Vampire Girl 2: Midnight Star (6 page)

Asher sits on the other side of the table and drinks deeply from his own goblet. "You're right. He will come for you. And while he can't reach you now, he won't give up. But you nearly died last night trying to escape. Are you willing to risk your own life again?"

"If I must," I say without hesitation. "I'm tired of being treated as a pawn in other people's games. As a dog expected to submit to its master."

He flinches when I throw his father's words back at him. "What if I can arrange for you to leave here and see Fen again? Without death-defying escape attempts or civil war?"

I tilt my head and pop a grape into my mouth. "I'm listening."

"Come with me to talk with my father, Madrid, and Durk. I have a plan, but you'll have to trust me."

***

"You propose what?" King Lucian's face contorts in displeasure. "This is folly!"

I bite my tongue and wait. Asher said I needed to trust him. I don't, not really. But I have to believe he can sell this plan to Lucian. It's my only shot. Still, my back is rigid as I rest my arms on the sturdy wood table we all sit around.

"She will live in my realm," Asher explains, "but she will return here regularly for training."

Lucian scowls. "And what if she doesn't return?"

"And what if she stays here but does nothing?" Asher leans forward. "Father, we need her cooperation, and as we've seen, we'll not get it through threats. We need a compromise." He sips from his goblet. "Arianna will continue spending time with the seven princes, thus fulfilling her contract, the one
you
insisted on. In turn, she will do what is needed here…" he glances at me, "without complaint."

I grin humorlessly.

Durk grunts. "The kid's got a point."

Asher doesn't look as amused at the title, but he wisely says nothing. I fight a smile at anyone calling an immortal demon 'kid.'

Lucian leans back in his golden chair, sighing. "This will abate suspicion from your brothers…"

"And," Asher adds, "It will keep the Prince of War from bringing his sword down upon the Fae while we try to make peace."

Lucian nods once, sharply. "Very well. But we will need a blood oath."

I scowl. "I've already signed one of your contracts, demon."

Lucian chuckles. "Then you will have no problem signing another." So, that's where Asher gets his wit.

The Prince of Pride glances between me and his father, his eyes nervous. He touches my hand with his, then faces Lucian. "She will sign… under certain conditions. The contract will end when she becomes Queen, or at any point if you or I choose to dissolve it."

Lucian glares at us. "I may dissolve it. No one else."

"No." Asher squeezes my hand tighter. "Either of us. Me or you."

The King clenches his jaw, silent.

"Father, you are in hiding, presumed dead. It is smart leadership to delegate someone in your place should you be indisposed to make important decisions." Asher waits, his expression plain.

I can't read him. I can't read his father. They are both cold.

Madrid leans over the table and stares at Lucian. "We sided with you because you promised peace, but right now the Prince of War draws near because of the princess. So far, you're not proving to be as useful as you promised."

Lucian sighs. "Fine. Draft the contract."

Asher smirks. "Already done." He pulls out a scroll, similar to the one I signed to save my mother, from somewhere in his cloak. I'm not sure if I'm happy or upset he already had one prepared.

Asher makes a few changes.

The king takes it and reads through the archaic writing.

I grit my teeth. We'll see whether I'll sign or not, but I don't want to argue with Asher here, in front of the king. I don't want to give Lucian the satisfaction.

"Very well," the king says, handing the parchment back to Asher. "But she must also be presented before she returns to Inferna."

I bristle at the idea of being 'presented.' It didn't go so well for me last time.

"Only if she is chosen," Madrid says.

"Chosen?" I look around, waiting for someone to explain, but no one says anything until Asher winks at me.

"You'll find out tonight."

The king nods. "If you are all in agreement, then I will concede to these conditions. But she must bind herself now."

Madrid and Durk nod.

Asher hands me the contract and the same pen I bled into before. I take my time to read each word, making sure I understand what is being asked of me. I can tell the king is impatient and wants me to sign immediately, but he can wait.

I note the most important parts: I won't be allowed to discuss my, Asher's, or Lucian's involvement with the Fae. I won't be allowed to share my knowledge of the king and his true fate.

