“We will find a way to fix you, Aiden,” Annella said.
“You’d better!” A voice called from the door.
“Mark.” I sighed, a smile lifting my weary lips.
In the blink of an eye he appeared by my bed and wrapped his arms around Emilia. “I missed you so much.” He hugged her tight.
“Thank God, you’re here,” she said, returning the tight embrace.
“I came as soon as I heard.” He released his grip on her and turned his attention to me. “I told you it was a bad idea. Didn’t I? That’s right... I did.” He narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips.
“You did,” I agreed. “Now stop gloating. How are you? How is life as a vampire?”
His eyes lit up like they had alongside the runway that one time I let him drag me to Fashion Week.
“It’s. A. Mazing. Why you would want to give this up is beyond me. Beyond me.” He tossed his arms in the air, finishing with huff.
“I’m so glad you made the right choice for you,” I said, not wanting to argue.
“And Emilia, look!” He pointed to the skin between his brows. “No wrinkle! I vanquished that son of a bitch with Botox and now I’ve got perfect skin for eternity. Boom. And look.” He popped his fangs. “I’ve got fangs.”
“Incredible, Mark,” she said, but she lacked the excitement in her voice that usually came out when they spoke.
“I’m sorry, sweetie. You must be so stressed out.” He noticed it as well and pulled her back in for a hug. “Don’t worry, we’re gonna fix him. And then I’ll go back to hunting down Ryan Gosling. I was literally right there when you called. Just a doorway stood between us.”
She chuckled and shook her head. “You’ll get him next time.”
“You know it.” He winked. “Now, where are we in fixing this hot mess he got himself into? You know, the one I told him not to.” He shot me that accusatory glance I’d grown so accustomed to.
And had missed.
Lothaire straightened up. “We’ve contacted every clan and still have little to go on. Leeya wasn’t lying when she said she’d seen it before. Apparently one of her clansmen tried and several weeks after the transition back to human, he died. But we think we still have time to change him back to a vampire. He cannot survive as a human, so the only way is for him to drink the blood of a vampire, and we kill him. And then... we hope he returns to us a vampire.” His voice trailed off at the end.
“He can’t just drink human blood and turn back?” Annella asked.
“The change back is complete. He’s fully human now,” Grizella said. “The only choice we have is to try to change him back the same way we just changed you, Mark.”
“Ouch,” Mark said, and I knew he remembered well the pain from his transition.
“And hope like hell it works,” Thorne interjected, his voice anything but confident.
“And if it doesn’t work?” Emilia asked, eyes searching the vampires surrounding her.
Silence settled over the room like a heavy blanket on a winter’s night.
“Then he dies,” Lothaire said, his commanding voice so meek I wouldn’t have known it was him if I hadn’t seen his lips move.
Emilia and I locked eyes, words failing us. There were no guarantees I could make her. No way I could erase the pain that welled up in tears behind her eyes.
“I’m sorry, Emilia. Please know that I wanted a life in the light with you. I wanted our freedom and a human life. I wanted it all and I’m so sorry. I tried.”
“Don’t apologize, Aiden. I shouldn’t have let you change in the first place.”
“You couldn’t have stopped me,” I said, squeezing her hand. “So, it looks like you’ll be eating sushi and drinking Jägermeister alone and still living as my blood bank. Is that okay? I know it’s not what we wanted.”
She bit her lip. “That’s not good enough for me anymore, Aiden.”
“What?” It felt like the air got sucked out of the room. “What do you mean? You’re leaving me?”
Her face softened, and she shook her head. A soft smile slid across her face. “No. I’m changing with you.”
“What?” The word fell out of my mouth.
“You go, I go.” She leaned down and kissed me. The gentle touch of her lips on mine sent a shudder down my spine. When she sat back up, I stared at her face, disbelief still holding my tongue.
“But it’s not what you want.” I finally found words. “You don’t want to be a vampire, Emilia. You want sunshine and food. A normal, human life. I can’t let you do this.”
