The Vampire's Reflection Read Online Free

anywhere else. Charlotte wondered just how long the peace was going to last.
    The smell of smoking meats and baked goods came up on the air as they finally reached the edge of the Southern Bohemian Occult town square—significantly transformed from how it used to be before the battle at the Regime. Ghosts from the months past seemed to fly by the forefront of her memory. It was as if she could almost hear the faded echoes of Aiden calling her name as he passed her on his way to training. The sound seemed tangible enough in her mind that her eyes darted for just a second to the far side of the street. He was not there. A sick feeling began to twist in her gut.
    Aiden really could have been lurking around any one of these corners, just waiting for the right time. Nothing was stopping him from finding his revenge. He would only need to wait for the moment when he could catch her alone. That was the other shoe that seemed to be hovering in the air just above her head. She was painfully aware of how constant its presence was as she waited for the moment when it would finally drop.
    Valek squeezed her hand lightly, she knew that he had been listening to her mind. Blood flooded to her cheeks and she reminded herself again not to be afraid. She was safe. Valek answered her again with a small, but affirming smile, nodding his head lightly.
    Charlotte wondered how long it would be before the magic exposed itself to humankind now that there was no Regime to answer to. At least for now. How long would it be until the more daring creatures started running rampant in human cities? She mused over what form it would take. If the discovery would present itself as a massive battle of Lycanthropes and Fae attempting to take over the capitol in a bloodthirsty battle between the monsters and the military, or if a single, human child would stumble accidentally across something benevolent on an afternoon of woods-wandering, and go missing before he could run home to tell his parents. Would it appear in headlines across mortal newspapers? Would the people of the Czech Republic and outlying countries be fixated on their television sets when the news broke? And then there was the question of whether or not the mortal population would even believe it or chalk it up to being a mere hoax. How long would it be before the magic dominated and the human population perished for their ignorance? But where would that leave her?
    Out of the corner of her eye, Charlotte saw Valek’s face strain. She knew how he sat up, long after she fell asleep—whatever time of day that was these days—mulling over ways to protect the Order, knowing it was only a matter of time before chaos ensued.
    Vladislov had been right about one thing, at least. Magic was something human beings would never have the capacity to handle. They’d try and force control over it, to dominate it—like everything else in their own world. Charlotte could only visualize how disastrous that would end up, how the human military would falter against the power of something considerably more divine. They wouldn’t be able to comprehend the insurmountable dangers of facing something as infinite as magic. Militant resources would eventually run out. Magic would not.
    Charlotte took in a deep breath when she thought again about how she was the only one of her kind that carried this knowledge.
    Valek cleared his throat, sounding annoyed.
    Right , Charlotte thought as she brought her feet back down to earth again. But magic should have never been confined either, she continued to deliberate. That was where Vladislov had made his mistake. Like the existence of Light and Dark, there needed to be balance. There hadn’t been balance for a long time.
    Charlotte thought back to the day only a few months ago when she’d visited Edwin at the general store. She recalled the lightning-in-a-bottle, and how the energy behind the glass pushed and pushed until finally, it was able to break free and destroy the