Creatus c-1

by Carmen DeSousa

  “Not in that way… until now.”

  Her mouth dropped open a fraction. “But we haven’t… or did we?”

  “No, no. God no. The kiss. Just our kiss. It’s unusual, but I’ve heard it happens. If the desire is strong to be together.” He sighed. “So much to explain. We got off track. You’re not upset that your mother and I were friends?”

  Kristina gave a dismissive shrug. “I always thought you knew us. The way you looked at me in the alley, the way you were so upset when you pulled that man away from my mother. I recognized you weren’t a random stranger.”

  He released a titter of relief. “Okay… well, that takes a load off my mind. My brother insisted you wouldn’t be able to handle that, let alone the rest of the details.” He brushed her hair back and rested his hand against her cheek. Just maybe, he hoped. Perhaps she’d be okay with everything else he had to confess to her. Though his brother thought she’d be upset, Derrick assumed she could live with the fact that her mother and he had worked together. The rest of his secrets, however, might not be as easy to accept.

  “I’ve always known you’re different, Derrick.” She ran her fingers down his jawline, a feather light stroke that sent his heart soaring, ready to take flight. “Will you talk to me now?”

  He nodded and decided just to spill it all out at once. “We call ourselves creatus. From the Latin word meaning ‘created’. When my kind came here, there was a lot of confusion about what we were and where we came from. But the fact of the matter was, even we didn’t know. We came to this world about four thousand years ago, on what you might call an ark, in an attempt to escape our world we theorize. According to my elders, we were directed to this planet. Only two elders escorted hundreds of toddlers and then destroyed all evidence of our arrival and our technology, taking up residence among humans.

  “Everything seemed fine, according to our history, which we are taught in our private schools. Until our diet and strength became known.” Derrick paused to let her catch up with his earlier comment about their eating requirements. “Cooked meats and grains are poisonous to our system, as they are to humans. But for some reason, the carcinogens don’t affect humans the way they affect us. It takes years to kill you in the form of heart disease and other maladies, but for us, we get deathly ill and usually die within weeks.

  “When humans witnessed us eating raw red meat, they assumed we were blood drinkers and began to hunt us as demons. In order to protect ourselves, we had to kill and go into hiding.”

  “Derrick,” Kristina cut in, “are you telling me you really are a vampire?”

  Derrick drew her hand to his chest and held it there without saying a word for a couple of seconds. “Do you feel that?” She nodded. “The myths are just that, myths. I have a heart; it pumps blood through my system. Just because we eat raw red meat, people assume we drink blood. Have you seen anyone eat a rare steak?”

  “Yes… ewww…”

  He blew out a breath, and a white puff of smoke encircled them, as the temperature was dropping fast. “Can you handle this, Kristina?”

  She bobbed her head. “Yes. My mother actually ate her steak pretty rare.”

  “I know…” He sighed and continued, “We are actually a peaceful race, and contrary to popular belief, we are not immortal, and a bullet will kill us just as any other being. We are, however, extremely strong. We estimate that most creatus are approximately ten times stronger than the average human. We hear better, see better, and we live twice as long. Hence, all the stories that we are immortal, I believe.

  “According to my family, when the new world opened up, my kind was the first to arrive. We’d already had relatives who had lived with the Cherokee Indians for centuries. It was a chance at a new life where all the superstitions of the old country would be laid to rest. Everything was great at first. We worked and lived side by side in a new unbiased country without all the superstitious ninnies.

  “When America started turning to crime around the turn of the century, it was my family who attempted to curb the corruption. We took to the streets at night as vigilantes, ridding the cities of the degenerates. It is from my grandfather and father that your superhero stories came about.” He tilted her head. “It may sound unbelievable, but Superman, Spiderman, Batman… they were all one type of man; my family. But then, it wasn’t an angry mob we feared; it was the government. The military has been searching for us for more than seventy years.”

  “Why?” she asked, an innocent gleam lighting her eyes.

