Chapter 30
Through the debris, Lila saw pale figures climbing along the exterior of the Arachnid Estate.
Strigoi? Already? Lila felt her heart jolt. Marcus was there . . . Constance, Kaz, her friends—her family.
Ambrose didn’t respond. Instead, he tucked his wings in before flapping them hard. They sped through the sky, the smoke growing closer and closer as Rebekkah kept pace.
Lila felt her warmth at the ready, she was prepared to drop in like a sun bomb if it meant saving her brother. But for now, she could support. She closed her eyes, feeling everything she needed to feel in order to heal, to rejuvenate, and spread her warmth like an energy current to Ambrose, Rebekkah, and herself. Wounds, cuts, scratches—all healed. But more than that, so did their stamina, so did their sore wings, their sore muscles. It was like they were brand new.
“When we get there,” Ambrose called, “we need to split up. Find anyone you can, but we have priorities.”
“I’ll find Darius,” Rebekkah said.
“I’ll find Marcus, Constance, and Kaz—they’re bound to be together, right?” she asked, hoping with all her might that for once, luck would go her way.
Ambrose nodded hopefully. “And I’ll find anyone else. As soon as we pull everyone out, we meet back at the foot of the manor stairs.”
“Assuming they’re still there,” Rebekkah quipped.
“And then we’ll figure out where else to go. Where else is safe.”
Lila hadn’t realized it till then, but he was right. Without the Crow Court, Maggot Mansion, and now Arachnid Estate, what other land was there? Where would they go? Another cave to hide away in until they came up with a plan?
Ambrose cut her thinking short as he dived toward the Estate. It was . . . a madhouse, completely in shambles. Strigoi were everywhere, chasing people—vampires and humans alike—biting and turning anyone they could. So many bodies lay on the floor, and Lila couldn’t tell if they were dead or just paralyzed from the arachnid venom.
As Ambrose landed, she held him tight, refusing to leave his arms as she focused on his tender embrace, even in the mix of chaos and bloodshed. She focused on his love as another burst of warm aura spread from her body to the area around them.
Some strigoi turned back, dazed, some only seemed to grow more feral. The paralyzed bodies on the floor remained, as nothing but a vampire lord removing the venom—or it eventually wearing off—would work. Lila promised herself, We’ll come back for them.
“Keep the aura up, if any strigoi tries to attack you, switch from your defensive warmth to your offensive heat. Burn the place down if you have to, Little Crow, and stay alive.” The order coursed through her as she nodded.
And if so much as a single hair on your beautiful head gets pulled, you call me. Understand?
Ye—
Lila, I mean it. You undertook enough damage to yourself at the Morada. You call me if you need me.
An ounce of shame rolled through her. She’d thought not telling him then would hurt less. Now she knew, not telling him hurt him so much more.
I promise to call. Immediately. You call too.
He nodded and tossed her something from his pocket. She caught it just as it glimmered in the sky. It was a small, pocket-sized dagger. A knife really. The hilt was a silver so clean and shiny, it mirrored her own reflection back at her—making it seem like no one was around her at all as none of the vampire reflections bounced from it—with a small, raw amethyst stone in place of the pommel, perfectly fitting her hand. But the blade wasn’t made of metal like the ones she’d been fancying as of late—it was made of a white wood. White oak wood.
It was a tiny, bejeweled stake.
Lila smiled at it, trying to figure out when Ambrose would’ve had the time to find it for her—
I made this while awaiting you to come to the room this morning after your walk with Nostro. As an engagement gift. I know it’s not much, but it’s all I had at the time, and this was definitely not the situation I planned on giving it to you. I wanted to slide it up your thigh and buckle it there for you as I kissed every inch of your body.
Lila’s cheeks reddened and her smile widened. He’d done this for her . . . made it for her, not found. I love it. I have an engagement gift for you too, but—
Later, Ambrose said. Give it to me later.
Lila bit her lip, and nodded. She had to wait. For her gift would be the entire sun.
Rebekkah and Lila dashed into Darius Maronai’s main hall, seeing bodies all around. Some were vampires crawling toward the exit, others were paralyzed, their eyes and mouths wide open in silent screams. As her warmth radiated, every vampire that needed healing, healed, and every strigoi that could be changed back, was. Rebekkah leaped to the rest, fighting off the blood crazed monsters as they attempted to feed on the weak.
Lila rushed to help some up, noticing the Cambrias amongst the few who were standing and aiding the paralyzed. Edward and Dianne Cambria, the couple she met the night before Sanktus Pernox, were both bleeding from their arms and foreheads, dust coating their hair. They looked up at her, their eyes widening.
“Lila!” Dianne called. “Marcus was upstairs, third floor. I haven’t seen him since before the attack. Go, now!”
Lila turned to Rebekkah, who quickly nodded and dashed to fight the next strigoi. Lila focused her energy on healing all she could in the room, healing Dianne and Edward, rejuvenating Rebekkah, and then she dashed upstairs.
As she passed the first landing, a strigoi lunged at her, and she swiftly dodged, using his speed to propel him off the banister and over the stairs, then she kept moving. Strigoi after strigoi swarmed the main hall she had been in months ago, the carpeted stairs where Ambrose had thirsted for her were now covered in someone’s blood, the black tile below in the main hall where Ambrose had held her for the first time as she sobbed for her brother, for fear of the Reinicks. The room where Ambrose had first kissed her, had first slept next to her, had first brought her euphoria.
It was all in this manor. And it was currently being torn apart.
Last time she was here, she couldn’t save her brother, couldn’t pull him from the thrall of the Reinicks, couldn’t even face him really.
This time would be different.
This time, Lila would save him.
