Chapter 50
Seraphim
This whole thing was a shitshow. Sam ran off and I didn’t have the mental energy to go chasing after her. I could tell she was close by and she was in a mood. If I knew anything about her, she was probably committing murder and it was likely bloody. She was a little psychopath in the making.
As for me, I had someone to track down. He wanted to talk to me. The little hand signals he used told me that much. Vas was always playing his own game, sending hidden messages. It was just what he did. The guy essentially grew up in stealth mode and he was all about choosing the winning side. The fact that he was trying to get me alone at all told me he had something up his sleeve.
The problem was that he usually dealt multiple hands at one time. He had his little deal with Sam, which I was still not on board with one bit. Neither was Mark. We were going to do everything in our power to keep her from going in that direction.
On top of that, I was sure he had most of his eggs in Sibon’s basket. I was interested to see what he might want from me. If it was a way for me to get back in her good graces, the answer would immediately be no.
Vas didn’t understand freedom, so I couldn’t blame him for trying so hard to find a way for me to come back. In his eyes, survival was the only option. It had always been that way for him and he’d sacrificed the people close to him more than once to ensure he stayed alive. Maybe it was dishonorable, but I couldn’t bring myself to lose respect for him. He wasn’t a coward, not in the least. This was just all he knew.
What was that saying? ‘The best way to keep a prisoner from escaping is to make sure he never knows he’s in prison.’ His entire life, he’d been in one prison or another, trading one for the next. He may not be able to understand what it meant to be free, but I hoped that one day he would get the chance.
Stopping at the entrance to an alley, I inhaled. Why was it always an alley? They were dark and smelly, not to mention overrated. We could just as easily meet on a rooftop or inside a building.
“You set us up in Alabama,” I said, turning my head.
Orange light appeared a little ways down. Vas blew out smoke, then flicked the cherry from the cigarette.
“Is that what you think, little flame?”
Rolling my eyes, I joined him. He was sitting atop his motorcycle with his booted feet resting on one of the handles. I was never sure if he had the balance of a cat or used matter to keep him from tumbling off the strange places he decided to perch. Honestly, the guy could probably manage to dance across a tightrope and make it look like a four-lane road. For lack of a better word, he was strange.
I lit my own cigarette, then raised a brow for him to go on. He smiled a little, revealing just the tips of his sharp canines.
“I didn’t have to set you up. Sibon found you and sent the pair. Can’t say I’ll miss Erla, but Davi has been a goddamn nightmare.”
“How did she find me?”
He tapped his temple. “You haven’t escaped her.”
“The connection has been weak,” I argued. “It’s been easy to keep her out of my head.”
“It opened again while you were in Alabama. It was a short window. Maybe an hour. That was enough.”
Taking a drag of the cigarette, I thought about his words. Could she have found her way in while I was asleep? I was certain it would have woken me up. When it hit me, I swore.
“When I was away from Sam. It was only twenty miles, though.”
“Apparently, proximity is a factor here. She is still planted inside of you, right where you agreed to let her exist. Once she felt an opening, she dove in and your guard was down. You’re not one to make mistakes like that, Ser.”
“I’ve been making plenty lately,” I muttered.
“And it cost you one of your Nexus. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but you don’t have many of them.”
Clenching my free hand, I took a deep breath. “Did you know what would happen when she lost one?”
“Yes. I have seen it happen once.”
“Why didn’t you tell us back at the cabin?”
He breathed a laugh. “Have I not made it clear we are now on opposing sides?”
“And yet, you came to the tower to offer Sam a deal that Sibon has not made. You’re here now. What game are you playing, Vas?”
“I’m weighing all of the pieces. Believe it or not, my time in that basement, particularly my one-on-one with the vampire, made me feel… Hopeful, perhaps.”
“What is it you hope for?”
“Change, I think.”
“You want to be free,” I guessed.
He made a sound of disagreement. “That’s of no consequence to me. If we’re being candid, I’m bored of the current state of things.”
“Bored,” I repeated incredulously.
“Yes. It’s been much of the same for five centuries. Worse in the past two. Nothing happens anymore and I have no hope for what Sibon wishes. It’s pointless to keep trying, so I wish to move onto better things.”
“What better things?”
“I don’t know. Perhaps I’ll go home, find those that still subscribe to the old ways.”
“Or you could acclimate to the modern world.”
He grimaced at the idea. “For what purpose?”
“To live, Vas. Spend your days doing things you enjoy. Make friends. Find love.”
“Love,” he laughed.
“If fucking Hemlock can do it, maybe one of us can as well.”
