Betrayal (Blood Haze: Book Three) A Paranormal Romance (11 page)

“Oh, yeah,” Liam agreed. “If you find
anything else, let me know, okay?”

“Will do.”

Kai and I went back to pouring through the
books in the library, but I had a feeling we would find what we
needed in that book in Alexi’s office back home. At some point,
exhaustion took hold of me, and I must have dozed off. I woke up in
Kai’s arms, as he was placing me gently into my bed.

“Thank you,” I whispered weakly.

“Of course,” he said quietly, pulling the
blankets over me.

He turned to leave the room, but he paused
for a moment. He turned around and quickly planted a kiss on my
forehead, and then he left the room, closing the door gently behind
him.

It was about ten PM when I heard a light tap
on my door. At first, I thought I was dreaming, but when I looked
over at the clock on my nightstand, I heard it again.

“Who is it?” I called.

“It is Alexi.”

“Come in,” I told him.

The door opened, and Alexi breezed in. He sat
down in the chair in the corner and leaned back.

“Did you sleep well?” he asked.

“Yes. Did you?”

“It is inconsequential.”

“I take that to mean you didn’t sleep.”

“Liam and I got a lot done.”

“Alexi…” I whined.

“It does not matter. I am fine. Liam and I
have everything arranged for traveling back to Georgia to get the
book. We are leaving in an hour.”

“An hour!” I gasped. “Wow, that’s soon.”

“We are on a time clock, as you are
aware.”

“Yeah, you don’t have to remind me. How much
time do we have left on Dmitri’s forty-eight hour clock?”

“About thirty hours.”

“I really wish you’d slept, Alexi. It’s not
healthy for you to keep losing sleep night after night.”

“I care little for my health,” he informed
me. “As long as you are safe, that is all that matters to me.”

“
I
care about your health,” I
grumbled.

“It will do wonders for my health if I can
stop worrying so much about you.”

“If we’re leaving for Georgia in an hour, I
need to take a shower,” I said, changing the subject.

“Alright, I will leave you to do so.”

Alexi stood up and started to leave.

“Alexi?”

He paused, and turned to face me.

“Thank you,” I said.

“For what?”

“For everything.”

“It is I who should thank you. No one has
ever cared as much about me as you do. Even if you never fall in
love with me, I think that might be enough.”

He turned to leave, but then he turned back
and added, “But I still hope you will fall in love with me,
someday.”

“I know.”

He left, and I hurried to get ready. I
showered, dried my hair, and changed into fresh clothes. I decided
to pack a bag, because I didn’t know how long we’d be staying, or
if my room was still like I left it back at the compound. I assumed
it was, but I couldn’t be certain.

We met in the foyer, and there was already a
group of clan members there to open the random portal. I was
admittedly a bit nervous at the prospect of falling through a
portal to a completely unknown location, but I wasn’t going to let
any of them know it.

“Are we ready?” I asked, coming down the
stairs with my bag in hand.

“Yes, come on,” Alexi said, extending his
arms toward me. I must have looked confused, because he added, “I
am going to carry you, so I can protect you if we land somewhere
dangerous.”

“I’ll be fine, Alexi…”

“This is not open for discussion,” Alexi said
sternly.

I sighed. Once again, he was leaving me with
no option. I knew Alexi would be stubborn, and he would probably
delay everything until I relented. I wasn’t in the mood to argue. I
just wanted to get it over with.

“Fine,” I groaned, and I allowed him to scoop
me up into his arms.

His arms closed firmly around me, and he held
me close to his body. He was so strong and protective, and it did
make me feel safer to be in his arms that way. I guess it wasn’t so
bad to give into him now and then.

The portal opened, and Liam went through
first, followed by Kai. Alexi’s grip on me tightened protectively,
and he jumped through the portal. I felt the familiar falling
sensation, and in a moment, Alexi landed deftly on his feet. I
hardly felt the jostle when we landed. Still gripping me tightly,
Alexi surveyed the area. We’d landed in a parking lot, but
fortunately, it was deserted. No one had seen us falling from the
sky.

“Any idea where we are?” Kai asked.

I looked up and down the street, and in the
distance, I noticed the sign of a fast food restaurant I
recognized.

