Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 92612 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92612 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
“Get the ball planned. I’ll return for it.” Valen’s grip tightens on my arm as he walks me through the maze of rooms and out to the landing.
“Yes, my Lord Specter,” Coal’s voice is flat.
“It will never happen. You can’t wipe us out.” I pull against his hold as he marches me back through the rooms and corridors. “There are simply too many of us. We have the numbers. An entire planet full of humans. We—”
“You had the numbers.” Valen’s grip is relentless as he pulls me up the stairs to Piano Bay.
“The plague hasn’t killed enough of us for you—”
He spins me to face him, his hands gripping my upper arms. “I’m not talking about the plague, little rabbit. You’re not thinking big enough—a common failing of your kind, one which we’ve exploited to great benefit.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Your beloved sister gave Gregor the nuclear codes, the bombs, the guns—every-fucking-thing he wanted. What do you think he did with that knowledge?”
I stare up at him, not understanding, or maybe refusing to understand. “No,” it comes out in a whisper.
“Oh, yes.” His eyes bore into me. “We can use fangs or we can use nuclear warheads. It doesn’t matter. In the end, humanity is fucking done. Paris, Tokyo, Jakarta, London, entire swaths of China—wiped out. Obliterated before they even knew what was coming. It was all too easy.” The icy cruelty in his words hits me like a fist.
“No.” I shake my head, my vision blurring. “That’s not possible. There’s no way. Juno would never—”
“We aren’t mobilizing to the west. Do you know why?”
I don’t want to hear any more, don’t want to believe it. “No.”
“Because Los Angeles is gone.” His grip is so tight it hurts. “That’s how far Gregor got before someone at the Pentagon figured out a way to circumvent him. He’s murdered millions, maybe billions, and he’s given orders that we are not to stop. Every vampire in the world obeys his command.”
“Including you?” Hot tears roll down my cheeks.
“Especially me,” he snarls. “It’s best you remember that.”
My breath catches in my throat, my mind shorting out at the sheer horror of it. How many people? How many?
My chin trembles as he releases me and stalks away, disappearing into the gloom of the level below.
12
Recovered Journal of Dr. Georgia Clark
January 11, Year 1, Emergence Era
I can’t sleep. I keep thinking about Juno. About how she’s changed so much. There’s a million miles of distance between us now. I hardly see her anymore. No more family dinners downstairs, at least not with her. She’s too busy. Or maybe she’s avoiding me. I passed her on the front steps, and I thought for just a second that she would keep going, would pretend she didn’t see me. Of course she didn’t. She wouldn’t do something like that. So why do I keep thinking about it?
“Ihaven’t been up here for quite some time.” Melody scans the garden, moonlight turning everything into silver and shadows. “I’m sorry I couldn’t bring you during the day.”
She’d come to my room earlier, her soft knock announcing her arrival. Apparently, Valen ordered her to take the ‘little rabbit’ out for some fresh air while he’s away.
I hate him more every single moment, with every breath I take. I wish he could feel it, the way I despise him. Maybe it’s best he’s been gone for five days or so, by my count. Though I can’t imagine how Atlanta is faring right now. When my mind strays to it, to the things Valen told me about the new world, I turn inward. I spend hours writing in my journal, filling every bit of space with the things I remember. With notes about Sierravirus, small sketches of faces I remember but can’t name, and my thoughts—but only the ones I feel safe enough to write down. I can’t stomach the notion of Whitbine getting his hands on my deepest thoughts, the ones I hope I’ve managed to keep hidden from him despite his compulsion. I have to cling to those secret parts of me, the only bits of my consciousness I can still call mine.
“Georgia,” Melody turns to me, the silvery light shining on her dark hair. “Please don’t run. I wouldn’t want to have to …” She lets the sentence fade, and I don’t have to do much imagining to know she’d hunt me down if I strayed.
“Not on your watch.” I nod. “Don’t worry.” I don’t fear what she’d do to me if she caught me. I’m more worried about her disappointment. As much as I refuse to trust anyone in this special pit of hell, I have to admit she’s grown on me. Her quiet way of meeting my needs, her ability to sense when I need space or comfort—she’s nothing like Valen, nothing like any of the vampires I’ve met. I want to put every one of their kind into a box, pigeonhole them under a sign marked ‘EVIL’ in no uncertain terms. Melody, though, has made that far more difficult than it should be. She’s too human, and if I’m being honest with myself, she reminds me too much of Juno, the Juno who helped raise me and made me feel loved when I felt like nothing more than an abandoned stray.