by Julie Wetzel
Settling on the couch, she slipped into her sandals and ran the brush through her damp hair. It would be a while before it was fully dry so she pulled the hair tie from the handle of the brush and pulled it up into a loose bun. As she worked, she worried about her decision to go get food. The fact that someone had tried to poison her sat heavy on her mind. Part of her wanted to go back in and cuddle with Darien where it was safe, but she knew he needed to recover. And her presence, even out here, would keep him from getting the rest he needed. The idea of being alone after the attack was daunting, but she knew she would have to face it eventually. She couldn’t spend her time hiding in Darien’s shadow.
Reaching out, she touched her connection with Zak. A loving gurgle filled her mind, making her smile. She sighed in contentment and let that connection go. Grabbing the beach bag she’d put together yesterday, she headed out for lunch and sun, reassured. No matter where she went, she wasn’t truly alone as long as she had her connection with her boys. They would both come if she needed them.
***
A feeling of wrongness woke Darien from his rest. He pulled in a lungful of air as his eyes popped open. His senses sharpened as he tried to identify what was wrong. The room around him was still and dark. He waited, feeling the vibe in the air, but there was nothing unusual. Just the smell of salt from the sea and the hum of the air conditioning.
Sitting up he reached for Vicky, but came up empty. He could feel their connection, so he knew she was alive, but there was nothing more than that. Fear gripped him as he swung his legs out of bed and glanced at the clock. It had been a little over an hour since he’d finally let go to rest. “Victoria,” he called, both out loud and through their link, but got no reply.
Standing up, he went to the end of the bed and shoved his bare feet into his shoes. The nagging need to find Vicky overrode his sense of propriety. Still dressed in his sleep pants and t-shirt, he headed out to search for her. Concern ate at him. He’d never reached for someone linked to him and came up completely blank. Even asleep or blocked, pushing on a bond should generate some kind of response. The closest he’d ever come was when Darcy had stolen his powers. He had lost the ability to reach his connections, but this was different. He could touch Vicky’s link. It was strong and sure, he just couldn’t feel her.
Worried that his power was waning again, Darien reached for Elliot. His mind touched his second’s with ease, but Elliot was concentrating very hard on something. Darien pulled back without interrupting him, but a new concern for his people added to the worry already eating at him. He reached for Josh and Jakob. As the two vampires closest to Elliot, they would know what was going on. The images and feelings of desire told him the boys were busy entertaining a lady and he backed away as quickly as he could. He knew the twins had a healthy sex life, but he didn’t really want those kinds of gritty details running around in his head. Quickly he touched the rest of the links he held with his kiss. Most of the vampires were asleep, but the few that were awake showed no signs of alarm. Finally, he touched Zak. The fay’s familiar gurgle filled his mind as phantom tentacles surrounded him, patting him lovingly. Darien smiled and pulled back from the hellhound. Whatever was on Elliot’s mind wasn’t bad enough to worry Zak. Besides, Elliot was a very capable and smart man. If he ran into something he couldn’t handle, he knew to call for help.
Letting it go, Darien turned his attention back to Vicky. The bonds with his people were strong, so there wasn’t an issue with his power. Why couldn’t he reach her? He pondered this as the elevator took him down to the lobby. She said she was going to lunch so he started with the hotel restaurant.
As he stepped inside, he cast a glance around the room. It was nice. The stylish décor made it a cozy place to relax for a meal, but he didn’t see Vicky anywhere.
“Just one?” The hostess asked as she smiled at Darien
“I’m looking for my wife,” Darien said as he turned to the smartly dressed woman. “She came down for lunch about an hour ago. Blonde curly hair, white swim suit, colorful sarong, probably wearing sandals.”
The woman nodded. “I remember her. She charged the bill to her room, but she’s already left.”
