Under the Burning Stars (22 page)

“Sure.”

“Really?”

“Of course. I don’t mind helping you all. You’ve all been through a lot and I know you need answers and Savina is less than helpful when it comes to that. Marcel is my friend. Just be sure to warn them about him.”

“I will.” That was easy. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” His eyes pinned
her with such a heavy gaze that she had to look away. What was that about?

She cleared her throat and her cheeks warmed.
“So how’s the book?”

“It’s good. I’ve read it before.”

Ava nodded. Why was it so awkward all of a sudden?

“Have you got anything going on this afternoon?”
he asked.

“You’re looking at it.”

He stood and tossed the book in the chair. “Come on.” He held out his hand.

“Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise.”

Ava
looked up at him and felt a little wary. Where was he going to take her?

“I promise it will be worth your while.”

“Why not?” She needed a little distraction. She placed her hand in his and she got to her feet.

Seconds later, they stood
in an empty parking lot in the middle of a city. She heard traffic nearby.

“Where are we?”

“Baltimore.”

Still clutching onto his hand, they walked out of the parking lot and onto a sidewalk and he pointed to a large gray building across the street.
She looked up at the engraved sign. Enoch Pratt Free Library.

“Why are we here?”

He gave a playful smile. “There is much to learn young grasshopper.” He pulled her across the busy street of people and cars. She was surprised no one seemed to notice them pop out of nowhere. They briskly walked under the arched opening and inside.

The sun’s light flooded
the lobby through the paned glass ceiling. Cream marble columns enclosed the main hall in a square. A small brown round desk was in the center of the room. On the second floor, there were open balcony windows and Ava could see chandeliers with soft lighting. She wondered if it was one large room or private rooms.

“You like reading so much, I thought we’d come here,” he said.

Ava stared at him in awe. Why would he do something so nice for her? He had always been kind and she hadn’t been so nice to him. She didn’t know what to say.

They walked across the slick floor and didn’t make a sound. The only thing Ava heard was the occasional turn of a page or cough or whispers.

“What’s different about this library than Savina’s?”

A smirk played on his lips. “You’ll see. So what do you want to be when you grow up?”

“I haven’t really thought about it. Still stuck in the past I guess. You?”

“I want to be a teacher.”

For some reason, Ava thought he would make an incredibly hot teacher. She felt her cheeks warm, and then cleared her throat. “Professor…I don’t even know your last name. Wow. That’s embarrassing.”

“
No worries. It’s Dacosta.”

“Has a nice ring. Professor
Dacosta. I could see it. What would you teach?”

“Literature.”

They made their way downstairs to a room with cream walls and small tables and chairs. A sign that read Special Collections was on the outside of the door. He guided her to Edgar Allan Poe’s collection.

Stunned, she
released his hand, not realizing she’d been holding it this whole time. She leaned over the display case. There were letters written by Poe. Virginia Clemm’s scent bottle and a miniature drinking glass. And locks of hair.

“Is that Poe’s?” she asked.

“Yeah. They kept it, hoping to later find the cause of death.”

“It was rabies. I thought that was obvious.”

“I think he was turned into a vampire.”

She stood upright and looked at him.
He was crazy. “Seriously?”

“Think about it.”

“They don’t even exist.” She was waiting for a smile or something that gave away his playfulness, but he never did. His eyes were alive.

“If we can do what we do, then why can’t they exist? He was rabid and incoherent and—.”

“Completely mad. If he was a vampire, then why did he die and not feed on the doctors or whoever found him?”

“It’s a cover up. He’s still out there. That’s why they never figured out how he died. And still can’t to this day.”

Ava rolled her eyes and laughed. “Your imagination has run wild. I can only imagine what your childhood must have been like,” she said without thinking and then silently cursed. Gabriel’s parents had been murdered and his uncle had abandoned him. The words just slipped out, but how could she have been so thoughtless. “I’m so sorry, Gabriel. I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’s okay. It was years ago so I’ve had time to get over it.”
He winked.

“I shouldn’t have said that.”

“I know you didn’t do it on purpose. Besides. I knew that wasn’t your angle.”

She nodded, but still felt guilty, and part of her wanted to know how he managed to be alone for so long. Ava didn’t think she could survive
. “How did you do it?”

“I had no choice.”

“What was it like? I mean, what happened?” She wanted to know more about him. They’d become friends, even though she felt wary of him when they first met. But she trusted him. Something about him comforted her.             

“
I was very young when my parents died, so I barely knew them. My uncle wasn’t an Enchanter and knew nothing about the world.”

“Your parents were mixed, too?”

“Yeah. My uncle took me and things were fine until I turned sixteen. I just couldn’t control it.” Gabriel released a small chuckle. “I’m sure he thought that I was worse than a drug dealer or something. I was scared, though. I didn’t know anyone else who could do what I did.”

