Clive stood silent, giving her no answers.
Ursula picked up a porcelain vase with her trembling hands and sent it crashing against the wall. The destruction felt good. So good in fact, that she tossed a ceramic pot against the opposite wall. “Liar!” she screamed to the top of her lungs, tears streaming down her face. “You’re all liars, and I want to see Ascher!”
“Ursula, we can’t—”
“I don’t want to hear it! I’m tired of being ignored!” She glanced down at the crumpled note she'd clenched in her hand. “What did he say?” she mumbled, attempting to find the part of the letter that most irritated her. “Here it is. He is unsure about the sealing and needs more time,” she read aloud in a mocking tone, her voice raising an octave with each syllable. “What about what I need?”
Clive reached for her again to calm her.
Moving away from him, Ursula floated to the far end of the room. She spied something out of the corner of her eye, a piece of history, an irritant further igniting her ire. Picking it up, a fresh stream of tears scalded her cheeks as she swiped her finger across the picture of them—Ascher and her.
Utterly baffled, she couldn’t understand what she’d done to make him cut communication with her. She’d given him everything he could want in a mate—she'd been dutiful, loving and loyal. She’d given him her virginity, because she believed that their sealing was predestined. Klaus prophesized it three hundred years ago—before either of them existed. She'd sensed that something was off. His voice was different the last time they’d talked, and his expression seemed a little too happy when she’d left the States three months ago.
The thought of a common existence sickened her. She was ruined goods, tampered with, considered unsuitable for a dignified sealing. If Ascher refused, they’d hand her off to a commoner. Claws ripped from beneath her fingertips and fangs burst from her gums.
“It’s only nerves,” Clive interjected, in an effort to alleviate her hysteria.
Even she could see the lies lurking behind his forced smile. Razor sharp talons scraped along the concrete wall, nearly splitting the blocks in half. “Fix this Father, you and your inbred servants had better fix this.” Her vision swirled with more crimson. “I want the life promised to me, it's mine. I want that bloodstone and I want him. I deserve it, and I’ll be damned if I let it go without a fight!”
* * * *
Langley, Massachusetts
Ascher paced the floor of the great hall, his mind a muddled mess. By now, he’d gotten a reply to his formal request for a postponement. Clive had bypassed him and gone straight to his father.
Gabe and their father, Jonas, arrived, giving him serious glances as they sat in their seats at the wooden table. Ascher swallowed hard. The large table was for serious meetings. Six months ago, he’d sat at it and received his father’s formal blessing to seal to Ursula. Although, Gabe hadn’t laid claim to Shauna, Ascher still felt like he was betraying him and recognized the scowl of contempt hidden underneath his brother’s pasted grin.
Ascher sighed. “I know why the both of you are here. I understand the weight of my decision. I also understand the consequences the covenants prescribe if I fail to honor the arrangement. I need more time. I’m just not ready.”
“Son, I know you, and you wouldn’t make a decision that would put the family in harm, unless there was a good reason. What is the reason for your indecision?”
“You should talk to her,” Gabe suggested. “Go to Romania and spend some time with Ursula. It’s been months since you’ve seen her.”
Ascher knew Gabe’s sudden interest in his love life had little to do with concern, and much to do with getting him away from Langley—away from Shauna. He cringed. The thought of making love to Ursula’s lifeless cold body every night for eternity was enough to make him impale himself.
Lacing his fingers on the tabletop, Gabe said, “Clive will rain down death on us if you refuse to go through with the sealing. Ursula is beautiful, sweet and she'll make a wonderful mate.”
Ascher glared at Gabe. He should have nothing to say about it, because he was free from having to make such a sacrifice. “Why do I have to seal to her? Gabriel thinks she’s so great. Let him seal to her!”
Gabe gritted his teeth. “You selfish fool,” he hissed. “You think you can just do what you’d like without consequences?”
