Vindicate (31 page)

“Is this what you want?” he asked. “Did you need me to stand here with you ? Why would you want to remember something that will never happen agai n? Go back to where I found you. L
ooks like you have a few new friends from there,” he seethed as he looked past me.

Draven and Brady were walking up the steps; Olivia had appeared at our side.

I reached my hand for his chest and slowly moved it up to his beautiful face. “Tell me. W
hat is the foundation of this place? W
hat words are sacred here?”

With those words, he vanished.

Draven leaned against the railing and looked around at my home. “Nice.”

My eyes moved out to the field . T
o the peace Chara had. I wanted to go home.
I was sick of playing games.

“Is it just me, or is she doing everything in her power to keep us away from the E
state?” I asked.

“I was starting to think I was the only one picking up on that,” Brady said as he looked in the direction of where his home would be if this place were real.

“Let’s end this,” I said, reaching for his arm .

Instantly, my porch vanished and we were in the lobby of the Estate. I was almost certain I could feel the real Landen. T
hat I could reme mber what floor Drake’s chamber was on.

I started to walk up the elegant , wide stairs. An image of Drake leaning against Bianca, kissing her neck passionately, appeared a few steps up. I walked past it without any emotion. Once I was a step above them, I hesitated and looked back at Bianca. “No wonder you have to steal men. Y
ou’re really bad at this passion thing,” I said smugly.

Laughter erupted from Draven as the image of Drake vanished and Bianca glared at me. I winked at her and continued my climb. The stairs broke into a large landing where two more staircas es appeared, one to the left and one to the right. I felt Landen to the left and went that way. At the top of those stairs, I was sure I was on the right floor.

Bianca appeared again, this time with an image of Landen.
Apparently, she was trying to prove me wrong. T
his time her display – the image’s display, were ones that should never be viewed through an open door. I shook my head in disgust, trying to hold my anger in . I was over her. B
eyond over her.
Thunder rattled the E
state in reflection of that emotion, which made Bianca giggle seductively.

I gritted my teeth and passed her by, knowing that I could feel the real Landen just ahead. A few doors down, I thought I felt Charlie.
Aden. I knew they were close. I opened the next door, feeling Landen there.

What I saw was horrific. The walls of the room were ripped away, and the floor was covered with broken glass and furniture . Landen’s body was lying across the floor, and Drake’s was leaning against the wall. Charlie and Madison were there, screaming his name.

Charlie looked up at me. “I can’t wake him ! D
o something ! G
ive him everything ! Q
uick!” she yelled.

I hesitated. I didn’t understand.
I didn’t understand why I co uld feel Aden but not see him. W
hy Charlie would want me to give everything to Drake first, knowing he would drain me without even trying. Something was off. I looked to my side at Draven; his eyes were furrowed as he stared at Charlie.

“Draven, help me!” she screamed. “Tell her to help!”

I glanced at her wrist. It was bare. N
o tattoo. With one thought, I flung Charlie’s image against the wall. Draven rushed to her side and pushed the sleeves of her hoodie up further ensuring himself that she was an image. When he saw her bare wrist, she vanished; so did the image of Madison.

“They’re here,” I heard Aden say and turned to see him, Charlie and Madison at Landen’s side.

Instinctively, I took at step toward them, but Brady held me back. “Take of f your ho o ddies,” he demanded .

Charlie looked at him like he was insane but then followed Madison’s lead. Chills spread across their shoulders. T
heir tank tops were not near ly enough to protect them from the harsh wind that was blowing through the open walls.

Brady glanced to his side at Olivia. Without an argument, she let her hoo d ie fall to th e ground. I did the same.
I didn’t want them charging me t hinking I was someone else.

I wanted a marker. S
omething to write with, and instantly it appeared in my hand. Across my wrist, I wrote the word ‘love,’
then handed it to Olivia for her to do the sa me.
The y understood what I was doing. T
hat for all I knew, Bianca would mock that tattoo in their images and I would make an irreversible mistake.
I dared her to write this word on her skin.
Britain had proven how deadly one four letter word could be just moments ago.

Olivia threw the marker at Madison, and once that sacred word was on their skin, Brady let me go. I dove onto the floor next to Landen. As I took his face in my hands, I nodded at Madison. “Go help Drake.”

Something was wrong. Landen had next to no aura at all. Even though t his was his image, more real than the illusions we’d seen, this wasn’t all of him. A sinking feeling gripped my soul. He was gone. I knew he was gone. This Realm had claimed him. Tears of livid grief glassed over my eyes.

Brady and Draven were already bringing Drake’s body to us.
“
Landen! O
pen your eyes! Open your eyes!
”
I yelled in my thoughts, getting no response. I let my lips rest against his, finding him cold. U
nresponsive.
My soul ached.

“Why can’t I wake him?!” I yelled in frustration.
I didn’t want anyone to tell me what I already knew. I wanted a solution. I wanted to turn back the clock. Save him.

“Britain said they were here, but your victory was where yo ur existence began,” Draven offered in a humble tone .
I felt his grief and knew that our victory had already been stolen.

“Britain?” Madison said as her eyes locked with mine .

“I didn’t hurt him.
I keep my promises.” I seethed .
It was a cold response, but it wasn’t directed at her. It was directed at the universe. Karma had no right to punish me this way. No right at all.

“So do I,” Madison said as her eyes fell back to Drake.
With a glance I knew he was gone, too.
Where Landen held a faint hint of energy, Drake had none at all.

