Grayson is looking extremely poised and calm, considering his situation. He surveys me standing in the doorway, covered in Ava’s blood with my Bloodstone and mother’s necklace around my neck, and small red flames licking at my fingertips. He’s still in his white shirt and black trousers, but they’re filthy and bloody. His face is bruised and cut, his cheek swollen. The eye I took is healing, but it is most definitely gone for good. His hands are bound in front of him and he too has a metal collar around his neck with a thick chain tethering him to the wall.
‘Miss Hooper,’ he greets, with a rigid jaw.
‘Rapist.’ I nod back in an equally courteous manner. ‘You have no intention of trying to run? You know I am free and I am sure you heard what I just did. Why are you just sitting there?’
‘I’ve been trying to get out of here for a week. I can’t.’ He lifts his wrists and shows me an old rag wrapped around them. ‘Toby has bound my magic and the chains are too thick to break. Lilly, listen, I understand that you are upset with me for the misunderstanding that occurred at the hotel. I assure you, it would never have gone any further and I will never even attempt to behave that way again. I was extremely angry and I lost myself to my temper. And now, with you pregnant, you need all the protection you can get. You need me-’
‘That spell. The one you told me to say. I wonder… How long have you known about that?’ I make a point of straightening my dress and smoothing down my hair. I lift my gaze and blacken my eyes. ‘Tell me.’
‘It was in one of the pages you translated from Rebecca Hooper’s journal.’
My compulsion and ability to control his words startles him. Controlling actions is one thing, words is another.
‘How did you-’
‘I’m assuming that it’s connected to my Sensativa? The way you kept asking if I could “sense” magic. Am I right?’
He nods and grinds his teeth in response, unable to refuse me.
‘That’s what Sensativa is, isn’t it? I sense magic so I can channel it. If I were to hold onto you and say those words, I would be able to access your connection to the Arcane Realm too. If I was an ordinary witch with no other ability but Sensativa, I could use that spell and access the same magic of the witch I channelled. Am I right?’
His eye twitches before he gives a slight nod. ‘According to the journal, yes.’
‘I’ll tell you a secret. I know I’m right anyway, because Rebecca Hooper told me that spell at the stone in Dartmoor. Problem was, when I lost access to my magic, I forgot it.’ I tut and give the side of my head a little whack. ‘Silly brain.’ My eyes narrow on him. They’re still as black as his soul. ‘Now, if you answer my next question in a gentlemanly manner, I’ll let you go free, and I won’t hurt a single hair on your head. Did you mean what you just said? Were you going to stop your attack? Or did you fully intend on fucking me? The truth now. Not that you have a choice.’
He grunts and fights hard to keep his mouth closed. It’s like watching an invisible force pry his lips open. ‘I wasn’t going to stop. I really, really wanted to fuck you as hard as I could.’ His eyes close in defeat and his head rests on the wall.
‘Shocker.’ I walk further in, my dress trailing behind me. ‘A week, Grayson. We’ve been here a week. And you said nothing of this spell. I could have used it. Toby had his hands on me more than once.’
‘You would not have freed me after all I have done. You would have left me behind.’
‘Perhaps.’
His eyes land on my belly. ‘You are truly with child? An Arcane child?’ He whispers the last part to himself in a longing fashion. With a blink, he returns to my face. ‘I did not hear clearly what happened next-door. I heard screaming and yelling. Is Hendrix still alive?’
‘Yes.’
Loathing contorts his features as he glances to the wall that separates the two cells. ‘He must pay-’
‘He is paying. And will pay for a while yet. As will Ava. As will your little brother.’
‘Where is Toby? If he has fled, you are in danger.’ He shifts to his knees and holds out his hands. ‘Free me. I swear to you, I will help protect you.’
I laugh. Hard. ‘You think I need protecting?’ I breathe through my hysteria. ‘Please. Now I have my magic back, I need no one’s help and no one’s protection.’ I crouch in front of him. ‘It is all of you that need protection from me.’ I give two short sharp whistles and Tobias joins us in Grayson’s cell. The expression on Grayson face as he looks past me to where his brother lingers, is one I have never seen on him before.
