Chapter 7
We're here. In Asia. Or more specifically, North Eastern India/Nepal. The map and notes Dad gave me to help us find the scroll said the best place to start would be in the Himalayas.
After hiking up the freaking mountain in vans shoes, we found the cavern the notes described. After dodging the various boobytraps that we triggered and making it to the far end of the cavern where I could collect the parchment slip we needed, things went a little haywire. This is what's going down currently:
I tuck the parchment that was hidden in here for us to collect as the next step to finding the Scroll into the back pocket of my torn cargo pants, where the rest of the notes and maps have been stuffed. As I'm turning to Damian, we both freeze as Emmaline's voice shatters the silence.
"Everett, wait!" Emmaline screams. An explosion rocks the cavern, shaking dust free from the ceiling. "Everett!" She shouts, her voice sounding distant.
Damian grabs my hand, yanking me close to his side. "Emmaline!" He pulls me forward. As the dust settles, we discover a wall separating us from Emmaline and Everett. The ceiling caved in right here from the force of the blast. The opening to the cave is on their side. Small streaks of light filter through the holes in the wall.
Damian lets go of my hand and starts pulling the rocks away, slowly working to create an opening. I step beside him to help. "Emmaline, talk to me! Are you guys okay?" I shout.
Her answering cry makes me freeze. "Everett's not breathing!"
Damian curses and moves faster, becoming a blur as he tears rocks away from the wall. I move to the sidelines, careful not to get hit.
A hole widens in the wall. Damian forces his way through just before more rocks and boulders crash down to fill the opening. I sink to the ground, staring at the wall. I'm alone. In the dark.
A sudden pain blooms in the left chamber of my ribcage, sharp and raging. I cry out, my hands instinctively applying pressure over my side in an attempt to ease the hurt that slowly seeps into the rest of my body. The pain broadens into something more excruciating, making every nerve ending scream.
I collapse and lay on my back in the dirt. Gasping for breath as the pain pulses throughout my body. Scream after agonized scream escapes my throat, drowning out the rest of the world.
Just as sudden as the pain appeared, it recedes into nothing. Breathing hard, I lay there for a moment to collect myself. What on Earth was that feeling? I sit up, hearing Damian's panicked shouts from the other side of the blockage with perfect clarity. Blinking, I expect to see darkness but gasp when I realize I can see just fine. Confused, I slowly push to my feet, bracing against the wall for support. An ice cream headache flows through me, leaving behind a warm, cozy feeling. The bond? The warm presence lingers in the back of my mind. Unbridled panic filters into my mind and I choke down a breath. It takes me a moment to recognize the feeling as not my own.
My birthday. Three days from three days ago. Today. I am 19.
"I'm okay!" I croak, wincing at the sandpaper feeling in my throat.
"What happened?" Damian demands, his voice cracking.
"I . . . it's my birthday." I say, pushing off the wall. "Calm down. I think it's your panic I'm feeling." The panic ebbs and I take a deep, cleansing breath.
"You went through the change." Emma says. It's not a question.
"You knew, Emma!" I accuse. "You knew it would hurt, didn't you!" I pause. "Is . . . Everett?"
Damian answers, "He's okay. Unconscious and he has a nasty knot on his temple but he'll be fine. Ready to test out your new vampire abilities?"
Hesitantly, I respond with, "Yes?"
"Don't answer with my question with a question, Avery. You clear the rocks away from that side and I'll work from this side." He pauses. "You can do it, Avery. I believe in you."
I nod and roll my shoulders back before starting in on the wall. Forcing myself to move faster, I feel the adrenaline pouring through my veins. Soon, a doorway sized gap is cleared.
Damian pulls me through and holds me against him. "You did it, beautiful." He laughs softly. "My little vampire, you're okay."
I offer him a faint smile before breaking out of his embrace to check on Emmaline. She sits beside Everett, watching his chest rise and fall. Her skin is coated in a fine layer of dust, just like the rest of us, except some of the grime has been cleaned from her cheeks by her tears. Emma's nose and eyes are tinged pink.
Damian lifts Everett over his shoulder like Shrek did to Fiona in the first movie. "C'mon guys."
Emmaline looks up at me. "His heart stopped." She bursts into tears.
I get down on my knees for Emmaline to climb onto my back for a piggyback ride. Standing, I slip my arms under her thighs to support her weight easily. Emmaline lays her head against my shoulder, her arms looped loosely around my neck as she cries.
Damian waits for us outside the mouth of the cavern, his arm across the back of Everett's legs to hold him in place. "You have everything?"
I nod, walking out beside him. The warm sun makes his eyes shine. I smile. "Race you down the mountain." Tightening my hold on Emma, I dash ahead. My new strength, sense of balance and unnatural speed helps me navigate the steep, uneven terrain of the mountain side.
"Challenge accepted!" He whoops, adjusting his hold on Everett before chasing after me. Emmaline's cries silence and she lifts her head into the wind, sighing.
We made it out of the cavern alive, all of us. We survived the first step together and collected the clue we needed to move on.
The best part of it all is now, I am who I was meant to be: A vampire.
