Caught

"At last," the woman said. "You've found your way home, Clara."

"Who are you? " Clara ordered, backing away.

"I'm Isolde. I've been waiting for you." The woman's golden eyes gleamed in the lighting. "And we don't have much time."

"Where's Lucien? " Clara asked, still holding the book like a weapon.

Isolde's smile faded. "Erynn has him. She'll take his blood by midnight if we don't stop her."

"Why should I believe you? " Clara asked.

Isolde held out her hand, showing a crescent-shaped birthmark identical to Clara's.

"Because we share the same blood," Isolde said. "I'm not just a witch, Clara. I'm your grandfather. And I know how to break the curse that's killed you for four hundred years."

Before Clara could answer, the castle shook violently. Books tumbled from the shelves.

"She's starting the ritual," Isolde said quickly. "We need to go now, or Lucien dies—and this time, he won't come back."

Clara paused, still gripping the journal. "Wait. How did you find me here? "

Isolde's eyes darkened. "I've always known where this room is. I've protected it for ages."

The castle shook again, harder this time. Dust rained from the ceiling.

"We don't have time for questions," Isolde said, reaching for Clara's arm.

Just then, the secret door burst open again. Lucien stumbled through, his clothes torn and bloody. His silver eyes widened when he saw Isolde.

"You," he hissed. "Get away from her! "

Isolde spun around. "Lucien? How did you escape Erynn? "

Clara ran to Lucien's side. "You're hurt! "

He leaned against the doorframe, breathing hard. "I've had worse." His eyes never left Isolde. "Don't trust her, Clara. She's not what she seems."

Isolde's golden eyes flashed with anger. "You fool! I'm trying to save you both! "

"Like you saved us before? " Lucien spat. "By making sure Clara died in every lifetime? "

Clara looked between them, confused. "What is he talking about? "

Isolde's face stiffened. "We don't have time for this. Erynn is—"

"Erynn isn't the one who started the practice," Lucien cut in. "It was Dominic. He's living, and he's working with Isolde."

Clara gasped. "Who's Dominic? "

"My sire," Lucien said sadly. "The vampire who made me. He's supposed to be dead."

Isolde's calm mask cracked. "How did you know? "

"I followed you," Lucien said. "I saw you meeting with him in the forest. I heard everything."

The castle shook again, more violently this time. A large crack split the roof.

"What's happening? " Clara cried.

"The ritual has begun," Lucien said. "They're trying to open the gates between worlds."

Clara's head spun with questions. "I don't understand. The papers said—"

"The records don't tell the whole truth," Lucien said, his eyes still fixed on Isolde. "Show her, witch. Show her who you really are."

Isolde's golden eyes burned with anger. Then she smiled—a cold, calculating smile that made Clara step back.

"Very well," Isolde said. She raised her hands, and her appearance rippled like water. Her white hair darkened to black streaked with silver. Her golden eyes shifted, changing colors quickly before settling on a deep, unnatural purple.

"My name is Isolde Ravencroft," she said. "I am Lucien's sister."

Clara's knees nearly buckled. "His sister? But the journals—"

"I wrote those diaries," Isolde said. "Not you. I copied your handwriting exactly, didn't I? Over centuries, I planted false memories, false hints."

"Why? " Clara whispered.

"Because I need your blood and Lucien's to finish the ritual," Isolde said simply. "You're not just any witch, Clara. You're the last descendant of the group that cursed us. Your blood is the key."

Clara's locket suddenly burned hot against her skin. She pulled it out, and it glowed brighter than before, glowing with blue fire.

"The locket knows the truth," Lucien said. "It was my mother's. I gave it to you in your first life—not to control you, but to protect you."

Clara held the locket tight. "My first life? "

"We were to be married," Lucien said softly. "Before Isolde and Dominic cursed me to become a vampire. Before they killed you."

Isolde laughed. "Such a lovely story. Pity it's not quite true."

She snapped her fingers, and the air behind her shimmered. A tall man with dark hair and ever-changing eyes stepped through what looked like a tear in reality.

"Dominic," Lucien growled.

The man smiled, showing teeth. "Hello, old friend. It's been ages."

Dominic held up an old book bound in dark leather. "We have everything we need now. The girl has awakened her power by finding the library."

Clara backed away until she hit the bookshelf. "What do you want with me? "

"Not just you," Dominic said. "Both of you. The vampire who yearns to be human, and the human with vampire blood who wakes as a witch. Perfect opposites who share a soul bond."

"We don't have time for this," Isolde hissed. "The alignment is beginning."

Dominic nodded. "You're right." He raised his hand, and Clara suddenly couldn't move. She tried to scream, but no sound came out.

Lucien lunged at Dominic, but Isolde flicked her hand, and he was slammed against the wall, pinned there by invisible force.

"I truly am sorry, brother," Isolde said. "But this is bigger than all of us."

She turned to Clara, whose body was frozen but whose eyes burned with fear and rage.

"Don't worry," Isolde said, touching Clara's face. "You won't die—not permanently, anyway. You'll be reborn again, as you always are. But this time, the worlds will be different."

The castle shook so hard that books flew from the shelves. The crack in the roof widened, and moonlight streamed in—three moons, red, silver, and blue, perfectly aligned.

"It's time," Dominic said. He began chanting in a tongue Clara didn't understand.

Isolde joined him, their voices blending into an eerie melody.

Clara fought against the spell holding her, but couldn't move. She could only watch as Dominic approached Lucien with a silver knife.

"Your blood first," Dominic said. "The blood of a vampire who remembers being human."

Just as he raised the knife to Lucien's throat, a blinding flash of red light filled the room. Everyone froze.

In the doorway stood Erynn, her red hair floating around her like flames, her eyes black as night.

"You started without me," she said, her voice booming strangely. "How rude."

Clara felt the magic holding her weaken as Dominic turned to face Erynn.

"You're too late," he growled.

Erynn smiled, showing teeth that were suddenly too sharp to be human. "No," she said. "I'm right on time."

She raised her hands, and the walls of the library began to melt away, showing not stone but stars—endless stars stretching in all directions.

"What have you done? " Isolde screamed.

"I've brought all three worlds together," Erynn said. "Human, vampire, and witch. Just as the prophecy promised."

She turned to Clara, her black eyes warming. "Hello, old friend. It's been a long time."

And as Clara stared into those black eyes, a flood of memories hit her—not from the past, but from the future.