Zone Zero: Vengeance (Book 3 of 3)

Chapter 8

Cheering vampires converge shoulder to shoulder all chanting the same thing. Kill him!

I feel sick to my stomach as everyone screams their wish to see Alex kill his own brother.

I am standing toward the back of the crowd, unable to will my feet to move closer. I know I should make my way to Alex for support but I can't seem to make my feet move.

I can see from here that there is a platform in the centre of the courtyard being illuminated solely by moonlight. Bloodthirsty vampires are surrounding every inch of space left available in the open courtyard, forcing others to litter the stairways and balconies as well.

I begin to slowly weave my way through the crowd as Luther and Cail take to the stage. Luther pushes Cail to his knees and stands next to him with a calloused hand weighing his left shoulder down.

Alex then appears on the stage and begins searching the crowd. Instantly I know he is looking for me and I begin to quicken my pace until I am in his view. He lets out a visible sigh of relief as I continue to close the gap between us, the cries of vengeance still thick in the air.

Imani soon appears on stage, along with Gable, and she passes Alex a large two-handed sword. The blade glistens in the moonlight and I can tell that it is made of silver. The handle has been thoroughly wrapped and covered to protect the user from touching the deadly metal.

Alex hangs his head slightly before reaching for the blade, grasping the handle tightly.

I want to stay strong and watch but a faint plead toward the back of the crowd catches my ear, forcing me to locate it.

Again the plead from someone sounds, begging to be let through the crowd and to stop this madness.

My vampire ears go into overdrive as I search for the source of begging. Someone here doesn't want Cail to die.

"Stop! Please let me through!" The voice is much closer now and definitely familiar.

I begin to move toward it as I catch Alex's eye. He must have heard it too.

"Stop! Do not kill him!" The figure finally reaches the front of the crowd and bursts onto the stage.

Neither Alex or I are surprised to find that it is Sabina that is objecting to Cail's death.

As soon as she is on the stage she stands directly between Cail and Alex to protect Cail in his weakened state. Both Gable and Imani make a move to remove Sabina but Alex waves them off. They immediately stand down but stay on high alert.

"I won't let you kill him." Sabina's voice is filled with authority as she speaks down to Alex. I choose this moment to step onto the stage and stand behind the man I love.

Alex tenses at Sabina's words but softens when I place a hand to his back. Just having me near him seems to calm him in a way I don't fully understand.

"You can't kill your own brother. I won't let you." Sabina states as though it were news to everyone here. Surprisingly, the death chants have subsided and an eerie silence now befalls the crowd.

"Step aside Sabina," Alex speaks lowly and disregards any authority that she thinks she has here.

"No!"

Alex raises an eyebrow at her defiance and speaks again.

"Step aside."

"I won't let you kill him." Her voice begins to waver but doesn't break.

"Sabina..." Alex begins but she cuts him off.

"No! As your maker, I command you to..."

"Stop." A small whisper breaks Sabina's sentence in half.

She begins to turn toward the voice as it comes from a defeated Cail. He looks up at her from his kneeling position and speaks once more, this time louder.

"Enough Sabina. Stop this madness."

"I won't let them kill you. You are too special to die." She drops to her knees as she speaks so that she can be eye level.

"Special? You always told me how special I was but it never stopped you from leaving me. Leaving us." Cail glances at Alex but doesn't let his gaze linger. "If I was so special then you would have stuck around long enough to nurture me. Not let me become a monster."

A trail of tears begins to flow freely down Sabina's cheeks. I myself have to bite back against a tear that threatens to be seen.

"I don't want you to die." She mutters lowly.

"And I didn't want to live but you forced me to. I should have died all those years ago. You should have let me die. I didn't want this. I didn't want any of this." The emotion is thick in Cail's voice and I know that he means every word. He told me so himself.

"I always checked in on you. I checked in on all of my children." Sabina's voice is choking on the words she speaks. It is a heartbreaking sound to hear.

"It wasn't enough. Your absence forced me to become this. I lost myself the day you made me a vampire. I can never forgive you for that." Cail's eyes flicker to mine before he continues. "I just hope that my own protege doesn't harbour the same ill feelings that I do for you."

I swallow down the lump in my throat and look away to hide the tears in my own eyes.

Suddenly Sabina stands and turns to me with desperation on her face.

"You can't let them kill your maker! Do something! Do something you stupid girl!" Sabina screams as she reaches for me, planting her fingers into my shoulders.

Alex is quick to push her back and Imani soon steps in to hold her at bay.

"Please Aodhan. Don't kill him." Sabina begs as her face continues to gleam with tears.

Alex looks past his maker and to his brother as he remains kneeling. Cail gives him a soft nod and then hangs his head low. He is ready to receive his punishment.

With a quick glance my way, Alex steps towards Cail and raises the sword above his head with both hands. He tightens his grip on the handle and then swiftly brings the blade slicing down through Cail's neck.

Cail's head separates from his body instantly causing a roar of cheers to erupt throughout the crowd. Everyone who came to see their share of death received it tenfold.

Sabina, still being held by Imani, locks eyes with me. Her golden irises boring into me as though it were the only thing she could do.

I step closer towards her and place my hands on each side of her face before kissing her forehead softly.

"It was what he wanted. We all needed to let him go."

My words are all it takes for her to crumble in place and fall to her knees. Her head in her hands as the loud sobs echo from her being.

I look down at her but choose not to console her any further. Instead, I walk away from the courtyard completely and into my own solace.

I need to be alone and far away from here.

A/N - Just a quick sorry to anyone that was starting to ship Cail and Evie. 😓

Xoxo