A Gift of Three (A Shade of Vampire #42)(31)

“We don’t have a choice, Serena,” Jovi reminded me, his voice low. I noticed that he hadn’t come near Aida since we first entered the room. He obviously couldn’t bear to see her looking like this, but I also got the impression that like me, he couldn’t quite get his head around the fact that the body on the table was his sister.

“We do. We can wait,” I replied softly. “Wait till they come out of this…trance, or whatever it is.”

“We don’t know how long that’s going to be. Or if it’s a spell or something that the Druid’s put them under. We don’t know anything of his powers—what he might be capable of.”

He was right. We had no idea whether or not this was some elaborate ruse to trap us here—for what purpose, I didn’t know—and I was definitely opposed to finding out.

“Okay,” I agreed. “Shall we head toward the greenhouse I saw, try to get out that way?”

Jovi nodded, trying to smile reassuringly at me, but his eyes were dulled. He glanced at Aida, and then looked away again.

“Let’s get moving.”

He led the way out of the room, not once looking back while I kissed each of them goodbye on the forehead—hating the feel of their cold, damp skin on my lips.

I followed Jovi back up the stairs, hoping that the Druid wouldn’t be back in front of the fire, waiting for us. When Jovi reached the top of the staircase, he held out his hand to stop me. He peered through a crack in the door as I used True Sight—my vision coming out in black and white, and fuzzy, another reminder of how fast my energy was depleting. The room was clear, the chair empty. Jovi sighed with relief and we emerged into the claustrophobic heat of the room.

“Which way?” Jovi asked.

I tried to remember the layout of the house as best I could, and led him quietly from the room by the door we’d first entered. We hurried back down the hallway, past a few more empty rooms till we came to the main entrance. I paused, trying to use my True Sight again to navigate.

“I think we keep going ahead,” I replied, “this way.”

Hearing a noise, a sudden thump coming from upstairs, I started to run. We quickly found the entrance to the greenhouse through another door. It opened onto a small sitting room—yet another fire was lit, with the walls almost completely covered in books. The wall in front of us had been knocked through, creating a large arch covered in frosted glass. Jovi rattled the small brass handle of the door, and it flew open. We stepped inside, being careful to close it behind us.

If I’d thought the house was humid, it was nothing compared to this. The air was damp and thick with the smell of fresh soil and strongly perfumed flowers. It was also huge—dozens of feet long and wide, with only one small path not obscured by plants that led to the exit. We began to walk forward, gently pushing the wide-leafed trees out of our way, and stepping around the wide and elaborate pots that held exotic blooms in multitudes of bright colors.

“Do you think any of them are poisonous?” I asked Jovi, staring at a neon-yellow and pink flower that despite its beauty somehow managed to look venomous.

“It wouldn’t surprise me,” he replied.

We reached the exit, and Jovi tried the door again.

“This one’s locked,” he stated.

“Damn,” I muttered, trying the handle again. Before I could say anything like, “Let’s see if there’s a key around,” Jovi had whipped off his shirt and wrapped it around his fist. In one swift movement, he slammed his hand through the pane of glass. It shattered, cascading down from its frame.

“Be careful,” he warned, gesturing for me to go first.

I stepped cautiously through, avoiding the sharpened points of shards still stuck in the frame. I suddenly felt ridiculous in my robe and pajamas—they were an old pair, with pink spotted pants and a lacy grey camisole top. I hoped that somewhere on our journey I’d be able to find a place to change.

Jovi emerged behind me, and we surveyed the overgrown grass of the garden and the swamps beyond. I ducked suddenly, pulling Jovi down with me as large wings flapped up above us. When I looked up, my grip on Jovi relaxed.

“We were wondering where you were.” My nonchalant comment belied the total relief I felt at his sudden appearance.

Field dropped down from the sky, looking astonished to see us.





Serena





[Hazel and Tejus’s daughter]




“What are you doing here?” Field asked. “I thought I was totally alone in this house—I got out as quickly as I could.” The Hawk was still dressed in his suit from the celebration, looking as rumpled as Jovi and I did. In his hands, he carried a thick vine coiled like a whip that he must have taken from the swamp trees.

Jovi shook his head, rising to his feet.

“We were all put in separate rooms,” the werewolf replied. “Serena found me—the others are inside as well…but, I don’t know, they’re under some kind of spell.” Jovi continued to tell him about the Druid and the state of our friends, while I kept half of my attention on the house, wanting us to keep moving before the Druid made a reappearance. From outside, the house reminded me of a southern plantation, which made me wonder if we were even in the In-Between…what on earth would a building like this be doing here?