The Awakening (The Elders Trilogy Book 1)

by TL Travis

  Tristan offers to take David to the airport, but I insist on taking him. Knowing it could be quite some time before I see him again scares the shit out of me. His flight arrives in Shumen, Bulgaria at midnight where he’ll rent a car and then drive to Varna.

  David and I arrive at the airport instantly entwining our bodies until it comes time to part ways at the security checkpoint. An onrush of tears ensues, I can’t shake the feeling of never seeing him again, anything and everything could go wrong with this crusade.

  “Amor,” David says, cupping my face in his hands, “I don’t like being apart any more than you, but I have to find out what’s going on. I’ll contact you every chance I get, but if Tristan steps out of line, I promise you that it will not bode well for him. He knows where I stand with you and there will be no wavering. I trust he’ll not make the same mistake twice as he’s given his word. When I return, you and I will talk about our future. We’ve been together for over a year now and you know I love you more than life itself. It’s my wish that upon my return we marry, but that would require you to be turned on your twenty-first birthday.”

  Through my tears I can only muster a nod as mere words escape me. Not the proposal I expected, but still a proposal nonetheless. He’s putting his life on the line to ensure mine doesn’t end and that’s not something I’ll ever forget. Knowing he’ll always be there for me makes all the difference in the world, and unless I agree to be changed, I can’t make the same sacrifice that he is. Changing would require my life as I know it to come to an end which won’t be easy no matter how I choose to look at it.

  Still holding my face, he wipes away my tears with his thumbs. “Amor, it’s time for me to go, but I promise I’ll return as soon as I can. You’re my love, my life.” He kisses me, deeply, passionately. A kiss that comes straight from the heart and one I will never forget as it may have been our last.

  “I love you, David,” I cry.

  “I’ll be back as soon as I can. Please think about what I’ve said. I love you, Jess.”

  Watching the love of my life walk away leaves me winded. Clutching my chest, I fall to my knees bawling hysterically. Somehow, I manage to pick myself up and find my way to the car. Once I am tucked inside the vehicle I lose it — full blown, screaming, crying, cursing losing it. No matter how hard I try, I can’t get past the nightmare that he may never return.

  As I walk in the house, Mr. Kiss Ass appears out of nowhere. “Do you want something to eat?”

  His question is probably sincere, but I really don’t feel like eating or dealing with him. “No, I’m going to bed.” I walk away. Somberly, he watches me retreat. Now he knows how it feels to be rejected. I’m sure that’s a new emotion for him. Still, I believe this to be his fault. Had he not shown up, none of this would have happened and I’d be tucked in David’s arms right now. But the reality of it is that Lourdes set her plan in motion the moment she met me and she’ll never rest until I’m out of the picture for good.

  I drop onto our bed, crying myself to sleep, not waking until the next afternoon. Feeling haggard and spent, I snatch my phone from the nightstand hoping to have a message from David, which I do. The first one reads:

  Landed in London, boarding next flight. I love you.

  And another a couple hours later:

  Landed in Shuman picking up rental car. Wish me luck, I love you.

  Both texts stir conflicting emotions within me.

  When Igo downstairs to let the dogs out, I turn the corner slamming face first into Tristan’s chest.

  He smiles. “Good morning.”

  “Good morning,” I mumble through my clinched jaw.

  After making toast, I plop down on a kitchen chair and force myself to eat. Tristan sits across from me, sucking down a human capri-sun.

  “Jess, I gave David my word to protect you and that’s a promise I intend to keep. I know you don’t want me here and I understand why, but I’m not going anywhere except to hunt. I’ll need to maintain my strength, but I have to insist that you not leave the house when I’m out.”

  I give him a nasty sideways glance that clearly says, ‘fuck off’ and continue eating, ignoring his feeble attempt at calling a truce. I’m so disgusted with him that I can’t stand being in the same house let alone on the same planet with him.

