5. Montana

Ilaid in Erik’s arms longer than I should have, knowing I was putting off the inevitable, but the idea of talking to Callie was terrifying. What if she despised me now? What if she couldn’t stand to be around me anymore? She’d only just started to see the vampires differently, would she be able to look at me as I used to be? Or would she only see a monster?

I crawled out of bed, flexing my limbs which were so strong it was hard to adjust to. Every movement I made felt powerful, like the sweep of a blade. I was a weapon given life. And I was afraid of what I might be capable of.

Moving to the bedside table, I hunted through the drawers, determined to find Valentina’s phone.

When I didn’t, I gazed at Erik a moment, drinking in the sight of his peaceful face. My eyes raked down to the packed muscles of his abs and energy pounced into my veins.

I shook my head at myself, forcing my legs in the opposite direction and heading to the closet. I found some jeans and a shirt to wear, pulling them on before quietly slipping out of the room. And I really was quiet. Entirely silent. Like a cat padding around the house.

I walked downstairs into the open plan kitchen-lounge where moonlight spilled in through the window and all was achingly quiet. My gaze landed on a large shape on the couch covered with a blanket, the back of my neck prickling as I stared at it. Was someone sleeping here?

I crept toward them and steeled myself as I tugged the blanket back to see who it was. My heart lodged in my throat at the vile sight before me. Fabian’s body lay in a heap next to his severed head.

My mouth parted in horror as his eyes gazed up at me, glassy, blank and seeming so void of life I didn’t know how it was possible that he could come back from this. But Erik had said he could heal. And I couldn’t bear to look at him like that, no matter what I thought of him. My senses told me what to do and I nudged his head toward his neck with a grimace.

As the jagged skin met, it immediately began to fuse together.

I watched in horror and awe as his head knitted back onto his body then his limbs jerked to life. He flew upright in a rush of motion, rounding on me with a vicious snarl. My lip curled back on instinct and a feral growl escaped my throat.

I gasped, covering my mouth at the reaction I’d had and Fabian stilled, blinking at me in surprise as he took in his new surroundings.

“Holy fucking shit,” Fabian gasped as he took me in. He was filthy, caked in dried blood and filth, his bare chest gleaming, but there he stood, alive as any immortal, undead creature could be.

“Hi,” I said weakly, dropping my hand.

I had no idea of how the hell I was supposed to explain the fact that I was his kind now, but I guessed the truth was staring him straight in the face.

“You’re...” He moved forward, reaching out to me with bloody fingers and I recoiled.

“How?” he demanded falling still. “And where’s your sister?” He threw a hopeful glance over my shoulder, his eyes dancing with light. “We killed the slayers, right? That’s why you’re here.” His excitement was evident and it burned a furious hole in my chest.

I reached out and struck him across the face. The blow was so hard, he flew away from me and smashed into the wall, sending a huge crack splintering across it. I swore at what I’d done, gazing at the palm which had landed the hit, feeling no ounce of pain from the collision with his face.

Fabian scrambled upright, turning to me with a glare. “What the fuck?”

“You listen to me,” I snarled, pointing at him as I forced the shock aside and focused on the bigger issue. “My sister is not yours and the slayers are damn well alive. No thanks to you. They’re far away from here with Callie. And you’ll never find her. I’ll make sure of it.”

Fabian’s eyes simmered with heat as he approached me, his muscles tensing as if he intended to hurt me, his upper lip peeling back to reveal his fangs. I backed up, suddenly not trusting my strength against him. He was a Belvedere. He was certainly stronger than me, and I wasn’t trained to fight.

He moved within two inches of me and then fell to his knees, grabbing hold of my legs. “Please tell me where she is. I’d never hurt her. I love her,” he pleaded, and my lips fell open in alarm as he clutched at me with desperation.

“Stop it.” I tried to shake him off, but he held on tight.

“She’s my life,” he begged and I sighed as I stared down at his pitiful form, the work of the gods clearly affecting him powerfully.

“Get up,” I urged more gently.

He rose shakily to his feet then clutched my arm. “Look at you,” he cooed, changing tact. “So beautiful. Did Erik make you? I can offer this to Callie too. Eternal life. Then the two of you will be together for all of time. Princesses. Adored and worshipped by-”

“She’d never want that.” I tried to pull my arm free but he didn’t release me.

“I can’t believe she ripped my head off...she’s so damn passionate.” He shifted closer, his eyes raking over my face. “You look like her in ways...”

“You’re creeping me out.” I jerked back and he finally let go.

“Sorry,” he muttered, rubbing the skin above his heart. “I just miss her. All I wanted was to bring her here. My love for her is all consuming and I need her by my side. Why did Erik let them go?”

