Without bitches to kiss, the rest just filed out.

Leaving Leah, Sonia, and me with Poncho.

“Don’t you smoke?” Sonia asked him, and he grinned wickedly at her.

“I do, beautiful, but I do not when I got a shot at sittin’ at a fancy-ass table with three gorgeous women, drinkin’ coffee, and shootin’ the shit.”

That was Poncho. He was a flirt.

I gave him a smile.

He returned it.

Then I poured my coffee, sat back with mug in hand, and while the world continued to hang in the balance, I shot the shit with my friends.

* * * * *

I moved through the grass toward the wolves doing what they’d been doing for days and days.

And I did it enjoying what I saw.

Callum was an incredibly handsome wolf, Ryon, Calder, and Caleb weren’t slouches either, but Abel was glorious. Big. Beautiful. And his fur was amazing. I’d touched it and it was thick and soft. Seeing him as wolf, I hoped one day I’d have a chance (or many of them) to go out with my mate while he roamed.

Abel sensed me, separated from the pack, and leaped to man.

Okay, more glorious.

I turned, walking backward, giving them all time to do the same and get decent before I made it to them.

“We’re good, Lilah,” Abel called, and I turned back.

“Sorry to interrupt,” I said loudly since I still wasn’t that close, “but Gregor’s chat with Gastineau is done. He reported to us girls and I’m here to report to you.”

“Leah go to Lucien?” Callum asked.

“Yes. And Sonia’s with the witches,” I told him, now close enough to stop so I did. “We decided to ask them if they could give Gastineau and the immortals that Gregor is sending to him a protection spell.”

“So Gregor is giving him reinforcements,” Ryon said, and I nodded.

“Etienne wasn’t where they’re holding Serena,” I shared. “It’s in a bunker, three stories down under a vampire-owned skyscraper, apparently where an old Feast used to be held. Hard to breach. They’re gonna try again anyway.”

The men had no response to this.

“Gastineau is, um…antsy,” I told them. “The second attempt is gonna happen soon.”

“He should wait,” Ryon muttered.

“Maybe, but a second attempt done quickly after so many losses were sustained would be unexpected,” Callum replied. “Perhaps that will aid their cause.”

Abel got close and curled a hand around my neck.

I looked up to him.

“You good?” he asked softly.

Two days of him safe, The Three safe, my friends and family safe, before we started to take risks in order to save the world?

I knew it made me chicken, but I was good.

“Yeah, honey,” I replied.

He studied me like he was attempting to see if I was fibbing, must have got the correct answer (since I wasn’t), and slid his arm along my shoulders.

“Think I’m done,” he told Callum.

Callum lifted his chin.

Abel looked down at me. “Let’s go see what the witches had to say.”

It was an unnecessary errand. They’d do whatever we asked. They might hate vampires, but they dug us. Not to mention, they kinda liked the world as it was.

Even knowing this, and knowing Abel knew it too, I replied, “Yeah, let’s go see.”

With waves to the others (from me, Abel did a chin lift), we walked to the house.

And when we got to the witches, we found we were right.

* * * * *

Late that night, everyone was crowded in Gregor’s office. Most people were lounging in the copious seating available (he had a serious big office), including me. I was sitting in Abel’s lap.

Aurora was up and pacing.

Although she was the only one pacing, the air in the room was thick with tension.

Suddenly, Aurora stopped pacing, looked to her mother, and asked, “Did we do all we could do?”

“Yes, sweetheart,” Barb answered. “With the time given and the distance between us, we did all we could do.”

“Teona ain’t no newbie,” Ruby put in. “She’s got serious mojo. We gave it to them good.”

This loosened a bit of the tightness I felt in my chest and I looked to Teona. When she felt my eyes and looked to me, I smiled.

She winked.

I totally liked Abel’s sister-in-law.

“The operation began three hours ago,” Abel declared, eyes to Callum before they moved to Lucien. “Your gut, what does it mean that we haven’t heard anything?”

