Aisha swept toward me, planting herself firmly by my side. She glared daggers at the wolf.
“Just go ahead and try to kill him, wolf,” she hissed. “You cannot so long as he is under the Nasiris’ protection.”
Perhaps the leader hadn’t noticed the jinni until now, having been so focused on chasing after Julie and me in the tree. But now that he did, his stance became far less confident. His eyes darted over Aisha before he retreated a step, apparently convinced that killing me was not an option after all.
“You cannot let the Elders rise to power,” he hissed at Aisha. “Why would your tribe protect him?”
“Because he has joined our family. He is one of our own,” Aisha shot back. “One more mention of killing him, and you will sorely regret it.”
Afraid that Aisha was about to turn murderous again, I gripped her forearm.
The werewolf backed away further.
“There is much at stake here,” he said after a pause. “Much at stake…” He turned to the werewolf with brown fur standing on his right-hand side. The leader’s dark face was filled with reluctance, even as he addressed his companion quietly. “We can’t kill the boy with these jinn around. I don’t see what other course of action we have than to grant him a tooth… and hope the doctor is competent in her task.”
The brown werewolf only grunted in response, before turning and bolting away into the darkness of the woods, leaving the rest of us standing together in silence.
The leader began to pace slowly up and down in front of me. “Know that this is the first time I have ever bowed to a request from a stranger.”
That much I can believe.
His eyes locked on mine. “Make good use of the tooth,” he said, his gravelly voice intense. “Remember that far more lies in the balance than just your own life. Don’t let us down.”
I swallowed hard. Don’t let us down. As I looked into his eyes, the responsibility I carried on my shoulders sank in deeper. This wolf and every other wolf surrounding me had their own lives and loved ones. Families. Children. By the mere act of keeping myself alive I was posing a danger to entire realms filled with such lives. I didn’t want to think about how many could be affected if the Elder managed to lure me back to Cruor and bring his plan to fruition.
I nodded stiffly, even though I had no way of guaranteeing I could fulfill such a promise.
My situation felt completely out of my hands. It felt like I was relying on everyone but myself—Aisha, Bahir, Arron, the witch doctor… and before there had been River. After all the blood I’d consumed, I was unable to even stand on my own two feet without Bahir inside me, fighting a battle against the Elder’s increasing influence over me.
This lack of control was one of the most disturbing things about the predicament that I was in. The feeling of relying on supernatural creatures I didn’t even trust. Even Aisha, who was tasked to protect me, I couldn’t trust fully because as loyal as she seemed to be, she possessed her own faults and weaknesses.
Everyone was depending on me, yet I couldn’t depend on myself.
Yet all the while, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this was a mission I was supposed to go on alone. I’d felt it deep down in my gut the night I’d told Corrine to leave The Oasis with River. I didn’t know how I knew it. I just did.
But I couldn’t see any way to change the situation.
The brown wolf came into view, interrupting my thoughts. As he bounded toward us through the undergrowth, he clutched a small brown sack in his mouth. He arrived in front of me and dropped it at my feet before backing away and resuming his position beside the black wolf.
I stooped down and picked up the sack from the ground. Loosening the strings, I found myself staring down at a large jagged tooth. I wasn’t sure where he had gotten this from. Perhaps they had some kind of collection, or perhaps it was even from a departed wolf. I didn’t care much, as long as it would satisfy the witch.
I bowed my head slightly. “Thank you,” I said.
The black wolf’s eyes remained boring into mine.
I wanted to feel strong in that moment, as strong as the look he was giving me. But no matter how I tried, I couldn’t. How could I feel strong while being propped up by stilts?
Chapter 19: Ben
I was quiet after Aisha transported us out of the woods and back to the beach. One could say that procuring this tooth had been painless, or at least more painless than I’d expected. Yet I could hardly bring myself to feel relief. My mind turned immediately to the next item we had to find for the witch.
“Merflor,” I said.
“We must head to The Cove,” Arron replied.
“Do you have any idea where to search for this plant within that place?” I asked.
“I know the substance,” Aisha replied before Arron could.
“I have a good idea too,” Arron said.
Julie touched my shoulder. “Are you all right?” she asked, her hazel eyes traced with concern. “You look unwell.”
I smiled bitterly. I’d been unwell for so long, I’d forgotten what it felt like to be well.
“I’m okay,” I muttered.
“Let’s get a move on then,” Arron said. “We need to make sure that we have all these ingredients in time, or you will have to reschedule the appointment… and that could come with another fee.”
Another fee. I didn’t like the sound of that. I guessed that would involve taking off on another escapade to find some other stupid ingredient for her.
The stormy beach disappeared around me and when my vision focused again, I was standing on an islet. The slimy rocks surrounding me glistened in the moonlight. The ground swarmed with giant crabs scuttling from one shallow pool to the other. I tried to avoid stepping on any of them as I approached the edge and looked down into the water. They appeared deep and murky, filled with some kind of thick seaweed. Surrounding this islet were countless others. We were in the midst of some kind of archipelago.
