When I tried to pull my hands free from the chains encircling them, it was as if blazing fire spread through my skin, setting it a blaze. A cry tore from my lips before my body shook against my will. Nicolas stared at me, emotionless. He didn't even seem happy about my predicament.
I realized that there was someone else in the room, standing beside a large metal door. Lucious stared at me, evident hatred in his eyes. "It seems she didn't only manage to entangle your son in her web, but also Jack."
I tried my best to keep an unfathomable expression when Nicolas stepped closer, grabbing a fist full of my hair and yanking my head to the side to take a better look at the mark on my neck. He stepped back after letting go of my hair, eyes pitch-black.
I smiled. "Do you plan to kill me? Then do it!"
Lucious was now the one to come closer. "Oh, but there are far worse punishments than death, Kendra."
I bit back a gasp of shock when a blade was pressed against my jaw. Ignoring Lucious, I glanced at Nicolas. "Are you aware that he sent an group to try to murder your children?" A cry escaped my lips when the dagger was shoved on into my thigh. I glared at Lucious and snarled.
"I have to admit that you're great at lying."
"You're insane." I struggled against the chains, ignoring how they burned wherever they touched my skin. "Nicolas, you're stronger than a stupid curse—" A strike to my face silenced me for a moment before I growled, wolf claws digging into the arm rest. "Lucious wants to be the only ruler! That's why he cursed you!" Another blow that I was certain had broken my nose and lips. I laughed. "Go ahead. Kill me!" I met Lucious gaze head on. "You stand no chance against them and you know it. That's why you tried so hard to tear them apart, but all you've done is bring them closer."
"Do you really think Jack did everything out of kindness?"
Again, I laughed. "Unlike you, Jack never claimed to be a good guy."
When the door opened, my heart dropped. "Elizabeth." Since I was a child, I had gone to the dinner own by Shelly that Elizabeth worked at along with Zoe. The look on her eyes was far from bubbly, but dead, as if all life had been sucked out of her.
"It seems Jack has made a lot of enemies. Because of
him there was an attack on Sector 15 and your acquaintance here lost someone she loved deeply."
"Elizabeth—"
"Don't you dare defend him! Shelly is dead because of him!" She moved and placed her hand on my stomach, making my eyes grow wide. Pain engulfed my stomach and spread through my body. Yet, I didn't scream at the top of my lungs and clung to the arm rest, feeling my insides be set ablaze.
"Stop!"
Elizabeth leaned closer. "You think you're unbreakable? Everyone has a limit, Kendra."
"What—What the hell are you doing!"
Lucious smiled from where he stood. "Ensuring that you become useless to both of them."
My eyes grew wide as I stared at Elizabeth's hand over my stomach. I struggled against the chains even harder now, knowing the only thing Aaron or Jack cherished most, what would guarantee that Aaron could take the throne.
"Neither will want anything from a woman who can't bare children. After all, that is what an Alpha desires. To continue their bloodline."
"You fool." It was difficult to move my lips. "Jack—Jack has Ana."
"All alphas seek a powerful male heir."
Tears fought to rise as a chanting began all around us. The wind picked up force, sending my hair in all direction. Elizabeth placed her other hand over my forehead, the chanting becoming stronger in my mind. There was a tingle in my head as she searched through my memories, twisting them.
I fought to not cave to whatever spell she was trying to cast, holding on in desperation to the wonderful memories of my family, of the men I loved, my friends. Tears slid down my cheeks when I felt the darkness spreading through my veins, consuming me whole.
When the chains snapped, Elizabeth stepped away, looking stunned. With a hiss, I lurched toward her to be grabbed by the arm and slammed hard against the wall. Pain exploded in my chest when Lucious shoved the dagger into it. "You're far more powerful than I thought." He pushed it deeper, intensifying the agonizing pain. "Do you know why the Prince of slayers seeks Jack?"
I remained silent.
"I assume you know everything about when his sister and he were captured...Well, a couple of years later, we were forced to exile him and his adherents. Do you know why?"
"I don't care."
