One (Rules Undying Book 6) Read online

  “Minerva, what did you do?” Georgia asked as the lights grew brighter on the marina docks.

  “Get out of here while you can, Berliner. You don’t stand a chance,” Minerva said as Steve finally reached them. She smiled triumphantly at her brother and showed off her phone.

  “Minerva!” Steve snapped as lights flooded him. Georgia stepped onto the docks while the others rustled below deck.

  “Get out of here now!” Georgia cried. A car door slammed. Even backlit, she recognized the shadowy form wandering towards the docks. She could also see the sword at his side.

  “Your loyalty is appreciated, Minerva,” Arthur said as he joined them on the dock. More cars started rolling through the marina gates.

  Steve shoved his sister towards his former servant. She gave her brother her sweetest smile and then stepped over to Arthur’s side. The vampire lord reached out his hand.

  “Georgia, why don’t you join me?” Arthur asked. “I’m disappointed in you now, but I’m certain you can make it up to me.”

  Steve grabbed her arm and yanked her back. Arthur’s face darkened.

  “There is no one else on this earth for you, Georgia,” Arthur said as he gave a pointed look to Steve. “You will be mine.”

  “She’s not yours,” Steve said. “She doesn’t belong to anyone.”

  “We really need to get out of here,” Georgia heard as the boat engine roared to life.

  “It doesn’t matter where you run to, Jaeger. I will follow you to the ends of the earth,” Arthur said, taking another step forward and turning to address Georgia. “You are the only woman I will ever love, and I will not lose you to some—”

  Steve interrupted him by grabbing his arms and kissing Arthur roughly. Georgia and Minerva’s jaws both dropped as Steve continued to embrace him. Arthur shuddered slightly, and Steve let him go. The Pendragon lord stared confusedly at the syringe stuck in his arm.

  “You will forget Georgia Sutherland. You’ll forget everything about her,” Steve commanded before pushing the red liquid into Arthur.

  “No!” Georgia screamed. “No!”

  “What will you be remembered for, Mrs. DeMarco? What praises shall be sung about your life?”

  “That’s not my name. I’m not Mrs. De—”

  “Oh, really?”

  “Tell me, woman. Do you believe in fate?”

  “Nope,” Georgia replied flatly. “In fact, I don’t believe in much of anything.”

  “Come on, you have to believe in something,” Arthur chided, now leaning over and giving her an expectant look. “Come on.”

  “Fine, I believe that fate is whatever you make it.”

  Arthur smiled. “You know, I once heard that fate was your most faithful little dog. It always comes back to find you.” He reached over and brushed the hair out of Georgia’s eyes. She pulled away.

  “No fate, no destiny, none of that nonsense,” she said flatly.

  “No undying love?” Arthur asked softly. Georgia became painfully aware of Arthur leaning towards her.

  “I’m getting married . . . later today,” Georgia said, sliding backwards.

  “Oh, come on, Steve’s a fool, and he doesn’t deserve you,” Arthur said, taking her hand. “I see the way you look at me when you think I don’t notice. You’ve talked to me all night. At first, I questioned your motives, but now, I simply do not care.”

  “And I’m marrying . . . Steve. Words I thought I’d never, ever say.”

  “Ever get that feeling of déjà vu?” Georgia asked. Bam-Yin responded by snatching some carnations out of a vase in the hall and shoving them into her hands. He winked.

  “You feel like you’ve married Steve before. I’m so sorry,” Bam-Yin said. “Come on, let’s put some effort into this. They got you in a dress and everything.”

  There was a slight commotion as Klaus escorted a tired-looking Steve out of the other side of the courtyard. The young vampire shuffled uncomfortably, tugging on his tie, and adjusting the cuffs on his classic, three-piece suit. Steve had even ditched his usual fedora in favor of neatly slicked-back hair.

  “Aww, he made an effort,” Bam-Yin said, taking her arm.

  “Are you really walking me down the aisle, Bob?” she asked, raising a brow.

  “Got someone else in mind? What says timeless romance quite like a vampire escort?”

