Aaron had a point. Since LIGHTS had taken out so many of the Noncompliant Vampires, it had left very little for the Independent Hunters and Guardians to do. Since technically they didn’t answer to her or Aaron, it was fine that he’d taken it upon himself to get in touch with them. She was just surprised and wasn’t sure how she felt about them risking their safety to protect her. But then, he was right; there was very little chance of Holland actually moving in on Cadence and Cassidy during the Eidolon Festival.
“You don’t look like you feel any better,” he mentioned.
“I do.” She knew she wasn’t very good at lying to him. “I just have a bad feeling.”
“It’s the wedding,” he said again, and she nodded, knowing in her heart that wasn’t it. “It’s not going to be easy to stand up there in front of all of those people and pledge yourself to me.” He made a face, and she giggled, shaking her head at his ridiculousness. “Cadence, it’ll be fine. Try not to worry. Before you know it, we’ll all be back on this plane, headed to Iowa.”
“Okay,” she said, but it wasn’t okay, and she knew, no matter how much he reassured her, something was wrong. She just couldn’t put her finger on what it was....
The sun was beginning to set as Hamish brought his BMW to a stop near the site where the festival would be held. Already, hired hands were erecting tents, makeshift stages, even a firepit. Most of them were human and had no idea what they were setting up for, though many of them would come back later to check it out at the urging of some of their Vampire counterparts. These things tended to be a little boring if there wasn’t a bit of wildlife around to keep things interesting. Of course, the Vampires were well aware of the rules—no sucking blood from anyone who didn’t consent, certainly no turning anyone unless the human knew what they were getting themselves into, and there would be absolutely no claiming of lives or else the Guardians would have to move in, and then there would be consequences. Rarely did anything like that ever happen, though if it hadn’t occurred at the last Eidolon Festival, then the task at hand wouldn’t be necessary now, and Cadence Findley would be off in the Midwest somewhere finishing up her schooling.
He’d already turned and trained the six individuals who would play crucial roles in tonight’s primary objective, and all of them understood exactly when and where to act. None of them knew why this was happening or what their counterparts were up to. They didn’t even know enough about the circumstances to know what to ask. It was all smoke and mirrors at the end of the day. Mirrors—he’d provided those to the two Vampires who’d be responsible for setting things into motion. While the book had said any reflective surface would do, Hamish wasn’t taking any chances. At the time of the book’s writing, the present-day mirror hadn’t even been invented. So each Vampire had been given an antique hand mirror dating back to the early 1800s as well as a reflective sheet of obsidian. He’d also given them buckets and told them to fill them with water. Between the three surfaces, he was hopeful at least one would be able to collect enough moonlight to serve its purpose once the ancient words were recited.
The two who would perform the chant had gone over it several times with him to ensure they had the pronunciations correct, and he’d told them to make sure they knew exactly what to say and when to say it. All of this had to go off at exactly the right moment, or else he would fail, and that wasn’t an option. The phrase was short and easy to remember, but if they said even one syllable wrong, one phonetic utterance, all could be ruined. The other two he’d brought with him would simply serve as lures, not difficult at all, especially since it was his understanding there would be help with that from abroad.
There was the possibility that the Guardians wouldn’t be where he’d expected them to be. If the three or four he was targeting where not together at the precise right moment, he wouldn’t be able to get them all. Of course, it was abundantly clear to him that Aaron was his primary objective, but after that, he wasn’t certain if he should take out that buffoon Elliott or the doctor. While it made logical sense to target the Healer, he was of the understanding that Cadence would react more defensively to losing her idiot friend. If Hamish could get all three and the boy, life would be perfect. Anyone else who happened to tumble into his trap would be the proverbial icing on his cake.
It all seemed nearly impossible when he looked out across what would soon be a shifting, moving organism, pulsating and blazing with life and after-life. To think that the moon could have such power, that he could demand that power, harness it, and use it to wreak such devastation, seemed impossible. But he knew the legends, the words recorded in the book, were true, so he would have faith in the process and hope that those he’d chosen to work toward the common goal he’d set out to fulfill would come through.
“Now, if the girls arrive here afterward, that will make it even better,” he muttered under his breath, watching a large tent launch into the sky. He had no hope of actually taking out the Findley girls in the same night. In fact, it was such a long shot, it had never even been mentioned to him by his contact. But... he could dream, couldn’t he? He could wish for many things—and if he was able to pull even the first part of this scheme off, he knew his power would rival that of the queen herself. Perhaps her magic was stronger; she had been to hell and back after all, but she would be nothing compared to his conniving intelligence. Hamish placed a hand over his chin to stifle the chuckle that wanted to escape. It really seemed oh too easy. He decided to walk away before he lingered too long and gave himself away to anyone who might be feeling around in the minds of the Vampires working here. He’d be back soon enough. He may not have anything more to do now that the wheels were set in motion, but that didn’t mean he wanted to miss the train wreck.
