“Do it,” Violet croaked.
And with a sickening squelch, I did it.
I tore my brother’s heart from his chest.
Fading
Violet
I watched as Famine’s lifeless body fell to the ground. His cold, unresponsive eyes stared at me and I was glad that he was dead.
“Violet? Talk to me! Say something!” Jenga screamed into my ear through the ear piece.
“I-I’ve been… stabbed.” I put as much pressure on the stab site as I could without making it hurt more. At first it didn’t hurt, there was this cold feeling in my side, I glanced down and saw the hilt of the blade, my blade, sticking out of my flesh. The cold pain turned white-hot and sharp.
“Shit! What do I do? What do you want me to do?” Her voice was fast and laced with panic. I zoned her out as warm, sticky blood ran down my body and there was a metal taste in my mouth, as if I’d sucked on a coin. Every breath and every movement caused unbearable pain. I was shocked and I grabbed at my side, trying desperately to pull the knife out. I cried out in pain. Every time I touched the knife a searing burn flared up my side.
“What’s happening?” Jenga demanded to know.
Warm, sticky hands rubbed against my cheeks, tilting my face upwards. His dark eyes were soft with pain and desperation.
“I-I’m not sorry,” I groaned. My voice was barely audible. The searing pain flared again and I gasped. Lucas flinched, not knowing what to do. His fingers twitched toward the knife, but he knew that I couldn’t afford to lose more blood. “I-I’m not s-sorry for finding F-Famine.”
His eyes clouded and he pursed his lips together. Lines carved through Lucas’s face, making him seem older than he was.
“B-but, I a-am sorry for lying t-to you.”
“Violet, what are you say—” She cut off her words when she realized I was talking to someone else and fell silent.
“Don’t be sorry. You did your job just like I taught you. I’m so proud of you.” Lucas scooped me up into his arms and I screamed in pain as the knife buried itself deeper. Then weightlessness overtook me and the pain was gone. I felt fine. Unfortunately, those few seconds came to an end, and when gravity took hold, I was right back where I started. My chest rose and fell with rapid speed. My breathing was shallow and quick.
I looked around the parking lot that was filled with black Jeeps. He’d brought me to HQ. Lucas’s face hovered over mine. He couldn’t go any further than this. Charms protected our headquarters from demons. My vision dimmed and I couldn’t tell if I was dying or passing out.
“Hey.” Lucas’s breath warmed my face, keeping me awake for a little while longer. “You’re going to be okay. You’re with your people.”
I couldn’t talk. No matter how hard I tried, my tongue remained motionless and only groans escaped my lips. My eyes threatened to shut until his blood-covered index finger tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. I stared into his dark brown eyes. His eyebrows curved with a concerned expression and he even managed to keep a small smile on his lips. He pressed his lips to mine and spoke against them. “I don’t want to lose you now and I won’t. You will get through this. You’re a fighter.”
Burning hot tears rolled down my face as he traced my half star.
“I’ve done terrible things to you… terrible, disgusting things, and there’s no way I can take them back, but I can tell you I regret them above all else.” The entrance door to HQ clanked and I clung to Lucas desperately. He pried my fingers from his t-shirt and kissed the tips of them. “I love you. I’ve always loved you.”
Thick, black smoke engulfed me as the door opened.
“You’re such a perve,” a familiar voice giggled.
“I’m just saying, if you want someone to go to The Soft Kitty with, then I’m your guy.”
“No, I don’t want—Oh my god! Violet?”
Cole swore under his breath and pulled his cell phone from his pocket. “I’m going to need a few guys up top. We have an injured angel, hurry.”
Janet’s crazy makeup face appeared above mine. I tried to smile at her stupid kitty-cat ears and whiskers. She always went over the top.
“What happened?” Tears that were blackened by mascara fell from her eyes and landed on my face. It was gross, but I was in too much pain to care. My lips twitched, but no words came out.
Cole knelt down beside me. “You’re gonna’ be all right, Violet. Just hang in there, buddy.”
