The Chosen Ones (33 page)

I felt the ever so slight
tightening of his hand on my arm, but he didn’t respond, didn’t bother to look
at me.

“Do you truly hate me this
much?”

His gaze remained on the door as
he responded. “Do not confuse indifference for hate, Jane.”

He might as well have slapped
me. I would have preferred his hatred. At least then he’d have a reason for
wanting me dead. But his indifference, his lack of emotion was too much like
the beautiful ones.
 

“We will no longer stand by while
they attack,” Bacchus continued outside. “Today is merely the first in a long
line of wars to be won.”

Suddenly Thane was stepping from
the carriage, pulling me with him. When my feet hit the cobbled street, there
was an uproar of cheering. Around me faces fill with hatred glowed under the
lantern light that hung around the courtyard. Monsters…every one of them.

“I give you the rebel leader!” Bacchus
cried, turning toward me.

I wanted to deny the accusation.
I was no leader. A leader wouldn’t be quivering under their hateful gazes. A
leader would have figured out a way to escape and warn the others of what was
to come. But calling me the leader would make Bacchus look good. Which, I knew,
was why he lied.

“Mommy! My pet,” a little girl
cried out.

A sudden tiny blur of a body hit
me so hard that Thane’s hand was knocked away and I fell to my knees. A grunt
of pain escaped my lips as thin arms wrapped tightly around my waist. I was
horrified by the touch of the little monster, yet at the same time taken in by
her innocent face. Her scent was like ripe apples left in the sun, warm and
lovely. But I knew better than to find comfort in her presence. This child
monster could save me no more than I could save myself. Thane gripped my upper
arm and jerked me to my feet as the child’s mother raced forward to take her
back to the group. And just like that she was gone. For some reason I hoped she
wasn’t there to witness my death.

“So is that what this is?” I
asked. “A public hanging?”

Thane didn’t answer, but Bacchus
heard and turned toward me. “No, my sweet. Our king wants the best. We are
having a celebration and you are going to be the main course.”

A cheer went up in the crowd. I
felt their thundering applause vibrate against me. Acid swept up my throat,
burning the back of my tongue. I was going to faint. The heat of the evening beat
down upon me, thrumming in time with their applause. They wanted to see me
suffer. They hated me with a passion I understood well, because I hated them in
the same way.
 

Thane’s grip was tight as he led
me through the crowds and into the main hall. I saw the double doors where
Sally and the others who had died had disappeared that fateful night. But we
didn’t go that way. Instead, Thane led me up the stairs to the right, bypassing
the floor where the women had slept the night we’d been chosen. Higher and
higher up into the castle. Were they going to dress me before they killed me? I
swore I would never wear one of those fancy white dresses again. But in this
world I had so little choice.

“You’ll stand by?” I seethed,
glaring up into Thane’s stoic face. “And watch? You’ll do nothing?”

We paused outside a wooden door,
and the dhampir who had followed stood in a neat little group, awaiting Thane’s
command. He pulled the dagger from the sheath on his thigh and reached around
me, stepping so close, his chest brushed against mine. I heard the soft swoosh
as the ropes were cut and my arms freed. Still standing close, Thane pushed
open the door behind me.

From the corner of my eye I could
see the other dhampir, waiting for their commands. But I didn’t care. I kept my
gaze focused on Thane, knowing there had to be something…something good inside
of him. It couldn’t have been all pretense.

“Please,” I whispered.

He lowered his gaze, meeting
mine. For one long moment we didn’t speak. I could read nothing in his eyes,
nothing in his firm lips or the hard planes of his face. Not surprising, for
I’d always had a difficult time understanding him.

“Thane,” I whispered, pleading.

With firm hands, Thane gripped
my shoulders and shoved me into the room. I fell hard to the ground, bouncing.
I had just enough time to see the smirking faces of the other dhampir before
the door was pulled shut with a sure thunk, and I was left to face the reality
of my situation alone.

****

I wasn’t sure how many hours
went by as I remained seated against the far wall…waiting…waiting for them to
return. Waiting…waiting for death. The evening sky had grown dark, my room cold,
but my mind remained on Will and Jimmy.

