The Pentagram Child: Part 2 (Afterlife Saga Book 5)

by Stephanie Hudson

  The skirt part was what normal people (Not Pip) would consider the ‘mad part’ of the dress. It was ripples of sheer white material edged with thick ribbon at the bottom of the short skirt that were all bright colours of the rainbow. It curled around me and flared out in waves. It was sweet and pretty and I felt like a little girl wearing it.

  I nipped back into the room I had left RJ in to check on her to find her fast asleep on the bed. She looked completely worn out but was still in her oversized hoodie and black ripped leggings, so I covered her up and took off her shoes.

  “Please be safe in your dreams.” I whispered to her and left the room as quietly as I could. I was just twisting up my hair and tying it with the rainbow ribbon to match that Pip had given me as I bumped into someone.

  “Lucius.”

  “So you made it.” He said raising his eyebrow at me in that chastising way that told me what he really wanted to say was, ‘I told you so’.

  “See, it all turned out in the end…well, kind of.” I added trying to hold back my guilty face.

  “Well I don’t know, I am dressed like a damn pirate.” He said making me laugh.

  “Let me guess, Pip?” He then held up the hook that she had obviously stuffed over his severed hand and said,

  “You think?” making me laugh harder this time.

  “The annoying little Imp doesn’t even have the decency to fake being sensitive to my cause.”

  “You have met Pip right?” I asked looking him up and down thinking that she might have made him a Pirate but at least she made him a hot one. Captain Jack Sparrow would have had competition on his hands.

  “Yes, undoubtedly so.” I smiled knowing that he adored that little Imp, no matter the hard ass act he played.

  “So you arranged with Sigurd to help spring Bill out to save me.”

  “That was the plan and one that worked nicely I think, considering what we had to work with.” He said looking me up and down with a smirk and I blushed.

  “Ha ha, very funny. But seriously you could have told me I could be expecting a cowboy to show up and save the day.”

  “Like you told me about the letter you left Dom?” Ok so he had a good point.

  “Yeah, I thought so.”

  “Then I guess we are even.” I said in my defence.

  “I guess we are.” It quickly became one of those moments that you didn’t know where it should go but before it became awkward you wanted to end it. My time around Lucius was difficult to explain as there was always going to be a love there that was different to what I held for anyone else. It wasn’t bad, it wasn’t wrong, it was just different. We had been through a lot together and when I had thought he was dead I had felt the same searing pain of loss that I had done when I thought I had lost Draven.

  Yet the love I had for both of them was separated by a very strong and prominent line. It was the same line I had with Vincent, Draven’s brother and between Sigurd and Jared and anyone else who was dear to me. But I would say if that line was ever smaller on one side then it would have been for Lucius. And that was a confusing can of worms I never wanted to open.

  “I have come to say goodbye.” I looked up at him and noticed for the first time I had known him, he looked tired.

  “Why, the party is still…”

  “Let’s just say that I would rather miss what I suspect is to come and let’s leave it at that.” He said cryptically. I frowned and it deepened when I noticed the little black veins around his forehead and down his neck. I wanted to ask him about it but I could tell now wasn’t the time, not when I saw the flash of pain he was trying hard to hide. And I knew it was the physical kind.

  I nodded and he gave me a small smile that didn’t reach his stunning steel grey, icy blue eyes. Then he put his hand on the back of my neck, pulled me close and kissed my forehead…

  Then he let me go.

  He started walking away but I shouted down the staircase to him,

  “Lucius?!”

  “Yes my little Keira Girl?” My heart tugged hearing my pet name and I closed my eyes a second too long.

  “Are you alright?” I asked and his response nearly broke me,

  “No…

  But I will be.”

  Chapter 71

  Wonderful World

  I couldn’t help but feel a sadness I had to hide after saying goodbye to Lucius but it seemed to be a recurring theme for the both of us. It felt like there was so much more we both had to say to one another but neither of us wanted to go first, or even listen to the facts. But I knew one thing and that was I hated seeing Lucius so broken.

  I shook my head slightly to get the morbid thoughts from my mind and tried to focus on the arms that held me from behind. When I had first walked back down from my goodbye with Lucius to find Draven again, I had been swept off my feet by someone I didn’t even know could dance.

  Vincent.

  The music was playing some catchy beat and I laughed as he twirled me around and just smiled when my feet fumbled the steps and messed up. I think I must have stepped on his feet more times than not. It was when I was being spun for the third time that I caught sight of Draven watching us.

  He had his arms folded and was leaning against one of the pillars just watching us both. I thought he might have wanted to cut in but then his look said something so much more. It was the type of look that made you feel shy, even with the one you love. I must have started blushing because he laughed. It was a beautiful sound which was why it was hard to keep my pretend scowl. If anything though this just amused him more.

  Vincent and I continued to dance until the song finished and once it had he looked down at me.

