Dark Destiny (39 page)

“Hey, do you think I’m cute?” Jared interrupted.

She blinked in surprise. “
What
?”

“Is that why you charmed those guys on the subway? Looking for some sort of undead looooove mate?” He watched her, waiting for a reaction. Then he gave it his all, the most alluring single eyebrow raise he could muster.

She snorted. “
Pleeeeease
.”

“You don’t gotta be shy, babygirl.” His lips parted with the most perfect smile that was ever made. “You can tell Jared the truth.”

Her lips pressed into a thin line for a moment before turning up into a seductive smile. Breathing in and out through her nose, she pointed to the barstool he was sitting on.

It collapsed, as though every nail holding it together had disappeared. Jared fell on the floor laughing hysterically.

“What is wrong with you?” she asked.

More fits of laughter.

Walking around him, she shook her head. “You can be a real ass, Jared.”

“I know, right?” he said through more fits of giggles.

“For your information, I did that because you were my back up plan,
not
because I like you.”

Once his laughter subsided, he picked himself off the floor. “Your what?”

“We needed two Souls ripped from the Light. I didn’t think your idiot friend was going to snatch you away before you got into the Light. I figured he’d wait and then pull you down. When that didn’t happen, you got stuck here. I guess I felt bad for putting you into this predicament. That’s why I came to you as, what did you call him? Mr. Zombie?”

“
You
felt bad?” Jared asked, eyebrows raised.

Amber smiled. “Well, as close as somebody like me can feel bad, right?” She lightly pushed him on the shoulder. “I knew you wouldn’t trust the goth girl from the subway who, I think, creeped you out. But once you get to know me, I’m not so bad. Really.”

“Just so you know, I don’t get creeped out.”

“So! I killed Mr. Zombie and took his form to help show you the ropes and at least get you an upgrade.”

“I see. Well, I better get going. If I’m going to be here for a while, I might as well go back my haunt and try to make the best of it.”

“Is that what you want? To be here? That’s
it
?” Amber asked.

Jared considered the question carefully. Of course he didn’t. At first, being here in Purgatorium had been . . . interesting, but the longer he stayed, the more he longed to be back home. To irritate his sister, to get back to beating up guys with
—

“Sebastian?” Amber finished his thought out loud. He turned toward her. Her eyes were focused on him. They had become a slightly lighter shade of violet, flickering in the darkness.

Is she reading my mind again?

“Yes,” she answered.

“Don’t do that,” he said evenly.

The light violet glow in her eyes subsided. “Doesn’t it bother you that your friend has had more than enough opportunity to come and get you from this place? And yet you’re still here.”

He turned back toward her, eyes slightly narrowed and eyebrows pulled together.

“You were this close to getting into the Light.” Amber brought up her hand, her index finger and thumb less than an inch from touching. “
This
close. And yet, here you are.”

Jared gave her a cold stare. “Why are you doing this?”

“I only want you to know the truth.” Amber turned away. She shifted her attention to the stacks of drinks behind the bar and began scanning. “Despite what you think, you’re not a bad guy, Jared. I’ve read your mind. I’ve seen everything. And believe it or not, I only want to help.”

“Sure you do.”

“I do. I want to make your life a little easier.” She continued to inspect the bar until she found what she was searching for. “Ah.”

She pointed at a bottle. It flew instantly to her hand and she tossed it over to Jared. “Here.”

Catching the bottle, he asked, “What’s this?”

“Regular Dr. Pepper,” she answered. “Take it. On me.”

“I don’t
—
”

Amber held up a hand. “Please don’t. Just take it. There are not a lot of things you’re going to get for free around here, trust me. You know you want it.”

Twisting off the cap, he took a drink. It didn’t take long for him to exhale. “Man, that’s good. Temperature’s perfect. Seems like forever that I’ve had something real to drink.”

“You may hate me, but honestly? I’m not a bad ally to have. Just like that, I can get you what you want most.”

Cocking his head, Jared asked, “And tell me, what do think I want exactly?”

“Life,” she answered. “I’ve gone deep in your mind. I know it’s what you want the most. And I can do that for you.”

“You?” Jared asked.

“Well, not me specifically. But my benefactors can.”

“The Seals.”

Amber’s smile widened. “You’ve been listening. Good. Yes, the Seals. By adding to their numbers, they will be most grateful. And in return they’ll grant you life.”

“But, Sebastian can
—
”

“Yes, but honestly? He would have already done it. Or else he would be here right now. And look around. I don’t see him, do you? I don’t think he’s coming Jared. And without this deal, you’ll be stuck here.”

Jared’s resolve started to slip. He turned from her.

“Look at me,” she said. “You’ve seen me on both sides. I can obviously travel between worlds. You help me out with something, I promise you, I’ll keep my end of the bargain. Don’t you want to see your sister again?”

There was a silence.

She continued. “You don’t know this, but Sebastian has not told your sister about your death. She’s still searching for you. It’s—it’s bad, Jared.”

“It is?” Jared asked.

Amber nodded. “Can you imagine what it will be like when she finds out? She’ll be crushed. As she once said, she will be ‘alone.’”

He shifted his eyes away from her.

“You remember what it was like when your mom passed. Getting hit with those random moments of sorrow that knocked you down. Uncontrollable fits of crying for minutes at a time. This will be worse for her and she will never get over it. You are her twin. You know the connection you two have.”

He stared at the dirty barroom floor for a moment. Then he nodded. “What do you want from me?”

“First, I have something else for you,” she said, lifting up a Soul.

“A Soul?”

“And it’s all yours.” She held it out toward him.

Six months ago

Amber had never been to Shahola Lake before and she found it surprisingly calming. Water trickled off the leaves from the previous night’s rain. A flock of birds chirped in the trees above her. The smell of pine and damp cedar flooded her senses. Normally, this type of scene wasn’t her thing—nature and all—but she couldn’t help finding this place soothing.

