Chapter 29

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

ATLAS

" T here are many things in this world I find intriguing : how the sunflower raises its face to the morning rays, how in a world of perfect symbiosis one cannot believe in a higher power, and how humans find the existence of the supernatural to be nothing but a mere myth. However, as of late, I find how you came to be lying beside me in a graveyard the most interesting of all."

Theon lay on the ground at my feet with his head lulled at a hard angle to one side. Whoever broke his neck had done so with enough force to render him helpless. Which, given the current state our world was in, rendered me intrigued. Theon was believed to be among the traitors to our kind. His reputation for being a staunch ally of Marius had been solidified over the years. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a small, square folding mirror that I carried with me in case of emergencies. I placed it on the ground next to him, then pulled my cell from my pocket. "I need medical and transport. I'm sending my location now."I hung up and quickly sent my coordinates, then closed the phone. Theon just blinked up at me with those wide green eyes. I squatted down over him. "You interfere with my hunt."

Though if I was going to roll with the honesty I prided myself on, I found the intrusion to have occurred at the perfect time. The hunt was taxing to my soul. I found little value in the world or beings around me. Only three vampires had my loyalty, only three vampires had my respect, and only one had my friendship, a friendship that'd seen me through things I cared not to dwell on. A friendship that indeed brought value to my world. Yet now I found myself in the position of failure. It was not a position I was used to occupying. I excelled at the hunt, I excelled at the kill, I excelled at the execution of orders. But this vow was the hardest one of all to keep. I was not a man who thought of futures nor believed that I had one. The only future I saw for myself was loyalty to The House of Shade, and now I was failing that too.

Like a wounded animal or terminally sick creature, it was a kindness to end their suffering. No one should have to live through the pain and anguish of such a life. I knew this was the kind of torture that Grayson felt. To not be himself physically or mentally or to hurt innocents would be the deepest kind of pain he could feel. Yet I could not find it in myself to do the right thing and end his suffering. With such a weakness, I didn't deserve to be called a friend. Each time I encountered him, I found myself pulling punches, hesitating to deal the death blow, or even worse, I would fear his loss so intensely his pain might as well have been my own.

How could I do this? But how could I not? I made a promise! A vow! A vow I wanted to break with every fiber of my being. I'd tussled with Piper, but it was a half-assed attempt if I was being honest with myself. Deep down, I wanted her to win. I wanted her to be right, even though Grayson was no longer in there. I didn't want to kill the belief that he still might be able to be saved. The desire to see him saved was overwhelming. In truth, I didn't want to give up on my friend.

Theon made a small grunting sound at my feet and blinked several times at me. "I find the blinking unhelpful. Do stop it. You look absurd."

More blinking.

I pointed my finger in his face. "Do not make me regret saving your life."

The mirror glowed and a vampire dressed all in black shoved his way out of it a little at a time. He placed his arms on the ground beside the mirror and pulled the rest of his body through, all the while grunting with the effort it took. He was slim, with a chiseled face and dark eyes. When he was fully through the mirror, he knelt down and reached back in to pull out a large duffle bag. "I hate coming through tiny spaces like that. It does no favors for my bollocks."

I rolled my eyes. "Just do as you're told."

The vampire swallowed and his eyes widened. "Atlas?"

When I arched my eyebrows at him, he swallowed and held his hands up. "Apologies. I'm new."

"Clearly." I looked toward the sky, where the dark-navy had begun to turn to purple. The first rays of light would surely burn Theon to death if we didn't move this along. "You want to hurry this up before the sun chars him to death?"

"The emergency?" He looked me up and down.

My patience held on by a thread as I pointed to where Theon lay on the ground at my feet. The vampire tripped over himself as he opened the bag and started pulling things out. Another vampire came through the mirror, and this one was a smaller woman with wide blue eyes and dark-blonde hair pulled back in a tight braid.

She shook her head when she looked at the other vampire working. "Oi, rookie, don't fuck this one up. Relax and do what we trained you to do."

She too had a large duffel bag with her that rattled with supplies. She reached in and pulled out a fold-up mirror and began to lay it out over the ground. It expanded into a six-by-six foot square that would make it easier for us to travel through with an injured Theo. My mirror was for emergencies only.

She glanced in my direction, and in a clipped, direct tone she asked, "Are you injured?"

"No."

