Vampire Lies (Blood and Snow Season Book 1) (20 page)

“Skull monkeys,” Laeddin responded, squeezing my hand.

“I should’ve guessed.”

Laeddin chuckled. “They are the keepers of the land. As long as we don’t do anything they deem disrespectful, they won’t bother us.”

I wanted to ask him if he had a list of items they would consider disrespectful, but I was too nervous.

They didn’t seem to bother Laeddin at all. As we walked along some unseen path, he pointed out the different birds, insects, trees, and flowers indigenous to this part of the world. The most interesting was a black flower that was bigger than my hand. Seven large leaves made up the base and there were several smaller flowers inside, like a large black cotton ball. Its center was red as were the veins within the petals, making the flower appear to be dripping blood. “What is that one called?”

He smiled
, plucked one of the flowers and put it behind my ear. The aroma was deep and luscious. “It’s a frevara au regalia.” He leaned in and sniffed the flower he’d placed in my hair. “One of our gardeners created it for the Queen. In our language, frevara au regalia literally translates to the Queen of Hearts.

“I like that.”
I turned so that our faces were inches apart. His scent filled every inch of me. His eyes flickered from mine to my lips and back again. “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”

Laeddin leaned down, his breath caressing
my lips. “I have.” He cupped my face in his hands.

I shivered, and raised my face, the desire to kiss him
again overwhelming. For the briefest moment I forgot everything except my need for his lips on mine.

Until the screaming began. I gasped, my heart pounding i
n my throat. “What’s that?”

Laeddin glanced
to either side of us, stepping back. “The skull monkeys. Perhaps I shouldn’t have picked the flower?” He grinned mischievously.

I
looked in the trees. They moved like they were alive. “What are they doing?” I moved closer to him. “Should we be worried?”

“If you weren’t a
vampire and I wasn’t a genie, I would say yes.” He winked. “But I think we can take care of ourselves.”

Laeddin grabbed my hand and ran the rest of the way to the waterfalls. When we came to a stop, neither of us was breathing heavily, but his hair was windblown, which meant mine probably was too. I didn’t care though. The scenery was amazing.

“Wow.” There were at least a dozen waterfalls, two of which were incredibly large while the rest were smaller. “This place is magical,” I breathed.

“It is,”
he agreed, pulling me forward.

We continued hand in hand until we arrived at the base of the closest waterfall.  Mist coated my body and wet my hair so that it hung damp in my eyes.

“Take off your shoes.” As Laeddin spoke he removed his. They were loafers and just slid off. Mine were Converse and took a little more time.

When they were off I followed Laeddin to the edge of the pool surrounding the waterfall. The ground under my feet was squishy and mud seeped between my toes.

“Hurry,” he demanded, his eyes alight with joy.

I dipped one toe in and
then another. It was tepid, like lukewarm bath water.

“Feels good, right?” He moved his hands along the surface of the water, splashing me.

“I can’t believe you just did that.”

He splashed me again. “Believe it, Jasmine.”

“You’re in so much trouble.” I dove in, going for his legs, determined to knock him off his feet, and soak him. But as soon as my hands touched his calves he lifted me out of the water.

“Heyyyy,” I whined, until I took a good look at his face. “What?”

He pulled me to him. “Do not say a word. No matter what. She isn’t to know what you are.”

“But—”

“No,” Laeddin barked quietly.

I nodded
, acknowledging that I understood the worry behind his words.

He let go and moved so that he was in front of me. His hand rested on
low on my hip, keeping me firmly in place. I slowly turned around. The “she” Laeddin mentioned was tall. Her skin was slightly tinted green and she was dressed from head to toe in black. In her right hand she held a long staff tipped with a deep purple orb, which gave off an eerie glow. I knew immediately she was Maleficent.

S
eeing her made me realize I wasn’t scared, but suddenly very sad. If Laeddin convinced her to remove the curse, what would happen to him? What would happen to me? I hadn’t even made my second wish yet.

“Laeddin. How long has it been?”
Her voice was at once loud and soft, melodic and grating.

Chapter 28

Laeddin found my hand under the water. He took it in his. “Two thousand years, Maleficent. You look well.” I felt his shoulders shrug. “You look the same.”

Her thin lips curled into a smile. “So do you, youngest son.” As she spoke hundreds of skull monkeys appeared behind her. They sounded like a cheering crowd. Maleficent raised her bony hand and they quieted. “Who is the girl you have with you?”

Laeddin’s hand tightened around mine. I knew he was telling me not to say a word, so I kept quiet.

“This is Jackie. She’s my newest mistress.”

“Ahhhhh, well step out from behind the genie, child. Let me have a look at you.” She waved her hand and Laeddin wa
s forcefully pushed away.

I really didn’t want to look at her
, so I pretended to be a shy human.

“There’s no need to fear me or the skull monkeys. We mean you no harm.” She glided along the ground as though she were floating.

I nodded.

Maleficent squinted shrewdly.

“Why have you come back to Debania, Laeddin?”

“Perhaps you can allow Jackie and
me to climb out of the water and we can go someplace more comfortable.” His hand found mine under the water again.

“There’s no need, Laeddin.” Her voice became more grating. “
Unless I like what you have to say, you’ll pay for coming back here.”

Anger simmered in my heart. The sorceress
had better not harm him.

“We’ve come to ask that you remove the curse. It’s been two thousand years.”
He raised the hand not holding mine out of the water in a pleading manner.

Mal
eficent began laughing, hard and sinister. Just as quickly as she began, she stopped. Snapped her fingers and the skull monkeys rushed us.