  Anger, hatred and rage consume me making it difficult to move past everything that’s transpired these last few weeks. Forgiveness and trust will have to be earned and it won’t come easily for Tristan, not by any means.

  David’s given me a lot to think about. Knowing I want to spend the rest of my life with him is an easy choice, but I’m not sure I’m willing to give up my humanity for it. But when I compare it to the fact that he’s risking his life for mine, it pales and seems childish and petty. Am I being shallow? Most girls wouldn’t even balk at the idea of spending their life with a gorgeous Vampire or give up a chance for immortality.

  I rinse off my dishes and go into the living room. Grabbing my book, I lay down on the couch. Reading appears to be an ideal diversion, but find I am unable to concentrate. I feel so empty, so alone and terrified without David. His mere presence soothes me and more than anything, I hate being apart. I detest the fact that it’s come to this. Maybe it would be best if I left, but I’m fairly certain I won’t get far on Tristan’s watch.

  Seeing I left my phone upstairs, I run up to our room to grab it. As I walk by Tristan’s room, I overhear his part of a phone conversation. Eavesdropping isn’t right, but I don’t trust him and this is a good way to find out what the hell he’s up to. Standing outside his door, I make a feeble attempt at perfecting my ninja skills by remaining still. My hope is he won’t sense my presence, and then I hear him say, “Things are going as planned. David stormed out and didn’t say where he was going.” Well at least he is playing that up, so I’m assuming he’s talking to Lourdes.

  “She’s just another foolish female falling for my charms. The allure I used was powerful, although I didn’t need to cast it so strongly. It was like taking candy from a baby. Yes, I’ll stay around and see if he returns. I’ll keep you posted.”

  I figure that is the end of their conversation so I turn to walk away when Tristan emerges.

  “I just updated David’s mother on the situation,” he states.

  “Oh ya, what exactly did you tell her?”

  He verifies what I overheard word for word so at the very least, he isn’t lying to me.

  I nod then go into my room, closing the door behind me and leaving him in the hallway. Right as it shuts, my phone rings. Hoping it is David, I run over to retrieve it and damn near trip over the dogs’ beds.

  “Hello, Amor, why do you sound out of breath? Is everything ok?”

  “Sorry, I left my phone upstairs and ran to get it. I’m fine but I miss you so much, I hate all of this.”

  “Oh Jess, I miss you too. Soon this will all be over then we can live our lives the way we want to, not the way anyone else sees fit.” He is trying his best to calm me, but my emotions are all over the place. Swallowing back the tears, I fill him in on the conversation I overheard between Tristan and his mother and let him know that Tristan verified it word for word.

  “I know it isn’t fair leaving you behind with him, but I believe he feels badly for his behavior. He’s been my best friend for as long as I can remember and was put in a terrible position by my mother so I feel obligated to make it right. Not only for us, but for his family as well.”

  David’s a noble man, but his reminding me of this doesn’t make it any easier to swallow. “I’m nearing the castle. I’ll contact you whenever I can.”

  We say our goodbyes and hang up. I roll over, once again crying myself to sleep which of course, leads to me feeling like total shit when I wake.

  My eyes are red and swollen and my stomach hurts from not eating. Depression makes me want to never leave the bed, but the dogs need to be taken care of. I get up and stretch, looking for my dogs, but they aren’t in the roo
m. Panic kicks in and I rush downstairs to find them playing with Tristan. Maybe I’m wrong in not trusting him? The dogs are no longer alarmed by him so maybe I should back off too. As soon as they see me they stop playing and run over. Turning to face Tristan I say, “Um, thanks for taking care of the dogs.”

  He bows slightly, tipping his head. “What do you think about getting out tonight and seeing a movie?” he asks, tossing one of the dog’s toys into the basket. He senses my unease quickly adding, “You can drive and pick the movie. I’m just tired of being cooped up.”

  “It would probably do me some good to get out of the house, have you heard from David?”

  He shakes his head no. “Have you?”