Callum looked to Lucien before both men scanned the room, their gaze stopping with meaning on any woman it touched.

There you had it. Protective vampires and wolves.

I rolled my eyes.

“Give it to us straight, darling,” Leah encouraged Lucien. “We can take it.”

“As you wish, my pet,” he replied, then looked to Abel. “It could mean they were successful, but just barely, and are currently securing a safe place in which to hide and see to Serena if, and this is a good possibility, she’s been harmed.”

That wasn’t great, the good possibility of Serena being harmed, but the possible outcome was, so I relaxed against my man.

“Or, it could mean The True decimated them and there’s no one to report back,” Lucien finished.

“Fuck,” I whispered, not relaxed anymore at all.

“We cannot know until we know,” Jian-Li pointed out the obvious. “So there is no need to waste negative energy on lamenting loss when we aren’t certain we’ve sustained one. And as positive energy sustains these beings, gives them their light, their lives, it’s crucial we honor them by staying as positive as we can.”

Yeesh, if all her ancestors were as wise as her, it was no wonder Abel was so smart.

On this thought, I felt something funny so I looked to Abel to see his gaze aimed across the room. There was a small smile playing at his mouth.

I looked where his eyes were aimed, but I knew what I’d see.

The mirror image of my man, including the smile playing at his mouth.

Cain.

He knew his parents had chosen well as to who would raise Abel.

But I bet it didn’t suck to have that confirmed.

We all fell silent and I held Abel and his brother’s nonverbal communication close, using that to send positive energy out there to Serena and her mate and all those who were trying to save her.

Our silence lasted awhile before Dad broke it, muttering, “Christ, I could use a doobie.” I looked to him to see his eyes on Gregor. “You got any pot around this joint? My stash ran out three days ago.”

I felt Abel shaking with laughter and I turned to grin at him just when an unmistakable boop, boop, boop-ing sound came from Gregor’s computer.

His eyes sliced to it as his hand went with vampire speed to his mouse.

He clicked.

The boop, boop, boop-ing stopped and the room filled with a deep, smooth voice.

“Serena has been secured.”

I slumped against Abel as relief swept the room.

“However, the losses were again great,” the voice went on.

The relief vanished.

“We’re safe. My mate is weak, but she’s being seen to,” the voice kept going.

That meant it was Gastineau.

“The news of losses is distressing, Gastineau,” Gregor replied to the computer. “But I’m very pleased to hear of Serena’s rescue.”

“You have the phantoms,” Gastineau declared, and I stopped slumping against Abel. “A delegation is en route to your compound now. I’ll send missives to the rest. And you’re already aware that my queen has committed her wraiths to the side of The Real True.”

“We’re most grateful,” Gregor told him. “I await your delegation and word of Serena’s successful recovery.”

“Right,” Gastineau returned, then there was a different boop sound and I knew he had disconnected.

“Not a surprise. Positive energy works,” Teona stated, and I saw her smiling at Jian-Li. “Not our asses on the line, and probably just hopeful we did anything to help, but hope is powerful. We can never forget that.”

She was not wrong.

“No truer words spoken,” Barb voiced my thoughts (kinda).

“I’d suggest another jamboree, but all I got in me is to fuck my vamp and crash in preparation of whatever shit we’re gonna face tomorrow,” Dad declared. “So I’m off to hit the hay.”

I grinned and looked at Abel, who was looking at Dad and shaking his head.

It didn’t take long for us to disburse, which we did on quiet, relieved, but edgy good-nights and tight hugs.

Abel and I were silent all the way to our room. We remained silent as we got ready for bed.

I continued the silence when we slipped between the sheets and he pulled me in his arms, front-to-front, and tucked my face into his throat.

I was guessing this meant no nookie.

I was disappointed, but I got that. He had a lot on his mind and I had to give him space to sort through it.

After a while, Abel ended the silence, giving me what was on his mind.