“There is nothing I want more than you, Aiden. There is no light or sunshine without you at my side. I don’t want a short life... I want a long one. An eternity. I want this, Aiden. I want you.”
“Emilia,” I whispered, still stunned at the weight of her admission. “Are you sure?”
“Positive,” she answered, her voice strong and sure.
“We’re gonna make the best vampire friends!” Mark chimed, and tossed an arm around her. “I’m so freaking excited.”
I wanted to feel excited, to share in the joy. But sadness suffocated me, like a cloak of doom. Sadness for Emelia’s sacrifice. Sadness for the life I had wanted for us. Sadness that we’d only had a short time to dance together in the sun.
“I can’t let you do this, Emilia. I can’t.”
“It’s not your choice, Aiden,” she answered. “I’m doing this.”
“I can see why you gave it all up for her, Aiden,” Annella said. “You found a good one.”
“I didn’t just give it up for her,” I said, finally acknowledging the difficulty of this decision. “I wanted that life. All of it. And of course, I wanted it with her. This last week has been the greatest in my life. I don’t know how I’m going to go back. I don’t want to go back.”
Lothaire leaned down, and I saw the sadness in his eyes. “I’m so sorry, Aiden. I wish there was another way, but you’re dying, and this is the only way we can save you. It’s the best we can do. And at least you’ll have Emilia at your side... and us.”
I nodded, tossing a glance to her before taking a breath. “Okay, let’s do this.”
“Wait,” Thorne said, shaking his head. “What if there’s another way?”
All eyes turned to him.
“There is no other way, Thorne.” Lothaire turned to face him. “Leave it.”
“But there might be. He doesn’t want this. Can’t you guys see that? He doesn’t want this life anymore and if there is even a chance, we need to tell him.”
“What other way?” I asked, my eyes darting between the two men in a stare-off.
“The Picts,” Thorne said, turning his eyes back to me. “There are still Picts left in our homeland. They are the ones who put this curse on us in the first place. Maybe they can fix you.”
“Thorne!” Lothaire boomed, filling every empty space in the room. “We don’t have time to go on a wild goose chase! We already discussed this! He’s dying!”
Thorne took a breath. “It should be his decision... not ours. If Aiden wants to try, we should try.”
For the first time in days I felt a glimmer of hope sparking from the darkness enveloping me. “Are you sure? They’re still there?”
“No, we’re not sure,” Grizella said through gritted teeth and shot a glare at Thorne that could have dropped him to the ground.
“But the rumors are that they are there. Just hidden.” Thorne resisted her stare.
“It’s too risky, Aiden. You might not even make the journey,” Annella said, worry shaking her voice.
“If there’s a chance, even a small one, that I can live as a human, I’m taking it.”
“Aiden,” Emilia breathed. “It’s too risky. You might die! You promised you would fight and not leave me!”
“I am fighting, Emilia. I’m fighting for the life we deserve. The life we both want.”
“Dammit, Thorne,” Lothaire growled. “We agreed not to tell him about your foolish idea!”
“No, you agreed.” Thorne argued back. “I’m not lying to him. He needs to decide for himself.”
“I’m not losing my brother again!” Lothaire exploded and finally I understood the reason for his hard stance against this. He’d lost me once. We’d both lost our brother, Caleb. All these years I thought Lothaire hated me and really he grieved for me... for his only brother. The only one left. Now he thought he might lose me again.
“Lothaire.” I reached out and took his hand. “I’m so sorry for the years apart. I’m sorry about everything I said, and I’m sorry I left you.”
The hardened lines in his face softened while he studied me.
“I don’t want to be a vampire anymore. This isn’t the life I want, and I need you to understand that. If there is any truth to what Thorne is saying, I need to take the risk. Can you understand that?”
“No,” he answered, but I could hear the doubt in his gruff response.
“You would do anything for Grizella, right?”
“Of course. Anything.” He cast her a glance.
