And then there was the added problem of her being around Dad, Tristan and me. Just because she had been cast out of the Clann and never used her abilities didn’t change the nature of her genetics. Her Clann blood would still be every bit as tempting to vampires as any other descendant’s.
I swallowed hard and forced myself to turn to him. “You sure it’s a good idea getting Mom involved in this?”
Dad sighed. “Believe me, I wish we did not have to. But she is your mother and therefore already involved. If she is not with us, the Clann could very well try to seek her out and use her as bait to lure us to them. Besides, her RV will be the best and most expedient way for all of us to get out of Clann territory and hide somewhere safe for a while.”
I wished I could argue that the Clann would never do that. But after tonight and seeing how they had ruthlessly killed their own leader, I knew they were entirely capable of doing anything that would help them take over the Clann.
Not that all of them had known the full plan.
I remembered the shock and horror on Dylan’s face when he’d discovered Mrs. Coleman’s body, and how he’d assumed at first that I’d killed her. He definitely hadn’t been fully in on his dad’s plans for tonight.
I saw again how Tristan had grabbed and thrown him across the room even as Dylan tried to tell Tristan the truth.
Shuddering, I pushed that memory away for now as my stomach knotted painfully. I glanced at my feet and got a peek of the contents of the bags Dad had given me to carry. The shopping bags were filled with plastic bags of blood. “You risked getting killed for blood?”
“Of course,” Dad said, his face blank. “We do not know when we will be able to restock. Especially once war breaks out. Blood suppliers have a habit of going into hiding during such times to avoid the Clann’s retribution. If that happens again, we must be prepared.”
Well, at least we had the comfort of knowing we wouldn’t go hungry for a while.
“We must stay on the move until we meet up with your mother,” Dad muttered, glancing around us uneasily. “The Clann will send the Keepers to search for us soon. When they do, these woods will not be safe.”
The Keepers. Oh, crap. “Can I borrow your phone for a second?”
Dad frowned. “Now is not the time to engage in a long chat with your human friends.”
“Not a chat, a warning. Ron’s a Keeper, remember?”
He held out the phone. “Keep it brief.”
With a nod, I dialed Anne’s number by memory. Thankfully she picked up instead of her mother.
“Anne, listen to me because I don’t have much time. Mr. Williams is staging a takeover of the Clann tonight. He killed Mrs. Coleman and tried to kill Emily and Tristan. He set it all up to look like Tristan and I killed her.”
“Are you freaking kidding me?” Anne gasped.
“I wish. They burned down my house, too.” Before she could ask, I added, “We’re all okay, Emily and Dad, too. But we’re going to be in hiding till we can find a way to set the Clann straight on what really happened. Dad says Mr. Williams is probably still going to become the new leader, though. And that means Ron and all the rest of the Keepers are going to have to obey his every order.”
“Like h—”
“Don’t start, Anne,” I growled, needing her to listen to me for once. “Please don’t encourage him to try to stand up to Mr. Williams. If they can kill Tristan’s mother, their own leader, how hard do you think it’ll be for them to take out one rebel Keeper?”
A second of silence, then she mumbled, “Okay. So what do you want us to do?”
“Tell Ron to be a good Keeper and do whatever he’s told. Even if that means hunting for Tristan and me. Tell him I said he can’t disobey them no matter what. These people aren’t messing around.” Remembering Dad’s warning about my mom, I closed my eyes and said, “They could hurt Ron’s family if he doesn’t obey them.”
She growled under her breath but thankfully didn’t argue with me. “How will I know you guys are okay?”
“We’ll get some disposable phones eventually, I guess. If Dad thinks it’s safe to, I’ll call or text you on one of them.” Thinking fast, I said, “What if you call me Cousin Sally or something like that?”
“Good idea! You know I’ve got tons of cousins spread all over the country. In fact, I’ll start calling and texting them all more. Then if the Clann checks my phone records, your long-distance calls will blend right in with everyone else’s.”
I couldn’t help but smile. Trust Anne to find a way to get even a little excited about this situation. “That’s a great plan. It might be a few days before I can call again. But I promise I will check in on you guys, okay? In the meantime, try really hard not to think about us.”
“Oh, crap, I forgot, they can read our minds. How the heck am I—”
“They won’t be able to hear your mind unless they’re in the room with you or if you’re outside. The danger zones will be when you’re at school or around town. Which reminds me…”
“Yeah?”
“Promise me you won’t go hunting for anything, in season or not, until I say it’s okay? Dad says things are about to get really nasty between the Clann and the vamps. I don’t want you in the woods if he’s right.”
“Okay,” she grumbled. “Stay safe and keep your heads down.”
“Will do.”
I ended the call though I hated to have to do it. I wished there was some way to keep Anne and the others safe. But short of making some protection spells for them, which I couldn’t do from a distance, they were on their own and at the mercy of the Clann.
Just like us if we didn’t get out of here.
I snapped the phone closed and handed it to Dad. “Okay. Let’s go.” I turned to the Coleman siblings. “Um, guys?”
Emily sniffed and wiped her nose, stepping back from her brother. He turned away to drag his forearms over his face before turning to face us again, as if ashamed to be seen crying.
