by C. L. Parker
“From darkness we forge immortal life! I beg of the wicked to capture his light! From this undeserving vessel shall his soul depart, still his worthless beating heart!”
“Isn’t his heart already stilled?” Theo snickered.
“Silence, idiot!” Sinclair yelled. Theo bowed his meaty head and tried to look small and inconspicuous.
Kerrigan watched Dominic’s frame bow off the platform. He gritted his teeth and thrashed around. A feral scream left his chest and echoed through the air above the sound of the wind and thunder. It was a sound of excruciating pain. Kerrigan had to turn away, unable to bear witness to it. But the sound wouldn’t go away, and the picture of his agony stayed fresh behind her eyelids.
“Blood of blood, of you he was made! Take it back, that life which you gave!”
“Sunshine.” Her grandmother’s voice echoed through her mind like the wind rustling the leaves of a tree. “Go to the Light, Sunshine. Find him there.”
Kerrigan opened her eyes, expecting to see her grandmother there in front of her, but she wasn’t. She gasped in surprise when she forced herself to look at Dominic. The mark on his chest glowed with white light as he writhed around. His face contorted in pain and his body jerked off of the platform and landed again with a hard whack.
“Aarrrgh! Oh God, please!” Dominic screamed out in agonizing pain. The fire overtook his body, and his soul broke away.
“God can’t help you now.” Sinclair’s eyes were blacker than night. “But maybe He’ll have mercy on your soul when you stand before Him in judgment, if there even is such a thing as Heaven.”
“No,” Kerrigan’s voice came out in an inaudible whisper. She was stunned by the sight before her. Dominic’s soul, glowing with a bright aura, was barely hanging on by webby wisps.
“Come to me, Drake D’Mon. Take his soul, my gift to you! Accept my offering, be born anew!” Sinclair’s voice was more assertive. Her long, black hair whipped in the wind, making her look more sinister. Thunder clapped, and a bolt of lightning streaked across the darkened clouds.
The raven swooped down from its perch in the tree, its wings spread wide and dominant, hovering menacingly over Dominic’s soul. The fowl’s ugly beak opened, its broad chest expanded, inhaling deeply. Wiry strands of Dominic’s essence stretched like rubber bands as it was pulled into the raven’s mouth.
The ground began to tremble beneath Kerrigan’s bare feet like a herd of wildebeests were stampeding through the cemetery. She heard the crack of granite, drawing her eyes to the platform. Crimson seeped from the sharp edges of the name engraved there, and she felt her chest constrict with recognition. When she looked back at Dominic with panic on her face, she saw a dark and sinister shadow figure forming just next to where he lay.
“It’s working.” Sinclair’s eyes were alight in amazement while her coven members gasped in shock and looked on in awe.
The transparent form began to take shape before Kerrigan’s eyes. A man, tall with long, black hair, pale skin, and a pointed nose loomed over Dominic. His eyes were the same shade of orangish-yellow as the raven, and she understood what was happening before her very eyes.
Drake D’Mon, Dominic’s father, was being reborn. As the raven took in Dominic’s soul, it was dispelling Drake’s. Once the transference was complete, Drake would then take over Dominic’s physical form permanently.
“Hurry, Sunshine! Before it’s too late!” Availia’s voice was urgent.
Kerrigan swallowed the bile rising in her throat. For him. She had to do this for him.
She grounded herself, determined not to let Sinclair succeed, and retreated into her mind’s eye to search for her sanctuary. The sky there was a stark contrast to reality; clear with hues of oranges and red. Tiny stars twinkled a pale green and white, their lights waning with the coming sun. The moon shared the sky, falling fast asleep, its nightly duty done. Light abounded there, and with one silent plea, each source shared their bounty.
Kerrigan walked through her sanctuary, noting the presence of the great oak, the thorn-covered rose, and the heady aroma of fresh cut grass. The ground opened up, revealing the ocean, so peaceful, so calm and inviting. He was there. He was everywhere. She heard the familiar hum of This Little Light of Mine, and the sound made her heart feel light and free. Standing in the middle of the ocean, beckoning her closer, was her grandmother.