"If you are going to stand with him might as well know everything. Jack hunted down the slayers that harmed his sister and not only killed them but their entire families. Of course, one managed to survive and now hunts Jack and every other werewolf." He paused. "Jack made decisions that had consequences which affected everyone and now he expects us to let him in the council? I should have killed him when he was merely a child."
"Why didn't you?"
Now, it was Nicolas speaking. "I had hoped that the good within him would win over the darkness—clearly I was mistaken. Jack is broken beyond fixing."
I shook my head. "You are wrong."
"I wish I was...I will not allow my children to fall into madness as he has." He grabbed my arm and forced me to take a seat back on the chair. The chains seemed to appear out of thin air from the floor beneath, moving like snakes to wrap around my ankles and forearms, burning my skin.
I was shaking with fury and could feel my wolf fighting me for control as my incisors elongated. Then agonizing pain engulfed me. It was like when I was in heat but this time it was mixed with the hunger—the lust for blood.
How long had I been here?
The hunger within me intensified the excruciating pain. As seconds ticked by, energy began to slip right out of my finger tips, my eyelids becoming too heavy to stay awake.
At a howl in the distance, my eyes snapped open and swiveled in every direction. I snarled before another howl followed filled with fury.
"They have arrived," Nicolas said.
"Good." The chains released me; however, the moment I stood I could not move my body. Lucious glanced at me before commanding me to follow him. The second he did, my feet moved forward on their own accord.
He had complete control over my actions.
It must have been the spell Elizabeth had cast. I still couldn't believe she would do this, but then again, she had lost someone she loved...Realization hit me hard in the face. Lucious had known Jack would try to get my family and must have planned the attack to make it appear like it was all Jack's fault. It would be the only reasoning as to how they knew when the barrier would be down.
Paige must have told them of Jack's plan.
But that would mean that they knew exactly where the safe house was located.
Worry consumed me for everyone.
When I stepped through the doorway, everything fell into complete darkness as I tried to keep up with Nicolas and Lucious. Not being able to see anything, I stumbled multiple times, but someone aided me. I wanted to jerk away, but without the help, I wouldn't make it anywhere.
About a couple of minutes later, a warm breeze caressed my body. Everything around me became clear once again after we came to a stop. My eyes widened as I stared at Aaron on his knees besides Eliot, covered in scarlet from head to toe. Catherine brought Jezebel and pushed her down by the shoulder to her knees beside her siblings, along with Seth.
They couldn't have turned against them so easily.
Jack stood next to Aaron, handgun in hand, muzzle against Aaron's temple. Wide-eyed, I stared in horror at him, hoping with all my might that this was nothing but an act.
"Hand them over or she dies."
"I'm not going to be fooled again. Her first...or I will blow their brains out." He stood with confidence, glaring at the kings as his eyes glowed amber.
"Have it your way." I was shoved forward and stumbled until I regained my balance. I moved slower than I would have liked, but how could I move faster when my body ached so bad I was certain I would collapse any minute. I removed the dagger out of my chest, grunting at the pain before tightening my hold around the hilt.
When I came close, the images around me vanished as an act of magic. I was beyond bewildered as only Bonnie and Zoe stood beside me.
An illusion.
I whirled around in time to see Luke flicker into view before shifting into something out of my nightmares. His large bat wings expanded after he struck Lucious, making him stumble. Nicolas shifted and attempted to aid his comrade to be struck by an inviable force and sent airborne, rolling to a stop feet away before getting back to his feet, letting out a terrifying snarl.
Aaron became visible along with Jack, who stood behind Nicolas. It was astounding how all now moved faster than my eyes could follow.
Bonnie stood beside me, a enchanting song beginning to echo around us when many werewolves and vampires jumped out of the cover of oaks. Now, they all froze like statues, enraptured by her siren call.
I moved and grasped an arrow right out of the air before it struck Bonnie, but a second came and struck her shoulder, making her cry out in pain. Seth appeared and jerked the arrow out, hissing as he tossed it to the side. All hell broke lose around us as everyone moved into action against our enemy.
Bonnie coughed, blood pouring from her lips. Bonnie bit her wrist to obviously try to save her sister. My eyes watered as I stood and faced the kings. A gasp escaped my lips when Lucious shoved a blade into Aaron's chest. I pushed my body to move faster and tried to shift to no avail. I tried over and over, but my wolf didn't respond.
