Shadows Entwined (Shadows Descent #3)

11. Violet

11

VIOLET

I stare at Caine, knowing full well he’s hiding something from me. The guys all look tense, exchanging glances that speak volumes. Something has happened while I was with Amara, and I need to know. Whatever it is, they don’t want to say it in front of Amara.

Turning to Amara, I give her a stiff smile. “Thank you for everything. I need to rest and process everything you’ve told me.”

Amara’s smile doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “Of course, dear. Remember what we discussed. Time is of the essence.”

As she walks away, I feel a chill run down my spine. Her words echo in my mind, reminding me of the choice that lies ahead. The choice to potentially become something beyond human, beyond vampire.

“Let’s go somewhere we can talk,” Thorne suggests, slipping his hand into mine.

We make our way to my room, the tension driving the vampire inside me into a frenzy. As soon as the door closes behind us, I turn to face them.

“Spill,” I demand.

The guys exchange looks, seeming to debate who should speak first. Finally, Caine sighs.

“We found some information about the Convergence,” he begins cautiously. “And about you.”

My heart sinks. “Let me guess. You found out about the whole ‘vessel for an Old One’ thing?”

Their shocked expressions confirm my suspicions.

“You already know?” Flint asks, his voice tight with concern.

I nod slowly. “Amara just told me. She said I have the potential to channel an Old One during the Convergence, to become some kind of god-like being.” I swallow hard. “She also said it would require sacrificing what’s left of my humanity.”

The guys exchange grim looks.

“We found similar information in a restricted book,” Thorne explains. “Well, Blackthorn translated it for us, but Violet, there’s more to it than that. Blackthorn thinks this might have been planned for a long time.”

“What do you mean?” I ask, though a part of me already suspects the answer.

Caine sits on the bed and reaches up to pull me down beside him. “We have reason to believe that Amara, Morgan, Nathaniel, and maybe even our fathers have all been part of some larger plot to groom you for this role.”

The words wash over me, and I nod, sighing heavily. “Yeah, I’d sort of come to the same conclusion. Although I was hoping Morgan wasn’t a part of it, I think she was the spearhead. What I don’t get is why she sacrificed herself.”

Caine grips my hand. “Blackthorn thinks it’s so you can finish what she couldn’t. To become a god and then to bring her back as your loving mother who died to save you.”

“What?” I choke on the word as my chest constricts. “That is some fucking deviousness.” I can’t let myself break down. I can’t. Not yet. I have to keep going. Everything depends on me keeping going.

“And from there, Nathaniel and whoever else was in their little circle of conspirators.”

“Blackthorn also thinks Cryos and Glacier are in on it,” Thorne states, earning himself a growl from Flint.

“Oh?”

“Caine might have debunked that theory, but we aren’t sure,” Flint says carefully.

“Wow,” I say, pulling my hand from Caine’s and getting up to grab the second to-go cup of blood from earlier. It is sticky and cold, but it helps.

“How so?” I ask, turning back to Caine after gulping down more of the cold blood.

Caine explains his theory about Cryos wanting to take me to the Ice Kingdom and how that doesn’t fit with the conspiracy if it’s true.

I nod slowly, processing this information. “It’s possible he’s not involved. Or maybe he is, but he has his own agenda.” I run a hand through my hair, frustration building. “I don’t know who to trust anymore.”

“You can trust us,” Flint says firmly, moving closer to me. “We’re on your side, Violet. Always.”

I give him a small smile, grateful for their unwavering support. “I know. Thank you.” I take another long drink, wishing it was something more potent and more human. “This is so fucked up,” I mutter. “I can’t believe I fell for it all. I actually thought Morgan cared about me.”

“She probably did care about you in her own way,” Thorne says gently. “But it seems her desire for power outweighed that care.”

I laugh bitterly. “Yeah, nothing says maternal love like manipulating your daughter into becoming a cosmic god puppet.”

“So, what do we do now?” Thorne asks, his voice tight with concern. “The Convergence is less than two days away.”

I take a deep breath, steeling myself. “We need more information. We need to know exactly what becoming this ‘vessel’ entails, what the consequences are, and if there are any alternatives.”

“Agreed,” Caine nods. “But where do we start? I don’t think we should go back to Amara, and Blackthorn is guessing as much of this as we are. Although his guesses are better than ours. He’s been doing this longer.”

“Then we need to go find him and figure this shit out.”

“Now?” Flint asks, a deep hunger in his tone.

I smile. “Yeah, now. The sooner we know more, the better.”

