Ian didn’t get a chance to finish his sentence. The wind gained speed, turning into a wild vortex that encased us. Snow and debris flew inches away from my face. Out of instinct, my hands went up to block my head.

“What’s going on?” Ian snarled.

“I don’t know,” I yelled to be heard over the roaring wind. I didn’t think the weather change was part of the ambush plan.

Squinting, I could tell the park was disappearing. It washed away like it was nothing more than a glamour. Ian grabbed ahold of me, his arm going around my stomach as he held me tight to his chest.

“Stop or I’ll rip your throat out!” he ordered.

“I’m not doing it,” I shouted.

The vortex slowed, making the new scenery more visible. Trees replaced the open space, my eyes roamed right and then left. We were transported into the middle of a forest I didn’t recognize as part of Flora. When the air dissipated and Ian and I were free, he didn’t loosen his grasp on me. His body shifted from side to side as he guarded himself against an unseen threat. I stumbled over my feet as he moved with me in his arms. I expected the cavalry to jump out of the tree line and attack, maybe this was a part of the plan, but when Holly appeared before us, a wicked smile curling her lips, I knew it wasn’t that simple.

“Hello, Ian,” she said with vehemence.

Confused, I stared at her. She addressed Ian like she knew him—well.

“This is your doing then?” Ian snorted.

“What’s going on?” I questioned.

Ian let go of my waist, but kept a hold of my arm. He and Holly stared at each other, energy building in the air until the electricity sparked against my skin. The hairs on my arms stood on end.

“Did you think I’d just let you throw me away like a piece of trash?” Holly said in a calculating, calm tone. Whatever was going on, her pride was evident in her smile and the gleam of her eye.

“Your dear High Priestess was the one who was picked for my plan. When she told me of you, however, I knew she wouldn’t make the cut. Imagine my surprise that a spirit walker lived, unaware of her power. As you may know, spirit walkers are a coveted commodity. How you managed to stay free all these years, I’ll never know,” Ian spoke to me, but kept his gaze on Holly.

“What the hell are you talking about?” I asked Ian. “You were scheming with Ian this entire time?” I directed the question at Holly. All of her actions, the war, her thinly veiled hatred of me, the reaction to my bond with Ian, it all made sense now. Kye told me she’d loved one man, was that man Ian Despereaux?

“Don’t think so highly of your spirit walker,” Holly laughed. “Did you know there was an army of witches and vampires in the forest ready to kill you? Gwen set the whole thing up, yet you pick her over me?”

I gaped at Holly. “Are you kidding me?”

“She’d be stupid not to have backup,” Ian interjected. “I knew they were there, but you were a surprise. I presume you cloaked yourself?”

“Couldn’t have you anticipating my plan,” Holly said, almost flirtatiously.

“Hold the fuck up!” I threw my arms in the air. Ian released his grip on me, and I walked a few feet between the two of them. “Will someone please tell me what in the hell is going on? And don’t speak cryptically about ’the plan‘.” I bent my fingers and mimicked air quotes.

“What do you see in her? She’s a dimwitted twit,” Holly added.

“Hmm,” Ian agreed. “But she’s nice to look at, and she tastes marvelous.”

I shot Ian a disgusted look.

“The plan is this, little witch.” Ian ignored my murderous glare. “I told you how I became a vampire, and I’ve been searching for revenge ever since. As a spirit walker you are connected to this reality and the dimension of the dead. As you know, vampires were created from demons, and since demons live within the realm of the dead, you are thereby connected to vampires—at least enough for my plan to work. You will be the first of its kind, little witch, a mixture of vampirism, witch, and spirit walker, a hybrid.” Ian looked almost giddy at the prospect of his ridiculous idea.

I watched him for a few minutes, processing everything he’d said before I started laughing. “You’ve had over eight hundred years to plan your revenge, and that’s what you came up with? Everyone knows witches can’t absorb the vampire virus, and even if they could, how would that help you extract your revenge?” I was smiling ear to ear pointing out the flaws in his idea.

Ian’s hand wrapped around my throat before I even realized he moved. My smile fell off my lips as I coughed and gasped to catch oxygen.

“Holly is right. You’re a daft little bitch.”

I clawed at Ian’s hands and kicked against air as he lifted me off of the ground. I was sure if he squeezed any harder my larynx would be crushed. Spots dotted my vision as darkness crept along the edges. Just when I was sure I’d pass out, he dropped me. I crumpled to the ground, my throat burning and already swollen.

