Crimson Kiss

35 Attacked

After leaving the bedroom, Ezra and I went to say our goodbyes to his family, out of respect, but Dragos was nowhere to be found. So we left the house and headed on foot down the street. Ezra had said it was not far from me, just a few blocks and he had been right. Eight blocks down the road. About a thirty mineut walk. That was fine with me. I did not mind the cold as much anymore. I was glad I had dressed in leggings. It was cold out and I shivered inside my leather jacket. Ezra had his arms around my shoulders, doing his best to help keep me warm.
As we crossed the street on my my block, there was a sudden gust of wind making my skin crawl. Something else was here. Nearby.
I slowed my pace, making Ezra look down at me. How had he not picked anything up? Perhaps I was imagining things? "Are you OK?" he asked me, slowing his pace.
I shook my head. "I'm fine," I said and turned to look over my shoulder. "Just had a funny feeling for a second." I gripped his hand, but as soon as fingers touched, I was ripped back, by my ankles, flying face first into the wet pavement and pulled backwards.
"Ivy!" I could hear Ezra calling my name, but I was more concentrated on the hooded figure before me, who held a long dagger in their hand. I held up my hand quickly, showing him the Mark of the Coven. The hooded assassin dropped his dagger and made a run for it. I jumped when Ezra appeared at my side, bending down to check me. When he noticed the figure running away, Ezra growled and I grabbed his jacket quickly.
"Leave him," I told him. "He didn't hurt me."
Ezra looked down at me. "There are more of them!" he told me and pulled me to my feet. I looked around, but I could not see anyone. I shook my head, wishing I knew a spell to tell me if I was being tracked. "Ezra, I don't see anyone!" I told him.
Ezra sighed and wrapped his arm around me and we continued down the street. "They are there," he assured me. "I can sense them. They are eager. Focused. Determined."
I swallowed harshly. "What do they want?" I whispered.
"I wish I knew," he said and quickened his pace.
Before I could say anything, there was a loud crack behind us, and a hooded figure stepped out before us and my hand came up on its own and the words left my lips before I knew or understood what I was saying. "Duratus!"
I watched in stunned amazement how ice sprang from my fingers and covered the hooded figure, who began to raise a dagger at me but once the spell hit him he was instantly covered in ice, his last breath coming out in a warm puff. The only thing that was not covered in ice was the dagger he gripped in his hand.
"When did you learn that spell?" Ezra asked me and I looked up at him, shocked at what I had done. I backed away from the body and reached for Ezra, unable to take my eyes from him.
"Did-... did I kill him?" I whispered.
Ezra stared at the hooded figure for a moment and then shook his head. "His heart is still beating. He will recover."
I looked up at him quickly only to see his eyes fixed on another hooded figure. "Because is friends are getting impatient with us standing here," he said and turned and gripped my hand and pulled me along. We walked in silence for a while. We were almost to my house when I felt Ezra, still so stiff beside me. I hurried up the porch steps with his right behind me.
"You should go get cleaned up," he said and helped out of my coat.
I glanced at my reflection. I had a huge gash on the side of my cheek. "God, Frank is going to freak out when he sees me like this!"
Ezra leaned in a little, his hands brushing away my hair. "I can help with that," he told me. I looked up at him, eyebrow raised.
"How?" I asked him.
Ezra held out his wrist at me and I shook my head at him. "No thank you," I told him.
Ezra sighed and nodded. "If you would rather not let me-"
I cut him off quickly. "Oh, no, you can feed! It is just a scratch, Ezra!"
I watched his face become unsure so I reached and grabbed his hand. "Come on."
Ivy followed me up the stairs and into my room. "Ivy, you should get cleaned up. I will wait here for you," Ezra said when we reached my room. I sighed and looked down at my damp, muddy cloths. I nodded and walked to my dresser and pulled it open. Ezra was beside me, watching my every move. I opened my panty drawer and quickly grabbed out a pair of silk panties. I turn to see Ezra with a smirk on his face.
"Nice," he commented.
