Destiny Calls (28 page)

“Cybil walked in on me and Destiny,” Cain quickly explained.

Vito’s head popped up. “You’re hooking up with my sister? Dude, not cool.”

Dane got in his face. “What do you mean? Walked in on?”

“I mean we were fooling around, and she walked in without knocking. She’s upset. I have to find her.”

Cain ran out of the house and spotted a flash of red. Cybil was heading up the hill toward the south.

“Cybil!”

She turned to face him and then quickly continued on. He jogged after her and heard Dane echoing his sister’s name not too far behind.

“Cybil, stop running! I want to talk to you,” Cain called after her.

Dane caught up to him and scowled alongside Cain as they chased after her. “Why is she so upset?” he demanded, and Cain had the sudden thought that Dane was getting a little too big for his britches. He didn’t need a lecture from a seventeen-year-old, mortal boy.

“I have no idea, Dane. I guess she didn’t like what she saw.”

“What were you doing?” he asked accusingly.

Cain shot him a hard look. “It’s none of your damn business.” He then turned toward the south and shouted again, “Cybil!”

“Damn it!” Dane snapped. “She’s heading to that damn bull pen.” He ran faster.

A jolt of fear had Cain’s steps staggering. “Clive’s pen? Why would she go there?” He increased his pace.

“You know how she is. She likes to hang out places people don’t usually go.
Cybil!
Stay away from that bull!”

As they crested the hill, Cain’s heart stuttered. She was climbing the gate to the fence. The bull was at the far side of the pen, but not happy about the trespasser. “Cybil,
no!
”

She looked back at him, their eyes meeting over the long distance, and even from this far away he could spot her tears. He picked up his pace and bolted toward the fence. His increase in speed seemed to jar her. She turned and quickly hopped over the gate.

“
Cybil! Get out of there!
” Dane shouted, running as fast as his legs could carry him.

The bull huffed, steam bellowing out of his nostrils as he stomped his front hoof. “Dear God, please…” he prayed as he sped to inhuman speeds. It was too late.

By the time he reached the gate, two thousand pounds of muscle and flesh was barreling toward Cybil. “
Cybil!
”

Her red dress blew in the wind like a taunting flag as Clive charged toward her, horns down, fur already sweating. “
Run, Cybil, Run!
”

Dane shouted behind him as he jumped the gate and tore into the pen. The bull raced toward the center where she stood, her red skirt whipping in the wind. Cain and Clive raced toward her, only the bull got there first. He screamed in horror as Cybil’s small body took the impact of the bull, red skirts swirling as she crumpled to the ground in a cloud of dust. “
No!
”

When he made it to her, the bull was just turning and coming back for more. Cain faced the animal with such rage pumping through his veins he could barely control himself. He growled at the beast as it charged toward them, ran at it, meeting it head-on. When he crashed into the bull using all his strength, the animal bleated in pain. Cain grabbed hold of its horns, spreading over five feet wide, and grunted as he gave a sharp twist. The animal’s neck snapped, and it fell to the ground. He quickly turned and went to Cybil’s crumpled form.

His hand shook as he gently reached out to touch her pale cheek. Dane skidded in the dirt beside him, frantic, and crashed down on his knees.

“She’s okay, she’s okay, she’s okay,” Dane repeated over and over again. Cain knew before he touched her that her heart had stopped.

“Tell me she’s okay?” the boy growled angrily at him.

Cain looked at him, the wind cold against the tears running down his face. He shook his head.

Dane shook. “
No! No! Do you hear me?
” He shoved Cain and Cain didn’t think to stop him. “
You fix this! You bring her back!
”

Cain looked at him, wishing he could undo this, but knew he couldn’t. He swallowed hard against the lump in his throat. “Dane, I’m sorry—”

“No! Don’t you apologize to me!
You fucking fix this right now!
”

“I can’t!” Cain practically sobbed back at the boy.