“Thank you,” Darien said and turned away from the woman. He was glad to hear that Vicky had eaten, but it still didn’t explain the emptiness at the end of her link. Retracing his steps through the lobby, Darien headed out to the pool. If she were serious about sun bathing, that would be the most likely place to find her.
The far side of the lobby opened to a walkway leading to the pool. Overhead, a second floor balcony cast a shadow over part of the patio, giving the guests a cool, outdoor area to enjoy the gentle breeze coming off the ocean. Making his way across the covered porch, Darien stopped and stood in the shadow of the outdoor stairs. He stared out at the large terrace holding the pool and scanned the area he could see, searching for Vicky. There were a lot of people relaxing around the pool, but he could only see half of the deck chairs from where he hid from the sun. After a few moments, Darien took a step closer to the light so he could see more of the patio.
Finally, his eyes caught the golden curls of Vicky’s hair. She was stretched out on one of the wooden lounge chairs, sunning herself. Letting out a sigh of relief, he watched her from the safety of the shadows, but something wasn’t right. Even though he could see her, he still couldn’t reach her. He pressed on their connection as hard as he could, but there was still nothing. She looked like she had fallen asleep, but if that were the case, he should have been able to feel her against his mind. Taking a closer look, his breath caught and his head stopped. Something was definitely wrong. She was much too still to be asleep.
Taking a step into the sun, Darien picked his way across the crowded patio. His feet picked up speed as he got closer. Something in her hair glistened dark red in the sun. Disbelief spurred him on and he shoved people out of his way as he raced to her side. Angry cries followed him, but he ignored them as he stood over her trying to understand what he saw.
Vicky’s lifeless eyes stared up at him and blood dripped from a wound on her head.
Shocked, he dropped to her side. “Victoria!” he said in an anguished whisper. He pulled her limp body into his arms and opened his power to her, but there was no life left in her. He pulled in gasps of air as he pushed the hair at her temple back to inspect the wound. Her blood was thick on his fingers as he felt the place where someone had caved in her skull. He glanced around at the people surrounding him, unable to process what was happening. There had to be thirty or more people here. How could no one have noticed her murder? Rage colored his vision as he lifted her lifeless body against him.
“Darien?”
Vicky’s voice broke into his rage and he whipped around to see her standing behind him. Her hair hung heavy with water as she dripped on the concrete. His eyes raced over her standing there alive. He turned back to the dead Vicky in his arms to find he was clutching her sarong wrapped around a towel. Shocked he held the material out and looked at it. Just a few seconds ago, it had been the woman he loved. Even the blood had felt real.
Dropping the towel, he stood up and turned to Vicky. He pressed on their connection and reached her with ease. Her worry filled his mind as he grabbed her up and squeezed her to him. His heart raced as he poured his powers over her, making sure she was okay.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, holding him tightly.
“I thought you were dead,” he said. His words were muffled from where he’d buried his face in her shoulder.
“What?” she said, shocked.
“On the chair,” he said, holding her tighter. “You were dead.”
Vicky turned her head to see the towel and sarong strung across the chair. “I was in the pool,” she said, pushing on Darien’s shoulder so he would loosen his grip. “Are you all right?”
Darien shook his head. “No.” The shock of finding her dead had rattled him. He touched her face to make sure she was real.
Vic
ky searched his face for a moment before pulling out of his arms. The look in his eyes disturbed her. She grabbed up her sarong, shook some leaves from it, and tied it around her waist.
Darien stood there trying to understand what had happened. She was dead, but no one saw her. And now she was alive. He watched dumfounded as she shoved her feet in the shoes, grabbed her bag, and yanked the sun umbrella from the nearest holder.
“Come on,” she said grabbing him by the arm and holding the umbrella up so he was protected from the sun. She pulled him into motion and led him across the patio to the shade of the balcony. Abandoning the umbrella in the bushes, she pushed him as far into the shade as she could get him to go. “Darien, what’s wrong?”
