Salem and I stood several feet away from the burning building, watching the flames grow higher. Nicolai made it out safely, completely unscathed aside from the emotional damage of killing his own brother. The rest of the Vanatori joined us, sharing the same solemn expression.
“This is awful,” I said softly, wiping away a sudden tear.
“I’m sure they told you to say that,” Remus fumed, pushing me back.
Salem coiled his arms around the pudgy hunter and held him firmly. “What in the bloody hell are you talking about?!”
All eyes were on us now.
“You are just as blind as the rest of them!” he shouted. “Is it not clear to you that your precious bride here is a traitor?!”
Nicolai laughed sharply. “Have you lost your mind, Remus?”
“No! She’s the one that led the hunters to us! Can’t you see it? Malik is a manipulator…she has been under his control, using our information against us!”
I shook my head in disbelief. “You have this all wrong and backwards—I have been helping you! After everything I have done, risking my own life to get closer to Malik in order to provide information to you…you dare to accuse me of betraying you? Besides…Malik’s manipulation has its limits in distance. He can’t control me here.”
Remus tugged away from Salem and glared up at me. “For all we know, you are leading us straight into a trap. You all heard what Traian said, about Malik believing she is working alongside him.”
“Don’t be daft, Remus.” Mikael sighed and approached his fellow hunter. “Alexis has been nothing but helpful to us, clearly you must realize this.”
“No. She’s yet to do anything helpful since she showed up! We’ve been attacked twice; near half our group lies dead…she let a vampire she found out on her own go free. Can’t you see she is their ally, not ours? Just look at her friends for the Lord’s sake! Are not two of them vampires themselves?”
“Alex has had nothing to do with the attacks. It was all Traian and Malik’s doing!”
“Either way,” Remus said and lowered his head. “Until she is out of the picture, you can consider yourself short another hunter.”
“Remus, wait!” I called and reached out to touch his shoulder as he turned to walk away.
Mikael jumped between us before Remus had the opportunity to make a swing at me. We all watched the hunter walk off into the distance, not once looking back at us. Excluding the unofficial group members, we were down from the seven original hunters to a mere two. These numbers gave me an uneasy feeling about the upcoming attack on Malik.
“Come, we must find a new location,” Mikael stated. “There is an old abandoned warehouse that I worked in prior to Delilah’s death, we can establish base there.”
“Wait, I have a question.” I said bluntly.
“Yes?” Mikael answered.
“Why did you all decide to kill him? I mean…if it didn’t matter if he told Malik about me or not…and one of your goals was to free him…why did you decide to kill him?”
I wasn’t surprised that Nicolai was the one to answer. “I wanted to save my brother. I know my brother, and that man was not him. As far as I am concerned my brother died long ago.”
“But what if he could have been saved?!"
“He killed Octavian, Alex. He admitted it. Hell, he could have been the one that killed Camellia for all we know. I could not let whoever that monster inhabiting my brother’s body was live after such a thing.”
“I…I understand.”
And with that everyone began systematically doing their part of the move. Nicolai, Ezra, Hannah and Salem all helped stuff what they could of the Vanatori’s equipment into the back of Mikael’s truck while I situated myself in the IQ. Watching their bodies move from one area to the other, I found myself dwelling on all the casualties I had come to experience since discovering who and what I truly was. Whatever became of my semi-peaceful lifestyle of attending high school, seeing my friends on a day-to-day basis, and only having to worry about getting my homework done on time? I had witnessed the death of so many people that I loved and even people that I hardly knew…and now I was bringing an innocent child into this world, knowing all the evil and cruelty it held.
The warehouse was, by all means, unimpressive. It was dark, cluttered and smelled strongly of mildew. Mikael must have been fairly familiar with the layout judging by the fact that he quickly discovered the location of a light switch. Although the lighting was dim, it was enough to give us an idea of where we were without us bumping into something. There were boxes all over the place, and I was almost positive there had to be a rodent infestation—what rat wouldn’t find this place to be the perfect home?
“What was this place formerly used for?” Salem asked as he shuffled around a stack of boxes.
“It was an antiques shop,” Mikael answered, looking somewhat withdrawn. “You can hardly tell by looking at it now, however. Delilah’s father owned the building, which had been in his family for years. Once he passed away, business began dwindling and soon after the place shut down. This is what has become of it—there’s no telling what’s in all these boxes. I wouldn’t be surprised if half have already been raided and stolen.”
Cautiously, I lifted the flaps on one of the boxes. Unsurprisingly, it was empty save for a few shards of glass and some packing peanuts. It was unbelievable to think that once, not too long ago, this place had been a store. Now, it was nothing more than a huge mess.
Nicolai rummaged through some of the boxes but also came out empty-handed. He did, however, discover where the cashier’s counter had been. The wood was stained and rotting from water damage—no doubt caused by rain from the various holes in the roof. There was a glass casing for jewelry but it, too, was empty.
“So much for making a fortune off of some lost, priceless antique.” Nic laughed and sat on top of the counter.
Mikael shook his head and pried Nicolai off. “I wouldn’t advise sitting on there unless you want an ass full of glass.” We all laughed, which felt good after the blur of events which had just taken place. “Let’s start fixing this place up a little, and then we can carry in some equipment.”
I lifted what boxes I could, feeling somewhat useless with the limited weight I could carry. No one complained, but that didn’t make me feel any better.
