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Sierra
The Vogel Castle, Goldene Stadt
Stella hardly had any personal possessions, so her packing took under ten minutes while Jemma continued to assess what she might need after joining a rebel group. They aren’t even rebels. This is ridiculous.
Stella shot a glare my way as Jemma sighed, indicating my curse had struck again. When would I learn to keep my thoughts in my head?
“They were rebels when Snow was in charge, and it is not ridiculous. Think of it as more of a resistance effort against the Darkness now,” Jemma said. “Did you think the villagers would just sit around waiting to be rescued?”
“I didn’t mean it like that, Jemma.” I traced the floral pattern on her bed covers while she shoved comfortable clothing into a suitcase. Stella leaned against the bedpost, occasionally making comments that certain clothing would be a disaster in the field. I liked Stella, and I wanted to be as close to her as a sister could be, but Cecily was much better at making friends than I had ever been. That coupled with the fact that Cecily and Jack had been rescued by Stella, it was no wonder Stella gravitated toward them rather than me.
“I know you didn’t mean it in a negative way, Sierra, but could you please try to understand why I need to do this?” Jemma pursed her lips as she stared at me, her hand paused over her bag with a shirt dangling from it.
“Have you even told Ross?” I asked, wondering what her brand-new boyfriend thought of her running off to join a resistance group with a Huntress—not just a Huntress, but a butt-kicking scary one.
“He knows, and he supports me. Once they find a way to help Alorna and the others that are frozen under Kai’s spell, he’ll join me there. I already spoke to Brant about it, and he said it would be fine.”
“So, is everyone just leaving?” I asked. I knew it was a low blow, but with Cecily obsessing over Felix, who was constantly at his sister’s side, Jemma leaving, and the thought that I might not get to watch my son grow up, I was feeling lost and alone.
Jemma sat beside me on the bed. “I’m not leaving, Sierra. This is no different than a trip to the Salien or Bastian castles, or even one of our trips to America. We need to end this, and preferably before...” She faded as if she had finally realized what truly bothered me. Stella shifted her weight and pushed off the bedpost to sit across from us.
“You’re worried about the merge, and what will happen if you don’t succeed?” Stella asked in her usual blunt tone.
I tried not to bristle when she used that tone. She had saved my sister and the others, and she could have easily killed Calla to ensure the Darkness could not absorb her power before they even left France, but she didn’t. Even so, there was that one thing that I couldn’t let go of no matter how hard I tried, and I had tried considering she was practically my sister—she would kill Calla and me and the other members of the Seven Sworn if necessary, and I wasn’t so sure it would bother her all that much.
Stella narrowed her eyes. I’d done it again.
“Someone really should spell you into keeping your mouth shut permanently,” she said, but it was with a grin. “Sierra, I will not take pleasure in killing you, not even a little. I promise I will wait until there is literally no other option to prevent the Darkness from taking you. I don’t want Hans to grow up without you. I wouldn’t gleefully kill someone that I... that I care about.” Stella’s cheeks flushed, and her gaze fell to the floral bed covers.
I felt my jaw fall open a little. It had only been a few days since we met, but she had been kinder to my family and me than she had been to the others, especially Cecily, as she wallowed in misery. It wasn’t that I blamed my sister. I would do the same, but that didn’t change the fact that I needed Cecily by my side for the hard parts. I needed my sister, but she needed to be elsewhere doing other things for other people who needed her as much as I did.
“You... care about me?” I asked, pointing to myself.
Jemma rolled her eyes but said nothing as Stella nodded slowly. “Maybe it’s because we share Brant, or maybe it’s because... I really don’t know, but I do care about you and don’t want anything to happen to you. Going with Brant is the best way I can think of to prepare to fight this thing. We need more people on our side, Sierra.”
I knew it was a death wish, but I couldn’t stop myself. I lunged across the bed and took Stella into a tight embrace. She stiffened like a plank of wood but didn’t shove me away, which I took as a vast improvement over her beating the snot out of me. Just as I was releasing her, the door burst open, and four rambunctious men filed in, covered in mud and grass.