Still, I didn't stop until I reached them. When Luke tossed me a weapon, I didn't hesitate and aimed directly at Lucious' head. He grabbed the muzzle and managed to force my hand to the left, making the bullet miss his head by the time I pulled the trigger.
A gasp escaped my lips when a blade tore through his chest, splattering blood all over my face. Wide-eyed, Lucious staggered away from me after the blade was pulled out.
Seth stood in front of his father, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Do you know what happens when a witch is killed?" He shoved the sword into his father's stomach. "All of the spell she cast go along with her."
Lucious laughed as if he had lost his mind. "You've always been your mother's pure image."
With a hiss, Seth pulled the sword out to only shove it in his chest, presumably until it reached the beating heart. The second he wrenched it out, his father's body crumbled to the ground with a thud.
Bonnie rushed to his side and hugged him. Seth didn't speak, or moved. It was evident that even after everything, he still loved his father. Killing him was far from easy and would be something that most likely would haunt him forever.
When Nicolas ordered everyone to halt their fighting, surprisingly, they listened, bowing their heads. I smiled at Aaron and Jack, who stood beside each other, obviously still in high alert.
My eyes widened when Nicolas caught an arrow right of the air, tip centimeters from my heart. The arrow glowed bright red before exploding, sending us airborne in different directions. As I rolled to a stop, a cry tore through my lips, my skin taking too long to heal.
"What the hell is wrong with me?"
Nicolas held a hand against his laceration while he aided me back to my feet. "Forgive me, but one of the spells cast upon you puts all your powers in slumber."
Aaron and Jack were getting to their feet, obviously having been close to the explosion. A cry tore through my lips when an arrow struck Jack. Aaron moved to pull it out but he too was struck. I sprinted toward them, heart about to break into a million pieces when both dropped to their knees.
Out of thin air, Elizabeth appeared, chanting something as both fell to the ground. The arrows stopped glowing before she yanked them out. Our gazes met, pain evident in her eyes as she glanced around.
Elizabeth gasped, the tip of an arrow piercing through her neck. Now, Bonnie and Zoe moved toward her to be stopped by slayers that leaped out of the cover of oak trees.
I became frozen, realizing that the slayers had waited for the right moment to attack. We were too busy turning against each other to even catch their fragrance. A mistake we were all about to pay dearly for.
As Elizabeth's body slumped to the ground, Sammy became visible. I was a fool to have trusted him, to have believed that the boy I cared for was still in there somewhere.
Ignoring the acute pain threatening to devour me whole, I moved forward just as Nicolas reached my side, shifting into a Lycan and unleashed hell upon our enemy. When Sammy aimed his weapon, I managed to dodge the arrow and yanked his bow away from him. A blow to my back had me stumbling forward. I whirled around and struck the other slayer across the face with the weapon before dropping it to the ground, my skin burning.
Sammy aimed the weapon that Jocelyn had give us to Jack's heart, smiling as he held my gaze. My heart stopped beating as I stared in horror, knowing that just with a simple cut it would end up deadly for Jack.
"Sammy!" Sammy turned at the exact time Zoe pulled the trigger of a handgun over and over, each bullet burying itself in his chest. A soft golden glow spread through the now visible marks on her body before it reached her eyes.
"Imposible—" Sammy coughed blood. "You didn't inherit the gene."
Zoe moved closer, pressing the muzzle to his forehead. "No. Carlos simply taught me how to hide it..." Tears streamed down her cheeks. "I know you killed him and Nick."
Sammy laughed. "I tried to, but they managed to escape before I could do so."
Zoe pulled the trigger, the bullet piercing his head, sending blood splattering in all directions, even on me. As I moved to Aaron and Jack, she dropped the handgun to the ground, tears flooding down her cheeks.
With shuddering fingers, I tried to wipe the blood off my face. Part of me was glad that Aaron and Jack were still awake, but it was evident they were barely hanging on. "They're fading."
When I lifted my gaze, I met violet eyes—that seemed so similar to mine—of a slayer, who wore the same golden and white outfit as the rest, including the mask covering their faces.
