In the Midst of the Light
Ten
Lexie
I'm not as comfortable as Valerio is with being in charge. Being a Guild Leader is his birth right, whereas I'm just his mate who by circumstance have the powers of a Guild Leader. Valerio knows exactly what needs to be done, and precisely when it needs to happen. I feel like I almost blindly follow after him. I too know what needs to be done, but I don't have the flare that Valerio has when it comes to actually executing it.
Uncle Cauis taught Valerio well, and I think I need to start taking lessons from Aunt Esmerelda so that way I can be just as productive as Valerio. Especially since it seems our time as Guild Leaders won't be as peaceful as we all thought it would be. I'm not afraid to go up against The Warlock and Zombie, but I am afraid of not preforming my duties like I should. With how informed The Warlock is about us, I know it's only a matter of time before something happens where I myself have to be in charge. The likelihood that Valerio will be occupied, and I have to actually lead the pack, are high, and I need to be ready if it happens.
It is comforting that Valerio won't let me out of his sight. Ever since the other day when Spencer tried to take me, he has been at my side, or at least in the same room as me. He only lets me use the bathroom by myself, but even then he's right outside the door. If he's next to me, his hand is somewhere on me. I've been on edge ever since my almost abduction, so his strong hand somewhere on me helps a lot.
But right now, it doesn't matter that his hand is on the small of my back. It doesn't matter that he's trying to calm me down because there's nothing that can calm me down right now. I think if Aemilia herself calmed down it would help, but her constant pacing and looking out the hotel room window every other minute is having the opposite effect.
"Aemilia," Valerio says as she starts her circuit again, "please sit down."
She grabs the sides of her head, fisting her hair in her hands, as she continues to pace. "I can't, Valerio. I just can't. And please don't order me to."
Valerio sighs quietly while he rubs my back with his thumb through my shirt. We've been in this hotel room for two days, and according to Aemilia, Spencer has already addressed the coven. She doesn't know when the attack will actually happen again, and that's what's driving her insane. My heart breaks for my sister in law. Aemilia and I have always been close, and I have never seen her like this. She's always been so full of life and laughing at a prank she's pulled on someone. Now, it's like she's trying to kill herself to come up with an answer.
Keegan has tried over and over again to be there for her, but she won't let him. Aemilia has almost always handled a situation by herself, and just because she has her mate now doesn't mean she's willing to let him in. About two years ago, Aemilia and I had an intense conversation about when Keegan would enter her life. I know how excited she was, along with how scared, so seeing her like this with him is really hard. What makes this even harder to witness is that you can tell by the look on Keegan's face that he loves her. I don't know how, seeing as how they haven't even been mated for a week, but he is.
Aemilia is completely blinded to it too. I understand that she has a lot on her mind, but I've never seen a mated couple act the way they are. I have a feeling that the reason Keegan is allowing her to treat him this way is simply because of who Aemilia is. Keegan doesn't understand that just because she's considered royalty doesn't mean he has to treat her that way. He is her mate, her perfect other half, and Aemilia should be treating him with that respect.
I think you might have to order her, Valerio, I tell him as the three of us continue to watch Aemilia come apart. At the very least order her to let Keegan help her.
Valerio's thumb stops moving in it's small circles, so I look at him. He's still looking at his sister, watching her closely. I watch as Valerio's eyes move to where Keegan is standing. His eyes turn hard, making me look at Keegan. They're looking at each other, and when Keegan stands straighter, I know Valerio told him to help.
"Aemilia," Valerio orders as Keegan walks over to her, "you will let Keegan help you, and you will stop pushing him away."
Aemilia whimpers at the command as Keegan's arms go around her. Keegan's face pains as he cradles her head in his chest with his hand on the back of her head. It's as if as soon as he starts to comforting her, her flood gates burst open.
I drop my head to look at the floor, giving them some privacy. Valerio's fingers on my back curl as he takes us to our own hotel room. Instead of letting me go, Valerio wraps his other arm around me, and cradles me against him. I wrap my arms around his waist, nestle my head in his chest, and take a deep breath through my nose.
The last few days have a whirlwind for me. I have never had to deal with anything like this. My life has been easy, peaceful, up until this point. I'm not sure how to really handle what is happening. I do feel we need to stop these attacks, but how? We're kind of frozen in our spots, waiting. Knowing this attack is going to possibly come to fruition and we can't just stop it kills me inside. If we can't stop this specific attack, over three million people will die. The Warlock's attack, if it happens, will be the largest terrorist attack in recorded history.
And the humans have no idea it's black magic that's doing it.
Valerio's citrus scent assaults me, but not in an overpowering way. It calms me, just like every other time he holds me like this. His strong arms envelope me in a blanket of love and warmth, making me never want to leave them.
