“You are very sure of yourself,” I was doubtful. “Maybe it’s time to reveal what is in the Book of Anu?”
Donovan shook his head. “No one will believe, not even the Immortals. The time will come, but that time is not now.”
Before I could say more, the chiming of the doorbell distracted the vampire.
The true darkness of the Immortal would soon rear its ugly head. I could feel it deep in my bones.
Chapter Ten
Sarah
Dressed in cutoff shorts and a white T-shirt with pink hearts across the front, I appeared to be furthest you could get from a vampire or a witch, but I was both.
Darrien stood behind me, his hand resting on my shoulder. His nearness offered protection and support.
At the moment I wasn’t sure which I needed most.
The woman who answered the door seemed mildly surprised when she saw us, but to her credit, she just smiled. “Can I help you?”
“I’ve come to see my sister, to see Nicole.” My words were rushed.
I was worried since I hadn’t heard Nicole whispering to me for hours now, not since she’d been given directions on where we should go once we reached New Orleans.
“Of course. Please come in.” Vicky stepped aside so we could enter. “She’s in here.”
We followed the woman into a small room. A man wearing a black shirt and a priest’s collar stood near the bedroom window, but I barely noticed him. It was the other man in the room who commanded my attention.
His dark eyes were magnetizing and he resembled the girl, Nicole. This vampire was our father.
My eyes strayed to the girl on the bed. She was still, her face a pale mask of death. Rushing to my sister’s side, I placed a hand on her forehead. She was burning with fever. She would need to move quickly before the soul left her body entirely.
“Sarah?” The deep male voice called to me.
Turning around, I faced the vampire who fathered me.
“Donovan.” My voice was icy and flat. “Where’s my mother?”
He shook his head. “I haven’t seen her since I went away from you both.”
“You mean since you left us stranded in a sleazy motel room in Portland?” I spoke the words through clenched teeth, my anger overcoming my common sense.
For a fraction of a moment, I saw shock in his eyes.
“Did you think I would not hear the stories?” I asked, coldly.
“I didn’t have a choice. Maybe one day you will see the truth of this.” It was the only explanation he offered.
“Maybe, but I doubt it,” I told him before turning back to Nicole.
There was no time to waste getting to know the father who’d left me behind. At least Nicole had made an effort to find me. It was her life that I was concerned with at the moment.
Before I could think of what I should do to help Nicole, I heard a commotion at the front of the house and a door slamming. A few seconds later, a man rushed into the room.
He was wearing a business suit and seemed completely out of place. His run of the mill, clean-cut appearance was confusing because he was a vampire. This I was sure of, in spite of the wire-rimmed glasses he was wearing, but very likely didn’t need. A vampire’s eyes were never bad. I knew that much.
The vampire went straight to Nicole’s bed. “Alec called me from the airport. He and Dash are on their way,” he said.
Glancing at me, the vampire held out his hand. “You must be Sarah,” he smiled. “I’m Ethan. I’ve been searching for you for a long time.”
I shook his hand and decided right away that this was one vampire I could like, aside from Darrien.
For the first time, I noticed Jeanie in the bedroom doorway. A sob found it’s way into my throat and I ran to her. “Thank God you’re okay. Darrien told me that someone trashed the house.”
Jeanie waved away my worry like she always did. “They were just throwing a tantrum, that’s all. I’m sure they were very angry to find that you’d slipped away right under their noses,” she laughed.
“Oh, and Taylor sends his love,” Jeanie added with a wink.
I didn’t miss the look of distress on Darrien’s face. Aunt Jeanie had done it purposely, so I chose to ignore her reference to Taylor.
“We have to do something for Nicole,” I said.
“I know, and we will, but first we need space to work. We’ll need enough room to lay her on the floor and to surround her with candles.”
“We can clear out the parlor,” Donovan spoke up.
A few minutes later, Nicole was lying on the hardwood floor, surrounded by white candles. As soon as Alec entered the house, he started freaking out.
“Seriously, you need to back off,” I told him. “We can help her but you need to chill out.”
Although he was like an animal caged, Alec let us get to work.
Now I was kneeling beside her while the rest of the group stood outside the circle. Jeanie had told me what to do, but she couldn’t help. The magic would be far more powerful if a blood relative performed the ritual.
From the darkness beyond the candlelight, I felt Alec’s anxiety. There were times when Ethan and Dash were restraining my sister’s lover by force.
Taking a deep breath, I started chanting the spell of life, as I used mint oil to draw a star on Nicole’s head. My hands shook with uncertainty as doubt taunted me. After all, I was still a novice witch. Could I really expect to pull this off?
Pushing the self-doubt from my mind, I cleared my thoughts and concentrated on the spell. Grabbing my crystal dagger, I placed the handle against Nicole’s forehead, with the blade pointed toward the ceiling.
“Zaltar! I call you now!” I said, my voice strong and loud.
The dagger started to glow. At first the blue light was dim, but it slowly brightened.
“I call the power of earth, of fire, of air, and of water. I call to the spirits that reside in the north, the south, the east, the west. Breathe life back into her lungs. Give voice to her words and chase away the shadow of death!”