I rolled my eyes at him and elbowed him playfully out of the way. Ezra snickered at me. "I may be a Vampire, Ivy, but I am still a man!" he reminded me.
I felt myself blush. He did not speak much of his "human" needs. Sometimes it was easy to forget he had any. Again, I had to wonder how many other girls or woman he had been with. Something touched my face and I looked up at Ezra whose face was creased with worry.
"Why are you feeling pain?" he asked me.
I felt myself blush even more. "It's nothing," I assured him.
Ezra sighed and shook his head. "You know you can he one hundred percent honest with me, Ivy," he reminded me. "I have been with you so far."
I sighed and stripped off the muddy shirt and tossed it in my hamper. "It's Nothing!" I assured him. No need to bring up my insecurities. "I better get a shower!"
I did not give him a chance to speak. I grabbed my bath kit and hurried from my room to the bathroom. It was odd. It was like having him in my room for the first time all over again. However, now, I knew what I was in for. I tried to get my mind to relax and forget everything was going on. I tried to forget that the Goddesses Coven was not always what it seemed and that the Vampires were still unsure about me. I wondered what it was going to take to get Dragos to trust me. I sighed and shut the water off, and warped myself in a towel. Racking a brush through my hair, I hurried and dressed myself. Before I could get back to my room, the door downstairs opened and I froze. I was sure I had locked it when we had come in. I listened and there were heavy footsteps walking around, the hardwood floors creaking under the pressure. Suddenly, Ezra was beside me and I felt my lungs fill with air, ready to scream, but Ezra's hand came down gently on my lips and he warned with his eyes.
"Who ever this is, they are not welcome here!"
I felt my face go blank. "What if its the killer?" I hissed at him.
Ezra pointed his finger for me to go back to my room, but I shook my head fiercely. There was no way I was going to hide away from whoever was breaking into my house and of it was someone from the Goddesses Coven the better. I was done hiding from them and I wanted to do that bonding spell sooner rather than later. I watched Ezra ease toward the stairs and look down. A shadow passed in the kitchen and he growled a warning at the intruder. I sighed and pushed Passed Ezra. "Ivy!" he hissed at me.
I shook my head, half way down the stairs. "This is my house, Ezra, no one is going to take that from me too!" I rounded the corner and saw the hooded figure standing in the middle of my kitchen. Before I could react, the hooded figure raised their hand and I was suddenly flying across the room and into the wooden kitchen table. The table collapsed under me, splintering into sharp pieces. With my head spinning, I pushed up from the ground and saw Ezra in the door way, his eyes fixed on the intruder. I watched as his eyes turned silver and he hissed at the hooded figure, bearing his teeth. The hooded figure raised their arm once more and that is when I saw it. The mark of my Coven.
"Stop!" I ordered. "As your High Priestess, I order you to stop!"
The hooded figure ignored me and pounced at Ezra who was ready for him. I watched as Ezra and the hooded figure struggled with eachother, his face becoming more and more confused. I racked my brain, suddenly all of the spells I had learned were no where to be found in my head. I was coming up blank. Fear washed through me as the hooded figure raised their arm and I saw the dagger. It was lined with a green oil of some find and I had to wonder if poison could kill a Vampire? "Ezra, watch out!" I warned him, but the hooded figure was already bringing their arm down. The blade swiped Ezra's arm and he hissed in pain, bearing his fangs to the intruder. With a firerce growl, Ezra reached out and gripped the intruder by the neck, ripping the hood down. It was a boy, a warlock, his face terrified. "Please!" he begged.
"Ezra, don't kill him!" I warned him.
Ezra grunted and slammed the boy into the wall. "Who are you?" he demanded.
The boy, no older than fourteen was shaking like a leaf. "D-Darius Fynn!" he stammered.
Ezra bared his teeth at him. "Who sent you?" he demanded.
Darius opened his mouth and stammered at us, almost as if he was unable to speak. I raised an eyebrow and shook my head. "Answer the question!" Ezra ordered.
