Read Online Eternal Dawn by Rebecca Maizel - Free Book Online

Suleen had asked. But it would be virtually impossible to change him into a human. The ritual that Rhode and I had performed was
older than any vampire I had ever known, and incredibly complex. And yet . . .
    A thought nibbled at the back of my mind.
    ‘What? What are you thinking?’ Tony asked. ‘You have a look. Like you’re going to punch something.’
    ‘Justin wasn’t supposed to stay a vampire. Everything – including him – was supposed to change when I went back to my original life. Maybe there’s a way to make him
human again
other
than the ritual or the power of the Aeris. Maybe there is some way to, you know, break the chains of vampirism.’ I slouched and threw my hands up. ‘I
don’t know how, or if it’s even possible. I’m just thinking out loud.’
    ‘I like this. Positive, optimistic. No doom or gloom.’
    I hoped I was right. I also hoped it would be enough to keep Tony from searching for Justin so that he’d remain on campus where I could see him.
    ‘I can keep an eye on Rhode,’ he said. ‘You know, see if Justin is tailing him.’
    ‘I have to admit that’s exactly what I hoped.’
    ‘So let’s clarify. You’re sure Justin can’t hurt you?’ Tony checked. I sat down on the floor across from his bed.
    ‘No. He can’t. Not mortally anyway.’
    It was vampire law: Justin could not hurt me because he loved me. But I did not love him, and bitter vampires were unpredictable and angry. They liked to destroy for fun; it eased their agony.
My life as a ruler of vampires had educated me on this very fact.
    Tony finally cleaned the cut on his face with an antiseptic wipe.
    ‘Here, let me help you,’ I said. As I dabbed at Tony’s skin, a certainty settled over me. Even though Justin’s love for me protected my person, he would do everything in
his power to destroy those I cared for most.
    I awoke with the glimmer of dawn, long before the rest of the campus was awake. While under the warmth of the covers in my dorm room, I held my palm out and trailed my
fingertips along the calluses that ran over my palm. Working in the orchard had hardened my body. Even though I was travelling between times, my body carried the weight of my choices.
Calluses
are good. In case I need to wield those swords sooner than I’d like.
    The memory of Suleen’s dying eyes, wide with fear, came to me. I sighed and got up, walking to the bay window. The campus trees swayed in the breeze, but unlike the trees at home they were
not top-heavy with apples. I missed my sister and hoped that Fire was right, that when this was all over she could bring me back to the exact moment I had left. It sent goose bumps over me
imagining Genevieve calling my name over and over in an empty orchard lane.
Remember why you are here. You are here to protect your friends. Protect Rhode.
I reached up to the tender spots
on my neck where Justin had almost bitten me.
    Various memories of Justin as a human boy came to me unbidden.
    We stand outside Quartz dorm; the rain pelts the grass.
    ‘You look really sad,’ he says.
    ‘Do I?’
    Justin lifts his chin up so the rain smacks his face even more directly. ‘Are you?’ he asks, still looking up.
    I nod once. ‘A little.’
    Justin had cared. He had been so gentle. He wasn’t bothered by the complexity of my vampire life, he had just wanted to get to know me.
    ‘You’re up early,’ Tracy said, interrupting the memory. She got up from her bed, shook her hair out and swept it back into a long ponytail.
    ‘Couldn’t sleep,’ I said.
    She walked towards the bathroom with her shower kit.
    ‘No reason to be nervous. It’s just school.’
    ‘No,’ I said with a small smile. ‘No reason at all.’ Before morning assembly, I walked the long length of the Wickham farm to the barn. I had hidden the arrow from last
night in my book bag. I followed the path, past the oversized pumpkins, past the tomatoes, and stopped at the spot where Rhode had pushed me to the ground. I