SURVIVE (THRIVE: Book Two)

Chapter 45- Among the Wicked

"Once you open a door like that, you can't close it, love," he states boldly as he begins to take steps toward me.

"Don't try to talk your way out of this, you're the one who decided to say anything about it in the first place." I say as I glare at him from across the room "Now talk." I command. Suddenly, he seems intrigued by my attitude, smiling twistedly as he approaches me.

"Fine, but don't say that I didn't warn you." he shrugs arrogantly "Let me tell you a little story about a good friend of mine and his fall into misguided corruption." he begins softly "He had taken some of my views to heart after realizing that he was weak, eventually finding a mild taste for blood and desire for control to protect the one that he loved. He had learned from my practice what it meant to be caring after his darker side had gotten the best of him, but he had a hard time seeing the lines that I had warned him about crossing. Camila really never stood a chance against him after he had fallen too deep into the abyss. By the time I tried to save him from himself, he was too far gone to listen." he explains casually.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I ask in disbelief as I hear my mother's old name "My father never did anything like this, especially not to my mother."

"Don't be so naive, it doesn't look good on you, sweetheart." he states irritatedly "You wanted me to be honest with you, and I was. Poor thing, it's not my fault that you've been lied to your whole life. Now that I think about it, you deserved to know considering that it's the reason why you even came into existence in the first place." he shrugs as he studies my face.

"What the fuck?." I state angrily "You're wrong, they would never keep something like this from me."

"Really?" he asks, suddenly surprised "First, unlike most people, I never tell a lie. Second, the person whose ear is pressed against the other side of that door right now is the perfect example of how willing Dante and Veronika are to keep secrets." he states confidently as he quickly walks over and opens the door. Just as he had said, Kai is there listening.

"Um..." Kai says nervously "Sterling, I'm sorry, I was just-"

"No, no, come in." Sterling insists as he waves Kai forward "Look, you wanted the truth and I gave it to you. It's up to you now to decide how to accept it." he states as he begins to walk out. I can hardly even process what he just said. Too many things about my family have been brought to the surface, and I don't even know who or what to believe anymore.

"Lucius," Kai suddenly says angrily "For all of your talk about holding back from crossing lines, this was one that you shouldn't have touched," he states as he comes over to me.

"Oh please, you practically spelled it out on her first day here, I simply filled in the blanks." Sterling states bluntly "Besides, she asked me to."

"I don't care, hasn't she been through enough this week?" he asks defensively "Just leave her alone."

"Mind yourself, Malakai." Sterling states aggressively as he comes over and grips my shoulders "I don't have to let you back in here, you know."

"Now this is the flavor that I've been looking for." I suddenly hear from the hall "You two usually play so nice, it's interesting to see you at each other's throats like this." Ember explains as she casually leans in the doorway.

"Oh goody, nice to see that you were eavesdropping too." Sterling states irritatedly. I can't help but stand there completely speechless, I feel as though my mind is being torn apart at the seams. Suddenly, Ember begins to wander toward me.

"You look pale, princess. Everything alright?" she asks sarcastically as she reaches for my face, but Sterling immediately bats her hand away "Oh come on, big brother. I'm not going to hurt your little toy." she says irritatedly.

"Excuse my skepticism, but I know you all too well to believe that." Sterling says as he forces me behind him "Look, I'm far too stressed to deal with your behavior right now, so why don't you run along for a while, hm?" he asks irritatedly.

"Not a chance," Kai states boldly as he crosses his arms, standing his ground.

"I agree with the kid, I've been far too bored sitting around here all week and you're the only one who has something interesting to play with right now besides Gaia." Ember explains as she glances around him at me "Oh come on, didn't mommy teach you to share?" she asks mockingly.

"Piss off." Sterling says angrily as he takes a step toward her "The last thing that I want to do is fight with you right now."

"Aw, mad at little old me are we?" she says as she tries to walk around him "Why don't you come out and play Luci, I've been dying to see your true colors again," she asks as she smiles twistedly.

"Don't be stupid, do you really think that you're strong enough to take me on?" Sterling asks, his eyes beginning to glow red. Suddenly, Ember seems more intrigued as her eyes begin to turn a burning shade of violet.

"Why don't we find out?" she asks, and suddenly her veins begin to glow like fire as they stare each other down "Come on, I just want to know what's so indulgent about her. You can't blame me for being curious since you haven't taken a special interest like this in a few hundred years."

"Enough!" Kai shouts "Would you two stop acting like children already?" he says frustratedly as he tries to go to me, but Sterling grabs him by the throat and throws him across the room, nearly knocking him out in the process.

"This doesn't concern you, boy." Sterling growls, returning his focus to his sister "Last chance to back off." he states aggressively. She seems all too pleased with herself as she shakes her head, suddenly igniting her hands.

"Not a chance." she smiles as she suddenly goes at him, attempting to make contact with his skin. As she grabs his arm, I can hear his skin sizzle, the smell immediately nauseating me. He seems to completely ignore it as he flips her, bashing her back against the ground. Just as it seems that he has her pinned, she suddenly finds a way to flip her body to the side, quickly rolling out from under him and grabbing a knife from her belt "I said come out and play, Luci!" she shouts twistedly as she suddenly flings the knife at me, piercing into my shoulder. As it hits, I fall to my knees, quickly pulling the blade out and throwing it to the ground. I grip my shoulder, but the blood is already oozing between my fingers. Suddenly, as I look up, I see the bloodlust in Sterling's eyes. I knew at that moment that this was what she wanted to happen.

"Sterling, please..." I say in fear as I try to back away, but he seems like he can't even hear me as he comes closer.

"She looks tasty, doesn't she?" Ember says as she watches him, seeming enthralled with herself as she holds Kai back from intervening. Soon, I have nowhere else to go as he grabs my ankles, pulling me away from the wall and starting to climb on top of me. As he pushes my hand out of the way and stares at the wound, his eyes become deeper, almost black. I had never seen him this bloodthirsty before.

"Please stop," I cry as he begins to lean closer, suddenly lunging forward, latching his teeth into my skin, drinking deeply from my veins. I shriek in pain as I feel him drain me, quickly making me feel lightheaded and sick. He usually had more self-control, but he became more animalistic than ever as he bites down harder, nearly tearing my flesh away.

"Let her go!" I suddenly hear Ember scream as she rushes forward and rips him off of me, but her voice sounds different from before.

"What the fuck?" Sterling shouts angrily as he tries to grab her, but she quickly kicks him back to the ground. Kai and I are both utterly confused as we watch her fight him off.

"Stay down, monster." I hear her say angrily as she steps on his chest, and I suddenly realize that it's not Ember talking anymore.

"Artemis?" Sterling asks in shock as she leans down, forcing more weight onto him.

"Not quite," she states as she quickly swirls her hand around, creating a blue aura. Suddenly, she punches his chest at full force, somehow knocking him out cold.

"What the hell..." I say in disbelief as I watch her step off, the aura slowly fading away. As she takes a deep breath, she suddenly looks at me and smiles, tears beginning to fill her eyes.

"It's so good to see you again, little warrior."