Chapter 27
Everyone hurried toward Tavis, including Cody and the groomsmen. “She tried to call me last night on this,” Tavis said, holding the cellphone Duncan had gotten him. “I didn’t hear it.” He looked a hair away from panic. “I just saw it and listened to the… the thing.”
“You mean voicemail?” Faelan asked.
Tavis nodded. “She called someone a bastard and then it sounded like he was taking her somewhere. I think it was Tristol.”
“You’re mistaken, warrior.” The voice came from the front of the chapel. It was soft, but powerful. Tristol stood at the altar next to the minister, who looked like a statue. Everything about Tristol was black, from his long raven hair to his clothes, all but his pale skin. He was stunning.
Tavis let out a savage cry and ran toward Tristol. Faelan tackled him, and they both crashed into the pews, scattering people like startled doves. Tavis tried to get up, but Faelan held tight.
“Don’t, Tavis. He’ll kill you. I can’t lose you again.”
Niall and Brodie ran to assist Faelan as the other warriors rushed toward Tristol, forming a barrier between the demon and the wedding guests.
Shay was scared, but she was also angry. She and Cody had suffered hell because of demons. Now one was screwing with her wedding. Anger rose to the surface. She felt a shimmering lightness settle over her. Before she knew it, she was running toward Tristol, easily breaking through the line of warriors.
“How dare you interrupt my wedding. I’ve waited all my life for this.” She felt the air stir as Bree appeared next to her, followed by a roar that could only come from Faelan.
Tristol smiled, and Shay’s anger diminished at the sheer beauty of the demon. What happened to ugly demons?
“My sincerest apologies, but I came to offer my help.”
“Your help?” Tavis yelled, struggling to free himself from Niall and Brodie. “You tried to kill me in that dungeon. You hurt Anna.”
“It wasn’t me,” Tristol said. “My guard did it, and he’s been eliminated.”
Cody and Faelan planted themselves between Shay, Bree, and the demon. The other warriors stepped up. “Stay back, Shay,” Cody ordered.
“I don’t think you can control your women,” Tristol said, looking at Shay and Bree with admiration. “I hope you both know how special they are.”
“We know,” Faelan said. “What are you doing on our castle grounds?”
“Ah, the Mighty Faelan,” Tristol said with a tight smile. “It was mine before it was yours.”
“How can you enter a chapel?” Cody asked. “This is holy ground.”
“I have my secrets, Cody MacBain. Just as you all do.”
Tavis broke free and rushed Tristol. In the blink of an eye, Tristol vanished in a black mist and reappeared at the back of the chapel.
There were gasps of alarm. Shay’s heart skipped a beat when she saw Matilda’s red head peeking around the corner, not ten feet from where Tristol now stood.
Tavis stared at the demon. “What the hell are you? Demons can’t move like that.”
“Vampires can,” Bree said.
Tristol smiled and two sharp fangs extended and then immediately retracted. “I guess my secret is out.”
“You’re a vampire,” Tavis said. “Those were your vampires in the fortress.”
“Correct.” Tristol moved like a streak of light back to them, resuming his original place near the minister who appeared to be asleep on his feet. “If we’re finished with show-and-tell, I’d like to get down to business.”
“Where is Anna?” Tavis growled.
“Voltar has her.”
“How do you know?”
“I’ve seen her,” Tristol said. “I came to help you get her back.”
“Why would you do this?” Lachlan asked.
“I have my reasons.”
“I don’t trust you or your reasons,” Ronan said. “You’re a damned vampire.”
“And you would trust my reasons more if I were a demon? Think about it. Demons are your enemy. And mine.”
“You’re saying we’re on the same side?” Duncan said.
“In this we are.”
“I think you need to prove yourself, more than just darting around the room,” Cody said.
“I proved myself by not destroying you. I know each of you. I’ve been alive longer than your great-great-great-great-times-one-hundred-grandfathers. I’ve watched you for many years. I could have destroyed you at any time, but I didn’t.”
A brief silence fell as his shocking words sunk in. Finally, Faelan spoke. “If you’re so old and powerful, why don’t you kill Voltar?”
“It would be best if I’m not involved in his demise. This way, you get revenge for your brother and your father.”
“Our brother?” Tavis asked. “Voltar killed Ian?”
“I’m referring to Liam.”
“Voltar?” Faelan’s voice trembled. “Voltar killed Liam?”
“He found out Liam would destroy him, so he destroyed Liam first.”