“They’re gonna be pissed that we got Serena.”

I closed my eyes.

“Yeah,” I whispered, pushing closer and holding him tight.

“They’re gonna retaliate.”

“Yeah,” I repeated, moving in to press my lips to the column of his throat.

“A lotta them still got concubines.”

I gave him a squeeze.

“This shit is gonna explode, Lilah, and soon,” he said.

“Probably,” I agreed.

“I hope like fuck we’re ready,” he muttered.

I did too.

But I did it to myself.

Out loud, I stated firmly, “We’re ready.”

“And I hope like fuck you’re right.”

“Shh, baby, clear your head. Sleep.”

“Need your hands and mouth on me.” He pulled me up so we were facing each other and dropped his voice low. “Need your wild. Need your brand of alive. Need to feel free the way only you can give to me even when we’re cooped up.”

“Whatever you need, honey,” I whispered, moving my hands on him.

“Love you, Lilah,” he whispered back, moving his hands on me.

“Love you too, Abel,” I replied before he dipped his head and kissed me.

Then I gave him my hands. My mouth. My wild. My brand of alive. And I did the best I could to make him feel free.

I guess I did all right, because after the third round, he cuddled us close again and fell asleep.

But I lay awake, hoping. Doing lots and lots of hoping. Sending my positivity into the universe with more hope that it would reach the fates that tied me to Abel, handing me beauty, making them decide on the side of right.

Only after I’d tired myself out hoping, I fell asleep.

* * * * *

They were dead.

All of them.

Every one.

Blood dripped in the gutters as I stood in the street amongst the results of pure evil, staring at the blond vampire. Taking in his arrogant grin. But also taking in the malevolence in his eyes.

Yes.

Pure evil.

And also fury.

My body was locked, frozen, but I still felt the chill race up my spine as terror took hold of my heart.

“Tell them,” he hissed. “Tell them to give us The Three. Tell them there will be more of this,” he snarled as he swung out an arm, “if they do not capitulate.”

His chin came up an inch and he stared down his nose at me.

“We’re prepared to face a death of hunger and completely annihilate the weaker species, if they do not yield. We will lose our lives and they will lose theirs—an end to the earth as we know it, opening the chance for a new beginning. Tell them. Tell them we’re prepared to wipe the earth clean. Tell them to give us The Three.”

* * * * *

“Goddamn it, Lilah, baby, wake up!” Abel roared, and I jerked awake.

The instant I did, a sharp knock came at the door.

Abel, looming over me and looking freaked out, whipped his head that way.

“Downstairs!” a voice I didn’t recognize shouted. “Immediately! Library!”

“Fuck,” Abel snarled, rolling over me and taking me with him when he exited the bed.

I wasn’t exactly awake so he guided me to my clothes, bent, nabbed my panties, and handed them to me.

I had them on, and he had his jeans on, when I asked, “Was I dreaming?”

“Yep,” he replied, bending to snag my jeans.

“Do you know what’s going on?” I asked.

He handed me my jeans, and when I took them, he cupped my jaw in his hands, leaning in close.

“No clue, pussycat. Now, do me a favor and dress. Quick.”

I nodded and did the best I could, shaking off sleep as I did it.

The minute I was dressed, though both of us were still barefoot, Abel grabbed my upper arm, pulled me into his hold, and whoosh, we were out of the room and in the library.

Gregor was there, his hand to his ear on the phone. Lucien and Leah were there. No one else had arrived yet.

They all had their eyes glued to one location in the room.

I looked that way as Abel put me to my feet and I saw that the media cabinet, which usually shut the large, flat-screen TV from sight, was open. It was playing the news, a newscaster reporting, a scrolling bulletin going across the bottom of the screen, pictures inset to the top left.

“…carnage today. Current reports state a small town in northeast Iowa, a village in the highlands of Scotland, another village just outside Sofia in Bulgaria, and a hamlet in eastern China were all decimated. In each instance, only one survivor, a witness, was left alive. The attacks were timed, occurring precisely across the globe. When the first reports came in of the slaughter, this video was sent to the press.”

