Page 9 of Forsworn By The Vampire
I frowned. "Do we what?"
"Belong. In this world."
Her eyes, as blue as the sky above where Cruthú flew in circles above us, were full of uncertainty as she looked to me for the truth. There was no hesitation in my answer.
"Yes, sister. We do."
She stared at me for a long moment, studying my expression, searching for lies in my eyes, but she found nothing. "Okay," she said again. "Do you know where he is?"
"No." I paused, wondering how much I should tell her. But if I wanted her to put her trust in me as her brother, I would have to do the same. "That's not entirely true. I know where he is, I just can't find it."
"I don't understand."
"He's moved the mountain."
Ryan stared at me like perhaps she'd been too hasty in agreeing to come outside alone in the full light of day with someone who was clearly out of their mind.
"Let me explain before you judge me."
"I'm not judging you."
I cocked my head to the side and raised an eyebrow.
"I just wonder how sane you are," she admitted. "Like maybe you're talking to the invisible voices for entirely too long."
"Well, sister mine, if that's the reason I'm insane, then surely you're not very far behind."
"Hmph." But she smiled. "Okay, tell me how anyone could possibly move a mountain."
"With magic, of course. I don't know that he actually moved it, I just can't find it. And neither can anyone else. Not for at least thirty years."
"Then how will we find him?"
"We don't need to find him, we just need to find the book." I gave her a meaningful look.
"And that's why you need me to gain control of these fucking things that are constantly screaming in my ears if I let them."
"Exactly," I said, leaning my head back to search for Cruthú in the trees. Spotting her at the top of the tallest pine, keeping a close eye on anyone who should come anywhere near us, I told Ryan, "I'm absolutely positive my father has hidden it somewhere. He's too intelligent to keep it with him. It's too risky, because he knows damn well I'll destroy it when I find him. And I WILL find him. Eventually."
Her hand, the one closest to me, lifted from her lap and hovered in the air a moment. My breath froze in my lungs, but I forced myself to breathe. Not to make any sudden movements, other than to turn my own hand until it was palm up on my leg. And then I watched as she slowly and carefully placed her hand in mine. My heart swelled almost painfully, and I wrapped my fingers around hers.
She stared down at our hands for a few seconds. "I'll help you," she finally said.
"Thank you, sister."
We sat in silence, our hands clutched together on my thigh, as the sun fell below the horizon and the temperature dropped. I looked up, hoping to see stars, but the lights from this beautiful city obscured my view. When full darkness fell, I tugged her up and off the bench, and I held her hand all the way home, Cruthú swooping down to land on my shoulder as we approached the apartment building where the vampires--and now us--lived, and for the first time, I dreaded this war that was fast approaching. But we had company coming from New Orleans, and we had to tell them what we knew and prepare for what was to come.
It was time.
Chapter 7
Angel
I'd been at the cemetery for three days when he found me.
I don't know how he did it. The tomb I was hiding in belonged to my family. It was sealed and warded. No one could get in there unless they knew how. Surrounded by the remains of my ancestors, I'd felt safe while I cast my spells, sleeping only in short spurts, sponge bathing instead of showering, and surviving on snack foods and bottled water.
When the tomb began to shake around me, I'd thought at first we were having an earthquake, or that the city had been hit by a tsunami. But it was neither of those things.
