Promise

by Kristie Cook

  "I deeply regretted doing that to you," Stefan said. "As you got older, I hoped you had just forgotten."

  I shook my head. "I didn't forget. I didn't remember your face, but I never forgot how much I loved you and how much I cried when you left. I thought I did something wrong."

  "It was nothing you did. I didn't have a choice and when your mom told me how hurt you were, we decided it was best for me to just stay away. I couldn't be reliable enough for you." Stefan held his arms open. "Please forgive me?"

  I could see sincerest remorse in his dark eyes. And I somehow knew he'd never meant to hurt me. Maybe it was the Amadis goodness emanating from him. I don't know how or why—perhaps the passage of time to heal the wounds or the fact I'd just survived the worst loss, if only for a couple weeks, I'd ever experienced—but I couldn't help but forgive him immediately. I left Tristan's arms and fell into Stefan's.

  "Sheffie," I cried into his chest.

  "Ali-oop," he murmured, stroking my hair. I'd forgotten his nickname for me and giggled through my tears. "I am so sorry."

  I nodded against his chest. "I know now. I'm sorry I slapped you."

  "I deserved it." He held me for another moment then gently pushed me back. "I think you need to get some rest now."

  I wiped the tears on my cheeks, took a deep breath and stepped back to Tristan. He wrapped his arm around my waist and I sagged against him. I'd spent every bit of emotional energy I had and that last bit broke me. I was absolutely exhausted. I didn't even know how we made it back to Tristan's house without me falling off the back of the bike.

  "You're amazing," Tristan said as he half-carried me up the stairs to his room. My head lolled against his side, my eyelids drooping.

  "Huh?" I asked through my grogginess.

  "You're so forgiving. I think I suffered more for what Stefan did to you than he did."

  I cupped my hand around his face. "I'm sorry you had to deal with my issues. You did take the brunt of it all and I love you for that. But I believe Stefan did suffer. I could see it in his eyes. Life's too short to hold grudges against people you love."

  Tristan chuckled and even through the exhaustion, I understood.

  "Even for us, my sweet Tristan. Love is just too precious."

  ***

  "You are such a tease," Tristan admonished the next morning.

  I widened my eyes and looked at him innocently as he pulled a pair of jeans out of a box and hung them up. "What? I'm just looking for some clothes."

  "In my closet?"

  I smiled impishly. I'd just stepped out of the shower and had a towel wrapped around me, water drops beaded on my skin and my hair still dripped. I had panties on already, but he didn't know that. I was being a tease.

  "Maybe I like wearing your shirts." I found a plain white t-shirt and pulled it on with one arm while holding my towel with the other. As I walked out of the closet, I let the towel fall in the doorway as the t-shirt slid slowly down to my thighs. I could feel his eyes on me as I left and I grinned to myself.

  I went back to the bathroom to brush my wet hair. It soaked through the front of the white shirt, making it transparent, and I debated how mean I wanted to be. But when I looked up into the mirror, I saw Tristan behind me in the doorway, watching me with his arms crossed.

  "Why are you doing this to me?" he growled.

  "What?" I played innocent again. He was behind me in an instant, his arms wrapped around me and his face buried in the crook of my neck.

  "You're so damn irresistible."

  "Oh. Well, you do that to me all the time. All you have to do is smile and wink. I'm just fighting fair."

  "This is hardly fair," he murmured.

  His hands slowly moved down my body as he kissed and sucked my neck. I leaned back into him, feeling his powerful, warm body tense against my back. I put my hands over his and pulled his left hand up, across my body to my right breast while his right hand traveled down my bare thigh and slowly up the inside of it. I grasped his hand and pulled it away just before he reached the top, my whole body tingling.

  "Hardly fair," I breathed. He pulled back and groaned in frustration as I turned around and hoisted myself to sit on the counter. I hooked my fingers in his jeans waistband and pulled him closer, wrapping my legs around his waist. I trailed my hands slowly up his abs and chest, up to his face, where I held him. "We don't have to do this to ourselves, you know. We could probably be married tonight or tomorrow, at least under the Amadis."

