Serenity kissed her hair, dampening the soft strands with her tears, laughing and crying at the same time. “No, I know you’re not. You’re my big girl. My big, brave girl.”
Elizabeth looked to Sebastian to be rescued from her mother’s onslaught of affection. He held his arms out to her and she untangled herself from Serenity and scrambled into them. Sebastian wrapped the little girl in his strong embrace. His eyes found Serenity’s and she gave him a smile.
Thank you.
“Has anyone seen Natasha?” Sebastian asked. “She got in my way when I was trying to catch Elizabeth. She tried to attack me but must have realized she was no match for me. I just threw her back into the crowd, but then she disappeared.”
“She’s gone,” said Vincent. “She was like a sibling to me and I can tell when she’s still around. I don’t know where she’s gone, but she’s nowhere in the club.”
Beside her son, Bridget sniffed and wiped away tears from her cheeks. “I’m so sorry you had to go through this,” she said. “I never meant for any of this to happen. I’m so glad she’s okay.”
Sebastian handed Elizabeth back to Serenity and rose to his feet.
“How could you do this to us, Bridget? We trusted you?”
“I’m so sorry.” More tears pooled in her eyes and spilled from the corners, trickling down her cheeks. “I didn’t know what else I was supposed to do. I love you and Elizabeth, but Vincent is my son.”
“He’s a grown man—no, worse, he’s a vampire.”
“He’s still my child. No matter how big he is, or what he’s become, he’ll always be my child. Just like Elizabeth will always be your child, even when she’s a grown woman. Would you ever choose someone else above her?”
Sebastian shook his head.
“Well,” she continued. “How can you expect me not to do the same thing?”
“You still betrayed us. I should kill you now!”
Instantly, Vincent was in front of his mother, eyes flashing yellow. Sebastian squared before him, the vampires eyeing each other, snarling.
Elizabeth gave a shriek of fear and Serenity wrapped her arms across her daughter’s narrow chest, pressing Elizabeth against her legs.
“Hey!” she shouted. “Quit it, you two. You’re scaring Elizabeth.”
The vampires glared at each other but backed down.
“I’ve got a question,” said Serenity. “How come Elizabeth never saw any of this about you, Bridget? Why didn’t she have any visions about you?”
Bridget gave an apologetic shrug. “Another spell, shielding me from her. Each day that passed, I wondered if someone would notice, realize that Elizabeth saw things for everyone else but me. But Sebastian was so caught up in his search for you; I guess the thought never crossed his mind.”
“Or maybe I just trusted you, Bridget,” he said. “Maybe I never thought to question anything about you.”
“Please don’t think I left Elizabeth unprotected. Every night, before I left, I covered her in the same protective spell I’d hoped Serenity was going to be able to use. I didn’t know for sure that Demitri planned to come and take her, but I didn’t want to take the risk so I hid her from him. That night you came back from taking Serenity to him, you said everything was fine, that it was all sorted, and I believed you! I thought Demitri hadn’t said anything to you so it was all over. That’s why I didn’t do the blanket that night, though I wish to God I had.”
“Whatever steps you took to try to help doesn’t change that you were reporting back to Demitri about an innocent little girl you were supposed to be taking care of.”
“Demitri said he’d never hurt Elizabeth, he was just interested in her, in what she could do. Though I knew him taking her was a possibility, I never actually thought he’d do it!”
Sebastian couldn’t say much. He’d also underestimated Demitri.
“We need to get out of here,” Serenity interjected. “If someone hasn’t already called the cops, they will soon.”
Chapter Twenty-five
True to Serenity’s word, as they left the club, the sound of approaching sirens cut through the night air.
They had more pressing issues to deal with and both Sebastian and Vincent knew it. The night sky had lost its inky black, morphing to a deep indigo blue.
Dawn was coming.
“Here,” said Bridget, handing Serenity the bag containing Elizabeth’s things. Even though the little girl had been fed vampire’s blood and was protected against the cold, she still needed some proper clothes.
“Thank you,” said Serenity. She fished out Elizabeth’s comfort blanket. “Here you go, sweetie.”
Elizabeth grinned in delight and took the cloth, pressing the soft material against her face.
Quiet until now, Vincent spoke. “What are you going to do, Mother?”
“I’ll be okay, especially now that I don’t have to worry about you. I’ll fly back to Los Angeles. No one is going to stop an old woman in connection to strange goings-on in a club.”
She put her arms around her son’s neck and gave him a brief, fierce hug.
“I’ll see you soon,” he told her.
She nodded and kissed his cheek. “Stay safe.”
The big vampire gave her a brief, tight-lipped nod and then vanished in a blur before them.