Love.
I stand and step aside, letting them see each other clearly. He observes Tobias’s hair and the hazel of his eyes. He takes in the manner in which he holds himself and shrinks away from his surroundings.
‘B-bias?’ Grayson stammers, shuffling closer, still on his knees as that is all the chain holding him will allow. He simply can’t believe his eyes. ‘Bias? You are back? You are you once more?’
Grayson is met with silence as Tobias remains silently lost in shock at what he has spent the last few centuries doing. His eyes flick rapidly from left to right as if watching a movie of misery play behind his eyes, and he seems constantly on the verge of tears.
‘You’ll have to excuse him. His memories are trying to organise themselves and he has a lot of cruel memories in there.’
‘Bias? My dear, sweet little brother. Oh… How I have missed you!’ He reaches out his bound wrists to him. ‘Come, please, let me hold you in my arms.’ But Tobias remains by the door. Frustration shimmers behind Grayson’s eyes. ‘Bias, Come. Please.’
‘I will not save you, Grayson,’ Tobias says, lifting his head and allowing his tears to spill forth. ‘What we have done to her and to so many others, we need to pay for that. The things I did…’ His eyes glaze over ‘The things I did… Oh god…’
‘He’s been saying that a lot.’ I add.
‘Bias, brother, you were not yourself. The things you did were not your fault!’
‘And what of the things you did? You were going to rape her!’ Tobias looks disgusted at his brother. ‘You violated her with your hands! You branded her and threatened her friends! You broke her heart and forced your own brother to sleep with a woman he loathed, just to hurt her! And Rose…’ Again, his eyes dart back and forth as if sorting through a ton of information. Then they land back on him. ‘And Kieran… your own son… you tortured him to death!’ Tobias starts to tremble. ‘You are a monstrous man. Just as I am. I took Lilly’s life and contorted into a hideous existence. All the things I did… All the pain I caused…’ He seals shut his eyes, forcing the tears brimming behind them to tumble down his face.
‘Desperate men are forced to do desperate things!’ Grayson insists. ‘I did what I had to do, to save us all! And you, you were Broken, Tobias. You are not held accountable-’
‘I am accountable. As are you. I took Lilly’s life from her. I took her child.’ He glances shamefully at me. ‘Our child. So now, my life is hers. I do as she bids and if my misery brings her one moment of relief or satisfaction then so be it.’ He shakes his head and lowers it once more. ‘And now, whether you accept it or not, your life is hers too.’
Grayson can’t believe what he is hearing. His eyes continue dancing back and forth between us.
‘You have meddled with his mind?’
‘No.’ I shrug. ‘I simply reversed his Break. He is once more Tobias Kendryk. His gentle little soul and generous heart is now filled with the memory of all the cruelty he has inflicted on others. He will be paying for what he has done for some time.’ I point at Grayson. ‘As will you.’
‘You think this is vengeance? Giving him back his soul?’
‘Vengeance is not pain. Or bruises. Or cutting. That’s where you men always lack imagination.’ I step further into the cell with him and I see how he fights the urge to back up. ‘Vengeance is giving someone something that must be lived with forever. Something that they can’t, actually, live with. For Hendrix, it is living without his teeth, locked in a dungeon to fester and petrify, knowing every day that his one and only goal in life will never come to pass. He will never make another vampire. His hope for family and love, for acceptance… will never happen. And it is the knowledge that I am the one that took it from him, that will eat at him.’ I step closer. ‘And as for Ava Sinclair, it was hearing that the man she loved, the man she gave up children and a real family or genuine relationship for, thought nothing of her. I spilt her guts and left her to die slowly, knowing that everything she sacrificed was for nothing. That the man she did everything for and gave everything to, never loved her. That he didn’t even like her.’ I look back at Tobias. ‘I think the word you used was… indifferent?’
Tobias nods. I take another step towards Grayson who remains glued to the spot.
‘And now, you-’
‘Your eyes are flickering,’ he tells me, watching my pupils closely. ‘Green and then explosions of lilac. The Break is trying to take hold of you. You must calm yourself. Any more dark deeds, and you may Break for good.’ I see the slight glance he gives towards the necklace.