My thoughts w ere racing in every direction.
I knew that Perodine had told me I was born in the study she now spent all of her days in, but I didn’t understand wh y I needed to be in that room.
Or i f it would even help us recover this epic tragedy.
I was afraid it was a trap. T
hat Bianc a wa nted me there. But then again I was ready for a fight. One way or another I was leaving this Realm with Landen.

“The observatory,” Olivia said, gripping my shoulder, trying to fight the intense cold that was making her shiver. “That’s where my dream was.”

I looked at each of them, finding a common agreement. I reached for Landen and Drake’s arm s , hoping against all hope that if I focused on that room that we would all be there.

“Create it,” Aden said, staring at me.

Instantly, the stone floor of the observatory appeared beneath us. I looked up to find the open ceiling, then to my side to see the pool of water. M
y power.

I scurried to my feet and scooped up handfuls of water and took it to Landen, letting it wash over his face. I nstan tly, he took a gasping breath.
Charlie and Madison started to take water to Drake, getting the same response.
The breath didn’t bring their energy back, though. Their souls were gone. I just knew they were. My rage was making the room rumble fiercely. It was my call to battle. Where was that evil wench ?!

As Olivia reached in the pool to help me , her hand froze. T
he entire pool froze. She screamed out in agony. I focused on a ray of sun, and through the open window t he ice around her hand melted. S
he pulled her purple, frozen hand out, taking deep, controlling breaths.

All at once, her image – my image – Charlie’s – Madison’s – they were multiplied across the room. Brady, Aden, and Draven had vanished, along with the bodies of Landen and Drake. T
he only sound was the echo of Bianca’s laugh.

I took in a deep breath as my eyes glared across the ro om. I focused on the emotions. To where the real Olivia, and Charlie were. Odd ly, I could not only feel them but I could still feel Aden, Brady and Draven. I was terrified that one of these images was them. T
hat they were masked. I reg retted instantly not having the boys mark t hemselves with the world ‘love.’

“I f any of you are real – say the word. W
hisper it ! Yell it, but you bet ter say something – otherwise I can’t promise that you will not be hurt!” I yelled into the room.

In the center of the frozen pool of water, an image of me began to mock Bianca’s laugh. “Now,” the image said, putting her hand on her hip, “you wouldn’t hurt little ol’ me, now would you?”

I raised my hand, and a bolt of lightning came from the ceiling, targeting the spot she was standing – she vanished before the strike could have any effect. My anger erupted around us. The wind blew fiercely, thunder crashed and lightning struck.

My eyes moved from image to image, watching them vanish, but with e ach one that I struck anothe r appeared then began to charge me. That’s when my anger reached a new height. W
hen the wind became so strong that I could barely stand.

I focused on the pool that had over a hundred image s on it and thought of the sun. A blazing light came throu gh the ceiling. T
he ice began to weaken immediately.

Something was wrong. I felt ice pouring through me. Frantically I looked to my side and saw Bianca. Her arm was literally inside of me. An evil smirk was plastered on her face. “Gotcha.” She whispered as my knees gave way. She held on to me, ensuring that the agony of her arm inside of me would continue its torment.

This was it. I’d failed. I knew what death felt like. And I knew this time there was no one to bring me back.

I saw a mix of dark and light energy snaking out of me and absorbing into Bianca . She was taking my soul. I had an awful fear that if she did – t hat if she took enough of my energy that my family would never know that I was gone. She would take my place. They would not die as quickly as I did, but suffer forever more.
My actions before this moment would have given them every reason to believ e that I could become malevolent .

I struggled to fight back. At best I was only proving to be difficult, not deadly , to her.

All at once the earth rumbled and a hum th at was so high pitch that it painfully stabbed my eardrums filled the room . I squinted my eyes unable to handle the agon y. I felt Bianca release me. I fell to my knees.

I’m not sure when silence came s imply because my ears were ringing. Moment s later the heavy sent of peppermint made me question my surroundings. I breathed in deeply feeling an awesome cleansing sensation rush over me.

When I opened my eyes I saw an empty white marble room, elegant marble stairs leading to higher levels in this enormous room .
Shimmering white doves circled the floor I was on, staring into me.
T
he bodies of Landen and Drake were gone. The images of me were gone. The pool of water was gone.

What the hell just happened?

Slowly I let my eyes rise. A few feet before me was a boy my age. His hair was dark, to o long to be considered short, and to o short to be cons idered long. His eyes were gray, yet they looked like diamonds.
Shards of light rippled through his stare.
His skin was tan, shoulders broad. Tall. Lean.
The heavy aroma of peppermint belonged to him. The scent complemented the essence of his energy. Powerful. Pure. Cleansing. Everlasting.

An insane amount of power was pouring o ff of him. The room was literally vibrating because of it. Or maybe I was vibrating. I didn’t know anymore.

Bianca was suspended in thin air, turning slowly. Her eyes were vacant. I wasn’t sure she if she was even alive.

“Who are you?
”
I said in the most powerful voice I could manage.

A ghostly smile echoed on the edges of his divine lips . This guy was near angelic. Was he even real?

Carefully he reached his long arm down to help me up. I hesitated, but took his hand anyway. I was in pain. Wiped out.

The second his flesh touched mine I felt a jolt of energy. An electric shock that returned everything Bianca had taken from me, and then some. I felt like I had just awakened from a night of being surrounded by Landen’s energy.

I held in the sigh that wanted to escape as I stood. He was taller than I thought. Maybe even taller than Landen. Now that I felt whole I tried to use my insights to judg e him, but I could n’t feel anything.
He was vacant, yet consuming at the same time.