Tales of Aradia The Last Witch Volume (31 page)

"And in the mean time?" Keon
inquired, "What should we do about her and her strange attempts to
change things in Salem?"

The Sovereign turned his back to
him and declared, "Things like hatred and intolerance has lasted
amongst the hiddens since the creation of our species! What the
hell makes her think that she, a mere witch, the lone survivor of a
massacred people, can change that?"

Chapter
Twenty-Five

A
fter losing the battle with Aradia, Roy, and Dax the attacks
had escalated to Aradia's human friends. Rhonda had almost gotten
into a terrible car accident when she and her mother had been out
driving and her mother had suddenly swerved to avoid hitting a
redheaded man. Felix's house had almost caught fire thanks to a
mysterious tank of gasoline they had found outside their house.
Calvin's car had had bricks being thrown at it! As for the Best Buy
where Everrett's uncle was the head manager, it had been completely
ransacked!

Her friends knew nothing about the
hidden race and so had not been able to name her as common
denominator. Aradia, however, could easily guess who the culprits
were and why. As she lay on her bed, she thought about all that had
happened. She knew that Dax had a point about keeping a low
profile. If she continued her behavior, and acted that in spite of
the McAlester brother’s attacks nothing had changed things probably
would get worse. At the same time ignoring their behavior, and
seeing them smirk at her at school every day and knowing she could
not report them to the authorities...Basically letting these thugs
think that they could do whatever they wanted with no consequences
bothered Aradia, a assistant D.A's daughter, something
fierce.

The thing of it is though, Aradia
asked herself, what I am going to do about it? On the one hand,
she, Dax, and Roy now knew that they could take the McAlester
brothers on. Doing that again, however, would mean starting a
vicious, violent, no holds barred fight with them and Aradia was
not willing to risk that! Another option was to give in to their
demands, and leaving with them but she was not willing to do that
either.

So what can I do? She speculated, I
could run and lead the McAlester’s away from Salem and my loved
ones. Aradia shook her head, rejecting that option as well. If she
started running from them, the chances were she would never stop
running, and she could not live the rest of her life as
fugitive.

So what can I do? Aradia asked
herself again. She heaved a huge sigh and turned on her back.
Aradia was struggling to hold back her tears of frustration; she
did not know what she could do or what she was going to
do.

"My God," Keon growled as he leaned
against a tree outside Aradia's house. "How long can it possibly
take for three vampires to snatch away a witch and drain her dry
damn it?!"

Saul shrugged, not knowing what to
say. He stood outside with Keon, sitting on a branch, and staring
into Aradia's window.

"I wish they would hurry up and do
it. I am getting impatient! I mean this chick should be dead and
buried by now!" Keon muttered, clenching his fist.

"You know," Saul pointed out,
"Maybe her being alive and around is not such a bad
thing."

For the past six months, he had
listened nonchalantly to Keon's ranting and raving of Aradia's
existence. Now, Saul finally decided to venture his own
opinion.

"She has managed to help bring a
lot of hiddens together. Fewer fights are breaking out because of
her influence you know. Although she has been trying to change
things she has not been trying to seize power thereby creating
social unrest amongst the hidden community either. In all honesty
Keon, I think her being in Salem is a good thing."

Keon turned his head slowly to look
at Saul who had barely anytime to blink before Keon pinned him
against the tree by his throat. Saul gasped, feeling Keon's claws
grip his throat. Vampires did not need to breath, but their throats
helped to circulate the blood they drained into their systems.
Therefore, if Keon were to rip out Saul's throat, he would die
within seconds.

"Keon," Saul croaked hoarsely.
"Please."

"See?" Keon growled, "See how bad
her influence is? Before you never would have stooped so low as to
beg your life but now...now you have gotten soft and weak. She is
the cause of it! Her poisonous influence has tainted not just you,
but everyone else in Salem too! Well no longer! I will put an end
to her destructive ways! I will get rid of her! And I will do it
now!"

Keon immediately released Saul from
his deadly grasp.

As he turned to leave, Saul gasped,
"But remember the Sovereign's orders. It was to let the McAlester
brothers handle her and you don't want to disobey the Sovereign do
you?"

Keon stiffened. He may have been a
battle hardened and bloodthirsty vampire warrior who had seen
thousands of innocents and guilty parties slaughtered like sheep,
but even he had fears and there was nothing he feared more than the
Sovereign's temper!

Keon stomped his foot in
frustration making the branch creak a little from his strength.
However, with one last glance at Aradia's window, a cruel smile
played upon his lips. Saul gulped for he knew what that smile
meant: Keon was working on a plan.

"Are you serious?" Tavis asked Keon
who nodded.

Korrigan, Dunc, Maurice, Saul, and
Keon stood facing each other in the Night Shadow clan's
lair.

At first, Tavis just gaped at him
astonished.

After running his fingers though
his dirty blonde hair he finally asked, "Why are helping us
Keon?"

Keon shrugged impatiently and said,
"Can’t I do a favor for an old comrade?"

"No," Tavis replied without missing
a beat.

A tense awkward silence now filled
the room.

"Look," Keon snapped, "Do you want
help catching the last witch or don't you?"

"What makes you think we need your
help?" Dunc muttered.

Keon looked quickly at Dunc and
said, "The fact that you have tried to capture her three times and
have failed miserably!"

Insulted, Dunc advanced towards
Keon who just grabbed him by the shirt and shoved him down onto his
knees.

