Reclaimed

by Diane Alberts

  He whirled on her, nostrils flared. “Don’t even speak her name.”

  “Ah, now you look animated. The mere mention of her existence and you perk up. It’s sick, you realize that, right? If this who—” She broke off at the look he shot her way. “If this woman is so worth it, if your undying devotion is so warranted, where is she now?”

  “Dead, by your hand,” he declared. He locked his hands in fists and deliberately ignored her reference to Sabrina. If she didn’t know he loved her maybe, just maybe, he’d stand a chance of convincing her to let Sabrina live in peace.

  “By my hands? Or yours?”

  He snarled and launched himself at her. She swung up on a nearby branch and kicked him in the face. Pain exploded in his nose. He flew backward, away from the bloody cliff edge.

  Pity, that.

  She followed him and straddled his hips. She pressed herself against him, and he gritted his teeth to keep his desire at bay. He hardened against her moist heat—Jesus, he could feel her through their clothes—and she laughed. She stroked a hand down his chest to the waistband of his jeans, and he drew a deep breath as she traced his erection. He captured her hand in his steely grip and fought back the desire fighting to overcome him.

  It had been too long. Too damn long. Hell, at this point, he’d probably screw a tree.

  For a moment, sadness crossed her features. He studied her as he struggled for control. As quickly as the sadness had appeared on her face, it disappeared. In its place came an evil smirk and her eyes glittered at him.

  “Don’t overreact, Elijah. I merely pointed out a fact.”

  He growled at her and threw her off of him. She landed on the balls of her feet. He didn’t bother to attack her again, simply glowered his hatred.

  “Are you forever destined to desire what your brother has?” Her question sounded soft, and for once, there no anger laced through her words. “Will you always deny what happiness you could enjoy in life, those things in your reach, only to yearn for those you cannot achieve?”

  He stiffened and sighed. “I can’t be happy with you, ever. I might feel the normal attraction and pull toward you every vampire has for their maker, but I will never love you. You need to accept that, just like I need to accept I will always be a monster. A monster you made.”

  “Of course you can’t ever love me,” she said sadly, “because you are too obsessed with her. The new whore.”

  So much for keeping Sabrina out of the conversation.

  “Sabrina doesn’t want me, so you can leave her alone. She wants Isaac. She is innocent of Amelia’s sins. She looks like her, but she can’t be held at fault for something out of her control. Leave her and Isaac alone. She means nothing to me.”

  She moved behind him and whispered in his ear, “Now, Elijah, what would be the fun of that?”

  Her laughter taunted him as she fled, and he howled into the wind.

  No one heard him.

  Chapter Sixteen

  As Sabrina sat at her computer checking her e-mail, the phone rang. She answered, not bothering to glance at the caller ID.

  “Hello.”

  “I made it home in one piece.” Marie’s voice sounded tired to Sabrina.

  “Well, that’s good to know.” She rubbed her eyebrows and leaned back in her chair. She dangled her head back against the top of the chair and stared at the ceiling. A yawn escaped her, and she blinked rapidly to clear her vision. Maybe she should take a nap.

  “Yeah. How are things? Did you and Isaac kiss and make up?”

  Sabrina winced, but didn’t bother to deny they’d fought this time. “Yes.”

  “Good. Your puppy-dog sad faces haunted me the whole way home. It was awful.”

  “Ha-ha,” Sabrina drawled.

  “I’m serious. It was terrible to watch.”

  “Sorry.”

  Marie laughed. “It’s okay, I forgive you.”

  “Gee, thanks. Now I’ll be able to sleep again.” She cringed as soon as the words were out of her mouth.

  Here come the questions….

  “Have you had any more nightmares?”

  “No, I’m fine. How’s Samantha?” Hopefully the quick change of subject would confuse Marie. It worked, and Sabrina smiled as Marie launched off on her favorite topic: Sam.

  They chatted for a few moments before hanging up. She shifted in her seat and tapped her fingers on her desk. All morning long she’d attempted not to think about the one thing on her mind even now, her dream. The clearing they had all died in taunted her mercilessly, and she yearned to compare it to its current state. She needed to see it again, but also knew Isaac wouldn’t want to take her.