“We have to go too,” said Sebastian, feeling the approaching dawn with an anxiety akin to insects scuttling inside his veins. “It’s almost light.”
She nodded. “I know. Will I see you again?”
Elizabeth tugged on the sleeve of his jacket. “Please, Daddy. Don’t make Bridget go away.”
“It’s okay, Elizabeth,” said Bridget. “Your father is only doing what’s best for you.”
He looked down into Elizabeth’s dark eyes. She wasn’t crying but her eyes had taken on the wet, shimmering look of someone who wasn’t far off. He turned to Serenity, trying to gauge her opinion.
“Bridget did what she could to help us,” Serenity said. “Yes, she should have come clean with us, but Demitri had her son. As she said, it’s only natural to do whatever you can to help your child.”
Sebastian pressed his lips together. “Okay,” he relented. “I assume you realize you can’t have your job back, but if you want to stay in touch for Elizabeth’s sake, then you can.”
Both Bridget and Elizabeth’s faces broke into a smile.
“Thank you.”
“You only get one chance,” he warned. “Don’t ever cross me again.”
“I won’t, Sebastian. I cross my heart.”
He glanced at the sky and something deep inside him jarred. “We have to go.”
“We can’t go back to the hotel,” said Serenity. “It’s too close to the club. Someone might match our description.”
“No, we need to get away from here.”
The sirens grew louder.
Bridget threw them a final glance and blew a kiss at Elizabeth, before turning and hurrying away.
Sebastian caught them up in his arms and fled. They crossed the big city, an increasing fear mounting in Sebastian’s heart. To be caught out in the open like this, with no bolt hole and daylight approaching was tantamount to one of his worst nightmares. He couldn’t just find another hotel. The cops might be on the lookout for them and he couldn’t risk getting caught in a hotel room in the middle of the day.
Ahead, they approached the huge, concrete square of the entrance to the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel. Something inside him relaxed. Underground. They’d be safe underground.
He skirted the outside of the four lanes of traffic, sticking close the wall. Within seconds, he found a door to a service tunnel and ripped it open. A small nook was set back in the wall and he pulled Elizabeth and Serenity into it with him.
Exhausted, Serenity had no more questions for him. Together they slept: Sebastian sitting upright, but deep in his undead slumber; Elizabeth and Serenity curled into each other, their heads resting on Sebastian’s lap. They’d been through a ha
rrowing time—both mentally and physically—and with only the steady drone of traffic in the background, broken by the occasional siren, they slept soundly.
Serenity jerked awake to find Sebastian looking down at her. Her hand reached out to touch Elizabeth, to reassure herself that Elizabeth was both alive and still human—or at least as human as she ever had been. Elizabeth stirred beneath her mother’s touch and Serenity let out a sigh of relief.
“She’s all right,” said Sebastian. “She’s safe.”
Serenity nodded and pushed herself to a sitting position, careful not to disturb Elizabeth too much. Her muscles groaned in protest, stiffened from the hard surface she’d slept upon and from the cold.
“Come on,” he told her. “Let’s wake Elizabeth up and go home.”
Serenity smiled. “Home. I like the sound of that.”
He lowered his face to hers and kissed her. “Me too.”
Together, they woke their daughter.
Wrapped around Sebastian’s strong body, they left the tunnel, and then the city, far behind.
They stopped for food within the hour—both Serenity and Elizabeth hadn’t eaten in over twenty-four hours and were starving. Serenity watched Elizabeth closely, wondering if any new need or thirst for blood would surface, but Elizabeth tucked into a cheeseburger with all the enthusiasm of any other half-starved child.
Soon they were off again, traversing the country from the east coast back to the west. By the time the lights of Los Angeles came into sight, Elizabeth had fallen asleep once more on Sebastian’s shoulder.
Finally, they reached their house. Sebastian set Serenity down on the gravel while Elizabeth still slept on his shoulder. To Serenity, the big house looked like the best place in the world.
Serenity stepped through the front door and into the kitchen, surveying the carnage Sebastian had caused. She lifted her eyebrows and he gave an apologetic shrug.
The damage didn’t matter; they were home and safe.
Without waking her, Sebastian took Elizabeth straight up to bed. She would be happy to wake up the next morning in her own room with Serenity there to take care of her.
Serenity began to pick up pieces of marble from the kitchen floor. Sebastian’s cool hand on her arm stopped her and she turned into the circle of his embrace.
“Leave it,” he said. “I’ll sort it out later.”
“I don’t want Elizabeth to come down and cut her feet on any sharp pieces.”
“I said I’d clean it up.”
“But what about—”
“Serenity,” he said, cutting her off. “She’s not going to get hurt. She’s safe.”