“Because he knows it’s the gods who set up that fight. They’re our true enemy.”

Fabian grumbled something under his breath, not seeming entirely content with that explanation.

I glanced around the room, looking for what I’d come here for and spotted the cell phone on the coffee table. A jolt of energy raced through me as I snatched it up.

My hand trembled just a little as I stood, gazing at the screen. When I tapped it, a whole list of missed calls were revealed from Julius.

My heart sang with hope. If they’d been trying to call, surely that meant they still cared? They hadn’t written me off as a parasite.

I found my way to his number, my thumb hovering over the call button.

“Do it,” Fabian urged, bouncing on his heels beside me.

I threw him a frown. “Go away, asshole. I need to do this alone.”

He gazed at me like a wounded dog expecting me to hit him again.

“Go,” I insisted and he padded off through the room with his head hung low, stepping out of a door into the hallway. I was sure he’d hear me anyway, but there wasn’t much I could do about that. The last thing I wanted was for Callie to hear his voice and have to wrestle with the mark that bound her to him.

I sank into an armchair, drawing in some air, though it was useless to me. Then I pressed dial.

I lifted the phone to my ear, chewing anxiously on my lower lip.

One ring, two-

“Monty?” Callie answered, her tone raw.

“It’s me,” I confirmed, squeezing my eyes shut as fear raged inside me.

Don’t hate me.

“I’m so sorry,” she blurted. “Are you mad at me? I didn’t want to do it, but I couldn’t lose you and-”

“I’m fine,” I promised, a tear of relief rolling from my eye, but it was icily cold instead of the heat I was used to. “Are you okay?”

“Am I okay? Fucking hell, Monty, are you okay? Are you...did Erik...” She seemed unable to get her questions in line and my heart went out to her. She must have been driven insane with worry, and guilt consumed me that I hadn’t trusted that she’d want to hear from me. I should have called sooner. I shouldn’t have waited.

“I’m alright, I promise. It’s strange, but it’s not all bad. And Erik is looking after me.”

“Did you drink blood?” she asked in a deathly quiet whisper.

There was no judgement in her tone, just fear. As if she was grieving over the mere idea of me having to consume it.

I didn’t answer for several seconds, hating having to admit it. But I couldn’t keep anything from her, and she would figure it out regardless. “Yes,” I rasped. “I couldn’t help myself, Callie. I didn’t want to but it was the only way to stop the pain and if I refused, it would only get worse. Plus it was from Realm A, the place the humans live happily. So I guess that’s the best option I have.”

A whimper escaped her and another tear rolled down my cheek.

“I wish I didn’t have to,” I added.

“I know,” she choked out, then a heavy paused passed between us. “Why did you jump?” she asked, her tone laced with hurt, like my action had been a betrayal of her. Leaving her behind in this savage world, but I’d never have chosen that path if I could have seen any other.

“Andvari,” I said in answer, and she released a breath of anger.

“I hate them. Him and Idun, they’re monsters. Worse than anything that walks on Earth.” I knew she meant the vampires and my heart cracked at her tone. At least she was making some progress with seeing them in a better light. But they weren’t just them anymore, they were me.

“We’ll work out the prophecy,” I breathed. “We’ll finish this.”

“But how? What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know. Maybe the answer lies at the holy mountain?” I suggested.

“Yeah maybe...” She cleared her throat. “You sound different, Monty. Like you but not you.”

“I am still me,” I swore, feeling sure of that right down to my bones. “And you know I’d never, ever hurt you. I don’t care what this curse makes me feel, it doesn’t mean I’d act on it, Callie, I swear.”

“I know,” she said on a breath. “I trust you. And I want to see you.”

“She can’t.” I turned sharply at the sound of Erik’s hard voice, finding him watching me from the doorway. “It’s too risky. You could succumb to the bloodlust and hurt her.”

Callie fell silent on the other end of the line and more tears found me. “I would never hurt my sister,” I growled.

Erik shook his head firmly. “Until you’ve had time to adjust, it’s best you don’t-”

“No,” I snapped. “We’ve been apart long enough. And we’re so close to figuring out the prophecy. I have to see her.”

“I’ll come, Monty. Wherever you are, I’ll be there,” Callie said at last and relief ebbed through me.

Erik’s jaw ticked as he observed me. “Not her. One of the other slayers first. As a test. There’s a cottage on the estate, I can pick them up and bring them there. But only Julius can come to the house. Not your sister.”

I released a hollow laugh. “Fine, but once you have your proof that I’d never hurt any of them, I will see Callie.”

