To protector her, he had to leave her. The decision should have been clear from the beginning, but being held by her now made all rational thought leave. He loved her, needed to be with her, knew that she was the one to save him, and he was going to have to let her go or she was going to die with him. That was the only way he could stay with her.
Ghostly tendrils of the sea began to cling to his legs, pulling his body back. Isabelle’s hold only grew tighter. “Let go, Isabell,” he pleaded, his voice lost in the tangle of her hair as she rested her head against his chest.
“No way,” she strained. “He won’t kill me to get you back.”
“Yes, Poseidon will. You have to let me go.” His heart shattered as Poseidon’s words began to echo within his mind. For truly you’ll never know, until you share your pain with a soul so pure, you’ll either bring them death or freedom. There was a type of freedom in death, but he wasn’t risking it. The pain he would bear the rest of his life would be worth her freedom to live.
“Isabelle,” he snapped. She lifted her head to look into his eyes, the unshed tears of frustration bringing tears of his own to the surface. “I won’t bring you pain because of a selfish desire to keep you near me.”
“That’s not your decision to make,” she fought back, tears falling down her face in earnest now.
“You’re right, it’s not. But I’m begging you, do not make watch your death in the same fashion as mine. Do not make me suffer the guilt of killing you because I couldn’t bear to leave you.” His heart shattered; the words spoken in more truth than he knew he had.
“I’ll find you, okay?” he said, a last-ditch effort to have her let go before she was dragged into the depths. With a sharp jerk, they both flew into the water, her startled scream filling the air as her lungs began to fill with water. Time was up.
His mind flashed to the moments before he drowned, the searing pain his lungs felt as water filled them, pushing out the air he’d never breathe again. Don’t let this happen, his mind pleaded with his heart. Stop this from happening.
Isabelle still clung to his body, and it took all his strength to pull her away from him. He watched as her eyes went wide with fear and wished he could do anything to erase that look. Before they were pulled down into the water, he took her hand in his and gave her squeeze.
“I’ll find you,” he promised. “I don’t care how long it takes. I’ll find you.”
“You don’t have to find me if I don’t leave,” she whined, her grip growing stronger in his hand. With a forceful jerk, their bodies were pulled under, the surface disappearing quickly. The invisible force of the ocean did not care who came with it, as long as someone did.
The time was now. He yanked her body close to his and in that brief moment of confusion, when her grip loosened, he leaned in, kissed her forehead, and shoved her away. She let out a wail when she realized what he had done and tried to swim towards him. It was too late, the ocean moved faster than she could.
In a blur, he was sucked back into the depths with only the small comfort of seeing Isabella break the surface before she disappeared from his sight. He may be imprisoned for eternity, but deep in his heart he knew he had done the right thing.
He’d fallen in love, realized he had made some terrible choices in life, and sacrificed everything for the life of another. Whether that was the lesson he needed to learn, or not, it was what he was satisfied with. His conscience was clear, and he was a at peace with himself, for the first time in his entire life.
When his body finally came to a stop, miles below the surface in a midnight hued cave, a voice rang out, startling him. “I guess you and I should finally have a talk, huh?”
Four Years Later
The cobblestone road rumbled under the tires as Isabelle’s Uber pulled to a stop. “You sure this is where you want to be?” the driver questioned as he twisted his body to look in her direction.
“Yep, this is the place. It may not look like much, but it houses state-of-the-art equipment and technology that will continue to preserve and repair the ocean and all those that use it. You should see the advancements in engine technology that they're working on. It won’t be long before ships leave a minimal ecological footprint, allowing the corals to repair themselves. It's fascinating,” she said, rambling on with while her nerves threatened to evict lunch from her stomach.
“No offence ma’am, but you hippies are weird. Smart as a whip and doing great things, but weird,” the driver said with a chuckle.
“We’ve been called worse, I suppose. Thank again,” she said while checking her app to be sure the man was paid. It was a long drive from the city and she wanted to sure she tipped well. Once everything was cleared, she grabbed her bags and waved the driver off. She knew she was in the right place, the trident on the door a clear indicator that she hadn’t gone in the wrong direction.
After the cruise and having to do some pretty significant leg work in hiding the fact that she had lost the love of her life, she went to college and changed her major immediately. The ocean was where she belonged and what she would continue to explore the rest of her life.
Theo was never far from her mind and if he couldn’t find her, she would do her best to find him. Or at the very least, honor his memory by cleaning up and finding ways to use the vast depth of the seas to sustain the people of the planet.
The company she now stood in front of was brand new and already paving the way for a zero-footprint society in ocean research and development. She had applied for an unpaid internship for the summer after graduation and within a week of her application going in, it was approved with her travel arrangements included.
Not much is known to the public about who backs the company, where the funding comes from exactly, but with her diligent research and in speaking with several people, the company was legitimate and real. So funding aside, the company had established itself in the community as the place to be to assist in the need for change.
