capitulo 3

Stevie Rae
Stevie Rae woke up feeling like a big ol’ pile of poo. Well, actually, she felt like a big ol’ pile of stressed-out poo.
She’d Imprinted with Rephaim.
She’d almost burned up on that rooftop.
For a second she remembered the excellent season two True Blood episode where Goderick had burned his own self up on a fictional roof. Stevie Rae
snorted a laugh. “It looked way easier on TV.”
“What did?”
“Sweet weeping puppies, Dallas! You nearly scared me spitless.” Stevie Rae clutched at the white, hospital-like sheet that covered her. “What in the Sam
Hill are you doin’ here?”
Dallas frowned. “Jeez, settle down. I came up here a little after dusk to check on you, and Lenobia told me it’d be okay to sit here for a while in case you
woke up. You’re awful jumpy.”
“I almost died. I think I have the right to be a little jumpy.”
Dallas looked instantly contrite. He scooted the little side chair closer and took her hand. “Sorry. You’re right. Sorry. I was real scared when Erik told
everyone what had happened.”
“What did Erik say?”
His warm brown eyes hardened. “That you almost burned up on that roof.”
“Yeah, it was really stupid. I tripped and fell and hit my head.” Stevie Rae had to look away from his gaze while she spoke. “When I woke up, I was
almost toast.”
“Yeah, bullshit.”
“What?”
“Save that load of crap for Erik and Lenobia and the rest of ’em. Those assholes tried to kill you, didn’t they?”
“Dallas, I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about.” She tried to take her hand from his, but he held tight.
“Hey.” His voice softened and he touched her face, pulling her gaze back to his. “It’s just me. You know you can tell me the truth, and I’ll keep my mouth
shut.”
Stevie Rae blew out a long breath. “I don’t want Lenobia or any of them to know, especially not any of the blue fledglings.”
Dallas stared at her a long time before he spoke. “I won’t say anything to anyone, but you gotta know I think you’re makin’ a big mistake. You can’t keep
protecting them.”
“I’m not protectin’ ’em!” she protested. This time she held tight to Dallas’s safe, warm hand, trying through touch to get him to understand something she
could never tell him. “I just want to deal with this—all of this—my own way. If everyone knows they tried to trap me up there, then it’ll all be out of my
hands.” And what if Lenobia grabs Nicole and her group, and they tell her about Rephaim? The sickening thought was a guilty whisper through Stevie Rae’s
mind.
“What are you gonna do about them? You can’t just let them get away with this.”
“I won’t. But they’re my responsibility, and I’m gonna take care of them myself.”
Dallas grinned. “You’re gonna kick their butts, huh?”
“Somethin’ like that,” Stevie Rae said, clueless about what she was going to do. Then she hastily changed the subject. “Hey, what time is it? I think I’m
starving.”
Dallas’s grin changed to laughter as he stood up. “Now that sounds like my girl!” He kissed her forehead and then turned to the mini-fridge that was
tucked within the metallic shelving across the room. “Lenobia told me there’s baggies of blood in here. She said as fast as you’ve been healing and as deep as
you’ve been sleeping, you’d probably wake up hungry.”
While he went for the blood baggies, Stevie Rae sat up and gingerly peeked down the back of her generic hospital gown, wincing a little at how stiff the
movement made her feel. She expected the worst. Seriously, her back had been like nasty burned hamburger when Lenobia and Erik had pulled her from the
hole she’d made in the earth. Pulled her from Rephaim.
Don’t think about him now. Just focus on—
“Ohmygoodness,” Stevie Rae whispered in awe as she stared at what she could see of her back. It wasn’t hamburgered anymore. It was smooth. Bright
pink, as if she’d gotten sunburned, but smooth and new-looking, like baby skin.
“That’s amazing.” Dallas’s voice was hushed. “A real miracle.”
Stevie Rae looked up at him. Their eyes met and held.
“You scared me good, girl,” he said. “Don’t do that again, ’kay?”
“I’ll try my best not to,” she said softly.
Dallas leaned forward and carefully, with just the tips of his fingers, touched the fresh pink skin at the back of her shoulder. “Does it still hurt?”
“Not really. I’m just kinda stiff.”
“Amazing,” he repeated. “I mean, I know Lenobia said you’d been healing while you were sleepin’, but you were hurt real bad, and I just didn’t expect
anything like—”
“How long have I been asleep?” She cut him off, trying to imagine the consequences of Dallas’s telling her she’d been out for days and days. What would
Rephaim think if she didn’t show up? Worse—what would he do?
“It’s just been one day.”
Relief flooded her. “One day? Really?”
“Yeah, well, dusk was a couple hours ago, so you’ve technically been sleepin’ longer than one day. They brought you back here yesterday after sunrise. It
was pretty dramatic. Erik drove the Hummer right across the grounds, knocked down a fence, and floored it straight into Lenobia’s barn. Then we all
scrambled like crazy to carry you through the school up here to the infirmary.”
“Yeah, I talked to Z in the Hummer on the way back here, and I was feelin’ almost okay, but then it was like someone turned out the lights on me. I think I
passed out.”
“I know ya did.”
“Well, that’s a dang shame.” Stevie Rae let herself smile. “I woulda liked seeing all that drama.”
“Yeah”—he grinned back at her—“that’s exactly what I thought once I got over thinkin’ you were gonna die.”
“I’m not gonna die,” she said firmly.
“Well, I’m glad to hear it.” Dallas bent, cupped her chin in his hand, and kissed her tenderly on the lips.
With a strange, automatic reaction, Stevie Rae jerked away from him.
“Uh, how about that blood baggie?” she said quickly.
“Oh, yeah.” Dallas shrugged off her rejection, but his cheeks were unnaturally pink when he handed her the bag. “Sorry, I wasn’t thinkin’. I know you’re
hurt, and ya don’t feel like, er, well, you know . . .” His voice trailed off, and he looked super uncomfortable.
Stevie Rae knew she should say something. After all, she and Dallas did have a thing together. He was sweet and smart, and he proved he understood her
by standing there, looking all sorry, and kinda lowering his head in an adorable way that made him look like a little boy. And he was cute—tall and lean, with
just the right amount of muscles and thick hair the color of sand. She actually liked kissing him. Or she used to.
Didn’t she still?
An unfamiliar sense of unease kept her from finding the words that would make him feel better, so instead of speaking, Stevie Rae took the baggie from
him, tore open the corner, and upended it, letting the blood drain down the back of her throat and expand like a mega shot of Red Bull from her stomach to
energize the rest of her body.
She didn’t want to, but somewhere deep inside her, Stevie Rae weighed the difference between how this normal, mortal, ordinary blood made her feel—
and how Rephaim’s blood had been like a lightning strike of energy and heat.
Her hand shook only a little when she wiped her mouth and finally looked up at Dallas.
“That better?” he asked, looking unfazed by their strange exchange and like his familiar, sweet self again.
“Could I have one more?”
He smiled and held another baggie out to her. “Already ahead of you, girl.”
“Thanks, Dallas.” She paused before slurping down the second one. “I don’t feel totally one hundred percent right now. Ya know?”
Dallas nodded. “I know.”
“We okay?”
“Yep,” he said. “If you’re okay—we’re okay.”
“Well, this’ll help.” Stevie Rae was upending the baggie when Lenobia came in the room.
“Hey, Lenobia—check out Sleeping Beauty finally waking up,” Dallas said.
Stevie Rae guzzled the last bloody drop and turned to the door, but the hello smile she’d already put on her face froze at her first glimpse of Lenobia.
The Mistress of Horses had been crying. A lot.
“Ohmygoodness, what is it?” Stevie Rae was so shaken by seeing the usually strong professor in tears that her first reaction was to pat the bed next to her,
inviting Lenobia to sit with her, just like her mama used to do when she’d hurt herself and come crying to be fixed.
Lenobia took several wooden steps into the room. She didn’t sit on Stevie Rae’s bed. She stood at the foot of it and drew a deep breath as if readying
herself to do something really terrible.
“Do you want me to go?” Dallas asked hesitantly.
“No. Stay. She might need you.” Lenobia’s voice was rough and thick with tears. She met Stevie Rae’s eyes. “It’s Zoey. Something’s happened.”
A jolt of fear zapped Stevie Rae in the gut, and the words burst from her before she could stop them. “She’s fine! I talked to her, remember? When we
were leavin’ the depot, before all that daylight and pain and stuff caught up to me, and I passed out. That was just yesterday.”
“Erce, my friend who serves as assistant to the High Council, has been trying to contact me for hours. I’d foolishly left my phone in the Hummer, so I
didn’t speak to her until just now. Kalona killed Heath.”
“Shit!” Dallas gasped.
Stevie Rae ignored him and stared at Lenobia. Rephaim’s dad had killed Heath! The sick fear in her gut was getting worse and worse by the second.
“Zoey’s not dead. I’d know it if she was dead.”
“Zoey’s not dead, but she saw Kalona kill Heath. She tried to stop him and couldn’t. It shattered her, Stevie Rae.” Tears had started to leak down
Lenobia’s porcelain cheeks.
“Shattered her? What does that mean?”
