by Sylah Sloan
My feet didn’t make any noise on the plush floor runner, as I turned the corner towards the staircase. Although there were no clear windows at the Manor, the light did shine through the stained glass, casting a cacophony of color across the floor and walls. I stopped before I reached a slash of light. I kept my body in the protection of the shadows, as I stared at the window, a scene of Angels and Demons fighting. I really shouldn’t have been doing this, and I knew both Mikhail and Cadeon would be pissed if they knew what I was about to do, but I wanted to know for myself.
I reached my hand out into the light, so slowly it was like everything stopped around me. I swallowed, my fingers the first part of me to touch the light. I thought maybe I would burst into flames or something, but when I felt only the slightest of tingles from the contact, I let out a breath of relief. This was probably not my brightest idea, but the excitement inside of me was too much to ignore. I ran up the stairs, feeling excited at the prospect of going outside. It had seemed like forever since I had been in the sunlight, and as I gripped the handle of the front door, I paused.
I started to think of what could happen to me and thought maybe the side effects of the sun on my new vampire body needed time to take effect. As those thoughts raced through me, I quickly pushed them aside, knowing if I let myself think too deeply about them, I would chicken out. I took a deep, steadying breath and turned the knob, pulling the heavy door open, and closed my eyes as sunlight washed through the main foyer. I felt warm all over and slowly opened my eyes, the snow sparkling all around me, like millions of tiny diamonds on the ground.
It was too cold, and with the sun shining brightly, it seemed warmer than I’m sure it was. My skin felt like it had fallen asleep, tingling all over but not uncomfortable or painful. I took a step onto the stone porch, holding my arms out slightly, and closed my eyes again. Soon the tingling subsided, and I was left with the glorious warmth, which seemed to wake my cells.
I felt arms wrap around my body and air leave my lungs, as I was pulled back forcibly into the house. My feet slipped on the floor, and I tumbled backwards, strong hands grabbing hold of my waist and keeping me from falling. The front door slammed shut, so loud I thought it would come off the hinges.
“You shouldn’t have done that, Meadow.” His voice was deadly calm, but I didn’t miss the way it made me feel very aware of my surroundings.
I turned my eyes to the side and saw a large shape pressed against the corner, light slashing through the stained glass, making a crisscross effect in front of him. Even though I couldn’t see who it was, I knew by the voice it was Cadeon. He sounded so angry with me, like I was a child who hadn’t listened to her parents.
“What?” I looked around, hoping no one was around to witness this, because I was getting embarrassed. “Why did you do that?”
“Why would you be so stupid as to go out into the sunlight?”
I squared my shoulders, his tone making me angry. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me, Meadow. You are acting foolish.” Although he still had yet to raise his voice, I could tell from his tone he was getting angrier.
“You told me I could go out into the daylight.” My face felt like it was on fire, my embarrassment rising with each passing moment.
“You know better than that. You know I told you we weren’t really sure yet. Look at yourself in the mirror and tell me if it’s safe to go out in the daylight.”
I had no idea what he was talking about, but I listened to him and walked over to the large mirror by the front door. My mouth hung open slightly, as I saw my red face. No wonder my face had felt like it was on fire. I had assumed it was from my embarrassment, but I was sunburnt. “I don’t understand.” I ran my fingers over my skin, my face almost immediately going back to my normal color. “It felt wonderful outside. There was no pain or anything.” I turned around and heard Cadeon sigh.
“The sunburn might have been the worst of it, but I don’t know. Any other vampire would have burst into flames, if they stayed out in the sun as long as you did, so I can’t dispute the fact that you are definitely a daywalker.”
He stepped out of the darkened corner, still staying away from the streams of light, but coming close enough, so that I could see his face and arms. I covered my mouth and stepped closer to him, seeing the awful third degree burns that covered his skin. One side of his face was bright red and had blisters covering it, along with both of his arms.