Shay saw the shock on Faelan’s and Tavis’s faces. Bree had told her how tormented Faelan had been over his little brother’s death, believing he was responsible. It was apparent that Tavis felt the same.
“But we know what Voltar looks like,” Tavis said. “We didn’t recognize him.”
Tristol leaned on the podium. “It was an illusion. He plays mind games.”
“How did he get Liam’s name?” Sean asked.
“Someone told him,” Tristol said. “I think there was a traitor. Voltar has been trying to infiltrate your clan for a long time. He’s done quite a lot of damage. He killed Nigel Ellwood. I rescued the Book of Battles and hid it where the others couldn’t find it. I knew if any of them got it they would wipe out your clan, and that wasn’t my goal.” Tristol crossed his arms and glanced at his audience. “You know my secret, and I know yours. Now I’ll tell you Voltar’s secret. He has a daughter.”
“Voltar? There are no records of him having a daughter,” Sean said.
“Not many know. Voltar didn’t until I told him.” Tristol smiled, and Shay felt her insides turn to mush. She didn’t know if it was longing or terror. “He still doesn’t know who she is. I want to be the one to tell him.”
“Where is his daughter?” Duncan asked.
“She’s with him, but he doesn’t know it,” Tristol said.
“You want to lead us to Voltar and his daughter, and have us kill them?” Niall asked.
Tristol gave Tavis a long look. “I don’t think you’ll want to kill his daughter.”
“Why not?” Tavis asked. “If she’s Voltar’s daughter, she’s evil.”
“I believe you know her as Anna.”
* * *
Earlier…
Anna walked toward the woods, her mind dark and cold after what she’d learned. Her father was an ancient demon.
Anna’s mother had been assigned to destroy Voltar. Before she told anyone about the assignment, she discovered the demon had been spotted at a bar in New York City. She went there pretending to be a patron, hoping to get him alone so she could destroy or suspend him. A biker struck up a conversation with her. She didn’t realize he was Voltar in disguise. No one had seen his human shell. But Voltar knew of the great female warrior.
He hated women and wanted to humiliate her before he killed her. He dragged her into the back alley and raped her then left her for dead. But she survived. And she found out she was pregnant. After the baby was born, she went after Voltar again, and this time she saw him shift from the biker into Voltar and knew she’d given birth to a halfling. The knowledge nearly destroyed her. Walter the Watcher was the only one she’d told, and he’d kept her secret all these years, until he told Angus.
Anna remembered the looks of horror she’d sometimes glimpsed on her mother’s face. The fear, the way she constantly watched Anna.
She wanted to believe it was a mistake, but it explained some things Anna had never understood about herself. She was stronger than other female warriors, and she had some unusual abilities. Angus had always said she did things that weren’t possible for a human, even for a warrior. And there were other things. Strange dreams. Warriors sometimes had prophetic dreams, but hers were dark. And she’d always felt so compelled by beauty, though she despised it in herself. Demons were drawn to beauty. Probably because they were so ugly. And she was one of them. Half demon.
She was a damned halfling.
And she was going to kill her father.
According to Tristol, Voltar was in the woods behind the castle, waiting for an opportunity to grab Tavis. Voltar was probably the one she’d spotted just before Tavis accused her of trying to miscarry. The baby. It would be part demon. She felt sick. How could she bring a baby who wasn’t fully human into the world? For a moment, she contemplated eliminating the problem—eliminating herself as her mother had done. No, she wouldn’t do that. What about the part of the baby that came from Tavis? The baby was human too. And although Anna was horrified to know there was some demon blood in her veins, she wasn’t evil. She had never hurt anyone, and she’d always fought on the side of good. And the baby would have even less demon blood than Anna had.
She was nearing the area Tristol had told her about when she realized going after Voltar could endanger the baby. That gave her pause. Even if she had been assigned to destroy the demon, he wouldn’t go down easily, and he would probably have other demons helping. Maybe she should call for reinforcement. The other warriors could destroy Voltar’s horde while she took on the ancient demon. How could she face Tavis? How could she tell him that she was the reason his baby would be part demon—the thing he hated most of all? How could she tell him that her father had killed his little brother, Liam? It had to be done. She pulled out her cellphone to call Tavis. She smelled sulfur. Voltar stepped onto the path in his human form.
“You bastard.” Anna dropped her phone and grabbed her talisman as Voltar aimed something at her that looked like a stun gun.
“Let’s see who’s fastest,” he said.