The newscaster disappeared and the head of a handsome, clearly uppity, blond man came on. Just his head. A black background.

Etienne.

“Today, The True successfully carried out our first mission. It was important to do so to make our intentions clear. However, now, we wish no further bloodshed. Therefore, we urge the leaders of the world to submit their populations to us without delay. The True immortals, the vampires, werewolves, and golem amongst you, demand your capitulation.”

I felt Callum and Sonia join us, but I didn’t move my eyes from the screen as the blond vampire continued talking.

“We will no longer hide our supremacy. We will no longer live in the shadows. We will no longer tolerate the efforts of our brethren to protect our human slaves from their rightful bondage.”

His eyes went scary and I felt my throat get tight.

“We will not be denied,” he warned. “Yield. Or you will fall.”

After that, he bared his teeth, extended his fangs on a snap, and the screen went back to the newscaster, who wore a troubled look.

“I can imagine our viewers believe this is another hoax. It distresses me to report that it is not. The thousands of victims of this senseless slaughter have been reported to be torn apart and drained of blood. Not a one has been found to sustain an injury by any weapon. The witnesses, all of them, thousands of miles apart, report that men and women with extreme speed and strength, as well as a number of wolves and what they describe as ‘hairless giants,’ invaded their towns, their homes, and wrought their butchery, leaving nothing but death in their wake and thousands of losses.” He leaned slightly toward the camera and lowered his voice as he finished, “And these attacks lasted moments.”

“This can’t be happening,” Sonia whispered.

Lucien, holding the remote, lifted it and clicked.

The next channel was news of the slaughter.

He hit another button.

More news of the attacks.

And another.

Every channel had been taken over by the news.

He left it on one with a female newscaster who was stating, “The videos seen several days ago all over social media sites were apparently exactly what they seemed to be. There are vampires amongst us. With the most recent heinous attacks perpetrated by these creatures, we have yet to receive explanations as to why the media received false information to relay to our viewers.”

“Get off the fucking phone,” Abel growled in a way my eyes went directly to him.

He was looking at Gregor.

“Off the fucking phone!” he roared.

“Honey,” I whispered.

“Yes, good. I’ll phone you back,” Gregor said and dropped his phone from his ear.

“Thousands dead. Us sitting on our hands and thousands dead,” Abel snarled.

“Avery is on his way. He’ll be here—” Gregor began.

Abel was in Gregor’s face in the flash of an eye.

“I do not give one fuck where fuckin’ Avery is.” He kept his face in Gregor’s but threw an arm toward the TV. “Thousands. Slaughtered!”

“Brother, stand down,” Callum called quietly.

Abel turned swiftly away from Gregor and narrowed his eyes at Callum.

“You down with that?” he bit out.

“You know I am not,” Callum retorted curtly. “Do not turn on me, Abel. Do not turn on your own. Get a fucking lock on it.”

Abel drew in a deep breath and stepped away from Gregor.

But the fury still burned in his eyes.

“Do we have any idea, whatsoever, where they plan to strike next?” Lucien asked Gregor.

“We don’t,” Gregor answered. “The President of the United States is about to make a statement, one he’s worked on with The Council and we approve.”

“And what’s that going to say?” Leah asked sharply. “Yes, there are immortals, and yes, some of them are evil, but, rest assured, most of them aren’t. We have no idea what the bad ones are up to and only a few more million of you are going to die…we hope…before we sort this. But hang tight.”

It was kinda funny.

It was also totally not.

“We must move,” Abel declared.

“To where?” Gregor asked.

“I don’t know,” Abel clipped. “Somewhere.”

“I know you’re frustrated, Abel—” Gregor started, but Abel cut him off.

“Yeah? You know that?” he asked sarcastically.

