Fighting Destiny (Central Coven) (23 page)

I was about to go over and grab Anita, Dean and Finn, since time was of the essence, when a cold hand clasped tight over my mouth so I couldn’t scream.  Another icy, iron grip slid around my waist, pinning me against him without hope of getting free.  The hand on my mouth pulled my head sharply to the side to expose my neck, and I felt the sharpness of fangs drag across the tenderness of my skin.

I closed my eyes, clenched my fists, and willed my body to become electrified.  Suddenly my assailant was tossed off of me as if he were trying to caress a live wire.  “Good!  I just wanted to be sure you could protect yourself.  I might not be able to be right by you every second, and it will be a lot easier to focus if I know you can protect yourself.”

“Aah! Dammit Grey, I should hit you, but I already electrocuted you,” I fumed.  “Sorry love, I had to know how you would handle yourself.  I came to see you, and then I saw what was going on here. I worry about you,” he shrugged.  I glared.  My eyes instantly blazed green, and then returned to their natural deep brown.  “That is sweet, but I still want to hit you.”  He chuckled, “Later, if we live through this I’ll let you take out all sorts of frustrations on me.”  “You have such a dirty mind.”

Anita, with Dean and Finn in tow, entered the room.  “What’s the plan?” Dean asked, ready for action.  “Well, considering that the dorm is surrounded by vampires we had no idea were coming…there really isn’t one.  What I do have are cloaks that will preserve our anonymity.  That way none of our neighbors will even ask us questions about what is going on, because they won’t know we were there. Also, I have potions that will make any humans that witness anything supernatural forget they were even there.  Other than that, we use all of our abilities,” I explained.  “Alright then, lets do this,” Dean replied eagerly.

I repeated the spell I said earlier to summon the cloaks Anita and I were wearing.  Dean’s was a dark tan, and charmed so it would not hinder him when he shifted into a cougar.  Finn’s cloak was bright blue. Not only did it match his eyes, but also the sky he had so much control over.  Grey’s cloak was the color of charcoal.  It made him blend in better, but also appear more frightening.  Anita’s glittered with gold threads laced through it.  It was mesmerizing like she was.  My cloak was an iridescent green.  The threads were physical pieces of my magic, and worked like a battery to keep my magic strong.

I pulled the hood of my cape over my head and said, “Let’s do this.”  I opened the door and entered into a scene of utter chaos.  People were crouched in the hallway, hiding behind their beds with their doors open, or just walking around dazed.

We walked down the three flights of stairs unnoticed, like ghosts.  On the first floor we found all of the cheerleaders trying to hide under the pool table.  There were rocks, bricks, and broken glass scattered all around the floor. 

“I see you witch!” Alexander shouted.  One of the cheerleaders began to scream.  “Shut up Casey!  They’ll hear you,” Cynthia admonished.  “I can’t help it.  First there are freakin’ vampires outside, and he just said something about a witch.  What the hell is going on?”  The cheerleader asked.  “I don’t know.  We should ask that freak Chloë and her friends, unless they have been eaten already,” Cynthia replied.  I looked at them and for the second time in one day I cast a spell on them to sleep, and they all passed out. 

“Finn, how cold can you make it?” I asked him.  “Only one way to find out,” he answered.  His bright blue eyes turned icy very quickly. “How’s this?” His breath was visible when he exhaled, as if the air was cold.  I smiled at him. “Excellent Finn. You’re a natural.” “Chloë, the cold doesn’t bother us, what are you doing?” Grey asked.

“I need it cold outside to set a perimeter spell.  I also have a few bottles of a potion that I want Anita and Dean to go up one floor and throw them out each side of the building.  That should keep them from coming in.  Then we need to get rid of them and erase the memory of everyone in and around the building.  All that is left after that is to repair the damage the vampires left,” I answered.

“As long as that is all,” Anita responded sarcastically.  “Why do we need a perimeter spell in the first place?” Dean asked.  Just then the realization hit Anita.  “Oh my God.  I was wondering why Alexander and Simone would risk bringing Vanessa back here.  I mean they could get away with bringing Steven. Everyone thinks he is that Masturbator perv, but everyone believes she was kidnapped and murdered.”  She put her hand over her mouth and shook her head in disbelief.