“Welcome to The Cove,” Aisha murmured. “The merfolk of course live in these waters. It is not advisable for anyone to enter them. So I suggest you all stay on this rock while I go down there in search of the herb.”
“How long do you think this will take?” I asked.
The jinni shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ll be as fast as I can.”
I’d heard that one before. Leaving the islet, she drifted down to the water and sank beneath it. Her long, thick hair billowed momentarily on the surface before disappearing with the rest of her.
It made sense for her to go. My parents had told me of some of the sinister creatures that lay beneath these waters, and I guessed Aisha would be immune to all of them.
I sat down on the edge of the islet and watched the waves licking the rocks. My eyes became unfocused as my mind traveled back to River. The girl I ached for. The only girl I’d ever professed my love to. I’d dated girls before River, but never come close to feeling strongly enough about them to say those three words. Although some had proclaimed love to me, I’d never been the kind of person to exaggerate feelings.
I closed my eyes, playing over in my head the last night we’d spent together. I relived her touch, her kisses, her embrace. The way she’d looked at me when she’d said she loved me too. The ache I’d felt, knowing that I had to leave her.
I snapped out of my reverie when someone sat next to me. I opened my eyes. Julie crouched, looking down into the water with a strangely thoughtful expression on her face.
“I’ve never seen a werewolf so cooperative,” she commented.
“Have you come across many werewolves?”
“A fair number,” she replied. “My father had some dealings with some. Though I’ve never come so close.”
She paused, clasping her hands together. Then her hazel eyes raised to mine. There was an undercurrent of sympathy behind them, sympathy that made me feel deeply uncomfortable.
“Look, Benjamin,” she said, catching her lower lip between her teeth. “I know you bar
ely know me. And I know I’ve voiced my concern about this before. But my mother always said that my gift was my intuition, and since I’m with you on this journey, I can’t hold back that I simply feel we’re going in the wrong direction. This whole heart thing…” She glanced back at Arron. “I just don’t see any good coming of it.”
I let out a weary sigh. I’d had this conversation with her only a few hours ago.
“Julie,” I said. “I know it’s utterly far-fetched. Hell, I barely believe it myself. But if you had been through what I’ve been through, you would understand why I’m trying this.”
She hesitated before continuing. “It’s just that I’ve been thinking… I might have another idea. Something that wouldn’t involve cutting you open and messing with your heart.”
“What?” I asked, sitting up straight.
“Well, it just occurred to me as we were waiting in those woods for the wolf to return with the tooth… ” Her voice trailed off and she cast a glance behind her at Arron, who was standing on the other side of the islet. “I-I don’t feel comfortable telling you with the Hawk listening in,” she breathed.
I wondered what idea Julie could’ve come up with that she didn’t want Arron knowing about. I didn’t know how good the Hawk’s hearing was, but I was quite certain he was able to hear what we were saying from this short distance.
“Julie wants to talk to me privately,” I called to Arron.
I didn’t wait for his response. Standing up, I caught Julie’s eye and nodded toward the islet opposite us. There was a wide distance between the two, but it wouldn’t take that much effort to jump it.
Arron cast Julie a suspicious glare as the two of us leapt off the islet and landed on the neighboring one about twenty feet away. Even here, I wasn’t sure that we were out of earshot, and from the look on Julie’s face, she wasn’t confident either.
We crossed to the next islet, and then the next, until we had moved five islets away. Julie eyed Arron, standing on a rock and looking toward our direction, before she faced me.
“Well, what is it that Arron can’t hear?” I asked.
She appeared tense. I wasn’t sure if she was still worried that Arron might overhear us, or if it was something about what she was planning to tell me.
Her voice sounded strained as she began in a whisper, “My father was given a gift some years ago, by an old warlock who owed him a favor… It was a box, about the size of that rock over there.” She pointed behind me to a large rock. “It was a beautiful box, but also sinister. The warlock said that it was crafted entirely out of human ribs and that it held a special power. A power I never believed it could possess… until I reconsidered a few hours ago when we were in The Woodlands.” She paused.
“And? What power?”
She let out a breath. “I’m sure you’ll find it as unbelievable as I did… But the warlock said that box was a trap specifically designed for Elders. The warlock had given it to my father soon after the demise of the Elders, once we had gotten free from our old mountain coven—or should I say prison. Knowing that we had been victims of those creatures for so long, the warlock gave it to my father as a gesture and told him that he could use it if an Elder ever found his way to us again in the supernatural world… Of course, thankfully, one never has, and so my father never put it to the test.”
“A box,” I repeated disbelievingly. “How could a box be capable of trapping an Elder? They aren’t made of physical elements like flesh and bone. They are spirits.”
“I’m not sure. Honestly, I don’t know how that warlock came across the box, or how it was originally infused with such a power. He just told us what it was made of and what it was capable of doing… and he also told us how to use it.”
“How?”
