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Or they may agree, but won’t be strong enough to defeat Brimmwise.
Brimmwise may double-cross us and kill Steph after they have me.
They might let her go, as agreed, and strip me of my magic before anyone can stop them.
While losing my magic would no doubt suck, I’m more concerned over what Brimmwise will do with it than what I’ll do without it. Sure, I won’t be a witch anymore, but I’ll still be a vampire. I’ll still have Jesse, the mate-bond, and my new vampire family.
But if Brimmwise plans to use my magic to eradicate the vampires, how long will that last? I’ll lose my family––again––and along with it, my own life.
And while I’m perfectly willing to risk all of it for Steph, we have no idea how long Brimmwise will be satisfied with the victory of exterminating the vampires. They crave power. And even though they can’t eviscerate the council without losing every drop of that power they’ve craved for so long, I’m sure they’ve thought of a workaround.
Perhaps they’ll imprison the council members. Maybe they’ll take out the covens as the witches last night predicted, leaving the council no one to reside over.
I shake my head to clear it, focusing on Jesse as he dresses for the day. He’s assured me that everything will go according to plan. That he and the others will not allow anything to go wrong. He believes his promises. I can see that. And it almost makes me believe them, too.
Almost.
Noting the time on the clock beside the bed, I swing my legs over the edge and stand. I need to get ready, too. We have a meeting with Windmere and Sabledown this morning, one shot to convince them to help us.
“It’s going to work,” Jesse says, his voice low and gentle like he knows the abrasive thoughts running through my mind and wants to soothe them.
“I know,” I reply.
I try to smile, but I can feel the sadness in it. Jesse sees it and rushes forward, wrapping me in a tight embrace before leaning back to meet my gaze.
“It’s going to work.”
I nod in response, my throat tightening to the point where I can’t speak. He hugs me again, rocking me back and forth slowly until some of the tension in my muscles ebbs. Then he releases me, gives me an encouraging smile, and swats me on the ass.
“Go get dressed, love. We have some witches to recruit.”
Thirty minutes later, we’re crowded inside an otherwise-empty café, surrounded by delegates from the two covens. Their deferential treatment of Bernadette is just as obvious as their disdain for Jesse, Leif, and Erik.
And as for me? Well, it’s just as obvious they don’t know what to think. My existence as a vampire repulses them, maybe even more so than the others because I was a witch, first. But my ancestry cannot be denied, and in their eyes, I’m still someone to be revered as the last living Grundelier.
I know they’re torn over which way to lean when it comes to me, so I keep my mouth shut and let Bernadette do all of the talking.
“As you know, Brimmwise has taken my niece, Stephanie Brummett. In exchange for her release, they are demanding that Eden Walsh, the last of the Grundelier line, turn herself over to them so they can strip her of her power and absorb it as their own. We all know what will happen if they succeed.”
“They’ll rid the world of those disgusting bloodsuckers,” someone near the back shouts, and while some of his brethren nod, quite a few more hiss at him to shut the hell up.
Ignoring the outburst, Bernadette goes on, saying, “They will not be satisfied with eradicating the vampires. They will find a way to force the other covens into submission, then they’ll turn their sights on the humans. We all know their history, and we all know they have not altered their stance in the years that have passed since the council reined them in.”
“None of us will be safe,” a woman near the front says loud enough for her voice to carry. “Windmere will assist in any way we can.”
“Sabledown will help, too,” a man calls out. “We have no choice.”
His eyes land on me with those last words, and though there’s disgust and malice in his expression, I can’t help but feel relieved.
They’re going to help.
“Brimmwise gave Eden until midnight tonight to decide. She will set up the exchange for ten-forty-five, when the full moon hits its peak. The location will be in the woods near the Grundelier village, where Brimmwise absconded with my niece. Eden is more powerful there, and the magic of that space will help cover your proximity. I will be with Eden, but Brimmwise will have no idea who I really am. They’ll only know me as Stephanie’s aunt.”
“How do you know they haven’t already figured out who she is? They could’ve already killed her, and we’re walking into a trap,” someone I can’t see calls out.
A chill rushes through me, and as if he senses it, Jesse wraps an arm around my shoulders, pulling me against him. Dipping his head, he whispers soft words of encouragement into my ear, assuring me once again that our plan will work.
“My niece is alive,” Bernadette says with firm authority. “I would feel it if something were wrong.”
