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Cora opened her mouth as if she were about to protest. “Fine,” she said. “Then let’s go hunting.”
16
Two hours later, we were waiting outside the gates of Samuel’s fashionable Bloomsbury house. Earlier, we’d gone up to Hampstead Heath, where Cora said there was always wildlife. She was a good hunter, with sharp eyes, and she’d pointed out squirrels and rabbits that had zigzagged their way across the grass, But I’d seen the fox, its green eyes unblinking and curious deep in the forest. Cora sat by my side as I drank, just as I sat by her side as she ate buns from the bakery.
It wasn’t odd. In fact, it was rather nice.
Now, we sat waiting for Violet. We’d been here for the last hour, not wanting to risk being even a second late. Neither of us talked, and the silence was heavy with anticipation. It felt like the clock had struck two an eternity ago, but I’d lost all sense of time. Cora shivered slightly beside me. Despite the cold, Samuel’s lawn was springy and bright. While the rest of the city seemed decrepit, as though it was decaying along with the leaves that fluttered to the cobblestones, the grounds of Lansdowne House seemed fresh. I wondered if this, too, was an enchantment.
Cora kept her gaze fixed on the main entrance of the house.
“Violet may not be the Violet you remember, but that doesn’t mean the real Violet isn’t somewhere, deep inside,” I said, breaking the silence. “It just might take a while to bring her out. When I first became a vampire, I don’t know if I’d have listened to a human. Be prepared for anything.”
Cora nodded. “I know. But it’s different with me and Violet. We’re more than close. It’s like we share a mind. And even if she’s a vampire now, it won’t change things. I won’t let it,” she said, her jaw jutting out determinedly.
You might not have a choice, I thought, but didn’t say it aloud. I’d already said enough. And maybe Cora was right. More and more with Cora, I found myself acting like Lexi: the older and world-weary mentor who wanted to show the protégé how it was done. But Cora wasn’t my protégé, and she didn’t want to be anything like me. Besides, maybe things wouldn’t change between Cora and Violet. Maybe Damon and I were the monstrous aberrations, the brothers who lost their bond along with their souls. Maybe Cora, not me, was Violet’s best hope for learning to live a moral life as a vampire. Maybe…
Just then, far off in the distance, I heard Big Ben. One … two … three.
“It’s time,” Cora said, grabbing my hand and digging her fingernails into my skin so deeply that I inhaled sharply. Cora’s grip showed what her demeanor hadn’t: She was just as nervous as I was that Violet might not be the sister she knew and loved.
A hush descended over us—even the crickets or squirrels we’d heard moments earlier had gone silent. It was as if we were underneath a protective dome, where no one would hear or see what occurred.
Violet staggered through the gates, her face covered with blood and her breathing ragged, as though she’d been running. She was wearing a dark red dress that buttoned up to her chin, but her forearms were bare. Her eyes were glittering in the darkness, and she’d lost the scared, haunted look she’d had as a hum
an.
“Violet!” Cora whispered from the bushes.
Violet paused midstep and glanced over. She looked so confused, it was all I could do not to leap from the bushes, wrap her in my arms, and bring her to safety.
“Violet!” Cora called again.
Violet finally located the source of the voice. Disoriented and defensive, she lunged for Cora, pinning her to the ground. Cora’s surprised cry pierced the air.
I plucked Violet off her sister and stood her up to face me. It was clear she was strong, very strong, from her recent feeding. I could hear the steady thrum of blood in her veins. I wondered how many victims she’d already claimed and hoped it was not as many as I had on my conscience.
Violet blinked and tried to focus, her savage grimace melting back to a look of confusion.
“Why… Stefan?” she said, shaking her head as if unsure whether she was in a dream. Just for a split second, I saw a glimmer of Violet as I’d known her: a naïve, innocent girl trying to make sense of the world. She turned to her sister. “And Cora?” she asked, as if she could scarcely believe her eyes. “What are you doing here?”
“Oh, Violet. You’re alive,” Cora said, leaping up and showering her sister with kisses. “I am so sorry. I’m sorry I went away, and I’m sorry for everything. Please forgive me. I never should have left you alone in the first place. Do you forgive me?”
Violet’s eyes glittered in the moonlight. She reached out and stroked her sister’s cheek. “Of course I forgive you,” she said. “Oh, I’m so happy to see you.” She drew Cora into an embrace.
Cora hugged her sister hard. “I needed to see you,” she said finally. “Stefan and I have been so worried about you.”
“You shouldn’t be,” Violet said in a dulcet voice. “I’ve been happier than I could ever have imagined. Jewels, furs, parties … it’s the world we always imagined,” she said, twirling a lock of her hair around her index finger. “And it can be yours, too. It’ll only take a second, and then you can be just like me. You can say good-bye to dull, dirty London forever. You’ll never have to sleep in a tunnel or in a crowded rooming house. It will be my gift to you,” Violet said as she lunged toward her sister. I ran toward them and pushed Violet to the ground, holding her there as she writhed and gnashed her fangs. Her face turned into a mask of hatred as she blinked up at me.
“You ruin everything, Stefan,” she snarled, pushing me away.
“I’m fixing everything. And Cora doesn’t want to be a vampire. That’s not the answer. We’ve come to take you with us,” I explained. “Where you’ll be safe.”
“Safe?” Violet spat as she stood. “I’m safe here. With Samuel. And I’m happy, too, Stefan. No thanks to you.” She sounded like she was issuing a challenge. Her voice had lost all traces of her Irish accent, and was as cold and hard as iron.
“You’ll be happier with your sister. You two are family. You don’t need Samuel.”
“What do you know about what I need?” Violet shot back, hatred dripping from her voice. “You told me not to become a vampire. You told me it would be lonely and terrible. ‘A fate worse than death,’ was what you said. But you just didn’t want me to have any fun. Not like Samuel does.” Violet laughed, an icy, tinkling sound. “I pity you. And luckily, I don’t have to deal with you. You’ll be dead soon enough. Until then, keep away from my sister. She doesn’t need your protection.”