“We’re on Bleaker Street,” I said
confidently. “We’re only about a half mile from the compound.”

“Wow, they got us pretty close,” Kai
admitted.

“Um, Alexi?” I chimed. “You can put me down,
now.”

He hesitated for a moment, and then he let my
feet fall gently to the ground. He kept his arm firmly around my
waist for a moment, and then he reluctantly loosened it.

“Let us go,” Alexi said.

It didn’t take us long to reach the compound.
Alexi had called ahead, and they were expecting us. We were met at
the gates by a security detail, and they ushered us quickly
inside.

I took my bag upstairs to my room, which was
just as I had left it. I placed my bag on the bed, and went into
the bathroom to wash my face. While I was in there, I heard a knock
on my door. I quickly dried my face, and I went to see who it
was.

“Your presence is requested in the dining
hall,” a young man in an acolyte’s robe told me.

“Thank you,” I said.

He bowed, and I followed him to the dining
hall. Alexi, Liam, and Kai were already sitting at a table. A tray
of food was sitting in front of an empty chair.

“Alice,” Alexi greeted me. “I took the
liberty of getting you something to eat. I hope I chose something
you will enjoy.”

I sat down and took a look at the food. It
was a plate of spaghetti with meat sauce, garlic bread, and a
salad. A bottle of Dr. Pepper sat beside it.

“This looks great, actually,” I admitted.

“Yeah, except he gave you Coke, before,” Liam
snorted.

“I like Coke just fine,” I said.

“But you prefer Dr. Pepper these days,” he
countered.

“Oh, good grief!” I snarled. “I don’t care
what I drink right now!”

“Jeez! Sorry,” Liam scoffed.

“No, I’m sorry,” I said with contrition. “I
didn’t mean to snap at you.”

“It’s fine,” Liam said, his voice sounding
hurt.

“Isn’t anyone else going to eat?” I
asked.

“We can eat, later,” Alexi answered. “We have
business to discuss.”

My eyes gravitated toward the ancient book on
the table in front of Alexi. He had one hand resting lightly on the
cover.

“Is that the book about Dmitri’s clan?” I
asked, twirling spaghetti on my fork.

“It is,” Alexi said. “And I have located some
useful information.”

“Already? I was only upstairs for five
minutes.”

“I knew what to look for.”

“And what did you find?” I pressed him.

“It seems as though Dmitri’s only ability is
a very thorough command of the art of dark magic,” Alexi said
gravely. “He is adept at much more than simply controlling
wraiths.”

“That’s good, though, right? He only has the
one ability.”

“Alice, that ability will allow him to do
nearly
anything
,” Alexi said. “Because he can control the
dark forces, his powers are virtually limitless.”

I dropped my fork, and it clinked loudly
against my ceramic plate. I swallowed a bite of spaghetti, and it
stuck in my throat. I took a swig of Dr. Pepper to wash it down,
and then I took a deep breath.

“What are we going to do?” I asked.

“There’s only one thing we can do,” Alexi
acknowledged. “We must learn to harness the power of dark magic
ourselves.”

“You can’t be serious!” Liam shouted. “You
know how Father felt about that, and Grandfather explicitly forbade
its use centuries ago!”

“I do not believe we have a choice,” Alexi
admitted, shaking his head somberly.

“There
has
to be another way,” Liam
argued. “You remember what Father said it can do to someone who
uses it. Besides, only certain people have the ability to use it.
What if we can’t?”

“We have to try, Liam,” Alexi said. “It is
the only way. And we only have a day to learn.”

“Then let’s get started!” I chirped.

“No!” Alexi raged. “
You
will not be
participating!”

“Alexi, I…”

“I said no! I will not allow you to risk
yourself.”

“What’s to risk? I don’t understand. What
does it do to people?”

Alexi sighed deeply. Clearly, he was troubled
by the very thought, and he didn’t want to discuss it.

“Tell me,” I demanded.

“Those who use dark magic are prone to losing
their minds,” Alexi finally stated. “The dark forces can take over
one’s mind, and it can turn them into evil abominations.”

“Like Dmitri?” I asked.