Soon, there were enough boxes out of the way that I could see the floorboards and walk through the building without bumping into something. The men got to work bringing in the equipment—protective gear, weapons, and even some of the mats had been salvaged before Nicolai burned down the former hideout. Hannah accompanied me in finishing up with the boxes until we were both satisfied with the roominess. We layered the floorboards with some old sheets and blankets that were discovered in a few boxes—these would become our temporary makeshift beds.
My phone suddenly went off, and I told everyone to be quiet when I saw that it was Cassius calling.
“Hello?” I spoke as steadily as I could considering I was rattled with nerves.
“Alexis, darling! I have been worried sick! What became of you and your sister?”
“I’m sorry…really. She had an emergency, a personal one. I can’t really talk about it, but we’re both fine. I’ll be back to work in the morning. I promise. I really hope I didn’t mess anything up for Malik and that his party was successful even with my absence.”
Cassius chuckled into the receiver. “Malik was rather furious at first, but soon said he understood why you needed to leave. He has already forgiven you, I believe.”
Gulping, I responded with strained laughter. “I hope so…look, I’m going to get some sleep, and I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”
“Stay well, and sweet dreams.”
I hung up the phone, relayed the message. No one else seemed to think the last bit was cryptic at all, but I was unconvinced. I had a bad feeling that Malik knew all along where I had been. I hoped he still at least believed I was his spy, not theirs.
After the brief conversation about the phone call, everyone resumed their previous task of preparing the new headquarters. Before long, everything that could be done with what we had was completed, and I left into a small restroom. It was obvious it had not been used in ages, and I wondered just how long the store had been shut down for, but it still functioned enough for a quick usage. Once my business was done I proceeded to change into a more comfortable pair of clothing to prepare for bed. Despite our efforts, the makeshift sleeping area was nearly unbearable and the night was filled with tossing, turning, grunts of discomfort, and the occasional verbal complaint.
The following morning I found myself alone in the warehouse, but I was comforted by the voices I heard outside. Slowly rising to my feet, I made my way outdoors to discover Mikael and Nicolai planting markers into the dirt as symbols of their lost friends. Salem, Ezra and Hannah were absent from the scene.
“Where are the others?” I asked groggily.
“They are training for the attack,” Mikael answered as he situated the last stone into the soil. “Salem wants to ensure that he is fully capable of assisting during the battle.”
I nodded and knelt down beside Nicolai. “This one is for Traian, isn’t it?” I asked, pointing to the fifth marker, knowing we had only lost four hunters, including Octavian.
“I feel that although he made some mistakes along the way, he deserves to be remembered for the good that once resided within him.”
Smiling, I pulled Nicolai close into an unexpected hug on both our behalves. “I’m sorry you lost him, but I do agree that he deserves to be among the rest of them. I wish I could have known him before he became undead.”
“He was a bit of a rascal, but I think you’d have gotten along.” He smiled at me. “Do you have any siblings, aside from Hannah?”
“No,” I replied thoughtfully and shrugged. “I never really considered what it might be like to have a sibling. My best friend was the closest I ever came to having a sister.”
“Was?”
“She passed away,” my voice came out in a whisper, and I blinked away a tear. “A drunk driver caused it…there’s still a part of me that wishes I could tear that boy apart and make him regret what he did.”
Mikael’s hand was suddenly on my shoulder, and I turned to look up at him. “We all seek vengeance in some form or another, but you must also reflect on what is at stake. This boy made a mistake, and in the end, you lost someone you loved. Would you be willing to do the same to his family by hurting him?”
“Of course not…”
“Then it is best that you keep those wishes solely to yourself, and never act upon them.”
“This coming from the leader of a group of hunters all seeking revenge on a Vampire Lord,” Nic scoffed.
“Aye, but Malik has nothing and no one to miss him when he is gone. Every one of his damned followers would see him dead and take his place if they could.”
For the first time in a long time, I kept my thoughts to myself—my opinion wouldn’t change their minds, anyway. Malik may not have someone out there that would miss him or be hurt to know he was dead, but what of the younger, more recent vampires that we would have to kill to get to him? They had families, friends, lovers…all-in-all, I admitted to myself that Mikael was right. These vampires would not be missed as what they were now, and there was little hope to save most of them. Besides, those that lost them had already grieved their absences and convinced themselves that they were gone and would never know they still existed…and if they did find out, what chances were there that they would accept them for what they had become?
Once Salem and the others returned from training, he summoned a meal in honor of our lost members—it was difficult to enjoy the delicious roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, corn and rolls under the grim circumstances but we all tried our best. Mikael insisted that despite our losses, we had to focus on the present as well as the future—we all needed our strength in preparation for what was coming. Nicolai was quiet and reserved throughout the meal, no doubt dwelling on Traian’s misfortune. What Octavian did to his brother was cruel and unlike the man I briefly knew, but it wasn’t surprising. People would do extreme things for the one they loved, even at the expense of others. I wondered momentarily what Salem would have done in the same situation if it was between Jason, himself and me. Knowing him, he would have lived in misery alone and let us be.
It took a lot of strength to hold back the pain I felt at the absence of Jason and Mitchell. The only thing that comforted me was that as soon as Malik was gone, I’d be on a plane to Willowshire to be reunited with my friends, and all of this would at last be behind us. At least I hoped that Jason would still accept me as a friend…despite what had happened.