Talisman 01 - The Emerald Talisman

freeing at least one of Nicholas’ wrists. But she caught it in midair and laughed.
    “Nice try,” she said with a smirk and looked at me like I were a bothersome, buzzing gnat. “Get over here.”
    Before I knew it, she’d run over, grabbed my wrist and pulled me to her side, still holding Nicholas in place with her whip. The strand magically grew with her movements. In a late response, I tried to jerk away, but found I was trapped in her iron grasp.
    “You again,” Bettina said with hard, calculating eyes. “I should have killed you earlier.”
    I shook under her deadly stare, then caught Nicholas’ confusion and horror. He didn’t know we’d met already. But then he became calm, like he’d discovered a solution to our problem.
    “I’ll go with you willingly if you let Julia go free,” Nicholas interrupted quickly.
    Both the girls’ focuses went off me to Nicholas’ face. I squirmed. The plan could not include him turning himself in and his ultimate demise.
    “No,” I said firmly. “Nicholas, don’t do this.”
    Everyone ignored me. Bettina’s face remained icy, but her emotions told me she was mulling it over.
    “What’s my guarantee you’ll cooperate,” she said after a second.
    “My word,” he said very calmly. I sensed to my horror his intention to keep it.
    “No!” I said a little louder.
    “Your word?” Bettina said in a sneer. Her lip turned up at the corner and she shot Angelia a look. They both laughed profusely.
    “A vampire’s word is worthless you fool,” she retorted. “I want to know your weakness and then we’ll negotiate.”
    Fear overtook me because I knew without the talisman, everything was his weakness. He was still partly human, after all. My blood began to pound behind my ears in anticipation of what he’d say, even though he still exuded a calm confidence.
    “Julia is my weakness,” Nicholas replied plainly.
    I gasped. Why did he tell them that? My mind reeled at the admission and then discovered it to be true. I was. He’d warned me the vampires would use me to get to him. I didn’t listen. And my stubborn actions removed the anonymity he used to attack his enemies, and it forced him to give me the necklace. Now the only thing he could do was sacrifice himself through a trade. I would be responsible for his death, as predicted.
    “Interesting,” Bettina said through squinted eyes, “You’ll come peaceably if we let her go?”
    “Yes,” he said.
    Panic welled up and constricted my chest. I struggled to pull the air into my lungs, but pushed it back out with the force of a freight train.
    “She lies. She won’t let me go,” I exclaimed louder than I’d ever yelled in my life.
    Bettina’s nostrils flared as she yanked down hard on my arm with tremendous force. I yelped out instinctively, expecting my shoulder to be pulled from its socket. Nothing happened.
    “Shut up, you little urchin,” she spewed.
    Her steel grip tightened around my arm and I thought the bones would break under the pressure, but something stayed her hand. I glared back, watching the muscles in her face tense up, her wrist tightening as if she tried to clamp harder but the pressure didn’t change. The medallion warmed against my skin and I realized it kept her from harming me. I smirked when her frustration began to swell. I wanted to taunt her, but found I’d lost the ability to speak.
    Angelia gave up trying to crush my arm and spoke to Bettina in a Gaelic tongue. The musical flow of their speech was unlike anything I’d ever heard before. Then I remembered Nicholas telling me vampires had special powers like speaking in foreign languages, but the speed and enchanting sounds they made were musical, completely mesmerizing.
    I felt Nicholas stir. I turned to face him. With a grim expression he mouthed to me ‘remember what I told you’.
    I looked wide-eyed into his beautiful face, shook my head yes . He told me to call his dad. But I didn’t want to come to the reality he might not survive this. I could never live with myself if he died protecting me and it was my fault.
    I started to object, but the only thing that came out of my mouth was air—not even a whisper. I clutched my throat in concern, but his attention was no longer on me. He still remained perfectly calm.
    “You have a deal,” Bettina finally said. “I’m taking you in and Angelia will stay here with Julia. You cooperate fully, we’ll let her go. If not, she dies.”
    “Fine, but I want to give