I learned that to be the true and only leader of the vampires in Hades, I had to take Drakkus down. As in, kill him. Of course, someone else could do it, but to be seen as a strong leader, it was ideal that I did it. Eddios said that it would be difficult for me because I was only eighteen and Drakkus was an old vampire. Essentially, I did not stand a chance.

At that lovely revelation, the rest of the vampires were brought into the conversation. I was told their names, but it would take time for me to learn it. I expected the Nephilim boy to tell me learning their names was pointless and not to bother. He didn't. All that he did was stand in the corner of the room like a wooden puppet. Lifeless.

The only way that I was going to get through this, defeat Drakkus and survive was with their help. I was grateful to have so many people willing to assist a complete stranger.

There was something that had been hinted at, but I think that Eddios was reluctant to discuss it when no one knew how to teach me. My witch abilities.

"The Nephilim boy said that my father is a powerful witch."

"That may be so, but that doesn't make this situation any easier."

"I need to learn how to control these powers. Look at what I did. It was over before I knew what was going on. I can't ignore what is inside me."

"She's right, Eddios. If Evelyn doesn't learn how to use her powers, then we're all at risk."

"And who would you have teach her, Jess? The witches have not been seen in decades. Clearly, there's at least one out there, but where is he? Even if we went to the town where she lived, it's not an indication that we would find him. Her mother frequently moved to hide. Was it from him or the vampires? Maybe there's a good reason that Evelyn's birthday was off."

Iralya stepped in, placing a firm hand on her partner's shoulder to settle his growing anger.

"I think that we can all agree that we need to think about this logically and, perhaps, in stages. The first recommendation that I have is that security is placed around this house and those who dwell in it. We know that Drakkus will stop at nothing to get what he wants, and he may resort to abducting Bradley to make Evelyn cave to his demands."

There was a unanimous agreement, and Jess wrote it down on her notepad.

"An education in becoming a strong leader and teaching Brad how to be her second in charge as the second point. Evelyn needs to complete her schooling. She needs time to be young. The burden of this leadership shall be eased as much as we can manage. At least until the threat is averted."

"A battle plan must be created," Eddios said abruptly. "All of this is pointless if we cannot defeat Drakkus. We'll all be dead. Is there any literature about witches that we can read to help Evelyn?"

Jess looked up from her book, shrugging at her brother.

"There may be something in the library. I can check when we return."

I realized that I'd never been to Kannon's place. He'd been here several times, in and out, as if he lived here yet I'd not stepped foot into his house.

After that, I tuned out. I was sick of hearing about battles, plans, and how things were going down the drain. Act now before it's too late.

"The hour grows late," Iralya said as she stood. "Kannon has homework, and I'm sure Evelyn does as well. We are yet to feed. Organize the security and bid our friends good night."

Eddios nodded. I stood, Iralya smiled as she took my hands.

"Darling child, do not fear him. You are powerful, and that is why Drakkus is so determined to win. He knows that you can beat him. This is your family land, the strength that you have far outweighs Drakkus. We will teach you. We will show you how to be a great leader."

I nodded with a smile, pretending that everything was fine. In reality, I was freaking out. There was no way that they'd get the education done in time. It was only a matter of days before Drakkus appeared, wanting revenge for Andross's death.

I was a goner.

When everyone left, I looked out the window. A vampire sat on one of the deck chairs, watching the street. There would be another one near our back door and two on either side of the house. Every so often, they'd check in with each other, and when dawn came, they'd shift into the shadows of the trees and watch from there.

I didn't want to point out that they were easy targets out there. I'm sure they figured that out for themselves.

"Did you want to discuss the letter?"

I shrugged, lumping myself back onto the lounge.

"What's done is done. You did what she asked. I can't fault you for that. Did grandma ever say anything to you?"

"No, not really. I remember she once said that we were like a fish out of water, struggling to breathe because we were not where we should be, desperate to return. All the while, the cat would be stalking us, waiting to kill us. I didn't understand what she meant by that and when I asked, she smiled at me and said that she hoped that I wouldn't have the same burden as what she had. Still didn't make any sense," he grumbled. "But it does now. She knew, probably wanted to tell me but thought that giving me a carefree childhood was far better. Maybe she'd told your mother and saw how it affected her and thought that keeping me oblivious would,"

"Keep you sober?"

Brad nodded, sighing as he rubbed the back of his neck. He sat down and pulled out the letter. It was strangely coherent for my mother. I'm sure she wrote it when she was sober, in one of those moments that I rarely saw.

"It says to remember the conversation that the two of you had at Starbucks on my tenth birthday."

"I always sent a present for you."

"Well, I never saw them."

"Didn't you? I've seen you wearing the necklace I sent. The silver chain with the guardian angel on it."

