AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Before he could answer, the trees rustled and my mouth gaped as Amir stepped into the clearing, his dark hand wrapped around Lukas' throat. Lukas was not here willingly. He was here as collateral.
"Amir? What's going on?" I sputtered. Lukas had a nasty cut over his eyebrow that was already healing, but he looked petrified. This explained why Lukas had disappeared. Amir had taken him for reasons still unknown.
Amir's golden eyes gleamed as brightly as the amber tie around his neck. "Josephine. You have something I want. I have something you want. It's simple really."
Crossing my arms under my chest, I took on a defensive pose. "I have no idea what you want, Amir. I have nothing to offer you." I insisted vehemently. "Let Lukas go, Amir."
"The hybrid. Turn him over or Lukas dies." Amir's smooth voice had no inflection. He was almost robotic in his speech pattern and movement. Something inside of him had snapped, leaving behind this cruel, cold version of the man in front of me.
"Nikolaus?" I questioned innocently. Fighting back a smile, I was buying time, just as I had with Derek back in Bali. I had to keep Amir talking and hoped that Stefan would find my note.
He’d be angry with me for doing this alone. Hell, I was mad at myself for not thinking things through clearly.
Amir laughed loudly, but it lacked any depth or feeling. Amir had seemed strange at our last meeting, but now…now nothing remained of that man. Smooth and polished, he was like my father. Lukas' icy blue eyes bored into mine, imploring me to help him.
"Don't be foolish. You know which hybrid I mean. It is not Nikolaus I am after or we wouldn’t be bargaining." Amir advanced and shoved Lukas to the ground, inches away from my feet. "It does not have to be this way. Turn over Fletcher and this ends now."
"Fletcher?" I echoed innocently. My eyebrows furrowed as my mind desperately searched for a way out. I’d have to keep stalling as long as possible and hoped I’d be strong enough to kill Amir on my own.
I knelt down to check on Lukas. His breathing was ragged, and he was trembling as I gripped his shoulders. I wished we shared a mental link, so I could talk to him like Stefan and reassure him this would be over soon. This would make things so much easier.
Amir strode closer and pushed me backwards, away from Lukas. I tumbled back, falling backwards in the grass. "Enough of your fretting. Lukas is unharmed for now. Turn over Fletcher in exchange for Lukas, Josephine. Do it for Lukas and Stefan."
As I got to my feet, I caught a glimpse of brown hair and black in the trees. Fletcher! I wasn't a praying person, but I was willing to pray to any god that if Fletcher was nearby, Stefan was as well, planning his attack.
Amir's presence had severed our bond. His ability managed to negate every one of our talents, leaving us to rely on brute strength and our ability to think quickly.
Amir towered over me, his hostile presence oppressive. He arranged his features into a smile, trying a new tactic with me. Kindness. "Kian only wants his children together. You, Nikolaus and Fletcher. You could be a family."
Hatred spiked deep within me, filling me with a rage that made everything around me take on a red tinge. This must be what bloodlust was like. Without thinking, I gave Amir a violent shove, sending him sprawling to the ground. I’d stunned him with my strength and I took advantage of his momentary weakness. "I have a family, Amir. A family that doesn't include Kian. You don't get it, do you? He'll kill you too. He talks the good talk, doesn't he? He's smooth, convinces you that you'll have a place with him. He'll give you a taste of power and then…and then Amir, when your usefulness is no longer needed, he'll destroy you. Just like the Board members. Just like Lenora and Adolfo. Just like all of his children. You're no different to him."
Amir's amber eyes burned through me, the hatred palpable. "I am different to him. He promised me power. I was given carte blanche to control the Council with an iron fist. Insubordination like this would mean a certain death."
Sneering, my lips turned up in an evil smile. “It’s too bad you chose the wrong side.”
I saw Stefan’s shoulders moving through the brush before I heard his battle cry, breaking the tense silence. He burst through the tree line and was a streak across the clearing, grabbing Amir and holding him to the ground by his throat. Stefan held him with an iron like grip. It was brother against brother. Good versus evil.
"You would betray me? Betray my mate? And for what, Amir? A promise of power from a liar?" Stefan hissed angrily. His hand tightened around Amir’s throat.
"I did what I had to do, brother. A few will have to die for the betterment of us all,” Amir choked out. He didn't struggle with Stefan. He'd accepted his fate and refused to fight back. He was going to be a coward and let Stefan kill him, leaving the guilt over his death for Stefan to carry with him for an eternity.
"What has happened to you? You stopped fighting the good in yourself and let yourself be fooled by a lunatic,” Stefan growled. He raised Amir from the ground and with a quick movement, smashed him into the ground again, his skull cracking from the impact. “And for what gain? To kill innocent people? To threaten the only thing in my existence that ever mattered to me?”
Amir coughed weakly and closed his eyes. “You do as you wish, Stefan. I accept my fate, Stefan. My death will not stop this.”
The heaviness from his words hung in the air, stagnant and putrid. Stefan stiffened and blurred into action. An arm landed near my feet, the skin slowly shrinking and turning into ash before my eyes. Then there was more tearing of flesh, the wet sound of bloodied skin and muscle separating from bone. I stood back, paralyzed as the man I loved killed his own brother, ripping him apart piece-by-piece.
Amir didn’t beg for mercy and he never once cried out. Only Stefan’s breathing and the sounds of death hung in the air.
Finally, when I didn’t think I could take any more, there was nothing but silence in the clearing. Fletcher stood stoically, his thoughts filled with shock and respect for Stefan. He admired him, unsure if he'd be able to do the same if things were reversed. Lukas was huddled in a ball on the ground, his face twisted in agony and despair. The man he loved had betrayed him and in turn, died before his eyes. And Liev... he wore an expression of guilt as he met my stare. His cowardice had caused this. All of this bloodshed was caused by his fear and weakness.
I knew it was time to focus on Stefan. I took a few steps closer to him. He was a shell of himself, covered in Amir's blood. His blue eyes were staring absently on the ground and his mind...his mind was in a disarray. He was filled with rage, guilt, fear...and revenge.
Vengeance would do no good. Unless he fought it, its pettiness would fester inside of him. Of course, I wasn't the one sitting with my brother's blood on my hands. However, it added to the growing arsenal of hatred for my father. He wouldn’t stop until he destroyed us, one way or another.
As I watched Stefan’s internal struggle, every fiber of my being wanted to console him. I thought about the things I could say. I could blindly assure him that it would be okay, or I could tell him he did what was necessary to protect us. Both seemed hollow and I just couldn't bring myself to do it. For every impulse to hug him there was this voice screaming at me that he needed time and space. He needed to come to terms with this on his own. He’d let me know when he was ready.
So I stood in silence. I just watched the horizon; I watched the sun rising in the sky. I stood and I waited for Stefan. I’d stand here for an eternity if that’s what it took to get him back to me.