  “I think he has been made to wait long enough, let’s torture him no longer.” I smiled and then bit my lip knowing there wasn’t much I could say to that. I was about to pull away when Vincent’s arms wrapped around me and pulled me in for a hug. Then he kissed my cheek and whispered in my ear,

  “You saved my brother. You risked your life to bring me back the biggest part of my own. I cannot thank you enough and even a lifetime of doing so will still not amount to what it means to me. You are my world’s strength and I can only hope I find a love like yours one day.” He pulled back to see the tears running down my cheeks, so he reached up and wiped them away with his thumbs. His crystal blue eyes glistened with emotion and for that one moment in time it belonged to us and no one else in the world.

  After that I found myself back in Draven’s arms with the party continuing on around us. Which brought us back to Pip and her fabulous ways. She bounced off into the crowd and I couldn’t take my eyes off her.

  “You love that little Imp, don’t you?” Draven asked me from behind and I bit my lip to stop it from wobbling.

  “I really do.” I said swiping the tear away before anyone saw it. It was strange for I had been in Hell facing perils, fighting Harpies, facing imprisonment in something that would rip me apart yet coming through all that and finding my family on the other side was what made me cry the most. It was feeling blessed and loved. It was being allowed the time to reflect and feel proud that you had the strength when you most needed it.

  It was simply living and being thankful for it, because no matter what you went through in life there was always a way out, you just had to fight for it. You just had to find the strength and push yourself through the shit and come out clean on the other side. But the one thing you had to keep you going was that when you hit rock bottom, at least you had something hard to help push yourself up against when reaching the top. And let’s face it you couldn’t get much lower than Hell’s version of Hell!

  So that was why I cried more now than when I was close to death, because even though there can be strength in your tears, there is double the amount of love in them. And that’s what my tears now were for. They were for the love of my friends, for my family and more than anything else, they were for the man I loved at my back. And as long as we had each other that was all that mattered…
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  We could face anything together.

  “Well then, you will be glad to know I picked up a birthday present for her.” I snapped my head round and looked up at him with wide eyes.

  “You did?”

  “I did, from the both of us of course.” He said and he bent to one side to pick up a gift bag I hadn’t even noticed was there. I had to laugh at all the comic book characters that covered it and the massive multi-coloured bow attached to one side.

  “What is it?”

  “You will find out.” He whispered and then nodded to Pip who was twirling in the middle of the colourful crowd like a child lost in her own wonderful world. To look at her you just had to smile and admire her beautiful spirit. Holding her skirt out and spinning round and round on her own listening to the heavy rock music that you would never have put her actions of dance to but it didn’t matter. She didn’t care for such things and neither did anyone else.

  She was perfect just the way she was.

  And she was my perfect friend.

  Suddenly the music stopped and Pip started clapping and chanting,

  “Cake, Cake, Cake!” Everyone in the other rooms tried to cram into the room to see and Draven and I stepped closer. Then from around the corner four people emerged each carrying a pole attached to the corners of a table top.

  “Oh…my…God.” I said at the sight of Pip’s cake where there was only one word to describe it…insane.

  “I think this is her biggest one yet.” Sophia said coming to stand by us with her own present in her hand wrapped and ready to hand to Pip. I looked back to the enormous cake as they set it down on a free table, taking up the whole space and one that could have sat six for dinner.

  It was amazing and stood about 6ft tall. In fact I don’t think if the guys carrying it hadn’t been Supernatural the four of them wouldn’t have got it in because that thing must have weighted a ton! The best way to describe it was a giant waterpark with the main water chute starting at the very top. There was a tunnel at the top that looked to be the start of the ride and where the carriage would come racing from. Then there were twists and turns and even a loop the loop all around the cake that was like a snowy mountain.

  There was also an icing figure of Zeus stood at the top of the mountain holding a sign up with both arms above his head, it read,

  ‘Pip’s Water Works’

  “Brilliant!” Pip shouted laughing at what it was named and then she bent over double and let out great belly laughs that even made her wheeze uncontrollably. I think it was the Pip equivalent of the Keira snort.

  The rest of the cake as it went further to the bottom became a sea with the arm of Poseidon rising out of the base. He had his famous trident in his hand and a dragon style sea monster’s head rose up from behind the arm and became the end of one of the water slides disappearing into its mouth. The centre of the cake was obviously earth as it was all different greens from the hundreds of tiny trees the ride passed through.

  Dotted all around the cake were smaller rides like it was in fact a whole fun world filled by this crazy amusement park and you could tell Pip absolutely loved it!

  Adam came up from behind it and Pip ran and jumped in his arms. I think he was dressed as a Jedi Knight and I was surprised he was looking so tame considering Pip must have dressed him. But I guess seeing as she had a thing for 80’s pop culture, it fit in with the theme of the party…which of course was madness.

  “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She chanted bouncing in his arms and he beamed from making her so happy.

  “That’s not all my little Winnie, there’s a surprise waiting at the top of the mountain.”

  “YEY! Is it that rainbow pony tail butt plug I wanted?” She asked clapping and I heard Draven cough and lean down to say,

  “Did she just say…”

  “Yeah, she did.” I whispered back shaking my head and trying not to get that particular mental image.

