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ward in surprise. Didn t you know I was
coming? He walked casually, eyeing my
mother as she dangled in the grasp of her
captor. With a single pointed nail, he
caressed her cheek.
What did he mean he was coming for me?
This didn t make any sense. I thought they
wanted to gain territory, to control all re-
gions and make vampires the dominating
and fearful predators that they once were.
He saw the questioning look in my eyes
and raised his bushy black eye brows.
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Interesting. I suppose you have no idea who
I am? His words seemed to hiss in the air.
You re the leader of The Dark.
My name is Baal, his voice boomed in ir-
ritation. Maybe they didn t like being called
The Dark? Your lovely mother here was just
telling me you didn t exist. Weren t you,
darling? He purred at her and I saw her re-
coil. She looked like she was going to puke.
But here you are! He sounded almost
amused and it both enraged and scared me.
What could I possibly do to stop him?
Yeah, here I am. I tried to push away my
fear by focusing on the sight of my parents.
My father, whom I had longed for my whole
life and only just found, and the mother I
never knew, but instantly felt connected to. I
didn t want to let them down. No matter how
afraid I was, I would do whatever it took. If
you ve come here to claim Naos as yours, you
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can forget it. Go back to whatever cave you
crawled out of.
Stupid girl. Tsk, tsk. He waged a pointed
nail at me. I bit my lip. I didn t like the way
he was looking at me. Do you really think I
came here just to take your precious Naos?
Had you not fled from Palace Noire I might
have let this poor excuse for a city live a few
years longer in peace.
I looked toward my mother. Did she know
what he was talking about? I needed to know
his angle, what his plan was, if I were ever
going to defeat him.
Who am I kidding? Baal propelled to my
side again, but I held my ground this time.
He pressed his sweaty face against mine. His
rancid breath filled my nose as he whispered
in my ear. I have wanted to see this city
burn for centuries. All these pathetic excuses
for vampires, wasting their potential on a
mythic Goddess! Where is she now? He
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looked at me waiting for an answer I couldn t
give him. Nothing to say?
What could I say? I didn t know much
about Nyx, but somehow I knew she
wouldn t just materialize in a poof of star-
dust and save the day. I knew it would be up
to us to save ourselves.
Baal walked steadily over to my mother,
pulling something from his pocket and held
it against her chest. She howled in pain and I
ran for her, my instincts taking over my
body. I wanted to kill him for hurting her,
but what he said next stopped me dead in my
tracks.
What if I were to kill your mother? he
asked. The special vampire who was blessed
with the miracle - he emphasized the word
like it would make him vomit - of a child.
Wouldn t you think Nyx would come down
and protect her chosen followers?
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Don t listen to him, Claire! Bennett
shouted from behind me. I had forgotten he
was there, but somehow his voice comforted
me. I wished that Arrick was here too. He
would know what to do.
Enough of your stupid games, Baal. Let
my parents go!
Alarms crackled through my nerves and I
immediately turned to face Bennett as a
hooded figure clamped its claw-like hands
around his neck. He shoved Bennett forward.
Fear widened the whites of his eyes. I had to
do something. I was losing this battle before
it had even begun.
Several hooded figures entered the room,
circling around me. The walls started to close
in on me and I felt my mind spinning out of
control.
What do you want? I screamed at the
figures, frustration tearing at my voice.
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One of them moved and I stopped, lower-
ing my body, readying for their attack. But it
didn t come. Instead, the figure lifted their
hood and my mouth fell open. It was Ana.
My body exploded in heat at the sight of
her face. I ran for her, my mouth open and
my fangs ready to pierce her neck. Revenge
would finally be mine.
Just steps before I was within her reach
she pulled a long, thick golden chain from
within her cloak. It dangled from her fingers,
swinging like a pendulum. Attached at the
end was a cloudy black stone. The instant I
locked eyes on it, my mind felt a crushing
blow of pain and misery like it was a solid
brick wall. My legs bolted in place on the
marble floor as if I had taken on the form of
a statue. I couldn t move. My body got heav-
ier and heavier. My mind screamed in agony.
My heart burned in sorrow.
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The sounds of Bennett s screams were
echoing in my mind. Somehow they seemed
distant. Was I fading away or was he? Slowly
all I could see was Ana s face. There was
something different about her. There was
something missing. The question twirled
around in my mind like a loose coin.
Then it came to me. I had pushed back my
anger and my pain and I truly saw it. Her
eyes were completely white. There was no
emotion in her face. I knew Ana and if this
were her, she would have wanted me dead,
as much as I wanted her dead.
The realization broke the stone s spell on
me and I collapsed to the floor. Ana stared
blankly at me. She hadn t even flinched. Did
she even know what was going on?
What did you do to her? I gasped.
Nothing she didn t deserve. Her orders
were to bring you to me, but she got greedy
just like the rest of them, said Baal, his voice
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dripping in hate. Now she s much more
obedient. Baal stroked Ana s bright blonde
hair. She stayed motionless. I almost felt
sorry for her. Almost.
Let her go! Bennett wheezed from
across the room, the figure holding onto him
tightly. I saw a stone hanging from their neck
and realized it was affecting him too. Pain
and hopelessness were plainly written on his
ghostly face. Everyone around me was suf-
fering and there wasn t anything I could do
about it.
I wished there was a way I could use the
stones against them, but Bennett had said
only a member of The Dark could harness
their power. What if he was wrong? There
had never been a vampire like me before.
What if I could do it? I had to try.
I bolted for the hooded figure holding
Bennett, making it to him quicker than I
thought I would. I rammed my shoulder into
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the hooded figure s gut and slammed our
tangled bodies onto the hard floor. I blinked
in surprise, realizing that this stone was dif-
ferent. I didn t feel the dread and fear like I
had before. No, this stone made me feel like
a failure, like I could never beat anyone. I
could never win any fight. Was this stone
created specifically to contain Bennett? If I
had to guess, these would be some of his
greatest fears.
I grasped the stone as it clattered on the
stone floor and yanked it from the figure s
neck. Without even thinking I draped the
chain around my neck. It hung heavily. Its
energy no longer pounded against me, but
stay collected around the stone. I grasped it
in my hands, it was burning hot. I couldn t
think about how I had just mastered what I
had been told was impossible. I didn t have
time to revel in this victory. I had to free my
parents and get us the hell out of here. I
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knew I couldn t defeat Baal, but I could at
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