I take it between my fingers and admire the colours swirling wildly inside the crystal. ‘If anyone attempts to remove this necklace, Grayson, the spell I placed on it will cause their hearts to stop. Even if they use magic to try and take it, say, with Telekinesis.’ I let the Bloodstone fall loose around my neck and lean down to him with possibly the smuggest smile I have ever worn. ‘You try and take this stone, you will die. I’m tempted to allow you to try. But then Gabriel will die too. And that is not something I will ever allow to happen.’
‘How do you know any such spell?’ Grayson demands. ‘It wasn’t in the pages of the journal.’
‘When I performed the spell at the stone, Rebecca filled my head with all her knowledge. I now know everything. I can make it snow.’ Delicate white flakes fall from the ceiling. I feel them land on my skin and melt. As the flurry continues, we see our breath in the air. ‘I can stand here.’ I channel my magic, melding both my Physical, Telekinetic and Energy into one, and with a few words uttered in my mind, I fade from one spot and reappear in another. ‘Or I can be here.’ And then I return again to him. ‘But sadly, for you, I am right here. And it is time for you to pay.’ I hold out the chain that once held me captive to the wall. It writhes and unlinks as the metal morphs and moulds. He watches it warily. ‘I have told you what vengeance is. It is taking something away and giving a gift that must be lived with forever. A gift that cannot be lived with. For you, the gift I give is this.’ He watches the chain as it continues changing and stiffening. It becomes a rod. The ends twist and bend until they settle and create a word. ‘You, Grayson, are about to be branded.’
He scoffs and shakes his head. ‘You cannot Brand me. To create a Branding iron takes time. Even if you know how to forge it in the right materials, which is not basic iron such as that by the way, there are rituals that must be completed.’
‘I’m an Arcane, Grayson. And I know everything Rebecca Hooper knew. You think I can’t forge a Branding iron in a pinch?’ I lift the branding iron and rest my lips against its cool surface. I gently breathe on it, muttering a few words in Latin. As I do, I create a slit in my palm, letting my blood seep into its molecular structure. The harsh grey starts to change to various mottled colours, moving just like oil on water. I hold it close and observe my masterpiece with pride. ‘That should do it. Now… this is a real Branding iron.’ I look up at him through my lashes, biting my lip with mischievous glee. ‘You wanna see it?’
‘Don’t you dare bring that thing anywhere near me.’
His chains are wrenched free with a simple flick of my wrist. I lift my hand and he slams backwards into the wall. I hold him there and descend on him slowly as he yells and roars, trying with all his might to get free of my control. I force the restraints around his wrists apart and manoeuvre him into a crucifixion position. The ragged binding spell remains on his wrist as I slowly saunter forwards, admiring the branding iron I have created. I gently blow on it, and the metal glows red hot in an instant.
‘Tobias, roll up Grayson’s sleeve, would you?’
He shuffles over to his brother with his head bowed low, and does as I have asked without a moment of hesitation. I’m not even using my compulsion. He rolls up Grayson’s sleeve as Grayson tries with everything he has to fight him off. To protect himself. He may as well be nailed in position for all the good his efforts do him. When his forearm is bare, Tobias backs away and stays by the door, watching.
‘TOBIAS!’ Grayson barks. ‘YOU STOP HER! YOU STOP HER NOW!’
I laugh and wave the red-hot metal in his face.
‘Careful, Grayson. You know, I can brand you anywhere. Doesn’t have to be on your arm. You upset me, I may slam this down on your face instead.’
‘Please! Bias! I am your brother, God damn it!’
‘Not anymore, you’re not,’ Tobias mutters shamefully.
‘Branding me will achieve nothing but weakening our forces. You do this, you will regret it!’