“What on earth happened to you? Ross, what are you doing here?” Jemma asked.
“You didn’t think I wouldn’t at least come to see you off?” Ross leaned over and kissed Jemma’s cheek, making me blush. Who would have thought after so many years, the boys who tried to keep Cecily and me safe would show up in the middle of a giant war to help us? I was happy my cousin found love with a man who was like a brother to me.
“You’re sweet,” Jemma said and closed her suitcase. “But that doesn’t tell me why you’re covered in mud and grass.”
“That would be because—oomph!” Ari had the wind knocked out of him when Hans tackled him from behind.
“We were playing with some of the kids before we came in. They’re ruthless little snots,” Jack said.
Ely leaned against the wall and smiled at me. It had been almost a year, and I still couldn’t get used to the idea that we were married—not just married but with my father’s approval and support.
“Well, that does it then. I’m all set if you are,” Jemma said and looked at Stella, who was still a little weirded out by my impromptu hug.
Ari stood beside Stella and stared down at her. Despite everything, it was amazing how so many people were able to find love and happiness in the middle of a battle against the darkest evil the world had ever seen. He looked up at me and smiled, reminding me his eye had been seriously damaged by an accidental shift. It was getting better by the day, but the mother instinct in me kicked in anyway.
“Ari, don’t forget to keep up with your eye treatments. My mother made enough salve to keep you in stock for a week or so,” I said.
“Is that your way of saying we need to come to visit in a week?” Stella asked with a smile.
Everyone else was caught up in conversation, so I took a moment to ask Stella a favor—one I knew she would try hard to keep. “Can you please... just look out for Jemma? I’m not sure what I would do if—”
Stella grabbed my hand to stop it from flailing around. “Yes, I swear. I’ll keep her safe, Sierra. No matter what happens, I will always fight to keep her, and you, safe.” Her long brown hair was tied into a braid that was tucked neatly underneath, a style that exhibited her strong cheekbones and beautifully arched eyebrows. But assessing her beauty was not what I was meant to be doing at that moment. It was merely my mind’s way of distracting me from what haunted me.
“I mostly worry about...” My voice faded as my gaze fell on my son, playing with his father and uncle.
“To the death, Sierra. I will protect him and fight for him until my last breath.” Stella’s words were solid and unshakeable. I knew, no matter what, Hans would be safe. He would live even if I didn’t, and that thought alone made an odd strength grow inside of me.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“Well then, we better get going,” Stella said, leaving me sitting on the bed with tears in my eyes. She threw a smile over her shoulder and took Ari’s hand, but I swore her own eyes were glistening with unshed tears. Ari ruffled Hans’ hair as the two left to gather their own things for the relocation.
Ross picked up Jemma’s bag and waited while she hugged me goodbye. “I’m going to go say bye to Cecily, but I promise we will be back in a week or so to visit, okay?”
I nodded and let my sorrow fade just a little, knowing she wasn’t walking out of my life forever. Once she and Ross left, Ely picked Hans over his shoulders and sighed.
“We’re headed to his room to change and get ready for dinner,” Ely said, and side-eyed Jack, which was code for talk to your brother about whatever is bothering him, then left the room.
Ely was right. Something was bothering Jack, but it was more than likely the same thing that was bothering me—we had a brother, and our parents had lied to us about it in both our first lives and in our present ones. I stood from Jemma’s bed and began pacing, just like Cecily always did when she was stressed.
“You too?” Jack asked, following me.
“Yeah. Why didn’t they just tell us? I sort of understand why they wouldn’t in the first life, but this one? With all these other people coming back from the dead or returning from the future, it doesn’t make sense to keep it a secret.”
“I keep telling myself it was because they just couldn’t believe their son might return, that maybe the thought of it was just too painful. I talked to Hayden, and she said the same thing, but I think it’s maybe easier for her.”
I paused my pacing. “How so?”
Jack bumped into me and sighed. “I don’t know. She takes everything so much better than I do, even this thing with Annabell. I hate that everyone thinks she betrayed us, Sierra. She would never do that, and she would never hurt any of us on purpose. Something must have gone wrong with her magic, or maybe it was Cole. I don’t know, but I know she didn’t mean to hurt Alorna and the others.”