“And I would do anything for Emilia. Anything. All these years I have wanted what you have, what the two of you share, and now I have it. She doesn’t want to be a vampire, either. If there is any chance I can save her from that life, then I need to take it. I need to save us both from eternal darkness. Can you understand that, Lothaire?”
His lips pressed into a tight white line while he searched my face. “This is what you want? To be human?”
“More than anything,” I breathed. “And I want her.” I looked back to Emilia who bit her lip and stared at me, the worry lines cutting deep into her forehead. “Please, Lothaire. I need to try.”
A faint nod tipped his head. “All right. Then we try it.”
A heavy sigh pushed from my lips and I lay my head back down into the pillow. “Thank you, Lothaire. I know you don’t understand, but I need to do this.”
“I understand,” he said, reaching over and taking Grizella by the hand. “I understand.”
“Aiden,” Emilia said, dropping to her knees at my side. “It’s too risky. You’re so weak, and there’s no guarantee we can get you there... or that they are even there! If we’re wrong, you might die. It’s too risky!”
“I might die anyway.” The pain flashed across her face and I hated being the one to put it there. “There’s no guarantee changing me back will work. If I’m going to die, I want to die trying... fighting for the life we both want. I’m fighting for us... just like I promised.”
“Aiden, it’s too dangerous.”
“How about this? If we go looking for the Picts and we can’t find them, or if I’m dying, they can turn us both on the spot. Then at least we’ll have tried.”
She gave me a worried look and then exhaled a deep sigh. “Okay. Let’s try.”
“Good.” I smiled and drew her closer to me. “I’m not ready to give up Jägermeister yet.”
She cracked a smile and snickered.
“He did Jägermeister?” Mark gasped. “And I wasn’t there? Ugh. I miss all the good stuff! When this is all over, I need a play-by-play, Emilia.”
“When this is over, I’ll let Aiden tell you,” Emilia said, shooting me a confident look.
“Aiden, you sleep. The rest of us will go figure out how to find the Picts and get you better. Don’t die on us,” Lothaire added with a scowl.
“I’ll do my best.” I chuckled.
“We’ll leave you two be.” Annella leaned down and kissed my head before pulling Mark out of the room.
“Thorne,” I called, stopping him before he left. “Thank you. You’re a good friend.”
“Just don’t die and make me regret it.”
They all left the room and Emilia crawled into my arms. Even though my body weakened by the second, all the reason I needed to fight curled up at my side. I kissed her head and closed my eyes, knowing the risk was worth it... that she was worth it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Emilia
“I STILL DON’T UNDERSTAND why we couldn’t take the helicopter all the way,” Mark grumbled and shifted in the saddle.
My horse ambled behind his, and I looked over to Aiden who fought the grimaces from pain the bumpy ride caused him.
“They are an ancient people who have no connection to society, Mark,” Thorne answered, the irritation sharpening his voice. It wasn’t the first time Mark had complained since the ride started a couple hours ago. “If we arrive to their hidden land in a helicopter, they will be terrified and turn us away. And Aiden is too weak to endure being dragged at light speed by one of us. Horses. It’s the only way to get him out here. Now stop complaining or go back.”
“Fine.” Mark sighed and turned his attention back to the untouched world stretched out in front of us.
They had night vision and navigated the dark with ease, but it made me anxious being out here in the dark, though staring up at the endless stars soothed my worry. It was like time had stopped here, and I admired the serenity surrounding us. Since we had left the small stable where we’d rented the horses, we hadn’t even seen a house or a farm. Though it was dark out, the nearly full moon illuminated the lands around us, and I could see the shadow of my horse as we trudged on.
But as beautiful as it was in the dark, I wanted to see this place in the light. I wanted to see the lush green grass and clear blue streams I could hear bubbling just beyond. Like a punch to the gut, the realization hit me that if I had to change into a vampire tonight that may never be possible again. It would leave me in an eternity of darkness, and I appreciated why Aiden wanted a life in the light so badly.