“It means her body still breathes, but her soul is gone. When a High Priestess’s soul is shattered, it is only a matter of time before her body fades from this
world, too.”
“Fades? I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about. Are you tryin’ to tell me she’s going to disappear?”
“No,” Lenobia said raggedly. “She’s going to die.”
Stevie Rae’s head started to shake back and forth, back and forth. “No. No. No! We just gotta get her here. She’ll be fine then.”
“Even if her body returns here, Zoey isn’t coming back, Stevie Rae. You have to prepare yourself for that.”
“I won’t!” Stevie Rae yelled. “I can’t! Dallas, get me my jeans and stuff. I gotta get outta here. I gotta figure out a way to help Z. She didn’t give up on
me, and I’m not givin’ up on her.”
“This isn’t about you.” Dragon Lankford spoke from the open doorway to the infirmary room. His strong face was drawn and haggard with the newness of
the loss of his mate, but his voice was calm and sure. “It’s about the fact that Zoey faced a grief she could not bear. And I do understand something about
grief. When it shatters a soul, the path to return to the body is broken, and without the infilling of spirit, our bodies die.”
“No, please. This can’t be right. This can’t be happening,” Stevie Rae told him.
“You are the first red vampyre High Priestess. You have to find the strength to accept this loss. Your people will need you,” Dragon said.
“We don’t know where Kalona has fled, nor do we know Neferet’s role in all of this,” Lenobia said.
“What we do know is that Zoey’s death would be an excellent time for them to strike against us,” Dragon added.
Zoey’s death . . . The words echoed through Stevie Rae’s mind, leaving behind shock and fear and despair.
“Your powers are vast. The swiftness of your recovery proves that,” Lenobia said. “And we will need every power we can harness to meet the darkness I
feel certain is going to descend upon us.”
“Control your grief,” Dragon said. “And take up Zoey’s mantle.”
“No one can be Zoey!” Stevie Rae cried.
“We’re not asking you to be her. We’re only asking you to help the rest of us fill the void she leaves,” Lenobia said.
“I have—I have to think,” Stevie Rae said. “Would y’all leave me alone for a while? I want to get dressed and think.”
“Of course,” Lenobia said. “We will be in the Council Chamber. Meet us there when you are ready.” She and Dragon left the room silently, grief-stricken
but resolute.
“Hey, are you okay?” Dallas moved to her, reaching out to take her hand.
She only let him touch her for a moment before she squeezed his hand and withdrew. “I need my clothes.”
“I found ’em there in that closet.” Dallas jerked his head toward the cabinets on the opposite side of the room.
“Good, thanks,” Stevie Rae said quickly. “You gotta leave so I can get dressed.”
“You didn’t answer my question,” he said, watching her closely.
“No. I’m not okay, and I’m not gonna be as long as they keep sayin’ Z’s gonna die.”
“But, Stevie Rae, even I’ve heard about what happens when a soul leaves a body—the person dies,” he said, obviously trying to say the harsh words
gently.
“Not this time,” Stevie Rae said. “Now go on outta here so I can get dressed.
Dallas sighed. “I’ll be waiting outside.”
“Fine. I won’t take too long.”
“Take your time, girl,” Dallas said softly. “I don’t mind waiting.”
But as soon as the door shut, Stevie Rae didn’t jump up and throw on her clothes like she’d meant to. Instead her memory was too busy flipping through
her Fledgling Handbook 101 and stopping at a super-sad story about an ancient soul-shattered High Priestess. Stevie Rae couldn’t remember what had caused
the priestess’s soul to shatter—she didn’t remember much about the story, actually—except that the High Priestess had died. No matter what anyone had tried
to do to save her—the High Priestess had died.
“The High Priestess died,” Stevie Rae whispered. And Zoey wasn’t even a real, grown High Priestess. She was technically still a fledgling. How could she
be expected to find her way back from something that had killed a grown High Priestess?
The truth was, she couldn’t.
It wasn’t fair! They’d all been through so much hard stuff, and now Zoey was just gonna die? Stevie Rae didn’t want to believe it. She wanted to fight and
scream and find a way to fix her BFF, but how could she? Z was in Italy and she was in Tulsa. And, hell! Stevie Rae couldn’t figure out how to fix a bunch of
pain-in-the-ass red fledglings. Who was she to think she could do anything about something as terrible as Z’s soul shattering from her body?
She couldn’t even tell the truth about being Imprinted with the son of the creature who had caused this awful thing to happen.
Sadness swept over Stevie Rae. She crumpled in on herself, hugged the pillow to her chest, and, twirling a blond curl around and around her finger like
she used to do when she was little, began to weep. The sobs wracked her, and she buried her face in the pillow so Dallas wouldn’t hear her crying, losing
herself to shock and fear and complete, overwhelming despair.
Just as she was giving in to the worst of it, the air around her stirred. Almost as if someone had cracked the window in the small room.
At first she ignored it, too lost in her tears to care about a stupid cold breeze. But it was insistent. It touched the fresh, pink skin of her exposed back in a
cool caress that was surprisingly pleasant. For a moment she relaxed, allowing herself to absorb comfort from the touch.
Touch? She’d told him to wait outside!
Stevie Rae’s head shot up. Her lips were pulled back from her teeth in a snarl she meant to aim at Dallas.
No one was in the room.
She was alone. Absolutely alone.
Stevie Rae dropped her face in her hands. Was shock making her go totally batshit crazy? She didn’t have time for crazy. She had to get up and get
dressed. She had to put one foot in front of the other and go out there and deal with the truth about what had happened to Zoey, and her red fledglings, and
Kalona, and, eventually, Rephaim.
Rephaim . . .
His name echoed in the air, another cold caress against her skin, wrapping around her. Not just touching her back but skimming down the length of her
arms and swirling around her waist and over her legs. And everywhere the coolness touched, it was like a little bit of her grief had been washed away. This
time when she looked up she was more controlled in her reaction. She wiped her eyes clear and stared down at her body.
The mist that surrounded her was made of tiny sparkling drops that were the exact color she’d come to recognize in his eyes.
“Rephaim.” Against her will, she whispered his name.
He calls you . . .
“What the hell is going on?” Stevie Rae muttered, anger stirring through despair.
Go to him . . .
“Go to him?” she said, feeling increasingly pissed off. “His dad caused this.”
Go to him . . .
Letting the tide of cool caress and red anger make her decision, Stevie Rae yanked on her clothes. She would go to Rephaim, but only because he might
know something that she could use to help Zoey. He was the son of a dangerous and powerful immortal. Obviously, he had abilities she didn’t know about.
The red stuff that was floating around her was definitely from him, and it must be made of some kind of spirit.
“Fine,” she said aloud to the mist. “I’ll go to him.”
The instant she spoke the words aloud, the red haze evaporated, leaving only a lingering coolness on her skin and a strange, otherworldly sense of calm.
I’ll go to him, and if he can’t help me, then I think—Imprint or no Imprint—I’m going to have to kill him.

Refaim
The sonorous drum was like the heartbeat of an immortal: never-ending, engulfing, overwhelming. El tambor no sonora era como el latido del corazón de un inmortal: interminable, engullendo, abrumador. It echoed through Rephaim's soul in time with the Se hizo eco a través del alma Refaítas en el tiempo con el
pounding of his blood. latidos de su sangre. Then, to the beat of the drum, the ancient words took form. Luego, al compás del tambor, las antiguas palabras tomó forma. They wrapped around his body so that even as he slept, his pulse allied Ellos envuelto alrededor de su cuerpo de manera que incluso mientras dormía, tomó el pulso aliados
itself in harmony with the ageless melody. misma en armonía con la melodía sin edad. In his dream, the women's voices sang: En su sueño, las voces de las mujeres cantaban:
Ancient one sleeping, waiting to arise Antigua un sueño, esperando que surjan
When earth's power bleeds sacred red Cuando el poder sagrado de la tierra sangra de color rojo
The mark strikes true; Queen Tsi Sgili will devise La marca de huelgas verdad, la reina Tsi Sgili ideará
He shall be washed from his entombing bed Él se lavó de su cama sepultando
The song was seductive, and like a labyrinth, it circled on and on. La canción fue seductora y, como un laberinto, su recorrido alrededor de una y otra vez.
Through the hand of the dead he is free A través de la mano de los muertos es libre
Terrible beauty, monstrous sight belleza terrible, monstruoso espectáculo
Ruled again they shall be Descartan otra vez se
Women shall kneel to his dark might Las mujeres se arrodillan a su oscura podría
The music was a whispered enticement. La música era una tentación en voz baja. A promise. Una promesa. A blessing. Una bendición. A curse. Una maldición. The memory of what it foretold made Rephaim's sleeping body restless. El recuerdo de lo que predijo hace cuerpo dormido de Refaim inquieto. He Él
twitched and, like an abandoned child, murmured a one-word question: “Father?” tembló y, como un niño abandonado, murmuró una pregunta de una sola palabra: "Padre?"