  Georgia sighed. Bam-Yin gave a thumbs-up to a concerned-looking servant, who was standing on the far left with an older, clunky boom box. He nodded again and the other vampire pressed play.

  “If it’s Europe’s ‘The Final Countdown,’ I’m going back to my room,” Georgia warned her escort.

  “Who doesn’t like ‘The Final Countdown’?” Steve asked as he jerked Georgia into hold and led her to an open spot smack-dab in the center of the dance floor. Georgia stumbled a few times before she relaxed into a sort of fast waltz, ducking in and out of frenetic undead couples. Her head spun as she looked at the wall of balloons and only saw herself sashaying across the dance floor. She leaned against his chest, hearing the vampire swish within. He whirled her out into a spin and as she stumbled and twirled around she found herself crashing into a chest with a heartbeat.

  For one moment, she smelled a faintly familiar perfume that quickly became ruined by the overwhelming smell of the wolf fur draped over the stranger’s shoulders. She felt an arm against her back, and the way his fingers slid around her shoulder blade brought back memories.

  “Please, stop that,” she said as she shuddered. “No, no don’t make me feel this again.”

  The stranger pulled away slightly. Georgia studied the wisps of black hair around his mask and the color of his eyes. The vampire smiled and showed off his fangs.

  “See something that you like?” he whispered. This voice made her shudder again.

  “Just something painful and familiar,” she replied. “Please, am I free to go?”

  “You know what that letter says, don’t you?” Lord Pendragon asked as he slid his finger under the chain around her neck. “It releases you from the service of my son.”

  Georgia nodded. His finger slid lower along her collarbone.

  “It would also, however, remove the protection that you have from my house and from the Jaeger house. Are you so sure that you want to go through with this?” he whispered in her ear. Georgia trembled uncontrollably.

  “Lord—”

  His hand slipped around her waist again and Georgia stiffened. She shook her head as she remembered the same embrace from long ago.

  “You’re remembering, aren’t you?” he said softly. Georgia nodded. “That’s because it’s a very special night at Pendragon Castle. Merlin is working his magic, you see.”

  “Magic isn’t real.”

  “Of course, magic is real, child.”

  “You’re better than this, Georgia. You need to get away from this world, and you need to get away from me. I, um, I finally understand that now, and I’m so sorry that I didn’t realize it sooner. I’m just . . . I’m sorry,” Steve said softly as they stood in the gardens of Castle Pendragon. Georgia dropped to her knees and didn’t react even as the rough pavers tore into her hose. Instead, she flopped over in the middle of the garden, defeated, and fighting back tears.

  “You won’t have to worry about me anymore,” she finally whispered. “I think I finally understand what Ren was trying to tell me before he died.”

  “Georgia—” Steve said softly.

  She looked over at the monster hiding in the hedgerows. In the subdued light, his big brown eyes took on a sinister dark glow, and his usually boyish features looked drawn out and ferocious.

  “Thank you,” she whispered. “It’s so easy to forget when you take care of a helpless, wounded creature that it’s really a wild animal. It’s like I’ve been taking care of a baby tiger and forgetting all this time what happens eventually.”

  Steve smiled weakly. “Oh yeah, what is that?” he choked out.

  “Eventually, you have a full
-grown tiger on your hands.”

  “No!” Georgia screamed again. Pain wracked her from her shoulder through her chest. Her scream devolved into a pure, feral roar. She thrashed but remained locked in a cold, frozen lump of flesh. Her scream faded into a choking gurgle.

  “I made a promise to you, Miss Sutherland, and a vampire’s word is his bond. I do swear to you that I will never hurt you, never betray you, and never so much as think of you as food. So, help me god, Miss Sutherland, I am devoted to you and your service and would be lost without you. Are we clear?”

  “We’re clear,” she said, squeezing Mr. Lambley’s cold hands.

  “Mr. Lambley?” Georgia squeaked out as she curled up in the bathtub of their quaint Brookline brownstone. The door thundered in its frame. Sinister growls echoed from the hall. “Mr. Lambley, it’s me . . . It’s Georgia! Remember what you said. Remember your laws.”

