The Triad of Finity Read Free

Crevlyn. “All right, then, just for the sake of clarity, let’s review: If I’m correct, this all began when you met the Orani girl. She invaded your home, and yet due to your Human Sympathizing Syndrome—an unfortunate consequence of your sired origins that we know is not your fault—you let her live and befriended her.”
    Oliver just stared ahead but inside he rolled his eyes. This was all ridiculous. This all began , he thought, when I was stolen from my human parents and sired , but he didn’t blame Phlox and Sebastian for that. They had merely wanted a child, and hadn’t been able to have one. So they’d volunteered to raise the prophecy children. Oliver’s origins were really Half-Light’s doing. And because of those origins, he’d felt strange his entire existence. But that wasn’t why he’d befriended Emalie. It had been because she was actually interested in him, not to mention how she was interesting herself, fascinating even. … Gone . …
    “Then,” Mr. Crevlyn continued, “there was the mix-up with the murder of the Orani girl’s cousin and whether the subsequent zombie was your minion—”
    “His name is Dean,” Oliver added. He hated how Mr. Crevlyn always did this: not using names as if they somehow weren’t worthy.
    Mr. Crevlyn paused for only a moment, his smile undiminished. “Of course it is. And all of that business was, in fact, orchestrated by the LeRoux girl—”
    “Lythia,” Oliver added.
    “Yes, she was the zombie’s true master, and she was trying to steal your prophecy. So, again, not your fault.” Mr. Crevlyn nodded like Oliver was supposed to feel good about that. “Then, let’s see, following that we had the brief period where the girl tried to slay you—”
    “Which wasn’t Emalie’s fault,” Oliver interrupted. He felt his anger growing. Mr. Crevlyn’s smile lessened. Phlox eyed Oliver severely, but kept silent as he continued. “She was being controlled by The Brotherhood of the Fallen. They were the ones who wanted to slay me.”
    “Indeed,” said Mr. Crevlyn. “And finally, there was the continual misinformation given to you by the rogue Architect. Her deceptions led you to seek out Selene, the Orani oracle, to search for your original human parents, and to try to thwart your Anointment. Again, Désirée is a powerful being, and so one can hardly blame you for all that, can they?” Mr. Crevlyn’s smile returned.
    “Sure,” said Oliver. He knew by now that this was one of the goals of Mr. Crevlyn’s visits: to make Oliver feel good about himself and his destiny. And an obvious second goal was to reform Oliver’s image, and by extension his parents’ image, in the Half-Light vampire community. There was much suspicion and mistrust as to whether the Nocturnes could handle being the family of the Nexia prophecy, but now that the Anointment had succeeded, and there was no other choice, Half-Light wanted to make sure that everyone saw the Nocturnes in a good light. It wasn’t for Oliver and his family, it was for the safety of the prophecy, just like everything had always been.
    Sebastian spoke up. “And has Half-Light determined the whereabouts of Dead Désirée?”
    “She remains … unaccounted for,” said Mr. Crevlyn with a sigh, his smile faltering only momentarily, “but all measures are being taken to find her.” He turned back to Oliver. “Well, I must say, Oliver, it is a testament to your strength and guile that you are still here and not a pile of dust, considering all the danger you’ve been exposed to! This alone should prove your worth as the chosen vampire, don’t you think?”
    Oliver just shrugged. “Sure.”
    “The closest he came to dust was when Half-Light tried to slay him,” said Phlox thinly.
    “Ah yes,” said Mr. Crevlyn, “well, these things do happen. Luckily, as the new Director, I can assure you that I have a far better handle on things.”
    Mr. Crevlyn reached out and ran his hand over the Menteur’s