Laeddin turned
and murmured to me. “They won’t hurt us. Hold very still and say nothing.”

I nodded just as one of the monkeys lifted me out of the water and
carried me over its head. It seemed incredibly strong. I dropped my head so that I could look behind and see what was happening to Laeddin. A skull monkey had picked him up and was carrying him overhead as well.

Seeing that he was okay, I moved my head
to see where the monkey was taking me. It walked a short distance and then stopped. I wanted to ask what was happening but I held my tongue.

Maleficent
was unexpectedly in front of me. “For your insolence I’ve decided to let you spend the next decade within the Caves of Vipers. If, after ten years, you’ve survived, I’ll consider your request.

My skull monkey lifted me high above its head and I realized it was going to drop me. While Laeddin and I could easily last ten years
down there, my friends didn’t have that luxury. And what would my parents think if I was gone that long? They would be frantic. What would happen if they tried to come after me?

“Wait,” I yelled.

The skull monkey froze. Maleficent stepped closer. “What is it, dear?”

“If you throw us into the cave, I can just wish us free and then Laeddin will just ask again. Isn’t there another way?”

Maleficent was standing directly above me. “You want something different than he does, don’t you?”

I swallowed.

She continued, “Oh, this is wonderful. You want him. The genie has become important to you.”

I lifted my chin defiantly. “So?”
It was true. In my heart of hearts I wanted him to survive. That was the wish I held close. But it was so selfish.

"So, why don't you ask me what you want? Maybe I'll consider it." Her dress swished as she moved.

“Is there a way to take the curse from Laeddin and his brothers without making Laeddin disappear or die?” As the words came out I felt like a silly child.

“Did you hear that
, Laeddin? The child has feelings for you.” She touched my face and flinched. “You pulse with magic.” She gasped. “You are a vampire.” She turned me in the monkey’s hands so that my back faced her. I didn’t look at Laeddin. I couldn’t. His fear reached out and strangled me. I couldn’t see Maleficent’s expression when she lifted my shirt but I heard the sharp intake of breath. “You are an Original.” She placed me on my feet. “This changes everything.”

“It does,” I asked, hopeful.

“Of course.” She snapped her fingers and all of the monkeys vanished. The sounds of birds and insects returned.

Laeddin took hold of my hand. “Knowing what she is changes nothing, Maleficent.”

I snuck a look at him. His face was hard with resolve.

Oh, yeah. He was furious. I swallowed, ignoring the racing of my heart. He obviously had no idea how serious I was about keeping him in my life.

“Why does my being an Original Vampire change things, Maleficent?” 

The slight grin she’d been wearing increased to a full-fledged smile. “There’s something I want and only you can give it to me.”

“Really?” I had no idea what that could be.

“Oh, yes. If you
give me what I want, I will remove the curse from the brothers…”

I was about to interrupt her, but she held up a hand, knowing what I wanted to say. “And I’ll make sure Laeddin returns to your time
exactly as he is now.” She peered down her straight nose. “I am a sorceress of my word.”

My heart lifted
. I couldn’t help it. That would solve everything. My human friends would be safe from the demura and Laeddin would still be with me.

What if he’s tired of living,
I asked myself. That was a possibility. But he had just kissed me and told me he’d be willing to spend eternities with me. His words meant something, didn’t they? I glanced at him. He wouldn’t meet my gaze, instead keeping his focus on some unseen thing.

“Do we have a deal?” Maleficent stood so close I could smell her, a mixture of decay and bitter herbs.

“What do you want?” For some reason I was suddenly nervous.

“I want you to give me your wings in exchange for all that I have promised.”

I gasped. “My wings?”

“Do not do it. We can find another way.” Laeddin faced me
, desperation now clear on his face. He took my chin in his hand and made me look at him. “No.” His eyes softened. “Please. Don’t.”

I thought about what
giving up my wings would truly mean. Never flying again. Never lifting into the air. Never feeling the breeze caress my body, dance through my wings. A week ago I couldn’t get rid of them fast enough. I’d wanted nothing more than a normal life. One without wings, like my mom and dad, my uncles and Cindy.

Not forever though
. A hole formed in the pit of my stomach. If I gave them up, Cam and the other humans would be safe. Was it a fair trade?

“You don’t know what’ll happen to you if they’re gone. Your wings are a part of who you are, Jasmine.” Laeddin
begged with his eyes, asking me to listen.

But I didn’t.
I pulled myself from Laeddin’s grasp and faced Maleficent. “My wings are yours, after I have proof that the demura are gone and the genies are no longer cursed.”

Her lip
curled in what I guessed was supposed to be a grin. “You have a deal.”

Laeddin jumped forward
, grabbing her arm. “She isn’t from our realm, Maleficent. You can’t make a deal with her. It’s against the rules of magic.”

Maleficent cackled
, pushing him away from her as though he were made of paper. “I just did.” She struck the ground once with her staff. A circular light shot from the ground and radiated across the land.

Laeddin fell to his knees. I watched, waiting for the tattoos around his wrists to vanish.

“Watch,” Maleficent commanded. The scenery in front of me swirled like wet watercolors. And before my eyes was a new landscape. I watched a demura about to enter a body, but it suddenly stopped, glanced in my direction and then vanished. “That’s one.”

From behind I heard Laeddin gasp. One of his
brothers had just been killed before his eyes. I wanted to go to him, hug him and tell him I was sorry. I wanted to take away his pain, but I couldn’t. Not while Maleficent was there. Not while I needed to make sure all the demura were gone.