Betrayal (Blood Haze: Book Three) A Paranormal Romance by Tara Shuler Page A

drink right now!”
    “Jeez! Sorry,” Liam scoffed.
    “No, I’m sorry,” I said with contrition. “I
didn’t mean to snap at you.”
    “It’s fine,” Liam said, his voice sounding
hurt.
    “Isn’t anyone else going to eat?” I
asked.
    “We can eat, later,” Alexi answered. “We have
business to discuss.”
    My eyes gravitated toward the ancient book on
the table in front of Alexi. He had one hand resting lightly on the
cover.
    “Is that the book about Dmitri’s clan?” I
asked, twirling spaghetti on my fork.
    “It is,” Alexi said. “And I have located some
useful information.”
    “Already? I was only upstairs for five
minutes.”
    “I knew what to look for.”
    “And what did you find?” I pressed him.
    “It seems as though Dmitri’s only ability is
a very thorough command of the art of dark magic,” Alexi said
gravely. “He is adept at much more than simply controlling
wraiths.”
    “That’s good, though, right? He only has the
one ability.”
    “Alice, that ability will allow him to do
nearly anything ,” Alexi said. “Because he can control the
dark forces, his powers are virtually limitless.”
    I dropped my fork, and it clinked loudly
against my ceramic plate. I swallowed a bite of spaghetti, and it
stuck in my throat. I took a swig of Dr. Pepper to wash it down,
and then I took a deep breath.
    “What are we going to do?” I asked.
    “There’s only one thing we can do,” Alexi
acknowledged. “We must learn to harness the power of dark magic
ourselves.”
    “You can’t be serious!” Liam shouted. “You
know how Father felt about that, and Grandfather explicitly forbade
its use centuries ago!”
    “I do not believe we have a choice,” Alexi
admitted, shaking his head somberly.
    “There has to be another way,” Liam
argued. “You remember what Father said it can do to someone who
uses it. Besides, only certain people have the ability to use it.
What if we can’t?”
    “We have to try, Liam,” Alexi said. “It is
the only way. And we only have a day to learn.”
    “Then let’s get started!” I chirped.
    “No!” Alexi raged. “ You will not be
participating!”
    “Alexi, I…”
    “I said no! I will not allow you to risk
yourself.”
    “What’s to risk? I don’t understand. What
does it do to people?”
    Alexi sighed deeply. Clearly, he was troubled
by the very thought, and he didn’t want to discuss it.
    “Tell me,” I demanded.
    “Those who use dark magic are prone to losing
their minds,” Alexi finally stated. “The dark forces can take over
one’s mind, and it can turn them into evil abominations.”
    “Like Dmitri?” I asked.
    “Yes, like Dmitri,” Alexi agreed. “You know,
he was once our father’s closest friend. He got into dark magic,
and it changed him. When Grandfather saw what it did to Dmitri, he
forbade anyone from using it, and he insisted Father cut all ties
with Dmitri immediately. Father complied, of course. He spoke to
Dmitri only briefly a handful of times since then.”
    “Do you know what Dmitri meant when he said
your father had something of his?” I asked.
    “I am not certain,” Alexi admitted. “But I
have a pretty good idea. In the book, it spoke of a talisman Dmitri
used in his dark magic rituals. The book says someone took it from
him, and it weakened him significantly. I am guessing the talisman
is what he was referring to. I would guess Father took it from him
and hid it somewhere.”
    “Do you know where your father might have
hidden it?”
    “Fortunately, no,” Alexi said.
    “Fortunately?”
    “If Father took it away from Dmitri and hid
it, he probably had a very good reason for doing so. If we don’t
know where it is, Dmitri cannot get his hands on it.”
    “How could Dmitri get it just because you
know where it is?” I asked.
    “How do you think?” Liam interjected.
    I thought for a moment, and then I got a
sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.
    “Oh,” I acknowledged. “You mean he