Deceived (2 page)

“And if I don’t?”

“You’ll be an outcast, stripped of our protection and knowledge,” Holly paused
as she crossed her arms and cocked a brow.
“Your own kind are being killed by demonic creatures, will you really stand against us because you’re sleeping with one of them?”

That was a low blow, but deep down I wondered what I would do if I wasn’t dating Aiden.  Would I be gun
g
-ho to stomp into the middle of a war? The answer was simple—no, I wouldn’t. I understood the severity of our situation and wanted nothing more than to end the fast acting vampire addiction to brew. A war, though, unsettled
me, as it would any other normal person. It wasn’t like we were going to be fighting with puppies. Our enemies were hyped up vampires for goodness sakes.

It
ticked
me off
that Holly referred to the vampires as demonic creatures. Vampires originated from the devil, true. When he was cast out of Heaven for not loving God’s children, he made children of his own, vampires. They were created to feed off of the humans God loved so much, but with the free will God bestowed
in humans
and evolution, the vampires evolved
into more timid monsters
.  The virus made them allergic to the sun and hungry for lifeblood, but that was the only thing demonic about them now.
Just like every other species, there were good vampires and bad ones.

“Well?” Holly asked.

I glared at her while I considered whether I wanted to go against my heritage. Without the NAWC backing me, I would be a pariah amongst my kind. I wanted to tell her that was fine with me, but I’d be lying. When I received my powers, I hated them. I lost my family because magic
had
chose
n
me. My parents were religious and thought I was evil. They kicked me out and sent me to Moon. I met Fiona here, and it was with her friendship I learned to embrace my magic. Everything I was today came from my magical roots; it wouldn’t be easy to give up, and Holly knew it. She presented the illusion of giving me the choice, but she knew I wouldn’t choose to be ostracized.

“What can
I
do?”
I asked dumbfounded.
I didn’t understand how my power for reading the dead mattered in a war against vampires. Sure there would be a lot of deaths, but did the NAWC expect me to read my fellow witches and warlocks who’d fallen in the middle of battle? That didn’t make sense.

“You can do more than you realize,” Holly smiled victoriously. “
Kye
is the best teacher we have; he’ll teach you how to harvest your potential. You two can pick up tomorrow, it is time for our meeting, and there is much planning to do.” Holly walked back down the path while I glared after her. When I first met her, she was nice and friendly—so much for first impressions.

*****

Everyone filed into the ballroom of the castle taking
a
seat amongst the rows of chai
rs that sat in front of a stage
. Holly had left a permanent scowl on my face. I was too distracted to appreciate the beauty or the rarity of the old world castle that sat in the middle of a forest in Washington. I leaned against the interior brick wall wondering what everyone’s reaction would be to the coming news—I couldn’t be the only one against it.

Fiona’s head popped up and swiveled as she searched the crowd for me. When her eyes found mine, she waved me forward, but I shook my head. I gave her a small smile, and she shrugged
and
turned
back around. Fiona was my best friend and my
roommate. Her parents were big timers in the magical community, and therefore, Fiona was raised as a witch. She loved everything about the craft and used magic all the time. I was still learning to accept what I was. I had my powers for ten years, which may seem like a long time, but in the terms of a witch, I was still a young grasshopper.
Witches, like a lot of other
supernaturals
had a longer lifespan. I was still a child compared to the council members who were around one hundred to two hundred in age.

The seven council members walked onto the stage in a single file line
and sat.
All except for Holly, who walked
up
to the podium.
Half of her long auburn hair was drawn up with a vintage barrette, giving a clear view of her high cheekbones and alabaster skin. Her deep green eyes roamed over the crowd and settled on mine. A lump formed in my throat. Holly would make my life a living hell if I didn’t comply with her demands. She smirked at me and then looked away.

“Welcome, my fellow brethren,” Holly’s voice reverberated off the stone walls. The crowd silenced and gave their attention to the council member, while I made snide remarks about her in my head. Government, in any sense of the word,
is
a pain in the ass, but forcing me to do something against my will or be snubbed by my community—that’s ridiculous. I hoped the community would be in an uproar against starting a war, it was my only chance
to escape Holly’s plan for me.

“Dark times have fallen upon us, and it’s in these times we must act as one. Many speculations have surfaced about our trouble with the vampires, but tonight you will learn the truth. Tonight, we will end the fear they have bestowed in us and take action against them. The vampires have learned a long lost secret, the secret of our blood.”
Holly’s hands fisted as they rest on the podium and her brows knitted together in anger.
Her voice was strong and confident like a true leader.

“
The gift of our magic lay in our blood, a gift from our Goddess.
The vampires have tasted this gift and grown to crave what is not theirs. Vampires have their own magic which allows them to hypnotize their prey and binds them from entering another’s home. Because of this, they can relate to the magic in our blood and twist it into something perverse, using our gift for their own selfish deeds.”