"I want my sword back," I say. "Write that in."

Asher is about to speak, but Lucian cuts him off. "Fine. I care not."

I sigh and continue to read. "I want something in here that guarantees the terms of my original contract will still be honored, and that nothing you ask of me now will jeopardize my mother's health or well-being. I will still be allowed to return home. She will still be safe and cared for no matter what."

Lucian growls. "One contract cannot negate another. The first is still in effect. Even if my idiot son gave too much leeway in rewriting it."

Asher's face doesn't even flinch at his father's vitriol.

I smile and hand the contract to Lucian. "Then it shouldn't be a problem to include that here. If you want my cooperation?"

Lucian doesn't look like he wants my cooperation. He looks as if he'd rather drain me of my blood and be done with it. But Asher takes the contract from him and makes the changes, then hands it back to me.

"What happens if I break this?" I ask.

"You can't," says Asher. "If you try, you will find you are unable."

"Unable how?"

Asher squints. "Let's just say there's pain involved. Lots of pain. But, that won't be an issue, will it, my dear?"

I cut my arm and fill the pen with my blood, and for the second time in a month, I make a deal with the devil.

***

Spero is returned to me, and I place her—yes, she's a she—against my bed. Three young Fae girls arrive to bathe and dress me. There's a large tub in the corner of my room, and it is filled with hot water, oils and flower petals. I step into it and luxuriate in the heat and heady scent, closing my eyes as I try to forget for a moment where I am and what I must do.

I think of Fen instead. Sometimes I feel him with me, but when I turn to look he's gone. I know it's just my imagination playing tricks, but it feels so real that my heart drops each time I lose him again.

I wish he and Baron were here right now. I'm nervous about the "choosing" and "presenting." I tried to pry more answers out of Asher, but he disappeared with the king and said I needed to get ready for tonight. Apparently there will be a crowd to witness whether or not I'm chosen.

After my bath, one girl uses a pumice stone to buff the soles of my feet while the other two work on my nails. "You have a lot of calluses," the youngest looking girl with blue hair says.

"Sword fighting. And blacksmithing. Neither are easy on the hands," I explain.

Her eyes grow wide, and she looks like she wants to ask more questions, but the taller girl with red hair glares at her, and she stays silent.

I wish they would ask more questions, or talk. This silence is unnerving. I try to elicit some communication from them, but they answer all questions in curt monosyllabic answers until I give up. I don't want to get them in trouble, and maybe they've been forbidden from speaking to me. I don't know.

My hair is brushed out until it dries and is braided into dozens of small braids that are then weaved together to form an elaborate design around my head, almost like a crown. Silver ribbon has been woven into the braids, and tiny crystals are added once the design is complete. It's striking against my black hair.

Rose oil is rubbed into my body before the girls dress me in a silver sleeveless gown dotted with tiny sapphires at the hem and neckline.

My make-up is classic: red lips and winged eyes. The younger girl adds final touches of silver dust to my face, chest and arms that makes me glitter under the right light. The tall girl slips my Blue Goldstone ring onto my finger and steps back.

"You are ready," all three say together, then they bow and leave the room.

That wasn't weird at all.

I sit on the edge of my bed, waiting. Presumably someone will be coming for me.

It feels like hours pass before the sun begins to set and there's a knock at my door. I stand, impatient for something to happen.

Asher smiles when I open the door, and appraises my appearance. "You look astonishing."

"I've looked astonishing for about three hours." I frown at him, fist on hip. "Why did I have to be ready so early? Do you know how hard it is to not mess up a dress or make-up this fancy? The struggle is real, dude."

"Indeed," he says dryly. "Are you ready to go?"

I nod and take his arm when it's offered.

He's dressed in a white suit and cape with blue and silver accents, and while he looks astonishingly handsome, I don't tell him so. The Prince of Pride doesn't need encouragement.

We walk across a bridge that links my bedroom to a huge tree, our outfits billowing in the strong wind. Within the center of the trunk is a winding staircase we take to reach land. Madrid, Durk and the king all wait below, everyone dressed in shades of white, silver and blue. Sky and air colors to represent their element.