Looking over to him, I realized though that he would be worth a life in the dark. I could find all the light I’d ever need inside his eyes. The love between us could illuminate the blackest of nights, but deep down I hoped that we could find our way back into the light together.
“He’s getting worse,” Lothaire said, riding up beside me and keeping his voice low.
“I know,” I agreed. Aiden barely had the energy to talk now. It had taken all their connections and two days to get a possible location for the Picts. And it was speculation at best.
“I don’t want to lose my brother, Emilia. If things get worse, you’ll be the only one who can convince him to change. I need your word you won’t let him die. I can’t lose him again... he’s my only brother.”
His eyes both warned me and begged me all at once. After spending two days with him I felt more comfortable around him... around all of them. But there was a power about Lothaire that frightened me even when he didn’t intend it. He reminded me of a large grizzly bear. And not just the way he looked. Harmless to his cubs and family, caring even, but lethal to any who would threaten those he loved. I took his words, and warning, to heart.
“I love him, Lothaire and I won’t let him die. There is no future for me without him, so I will do whatever it takes to save him... and I will make my own sacrifice, if needed.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” He glanced over to Aiden, who had slumped over on his horse, struggling to stay on. “I wish he’d agreed to ride with me. His stupid pride.”
I arched a brow. “He’s got your stubborn streak as well it would seem.”
Lothaire snorted. “It would seem so. It runs in the family. I think Annella is the most stubborn of us all, though. The deadliest, too.”
I looked up to Annella and those words, and the ones Aiden had said about not wanting to meet her in a dark alley, still confounded me. The Annella I admired and felt connected to was full of giggles and smiles. An innocent looking beauty, there was nothing threatening or terrifying about her. Her miniscule size made it even harder for me to picture her tearing through groups of grown men and even powerful vampires. She must have felt my eyes on her because she turned in her saddle and flashed me her wide grin.
“Don’t let her looks fool you,” Lothaire said with a chuckle.
“What are you two talking about?” Thor
ne slowed his horse and pulled up on my other side. His icy blue eyes darted between the two of us. Even though he wasn’t Aiden’s actual brother, they could pass for them with ease. They shared the same strong jaw, light blue eyes, and impressive figure. His appearance was more rugged than Aiden’s, but their features were remarkably similar. So far, my initial thoughts wondering if all vampires were beautiful seemed to be true. Either that or Aiden just had an exceptionally attractive clan before he turned. Every one of them was striking and beautiful in their own way.
“We’re talking about Annella,” Lothaire said, “and how she could whoop any of us if she wanted.”
Thorne blew out a puff of air. “Can and has. I’ve stopped sparring with her... my pride can’t take having her set me on my arse again.” He laughed.
“Stop talking about me!” Annella called back and flashed a playful glare over her shoulder. Grizella, riding at her side, glanced back as well and shook her head.
Her beauty was otherworldly. I could see why Lothaire had been so taken with her in an instant. Raven black hair and green eyes gave her an exotic and intimidating appearance. Her porcelain skin practically glowed under the moonlight. When her gaze fell to Lothaire, her face softened, and her eyes flickered the same way mine did when I looked at Aiden. Four hundred years later and their love remained just as strong as ours. You could see it anytime they looked at each other.
Aiden groaned, and all eyes shot to him. He slumped even lower on his horse now. I clicked to mine and trotted over the few steps to ride up at his side.
“Hang in there, baby. We’re almost there.” I reached over and placed my hand on his leg, but he grimaced at my touch. Withdrawing my hand, I took a staying breath. Seeing him this way, in so much pain, felt like a knife ripping me apart in ways I never imagined possible. Being so close to him and unable to touch him and hold him only sharpened the edges of the blade. And it was my fault. If I hadn’t met him, he would still be safe. If I’d thrown away that card Mark had handed me, Aiden would still be living his life, not dying next to me, clinging to the hope that he could remain human.
Into The Light (Immortal Hearts Book 1) Page 27