‘This is your punishment, Grayson. This is the gift I give you as thanks for all you have done for me. You want power. Not just in terms of magic, but in authority too. You want to be the greatest Coven Leader of all time. You want to have the Arcane as your wife. You want the most powerful children. Well, now you will have no magic. No coven will follow a powerless witch who has treated innocent people the way you have.’ I rest my hand over my belly. ‘Gabriel will have the Arcane as his wife and we will have an Arcane child. Not you.’ I gesture to the glowing metal between us. ‘You will have this. You can’t cut it off. You can’t burn it off. Believe me, I tried. There will just be the cold, lonely reality that you are a powerless witch, alone in a world that hates us. That hates you.’
‘You do this, I will kill you. I swear it, Lilly Hooper. Forget the Veil. Forget furthering your bloodline. I will just, plain, kill you!’
I giggle and look at the cut still on my palm. ‘You can try.’ I slide it along his arm, leaving a thick trail of red on his flesh. When I remove my hand, the cut on it heals. I rest the iron an inch from his skin. ‘You have no idea how much I’ve been wanting to do this.’ And with that, I press the rod onto his arm.
Listening to his skin crack and burn and hiss, is almost as melodic as his chorus of screams. His pain and fury mix with wrath as he looks up at the ceiling and yells in utter agony.
Bliss.
A hand reaches out and rests on wrist, pressing the iron harder into his flesh and making his cries even more desperate. Their fingernails are caked in dirt and dried blood. Her delicate wrists are bruised and the skin is rubbed-raw. A deep chill emanates from her touch, sending a shiver throughout my entire body. I glance to my side to see who it is. My Broken-self watches Grayson’s suffering with relish, laughing and biting her lip in sick enjoyment. I feel her grip on my wrist tighten and I stagger forwards as she lunges, pressing the searing metal harder onto his arm. With a gasp, I yank back my hand, dropping the iron in the process. It falls to the floor with a clang and returns to its original form of a plain iron chain. My feet scurry back as I hold my wrist close to my chest. I felt her! I felt her touch me and felt the coldness of her body!
‘Lilly?’ Tobias calls nervously from the door. ‘A-are you okay?’
‘IS SHE OKAY?’ Grayson bellows, panting furiously. ‘FUCK HER, TOBIAS! SHE JUST BRANDED ME! I’M FAR FROM FUCKING OKAY!’
I can’t take my eyes off the girl before me. How is that possible? Hearing her whispers, seeing her in the corner of my eye, and now feeling her touch. No, it can’t be possible!
Tobias steps closer and rests his hand on my shoulder. I flinch and back away, still clutching my hand and feeling the impossible sensation she gave me.
‘Lilly… what’s wrong?’
‘Do you see her?’ I whisper, staring at my Broken-self. Her malicious half-grin and the dark intentions behind her eyes make me shudder. And those eyes are firmly on me.
‘See who?’ Tobias looks around the room. ‘There is no one else here but us.’
My eyes blacken and I yell at him, ‘DO YOU SEE HER?!’
‘I see no other!’ he insists. ‘Just us three!’
She starts to laugh, a low and devious laugh. She takes a step towards me. I take one back. She takes another, and another, until my back is against the wall and her face is in mine.
‘Who do you see? Lilly! Who do you see?’ Tobias rushes forwards and stands directly in front of me, clasping my shoulders and giving me a shake.
I drag my eyes away from her lilac ones, and stare into his. ‘My Broken-self. I see her, standing there.’ I rub my wrist. ‘She touched me.’
His face pales.
Behind us, Grayson speaks. ‘Her Break is taking her,’ he says. ‘Any minute now, she’ll be gone and we’ll be torn to pieces by the creature she has become. Tobias, you must get us away from her! Before it is too late!’
Tobias stays with me, his thoughts racing.
‘Lilly, if you Break and kill us, the father of your baby will die too. You must let us go!’ Grayson starts thrashing against my hold over him. ‘You must!’
‘I will not abandon you.’ Tobias takes my face in his hands. ‘Take us to Gabriel, Lilly. Take us to the man you love. You know the teleportation spell. I saw you use it. Take us to him and let his love heal the Break before it takes you once more.’
My attention keeps shifting to the mirage of evil who stays perfectly still with her eyes glued to me.
‘LILLY! You must listen to me now.’
