“Is Michael dead?” Alora questioned.
Marcel glanced at her and nodded solemnly. “Yes.”
The tension in Alora’s shoulders dissolved when she heard this, and I understood why. I’d be relieved too to know my kidnapper was dead.
“Theodore killed him,” Marcel went on. “He flew into a rage after Rebecca and Emilia were taken. He said it was Michael’s fault for allowing himself to be overpowered. He was being completely unreasonable. Everyone knows that there’s no way for a mere warlock to fight off a sorcerer of Roman Patel’s power.”
“So, Theodore just … killed him?” I asked.
“He did. I fear he would have killed me too simply to assuage his fury, but I managed to escape when Rita began to calm him down.”
Oh, how the mighty had fallen. I folded my arms. “And now you’re here to beg for sanctuary?”
“I didn’t know where else to go. I thought Theodore was the answer to making the magical families reign supreme in Tribane, but now I see he’s too old. His age has caused his sanity to slip. Most of the magical families are afraid of him and are in hiding.”
“You should have thought of that before you decided to bring him back from hell,” I said with no small amount of disdain as I nibbled a scone. It wasn’t too long ago that Marcel thought he was so high and mighty with Theodore on his side. Now his plan had backfired, and it served him right for what he did to my poor father. Just thinking of my dad made my throat grow tight with emotion.
“I know I’ve made a terrible mistake, and I’ll do anything in my power to make up for it. All I ask is for protection.”
“And how do we know Theodore didn’t send you here himself?” Ethan asked, suddenly stepping into the room.
Marcel’s eyes bugged when he saw Ethan. Obviously, he could sense the change in him, feel the power.
“I can prove it, I promise. I’ll tell you all of his plans,” Marcel replied in a jittery voice.
Ethan walked to me and sat, pulling me into his side, his strong arm wrapping around my waist. “Go ahead.”
“I need a promise from you first that ensures my safety.”
Ethan raised an eyebrow. “I will promise you nothing, warlock. You will tell me Theodore’s plans and then I’m going to lock you up until I see with my own two eyes that these plans are real and not some ploy to lead us into a trap. Once we have defeated the sorcerer, then and only then, will I set you free.”
“That sounds mighty generous,” Finn interjected, nudging Marcel’s shoulder. “I’d take that offer if I were you, mate.”
“Yes, yes, okay,” Marcel said in a fluster, running his hands through his long, wet hair.
“I’m waiting,” Ethan said, his words edged with impatience.
“He’s going to release the chaos again,” Marcel answered swiftly. “But this time it will be far more powerful. He’s been summoning it from the hell dimension, building up a store to release when you least expect it.”
“And when would that be?”
“Sunrise, three days from now. He’ll release the chaos, but because it’s stronger than before, it will kill the humans the moment it enters their bodies. By the time night falls and the vampires awaken, the humans will all be dead. There will be no blood for them to feed on, so they will weaken. Theodore will wait a few days and then he’s going to open a portal from the hell dimension and let all variety of entities through. Those entities will kill the vampires in their weakened states.”
“That is quite an ambitious plan,” Ethan mused, scratching his chin. “But why did he want Emilia and Rebecca?”
“He needed Rebecca’s blood to cast the spell that will open a big enough portal. He has a vial of it that he’s kept hidden somewhere safe. He was holding Emilia hostage to keep her from undoing the barrier spell around the city. It was an added bonus to his plan because not only would the vampires be weakened when he opened the portal, they would also be unable to flee.”
“Lovely. But what, pray tell, does Theodore want with an empty city? The magical families can’t number more than a hundred or so people at this stage. That’s not much of a kingdom to rule.”
Marcel chewed on his lip. “That’s just it. He doesn’t want to rule only Tribane, he wants to expand. If he can take the city and continue bringing entities over from hell, then he can build a dark army and move out until the entire country is within his hold. Tribane is just the beginning.”
My palms grew sweaty as I listened to Marcel speak. These plans of Theodore’s may be pretty grandiose, but I could see how they were achievable. Who knew what kind of creatures he’d be bringing over from hell?