“Grammy?”
The waves inhaled and exhaled a contented sigh. Kerrigan walked forward and immersed herself in its life-giving offering. She soaked it all in, feeling the warmth flood her body with luminescent power. She was protected and untouchable in her sanctuary. There was no place for fear.
“You can stop it,” Availia said with kind eyes.
“How?”
“They can’t take what no longer belongs to him,” was Availia’s cryptic response before she sank from view.
“Wait, Grammy!” Kerrigan pled with her hand outstretched, but she was too far away to reach her.
Wind whipped around a confused Kerrigan carrying a faint whisper of a memory. “Mi alma es tuya, Querida.”
A shiver trickle down her spine, and her flesh pebbled. “My soul belongs to you,” she translated to herself. “My soul belongs to…His soul is mine! He gave it to me!” she called out, understanding dawning on her.
With renewed confidence surging through every fiber of her body, Kerrigan opened her eyes. She felt empowered and fearless. Dominic’s soul had almost completely diminished while Drake’s form was more pronounced.
“Just a little bit more and you can take his body,” Sinclair told him. Everything about the way she held her body showed her anxiousness. She thought they had won, but that wouldn’t last long.
“Sinclair! Release him and leave him be!” Kerrigan’s voice was omnificent and alien as it drowned out the storm.
Dominic turned his head in her direction. Her eyes cast their own light, and everything about her hummed with the new surge of power she had invoked. Even though he was in awe of her, he knew there was nothing she could do. What he was most worried about was the energy this fearless act was going to take from her.
“Querida, don’t,” he pled, his own energy fading fast.
Sinclair cackled. “You’re nothing like her. You can’t stop it.”
“You have no idea what I’m capable of.”
With just a flicker of thought, the restraints that had been holding her fell to the ground, and she was free. Kerrigan rose to her feet and walked toward them with sure footing. Her eyes were trained on Drake, her head raised, and her shoulders square.
“Dominic Grayson gave his soul to me,” she said assertively. “You. Can’t. Have. It. And now, I’m going to take back what is rightfully mine.”
She stretched her arms out in front of her, hands cupped together as she continued her advance. She closed her eyes and imagined herself pulling Dominic’s life essence across the space between them. It flowed effortlessly to her, his soul, like a ship at the mercy of a vengeful sea, but always knowing the direction home. And, she was the lighthouse that beckoned him there. Kerrigan felt a white hot sensation concentrated in her palms. When she opened her eyes, she could see the ball of incandescent energy gathering there. His colorful aura, her bright white power, coming together like a stellar explosion. A supernova of epic proportions.
His curse. Her gift. Their destiny – materialized in her hands.
“No!” Sinclair shrieked.
The corners of Kerrigan’s mouth curled up into a smug smile, and she looked at Sinclair, daring her to try to stop her. Drake’s form was a mere shadow again and fading quickly. The shadow billowed in smoky grey puffs as it darted back into the raven’s mouth like a vacuum cleaner set on reverse.
“What are you doing!?” Sinclair yelled, her eyes wide with surprise.
“I just want to right a wrong,” she answered, twisting Sinclair’s words on her.
Kerrigan lifted her palms until they were cupped in front of her face. She inhaled d
eeply and let out a slow breath, blowing Dominic’s soul back toward his lifeless body. His back arched off the platform, and he took in a sharp breath. The white light of his soul poured in through his mouth.
Dominic’s fingers began to twitch as the raven let out a shriek in protest and flapped its wings, sending ebony feathers floating through the air. His eyes fluttered open, and he looked around in bewilderment. The raven took flight and made a speedy escape.
“Come back, Drake!” Sinclair called after it.
When the raven didn’t heed her call, she snapped her head back toward Kerrigan. Her brows knitted together in anger, and she dropped her chin, looking up at her from beneath her lashes. Her chest heaved with fury. Fire and brimstone reflected in her blackened eyes, and her lips curled back to reveal her clenched teeth. She hissed with her breaths, a low growl building in her chest as she narrowed her eyes in hatred aimed at Kerrigan.