“Oh my.” I took I step closer, and he took a step back. I dropped my hands, feeling guilty. “Why did you do that, Cadeon? You’re hurt now, because of me.” He shook his head, and I watched in awe as the burns and blisters started to heal on their own. In a matter of minutes the only thing left from his injuries was a light pink coloring to his face and arms.
“It isn’t your fault. When I came to see if you were up and saw the open door, my worst fears came to life. I pictured you a pile of dust on the front steps, like some morbid gift someone left.”
I took another step towards him, until he was backed to the wall. I lifted my hand, and he didn’t flinch. I trailed my fingers over the side of his face. My heart clenched that he had gotten hurt because of me. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to feel the sun on my face again.” He breathed out heavily, reaching up and cupping my cheek. We stood like that for several minutes, his fingers brushing against my cheek while mine brushed against his arm.
“Promise me you won’t do anything like that again.” Cadeon spoke softly.
As I stared into his crystalline eyes, I wanted to promise him whatever would make him safe, and, even as I nodded my head, I knew that part of me was lying.
Chapter Twenty-Three
It was nearly Christmas, and everyone at the Manor was busy preparing. There went my whole belief that vampires didn’t like anything religious. Many students and teachers were busy setting up a huge blue spruce in the front foyer corner. It was ten feet tall, and the smell of the fresh needles and wilderness clinging to it put a smile on my face. I sat on the stairs and watched them, and, although I wanted to help put the ribbons and decorations on it, I didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes. I was content enough to just sit and watch and when they were finished and everyone stood back to admire their handiwork, my heart broke a little at the memory of Marie and the kids.
Christmas had been the kids’ favorite holiday, mine too. Marie made fresh cookies, and I helped Cecile, Toby, and Mack build gingerbread houses. They were never great, but it had always been fun trying to recreate the masterpiece on the front of the magazine Marie had given us.
Everyone scattered, but I stayed and stared at the tree, the lights like millions of little stars, twinkling and bright. Someone put on Christmas music, and the soft notes filtered through the air. I turned and looked as Nik came and sat beside me, his ever-present NY cap on, his bright blue eyes a stark contrast to his pitch black hair. We hadn’t talked about the fight any further, and I preferred it that way. No one knew about what happened—the whole thing of freezing people in place and Rhyker reaching out for me. That was something I didn’t share with anyone besides Mikhail and Cadeon. They still hadn’t found anything new, and every time I sought them out, they were busy thumbing through ancient books, looking in the texts for the answers.
I leaned into Nik’s shoulder, smiling up at him as he started to sing along with the music. “What are your plans for Christmas? Are you going to spend it with your family?” He shrugged, not stopping his serenade to me. I had a feeling I shouldn’t have brought it up.
“My parents are going to Europe for the holiday, something about a romantic get-a-way with just the two of them.”
I leaned my head on his shoulder, feeling so bad for him. I wanted to tell him everything would be okay. “That means I get you all to myself.” I smiled up at him and even though he returned the smile, I could see how sad he really was. “It’s just going to be us anyway, Violet is spending time in Aspen with her family.” I saw Cadeon walk into the foyer, his eyes al
ready on me. His face drew into a scowl, which quickly disappeared as soon as it had come. I lifted my head from Nik’s shoulder, suddenly aware of how close we were. Our legs were touching, and I knew it must look pretty intimate. Although Cadeon and I were on better terms, we certainly weren’t in a relationship, and I shouldn’t have felt bad for how close Nik and I were. I thought about how I would feel if I saw Cadeon like this with another girl. Jealousy spiked inside of me, but I shoved it away.
“Hey.” I smiled. Cadeon returned the gesture, but I didn’t miss how his eyes kept going back to Nik. “What’s up?” Lately, Cadeon had been immersed in his work, and seeing him now made me realize how much I missed him.
“I’ll talk to you later. Maybe I’ll swing by with a movie after dinner?”
“Sure, make it something scary.” Nik smiled down at me, his gaze going to Cadeon and his smile vanishing. “Okay, see ya later, Meadow.”