  He closed his eyes and sighed. "Why are you suddenly in such a rush?"

  "Because I love you, I'm going to spend the rest of my life with you anyway and I want to be your wife."

  He smiled at that last word, but didn't open his eyes. "Not just because you want my body?"

  "Well, that, too," I admitted. I slid my hands across his chest again.

  He opened his eyes, braced my face gently in his hands and said, "You are incorrigible!"

  He stomped out of the bathroom and sat hard on the bed, his head falling into his hands. I hopped down and followed.

  "What's wrong with me wanting to make love to you?" I asked.

  "Three days ago you hated me," he muttered into his hands.

  My mouth fell open. "I never hated you!"

  I threw myself back on the bed and stared at the ceiling.

  "You didn't want anything to do with me and now you're ready to rush off and commit yourself for life."

  I shot off the bed and stood in front of him, lifting his face with my hands and holding his eyes with mine. "You're damn right I want to commit myself. I made up my mind and I'm ready now. I know you are, too. If there was ever a time you would've hurt me, it would've been the other night. You can handle it now. So what are you waiting for? Are you having commitment issues?"

  Pain flickered in his eyes, as if I'd slapped him. "Of course not! I just don't want you feeling like you have to rush into anything. You're only nineteen!"

  I threw my hands in the air. "Is that your argument? My age? Does it matter how old I am if we already know we're together forever?"

  "I'm just saying there's plenty of time. Don't feel rushed because of lust or because you think it'll be safer for me."

  "We could have sex right now and I wouldn't change my mind. And, yes, I would feel better if I knew you had every protection possible. Even if you don't think you need it, it would make me feel better. You are my life and the thought of losing you…" My breath hitched with the thought. "…horrifies me! I need you, Tristan. Whatever binds us closer together, I'll do. Now. Before it's too late."

  He pulled me into his arms and brushed his lips against my cheek. He lowered his voice to the loveliest of tones. "Be patient, my love. We're not doing this out of fear or threats or others' demands. We'll know when the time is right. Our terms."

  I sighed with frustration. "If we're making the decision, it is on our terms. But I've made my decision and now it's up to you. So I guess now it's on your terms."

  I didn't like giving that to him, but I knew he wouldn't like it either.

  "Alexis," he growled.

  I ignored him. I picked up my bag and went into the bathroom, closing the door this time. I thought I heard something hit the wall.

  Chapter 21

  Over the next several weeks, I concentrated on summer classes and putting the finishing touches on my book. I felt the pressure of getting it done, a big obstacle in setting our wedding date. After a couple weeks of teasing Tristan, hoping he would come around, I realized I frustrated myself just as much. So I gave it up and decided holding off on nearly everything would make our wedding night that much better. I stopped spending the night with him and as soon as the loving kisses became passionate and hands started exploring—his or mine—I cut it off. It was, admittedly, quite maddening.

  "You are infuriating, you know that?" Tristan teased one night as we snuggled on Mom's couch. "I liked it better when you threw yourself at me."

  I laughed. "Shouldn't have complained t
hen."

  "Will you please do it again?" he murmured against the hollow behind my ear.

  "Nope."

  "But I miss your body." His hand slid along my side.

  "Then you will enjoy it all the more on our wedding night." I picked his hand up as it started sliding under my shirt.

  "Are you trying to manipulate me? Because it might be working…." He kissed and nibbled my ear, driving me nearly over the edge.

  I sighed. "Not much longer, right? September First?"

  "Five weeks, four days, eighteen hours."

  Feels like forever. I moaned internally. But I smiled anyway and said, "Not long."

  We'd just decided the date that day when we mailed the first query letters for getting my book published. Mom was satisfied and it was far enough away that we could have a legal wedding and exchange Amadis vows at the same time. The Daemoni had been quiet, according to Stefan, who dropped in every now and then for coffee or dinner, so I had to trust Tristan would be okay in the meantime.

  Less than a week later, though, Hell blew in.

