Odyssey (The Vampire Destiny Series Companion Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

“Steafedn!  You must stop them!”
There was a part of me that wanted to intervene and save her life, if only due to the fact this woman had been my maker and once my lover.  Yet I did nothing but stand by as they hauled her away through the rubble of the hut we had shared.
Only two thoughts were running through my mind, and neither of them comforted me.  I was a collaborator to her impending execution.  My alliance with Sofia had set it into motion.
Sofia remained at my side, her hand heavy on my shoulder.  Her touch offered me little consolation. "Who were those men?"  
"Ah, Silvio and Reginald.  They are two of the Council members.  Reginald is the brawn of the two.  He will enjoy making her suffer.  It is his greatest talent.  Silvio is the brains.  He can pick through your mind to decipher the truth."
My eyebrow rose at her explanation.  A telepath and a vampire with a fondness for pain.  Perfect choices for the Council I surmised, but were they any better than my maker?  Were any of us?
Sofia circled around me until she faced me.  Her dark eyes betrayed the nonchalance she was trying desperately to project.  They were filled with concern as she stared into mine.
"Steafedn, do not punish yourself or question your actions.  She obliterated two villages of humans, leaving newborns behind to possibly expose our kind.  You did a great service today.  It will not be forgotten."
Closing my eyes, my throat tightened as I struggled to swallow.  My voice sounded strained when I spoke.  "I only wanted to be free.  Take me to her.  It is the only thing I request of you."
I heard the heavy footfall of my brother approaching. "My brother, we will see Solveig a final time.  She will take us there."
My eyes flickered open and I saw Sofia nod in agreement.  "Come.  You will not like what you see, however you can say your farewell to her."
Sofia began to walk away when I reached out to grab her arm.  I pulled her back to me.  "There is no other way?  Only death?"
Sofia smiled in sympathy.  "You already know the answer.  There are no second chances for her, Steafedn.  Not for her offenses."
Letting out a deep breath of resolve, I knew that Sofia spoke the truth.  When I accepted her arrangement, I knew what the end result would be.  Yet I still chose it because there was no other way out—for Amir or myself.  Solveig had pressed her luck for too many years.  She had committed atrocities and broken rules.  Now she would pay the ultimate price with her life by meeting the final death.
Sill my stomach churned with guilt.  "Take us to her."
"Follow me."  Sofia nodded and the three of us ran into the cool evening air.  The night surrounded me; its darkness mirrored the blackness that had wrapped itself around my soul, tainting it with guilt and regret.
We had traveled for nearly an hour when finally we reached a castle hidden far from the neighboring towns.  Torches lit the cobblestone path under our feet as we approached two guards that stood watch at the heavy wooden doors.  They inclined their heads in recognition of Sofia but eyed Amir and myself with suspicion.
"They are with me, Antonio.  They are here to see Reginald and Silvio."
We were given entrance and the quietness of the night air was broken by my maker's tortured screams.  My hands clenched into tight fists as I listened to her cries of pain.  It was only Amir's presence at my side that kept me level-headed as every bellow for mercy tore at my very soul.
What had I done?
"Please escort us to see her a final time.  If not for me, do it for my brother," Amir spoke softly.  He clapped my shoulder one time and shoved me forward slightly as Sofia gestured for us to follow her through the doors.
We trailed behind her up a stone staircase and into a dark passageway lined with heavy iron doors.  Behind one of those doors, my maker was living her last moments before her final death.  A gamut of emotions ran through me: happiness, guilt,