  “It started with some of my kind during World War II. A rumor had spread about immortals who had lived in the mountains had come to protect the innocent. We’d been here all along, but someone had remembered tales of their childhood about how my kind would protect a human and nurse them back to health.” He shrugged. “We’ve always been in the medical field; it makes forging documents easier. Anyway, my family had to tone down the protection, as sad as that is. In 1947, a division under the National Security Council got wind of the stories and got very close. We hide well, though. We have our own schools, medical centers, spies within the government, enabling us to stay one-step ahead. It is the one area our entire race agrees upon; we must stay hidden at all costs.”

  Derrick stopped and glanced around the darkened park, thinking they should be getting home. But knew he needed to get to the scary part. The detail about his kind that fed the nightmares. “We protect our own no matter what. Until there’s a rogue. As I said, we are mostly peaceful, but we do have our psychos, as humans do. The only problem is when one of my kind is homicidal, they eat their victims.” She shuddered and he rushed to assure her. “Don’t get me wrong. We don’t crave humans. Humans don’t even smell like food. Believe me, if my kind really craved humans, the human race would have been extinct a long time ago.”

  Chapter Eight

  Kris shivered again. She gathered the blanket tighter around her shoulders, hoping Derrick wouldn’t think she was afraid of him. Because she wasn’t. “So your family is concerned if you and I don’t work out…” she trailed off, understanding what Derrick had been trying to impress on her. Forever. One man, well… one creatus, forever.

  Derrick pulled her to his chest, his hand running the length of her back. “I would never let anyone hurt you, Kristina. No matter what. I’d die first.”

  “But then we’d both die,” she whispered.

  She felt the subtle movement of his head. He’d nodded without realizing, she was certain. “I trust you, Kristina. If you’d rather walk away now, I’ll let you go. No one will ever know, and you can live out your life as if you’d never proved I existed with your death-defying stunt.”

  Kris huffed out a chuckle. “As if that were even possible.” She turned in his arms again. “I’m not going anywhere, Derrick.” She gazed up at his face, struggling to make out his features in the dim light. “You said you’ve fallen, and that you don’t fall twice.” She felt his chest fill and release. “Is it possible I’ve ‘fallen’ too? Can that happen? Because I swear when you kissed me, I felt something. But then we stopped...”

  “Yes,” he murmured. “You’ll feel it inside. It’s painful at first, as if something wants possession of your soul. But when you accept it, when you open up to it, the warmth surges through your body. An electricity flares through every nerve ending, and you feel light, as if your body could just float away on its own.”

  “Do you feel that way now?” she asked, hoping he did, but frightened of what that might mean. What if it didn’t happen to her? Was it even possible for a human to fall as he had said? She’d never felt anything like she’d experienced when he kissed her in her apartment, but was that just the anticipation of a first kiss from the man she’d dreamed about nearly every night?

  “Yes. I felt it fighting to take control. And I’d blocked it until you mentioned being with another man.” A burst of air left his lungs. “It enveloped me then. Because the thought of you—”

  “Then how could I ever lea
ve you?” She lifted her head to his, wanting to give into the feeling.

  Derrick dipped his head, brushing his lips across hers as he’d done earlier. “I don’t want you to ever leave me. I want you to stay, but I’m afraid—”

  “Kiss me, Derrick. Possess me,” she whispered. “Make me yours. I want to stay with you.”

  Without hesitation this time, his mouth parted, taking hers completely. The tip of his tongue touched her lips and her mouth fell open, accepting him. He lowered her onto his lap, his arms folding completely around her, cocooning her to his body. He moved his hand behind her neck, locking her in his embrace.

  Every nerve ignited as if she were on fire. Red-hot heat radiated through her body, singeing every molecule without actually burning her. Instinctively, she started to pull back against the fiery emotion, but Derrick held her tightly, refusing to let her go as the fire soared through her veins, radiating under her skin. Her body felt as if it would combust. His mouth pressed harder as her body writhed with a somehow joyous pain. She wanted to contest the burning in her stomach, in her loins, but her mind told her it was a good pain. Her heart raced, pounding out a vicious rhythm, and Derrick pulled her even closer, refusing to break the kiss.