A retinue of guards dressed in white formal uniforms escort our group across the floating island, between silver trees and homes carved into stone. Snow crunches beneath our feet. A bird sings from atop a tower. As we travel, Fae on the street begin to follow us, whispering amongst each other. Some even leave their homes to join the crowd. They come in groups of two or three, then five, then ten, until I can no longer count how many.

It's clear they were expecting this. They are all dressed formally in Air colors. Many carry white and silver feathers like bouquets. The path we walk sparkles in the moonlight, lit with candles and glowing orbs of light that float around us.

We finally arrive at our destination: a grand tree so tall it blocks the sky and so wide you could drive a car through it. It reminds me of the California Redwoods, except this tree is silver, the bark, the branches, even the leaves. Asher brings me to stand before the trunk, where a hollow is covered in tangled roots. In the middle is a handprint spiked with silver.

"It is time for the choosing," Madrid says in a loud voice so everyone can hear. "Blood alone will determine if Arianna is truly heir to Avakiri."

The crowds raise their hands and a breeze blows through the night, catching my dress and swirling it around my ankles.

Asher takes my hand and places it on the handprint. "You must give it blood," he says.

He steps back, and I look at my hand, pale against the silver of the tree, my ring the only splash of color with its deep blue stone full of sparkles.

The spikes are deep, and the pain flashes up my hand, wrist and arm as blood trickles into the tree.

Nothing happens.

A hush falls over the people watching. Waiting. The wind around me dies down.

Beads of sweat form on my forehead and under my arms. My skin feels hot, sticky. My body aches. I want to pull my hand off the spikes, but instead I push further into the pain, imbedding the silver thorns more deeply.

Everything is quiet. Too quiet. As if the whole world has disappeared and I am the only one left.

My hand burns. I try to pull it toward me, but it's stuck. My ring tightens. The stone grows larger. It's so heavy it tears at my finger.

Then my vision goes black, and I can no longer feel anything but weightlessness.

I float in a sea of stars.

There is no gravity. My dress drifts around me as if in water. I can't see anything but the bright points of light around me. I hear nothing. No.

There is something. The swishing of air. Movement.

The darkness takes shape. Small at first, then larger. It grows legs, claws, a tail, spikes. Wings sprout from its back, spanning into eternity. The darkness turns to me, its face reptilian in feature, but with a consciousness much deeper than any lizard. It stares at me with eyes like stars.

"You are mine," a voice whispers in the darkness. "You are the chosen." It is loud, all consuming, layered like a chorus. It is soft and hard at the same time. It is gentle and furious. Not female or male. Something else. It surrounds me. It embraces and engulfs me.

"You are the Midnight Star."

My head fills with visions of life and death, visions that flash like fire before my eyes, and my ears feel pulled, stretched, torn from my head. I spin in space, and white light explodes from within me.

Fire and ice fill my veins, remaking me into something new, unlocking ancient secrets stored deep inside my cells.

"Go now, child of midnight," the voice says inside me. "Awaken the wilds."

***

The ground is hard beneath me, and my body buzzes with a new energy. Heady. Unsettling. A hand reaches for me, helping me to my feet. Asher. He stares at me, his eyes wide, his jaw slack.

"What's wrong?" I ask. "Did I fail?"

My head throbs, and I can't take in all the people staring at me just yet, so I focus on Asher's eyes, on his hands holding mine.

"You most certainly did not fail, Princess," he says with awe in his voice. "On the contrary, I fear you've succeeded."

Madrid steps toward me, a secret smile on her lips. She nods her head and one of the guards brings over a tall silver mirror, placing it before me. "See for yourself," she says.

It takes a moment to realize I'm looking at myself. Before me stands a Fae with black hair tinged with blue sparkles. Her ears are pointed. I am no longer Arianna, the human girl from earth. I'm something else entirely.

I study the rest of my reflection. A black dragon armband coils around my right arm. It's warm on my skin, and when I reach out to touch it, the band moves, uncoiling its long tail and raising its head.