  “Last night after we talked in the hallway he told me he arrived at the castle, but that was all.”

  “Well Jess, the dogs have been fed so pick a movie and I’ll take you to dinner afterward.” His gesture is sincere so I agree and we head out.

  Chapter 15

  David

  Meanwhile at the castle in Varna…

  I barely enter the castle when my mother comes barreling down the staircase. It is as though she had prior warning I was coming, when in reality, she probably heard me pull up outside.

  “Son, to what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?”

  “Jessica left me,” is all I say.

  She tries to suppress the pleasure this announcement brings her, which she doesn’t do a good job of. I have to bite my tongue to keep the rage from surfacing. I bite so hard my fangs cut my lower lip. She meanders over, wrapping her arms around me. “Come, my son, you’ll find your room just as you left it. How long will you be staying with us so I can let the staff know?”

  “Until I figure things out,” I tell her.

  She nods. “You’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like. The Brandt’s will be arriving around midnight. They’re returning from visiting their family in Belgium.”

  Great, I just walked in and she’s already pushing Amelia down my throat.

  I drop off my luggage in my old room and find it just as she said, untouched. Well, at least she didn’t destroy anything, but how am I going to avoid Amelia? In the past, Amelia was unable to keep her claws off of me, so this will be prove to be quite the challenge. She’s not a virgin, she’s very promiscuous, but Tristan’s warning about her and her family is still fresh in my mind.

  After unpacking, I leave my room seeking Tristan’s parents. I am famished, but assume my parents will insist we hunt after the Brandt’s arrival. That will be the perfect opportunity to see the lot of them in action, something I haven’t witnessed for many years. The way a Vampire hunts says a lot about their character. Any Vampire with a soul will hunt with care and compassion for their victim. We can feed without killing, but chose to remove the less desirable characters from society.

  Strolling through the castle brings back a lot of memories, memories I’ve repressed. I wrack my brain, searching for something I might have missed or ignored about my mother, but nothing is coming to me. Walking around, I notice nothing has changed. Paintings of the Elder Vampires and their bloodlines adorn the halls in the same spots they have for centuries. My mother’s despicable family is displayed on a lone wall, in gold frames with an embossed placard above the top row reading, ‘Vasquez Family Elders’ most of which are still assumed to be walking among us. My father’s lineage is displayed several rows below theirs.

  As I stand here, taking it all in, the realization as to how many members of my mother’s family have been excommunicated from the council in previous centuries for various reasons, sheds some much-needed light on the current situation. Seems the apple didn’t fall far from the proverbial tree, at least not where my mother is concerned. Maybe her lineage isn’t as ‘pure’ as she portrays it to be.

  Feeling another presence, I turn, finding my father standing there. “Welcome home, son, your mother shared your unfortunate situation with me and I am sorry to hear of it. I really liked Jessica.”

  I detect sincerity in my father’s body language. Outwardly his facial expressions appear pure, but I’m still apprehensive. My father opens his arms, inviting me to hug him. As we part, he puts his arm across my shoulder guiding me to the balcony.

  “Son, aren’t these grounds breathtaking?” He gestures to the meadow below.

  “Yes, Father, the countryside is divine.”

  “This will be yours to govern one day, my son.”

  Not feeling comfortable with where this is going, I only nod in return. I know it is said that I will take over the family seat on the council, but now I’m not so sure the other council members will be in favor of that once my mother’s wrongdoings surface.

  “I understand you have much to ponder, son, I don’t mean to burden you with this. Come, our guests will be arriving soon and I’m sure you’ll want to freshen up.”

  Descending the stairs, cordially I greet each guest in turn. I shake her father’s hand then begrudgingly, kiss the top of her mother’s and then hug Amelia. I look to my mother for approval noting her sardonic expression, wishing I could smack it off her face, but instead choose to force a smile. Glancing over to my father, he nods with no facial expression whatsoever. I’m coming to realize he isn’t the happiest of men.

