“I’ll go help her,” Isabelle said.
She couldn’t wait to get her hands on the new material, and start planning exactly what they were going to do with it. It had to be the paint that they had ordered, or maybe the kitchen cabinets. She was beginning to really smile with anticipation when her father suddenly stiffened. His eyes flashed a vibrant red, before he was gone. They stood silently for a moment, gaping at each other, before turning and running toward the front door.
CHAPTER 3
By the time they reached the front door, her mother and father were outside, kneeling over a woman. Isabelle skidded to a halt, her eyes widening at the sight of the middle aged woman on the ground between them. “Kathleen!” Ethan gasped.
Isabelle’s mouth dropped open as she gaped in surprise. “What happened?” Aiden demanded.
Her mother looked up at him, unshed tears in her wide violet blue eyes. “She fainted,” she whispered.
“Mom! Mom!” It was then that Isabelle noticed the young girl kneeling over Kathleen, lightly tapping her face in an attempt to wake her.
“Who is that?” Aiden insisted.
“Kathleen,” Isabelle answered absently, horrified by the scene before her.
“Who?” Ian asked in confusion.
She sighed impatiently as she rolled her eyes at them. If it didn’t have to do with a girl, or blood, they paid no attention to anything. “Mom’s friend from college!” she snapped impatiently.
“Oh,” he said dully. “Oh shit!” He exclaimed more loudly when the full realization sank in.
“Liam, get her up, we’ll take her inside,” her mother ordered briskly
Her father bent and scooped Kathleen easily up. “Put her down!” the girl screamed, pulling at her father’s arms. “Put her down now!”
“What the hell is going on?” Jack bellowed from the back of the pack still crammed in the doorway. “Is that... oh shit this can’t be good.”
“Get out of the way Jack!” her father snapped as he carried Kathleen quickly inside.
Her mother followed eagerly behind, her beautiful face pinched with worry. “Ethan, please take care of ah… Kathleen’s daughter.”
They all turned to look at the young girl as she stared fearfully back at them with wide blue eyes. Tears were streaming down her pretty face as she tried to shove her way past them. Ethan seized hold of her shoulders, pulling her back from the doorway. “Just calm down,” he said gently.
Bright, sky blue eyes flashed to him, they boiled with anger and fear as she shoved at him again. He seized hold of her slender arms, pinning them to her sides. “Your mother is fine; she just went inside to catch up with her good friends.” The girl’s eyes began to glaze over as his power started to wrap its way into her mind. “You decided to stay out here with us while they catch up. Okay?”
She nodded slowly as he released his hold on her. Isabelle nudged him out of the way, seizing hold of the girls limp hands. “What’s your name?” she asked gently.
“Delia,” she replied numbly.
“Delia, that’s a nice name. How old are you Delia?”
The girl continued to stare dazedly at her. “Sixteen.”
“What brings you here?” Isabelle asked gently, trying to break the girl from her trance.
Delia blinked in confusion, and then her eyes focused fully on Isabelle. “My mom wanted to see yours.”
Isabelle let out a small sigh of relief as the girl began to regain full consciousness. “I’m sure that they’ll have a good time,” Isabelle said more forcefully, clinging tighter to the young girls delicate hands.
“Yes, they will. Who are you?” the girl asked quietly.
“I’m Isabelle and these are my brother’s Ethan, Aiden, and Ian. The ugly guy with the wet hair is Jack, one of the stooges.”
“Hey!” Jack protested angrily at the same time Delia asked. “The stooges?”
Isabelle grinned at Jack as he scowled disapprovingly back at her. “Yeah, that’s what we call our parent’s friends Jack, David, Mike, and Doug.”
Delia frowned, her forehead puckered as her light eyebrows drew tightly together. “There were only three stooges.”
“You’re forgetting Shemp,” Ethan interjected. “Everyone forgets Shemp. Trust me, once you get to know these four they are just like the stooges.”
“Hey!” Jack protested again, frowning angrily at all of them. “We helped to raise your ungrateful asses!”
