A Shade of Vampire 82 A Circle of Nine - Bella Forrest

Derek

Life was a funny occurrence.

For me, it had always come as a rollercoaster ride, plunging me into darkness and despair before throwing me upward into the luminous arms of bliss and happiness. Visio, however, had strayed from the pattern I’d become familiar with. It had hope, and it had secrets. It had beauty, and it had evil. Most importantly, it had the key to giving sunshine back to all vampires.

It began as a relatively simple mission. An exploratory adventure. The discovery of Aeternae, the next evolutionary step for vampires—or so I’d thought. They had their flaws, of course. What culture didn’t? But they had been dabbling in matters they had no business getting into, ever—death magic.

Life was a funny occurrence, yes, but death was final. Unavoidable. The concept of eternity was a beautiful dream we’d all been chasing, but the end was always nearby, hidden behind a corner or inside a nook along the way. The Aeternae had broken the balance between life and death. Now everything was out of place on Visio, and we’d landed ourselves smack in the middle of a hellstorm.

“I didn’t think it was possible since we became vampires, but my back hurts,” Sofia grumbled as she eased herself up off the floor and out of my embrace. We’d slept in this abandoned house, our bones cold and our souls shaken by everything we’d witnessed inside the courtroom.

“They’ll be here soon enough,” Tristan said, standing by one of the partially boarded-up windows. Valaine was fast asleep in the corner, mere feet away. “We can’t stay much longer.”

Amal handed out more invisibility pellets, her eyes bloodshot from exhaustion. Faulties needed more sleep than vampires, much like humans, and they’d barely gotten any rest during the night. To be fair, the rest of our group hadn’t done much better. Ansel, the poor soul, was terrified and speechless, likely still reassessing his options and wondering where it had all gone sideways for him.

“As long as we’ve got our magic, they can’t catch us,” Amal replied.

“I still can’t get Acheron out of my head,” I muttered, getting up. The image of his severed head persisted in my mind’s eye, like a ghostly apparition. I remembered the exact moment in which the Nalorean nanny had gone into autopilot and killed him. I remembered the horrified look on Danika’s face, followed by her bloodcurdling scream. I remembered the gold guard rushing to shield Thayen from that awful sight even though it was too late. The boy had seen enough to understand that his father was gone. “What they did to him…”

“Danika has lost it. Completely.” Sofia said, shaking her head. “I don’t know how we’re going to get through to her, but we’ll have to try. Somehow.”

“She just watched her husband’s assassination,” Tristan replied. “Instinct took over.”

Valaine sighed, rubbing her eyes as she stood and leaned against the wall. Paint came off in faded green flakes, like mint snow falling softly across the hardwood floors. Our voices echoed through the house. “I don’t know how we’re going to convince her I’m not at the root of the Black Fever, considering we don’t actually know that for sure. The Lady Supreme is just trying to protect the people.”

“Innocent until proven guilty,” I said. “That’s how it should be.”

“Not on Visio. Not always, anyway. Not when the lives of millions are at stake.” Ansel finally spoke. I’d almost forgotten the sound of his voice. All eyes were on him now, and he didn’t seem comfortable with our attention. Nevertheless, he’d gotten it. “But the Darklings are convinced you’re the one they need to kill, Valaine. There has to be some basis for it.”

“You’re not ready to admit you were entirely wrong, huh?” Tristan chuckled, but there was tension in his tone. A certain bitterness that made me realize it wasn’t Ansel who struggled with a form of denial. It was Tristan. He wasn’t ready to accept that maybe, just maybe, the former Darkling was right. That Valaine had a real connection to the Black Fever, which she clearly knew nothing about.

“Perhaps he wasn’t entirely wrong.” Valaine sighed, her gaze fixed on the floor.

“No, don’t say that,” Tristan replied.

“Why not?” Valaine frowned. “Maybe they’re all right. Maybe Danika has every reason to fear for the safety of the Aeternae, and I’m just clueless about it all. Maybe I am connected. The blood tests seem to confirm that already.”

Amane shook her head. “No. All the blood tests confirm is that you have certain elements in common with

readonlinefreenovel.com Copyright 2016 - 2024