  Mother commands the servants to take the Brandt’s luggage to their rooms so they can freshen up and change into hunting attire. I decide to do the same. My parents need to keep it more pure as they call it, and that things should remain as they once were centuries ago. They don’t like the way humans have allowed society to digress, preferring days of old.

  Donning my leather trench coat, I don’t feel much like hunting, but I’m starving and bowing out now would draw unwanted attention, plus hunting will be a good way to keep an eye on all of them, especially mother dearest.

  Arriving downstairs, I am greeted by an awaiting Amelia, all the others are still changing. She nears, purring seductively, “Have you missed me?” while tracing the ‘V’ neckline on the top of my t-shirt with her finger tips. Her beauty would stun Aphrodite herself, but it’s not something I’m easily fooled by. She’s tall and slender with long, billowy blonde hair falling in ringlets to her waist. Her hypnotic sapphire blue eyes have brought the strongest of men to their knees. Ah, what fortuitous timing, she pulls her hand away as the others surface.

  On the trip to town, Amelia keeps pace alongside me. I wonder if my mother had somehow been forewarned of my arrival, thus notifying the Brandt’s so they would return. Things aren’t adding up with this trip. I wonder if Mother has the Rogues tracking me. Note to self, notify Tristan and heighten security levels for Jess.

  Crossing the edge of town, Amelia asks, “What brings you back to Varna, David? Have you finished school?”

  “No, I have three years left.” I don’t want to elaborate any further and risk giving anything away.

  “I heard you had a human concubine,” She speaks with such hatred that I have to fight back the urge to choke her.

  “Yes, but that’s over.”

  “Ah,” is the last she voiced on that subject.

  We reach the seedy edge of town where the taverns and whorehouses are. Generally, we’d lurk in the shadows, waiting for unruly bar patrons to get expelled and start fights outside. Assessing them, we’d pick our meals accordingly. I despise using humans as meals, but it’s a necessary evil being an immortal. Scanning the area for my mother, I spy her eying a young couple walking down the other side of the street, licking her lips as though they were pieces of candy.

  They have their arms tightly wrapped round one another, completely oblivious to what is going on around them. From here I can sense their love for one another and feel no evil radiating from them, so they should be of no concern to the pack, but Mother seems to feel otherwise. The rest of the pack is gravitating toward a group heading to an alley behind the tavern. I stand back, assessing my mother’s next move. She senses my watchful gaze, shifting her interest from the couple to the gro
up the rest are tracking.

  Catching up to the others, I see the seedy group of men they are following have a terrified young bar maiden in their grasp. She can’t be more than sixteen. They are taunting her as she begs them to release her. The men shove her down onto a table and begin pushing her skirt up. There’s no way in hell I’m letting them take that from her. Without thinking, I dart out, grabbing the man closest to her around the throat and begin feeding. This sets the rest of the drunks into mass hysteria, but they never have a chance for fight or flight to ensue before our hunting party descends upon them.

  I have to say, there’s nothing like taking that first bite, breaking the skin, feeling the warm blood slither down your throat. The rush you get as it pulsates through your veins is like heroin to a Vampire. The euphoric frenzy speeds through you, nothing else can compare. Right then, the bar maiden starts screaming and she bolts, never looking back. She is of no concern to us, but just to be safe I catch up to her, compelling her to forget all that transpired then send her on her way.

  We pile their lifeless bodies in the nearby forest, swiftly setting them afire. Luckily, we are in a remote part of town on the far west side which isn’t heavily populated. This is a poor, working class village and the likelihood of anyone seeing anything is minimal at best. Once all that remains are skeletons, we bury them and set course back to the castle.

  During the journey, my father paces himself in line with me and comments, “That was a noble deed you did for that girl, I’m proud of you, son.”

  Stifling a grin, I nod. While I’m not looking for my father’s approval, it is still nice to hear. I gaze up through the group discovering my mother is nowhere to be found.

  “Father, where’s Mother?” I ask.