Dark Hunger (Immortal Legacy Book 5)

by Lorraine Kennedy

  Tilting my head back, I looked up at the night sky. It was magical the way the stars twinkled against the dark heavens. It was easy to imagine that as long as there was starlight, that radiance would keep evil from overcoming the world.

  If only that were true and those heavenly lights could keep away the darkness winding its way through my heart.

  I was so sure it was Darrien I’d seen at the rest stop, but after running the scene through my head over and over again, I was no longer certain. Maybe it had been a ghost, or someone resembling Darrien. It was easy to make a mistake when it was so dark.

  It could have been just some drifter using the restrooms as a place to sleep. I was still grieving. Maybe I’d wanted it to be him so bad that my brain made me believe the person I saw was Darrien.

  I burrowed deeper into my sleeping bag, trying to stay warm. Nicole slept only a few feet away. The guys didn’t have a choice but to stay in the van. They couldn’t be outside when the sun came up.

  Closing my eyes, I tried to fall asleep. Just as I was ready to doze off, a rustling in the underbrush brought me fully awake. Sitting up, I stared in the direction I’d heard the noise.

  The moon was bright, but not bright enough to make out much of anything.

  Then I saw him, a dark silhouette against the moonlit sky. Scrambling from my sleeping bag, I started toward him. There was a chance I was wrong and the person was some stranger getting his thrills by watching us sleep, but I didn’t think so.

  I could feel his presence - the essence of his being in a way that was only possible with someone you loved so intimately.

  As soon as I started moving toward him, he sprinted. I followed, running in the direction he’d gone.

  “Darrien,” I called after him. “Don’t run away from me, please.”

  I followed him through the trees and out into an open, grassy meadow. He stopped but was still far ahead of me.

  “Don’t run from me,” I yelled. “I will follow you to hell and back if I have to.”

  “Why are you here, Sarah? Who brought you?”

  “We came here looking for Lex’s Outerlands,” I told him. “I didn’t know you would be here.”

  “You are fools! There is no such place. It is hell you seek,” he said, bitterly.

  “No Darrien.”

  I took a few steps toward him, but with every step I took, he would move further away.

  “Stop,” I shouted. “I think you owe me an explanation.”

  “I’m a monster, Sarah, a real monster. The boogeyman that comes out of your closet at night,” he laughed harshly.

  “No, I don’t believe you,” I said, moving cautiously in his direction. I didn’t want to risk him running again. There was simply no way I could keep up with him if he did.

  “Don’t come any closer!”

  “Or what, Darrien? Are you going to attack me?” I asked. “If you are the monster you claim to be, isn’t that what you would do?”

  “Just go away, Sarah.”

  The defeat and sadness in his voice were like shards of sharp pain going straight into my heart.

  “Why can’t you believe in me Darrien? Why can’t you believe that we can get through this, no matter what?” My voice splintered, my heartbreak coming through with every word. If I lost him again, I would simply wither and die.

  “Not this we can’t.”

  I took two more steps, but again he started to turn away.

  “Don’t Darrien! Please don’t turn away from me,” I begged.

  I took another step and froze. Now I could see why he was running from me. I could see the hideousness of his deformity.

  But I refused to react. I wouldn’t so much as flinch or avert my eyes. I took another step toward him.

  “Now are you satisfied that you can see me as the monster I truly am?” Darrien turned away.

  “You are an Immortal, Darrien. You will heal.”

  He shook his head. “We are flesh and blood. You know that. Your very existence is evidence of that.”

  “But …”

  Darrien cut me off. “Not the sun, Sarah. The sun damages the cells that regenerate.”

  “Do you really believe me to be so shallow that this would matter?” I asked, angrily.

  “You are fooling yourself,” he said in a soft voice. “You would feel revulsion every time I touched you.”

  Reaching out, I place my hand on the scarred flesh of his arm. “I love you. What you look like doesn’t matter.”

  Darrien shook his head. “Sarah, don’t make this any harder than it already is.”

  “So now that you look different, does that mean that you don’t love me anymore?” I asked.

  “No, it doesn’t mean that. I do love you. I will always love you,” he whispered.

  “Then prove it,” I told him. “Hold me in your arms, Darrien. Kiss me. I’ve been too long without you.”

  Slowly, he turned to face me. I slipped my arms around his neck and brushed my lips against his. Darrien pulled me close and kissed me. At first, his kiss was tender and uncertain, but then it turned to one of yearning.

  When he pulled away, he placed his cheek against mine. I could feel the dampness of his tears, the tears of a vampire.

  My heart swelled with a love so complete, so pure that its light was far more brilliant than any light of heaven.

  “Will you marry me?” I asked.

  Darrien pulled back. “You’re joking?”

  I shook my head. “No. I want to marry you tomorrow, next week, next month. I don’t care when. I just want you to promise that you will be with me the rest of my life.”

  “I promise,” he said, his lips next to mine.

  There was no need for more words. I pulled him down with me into the grass of the meadow. Darrien was on me, kissing me hungrily as he tore away the barrier of my clothes.

  “Are you sure,” he asked.

  “Very.” I smiled.