“Silly man doesn’t like to be laughed at,” Holly advised. Her tone was more amused than concerned.

“Holly thought the same thing, that witches couldn’t be turned into a vampire hybrid,” Ian picked up his story like he didn’t just lose his cool and almost kill me. “It was her plan to unleash the secret of the witches blood in hopes that once vampires obtained magic, we’d be connected enough to transfer the virus.” Ian clasped his hands behind his back and paced the area in front of me. I kept my head down but watched his shoes move back and forth. I looked in Holly’s direction, astounded to hear she was the one who’d shared the secret of the witches’ blood. From what I’d heard around Moon, it took a very dark spell to break the protection the Goddess set in motion to protect us from the vampires. How she found a way around that was beyond me.

“It didn’t work, of course,” Ian continued. “It almost killed your High Priestess. Her body rejected my blood, but it wasn’t all a waste. A new drug was uncovered. You have no idea how boring it gets to drink the same thing over and over. Brew, I came up with the name, is more powerful than I ever imagined, and magic is exhilarating. I feel alive with it coursing through my body.”

“It will work. I just need to take small doses at a time, build up a tolerance,” Holly interjected, stepping forward. Her auburn hair framed her alabaster face. Wide green eyes almost pleaded for Ian to agree with her. If I had any doubts before, I didn’t now. Holly was in love with him.

“How long have you been involved with Ian?” I asked, my voice raspy.

“Ten years,” Holly answered, her voice distant as she thought about some reserved memory. “We loved each other, at least until the plan ruined it. Ian became obsessed with the idea of creating a hybrid.”

Ian must have discarded Holly when he figured out she wasn’t able to change, and Holly struck back by gathering her followers and declaring a war. It was nothing more than a lover’s quarrel. They made the perfect couple; Holly was just as heartless as Ian.

“The council will kill you for your betrayal,” I growled. Multiple witches and warlocks had already been killed. Those lives were on Holly’s hands. She was responsible for everything, the witches’ deaths and the addiction.

“They’ll never find out because you, my dear, will be dead.”

“You aren’t going to touch her,” Ian warned and stepped in front of me.

“I’ll kill you too if I have to,” Holly said.

They stood ten feet apart, both ready for the other to make the first move. Holly’s hands blazed a brilliant blue as she geared up to strike Ian.

“Wait,” I said as I picked myself up from the ground. Holly and Ian glanced at me. “What part did Aiden play in this plan? Or were you lying?” I asked Ian.

Holly snorted and motioned with her head to a tree a few feet away. “Why don’t you ask him yourself?”

My eyes followed the movement. Aiden was pressed against the base of a tree, held by invisible restraints. Holly twirled her hand in a circular gesture and Aiden gasped.

“Tell her,” Holly snarled.

“Gwen, this isn’t how I wanted you to find out,” Aiden replied, his words like a hammer to the fragile hope I still held onto. Piece by piece I saw the walls of our relationship come tumbling down. No longer was I looking at the man I loved, but a stranger. My heart couldn’t fathom his confirmation that Ian hadn’t been lying.

“You were a part of this the entire time?” I breathed, almost unable to form the words on my quivering lips.

“Ian came to me when I was helping with the brew case and told me about his plan. I was against it at first, but then I thought about the possibilities. You and I could be together forever, my Gwen. If you could turn vampire, we’d never have to say goodbye,” Aiden said, his eyes begging me to understand.

“I’m a witch, we live for at least three-hundred years,” I said incredulously.

“Oh please,” Holly laughed. “Quit lying to the poor girl. Ian isn’t the only one with the taste of revenge in his heart. Isn’t it true the La’rue’s did some damage to you as well? If I’m not mistaken, they turned you and killed your family? Sounds like a reason for wanting a hybrid if you ask me.”

My eyes welled with tears. My heart slammed against my chest. I stared motionless at Aiden. My entire body felt broken at the revelation.

“So your plan was to fuck me, gain my trust and talk me into becoming a hybrid?” My voice grew with each word, turning into a scream that seared my swollen throat. I wanted to rip his head off, tear out his heart and stomp on it. I wanted to destroy him.

“Vampires, they’re leeches that’ll drain everything out of you,” Holly remarked.

“Shut up!” I roared.

“Gwen, it wasn’t like that. I was still just considering the idea. I’d never allow harm to come to you. You must know that.”