Betrayal (Blood Haze: Book Three) A Paranormal Romance (22 page)

All at once, I began to panic. If it might
not be possible to bring Dmitri back, how could I allow Alexi to
risk such a thing?

“Alexi, why don’t you tell Father Jacobs what
you are planning,” I growled, certain Father Jacobs would side with
me.

“He knows,” Alexi said softly.

“It was my idea,” Father Jacobs admitted.

“What?” I gasped. “Your idea? Are you crazy?
Why would you let Alexi risk something like that! You’ve seen what
can happen!”

“I would never ask something like that of him
if I didn’t believe he could handle it, Alice.”

“But you haven’t see what I’ve seen,” I
snapped.

“What do you mean? What did you see?” he
asked.

“I believe Alice had a vision in the car when
we were going to see Dmitri,” Alexi explained.

“Why didn’t you tell me this? Alice, what did
you see?”

“It was fuzzy, and I couldn’t see much. But I
saw Alexi, and I felt this darkness, almost like evil.”

“But you didn’t see anything else?” Father
Jacobs asked.

“No, nothing. I only saw Alexi.”

“Then you can’t be certain the evil you felt
had anything to do with him,” Father Jacobs said.

“No, but…”

“Alice, look. I know you’re worried about
him. But I truly believe he will be fine. He won’t be in this long
enough to matter. We’ll be able to get it out of him.”

“I don’t know if that’s a risk I’m willing to
take, Father,” I told him.

“Well, that’s something you’re going to have
to think about,” Father Jacobs told me.

I wasn’t prepared to put Alexi at risk that
way. I’d only just found him. I wasn’t prepared to risk losing him,
especially not so soon. No one could understand the darkness I felt
when I had that vision. They didn’t feel what I felt, and they
didn’t see what I saw.

Suddenly, I felt unable to breathe. I tried
to pull my collar away from my neck, but the tightness in my throat
and chest just ached more. I stood up and backed away from the
table. Alexi reached toward me, but I jumped back.

“I’m sorry,” I gasped. “I need some air.”

I fled from the room and escaped out the
front door. I ran around to the side of the house and collapsed in
the grass, gasping desperately for air.

“Alice?” I heard Kai’s voice behind me.

“Kai? What are you doing out here?” I
asked.

“I needed some air,” he explained. “I came
out here to think.”

“Me, too,” I told him.

“Are you alright?” he asked.

“I’m fine, I… just needed to get out of there
for a while.”

“I know the feeling,” he muttered.

“Kai, I’m sorry I…” I started to say.

“Stop,” he interrupted. “You don’t have to
apologize. I get it.”

“I’m not sorry I married Alexi,” I clarified.
“I’m just sorry it happened so fast, and I didn’t have a chance to
talk to you about it, first.”

I could tell my words stung him deeply, but
he tried to keep his face as stoic as possible.

“I know,” he said. “You don’t owe me
anything.”

“What I felt for you was real,” I said
softly. “I want you to know that.”

“Like I said, you don’t owe me anything. No
explanations, no excuses.”

“Kai, you may not believe this. But I loved
you. I still love you, but not the way you want me to.”

“Don’t do this to me,” he pleaded, his voice
breaking. “Can’t we talk about something else?”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered weakly.

“Why did you come out here?” he asked,
changing the subject. “What happened?”

“I can’t talk about it.”

“Can’t? Or don’t want to.”

“Both, I guess. It’s too raw right now.”

“Trouble in paradise?” Kai asked, and I
thought I detected a hint of hopefulness in his voice.

“No, nothing like that. They just have a
different idea of how things should go than I do.”

“They?”

“All of them. Alexi, Father Jacobs, my
family… I get the idea they’d all gang up on me if given the
chance.”

“And me?”

“What about you?”

“Do you think I would join them? Gang up on
you?”

“I don’t know, anymore. On this, you just
might.”

We were silent for a few moments, neither of
us knowing what to say.

“Liam called a little while ago,” Kai
said.

“Really? Is he okay? Is he coming home?”

“He feels really guilty for missing his
brother’s wedding… and for not being there for you.”

“Oh.”

