The Awakening (20 page)

"Don't make any rash decisions, Alex,"
Gabby said, placing a hand on his arm. "One step at a time. We'll get the
grimoire, then I'll need to decipher the spell. That could take time. Things
can change in a blink of an eye."

"One step at a time," he echoed looking
around the room at the assembled vampires. Aya, who he'd had the biggest crush
on. Zac, who he wanted to punch in the face. And that other guy must be
Tristan, the one with the curly hair. And then there was one of his oldest
friends, Gabby, who turned out to be a witch. Out of all of them, he'd trust
whatever his best friend had to say.

"One step at a time," she replied with a
sad smile.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

"So what's the plan?" Zac asked, cracking
his knuckles. "I assume we're going for the grimoire tonight?"

"As soon as possible," Gabby replied.
"Do you think Maddox and Nye can crack into the security now?"

"Apparently Maddox is good at this kind of
thing," he said with a shrug.

"Well, there's not much to it, I guess.
Disable the cameras and alarms, compel the security guards to turn the other
way, get into the vault, get the grimoire."

"Sounds easy when you say it like that,"
Isobel said. "The vault is locked with one of those fancy access panels.
You need a code to unlock it."

"You've been in there tons," Gabby said.
"Haven't you ever seen someone put it in? Has someone given you a
code?"

"No. I'm still a student. Only the staff that
work in there have codes. And besides, a lot of the books and manuscripts are
locked inside as well."

"Shit, hey," Zac said with a groan.
"I don't know if there's a work around for that."

"Maybe the security guards know," Aya
offered, glancing at Gabby.

"You want me to prod around in their
heads?" the witch asked. "You can compel it out of them."

"Either way works."

"I'll give Nye a call and see where they're
at," Zac said, taking his cell out.

"Who's going in?" Tristan asked.
"Not all of us surely."

"I have to go and Isobel, of course…"
Gabby started.

"And me," Aya interrupted. "I've got
the skills necessary."

"Why does Aya get to go?" Zac asked
sullenly. "If it's just compulsion you need…"

"I can help determine which is the right
grimoire," she said, shooting him a look.

"You'll still get to go," Gabby said,
elbowing the vampire. "You just have to wait outside."

"Wait," Isobel interrupted. "What
about Alex? Can someone stay with him? What if that Aed guy comes looking here?
Or another vampire?"

"I'll stay," Tristan offered. "Too
many vampires spoil the…somethin'." He shrugged.

"So, I'm getting babysat now?" Alex said
from the corner. He'd been sitting on the kitchen counter, listening to their
planning in silence. He still looked a little overwhelmed after hearing their
crazy story.

"Aed is unpredictable and very strong,"
Tristan explained. "And he still has his power. I'm not enough to stop him
on my own, but someone should still be here just in case."

"And give your sister peace of mind," Aya
said with a smile.

"You're exhausted," Isobel said, wrapping
her arms around him. "Get some sleep. Then we'll be back before you know
it."

"How can I sleep?" he asked thinly.

"You close your eyes, then…"

"
Izzy
."

"Alex, I love you, but I'm a grown woman. I
can help your friends. I
want
to help them. You need to trust Gabby and
Aya. They seem to know what they're doing."

"I do," Aya quipped.

"You should've seen her snap that vampire's
neck. And Zac…" She stopped mid-sentence and clamped her mouth shut.

"Aw, shit," Nye groaned.

Alex turned on Zac, his eyes dark. "What did
you do?"

"Nothing too…
bad
." But Zac's
expression said otherwise.

But Alex was too angry to listen and went to punch
the vampire right in the face. Before his fist could connect, Aya grasped his
forearm.

"We're all here," Aya murmured,
"We're all in one piece. This is a battle, Alex. We can't all get through
this without having to fight a bad guy or ten. There'll always be an element of
danger. I know you're angry, but you need to trust us. I will not let anything
happen to Isobel. I will fight to the end. Do you understand?"

Her speech came across a little patronizing, but he
could tell from her tone that she was serious. She cared. She understood. He
didn't really have a choice, but he nodded anyway and she let him go.
"Okay."

"Let's get ready," Gabby said, picking up
her coat from the back of the chair she sat in.

"Then," Zac said, doing the same,
"once we get the word from Nye and Maddox, we roll out."

It was close to one am by the time they gathered a
few streets over from the University. The air was swirling with a light misty
rain, each drop illuminated with the orange glow from the street lamps around
them. Lingering in the darkness, they waited for Maddox and Nye to appear.

Gabby shivered and flipped the collar up on her
coat. Isobel huddled in the doorway beside her, blowing on her hands and the
witch felt a pang of remorse. Izzy had agreed to help, but she hoped it didn't
cost her or Alex too much in doing so. The more she dwelt on it, the more she
wished Regulus was here. He'd know what to do. The aching hole in her heart
seemed to crack open a little further as she recalled the Roman's features. It
had only been five days...

Zac leaned against the wall beside her and slid his
hand into hers. He seemed to understand where her thoughts were and she was
grateful for the small gesture.

He straightened a moment later and nodded towards
the end of the street. Two forms came into view and she recognized Nye but the
other man was a stranger to her. It must be Maddox.

She regarded him as they came closer and all she got
was a bad feeling. She supposed he was meant to be a part of the Six with that
kind of aura. He was a vampire's vampire, a thug, animalistic…ruthless. It was
no wonder he'd sided with Regulus.

