I shook my head. My stomach churned. That couldn’t be true. I couldn’t be—she couldn’t be.
“You’re lying.”
She gestured to her face. “Am I?”
“You’re lying!” I shouted. “You can’t be—”
She rolled her eyes and cast her voice low and gravelly like something out of a movie I’d seen just once a long time ago.
“Hedy, … I am your sister.” She burst into giggles and clapped. “I’ve always wanted to do that. Didn’t think I’d get a chance. One more off the--”
“You aren’t my sister! Don’t ever call me that! I only have one sister—”
“That other idiot? Bella, right?” She shrugged. “I mean, I wouldn’t have said it out loud or ever acknowledged it considering her choice in fiancé… and the fact that she’s a thief. But, he
I couldn’t believe what she was saying. There was no way that I could do that. I loved Candido so much. I couldn’t keep something like this from him. We just got to the point where he would kiss me. If I thought about how much he hated vampires, how much werewolves in general hated vampires, I couldn’t even imagine keeping it from him.“No.” She scoffed. I glared at her. “No. I’m not keeping this from him.”She shrugged. “Okay.”I narrowed my eyes. “Okay…?”She shrugged. “Your lineage. Your daddy. Your problem.”I narrowed my eyes as she took another long drag of her pipe. There was something off about that. I didn’t like how easily she just gave in. She wasn’t even trying to convince me of her side. Did she not care? Why would she even suggest me keeping this from him if it didn’t matter.“Well, as lovely as this all was,&rdquo
I blinked up at him, looking up into his eyes as most of the conversation with Raven came back. I leaned into his arms and let out a soft breath.“I’m fine,” I said, feeling a little feverish from embarrassment. I licked my lips, thinking more about it, more about what else she would tell me and what could happen next.I didn’t want to jeopardize all the good things that were in my future with Candido.I didn’t want to jeopardize any of it, so I hugged him tight and started to think about what it would mean to ease him into the idea.I swallowed. “We should get going.”“I don’t know where the entrance leads now,” he said. We’ve sent scouts ahead.”“Out of the caves,” I said. “She said… it would take us back the way we came and… that we should stay out.”“On what authority?” He asked. “Who was she?”
I rushed to get dressed, but I was sluggish. Candido wasn’t much better, we hustled out of the room only to find Vanessa running down the hall.“Stay behind,” Vanessa said.“But—”“We don’t need you two out and about in the field still at odds.”I said nothing, but Candido seemed offended. “You think that we can’t—”“You’re also swaying on your feet,” Vanessa said. “Get some rest and take the time to get whatever is going on resolved.” She stopped and looked at us both with a menacing finger pointed at us. “That’s an order to both of you.”I set my jaw, wanting to protest. This wasn’t a Moon Shadow issue. She had no right to tell me what to do with regard to my relationship with Candido, but the only thing I could think of was everything that Raven told me, and if Steven had given Candido all the information he
I looked at my calendar and wondered if I’d make it to that day. I looked up at Candido and shook that thought away. Candido would protect me. He wouldn’t let anything happen to me. I’d turn twenty. We’d get married. These vampires would go away once Candido got through with them.For now, we just had to get to Red Moon.I got dressed in new gear. Candido got dressed in tactical gear too and the rest of Moon Shadow who could still fight loaded into the jeeps and headed to Red Moon on the quickest paths. The pathway into the caves didn’t even appear, but I felt the forest shifting around us as if someone was trying to get us there as quickly as possible.“The forests are shifting,” Francium said. “Are you doing that?”Candido remained silent for a moment. “Gilgamesh?”“I feel it too,” he called back. “I don’t know.”“Everyone keep on guard,” Candido called. “We might be heading into another trap.”My heart lurched and drew closer to Candido. He took my hand.“Whatever you do, stay wit
Candido squeezed me and pulled me forward into the building through the unlocked back door. She turned around and shrieked at us.“Go away!” She yelled. “I’m so tired—Who are you? What do you want?”“She’s more than drunk,” Candido said. “Something’s wrong with her.”She sneered. “And what is it to you? Shouldn’t you be happy getting a free show?”I sneered at her. “Candido didn’t want you for a reason. No one else does either.”Her eyes flashed and she screeched. “That bitch Hedy is to blame! If she hadn’t gotten involved, everything would have been perfect.”She stumbled. “Candido loved me.”I growled at her. “Candido, never loved you—”“Pandora, stand down,” Candido said, pulling me back.“What would you know, stupid bitch!” Sibyl hissed. “You look so dumb in that stupid mask! I bet you’re hiding your ugly face.”I couldn’t help it. I lunged forward, tearing away from Candido before he could react.“Pandora, no!”Sibyl turned sharply, smashing the bottle of wine in her hand across
I groaned. My ears were ringing. I was so hot like I was surrounded by fire, and my head ached. The world was hazy around the edges, but I smelled blood. A lot of blood, like I had walked into a blood bath, yet I wasn’t covered in it. I looked around as I felt heat getting closer and more intense nearby, like a fire was building.I shifted, trying to get up though my head was spinning. Had I hit it? I had to have hit my head. What had exploded? I reached up, trying to feel for a bump. My hand came back slick with blood. I didn’t feel good.Where was Candido?Could we leave now?Was it over?Where was Norton? Sibyl?“Think about the baby,” Sibyl’s voice whimpered nearby. “What about our child? Our son?”I frowned, looking over toward where she was speaking. She was still naked. The curve of her stomach seemed highlighted in the firelight as she cradled it and looked up at Damian standing a few feet from her. She was on her knees in front of him. She looked pathetic, but I noticed that
I was falling and falling through darkness. Hard surfaces jumped out at me, shoving, pushing me. My head ached as if something was pulling my hair—pulling me along by my hair. Then, it released me. The wind scooped me up and tumbled me around. I opened my eyes to complete darkness and my heart lurched as I slammed into something. I was in that cave again, just falling and tumbling around. I hit several hard walls, unsure of where the next one would come from, I tried to protect myself, but for every time I braced, it came from somewhere else.I didn’t know how long I was tossed around, but then, I was free-falling straight down until I landed in the deep dark waters. I struggled for the surface, but I couldn’t. The currents were too strong just like before. I hurt much more than before, and there was no reason for it. My lungs burned. I wanted to scream. Where was Raven? Wouldn’t she help me, or was she too busy with her threesome to notice I was in the caves again? They slammed me ar
I screamed as it pushed, burned, and tore through my hand, melting into the stone beneath me. I tried to move my fingers but I couldn’t feel them. I couldn’t feel anything but the pain.I screamed and screamed and screamed. The pain was all I could think of. I felt like I didn’t have enough air in my lungs. He moved like a shadow around the altar, still chanting, though the tone had turned almost cheerful. I turned my head trying to avoid the next one, but there wasn’t time. I had no strength. I felt like all of my strength had been taken from me.I smelled more burning flesh and realized that the stone glinted in the moonlight.It was laced with silver. My stomach lurched with fear. Raven wasn’t affected by silver. Why was I being affected now?He pressed his hand against my forearm and plunged another stake through my right shoulder. I arched off the altar, pushing and straining against the stone arches as I screamed again. It burned. I could smell it.“Candido!” I screamed, listeni