"You have to help him," she whispered. "Please!"

"I will help him, Bianca. If you make me a promise," he said. "You must keep this promise no matter what, or your brother will get sick and die. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"There is a man you will meet when you are older, a man who-"

"This is low, even for you," a second man's voice said.

She jumped at the new voice. The second man's hand clamped on the first man's shoulder. The eyes of the newcomer were the color of their Christmas tree. He had Papaw's face, with wrinkles around his eyes and a kind smile.

"By divine code, you can't interfere," the man with the purple eyes said in a tone that made her shrink away.

"By divine code, neither can you."

Purple-eyes rose. Green-eyes stepped between Bianca and Purple-eyes, and Purple-eyes backed towards the window again.

"We're so much better than this, brother," Green-eyes said. "Children are off limits."

"For your kind, Watcher. There are no boundaries for us."

"Divine code disagrees with you and the rest of the Others."

Purple-eyes looked at her, and she shrank behind Green-eyes.

"The Grey God will destroy us all, brother. You can stop this war here, now," Purple-eyes said with a look that made her snap her eyes closed.

"You're a fool led by a fool. Go, brother," Green-eyes said.

Bianca held her breath and waited, able to feel the tension between them even with her eyes closed until he spoke again.

"He's gone, Bianca."

She opened one eye, then the other, confirming his words. She started crying again.

"Jonny's gonna die!"

"You can save him."

"I can't! I tried! I can't!"

"Listen, Bianca." He took her arms and sat her in a chair, handed her a fistful of tissues, and knelt. She blew her nose loudly and looked at him through blurry eyes. His small smile was kind, his bright eyes unblinking. "You have a very special gift. No one else has one like you."

"But I'm too little to save Jonny."

"Nonsense. You can save Jonny. You hear his body speak of the death in him?"

"It's awful," she whispered.

"If you listen really hard to what his body tells you, you can save him. No one wants to die, and his body will tell you what it needs from you. You need to rest tonight, sleep as much as you can. In the morning, you'll be able to heal him."

"But I've been trying for days!"

He touched her again, his hand cool but the electricity that shot through her warm.

"I've woken your gift completely," he said. "You must promise to keep it a secret and to make Jonny keep it a secret."

She blinked rapidly, startled by the sensations going through her.

"Do you promise?"

"Yes."

"You must also never harm another. It is the way of ancient healers. Do you understand?" he asked.

"Ancient healers?"

"In time you'll learn more. Do you understand what I ask of you?"

"I don't know. I think so," she murmured.

"Can you promise to keep Jonny safe?"

"He's my brother," she said, sniffling again.

"Good. Go to sleep, Bianca. I'll watch over your brother tonight. In the morning, you'll save him."

For the first time, she noticed he wasn't wearing a doctor's white coat. "You're not a doctor, are you?" she ventured.

"No, but I'm a friend here to watch over you and Jonny."

Something about the man made her feel safe, and the warm electricity in her body made her sleepy. She kissed Jonny goodnight and crossed the bay to curl up with their father.

When she'd gone, the Watcher placed a hand on Jonny's forehead.

Come back, god-slayer. Your time is yet to come.

As strong as the girl was, she was too small to bring Jonny back from the place the Others sent him. The Watcher's hand fell away, and his gaze went to the dark side of the bay, where the little girl was already fast asleep.

A healer and a god-slayer born into the same family. It had always been so. The Black God's sister was a healer who died at her brother's hands.

The Watcher smiled. He saw a different fate for the little girl in the next room, a better one than that of any of the ancient Healers. As long as the Watchers could keep the Others from tampering with their fates, both children would fulfill their paths and usher in a new phase of the war between good and evil.

Chapter Two.

Present Day Miami, Florida Bianca drew a heart around her ex-boyfriend, Aaron's, name, followed by a huge X. She'd pined for him for five years, accepting his excuses of flying around the world for work while he just went across town to his wife. She'd left town a year ago to get away from two heartbreaks: Papa's death and Aaron's unavailability, only for him to call out of the blue when she just so happened to be in town. She blamed Jonny for that one. He'd always wanted a big brother and idolized Aaron.

What a waste of five years.

"I probably shouldn't have come back to Miami," she said into the phone pressed to her ear, wishing she could talk to him without the butterflies in her stomach. "I should've just sold all Dad's things after he died."

"I wish you'd told me he died when you left last year. But I'm glad you're back," was the smooth reply.

"Sorry to hear about your split," she managed. "She was a nice lady."

"Thanks. It's been a bit rough lately for both of us. I could use a friend. I'm sure you could, too."

Not falling for it this time, she vowed to herself. At her silence, he continued.