"How are we supposed to stop this one, Valerio?" I whisper into his chest.
His arms tighten around me, and his chest rises as he takes a deep breath. "I don't know, Lexie," he replies, keeping his voice at a whisper too, "just knowing which building is going to explode doesn't help." One of his arms loosens around me, but he brings that hand up and tangles his fingers into my hair. "We don't know when it will go off, and I won't put anyone in danger by sending them there to find it."
I chew on my bottom lip. We know the bomb is in the Mosque-Madrassa of Sultan Hassan, and that all the buildings within a half mile radius will be destroyed along with it if it goes off. The wolves who live in the area have been alerted, and Valerio ordered Alpha Asfour to get his packs out when the Alpha wanted to stay and help. Aemilia's vision changed when he offered to stay. Instead of just humans dying, all the packs in Africa would die too because Asfour was going to gather them. The number of packs who live in Africa has gone up in recent years, and neither Valerio nor I want to see them come to harm because of magic.
We both believe that even though the Guild Leaders have magic, it doesn't mean the wolves have to join in this. Our pack will handle The Warlock, since we are the only wolves that have powers. If the wolves were to join in stopping him, he would end up killing about a quarter of them, according to Aemilia. We can't let that happen.
Valerio may not like it, but there's only one way, that I can see, to stop this attack from happening. One of us has to go into the building. It's highly possible the black magic bomb is already in place, someone just need to go find it and get it out of the city. With a tour of the ancient building starting every half an hour, the number of people who will die keeps going up the longer we wait.
I don't need a lesson on how to be a Guild Leader from Aunt Esmerelda to tell me what needs to be done. I can go into the building, find the bomb, and get it out of the city without fear to my life. In one of Aunt Esmerelda's spell books I was looking through the other day, there was a spell to protect yourself from death. It was in a black spell book, and even though there was a note on the side of it stating that it takes time to actually come back to life if you do die, I believe it's worth a shot.
The only problem is Valerio. I haven't even mentioned the spell to him, and I know there's no way in hell he would let me do it. He won't even leave my side long enough for me to even try to make an escape.
An idea suddenly clicks in my head. I pull away slightly from Valerio, keeping my arms around him, and smile sheepishly up at him as the air in the room starts to stir. I feel my heart rate increase as someone comes into our room, and I'm terrified when I see it's Aemilia. Is she coming to tell Valerio what I'm up to?
"Keegan needs to talk to you," Aemilia says instead. She doesn't look at me, but she says to me, You need to use R.C.'s blood in the spell.
"What about?" Valerio asks as one of his arms drop from around me.
I work hard to control my face and breathing as I reply to Aemilia, Why? I didn't see that you needed someone else's blood other than your own for the spell.
Aemilia shrugs. "He needs to ask you something, Valerio," she replies, starting to get aggravated. I know she's only doing this so I can leave. Because Valerio is going to lose his mind when you die doing this, and the only way to accelerate the amount of time that it takes to come back is to use R.C.'s blood.
I swallow, force a calm smile, and look at my mate. "I have to use the bathroom real quick," I lie, knowing this is the only way he will leave me alone for two seconds, "go ahead. I'll be right behind you."
He looks at me for a second, and then shakes his head. "I'll wait."
Just go, Aemilia tells me.
I nod to Valerio and walk around him to the bathroom. I control every movement as I walk across the room, not wanting to give anything away. I shut the bathroom door softly, and then immediately take myself to the cabin.
"Lexie," R.C. greets me in shock. He pauses a second, dips his head like he's confused, and then looks at me. "Everything okay?" He asks in a timid voice.
I start making my way over to the black spell book on the kitchen table where I left it, curl my fingers for what I need for the spell, and look at R.C. "I think I've figured out a way to stop the attack," I tell him, making his eyes widen and his face pale, "and I need a drop of your blood for it."
His eyebrows come back down from his hair line as he looks at me confused. He comes around the kitchen island, looking at me curiously, and asks, "What are you doing?"
I open the spell book to the page, and then turn the book in his direction. "We still don't know when the bomb will go off, and in case it does while I go in to look for it," I nod to the spell, "I'll be using this."
R.C. continues to look at me curiously as he comes up to the table. He looks down at the spell for a minute, and then looks back to with shock again. "Does Valerio know?"
I shake my head. "He doesn't even know I'm gone yet."
R.C. lifts his head fully and examines me closely. "Why do you need my blood for it?"
"Aemilia said your blood will make me come back faster," I answer.