I told myself it was my father he was trying to hide his tears from. After all, I’d seen him cry before, like the night we dream-connected after his father’s death. That time it had been me who had held him while he dealt with the shock and loss.
But a knot still managed to form in my throat, making it hard for me to say, “My mom’s going to pick us up, but we’ve got to run awhile longer on foot and meet her halfway.”
Tristan nodded, keeping his eyes lowered while Dad picked up Emily again.
Tristan? I asked silently this time. Are you okay?
“Let’s go,” Tristan said, his tone gruff.
Dad took off again, Tristan right behind him, leaving me to follow them with a sinking feeling deep inside the pit of my stomach.
CH A P TER 11
Five minutes later, we neared the highway. We ran parallel to it within the woods for a while, risking crossing roads when necessary, carefully skirting towns. I lost track of time, grateful for the chance to stop thinking about everything else and just focus on the job of putting one foot in front of the other and avoiding obstacles like trees, bushes and entangling weeds in the ditches and fields.
Then we saw Mom’s truck and trailer waiting at the side of the highway up ahead.
We slowed down to a human jog, allowing Mom to see our approach in the headlights as we ran up the side of the road toward her. By the time we reached the trailer door, Mom was there to usher us all inside. In the kitchen area, she gave me a quick, hard hug, checking me over for injuries before turning to do the same with Dad.
His hard features softened for a moment. Finally he spoke up. “Joan, I told you we are all uninjured.”
He stepped away from her to stow the blood bags in the fridge.
“Oh, please, Michael,” Mom replied, rubbing at her eyes with a shaking, weather-roughened hand. “You and I both know you always say you’re fine whether you really are or not.”
From the main bedroom at the other end of the trailer came an endless, piercing ya
pping from Lucy, the Yorkshire terrier who was supposed to have been my birthday gift last November. At least until we’d discovered the dog hated vampires. From the frantic, fierce pitch of her barking, it was obvious she hadn’t changed her opinion of our species yet.
“Stop it, Lucy!” Mom shouted with no success. The dog kept right on barking her little head off in an attempt to destroy both my supersensitive vampire hearing and my already frayed nerves.
“Tell me everything,” Mom insisted once she was sure we were okay.
Dad told her the short version. She grabbed the edge of the nearby kitchen counter when he told her about the Clann’s attack on the Coleman house. When he got to the part where they tried to burn us inside Dad’s house, she had to sit down on the couch beside Emily.
“I can’t believe the Williamses would do all of this,” she murmured. “I grew up with Jim. He always hated vampires, but this…”
“Believe it,” I said, trying to keep my focus on her so I wouldn’t stare at Tristan, who still hadn’t said a word. “Dad’s right. This was way too coordinated not to have been planned ahead of time.”
“He’s taking over the Clann,” Tristan said. “He’ll declare war on the vamps next.”
“Not until he’s officially voted in as leader,” Emily said.
“Which’ll take, what, a couple of days to round everyone up for an emergency vote?” Mom said.
“We must warn the council.” Dad stepped outside for a few seconds, reaching for his phone in his pocket even before his feet touched the ground. The door swung shut behind him, only to jerk open again ten seconds later. He reentered the trailer, shut the door behind him and cleared his throat. “They…have requested a meeting with us.”
“Why?” The word squeaked out of me.
“They want to hear a firsthand account of what happened. They…”
I read the rest of it in his thoughts. “They think we started this? That we lost control or something? Didn’t you tell them about Mr. Williams and his hit team of descendants?”
Dad nodded. “My words did not matter. They demanded to meet with both of you. Immediately. They are sending a jet to the nearest airport for us.”
“Absolutely not!” Mom snapped. “Savannah had nothing to do with this.”
“Neither did Tristan,” I told her. At least, not the part where his mother died.
But he had lost control and killed Dylan.
He turned his head to look at me, his eyes narrowing. I didn’t lose control tonight.
I swallowed hard and looked away. “We can’t go right now. Tell them Mom and Emily need us here.”
“They will not care,” Dad said.
“Fine. Then we’ll go with you—” Mom began.
“No,” Dad said. “I will not take you or Emily into my kind’s territory. You will be safer here in the States for now. You will hide together in this RV in some remote park far from the Clann until we return.”
Emily moved behind me and grabbed her brother’s arm. “Please. Please don’t do this. Tristan.” She looked at him with pleading eyes. “Please don’t go. You’re all the family I’ve got left. What if you get there and they keep you prisoner or…or…”
Tristan looked at my dad. “What if we refuse to meet with the council?”
“Then they will consider us as having sided with the Clann and will treat us accordingly.”
We would become enemies of both the Clann and the council.
Just like my parents had been for years before Mom couldn’t handle the stress of a life spent on the run.
Tristan read my mind. He turned to his sister and rested his hands on her trembling shoulders. “Sis, I’ve got to go.” She opened her mouth to protest. “I’ve got to get everything cleared up with the council. We can’t be enemies of both sides, especially if war breaks out.”