“Did you not have an Aureole?”

“I remembered a woman who took me to her home one day when I was a kid. I didn’t know who she was or who the other kids were at the time. She befriended me briefly but after my parents died, I moved, and never saw or heard from them again.”

“That’s awful.
That’s similar to what Joss experienced.”

“Yeah. When Corbin roamed the earth, it was like that for a lot of people.
Because people hid who they were from him.”

“
How did you learn to control it?”

“After a few years of
.” He paused, seemingly to gather the right word. “Researching, I met Eric. He wore a necklace of the symbol I’d seen in books and was curious. He knew what I was, when I didn’t know what he was. But he wasn’t like any other person, so I had my assumptions. He took me to Colden and Savina who explained everything. So, I joined this Aureole.”

“Wow,” she whispered. “
Sounds like he saved a lot of you.”

“Yeah. The rest of them were born into the Aureole.”

“I don’t think I could’ve lasted as long as you. And here I am complaining about such trivial things.”

“
I hardly consider being ambushed by Cimmerians trivial. Or all of the other things you’ve had to deal with lately.”

“I just meant Peter.”

“I know.”

Ava shook her head. “I can’t imagine what that must have been like. I can’t believe
your uncle would just abandon you. Why would he?”

“Because of what I was.”

“That’s no excuse to just leave someone like that.”

He shrugged. “Good riddance.”

She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “I’m glad you found Eric. They would never abandon you. I’m sure you never did anything as reckless and naïve as I have.” She thought about Peter becoming an Enchanter and Gillian and Thomas avoided her.

She dropped Gabriel’s hand and turned away.

“What is it?” he asked, walking beside her.

“I never wanted to hurt anyone’s feelings
. But I miss Gillian, before her powers developed. Everyone else seems to accept Peter. But she helped me the night I got shot.”

“She still cares about you. Personally, I think she needs to get over it.
Maybe if she’s been having Cimmerian thoughts that might contribute to her hatred of Peter.”

She stopped and looked at him. “Do you think I made a mistake?”

His eyebrows furrowed. “No. I would do the same if I truly loved the person. Do you think you did?”

“No, but it seems like ever since it happened we’ve been at odds with each other.”

“You two are going through a lot of changes. You’re learning more about your past and he’s in a new world. If he became an Enchanter for you, it’s because he loves you immensely.”

“
That shouldn’t be the only reason.”

“I’m sure it’s not. The Cimmerians tortured him.”

“I know.”

“
Is it like it was with Thomas?”

“Not in the slightest.”

“What happened with you two?”

She shifted. “We just changed. I didn’t love him anymore and he was getting too aggressive. He kept burning me.” Ava looked away.

“Surprised Peter never beat him senseless,” he murmured. “I would have.”

Ava glanced up at him, but looked away once his eyes met hers. “Yeah.” She didn’t know what to say.

“Sorry, but it is true. I know I shouldn’t say this, but I am. I feel a strong connection with you.”

She raised her head and
his eyes fixed on her. She could feel it, too. “I think it’s time to go back.” She didn’t know what to think, but the hard gaze in his eyes made her nervous.

“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“I’m not,” she lied. “I just have to get back.”

He took her hand and she closed her eyes, like an automatic response. She opened them, expecting to see the Manor, but
they were in an open field. The skies were gray and a slight breeze blew through her hair. She looked around and saw a large patch of black grass and a lone clothesline. It was her former home and they stood in the exact spot that her mom died.

Ava jerked away from Gab
riel. “What are we doing here?”

He shook his head, eyes in bewilderment. “I don’t know.”

“Why would you bring me here?” she yelled.

“I didn’t.
This is what Aaron was afraid of happening.”

“
Did you know they would be here? Did you do this on purpose?”

He frowned, and for a second she saw hurt in his eyes.

Then, she stiffened as a group people emerged from the woods and moved toward them. Ava looked around. There were probably ten of them and they were closing in on them. When she turned back, Gabriel was gone.

Water oozed down Ava’s arms. She concentrated and watched her opponents for any movement, just like Gabriel showed her. How could Gabriel abandon her? Was he getting more help? Was he a traitor?

She didn’t know and didn’t have time to think about it.

A tall man with bushy red hair advanced on her. She raised her hands and blasted him in the face, knocking him unconscious.

Another witch ran toward her, but
Ava defeated her swiftly. More witches appeared through the woods. She didn’t know how she would get out of this alone, but she would not die in the same spot as her mother.

T
here were too many for Ava to take down all at once. She needed help. More water. Or others’ magic. She took a deep breath, feeling the water trickle down her arms. Her body warmed and she remained calm, poised to attack, but felt the energy throb inside her veins.