The melody concluded with the rhyme Rephaim had memorized centuries ago: La melodía concluyó con la rima Refaim había memorizado hace siglos:
Kalona's song sounds sweet Kalona canción suena dulce
As we slaughter with cold heat A medida que nos masacre con el calor en frío
“. ". . . . . slaughter with cold heat.” Even sleeping, Rephaim responded to the words. masacre dormir con calor frío. "Incluso, Refaim respondió a las palabras. He didn't awaken, but his heartbeat increased—his hands curled into fists Él no se despertó, pero su ritmo cardíaco aumentó sus manos-apretó los puños
—his body tensed. -Su cuerpo se tensó. On the cusp between awake and asleep, the drumbeat stuttered to a halt, and the soft voices of women were replaced by one that was deep En la cúspide entre despierto y dormido, el tambor tartamudeaba a su fin, y las voces suaves de las mujeres fueron sustituidos por uno que era profundo
and all too familiar. y muy familiar.
“Traitor . "Traidor. . . . . coward . cobarde. . . . . betrayer . traidor. . . . . liar!” The male voice was a condemnation. mentiroso! "La voz masculina era una condena. With its litany of anger, it invaded Rephaim's dream and jolted him fully Con su letanía de ira, que invadió el sueño Refaim y le sacudió plenamente
into the waking world. en el mundo de la vigilia.
“Father!” Rephaim surged upright, throwing off the old papers and scraps of cardboard he'd used to create a nest around him. "¡Padre!" Subió Refaítas en posición vertical, rompiendo los papeles viejos y pedazos de cartón que había utilizado para crear un nido a su alrededor. “Father, are you here?” "Padre, ¿está usted aquí?"
A shimmer of movement caught at the corner of his vision, and he jerked forward, jarring his broken wing as he peered from the depths of the dark, cedarpaneled Un brillo de movimiento capturado en la esquina de su visión, y él tiró hacia delante, sacudidas su ala rota mientras miraba desde el fondo de la oscuridad, cedarpaneled
closet. armario.
“Father?” "Padre?"
His heart knew Kalona wasn't there even before the vapor of light and motion took form to reveal the child. Su corazón sabía Kalona no estaba allí incluso antes de que el vapor de la luz y el movimiento tomó forma para revelar el niño.
“What are you?” "¿Qué eres?"
Rephaim focused his burning gaze on the girl. Refaim centró su mirada ardiente de la chica. “Begone, apparition.” "Vete, aparición."
Instead of fading as she should have, the child narrowed her eyes to study him, appearing intrigued. En lugar de desaparecer como ella debe tener, el niño entrecerró los ojos para estudio, que aparece intrigado. “You're not a bird, but you have wings. "Tú no eres un pájaro, pero usted tiene alas. And you're Y tú eres
not a boy, but you have arms and legs. no un niño, pero usted tiene los brazos y las piernas. And your eyes are like a boy's, too, only they're red. Y tus ojos son como un niño, también, sólo que son de color rojo. So, what are you?” Entonces, ¿qué eres? "
Rephaim felt a surge of anger. Refaim sintió un arrebato de ira. With a flash of movement that caused white-hot shards of pain to radiate through his body, he leaped from the closet, Con un destello de movimiento que causa fragmentos candente de dolor para irradiar a través de su cuerpo, saltó del armario,
landing just a few feet before the ghost—predatory, dangerous, defensive. de aterrizaje a sólo unos metros antes de que el fantasma depredador, peligrosa, a la defensiva.
“I am a nightmare given life, spirit! "Estoy en una pesadilla dado la vida, el espíritu! Go away and leave me in peace before you learn that there are things far worse than death to fear.” Vete y déjame en paz antes de aprender que hay cosas mucho peores que la muerte que temer. "
At his abrupt movement, the child ghost had taken one small step backward, so that now her shoulder brushed against the low windowpane. En su movimiento brusco, el fantasma del niño había tomado un pequeño paso hacia atrás, de modo que ahora rozó el hombro contra el cristal de baja. But there she Pero hay que
halted, still watching him with a curious, intelligent gaze. se detuvo, todavía lo miraba con un curioso e inteligente mirada.
“You cried out for your father in your sleep. "Usted gritó a su padre en su sueño. I heard you. Ya te he oído. You can't fool me. No me puedes engañar. I'm smart like that, and I remember things. Yo soy inteligente como eso, y recuerdo las cosas. Plus, you don't scare me because Además, usted no me asusta, porque
you're really just hurt and alone.” usted está realmente solo herido y solo. "
Then the ghost of the girl child crossed her arms petulantly over her thin chest, tossed back her long blond hair, and disappeared, leaving Rephaim just as Entonces el fantasma de la niña cruzó los brazos sobre el pecho con petulancia delgada, echó hacia atrás su cabello largo y rubio, y desapareció, dejando como Refaítas
she had named him, hurt and alone. ella lo había llamado, herido y solo.
His fisted hands loosened. Sus manos puño suelto. His heartbeat quieted. Su pulso se calmó. Rephaim stumbled heavily back to his makeshift nest and rested his head against the closet wall behind Refaim tropezó en gran medida de regreso a su nido improvisado y apoyó la cabeza contra la pared detrás de armario
him.“ él ".
Pathetic,” he murmured aloud. Patético ", murmuró en voz alta. “The favorite son of an ancient immortal reduced to hiding in refuse and talking to the ghost of a human child.” He tried to "El hijo favorito de un inmortal antigua reducido a esconderse en la basura y hablar con el fantasma de un niño humano." Trató de
laugh but failed. reír, pero fracasó. The echo of the music from his dream, from his past, was still too loud in the air around him. El eco de la música de su sueño, de su pasado, seguía siendo demasiado alto en el aire a su alrededor. As was the other voice—the one he could have Al igual que otra voz-la que él podría haber
sworn was that of his father. jurado fue la de su padre.
He couldn't sit anymore. No podía sentarse más. Ignoring the pain in his arm and the sick agony that was his wing, Rephaim stood. Ignorando el dolor en el brazo y la agonía enfermo que era su ala, Refaim puso de pie. He hated the weakness that pervaded his body. Odiaba la debilidad que invadía su cuerpo.
How long had he been here, wounded, exhausted from the flight from the depot, and curled into this box in a wall? ¿Cuánto tiempo había estado aquí, heridos, agotados por el vuelo de la estación, y se acurrucó en este cuadro en una pared? He couldn't remember. No podía recordar. Had one day Si un día
passed? pasado? Two? Dos?
Where was she? ¿Dónde estaba? She'd said she would come to him in the night. Le había dicho que vendría a él en la noche. And yet here he was, where Stevie Rae had sent him. Y sin embargo allí estaba, en el que Stevie Rae le había enviado. It was night, and she hadn't come. Era de noche, y ella no había llegado.
With a sound of self-loathing, he left the closet and his nest, stalking past the windowsill in front of which the girl child had materialized to a door that led Con un sonido de auto-odio, salió del armario y su nido, el acecho de la ventana el pasado frente a la cual la niña se había materializado de una puerta que conducía
to a rooftop balcony. a un balcón de la azotea. Instinct had driven him up to the second floor of the abandoned mansion, just after dawn, when he'd arrived. El instinto le había hecho subir al segundo piso de la mansión abandonada, poco después del amanecer, cuando había llegado. At the end of even his great Al final incluso de su gran
reservoir of strength, he'd thought only of safety and sleep. reserva de fuerza, se le había ocurrido sólo de la seguridad y el sueño.
But now he was all too awake. Pero ahora estaba muy despierto.
He stared out at the empty museum grounds. Él miró hacia los jardines del museo vacío. The ice that had been falling for days from the sky had stopped, leaving the huge trees that surrounded the El hielo que había estado cayendo durante días desde el cielo se había detenido, dejando a los enormes árboles que rodeaban la
rolling hills on which sat the Gilcrease Museum and its abandoned mansion with bent and ruined branches. colinas en que se sentaba el Museo Gilcrease y su mansión abandonada y en ruinas con dobladas ramas. Rephaim's night vision was good, but he could Refaim visión nocturna era buena, pero no pudo
detect no movement at all outside. detectar ningún movimiento exterior. The homes that filled the area between the museum and downtown Tulsa were almost as dark as they had been in his Las casas que llenó el espacio entre el museo y el centro de Tulsa eran casi tan oscura como lo habían sido en su
postdawn journey. postdawn viaje. Small lights dotted the landscape—not the great, blazing electricity that Rephaim had come to expect from a modern city. Pequeñas luces del paisaje, no la electricidad de puntos grandes, ardiente que Refaim había llegado a esperar de una ciudad moderna. They were only Eran sólo
weak, flickering candles—nothing compared to the majesty of the power this world could evoke. débil, velas encendidas-nada en comparación con la majestad del poder de este mundo puede evocar.
There was, of course, no mystery to what had happened. Hubo, por supuesto, ningún misterio sobre lo que había sucedido. The lines that carried power to the homes of modern humans had been snapped just as surely as Las líneas de alimentación que lleva a las casas de los humanos modernos se habían rompió con tanta seguridad como
had the ice-burdened boughs of the trees. tenía las ramas cargadas de hielo de los árboles. Rephaim knew that was good for him. Refaim sabía que era bueno para él. Except for the fallen branches and other debris left on the roadways, the A excepción de las ramas caídas y otros restos en las carreteras, el
streets appeared mostly passable. calles aparecieron en su mayoría transitables. Had the great electric machine not been broken, people would have flooded these grounds as daily human life resumed. Si la gran máquina eléctrica no se ha roto, la gente se han inundado estos motivos como la vida diaria en el hombre se reanuda.