“You bitch!” Without warning, her arm jerked forward, sending a ripple of something wicked in Kerrigan’s direction.
Anticipating the attack, Kerrigan lifted her palm. Light emanated in waves as Sinclair’s dark magic attempted to penetrate the bubble of protection around her.
Sinclair roared in frustration. “What are you idiots waiting for?” she barked at the four members of her coven. They had been standing back, glued to their spots in fear and incapable of doing anything but watch the whole scene. “If you value your lives, you’ll kill her!”
Greta pushed Yvette forward. She stumbled, unable to maintain her balance, and she crashed to the ground at Kerrigan’s feet. Yvette cowered there, unwilling to make any move that might be misconstrued as an attack. Theo pushed back his shoulders and straightened to his full height. He charged forward and wrapped his arms around Kerrigan’s waist. He jumped back, screaming in pain with the heels of his hands pressed to his eyes.
“My eyes! My eyes!” he squalled, backing away.
Chase went to him and pulled his hands away to assess the damage. His eyes were milky in color, as if the whites of them had swallowed his pupils.
“I can’t see! I’m blind!”
“I’m outta’ here!” Greta said. “Come on, Yvette.”
She pulled on Yvette’s arm, and she scrambled to her feet. They took off running, just as they had before, with Chase close on their heels and Theo in tow.
“Now what are you going to do?” Kerrigan asked Sinclair.
Sinclair’s lips twitched. As badly as she wanted to destroy Kerrigan, she knew she was no match for her. She looked around, abandoned and out of options. She threw her head back and let out a blood curdling scream that sent all the birds nesting in the trees flocking to the air.
“This isn’t over! You hear me? Not by a long shot!” she yelled at Kerrigan. Then she turned on her heels and ran after her coven.
Once she was out of sight, and Kerrigan was sufficiently convinced that she wouldn’t return, she allowed herself to relax, dispelling some of the Light that had been surging through her. She turned toward Dominic and went to him. He tried to sit up, his body devoid of energy and feeling like a wet noodle.
“Here, let me help you.” Kerrigan put his arm around her shoulder and helped him stand. “We should probably get you out of here before Sinclair changes her mind and decides to come back.”
“My car is parked just outside the gate,” he said in a weak voice.
“Do you think you can make it, or should I call the twins?”
“No, I can make it.” With Kerrigan’s help, he took a step forward. “But you’ll have to drive.”
They walked in silence back to the Barracuda, both of them still in shock and not knowing what to say. Dominic wanted to say something, anything, to her, but he didn’t even know where to start. True, she had saved his life, but she had also found out what a freak he was. And that just might change the way she felt about him once it all sank in, and she had the chance to be disgusted.
“About what happened back there,” Dominic started after he was seated in the passenger side. Kerrigan had taken her place behind the wheel.
She blew out an exhausted breath. “Dominic, I just don’t think I’m ready to talk about it right now. Let’s just go home, regroup, and we can talk about it later. Okay?”
Her eyes were heavily lidded, and the irises, vibrant blue just moments ago, were beginning to dim and look weak. The amount of energy she had used to fight off Sinclair and give his soul back to him was waning. They had only a limited amount of time before she wouldn’t be able to drive either.
So he let it go with a simple, “Thank you…for saving my life.”
Kerrigan looked straight ahead, but gave him a nod. Then she started the engine.
Kerrigan said nothing on the ride home. She kept her weary eyes on the road and a blank expression on her face. Dominic kept his eyes on her. He wanted to say something, anything to break the silence and ease the awkward tension in the air between them. The problem was he didn’t know what to say.
The rest of the town went about their lives as if nothing had ever happened. People passing in their cars drank their morning coffee while they hugged cell phones between the side of their heads and their shoulders. The ones on the sidewalks walked at a hurried pace, each of them with somewhere they needed to be, something they needed to do. Students with backpacks slung over their shoulders rushed to class at Flagler, businessmen and women carrying briefcases tried to make it to work on time.