  Not only did he not like her going there, he didn’t enjoy going there either. That much had been clear when they had been there a few days ago. And she knew if she asked him to take her he’d feel compelled to do so, even though he didn’t want to. So while she didn’t want to make him go, it didn’t mean she couldn’t go check it out herself, did it? Screw it. The desire proved too strong; she needed to go.

  The dream from last night tormented her endlessly, assaulting her with images she had no desire to see. She cringed as she remembered it once more.

  “I love you, Elijah.” Amelia whispered.

  “I love you, too, Amelia.” Love shone in his eyes as he leaned down and kissed her.

  Then pain exploded in her face, and the world faded to black. When Amelia came to, Louisa hovered over her. What in the world happened? And where did Elijah go?

  She groaned and rolled to her side, searching for signs of him. She didn’t see him anywhere. She sat up and tried to calm her rolling stomach.

  She wet her dry lips and croaked out, “Where’s Elijah? What happened?”

  “Hmm, maybe I can help. You are a harlot, and Elijah is a bastard who can’t keep his hands to himself. Caught up? Good, because off you go.”

  Louisa grabbed her by the hair and threw her. She felt too stunned to even cry out from fear, or from the pain of her hair ripping out of her head. In an excruciating collision, she hit the ground and lay motionless as she attempted to catch her breath. A shadow fell over her, and she whimpered in fear.

  She opened her eyes, sure she’d see Lady Harding, and instead saw Elijah.

  Oh, thank God.

  “Elijah, help me,” she whispered.

  “There’s your whore, Elijah. Have any final words to say to her, before I kill her?”

  She struggled to sit up, and Elijah shook his head at her.

  “It need not be like this. We can leave together, just the two of us. Come to me, and we shall leave.”

  Louisa sneered. “I have a much better plan, Elijah.”

  Louisa stalked toward them, and Amelia sat up to search for an escape route. There had to be a way out.

  Her eyes caught sight of a familiar face, and she drew in a horrified breath. “Good Lord, is Isaac—”

  Louisa followed her line of vision. “Dead? No, he’s very much alive. See, I have plans for him. But you, my dear, will definitely be dead when I am finished.”

  Elijah jumped in front of her, presumably to protect her. Louisa threw her head back and laughed. “Oh, Elijah. You are positively hilarious.” Louisa picked him up and slammed him against a tree before breaking another tree nearby. She forcefully drove it through Elijah’s shoulder and into the tree behind him. He let out a cry of pain, and Amelia shrieked. Louisa dusted her hands off and laughed. “Ready for the main show, Elijah? You surely will not wish to miss it.”

  She stalked to Amelia, who in turn whimpered in fear. “Lady Harding, I am sorry, but please don’t do this. You have hurt Elijah. Look at him!”

  “Have you never been told not to frolic under a promised man? You are a shameless harlot, Amelia.” She shook her head and smiled. “This is going to be marvelous. Prepare yourself for a broken arm.”

  She grabbed Amelia’s left arm and snapped the bone in two. Amelia cried out and sobbed as pain wracked her body. Elijah strained
against his prison and yelled her name.

  Even as Amelia reeled from the injury, Louisa grabbed the other arm and repeated the action. Mercifully, Amelia passed out from pain. Next thing she saw, Elijah had blood oozing from his neck. His eyes looked drugged, as if he had imbibed too much brandy. His eyes met hers, and she was startled to see the tears running down his cheeks.

  The pain of her leg snapping made her tear her eyes from Elijah, and she screamed in agony. Before she processed the pain, a new one exploded in her other leg. From a distance, she heard Elijah call out her name. She tried to hone in on his voice and conjured up a picture of his face when he had first kissed her.

  It had been worth even this agony. She could have no regrets.

  Amelia turned her head and focused on him. She could tell he grew weaker, and sobs wracked his body. She latched onto on her beloved’s face and waited for death, mercifully, to take her away. Surely Louisa would finish her off soon.

  Pain burst through her chest, and she involuntarily looked down. Elijah’s dagger protruded from her. She choked on a strange liquid and realized it was blood.