  Georgia blinked, and the lighting changed in the bathroom. The once glistening tile looked dingy and spotted with mold. “What the hell are you?” she screamed through the wall.

  “You can see the fangs too?” Geoffrey Lambley asked incredulously. “How can you see the fangs?”

  “Because you showed them to me!” Georgia snapped. She once more fumbled with her phone, but to no avail. “What are you, some kind of freak?”

  “Freak? Well, that’s rather rude,” he replied.

  “You lunged at me!” Georgia said. She managed to angle the shelves perfectly to form a wedge between the sill and the toilet. Once sure of her barricade, she turned her attention to the window over the tub, but much to her chagrin, it was purely decorative and barred from the outside too.

  “You weren’t supposed to see the fangs yet. Sorry about that. Usually, you know, the miasma works. This has never happened to me before,” the vampire said apologetically.

  “Are you . . . nervous?” Georgia asked after a few more attempts of Steven J. DeMarco trying to slide his fangs into her bare neck.

  “Just, gimme another minute,” Steve replied, sweat starting to drip from his forehead. He finally pulled away. “This has never happened to me before, I swear!”

  Georgia blinked again and knelt by the tub. Her eyes widened in horror as she saw the red filling the water. A lone hand curled over the porcelain edge, blood dripping from chipped fingernails. Georgia watched the red rivulets flow down the side. “No,” she choked out, her voice tiny and weak. “Please, no.”

  The door cracked and splintered as she heard the fist pound through the paneling. The monster in the hall howled and screamed, cursing the cellulose-filled shards tearing into his pale skin. Georgia turned and screamed like a little girl as she saw a ferocious face framed by wild, red hair.

  “Mr. Lambley,” Georgia squeaked as the monster raged. “No, please, god, no . . .”

  She trailed off as she saw her own face sinking into the water. Georgia grabbed her own cold, lifeless hand. A ring cut into her skin.

  “Get out here, you beast-loving strumpet!” Mr. Lambley snarled. “Face your maker for your sins!”

  “Oh, Georgia, I’m such a failure, an utter, utter failure,” Geoffrey sobbed. Georgia remained frozen in utter slack-jawed silence as the vampire in the hall carried on whimpering and sniffling like a soap opera diva. “It started so long ago. I just lost my mojo,” he blathered. “There just came a time when I couldn’t get the fangs to even come out.”

  “I made a promise to you, Miss Sutherland, and a vampire’s word is his bond. I do swear to you that I will never hurt you, never betray you, and never so much as think of you as food. So, help me god, Miss Sutherland, I am devoted to you and your service and would be lost without you. Are we clear?”

  “Mr. Lambley?” Georgia cried again. She fluttered her eyes and gasped in horror as the pool of red expanded around her limp body. The cold from the floor soaked into her skin, but she couldn’t shiver. A gaping wound spanned her neck to her shoulder as the ginger vampire recoiled in horror. The lights above the vanity flickered. Another shadow loomed from the doorway.

  “Oh, Geoffrey, my boy, what have you done?” a cold, British-accented voice asked. “What have you done?”

  “I killed her. I k-killed—” Mr. Lambley stammered as Georgia’s eyes closed.

  “They say when a human dies, their life flashes before their eyes. I wonder what this wretched little animal sees. What do you see, Georgia? What pathetic remnants lie between you . . . and oblivion? What did you really hold dear?”

  Georgia gasped as her eyes opened once more. She blinked a few times at the brilliant sunshine. Soft blades of grass poked through her fingers. She pushed to a seated position and smiled as she saw a friendly face grinning right back at her. “Hey, Sweetheart.”

  “Steve,” she whispered as she reached over to touch his sun-warmed face. The moment her fingertips brushed his skin, she felt stubble. As she blinked, she saw a face both familiar and alien—a rugged-looking blond man with a scar cutting through his eyebrow. His features looked like a mix of Morgan’s and her own.

  “Don’t be afraid, Sweetheart. It’ll be OK. I promise it’ll be OK. Look.” He pointed, and Georgia turned to see an awkward little boy with glasses and a terrible cowlick running around with a dead ringer for Georgia—only with decidedly more feminine fashion sense. “Go play with your mama and your brother. Play as long as you want, Sweetheart.”

