So here it is for your enjoyment…Lucius’ and Keira’s first real encounter.
Chapter 18
Following Ghosts.
Book 2
I grabbed my jacket and ran out of the door to find a huge black Rolls Royce in the drive waiting for me. A man in a grey coat and black hat was holding the door open for me, only it opened the opposite way compared to other conventional cars.
It looked like a deadly creature under the moonlight, with its angry square grill that looked as if it would take a bite out of the Aston Martin that was behind it, waiting to be driven by another of Draven’s men. Its emblem gleamed silver and I was sure I remembered the winged figure was called the ‘Spirit of Ecstasy’.
Well, that sure was fitting. I don’t think I could think of a better description and I wasn’t just talking about the car. I stepped forward cautiously as though it wanted to eat me and only when I saw the figure of Ecstasy himself sat there waiting, did I hurry my feet. As soon as I ducked to get in I had Draven’s hand held out to help me.
This car reminded me of two different forces fused together. The inside was the complete opposite to the outside. The inside being made with pure luxury in mind and the outside had you gulping at the sight. It was a bit like Draven. Half of him you would kill just to receive his soft touch and caresses all over your willing body and the other half would kill you if you were crazy enough to go against it.
I ran my hand over the soft cream leather seat and thought it to be far too comfortable to be in a car. The back seats were more spacious than I expected and there was a clear screen between the driver and us. As always, Draven watched me like prey as I looked around at the walnut finish and cream carpets that also held foot rests.
“You seem to like this car.” Draven’s voice was deep and smouldering, making me jump at the sound and when the doors locked before we pulled away, I swallowed hard. Like this it was easy to see him as a King. He sat back casually as if he’d known this level of luxury all his life and I felt like Oliver or Annie being taken under his wing.
I bit my lip at just how different our lives were and prayed to God for not only opposites to attract but for them to be able to withstand anything. I needed Draven and it pained me to know my need was far greater than his. It just had to be. Anything else just wasn’t plausible. I mean, he could have anything he wanted and I didn’t know if I would ever understand why he would ever have wanted me but I was left thanking God daily that he did.
“It’s a beautiful car, but why didn’t you just drive the Aston back?” At this he cocked his head and smiled to himself.
“Because, I like to have my hands free for other things,” he whispered into my hairline before tilting my chin upwards for a gentle kiss. We both sighed at the same time, when the sound of his phone vibrating brought our lips apart. I started to pull away but with supernatural speed his hands grabbed my body and pulled me in to his for a demanding kiss.
“Only when I am ready to let you go, little one,” he said in a hoarse voice, clearly thick with lust. Meanwhile, the phone became a background buzz soon forgotten as Draven’s lips seared mine with burning need. I could tell he was fighting himself to keep control and if the deep frustrated growl was anything to go by then I would say that his rational mind had returned.
He let me go with a deep inhale and reached into his pocket to answer his phone.
“Speak!” He demanded in one of those ‘I am your Lord and Master’ tones. He listened for a moment before switching to another language to reply. I got the distinct impression he didn’t want me to know what he was talking about.
I decided to ignore the call and I watched the night fly by in a black haze. Only when Draven’s hand reached for mine as he moved closer to me, did I realise the phone had gone. I didn’t turn my head to look at him but instead I rested it on his shoulder and snuggled closer before my insecurities got the better of me. He responded to this by stroking my cheek with his other hand.
“You must be tired.” I didn’t know whether he was asking me or talking to himself, but at the very sound of the word I could feel my eyes closing and getting heavy. The hum of the engine was creating a rhythm that my brain responded to by drifting off and shutting down. When Draven’s hand started to make circles on my palm, I couldn’t fight it any longer, so when his words whispered their usual command in a velvety tone, I was totally compliant.
“Sleep now.” His words were the last thing I remembered.
I woke as I felt movement under my body and I soon realised I was being carried up some stairs. As soon as Draven felt me stir, he pulled my body closer to his and leaned his head down.
“Ssshh, go back to sleep, my young beauty. You will be in our bed soon.” The way he said ‘our bed’ made me smile under his jacket, which was pulled tightly around me. I could just hear a door open and the usual smell of old furniture filled my lungs. This room felt more like home to me than any other place on earth.
I felt him stop and the sound of the covers being pulled back made a whoosh sound in the air. I knew he was using his gifts, considering that his hands weren’t free. He lowered me down and I could feel the heat escaping from my body as the distance between us grew.