I pull my focus from her, and nod.
‘But I don’t know where he is.’
‘The Nomad camp,’ Tobias tells me. ‘He’s at the Nomad camp. The same one you visited with Grayson. I’ve had eyes on him since he arrived there almost a week ago. He went there to look for you. He’s told them all exactly what has been going on.’ He looks at Grayson. ‘The camp has declared its loyalty to Gabriel and has renounced you entirely. Gabriel is the new Coven Leader and you are to be arrested on sight, and locked up for good.’
Grayson bellows at us both before Tobias turns back to me.
‘From what I have been told by the men that followed my Broken-self, a few have remained loyal to Grayson and abandoned the camp in search of him. Mainly the soldiers. But the civilians have pledged their loyalty to Gabriel. To you and Gabriel both. You hear that?’ He smiles and tries to look encouraging. ‘They love you, Lilly. They’re all looking for you. Let’s go and find them, shall we?’
‘Because you took us,’ my Broken-self hisses behind him. ‘You stole us and locked us up with a chain around our neck. You forced us to watch videos of Ryan attacking us! Raping us! If it wasn’t for you, we would be home, with Gabriel!’ Her anger contorts her face and the more she speaks, the more I feel her loathing seep into me. He did do those things! She’s right. He touched my body and caressed my flesh as I was forced to watch the years of abuse I suffered play out all around me. Before I realise it, my fingers are around Tobias’s throat and I’m squeezing. His eyes bulge and his skin turns purple. My grip grinds his bones together as I lift him from the floor.
‘You dare touch me,’ I snarl. ‘After everything you have done, you DARE!
‘Lilly…’ he wheezes. ‘Don’t let her take control. Your eyes are changing.’ He tries to take in air but struggles greatly in succeeding.
‘He wanted to make us his puppet!’ My Broken-self snaps venomously in my ear. ‘He was going to kill our baby!’
‘And I thank God I didn’t,’ he gasps.
My brow furrows in confusion. ‘You heard her speak?’
He tries to respond, but my hold is too much.
‘You spoke, Lilly,’ Grayson tells me. ‘Those words came from you. From your mouth.’
When I look at him, he jumps as if seeing a snake.
‘Y-your eyes… Your hair…’
The tips are turning white. Slowly, bit by bit. I drop Toby. With a twitch of my hand, Grayson’s collar falls to the floor and his feet return back to the ground. He makes for the door at a sprint.
My eyes turn black. ‘Both of you, come here!’
They have no choice. They both stand beside me and I take their hands. I can’t leave them here to die, or allow them to be free to plot their revenge, so I must take them with me. Transporting us all will require more power than just simply fliting around the room. I channel my powers and let them meld, like mixing a potion with multiple energies. And with some Latin words muttered under my breath and a clear image of where I want to go, I close my eyes and repeat the words Rebecca implanted in my mind, over and over. First, it’s in barely a whisper, but as I get a feel for the words, I become more confident. I began as if I were asking for the power. Now, I’m demanding it.
‘Hinc ad amorem meum ibi.’ I open my eyes, griping Grayson and Tobias’s hands tightly. ‘Hinc ad amorem meum ibi.’ Red lightning emerges from my body and sparks out all around us. ‘Hinc ad amorem meum ibi.’ The building begins to tremble as the streaks glow brighter and merge, creating solid lines of red energy. ‘Hinc ad amorem meum ibi.’ The lights above us sway back and forth. The lightbulbs glow brighter, and brighter, until they pop and shower us with glass. ‘Hinc ad amorem meum ibi.’ My lightning turns white, illuminating the room. It’s so piercingly bright, they have to squint against it. Plaster falls from the ceiling. The brick cracks. Water pipes rupture.
‘YOU CAN’T RUN FROM YOUR TRUE-SELF, LILLY HOOPER!’ she screams at me over the chaos.
Yes, I fucking can! ‘HINC AD AMOREM MEUM IBI!’
The ceiling starts to fall. Everything goes to a blinding white and we’re torn from the room, leaving Ava Sinclair and Hendrix Spencer alone, to die, beneath its rubble.