She shook her head. “I can hardly believe we almost lost her. Seeing her lying on the floor, all broken like that…” Serenity’s voice broke and tears filled her eyes.
“Everything is okay now.”
“I know, but I don’t think I’ll ever get that image out of my mind. I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared in my life.”
“I felt the same way. I might not be able to show my emotions in the same way as you, but that doesn’t mean I don’t experience the same thing.”
Serenity sniffed and nodded. “I understand.”
He held her closer and she pressed her cheek against his chest, relishing in the solidity of his body; it was her wall against the rest of the world.
“The thing is,” she continued, “I let her down in the club when I thought she was going to die. I wasn’t thinking of her in those moments, I only thought of myself, of how I was going to cope if I didn’t have her in my life. I’ve always believed I put Elizabeth’s needs first, but right at that moment I knew becoming a child vampire wouldn’t be what would be best for her. To be caught as a six-year-old child forever would be horrific. But I didn’t care; I only wanted her. I couldn’t stand the thought of losing her.”
“Hush,” he soothed her, his large palm stroking her hair. “You wanted to keep your daughter with you. Any mother would react the same way.”
“No, I don’t think they would.”
“We all have our weaknesses, Serenity. Perhaps your love for Elizabeth is your weakness. Perhaps my love for you is mine. But in our weaknesses we must also find strength.”
“I’ll always find strength in you,” she said. “I always have.”
“We find strength in each other,” he said. “That’s what family is all about.”
She nodded against his chest. “But we’re safe now, aren’t we? No more Jackson, no more Demitri. Just us together.”
“Yes, just us. We deserve a happy ending and I intend to make sure we get it.”
Serenity’s thoughts turned briefly to Natasha and her parting promise:
I won’t let you get away with this… You haven’t seen the last of me.
She shook the concern from her head. The other vampire was younger and weaker than Sebastian. She wasn’t a threat to them.
Serenity lifted her arms and wrapped them around Sebastian’s broad neck. Her fingers laced into the soft, dark hair at the base of his neck. He smiled, his green eyes lighting. He bent his head to hers and kissed her, soft and slow and deep. All of Serenity’s worries melted away. For once, she felt at peace.
They were together and they were safe.
For the moment, nothing else mattered.
Love Serenity and Sebastian? Book four, Dominion, is available to buy from Amazon! Just click on the link to be taken through to the book’s page. Make sure you sign up to Marissa Farrar’s new release list to stay updated about new releases, exclusives, and special offers! www.marissa-farrar.blogspot.com
About the Author
Marissa Farrar is a multi-published fantasy and horror author. She was born in Devon, England, has travelled all over the world, and has lived in both Australia and Spain. She now resides in the countryside with her husband, three young children, a crazy Spanish dog, and two rescue cats. Despite returning to England, she daydreams of one day being able to split her time between her home country and the balmy, white sandy beaches of Spain.
Even though she’s been writing stories since she was small and held dreams of being a writer, her initial life plan went a different way.
In her youth, inspired by James Herriot, she decided to become a vet, and would regularly bring home new pets to her weary parents. Upon discovering her exams were never going to get her into a veterinary degree, she ended up studying Zoology. Once she completed her degree and realised she’d spent the majority trying to find time to write, she decided to follow her dream of being an author. Seven years later, she was published and two years after that she was able to say goodbye to the day job.
However, she’s continued to collect animals!
Marissa is the author of twelve novels, including the dark vampire ‘Serenity’ series. Her short stories have been accepted for a number of anthologies including, Their Dark Masters, Red Skies Press, Masters of Horror: Damned If You Don’t, Triskaideka Books; and 2013: The Aftermath, Pill Hill Press.
If you want to know more about Marissa, then please visit her website at www.marissa-farrar.blogspot.com. You can also find her at her facebook page, www.facebook.com/marissa.farrar.author or follow her on twitter @marissafarrar.
She loves to hear from readers and can be emailed at [email protected].
Also by Marissa Farrar
The Serenity Series:
The Vengeful Vampire (free short story)
Alone (free first novel of the series!)
Buried
Captured
Dominion
Endless
The Spirit Shifters Series:
Autumn’s Blood (free on Amazon)
Saving Autumn
Autumn Rising
UNDERLIFE
(Please note, the prequel to Underlife, Go Back, is now free to download from Amazon)
THE DARK ROAD
WHERE THE DEAD LIVE
IN THE COMPANY OF THE DEAD
THE BODY FARM
&nb
sp; THE SOUND OF CRICKETS (Women’s Fiction Novel)
The Serenity Series: Box Set: Books 1-3 Page 65