She said nothing else, just went about preparing Theon to be moved. I stood there gazing off in the direction Grayson had taken off. I could hunt him down, I could find him, I could kill him, but the prospect of doing that only made me feel weary down to my bones. I was a solitary sort of soul but that had always included Grayson. Even in his current state, I found solace in knowing my single, only friend still walked the Earth along with me. Slowly, I felt myself begin to mourn him. It was a deep sadness that I would carry with me for the rest of my days. It made me question if the rest of my days would be worth it without my only friend. He made the days seem tolerable, his humor always surprised me, and no other on this Earth understood me the way he did. We had an unspoken understanding between the two of us. His death would dim the world, and it would never be the same . . . I would never be the same. It was selfish, and yet with each passing day, I found myself praying that Piper was right and would find a way. It was an odd sensation to root for one's only failure.

"We're ready." The smaller vampire caught my attention as the two of them lifted Theon on a big, flat yellow board they'd strapped him to and began to descend into the mirror, which rippled around them as though they were stepping into a lake.

Theon's eyes widened and he kept blinking them at me. "As much as I love your efforts to communicate, I find the attempts tedious."He rolled his eyes, and I tilted my head to the side, studying him. "Now that sentiment I understand."

I followed them through the mirror, letting the cool liquid run over my skin and peel back just as quickly. Bright white light momentarily blinded me as it always did when we entered the lab. But this mirror opened right into the heart of it, which at this present moment I was grateful for. I turned toward the first lab assistant I saw and stepped in his path, stopping him from walking. His hands shook and he dropped a tray of test tubes onto the floor. They shattered at my feet and tiny shards of glass scattered over my boots. He tipped his head back, looking up at me. His mouth dropped open, and he snapped it shut only to let it drop open once more. I scrubbed a hand down my face.

I don't have time for this. "If I wanted you dead, you would be."

He nodded so emphatically that his teeth chattered. "Yes, of course."

"Go tell the King I'm here and requesting his presence." When he stood there frozen, just shaking and staring at me, my patience met its end. I wrapped my hand around his upper arm and walked him past the research tables, past the holding cells for the vampires overcome with sickness, and right to the doors. I planted my foot and kicked them open with the other foot.They both flew wide, slamming into the walls with a bang. I tossed the assistant out. "Go, now."

He scrambled away, and when I turned around, all the other techs were staring at what I'd just done. I growled and they went back to their microscopes and lab work. They all pretended to bustle about as I passed, but I could still feel their eyes on me. I marched down the hallway toward the exam rooms until I came upon Theon's. He lay there strapped to the board with that brace around his neck.

Doctor Stanbourn hovered over him and was flashing a light into his eyes.He held his finger up. "Follow my finger."

Theon followed the doctor's finger with his eyes. He gave another round of infernal blinking and tiny grunting noises. "For the last bloody time, no one understands you. Might as well shut it."

The doctor pointed at Theon's neck. "Your handiwork?"

"If I wanted him dead, I would've ripped his head clean off and left the body there to burn to ash."

His eyes widened, and he moved to the other side of Theon. He pressed his fingers to his neck, feeling the bones. "It's a clean break."

"How long until he recovers so I can kill him properly?" I never wanted to kill my best friend, but I'd happily kill Theon.

"Why bring him here to get well if you're only going to kill him in the end?" The doctor straightened his stance and ran his hand over his salt and pepper hair.

"I'm a big softy."

A smile spread over the doctor's face, and he licked his lips, trying to fight it. "Indeed, a word I would use to characterize you."

If I hadn't felt like I was drowning in melancholy, I might've given the doctor the smirk that remark deserved. As it was, I could hardly find joy in anything, perhaps I never would again. I pressed my lips into a line. "What's the course of treatment?"

Titus marched into the room and everything halted. I turned and bowed out of respect and habit just as the doctor had as well. Titus gestured to Theon. "What's the meaning of this?"

"It's a gift, I believe."

"I'm not sure what would make you think I wanted a broken vampire as a gift, but this is dark even for you, Atlas." He moved closer to Theon and bent low over him, looking at the way his neck bent to the side.

"Not a gift for you, Your Majesty. I believe it was a gift for me. He was left like that at my feet when I was looking for the Prince."

Titus' eyes darted to me at the mention of Grayson, but he said nothing. Instead, he stood straight to face me. "Why would anyone break Theon's neck and leave him for dead at your feet?"

"You assume being laid at my feet means death?"

