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  Vanquished

  A Valens Series Book Three

  Andy Lewter

  Contents

  Untitled

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Logo

  Vanquished

  by Andy Lewter

  Published by Clean Reads

  www.cleanreads.com

  * * *

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and events are fictitious in every regard. Any similarities to actual events and persons, living or dead, are purely coincidental. Any trademarks, service marks, product names, or named features are assumed to be the property of their respective owners, and are used only for reference. There is no implied endorsement if any of these terms are used. Except for review purposes, the reproduction of this book in whole or part, electronically or mechanically, constitutes a copyright violation.

  VANQUISHED

  Copyright © 2016 ANDY LEWTER

  ISBN 978-1-62135-605-9

  Cover Art Designed by CORA GRAPHICS

  For Callie.

  * * *

  May you always know your path: mind, body, and soul. That one day you’ll understand the strength within yourself is stronger than you ever imagined. And that you may feel, now and forever, the endless love that is always wrapped around you.

  Prologue

  Kayla – 1996

  * * *

  I filed my nail into a perfect point and admired the deep, red polish that reflected the noonday sun. Devil’s Poison. What a perfect name… “What the devil is taking him so long?” I seethed, hurling the nail file to the floorboard on the car.

  “Do you need my assistance, Mrs. Ludovic?” Cade asked with a shake in his tone. I snapped my attention toward his trembling frame in the back seat. His eyes shifted to his feet under my scrutinized gaze, much like a reprimanded child ashamed of himself. What a mindless waste of Valens blood. So weak. I don’t think I’ll ever know what potential Emerson saw in such trash.

  “If he takes much longer, I might have you go in there and burn the place down. With you inside!” I snapped, whipping back around and crossing my legs as my patience began to wane. A tall figure came into view a moment later, and a wicked smile twisted my lips.

  “It’s done. His Kavin friend, too.” Emerson stated as he slid into the driver’s seat. His dangerous, copper eyes met mine. “Oops.”

  “That’s it? Our beloved leader, Gerald, is dead?” I asked in a rush.

  He released a knowing grin, answering my question without words. I sighed happily and relaxed in my seat, the vision of my future flashing like a dream before my eyes. “Now we wait. This last Everett will prove a wasteful human,” I said, turning around looking into my toddler’s inherited copper-brown eyes. “Then it’ll be our turn to rule. Long live Nicholas, the King.”

  1

  Abby – Present

  * * *

  Squeezing my hands weakly, I frowned at a crinkling sound from the stiff, paper covered pillow beneath my cheek. Shifting my hips, my eyes flew open as a fiery pain shot through my core like a branding iron.

  “Don’t sit up,” Athena stated.

  Releasing an anguished breath, I took in the sight before me. Bright fluorescent lights shined down on a dreary concrete floor with my hospital bed in the middle of the room. Several IV bags and monitors were hooked up to different parts my body.

  “What happened?” I asked, reaching for my throat, surprised at the scratchy sounds in my voice.

  “You got shot,” Nicholas said over my shoulder. I hadn’t realized he was there. Glancing back at him, my stomach plummeted by the haunted emptiness in his eyes.

  Something must’ve happened… something…

  With a quick gasp, my jaw dropped with horror as recent events flashed through my mind like a scroll. “Miles!” I shrieked. Panic erupted in my chest and sudden tears clouded my vision.

  Athena stepped closer, her eyes glued on the heart monitor. “You need to calm down.”

  “He’s okay,” Nicholas whispered, reaching for my hand and squeezing it gently. “He’s in the room next door.” His copper eyes bore into mine and our undeniable bond soothed away my turmoil within his grasp.

  “He’s okay? Can I speak to him?”

  Nicholas’ face fell, and he glanced at Athena. After a silent passing between Athena and Nicholas, Athena huffed and put her hands on her hips. “He’s not awake yet.”

  Pulling my hand away from Nicholas, I narrowed my eyes. “Is he okay or not?”

  Athena’s frame went frigid. “He’s stable. The bullet went through him before it got to you. Doctor says it went through his lung. ”

  Inhaling a steady breath to keep my calm, I turned my focus on the stiff, white sheets covering my legs. I studied the IV in my arm then softly touched the injury over my abdomen. “He saved me,” I murmured. “How long have I been sleeping? Where are we?”

  “You’ve been out a few days. Needed surgery and a few blood transfusions. We’re in the northern part of Washington. This is where Moui grew up, I guess.” Nicholas shrugged.

  I began fidgeting and willed my emotions to calm. Athena interrupted my thoughts by loudly clearing her throat and frowning deeply at me. “You have intestinal damage. The doctor ordered you to stay bedridden.” She smirked, then started popping her knuckles. “And I always follow orders.”

  I scoffed then winced. “Do you? Not so sure about that.” I grimaced at the pain burning in my abdomen and cleared my throat. “Where’s Ray? Can’t he heal me?” I glanced at Nicholas hopefully.

  “It only works when the mind is awake. I texted him when we saw you waking up — he should be here shortly,” Nicholas answered.