“As am I!” Gregor thundered, and the room went completely still at his uncharacteristic loss of control.

But he wasn’t done.

“I have eaten and slept and breathed these fucking Prophesies for decades, knowing one of the few beings I love on this earth was vulnerable to them.” He swung his arm to Sonia. “Knowing that though we could prevail, we could also not and all would be lost. All. All would be lost. And I’ve been working every moment to see that this does not happen. Yes, Abel, I know you’re frustrated. As…am…I.”

Abel drew breath in through his nose and his voice was a lot calmer when he said, “I hear you. I was out of line. I’m pissed. And you got my apologies.”

“I’m grateful for that,” Gregor returned, also sounding calmer, but his voice was still terse. “And I hope you understand that since we became aware that The Prophesies were about to come true, I have lived nothing but being certain The Three were safe. I hope you understand my caution. You are our only hope. And it has been my duty to my people, to the immortals, to all who inhabit this planet, to do just that. So I did.”

“I get you,” Abel said quietly, perhaps not calm, but now wanting to calm Gregor.

“Now,” Gregor kept going. “I’ve ordered all the teams that were preparing to take the hanger training camps to move as soon as they’re ready. They’ve been ordered to capture as many immortals as they can. Once that’s done, my suggestion is that we move from here to the nearest camp in order that Abel can work his way through the captives. We’ll be certain to have a very tight security detail on you as you travel. The phantoms and wraiths have already been contacted and are at the ready for our command. Although The True will be on alert that we may use them and their invisibility to attempt to get close and gather intelligence, we have no choice but to send them in. This will make these missions extremely dangerous, but we must do all we can. And last, The Council is currently speaking with leaders across the globe to procure their allegiance in military matters and in attempting to calm the fears of their people. That’s all I have. Now tell me, are you ready to move?”

“Yes,” Lucien stated immediately.

“Absolutely,” Callum agreed.

“I’m with this all the way,” Sonia added.

“Me too,” Leah said.

I just nodded.

Abel grunted, “You know what I think.”

“I’ll arrange the detail,” Gregor muttered.

“No,” Abel said. “We got mouths, we’ll deal with that shit. You got enough on your plate. Deal with that, and just sayin’, any of that we can take on, give it to us.”

Gregor looked to him and nodded.

Then, in a blur, he was gone.

My eyes drifted back to the TV.

“It’s begun,” Sonia said.

“It’s begun,” Leah repeated.

A chill slid up my spine that was highly unpleasant and weirdly familiar.

“It’s begun,” I whispered.

* * * * *

“My fellow Americans,” the president said on TV.

We all were sitting together in the library. All of us save Aurora, Teona, and the other witches. They were off somewhere trying to find Etienne as well as working like crazy casting protection spells on The Three, on our loved ones, who had since declared they were going with us, and on the teams that were right then invading the training camps.

Gregor also wasn’t there. He had shit to do.

If our morning wasn’t bad enough, through an email communication direct to The Vampire Dominion, as well as one to Callum, we learned that the rest of the concubines being held were murdered, the proof of this further atrocity irrefutable as they’d videotaped each life being blinked out.

One hundred and seven concubines gone, including another member of Leah’s family.

Now our bags were packed. We were ready to roll the minute we got the word.

“As you can see,” the president went on, “there are immortals in this world.” He gestured beside him to a handsome, blond vampire named Rudolf, a Council member, who had just extended and retracted his fangs. Also beside him was a wolf named Saint, who the cameras had caught transforming but now sat docilely, being pet by a beautiful, dark-haired she-wolf in human form, his mate, named Juliana. And last, there was a stunning, ethereal wraith hovering, seated over another chair.

The president drew in breath and locked eyes with the camera, but it didn’t pan in, keeping the immortals sitting beside him, who seemed normal and, more importantly, not aggressive, in the frame.