I stared at him. Was this some kind of sick joke? Why hadn’t Cole rolled me under a car and left me for dead? Caring didn’t really suit his selfish-looking features, but then again, I wasn’t one to talk. While Cole assessed the damage, being careful not to touch the knife, I searched the parking lot until my eyes fell on Lucas’s face. He was standing behind a Jeep and I was only just able to see his neck and head. I wanted him to hold me. I felt like I could die then. Now, I didn’t want to die, I felt like I’d be leaving too much behind. The door flung open again, and with a sympathetic smile, Lucas disappeared. More hot tears burned my cheeks. A few angels surrounded us. One made a comment on the smell of smoke and they got me inside as quickly as possible.
Halfway down the stairs, I lost consciousness.
***
My eyes fluttered open and instantly a headache consumed me, forcing me to shut them again. For the brief time my eyes were opened, I noticed I was in a hospital. Everything was white or a weird cream color. In the background I heard beeping noises and distant chatter. Every now and then, I heard the faint sound of shoes clicking against the hard floor. The crisp smell of an antibacterial cleaning product tickled my nose. For the second time, I slowly opened my eyes. The headache was still very much there, but I pushed through it. The curtains were drawn, but the bright glow that seeped in from the edges told me it was midday. The hospital gown I wore made me uncomfortable as it bunched around my thighs. I shifted in my bed and the pain in my side ached slightly. I stiffened and remained still. The last thing I wanted was to rupture anything or reopen any stitching. A flush sound came from behind the curtain next to me and then a door opened. I hated sharing rooms in hospital. Jenga’s face peered around the curtain and her bright green eyes flared with happiness when she saw that I was awake.
“Violet? You’re awake!” She bounced all the way to my bed. She looked pretty. Her black hair was tied up in a stylish bun and she wore a short yellow sundress and matching yellow earrings.
“Wow. You’re bright,” I croaked. I didn’t sound like me. I sounded old and weak.
“Yeah, I figured if you wake up you might like to see some color. This place is dreadful.”
I shrugged. “It’s a hospital, you can’t really expect much.”
She squeezed my hand “I’m so happy you’re alive. It was touch and go there for a while.”
Dread filled my stomach. She heard the conversation between Lucas and I. “How much did you hear?”
She dropped into the recliner beside my bed and crossed her legs. “All of it. I heard Lucas. I heard a man and a girl name Janet… I heard Tom freaking out as he transported your bloodied body here. Once I heard you were here, I came as quickly as I could and I’ve only left to eat. You were in surgery for a little while and needed a blood transfusion. They put some healing serum into your drip so you’ll probably be let out tomorrow morning.”
I nodded. Awkward silence filled the room and Jenga pursed her lips. It seemed like she had something that she wanted to say.
“He loves you.” In her voice I detected a hint of disapproval.
“Who?” I replied, acting dumb.
She rolled her eyes. “Who else? Lucas.”
There was no point lying to her. She heard everything. “And I love him.” She watched me intently. “But some things just aren’t meant to be. You can’t tell anyone what you heard, please,” I begged.
“What kind of friend would I be if I told on you? Your secret is safe with me. Besides, nothing actually happened. It’s not like you two slept tog
ether.”
A strange pang hit my stomach and I felt my cheeks burn. I gave her a tight smile. “Right.”
She rose from her chair. “I’m going to get some coffee, but before I go I wanted to let you know that The Council wants to see you tomorrow afternoon.”
Every muscle in my body ached. Seeing the Council was the last thing I wanted to do. Famine was dead and I’d have to claim the responsibility of an unauthorized kill. I couldn’t palm it off on Lucas because the Council would know something was up.
“What do I tell them?”
“Tell them you were in Logansville tracking Trackers, like your mission said, and you came across Famine. I’ll leave his death up to your gruesome imagination.”
She left the room in search of coffee and I lay in the hospital bed, completely freaking out. Before now, killing a Horseman to claim my pride back seemed like a good idea. Now that I officially had an appointment with the Council—the same Council that had me blasted with a hose and drugged—I was scared out of my mind.