Water slithered around Ava’s feet, lifting the debris from the ground, and rose to her waist. The witches circled Ava, and then several closed the distance. She raised her hands and the water followed, building into a tidal wave. She didn’t want to envision them drowning. She wanted to see it for herself.

Ava wanted the Cimmerians to suffer under the darkest ocean. She let go of the tidal wave and watched it crash onto all of them. The ground shook from the force and the clothesline fell, getting lost in the flood. She stared on as the water swallowed the Cimmerians, their arms flailing. She made the water swirl and rise all around them, tossing them about like they were rag dolls.

Ava was sending a message to whoever was in charge.
She was tired of everything they had put her through and she was going to end it.

T
hen she saw complete darkness. She still heard the sharp inhaling of breaths from the Cimmerians, and the water started to calm, like the storm was over. Ava dropped to her knees and felt as if she was going to pass out, but then she saw the light of the day once again. The water had dropped a few inches, and had begun to retreat. A few bodies moved, but some were stiff.

She looked up and clenched her teeth.

“Surprised?” Xavier Holstone casually strode toward her. For someone who had supposedly been tortured for months, he looked well. His ashen face still held darkness and he still had that stupid cocky attitude. She wanted to beat it out of him.

Ava jumped to her feet and
instead of running, she held her ground.

“Not really,” she said, allowing water to build around her hands
again. “I knew you’d get out.”

“Smart girl. You aren’t afraid of me.”

“Why should I be? After all the times you could’ve taken me.”

His black eyes narrowed.
“Havok will have your power soon. And then I’ll have the sweet pleasure of torturing you.”

“I’m shaking. Is that why he wanted
Devon? To use him to absorb all the Elemental Powers.”

“Yes, but you see how that turned out.”

“Why doesn’t Havok just do it himself?” she dared ask. Keep him talking.

“You don’t know much about Havok do you?” He clicked his teeth with his tongue. “Havok’s a soul reaper. Once he has all the powers in an absorption
Enchanter, bingo. All hell breaks loose. And I can’t wait.”

“
Who’s your guinea pig now that Devon is dead?”

He gave a wicked grin. “Lance, of course.”

“It won’t work. Absorption Enchanters can only take one power at a time.”

“I take back the smart girl compliment. You really are daft. Oh well. You’ll learn.”

“Why are you here? What do you want?”

“You get right to the point. I like it. You’re going to give yourself to Havok and convince the other five, plus your protector to do the same.”

“Protector?” How did they know what Peter was?

“Don’t play dumb. We know all about him. I
now know why I could never use my power over you. And why we spent days torturing that pathetic boy and nothing happened. Anyway, you have until the new moon to come forth.” He turned and began walking away.

“That’s it? You bring your little entourage of weak witches, who can’t kill me, all so you could tell me that. You’re such a coward. You want
me? Here I am.”

He halted, and then turned around.
His cold eyes used to give her chills, but she wasn’t afraid of him anymore. “Tempting, but you aren’t much good to me by yourself.”

“
If you take me now, they’ll come find me. Then you’d have us all.”

Xavier smirked. “Are you so desperate to leave them?”

“No. I’m just tired of this song and dance. But you know none of us will actually give ourselves to whoever this Havok is.”

He smiled, but it didn’t reach his dark eyes. “Once you realize who Havok is, you will want to help.
It’s your destiny. Besides, if you all don’t follow through, we’ll bring war to you.”

She clenched h
er fists tighter. She was ready to blast him. “What could you possibly know about my destiny?” She remembered the blond Cimmerian say the same, but what exactly did it mean?

“
Wow. Still haven’t figured that out. You’re promised to become a Cimmerian and to give up your powers to Havok.”

She was taken-aback.
“What?”

He
barked a laugh. “How could they not have told you? Oh this is too good. Your mother promised your soul to Havok. You belong to him.” He laughed some more.

Her heart turned cold
and she felt the blood drain from her face. There was no way that was true. “That’s a lie.”

“She’s been sending you signals. Have you not gotten them?”

Ava raised her hand as if to slap him.

“I wouldn’t do that
. Your friend is trapped behind an invisible wall and I have an Enchanter who is torturing him from afar.”

She dropped her arm. “What are you talking about?”

He made a motion and Gabriel appeared behind her. Glowing blue ropes that looked electrical wrapped all around his body. He was bleeding profusely and his jaw was clenched as he tried to remain perfectly still.

“My good friend, Gabriel.
” He stepped closer and Ava froze. “You know, I wouldn’t trust him if I were you.”

“Let him go.”

“As you wish.” He made a motion and Ava shot water hitting him in the chest. She felt a hand grab her arm and within seconds, was somewhere in a forest with an injured Gabriel.