He gives me a mock, sad expression, which makes me giggle as we file out of my room, and the guys lead me back to the library. The snow is still falling gently, and again, I get a pang for Christmas. Maybe when all of this is over, and we survive, and I’m not a power-crazed ancient god, I can use some of this magick inside me to summon up some decorations and fairy lights. It won’t be the same, but it’s better than letting it pass by uncelebrated.

We hear raised voices as we head up the steps to the library. We all freeze, exchanging wary glances before creeping closer to listen.

“...I cannot and will not allow this to continue, Amara,” Blackthorn’s voice rings out, his tone angrier than I’ve ever heard him. “Not on my watch, not in my academy.”

“Allow?” Amara scoffs. “We’re on the brink of something monumental, Blackthorn. Violet has the potential to change everything, surely even you can see that?”

“At what cost?” Blackthorn demands. “You’re talking about sacrificing a young woman’s essence, her humanity.”

“For the greater good,” Amara insists. “You know as well as I do what’s at stake here.”

“The greater good?” Blackthorn’s voice drips with disdain. “And who decides what that is? You? Nathaniel? Morgan?”

I feel my chest tighten as I listen to Blackthorn and Amara argue. Part of me wants to burst in there and confront them, demand answers. But another part knows we need to hear more. I hold my hand up as the guys are ready to go to war, and they pause.

“This goes beyond any of us,” Amara says, her voice taking on an almost fanatical edge. “The Old Ones will rise during the Convergence whether we’re ready or not. Violet is our only hope of controlling that power, of harnessing it for good.”

“And what happens to Violet in the process?” Blackthorn demands. “Have you even considered that?”

There’s a pause, and when Amara speaks again, her voice is cold. “Sacrifices must be made. Violet understands this.”

I feel sick. Is that really what she thinks of me? Just a sacrifice to be made?

“She’s barely more than a child,” Blackthorn argues. “She can’t possibly understand the full implications of what you’re asking her to do.”

“She’s far more than a child,” Amara snaps. “She’s the culmination of centuries of planning, of careful breeding and manipulation. Morgan saw to that.”

“So that’s it then?” Blackthorn says, his voice heavy with disappointment. “Violet’s just a means to an end for you?”

“She will play her role, and then the true queen will live again.”

“And I suppose by that you mean Morgan?”

“Who else?”

“Then you leave me no choice,” Blackthorn’s voice rings out, followed by a piercing scream.

The guys and I exchange worried stares before I push open the library doors to see Amara suspended in mid-air, being systematically magickally electrocuted by Blackthorn, who is wielding a power far greater than I thought he possessed.

“Wait!” I shout out, lunging forward, but Caine grips my arm so tightly that I jolt to a halt.

Flint steps to my other side as I fight with Caine to get him off me to stop this madness. Amara might be using me as a pawn, but this isn’t right. Her screams rip through the air, making me shudder.

“Stop!” I shout as Flint’s hand clamps down on my other arm. I hiss and snarl, kicking out.

Blackthorn turns his head, and his eyes meet mine. For a moment, I see a flicker of something ancient and terrifying in their depths.

He turns away again and increases the voltage.

“Get off me!” I roar at the guys and call my magick to me, blasting them away in a haze of black shadows that feel cold and wrong coming from my soul. They stagger back, but Thorne is in front of me before I launch forward. He places a hand on my chest and shakes his head. “It has to be this way. We have to protect you.”

“Thorne!”

Amara’s screams increase in pitch, and it rips right through me. I duck around Thorne, feigning right and then going left, but he is fast. He has his hand around my throat before I’ve even blinked.

“No.”

“Let go of me!” I rasp.

“Not a chance.”

“Thorne,” I growl, the sound coming deep from my chest as my fangs descend. I snap, and magick crackles on my fingertips, but for some reason, I can’t touch him.

Amara’s screams suddenly cut off. The sudden silence is deafening. I turn my head to see her limp form suspended in the air, wisps of smoke rising from her body.

Blackthorn lowers his hand, and Amara’s body drops to the floor with a sickening thud. He turns to face us, his eyes blazing with fury and danger.

“It’s done,” he says, his voice echoing with power.

Thorne releases me, and I stumble forward, my legs shaky. “What... what have you done?” I whisper, staring at Amara’s motionless form.

“What was necessary,” Blackthorn replies, his voice grim. “This plot against you is far-reaching, Miss Violet. These acolytes of Morgan’s will stop at nothing to destroy you and whoever else gets in their way to get what they want. My job is to protect my students.”

He stalks off with his black robes flowing behind him.

I move away from the guys. They let this happen. They stopped me from intervening.

I’m not sure what that means or, quite frankly, how I move past it.