Jonas’s hand crashed down on the heavy wood table, cracking it. “I will not have you two at each other’s throats! If there’s a chance that Clive is coming after us, we have to unite and be ready to fight. The darklings aren’t going to roll over and play nice. They’re soldiers and killing is what they do. It’s why the Romanians created them. Rousseaus don’t behave like this! My sons do not behave like this! What’s wrong with you, Gabriel?”
Gabe’s face became a slab of furious stone. “Me, what’s wrong with me? He jeopardizes all of us, yet you still take his side. But I should’ve expected that you’d take the side of your half-blooded love child!”
A low growl escaped Ascher’s lips as he lunged across the table, grabbing Gabe by the throat. “Damn it Gabe, you take that back. You take it back right now!”
“I won’t. I’ll never take it back! You’re nothing but the product of his obsessions with an impossible scientific principle and a warm-blooded whore!”
Jonas grabbed Ascher’s hand, attempting to pry it away from Gabe’s neck. “Please son, don’t do that. He’s your brother.”
Ascher growled then glared at his father. “No brother of mine bad mouths me, or says such awful things about my mother.” He turned back to Gabe. “And you’re one to talk considering you helped create me!”
“Enough!” Jonas roared.
Ignoring their father’s orders, Gabe and Ascher continued growling as they ascended into the air. Gripping Gabe’s neck as they twirled in the air, Ascher gave him the brunt of his glowing red eyes.
Gabe returned an equally intense gaze, smirking. “You think I don’t know about you and Shauna? She can’t go a day without your face flashing through her mind. She was supposed to be mine, but you ruined that. Why do you think I led her to the bar? I wanted her—for me.”
“She doesn’t want you, Gabriel.”
“Because she can’t keep her mind off you.” Gabe maneuvered out of his brother’s hold. In a second, he was holding Ascher by the throat. “You think you’re so special because you’re a half-bloodling, don’t you? You think you’re the messiah. You’re an abomination, just a test tube experiment gone wrong.”
“I’m an abomination? We all are, Gabriel! We’re the walking dead. Mine is less conspicuous, but no less true. You think Shauna would want either of us if she knew what we were?”
“You’re so smug. You can hide behind the flush in your cheeks, your warm skin and think you fit in with them, but you’re more of an aberration than the rest of us!”
“You’re ruining our brotherhood over a human who doesn’t matter.” Ascher paused, absorbing how quickly the lie came from his mouth. She mattered more than anything—enough that he was now fighting with his blood.
“What are you two talking about?” Jonas questioned. “Who is this human?”
Ascher peered down at his father. “Her name is Shauna. Gabe led her to the bar and hired her to work there.”
Jonas gave both his sons fleeting glances. “Humans and vampires don’t mix. Ascher drifts between two worlds because of what he is. If I’d known that life would be so difficult for him, I wouldn’t have created him, or let Beatrice carry him. You can’t get involved with a human, Gabriel.”
They both descended to the floor.
Gabe glowered at Ascher before loosening his grip. “I’m sorry father—for my behavior. I’ll leave at once. I think it might be best for me to take some time away. Quinn can take over the bar.”
Jonas motioned him over. “I want to talk to you first Gabriel, before you go.”
Ascher closed his eyes to sweep Gabe’s mind and sensed no immediat
e cause for alarm. He channeled Shauna next. She was sitting in her apartment alone, stroking her cat while she held a picture of her sister in her hand. Tears fell from her eyes, as her mind whispered its contents to him. I miss you sissy. I miss you so much. Sighing, she placed the picture back into the photo album.
Ascher clutched his head as her angry mind screamed about her parents and their closed mindedness. Leaning against the wall, he absorbed her thoughts and attempted to stay conscious. Pacing back and forth, her thoughts raged about their treatment of her sister. Finally, drained and tired, she fell into bed. Her mind drifted and her eyes became heavy as she had one final thought. In the softest flutter of a voice, Shauna's mind whispered, Ascher, and a shiver coursed his spine.
* * * *
After a sleepless night and morning spent seeking Shauna, instead of avoiding her between classes, Ascher crept into Birchmont’s library. He’d been a jerk and dismissive of her feelings. If she didn’t want to see him, he deserved it, but he still had to try. Well aware that he had a lot of apologizing to do, he’d surmised that it was worth the effort to know her better.