"Are we good?" Zac asked as the vampires
stopped in front of them.

"The cameras are out," Maddox confirmed,
looking over Isobel.

"Hands off, Maddox," Nye said, shoving
the assassin.

"Just looking."

"Yeah, well look someplace else."

"What about the security system?" Gabby
asked, angling herself between Maddox and Isobel.

"Offline," Nye confirmed. "We also
compelled all the guards we could find."

"So we can just walk in?" Aya exclaimed.
"Just like that?"

"Are you doubting my skills?" Maddox
asked with a sneer. "I might've been born in the middle ages, but it
doesn't mean I'm still there."

"No one is doubting you," Zac said.
"If you say it's offline, then it's offline."

"The courtyard camera is out, but the ones
around the street aren't linked to the University system," Maddox
explained. "Those are linked to the city wide system. That's monitored by
the Bobbies."

"Bobbies?" Gabby asked with a frown.

"The police, love," Nye explained.

"We better go over then," Zac said.

"Over?" Isobel asked with a gulp.

"Across the roofs," he explained. "I
can drop you off. Aya can take Gabby."

She looked a little alarmed, and Aya offered her a
friendly smile. "Just a piggyback. It'll be over before you know it."

"C'mon," Zac said, gesturing for her to
jump on his back. He stooped as she put her hand on his shoulders and took a
deep breath.

"You promise you won't drop me? I haven't
forgotten this morning you know."

"This morning?" Gabby asked.

"There was another vampire," Nye
explained. "We needed to flush him out."

"You used her as bait?" Gabby exclaimed.

"She was safe with us," Zac said, then
gestured at Isobel again. "You better hold on tight, Isobel. It's a fast
ride."

With a grimace, she jumped onto the vampire's back
and they were gone, a small shriek signaled they were on the roof above. Aya
turned and Gabby jumped up on her back and they followed close behind. The rise
of air took her breath away and a few seconds later they were outside the
library doors. The only reason Gabby knew was the fact that she'd seen this
exact place in Aed's memory. It had been full daylight then, but even in the
dark, it was unmistakable. Aya set her down by the door and she nodded to let
the Celestine know she was okay.

Zac dropped Isobel and she held onto him for a
moment to steady herself.

"Whoa," she said. "Talk about
dizzy."

"Send me a text message when you're ready to
be picked up," he said with a grin and was gone.

"I'll never get used to that," Isobel
said, shaking her head.

Gabby smiled and turned to the door, cracking it open
so they could peer through. She cast her earth sense out, feeling for any life
inside and all she got was a couple of pot plants. Talk about sensitivity. She
glanced at Aya and the Celestine nodded.

"It's clear," she confirmed and they
entered the library, closing out the night and swirling rain behind them.

Walking down the hall, Isobel took the lead and
they entered the library proper, the open space stretching out in front of
them. Aya stopped abruptly and gestured for them to duck and Gabby realized
a security guard was walking their way. They crouched behind the information
desk at the front, the one that Gabby recognized from Aed's memory.

"Would he know the code?" Aya whispered
to Isobel, nodding towards the man who was slowly approaching their position.

"He can't know what it is," she hissed.

"There's only one way to find out," Aya
declared and stepped out of the shadows.

The guard instantly turned at the movement and
started when he laid eyes on the Celestine. "Hey," he exclaimed,
fumbling for his gun. "You're not meant to be here. Hands where I can see
them."

But Aya was too impatient for that. She flew
forward, faster than Gabby's eyes could follow and she pushed him back against
the wall, a pale hand curling around his throat. The gun clattered to the floor
and the guard's face slackened before he had a chance to call out.

"Hey, how you doing?" Aya asked, amused
at his reaction.

"Fine," the guard replied in a monotone
voice. "I really don't want to be here, but I don't get paid
otherwise."

With a laugh, Aya cocked her head to the side and
asked, "I don't suppose you know the code to get into the library vault?
You know the one with all the really old books?"

"The vault? Yes, I know it. It's my job to
check it after hours."

"What is it?"

"Four, six, eight, five, seven."

"Thanks," she replied. "Now, forget
everything that just happened from the moment you saw me. Once you've done
that, go into a dark corner, count to…say, ten thousand, then go home."

"Okay."

She let the guard go and he shook his head, looking
totally bewildered and then wandered off into the dark library.

"She did that freaky eye thing, huh?"
Isobel whispered in Gabby's ear.

"Uh huh."

"Did she have to make it ten thousand? The
poor guy will be there for ages."

"Clock's ticking," Aya called out,
gesturing for them to come out of their hiding place.

"Which way?" Gabby whispered, glancing
across the library floor. All she could see was books and reading tables and
another level that looked much the same from down here.

"Follow me." Isobel lead them through the
main reading room, between rows of tables with old-fashioned green and gold
lamps, to a set of stairs at the side. Up on the second level, there were rows
and rows of books that stretched into the darkness. This place was massive, bigger
than any library Gabby had been in.

"The vault is through the doors at the
end." Even though Isobel's voice was a whisper, it sounded loud in the
silence and Gabby glanced around nervously.

Aya placed a hand on her shoulder. "We're
alone."

"For now," the witch whispered, her heart
feeling all fluttery in her chest.

"Wait," Isobel whispered. She disappeared
into the stacks and appeared a moment later with a book in her hands.
"This is the closest thing that I can remember that the spell books look
like."