There was movement behind me and I turned, the words leaving my lips before I could see who it really was. "Ventus!" I screamed and watched as Delphine went flying backwards into the front door, crashing through it, landing on the front porch.
"Delphine!" I cried and hurried after her, but there was another hooded figure before me now.
'We are not here for you, Priestess!" he said, his voice deep as he pushed passed me. I watched as he headed for Ezra who still had Darius by the collar. "Ezra, look out!"
Ezra dropped the boy and turned to the second hooded figure. Darius scrambled to his feet and vanished out the back door. The second hooded figure raised his hand and spoke one single word. "Dolor!"
I watched as Ezra fell to his knees, his groans of pain turning into screams of agony. "Stop!" I begged. "Please, just tell me what you want!"
The figure laughed and reached for Ezra's head, gripping his hair. "I have a message for you King!" he said and slid a dagger slowly across Ezra's cheek, watching the blood pearl at the tip of his blade. "Disown this Witch and leave her be! She is a High Priestess of the Coven and is to remain pure! Do you understand?"
I rolled my eyes. "So Tate sent you?" I demanded. "I already have an agreement with him. And it stands-"
The hooded figure turned to face me, his hand still around Ezra's neck. "He sent us to remind you of the terms. If we find out you have been feeding from a Vampire, you will have to stand trial and the Elders will not be kind if they know you are fucking a Vampire-"
I felt my face flush crimson. "Not that it is any of your business, but I am Pure!" I snapped at him. The hooded figure laughed at me. "For how long?" he asked me.
Before I could answer, Ezra's fist connected with the mans head and he dropped like a rock.
I looked up at Ezra when he turned to face me, his eyes stark white. Without a word he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.
Behind me, there was a soft groan and I turned, suddenly remembering Delphine. "Are you OK?" I asked her and helped her to her feet. "I'm so sorry-"
Delphine shook her head and wiped at her bleeding lip. "I'm OK," she assured me. "Nice spell work though! You are getting better at it."
I gave a small smile and turned back to Ezra who was now towering over our would be assassin.
"Who is he?" Delphine asked.
I shook my head. "He has to be someone from the Coven," I said. I looked back at Ezra, his face was dark, his eyes cold. With a sigh, I looked around the kitchen and back at my splintered front door. "Frank is going to kill me!"
Ezra and Delphine looked at eachother. "What is she doing here?" he asked me.
I turned to face him now. "I invuted her!" I said quickly, coming to her defense. "Where did the other one go?"
Ezra looked at the back door, that was wide open. He sighed. "I will track him," he said and headed for the door. I watched him go, wondering what the hell was wrong with him. He could have just called Amira or Marcus to track the kid. I hurried after him, catching him halfway across the yard. "Ezra!"
He stopped, not turning to face me. "Are you coming back?" I asked him.
He sighed. "I should stay away for a while," he said.
I scoffed at him. "You just got back!" I argued.
Ezra turned to face me now. "They were able to get inside!" he reminded me. "I tought you had this placed wared!" I raised an eyebrow at him. Was he really mad at me for being attacked?
"Ezra, I-"
He cut me off. "Yes," he said quickly and walked back to me. "Yes, I will be back. I can't say when, but I will be back sometime tonight. Can you do me a favor?"
I nodded. "Anything," I said as his arms wrapped around me.
"Ward the hell out of this place!" he ordered and then pecked my lips. I sighed, my lips sliding closed but then, suddenly there was nothing. I opened my eyes again, but Ezra had gone, vanished into the night. I sighed, wrapping my arms around me bear arms and shivered. I needed to get the bonding spell down. And fast. I needed to know who my enemies were and who were my friends. I already knew that Tate was one of them and clearly there was no winning Freya back on my side. I knew what I was doing could be considered treason, but did I really have another choice? If my taking down my own Coven would save the lives of the people I cared for, would that make me villain or hero? And, by standing by Ezra and the Vampires, what made me cut out to lead anyone if my actions were considered treason? I sighed, knowing I would never really have the answers until I acted on my plans. I would have to have a girls night with Delphine and Amira to find out. There was so much to do. And so so little time.