The first days, after the falling out with his brother, Ascher had avoided him, making Quinn the buffer and lookout. When he wasn’t avoiding Gabe, Ascher had spent his days attending classes and steering clear of Shauna. Once or twice, he’d come across her in the hallway and turned his head, avoiding her eyes and refusing to give her the slightest inkling of acknowledgment.
Gabe had left a week after the blowup, telling no one where he’d be or when he’d return. His rage and anger spewed out in such wretched waves that it was difficult for Ascher to channel him. After three attempts and a nose bleed, he decided to let Gabe cool off.
Now two weeks removed from Gabe’s absence, Ascher was free to think about a friendship with Shauna. A new horror movie was coming to the Metropolis in a week. He loved horror movies, despite their unrealistic portrayals of his kind. He was anxious to see it but hated going alone.
The musty odor of old books and lemon scented furniture polish permeated the air of the ancient library. Students sat in the rows of desks, their faces weary from the pressures of finals, their minds overflowing with random chitchat that bored Ascher to insanity. He found her in the middle row, her head resting on her arm as she read from a book.
Shauna twirled a wavy lock of hair around her pointer finger. Her skin glowed with that wonderful butterscotch tone, her pink cheeks rosy with a lovely flush. Her complexion was stunning and so very different from the washed out deadness of Ursula’s pale existence. Her full lips were glazed pink and pouting—tempting him to kiss them repeatedly.
Ascher sighed aloud.
Shauna looked up, as if she heard his frustration.
Ducking behind a row of bookshelves, he channeled her mind. The quiet of the library made it easy to hone in on her thoughts. He listened as she read poetry. He'd never heard this poem—a contemporary, no doubt. Her mind’s voice whispered the words swirling in her head as she jotted down notes then closed the book to sit quietly. Her mind spoke as if she were right in front of him.
Ascher, if you’d only say something to me. I’m so unsure about how you feel. I know there's something there; I felt it in the bar and in the park during the fireworks. I’m not crazy, and now you walk by me as if I’m the plague. Why do you do that, Ascher?
To his astonishment, he ascertained that she thought of him just as much as he thought of her. His legs propelling him over to where she sat, he paused, giving her a warm smile. “Mind if I sit here with you?” Every nerve in his body teemed with anxiety and excitement to see her again.
She cleared the place beside her, shoving the book of love poems in her backpack. “No, not at all.”
“Thank you.” Ascher sat, listening to her mind as it spoke more.
He has the most beautiful teeth—perfectly straight with no gaps or discolorations. He’s almost too perfect. Guys like him are usually serial killers. I wonder why he’s so pale. You’re being rude. It’s impolite to stare, and you didn’t like it very much when he stared at you.
She turned away from him.
“Nice weather we’re having.” As the lame statement left his mouth, he froze. His attempt at making small talk failed utterly. You idiot, you just commented on the weather. Have your eighty-seven years taught you nothing? “I meant to say, are you enjoying the unseasonably warm days we’re having?”
“Not really,” she spoke while still staring into space to avoid eye contact. “I’m behind in all of my classes. Plus, I’m working and trying to cram for exams.”
“I could help you.”
“I don’t want to take away from your free time. I’m sure your girlfriend wouldn’t appreciate it either.”
“Girlfriend, what makes you think I have one of those?”
Her cheeks flushed with the pink color of embarrassment. “I just assumed that you did.”
“Well, I don’t.” True, he didn’t have a girlfriend, but he did have a walking dead Romanian fiancée. “If you need to cram, I’d be more than happy to help you.”
“If you’re offering, I’m accepting. I really could use the help. I’m going to lose my grant if I don’t pull my grades way up.”
“It’s settled. We can meet here every day.” The thought of having a reason to see her every day gave him a thrill.
“This isn’t going to make things weird at the bar?”
“I told you I’m not your boss. Quinn is.”
“Is Gabe coming back?”