“The lack of power keeps humans away,” he muttered to himself. "La falta de poder de los seres humanos mantiene lejos", murmuró para sus adentros. “But what is keeping her away?” "Pero lo que es su alejamiento?"
With a sound of pure frustration, Rephaim wrenched open the dilapidated door, automatically seeking open sky as balm to his nerves. Con un sonido de pura frustración, Refaim arrancó la puerta en ruinas, automáticamente la búsqueda de cielo abierto como un bálsamo para sus nervios. The air was cool, El aire era fresco,
and thick with dampness. de espesor y con la humedad. Low around the winter grass, fog hung in wavy sheets, as if the earth was trying to shroud herself from his eyes. Bajo todo el pasto de invierno, la niebla flotaba en hojas onduladas, como si la tierra estaba tratando de cubierta de los ojos.
His gaze lifted, and Rephaim drew a long, shuddering breath. Su mirada levantada, y Refaim respiró hondo, estremeciéndose. He inhaled the sky. Aspiró el cielo. It seemed unnaturally bright in comparison to the darkened city. Parecía extrañamente brillante en comparación con la ciudad a oscuras. Stars Estrellas
beckoned him, as did the sharp crescent of a waning moon. le hizo señas, al igual que la media luna aguda de una luna menguante.
Everything within Rephaim craved the sky. Todo dentro de Refaim ansiaba el cielo. He wanted it under his wings, passing through his dark, feathered body, caressing him with the touch of the Él lo quería debajo de sus alas, que pasa a través de su oscuridad, con plumas del cuerpo, acariciándolo con el toque de la
mother he'd never known. madre que nunca había conocido.
His uninjured wing extended itself, stretching more than a grown man's body length beside him. Sus alas no están lesionadas se extendió, de más de la longitud del cuerpo de un hombre adulto a su lado. His other wing quivered, and the night air Rephaim had Su otra ala se estremeció, y el aire de la noche había Refaim
breathed in burst from him in an agonized moan. respira en brotar de él en un gemido agónico.
Broken! Roto! The word seared through his mind. La palabra cauterizada por su mente.
“No. "No. That is not a certainty.” Rephaim spoke aloud. Eso no es una certeza ". Refaim habló en voz alta. He shook his head, trying to clear away the unusual weariness that was making him feel increasingly Sacudió la cabeza, tratando de despejar el cansancio inusual que le hacía sentir cada vez más
helpless—increasingly damaged. -cada vez más indefensos dañado. “Concentrate!” Rephaim admonished himself. "¡Concéntrate!" Refaim se amonestó. “It's time I found Father.” He still wasn't well, but Rephaim's mind, though "Es hora de que encontré Padre." Todavía no estaba bien, pero la mente Refaim, aunque
weary, was clearer than it had been since his fall. cansado, era más clara de lo que había pasado desde su caída. He should be able to detect some trace of his father. Él debe ser capaz de detectar algún rastro de su padre. No matter how much distance or time separated them, No importa cuánto tiempo o distancia los separaba,
they were tied by blood and spirit and especially by the gift of immortality that had been Rephaim's birthright. estaban atados por la sangre y el espíritu y, sobre todo por el don de la inmortalidad que había sido patrimonio de Refaim.
Rephaim looked up into the sky, thinking of the currents of air on which he was so used to gliding. Refaim levantó la vista hacia el cielo, el pensamiento de las corrientes de aire en el que estaba tan acostumbrado a vuelo sin motor. He drew a deep breath, lifted his uninjured arm, and Él respiró hondo, levantó su brazo sano, y
stretched forth his hand, trying to touch those elusive currents and the vestiges of dark Otherworld magick that languished there. extendió su mano, tratando de tocar las corrientes esquivo y los vestigios de la magia oscura Otro Mundo que languideció allí. “Bring me some sense of "Tráeme un poco de sentido de
him!” He made his plea urgently to the night. él! "Él hizo este pedido con urgencia a la noche.
For a moment he believed he felt a flicker of response, far, far off to the east. Por un momento creyó que sintió un atisbo de respuesta, lejos, muy lejos hacia el este. And then weariness was all he could feel. Y luego el cansancio era todo lo que podía sentir. “Why can I not sense you, "¿Por qué no te sentido,
Father?” Frustrated and unusually exhausted, he let his hand drop limply to his side. Padre? "Frustrado y cansado inusualmente, dejó caer blandamente la mano a su lado.
Unusual weariness . Inusual cansancio. . . . .
“By all the gods!” Rephaim suddenly realized what had drained his strength and left him a broken shell of himself. "Por todos los dioses!" Refaim se dio cuenta de lo que había agotado sus fuerzas y le dejó una cáscara rota de sí mismo. He knew what was keeping him from Él sabía lo que le impedía
sensing the path his father had taken. detección de la ruta de su padre había tomado. “She did this.” His voice was hard. "Ella hizo esto." Su voz era dura. His eyes blazed crimson. Sus ojos brillaban carmesí.
Yes, he'd been terribly wounded; but as the son of an immortal, his body should have already begun its repair process. Sí, había sido terriblemente herido, pero como el hijo de un inmortal, su cuerpo ya debería haber iniciado su proceso de reparación. He'd slept—twice since the Había dormido-dos veces desde la
Warrior had shot him from the sky. Guerrero le había disparado desde el cielo. His mind had cleared. Su mente se había despejado. Sleep should have continued to revive him. El sueño debería haber continuado para revivirlo. Even if, as he suspected, his wing was permanently Incluso si, como sospechaba, su ala fue permanente
damaged, the rest of his body should be noticeably better. dañada, el resto de su cuerpo debe ser notablemente mejor. His powers should have returned to him. Sus poderes se han vuelto a él.
But the Red One had drunk of his blood, Imprinted with him. Sin embargo, la Red One había bebido de su sangre, impresa con él. And in doing so, she had disturbed the balance of immortal power within him. Y al hacerlo, se había alterado el equilibrio de poder inmortal dentro de él.
Anger rose to meet the frustration already there. La ira se levantó para responder a las frustraciones ya está ahí.
She'd used him and then abandoned him. Ella lo había utilizado y luego lo abandonaron.
Just like Father had. Al igual que el Padre tenía.
“No!” he corrected himself immediately. "¡No!" Se corrigió inmediatamente. His father had been driven away by the fledgling High Priestess. Su padre había sido expulsado por el naciente Suma Sacerdotisa. He would return when he was able, and then Regresaría cuando pudo y, a continuación
Rephaim would be at his father's side once more. Refaim sería al lado una vez más de su padre. It was the Red One who had used him, then cast him aside. Fue el elenco Red One que lo había usado, entonces lo llevó aparte.
Why did the very thought of it cause such a curious ache within him? ¿Por qué la causa sola idea de que un dolor de curiosos en su interior? Ignoring the feeling, he raised his face to the familiar sky. Haciendo caso omiso de la sensación, alzó la cara al cielo familiar. He hadn't wanted this No había querido esta
Imprint. Pie de imprenta. He'd only saved her because he owed her a life, and he knew all too well that one of the true dangers of this world, as well as the next, was the power Sólo había salvado porque él le debía la vida, y sabía muy bien que uno de los verdaderos peligros de este mundo, así como la siguiente, era el poder
of an unpaid life debt. de una deuda de por vida sin pagar.
Well, she had saved him—found him, hidden him, and then released him, but on the depot rooftop, he had returned the debt by helping her escape from Bueno, ella lo había salvado, lo encontró, escondido él, y luego lo liberaron, pero en la azotea de depósito, que había regresado de la deuda por ayudarla a escapar de
certain death. una muerte segura. His life debt to her was now paid. Su deuda de por vida a ella se pagó ahora. Rephaim was the son of an immortal, not a weak human man. Refaim era el hijo de un inmortal, no un hombre humano débil. He had little doubt he could break this Imprint Había pocas dudas de que podría romper este Pie de imprenta
—this ridiculous byproduct of saving her life. -Este subproducto ridículo de salvar su vida. He would use what was left of his strength to wish it away, and then he would truly begin to heal. Él usaría lo que quedaba de su fuerza como para hacer desaparecer, y entonces él verdaderamente comenzar a sanar.
He breathed in the night again. Respiró en la noche otra vez. Ignoring the weakness in his body, Rephaim focused the strength of his will. Haciendo caso omiso de la debilidad en su cuerpo, Refaim se centró la fuerza de su voluntad.
“I call upon the power of the spirit of ancient immortals, which is mine by birthright to command, to break—” "Hago un llamamiento a la potencia del espíritu de los inmortales antiguo, que es mío por derecho de nacimiento de ordenar, de ruptura"
The wave of despair crashed over him, and Rephaim staggered against the balcony's railing. La ola de desesperación se estrelló sobre él, y se tambaleó contra la barandilla de Refaim del balcón. The sadness radiated throughout his body with such force that La tristeza irradiaba por todo su cuerpo con tal fuerza que
it drove him to his knees. que lo llevó a sus rodillas. There he remained, gasping with pain and shock. Allí permaneció, jadeando por el dolor y el shock.
