The Mark Of The Phoenix

Chapter 5 Aiden's Betrayal

I filed into my place just as the last bell of the final call tolled. Aiden paced the Slayer lineup, his hands clasped behind his back, his eyes searching each face. When he reached me, I felt his gaze linger. I knew he sensed something in the way I was breathing, but I forced my lungs into a steady, normal rhythm. I pushed the guilt down, burying it deep until it disappeared from my eyes.

Aiden marched to the front of the line. "All of you need to work on your pace," he huffed, pacing back and forth. "When the bell tolls, you should be in line by the second ring and in position by the third. Tonight was just a drill. Next time, it might be a real life-or-death situation."

He dismissed the men, but his eyes stayed on me. "Except for you, Prize."

As the other Slayers filed out, he stepped closer. "What’s going on, Sindel?"

I knew he meant business because he used my real name instead of my title. I shrugged, my mind racing for an excuse. I stammered out a vague explanation about "lady problems," leaning into the awkwardness of my monthly cycle. Aiden, like most of the men, looked instantly uncomfortable. He nodded quickly, not letting me finish, and waved me away.

Later, in my bunk, I lay awake behind my privacy curtain. I listened to the time-bells that rang every half hour, counting them until it was a quarter to three. I slipped into my hooded cloak and gripped my boots in my hand, tiptoeing past the snoring Slayers. I didn't notice the shadow following me—Aiden was a master of stealth, staying just far enough back that I never sensed his presence.

I slipped into the tunnels and headed for the iron door. Before I could even close it, a stone-cold arm wrapped around my waist. I jumped, ready to strike, but then I realized it was Dominic. The time-bells donged—not the loud military gongs, but the calm bells of the valley.

Right on time. Dominic grinned and kissed me quickly.

"I see you weren't caught either," I whispered, flirting back at my "monster."

"I missed you," he said, kissing the top of my head. We held each other, neither wanting to let go.

"I missed you too," I whispered into his chest. I could hear his steady, slow heartbeat. "Now, what are we going to do, my blood-drinking Romeo?"

"Run away with me, Sindel. Now. We’ll find a place where no one knows us—where Slayers and Vampires can't find us."

The idea was intoxicating. "I want to. I just have to get my mother’s journal and my father’s watch. They’re all I have left."

He sighed and nodded. "Go. One hour. Get what you need and meet me back here. We'll leave before the sun comes up."

I kissed him one last time and slipped back through the iron door. But as I turned to lock it, I froze. Aiden was standing right in front of me, his jaw clenched in a hard, jagged line.

I thought he was going to strike me, but he was faster. He grabbed my arm, twisted it behind my back, and snapped on a pair of shackles. The iron teeth of the cuffs pierced into my wrists, making it impossible to slip out. He shoved me forward, his dagger pressed against the small of my back.

"Dominic!" I managed to scream before Aiden growled in my ear, "Don't you dare."

He marched me through the torchlit tunnels straight to the King’s bedchambers. He handed me off to the royal guards at the door. "She’s the Prize Slayer," Aiden said, his voice like gravel. "I must see the King. She’s a traitor and she’s lethal. Don't let her escape."

A few moments later, the doors opened. Aiden pushed me into the dim room where the King stood waiting.

"Aiden tells me you have been consorting with vampires," the King said, his voice cold. "The penalty for such treason is death by beheading."

I didn't argue. There was no point. I accepted my sentence in silence.

"Put her in the strongest cell," the King commanded. "The execution will be at noon tomorrow."

Aiden bowed, his face a mask of duty. No emotion, no regret. He led the guards as they marched me to the dungeons.

The glare from Aiden’s eyes seared through my heart. Shoved inside the cell, I felt the weight of my betrayal. I had let down the only father figure I had. I hadn't intended to fall in love with the enemy—the spawn of the monsters who destroyed my life when I was eight—but here I was. Aiden didn't even look at me as he locked the door.

I sat on the dusty cot, watching a mouse crawl over my boots. I didn't even flinch. Eventually, the exhaustion and anxiety took over, and I drifted into a heavy sleep.

The Dream

I was walking toward a beautiful gate of ivory and crushed amethyst that glittered in the light. At the top were three jewels: a ruby triangle, an emerald rectangle, and a circular amethyst. Suddenly, a shadow fell over me—a dark shape diving from the sky.

I ducked, expecting a strike, but instead, a flash of light blinded me. Between me and the attacker stood a bird made of pure fire.

“Remember the lullaby, Sindel,” the bird's voice echoed in my mind. “You can break the curse. The prophecy will be fulfilled when the last verse is sung. Your mother’s journal holds the key to set me free. You are the one destined to break the chains between darkness and light. If you fail, the sun will die, and love will be drained from the world.”

The bird’s eyes burned into mine. “Wake up, Sindel. It is time to run.”

A tapping sound on the bars of my cell window pulled me awake. I climbed onto my cot and stood on my tiptoes. Above me, tucked into the shrubs that hid the dungeon vent, was Dominic.

"How did you find me?" I whispered, my heart fluttering.

"I heard you call my name in the tunnel. Vampires hear very well," he said softly. He slipped my satchel through the bars. It was all there: the journal, the watch, and even the small dagger I kept under my pillow. "I’m getting you out. Stand back."

He gripped the iron bars. "Be ready. This will be loud."

With a roar of strength, he pulled. The bars groaned and snapped, and the stone surrounding them crumbled. It was loud—the guards definitely heard—but Dominic reached in and scooped me up, pulling me through the gap. He tucked me into his arms and ran.

Behind us, the castle erupted. "Sound the Slayer trumpets! Beat the drums!"

The trumpets and drums together meant a full infantry hunt. We were outnumbered. Dominic cleared the gates in seconds, then set me down in a patch of moist grass so I could catch my breath.

"Which way?" Dominic asked, looking at the approaching torches and the sound of barking dogs.

I looked at the massive peak looming ahead of us. "Glass Mountain. No one would think to look there."

Dominic thought for a second. "I've heard the Gnomes live in that valley. Vampires don't eat them because they taste like rotten cheese, but they’re annoying. They love to play tricks."

I smiled. "I've heard the same. They'll tie your laces together just to watch you fall."

"Stay on the path," Dominic commanded. He sprinted toward Darkness Falls, then doubled back toward the Midlands, flattening the grass and leaving a false trail to confuse the dogs. By the time he returned, the war drums were closer, but he had successfully diverted the Slayers in one direction and the guards in another.

He scooped me up again. "I'm going to carry you to the top."

He ran at lightning speed until we reached the base of the Tahoe Glass Mountain. He used his belt and our two cloaks to create a makeshift tether, binding us together.

"Jump on my back," he said. "The tether is so you won't fall far if you lose your grip, and I can pull you up with one hand."

We began the ascent. Dominic was fast, but the higher we got, the colder the air became. Snow began to drift, stinging my skin like needles. I began to shiver violently.

"Almost there!" Dominic yelled over the howling wind.

My hands went numb. My strength gave out, and I lost my grip. I plummeted, but the tether caught me with a violent snap. Dominic nearly lost his footing, but he held on. He reached the summit, turned, and hauled me up over the ledge.

"I told you... I wouldn't let you fall," he gasped, breathless from the climb.

We lay on our backs as the sun began to rise. To my surprise, the top of the mountain wasn't frozen. It was a lush, green field of flowers that smelled like a thousand bottles of perfume. We crawled under the shade of a massive willow tree, shielding Dominic from the sun, and fell into a deep sleep on the soft grass.