Chapter 19
By the day of the game, my sadness had turned to anger.
I was angry that I hadn’t been there to say goodbye, angry that life had to be so cruel, once again.
The only thing that I was thankful for was that it had not been a vampire that killed them.
I was sure that when it came time to sleep, the tears would return, but I would use my outrage as fuel and win this game tonight.
And if my team didn’t step it up this time, they were going to get an earful.
Vander had informed me who Dravyn Knox was; one of the vampire kings’ high-ranking advisors, a savage killer, a daywalker, and the one who’d taken Vander’s sister.
He’d vanished for two years, until now. The smoldering fury in Vander’s eyes was unnerving as he explained things this vampire had done.
He was desperate to go after him, but we had to wait for the command.
I had to win this game not only for myself but for him.
Commander Ace’s speech played in my head.
“For the winning team, the reward will not only be a day off to play in the city but also the privilege to accompany the group chosen to assassinate the Nocturnus Commander Dravyn Knox and his wicked battalion. This daywalking vampire is the purest of evil and has killed many of our own. Many assassins just like you. He will die and his stone dust will be scattered to the wind, and you will help do that.”
The cheers of the apprentices still echoed in my head, making my skin tingle.
Last time we’d been Team Vampire and had to guard the hostages, now as Team Assassin we needed to rescue them.
One thing we had on our side were the patches of snow.
It would be easier to track our adversaries.
The speeches from Vander and Falcon already had our team full of excitement and pride and ready for vengeance.
I wore my fur-lined black coat, extra socks and thicker pants.
The stars sparkled in the clear night sky.
Without cloud cover, the temperature had plummeted.
The cold even burned my throat, breathing in too deeply.
I’d thought we’d made it past this part of winter and spring was here, but mother nature was fickle.
My scarred hand ached and was stiffer in this climate and it pissed me off.
My boots crunched over the hard ground. My team and I had already made our way through the city.
Etterdam’s Library, the landmark for vampire territory, was in view.
Taewyn walked beside me with worried glances more often than necessary.
I’d told him and Celine about my mother and brother the day before, and he’d been treating me extra carefully since.
“Are you nervous about what Beast might do in this game?” he asked. “He’s been quiet, but he still has that evil look in his eyes.”
I shrugged. That bastard always had an evil look in his eyes. I didn’t care anymore. Our rivalry seemed so trivial now. His threat after the whipping still lingered in the back of my mind, but he hadn’t attempted to make good on it. “No, I haven’t thought about him in a long time.”
“Maybe getting lashed in front of the entire League truly changed him. It would me.”
“Changed him for the worse,” I muttered.
“What makes you think that?”
“Something he said...” I hadn’t told anyone.
Not even Vander. I’d hoped Beast had simply said it in the heat of the moment, and so far, I’d been correct.
He hadn’t spoken a damn word to me or Taewyn.
Dred never looked my way. I hoped it was because he was ashamed of how far his petty feud with Vander from years ago had been taken.
There were no stupid jeers and certainly no putting hands on us.
I wondered if Beast’s back was full of scars.
He didn’t take his shirt off during training anymore, but I supposed no one had since the cold came.
Taewyn nudged me. “Well, spit it out.”
“After the fight between Dred and Viper and the lashing, he said that Viper wouldn’t always be around to protect me. But whatever he might try, I doubt he’ll make it public, not after what happened. I don’t think he’ll come after me during the game.”
Taewyn pursed his lips. “But this is the only time Viper isn’t with you. Maybe he’s just been waiting.”
“I’m not saying he wouldn’t try to hurt me within the rules of the game, but I’m not the same woman he fought months ago.” I grinned at him even if my mouth was covered with my mask.
“No, you’re not. You scare me sometimes.”
“Oh, stop it.” I shoved him lightly, and he laughed.
As a group, we stopped behind an old brick building before we crossed into the other team’s territory.
Celine held the map this time, and Shadowhawk, the tall, quiet apprentice who’d started sitting with us at supper stood next to her.
Vander often kept me out too late for mealtimes with everyone, but when I was there he seemed friendly enough.
Celine talked about him often when he wasn’t around.
Shadowhawk pointed at the map she held open to us.