I seemed to be in a semi-daze and didn’t know whether this was me dreaming as I started to feel the air on my skin where my clothes were being removed. His soft hands made sure to come into contact with skin with every inch of material that he pulled away from me. I bit my lip at the feeling his undressing did to me and the craving to have him take me was nearly uncontrollable. He lifted me slightly to pull the top over my head and then expertly removed my underwear. Then he ran his fingers gently over every curve and I inhaled deeply, taking in his scent.
He gently rolled me over so that I was lying on my front and he did the same motions down my back. His palm flattened on the base of my spine and he ran it up slowly till it reached the back of my neck.
He must have thought that I was in a deep sleep, as he started to whisper things to me in a different language before letting my hair loose. He gripped it with both his hands and twisted it. Then he placed it to one side so that he could kiss my neck and continue downwards, making my spine feel like sticky dough. Every touch felt like little electric pulses that lit up my nerves and senses like fireworks on New Year’s Eve.
“My Lord, everything is ready…they…they are here and are awaiting your command.” An unsure voice I didn’t recognise spoke and when I shifted slightly from surprise his soft hands held me still.
“Ssshh… le sommeil mon pure” (“Sleep my pure one” in French). His voice acted like a warm blanket over my mind and I tried desperately to stay awake and focus on what was happening, but it was proving impossible.
“Tell my Council I will join them soon.” His authoritative voice filled the night air making it such a contrast to how moments before he was talking so sweetly to me. He wasn’t yet finished with me as his hands explored my skin and I knew that if I rolled over to fully announce I was awake, his movements would stop and he would leave. I wanted to ask him what it was that would soon take him away, but I was captivated by the immense bliss that having his hands on my body created.
He smoothed back my hair so that he could see my face and the back of one finger traced my jawline. I couldn’t help but bite my lip as he got closer to them and I heard him let out more air through his nose at his amusement. I felt his hands flatten on the bed either side of me and his body weight rested on them while he lowered his body closer to mine. His lips rested lightly on mine but for no more than seconds. Then he moved them to my ear and whispered,
“I love you, Keira.”
And then with that, he was gone.
NEW
I woke feeling strange. It felt as though a presence was near, so close in fact, it felt like the shadows of someone else were reaching out and touching me. I gripped onto the covers still half trapped in sleep and half aware of the reality facing me, had I only to open my eyes. B
ut the simple matter was that I was scared. It was as though somewhere deep within myself I knew…I knew that whatever was out there, wasn’t safe. Not like it was in Draven’s arms. Not like it was with him beside me.
It was having this thought that made my eyes snap open to see that it was true…Draven wasn’t here. But that didn’t mean I was alone. I sat up slowly as if trying not to alert my presence to anyone that could be near. Then, taking a deep breath, I pulled the curtains back from around the bed, holding the sheet to my chest, hiding my naked body. I took in the empty room and released a sigh in relief, one that turned out to be premature. A figure walked through the door and I smiled softly as I saw it was Draven.
“Oh good, I was getting…Draven?” I started to speak to him but as he walked past me without even a look or word I frowned, letting my sentence turn into a question. At the sound of his name he didn’t answer me, if anything, it looked as if I wasn’t even here. But no, that wasn’t right…it wasn’t me that wasn’t here…it was him.
Draven looked like a ghost.
I sucked in a horrified breath and shook my head a little. What was going on here…was I still asleep? Could that be it? I still questioned myself when I saw his shadowy figure walk to the glass door and straight through them as though they were already open. I shuddered watching the scene play out as though a lost memory and real life were trying to catch up with one another.
I watched him stop once on the other side of the door and he looked back over his shoulder at me. His eyes looked like purple fire as he mouthed the words,
“Come…come with me.” I jumped and let out a small shriek as he may have said them out there on the balcony but they were heard as if whispered right by my ear. Then the smirk as his eyes flashed red for a second before turning his attention back to the night.
I didn’t know what to do, whether to stay here or to find out what this all meant and go out there with him. What if there was something he subconsciously wanted me to see? I didn’t know anything about my purpose in his world yet, other than there was one, so what if now was my only opportunity to discover the true meaning of the word…Electus?
The temptation was too great to pass up, which is why I reached around for something to put on and strangely found a silky black nightdress and matching robe folded at the end of the bed. I got up, shivering thanks to the middle of the night chill and with no body to warm me. Then I grabbed the black satin and pulled it down, letting it fall to the ground around me. It hugged my breasts tight in lace covered triangles just big enough to contain my flesh and flowed down from the gathered part under my bust.
