Anathema (Causal Enchantment #1)(88)

I heard a loud hiss and shouts and then the world spun as Caden whipped my body around, burying my face in his chest to shield me from whatever was happening behind us. He held me like that until the commotion died down. When his arms loosened their grip, I resurfaced to find Amelie, Bishop, and Rachel forming a protective ring around me. I peeked over Caden’s shoulder. Rachel had been forced to her knees, four Council members restraining her. She glared at us like a feral animal, her pupils so prominent that her eyes looked completely black.

“Now, Rachel, we discussed this. If you can’t behave, we will have to assist you,” Jonah calmly warned, dangling a cord of Merth dangerously close to her nose.

“Of course, Jonah,” she said through gritted teeth. It took a few seconds but she managed to compose herself, even producing a semi–genuine smile. The bodyguards released her with doubtful expressions on their faces.

“Go on now, Caden. Please tell Evangeline the truth, as we discussed. She needs to know that she’s safe,” Mage instructed in an even voice.

I looked up at Caden’s face to see him staring defiantly at the vampiress, his jaw taut. They remained like that, the silence growing more awkward as the seconds dragged on, until Amelie’s raspy voice spoke up.

“We’re all fine, Evangeline.”

“And of course they wouldn’t hurt you. You’re much too valuable,” Fiona added excitedly—too excitedly for Fiona’s normally level demeanor. She sounded hysterical.

I caught Jonah’s white eyes touching hers. There may have been a hint of warning there, but it was impossible to tell. It was impossible to read anything in those dreadful eyes.

Bishop remained quiet, his eyes focused on the ground ahead of him, his arms hugging his chest tightly as if he was restraining himself. So far, if they were trying to convince me, they weren’t doing a good job.

I returned my focus to Caden, looking up at him questioningly. Those beautiful jade irises gazed down at me adoringly. His face softened. “Yes, of course. We were being too protective of you. We weren’t thinking rationally. You’re safe with the Council. You shouldn’t be afraid.” He smiled tenderly, pushing a strand of hair from my face. “You trust me, right?”

My stomach plummeted. There it was. That word. The word he had warned me of before. He was sending me a message. It meant that I was in terrible danger. “Yes, I trust you,” I said slowly, emphasizing that deceptive word, offering him a small smile and, I hoped, an indication that I understood him loud and clear.

He stroked my hair softly as Mage spoke. “Your friends here were very cooperative in filling the Council in,” she said, again smiling at the four of them.

How cooperative? What does the Council know? And how did they get that information? Eyes wide with concern, I glanced up at Caden to see him staring straight ahead now, his face expressionless. The others held the same blank, incomprehensible gaze. Had they been tortured?

“We understand you’re looking for a way to bring your friends back with you—a portal of some sort, like this statue,” Jonah said.

I nodded reluctantly. Rachel could have told them.

“That’s so gallant of you,” Mage crooned, smiling. She was trying to win me over with kindness and flattery. She walked toward me, her hand outstretched, beckoning me to come forward. She stopped halfway, forcing me to peel myself from Caden’s side, something I dreaded doing, but I knew I had no choice.

“And this necklace will tell you how, right?” Mage reached up to the collar of my shirt, her fingertips grazing my skin. I fought hard against the urge to cringe. Her long nail hooked the chain. She pulled at it until my pendant slid out. “Beautiful,” she murmured, gazing at the bright orange swirls. She let go, the pendant landing softly on the outside of my shirt, visible to all.

“Your friends told us about these vampires on the other side. How they’re using you.” She made a tutting sound. “It’s just awful, how that witch deceived and cursed you. You can’t protect yourself against them. What do they have planned for you once you get there?”

“I’ve made arrangements to be adequately taken care of afterward,” I answered vaguely.

Mage gave me a doubtful smile. “And you trust them?” She took a casual step forward. “We could help you. Protect you. This group of us around you—” she motioned to the group of vampire onlookers “—are extremely powerful. Much more powerful than those three. Even the witch. After all, we would forever be in your debt. You could have anything you wanted. Absolutely anything.”

So that was it. That was their angle. Nurture distrust in Sofie, offer their allegiance and protection—my own personal bloodsucking bodyguard—and all the riches imaginable. All I had to do was bring them home with me. To infest Earth. To start another war, annihilating another world of humans. Clever vampire, but I’m on to you and this won’t work. Thank God the pendant masked my skepticism. “That would be great,” I said slowly, forcing what I hoped looked like a genuine smile. “I hope I can figure out where the portal is.”

“Oh, so do we! For your friends’ sake, you must!”

I frowned. “I don’t understand. I thought you said we were all safe here.”

“Oh, yes, you are. But, you see, there’s a throng of vampires outside this rubble. Hundreds of them. They saw us carrying this statue here, and your friends, bound with Merth. The Council is powerful, but there are only sixteen of us. We can only hold them back for a few days. Then, when they break through and find out … well, if they found out that your friends were planning an exodus without even considering them … your friends would not last long,” she explained soberly. “After that, when you return … well, that group is not nearly as civilized as we are.”