Her stomach began to flutter as she approached the door. Before she could even knock, it swung open and someone about her own age smiled at her. “You must be Isabelle, come in. I’d love to say we have our act together, but most of us just got back from a month-long cruise working on mechanical engineering and coral rehabilitation and our bags haven’t even been unpacked yet. So, if you smell something bad, we apologize, you know how a month at sea can wear on a person’s body and things.”
She nodded. “It’s okay. I’m just beyond excited to be here. Can I help with anything?” she asked, setting her bags down and out of the way.
“Not yet, but we’ve got a list a mile long for you to start on when you get settled. Give it a few minutes and the boss will be down to greet you and show you around,” the man paused then smiled. “He smells awful too, but something tells me you won’t care.”
“Honestly, the smell of the ocean doesn’t bother me. If it did, I’d not be in this line of work,” she said with a grin.
“Yep, that was the right answer,” the man pointed to a sitting area off the left. “Go ahead and wait in there, he’ll be done in a few minutes.”
“Thanks,” she said while reaching down and grabbing her bags. “I didn’t catch your name.”
He smiled and gave her a wink. “It’s James.”
“Nice to meet you, James.”
“Likewise,” he said before ducking off into the hustle of people that were scrambling around the house.
After she moved into the sitting room, and putting her stuff against the wall, she found herself drawn to a painting that sat over a fireplace that had never been used. Looking up, she was hit with such a wave of familiarity that it nearly knocked her on her butt.
The detail in the ship was so great, she could feel the splintered wood under her feet as the ocean spray seeped into her skin, leaving a chill down to her bones. She had never forgotten when that felt like and as she raised a shaking hand to the painting a wave of emotion crashed into her.
“I told you
I’d find you,” a voice whispered from behind her.
Whipping around, Isabelle looked into the deep brown gaze of her lost love and launched her body towards his. He caught her with ease as she wrapped her legs around his waist and dropped her head onto his shoulder, letting four years of tears fall at once.
“How are you here,” she muttered as she tried to get a handle on her emotions.
“I made a deal with a guy who says he doesn’t exist anymore,” Theo laughed, the sound like magic to her ears. She felt his hand as it cupped her cheek and gently forced her to look at him. His gentle smile looked down at her and she knew, he was here to stay. He had somehow come back for her, just like he had promised.
Slowly, he lowered his lips to her, much like he had done so many years ago, only this time, nothing stopped him from connecting with her. She groaned and wrapped her arms around his neck, encouraging him to be as close as he needed to be.
He tasted like the sea, like the sweet breeze of a Caribbean sunset, warm and engulfing. His body was solid and real under hers and trembled with emotions she knew very well.
When he finally broke away, she hitched back another sigh and fought to stay in control. “I’ve waited so long to do that and have no intentions of letting you go this time. Stay with me?”
“I’ve searched the oceans for you, of course I’ll stay with you. Will you stay with me?” She had to be sure. She needed to know that he was not leaving her again.
“I’ve crossed those same oceans, just to be able to stay, right here, with only you.”
Hey everyone! Thanks for reading! Now that you’re done, could you go jump over to Amazon and Goodreads and give the book a quick review? It would mean the world to me if you could. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart and the endless stories in my mind. Your reviews are like a breath of fresh of air that I need to continue this process of writing and any review is so greatly appreciated.
As a thank you for reading this story, I’d like to introduce you to the world of Briarberry with the first chapter of book 1 in the Briarberry Estate Series, Fanged and Confused.
Enjoy!
And remember, I love you, you are loved, smile, the world needs you!
Fanged and Confused
Carrie Humphrey
Chapter 1
Okay, you can totally do this, Kedah thought as she shifted her backpack to the front of her body. No one was guarding the room. It was as simple as sneaking in, grabbing what she needed, and getting out. Easy.
Taking a huge gulp of air, she tried to rid herself of the nervous hiccups that appeared and ran for the door. It was unlocked, as it had been in the past, so she slipped into the cool dark room with ease.
Going over to the standup cooler, she grabbed what she needed, filling her pack so much she almost couldn’t zip it shut. She quietly rearranged things inside the fridge to make it look like nothing was missing, hopefully. As with the previous times she had been here, things seemed to be going without a hitch.
“Stop.” A voice demanded from somewhere in the dark shadows of the cold room. She hadn’t noticed anyone in here, but then, she thought it was safe to think no one would be lurking, aside from her.
Holding her backpack just a little closer, she began to frantically look around for the body that belonged to the voice. She would have thought with her heightened senses that she’d have no issues identifying a body in the room. She thought wrong.
“Are you stealing blood?” The male voice asked. He didn’t sound angry, just slightly amused, which was odd. Confusion clouded her thoughts as she tried to think of something clever to say, because ‘yes, I’m stealing blood’ just sounded pathetic. If only her current health condition came with the superpowers she expected, she’d have been good as gold to just leave without anyone catching her.
Well, she thought, when all else fails, lie.
“Yes, but because my mother needs a transfusion and insurance isn’t covering it.” As lies go, it was the best she could come up with. Even though it was pretty lame.