I hugged my brother, desperate for him to know that I loved him no matter what. “I know there must be a reason she left, Jack, and for what happened when she did. I don’t know what it is, but I know that little girl loved you with her whole heart.”
“Not so little anymore.” His puffs of breath tickled my forehead, but he was right. Annabell had aged twelve or so years right in front of our faces.
“How did she do that? What did she do?” I asked.
He shrugged and released me. “I have no idea. If she really is Elfriede, then her power must be unimaginable. I can only hope she is devising a plan to end the Darkness rather than...”
“Jack?” I pushed away from him and stared into his face. “You can’t possibly think otherwise. You’re the one who just told me you were sure it was a mistake or that something had gone wrong. Of course, there is no way Annabell meant to do this.”
He shook his head and ran his hands over his face. “Of course. You’re right. She wouldn’t hurt anyone on purpose, but we’ve all seen what that evil can do to even the kindest of us.”
“What happened with Hayden was different, Jack. It was—”
“Was it? The Darkness knew how strong she was and tapped into that. Imagine if it somehow gets its claws into Annabell again.”
A shiver coursed down my spine.
“Enough of this,” Jack said. “We don’t know how much time we have, so let’s spend it making happy memories with our families rather than contemplating things that might not even happen. Besides, I promised Hayden I’d call with an update today.”
“When will she return from Schattenland?” I asked, hoping it would be soon. Jack was never quite right when Hayden was away.
“She should return soon. She just... needed her brother and sister. I understand that. Now go on and tell your husband I’m fine. He keeps asking me if I’m okay, and it’s driving me crazy.”
I chuckled and left Jack alone to sort through his muddled thoughts. I knew once he spoke to Hayden, his mood would improve, but all I wanted at that moment was to hug my son and spend some time with him before the next disaster inevitably hit. Any time we had even a moment of peace, disaster struck. Before long, we would move Hans to the underground bunker with the other kids at the Salien castle, but I couldn’t bear thinking about that just yet.
Inside Hans’ room, Ely was sitting by the fire. Hans was spread across his bed, fast asleep. I chuckled. “You wore him out already?”
Ely glanced up and placed his book on the table. “It’s been an eventful day with the return of a brother you never even knew you had. How is Jack?”
I sat on my husband’s lap and snuggled in. “He’s okay, just lost without Hayden here.”
“Mmm... I can understand,” Ely said as he rested his chin on my head. “How do you feel about everything?”
I thought for a moment over everything that had happened already that day. It wasn’t the first time I discovered I had a brother, but it didn’t change the severity of the situation. Not only did I have another brother, but he was the adoptive brother of an honest-to-goodness monster hunter. Add to that the fact Marcus had killed him and sent him back to the forest... There was just too much to think about—too much to feel.
“I think the only thing we can do is let the feelings settle a little before we try to figure them all out. But Ely?”
“Hmm?”
“No matter what, I need to know... I mean, if I do...”
“Shh,” Ely said and held me tighter. “You won’t, but hypothetically, I can promise you he will grow up in a family full of love. I can take him back to America, and we can live in—”
A knock at the door interrupted Ely.
“Come in,” I said.
Cecily and Felix entered, but it wasn’t a social call. I could tell by the look on Cecily’s face and by the very fact that Felix wasn’t in Scarlett’s room trying to help her settle her addled mind. I stood, followed by Ely, whose mood changed in an instant.
“What? What is it?” Ely asked.
“Marcus called. He... They know what it is,” Cecily said. “They figured out who Cole is and what he is.”
“What?” I asked, my stomach bottoming out.
“They know what the Darkness is. We need to talk.” Felix pushed the door open all the way, allowing Hans’ nanny to enter. She smiled and squeezed my arm, then went to pick up Hans’ toys and books.
Ely took my hand and let his eyes connect with mine. It was the moment I had dreaded since I discovered I was one of the Seven Sworn. It seemed I was about to discover the true identity of the monster that would steal my life.