Day-Walker
Page 9
He'd hardly ever addressed her by her first name, and the way he said it now made her suddenly afraid. She sank into his vacated seat, absentmindedly stroking the soft strands of the upholstery.
"I burnt Draken's remains to be sure of his death," Stefan continued. "Once I was sure they were completely ablaze, I hurried after you. The flames were already spreading like wildfire, and I wanted to be sure we were all well clear before the whole house went up. I was too late; Artur had you. Will had stunned him, but he had not finished him off. He was so busy feeding he did not notice me approach. I pulled him off you and snapped his neck. But you had lost too much blood. Will was barely conscious on the steps, and so I made a decision; I gave you my blood. I saved you, only not as a human, not as a mortal."
"What do you mean? I feel fine; I feel better than I can ever remember feeling… but… oh…"
Darci lapsed into silence as Stefan's words finally sunk in. She became aware of the strands of thread she was stroking, individual strands she should not be able to feel. The wound on her neck was gone. It had healed in a matter of hours. No human would recover that fast.
"Yes," Will said. His voice broke, his face contorted in pain. "You are a monster now, like me."
"How can you say that?" Darci asked, standing again and walking towards him. "You are no monster, and even Stefan here, despite his outward show, came to our aid, came to your aid, when the need was dire. We would both be dead without him and Draken would have all the power he desired. It seems to me vampires are only evil if they choose to be. I'm not saddened by my death. I'm happy. You know I wanted this. The only thing that would make me grieve over this change to my life would be if you wouldn't live it with me. So, are you leaving me?"
"No, no, I could never leave you," Will conceded, opening his arms and embracing her.
"She will need your blood now, too, if she is to travel with you into the daylight," Stefan reminded Will, stepping towards them.
"I know; it will be done," Will told him and held out his hand. Stefan glanced at it, bemused, then finally took it in his own and they nodded to each other.
"Thank you, Stefan," Darci said, giving him a quick hug. It seemed an entirely inadequate response after all he had done, but her head was too full of the new sensations she could feel and thoughts of the future to form a better speech.
"I will see you again, of that I am sure," Stefan said with a lop-sided smile. "We will leave you two alone now." He walked towards the door, and Liza stood to follow.
"Liza, wait a second!" Darci called and ran over to her. There had been a warm feeling, bordering on the unpleasant, across her chest for the past few minutes, and she had just realised she was still wearing the silver cross. She pulled it off over her head and held it out to Liza. "This saved me a few hours ago," she said. "Please take it back in case you need it one day."
Liza took the cross and looked down at it. She smiled briefly then scurried out the door towards Stefan, who stood waiting for her at the foot of the stairs.
"What happens now?" Darci asked when Will approached and wrapped his arms around her.
"Now, we make you a Day-Walker, and we live together in peace, forever."
"No more danger?"
"I certainly hope not," Will said, "but one can never tell what tomorrow will bring."
The End
About the Author
Nicki J Markus was born in England in 1982, but she now lives in Adelaide, South Australia with her fiancé. She has loved both reading and writing from a young age and is also a keen linguist, having studied several foreign languages. She has completed a BA (hons) English with French from the University of Greenwich, London and a postgraduate diploma in Translation from the University of the West of England, Bristol. She is currently studying for a Diploma in Editing and a Higher Diploma in Publishing.
Nicki J Markus launched her writing career in 2010, and her fiction work has been published by Wicked Nights Publishing and Silver Publishing.
In her spare time, Nicki J Markus also enjoys many other creative pursuits including music, theatre, photography, sketching and web-design. She has a keen interest in history, folklore and mythology, pen palling and travel.
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Also by Nicki J Markus:
Available from Silver Publishing:
Day-Walker