A handgun was pressed against their temple. The person smiled and said, "Hey, Luke."
Luke's eyes grew wide, obviously recognizing the voice. "Imposible."
The person stepped closer to him after he lowered the weapon. "Aaron and you aren't the only ones capable of playing with people's mind."
I was stunned when the person shifted into a lycan and took down the slayers one by one without much effort. Everyone else stepped back, watching as someone aided Nicolas and his family.
Catherine ran to her brother while Jezebel was at Aaron's side within seconds of the battle ending thanks to the mysterious Lycan that now stood in the middle, staring at Nicolas.
Bonnie was by our side along with the others. Zoe bit her wrist and tried to feed them her blood but neither was responding. She shook her head in disbelief before Luke pulled her into a hug.
My heart shattered apart as I realized that I was about to lose them both. Now, tears trickled down my cheeks. This couldn't be happening. It had to be a nightmare.
I shook my head, my heart breaking. "Someone please help them!"
The Lycan shifted, her back facing us. She dropped to one knee then the other as Nicolas approached her. When she dropped her head in submission, her long blond curls fell like a curtain around her face.
He shifted before reaching her. "How is this possible."
"Forgive me...I shouldn't have never turned against you."
Nicolas stared at her for the longest before walking around her in our direction. "Take her to a cell."
"I can save them." He froze at her voice. "I want complete amnesty."
He hesitated, his gaze falling upon Aaron, who had lost consciousness just like Jack, their wounds not healing at all.
Pain evident in his blue eyes, Nicolas said, "Fine, but once you are done, you will leave and never return."
The woman stood. When she faced us, my eyes widened as I stared into a mere image of myself. It was like looking at a damn mirror. The only different being the blond hair, which she clearly had dyed.
"Annabel."
She smiled at me, an arrogant smile that for a moment I wanted to slap off her face. Completely ignoring me, she moved toward Jack and put her small hands on his shoulders. There was a soft golden glow then it was as if he was never hurt. His eyes snapped open and he looked around befuddled, clearly trying to decipher what had happened. Catherine enveloped him in a hug, crying tears of joy.
With my heart about to burst, I watched her repeat the same process with Aaron. When he opened his eyes, they were pitch-black and slowly turned piercing blue.
Jezebel hugged him, crying like I had never seen her. Once she calmed down, she stepped away from him. Annabel actually stood in my way before I could get closer to either of them, meeting my gaze head on, chin held high.
"Annabel." Aaron stared at her in utter disbelief.
She shot him a flirtatious smile. "Sorry for having to mess with your head, but I was left with no other choice."
He glared and moved, grabbing her by the arm. She actually smiled and moved closer, honestly pissing me off. "Don't be so rough with me."
Aaron must have sensed my irritation; he let her go and glanced briefly in my direction. "You made me believe the rogues murdered you."
"Your father and Lucious wanted me dead." She cupped his face but he grabbed her wrist and pushed her from him. "Aaron—"
She stopped speaking when he ignored her and walked toward me. I stepped closer and hugged him before pulling him into a short kiss. After pulling back, he pressed our foreheads together.
"Well, that did not go as planned," Jack said, not once looking at Annabel.
Aaron actually laughed. "When do your plans ever go as you want them to?"
"True." Jack smiled. "But if I recall correctly, this was your plan, not mine."
Aaron chuckled. "Hey, I think I did pretty well with the illusion for my first time."
I had no idea he could do such thing, but then again, he could get into anyone's mind so it shouldn't have surprised me that he could mess with what one saw right in front of them.
I grabbed Jack's hand and pulled him into a hug before kissing him. "Both of you are going to be the death of me." I hugged both of them, glad that they were okay.
When I stepped back, I smiled at Zoe and Luke. I had been right. He had witnessed that she was indeed a descendant of a slayer and that had changed nothing. He still loved her.
Unintentionally, my gaze met Annabel's. Jack cupped my face and forced me to look at him instead, a playful smile on his lips. "Is everything okay?"
"Of course." A big fat lie. "Let's go home."
After this madness, I hoped that Nicolas would finally release the humans. I knew that we could look past our differences and co-exist like we had once.
Or so I hoped.