  She couldn’t breathe. She would soon die.

  Thank God.

  Sabrina walked out of the house in a daze, focused on the dream until she reached the clearing and examined it under her new insight. She could see all the similarities now, the silly things she’d missed before. She found and studied the tree Elijah had been pinned to, and pictured with perfect clarity the startling red of his blood against the bark. In a trance, she stumbled to the tree and touched its rough surface, and saw a scar on the tree’s surface in the exact spot where Elijah had been speared. The same spot he’d suffered, fought, and died.

  She looked over her shoulder and recognized where Isaac had lain motionless. Not far from the tree she leaned against now. He had been so close to them, so close to saving them and running. But instead, he had been cut down like a savage beast. By a savage beast.

  The bitch.

  She wandered toward where Isaac had landed and froze. And here, here was where Amelia had died. Where they had both lost the love of their lives. Everything had changed drastically that day, both emotionally and physically. Though both immortal, they could no longer embrace each other as brothers. They were on opposite sides of the battlefield, forever locked in a ferocious war that would only end in death.

  Her fingers were still on the tree when Elijah walked up behind her. She turned to him; his gaze locked on the scar on the tree, strangely fascinated with the spot where he had died long ago. He tore his gaze off of the tree to focus on her, and the pain in his eyes spoke to her without words. His face looked the same as it had the day Amelia had died. “Oh, Elijah, I’m so sorry. I saw it all happen last night. It—no one should have to go through that. Ever.”

  “You saw it?” he whispered. “But, how? I didn’t come to you last night.”

  “I don’t know. But I did, somehow.”

  “Oh, God.” He looked away from her and sighed deeply. “I’m so sorry you had to see it. No one should ever see what happened that day, what I did that day.” His brow furrowed, and his eyes were lost in shadow as he stared off into the distance.

  His pain hit her as strongly as if it were her own, and her heart ached from the force of it. Though she couldn’t love him the way he wanted her to, she did love him. She yearned to heal the hurt bottled inside him, and it seemed natural to open her arms to him. He immediately took her offering of comfort, and she wrapped her arms around him and rested her cheek on his chest.

  The oddness of the lack of beating heart beneath her cheek struck her, making her bite back a smile. Instead, his chest was still, immobile as stone. She noticed the oddest things at the most inopportune times.

  He didn’t move, and she did her best to do the same. They stayed in their frozen embrace for an unknown amount of time. When he finally spoke, pain wracked his voice and broke her from her silent thoughts.

  “I loved her so much.” He sighed.

  “She loved you, too.”

  “I love you, too.”

  She paused before whispering, “I know.”

  “And you love Isaac.”

  “I do.”

  He sighed and inhaled the fragrance of her hair. “Let me enjoy this, just one moment longer.”

  She laughed and glanced up at him as she conceded, “Okay, one more minute.” She had a moment’s warning as he stared at her lips, before he went to take the kiss he could apparently no longer resist. She flinched and shouted, “No, Elijah! Don’t do it, or I’ll have to punch you again.”

  He groaned and closed his eyes as if deep in thought. “Damn it, Sabrina, it might be worth another black eye.”

  She laughed and stepped back from his arms. “Oh, Elijah, you really need a—”

  Clap, clap, clap.

  Oh man, someone watched them, and she knew it would be Isaac. And, of course, he’d found her in Elijah’s arms again. However innocent the embrace had been, it would look anything but to Isaac, who already felt insecure about his brother.

  Her heart lurched, and she took a deep breath before turning to face Isaac. This was going to suck royally. Her eyes widened in fear and she found herself wishing it had been Isaac. But it looked far, far worse. Across the clearing, Louisa glared at her.

  “You know, you almost had me convinced the girl could live. Clearly, you were lying through your teeth last night, Elijah. Didn’t anyone ever tell you lying to your maker is frowned upon?”

  “I didn’t lie to you.” As Elijah spoke, he positioned Sabrina behind him. “We aren’t lovers. I already told you as much. She loves Isaac, not me.”

  “She has an odd way of showing her love for Isaac. For if I’m not mistaken, it’s you she embraced. Not Isaac,” Louisa sneered.