“And he says it hurts too much to come back
right now.”

I knew it was the truth, but hearing it said
aloud made it hurt that much more. Liam still felt like my best
friend, and I missed him terribly. There was no one else who could
make me smile and laugh the way he had.

“God, why do I keep doing this?” I
muttered.

“Doing what?”

“Hurting people! No matter what I do, I
always end up hurting someone. And Liam… he was supposed to be the
one uncomplicated relationship. A friend. Someone I could talk to.
And now… this.”

“You can’t help it, Alice. It’s who you
are.”

“Who I am?” I shrieked. “You mean I’m a
person who just goes around hurting people? What am I… a
monster?”

“I didn’t mean it that way. I just meant that
people can’t help the way they feel about you, and you can’t help
but hurt them. You can’t be with everyone who falls for you.”

“But it’s probably not even me you fell for,
Kai. It was probably my charm ability.”

“You really believe that?” he asked, his
voice barely above a whisper.

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“Alice, that first day I met you, I was
enchanted. I wasn’t under some kind of spell. You were beautiful,
smart, talented… I listened to you play that piano and it was like
an angel singing. You were the most enchanting creature I ever laid
eyes on. I never felt that way about anyone else.”

“But it
could
have been my charm
ability, couldn’t it?”

“Theoretically, I suppose it
could
have been. But it
wasn’t
.”

“How can you be so sure, Kai?”

“Look. If you were unattractive, or dull, or
whatever, then maybe I could believe that. But look at you! Alice,
you’re everything anyone could want! You’re kind, caring,
supportive, selfless… you’re everything…
everything
someone
would want in the love of their life!”

I was starting to get uncomfortable. I didn’t
feel it was appropriate to be having such a deep emotional
conversation with someone other than Alexi.

“Kai, I…”

“No, wait,” he interrupted. “I’m sorry. I’m
out of line. It won’t happen again.”

“I really need some time by myself,” I said.
“I’ll see you later.”

“Wait,” Kai called, but I kept walking.

I found the bench by the edge of the wooded
area where I’d dreamed of Alexi and realized how much I loved him.
It seemed like the ideal place to sit and reflect without being
disturbed.

I heard the pleasant twitter of a bird
chirping in a tree above my head, and I crossed my ankles and
leaned back against the cold wood of the bench. The sky overhead
was mostly gray with a smattering of clouds blocking out the blue
in all but a few spots. It threatened to rain.

I wanted to burst into tears, but I would not
allow myself the luxury. I was a grown woman, now. As much as I
felt like I wanted to dissolve, and to hide away from my problems
under the shelter of my mother’s ever-watchful eye, I could no
longer do it. I was an adult, and it was time to put away childish
notions.

Alexi was my husband. I couldn’t stand the
thought of losing him when I’d only just found him. However, my
logical side knew Alexi might be out best hope of controlling the
situation. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I
didn’t know. There were so many questions I hadn’t asked – too many
I’d been blinded by love to see.

This was the crux of my problem. The love I
had for Alexi – and for Kai and my family – was blinding me. How
could I make such a critical decision, when my logical brain was
being clouded like the gray clouds that blotted out the blue sky
over my head?

I’d heard a million times before that running
away was never the answer. Yet, I had done it again and again. It
had always worked in the sense that we survived, but there was
always a sense of loss – like I’d surrendered and allowed the other
party to win.

Right now, I felt like running away from my
conversation with everyone had been the right thing to do. I now
realized how overshadowed my mind had become, and how emotion had
managed to take away my ability to think and reason. Now, I had
purpose. I had the answer I needed – I needed to ask more
questions.

More than that, I realized something. All
along, the one person who had been my rock was Alexi. He had been
strong and solid, never wavering in his love or devotion, never
questioning my intentions or trying to force me into anything. Who
was I to question him? Whether or not the evil I saw and felt in my
vision was Alexi, I had no doubt he would find his way back to me.
I believed in him. I knew he would never let me down.

With renewed hope, I marched back into the
dining hall with my head held high. I felt like a new woman –
mature and intelligent – without the weight of a schoolgirl’s fear
on my shoulders.