“They have lived among us as long as there have been humans roaming this planet,” the president went on gravely. “They are your colleagues. Your neighbors. They are productive, involved citizens. They pay taxes. They create jobs. There are some who are doctors who save lives. Nurses. Scientists who help to eradicate disease. Our existence with theirs has been harmonious for millennia. They have kept themselves hidden only for the purpose of our safety, however, there are many among us who know of them. Work with them. Take them as husbands and wives. Indeed, they are of us, human, just a different race. But as with any race, there are those who desire to destroy harmony.”

At this point, the camera panned in, broadcasting only the president’s face, which he’d arranged into a mask of concern and determination.

“I know it’s asking a great deal of the citizens of this great nation, but I urge calm. This faction…who attacked our own in Iowa and others around the world…is few. We, as well as the immortals, are aware of their existence. We are prepared to retaliate. We have more than hope that we will quash any further barbarisms perpetrated by this small, rogue offshoot before they happen. We have weapons to defeat it. And I promise, as your president, as your commander in chief, as a man who knows these races and trusts them, we, with our immortal brothers and sisters, will prevail.”

The president disappeared and we saw the newscaster.

Callum, who had the remote, turned the volume down.

“You think that worked?” Xun asked.

“Nope,” Moose answered.

I sighed.

“Is that true, you guys human?” Wei asked.

“Propaganda,” Lucien answered. “We were born of magic. However, that likely won’t be accepted very well at this juncture.”

“I hear that,” I muttered.

Lucien got up from the arm of the chair that Leah was sitting in, saying, “I’m going to find Gregor, see how things are—”

He didn’t finish.

Abel’s head turned to look over the back of the sofa where we were sitting, so mine did too.

A second later, I saw a blur materialize as Gregor.

He didn’t waste a second.

“The mission to take the training camp in Pennsylvania was successful. They’ve detained a goodly number of The True. Our jet is on standby.”

Everyone was on the move as he spoke.

And everyone stopped being on the move when, suddenly, Poncho’s auntie materialized beside him.

Her hair was wild, her face was caked in mud, as were her clothes, she smelled really, super bad, and she was in a serious state, arms waving, mouth moving a mile a minute to spit out words.

Unfortunately, all of them were Spanish.

Fortunately, Poncho was with us.

“Tía, despacio, por favor,” he said.

She nailed him with a look that I reckoned could pulverize rock, literally, seeing as she was a bruja, then she went on talking.

It seemed just as fast to me, but apparently it was slower because Poncho was catching it and he started translating.

“She says you can’t go,” he told us, then listened before telling us more. “She says you must remain here.”

“Fuck, seriously?” Abel bit off.

Poncho ignored him and kept translating.

“She says your work will be done here. She says the fates haven’t decided the outcome. She says the human race will decide the outcome. She says if you leave the security of this compound, which will keep you safe, The True will triumph.”

Poncho’s auntie quit talking.

“Our work will be done here?” Leah asked.

“That’s what she says,” Poncho answered.

“How can the human race decide the outcome?” I asked. “It would be nearly impossible for them to win against immortals.”

Poncho turned to his aunt, she said something to him, then he turned to me. “She said this is a test. She said they must pass or they’ll suffer for their failure.”

“Great, now we got hazy predictions to deal with,” Dad muttered, then said louder, “No offense, tía de Poncho.”

She shrugged at Dad.

“There are people in danger if we don’t move,” Callum noted. “Did Josefa see harm come to any others?”

Poncho again talked to his aunt.

Then he spoke to Callum. “The next fight, we’ll be there.”

I shook my head. “How, if we’re here?”

“No clue. Auntie just said we would,” Poncho told me.

“Brother,” Jabber began, “a lot’s riding on this. Is the old broad that good at tellin’ the future?” he asked, then looked to Poncho’s aunt and added, “No offense.”

She skewered him with her eyes.

“My first wife, she told me the bitch would cheat on me. My second, she told me the bitch would steal from me. My third, she told me the bitch would try to cut me,” Poncho said.