"Now look you three incompetent,
insignificant, insufficient pieces of vampire filth! Either you
follow my plan to capture the last witch or so help me I will kill
all of you right here and now and find someone who can do what you
three obviously lack the intelligence to do!"

"But what's in it for you?" Tavis
asked.

Keon grunted and let go of
Dunc.

"I want her out of Salem, and out
of my life! Period!" Keon snapped.

Tavis scoffed and said, "Surely
that can't be all you want!"

"It is enough!" Keon thundered,
"Now do we have a deal or don't we?"

Tavis turned to his brothers for
assurance.

It was Korrigan who finally spoke.
"What have we got to lose? We have already tried three times, and
failed! I am tired of waiting. I want Aradia and I want her
now!"

"Follow my instructions and you
will have her," Keon roared, "Now I ask you one last time. Do we
have a deal or what?"

Humbled by his yelling, Tavis
stepped closer to face Keon. After a few seconds of tense silence
passed, he slowly held out his hand. Keon smiled as he took it,
sealing the pact, and Aradia's fate.

Chapter
Twenty-Six

"Hey are you doing anything
Saturday night?” Tristan asked as he suddenly appeared at Aradia's
side.

She slammed her locker shut, and
turned to look at him.

"Actually yeah I am," she said, "I
am planning on avoiding you like the plague!"

Tristan scowled as she
smiled.

She would have left Tristan in the
dust if he had not stepped in front of her.

"No you stupid bitch," he snapped,
"I am not talking about asking you out on a date..."

"Thank god," Aradia interrupted
muttering.

Tristan scowled deeper. "There’s a
meeting of all the hidden elders this Saturday night."

This definitely piqued Aradia's
interest. "Why?"

Tristan rolled his eyes as if he
were amazed at what he thought was further proof of her
naïveté.

"Just like humans have leaders who
meet and discuss things on a regular basis so do hiddens," Tristan
explained, "I figure that since you are officially recognized as
the last witch and are now considered a hidden, you should
attend."

Aradia hated to admit it, but
Tristan had a point.

Still she couldn't help, but raise
an eyebrow. "Why are you telling me this?"

Tristan shrugged and said, "I have
my reasons."

"None of them good I suspect,"
Aradia muttered.

"Look you going to be there or
what?" Tristan snapped.

Aradia paused, and thought about
it. She knew Tristan was not the type of guy to volunteer any type
of information to anyone unless he had something to gain from it.
On the other hand, if what he said was true... like Tristan had
pointed out she was a hidden now and it seemed only fair that she
participate in some of their law-making activities.

"I am actually kind of amazed that
Tristan told you anything," Dax said to Aradia as he leaned against
her dresser drawer.

Aradia shrugged as she tried on
another sweater, this time in cranberry red. "I was too and I do
suspect he's up to something but hey according to you there really
is a hidden meeting going on tonight so at least he's not lying
about that. Besides since I am the last witch and I have been doing
a lot of controversial things lately I find it prudent to show up
and meet some of the people in charge."

"Controversial things?" Dax
repeated, sounding amused. "You mean like repairing injuries on all
of the hidden that were deemed un-healable and throwing illegal
raves to promote amelioration?"

Aradia threw him an annoyed glare.
"The fact is Dax, I figure it's about time I step up to the plate
and face my responsibilities."

"Why?" Dax asked, "Your people are
dead so you don't need to represent them or speak on their behalf
or anything."

Aradia turned from her reflection
to look at him, stunned.

Slowly she said, "You know I think
I am becoming a bad influence on you too."

Dax chuckled, but said nothing.
After realizing he was not going to apologize for his comment,
Aradia turned back to her mirror.

It was as she brushed her hair when
she said, "It's like you and Tristan pointed out a while back being
the last witch has granted me an enormous political advantage.
Therefore, I might as well meet the others who also share political
influence. Who knows? Maybe I can talk to them about promoting
amelioration amongst the hidden."

Dax snorted, and Aradia wheeled
around now looking as mad as hell.

"Look Dax," Aradia snapped, "If you
don't really believe in my cause of promoting amelioration amongst
the hiddens why the hell you bother helping me at all?"

Dax shrugged while Aradia just
stared at him.

After a few seconds, Dax sighed,
unfolded his arms, and leaned against her desk. "It's not that I
don't believe in your cause Rai. It is just that I have my doubts
about it. After all, things have been this way since before I can
remember, and if amelioration amongst the hidden race cannot be
possible in over two centuries what makes you think it is a
possibility now?"

Aradia said nothing.

"However," Dax admitted, "The
things you have done recently..."

He shook his head. "Ever since the
parties first started there have been less fights amongst the
hidden and less violence. So while I do doubt your theory of
promoting amelioration I no longer think it’s impossible hence why
I still help you with achieving your goal."

"And besides," he added flashing a
sexy smile. "Helping you do this makes you happy and I like making
you happy so..." He trailed off.

Aradia smiled, slowly walked
towards him, and slipped her arms around his waist.

"You know something Dax?" she
whispered in his ear as she hugged me, "Being around you is wanting
to kiss you and hit you at the same time."

Dax laughed smartly. "I am all for
the first choice you know?"

Aradia also laughed, and lifted her
head to look up at him. Dax then tipped her chin up, and began to
draw her lips towards his.

Suddenly they heard creaking sounds
outside of Aradia's room as if someone was walking up the
stairs.

"It's my parents!” Aradia quietly
shrieked.

Looking around quickly, Dax saw her
open window.

"I will meet you outside with my
car okay?" he whispered in her ear.