Kai had joined the others, and he noticed me
before anyone else. Everyone eyed me suspiciously, as I strode
confidently to the table where they were gathered. I noticed Alexi
raise his eyebrow curiously. He could sense the change in me better
than anyone could.

“Father Jacobs, how would the process of
exorcism work on the wraiths? I need specifics. How long would it
take? What would you do?” I asked.

He looked confused and surprised for a
moment, then he answered, “I would need at least five minutes, I
suppose. The process is similar to a traditional exorcism, but the
wording is different. I don’t need to touch the wraiths, but they
need to be close – within twenty feet or so.”

“Okay, so you need the wraiths to be nearby
for five minutes or longer,” I repeated. “Alexi, what could you do
to stop the wraiths?”

“I would have to control them the way Dmitri
does,” Alexi replied.

“You have the talisman, so presumably it
would be easier for you than for him, correct?” I asked Alexi.

“That is the theory,” Alexi agreed. “But
Dmitri has had decades of practice controlling wraiths. I have
never done it. I cannot even practice, because to do so would
require the summoning of a new wraith.”

“No, you definitely shouldn’t go summoning
more of the things,” I granted. “So you’re going in with no way of
knowing whether it will really work – whether you can actually
control them.”

He nodded in acknowledgement.

“Alright, we can work with that,” I muttered,
pausing to think before continuing. “I have my ability. If we can
lure the wraiths outdoors, I should be able to buy some time by
blowing them back with my wind vortex. Even if Alexi can’t control
them, I might be able to hold them off for five minutes.”

“Do you have a plan?” Kai asked.

“Hold on, I’m thinking,” I mumbled.

My mind raced as I thought of the layout of
Dmitri’s property. I hadn’t seen much of it, but I couldn’t risk
going back there. The wraiths might become suspicious. In fact, I
had no way of knowing whether or not the wraiths suspected
something was amiss because of our earlier two visits. They might
have some sort of telepathic connection with Dmitri. Still, I
thought perhaps it might be smarter to go to Dmitri rather than
having the wraiths come to us.

We could trick the wraiths by going to
Dmitri’s compound and staging a mock attack. We would have to count
on Dmitri to understand what we were doing and play along, because
we couldn’t risk alerting the wraiths if they weren’t already aware
that Dmitri was conspiring against them.

“We’re going to have to attack at Dmitri’s
compound,” I said at last. “The wraiths will have to think we’ve
come for Dmitri, and Dmitri will have to pretend to compel them to
attack us.

“Alexi, you’ll try to gain control of the
wraiths while Father Jacobs performs the exorcism. I’ll stand ready
as backup in case you are unable to gain control. And Kai, we’ll
need you, too.”

“What can I do? I don’t have any abilities,”
he said.

“Yes, you do. You’re strong, and you’re fast.
You can pretend to physically attack Dmitri – make it look real. We
need the wraiths to believe this is a real attack against Dmitri.
Otherwise, they’ll turn on him and we may not be able to save him
in time.”

Kai’s perked up. This would be the first time
he had a real role to play, and sly grin spread across his lips and
lit up his eyes. I could tell he was glad for the hand-to-hand
training he’d participated in at the hidden compound.

“Got it!” he acknowledged.

“You’ll need to let Dmitri know we’re not
there to hurt him, too, Kai,” I warned him. “But you have to be
subtle, because the wraiths can’t know what we’re really doing. The
element of surprise is going to be one of our biggest assets.”

I turned to Alexi.

“What do you think? Will this work?” I asked
him.

“I believe so,” he admitted. “If the wraiths
believe we are there to attack Dmitri, they will be more apt to pay
attention to his directions.”

“Great, that should keep them somewhat
distracted,” I commented.

“When do you propose we do this?” Alexi
asked.

“As soon as you believe you’re ready,” I
answered. “You should spend some time practicing some dark magic
before we go. I don’t want you going in unprepared.”

“What made you change your mind about this?”
Alexi asked curiously.

“I trust you,” I told him, smiling at him
with all the love in my heart and placing my hand on his shoulder.
“I know this may break you. I understand the risks. But I believe
with all my heart you’ll find your way back, and I’ll be there with
you every step of the way.”