Dean and Finn looked at each other, and back at me.  “Grey could you explain it to them?”  Neither of them noticed the sparks of green magic exploding at the ends of my fingers.  Nor had anyone noticed the enormous strain I had been under since the beginning of this siege.

“Vanessa still has a room here at the dorm since she is only listed as missing.  Therefore, she can invite the other vampires in,” Grey explained.  “Why does it have to be cold?” Dean asked confused. “The cold binds the liquid potion to the ground.  It could be a ring of fire, but we don’t have much time, and there would be evidence afterwards.  This is the easiest way.  Especially since Finn seems to be able to change the temperature.”  “Okay. I understand why we need a perimeter spell and the cold. What I don’t understand is why haven’t they already come in?” Finn added.

They all turned their attention to me again.  Now Grey noticed the magic dancing at the end of my fingers, the extreme bright green of my eyes, and my nose had began to bleed.  “Anita and Dean, quickly dispatch the potion, and then return.  She can’t hold this up much longer,” Grey ordered.  They grabbed the glass vials and ran up the stairs to the second floor.  Once all four bottles were thrown from each side of the building an impenetrable fog surrounded the building, and prevented the vampires from entering. 

I could feel every molecule in the swirling fog.  Each particle stretched my magic, pulling me in every direction at once.  It felt like dozens of needles pricking my skin.  I forced myself to concentrate despite the exhaustion threatening to overcome me.  I forced magic into every microscopic element of the fog.  The charge continued to build, pulling magic out of me by the second.

Anita flashed down the stairs, first followed by Dean.  “Chloë, Chloë, are you Okay?” Anita asked me.  I couldn’t answer.  “Grey, her nose is bleeding,” she alerted.  I couldn’t hold it any longer.  I wasn’t sure if it was long enough, but I was drained.  I released all of the magic I had built up in a burst of light. 

Outside all of the vampires fell to the ground.  Blood started to trickle out of my ear.  “Chloë,” Anita began.  “Put the charms on the vampires,” I urged weakly, and shoved the bag into Anita’s hand.  She nodded her head, and I passed out.

The magical fog seeped into my brain printing images of bodies lying unconscious.  I could see and hear my friends, but I couldn’t respond to them.  I was trapped in my head, but too tired to be frightened.

Grey told Anita, “Take Chloë’s wand, and use it to place the charms inside their clothing.”  “But I can’t use her wand.  I’m not a witch, it won’t work for me,” Anita protested.  “Trust me, Anita. We don’t have time to argue about this,” Grey told her. She took the wand from his hand and motioned to the others to follow her outside.  Anita, Dean and Finn stepped over the bodies and placed the charms the silversmith made, into the seams of their clothes.  “You only need to hold the wand over the charms and wish them to be concealed.  Chloë has already charmed them,” instructed Grey.

While Anita was securing all of the charms, Dean was making sure she was safe, and Finn was controlling the weather.  Once the last charm was secured, many of the vampires started to rouse.  I wanted to scream, I was trapped inside my head and I couldn’t tell them to look out for Alexander.  It turns out I didn’t need to.

“Did you put one of those things on Alexander?” Dean asked Anita.  “No, it won’t work on him.  He isn’t under a spell,” she explained.  “Well, we better do something then, because he is waking up,” Finn pointed out.  Dean released a loud feral growl, and leapt off the ground toward Alexander.  The hazy image of a cougar surrounded Dean, and rapidly solidified. 

Alexander stared at a cougar barreling toward him, and called to the other awaking vampires for help.  As the others awoke they looked around confused.  Their faces showed that they were not sure where they were, or how they got there.  Finn clenched his jaw, and lightening shot across the sky.

The vampires that were standing around dazed raced off in every direction.  Dean cocked his head, and swished his powerful tail back and forth.  His muscular cougar body prepared to pounce, but before he got the chance Alexander fled in a blur of motion.

Finn slowly released his control over the weather, and with the change in the temperature my spell lost its hold.  I couldn’t see my friends, I couldn’t hear.  The fog pulled out of my mind, and everything went black.

Moonlight was shining through the curtains. I was nestled in bed, wearing a petal pink silk nightgown.  I recognized the room as the violet room from Grey’s house, but I certainly didn’t remember this nightgown.