I wondered if Draven had left it for me, hoping to see me in it in the morning? That seemed like the most plausible explanation. So, assuring myself of this, I pulled on the large floaty robe to match, marvelling at how the wide sleeves touched the floor like some Kimono style. I grabbed the tie and knotted it at the front, trying to give myself some protection against the cold. It was a beautiful set but not exactly practical in winter.
I looked down seeing nothing for my feet and decided I wouldn’t be out there long anyway. I just needed to check on what was going on and if I was unsure, then I would come back inside. So, with this firmly in mind, I walked towards the glass doors and unlike Draven had, I placed my hand on them so that they would open. I sucked in a startled breath as the cold hit me like a blistering wave.
I decided to let my hair remain under the cover of my dressing gown as it would help in trying to keep me warm. That and it meant it wouldn’t get blown around in the elements and become a mass of knots come morning.
“Draven?” I said his name in question, looking around the balcony for him but movement in the corner of my eye made me look towards the winding staircase that I knew led to the roof I remembered so well from that night. The night I ran from Draven. It was the first time I had seen him in his true form and back then I refused to believe it. Seeing Demons most of my life caused something to snap inside me and not fully understanding what he could be, I ran from him in fear of what I thought he was.
Now though I knew better and I walked up the stone steps, following him up there without fear of what I would find in him. I trusted Draven and that trust included knowing he would never hurt me. No, now the fear I had was looking down at the immense height that one wrong move could have plunged me into…an abyss of trees…but surely Draven would save me if I were to fall?
I decided to keep going and keep my eyes firmly planted on the steps in front of me, trying not to let the wind freak me out as it whipped around my body. Finally, I reached the top and this time I didn’t need to look around to find him.
“Draven? Draven!” I called his name first in question when he looked back at me but kept walking. Then I shouted his name as he walked towards the door at the other side, one he had held me trapped against that night. This was when I started to run towards him and just as I was about to get to him he opened the door and walked through it.
“Draven no!” I shouted as he looked back one more time and mouthed the words,
“Goodbye, Keira.” Then he shut the door on me just as I reached out. I tried the handle but it wouldn’t open, so I screamed in frustration, slamming my open hand against the door.
“I don’t think that will help, Pet.” A voice behind me spoke and I froze to the spot. My fingers curled inward with my nails scratching against the wood panels as I made a fist. I don’t know how I knew who that voice belonged to but I did and because of this I didn’t want to turn around…I really didn’t but what choice did I have, especially when I heard him snarl his demand,
“Time to face your fate…now look at me.” I swallowed hard knowing he was right. It was time to face my fate and the face that had terrorised my dreams. So, I turned around slowly, dreading what I may find this time and hoping it wasn’t a room full of blood like the first time. But this time we were alone and the only blood was my own that felt like it was drowning my heart as it worked overtime. Because there he was.
The Handsome face of the Devil I didn’t want to know…
Lucius.
King of the Vampires.
Chapter 19
Lucius
Book 2
NEW
I hated the fear seeing him brought out in me, nearly as much as I hated myself for being such a fool. He had created Draven’s image, manipulating it so that I would follow it up here. Up here to him. He had laid the trap and I had just walked straight into it.
He leant his frame against one of the corner stones that rose higher than the rest, with his feet crossed casually. He looked briefly at his hand before swiping something off his long leather jacket. One that was like some old, worn military style with a gothic element to it. Underneath this he wore a black t shirt with strapping over the chest as if he carried weapons of some sort. Dark charcoal jeans and boots, seemed to be his typical casual bad ass style and I shuddered as his killer eyes met with mine. He smirked at me, showing me the glint of a fang and I tore my gaze from his, putting an end to his game of cat and mouse.
“Ah!” I shouted in surprise as the next thing I knew he was right in front of me, gripping my chin and forcing it up to look at him.
“The game has just begun, my dear,” he warned.
“What…what do you want with me?!” I demanded after first trying to find my voice. His hand slowly crept down from my chin to the column of my neck and I took a step back away from his threatening hold.
“Ah ah ah, tut, tut” he said slapping an arm tightly around the back of me and yanking me forward into his hard chest. There he held me to him and I struggled to get free.
“It’s not nice not giving your guest a welcoming hug. Now be still before I bite you,” he warned, snapping his teeth close to my face like a wild beast about to take a chunk out of me. His cool calm voice sounded even more deadly than one shouting down at me. As the contrast to his strength and forceful movements were made even deadlier by his controlled tone. So, because o
f all the warning signs this twisted dark king gave me, I instantly did as I was told and stilled in his hold.
The Forbidden Chapters Part 1: Afterlife Saga Page 19