What is happening to me? ¿Qué me está pasando?
Next, an odd, alien fear filled him, and Rephaim began to understand. A continuación, un extraño, ajeno miedo lo llenaba, y Refaim empezó a entender.
“These are not my feelings,” he told himself, trying to find his own center within the maelstrom of distress. "Estos no son mis sentimientos", se dijo, tratando de encontrar su propio centro dentro de la vorágine de la angustia. “These are her feelings.” "Estos son sus sentimientos."
Rephaim gasped as hopelessness followed fear. Refaim jadeó como desesperanza seguido miedo. Steeling himself against the continued onslaught, he struggled to stand, fighting the waves of Stevie Rae's Armándose de valor contra el ataque continuó, luchó de pie, luchando contra las olas de Stevie Rae
emotions. emociones. Resolutely, he forced himself to refocus through the onslaught and the weariness that tugged relentlessly at him—to touch the place of power that Decididamente, se obligó a reorientar a través de la embestida y el cansancio que tiró de él sin descanso-para tocar el lugar de poder que
lay locked and dormant for most of humanity—the place to which his blood held the key. estaba cerrado y en estado latente durante la mayor parte de la humanidad-el lugar al que su sangre tenía la llave.
Rephaim began the invocation anew. Refaim comenzó la invocación de nuevo. This time with an altogether different intent. Esta vez con una intención muy diferente.
Later, he would tell himself that his response had been automatic—that he'd been acting under the influence of their Imprint; it had simply been more Más tarde, decía a sí mismo que su respuesta había sido automática-que había estado actuando bajo la influencia de su huella, sino que había sido simplemente más
powerful than he had expected. poderoso que él había esperado. It was the damnable Imprint that had caused him to believe that the surest, quickest way to end the horrible wash of emotions Fue la imprenta condenable que le había hecho creer que el más seguro, más rápida manera de terminar el lavado horrible de las emociones
from the Red One was to draw her to him and thus remove her from whatever was causing her pain. Uno de los Rojo fue para atraerla hacia él y lo que sacarla de lo que le estaba causando el dolor.
It couldn't be that he cared that she was in pain. No podía ser que no le importaba que ella estaba sufriendo. It could never be that. Nunca puede ser eso.
“I call upon the power of the spirit of ancient immortals, which is mine by birthright to command.” Rephaim spoke quickly. "Hago un llamamiento a la potencia del espíritu de los inmortales antiguo, que es mío por derecho de nacimiento a mandar." Refaim habló rápidamente. Ignoring the pain in his Ignorando el dolor en su
battered body, he pulled energy to him from the deepest shadows of the night, and then channeled that power through him, charging it with immortality. cuerpo maltratadas, sacó la energía a él desde las sombras más profundas de la noche, y luego de que el poder canalizarse a través de él, acusándolo de la inmortalidad. The El
air around him glistened as it became stained with a dark scarlet radiance. aire a su alrededor un brillo como quedó manchada con un resplandor rojo oscuro. “Through the immortal might of my father, Kalona, who seeded my blood and spirit "A través de la fuerza inmortal de mi padre, Kalona, que sembraron mi sangre y el espíritu
with power, I send you to my—” There his words broke off. con el poder, yo os envío a mi-"Hay sus palabras se desprendió. His? Su? She wasn't his anything. Ella no era su nada. She was . Ella fue. . . . . she was . que era. . . . . “She is the Red One! "Ella es la Red One! Vampyre High Vampyre Alto
Priestess to those who are lost,” he finally blurted. Sacerdotisa de los que están perdidos-dijo al fin soltó. “She is attached to me through blood Imprint and through life debt. "Ella se une a mí a través de la sangre y legal a través de deuda de por vida. Go to her. Ve con ella. Strengthen her. Fortalecer ella. Draw her to Dibuja a su
me. mí. By the immortal part of my being, I command it so!” Por la parte inmortal de mi ser, yo lo mande así! "
The red mist scattered off instantly, flying to the south. La niebla roja dispersada por instante, volando hacia el sur. Back the way he'd come. Volver por donde había venido. Back to find her. Volver a encontrarla.
Rephaim turned his gaze to look after it. Refaim volvió la mirada a cuidarlo. And then he waited. Y luego esperó.

Kalona levantó las manos. No dudó. No había la menor duda en su mente acerca de lo que tenía que hacer. No permitiría que nada ni nadie en su camino, y este muchacho estaba de pie entre humanos y lo que él desea. Él no tenía especial interés para matar al muchacho, que no tenía especial interés el niño vivo, tampoco. Era una simple necesidad. No se sentía remordimiento o arrepentimiento. Tal como había sido la norma durante los siglos desde que había caído, Kalona sentía muy poco. Así que, indistintamente, el cuello torcido alado inmortal del niño y poner fin a su vida. "¡No!" La angustia de que una palabra se congeló el corazón de Kalona. He dropped the boy's lifeless body and whirled around in time to see Zoey racing toward him. Dejó caer el cuerpo sin vida del muchacho y se dio la vuelta a tiempo para ver Zoey corriendo hacia él. Their eyes met. Sus ojos se encontraron. In hers were despair and hatred. En ella se la desesperación y el odio. In his was an impossible denial. En la suya era una negación imposible. He tried to formulate the words that might make her understand— might make her forgive him. Trató de formular las palabras que podrían hacerle entender-podría hacer que ella lo perdone. But there was nothing he could say to change what she had seen, and even if he could work the impossible, there was no time. Pero no había nada que pudiera decir para cambiar lo que había visto, e incluso si podía trabajar lo imposible, no había tiempo. Zoey threw the full power of the element spirit at him. Zoey lanzó todo el poder del espíritu elemento en él. It hit the immortal, striking him with force that was beyond physical. Este llegó a las inmortales, golpeándolo con fuerza que estaba más allá de física. Spirit was his essence— his core— the element that had sustained him for centuries and with which he had always been most comfortable, as well as most powerful. Espíritu era su esencia, su núcleo-el elemento que lo había sostenido durante siglos y con el que siempre había sido más cómodo, así como más potente. Zoey's attack seared him. ataque de Zoey le quema. It lifted him with such force that he was hurled over the huge stone wall that separated the vampyres' island and the Gulf of Venice. Es lo levantó con tanta fuerza que fue arrojado sobre la inmensa pared de piedra que separaba la isla de los vampiros 'y el Golfo de Venecia. The icy water engulfed him, smothering him. El agua helada lo envolvió, asfixiarlo. For an instant the pain within Kalona was so deadening that he didn't fight it. Por un instante el dolor en cuestión era tan sofocante Kalona que no luchar contra ella. Perhaps he should let this terrible struggle for life and its trappings end. Tal vez debería dejar que esta terrible lucha por la vida y su fin atavíos. Perhaps, once again, he should allow himself to be vanquished by her. Tal vez, una vez más, debe dejarse vencer por ella. But less than a heartbeat after he had the thought, he felt it. Pero menos de un latido del corazón después de que él tenía el pensamiento, lo sintió. Zoey's soul shattered and, as truly as his fall had carried him from one realm to another, her spirit departed this world. Zoey alma destrozada y, tan cierto como su caída lo había llevado de un reino a otro, su espíritu partido de este mundo. The knowledge wounded him worse than had her blow against him. El conocimiento lo hirió peor que le había golpe en su contra. Not Zoey! No Zoey! He'd never meant to cause her harm. Nunca había la intención de causarle daño. Even through all of Neferet's machinations, through all of the Tsi Sgili's manipulations and plans, he'd held tight to the knowledge that, in spite of everything, he would use his vast immortal powers to keep Zoey safe because ultimately she was the closest he could come to Nyx in this realm— and this was the only realm left to him. Incluso a través de todas las maquinaciones Neferet, a través de todas las maniobras de los Sgili Tsi y planes, él sostuvo firmemente que el conocimiento de que, a pesar de todo, él usaría sus poderes inmortales vasta para mantener Zoey seguro porque en última instancia fue lo más cerca que podría llegar a Nyx en este ámbito-y éste era el único reino que le había dejado. Fighting to recover from Zoey's attack, Kalona lifted his massive body from the clutching waves and realized the truth. Luchando para recuperarse de un ataque de Zoey, Kalona levantó su cuerpo masivo de las olas agarrando y se dio cuenta de la verdad. Because of him, Zoey's spirit was gone, which meant she would die. Gracias a él, el espíritu de Zoey se había ido, lo que significaba que iba a morir. With his first breath of air, he released a wrenching cry of despair, echoing her last word, “No!” Con su primera bocanada de aire, lanzó un grito desgarrador de desesperación, haciendo honor a su última palabra, "¡No!" Had he really believed since his fall that he didn't truly have feelings? ¿Realmente había creído desde su caída que no tienen sentimientos realmente? He'd been a fool and wrong, so very wrong. Había sido un tonto y el mal, tan mal. Emotions battered him as he flew raggedly just above the waterline, chipping