A Clash of Storms (A Shade of Vampire #50)(11)

Jasmine looked at the succubi still groaning in pain on the ground to our right, then gave Jax a pleading look.

“Can you please make them stop?” she asked. “They were only following my orders.”

“Orders to do what, kill us?” the Lord of Maras snapped, an eyebrow raised.

“No.” She shook her head. “To test you.”

Jax scoffed, but snapped his fingers. The wards immediately released their hold on the succubi, while the Bajangs came even closer, the giant felines making the very trees around them tremble.

“I don’t think you’re in any position to test us,” Draven replied dryly.

“Oh, but I am, Draven.” She smiled. “I wanted to make sure you’re ready for what lies ahead. I must say, you’ve exceeded my expectations. You were fast in your response and very well organized. The succubi would’ve put up a good fight, but you’ve got, what, forty Bajangs prowling these woods?”

One of the succubi huffed, pursing her lips. She stood up and brushed the dirt from her arms. Jasmine’s gaze continued to wander from one member of our group to another, her eyes flickering black when she once again looked at Draven.

“It is so good to see you, Draven,” she said slowly, taking a step forward.

“Don’t move,” Draven shot back, and aimed his crossbow at her.

I knew he wasn’t going to shoot. He was just irritated and eager to give her a taste of her own “testing” medicine. Jasmine stopped, her hands in the air, and sighed.

“You’re angry,” she muttered.

“You’re damn right, I’m angry,” he growled. “I didn’t even know you were alive until one of our Oracles spotted you in a vision, and yet, somehow, you seem to know plenty about me. Explain yourself before I ‘accidentally’ release a poisoned arrow into your chest.”

“That’s rather vitriolic coming from you.” Jasmine frowned.

“It’s coming from all of us,” Malachy’s voice boomed from behind.

The young Druids kicked their horses and moved closer, settling by Draven’s side. They were all mad at her, and, once more, I found myself unable to blame them. She had abandoned them, after all. Jasmine didn’t seem all that surprised to see them, just happy, a smile lighting her up from the inside.

“You made a wise choice to join my nephew,” she replied with a nod.

“First things first.” Draven raised his voice. “How did you find us?”

“I’ve had you followed since your friends left the mansion and sought shelter in Stonewall.”

She winked and whistled. I heard leaves rustling behind us. A young succubus, petite like Vita, appeared almost out of nowhere, her body covered in dark green paint and dried up dirt. Her bright, silvery eyes were the only thing that stopped us from mistaking her for a solitary tree. She came to Jasmine’s side, then bowed respectfully.

“We used a telepathy spell to keep in touch,” Jasmine continued. “It’s how I knew who each of you were before we came here to greet you.”

“You’ve got a cloaking spell over your camp, you have a telepathy spell,” I mused. “You’re using plenty of swamp witch magic, aren’t you?”

“Indeed, I am.” She smiled at me. “Long before the swamp witches were killed, I spent days in their company. They taught me a few tricks before things got bad and Azazel started coming after them. I was the one who urged them to split their spell book in three and got my brother involved in keeping a copy safe. These tricks have kept me alive until now.”

“So you knew about me. You spoke to my father. And my father knew you were alive but never told me anything,” Draven said heatedly, his nostrils flaring.

She nodded cautiously. “I asked him not to tell anyone. To be fair, he didn’t tell me about you, per se,” she explained. “After news broke of Genevieve dying in labor, along with the baby, I had a feeling that Almus wasn’t telling me the whole truth. He was never able to lie to me, anyway. At the time, we were facing constant betrayal from Druids turning to Azazel, and we were forced to separate. We didn’t know whom to trust anymore, and I’d made it my mission to protect the Grand Temple students. An attack on Persea was inevitable at that point.”

She paused to take a deep breath, looking at the young Druids. Recognition glimmered in her eyes.

“I brought them here while the portals were still active, and I hid them on Marton. I checked in on them once every full moon, but I was eventually tracked down and nearly killed. I’d been betrayed, though I still don’t know by whom—at the time, I was surrounded by many creatures I didn’t trust. Thankfully, whoever it was hadn’t figured out why I’d been going to Marton. In any case, after I got back to Antara and nursed my wounds, I went looking for my brother. I sent a message to him through several rogue succubi, and I was given a time and a place to meet. By then, Almus was getting weaker, still recovering from deeper wounds. Azazel was getting closer. It was then that he decided to tell me the truth about you, Draven, and the mansion with all its secrets, including the Daughter. He feared that death was imminent and needed to make sure you’d be looked after.”

“What a fine job you’ve done,” Draven scoffed, putting his crossbow away.

“I made the choice to stay away from you, yes,” she replied. “But not because I didn’t want to look after you. I did. More than anything. But there were still Destroyers on my tail. Traitors around me. Too many creatures knew where I was, and I couldn’t bring them all to your doorstep. I just couldn’t. You had the ancient wards in there; the mansion was protected. Almus had told me everything about the deal he’d made with the Daughters. I didn’t want to put you in danger. It wasn’t an easy choice, my dear, but I had to make sure you stayed safe. As cruel as it may seem, I felt it was in your best interest that I kept my distance.”