She sat in a small dirt clearing, like a little beach, resting her head on her knees. Midnight lay curled up beside her, the cat’s black fur glistening in the dappled sunlight.

Out on the lake, Amber caught the faint sound of calm water being disturbed. The cat arched her back and pointed her long tail, awaking from a sweet slumber. She stretched out one leg and then another, extending and retracting her claws as well. After repeating this process a few times, she seemed content.

“Meow,” she uttered.

Amber paid her no mind. Her violet eyes were locked onto her target. Out on the water, Makayla sat in a small two-person canoe, accompanied by Ethan. He had a paddle and made hard, strong strokes toward the center of the lake. Amber leaned forward, closer to the lake, and gently placed her hand in the water. There was a tremendous amount of energy in this water; she felt it sink into her fingers.

“Meow.”

“Midnight, be quiet. I need to concentrate,” Amber scolded. The cat stared at her with sparkling, golden eyes. Bowing her head in acknowledgment, Midnight took a few cautious steps back and lay down in the grass.

Hands moving in slow circles just below the surface of the water, Amber shut her eyes and began mumbling phrases in an ancient dialect of a long dead civilization. Most spells were a simple matter for her; a wink of the eye, or a snap of her fingers and the deed was done. What she intended to accomplish today would require considerably more effort, as well as a decent amount of pain.

In a trance, her head bobbed back and forth, a steady stream of archaic language that sounded like gibberish, pouring from her mouth. Winds tore through the small area. Scores of wet leaves and errant branches pelted Amber’s body. Nature commanded her to stop. The witch continued chanting, unfazed. Nothing would stand in the way of what she had come to accomplish.

A rush of water shot into her fingertips and she convulsed under the strain on her body from freezing cold liquid. When she could take no more, she withdrew her hands from the water. Her eyes shot open and water cascaded from her fingertips on the opposite hand. Finally, it stopped.

She dug her still dripping fingers into the ground, tracing a perfect scale replica of the lake before her. When she pulled her hand away, the outline came alive. It rippled and rolled, mimicking the exact movements of Lake Shahola. The spell was successful. Exhausted but satisfied, Amber collapsed in a heap, breathing heavily.

Red lightning crackled in midair a few feet from her as time and space bent. The vortex opened and Cleo pushed through, walking though the lightning as though it wasn’t there. The sound of the Vortex closing sent a flock of birds fleeing into the clear blue sky.

Amber had always been enthralled by Cleo’s legend, as well as by her beauty. It was rumored that Cleo’s death began with a cobra she’d induced to kill her, allowing her to become what she is today, a
Seal
. Amber knew that all
Seals
had powerful
Gifts
. She wasn’t exactly sure what Cleo’s
Gift
was, but she knew it was something fierce.

“My lady,” Amber said, bowing her head. She weakly tried getting up from the sodden ground.

Cleo waved her off. “You’re fine, my dear. No formalities when it’s just us.”

“Thank you, my lady,” Amber said with another slight bow of her head.

Cleo shifted her gaze toward the lake. “Where are we?” Off in the distance, Ethan had just stopped rowing.

“Oh, I was just about to
—
”

“I see,” Cleo interrupted. “And you’re sure about the match?”

“Y—Yes, my lady. According to my spell, th—this Makayla’s Soul essence is almost a match with Sara’s. It’s uncanny.” Amber breathed in quickly through her nose but she was unable to mask her nervousness.

“Interesting.”

“If you put a hound dog next to Sara and Makayla, it could not tell whose scent is whose.”

“And the boy?”

“Um, yes my lady. He is indeed her soul mate. He easily took the bait and is very much in love,” Amber replied, turning her attention back toward the lake.

“And this
Makayla
. She is truly happy?”

“From everything I have gathered, yes. I’ve been monitoring them closely for the past three months. These two are truly at peace. No existing unresolved issues.”

Cleo smiled in delight, “Excellent!
Excellent
news.”

Amber averted her gaze from her matron. “I—It’s only to please you, my lady.”

“Our informant is currently in place. After your work is done here, we will be transferring to Baltimore. It is time to activate Jared.”

Amber understood immediately. Jared had been one of her pet projects for the past several years. She came to him when he was a small child and
charmed
him into helping Sebastian deal with a group of bullies. Amber smiled at that. She’d brought them together at the beginning, and she would break them apart at the end. Poetic actually.

“Speaking of which . . .” said Cleo, snapping Amber from her thoughts. Cleo clenched her palm into a fist. When she opened it, a red flame danced in her hand. Gradually, the flame melted into a small vial with a red liquid inside. “This is Sara’s blood. I’ll leave you to the final step of matching their essences
perfectly
.”

“Yes, my Queen.”

“You’ve done good work here, my child,” said Cleo, holding out the vial. “I shall leave you to it.”

Amber took the small vial of blood and brought it close to her chest. “Thank you, my lady.”

Cleo cleared her throat. “I need to make my report to Nero.”

Reaching to the seal on her arm, she touched the glowing rune resting at the three o’clock position. The
vortex of doom
, as Amber thought of it, roared to life, a fiery, crimson portal that led into pure darkness. Cleo pushed through it. It swallowed her whole and burst into embers that drifted to the ground.

Amber breathed a sigh of relief. Her hands were shaking. Not many things rattled her, but
Seals
definitely could. After setting the vial on the earth next to her, she shook her head, clearing her mind.

Now, it was time to get to the task at hand.

She gazed out at the love birds in the canoe. Ethan appeared rapt and talked heatedly, likely professing his love. Makayla stood. Amber grinned wickedly and slammed her fist into the dark ritual circle she’d created, into the miniature version of the lake.