The Survivors: Body & Blood (book 3)

The Key, pt. 1

ALEXANDER WAS SITTING ON EVERETT'S COUCH WHEN I PORTED into the room.

"Believe me yet?" he asked.

"Please, go," I begged.

"I can't. I went about this in the wrong way," he said. His voice sounded apologetic, and it was disarming. I tried to ignore it.

"Please," I repeated.

"You know it's stupid," he said. "I thought if I could have you away from all of them, tell you things you wanted to know about your past and who you were . . . I thought then, maybe, you could . . ." his voice trailed off. I'd never seen him like this. Alexander Raven was a sociopathic, charismatic energy. He unnerved you and made you nauseous and yet he did it with flare and style. He did it in such a way that you weren't afraid when you should have been, and so you let your guard down as he had pointed out I so grossly had.

Or at least that's how he was with me.

So this? Sounding like a person? A great trick. A grave trick.

"Could what?" I said, standing in front of him.

"I thought maybe you'd like me," he said.

"This is a joke."

"It's not," he said. "You are what I need to achieve my goals, and why wouldn't I want as pleasant a partner as I could manage? Don't you think it would make your life better if you liked me? We will end up together in the end. You're the only one who can help me make my part-human empire, and because of that, I can't let go of you. But I tried! Don't you see? This is the ultimate Beauty and the Beast! If the Beast keeps his Beauty prisoner, then she will never grow to love him! I don't want you as my prisoner. I want you to stand beside me as I put supernaturals in the place they've belonged from the start: Above humans. Among the gods."

I couldn't even process this mind-bending logic. And if I'd been foolish enough to before, I would never again be so foolish as to believe a word he said.

"Goodbye, Alexander."

He got to his feet, unnecessary since he wouldn't actually exit this room in any kind of normal fashion. "Fine. A peace offering."

He held out a piece of paper to me.

"I don't want it."

"Yes, you do," he said. "Take it."

"I don't want anything from you," I said. I was trying with all my might not to cry.

"I think you forget that chasing me and chasing your family are two different things. You're never going to get what you hope you will in fighting me, so you might as well find some peace of your own before I take you down, kicking and screaming," he said. "Take the paper."

"What is it?"

"It's the key to Lizzie's cipher."

For some reason, I knew he wasn't lying. "Why are you giving me this?"

"Because I couldn't care less about your tragedy with your Survivor family, and if this will make you like me a little more, then why not? Happy deciphering, Sadie."

I just stared at him, unable to make myself say the word thanks.

"If I were you, I'd decode pretty quickly. If my visions are on point, you'll be receiving an interesting phone call in about two hours that will change everything with that Survivor clan. Just a heads-up."

Somehow I knew he wasn't lying about that either.

"Wait, Alexander?" I said. He stopped. "What else did you do? What else have you caused?"