It was only when I heard the
soft sound of music floating up through the windows that I stirred. Although it
wasn’t quite a full moon yet, the party had begun. As if in a trance, I stood slowly,
using the stone wall for support. I could accept my fate, or I could fight to
the end. I might not be able to win, but hopefully I could take one or two down
with me. Will hadn’t taught me to give up. I would make him proud.

If I was going to fight, I needed
to move, stretch my body and prepare. I walked the room, taking in the details
as much as I could without any light. I’d be at a huge disadvantage. They could
see in the dark, they were stronger, faster. Frustrated, I paced to the window
and stared out over the garden. The moon was full, highlighting the woods in
the distance, the fields beyond. I was at the back of the building, that much
was clear. I leaned further out the window and dropped my gaze to the ground.
Something glimmered below….something that looked suspiciously like water.

I pulled back, surprised. Thane
had placed me in the very room from where we’d jumped those months ago. My
heart hammered madly as I tried to understand what it all meant. Thane wasn’t
stupid, far from it. So why had he placed me here? Did he think to mock me,
knowing I couldn’t swim? I leaned back out the window. In the dark, the water
didn’t look so far, but I knew it was a long, long way down.

Still, this window was my only way
out. If I jumped into that water, if I could manage to make it to shore, I
might be able to escape again. I had no choice. This time, I wouldn’t have the
cumbersome skirts around me. With trembling fingers, I took off my boots, knowing
I couldn’t handle the weight. I would gladly run barefoot and naked if need be.
Besides, better to die by drowning than by their hands.

Taking in a deep breath, I
climbed onto the window sill. The warm air whipped around me, tugging my hair
loose from its braid. In that moment everything came rushing back. The day
Thane had saved me by forcing me to jump…the fear, the anger, the confusion. But
it had all been a ruse. He hadn’t cared. The only person who could save me was
myself. Clutching the window sill ledge, I pushed off.

Like that moment those months
ago, I flew through the air. I felt oddly calm as I drew my arms in tight and
closed my eyes. Until I hit the surface…hard. Cold water surged over my head,
dragging me down. I wouldn’t die…I couldn’t. But as the chill water pulled me
deeper…deeper…the fear I tried to control overwhelmed.

As I hit the water, and sank
further and further into the cold darkness Thane’s voice came to mind.
“I have you, Jane. Close your eyes, relax.”

 
Although the memory of him on the island
trying to teach me to swim should have angered me, should have terrified me,
oddly enough it calmed me. My panic fled, and I let the water naturally push me
back to the surface. When I felt the pressure of the moat ease, I knew I was
close. With as much strength as I could muster, I shoved my arms through the
surface, breaking through. Frantic, I sucked in a quick gulp of air before I
went below again.

Don’t panic, don’t panic.

I focused on my memory of Thane swimming
through the ocean after we had jumped off the cliff. The way his body had moved
through the sea, his arms surging, his legs kicking. Using my limbs I somehow
managed to break the surface once more. This time, I didn’t sink, but surged
toward the shore. If I could keep moving, keep paddling, I might make it.

Keep swimming. Keep going.

The shoreline wavered. My limbs
trembled with exhaustion, but I kept my attention on that dark shore. The
sounds of the party out front mixed with the thunder of my racing heart, urging
me onward like the beat of a drum. Forward, forward, forward. I tried not to
focus on the fact that they were celebrating my eminent demise and instead
concentrated on survival. Closer…the shore seemed so near that I thought maybe
I dreamt.

My toes scraped against
something soft, something that shifted under the pressure of my feet. The
ground. My heart leapt into my throat. Close. So very close. When my feet sank
into the bottom, gritty sand seeping through my socks, I almost cried out in
relief. But I couldn’t rest. Not now, maybe not ever.

Determined, I somehow managed to
drag myself to the shore. But I knew better than to take even a moment to catch
my breath. I shoved my wet hair from my face and stumbled toward that rock wall
in the distance. Around me, the party continued. The sound of music trilled eerily
through the night sky, mixing with the rumble of laughter. I could picture them
drinking their blood in wine glasses, laughing and conversing as if nothing out
of the ordinary was happening. And somewhere, within that crowd, stood Thane.

