Part 2 (2/2)
That didn't matter right then. What mattered was that Kaleo Sonyar, the vampire who had just appeared among them, looked p.i.s.sed p.i.s.sed. The oldest living direct fledgling of Kendra, Kaleo was an apt representation of his line: beautiful, an artist, absolutely mad and capable of undeniable cruelty. He had features like a Roman sculpture-quite literally, since rumors claimed he had modeled for some of those works-and golden blond hair that gave him an angelic cast. The looks were misleading, however. By killing Nissa's father and threatening Nikolas, Kaleo had convinced Nissa to let him change her. More recently, he had bloodbonded Christine and tortured her for months, mainly to spite Nikolas.
Seeing the anger stark on his aristocratic features now gave Sarah the chills.
”What is going on?” Kaleo demanded.
”I think that's our question for you,” Kristopher said. ”What are you doing in our home?”
Kaleo spun to face Sarah, which made both boys take a protective step forward. ”Your 'family' was in SingleEarth.”
”I know. They-”
He shook his head, silencing her explanation. ”They took Heather. I demand you three get her back.”
”You demand demand?” Nikolas repeated incredulously. ”Why would we possibly help you rescue one of your your bonds? What exactly were you doing while she was fighting hunters, anyway?” bonds? What exactly were you doing while she was fighting hunters, anyway?”
Though Sarah was also surprised that he would expect expect their help, she didn't share Nikolas's shock at the request. She knew what the hunters might do to Heather if Heather refused to give them information. their help, she didn't share Nikolas's shock at the request. She knew what the hunters might do to Heather if Heather refused to give them information.
”She is surrounded by witches waiting for some fool to step in to pick her up,” Kaleo said. ”I'm not about to be the only fool there. As for why you should help, if Heather hadn't distracted the hunters, they would have taken Nissa instead. And finally, I was in the same place you were: not not in SingleEarth, where I am very much not welcome, and in SingleEarth, where I am very much not welcome, and not not policing my people in a place where they are supposed to be safe from exactly this kind of a.s.sault. Since when has that rule changed?” policing my people in a place where they are supposed to be safe from exactly this kind of a.s.sault. Since when has that rule changed?”
Both brothers answered the question by looking to Sarah for explanation. ”Sarah?” Kristopher asked.
”SingleEarth's autonomy is a high law among all witch-kin-”
”Which is why I was a little surprised they seem to be ignoring ignoring it,” Kaleo interjected. it,” Kaleo interjected.
Sarah stepped back. It didn't make any sense sense...but Caryn had acted like it did. My mother says if I cross them, it could endanger everyone at SingleEarth My mother says if I cross them, it could endanger everyone at SingleEarth. ”Oh, G.o.ddess,” Sarah whispered as the answer struck her like lightning. Her stomach plummeted. Her chest constricted.
”Sarah?”
She wasn't sure who had spoken. She felt blind. But she remembered the ancient words she had spent many hours studying as a child. A Vida was only given a true blade, crafted by the witches of old and imbued with generations of power, after she had recited and then sworn to all the laws of their line. She could have said the words in her sleep, but the only law applicable in that moment was so ancient she would never have thought anyone would invoke it.
When witch-kin is slain, there shall be no safe haven, no higher law to protect the guilty. Every hunter shall turn her blade to the task, and there shall be no rest until those responsible have been slain.
The Rights of Kin hadn't been called upon since the death of Smoke Madder, thousands of years earlier. The conflict had led to the schism that split the witches into separate lines for the first time, with some obeying the Rights and some swearing a vow of nonviolence and giving up the t.i.tle of hunter for themselves and all their descendants.
Hunters' deaths were avenged when they could be, but most of the time it was simply accepted that hunters eventually lost their lives, usually to their prey. No one had called on the Rights when the Light line had been extinguished three centuries before, and the Vida line had nearly been forced to the same fate. No one had called on the Rights when Nikolas and Kristopher had killed Elisabeth Vida in the 1850s, or when Zachary's sister Jacqueline had been slaughtered, or when Sarah's father had been bled and dumped on their front step.
Sarah was sitting. When had she sat down?
Kristopher was by her side. Nikolas was still standing close to Kaleo, defensive, and Christine was hovering in the doorway at the opposite side of the room. Her face was tight with fear, but she stood solid, eyes only occasionally flickering back to Kaleo from Sarah.
