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“Well, that sounds like the one,” he said, and pulled the book from the shelf. It was large and heavy, and its cover was intricately decorated with jewels. Sebastian carried it to one of the many small tables dotting the library space and gently set it down, afraid to damage it.

He opened the cover and found a beautiful illustration just inside, the colors just as bright as the day it was painted. It depicted the original Vlad in all his glory, surrounded by light. “Propaganda existed even that many years ago, I see,” he chuckled and gently turned the vellum pages.

Each magic type had an illustrated header followed by flowing script describing its details. Despite the anxious feeling in his stomach urging him to hurry, Sebastian couldn’t help scanning each page and admiring the artistry. Thankfully his magic was near thebeginningof the alphabet, and he soon found the correct page.

Excitement flooded his veins, making his skin feel prickly as he read the words. However, it didn’t last long. “This is…the same as Victor’s book…” he muttered. In fact, it was nearly word-for-word what Victor’s book had to say on the subject. “No, this can’t be all!”

He turned the page and, to his relief, therewasmore. But rather than giving him the escape he hoped for, the contents only made his stomach sink.

Should the artist continue to paint the same subject without destroying previous works by fire, each painting will tear away another portion of the soul until no pieces remain. The pieces will form a mirror of the subject, good for evil and evil for good. The mirror will strive to reunite the two sides of the soul, even to the detriment of their physical body.

In addition, each soul fragment taken will shorten the life cycle of each reincarnation. As of yet, no artist has entirely removed a soul to where the reincarnation ceases. However, as the fragmented soul is trapped on the mortal plane, current theory is that the spirit would remain in limbo for eternity unless every painting of them is properly destroyed.

Sebastian sat back heavily in the chair, despair consuming him. Futile. The entire trip had been futile, just like everything else he had done in his life. “I found it, Remus,” he called out, defeated, and his voice echoed in the space. His brother appeared at his side and Sebastian turned it around so Remus could read.

He did so silently with anger creasing his face more and more deeply as he learned the truth. “You’ve damned her to Hell, Sebastian,” he whispered, the anger more apparent than if he had shouted. “You claim you love her, but you’ve damned her to Hell.”

There wasn’t even anything to say in response. Remus was right. And the only way to redeem her soul was to force her body to feel the burning pain of the damned. “I don’t know if I can do it, Remus. I burned one painting out of fear, and even while unconscious she writhed in pain. I don’t know if I can put her through that much torment, to drive that knife into her over and over again. I can handle the pain, but can she? She’s so fragile.”

“Well, we’ll just have to add that the burning causes pain for the artistandthe subject to the update in Victor’s book,” Remus answered, his voice still shaking from the tide of unexpressed anger boiling beneath the surface. He was carefully transcribing the additional information from the large book to a pocket-sized notebook.

Once he had finished, Remus closed the book and gestured to Sebastian. “Best put that away so we can get out of here. We don’t know if this place has any enchantments that would alert Vlad that we’ve been here. Best to be long gone if it does, and to leave the place as we found it.” He shoved the notebook in his pocket and looked longingly at the rows of books.

“Good point,” Sebastian admitted, and carefully put the book back exactly where he’d found it. He watched Remus for a moment and sighed. “I wish we could stay and read them all, too. But right now, the womanwelove is in danger. Maybe in the future we can find a way to make this place accessible to everyone, regardless of coven.”

Remus took a deep breath, nodded, and together the two of them left the library. The door at the end of the tunnel opened the same as the way in, and this time Sebastian very carefully navigated the stairs. Once the two emerged under the night sky, Remus flicked off his flashlight and turned his back to his brother.

“Well, now you have your answer. My job was to keep you from getting us all killed, and I’ve done that. So what you do next is entirely your problem. I’m going home.” Without a further word, Remus disappeared at full vampiric speed into the darkness, leaving Sebastian alone in the crumbling ruins of his ancestral home.

The weight of his failure and what he had to do next pulled Sebastian to his knees. He clutched his stomach with both arms and curled up so tightly that his forehead nearly touched the ground. “Forgive me,” he murmured as he rocked back and forth, his emotions overwhelming in scope. “My only Muse, forgive me…”

CHAPTER31

Venice, Italy. 13 June, 2007

Isabel prodded at her bowl of pasta, her face drawn downward and her shoulders slumped. Josephine flitted around the kitchen, cleaning up the dinner dishes and setting up to make a new batch of medicinal soap. Neither woman spoke as they went about their activities, each lost in their thoughts.

It was Isabel who broke the silence first. “It has been two days, Josie. Why haven’t we heard from him? What if he reallydidgo to Vlad, and we’re just waiting for the fallout to reach us?” She set down her fork and pushed her plate away with just two bites missing. “What if Vlad puts him to death and I never get to see him again, and he dies not knowing I remember everything?”

Josephine began to giggle and tossed the rag she was using to wipe the counter into the sink. “You sound just like him, Aurora. Every life cycle it’s ‘What if she doesn’t come back?’ ‘What if I can’t find her?’ ‘What if she never remembers me?’ It gets exhausting.”

“Then it’s a good thing you love me, too,” Isabel replied, fidgeting with the fork while resting heavily on her elbow. “But shouldn’t we be worried that Remus isn’t back yet, either?”

“They went all the way to Romania! I don’t think it’s time to worry yet. Even if Remus flew there, found Sebastian immediately, and then flew right back, we’d still be cutting it close expecting him to return by now. Why don’t you go with me to the shop today? Maybe being around humans for a little while will get your mind off all this vampire drama.”

She didn’t particularly resonate with the idea, but Isabel knew that cooping herself up in Josephine’s room with nothing to do would only make her miserable. At least some sunshine should do her some good. “Okay, I guess I can go with you. Not like I have any other plans today.” Isabel dumped her pasta in the trash and rinsed the bowl, ignoring the look of disappointment from Josephine that her cooking had gone to waste.

“Good. I just need to pour this soap into the molds. Why don’t you do the second bowl so we can get up top faster? All you have to do is pour it in there.” She pointed to a silicone mold, a recent acquisition which had vastly improved Josephine’s soap making efforts. “Just try not to spill too much. The ingredients for this particular recipe were really expensive.”

Isabel nodded and picked up the bowl of melted soap, turned it so the small spout faced downward, and began to pour. The mixture smelled of lavender and lemongrass, and something earthy. “What does this soap do, anyway?”

“It’s for skin rashes. Nothing too fancy, and it doesn’t even need venom.” Josephine scraped the last of the soap out of her bowl and tapped the mold to release any bubbles. Once both molds were full and set aside to cool, the women headed for Josephine’s room to change.

They didn’t make it there, however. A vampire Isabel didn’t recognize rushed up to the pair and gestured vaguely in the direction of Victor’s quarters. “Victor wants the girl brought to the throne room. His sons have returned,” he announced, and without question Josephine grabbed Isabel’s arm.

“Let’s go!” Josephine exclaimed, and Isabel had no argument. The two rushed through the winding passageways as Isabel did her best to keep her emotions in check. Excitement to tell Sebastian she got her memories back. Anger that he’d been keeping her in the dark. Relief that he made it back safely. Each one crashed in like a new wave of the rising tide, growing until she stopped outside the throne room.

She paused for a moment to calm her breathing and her heart, knowing that every vampire in the keep could probably hear it pounding. The moment the door opened she rushed inside, eyes scanning the space for the familiar form of her husband.