  Her muscles seized then tingled, and she realized what her body was experiencing. The most intense orgasm she had ever felt—from a kiss. She gave into it then, feeling the blood rush through her system, an intense heat radiating throughout every molecule in her body. And then she felt a magnificent high. A surge of pleasure she’d never experienced via any man, drug, or alcohol. Her body melted as Derrick finally retracted, but the fullness of his drug remained in her veins, completing her, making her his. “Wow…” was the only word she could push out of her mouth.

  Chapter Nine

  “ That was some kiss.”

  Derrick whipped his head to the sound of his brother’s voice. He focused his eyes on the top of the Chart House, knowing that’s where he’d be hiding. Away from human eyes and ears, but still able to see and communicate with him.

  “Excuse me, Kristina.” Derrick stood and gestured that she should stay sitting when she bounced up next to him. “I’m sorry. I’ll be right back.” Her eyes spoke volumes. Sadness, rejection, fear. He lifted her hands to his lips. “I’ve fallen completely. I will never leave you now, nor will anyone ever take you away. But… we have a visitor I need to handle.” He lowered her hands. “I’ll only be a few feet away. Okay?”

  “Okay,” she said on a sigh, confusion clear in her eyes.

  When she settled herself down on the blanket, he sprinted to the end of the park. It was too dark for her, but he could see her straining to see where he’d gone.

  Michael landed in front of him with a soft thump. “Did you fall?”

  As usual, no pleasantries. His brother had the personality of a doormat. Did he really think Derrick would ever allow anyone to hurt Kristina even if he hadn’t?

  “Yes. Completely,” Derrick admitted, even though he didn’t want to tell him. The act was personal. Something he’d waited his entire life to experience, but instead of enjoying the moment with Kristina, he had to address his brother’s queries. Michael was lucky he hadn’t already knocked him to the ground so that he could return to Kristina.

  His brother closed his eyes and shook his head. “More importantly… did she?”

  “I’m pretty sure, but you sort of interrupted us, you perv. Couldn’t you have waited for me to call you in the morning?”

  Michael huffed out a silvery breath in the cool night air. “No. There’s a problem and you know it. When were you going to tell me about the detective?”

  Derrick grabbed his brother’s shoulders and shook him. “What the hell, Michael? Are you bugging my home? I know you have your spies, but you have no right to defile my personal space.”

  Michael shoved his hands off him and backed up a step. “I don’t need to bug your house. I have my own sources. If you’d been paying attention to the news and not your girlfriend for the last few days, you’d know we have some major problems other than the detective. I’ve been handling everything while you’re off playing with your new toy.”

  His blood pressure rising, Derrick stepped toward his brother again. “That’s enough! Speak disrespectfully about Kristina again and we’ll finish everything here.” When Michael bobbed his head in understanding, Derrick continued, “What problems?”

  “We’ll discuss it tomorrow. I assume you’ll be introducing your bride to the family.”

  Derrick nodded.

  Michael raised an eyebrow, a sideways smile lifting his rounder cheek. His brother was the only creatus he’d seen who actually had dimples. It sort of detracted from his bad-boy guise, which Derrick never minded pointing out. “You want me to tell Vic,” his brother taunted.

  “No, I don’t want you to tell Vic,” Derrick growled. “I’d rather do it in person.”

  “You’re going to risk Vic seeing Kristina?”

  “Do I have a choice?”

  Michael shook his head. “Not really. It’ll happen eventually. I’ll just let everyone know you’re coming. We need to gather to discuss what’s been going on anyway. Make sure you watch the news when you get home. I’m sure there’ll be another one tonight.”

  Derrick narrowed his eyes, shaking his head. “Please tell me you’re wrong.”