  “I don’t think I could have fit that into the carriage, love.” Adam said laughing and then pulled a big lever that was on his side of the cake. It was a candy pole, with red and white stripes and a big exaggerated red ball on the top. He pulled it towards him and you could then hear the cake coming to life.

  The icing clouds above Zeus started to move from one side to the other. Then a rainbow went behind the mountain and back round again. The tiny rides at the bottom started to move and fairground music started to play. Even tiny little icing figures started to slide down the water chute into the dragon’s mouth and every time one disappeared there was a tiny little scream.

  But the best part came when the tunnel door opened at the top and the little carriage emerged. It followed the track all the way round the mountain until it came to the end near where Adam had situated Pip. There in the little carriage was a black velvet box, tied with a comic book ribbon and the whole gift matched her dress.

  She squealed and grabbed the box before yanking the ribbon off impatiently then she snapped open the box and started screaming with delight. Everyone cheered even though none of them knew what it was, although it was obvious it was a piece of jewellery.

  “You got it! Oh my peanut butter cups! You got it me! You remembered!” Adam, looking like the dashing Jedi picked up his wife and swung her round before showering her with kisses. Then he put her down and she shouted,

  “I love you, I love you, I love you! Now put it on me!” To which Adam started frowning and growled,

  “Not here, love.” He said making her laugh.

  “Ok cave man, I won’t get my dairy pillows out, no need to go all possessive about my Jubblies…here look what he got me everyone!” Pip shouted holding up the box and showing us the beautiful silver heart with an arrow going through the centre. At the end of the arrow you could just see the tiny green emerald embedded there. It took me a while to figure out what it was as there was no chain attached to it but then the whole ‘Dairy pillows’ and ‘Jubbly’ comment clicked and I knew it was a nipple piercing. I looked at it again and saw that the arrow went through the nipple and fixed to keep the heart in place around it.

  “It’s so pretty.” I said and even though I couldn’t see myself getting my nipples pierced this was one piece of jewellery that could have changed my mind…it was very cute.

  “As pretty as it may be nothing will be piercing this delectable skin of yours other than my teeth.” Draven hummed after getting his lips close to my ear. I shuddered in his arms and almost groaned as I put more of my weight back against him. We hadn’t even had our first kiss yet and I put this down to we both knew what would happen when ‘It’ finally happened.

  “I need to get you away from here. I’m finding my patience to have you is at its last strength.” As he said this he pulled me more forcefully back against him and I could feel his solid erection was backing up his words of need.

  “Oh no, now you two can just stop that for a minute, I am opening presents!” Pip shouted pulling me slightly away and sticking her tongue out at Draven when he growled at her.

  “Tough titties Royal Man, this Tootie is mine for the next hour!” And she was right, it did take her another hour to open all her weird and wonderful presents. Some of which included a remote controlled tarantula, bacon flavoured candy, Zombie blood shower gel, vibrating bra with attached nipple clamps, new shoes that had little garden gnomes as the heels, a clutch bag like a bloody cleaver and then something called a GO GIRL, which she got very excited about.

  “Yey! I can pee on the GO!” She shouted holding up the pink funnel like she was holding the Olympic torch.

  I must confess that I was hitting my limit of being felt up by Draven, as it hadn’t taken long for him to get back possession of me. But with his hands feeling up my sides and keep dipping higher up the back of my legs I was ready to get on my knees and beg for mercy.

  “And this is from me and Zagan.” Sophia said handing over hers. Pip continued to do what she did with most of her gifts and that was to shake it by jumping
up and down. Then she tore into it and screamed…again, something she did with each gift she received. In fact I don’t think I had witnessed someone so thankful no matter what the gift was, just the fact it had been bought for her was getting her excited. I was starting to think someone had a bit of a gift addiction.

  “Oh my, a Willy Wonka Penis Factory! This is amazing, look honey, I got one!” She said holding it up and I had to turn my head to the side in case I was seeing it wrong.

  “Is that what I think it is?” Draven laughed behind me and Sophia actually blushed before leaning into me and saying,

  “Try not to judge me, I promise you it’s what she asked for.” She was of course referring to the glass bulbous shape attached to a long green pony tail, with electric blue tips to match Pip’s hair.

  “It’s my very own Rainbow pony butt plug! Oh we are going to have so much fun with you riding me with this in later! I’m so glad I packed our horse whip! Thank you, thank you, thank, you!” She said leaving her husband to stand red faced whilst coming over to hug Sophia.

  “Thank you Zagan.” She added and he held up his hands and took a step back, then pointed at his wife and said,

  “It was all her idea!” Making everyone in the room laugh and Draven even patted him on the back in a ‘We are men, we band together’ type of way.

  “Whatever, I bet you bought Sophia one of these already!” At this Zagan cried out as Draven’s pat on the back turned into his gripping his shoulder in comment to hearing about his sister.

  “That would be a big no, no!” Sophia said and then turned round and smacked her brother,