Hours flew past a lot quicker than I wanted. Only the Council and Lucas occupied my thoughts, and before I knew it, it was dark outside. I’d be released in the morning and in front of the Council tomorrow afternoon. Great…or as Janet would say, “FML.”
Jenga stayed with me until visiting hours ended. We didn’t talk much. I was too consumed by my thoughts, but she didn’t seem to mind. If I was in her shoes, it’d drive me crazy. What was the point of hanging out with someone if there wasn’t a regular conversation? Maybe if this were a test, she’d pass as a good friend and I’d fail miserably. Definitely something I should probably work on. It takes two to tango, even in a friendship.
***
I glanced out the window. The morning sun was shrouded behind a thick layer of clouds. In the distance trees whipped wildly around the place. Funny. The weather reflected my exact mood—cold and miserable.
“Are you ready to go?” Jenga asked, packing the last magazine into her backpack.
I turned to her. “I really don’t want to. They’re going to find a way to fault me and probably end up killing me this time.”
“Don’t be such a downer. They’re going to praise you. You saved Earth from the apocalypse.”
“You clearly haven’t met the same Council as me. They had me beaten and drugged for not killing a demon. They’re extremists. No extremist of any kind does good things.”
She shrugged and flicked her fringe away from her eyes. “Let’s just go.”
Once I signed out of the hospital, she headed for the elevator. Jenga handed me an exemption form and I stared at it. Jenga pushed me into the sterile elevator and the doors closed. I stared at the buttons for a little while before pushing ‘7.’ As the elevator went up, I had a good look at myself in the reflection. Who knows if I’d leave this place with even, normal colored skin. Or alive.
The elevator doors opened and I was greeted by a Council guard. He took my form and walked me to the doors of the initiation room. I’d never noticed the corridors on this level. They were very elegant and comforting. I liked the way the lime carpet matched the black columns. Who would have thought that such pompous assholes would have such good taste in décor? The huge black doors slowly opened and I was looking into the same dark room and staring down the same wooden chair as last time. The guard nudged me forward, but I didn’t move. I was too scared to enter.
“Is there a problem?” he growled through his plain metal mask. Strange, they must be a new thing.
“Uh…” I swallowed hard and slowly put one foot in front of the other. “No… I guess not.”
The guard disappeared into the darkness and I sat on the wooden chair. My knees knocked together as I shook with fear. I was confused. I’d never been so scared before in my life. It could be because I was going to have to lie to them… or the fact that I felt guilty for sleeping with a demon. Guilt drenched my conscience and I was on the verge of having a panic attack. I could feel it. “Rise!” someone, somewhere shouted through speakers. My chest constricted and I slowly rose to my feet.
Crap.
Underworld
Lucas
The whiskey went down smoothly and I dropped the empty bottle into the wastebasket beside my desk. That was the last bottle. I swayed drunkenly on the edge of my desk, looking out at the city. The strange clouds and unnatural lightning had long since passed. Maybe Violet had, too. I shook the thought from my head. It didn’t sit well with the alcohol and the need to destroy something increased. Shortly, my body would heal itself from the damage of the alcohol and I’d be as right as rain. But until then, I sat in the blissful fog of incoherency.
My hands were still bloody—dry, but still red. I didn’t want to wash it off, at least, not until tonight’s events fully sank in. Famine stabbed Violet and I’d killed Famine. All of it was such a blur… it happened so quickly. Soon, I’d be summoned back to the Underworld and trapped there until it was time to end the world in a few hundred years, or they replaced Famine, whichever came first. Dex would take control of all my assets while I was gone. My thoughts fell to Shade and Conquest. They’re going to kill me. I was tossing up whether to tell them it was me or not. If Violet survived, she had to claim the kill herself, otherwise her Council would make assumptions. Trust me when I say that was the last thing you wanted to happen.
