you should thank.”
David did his best to conceal his surprise, but Brania could tell by the way Jean-Paul flinched when she mentioned Nakano’s name that David had had no idea his beloved son had hired a third party to do his bidding. Teaching was turning out to be kind of fun. Until David decided to alter the lesson plan. “I forgive you for killing Margaret,” he announced. “I understand why you felt Nurse Radcliff needed to be terminated, and I have chosen to show you mercy. So you see, there’s no need for you to remain in hiding from me any longer.”
She felt her feet dig into the earth to stop her legs from shaking. She wasn’t exactly sure why, since she felt no remorse for causing the nurse’s death, but perhaps it was because she suddenly realized that if it came down to a physical confrontation, it would be three against one. Interesting, she realized, no matter how much you know there’s always room for more knowledge. “I never felt I had to hide from you,” Brania said. “You are after all my father. It’s just that for the time being I prefer to be alone.”
When David rose, the buck shifted slightly, and some excess blood slid down the animal’s tongue and trickled out of its open mouth. Brania felt such derision for this group of men that she half-expected them to scamper on all fours and fight each other to see who could lick up the last remaining drop. But no one moved, not until David motioned that they should join him. “And so we shall concede to your wishes,” he stated. “You may retreat to your solitary confinement, but I have one request.”
Her feet dug farther into earth. “And what is that?”
“That you be at my side during the upcoming Tri-Centennial Celebration,” David replied. “It is more than a matter of protocol. It is an auspicious occasion, and I would like to be surrounded by my children. Please don’t disappoint me.” David didn’t wait for Brania to reply. He simply retreated into the woods, followed by Jean-Paul and Joubert.
Damn him! Brania hated allowing him to have the last word, but he didn’t stick around long enough for her to say anything. And, now that she was alone with nothing in sight but the rotting corpse of a once magnificent animal, she had plenty to say. Her father should come back now, and she would show him how easily she could disappoint him. But she wasn’t going to be given the opportunity to form any sort of rebuttal; she had other matters to attend to. Like finding out why Imogene was screaming so loudly she was threatening to disturb all of England.
Racing into the cave, Brania thought she understood the reason for Imogene’s shrieks—Nakano was pacing in one corner of their hideout. “Don’t look at me!” he cried. “Crazy ghost girl was screaming her bloody head off when I got here.”
Not only was Imogene screaming, she was clawing at the sides of the lidless coffin as if she was unable to sit up, as if some weight were keeping her body flat against the bottom of the casket. The girl was going through yet another transformation, and Brania had a good idea who was responsible.
However, she wanted to keep that person’s identity a secret. “Kano, go home!” she ordered.
Flustered, Nakano didn’t understand why he was being yelled at. “But I didn’t do anything!”
Drawing upon every maternal instinct she had acquired while Imogene had been in her care, Brania spoke quietly but firmly to Nakano. “I understand that, but the truth is your being here upsets Imogene so I need you to leave, just so I can calm her down,” Brania rationalized. “Could you please do that for me?”
Reluctantly, Kano agreed. “Yeah, sure.”
He was hardly out of the cave before Brania jumped into the coffin and grabbed Imogene by the shoulders to try and force her out of her trance. “Imogene! What’s happening? Tell me!”
Arms flailing, Imogene was clutching at the air, Brania’s face, anything that would pull her out of whatever scene she was witnessing. “Dro ... drow ...” she gasped.
She was drowning. Brania’s instincts were correct. Imogene was still linked to Edwige, and now Edwige was swimming deeper into the ocean on her way to The Well. “Look at me, Imogene,” Brania ordered. “You’re safe, you’re with Mother.” Either Imogene didn’t hear what Brania was saying or she didn’t believe her. Her arms kept moving as if she was treading water, trying to reach a surface that didn’t exist. “Imogene, I need you to focus,” Brania compelled. “Use Edwige’s eyes and find The Well.”
Suddenly her body stopped shaking, her arms fell to her sides, and her breathing returned to normal.
“I see it,” Imogene announced.
Brania stared at her in amazement, knowing that Imogene was gazing upon the elusive Well, the life force of all water vamps, the treasure that her father wanted to find and destroy. Holding Imogene close to her, wiping the sweat from her brow, Brania beamed. She wasn’t sure if she was prouder of Imogene for her unprecedented connection to Edwige or of herself for the skillful way her own mind worked. It wasn’t every day that she outdid herself, conceiving another plan that would teach her father that he had underestimated her. Soon he would discover that Brania was more powerful, cunning, and vengeful than he could ever hope to be.
chapter 18
Brania didn’t expect to find anyone else in the cave when she returned from her feeding, which is why she was surprised to find that Imogene had company. She was even more surprised when she recognized the girl who was sitting with Imogene in her coffin. She only saw the girl from behind, but her hair was just as red and wavy as the last time she had seen it.
“You’re the girl from The Forest!” Brania exclaimed.
“Brania, please, my guest’s name is Ruby,” Imogene corrected.
Turning to face Brania, her eyes no longer completely white, but now their normal blue, Ruby smiled. “Hello, Brania.”
Recoiling just a bit at the sight of the girl, a torrent of memory assaulted Brania, and in an instant she remembered everything that this Ruby person had done to her. She didn’t know why, she didn’t know how, but she knew two things: She was connected to this girl, and this stranger was dangerous.
“What are you doing here?”
Ignoring her question, Ruby instead extended her hand to Brania and asked, “Would you mind helping me out?”
Warily, Brania walked toward the casket and tried to hold onto the anger she was feeling and not give in to the fear that lay just underneath it. Fear was useless; it was for mortals, not for someone like her. Unfortunately, fear clung to her like a shy child clings to its mother. It simply would not let go.
“Imogene,” Brania said. “She’s your guest, would you please help her out of your coffin?”
Thrilled to have a task, Imogene jumped at the opportunity. “Ruby, give me your hand,” Imogene instructed. How wonderful it was to be able to feel someone else’s hand. Imogene assumed that the reason she could touch Ruby and Ruby could hear her was because they were in the cave. This
“straddling life and death” thing sure had its own rules. But as long as Imogene could touch someone other than Brania, she didn’t care. She was so energized that by the time she and Ruby were both standing on the cave’s floor, Imogene had informed Brania that Ruby had recently enrolled at St.
Anne’s school, she was blind, and she was Penry’s twin sister. Finally, it made sense to Brania. “So that’s why you’ve come here,” Brania said, feeling the fear unwrap its needy little fingers from her body. “To avenge the death of your brother.”
“Brania!” Imogene exclaimed. “That is no way to speak to my new friend!”
When Imogene saw Brania’s head whip in her direction, her face filled with scorn and contempt, it reminded her of the way Brania had looked when she attacked her in her dorm room. Before Brania took her first step toward her, Imogene disappeared. “Imogene!” Brania howled. “I do not have time for these games!”
The game didn’t last very long, because Imogene didn’t want to stray too far from Ruby. It was nice to look into the girl’s eyes that were the same color as Penry’s, so after a few seconds she materialized in her coffin. “Now stay there and do not move!” Brania ordered. Turning around to face Ruby, she spun so hard that her heel dug into the rock floor, a tiny cloud of dust floating around her shoe. “And you!” she barked. “Why have you come to me? I had nothing to do with your brother’s death.”
As if she could see exactly where the boulder was, Ruby walked toward it and sat down. She looked at Brania, and her bemused expression never changed; all that changed were her eyes. Gone were the blue irises,