“Go right ahead.”
I shuddered at the thought. “Okay, maybe not love. Still, there are things out there to enjoy. Art. Nature. Music.”
My chest ached when I imagined playing on stage again. It hadn’t been that long, but that dream had been stolen from me the night Sam discovered my true identity. It felt inconsequential now, but my desire for it hadn’t dimmed one bit.
“It’s very unlikely you can save her,” Vas said, drawing me out of my head.
“Then I will die trying.” The words came so suddenly, without a need to consider them. It was as if they were built into my DNA. Maybe they were.
He leaned forward, resting his arms on his thighs. “Please, little flame.”
“I’ve been stupid for a long time, but now I’m seeing things clearly. Sam is mine and I am hers. If I have to give my life, then so be it. I won’t go back to that life, nor will I let her give everything up for it.”
“You’re only trading one pair of shackles for another.”
“That’s rich coming from you. The difference is, Sam isn’t chaining me up. Sibon demands unwavering loyalty and would expect me to give my life for her. Sam would never ask such a thing of me and I know she’d put her life on the line for me, even though it’s meant to be the other way around.”
“She killed the other one,” he pointed out.
“Because I told her to. I made her promise to end my life to keep me out of Sibon’s grasp. She didn’t do it out of selfishness or to serve her own purposes. In a fucked up way, it was her putting her trust in me. Believing that I knew what needed to be done.
“Sam didn’t want me to join her for her own gain, but to free us both of the threat Sibon poses. With her, there are no shackles. I’d consider them more like friendship bracelets,” I added with a smile. “I’ll sacrifice everything for her without a single regret except that I didn’t accept her sooner so we might have more time as what we were meant to be.”
“God,” Vas groaned, hanging his head and making his dark hair fall over his face. “I fucking hate bonds. They’re a curse.”
“That’s dramatic.”
“They’re literally a curse, but that’s not important. I needed to know how far you’re willing to go for this.”
Hope began to bloom in my chest. “You have a plan, don’t you?”
“No,” he replied, making me deflate. “But against my better judgment, little flame, I care about you like my own family. You got under my skin like a fucking splinter and you won’t budge. So, I don’t have a plan. However, I might try to make one.”
“Tell me what you need me to do and I’m there.”
“Convince Sam to follow through on our arrangement.”
Grabbing his bicep, I brought flames to the surface. He clenched his jaw, meeting my eyes as they ate through his skin. The fucker barely gave me a glimpse into his pain.
“How does one spring a trap on someone that can get inside your head?” he asked simply.
“You can’t.”
“Sure, you can. Sibon will be able to discern if Sam is telling the truth. All that matters is that Sam believes she is. It’s the same sort of loophole we use when we want to avoid being honest with her. I just don’t trust that your Ark has enough self-control to be convincing if she’s in on the plan.”
“That’s probably a smart move, actually.”
“Yes, I know. Who the hell do you think you’re dealing with here, Ser?”
I couldn’t help but smile. “You’re really going to move against her?”
“If things go awry, I was never involved,” he said slowly. “I will do what I can to save you, little flame. Should it come down to it and I see no way out, I will strike you down without hesitation. My conscience will be clear knowing that I gave you a chance.”
“That’s all I can ask of you.”
With a sharp nod, he dropped his feet on either side of the bike. The roar of its engine was loud in the small space and I watched until he turned onto the street. I went in the opposite direction, shoving one hand in my pocket while I put a cigarette between my lips and lit it.
Now that he’d mentioned what happened in Alabama, I was anxious to get back to Sam. I was sure Sibon knew where we were, but I didn’t want her having any access to my mind. I’d been too relaxed, not focusing enough energy on keeping her out, but I didn’t realize that being away from my Ark would allow her back in.
When I reached the tower, I was about to head inside, but stopped in front of the doors. Blowing out a line of smoke, I stared up at the top of the building and shook my head. This was the last fucking thing we needed.
Like some fucked up version of the YMCA dance, there were five bodies posed in front of the top row of windows. They were hanging by what looked like wire, their bodies grotesquely misshapen to spell out one word. Sibon. The coven had money and ways to cover up the shit vampires got up to, but this would make the news. I guess that was probably the point.
I smelled Sam before she reached into my pocket and grabbed my pack.
“They’re going to get a special delivery,” she announced.
When I turned to her, I immediately grabbed her arm and shifted her into smoke, hoping nobody saw. She was covered from head to toe in blood and god knows what else. One might assume she’d be less prone to violence without Lock around, but clearly she strived to top some of his most whimsical murder sprees.
God, help me.