  “Wish I could tell you that. But there’s no doubt. We have a rogue creatus.”

  Derrick took his time walking back to Kristina. Only officially in his life a few days and he’d have to remind her that his kind was the most dangerous of all serial killers. He definitely didn’t want her out of his sight either, which he was certain would turn into an issue. Especially since he’d just insisted he wasn’t controlling and that she could do as she pleased.

  The problem was that if there was a rogue, more than likely they were acquainted with the creatus, which meant they’d eventually meet Kristina. It couldn’t be anyone in Boston, though. Other than a few who’d come to live with their group over the years, most of the creatus he’d known since he was a child. None of them was capable of such atrocious acts. Sadly, it usually wasn’t about food when there was a rogue among them, but about hatred and a thrill. They enjoyed the chase, reveled in the fact they were superior. With their heightened senses and strength, the chances of a human detective catching them were nil. They’d hear or smell authorities a mile away, and then they’d outrun them.

  Thankfully, that’s where Michael came in. His brother was a true detective. He’d hunt the rogue down and dispose of him before he created a nightmare they’d have to clean up.

  Derrick stepped in front of Kristina, startling her. “It’s okay. It’s me.”

  She jumped to her feet. “Oh, thank God! I’ve never been in the park this late. It’s scary. Every shadow seemed to come to life.” She glanced to the left. “I swear I heard someone breathing.”

  He smiled to assure her, but then glanced in the direction she’d looked. He saw nothing, but that wasn’t unusual. If it were the rogue, he’d know how far to stay away, and he would have bolted the moment Derrick approached. He’d have to keep an eye out for the perpetrator. Unfortunately, creatus didn’t look or smell any different from humans. Their chemical makeup was so alike that his kind often wondered if the same superior being had created both species.

  Derrick wrapped his arm around Kristina’s waist. “Let’s go home.”

  Kristina leaned against him without a word, content it seemed just to be with him. The idea sent a thrill through his system. He’d worried for six years for no reason. Kristina had accepted him without question. The one nice thing about falling was that it could not be faked or forced. Lord knows he’d tried. He’d attempted to fall for one of his kind, but it’d never happened. Now they could move ahead with their lives without any concerns. His family could not argue since she’d fallen too.

  After the valet brought his vehicle around—with no scratches or reek of cigarettes—he exch
anged the keys for a generous tip and then closed Kristina inside.

  “Derrick, when you said ‘Let’s go home…’” Kristina started as soon as he sat down in the driver’s seat. “Um… what exactly did you mean?”

  “Well, I have a spare bedroom, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

  She cleared her throat. “I’m not worried, but I have to go to my apartment.”

  “Of course. We can get your things—”

  “No… that’s not what I mean. I have plants that I need to take care of.”

  He laughed, but then stopped when he realized she was serious. “Plants?”

  “Yes, plants. They need watered and they need air. They’ve been closed up in the house for days.”

  “You’re kidding, right?”

  This time Kristina crossed her arms over her chest. “No, I’m not kidding.”

  He turned in the direction of her apartment. Plants? He’d understand a kitten or a puppy, but plants?

  Derrick parked in front of Kristina’s apartment and hopped out. With a quick glance around, he dashed to her side of the vehicle to open the door.

  She glanced up at him, eyes wide. “You’re such a gentleman, Derrick. I’m not used to this.”

  He took her hand and led her to the doors of the building. “Get accustomed to it; it’s who I am.” He pulled her close as they stepped in front of the door. “Would you please water your plants and come home with me?”

  “Derrick, I like my bed. I know you have a fancy apartment, but I like my place. I haven’t been home in days. My plants need my carbon dioxide too.”

  “The point is… my condo is safe.” He shook his head. “I can’t believe… plants. I never would have guessed?” He nudged her chin up with one finger. “I’ll worry about you all night.”

  “I know it’s not the best neighborhood, but I’ve never had any problems.” She curled her body against his. “You could stay here…” she hedged. “I have a comfy sofa.”