The vampire rubbed a palm over her forehead. “I’m just trying to recall his words…” Her face scrunched as she closed her eyes tight. “Human blood,” she said after a pause. “The warlock said something about keeping the lid of the box open, and inside, placing a basin of human blood. Elders are unable to keep themselves from gravitating toward human blood, especially if fresh. If the box was in close proximity to the spirit, it would sense the blood, be drawn to it, and as soon as it entered within, the box would snap shut.”
I stared at Julie. She was losing me. I hadn’t thought that it was possible to top the farfetched idea of a vampire having heart surgery, but this Elder trap sure did it. The crazy things we were coming up with only highlighted the direness of my situation.
“Okay,” I said, exhaling slowly. “You’re not a hundred percent sure if this box really does possess the powers to trap an Elder. Your memory also seems to be hazy regarding how to work the thing… But let’s just say that old warlock really did give you an Elder trap, and your memory regarding how to work it is accurate… Leaving aside the fact that we’d have to get fresh human blood, the box is still with your father, right? Do you even know where your father is?”
A look of discomfort crossed her face. “I, uh… Of course I don’t know exactly where he is. I haven’t seen him since I escaped but… I would imagine that he would be near The Tavern if he sent two men to come and kidnap me. His ship wouldn’t have been far off that island’s shore. There’s no saying where he and his crew are now, but I would assume that they would still be close to that area—still looking for me.” She looked down at her feet, dodging a crab as it scuttled by. “Obviously, I couldn’t ask for or retrieve the box myself, but your jinni girlfriend—”
“Aisha is not my girlfriend,” I corrected her.
“Sorry. Your jinni friend, I’m sure, would have no problem airlifting the box… I could tell her exactly where it’s located on the ship—I don’t see what reason my father would’ve had for moving it when it’s been sitting in his study all these years.”
I held up a hand, catching up with Julie’s train of thought. “Okay, so if we assumed this was a working trap, and we knew how to use it, and we managed to find the box and steal it from your father’s boat without any problems, and get fresh human blood… Then what?”
“Then we would need to track down the Elder—Basilius, Arron said he was known as? He’s the one who imprinted on you, and he’s the one who has the influence over you. We’d need to trap him in the box.”
“But even if we did manage to trap him inside it, how would that stop his influence over me? He may not be able to glide out of the box and inhabit my body, but his influence would still remain with me as it has until now.”
“No.” Julie shook her head. “According to what the warlock said to my father, if an Elder was trapped inside this box, it would be truly trapped. Contained. It would not be able to have any influence on the world outside the box. That’s what was supposed to be so special about the gift.”
I couldn’t shake my skepticism, in spite of how sincere Julie appeared. “Let’s say everything you’ve told me so far is correct, how would we actually get an Elder to enter the box? We are nowhere near Cruor.”
My voice trailed off at the somber look on Julie’s face.
“We would use you as bait,” she said, “but we would have to travel to Cruor in order to get close enough to do this.”
At this, I shook my head. “No. Julie, I appreciate you trying to help me with this, but I can’t possibly risk setting foot in Cruor.”
According to the visions imparted to me by the jinn and my visit to the oracle, Basilius was currently the only Elder in Cruor who was strong enough to inhabit a vessel. So while I wouldn’t be in danger from other Elders there, the moment Basilius sensed my closeness, even the jinn wouldn’t be able to stop him from entering me fully and finally claiming me the way the oracle had prophesied.
“I know it’s not the simplest of solutions,” Julie said. I almost laughed. “But as crazy as it sounds, I thought it might be less risky than having your chest sliced open by a stranger who could be allied with a Hawk who clearly wants you dead.”
“I was willing to consider the
box idea until you mentioned Cruor. As dangerous and uncertain as removing my imprinted heart would be, it still feels like the less risky option.”
Julie shrugged. “Fair enough. I thought I ought to mention it to you all the same.”
Having made up my mind, I looked toward the islet where Arron was waiting. He had begun pacing up and down over the rocks. “You didn’t want Arron overhearing this because…?”
“Because I don’t want him knowing about this box,” Julie replied. “As much as I dislike my father, he is after all my father. I wouldn’t want to be responsible for setting a gang of Hawks on him.”
That was understandable.
“So… that was everything you wanted to say to me?” I asked, my eyes traveling back to Julie’s pale face.
Clenching her jaw, she nodded.
I was unsure of what to say next. I’d already thanked Julie for her concern and it felt awkward to be standing alone with her in silence. I would prefer for there to be a third person present as we waited—even if that person was Arron. I gestured to the islet and the two of us leapt back toward it.
Now we could only wait for Aisha to return.
Chapter 20: Ben
As I had feared, we were waiting hours for the jinni. I ended up passing the time sitting opposite Julie on the rocks, with her telling me more about her life before she’d become a vampire, while Arron continued to brood behind us. Like so many, Julie’s life had been ordinary before she’d become a bloodsucker at seventeen. She had been born in central China; her father had been a politician, her mother a schoolteacher. She’d gone to school and studied hard to please her parents, all while fostering the dream of becoming a ballet dancer. It was during a vacation near the Taihang Mountains, while enjoying an evening walk with her family, that her uneventful life had been turned upside down.