Chapter 36 Julian

I was exhausted, which I was particularly unused to. I sat on a wooden chair with royal purple upholstery, free from the confines of Marguerite's bed at last and clothed in black cotton pajamas, which I much preferred to being naked. I supposed she was rewarding me for good behavior, but the truth was I just didn't have it in me to verbally fight her anymore.

Fortunately, it was daytime, and since Marguerite was the most skilled at combat among the vampires, she was off training newly turned fledglings how to best use their new abilities. Or, at least, that's what I thought she'd said before leaving. I was very happy to have a moment free of her company.

The taste of fresh blood still sat in my mouth. A few hours ago, Marguerite brought a couple of Initiates to drink from. I wasn't proud of it, but I'd greedily drank from a willing male. My weakened state seemed to magnify my thirst, and blood at least brought some sort of pleasure to my tortured existence.

All things considered, Marguerite was a far more merciful torturer than Hadrian would have been. Being trapped in a penthouse suite and having my personal space violated with unwanted affection was certainly better than being slowly skinned alive repeatedly or drowning over and over again or any other manner of sadism Hadrian was capable of.

I should count myself lucky. Marguerite's undying obsession with me had saved me from a horrifically hellish fate. At least for now. Would she eventually tire of me if I kept refusing to play along, to give in?

I wished Shea would contact me. She and Caesar needed to know. At least so they wouldn't think I'd abandoned them. The thought stabbed me with grief and regret. I had been a fool to come back here. I should have stayed with them. And now I might never see either of them again.

A soft scratching noise came from the closed window and pulled me from my sorrow. I lifted my head, and the effort to do so almost broke me.

Though the room was dark, my vampire eyes easily cut through it. Marguerite's long, purple couch sat right against the large, covered window. Although it was sealed off for the daylight hours, Marguerite had strung long, flowing silver curtains around it, framing it in elegance.

More scratching sounded from behind the metal covering the window, and I gritted my teeth as I attempted to get to my feet. My legs shook at the effort, then gave out. I found myself sprawled upon a fine purple-and-silver woven rug. Having fallen face-first, my nose had cracked upon impact—the rug had done very little to protect it from the hard stone floor beneath.

With difficulty, I pushed myself onto my knees. I waited for my nose to heal itself, and it took a painfully long time. I felt the sluggish cracking and popping as my nose set back into its proper place.

The scratching came again, this time more rapid, as if whatever was on the other side was growing eager to enter. Could it be Shea? Or Caesar? Had they somehow discovered my capture and come to save me? More likely, it was just some random critter. Either way, at least I wouldn't be alone.

Will trumped exhaustion, and I forced myself forward like a wiggling worm on dry soil.

I kept my head down as I dragged my legs behind me, and before long, I bumped my head on the couch.

Inhaling heavily, I placed my elbows on the soft, deep purple cushions and levered myself up. I lifted my knees up one at a time, and the effort nearly made me fall backward. I balanced myself with my hands on the top of the back part of the couch.

The scratching was loudest just in front of me. I reached up for an ancient locking mechanism that kept the window closed. My shackles clanked as my arms shook while grabbing the horizontal lock.

"Damn things," I cursed under my breath.

Taking a few more breaths, I used what little strength I could muster to try to pry the lock up. It didn't budge, not even a little.

I let myself fall back onto the couch in disappointment. For so long, I'd taken my superhuman strength for granted. Now, I was weaker than most humans.

Laying back, I looked up at the stuck window again and noticed the scratching had stopped. I'd failed whatever was on the other side. Not that it mattered. Nobody knew about my imprisonment. Nobody was coming for me.

A deep, crashing reverberation sounded like bells chiming in my ears.

The ringing continued, slowly tapering off like a glass being clanked by a knife.

"What the hell?" I muttered.

And then the clanging noise boomed again, followed by the screeching of metal on metal. Sunlight streamed in, brightening the room with regal brilliance and forcing me to shield my eyes instinctively from the radiant heat that flooded as shards of glass sprayed through the room.

My mind was slow on the uptake. Everything was bright because the window had opened. And it hadn't just been opened; the metal cover had been entirely ripped off, and the glass had been shattered. If that wasn't surprise enough, I stared in wonder as a certain gray cat appeared at the window ledge and looked down at me with red eyes.

"Rainbow?" I muttered, wondering if my mind was playing tricks on me. Had my cat really torn away the metal window cover?

But Rainbow leaped from the window sill and landed on the top of the couch, then stepped down onto my chest. Even though I could feel his weight on my chest, I still couldn't believe he was real. Rainbow should be hundreds of miles away.

I lifted my bound hands and petted my vampire cat behind the ears.

"You followed me?" I said with wonder. The cat's senses must have been enhanced by its vampiric abilities. I marveled that Rainbow had made such a journey and had been able to find me. Though how he knew I was in danger, I would never be able to fathom.

In reply, Rainbow rubbed his head against my arms and purred, his voice hitting that perfect Middle C timbre.

I wasn't alone anymore.

But if Marguerite came back and saw the cat, she'd kill it in a heartbeat.

"It's not safe for you here," I said.

If Rainbow understood me, he made no sign of it. For the time being, I didn't care. I was grateful to have the cat with me, however odd it was.

Time passed, and I remained on the couch, eyes closed as I idly stroked Rainbow's fur. I felt empowered by not being alone anymore.

While I could tolerate the sunlight just fine, I typically didn't care for it. Right now, though, it was a breath of fresh air. It brought me serenity in my weakened state. Mixed with the coming of Rainbow, it was a sign of hope. I closed my eyes and took in the moment of peace.