“Yes, and that’s why we are the way we are,” Aiden retorted happily, pushing Jack’s shoulder lightly.
Delia smiled brightly as she looked over Isabelle’s shoulder toward the group gathered on the porch. She was a pretty girl with wide, sky blue eyes, and soft, gentle features. Her cheekbones were high and delicate, her mouth full and pouty. She was taller than Kathleen, and leaner, but she had her mother’s curvaceous figure.
At that moment, another set of headlights flashed into the driveway. “Who the hell is that?” Jack’s kidding air vanished in an instant as they all stiffened in preparation for what was to come.
Delia turned to look, her smile grew wider. “That’s my sister Jess; she rode up with her boyfriend. You probably remember Jess.” She turned back toward Isabelle, her face eager as she looked hopefully at her. “She remembers you.”
Isabelle vaguely remembered Jess. The last time she had seen her, she’d been eight years old. Jess had been a pudgy blond, with bright blue eyes, and a zeal for mischief. They had been fast friends then, as Jess had been the only girl that Isabelle had to play with at the time, Abby and Vicky having just been born. To her surprise, Isabelle suddenly found herself looking forward to seeing her again. Jess had been so much fun when they were younger, and it would be nice to have someone other than her sisters to speak with.
“Oh wonderful,” Jack muttered. “I’m going to get the others.”
“I think you should,” Ethan said softly.
They all turned as car doors opened and slammed shut. Isabelle’s brow furrowed as the night air suddenly shifted and stirred. She glanced worriedly at her brothers, their casual postures were gone. They now stood stiffly, scanning the night. Ethan’s nostrils flared as he scented the air for the source of the sudden disturbance. Isabelle turned her attention back to the car. There were two people standing in front of it, hidden within the shadows of the night.
“Do you feel that?” she whispered.
“Yes,” Ethan said, his eyes narrowing sharply. Aiden and Ian stepped forward, their bodies tense, and their eyes locked intently upon the shadows.
“What is that?” Ian hissed.
Isabelle didn’t know, but it radiated through the inside of her, shaking her to the core. Something was off, something wasn’t right. It was not a scary feeling, not one that rocked her with fear, but it upset her nonetheless. There was something in those shadows that she had never felt before, something that she didn’t understand.
“What are you guys talking about?” Delia demanded.
“Isabelle go inside,” Ethan commanded sharply.
Isabelle shot him a nasty look as her jaw clenched and her hands fisted at her sides. She wasn’t going anywhere if it meant leaving them alone with whatever the strange presence was. “No,” she retorted fiercely. His eyes narrowed as they darted to her.
“Come on.” A girl’s voice, Jess’s, cut through the air. Isabelle could tell that she was pulling on the man’s hand beside her, but he wasn’t moving.
“Hold on.” The deep, husky voice was a solid command that stopped Jess’s movements instantly. It also caused a bolt of surprise, and something else, something that she didn’t recognize, to jolt through Isabelle.
“Stefan,” Jess said impatiently.
Isabelle strained to see through the shadows. Her night vision was exceptional and she was able to make out a small, thin girl, with light blond hair before the car. Her hand was on the arm of the man next to her. Isabelle’s gaze sharpened on him. His shoulders were broad, his build large and
muscular, and his hair was as dark as the night surrounding him. The sensation, the disturbance in the air, was coming from him. It radiated off of him, pulsing through the night.
“It’s him,” Ethan whispered.
“Yes,” Aiden agreed his voice barely audible in the completely still air.
“Huh?” Delia asked in surprise.
They all ignored her as they focused their attention on the strange man hidden within the shadows. Isabelle could barely make out the hard planes of his face and the firm set of his jaw. He looked as cold as concrete, and he was as still as stone. His eyes were dark, and narrowed upon them.
“Come on Stefan!” Jess said, pulling on his arm again.
He shrugged off her grasp as he stood stiffly; the shadows enfolded him within their embrace. Isabelle’s heart leapt into her throat. She suddenly knew what it was that was off, what he was. “Like knows like!” she gasped.
