With a heavy heart, I okayed it. As Lannan left the room, I crossed to the window. It was snowing up a gale outside. When we had pushed Myst back, the winter had died down a little—felt more normal. But today, I closed my eyes and I could feel Myst on the winds. She was out there, no longer waiting but beginning her advance. The snow was a directed force, swirling in a frenzied dance, eager to gobble up the land.
For the first time, I began to think by the time this battle was over, I wouldn’t have any friends left. Those still alive would probably hate my guts. As I stood there, contemplating what felt like a bleak future, Rhiannon joined me.
She put her hand on my shoulder, leaning against me. “We will win this. Don’t fear. We’ll win, and free New Forest of Myst.”
“But what then? The town is dying. People are being murdered on the streets. You saw the news reports. Will there be anybody left?” I turned to Regina. “We heard the news. What’s going on in the town?”
She let out a soft whisper, as if to someone by her side. Then she flipped on her computer and quickly tapped something onto the screen. Another moment and she met my gaze.
“There were fourteen deaths today—the Shadow Hunters are in the town. Lannan and I already dispatched a group of men tonight to hunt them down and eradicate them. They seem tougher than before. I think Myst has been recruiting for strength rather than numbers.” She pulled out a file and tossed it across the desk. “I think you should see this.”
I picked up the folder. “What is it?”
“What we have managed to gather on Myst and her cronies the past few weeks. We noticed that attacks on animals near the town were growing—yes, we keep track of things like that.” Regina drummed her fingers on the desk. “The remains were . . . few, and viciously ripped to shreds. We’re not stupid—we know Shadow Hunter attacks when we see them. So Lannan sent out scouts and began to find traces of them. They’re cagey though, and good at hiding in the woodlands surrounding the town. Then, yesterday, the attacks on people began.”
“Yesterday? How many, total?” Rhiannon turned from the window, where she’d still been standing.
“Twenty-two deaths. Sixteen wounded, six severely.” Regina leaned back in her chair. “We can send scouts out into the woods, but the Shadow Hunters can hide by night and come out in the day. They know we can’t chase them down during daylight hours.”
“I may be able to help there. I met my grandfather today. He said he’d send out reconnaissance to look for Myst’s warriors. If the Indigo Court is holing up in the Golden Wood, we’ll find them.” Though I said it with more confidence than I felt, I still felt that at least we had some hope.
At that moment, Lannan returned. He motioned for Kaylin to follow him. “They’re all asleep and will stay that way for the next few hours. How long do you think it will take you to examine their thoughts?” Though he spoke to Kaylin, he looked at me, and in his face was hunger mingled with a strange sense of loss.
For once, I met the vampire’s gaze, and—even though I didn’t want to admit it—the thought of his touch appealed to me. The more stressed I was, the more I welcomed his slam-bam attitude. My darker nature hid in the shadow of worry and regret, and when the gloom grew thick, it came out to play.
Kaylin glanced from Lannan to me but only said, “Not long, though it will be harsh and penetrating. They will wake with the full knowledge of what I’ve done. I’m prepared for their anger, as should you be. This is a deliberate mind-fuck, Cicely. I agreed because it truly is the best option in the situation, but even my demon is squeamish at the intrusion. And it’s hard to make a night-veil demon squeamish.”
I patted him on the shoulder. “Yeah, I know. Just . . . go. Do what needs to be done. We’ll deal with the aftermath when we get there.”
Kaylin followed Lannan out the door. As it closed behind him, I turned back to Regina. “I don’t know what my grandfather will be able to do, but I’ll let you know as soon as he contacts me.”
I didn’t want to sit around waiting, but there wasn’t much else we could do. We couldn’t just head out in the streets looking for a fight. And once I knew for sure that the others were on our side, we could start to plot our course of action. I wandered over to the window again. Rhia had taken her seat next to Chatter, and they were holding hands, softly whispering. Watching them, I wondered how she’d ever let herself get involved with Leo. He’d been so wrong for her.
Chatter leaned over, softly nuzzling her ear, and their connection was so tangible it was hard to ignore. Did Grieve and I look like that? Did my pull toward Lannan interfere with us, or did it simply exist in a different light? I didn’t love Lannan, and I never would. Grieve was my heart. He was my center. Lannan fed the darker side of me, the side that I didn’t want Grieve to go near. If Grieve stepped into those shadows, then my rock would vanish, and I would be fully swallowed up by the abyss. Lannan allowed me to be vulnerable with Grieve.
The snow continued to fall in the growing dusk, and it called to me. I wanted to be out in the chill and gloom. I turned back to Regina. “I need to go outside for a breath of fresh air. Will it be safe?”
She considered, then nodded. “The French doors will lead you to the patio. Feel free to walk out on the veranda for a bit. No one will harm you here. Not unless they launch a full-scale attack, and then war would be upon us all, and no one would be safe.”
I motioned for Grieve to stay where he was. I wanted to be alone with my thoughts. As I stepped out into the chill night air, the winter braced me up and quickened my blood. I straightened my shoulders and shook back my hair. How fast this transformation had changed me. And how much I’d taken to it.
I walked atop the drifts, gliding over the crust that had formed on the surface. The air caught me short. Not nearly as cold as it was back in the realm of Snow and Ice, it was still harsh and austere. A snowflake fell into my mouth and landed on my tongue, but it did not melt.
The patio—or veranda—extended some fifteen feet out from the mansion and was surrounded by a low stone wall, high enough to sit on but not so high that it impeded vision or could easily conceal someone crouching behind it. I wandered over to the edge, staring out into the wintry darkness.
Guards were patrolling the compound, and more would be making the rounds, watching over the perimeters of the land. They were vampires, all of them. During the day the Vampire Nation had to rely on their day-runners—not nearly as powerful but almost always loyal without question. Though, after the incident with Crawl and Geoffrey, I had a feeling that all the day-runners would be under scrutiny as well.
I passed the wall and walked out onto the lawn, the full brunt of the snowstorm landing on my cloak. The owl feathers softly wafted in the breeze, and as I stared up into the sky, the barren trees loomed overhead, black silhouettes against the silvery night. In one of the trees perched an owl, and I recognized it immediately. Hunter. My grandfather.
He flew down, circling to land on a nearby bush. The bough bent under his weight, and within seconds, he stood there, a pale glow against the night. He was wearing soft white leather buckskins and a matching tunic, and a pendant around his neck emanated a silver light. It looked to be moonstone, though it was surrounded by a black onyx ring of stone. Hunter’s hair was caught back in a ponytail. Something inside quivered.
Blood recognizes blood.
At first I thought Ulean had spoken, but then remembered she was not allowed within the compound. Vampires didn’t like the magical creatures—Wind Elementals could read a vamp’s thoughts, where most of the magic-born couldn’t. And vampires couldn’t sense them very easily. So they banned them from the premises, and we respected their wishes.