I was aware of the opportunity this afforded me as well. The window was open, and gods only knew when I'd get another obvious escape option again. But I also knew better. Considering how herculean a task it had been just to crawl from the chair to the couch, there was no way in hell I could climb down the wall. The most I'd be able to do would be to hoist myself onto the window sill and throw myself out, and as I was several stories up, the landing would likely kill me.

"Julian."

My eyes flew open.

"Sh–Shea?" I muttered, my heart leaping with both joy and terror at the sweet sound of her voice. Could she actually be here? Had Rainbow led her here? If Marguerite were to discover her, she would kill her slowly and make me watch.

I forced my head to roll to the side so I could scan the painfully bright room, but I saw nothing but Marguerite's lavish decor.

"Who else? You're not involved with any other witches who can magically call you, are you?" Her voice chimed in my head, and my slowly working mind finally understood.

I gave a dry, weak chuckle. Only Shea would be able to make me laugh at a time like this.

"Never," I murmured with a droopy smile.

"Listen, something's happened," she said. "Caesar has been removed as director of the Dome. We're working solo now."

The words repeated in my head even after she'd stopped speaking them, my mind struggling to find the meaning in them.

"What…happened?" I finally asked.

"Some shifter military asshole staged a mutiny," she explained. "They found out about your affiliation and used that to turn everyone against him."

My heart cracked even before my mind registered the words, guilt bleeding out of the wound and seeping into me. No. It was all my fault. That school meant everything to Caesar, and now, he had lost it because of me.

I sobbed dryly, my body still too drained to form tears, and my eyes stung in refusal.

"Wait, what's wrong?" Her voice rang crisply through my hollow sobs. "You don't sound right. Why are you crying?" Her pitch escalated with each word, and I felt even more guilt for making her worry.

I took in a long, shaky breath. "Something happened here, too. Hadrian discovered my treachery. The irony is truly astounding." Even in my agony, I couldn't help but appreciate that. Fate was an evil bitch.

"Omigod!" Shea's voice sliced through my mind, her panic cracking my heart even more. "Where are you? What are they doing to you?"

"I'm in Marguerite's quarters at Heritage Prep," I replied with a sad slur to my words. "My punishment is that I'm to be her eternal plaything. They've fitted me with copper cuffs to weaken me. I can barely move."

"Oh, Julian," she whimpered. "Who is this bitch?"

"A vile woman who's been obsessed with me for decades," I lamented. "Now she finally has what she's always wanted: me at her mercy." More sobs croaked from my dry throat.

Silence echoed in my mind for several long seconds, but I could feel a deep and righteous anger reverberating through our mental connection.

"I will kill her with my bare fucking hands," Shea vowed in a menacing tone I'd never heard from her. "I'm going to destroy her for laying her filthy hands on you."

The promise and devotion in her words made my shattered heart throb with love for her. That she would be driven to such murderous intent on my behalf… I didn't have the words to describe how deeply that touched me, especially in my current state.

"Don't worry, Julian. Caesar and I will come for you. We will get you out of there if it's the last thing we do. I promise."

My sobs intensified, lurching out of my helpless lungs like the chug of a train's engine. I didn't know whether to be relieved, grateful, or terrified. I was stuck with indecision between begging her to rescue me and insisting she stay far away from this goddamn place. A witch and a gryphon alone would be no match for an entire school full of highly trained vampires and their militia of willing human pawns.

"Just hold on. Please, hold on. And, Julian, um…there's one more thing you should know."

I closed my eyes, letting them roll back into my head and away from the sunlight that was now far too bright. I wanted to be able to focus on Shea's beautiful voice without any other sensory distractions.

"I… I am Alice."

The entire world fell silent at the end of those words. Whatever wheels were left to turn in my mind jammed, understanding escaping me completely. What did she mean? Did I hear her correctly? Was my brain so melted and fried that I was losing touch with reality?

"Julian?" she asked.

"I'm here," I rasped.

"Look, I don't know how or why, but it's true," she continued. "My blood accidentally unlocked the grimoire because it's my family's grimoire. I cast a summoning spell to talk to Alice, but it didn't work because her soul isn't in the spirit world… It's inside me."

My head began to spin, dizziness clutching my belly with sickening fingers. "I… I don't understand."

"I'm Alice reincarnated," Shea said plainly. "You don't need a spell to bring her back because she's already here, as me."

A sense of peace fell over me as my muddled mind flashed with hazy memories. Shea's face the first night I saw her, so much like Alice's. Her magic, so similar. Her touch, her smell, her taste, new and nostalgic at the same time.

Though my mind was beyond comprehension at this point, my soul knew. Shea was right. And I think some part of me had known it all along.

Bliss buzzed through my frail husk of a body, my sobs turning into low chuckles of joy.

"I love you, Shea," I professed, my voice constricted with emotion.

"I love you, too," she whimpered. "We're coming for you. Stay strong for me."

"Forever," I vowed.

The connection faded, and I was left in a silence that no longer felt hollow and bleak. Shea was Alice. The greatest desire of my heart had happened without my intervention or influence. Perhaps fate wasn't such an evil bitch, after all.

I was no longer afraid for Shea's safety in attempting to rescue me. There was nothing that tenacious witch couldn't achieve, and with Caesar by her side to protect her, they were a force even for the vampires to reckon with. If my Alice had found a way to come back to me, then my Shea would do it again.

For the first time in a long time, I finally had faith .