“What?” Delia asked in confusion, her eyes wild and wary as she took a quick step away from her and her siblings.
“Shit,” Ethan hissed, his stance becoming even more rigid as his hands fisted at his sides. Her brothers stiffened around him, grouping tighter together.
“You people are strange,” Delia said, her eyes darting fearfully over them. “I want to see my mom.”
“What do we do?” Aiden whispered.
There was a shifting among the shadows, a small bristling as the man moved ever so slightly. “I wouldn’t do anything,” he informed them coldly.
Jess had called him Stefan, Isabelle remembered as she took an instinctive step closer to her brothers. There was something about his voice, something strange, but not unpleasant as it enveloped her like a warm cloak. It did something to the inside of her, caused something to stir and shift in a way that she had never experienced before. “Ethan,” she whispered fearfully.
He took a step forward, shielding her even more. The man, Stefan, laughed softly as he finally started to move forward. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
Another shiver wracked through Isabelle at the sound of his voice. The shadows parted around him as he moved swiftly into the light. Isabelle’s breath froze in her lungs; the world seemed to rock on its axis as her eyes locked upon him. He was perfect, broad, tall; magnificent. The hard planes of his perfectly sculpted bones were highlighted by the light now playing off of his strong face.
His gaze traveled swiftly over her brothers before settling on her. His eyes were as black as onyx, and just as cold. They penetrated through her, racking her bones as they seemed to steal straight into her soul. For a moment, he was the only thing that she could see, the only thing she could feel.
Everything else disappeared.
Then, his gaze moved from hers, breaking the brief connection. Isabelle felt an amazing sense of loss as the breath rushed out of her, and the world slammed into place. With a startled cry, she turned and shoved her way past Aiden and Ian as she fled into the sanctuary of her house.
***
Stefan couldn’t move as his gaze locked on a pair of pure violet eyes. The young woman stared at him, her mouth slightly parted as she gazed at him with a deer in the headlights look of pure panic. Her hair was dark, with soft gold streaks running through its shimmering depths. It curled around her beautiful, delicate face, before spilling down her back in thick waves. Her nose was small, and narrow, her tiny nostrils flared as she gaped at him.
She was tall and slender, with the elegant grace that was innate to all of their kind, but with her, he knew that it would have been present even if she were a human. She was beautiful, perfect, unlike anything he had ever seen before, or had ever thought to see. He was surprised by the bolt of lust that ripped through him as the delicate tip of her tongue came out to nervously wet her full, luscious lips.
For a moment, she was all he could see, all he could sense. Then, the man next to her moved. Stefan’s eyes darted to him as his instincts kicked into high gear. He knew what they all were, and he knew that they were going to defend their home, and each other. He had sensed them miles down the road, but he hadn’t known that he was heading straight into their lair. He still couldn’t believe it. Never had he seen so many of his kind in one place, and he knew that there were still more of them in the house, and he could sense even more somewhere else.
He also knew that they were not killers, but he didn’t know if they were going to attack him. He had come into their territory after all, and he knew full well just how territorial his kind could be. A strangled cry snapped his gaze back to the woman as she turned and fled. Startled looks came over the faces of the two that she shoved past, but they didn’t make a move to stop her. The other one took a step forward, his body rigid as his hands clenched into fists at his side.
“I don’t think you should be here,” the man said coldly.
Stefan didn’t think he should be here either, but he wasn’t going to tell him that. He was stronger than most of his kind, but with so many of them here he knew that he would be in for a hard battle. A battle he would not walk away from unscathed, especially if he had to protect Jess and Delia from them.
“You are the creepiest people I have ever met!” Delia cried angrily. “I want to see my mother!”
“Delia shut up!” Stefan hissed. His gaze darted to the young girl by the porch, Delia was easily within their reach, and if they wanted to hurt her they could have her in seconds. The last thing he needed was for her to draw even more attention to herself. He needed all of his senses at the moment, and Delia’s yelling was not helping.
“Stefan!” Jess cried, at the same time that Delia started shouting angrily.