  As he caressed my body, I was drowning in my need for him - my love for him, and my desire to be possessed by the only man I would ever love. In that instant, I was so happy that I started to shake uncontrollably.

  “Are you okay,” he asked.

  Again, I smiled. “I’ll always be okay, as long as I’m with you.”

  As we made love, my heart was filled with everything that was good in the world. It was only in the arms of this Immortal that I could feel such optimism. With our need sated for the moment, I cuddled closer to him, my hand straying to the scars on his face.

  Darrien stiffened.

  “Don’t,” I told him. “I love you, all of you.”

  Putting my arms around him, I squeezed. Silently, I vowed that I would eventually find a way to heal him. I would heal his body and his soul. What my love could not heal, magic would.

  For the time being, I was content. Tomorrow was another day. There would be time enough to find out what happened to Dash and to fight the evil that would descend on the world, but for now, I was content to just be close to the one I loved.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Summer

  I was entombed in darkness – a darkness so complete that nothing existed beyond that black void but my own poisonous thoughts and fears. The rapid pounding of my heart was like a relentless hammer beating against my chest.

  How long had I been here?

  Terror was my constant companion, its grip so tight that I no longer knew what it felt like to not be afraid.

  I could hear movement above the pounding of my heart. Something scurried across the floor, brushing up against my leg.

  My hand flew to my mouth to stifle the scream that threatened to explode from my throat. If I made any noise, I might wake them. For now, they lay rotting in their coffins, unaware.

  There was another sound, a creaking. It came from the direction of where the coffins were lined up against the cold, gray wall.

  Something came out of the darkness to brush up against my hair. Panicked, I scrambled up the steep stairs to the
opening of the tomb.

  Shrieking, I pounded at the door, no longer able to contain my terror.

  The heavy door creaked and groaned as it was pulled open. For so long, the darkness had stolen my sight, now even the moonlight was blinding.

  The looming shadow grew as it moved in my direction.

  He stood on the stone steps, a silhouette against the moon. His dark eyes resonated an inner light - the light of the Immortal.

  Screaming, I backed away.

  “Come, my love,” he said, holding out his hand.

  His eyes pulled at me, forcing my body to move against my will. I placed my hand in his and he led me out of the tomb.

  The vision of the gravestones bathed in the light of the full moon was surreal - eerie, but I was aware of only one thing, my captor.

  Pulling me into the grass, he positioned himself above me. I felt the chill of his touch on my legs and then he lifted my dress. Air rushed through my lips when his hand roughly spread my thighs.

  The scene faded.

  Suddenly, I was somewhere else. I was no longer in the cemetery with the vampire. In this vision, I was in the home of her ancestors.

  Shades of crimson blazed across the desert sky as the sun made its descent into the western horizon. The day was waning, but still the heat of the desert was stifling. The only relief from the heat was a soft breeze coming from the north, though it was little help. The wind couldn’t penetrate the thin material of my dress to cool my skin. It made no difference. I barely noticed the temperature.

  I stood on a rock ledge, overlooking the dance arena. The steady rhythm of the drums vibrated the earth, folding around me until my heart felt as if it beat in time with them. From the ledge, I could see the dancers moving gracefully to the beat of the drums, their traditional regalia creating a spray of brilliant color that swept across the dance circle.

  I could feel the shadows moving silently over the land. Not the shadows of night, but the darkness of spirit. The wind played havoc with my long hair, a sudden gust blowing my hair into my face, blocking my vision for a fraction of a second. I brought a hand up to brush the hair away from my eyes and was startled to see that the dancers were no longer there.

  The drums had gone silent.

  A lone figure was in the center of the circle, looking up at me. Though there was a strong breeze, it didn’t disturb the old man’s long, thinning gray hair. His intense stare never wavered.

  “Grandpa Busby!” My words echoed off the surrounding red cliffs.

  “The time has come child.”

  I could hear his words, but not with my ears. His voice seemed to echo in my skull.

  “It was always meant to be. Your life’s path will take you on a journey of shadows. You are in danger. You are all in danger!” Grandpa Busby’s scratchy voice faded away, as did the vision.

  “Who are you talking to?”

  I jumped at the sound of the deep, husky voice that came from behind. I knew that voice. It was the voice that haunted my dreams and called to my heart on those lonely nights when the world seemed so empty of light and love.

  Was this just another trick of the spirits?

  I turned slowly, afraid that I was imagining his voice. He stood only a few feet away. Anton was as large as life and so overwhelming that to look at him, took my breath away.

  He stood against the backdrop of a darkening sky, his long blond hair dancing on the winds. Our gaze locked and it was impossible to look away from those intense, smoky-gray eyes. Standing so close to him, I felt as if I were still a child. He was so tall that he towered over me.

  “Anton,” I whispered. I was so afraid that if I spoke too loudly, he would simply fade away.

  Anton’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “You were expecting someone else?” he said with a slight Romanian accent.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I’ve come to take you back.” As he spoke, his voice started to fade. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t hold onto his voice or the image.

  “Wakeup sleepy head!” Penny shook my arm.

  I stirred but resisted leaving the dream.