  “It’s cold, Daddy,” Georgia heard her own little voice say.

  “It even gets cold in Georgia,” he replied, smiling sadly before mussing her hair. “Come on, don’t you want to play . . . just a little while?”

  “I’m tired, Daddy. I had dreams about monsters.”

  Her dad winced ever so slightly, and gnawed on his lip a bit before saying, “You don’t have to be afraid of any monsters, Sweetheart, not now and not ever again. Monsters can’t hurt you. You just remember that. I’d never let any monsters hurt you, ever. You should play, and laugh, and act like there isn’t any tomorrow because you never know when there isn’t gonna be a tomorrow ever again.”

  “Something’s wrong, isn’t it?” Georgia asked as she saw a tear welling in the corner of his inhumanly bright-blue eyes. “Daddy, I had the most terrible dream.”

  “Just a little bit longer, Sweetheart. Just dream a little bit longer.”

  “I can’t hold out much longer. I’m sorry.”

  Ren jerked away from Georgia and ran for the door. “You can’t see this,” he choked out. “Just go, please.”

  “No—”

  Ren’s father opened the door and slipped between the couple. Georgia tried her best to slip by, but the mountain of a man was simply unmovable. She could hear desperate tapping and clicking from the hallway. “Ren!” she cried out.

  “Forget about me,” he cried back before the door slammed shut.

  Georgia stumbled away from the doorway and her new jailor. Ivan hung his head in shame.

  “Are you just going to let your son go kill himself?” she spat. “Why don’t you stop him? Why?”

  Ivan said nothing, but his jaw tightened as he guarded the door. A buzz sounded from Georgia’s purse. She stumbled over to see the message.

  “I want this to be the last thing you see from me,” message one read.

  “Mada ikite iru.”

  “The two of us had this code. He’d text me every morning before he went to bed with the words mada ikite iru.”

  “Is that ‘I love you’ in Japanese?” Gail asked the smiling Georgia.

  “No, it means ‘I’m still alive’ actually. We always knew we were on borrowed time. That was part of the excitement of it all . . .”

  “We are losing her, master.”

  “Good, I win either way. Time to die, Georgia DeMarco.”

  “Mada ikite iru,” Georgia whispered as she opened her eyes. A pair of sleepy, green eyes stared back at her. She brushed little spikes of jet-black hair off Ren’s forehead and frowned as she felt a cold sweat. He returned the gesture and replied, “Mada ikit
e iru to you too.”

  “What is it?” Georgia asked as she saw him frown. Ren yawned and stretched before wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close for a kiss. Her lips lingered on his, and she enjoyed the faint taste of last night’s libations mixed with a hint of minty freshness.

  “I just wish we could stay like this, forever, but I know it cannot be—”

  “Don’t say things like that, Ren. As long as we’ve got each other, everything will be fine. I know that vampires are monsters, but I’m not afraid of monsters, and you shouldn’t be either,” Georgia whispered in his ear.

  “But what if I am the monster,” he asked staring deep into her eyes. “What if you should be afraid of me, Georgia?”

  “You’ll never hurt me, Ren, no more than Mr. Lambley could ever hurt me.”

  “Mr. Lambley,” Georgia choked out as the cold seeped into her bones. She stretched one more time to the limp hand reaching from the tub. She shivered as her eyes grew ever so heavy. “Mada ikite iru . . .” Blood-filled spittle gurgled over her lips. A redheaded vampire shuddered and cried in the corner.

  “What have I done?” Mr. Lambley cried. “By god in heaven, what have I done?”

  Georgia finally closed her eyes and let the icy embrace take her.

  After a while, a bright light filled her vision. She grabbed her chest and felt another wave of agony. Her eyes snapped open, and she faced the light.

  “Fuck you all, I’m still alive,” she whispered as the pain crashed into her again. She pulled the sheet off her icy sternum. As she saw a Y-shaped incision slicing from her shoulders to her belly button, her jaw dropped. She looked left and right and saw corpses on either side of her. “Maybe I spoke too soon,” she gulped as she saw the tag on her big toe.

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