He purposely shut them out as he tuned his senses to the air around him. Detecting the approach of others, he turned so that his body was halfway between the porch, and the shadows at the edge of the house. He knew immediately that there were four of them.
They came running around the corner, skidding to a halt as their eyes landed upon him. He half crouched prepared to fight to the death as a soft hiss escaped him. Their eyes widened in surprise, and then narrowed dangerously. The three on the porch took a step toward him, hostility radiated from every inch of them. Stefan’s muscles bunched in anticipation of a fight.
Jess and Delia took a frightened step back. Delia began to scream hysterically, causing Stefan to wince at the harsh sound of her grating voice.
“Stefan!” Surprise snapped through him as one of the newcomers called his name and took a step forward. The animosity that had surrounded the man moments before vanished instantly. Stefan remained rigid as he straightened slowly, his eyes intent upon the tall, blond man that had spoken his name. For a moment he couldn’t recall who he was, then recognition sprang forth, and a small laugh escaped him.
“David?” Stefan asked in disbelief.
“Yeah, what the hell are you doing here?” David grinned at him as he strode forward, extending his hand. Stefan accepted it and shook it briskly.
“What the hell is going on?” Jess demanded angrily, her hands planted on her hips as she glared at them. Her eyes swung to Stefan, a moment of fear flashing through them before she took a step closer to her sister.
“That’s what we’d like to know,” one of the other newcomers muttered.
David peered over his shoulder, his eyes widened as he finally noticed the two humans gathered behind Stefan. “Who the hell are you?” he demanded.
“Kathleen’s kids,” the tall man at the front of the porch answered.
David’s eyes widened as he spun toward him. “What?” he gasped.
“Yeah, don’t ask. Who the hell is that?” he asked nodding toward Stefan.
David blinked in surprise, shaking his head slightly as he glanced quickly between Stefan and the group gathered on the porch. “This is Stefan. I met him when I went to college in Pennsylvania. He’s the one that told me about what was going on with Liam and Sera.”
Stefan’s eyes widened as his mouth dropped. “Are these their kids?” he
asked in surprise.
David nodded as he grinned at Stefan. “Some of them. That’s Ethan, Aiden, and Ian,” He said, nodding to the group still gathered on the porch. “Those are my friends Mike, Doug, and Jack. I told you about them before.”
“Yeah, I remember,” Stefan replied dully, his gaze quickly searching the three men on the porch. He had heard of vampire children, had been told that they were normal looking, but he had never actually seen one. It was completely amazing. “Who was the girl?” he inquired.
“The girl was our sister, Isabelle,” Ethan, or at least he thought it was Ethan, replied coldly.
Stefan’s eyebrows rose at the fierce tone in the boy’s voice, but he refrained from saying anything. “What is going on?” Delia asked shrilly.
“Someone’s going to have to take care of them,” Stefan said, waving a hand at the humans behind him.
“Not me,” Jack announced. “I had enough of doing that with Kathleen years ago.”
“What did you do to my mother?” Jess nearly shrieked.
“What are going to do to us?” Delia cried, backing steadily away from the porch, her gaze darting wildly around. Her fear was palpable as it radiated through the air.
“That’s all you guys, it’s a perfect training session for honing your powers of persuasion,” David said, grinning as he nodded to the men on the porch. “Why don’t we go somewhere a little less chaotic and catch up?” he asked Stefan.
“That sounds like a very good idea,” he replied.
CHAPTER 4
Isabelle woke with a groan to the endless pounding of a hammer, and the annoying buzz of a saw ringing in her ears. Moaning miserably, she grabbed her pillow and pulled it over her head. She had barely slept last night, and this was not the way that she wanted to be awakened. Why the hell were they working on the new house so early in the morning? She wondered angrily.
Then she realized that she was being ridiculous. If they had started later, she would have been over at their house, dragging them out of bed in order to get them moving. She was just angry because she hadn’t fallen asleep until the sun had already started to peak its head over the horizon. She groaned again as she clearly recalled the reason why she’d had so much difficulty falling asleep.
Destined (Vampire Awakenings) Page 3