“I don't know. He had some personal issues to iron out. Could take him a little while.”
She glanced at her watch then bolted upright. “Oh, my God, I’m so late!”
“Late?”
Shauna scrambled to gather her things, shoving them into her backpack. “I have to pick up my little sister today. Something happened with her car and she needs a ride home.”
Ascher stood with her, grabbing her backpack and slinging it across his shoulder. “Let me, at least, walk you to your car.” Carrying her books was his way of staking a claim—even if she didn’t understand what his subtle gesture meant.
“Thank you. I’d really like that.”
They walked past Stewart Hall and the Galleria until they reached the parking deck, stopping at a pink VW Beetle.
“Well, this is me. Thank you for carrying my things.”
“Thank you for allowing me to carry them.”
She stared up at him with an indescribable look in her dark eyes. “See you around, Ascher.”
“Take care, Shauna.”
He walked away thinking how easy that was. A connection was forming—the fireworks were a definite turning point in their friendship. Her mind needed binding, and he was sure Gabe was still channeling her.
Sitting in his car and preparing to pull out of the parking garage, a figure in the shadows caught Ascher’s eye. A black blur darted across the reflection in his rearview, followed by another moving so quickly that it could only be a vampire.
Testing the air, Ascher scented two like himself. The first scent was female and so sickeningly familiar that he gulped a breath of disgust. He paused, remembering Shauna on the next deck. Shutting his eyes to channel her, he saw her driving down the interstate, singing some obnoxious pop song.
At least she was safe and out of harm’s way.
Content that Shauna was well out of view, he honed in on the shapes again. As one of the blurs flew by, he reached out attempting to grab it—he missed. His stomach twisted as the revolting scent gnawed at him. “You can come out now, Ursula.”
She stepped out of the shadows, her angry face shrouded in a dark cape to protect her from the muted rays of sunlight. He couldn’t see much of her eyes, except a faint glimmer of red flashing beneath the hood. “I don’t suppose your sudden lack of interest in me lies in the heart of a dark-eyed human.”
Ascher stepped out of his car. “What are you talking about? I have a better question. What are you doin
g here?”
“Don’t play coy with me, Ascher. I smell her on you, but at least I know you’ve been faithful.”
“What?”
“A scent as sweet and alluring as hers can only be that of a virgin. She smelled delectable.” Worming her way into his rigid arms, she purred, “Has it been so long that my touch has grown cold to you?” She leaned in for a kiss, but he pushed away.
Her touch was always cold and his demeanor turned equally frigid. “Why the hell are you here, Ursula?”
“After months of distance, this is the welcome I get?”
“I thought I made myself clear.”
“You’ve been ignoring me. If it’s nerves then I understand.”
Ascher sampled the air again. There was another scent—the unfamiliar one. It was, without question, male. He shot Ursula an irritated glance. “Tell your friend he can come out, too.”
She rolled her eyes and turned to the shadows. “Come on out, Ian.”
Ian cleared two enormous trucks with the deceptive grace of a vampire half his size. His vast layers of scarred skin, massive muscle build and darkened complexion made his appearance that of a demonic god—typical characteristics of a darkling.
Though Ascher should have been afraid of the darklings’ superior size, he only felt contempt when he saw them. Wrinkling his face, he muttered, “So, you brought a pet along.”
“Watch yourself, half-blood,” Ian snarled while clenching his fists. “Clive might have to wait until next month, but nothing says that I have to.”
Ascher flashed his eyes and gnashed his teeth. “Anytime you’re ready to rumble, big boy.”
“Stop it, you two!” Ursula gave Ascher a sickeningly sweet smile that turned his stomach. “Aren’t you going to take me to the mansion? I had a long trip, and I couldn’t wait to see you.” She reached out to run her hand through his hair.
Avoiding her touch, he stepped back. “Not until you tell me why you’re here.” Ascher struggled to hide his disgust, clamping his quivering jaw. Still channeling Shauna, he saw her driving with her sister in the passenger seat.
The Progeny (The Progeny Series) Page 5