Dane shouted in his direction as tears streamed down his face. “I know what you are, and I know you can bring her back!
Why won’t you save her?
”

He tried to hold the boy, but he shook him off. “Dane, you don’t understand. She isn’t my mate. It only works if she’s my mate.”

“That’s not true. I heard the other men talking. They said it can still be done.”

“Who did you hear?”

“It doesn’t matter! You’re losing time. Do it!”

“I can’t. If she isn’t my mate, it will make her mad. She won’t be the same.”

“
You don’t know that!
” He looked at him with such desperation in his young eyes. Cybil was all Dane had left. As if his strength suddenly abandoned him, he fell into a fit of sobs. Dane wiped the heel of his palm angrily at his eyes. “Please, Cain. She’s all I have left.”

Unable to deny him, Cain reached for Cybil’s small form and pulled her limp body into his arms. He looked at Dane one last time, and the boy nodded. Cain opened his mouth wide and hissed as his fangs punched free from his gums. He sank his teeth into the child’s tender neck and drained her dry. He could taste the youth in her blood, and it made him sick. Why was life so cruel?

Still reluctant to go on, he hesitated a moment after he placed her pale, bloodless body back onto the ground. The contrast of her crimson dress against her pastel white skin looked unnatural.

“Do it!” Dane growled.

Cain bit into his wrist and quickly pressed it to her lips. Droplets of red, so dark against her translucent skin they appeared black, dotted her chin. She wasn’t swallowing. Cain pulled her into his lap and tipped back her head.

Her bonnet fell to the ground and her unbraided, straggly white-blonde hair spilled over his sleeve. “Rub your hand over her throat. She has to swallow it.”

Dane did as he was told and forced as much of Cain’s blood into her body as possible. When the wound on his wrist closed, he carefully pulled his arm away and rocked her. She was so thin and small. Dane rocked with him, never taking his eyes off his sister’s still form.

“What now?”

“Now we wait and see if it worked.” He looked at the boy and wanted to warn him that if she survived he may very soon wish she hadn’t, but figured his words were useless at this point.

Although the elders weren’t completely sure, Cain had seen what had become of the transitions in the woods. A mortal only turned safely if it was through the blood of their mate. He didn’t want to do that to Cybil. Why had she run into the damn pen?

His body shook as he took a deep breath, and he realized he was still crying. He looked at Dane who was crying as well. All of this was Isaiah’s fault. If he hadn’t killed their mother, they wouldn’t have been here and Cybil would still be alive.

“Did you see that?” Dane whispered. “Her finger twitched.”

Cain laid her out on the ground and carefully pulled her red dress over her knees. He put an arm up, forcing Dane to step back. Her finger twitched again. Dane tried to go to her, but Cain put a restraining hand on his arm. Cain looked at her chest. There was the slightest flicker, too light for Dane’s mortal eyes to detect, as her heart began to pump.

Color slowly returned to her skin in a red wave from her chest to her shoulders to her fingertips.

“It’s working!” Dane said, and Cain apprehensively watched as color rose in her neck, putting life back in her cheeks, and taking away the gaunt appearance of her sunken skin.

Dane gasped, and Cain followed the boy’s gaze to Cybil’s hands. The cuticles filling the beds of her nails receded, and the choppy, chapped skin around her fingertips rejuvenated. Her hair thickened from baby fine to a weighty mass with a full and healthy sheen. Her lips plumped and pinkened and her silver lashes practically doubled in length.

They waited, neither one of them daring to breathe.

Suddenly Cybil’s chest filled, her small dress tightening and expanding over her small chest. Her mouth opened wide and two sharp little fangs showed over her bloodred tongue. Her eyes opened, but they were no longer blue. There was no white surrounding her irises. Dane gasped as he stared into liquid pools of red.

Cain quickly stood and yanked the boy behind him.

“Wha—”

“Stay back!” Cain held Dane behind him as Cybil blinked and panted at the sky.

“Cain?” Cain turned quickly at the sound of Destiny’s voice.