Darien stared at her, still stunned by the experience. His skin stung from the short time in the sun, but that took second place to the feelings swirling in him. There was joy and relief, but there was also fear and shock. It made it hard for him to speak. Pulling her into his arm, he leaned back against the wall where she had pushed him. “You were dead,” he said again, still unsure how to explain what had just happened.
“What?” Vicky asked, leaning back just far enough to meet his eyes.
“I saw you. In the chair.” He glanced back out to the patio, but couldn’t see the chair Vicky had been sitting in. “You were dead.”
“I’m not dead,” she said pulling his attention back to her. “I’m fine.”
Darien looked back at her still unable to comprehend what happened. “But I saw you,” he said trying to explain. “I touched you. Someone had bashed your head in.”
Vicky studied his eyes for a moment before stepping away from him. “Come on.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him back towards the lobby.
Darien followed her. His mind was starting to recover from the shock. Drawing in a deep breath, he backed away from the feelings overwhelming him. With a clearer mind, he squeezed Vicky’s hand, making sure she was real.
Vicky squeezed his fingers back.
As they stopped to wait for the elevator, Darien stepped up behind her and folded his arms around her. “I thought I lost you,” he whispered into the side of her neck.
Tilting her head, she gave him better access to her neck. “I’m here.” Resting her arms over his, she leaned into him. When the elevator opened, Vicky stepped from his arms, but caught his hand and pulled him along behind her.
Darien punched the button for their floor and spun around to stand in the corner. He pulled Vicky back into his arms, closed his eyes, and buried his nose in her damp hair. The strong smell of chlorine made his nose itch, but he kept it buried in her hair, drawing in her scent. He opened his eyes at the sounds of laughter. A young couple giggled their way onto the elevator. They were slightly sun burnt and full of joy. Upon seeing Darien and Vicky in the corner, the girl tried to get her man to be more respectable, but he growled and latched onto her in a way that made her laugh more. Their joy made Darien smile, and he relaxed a bit. He couldn’t help but envy their moment of carefree joy. He had come to the islands with the hope of finding a moment of such delight, but so far, things hadn’t gone as he would have liked. He was stressed. And it was probably that stress that caused his weird hallucination.
As the young couple apologized and giggled their way off the elevator. Darien relaxed around Vicky.
“Are you better?” she asked as the door slid shut.
“Yes,” he said. “I’m stressed about the Council, and I think I had a bad dream that hung around.”
Vicky turned in his grasp and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I see.” She considered him for a moment. “Let’s not worry about the Council for the moment. We’re here to relax, so let’s make the best of it while we can. Besides,” she pressed her body into his as she spoke. “I think I’m ready to take you up on that threat now.” Lifting her face to meet his, she pressed a soft kiss to his lips.
Darien made an appreciative noise as he held her tighter and deepened the kiss. He was going to have to deal with the Council soon, but Vicky was right. There was no need to worry about them at the moment and loving her would go a long way to reassuring himself that she was okay.
When the elevator stopped on their floor, Vicky started to pull away, but Darien caught her lips again and pulled her back. She giggled when the door closed and the elevator started down again. When it stopped a few floors down, she pulled away from his lips and teased him. “We missed our floor.”
He smiled at her. “It will come by again,” he reassured her.
Laughing, she turned her head and rested it on his chest.
He sighed contently as the door slid open and an elderly couple came in. The lady smiled at them while her husband punched the button for the ground floor.
“Could you hit twelve for me, please?” Darien asked.
The man punched the higher number, but his wife’s smile went from sweet to knowing.
“To be young and in love,” she said as she took her husband’s hand for the ride down.
They all rode down in silence, but the old woman turned to them as the elevator stopped. “You kids have a good day. And make sure to get out and see the rest of Hawaii. I’m sure the view from the hotel is nice, but the island has much more to offer.”
“Fran,” her husband chided her. He turned to Darien. “Have a nice day,” he added as he pulled his wife from the elevator. Thankfully, no one got back on before the door closed and the car started back up.