“Whoa,” Jabber breathed, his eyes getting big. “She’s good.”

“Yeah, she’s good,” Poncho returned. “Any other questions?”

“So we sit and wait…more?” Abel asked, pure frustration naked in his tone.

Poncho’s aunt started talking again.

Then Poncho started translating again.

“For you, yes. For her, she has to get started with her protection spells. She says the gringa witches do good work, but what you’re gonna face, you need to pack a punch and she’s gonna give that to you.”

“Well, tell her to get started,” Dad stated immediately.

“Uh…does she speak English?” I asked before Poncho could give the order for her to begin.

“She understands it, doesn’t speak it. Says it fucks with the purity of her magic,” Poncho answered.

That was interesting.

“She can get started now, Poncho,” Lucien growled.

“Right,” Poncho muttered and turned to his aunt.

“Are you going to take the advice of this witch?” Gregor asked.

“Well, just to say,” I began, “Poncho’s first wife cheated on him, the second stole from him, and the third totally tried to cut him.”

“Fabulous,” Abel muttered, dropping his head to study his boots, so I found his hand with mine and held tight.

“I…” Leah started, and when I looked at her, she was shaking her head. “Well, I feel this is magic, what’s happening, what unites us, what made some of us, what gives us what we have to fight it. So, I figure, someone who knows magic, we should listen to.”

“I’m concerned about further delays, but I must say, I agree,” Sonia put in.

Everyone looked to me.

I kept my eyes on the bruja.

She had her eyes on me.

“Keep us safe,” I whispered.

She nodded and disappeared.

And again, Abel muttered, “Fabulous.”

* * * * *

Gregor

Later that night, Gregor sat in his office with Callum’s mother, Regan.

“We’re agreed?” he asked.

She held his eyes and nodded once.

“Yes, Gregor. We’re agreed.”

He grabbed his phone and hit the button, which made the call.

He put it to his ear.

The call was answered with, “Is it time?”

“It’s time. Release them.”

“It will be done,” the voice said.

He listened for the disconnect before he drew in a long breath and let it out.

“They won’t be happy,” he told the desk blotter.

“They slaughtered entire villages.”

Regan’s voice was so harsh, coming from a gentle she-wolf such as she, Gregor’s eyes cut to her in surprise.

“We have no choice,” she finished.

She was right.

They had no choice.

He just hoped, if they survived whatever was to come, The Three would agree.

* * * * *

Barb

“We’re all in?”

Barb looked around.

Flo was nodding.

Jezza looked worried, but she was nodding too.

Ruby was just staring at her.

“Ruby?” Barb prompted.

“Could mean the death of us, our entire coven wiped out, all of this in less than two weeks,” Ruby replied.

“Could also mean, we don’t do what we can, we don’t help, next month our coven is hiding our magic, serving tea to an immortal, and doing that crap until the day we die,” Barb replied.

“See your point,” Ruby muttered.

“So, you’re in?” Barb pressed.

Ruby hesitated.

Then she nodded.

“Good,” Barb said and turned to the vials filled with fizzing pink liquid that were on the dresser in her bedroom. She passed them around, saying, “I’ll get Aurora’s to her.” Her eyes slid through Flo and Jezza. “You’ll take care of the wolves and the brothers Jin?”

At their nods, she gave them more vials.

When she gave Ruby hers, she asked, “You’ll speak to Teona?”

“Yup,” Ruby answered.

Barb gave her a second vial.

In their thoughts, preparing for what was to come, they all went to the blessed instruments sitting on Barb’s bed, chose one, and moved toward the door.

“See you in your dreams,” Barb called to their departing backs.

Ruby, the last one out, caught her gaze.

“See you in your dreams, my beloved sister,” she whispered.

Then she closed the door.

The minute she did, Barb went to the bed, made her choice and slipped the blade under her pillow. She would sleep with her hand around the handle.

Then she did what she very much as a mother did not want to do but had to.

She left her room to find her daughter.