“Get downstairs and out of the manor! Quickly!” Lila yelled at the number of vampires she’d just healed. “Carry the paralyzed!”
Lila burst through room after room on the third floor, healing those who needed it, and stabbing or burning any enemy. No sign of anyone she recognized yet, and as the adrenaline pumped through her veins, so did her doubt and worry. What if Marcus and Constance weren’t here? What if Kaz guided them elsewhere? She spun around, slicing the neck of another strigoi and using the moment of surprise to stab her wooden blade into his heart. His skin charred, his eyes full of hate, as more thoughts flooded her mind. What if they’d been changed? What if Kaz was killed? She burst through another door, and a black mass flew at her head. As she felt claws at her chin and wings on her cheeks, she knew—
“Pollock!” she yelled.
The bird before her stopped his assault, and tilted his head. After the shortest beat, he squawked loudly and vigorously flapped his wings in her face, nuzzling the top of his head against her chin, her nose, her forehead.
She giggled, “It’s good to see you too, buddy. Now, where are—”
“Lila!”
That voice.
Behind the black mass of feathers, Lila saw a tall, lanky boy run at her, arms spread wide. Marcus threw his arms around her waist and spun her, around and around, lifting her into the air.
“Marcus! When did you get so tall? Are you okay? Are you hurt? I’ve missed you so much, I can’t believe you’re here. Why are you so skinny?”
After putting her down, he snickered against the top of her head. “Ask me later. We need to get Constance and Kaz out of here.”
“Miss Bran?”
Marcus stepped back, and Pollock flew to his shoulder. The room before her was completely wrecked, the couches and tables were tossed over, the bed sheets were ripped, but in the center of it all, a graying head popped from behind the green velvet of an upholstered chair.
“Kaz,” Lila cried, just as another blond head jumped from her hiding spot, running into Lila’s arms.
Constance cried against Lila’s shoulder, “Lilac, what are you doing here?! The strigoi—”
Lila hugged her fiercely, pulling her into her arms and squeezing. “I know. We need to get out of her right now. But I need to hug my friend first.” She pulled back and looked Constance in the eyes. She knew the young girl was brave beyond her years, but she took her hand anyway. “I need you all to stay close to me.”
Without so much as another word, she grabbed Marcus’s wrist, feeling the warmth of sunlight all around her, spreading from her palms onto those she held.
“Constance, Marcus, put Kaz between you two, behind me. We’ll keep him in the center, and we’ll fight any vampire who tries to attack us,” Lila demanded. They did as she said with no question, though she saw Marcus hesitate for just a moment, arching an eyebrow. He didn’t know of her power, he had only ever seen her as a weak murine. But just as he opened his mouth, possibly to ask, Lila started forward and back down the stairs of the Arachnid Estate.
Within moments, strigoi were on them. Marcus and Constance shifted into their monstrous forms, as Lila projected the sizzling sunlight toward her enemies, careful not to touch her allies. She remained in front of Kaz, keeping him out of harm’s way, but the man ripped a sconce from the wall and batted it around with all the fury and strength she’d seen in Ambrose, to protect his people.
Just as Lila was burning the face of a strigoi that got way too close, Rebekkah met them on the stairs.
She met her eyes, black ooze dripping from her fangs, from her claws. “Mouse—”
Marcus leaped from behind Lila, tackling Rebekkah down the stairs. It was all so fast, his hands at her throat, as their bodies and wings tumbled over each other down the stairs.
Lila yelled his name and hurried after them, rushing the waves of healing warmth around her.
“You vile, treacherous witch! Can’t you leave us alone?!” Marcus screamed, his fangs so close to Rebekkah’s face. But Rebekkah didn’t fight back, she just held his wrists.
“Marcus, get off her!” Lila yelled, but Marcus didn’t listen.
“You’ve tortured us for years, isn’t it enough?”
Lila ran up behind him and tried to pry him off.
“Why are you defending her? Does she have you enthralled?”
Marcus whipped back and his savage gaze met hers—there was so much anger, so much pain, so much . . . betrayal.
“Marcus, no. A lot has happened. Rebekkah isn’t our enemy, not anymore.”
“Since when? Last I remember she was drinking your blood and making me her puppet,” he seethed.
“Since she saved me from her brothers. Since she became a victim to them as well.”
Marcus scoffed. “Just because she’s playing the victim card means we have to forgive her? Forgive everything she’s done to us? To me?”
His nails dug in deeper, but Rebekkah managed to choke out. “No. It doesn’t.” Marcus snapped back to her. “If you need to kill me to feel better, do it. But your friends need to get out of—”
A large, pale hand—almost the size of Ambrose’s—grabbed Marcus by his nape.
“Young Marcus, now is not the time for this. Settle your differences with Miss Reinick later.” Darius Maronai stood above Rebekkah, holding Marcus aloft. His long black hair seemed even longer, even curlier in his monstrous form, as it contrasted his skin that looked like fresh ash. “Ambrose is downstairs with Balzar and the Cambrias, helping those you’ve sent down, but the number of strigoi seems endless. We need to leave.”
“You’ll leave the Estate?” Constance asked, stepping forward.
He nodded solemnly. “If I must. There is a greater cause now.” His vibrant emerald eyes met Lila’s.
Lila stepped forward and grabbed Marcus’s arm. “We’ll talk through all of this later. Once we’re all safe.”
Marcus glared at her for a moment, then nodded, and Darius eased him back down. At the same moment, Darius helped Rebekkah to her feet, his hand lingering on hers for a moment as their eyes locked.
Constance came up beside Marcus, and threaded her hand with his. “We need to get Kaz and Lilac to safety, Mar.”
His eyes locked on hers, and Lila swore something silent passed between them.
Damn, how much had she missed?