  Looking between Athena and Nicholas, I frowned as I noted the exhaustion in both their eyes. “What happened after I blacked out?”

  Nicholas sat down in a chair, and his eyes turned distant. “There was a gunshot… I knew it was you. I ran as fast as I could — I thought I was too late.”

  “But you weren’t,” I coaxed, hating the low tones of pain in his voice.

  His troubled eyes met mine. “There was so much blood.”

  “Hold that thought,” Athena said, walking briskly toward the door. “She’s awake, Doc!” she yelled down the hallway. She crossed her arms and turned back around, eyes landing on me.

  A moment later, a light knock sounded at the door and an attractive Young Valens stepped in a second later. “Lady Everett, I’m Dr. Chase. How are you feeling?” he asked as he made his way to my bedside.

  I pulled my blanket up. “Sore.”

  He nodded as if he anticipated that answer. “As expected. You needed two blood transfusions and surgery to remove the bullet fragments from your abdomen.” He began busily writing the vitals from the machines on a clipboard.

  Athena cleared her throat, continuing on with the conversation. “It got nasty. The milita
ry tried to abduct you and Miles. We got there first, but barely. We had to do things we shouldn’t have… but it was the only way,” she stated, clenching her jaw in thought.

  “The only way? What did you do?” I asked, feeling my heart slow with anxiety.

  Athena met my eyes with fierceness. “We brought the rain.”

  “We had to use our gifts against them to get you and Miles out. Everyone got away, but not without injury.” Nicholas smirked. “Good luck having them side with you now, though.”

  A moment later, Ray stepped in. “Hey, Abby. It’s nice to see you awake.” He chuckled.

  “Consider yourself summoned,” I said, smiling slightly. “Come and heal me already!”

  Shaking his head, he sauntered toward my bed. “You really scared us for a bit there,” he murmured, his bright blue eyes peering into mine.

  Dr. Chase cleared his throat next to me. “Using his gift to heal you is a risk.” He eyed us with a disappointed frown. “There can be endless outcomes given the state you’re in. His healing gift may reject your incision, your transfused blood — there’s no telling.” My stomach dropped at his words, and I wondered how long it’d take me to heal on my own.

  “But, I am a curious being. Let me remove your IVs and call in some assistance, just in case,” he said with a corner smile. After taking gentle care with removing my IV’s, he bandaged up my arms and turned toward the door. “Assistance!” he hollered down the hall. Two wide-eyed Young Valens bustled in a moment later. “Stand by while this Young Valens administers his gift to Lady Everett,” he directed.

  Stepping closer to my bed, Ray cast uneasy eyes at his audience then sighed and focused. He placed his hands on my shoulders and the familiar heat crept through me. The wound in my abdomen had a warm, bubbly feeling. Then, like a flip of a switch, a white-hot burn seared through my core. Everything grew black for a brief moment, then the pain trickled away and light poured back into sight.

  Nicholas leaned in, his breath tickling my cheek. “How are you feeling?” he asked, brushing a strand of hair away from my face.

  My only focus was keeping the grimace off my face. “Ouch.”

  Dr. Chase gently pulled up my gown, making sure the sheet stayed on my lower extremities. Elastic bandages were wrapped several times around my torso, securing several large gauze pads. An assistant handed him a pair of scissors, and he sat carefully on the bed, taking slow precautions as he snipped the elastic bandages away from my skin. Pulling off the gauze pads in layers, he met my eyes before peeling away the final strip. There were dried bits of blood framing a fully healed pink scar.

  “It’s healed. Are you still sore?” he asked as he perked up, fascination lacing his tone.

  I adjusted my hips and flexed my abdomen. I met Ray’s eyes. “You’re awesome. I’m better!”

  Dr. Chase shook his head with a lopsided smile. “I suppose we should remove those stitches. Shall we?” Reaching toward a tray of tools, he gently began removing each stitch. After the last thread was removed, he brushed his gloved hand over my newly healed wound. “You can be released from the hospital wing once you’re ready.” He met my eyes once more and turned toward Ray, pointing his finger. “And you, my friend, have come in handy. Thank you for your service,” he said, eying him a moment before following his assistants out the door.

  Looking down, I ran my fingers over the scar. My lip trembled as I remembered the moment it happened like a nightmare flashing before my eyes. I tried ending this war between Valens and humans by eliminating the person provoking it – Kayla Ludovic, Nicholas’ estranged mother. The woman who’s been brainwashing humans and Valens alike — and one of them being my own mother. But I failed. And on top of that, I’m currently at the top of the U.S. government’s hit list.

  I sighed and met Athena’s eyes. “Where’s my sister?”

  “Out to lunch with Damian. She just left,” she said with a sigh, plopping down in a chair. Nodding, I placed my bare feet on the cool cement and stood up. My stomach muscles felt weak, but the pain was gone. Stretching my sluggish muscles with my arms above my head, I turned around and looked at Athena. “I want to see Miles.”

  “It’s probably a good idea to change. I’m not sure everyone wants to see your naked bum,” Athena quipped with a dark grin on the corner of her lips.