Gasps and angry mumbling echoed through the crowd as they listened to Holly.

“We have lost many to their greed, and that all ends tonight. A war is upon us, my friends. We must take back what is rightfully ours, or our kind will grow extinct. We must act in the
G
oddess’s name and protect the gift she has given. Tonight, the council asks you stand with us in our war.” Holly finished with a prideful smile. Cheers and claps echoed in the cavernous space and beat against my head.

“Do not agree so eagerly, my family,” Holly
warned
, causing the celebration to settle. “If you agree to fight against the vampires, this is binding. Anyone who is caught consorting with the enemy will be treated as such,” Holly’s eyes found mine,
empha
sizing her thinly veiled threat
. My heart beat like a
sledgehammer against my ribs
. She was making me give up Aiden, even after I already agreed, against my better judgment, to aid in the war. My chest heaved with panicked breathing, and the familiar twinge of magic danced along my skin. My whole world was crashing down upon me, suffocating
me.

“Are there any questions?” Holly asked. The crowd was hesitant at first, but a couple hands drifted into the air.

“My daughter is a vampire; does that mean I can’t have contact with her because of the war? She hasn’t
drunk
witches blood—she’s an innocent in this,” A middle-aged woman with curly red hair
and a kind face
asked. Witches were chosen by the goddess, not necessarily born, like Fiona was. This woman’s daughter must not have been chosen and decided to turn into vampire instead.

“I understand your predicament, but no vampire is innocent in this war. Sooner or later, they will all crave our blood. This is a decision you must make, no matter how difficult it may be,” Holly answered with a sad smile.

I cursed her heartless
words
. The woman wiped a tear away, stood up, and left. When she passed me, I gave her a genuine smile and nodded; I was impressed she had the proverbial balls to stand against the council and for her daughter—if only I could find the same courage.

“Yes?
” Holly
said to a man who looked to be around
thirty
.

The man stood up and looked around the crowd, hesitant to say what was on his mind. “Shouldn’t we only punish those who have partaken of our blood? I know the council is looking out for our best interest, but why should those who haven’t had our blood
be punished?” The man sat down and
wiped off the sweat collected along his brow
with a trembling hand
.

Holly was silent for a moment while she eyed the crowd. Although she stoo
d and spoke with confidence, I could tell she
was worried about the compassion the people were showing towards the innocent vampires.

“It is easy to look at those who have not drunk from us as innocents,” Holly began. “Word is already spreading of the miraculous things our blood enables the vampires to do, and more and more vampires are tempted to drink from us. Loved ones are no exception, as I told the woman before you. We have a member here tonight who was betrayed by a loved one because the pull of our blood was too strong.” Holly held out her hand towards me. My stomach sunk and my breath caught in my lungs.

“Gwen Sparks was romantically involved with a vampire, and he betrayed her by becoming addicted to the magic in our blood. She trusted an innocent, as you call them, and in the end he deceived her.”

Everyone turned and looked at me, while I stared holes into Holly. I should have
known the council
would find
out
that
Aiden
was
addicted to brew. While he tried to find answers about the case, his friend, Louis, urged him to try witches blood. The addiction was strong and fast. Aiden was on his way to becoming a full fledge brew junkie before I discovered what happened.
Because I felt responsible due to the fact that he wouldn’t have gotten the addiction had he not been trying to help me solve the case,
I offered to feed him so he wouldn’t kill a witch
for his next fix
. I was so upset about what happened
that
I took him to Ms.
Ozland’s
house, and we were able to break his addiction. It was painful for me, but worth it. Ms.
Ozland
was the only person, besides Aiden and me, who knew about that night—the only person who could have betrayed my trust.

“So, hopefully I’ve made it clear how serious our situation is,” Holly said, and the crowd turned their attention back to her. I couldn’t stand to be in the same room with her anymore so I walked out. 

“I thought I’d find you here,” Fiona said. I made my early exit from the meeting and hid in the castle’s library. The room was hardly ever active and the large arched windows were fitted with comfy seats, a perfect place to think. I had curled up on one and stared out at the moonlit landscape.

I looked up at Fiona. Her blond hair was swept to the side in a ponytail and her blue eyes studied me with concern.

“So, it’s done? A war is definite?” I asked
solemnly
. I hated everything about the turmoil our two species were facing. The distribution of witches blood, or brew as the vampires called it, needed to stop, but a war seemed extreme.

“Yeah,
besides a few doubtful people, everyone agrees it nee
ds to be done,” Fiona answered.

“What about you? Do you think it needs to be done?”

“I know you’re torn on the situation because of Aiden, but we can’
t let them continue to kill us,
Gwen. Of course we’d love to settle it another way, but since the vampire council hasn’t taken action, we have to.” Fiona watched me l
ike she was afraid I’d tear her
a new one for agreeing with the council.

Instead, I gave her a small smile, then turned and rested my head against the stone wall to stare out the window again, “I know,”