Nik left, and Cadeon watched him the entire time. There was an awkward moment, where I shifted uncomfortably and then Cadeon sat beside me, not as close as Nik, but close enough that I smelled his wonderful scent. “Have you guys found anything yet?”
He ran a hand over his jaw and stared at the tree, the light reflecting off of his eyes like a mirror. “No,” he breathed out wearily before turning and looking at me. “Have you spoken to Mikhail yet?”
I knew what Cadeon was referring to, but I still hadn’t found the right time, nor did I have the guts to find out what Mikhail was keeping from me. I knew I should go in there and demand he tell me, but there was a part of me which was frightened at what he might say. “No.”
I heard Cadeon sigh, and I looked over. He looked so tired. “I hope you do soon, but I understand your hesitance,” he said.
We were quiet, but the silence wasn’t awkward. Cadeon finally spoke about our earlier conversation. “There has never been a recorded case where two realms crossed paths like you experienced. Over the ages the Shadow realm has been twisted and morphed into a fairytale, a myth.”
I couldn’t help laugh a little. Cadeon looked at me with a strange expression. “I’m sorry; it’s just it seems kind of weird for mythical creatures to have fairytales,” I said.
Cadeon smiled a little. “I guess so, but maybe humans are the fabled creatures to us.”
“Hmm.” I could hear the joking tone in his voice, but he did have a good point. “So what are we going to do?”
“Well, until we can find something, Mikhail suggested if this being reaches out to you while you’re dreaming, you should make contact.” I was about to argue, but Cadeon held his hand up and stopped me. “Believe me, I told him I thought that was the lousiest idea he had ever had. Even though you can’t be harmed in your dreams, I don’t like the idea of you interacting with what we don’t understand.”
We were both quiet for a while, and I thought about it, not liking the idea, but not knowing what other options we had. “I think I should do it. It scares me, but you said it can’t hurt me in my dreams, right?”
“No. While you dream, it’s your subconscious creating an alternative world, but that’s what the Shadow realm is, an alternative world.” At my confused look, he chuckled. “I know it sounds confusing, but just think of it like this: your brain creates this other world which only you can go to. Then think about everyone on the world dreaming of their own little worlds at the same time. That produces a lot of power. Those people aren’t all dreaming about the same thing, but they are all using the same connection to get there—sleep. So all this power is created with nowhere to go, until one day it becomes so huge, it creates its own realm. Once that world is created, a thread starts to form from one’s subconscious to the dream realm. Over time, that thread becomes a rope and then a bridge and then it’s so thick, one can’t distinguish the subconscious from the dream realm. Make sense?”
I stared at him with what I knew was a dumbfounded look on my face. “I lost you at ‘No’.” He chuckled again, and the sound made my whole body tingle. I was aware of how much bigger he was then me, how muscular his arms and legs were, easily double the size of mine, and at that moment I felt insanely feminine around him.
“Well, like I said, over time it became more myth than anything else. There isn’t any hard evidence, well, not that we have, anyway.”
I thought about what he said, finding it scary everyone in the world was connected at the same time, while they slept. That this other realm that we created could house an array of creatures no one knew of. Presumably, they could jump into other’s dreams if my run-in with Rhyker Rulon was anything to go by, but what had really happened in the woods, during the party? Would I ever even find out? Cadeon’s deep voice brought me out of my musing.
“So, Nikolai visits you?”
It was weird hearing him say Nik’s full name. I shrugged. “Sometimes. We like the same movies and music, so he stops by with his collection of DVDs and CDs.” At Cadeon’s brooding look, I added, “Violet also comes by.” I hoped that would make his sour look go away, and it did, but only marginally.
He was quiet for some time after that and then, he stood, holding his hand out to me, like a peace offering. I took it, and he walked me back to my room, both of us stopping in front of my door and staring at each other. It was getting close to dawn, and everyone was going to bed, but I didn’t want my time with Cadeon to end. “Do you want to come in?” It felt strange to ask him, like I was doing something lewd, but I would have been happy to play chess with him, if it would have given me a little more time to be with him. I thought he would say yes and my heart stammered, but when he shook his head, I let my shoulders fall slightly.