The light emanating from the dagger grew so bright that I had to use one hand to protect my eyes, but then the light changed into brilliant prisms of color so breathtaking that there was no mistaking it for anything other than magic.
When the light faded, a white mist gathered above Nicole’s head. Like ghostly fingers, the mist crawled over her body, finding its way into her nose and mouth and entering her head through her ears.
When the smoky mist retreated, it moved to me, gathering at my shoulder. The mist darkened until it was completely black, and then transformed into a raven.
While the raven rested on my shoulder, I knelt closer to my sister. “Nicole, can you hear me?”
Nicole’s eyes fluttered open and she stared at me, her confusion evident.
“Do you remember me?” I asked.
Nicole shook her head. “No, maybe. I don’t know.”
“That’s okay,” I smiled. “It’s not unusual for people to lose their memory of the other side.”
“What do you mean, the other side?” Nicole tried to sit up, but the effort seemed too much for her.
“You were very close to death,” I told her.
“Nicole!” Alec called from across the room. Breaking away from Dash and Ethan, he ran to where Nicole and grabbed her hand.
“Can you ever forgive me?” Alec was so upset he sounded as if he would choke on his words.
Nicole reached up to touch his face. “There is nothing to forgive. I would do it all over again.”
Alec shook his head. “No! You will never risk your life for me again.”
Nicole’s only response was a strained smile. She then closed her eyes and drifted into sleep.
Vicky stepped forward to take her daughter’s hand. “Let’s get her to bed. She is still weak and needs her rest.”
I felt a twinge of jealousy that my sister should enjoy the love of a mother, while I’d been denied that love for so long. Shamed by my
thoughts, I pushed them out of my head and reached out to grab Vicky’s hand.
“I saw your son in a dream. He is happy and at peace. He is always near you and Nicole.”
Tears crept into Vicky’s eyes. “Thank you,” she said, clearing her throat. “You should tell Nicole this when she is well. She will want to hear about her brother.”
Chapter Eleven
Sarah
Sitting on the white marble bench, I let myself relax, enjoying the garden and cool evening breeze. It had been two days since Nicole had come out of the coma and she was quickly regaining her strength. I’d spent many hours getting to know my sister and filling her in on what had happened while she was in a coma.
The sound of footsteps on the stone walkway intruded on the peaceful solitude of the garden. Donovan approached, but I refused to acknowledge him.
“Sarah, do you mind if I sit here?” he asked.
I shrugged.
“You haven’t spoken to me since the night you arrived. I believe we have a lot to talk about.”
“Not really,” I told him and then stood to leave.
“Please don’t go. Talk to me,” Donovan spoke up before I could walk away.
Taking a deep breath, I sat on the bench next to him. “What do you have to say to me that you couldn’t have said years ago?” I asked.
“I have three daughters and I love them all equally. You must understand Sarah, I will not be the cause of harm coming to one of you. And I will not bring this curse of my existence onto the women that I’ve loved,” he tried to explain.
“What do you mean?” I was confused.
“Your mother, she couldn’t accept what she was. Beth wanted me to turn her into what I am, but I refused.” Donovan grew silent for a long time before he continued.
“I knew she loved me and would have done anything for me, even give up her life as a human. I couldn’t let her do that. I loved her in my own way and I didn’t want her to live like I’ve lived. And then there was you. I knew she couldn’t be the mother you needed if she was a vampire.”
“Well, she wasn’t that anyway.” My words were full of bitterness.
I didn’t resist when Donovan took my hand in his. “For that, I am so very sorry.”
I closed my eyes in an effort to hide my pain. “Jeanie was good to me. She was always there when I needed her.”
“Yes, and I am eternally grateful to her for the love she’s given you, though I know she still disapproves of me,” Donovan added with a smile.
“So what do you think happened to my mother?” I asked, my heart softening slightly.
“I believe she probably went searching for a vampire who would turn her. The fact that she never returned tells me that she found what she was looking for, but he brought her death instead of the eternal life that she wanted.”
Tears stung my eyes. From what I remembered about my mother, she’d been so beautiful and so full of life. It was difficult to imagine that she was really gone. For some reason, I’d always believed she would come back for me someday. As a child, I’d fantasized about it.
In that fantasy, my mother would walk up the driveway of the old Fabre mansion and with that beautiful smile on her lips, she would open her arms to me. But that day had never come and now I knew it never would.
Reaching up, my father gently wiped away on my cheeks. “I do have some information about her.”
Holding my breath, I waited for him to continue.
“I asked Ethan to see if he could track down Beth’s movements after she left you in Sutter Point. He was able to trace her to Wyoming. That was about ten years ago. It was the last place she was known to be.”
“That doesn’t make any sense.” I drew my brows together in confusion. “If she were searching for vampires, wouldn’t she have come here to New Orleans, or maybe someplace like Romania?”
“You would think, but that’s what we’ve been able to uncover so far.”
Sighing, I got to my feet. “I’m tired. I think I’ll go to bed early tonight.”
The truth was that I needed some time alone to digest what he’d told me, and to come to terms with her mother’s fate.
I started to walk away but paused at the sound of Donovan’s voice.