“Yes, like Dmitri,” Alexi agreed. “You know,
he was once our father’s closest friend. He got into dark magic,
and it changed him. When Grandfather saw what it did to Dmitri, he
forbade anyone from using it, and he insisted Father cut all ties
with Dmitri immediately. Father complied, of course. He spoke to
Dmitri only briefly a handful of times since then.”

“Do you know what Dmitri meant when he said
your father had something of his?” I asked.

“I am not certain,” Alexi admitted. “But I
have a pretty good idea. In the book, it spoke of a talisman Dmitri
used in his dark magic rituals. The book says someone took it from
him, and it weakened him significantly. I am guessing the talisman
is what he was referring to. I would guess Father took it from him
and hid it somewhere.”

“Do you know where your father might have
hidden it?”

“Fortunately, no,” Alexi said.

“Fortunately?”

“If Father took it away from Dmitri and hid
it, he probably had a very good reason for doing so. If we don’t
know where it is, Dmitri cannot get his hands on it.”

“How could Dmitri get it just because you
know where it is?” I asked.

“How do you think?” Liam interjected.

I thought for a moment, and then I got a
sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

“Oh,” I acknowledged. “You mean he could…
torture you?”

“Or worse,” Alexi added.

“Oh, my God,” I groaned. “But what if you
just gave it back to him? He said he would return me if Barnabas
gave him what he wanted.”

“That was before he realized how powerful you
are,” Alexi said. “He now wants you more than he wants the
talisman, or at least as much.”

“What? Why?”

“Because you are more useful to him,” Alexi
answered.

“I want to help,” I told Alexi. “Please, let
me try.”

“Absolutely not!” Alexi’s voice boomed
through the dining hall. “I will not risk such a thing.”

“What if you can’t do it?” I asked. “If none
of you has the ability, will you let me try?”

“No,” Alexi said. “Not even then.”

“But…”

“This discussion is over,” Alexi said,
standing up quickly. “Liam, Kai, let us go downstairs and get
started.”

“I’m coming,” I said, jumping to my feet and
rushing to Alexi’s side.

“No, you are not!” Alexi demanded.

“Now look here!” I shouted, stomping my foot
angrily and shoving my wagging finger in his face. “You may be able
to keep me from learning how to use this dark magic stuff, but I’m
going to be there to watch you, and you can’t stop me!”

Alexi stared at me for a moment, and then
relented.

“Fine, you may come to watch,” Alexi
grumbled. “But you are not to attempt anything you see. Is that
understood?”

“Yes, fine,” I lied.

I hated lying to Alexi. I hated lying to
anyone I cared about, but it especially hurt me to do it to Alexi.
He was always looking out for my best interests, but I needed to
learn this stuff somehow.

I followed him downstairs, and we entered one
of the classrooms. I’d never been in this one, before. In the
center of the dark room, there was a huge stone altar surrounded by
several candelabra. Alexi waved his hand, and all of them were
instantly lit. I gasped.

“What?” Alexi asked, suddenly at high
alert.

“I’ve never seen you do that,” I
admitted.

“Oh, that,” Alexi sighed, clearly relieved.
“It is nothing.”

“Well,
I
thought it was impressive,” I
shrugged.

Alexi chuckled.

In the back of the room, a very old looking
table stood, and an even older book sat atop it. The book was
covered with a thick layer of dust and cobwebs. It was clear this
book had not been touched in a very long time.

Alexi blew the dust away from the cover and
opened it carefully. The binding creaked slightly as it opened, and
the pages rustled as Alexi flipped through them.

“We will start with something simple,” Alexi
said. “Kai, Liam, approach the altar. We are going to try to summon
a flame onto the altar.”

“Like what you just did?” I asked.

“No, it is not the same thing,” Alexi
answered. “My ability is my own. It does not come from dark
magic.”

Kai and Liam both stepped over to the altar.
Kai stood across from Liam, and the two of them looked to Alexi for
guidance.

“Place your hands on the altar, and repeat
after me,” Alexi instructed.

Both Kai and Liam placed their hands on the
altar.

“In the name of the Dark Father, I invoke the
spirit of the flame,” Alexi said.

Kai and Liam both repeated the phrase as
instructed. Alexi watched carefully for something, and when it did
not occur, his mouth twisted into a frustrated frown.