And then there were the tourists with their Hawaiian shirts and khaki shorts. A vacation was supposed to be about rest and relaxation, yet they scurried along, trying to keep up with the itinerary the lady of the family designed to make the most of their trip. Sort of defeated the purpose, didn’t it? St. Augustine was a paradise of history and tropical weather, but if you take away the fun in the sun, you would find real people with real problems. Some with problems you can’t even begin to comprehend.
Magnolia Avenue looked the same. Children waited by the bus stop, just the same. Housewives walked out and retrieved the morning paper, just the same. Everything was just same. But something was different between Kerrigan and Dominic.
They pulled into the driveway, not bothering to park the Barracuda in the garage. Gabe was waiting on the porch in the company of Sydney, Olivia, and the twins. Tyson and Talon jumped off the porch and wrenched their car doors opened, each lending their strength to get the occupants out and inside the house.
“Gabe, she’s going to need the extract. You remember the one I made before?” Dominic asked. “The passion flower…out in the garden.”
“I’m fine,” Kerrigan protested. “I’m just tired from lack of sleep. I’m going to bed.”
“Is anyone going to tell us what in the Sam hell happened to you two?” Sydney asked.
“You’ll have to ask Dominic. Seems I’m not privy to certain information, so I assume I’m not permitted to discuss it either,” Kerrigan said with an air of exhaustion that oozed sarcasm. “Right now, all I want to do is sleep.”
“Sleep would be good.” Dominic gained a brief glimpse from Kerrigan before she turned her back on him and walked toward the stairs.
Dominic followed, ignoring the questioning stares from their friends. Instead of going to his room, where she always slept, Kerrigan went to her own instead. He paused briefly, wondering if he should say something to her, but decided to wait until she came to his room.
He went on up and changed his clothes before calling Ricardo to thank him, and to let him know that his services wouldn’t be needed after all. He promised Ricardo that he would still give him the Colt regardless, because he knew he had every intention of following through on their deal.
After the call, he lit a cigarette and stepped out onto his balcony. He only smoked about half of it before fatigue took over, and he butted it. Stepping back into his room, he pulled back the covers and crawled under them. He stayed on his side of the bed, wanting to make sure he left enough room for Kerrigan when she came in.
/>
Sleep claimed him before he had a chance to talk to or even snuggle with her.
By the time he woke, it was already dusk outside. He had slept the whole day. He rolled over to snuggle into Kerrigan, but she wasn’t there. In fact, her pillow hadn’t even been disturbed, which meant she hadn’t been there at all.
Maybe she hadn’t been as fine as she claimed earlier. Worry seized him, and his body reacted. Dominic leapt out of bed and ran down the steps to find her.
The door to her room was wide open, but there was no one inside. He ventured down the stairs and was relieved when he heard Kerrigan’s voice coming from the front room.
“He just isn’t what I thought he was,” he heard her say.
He didn’t need or want to hear any more. She had voiced his worst fear. She found out what a monster he was, and she would forever see him that way. He turned and crawled back to his room to lick his wounds like a dog with his tail tucked between his hind legs.
Meanwhile, Kerrigan was still sulking on the couch in the living room with Gabe.
“Oh, sweetie, I don’t know what to say,” Gabe said. “On second thought, yes I do. That man is totally smitten with you. Take it from someone who’s been lonely for far longer than he’d care to admit. You’re crazy if you let the omission of a few little details keep you from being happy.”
“It was a pretty huge detail.”
“Kerr Bear, I heart you hard and all, but if you interrupt me one more time, I’m going to knock the shit out of you. You need to hear this, bitch,” he said with an air of authority.
“I have no idea what exactly it was that he kept from you, since all you little hookers are keeping secrets around here lately. But did you ever stop to consider that maybe he did it out of self-preservation?
Take little Ronald Miller, here.” He nodded toward the television screen where they were once again watching Can’t Buy Me Love. “Boyfriend paid little miss popularity, Cindy, to pretend to be his girlfriend, and why? So that he could gain some respect from his peers and get a little poonani action on the side. When all those little pricks found out that he was still just a geek underneath, they shunned him and wouldn’t give him the time of day.