Thane.

He would know which way I’d head…toward
Kelly. I paused halfway to the wall, fighting for breath. Yes, Thane would know
which way I’d flee, which meant once I got over that wall, I needed to go in
the opposite direction. I couldn’t go to Kelly, at least not now. The moon
shone above, lighting my path, urging me onward. I bolted the last half to the
wall. I would make it. I would not die at their hands.
 

I shoved my palms onto the rock
and lifted myself. With a grunt, I fell atop, the ledge biting into my gut.
Desperate, I somehow managed to throw my legs over and tumbled to the other
side, landing with a thud to the hard ground. For a brief moment I merely lay
there, staring up into the dark, dark night. Soon Thane would realize I had
escaped. Soon that bell would ring, warning the others.

I pushed off the ground and
darted up the hill. Who knew where I’d go, if I even managed to escape. Somehow
I made it through the trees and into a field. When I dared to glance back it
was to see the castle aglow in the distance. No warning bells…yet.

My heart told me to head toward
Kelly and warn the others. My head told me to get as far away as possible, hide
until they stopped looking. Save myself first. I paused for the briefest moment
in indecision and that’s when I sensed him. Too late. Suddenly I was tackled to
the ground. My body hit the hard earth, that familiar form pinning me to the dirt.
Thane’s scent swirled through the air, making me ill. Twisting, I threw my arms
up, hoping to at least hit him once before he tore out my throat. But his firm
fingers gripped my upper arms and shoved them to the ground.

“Let me go!” I screamed, my
voice echoing into the night sky.

“Damn it, Jane, just open your
eyes!”

Startled, I paused in my
struggle, not realizing I had closed them. Slowly, I lifted my lashes. Thane
hovered over me, an overly long lock of hair falling across his scarred cheek.
Thane, the man I had cared for. The man I thought had cared for me.

Staring into his glowing eyes
tore at my insides, ripping apart my heart piece by broken piece. “I hate you.”

“I know.” He lifted, standing. I
didn’t miss the crossbow attached to his back and the daggers at his thighs. He
was dressed for war. “And you can, but first I need you to look around.”
 

Suddenly, I became aware of a
pulsing energy around me, as if a thousand hearts beat at once. My entire body
buzzed. Confused, I sat up.

Shadowed forms stood near the
perimeter of the field. Cold sweat coated my body. Although I trembled like a
frightened child, I jumped to my feet, my legs braced apart. I would not die on
the ground like a worm.

“Humans, Jane,” Thane said, as
if sensing my unease.

I wasn’t quite sure what he
meant, until I took in a deep breath and truly looked at the people surrounding
me. Thirty, maybe more. Not vampires, but humans. From the group stepped an all
too familiar form.
 
 

“Will?” I whispered.

I was still trying to understand
what had happened when Will headed toward me. He didn’t slow but threw his arms
around my waist and drew me up into his warm, familiar body. Stunned, I merely
stood there while he hugged me close.

 
“I’m alive. It’s okay. It was an act. Thane
didn’t really kill me.”

His words pierced the numb confusion.
Angry, I shoved away from him. “You had planned this all along?”

“No.” He shook his head. I
couldn’t help but notice that he, too, was dressed for war. Daggers were
strapped to his thighs and his familiar sword was in its sheath on his back. “Thane
didn’t tell me until we were out there in the woods.”

“The blood…”

“A deer.”

My heart thundered, my mind
spinning as I tried to understand exactly what had happened. Thane had moved
toward the others and was quietly giving them orders in that calm way of his.
Will was still alive. Thane wasn’t evil. I had somehow escaped. Nothing made
sense.

“You’re okay?” He took my chilled
hands in his.

Somehow I managed to nod. Although
the night was warm, I was still soaked through and growing colder by the minute.
My gaze found Thane’s and held. He had tricked me, lied to me. The heart-break,
the fear, the anger had been moot. How could he?