  “I only comforted him. That’s it. He was grieving over what you did to him and all the people he loved,” Sabrina replied in a rush of anger. She should be terrified of this woman—this monster. But instead, hatred flowed through her veins and gave her a heady sense of power.

  “Oh, how darling. I’m sure that is what Amelia was doing as well. Comforting him,” Louisa said, sarcasm oozing from her voice.

  “Sabrina, be quiet.” Elijah shushed.

  “I will not!” she exclaimed. “She doesn’t scare me.”

  “Louisa, knock it off. She is innocent. Leave her be.”

  “Once again with the broken record. Don’t you ever say anything new?” She took a step closer to them, and Elijah snarled in response. She seemed to take heed of the warning, because she paused and raised her hands in a gesture of peace. “Did you like the dream you had last night, Sabrina? It’s one of my most shining acts of all time.”

  Sabrina gaped at her and completely forgot her bravado. “You showed me the dream?”

  “But, of course. Who else?”

  “Which dream?” Elijah interjected.

  “Why?” Sabrina questioned.

  “Well, what would be the fun of killing you, if you didn’t remember the last day in detail? I have always been somewhat dramatic, and I love my scene to be set perfectly, in all ways. As a matter of fact, I’m still not quite ready to kill you yet. We are missing one key factor.”

  “Isaac,” Sabrina breathed. “You leave him alone, bitch. He has done nothing to you!”

  “Oh, you’re a delight. I’m here merely for informational purposes today, which is the only reason you’re still safely tucked away behind dear old Elijah. Otherwise, I’d be snapping your bones in two. Like I did before.”

  “I think you’re wrong there, because I’m not her. I have information for you, too.”

  “Oh? And what would that be?”

  Sabrina stepped around Elijah’s protective stance and moved to walk up to Louisa. Elijah grabbed her, so she settled for leaning forward to hiss, “I’m not scared of you.”

  “Are you trying to get yourself killed?” Elijah snapped as he pushed her back behind him. Sabrina ignored him, and so did
Louisa.

  Louisa laughed. “Oh, my, you are fun. Too bad I have to kill you.”

  “I have to breathe. You don’t have to kill me. How about we just call it a day and you crawl back to whatever little hole you came from? M’kay?” Even as she taunted the dangerous creature in front of her, she knew she played a dangerous game. But, she couldn’t seem to help herself. Seeing Louisa brought out feelings that overwhelmed her. Hatred. Fear. Sarcasm.

  “Oh, I disagree. As much fun as you are, seeing your face makes me ill. Seeing him moon all over you again makes me even sicker. I’m going to kill you the same way I killed her: slowly, and happily.”

  Sabrina shuddered at the promise, because Louisa would love to do just that. But she would be damned if she’d show any fear in front of the bitch, and so she forced a sardonic laugh.

  “Bring it, bitch.” Sabrina stuck up her middle finger. Louisa’s eyes widened and she threw her head back and laughed.

  “You are so going to be fun to kill. So much fun,” she said.

  Elijah snarled, and she felt his muscles tense in preparation to defend her. Yet somehow, she didn’t think even he would be enough to stop this madwoman. She would die—and soon. It sobered her.

  Louisa shook her head and said scathingly, “Down, boy. I’m not going to hurt her yet. But I want to talk about the day Amelia died. Sabrina woke up too early, and I didn’t get to show her everything. I think it’s time for her to find out who really killed her.”

  “I know who killed Amelia. You,” Sabrina argued. “And don’t think I’ll be so easy to get to this time. I’m no cowering weakling, Louisa. You don’t scare me. And I have Isaac’s protection this time.”

  Louisa stared at her before throwing her head back and laughing. “Oh God, you believe you can conquer me? How amusing.” She laughed and winked in Elijah’s direction. “She’s got much more fight in her than your whore Amelia. Too bad she doesn’t want you. She didn’t even mention you as one of the weapons in her arsenal.”

  Elijah roared in anger, and Sabrina cried out when he shoved her backward and lunged at Louisa. She stumbled to her feet and watched in horror as he rolled on the ground fighting her.