“Do not make the same mistake as your mother, Sarah. An Immortal cannot be what you need. Not really.”
Refusing to acknowledge Donovan’s words, I made my way to the bedroom on the second floor. Just because it turned out bad for my parents doesn’t mean it will be the same for me. Part of what went wrong with my mother and Donovan was her choice in men. He was obviously not someone who would ever belong to just one woman. It wasn’t the same with Darrien.
Slipping into bed, I closed my eyes and tried to sleep, but it was hot. Though the night breeze drifted through the bedroom window, I still felt as if I was suffocating.
“Sarah!” a voice called to me from outside.
Leaving the bed, I made my way to the window. Darrien was in the garden, motioning for me to come out.
“What are you doing down there?” I asked.
Darrien put a finger up to his lips. “Don’t be so loud. Come out and play.”
My heart raced as I anticipated what type of playing he wanted to do. Since we’d arrived in New Orleans, Darrien had made himself scarce. I’d seen him only once since that night, and even that was only at the bedroom window. There was only time enough for a quick kiss before we heard someone coming.
Darrien was aware of Donovan’s feelings about our relationship. I just hoped my father’s disapproval wouldn’t matter. It shouldn’t matter. Not after he’d been absent for most of my life.
“I’ll be down in a minute,” I said, blowing him a kiss before turning from the window.
But as soon as I turned around, I froze. Gina was blocking the door. The ghastly vision sent shards of fear into my heart.
She had seaweed clinging to her wet hair and her face was swollen and gray, just like it was on the day they had pulled her body from the water.
“Go away, Gina!” I closed my eyes, hoping that when I opened them again, the ghost would be gone.
But when I looked again, she was still there.
“What do you want?” I asked, angry that my friend continued to haunt me. All of these years there hadn’t so much as been a whisper and now Gina was popping up around every corner.
“Death is painful but the pain does go away.”
I could hear Gina’s voice in my head, but before I had time to contemplate the meaning of her words, she vanished.
Baffled, I left the room. Tonight, I needed the solace of Darrien’s arms more than ever. I found him waiting in the garden and all but flew into his embrace.
“Are you okay?” he asked, startled by my behavior.
“Yes,” I whispered. Getting on my tiptoes to place a quick kiss on his lips. “I’ve just missed you, that’s all.”
Darrien smiled. “Have you ever made love on a riverbank?”
I shook my head.
“Well, now you will.” Darrien wrapped his arms around me and we rose into the darkness. A moment later, I could see the glistening black water of the Mississippi below.
Slowly, we descended from the sky. Darrien gently laid me in the tall grass of the riverbank. His eyes were alight with his hunger, but that hunger was softened by love and something else. Suddenly I realized what else I was seeing in his eyes, sadness.
I opened my mouth to ask him what was wrong, but before I could say a word, Darrien silenced me with a deep kiss. His tongue danced with mine; caressing the inside of my mouth while his hands stroked the inside of my thighs.
Darrien pulled away and whispered, “Going two nights without you has been torture.”
“Hmm, I know what you mean,” I told him as my fingers sought out the button of his pants. With deft movement, I released his stiff flesh from the confines of his pants and wrapped my hand around him.
“You move so quickly,” he panted.
&n
bsp; “I can’t help myself. You’ve neglected me too long,” I told him as I gently pulled on his erection. I loved the way his body trembled as his hunger grew.
“Witch!”
“And I’m very wicked,” I laughed.
As he stared down at me, I was falling into the fire I saw within his eyes.
“Do you remember everything now? Do you remember being Caroline?” he asked in low voice.
Nodding, I said, “I do remember. I remember making love in a field of wildflowers, beneath the sun.”
“We would never be able to do that again,” he said, his voice cracking with emotion and the need that was overwhelming him.
“I don’t care,” I told him, lifting my head so that I could kiss him.
Darrien lost it then. His mouth devoured mine in a hungry, demanding kiss. His hands lifted my nightgown so that he could get to my panties. Slowly, he slid them off and when I was free of them, his hand was between my thighs, gently spread my legs.
My legs grew weak and I started to shake, waiting for the moment he would enter me.
“I want you to bite me while we are making love,” I gasped, fighting to get my breathing under control.
Darrien growled and I felt his fangs pierce my neck. In that same instant his hard flesh penetrating me. The moist heat between my legs erupted into a raging blaze of passion. The feeling of him feeding on me as he moved rocked against me was so erotic that I was almost instantly pulled into an earth-shattering orgasm.
Howling my delight, I savored the feeling of him frantically thrusting into me, consumed by his mind-numbing need.
As he spilled his seed in me, I wrapped my legs around him and let him bring me to that place of unbelievable pleasure, once again.
There was some pain as he withdrew his fangs from my flesh, but I was soothed by the feeling of his tongue licking away the droplets of blood that still flowed from the wound.
“I love you,” he whispered in my ear.
“Not as much as I love you.” I smiled; content with life for the first time that I could remember. It wasn’t perfect, but with Darrien by my side, it was as close to perfect as it had ever been.
Dark Hunger (Immortal Legacy Book 5) Page 3