away at his already wounded spirit, raging against him, weakening him, bleeding his soul. Las emociones le maltratadas, mientras volaba entrecortada justo encima de la línea de flotación, saltando lejos en su espíritu ya herido, furioso contra él, debilitándolo, sangrado su alma. With blurred, blackened vision, he stared across the lagoon, squinting to see the lights that heralded land. Con borrosa, visión ennegrecido, miraba a través de la laguna, entrecerrando los ojos para ver las luces que anunciaban la tierra. He'd never make it there. Él nunca lo hacen allí. It would have to be the palace. Tendría que ser el palacio. He had no choice. No tenía otra opción. Using the last reserves of his strength, Kalona's wings beat against the frigid air, lifting him over the wall, where he crumpled to the frozen earth.He didn't know how long he lay there in the cold darkness of the shattered night as emotions overwhelmed his shaken soul. Utilizando las últimas reservas de su fuerza, alas Kalona de golpear contra el gélido aire, elevándolo por encima del muro, donde se desplomó en el earth.He congelados no sabía cuánto tiempo permanecía allí en la fría oscuridad de la noche destrozado como las emociones abrumado su alma agitada. Somewhere in the far reaches of his mind, he understood the familiarity of what had happened to him. En algún lugar de los confines de su mente, comprendió la familiaridad de lo que había sucedido a él. He'd fallen again, only this time it was more in spirit than in body— though his body didn't seem his to command any longer either. Se había caído de nuevo, sólo que esta vez fue más en espíritu que en el cuerpo, aunque su cuerpo no parecía el de mandar tampoco. He felt her presence before she spoke. Se sintió su presencia antes de hablar. It had been like that between them from the first, whether he truly wished it or not— they simply sensed one another. Había sido como la que existe entre ellos desde el principio, si realmente desea o no-simplemente sentía uno al otro. “You allowed Stark to bear witness to your killing of the boy!” Neferet's voice was more frigid than the winter sea. "Usted permite Stark para dar testimonio de su muerte del muchacho!-La voz de Neferet era más frío que el mar de invierno. Kalona turned his head so that he could see more than the toe of her stiletto shoe. Kalona volvió la cabeza para que pudiera ver más que la punta de su zapato de aguja. He looked up at her, blinking to try to clear his vision. Él la miró, parpadeando para tratar de limpiar su visión. “Accident.” Finding his voice again he managed a rasping whisper. "Accidente". Encontrar su voz una vez más logró un susurro ronco. “Zoey should not have been there.” "Zoey no debería haber estado allí." “Accidents are unacceptable, and I care not one bit that she was there. "Los accidentes son inaceptables, y no me importa un poco de que ella estaba allí. Actually, the result of what she saw is rather convenient.” En realidad, el resultado de lo que vio es bastante conveniente. " “You know that her soul shattered?” Kalona hated the unnatural weakness in his voice and the strange lethargy in his body almost as much as he hated the effect Neferet's icy beauty had on him. "Usted sabe que su alma destrozada? Kalona odiaba la debilidad natural de su voz y el letargo extraño en su cuerpo casi tanto como odiaba a la belleza de la helada de efecto Neferet había en él. “I imagine most of the vampyres on the island know it. "Me imagino que la mayoría de los vampiros en la isla lo sabe. Typically for her, Zoey's spirit wasn't exactly quiet in its leave- taking. Normalmente para ella, el espíritu de Zoey no era precisamente tranquila en su despedida. I wonder, though, how many of the vampyres also felt the blow the chit dealt you just before she departed.” Neferet tapped her chin contemplatively with one long, sharp fingernail. Me pregunto, sin embargo, cuántos de los vampiros también sintió el golpe a la chica que trata justo antes de que ella se fue. "Neferet golpeó el mentón con una uña contemplativamente largas y afiladas. Kalona remained silent, struggling to center himself and draw together the ragged edges of his torn spirit, but the earth his body pressed against was too real, and he had not the strength to reach above and feed his soul from the wispy vestiges of the Otherworld that floated there. Kalona permaneció en silencio, luchando por el propio centro y reunir los bordes irregulares de su espíritu roto, pero la tierra su cuerpo apretado contra era demasiado real, y él no tenía la fuerza para llegar arriba y alimentan su alma de los vestigios wispy del Otro Mundo que flotaba allí. “No, I don't imagine any of them felt it,” Neferet continued, in her coldest, most calculating voice. -No, no me imagino a ninguno de ellos se sentía ", continuó Neferet, en el más frío de ella, la mayoría de cálculo de voz. “None of them are connected to Darkness, to you, as I am. "Ninguna de ellas está conectada a la oscuridad, a usted, como yo. Is that not so, my love?” ¿No es así, mi amor? " “We are uniquely connected,” Kalona managed, though he suddenly wished the words were not true. "Estamos haciendo conectados", gestionado Kalona, aunque de repente se desea que las palabras no eran ciertas. “Indeed . -Desde luego. . . .” she said, still distracted by her thoughts. . ", Dijo ella, todavía distraído por sus pensamientos. Then Neferet's eyes widened as a new realization came to her. Entonces abrió los ojos Neferet como una nueva realización se acercó a ella. “I have long wondered how it was that A-ya managed to wound you, such a physically powerful immortal, badly enough that those ridiculous Cherokee hags could entrap you. "Hace tiempo que se preguntó cómo era que A-ya logró que la herida, como un inmortal poderoso físicamente, bastante mal que esos ridículos brujas Cherokee podría atrapar. I believe little Zoey has just provided the answer you've so carefully withheld from me. Creo que poco Zoey acaba de dar la respuesta que ha retenido tanto cuidado de mí. Your body can be damaged but only through your spirit. Su cuerpo puede estar dañado, pero sólo a través de su espíritu. Isn't that fascinating?” ¿No es fascinante? " “I will heal.” He put as much strength as possible in his voice. "Voy a sanar." Puso tanta fuerza como sea posible en su voz. “Return me to Capri and the castle there. "Me regreso a Capri y el castillo allí. Take me to the rooftop, as close to the sky as I can be, and I will regain my strength.” Llévame a la azotea, tan cerca del cielo que puedo ser, y voy a recuperar mis fuerzas. " “I imagine you would— were I so inclined to do that. "Me imagino que usted-me eran tan inclinados a hacerlo. But I have other plans for you, my love.” Neferet lifted her arms, extending them over him. Pero tengo otros planes para ti, mi amor. "Neferet levantó los brazos, extendiéndolos sobre él. As she continued to speak she began weaving her long fingers through the air, creating intricate patterns, like a spider spinning her web. Como ella siguió hablando ella comenzaron a tejer sus dedos a través del aire, la creación de patrones intrincados, como una araña que teje su telaraña. “I will not allow Zoey to interfere with us ever again.” "No permitiré que Zoey para interferir con nosotros nunca más." “A shattered soul is a death sentence. "Un alma destrozada es una sentencia de muerte. Zoey is no longer any threat to us,” he said. Zoey ya no es ninguna amenaza para nosotros ", dijo. With knowing eyes, Kalona watched Neferet. Con los ojos sabiendo, Kalona vistos Neferet. She drew to her a sticky blackness he recognized all too well. Ella se acercaba a ella una oscuridad pegajosa reconoció muy bien. He'd spent lifetimes battling that Darkness before he embraced its cold power. Había pasado vidas luchando contra la oscuridad antes de que él abrazó su poder frío. It pulsed and fluttered familiarly, restlessly under her fingers. Se impulsos y revoloteaban familiarmente, sin descanso bajo sus dedos. She shouldn't be able to command Darkness so tangibly. Ella no debe ser capaz de dominar la oscuridad modo tan tangible. The thought drifted like the echo of a death knell through his weary mind. El pensamiento deriva como el eco de una sentencia de muerte a través de su mente cansada. A High Priestess shouldn't have such power. Una sacerdotisa no debe tener ese poder. But Neferet was no longer merely a High Priestess. Pero Neferet ya no era simplemente una Alta Sacerdotisa. She had grown beyond the boundaries of that role some time ago, and she had no trouble controlling the writhing blackness she conjured. Ella había crecido más allá de los límites de ese papel hace algún tiempo, y ella no tenía problemas para controlar la negrura que se retuerce conjurado. She is becoming immortal, Kalona realized, and with the realization, fear joined regret and despair and anger where they already simmered within the fallen Warrior of Nyx. Ella se está convirtiendo en inmortal, Kalona realizado, y con la realización, el miedo se unió al pesar y la desesperación y la ira en el que ya fuego lento dentro de los caídos Guerrero de Nyx. “One would think it would be a death sentence,” Neferet spoke calmly as she drew more and more of the inky threads to her, “but Zoey has a terribly inconvenient habit of surviving. "Uno pensaría que sería una sentencia de muerte", habló con calma mientras Neferet atrajo a más y más de los hilos a su tinta ", pero Zoey tiene la costumbre de sobrevivir terriblemente incómodo. This time I am going to ensure she dies.” Esta vez me voy a asegurar que ella muera. " “Zoey's soul also has a habit of