  Tropical Storm Edmund brewed in the Gulf of Mexico, projected to make landfall somewhere in our area as a category one or two hurricane. Long-time locals told us it wasn't much to worry about—"Board up and hunker down. You'll be fine." Mom and Tristan seemed overly tense, though, considering they'd faced much worse than a relatively small hurricane. The first heavy bands of wind and rain came in as we finished boarding the cottage, having spent most of the day preparing the store.

  "Something's going on besides this storm," Tristan yelled over the wind at Mom.

  "I feel it, too," Mom yelled back. "We're almost done here. Get Alexis to your house. We'll be there in a minute."

  Tristan and I ran for the car, leaving Mom and Owen to finish hanging plywood on the last window. Rain blew in sheets, looking like it marched across the road. We arrived at Tristan's house within five minutes, but in that short amount of time, the storm's intensity had already increased. The wind whipped at the trees, bending the palms at forty-five-degree angles, but the worst of the storm was still hours away. We pulled into the garage and as I stepped out of the car, I thought I saw something rather large blow under the closing garage door. Tristan saw it, too.

  "Aw, shit! Alexis, back in the car NOW!" Tristan roared.

  But I couldn't move.

  Evil! Daemoni! Evil!

  Someone grabbed me from behind and held me in a chokehold with one arm against my neck and a powerful hand clawed around my head. I didn't know if I gagged from the pressure against my throat or from the stench of rotten meat, vomit and feces. Flames exploded in Tristan's eyes. He swam in my vision, but I thought I saw him take a step toward me.

  "Don't! Just a little twist of my wrist and she's dead," said a sickening, scratchy, barely human voice that sounded far away though it was right in my ear. My pulse thundered in my head, nearly drowning everything else out. Whoever held me stiffened behind me.

  "And one little twist of my wrist and you're dead." I had no idea how she got into the closed garage, but I recognized Mom's voice. It sounded like I'd never heard it before. Low and vicious.

  I was shoved to the ground, cracking my head on the Mercedes' bumper on my way down. In an instant I was in Tristan's arms. Each breath tore through my burning throat. I buried my face in his chest, trying to flush the reek out with his scent. There was a stomach-turning cackle and I turned to stare with fascinated horror.

  The sordid creature barely resembled a human. Its eyes glowed red fire in its round, lumpy head and twisted, pointed teeth filled its misshapen mouth. I thought it might have been grinning, but if that was a smile, it was the kind that gives you nightmares. Black blood trickled down its neck where Mom held a blade, the point pierced into its skin.

  "What do we do with it?" Mom asked, ignoring the creature's cackle, except for a slight dig with the knife.

  "Take it upstairs and we'll see what it thinks it's trying to do. I'll be right behind you." Tristan carried me up the stairs as we followed Mom, who held the knife at the creature's throat. My head throbbed with each step and I could feel a lump forming on my forehead.

  A strange popping sound came from the living room and Mom froze at the top of the stairs. The creature skipped away from her, cackling again. Tristan stopped right behind her and stiffened. The creature was not alone.

  "What an excellent gift you've delivered, Seth—two generations of Amadis royalty and your heart all at once." This voice was smooth and clear, possibly appealing if I hadn't felt the evil rolling off the man who stood in the middle of the dark living room. The creature crouched at his side. "I couldn't have imagined it being this good."

  "Your imagination has run away from you if you think you can get away with this, Edmund," Tristan said calmly. He set me on my feet on the landing and both he and Mom took protective stances in front of me as the man took a step closer to us. Terror gripped my heart as I realized how weak and vulnerable I was, unable to do anything but watch. Moving only my eyes, I glanced down the stairs, wondering if any others lurked in the shadows.

  "I admit it's risky, but the rewards will be worth it," the man replied.

  Hurricane shutters blocked out almost all light from the windows, but my eyes adjusted to the darkness. I still couldn't see the man's face, but I could see the outline of his hulking figure. He stood nearly as tall as Tristan and much bulkier. I had to remind myself of Tristan's power because, I thought, if it came down to brute strength, I didn't see how he could win. My heart raced as I realized the inevitability of the situation—Mom and Tristan would have to fight for our lives.