“Destiny, go back to the house,” he shouted, trying to keep his voice calm and praying she listened to him. He looked back down at Cybil who was appearing more and more agitated by the second.

“Is everything all right?” Destiny called, and he could tell she was getting closer.

“Everything’s fine. Go back to the house,” he yelled quickly.

“Where are you—”

“
Go back to the damn house!
” he shouted, and suddenly Cybil shot to her feet with unnatural agility and speed.

He looked back at the new transition and saw no remnants of the sweet little girl in her eyes. “Cybil,” he said her name slowly, soothingly. “Listen to me, Cybil. We only want to help you.”

Her head lowered as she hunched over, bringing her shoulders up to her ears. She reminded Cain of a vulture on a perch. Her eyes tracked every movement, ready to attack at any moment. He prayed Destiny didn’t say another word and did as he said. Unfortunately, as always, his prayers went unanswered.

Destiny stomped into view, a scowl on her face, obviously prepared to give him hell for speaking to her in such a nasty way. As soon as she stepped into view, Cybil saw her and growled. Cain looked at Destiny, and fear choked him. “
Destiny, get out of here!
”

She breathed in, no doubt to deliver him an insult, but all that left her lips was a scream. Cybil was in front of her in a heartbeat. Cain was right behind her. Destiny’s scream was cut short as the small vampyre latched onto her and sunk her fangs into her throat.

Cain ripped the girl off of Destiny and winced at the terror showing in her eyes. Thankfully, Cybil had come up short, only biting Destiny’s shoulder, but the damage was not good.

Blood ran down her chest as she laid on her back with eyes the size of moons. “Dane! Take Destiny to the house. Tell Gracie what’s happened and have her look at Destiny’s neck.”

Cybil struggled in his arms, biting and clawing at his flesh. He winced and she gouged a deep cut in his neck while swinging her arms and hissing like a banshee. He held her small form under his arm, ignoring the blood trickling from his ear.

“Where are you going? What are you doing with Cybil?” Dane asked quickly.

“I’m taking her to the bishop. There are containment rooms in the basement where she can wait until we figure out what’s to be done with her.”

“What do you mean, ‘what’s to be done with her’?”

Having made enough explanations for one day, he growled and gave the boy a warning look. Through gritted teeth he said, “I mean exactly what I told you when I said this couldn’t be done. Like a fool I listened to a mortal rather than my elders, but don’t you worry. It is I who shall pay for this crime. Cybil and I. Now get Destiny back to the house like I told you!”

Chapter 25

Grace turned from Vito as her mind was assaulted by a melee of frantic thoughts. Excruciating loss stuck her, and she jerked at the intensity of it. Whose? She searched for a mental fingerprint and gasped when she realized it was coming from Dane.

She was out the front door in half a heartbeat. Dane’s face was as white as a sheet, and Destiny had blood running down her chest. Her mind wrapped around Dane’s.
Gone. Dead. Vampyre. Evil. Gone.

She struggled to decipher what had happened. A flurry of images, Cain breaking the bull’s neck. Cybil being impaled. Gracie gasped and reached for the railing, needing the support. “Dear God, no.”

Her mind filled with images of Cain, Dane’s voice railing at him and then her brother doing the unthinkable. He had turned the child.

Vito came onto the porch, “Where’d you go, Gracie—for the love of fuck! What the hell happened, D?” He stumbled down the porch to his sister. She fell into the shelter of his arms, hiccupping sobs and incoherent words in a foreign language. Vito soothed her and once he was convinced she had no mortal injuries, shuffled her to a rocker on the front porch.

Grace stood waiting for Dane to look at her. When he did, the two of them said nothing, but shared every emotion there was. Sorrow, regret, affection, grief, loneliness, anger. There was no end to the abyss that he had fallen into, and Gracie feared this would be the end of sweet Dane. How was one expected to be a child after so much misery? Damn this world for being so cruel.