  Mortified, I grabbed the back of the hospital gown and spun toward Nicholas and Ray. A deep blush burned my cheeks as I witnessed Nicholas’ ear-to-ear grin.

  “Not bad, Everett,” he said with a smirk. “Now I know why they call it the ICU…” Athena howled with laughter and tossed me my clothes, apparently enjoying my embarrassment. Tightly clutching the back of the gown with one hand, I dashed into the bathroom and locked the door behind me.

  After dressing, I finger-combed my hair and tossed it to the side. Looking in the mirror, I pressed in my pink cheeks and met the hollowed eyes staring back at me — eyes that held dark secrets and endured far too much pain. Swallowing hard, I pulled my gaze away and opened the bathroom door. Nicholas, Ray, and Athena were waiting silently by the exit.

  “Ready?” Athena asked.

  I furrowed my brows as I sensed nervousness from Athena. Stopping in my tracks, I folded my arms and clenched my jaw. “Why are you nervous?”

  She rolled her eyes and sighed. “It’s just… he doesn’t look good. Remember that when you see him,” she stated, giving me a side-eye. After a quick glance at Nicholas, she flipped her hair to her back and stepped out of the room.

  Ray followed her out, and Nicholas offered his arm with a dashing grin. “You have no idea how good it is to see you being you.” His warm eyes peered into mine, and I let myself become lost. As my fingers clasped his inner arm, the hum from our connection burned in a delicious zing up my veins and into my chest, bringing an instant smile.

  Sighing, I refocused and pushed the feeling away, nudging him toward the door. His features faltered at my gesture, but he remained silent.

  Guiding me to the right, we stepped into a room identical to mine. Except this room held more machinery… and beeping. Several nurses writing on clipboards and checking vitals crowded around the bed — Athena and Ray silently peeked over the nurse’s shoulders, and Dara sat exhausted in a chair in the corner.

  Athena watched me with concerned eyes when she heard our approach. The nurses talked quietly amongst themselves as they adjusted the patient’s sheet. After finishing up, they stepped to the side and revealed a sight so gut-wrenching, my mind took a minute to process what lay before me.

  Under a copious amount of twisted wires and tubes keeping the critical patient alive and breathing, lay my best friend, Miles. I let go of Nicholas’ arm and cupped my mouth to muffle the sobs escaping my lips.

  His normally tanned, glowing skin was replaced with a pale, ashen color. His hair was greasy and matted to the side from lying too long, and purple-bruised circles were prominent under his eyes.

  Numbing shock pulsed through my body, and my feet felt as if they were floating above the ground. As I made it to his bedside, my fingers shook with despair as they clasped his cold hand. Another sob broke through my barrier as I looked at the person who had always brought me warmth and strength — someone I could always trust and rely on, now broken.

  “When will he wake up?” I asked after I collected myself.

  “We’re not sure,” his mother replied wearily from her chair. “The next step is to have the breathing machine removed.”

  I focused on the white-ridged tube invading his mouth. “He can’t breathe on his own?”

  “They were able to pull the fluid from his lungs, but since he still rests in his coma, they’re leery to take it out. They want to have complete control over his body… in case he…” Dara broke off, trying to refrain from crying.

  I pulled her into a hug and held her for as long as she needed. “Miles is strong. He won’t leave us… not now.”

  Dara nodded, pulled in a ragged breath and gave me a reassuring smile. She
met my eyes and smoothed her hands over my cheeks. “You make him strong, Abby.”

  Pushing my trembling lip into a straight line, I turned toward Athena. “What do we do now?”

  She watched me with knowing, tired eyes. “We push forward,” she said flatly.

  2

  After many attempts to leave Miles’ side, Athena was finally guiding me down the dreary halls of Moui’s bunker. Miles and I were stationed several floors underground in a hospital wing, and she led me to the nearest elevator shaft.

  “What is this place?” I asked, my eyes wandering along the industrial pipes and fluorescent lights overhead.

  She shrugged. “Apparently this used to be some sort of undisclosed headquarters. Valens families grew up here to practice their gifts freely. It’s been abandoned for years.” Her lavender eyes met mine as she scrunched up her nose. “Had lots of cleaning to do, too.”

  “Why was it abandoned?” I asked as I traced a finger along the cool cement bricks in the hallway as we stepped into the elevator. She pressed a button and folded her arms, watching the doors close. “People’s paths change. Maybe they didn’t need it anymore. I dunno,” she said as she tossed her golden curls to the side and leaned her hips against the rail.

  I watched as she shifted her eyes to a distant place. “How bad is it really?” I murmured.

  Her uneasy gaze moved to mine and she pursed her lips. “It’s bad.”

  Sighing at her news, I raked my hair. “You have to tell me everything so I can think of how to fix it.”

  She shook her head. “We heard the shot. Nicholas and I got there as soon as we could. Humans were picking you up off the street and leaving Miles for dead. The amount of blood around you two…” Her words broke off with emotion, and she cleared her throat. “Nicholas pulled a quick storm to try and get to you,” she met my eyes with an intensity I’d never seen in her before. “He had no choice. He shot them with lightning.”