  "You're an imbecile if you think you'll be rewarded for shedding their blood," Tristan said. "The Daemoni would not welcome the war that would ensue."

  "Yes, I said it was risky. But after all is said and done, I would be personally responsible for ending the Amadis for good. That will be rewarded."

  I shivered at the menace in the man's smug voice.

  "If you live through it," Tristan said pointedly.

  "Which you will not," Mom added. "God Himself would not allow it."

  The man shrank back at Mom's words and didn't reply. We all stood in silence and I knew they each calculated how to proceed. The wind picked up intensity outside, shaking the shutters. The storm seemed to be coming faster than expected. It would be foolish to try to escape outside into it. The trapped feeling caused the panic to rise even higher, tightening my chest.

  Edmund's eyes darted back and forth between Tristan and Mom as he moved a few steps to our right and his creature scurried next to him. Tristan moved, too, while Mom remained still. Edmund and his creature moved back to our left. This time both Mom and Tristan moved with him. They angled themselves to take him from both sides without leaving a wide enough gap for him to get to me.

  "So why don't you just make this easy for all of us, Seth?" Edmund finally spoke as they continued their macabre dance. "You come with me and I'll leave them alone."

  "Never!" Tristan snarled.

  Edmund nodded at me. "You can bring her along, if you'd like."

  A deep, guttural growl rumbled in Tristan's chest. He and Mom both took a step forward, their only reply.

  "Then you'd rather fight it out." Edmund made a tsking sound and the creature's shape transformed. It fell on all fours, became longer and taller in the darkness. It paced like a guard dog in front of Edmund, its eyes glowing red fire, a low growl in its throat. I shrank back while Tristan and Mom positioned themselves to fight. "Or maybe I just take her and let you chase me."

  Edmund leaped into the air, seeming to fly over Tristan and Mom. He landed right next to me, as they spun around. Tristan swore profusely. The dog-thing stayed behind them. It crouched to attack. It continued to growl and even in the darkness I could see its lips pulled back, sharp fangs glinting in the little bit of natural light seeping in at the edges of the windows. Edmund grabbed the back of my neck tightly and pulled me to him. My mind and body numbed
in terror.

  "NO!" Tristan growled roughly.

  He lunged at the bulky man, knocking Edmund hard against the wall, pulling me with him. My hip smacked painfully against the baluster at the top of the stairs. At the same time, the dog-thing jumped at Mom. She spun at it. Her arms whacked it in the side like a bat hitting an oversized, misshapen ball. It sailed across the room, landing with an inhuman cry. It was back on its feet in a second and charged at Mom. She crouched, ready for it. They simultaneously leaped toward each other. While still in mid-air, Mom grabbed its head and twisted it with a snap. The thing fell to the floor with a thud.

  Mom landed lithely on the balls of her feet and whirled around to Tristan, the hulk and me. Tristan and Edmund glowered at each other in a standoff. Tristan held his hand up, palm facing Edmund but nearly two feet from him. He held the hulk flat against the wall with his paralyzing power. Edmund's hand still clutched my neck.

  "LET. HER. GO!" Tristan roared. His eyes blazed with bright flames.

  "You are such a traitor." Edmund smirked, his own eyes glowing blood red.

  He slowly raised his free hand just an inch from the wall, fighting Tristan's power with evident difficulty. Mom stepped forward. Edmund was just able to twitch his finger. She flew into the loveseat, held there by an unseen force. Anger blazed in her eyes as she struggled against the power holding her, her shoulders and neck straining.

  It pissed me off.

  My heart pounded in terror but the anger rose above it. Just enough to give me the force I needed. It all happened so quickly, but it felt like slow motion as my mind registered every move, every detail. I wrapped my hands around the baluster and yanked it from its anchor. I lifted it as high as I could and slammed it down on the arm holding me. It wasn't much compared to Edmund's strength, but enough to distract him. He turned to look at me, his eyes wide. His mouth formed a silent O. He apparently never expected me to fight back. Tristan seized the opportunity and pounced. I freed myself from the hand before it tried to close back on me. I stumbled sideways and caught myself on the opposite rail to avoid falling down the stairs.