When he only stared at me with an of course look on his face, I gave a single nod. "Fair assumption."

"So, we have Marius' right-hand man with a broken neck in our lab." Titus rubbed at the stubble covering his chin and gave a little hum. "Interesting turn of events, wouldn't you say?"

"The most interesting one I've had all day," I agreed.

Titus turned toward the doctor. "What is the plan of action here?"

The doctor crossed his arms over his chest and glanced from me to Titus. "I will have to use one of the healing potions Ophelia left behind for us. I can straighten the bone, and the potion should help the healing process move rather quickly."

"Excellent, then I'll be happy to question him." I strolled over to Theon and bent over his head so he could see me clearly. "And you'll be very helpful, won't you?"More of that rapid blinking. "I'm going to assume that's a yes, because a broken neck will seem like child's play compared to what I will do to you."A small grunt. "Good." I patted his chest.

Titus turned to the doctor. "How long until he's fully healed?"

"I'd say a comfortable estimate would be three days. As he's a prisoner, I'll be sure to keep him restrained at all times."

Titus nodded in agreement. "Until we know how or why he came to be like this, I think that's best. See that he gets the best treatment but do proceed with caution and keep him contained."

The doctor bowed toward Titus and turned back to Theon. Titus crooked his finger at me, motioning for me to follow him out the door and into the hallway where we could be alone. I knew what he was going to ask me, and I didn't want to answer. I didn't want to talk about it. I would either be disobeying an order from my King to find Grayson and bring him home. Or I would be breaking a vow to my best friend to put him out of his misery.

Titus lowered his voice. "What of the Prince?"

"He still eludes us," I answered honestly.

"We need him contained as soon as possible." His voice was a deep whisper. "If anyone finds out that the heir is lost to madness, it will embolden them."

"We can't be doing with any more of that."

He placed his hand on my shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. "I know you've cleaned up the mess this curse has caused for years, and it's given you no hope for our Grayson, but I can't . . ." He cleared his throat and swiped at the corner of his eye as though brushing away a tear. "But I can't bear to think of losing him. Just bring him home."

"I will do my best, Your Highness."

"I know you will." He dropped his hand from my shoulder. "What of Piper? Are you two working together?"

"In a manner." I didn't want to lie to my King. "She's out there looking for him now."

"She's tireless in her pursuits." A slight smile played on his lips. "It must be exhausting."

I pictured that necklace Grayson had given her. He'd taken great pains to get it to ensure she didn't go feral once more. In his absence, I didn't think she was taking care as much as she should have. The memory of that pearl turning a darker shade of pink during our fight invaded my mind. I might be annoyed at her for getting in my way . . . I paused, thinking about that. Was I annoyed or was I grateful for her interference? She would need blood soon. As Grayson's soulmate, she could only drink from him or she would sicken and die. He was my best friend, my only friend, I couldn't let the only one he'd ever loved go feral.

"Yes, she is relentless." Again, not a lie.It felt odd standing in front of Titus and dancing around the truth of the situation. I lowered my voice. "She will need to feed soon."

His eyes darted up and down the hallway, checking to make sure no one was listening. "I believe Gray made sure he had a supply here for her."

"Indeed." I knew exactly where those bags of blood were kept. When she'd left the castle to go live with the Night Spawn, Gray had made sure she got regular deliveries of his blood and that there would be some left here for her. "I know where they are. I'll see that she gets it."

Titus gave me a tight-lipped smile. "Your loyalty knows no bounds."

Like a shot to the heart, his words cut me deep. I'd prided myself on my infallible loyalty, and yet I'd failed Grayson over and over again. I'd failed him out of selfishness, out of grief, and out of the need to keep my one and only friend.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." I nearly choked on the words. Without another word, he walked away, leaving me there with my self-loathing and doubt to suffer with. I pulled my phone from my pocket and hit the number. "I need something done and it needs to be done now."

She would have the blood she needed. I'd be damned if I would let her go feral on my watch. My best friend would be counting on me, and I'd never failed him. Not until now. I relayed exactly what I wanted and quickly hung up. I had no other reason to stay here. It was my duty to return to my hunt. The heart that I'd long thought dead wretched in my chest, sending a dark wave of sadness through my whole body because there was only one thing left for me to do, and for all my faults, I was loyal until my very last breath. There was nothing left for me in this world.

I was bound to my vow, bound to kill my only friend.