Erik moved toward me, taking the phone from my hand and talking down the line. “Hello, Dream Walker. Are you haunting me in my waking hours now too?” he asked, his tone cool.

My brows arched in surprise. Callie had gone to him in his dreams? Did that mean they were forming some semblance of a friendship? I didn’t think that was likely from Callie’s side, but I wondered if she was trying for my sake.

My heightened hearing picked up her answer on the other end of the line. “I’m pretty sure it’s you who’s haunting me, Belvedere. So where is this cottage? Where can we meet you?”

“Only Julius can see Montana,” Erik pressed. “Neither you or Magnar should stray too close to my home just yet. There is still the issue of Fabian-”

“Yes,” Fabian cut in as he stepped into the room. “If that slayer comes within a mile of me, I’ll finish him for real this time and take my wife back.”

I glowered at his causal vow to kidnap my sister, and Erik turned his back on him. “I’ll text you where to meet me,” he murmured before cutting the line.

An ache filled me at not having a chance to say goodbye, but I suspected he’d done it to avoid the chance of Fabian getting his hands on the phone.

“So you’re awake,” Erik turned to his brother, passing the cell phone back to me.

“Your new vampire helped me heal. How long have I been on that couch?” Fabian asked irritably, his hands curling into fists.

“After the slayers dumped you in my boat and I stuffed you in the trunk of my car?” Erik goaded him and tension crackled in the air between them.

“Yes,” Fabian gritted out.

“It’s been several hours,” Erik said, folding his arms.

“Who the fuck do you think you are? We were on the verge of defeating the slayers. Why did you let them go?” Fabian demanded, taking a step towards his brother.

I rose to my feet and moved to Erik’s side, protectiveness washing through me. He wasn’t alone if Fabian decided to start something. I was able to defend him now.

“Because we found some common ground for once,” Erik explained. “The gods took over our bodies during that fight. They are to blame for everything. They were the ones who pitted us against each other in the first place. It’s time we faced that fact and put our differences aside.”

“The slayers hunted us to the ends of the Earth!” Fabian bellowed, and Erik released a weary sigh.

“That was then, this is now. We have to adapt,” Erik insisted. “And if you don’t drop the issue, I’m going to ask my wife to help me detach your head again because I can’t deal with your bullshit right now.”

Fabian fell quiet, his eyes whipping to me. “Why did you turn her?” he asked, changing the subject, his head cocking as if assessing my new form, sizing me up.

“Andvari tried to kill her, I’ll tell you everything later,” Erik clipped. “All you need to know right now is that she’s one of us.”

My skin tingled at his words. I was one of them. No longer a food source or a weak being to be put under the thumb. And although the idea still made me uncomfortable, it felt good to be on equal ground for once.

Fabian stalked past us toward the stairwell. “I’m gonna have a shower.”

“Great,” Erik muttered as he passed.

“And jerk off while thinking about your wife’s twin sister,” Fabian taunted him and my mouth parted in disgust.

“Can we cut his hands off?” I asked Erik as Fabian disappeared into the stairway.

“Much as I’d enjoy that, I’m sure Fabian would find other ways to pleasure himself. That’s just the level of stubbornness he’d stoop to in defiance of anyone telling him what to do.”

I breathed a laugh, praying Fabian had been joking about what he’d said and forcing my mind sharply away from the idea in case he hadn’t.

Erik took my hand, his grey eyes brightening, and energy raced across my skin from the contact.

“You should wash too,” I said, eyeing his mud-caked body.

“Mhm,” he hummed, pulling me after him toward the staircase. “So you don’t like your royal husband dirty?”

I laughed as he tugged me along. “It’s pretty embarrassing, your royal assness.”

“I didn’t realise what high standards you had for me.”

“Oh I do, and I expect you to come up to the mark, Prince Erik.”

He cornered me on the stairs and his smile fell away to an intense look. “It’s so good to have you back, rebel.”

He brushed his thumb across my cheek and my heart squeezed with my love for him, all the barriers between us seeming to crash away to the dirt. I’d chosen to turn from him, to run and never stop running, but fate had had other ideas. Now I was with him again and there were no gilded cages in sight, I couldn’t find a single reason not to indulge the wants of my heart. Because despite the circumstances, and all the terrible things that came with this reality, I felt freer than I had in a long time. My destiny had been laid in my own hands and as scared as I was about what this new body meant for me, I was hopeful of what it might lead to as well.

I took Erik’s hand from my face, placing a kiss on his muddy skin. “I’m glad you turned me,” I breathed. “And I don’t ever want to be apart again.”

“Promise,” he commanded and for once I didn’t mind giving into his commands, because this vow was one I gave freely from my lips.

“I promise.”