Amelia Atwater-Rhodes - Shattered Mirror

Robert opened his mouth, closed it, opened it again. “I thought . . .”

“She told us what happened up until you sent her off,” Sarah said. “Then she broke down, hysterical. Nissa said Kaleo did this.” Since when did Nikolas turn into a cuddly sweetheart? Sarah wondered cynically, seeing the tenderness with which Nikolas held Kristin.

Nikolas’s eyes narrowed. “It would be like him.” He looked around the room, taking in the lack of color, perhaps seeing even more in it than Sarah had. “This isn’t his, though . . . Kaleo likes color, especially red.”

Kristin shivered, and put her head down on Nikolas’s chest, crying.

“She can’t stand color anymore,” Robert explained, watching his sister in Nikolas’s gentle embrace. “She screams at anything red.”

Nikolas nodded, and then returned his attention to Kristin, lifting her face.

“What happened after I sent you away, Christine?”

She shook her head violently. “No, no—”

“Christine, look at me!” Nikolas ordered. He put his hands on her shoulders and forced her to meet his gaze. Sarah heard the echo of his voice in her own mind, and she could tell that Nikolas was forcing his words into Kristin’s mind as he spoke aloud. “You’re . . . safe, Christine. No one is going to hurt you. Calm down.”

Kristin relaxed a bit as his mind reached into hers, speaking his words directly to her thoughts.

“Now tell me what happened.”

“No, I—” She broke off, finally looking away from his black eyes. “You sent me away, and he took me outside . . . he said you didn’t care what happened to me . . .”

“Go on.”

“And he . . . he bit me, but it wasn’t like when you bit me, it hurt . . .” She moaned. “I tried to push him away but it just hurt more . . .”

She collapsed back into sobs and he put his arms around her, comforting. He ran his fingers through her hair, and Sarah saw him hesitate when he noticed the dye.

“Go on, Christine. He isn’t here; it doesn’t hurt anymore.”

“I think I blacked out, and when I woke up I was in a hospital, and people were asking me questions, about you . That’s all they cared about. The police thought you had hurt me, and I told them no, you tried to send me home, but no one would believe me. And they had an IV in me, and the blood was so red . . .”

She was babbling now, but Nikolas simply held her, looking over her shoulder as if he couldn’t stand to see the mess she had become.

“Christine,” he said, looking her in the eye. “It’s over now—”

“No!” She screamed it. “They keep telling me it’s over . . . that there’s nothing to be afraid of, that . . . but it isn’t . . . it isn’t . . .”

Now she did collapse, and Nikolas caught her easily. He whispered into her ear and she moaned in unconsciousness. Suddenly his eyes narrowed as he found something in her mind he didn’t like.

“I’ll kill him, Christine,” he said softly, speaking to the unconscious girl. “I wasn’t strong enough to protect Father, but for this, Kaleo is dead.” Looking up, he spoke to Robert. “I’m taking her with me.”

“Like hell you are!” Robert started to lunge at Nikolas, but Nikolas pulled his knife from his pocket and snapped it open, tilting it toward Robert.

“You don’t understand, boy. Kaleo has been feeding on her—not just once, but ever since he found her,” Nikolas snapped. “And he has blood bonded her to himself, which means he has complete control over her mind. I’m taking her someplace safe until I can stop him. Then, if she wants to return, I’ll bring her back.”

“Like I would believe you.”

“I never lie,” Nikolas answered, and Robert glared at him. “Normally, the humans invited to our circuit are loners—they don’t have anyone to miss them, or anyone to miss. Christine should never have been invited in the first place. Once I am satisfied she is safe, I will let her come home. I would not take her away from her brother.”

Robert was unconvinced. “Let go of my sister.”

“I was asked to help her—do you really want me to leave her here until Kaleo drives her completely insane?” Robert took a step back, but his glare didn’t soften. Nikolas sighed. “Did she ever once say I hurt her?”

“You knifed her!” Robert shouted.

“I marked her. That should have protected her from Kaleo. But I told him I didn’t care what happened to her, so long as she got home. Did she ever say I hurt her?”

“What are you trying to prove?” Robert demanded.

“I do not torture my prey the way Kaleo does.” Sarah smirked, and Nikolas commented, “As I recall, Sarah, you were trying to kill me. You’re a Daughter of Vida, and you broke into my home. I would hardly consider you prey.”

“You don’t torture your prey,” Sarah challenged. “You just kill them.”

Nikolas shrugged, acknowledging the truth. “Yes, I kill. I have no reason to deny that fact.” Turning to Robert, he said, “But I will not kill Christine.” He whispered something else, and Sarah thought she might have heard him say “Again.”

“Just for the record, what happens once you’re satisfied she’s safe?” Sarah asked.

Nikolas looked up and then tossed something in her direction. She caught it instinctively, and Nikolas disappeared, taking Kristin with him.

SARAH CAUGHT NISSA’S ARM before the other girl could disappear, and herded her into another room.

“What is he up to?” she demanded instantly.

Nissa looked startled. “What?”

“Nikolas is a self-admitted killer. Suddenly he’s all heart.”

Nissa shook her head slowly. “Nikolas is . . . Nikolas,” she answered vaguely. “His marks make him more blatant among vampire hunters, but he isn’t even as bad as most of my kind.” She sighed. “You see him only as a killer, the same way he sees you only as a threat to himself and Christopher. Nikolas has rules of his own, and he would never torment an innocent girl like Christine.

“Nikolas sees you as his enemy because you threatened someone he cares about.” Nissa sighed, grasping for the words. “But Christine is someone he has chosen to defend. Nikolas is a harsh enemy, but much of that is because he is a fierce protector.”

Sarah shook her head, not understanding. “So he chooses to protect Christine . . . but at the next bash, or probably even tonight when he hunts, he will kill some other girl who might as well be her.”

Nissa looked heavenward as if for assistance, which was not forthcoming. “You know my brothers used to hunt together. They had—and Nikolas still has—scores of admirers, all of whom were completely safe. They were more than willing to donate blood, and beyond them, people would come to my brothers who wanted to die. I will never understand how my brothers’ minds work, but they aren’t . . . evil. They could never be that.”

Robert entered the room and Sarah jumped at the sudden intrusion.

He turned to Nissa. “Is my sister going to be safe with this guy?” he demanded.

Nissa nodded. “With Nikolas is probably the safest place she could ever be.”

Robert nodded sharply. Then he groaned, and leaned back against the wall. “What the hell am I going to tell my parents?” He turned back to Nissa. “Never mind. I don’t care about my parents. Thank you. Tell Nikolas that too. I just want my sister to get better.”

Nissa smiled faintly. “I’ll tell him, the next time I see him.”

She disappeared, and Sarah finally relaxed. Remembering the note she was still holding, she quickly skimmed over the words.