“Kids,” Darien scoffed in amusement.
Vicky laughed. Looking up, she pecked him on the lips again. “You know, to them we do look like kids making out in the corner of the elevator. I’m soaking wet and you’re still in your pajamas.” She tugged on the shoulder of his shirt for emphasis.
Darien rumbled in desire. “Then, how about we go take care of that.”
She giggled again. “Yes.” Meeting his lips, she kissed him once more.
This time, when the elevator stopped on their floor, Darien released her and moved her back a step so he could lead the way to their door. When he got there, he stopped in front of the locked door. Realization washed over him and he turned to Vicky. “I forgot the key,” he admitted.
Vicky laughed and reached into her bag. “Good thing I brought mine.”
Pulling her to his side, he kissed her hair. “Have I told you how amazing you are?” he asked.
“Not today,” she answered, slipping the card into the lock and opening the door. The door clicked open and she pushed it wide. “After you, my husband.”
Darien growled and pulled her into the suite with him. Once clear of the door, he shut it and pushed her up against it, making her drop her bag. “You are the most amazing thing in the world,” he said before he pressed his lips over hers and kissed her until she was breathless. Once he was done showing his appreciation, he backed off and pecked at her lips one last time. “Come on, let’s get you warm.” He stepped back and let her head towards the bedroom. Grabbing her bag from the floor, he dropped it on the desk. The sounds of the shower coming on made him smile and he was just turning to join her when someone rapped on the door.
Stopping, he stared at the closed door. A hint of the anxiety he’d put down earlier crawled up his spine. Who would be knocking at his door at this time of day? The rapping sounded again and he walked towards the door slowly. It couldn’t be any of his people. Hawaii was too far way. They would have called him before hopping a plane to come down. But he couldn’t see the Hawaiian Council calling on him. Not only was it the middle of the day, it was horribly rude to call on a master when they were resting. Well, unless it was important or you were trying to make a point. Whoever this was, it had better be important. Pulling the door open, he was surprised to find Shuri standing in the hall. “Hello.”
“My lord!” she exclaimed, surprised to see him.
Darien raised an eyebrow in question.
“I didn’t expect you to be awake,” Shuri said. Her eyes ran over him. “Am I interrupting?�
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Shuri’s quick glance made him consider her outfit. The crisp white shirt and flowing skirt were immaculate compared to his rumpled and damp sleeping clothes. An odd sense of self-consciousness came over him, and he stood up straighter. “As a matter of fact, you are.”
“Forgive me, my lord,” Shuri said with a bow. “But, I’ve come on Council business and need to speak with you for a moment. May we come in?”
Darien froze. Something in her words sent a warning racing through him. Glancing past Shuri into the hallway, he saw another woman standing behind her. She was beautiful. Her long, dark hair was pulled back in a braid, and the familiar red dress showed off an almost obscene amount of tan skin. He drew in a deep breath, waffling on his decision. After yesterday’s attack, he didn’t want to let them inside, but he couldn’t conduct vampire business in the hallway of a hotel. Stepping back, he opened the door wide. “Enter.”
“Thank you,” Shuri said as she straightened and led the way in. The young woman followed with her hands folded and her face pointed down.
Darien watched as they passed, reading the girl’s mood from her body language. She held the submissive pose that went with the blood red silk of the revealing dress, but there was a tension in her shoulders that was out of place. She wasn’t here by choice and that angered him. He disliked the very notion of tribute and blood slaves, especially when they were forced into it. The idea of one person owning another had never sat well with him. “What do you want?” he asked tartly.
Both of the women tuned to face him.
Shuri bowed deeply from the waist. “I’ve come to offer my master’s deepest apologies. He is truly sorry for the attack on your lady and sends you a gift.” Rising just slightly, she held her hand out towards the other young woman. “He hopes that it appeases you.”
The girl nodded her head but did not otherwise move.