“This time we go in as one team,” he said.
“Scouts are always used during missions, so Smoke, Bonecarver, and I will go ahead and return for the rest of you once they are found. Agreed?” My eyes darted to Celine.
This was news to me. She gave me a quick smile and a nod.
There were a few murmurs of protest, but eventually everyone was in agreement.
It was surprisingly easy to find the other team at the bridge over the Kalixo River that cut through Nighthaven. They weren’t hiding, which meant they wanted us to find them.
They fancied a fight. Great.
Beast leaned against the left side of the stone bridge with three others flanking him. The upper-level assassins playing hostages were surrounded at the center. They were here to assess each of us during the game as much as they were a part of it.
The three of us crouched behind a thick juniper bush dusted with snow. “Why choose the bridge?” I wondered. “It’s out in the open.”
Shadowhawk narrowed his eyes. “The water.”
They wanted to use it as a natural weapon. “Throwing members of our team in water that cold would mean immediate surrender,” I mused aloud.
Celine shook her head. “No, it could mean death. It’s warmed enough that the ice over the river is no longer solid. Someone could get trapped beneath. And if by some miracle they get out, they could freeze to death before making it back to Drakthar.”
“This shouldn’t be allowed,” I added.
Shadowhawk grunted his agreement. “Leadership hasn’t stepped in. Vampires wouldn’t coddle us just because we’re apprentices and neither should they. We’ll have to chase Team Vampire across the bridge, away from the river and fight on the other side.”
I watched Beast and his friends laugh. “They’re already surrounding the hostages in the center. They will hold the bridge. But what if we could get them to come toward us?”
“How?” Celine asked. “They won’t be stupid enough to leave their position even if we taunt them.”
I glanced back toward the city where the torchlight burned orange and an idea sparked.
It was dangerous, and I could get in trouble, but their plan to toss us in the icy river was worse.
My mood was that of a dark endless pit tonight.
The deaths in my family made me feel unruly like there was a storm building inside me.
I wanted to go into the woods and slaughter, take my anger out on vampires, but I’d have to settle for the team.
“We set half the bridge on fire,” I said.
Both of them snapped their heads my way.
Even with their masks up, the astonishment showed clear in their eyes.
“If they want to play dirty, so can we. I’ll do it and I’ll take the blame if we get into trouble for it.
There’s another way across, down river. I’ll set the east end on fire, and they’ll be forced to run this way. ”
Shadowhawk shifted; he and Celine exchanged a glance. “You’ll need a lighter fluid—alcohol or pitch—for it to even catch fire,” he said.
Celine drummed her fingers along the sheath of her dagger on her hip and let out a low chuckle. “You continue to surprise me, Bonecarver. Let’s do it. If you can get them off the bridge, we’ll be waiting to ambush them.”
“Leave it to me.”
I flew through the empty backstreets of the city.
The cold wind nipped at the exposed skin around my eyes.
After following Vander around for months, I knew Nighthaven well enough to find a tavern for something highly flammable.
I took a sharp turn down an alleyway with no balconies overhanging from which people might spot me.
I followed the sound of the music and rowdy behavior, but it was the smell of liquor that brought me to the correct window at the back of a tavern, and I slipped into a storage room.
It was dark. Only a sliver of light came from underneath the door to the bar area. The shelves were lined with bottles, and I doubted they’d notice one missing, though I’d never been a thief before.
I lightly stepped over a mop and bucket. I snatched up an old rag from a pile in the corner. I moved swiftly to the shelves, scanning for something with a high alcohol content.
A whisper in my bones made me turn toward that door. A creak followed, footsteps came next. I melted into the shadows of the corner, pressing myself against the wall behind the last shelf.
I was an assassin.
Silent.
Shadow.
A rotund man with a thick mustache waddled across the threshold.
Warm light flooded in with him and I pressed myself further, stopped breathing.
Most people weren’t particularly observant and if I didn’t move or make a sound, he wouldn’t discover me.
For the better part of this year, I’d learned to make myself invisible.
Whistling, he teetered in, grabbed a glass bottle of amber. He paused, glancing at the—open window.
Shit.
A novice mistake.