reincarnating,” he said, purposefully baiting Neferet to try to throw off her focus. "Zoey alma también tiene la costumbre de reencarnar", dijo, a propósito de carnada Neferet para tratar de deshacerse de su enfoque. “Then I will destroy her over and over again!” Neferet's concentration only increased with the anger his words evoked. -Entonces voy a destruir una y otra vez! "Concentración Neferet solamente aumentó con la ira sus palabras evocadas. The blackness she spun intensified, writhing with swollen power in the air around her. La negrura hilaba intensificado, retorciéndose con poder hinchadas en el aire a su alrededor. “Neferet.” He tried to reach her by using her name. "Neferet." Trató de llegar a ella mediante el uso de su nombre. “Do you truly understand what it is you are attempting to command?” "¿De verdad entender qué es lo que están tratando de mando? Her gaze met his, and, for the first time, Kalona saw the scarlet stain that nested in the darkness of her eyes. Su mirada se encontró con su, y, por primera vez, Kalona vio la mancha roja que anidaban en la oscuridad de sus ojos. “Of course I do. "Por supuesto que sí. It's what lesser beings call evil.” Es lo que llamamos el mal menor seres. " “I am not a lesser being, and I, too, have called it evil.” "Yo no soy un ser menor, y yo también, lo han llamado el mal." “Ah, not for centuries you haven't.” Her laughter was vicious. "Ah, no hace siglos que no." Su risa era vicioso. “But it seems lately you've been living too much with shadows from your past instead of reveling in the lovely dark power of the present. "Pero parece que últimamente has estado viviendo demasiado con las sombras de su pasado en vez de deleitarse en el poder encantador oscura del presente. I know who is to blame for that.” Yo sé quién tiene la culpa de eso ". With a tremendous effort, Kalona pushed himself to a sitting position. Con un tremendo esfuerzo, se empujó Kalona a una posición sentada. “No. "No. I don't want you to move.” Neferet flicked one finger at him, and a thread of darkness snaked around his neck, tightened, and jerked him down, pinning him to the ground again. No quiero que se mueva ". Neferet encendió un dedo en él, y un hilo de la oscuridad serpenteaba alrededor de su cuello, apretados, y tiró de él hacia abajo y la batió de nuevo al suelo. “What is it you want of me?” he rasped. "¿Qué es lo que quieres de mí?-Jadeó él. “I want you to follow Zoey's spirit to the Otherworld and be sure none of her friends”— she sneered the word—“manage to find a way to coax her to rejoin her body.” "Quiero que siga el espíritu de Zoey al otro mundo y estar seguro de que ninguno de sus amigos" - se burló ella-la palabra "logran encontrar la forma de su cable coaxial para reunirse con su cuerpo." Shock jolted through the immortal. Choque sacudió a través de la inmortal. “I have been banished by Nyx from the Otherworld. "He sido desterrado por Nyx del Otro Mundo. I cannot follow Zoey there.” No puedo seguir Zoey allí. " “Oh, but you are wrong, my love. "Ah, pero te equivocas, mi amor. You see, you always think too literally. Ya ves, siempre piensas demasiado literalmente. Nyx ousted you— you fell— you cannot return. Nyx que derrocó-que cayó-si no puede regresar. So you have believed for centuries that is that. Así que han creído por siglos que es eso. Well, you literally cannot.” She sighed dramatically as he stared at her blankly. Pues bien, literalmente no se puede. "Suspiró dramáticamente a medida que la miraba sin comprender. “Your gorgeous body was banished, that's all. "Tu cuerpo hermoso fue desterrado, eso es todo. Did Nyx say anything about your immortal soul?” ¿Se Nyx decir nada acerca de su alma inmortal? " “She need not say it. "Ella no tiene por qué decirlo. If a soul is separated from a body for too long, the body will die.” Si un alma está separada de un cuerpo por mucho tiempo, el cuerpo va a morir. " “But your body isn't mortal, which means it can be separated indefinitely from its soul without dying,” she said. "Pero el cuerpo no es mortal, lo que significa que pueden separarse indefinidamente de su alma sin morir", dijo. Kalona struggled to keep the terror her words filled him with from his expression. Kalona luchado por mantener el terror que sus palabras le llenó de su expresión. “It is true that I cannot die, but that does not mean I will remain undamaged if my spirit leaves my body for too long.” I could age . "Es cierto que no puede morir, pero eso no quiere decir que se mantendrá en buen estado si mi espíritu deja el cuerpo durante demasiado tiempo." Podría edad. . . . . go mad . se vuelven locos. . . . . become a never dying shell of myself . convertido en un depósito no morir de mí mismo. . . . . The possibilities swirled through his mind. Las posibilidades se arremolinaban en su mente. Neferet shrugged. Neferet se encogió de hombros. “Then you will have to be sure you finish your task soon, so that you may return to your lovely immortal body before it is irreparably damaged.” She smiled seductively at him. -Entonces, usted tendrá que asegurarse de que termine su tarea antes, de modo que usted puede regresar a su cuerpo inmortal hermosa antes de que se ocasionaría un perjuicio irreparable ". Sonrió seductoramente a él. “I would very much dislike it if anything happened to your body, my love.” "Me gustaría mucho que no les gusta si algo le sucedía a su cuerpo, mi amor." “Neferet, don't do this. "Neferet, no lo hace. You are putting into motion things that will require payment, the consequences of which even you will not want to face.” Usted está puesta en las cosas de movimiento que se requiere el pago, cuyas consecuencias aún no se quiere enfrentar. " “Do not threaten me! "No amenace mí! I released you from your imprisonment. Te libera de su prisión. I loved you. Yo te amaba. And then I watched you fawn over that simpering teenager. Y entonces te vi cervatillo sobre ese adolescente sonrisa afectada. I want her gone from my life! Quiero que ella desapareció de mi vida! Consequences? Consecuencias? I embrace them! Las abrazo! I am not the weak, ineffective High Priestess of a rule- following goddess any longer. Yo no soy el débil, ineficaz suma sacerdotisa de una diosa seguir una regla más. Don't you understand that? ¿No lo entiendes? Had you not been so distracted by that child, you would know it without me telling you. Si usted no ha sido tan distraídos por ese niño, usted lo sabría decirte sin mí. I am an immortal, the same as you, Kalona!” Her voice was eerie, amplified with power. Yo soy un ser inmortal, lo mismo que tú, Kalona! "Su voz era extraña, amplificado con el poder. “We are perfectly matched. "Estamos perfectamente adaptados. You used to believe that as well, and that is something you will believe again, when Zoey Redbird is no more.” Utilizó para creer que también, y eso es algo que va a creer otra vez, cuando Zoey Redbird ya no existe. " Kalona stared at her, understanding that Neferet was utterly, truly mad, and wondering why that madness only served to feed her power and intensify her beauty. Kalona la miró, comprendiendo que era absolutamente Neferet, verdaderamente loco, y preguntándome por qué esa locura sólo sirvió para alimentar su poder e intensificar su belleza. “So this is what I have decided to do,” she continued, speaking methodically. "Así que esto es lo que he decidido hacer", continuó, hablando metódicamente. “I am going to keep your sexy, immortal body safely tucked away underground somewhere while your soul travels to the Otherworld and makes sure Zoey does not return here.” "Voy a mantener su cuerpo sexy, inmortal a buen recaudo bajo tierra en alguna parte mientras tu alma viaja al otro mundo y se asegura de Zoey no volver aquí." “Nyx will never allow it!” The words burst from him before he could stop them. "Nyx nunca lo permitirá!" Las palabras brotar de él antes de que pudiera detenerlas. “Nyx always allows free will. "Nyx siempre permite el libre albedrío. As her former High Priestess, I know without any doubt that she will allow you to choose to travel in spirit to the Otherworld,” Neferet said slyly. Como su ex Alta Sacerdotisa, sé sin lugar a dudas que le permitirá optar por viajar en espíritu al otro mundo ", dijo Neferet con astucia. “Remember, Kalona, my true love, if you ensure Zoey's death, you will be removing the last impediment to us reigning side by side. "Recuerda, Kalona, mi verdadero amor, si se asegura la muerte de Zoey, usted va a sacar el último impedimento para nosotros que reina al lado del otro. You and I will be powerful beyond imagining in this world of modern marvels. Usted y yo estaremos poderosos más allá de imaginar en este mundo de maravillas modernas. Think of it— we will subjugate humans and bring back the reign of vampyres with all the beauty and passion and limitless power that means. Piensen en ello: vamos a someter a los seres humanos y traer de vuelta el reinado de vampiros con toda la belleza y la pasión y el poder ilimitado que eso significa. The earth will be ours. La tierra será nuestra. We will, indeed, give new life to the glorious past!” Nosotros, en efecto, dar nueva vida al pasado glorioso! " Kalona knew she was playing on his weaknesses. Kalona sabía que ella estaba jugando en sus debilidades. Silently, he cursed himself for allowing her to have learned too much about his deepest desires. En silencio, se maldijo por lo que le permite haber aprendido mucho de su deseos más profundos. He'd trusted her, so Neferet knew that because he wasn't Erebus he could never truly rule beside Nyx in the Otherworld, and he was driven to re- create as much of what