“Lucas?” Eva’s comforting voice filled the silence and I heard the door click behind me. Her soft shoes padded across floor until I saw them come to a stop in front of me. “Is everything okay?”
I dragged my gaze from her shoes to her face. Her gold eyes shone with concern. “You know I’m upset?”
She nodded. “I was experimenting with some aura spells. I was a little worried when the darkest aura I’ve ever felt was coming directly from your room. Tell me what happened…”
I stared at her face and I felt safe. I felt like everything was going to be okay. Eva made me feel like my grandma did when I was human, before she passed away. “Famine is dead. I killed him.”
Eva’s brows furrowed. “And that’s why your aura is dark? You hate your brothers—more than I do, and that’s sayin’ something.”
My lips twitched and I almost smiled. “That’s not the reason. Violet and Famine were fighting and I let them… in the end, he stabbed Violet and I lost it… I tore his heart from his chest.”
Eva’s lips parted and she looked genuinely hurt by the news about Violet. “Is Violet okay?”
“That’s what’s killing me. I have no idea. She was in such bad shape when I took her to the angel headquarters… I could’ve turned her into a demon. She was borderlining death… I could’ve saved her.”
All I had to do was force my blood into her wounds and she would have become a demon…but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
“Hey, you did a good thing. She didn’t want to be a demon... I knew you weren’t all bad.” She extended her hands to me and I hesitated. “Can I take a look? At what happened?”
Sharing something like that was personal. I watched her hands for a few seconds before I decided to place mine in hers. Her hands felt thin and papery. She closed her eyes. Behind her eyelids, her eyes moved rapidly. She gasped a few times and her fingers twitched around my hands. Minutes passed and I could tell by the way the deep lines carved their way through her features that she was engrossed in the events. Her eyes flicked open and she pressed my hands together.
“That must have been hard for you…”
I didn’t reply.
“I can do a spell… it will tell us if she’s alive.”
I pulled out of her hands and ran them through my hair. “Her body would be in the Never Dark by now...”
“I know. That’s why I’m going to need something that belongs to her.”
“I have nothing.”
Eva narrowed her eyes at me. Her molten gold eyes sparkled, even in the dark. She wasn’t looking at me. She was looking into me. “Underneath all that darkness, I see a hint of red.??
?
“And what does that mean?”
She turned from me and approached the unmade bed. The black sheets were tangled into a knot and my pillows littered the floor. “Red in your aura symbolizes Love…” She plucked something from one of my pillows—a long red hair. Eva smiled knowingly at me. “Or passion.”
“Is that all you need?” I asked, steering the conversation away from sex. Eva nodded.
She knelt on the floor and wrapped the string of hair around her left index finger. She placed her palms together as if she was praying. “If I’m strong enough, I should be able to gain visual access to the Never Dark realm and locate her.”
“What do I do?”
“Watch.” She closed her eyes and began chanting in a foreign language. I watched her intently. Waiting for any sign on her face that said Violet was okay… or dead. The hard walls of the room slowly became translucent, displaying the night sky and light pollution in every direction. I gasped and sobered up immediately. Above us, beautiful colors danced and mingled. I was awed. I’d never seen anything so remarkable. The colors floated away and I glanced at Eva. Blood ran from her nose and down over her thick, dark lips. I wanted to help her, but I knew better than to interrupt her. She gently rocked back and forth, chanting and humming. A familiar building brought my attention back to the spell. It was the Never Dark Council room. I spotted Violet standing fiercely before the Council. I stared at her as if she was a ghost. There was color in her lips, her eyes, and in her cheeks. She pursed her lips like she was full of confidence, but she didn’t fool me. I could see the slight tremble in her bottom lip.
One by one the Council entered and took their seats. They still looked the same as I remembered. Violet’s hands twitched at her sides. I gritted my teeth. I was anxious for her. The Never Dark wasn’t exactly known for being nice, regardless of the situation. The last time I stood in front of the Council was at Violet’s initiation. They ordered the guards to beat Violet until she ‘learned some respect.’ I was powerless to help her, just like now.