  “Hey! If we are going out tonight, don’t you think you’d better get ready?” Penny shook me again.

  Finally, I opened my eyes. My heart sank as soon as I realized that I’d been dreaming again. It had been so long since I’d seen Anton that I ached whenever I opened my eyes to find that he was not really here. Dreaming of Anton was not so unusual, but the rest of my dream had been really bizarre.

  Sitting up, I struggled to overcome the grogginess that always accompanied one of my vision dreams. That’s what I called them.

  I wasn’t sure how long I’d slept, but it was getting dark outside. Sleeping half the day was how it went when I worked until the wee hours of the morning. I was trying to get into the head a killer, but so far hadn’t made much progress.

  The latest murder was as weird as the rest. Usually, I didn’t have a lot of trouble coming up with a profile to give the police, but this one really had me stumped.

  I’d only intended to take a quick nap, but was so exhausted that I’d fallen into a deep sleep. In my dream, I’d been with a stranger - an Immortal. That part really disturbed me because I’d been about to have sex with him in a cemetery.

  Where had that come from?

  Then my dream changed and I was in New Mexico. Anton was there. He’d come to take me home.

  But then there was that ominous warning from Grandpa Busby. Busby was really my mother’s grandfather. Though Busby had passed away when I was young, I could still remember the sparring of words between him and my mother. Mom had always tried to talk him into coming to live with us. Grandpa was one of the few humans who knew of the existence of Outerlands. He always told us that he loved visiting, but he liked it just fine at home.

  I could still hear his words.

  “I am Busby, born to the Bitter River People for the Deer Clan. I am Dineh and will die in my own country.”

  And he’d done just that. When the time came for Grandpa Busby to pass into the land of spirits, my mother was devastated. It was then that Mom decided that she wanted her children to grow up in the Navajo tradition. That’s when JJ and I were sent to live in New Mexico with a family friend. Though Outerlands was where I came from, I really looked at New Mexico as home.

  My native heritage ran deep and was a large part of who I was. That’s why I believed my dream wasn’t just a dream. It was a message from my grandfather. He was trying to reach out to me from the other side to warn me about something.

  Since I had the same gift as my mother, I could communicate with the dead, but for some reason, Grandpa Busby had never come through. There were times that I’d really wished he would make contact. I missed him terribly.

  When Penny returned to the living room and tossed me a look of disapproval, I groaned. She was already dressed and ready.

  “Okay, I’ll get going,” I told her.

  “You shouldn’t have stayed up all night,” Penny scolded.

  Ignoring her, I headed for the bathroom. Now I wished I hadn’t promised to go out. Not only was I troubled by the dream, but I couldn’t keep my mind off the murders. Someone was killing people and it was my job to help the police figure out the perp’s mind worked.

  What could drive someone to commit such horrendous acts against others?

  Chapter Nineteen

  Summer

  Through the double glass doors, I could see the flashing lights of the slot and poker machines inside the casino. Just as I reached for the elaborate brass door handle, my phone rang.

  There was no way I’d able to have a conversation once I was inside, so I backed away from the doors and pulled the phone from my purse.

  “Hello,” I answered.

  “Summer?” The female voice was soft and uncertain.

  “Yes, who’s this?”

  “Sarah. Do you have a minute to talk?

  Seeking privacy from the hordes of pe
ople entering and exiting the casino, I moved to the shadows of the parking lot.

  “Sarah! What happened to you? You disappeared on me and left me nothing but a note.”

  “I know and I’m so sorry. It was unavoidable, otherwise I wouldn’t have left that way,” Sarah apologized.

  “Okay, so what happened?”

  “I can’t explain a lot right now, but I will as soon as we see each other again. I have a problem that I thought you might be able to help with?”

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “A friend of mine managed to get through to Outerlands. Do you know if he will find his way out again?”

  Closing my eyes, I drew in a sharp breath. Outerlands was not the place to be if you weren’t from there. Although it was my home, I’d spent little time there. I could only imagine what might happen to someone unfamiliar with a place like that.

  “Summer, there’s something else. He’s a vampire,” Sarah added.

  “Oh no!” I gasped. “How?”

  “It’s a long story, but will he be okay?”

  “I don’t know,” I said, telling it like it is. “It can be a very dangerous place for vampires, or anyone really.”

  “That’s what has me worried,” Sarah confessed.

  “Why don’t you let me get back with you? I might be able to get some information about what’s up with him over there.”

  “Thanks. That would help a lot. And Summer, I really am sorry about leaving the way I did.”

  “We’ll talk about it later.”

  “What about our spell? Did it work for you?” Sarah asked in a lighter tone.

  “Not yet, but maybe soon. What about you?”

  “Yes, it worked.”

  “I’m so happy for you. I’ll talk with you soon,” I told her before ending the call.

  Great! Now I had a serial killer on the loose, strange dreams warning me about something, and to top it off, now there was a vampire trespassing in Outerlands. How much worse could it get?

  While in Reno, Sarah had performed the most amazing spell to guide our true loves to us. So far, it hadn’t worked for me, except for in my dreams. But then again, Anton was always in my dreams.