A Gift of Three (A Shade of Vampire #42)(25)

“Vita, are you okay?” I ventured, hoping I wasn’t going to wake her. Her eyes were closed, but were moving rapidly beneath her lids.

“Mmm,” she murmured. “I’m fine—just need to sleep it off.”

This was starting to get weird. It wasn’t food poisoning; I knew that much. I began to make my way toward the door. I was going to get their parents and Corrine. Clearly there was something seriously wrong with both of them, but it was something that Corrine could no doubt sort out in a second.





Field





After getting lost in the maze about a hundred times I finally located the exit with my mom—we’d lost all sight of Grace and Lawrence in the process. Dad was waiting by the exit, rolling his eyes in amusement.

“Really, it took you that long?” he asked us both archly.

“Mom wouldn’t let me fly!” I laughed. “I’d like to see you do any better—without supernatural abilities, of course.”

“Yeah, tough guy,” my mom teased. “You can talk big, but you would have been just as lost as we were. I’m pretty sure there was jinni magic being used…I heard that the Oracle managed to create a similar experience in Nevertide.”

That made sense. No wonder Hazel had refused to join in. I could imagine that a Nevertide maze would haunt anyone for a long time.

“Did you find Vita?” Mom asked.

“I did. She was in the observatory. Curious kid, that one,” he remarked, looking pleased.

“Good,” Mom replied. “Now, will you please escort me to our room? I am absolutely exhausted and I am not waiting around for this party to end, because I think it’s going to be dawn before it does.”

“Of course,” Ben replied. “What are you going to do, Field?”

“I’m going to find Sky and the rest of them, and then do the same. I’m tired.”

I said goodnight to both of them, and made my way back to the place that I’d last seen them. They hadn’t gone far. Phoenix was gone, but the others were there, and they’d been joined by Jovi. There weren’t any fae girls to be seen, but they were all looking pretty pleased with themselves, draining glasses of some strange pink concoction that fizzed like soda when they placed it to their lips.

“Anyone ready to call it a night?” I asked.

“Already?” Rock cried. “The night’s just begun. The party’s just getting started!”

I sighed, rubbing my brow. I wasn’t going to be the one responsible for breaking up the merriment, and it was probably best that I just left them to it. It was most likely that they’d want to sleep outdoors anyway. I had a room waiting for me—one I was meant to be sharing with Maura.

“I’ll come,” Jovi replied sleepily. “I’ve had enough. See you all in the morning.”

He half-heartedly waved at the rest of the Hawks, before we both started to move in the direction of the castle.

“Good night?” Jovi asked.

I shrugged. “It was fine,” I replied.

“I’m sharing a room with Phoenix,” Jovi muttered. “I hope he’s remembered that… and he’s alone.”

I laughed. It was unlikely.

“You can use mine if you need a place to crash,” I offered.

We strode along the corridors, going up to the second floor where the rooms were located. Both of us were silent. The doors all looked so similar, the corridor almost impossibly long, and I half-wondered if it was some kind of fae illusion that made the interior of the palace seem even larger than it appeared from the outside.

“I don’t know how I’m going to find my room,” I mumbled, checking to see if I recognized any of the ornaments that hung on the walls, or the small stone sculptures that were suspended from the ceilings.

“They should have numbers on them or something,” Jovi replied. He smirked. “Maybe it’s designed for people to stumble in on the wrong rooms…”

I put my hand up to silence him for a moment. I’d heard some strange groaning coming from one of the rooms, as if someone was in pain.

“What is that?” Jovi replied, picking up on the noise.

We reached the door where the sound was coming from, and I could distinctly hear Serena’s voice. Before I could knock and ask if everything was okay, the door swung open and Serena stood in its frame. Her body was swallowed by a large fluffy robe, which would have looked comical if her face hadn’t been fraught with anxiety and distress.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“The girls,” she replied, her voice pitched high.

Before she could say another word, a loud thump came from inside the room. Jovi and I moved past her, and I saw Vita, lying on the floor next to her bed. Her body tautened for a moment, the small frame of the human-fae stretched out, her muscles tensed. We rushed toward her as she started to jerk, her body contorting in some kind of fit.

“Roll her on her side!” Jovi cried out.

We moved her, trying to be as gentle as possible, but holding her firmly so that she didn’t hurt herself.

“Serena, get a pillow!” I told the girl, waiting till she dragged one from the bed and placed it beneath her friend’s head. Vita’s convulsing continued, her body jerking violently. I was about to tell Serena to start knocking on doors for help when Aida let out a howl.