he'd lost here in this modern world. Había confiado en ella, así que sabía que Neferet porque no era Erebus nunca realmente podía gobernar junto a Nix en el otro mundo, y él se vio obligado a volver a crear la mayor cantidad de lo que había perdido aquí en este mundo moderno. “You see, my love, when you consider it logically, it is only right that you follow Zoey and sever the link between her soul and her body. -Ya ves, mi amor, cuando lo considere lógicamente, es justo que siga Zoey y romper el vínculo entre su alma y su cuerpo. Doing so simply serves your ultimate desires.” Neferet spoke nonchalantly, as if the two of them were discussing the choice of material for her latest gown. Si lo hace, simplemente sirve en última instancia sus deseos. "Neferet habló con indiferencia, como si los dos de ellos estaban discutiendo la elección de los materiales de su último vestido. “How am I even to find Zoey's soul?” He tried to match her matter of fact tone. "¿Cómo voy hasta encontrar el alma de Zoey?" Trató de juego con el tema del tono hecho. “The Otherworld is a realm so vast, only the gods and goddesses can traverse it.” "El otro mundo es un reino tan grande, sólo los dioses y diosas pueden atravesarlo." Neferet's bland expression tightened, making her cruel beauty terrible to behold. expresión insulsa Neferet apretó, haciendo su cruel belleza terrible de contemplar. “Do not pretend you don't have a connection to her soul!” The Tsi Sgili immortal drew a deep breath. "No pretendas que no tienen una conexión con su alma!" Señaló a El inmortal Tsi Sgili una respiración profunda. In a more reasonable tone, she continued, “Admit it, my love; you could find Zoey even if no one else could. En un tono más razonable, continuó, "Admítelo, mi amor, usted podría encontrar Zoey incluso si nadie más podía. What is your choice, Kalona? ¿Cuál es su elección, Kalona? To rule on earth at my side, or to remain a slave to the past?” Para pronunciarse sobre la tierra a mi lado, o seguir siendo un esclavo del pasado? " “I choose to rule. "Elijo a gobernar. I will always choose to rule,” he said without hesitation. Siempre elige para gobernar ", dijo sin dudar. As soon as he spoke, Neferet's eyes changed. Tan pronto como el paciente hablaba, Neferet ha cambiado. The green within them became totally engulfed in scarlet. El verde en su interior quedó totalmente envuelta en escarlata. She turned the glowing orbs on him— holding, entrapping, entrancing. Se dio la vuelta al esferas brillantes en él-, tenencia, atrapando, fascinante. “Then hear me, Kalona, Fallen Warrior of Nyx, by my oath I shall keep your body safe. -Entonces, me oyes, Kalona, Fallen Guerrero de Nyx, por mi juramento Me comprometo a mantener su cuerpo de seguridad. When Zoey Redbird, fledging High Priestess of Nyx, is no more, I swear to you I will remove these dark chains and allow your spirit to return. Cuando Zoey Redbird, volantones Alta Sacerdotisa de Nyx, no es más, te juro que voy a quitar estas cadenas de oscuridad y permitir que su espíritu regrese. Then I will take you to the rooftop of our castle on Capri and let the sky breathe life and strength into you so that you will rule this realm as my consort, my protector, my Erebus.” As Kalona watched, helpless to stop her, Neferet drew one long, pointed fingernail across the palm of her right hand. Luego te llevaré a la azotea de nuestro castillo en Capri y dejar que la vida respira cielo y la fuerza en usted para que usted gobernará este reino como mi compañera, mi protector, mi Erebus. "Como Kalona miraba, impotente para detenerla, Neferet señaló a una uña larga y puntiaguda en la palma de su mano derecha. Cupping the blood that pooled there, she held her hand up, offering. Abrazando la sangre que agruparon allí, ella sostuvo su mano, ofreciendo. “By blood I claim this power; by blood I bind this oath.” All around her, Darkness stirred and descended on her palm, writhing, shivering, drinking. ¡Por la sangre que reclama este poder, por la sangre que unen a este juramento. "Todos a su alrededor, la oscuridad se movió y cayó sobre su palma, retorciéndose, escalofríos, bebiendo. Kalona could feel the draw of that Darkness. Kalona podía sentir el sorteo de esa oscuridad. It spoke to his soul with seductive, powerful whispers. Se habló con su alma con potentes seductora, susurros. “Yes!” The word was a moan torn deep from his throat as Kalona yielded himself to the greedy Darkness. "¡Sí!" La palabra fue un gemido desgarrado profundo de su garganta como Kalona se entregó a la oscuridad codiciosos. When Neferet continued, her voice was magnified, swollen with power. Cuando Neferet continuó, su voz era magnifica, hinchado con el poder. “It is your own choice that I have sealed this oath by blood with Darkness, but should you fail me and break it—” "Es su elección, que han sellado este juramento de sangre con la oscuridad, pero si me fallan y romperlo" “I will not fail.” "No voy a fallar". Her smile was unworldly in its beauty; her eyes roiled with blood. Su sonrisa era mundana en su belleza, sus ojos enturbiado con sangre. “If you, Kalona, Fallen Warrior of Nyx, break this oath and fail in my sworn quest to destroy Zoey Redbird, fledgling High Priestess of Nyx, I shall hold dominion over your spirit for as long as you are an immortal.” "Si usted, Kalona, Fallen Guerrero de Nyx, romper este juramento y no en mi búsqueda ha jurado destruir a Zoey Redbird, incipiente Alta Sacerdotisa de Nyx, voy a mantener el dominio sobre su espíritu durante el tiempo que eres inmortal." The answering words came unbidden by him, evoked by the seductive Darkness, which for centuries he'd chosen over Light. Las palabras vinieron espontáneamente responder por él, evocada por la oscuridad seductora, que durante siglos había elegido más de la Luz. “If I fail, you shall hold dominion over my spirit for as long as I am an immortal.” "Si no lo consigo, que se mantenga el dominio sobre mi espíritu por el tiempo que soy un ser inmortal." “Thus I have sworn.” Again Neferet slashed her palm, creating a bloody X in her flesh. "Por lo tanto yo he jurado". Recortó nuevo Neferet palma de su mano, creando una sangrienta X en su carne. The copper scent wafted to Kalona like smoke rising from fire as she again raised her hand to Darkness. El olor a cobre flotaba Kalona como humo de los incendios que se volvió a plantear la mano a la Oscuridad. “Thus it shall be!” Neferet's face twisted in pain as Darkness drank from her again, but she didn't flinch— didn't move until the air around her pulsed, bloated with her blood and her oath. "Así será!" Cara Neferet se torció en el dolor como la oscuridad bebió de ella otra vez, pero ella no se inmutó, no se movió hasta que el aire alrededor de su hinchada impulsos, con su sangre y su juramento. Only then did she lower her hand. Sólo entonces se baja la mano. Her tongue snaked out, licking the scarlet line and ending the bleeding. Su lengua serpenteaba hacia fuera, lamiendo la línea roja y poner fin a la hemorragia. Neferet walked to him, bent, and gently placed her hands on either side of his face, much as he had held the human boy before delivering his deathblow. Neferet se acercó a él, se inclinó, y suavemente colocó las manos a ambos lados de la cara, todo lo que había sostenido el muchacho humanos antes de entregar su golpe mortal. He could feel Darkness thrumming around and within her, a raging bull waiting eagerly for his mistress's command. Podía sentir la oscuridad zumbido alrededor y dentro de ella, un toro furioso esperando ansiosamente para el mando de su ama. Her blood-reddened lips paused just short of touching his. Sus labios enrojecidos de sangre se detuvo justo antes de tocar la suya. “With the power that rushes through my blood, and by the strength of the lives I have taken, I command you, my delicious threads of Darkness, to pull this Oath Bound immortal's soul from his body and speed him to the Otherworld. "Con el poder que corre por mi sangre, y por la fuerza de la vida que he tomado, que yo os mando, mi deliciosa rosca de la oscuridad, para sacar el alma de este inmortal Juramento Bound de su cuerpo y la velocidad de él al otro mundo. Go and do as I order, and I swear I will sacrifice to you the life of an innocent you have been unable to taint. Ve y haz lo que te orden, y te juro que te ofreceré sacrificios de la vida de un inocente que ha sido incapaz de mancha. So thee for me, I mote it be!” Así te para mí, yo sea! " Neferet drew in a deep breath, and Kalona saw the dark threads she'd summoned slither between her full, red lips. Neferet respiró profundo, y Kalona vio los hilos oscuros que había convocado deslizarse entre sus labios carnosos, de color rojo. She inhaled Darkness until she was swollen with it, and then she covered his mouth with hers and, with that blackened, blood- tainted kiss, blew Darkness within him with such force that it ripped his already wounded soul from his body. Inhaló la oscuridad hasta que ella estaba hinchado con él, y luego se cubrió la boca con la suya y, con ese ennegrecido, beso manchado de sangre, sopló la oscuridad dentro de él con tal fuerza que arrancó su alma ya herida de su cuerpo. As his soul shrieked in soundless agony, Kalona was forced up, up, and into the realm from which his Goddess had banished him, leaving his body lifeless, chained, Oath Bound by evil, and at the mercy of Neferet. Como su alma gritó en agonía sin sonido, se vio obligado Kalona arriba, arriba, y en el reino de la que su diosa lo había desterrado, dejando su cuerpo sin vida, encadenados, obligados por juramento el mal, y en la misericordia de Neferet.