Tears spilled down Emily’s cheeks as she stared at him for a long moment. Finally she nodded and stepped away.
“I will drive us to the airport,” Dad said as he exited the trailer.
TRISTAN
Sav’s dad coordinated everything by phone while driving us to the nearest airport. I didn’t know where we were or which airport we’d be f lying out of, and I really didn’t care.
All I could think about was the terrified look frozen by death on my mother’s face…the same look of terror that had twisted Dylan’s face, too, just before I’d thrown him across the living room of what had once been my home…the sound his spine had made as he crashed into the fireplace.
We all stayed in the trailer in silence during the fast and bumpy ride to the airport, then waited in the RV until Michael came back to the trailer to tell us it was time to go. I gave my sister one last hug. Her growing tummy bumped into me, a silent reminder of how vulnerable she was now. I hoped I would return in a couple of days to look out for her. Her words about how I was the only family she had left kept echoing inside my head.
Savannah hugged her mother in silence. Her mother was sobbing loudly and making no effort to hide her fear.
“Joan, we must not delay any longer,” Michael murmured, and she reluctantly released their daughter. “Get as far north as fast as you can then find a state park or RV park somewhere to hide in.” He pressed a credit card into Joan’s hand. She scowled and opened her mouth to protest. “No, no arguments this time. At least give me this one small reassurance that you will have enough funds for anything you need in my absence. Do not let that foolish Evans pride further endanger yourself or Emily and her unborn child.”
He stared hard into her eyes until Joan finally nodded.
I followed Savannah out of the trailer, Michael right on my heels until we were all down the metal steps. Then he took the lead toward a jet on the runway. A man at a side gate frantically waved at us to hurry over to him, then he slid the gate open just enough for us to slip through before shutting and locking it behind us. We jogged at a human pace behind the man in gray coveralls, across the tarmac and up to the jet’s long line of white metal stairs.
Savannah paused for just a second to wave to her mother, wishing she could take away her mother’s fear, wishing she wasn’t afraid, too.
Then we boarded the plane and braced ourselves for the trial to come.
The last time we had walked through the maze of underground tunnels that led to the council’s headquarters beneath the famed City of Love, I had been handcuffed and blindfolded. So I was looking forward to finally getting to see exactly what we’d been led through. Unfortunately, the council was still cautious as always, insisting we wear black blindfolds from the time we were picked up in a black sedan at the airport and later while we were led through the winding maze of tunnels, until Mr. Colbert stopped us outside the council’s meeting room. Only then were we allowed to remove the blindfolds, which was pretty disappointing but understandable.
Then we stepped inside the meeting room and I was even more confused.
The cement block walls had been painted red and covered with old-fashioned-looking tapestries in an apparent attempt to spruce up the joint. But not much else had been done to hide the fact that this room was built primarily for security from outside attack. I’d expected something a little more lavish and a lot less fortress.
Then I looked at the long table draped with a red cloth. Behind it sat a line of nine very old, very ticked-off vampires.
The air became tinged with a bitter f lavor I could almost taste on my tongue, like some kind of mixture of crushed herbs and weeds.
Fear, Savannah thought, her gaze unwavering from the council. You are sensing their fear.
Of what? I thought.
Fear that the peace treaty with the Clann has failed. Fear of what is to come. But most of all, probably fear of us.
Huh. So the council was afraid of us. That seemed a good bit of info to store away for possible use later.
“Tristan Coleman and Savannah Colbert,” the vampire in the middle greeted us with a somber tone. “You stand before the council
today in order to report what has recently transpired within the Clann.”
I decided to take the lead, because Savannah’s heart was hammering so loudly I was sure the council could hear it even if they couldn’t hear our thoughts. “Yes. We came here of our own free will to tell you about the death of…” Suddenly my throat choked shut.
“Of Nancy Coleman,” Savannah finished, reaching out to take and squeeze my hand.
Quickly she related how my mother had invited us to dinner at her house, how we’d showed up to find the security gate and front door open and the house filled with smoke and descendants already attacking my family, and how we’d battled them in order to save Emily, though my mother had been beyond saving.
I worked to keep my face impassive and my breathing steady. But it was a challenge, because as she told them what had happened, I could see it all again within my mind…how the smoke had clawed at my eyes and throat and lungs, making it hard to see the descendants. And yet the adrenaline rush had made everything seem to move in slow motion, giving me far too much time to think and fear.
And then Savannah’s scream from downstairs, running down with Emily to find her and Mom there in the living room…
Realizing that Mom was dead, that we were too late to save her…
Dylan hunched over her…
The crack of his bones when he hit the fireplace…
Tristan! Savannah thought so loudly it was practically a shout, shaking me from the memories. Did you hear them? They asked what happened to Dylan.
I cleared my throat. “Yes, Dylan Williams. He helped his father and several other descendants attack my family. When I first saw him in my—that is, my family’s house—he was bent over my mother’s body.”
“And then?” the vampire in the middle prompted. He looked familiar. Then I recognized him. Of course. He was Caravass, the leader of the council, the vampire who had come with his council members to the Circle last year because another council member, Gowin, had led them there with lies meant to create a war.