Sarah recognized the posture. It was loyalty that held her when terror made her want to run. It had to be hard for her to stay in the same room with Kaleo, but she did it anyway.
Sarah wanted to say to her, Just run. Loyalty isn't worth so much sometimes Just run. Loyalty isn't worth so much sometimes.
”The Rights of Kin are ancient, ancient ancient Vida law,” Sarah said. ”Older than the other lines' existences. Older than any living vampires, or recorded civilization, for that matter. They were pa.s.sed down verbally for centuries, because humanity hadn't yet invented written language.” Vida law,” Sarah said. ”Older than the other lines' existences. Older than any living vampires, or recorded civilization, for that matter. They were pa.s.sed down verbally for centuries, because humanity hadn't yet invented written language.”
”Get to the point, point,” Kaleo growled.
”Back off!” Kristopher shouted. ”Can't you see she's in shock?”
Sarah shook herself. She wasn't in shock; a daughter of Vida didn't have that luxury. She pushed herself to her feet.
”The Rights of Kin can be called upon by any descendant of Macht-any Vida, Smoke, Arun or Marinitch witch-when their kin is slain. The law requires any other child of Macht to set aside all allegiances and obligations to a.s.sist with hunting down the killer. The healers don't have to fight, but they can't offer sanctuary or a.s.sistance, either. What Caryn did,” she said, thinking out loud as her gaze went to the bag the witch had hastily pa.s.sed her, ”would be enough to get her disowned if anyone learned about it.”
”Focus, Vida,” Kaleo snapped. ”What does this mean, right now, to us?”
Kristopher looked ready to murder him, but the sharp words brought Sarah back to herself. They reminded her of the many times she had reported to Dominique, ignoring fatigue or agony after a particularly grueling fight. She had to be practical and keep her mind on what needed to be done. She couldn't dwell on the lump in her stomach when she wondered why now, of all times, Dominique had called upon this ancient law.
”It means that all witches who hunt will turn their full attention on the ones Dominique considers responsible for my murder. They will call on their allies. They will track down anyone they have ever known to have a connection to the killers, without worrying about messy treaties with SingleEarth or other normally respected neutral havens.”
”I don't suppose they care that you are not, in fact, dead,” Nikolas said.
Sarah shook her head. ”In their eyes, I am.”
”And we're your killers,” Kristopher added. ”That means we need to warn our people. Everyone who wears our marks, or is normally allied with us.”
”Is Nissa safe?” Kaleo asked.
”She already had her run-in with the hunters-”
”Yes, I'm aware of that,” the Roman interrupted. ”I a.s.sume she came to you after. Is she safe?”
”Yes,” Nikolas replied. ”We're not stupid. We didn't know about the Rights, but the hunters threatened to kill her. It wasn't subtle. She's gone to ground.”
Kaleo nodded and then looked back at Sarah. ”What will these hunters do to a bloodbond who might have information?”
”Normally, most hunters won't hurt humans, even bloodbonds, but all bets are off now. They'll want information, and they won't show a lot of mercy getting it. Thank G.o.ddess Nissa got away.”
”I, too, am relieved that Nissa is safe,” Kaleo said, ”but Nissa got away because Heather threw herself at the hunters, probably a.s.suming they wouldn't bother with a bloodbond, and certainly knowing that I would expect her to protect Nissa in any way she could. If she is now in danger, it is your fault, and I expect your help to retrieve her.”
Sarah closed her eyes and let herself go completely still, visualizing calm and centered attention.
By the time she opened her eyes again, she had come to a decision. There was one difference between this and all the deaths before. As Nikolas had pointed out, even if Sarah was dead by Vida standards, she wasn't dead dead. Her family would be horrified at the notion of a vampire-a monster-walking around in the skin of someone who had once been one of them. Vidas didn't believe that vampires could ever be good. They would be thinking not about if if Sarah went bad, but Sarah went bad, but when when, and would consider it a mark of respect for who she had been to destroy what she now was.
”It isn't right of me to put you all in this much danger. Dominique called on the Rights, but what she really wants is me.” There was a feeling that was almost one of freedom, of relief, as she said, ”If I turn myself in-”
Shouting from the two brothers interrupted her chilled determination, but Kaleo's words were what cut through to her: ”Don't be absurd.”
”Once they have me, they'll release Heather.”
”So?”
She had expected anything other than blunt indifference from Kaleo. He had seemed to want to rescue his bloodbond, but Sarah realized she had misjudged him.
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