“Sleeping beauty has risen,” Grey announced as he came in the room.  “How long have I been out? I asked.  “Since yesterday,” Grey told me as he slid into bed next to me.  I cocked an eyebrow, and looked at him wondering if he would confess to undressing me. 

He rested next to me, propped up on one elbow.  With his free hand he touched the fabric on my thigh, then traced it up my waist.  “This color suits you,” he said with a wicked grin.  “And how did I end up in this?” I asked tracking the delicate neckline.  “Guilty,” he said with a mischievous laugh. 

“Where are my friends?” I asked, wondering if we were alone in the house.  “They are here.  Without you conscious to repair the damage, Cynthia called the campus police when she awoke.  They could not see any of us because of our cloaks; once we figured out what was happening we left.  The police blamed it on a group of vandals that have been breaking into a lot of cars and apartments.  No one remembered anything supernatural.  They only remember seeing a group of people trying to break into the dorm by throwing rocks at the windows,” Grey replied.

“That makes sense, but I don’t understand
why
they are here.”  “Well we all thought it best to keep you isolated while you were unconscious.  It seemed to make sense to keep everyone together in case the necromancer and Alexander regrouped and tried again.  Dean is the only one of them with any training.  I didn’t think you would forgive me if I left them unprotected.  Tell me beautiful Chloë, what is bothering you?”

I inhaled deeply, “I don’t know where to start.  I would love to be alone with you.  Not to mention, we still have to figure out how to rid ourselves of Simone and Alexander. I don’t even know what they want.” 

“I too would like to be alone,” Grey said and gently kissed my neck.  I eagerly wrapped my arms around his shoulders.  His hand caressed my calf, and slowly slid up the plane of my leg.  Our lips met.  I grabbed a handful of his hair.  He quickly rolled over on top of me. 

His strong arms held me firmly to him, and his fingers traced the muscles on the exposed skin on my back and arms.  Grey looked deeply into my eyes.  The feeling I saw there, it seemed he was still trying to hide the depth of it. 

“What are those dark eyes hiding,” I whispered in his ear.  He laughed lightly, “Only that which needs to be.”  “When will you tell me?” I asked.  “What do you want to know?” he teased, kissing me just below the ear.  “When you look at me,” I hesitated, “it seems like you want to say something, but you stop yourself.”

“Do you really want to know?” he asked while he played with a piece of my hair.  He nervously looked at me through his eyelashes.  “I think I do,” I replied and bit my lip. 

He pushed the hair out of my face, and looked at me.  Then I saw it before he said anything.  It was so obvious, and I already knew.  “I love you Chloë,” Grey said softly.  I kissed him once gently on the lips, and said, “I love you too.” 

We began kissing again, this time in earnest, so intently neither of us heard the door open.  “Is she awake yet?” Anita’s voice came booming through the room.  “My eyes!  Oh my God, my eyes!” Anita laughed.  “Uhm, yeah, so I’m going to go now,” she said with her hand covering her eyes, and turned to leave.  Finn’s voice called up the staircase, “Is she awake yet?” “Yeah, but she, uhm…I’m on my way down,” Anita called out.  She closed the door, and I heard her chuckling on her way to the staircase. 

“Uhh!  No privacy,” I complained.  “Later,” he promised, and kissed me one last time.  “I should…” I pointed in the direction of the dresser.  “Yes, you should dress.  I would not want the others to see you in that.”  “So you put me in this, for what reason?” I asked.  “Fun,” he laughed. 

“Well you’ve had your fun. I’m going to change now.”  “Okay, go ahead,” he settled back on the bed.  “You are a devil,” I teased.  Faster than I could perceive Grey was standing right next to me.  He picked me up and set me down on top of the dresser.  He leaned down, and I held my breath waiting for him to kiss me.  When he got closer, our lips nearly touching, he whispered, “I’ll leave you so you can get dressed. I don’t have the self-control to stay in here anyway.” 

“Later?” I called out to him.  “I promise,” he said as he closed the door.  I sorted through the drawers, if we couldn’t be alone, I would make him suffer. I found a pair of tight black pants, a low cut red t-shirt, and black strappy sandals.