Page 46 of A Clash of Embers

Before I could respond, he pulled me into the room and I was greeted with a lot of surprised faces. Some that were somewhat familiar, Griffin and Lachlan, but the others, I had no clue.

There was a large table in the center of the room in a circular shape that held the map of the entire world of Darthium, similar to Queen Anne's office. I stood back from the table and let myeyes wander to the people who stood proudly in this room. The humans stood out; their skin was dull and pale in comparison to the werewolves and vampryes. The werewolves were poignant and strong. Whereas the vampryes, Eros and Lachlan, were in pristine condition. Strong and attractive, but easily the most dangerous.

Eros waved me over to the table where the other soldiers stood. Two from each species, then there was me.

“This ismyClara. She will be vital in the planning of our next move. Please introduce yourself if you haven’t already.” He paused, looking down at me. “She’ll be around a while so might as well get comfortable.”

He said that I’d be around a while… What did he mean by that? He was going to keep me. Away from my friends and Leo?

Griffin nodded at me and then turned his gaze to the woman next to him. “This is Alexandra. She is my second in command, tough as nails. I think you two will get along.” Alexandra was acuriouswoman. She had long dark brown hair but the scars on her face took precedence over everything. They were clear across her right eye leaving pink lines that expanded across her features. I smiled at her and nodded, making a mental note to ask about her later.

An older man with thick gray hair and crinkles deep across his face spoke up. “My name is Abraham and this is my son, Jax. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Clara.”

Humans. His son, Jax, had soft blonde hair that was shaved close to his head along with a trimmed beard. I wrapped my powers around them and they didn't shy away. I'm sure they were used to it. They were frozen under the curse, just like everyone else. They let me know that a large portion of humans were sucked under the curse, and the ones who were teetering the line on entering Tetharus, Athiana was ready to send them there but thought a repeated curse was misery enough.

I turned to look at Eros and Lachlan, the last leaders in the room. Eros nodded in thanks to the others as we started the discussion. One that I wasn’t quite prepared for.

“So, the others played right into our plan, which allowed Clara better access to me.” I kept my face straight and didn’t let my emotions register. “Leo put into motion the next part of the plan: they will come for her, but we will be waiting. In two days, we will venture to Bolzana to meet with the Doyen."

What the abyss was a Doyen?

I saw Eros tilt his head at me with knowing eyes and a smirk. A gesture that told me he would tell me later, but not now.

“Once we meet with her, we will gather supplies and make our way down into Athiana’s region. She will be expecting us, but what she won’t be expecting is the troops of humans and werewolves coming from the south.” He pointed to the map. “We will trap her and that’s when we will capture Athiana and make her reverse the curse.”

Which curse was he talking about?

After Abraham, Griffin, and Eros finished their conservation about specific strategies and placements for their soldiers, I noticed that Eros gestured for me to walk with him out of the room and into the grand ballroom.

The tables had been pushed to the edges of the room allowing space for people to dance and enjoy themselves. I saw Griffin immediately take off to the middle of the dance floor to dance with some of the other werewolves. Everyone was laughing and enjoying their time together.

I missed that. It reminded me of simpler times.

“You should go and join him.” Eros spoke to me with a voice that startled me and I looked at him with a bewildered look. “Seriously. Go.”

I thought for a moment about the reasons why he would want me to go and enjoy myself. Technically, I was his prisoner ofsorts, but as always, he gave me serious whiplash. He was the most difficult man to read. He was also theonlyman who I couldn’t reach through my powers. I couldn’t read his mind fully and there was no way my persuasion would work on him. I nodded and turned to walk to the dance floor to join Griffin.

Chapter 22

The string quartet started to play a slow song as Griff reached around my waist pulling me in to dance with him. We moved silently back and forth for a while before he spoke.

“I’m so glad that you’re here,” he paused as I watched him take a breath before continuing. “Thank you for breaking the curse in Carondelet. Eros did help me remember some of the events that happened during our time there, but when you touched me, I saw the entire picture. I wanted to make sure not to make a big scene about seeing you but I truly amthrilledyou are here.” He took a breath and pulled back before he continued looking around the room. "Eros told me that you wanted to talk about Lettie, but I'm not sure I'm ready yet."

I nodded as he continued, “The people here are, um...unsure of you. They want to believe that you will help us, but they also know that you have alliances elsewhere.” His eyebrows rose with a ‘I know you better than you think I do’ look. “It's why you're hesitant totrust,and to be completely honest, I wouldn’t trust anyone either.”

I looked at him, into his honest face when his expression morphed into fear, but before I could respond I felt a stinging sensation run through my body. The sharp pain at the bottom of my neck felt like a hot knife searing my skin, unleashing a blazing storm within me.

My veins felt like they were lit on fire. As quickly as it happened, the reason for the pain was loudly screaming, begging, on her knees as Eros had his hand wrapped around her neck. I noticed it was the young vamprye with red eyes who I had seen earlier. She attacked me and took my blood from my body into hers.

I felt the warmth of my blood drip down my neck as I watched this scenario unfold in front of me. The people around the room all took large steps backward as attention fell upon Eros, Griffin, and the two women who looked very concerned—the vamprye who attacked me and me, the girl who was standing dumbfounded in the center of it all.

“Please Eros, I-I couldn’t control myself. Her scent was too strong, I couldn’t help it. I just wanted a taste—”

He took a step towards her, tightening his grip on her neck as her eyes slightly bulged out, and he leaned in closer to her face as he spoke through clenched teeth.

“You will never touch another person again. You will never touch mymateagain and you willneversee the light of day. You have had your chance, and now it is done.”

With a twist of his right hand, he broke her neck and with his other, he struck a Lilith Silver blade through her chest causing her skin to turn bright white as if all the blood was drained from her. The thud of her body on the floor sent chills up my spine. I could sense the power radiating off of him, it pulsed like an extension of him that was surrounding me, enveloping me. It made me still.

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