I stared, remembering the day that I'd come home from school. It was sitting on the kitchen counter with a tag that said my name and nothing else. I didn't recognize the handwriting, and when I asked my mother who it was from, she mumbled something that I couldn't understand and then started snoring.

"Did you ask about it?"

I nodded.

"Well, after that, I had to give clothing as gifts. I assumed that she was just going to leave them somewhere for you, so I only wrapped them, no gift tags or anything."

"Yeah, that's probably what she did. She rarely bought clothing for me, and when she did, it was always around my birthday, so I guess it was really you that bought them for me. So, thanks."

It wasn't easy being raised by someone who didn't care or was too high to realize that her child needed things. I had to rummage through charity bins so that I'd have different clothes to wear to school. Being teased for wearing the same thing over and over again was not fun.

Maybe he knew, maybe he was just being nice, but those clothes that Brad bought for my birthday were the greatest thing ever. At the time, I thought that my mother was being generous, feeling guilty or had a good night out and earned a lot of money. There would be a pile of clothes sitting on the kitchen counter, and it would be enough to last me for a long time. No doubling up on days, no struggling to get the clothes dried before the next day of school.

I took incredible care of those clothes, knowing it would be another year before I got new ones. When a shirt got a tear in it, I asked my teacher if she could show me how to repair it. She did, and the next day, she had a box waiting for me. It was full of different colored threads, needles, a little pair of scissors and a needle threader. I cried because it was the nicest thing that anyone had ever done for me. And yes, I still had that box. It was another item that I treasured enough to keep in good condition.

"I would have preferred to give them to you, but your mother had rules, and I had to follow them. We discussed it at length, almost like she thought that she wouldn't make it. Like she knew there was someone following her."

"Did she ever say anything like that?"

Brad shook his head, sitting in the lounge next to me.

I frowned as I thought about my mother, Brad, and all this nonsense. Something struck me as odd.

"Brad,"

Uneasily he looked at me. He knew that something had clicked.

"Did you pick this town for a reason?"

He closed his eyes, a soft sigh escaped before his eyes reopened.

"Your mother said that you had to return to Hades before your eighteenth birthday. She suggested doing it at the last minute, to give you as much normalcy as possible. I spoke to Niko about it before his passing. He knew why. I'm sorry, Evie, it's not something that I would want for you and if I'd known, I would have never come here. So, I'll give you the bad news first."

Well, that was not what I wanted to hear.

"The Corbin line is incredibly rare because the firstborn children are always girls. Niko told me that vampires don't give birth to females, and any female vampires that you see are always turned from humans. Our family, we only ever get one female. That's why I'm here."

"This is the bad news?"

"I'm getting there. Trust me, you're not going to like it. So, back in Niko's day, when he was ruling, Drakkus was his second in charge. When Niko and Beatrice became pregnant, Drakkus overheard them talking about the child being a girl. Later, he stated to Niko that he was the only one worthy of the girl's hand in marriage and demanded that Niko agree to the arrangement."

"But he's gay, isn't he?"

Brad shrugged.

"I have no idea. Maybe he takes whatever he can get. Maybe he's gay but wants someone to have his children. Niko said that his child was born female, something that just doesn't happen in their world. Drakkus does not like humans being turned. Niko said that he called it foul blood. Maybe he saw this child as a solution to his issues. Anyway, Niko said that he'd already seen the beginning of the insanity and refused. That's when Drakkus left and formed a faction of vampires who were supposedly unhappy with Niko's rule. When he realized that the child and mother were in danger, Niko sent them away with strict instructions to hide no matter what. To pass on the rules to each generation and never come back to Hades."

"But you said that my mother told you that I had to come back before I turned eighteen."

Brad nodded grimly.

"That's what your mother deemed as the good news. I don't agree, just so that we're clear. I don't know how she found this ruling out, but she did. It was too late for her but for you, it was a shot at ending this madness for you and your daughter. If you don't stop him, you could end up as his captive. In the laws of the vampires, it is stated that if one vampire turns against another, a blood war begins. Every descendant of the two vampires has the ability to end the blood war if the two warring vampires won't, but they can only do it at a certain time."

"Before they turn eighteen?"

Brad nodded.

"Did I make it in time?"

"You did. Shooting Drakkus was the opener. I don't know how close you got, but Niko said you had done it."

"When did he say that?"

He shrugged uneasily, looking rather morose.

"After the first shot. He was still alive at that point but finally passed after you shot Drakkus the second time."

"So, I can stop the blood war?"

"You can."

"I just need to kill Drakkus."

"Yes."

Well, that certainly helped clear things up for me. I was still in the same spot, still stuck in this horrible predicament.