He looks back down to the spell, and chews on the inside of his cheek. "Do you think you can find the bomb?" He asks quietly, looking over to me. "You're my sister in law, and even though Aemilia said my blood will bring you back faster if you die, I don't want you getting hurt because of this guy."
I smile at him, put my hand on his bicep, and reply, "It is my duty to make sure there is peace," I look down to the spell, "and if this is the only way to possibly get it, then I'll do it."
R.C. doesn't say anything to me. He simply starts putting the spell together.
Block Valerio from getting to you! Aemilia shouts in my head.
I feel the air begin to stir as soon as Aemilia warns me, so I quickly wave my hand, making the room still again. R.C. stops, looks at me, and when I shake my head at him, he continues to put everything together. He pokes his finger, taps the base of the needle, and then mixes everything before passing me the bowl.
He smiles at me as I take it out of his hands, and says, "Good luck, sister."
I smile at him, and then down the contents. I gag harshly at the disgusting mixture as R.C. takes the bowl out of my hands. When I'm done, I stand up from being bent over from coughing, wipe the gunk from my eyes from coughing so hard, and then take a deep breath. I nod my head at R.C., who smiles at me, and then I focus on Aemilia and Keegan's hotel room bathroom, praying Keegan isn't in there.
I breath a sigh of relief when the room is empty. The relief is short lived as the door flies open, and in it's frame stands a pissed Valerio. Standing behind him is Aemilia with her arms around herself as she looks at the floor.
"Of course you would order her to tell you," I say as I look at Valerio.
"You really think I would let you do this?" He challenges as he comes into the bathroom.
"Someone has to Valerio!" I shout at him. "I am protected. I won't stay dead, and that's even if I do die."
Valerio's jaw locks, and he pierces me with a look that makes me shrink away from him. He takes another step into the bathroom, slams the door shut behind him, and grabs my right elbow. He pulls me against him as he growls, "In all but four futures, you die Lexie." His jaw locks again. "I won't lose you for any amount of time."
We stare at each other, neither of us backing down. Every second I stand here arguing with him over what has already been done is a second wasted. I'm willing to do this, even if I know I'll die. There's a chance, it may be miniscule, but there's a chance I pull this off, and I have to take it.
I drop my head, letting him think he's won, and take a step out of his hold. I wait a second, and then flick my fingers towards him before anything can happen.
"I'm so sorry, Valerio," I whisper as I close our link. I have never closed our link since we mated. Already, it feels weird not being connected to him. I step back up to him, give him a kiss as a tear comes down my cheek, and then teleport just outside the bathroom door.
"You have three minutes until he breaks out of that," Aemilia tells me hurriedly. "If you take the stairs, you'll make it outside before he gets out."
"Thanks," I tell her as I turn for the door leading to the hallway.
I don't shut the door behind me as I sprint down the hallway. I slam into the door at the very end leading to the stairs, and then grab the railings, hurling myself over them to go down. We're on the eighteenth floor, and by the time I make it down ten floors, my breathing is labored.
Don't stop! Aemilia shouts at me.
I swallow, catching my breath, and then go back to vaulting down the stairs. When I get to the lobby floor, I decide to go ahead and go all the way down to the garage. There should be less people there, so a woman running away will go unnoticed better. There's only one person in the garage, but they don't even see me before they get out of their car. I run up the exit ramp, and then turn left on the sidewalk.
I run the three miles to the Mosque-Madrassa, coming to the mausoleum side. I put my hand on the light tan stone, breathing heavily. I'm squinting to see clearly, and the hot, directly over head sun is beating down. Sweat drips down my whole back, and the humid air makes getting air into my lungs difficult. I swallow as I pant and wipe off my forehead.
As I close my eyes, I feel Aemilia pushing an image onto me.
Deep in the interior of the building, there looks to be a deserted office. Sheets cover the two couches on the wall, along with a coffee table. In the office is a desk, also covered in a sheet, and I start walking to it. I reach an arm out to a large mahogany box that isn't covered and is sitting just beside the desk. As soon as my hand touches it, I feel the dark magic inside. It chokes me.
I snap my eyes open, and I hear Aemilia vow, You have forty-five second to get the bomb out.
She doesn't say if I live or not, but knowing I save so many lives is enough for me. My protection spell will work, so it's not like I'm really dying.
I look around the area, and not caring if anyone happens to see me, I curl my fingers to go to the room. I run to the box, force myself not to be effected by touching it, and teleport myself to the least populated place I can think of. The wind at the top of Mount Everest nearly knocks me off my feet, and I gasp for air. I try teleporting out, but because of how far away the mountain is from Cairo, and how long it took me to get here, the bomb goes off before I can. The black magic catapults me from the top of the peak as it explodes, killing me instantly.
Thanks for reading!
~Stefanie