at her gently, and swept her hair from her eyes.
“Remember that day we spent together?” he asked, nostalgia in his voice. “On the beach? The horses?”
Caitlin smiled, thinking of it. Of course she remembered. She thought about it all the time.
“Yes,” she said.
“We have been together in so many places, so many times, so many centuries. That is what matters. Our memories together. The times we shared. No matter what happens, somehow, we will always be together.”
Caitlin wanted to respond, to say: Yes. You’re right. We will always be together.
But instead, she was overwhelmed with emotion. She burst into tears again, and hugged him tightly. It was the worst feeling of her life. Deep down, she knew it was the last time she would hold him again. She sensed it in every pore of her body.
She didn’t how to handle it, how to say goodbye, how to let him go. So, without saying another word, without even looking into his face again, she suddenly pulled away.
She turned her back, took two steps off the side of the cliff, and leapt into the air. Her wings expanded, and she soared, higher and higher into the air.
She could feel Caleb behind her, watching her the whole time.
And she dared not, even for a second, look back.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Scarlet stood there in disbelief, watching as the old man held the vampire shield high above his head, the ground beneath her quaking. She watched as he transformed, became younger, stronger. Rays of light continued to shoot out from the shield, completely filling the room, and the other vampires continued to bow low to the ground, shielding their eyes from the intense light. She too, had to turn away, so much light filled the room. Beside her, Ruth whined.
She managed to peek a glance, and as she did, she was confused by what she saw: shadows, then shapes, seemed to pour out from the shield. At first she thought maybe her eyes were playing tricks on her, but as she looked closely, she realized they weren’t. It looked like spirits were flying out of the shield, forming in the light. At first, they took the nebulous form of shadows; but then they hardened, turned into shapes. And within moments, these shapes transformed into people.
Vampires.
Scarlet was even more surprised to see that these were vampires she recognized from other times and places. One of them had a face she would never forget: he was huge and bald, with one eye and a big scar across his face. Kyle. She’d thought he was dead for good, and was terrified to see him emerge from the light.
Within moments, he was standing there, back, alive again. He looked as ferocious as ever, more filled with rage than Scarlet had ever seen him, as if he’d just been let loose from a cage.
Behind him, more shadows emerged. There was another vampire she recognized, forming out of the shadows: it was the man she had seen back in Scotland, the one they had called Rynd. The one who had killed Polly.
Dozens and dozens more evil vampires and creatures, emerged, each more hideous than the next. It looked like the shield was a portal, unleashing an army of demons.
Soon, the narrow tunnels of the aqueduct were filling up with creatures, screaming, shrieking. The scene became chaotic, and Scarlet feared for her life. She knew that now that she’d led them there, they would have no more use for her, and would kill her. She knew that she had to do something quickly, or in a few moments, she would be dead. Now was her chance.
Scarlet searched the tunnels, frantic for any way of escape. She realized that, with all the chaos, the vampires were distracted. She was still cuffed, but at least her warders had stopped paying attention to her—for the moment.
Scarlet saw her chance. She turned and nudged Ruth with her foot; Ruth, still sitting loyally by her side, seemed to understand, to pick up on the signal.
Scarlet nodded, and at the same time, the two of them turned and took off, running away from the crowd, back up the steps, back up the narrow alleyway. They ran back up flight after flight, Scarlet running awkwardly with her wrists chained in front of her. She glanced back over her shoulder, but saw nobody coming her way. They were all still staring at the shield, still transfixed.
It wasn’t until they neared the top flight of steps, until she could see the doorway up