"If you have time while you're in town, we could get together for coffee or something."

"I don't think that's a good idea," she said.

"Might as well. You're too sweet to get over me," he teased.

"Just because I dropped at your feet whenever you called for five years doesn't mean I'll do it now. It's been a year since I found out you were married and we split!"

"Hey, I really am free this time. Got the divorce paperwork to prove it."

A part of her still longed for him, to smell him and feel his skin against hers. She'd fallen for him the day she met him seven years ago. He was her world, but she'd been nothing more than an afterthought, strung along with promises for years. Now, he could deliver what he'd always promised-a life together-yet she didn't feel like leaping for joy like she would've a year ago.

"I'll even bring the paperwork with me," he offered. "Lunch, nothing else. If we still click, we'll go from there."

She chewed her lip. By the confidence in his voice, he expected her not only to agree, but to resume her place on his arm.

"Lunch," she agreed slowly.

"Great! How about a week from Sunday? I'll send you an email of where and when."

"Fine. Look, it's late. I'm going to bed." She hung up, sick of him and her weakness. She'd sworn off men-especially this one-a year ago! After all of Jonny's childhood injuries she'd healed, she couldn't fix her own heart!

Uncurling from the couch, she started to the bedroom of her father's small Miami apartment. Jonny stayed after their father's death, while she moved closer to her mom on the west coast. He hadn't changed a thing, as if expecting Papa to come home at any minute. Saddened, she considered calling him to check in when a sudden pounding at the door made her jump.

Aaron! Her heart soared. She clawed her way into a sweatshirt as she hurried to the door. The pounding didn't stop until she wrenched it open.

"Kyle?" she asked, looking up at the freaky-looking youth in Goth clothing and multiple facial piercings. He pushed his way into the small apartment and flung the unusual Miami rain from his clothes. "Jonny's not here."

The pale, dark-haired youth was drenched, but it was the wild look on his face that made her stop in the middle of the foyer and watch him pace with agitated energy.

"You okay?"

"I don't know," he said at last and flung himself into a chair, planting his hands against his forehead. "I feel funny, like really cold."

She was used to the teenage fits of temperament after spending the summer with her newly turned twenty-year-old brother. She tied her hair back and straightened the sweatshirt, somewhat relieved and disappointed it hadn't been Aaron at the door after all.

"You want some cocoa?"

"B, I did something wicked wrong!" Kyle said, following her into the kitchen. "I have to tell you about Jonny."

"He's visiting our grandparents. He'll be back next weekend," she said. "You wanna call him or something?"

"No, B, he's ..." Kyle met her gaze, flushing.

"Are you hurt?" she asked, leaning against the counter. There was blood on his trench coat. It mixed with the rain to drip pink puddles on the ceramic floor.

"Jonny didn't go to your grandparents'!" Kyle blurted out. "He was seeing this girl, and he told you he was going to go so you didn't think he'd spent the night with her and ... you know ..."

"Jonny's not in Indiana?"

"He's in trouble, B, and it's all my fault!"

"In trouble how?" she demanded.

"His girlfriend is so hot but she's like a vampire," Kyle said. He ran his hands through his wet hair again.

"Vampire?"

"He went to see her yesterday, and he asked me to stop by and meet all her friends tonight. I went. Fuck ... I mean, shoot, B, it was terrible. They really are vampires! They were killing people in front of me, and his girlfriend bit him, and now he's going to be a vampire. They said-"

"Kyle, are you on drugs?" she asked, baffled.

"No, B, I promise. I've been clean as long as Jonny."

"Jonny's on drugs?"

"Not anymore. I didn't want to come here but I know about ... he told me-and I never told anyone, I swear it-about your healing ability." His voice turned to a whisper and he looked at her, conflicted. He'd been Jonny's best friend for ten years, and they'd started the Goth-vampire stage when they got to college. She never thought much of their black clad, piercing-decorated vampire girlfriends and couldn't help being irked that Jonny had told his friend her biggest secret!

"What're you telling me, that Jonny's hurt?" she asked.

"I think so."

"You think he's been eaten by a vampire."

"Not eaten, B," Kyle corrected her. "Just bit his ... actually, it was his arm, right in the middle of his forearm. She bit him there."

"Kyle, you're scaring me. But, whatever. We'll talk about the drugs later. I'm going to get him."

"I'm not going back there," he said resolutely.

"You've been inseparable for ten years," she said. She studied him, alarm swirling through her for the first time. "What gives?"

"I don't know, Bianca," he whispered. "You shouldn't go either. We should just call the police. They can go. We'll stay here. You'll be safe."