“Right,” the man laughed as he stepped into her view. He was tall, had wide brimmed black glasses, ruffled dirty blonde hair, was strikingly handsome, and he glowed. Not like glowed, glowed, but had an aura about him that she’d only seen one other time. “Even a human would find it hard to choke down that lie. Because darling, you are a terrible liar.”
She sighed and realized that some things just never change. Bad liar as a human and even worse now. “Are you going to call the cops? Cause I’ll just run and I’m pretty sure they won’t catch me.”
“I bet I’ll catch you before you can finish your next thought.” He smirked. “The cops on the other hand won’t stand a chance, of that I am sure.” Cocky SOB, she thought. Then he disappeared before she could continue her mental rant and reappeared behind her, wrapping his arms around hers and her pack, his lips beside her ear. “Now, why are you really stealing blood? And for the record, I have fangs as well so lie again and I won’t hesitate to use them.”
She paled and froze. He had fangs and moved faster than she did. He was just like her. “I’m hungry.” She muttered, no longer attempting anything but the truth. She was hungry, after all. This was her only source of food. Humans were a no-fly zone for her. She tried the animal thing but that tasted like rotting cattle, and left her with the urge to vomit for days.
“Hungry?” He asked, startled. “What do you mean you’re hungry?”
Kedah sighed and closed her eyes. She was, in fact, starving. “I’ve not had, er, liquid, in days and I’m hungry. This is my only way to get what I need. Please,” she pleaded. “If you are what you say you are, let me just go on my way and take what I need.”
The man holding her let go, spun her around, and looked deep into her eyes, which had now snapped back open. “Excuses me if this sounds harsh, but why are you starving and reduced to stealing? Surely your Sire is providing for you?”
She growled at the mention of the person who had turned her. He drained her, turned her and left her. “Well, he isn’t and no, I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Unfortunately, I can’t just let you go. Most of us live by a code of ethics and I’d like to know why your Sire feels the need to be excluded from that.” The man stated. He was becoming increasingly persistent and she was becoming increasingly irritated. She just wanted to leave and be on her way, alone.
Though it would be nice to know a fellow vampire, she was not about to lose what little control of her life she still had. Ever since the accident, she spiraled out like a tornado on a path of destruction and only now, four months later, was she gaining a foothold. She’d gotten a night job, moved to her basement, found a local blood bank to “borrow” from and had one friend in the world who knew what was going on and still loved her.
So who exactly was this guy, anyways? Where was he when she was turned? Those nights of hell when all she wanted was to be burned or staked to get her out of the pain she’d felt. That was beyond the worst torture she could have ever imagined and she still wasn’t sure how she survived. Shuddering, she took a step back. “I’m fine. Can I go, or are you going to call the cops?”
“The cops? Really? What do you think I should say? Hey, there is a woman here stealing blood because she’s hungry. We’d both be arrested, or at least they’d try. I wouldn’t be caught, but you’re young, you may. And what would you do in prison? Ask nicely for bags of blood?” He laughed bitterly. “Seriously, though, I really need to know who you are and why you’re stealing blood.” She watched as he pushed his glasses up onto his nose and crossed his arms over his chest.
Glancing to the door that was lit with a dim exit sign, she took a deep breath, trying to, yet again, calm her nerves. Whoever this was, it was obvious he was not about to let her go. But, to be fair, he wasn’t attacking her either. She hugged the bag tighter to her chest and closed her eyes. However this would go down, she needed to not lose the bag, or she risked the life of her best friend back at the home.
“Let me at least introduce myself, okay? I’m Jensen, local vampire. And you are?” There was nothing threating about his voice, nothing that suggested to her that she was in trouble, and yet worry clouded her thoughts. The only other vampire she had met had turned her and left. Her view on the species as a whole, wasn’t great.
She had been fine alone, or at least okay, but a deep need to belong was beginning to push forward in her subconscious and it was getting hard to ignore. Maybe, just maybe, Jensen wouldn’t disappoint.
Maybe he could help.
“Kedah.” She made no move to shake hands, but neither did he.
“Alright Kedah, I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that you maybe didn’t have a good experience turning.” He took a step back and held her gaze. “It seems you have little to no reason to trust me, which I understand. I can offer you help, if you’re interested.”
Before her brain could tell her no, her mouth opened and spoke words she didn’t stop to think about. “A good experience? Are you kidding? It was the worst thing I have ever felt and I wished and prayed for death. Where in the hell were you to answer that prayer? I should have died, I wanted too. Even now, I don’t feel like I should be here, yet here I am, stealing blood because I don’t even know how to bite someone. So trust you, no. I don’t even come close to trusting anyone because I have had to do this alone while no one cared. Where was your help then? You’re a little late.” She snapped her mouth shut to stop talking but her eyes were wide and her emotions all over the place.
To his credit, Jensen remained calm through her rant and continued to hold her gaze. “Kedah, I am sorry that happened to you. I am. But you made it, you did it alone. That’s impressive as hell. Trust me on that. Though I couldn’t help you then, and I intend to find out why you were left alone, I can help you now. Here.”
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