“Believe me, it isn’t that I don’t want to spend time with you, but it would be inappropriate for me to come into your room.”
I wanted to tell him he had been in my room plenty of times, but I noticed how he kept tightening his fists, his knuckles turning white from the force of it. I wondered how much he was holding back, and I felt a little thrill of excitement. I nodded and opened my door. “Okay, well, goodnight.” I turned and started to step inside, when he put his hand on my shoulder and stopped me. I turned around, my heart beating so fast I thought for sure he could hear it.
He took a step towards me and his hand cupped my jaw, tilting it back slightly. I watched him come closer to me, and my breath stalled. I hadn’t kissed him since the dance, but that seemed like ages ago. When his lips touched mine, they were almost hesitant, but soon grew hungry. He wrapped his arms around me, his mouth devouring mine, as I stumbled backwards and farther into my room. I thought he would break the kiss, when he realized where we were going, but his kisses became fierce. The door swung shut, and I felt the edge of my bed hit the back of my legs. My heart raced, and I knew I should stop, but I didn’t want to.
He broke the kiss, dropping his mouth to my neck and panting. “I should leave.”
I knew I should agree with him, but of course I didn’t. “No, I don’t think you should.” His arms tightened around me as he started to kiss my neck, his lips warm and soft as his hands ran up and down my back.
“I’ve been trying to control myself, Meadow, I swear I have. I see the way the other guys look at you.”
His words thrilled me and made me hot. We fell on the bed, me on my back with Cadeon’s body covering mine. We started kissing again, and it was then I heard his heart beating. I felt my fangs lengthen and gasped when Cadeon’s tongue swiped over them, cutting his tongue and letting his sweet blood fill my mouth. He made a sound in the back of his throat, a noise of need and arousal. He ripped himself away from me, taking several uncoordinated steps backwards as he breathed heavily.
“I really should go now.”
I swallowed hard. I could see the way his gaze would jump from my mouth to my neck. “No, you don’t have to. I want this, Cadeon. I want to be with you completely.” He made a strangled noise as he stared at me with half lidded eyes. I thought he would come closer, but he took another step back and then
turned towards the door. I got out of bed and walked up to him, placed my hand in the middle of his back, the muscle bunching beneath my touch. “I’m sorry.”
He turned around, grasping my hand and bringing it to his mouth for a soft kiss. “You have nothing to be sorry about.” He closed his eyes, his jaw clenched tight, as he let my hand go. “I want to be with you so bad, Meadow, but I don’t think I’ll be able to control myself.”
I got hot, and I took a step towards him. “Maybe I want you to lose control.” I didn’t know why I was saying the things I was, but something inside of me went wild, and a part of me wanted to be unleashed. His breathing mimicked mine, fast and erratic. My hands skimmed his muscular arms, and we stared at each other. I tingled everywhere, and it was a feeling I remembered all too well.
I was vaguely aware of the room becoming hazy, the edges shaking, as if an earthquake were rocking Arcane Manor. Cadeon’s dreamy expression changed, and his eyes widened as he stared at me. I felt myself get pulled back, as though hands were wrapped around me. I tried to reach for Cadeon, but as hard as I tried, he was out of reach. I saw his mouth moving, but I couldn’t hear what he was saying, couldn’t hear anything, except for the ringing in my ears. He grew distant, and I could see he was reaching for me, just as I was for him. I was suddenly submerged in darkness.
I tried to see where I was, the invisible hands no longer pulling me backwards. I felt the hard ground beneath my feet, but I couldn’t see an inch in front of my face. A soft white light began to illuminate the room, and I gasped at what the light revealed.
I stood in the center of an opulent bedroom, silks and satins adorning everything, the soft light from hundreds of candles around the room making everything ethereal. I turned around and took note of every plush thing adorning the room. I gasped when Cadeon materialized in front of me, his smirk like nothing I had ever seen.