Sekhmet's Curse (Pearl Vampire Chronicles)

by Dara Nelson

  “That might be a good idea,” Matt said. “I’ll meet you two over there in a few minutes.”

  I leaned on Carlos as we slowly walked over to the guest house, because I was suddenly completely exhausted. “I miss you, you know,” he whispered.

  “I miss you too. Hey, do you realize that the last time we were here was when we got married? It seems like so long ago.”

  “Tell me about it,” he smirked, “feels like forever since you shackled me.”

  “Oh, shut up. You don’t fool me, you dork. You’re really happy right now. Happy as in content, satisfied. I’ve known you long enough. I can tell.”

  “Yeah, but that could all be gone in a few months Sarah,” he whispered.

  “Shhhh,” I said as I patted his arm, “Let’s not worry about that right now. Let’s just enjoy our time together, okay?”

  “Okay, Sarah. I know you’re right. It’s just really hard, you know?”

  “I know.”

  We made our way up the steps and into the guest house. “Hungry?” Carlos said.

  “Yeah, but more tired than hungry. I think I’m going to go up to bed, okay?”

  “Sure thing. I’m going to grab a drink first. You want me to send Matt up when he gets here?”

  “I want you to send Matt AND you up when he gets here. I’m emotionally drained and I need you both by my side.”

  “I understand,” he said as he gently kissed my forehead, “see you in a minute.”

  I nodded and forced my legs to get me up the stairs. I was out the second my head hit the pillow.

  Chapter Seven

  It was the dream that woke me. Or actually, I should probably say¸ it was the nightmare. I was suffocating. I couldn’t breathe. I was locked in Sekhmet’s tomb, and I was dying. Her hungry, evil eyes bore down on me as she prepared to consume me. “You failed. I had such high hopes for you, and you failed, you worthless bitch,” she screamed at me.

  “But, but, but I answered every question correctly. I passed every test you threw at me. How is it that I failed?” I sobbed.

  “Because, you didn’t figure out why I brought you here, that was the final test, the one that I didn’t tell you about or spell out to you. That was the one that you were supposed to be smart enough to figure out on your own, but you didn’t, you miserable loser. You failed and now you must die.” Her mouth began to open wide. Wide enough that I knew that she wasn’t going to bite me or drain me. She was going to swallow me whole. I opened my mouth to scream, and that was when I woke up. I gasped as my eyes shot open. I quickly took in my surroundings as I tried to calm myself down. Matt and Carlos were sleeping soundly on either side of me. ‘Relax, Sarah. It was only a dream,’ I tried to tell myself. But something about it seemed more than that. It felt more real. It felt like a premonition. So, she’s going to give me some tests to pass, but the final test is one that I have to figure out on my own. Fucking marvelous. As they both began to stir next to me, I decided that telling them about the dream was probably not a good idea. Not a good idea at all. But I would tell Bahiti. She might be able to help. And she deserved to know what had happened to Hapshet, her mentor, why his body was never found when he was locked in the tomb with Sekhmet. I shivered as I thought about her consuming him. The terror he must have felt. “That will not happen to me. It can’t,” I whispered.

  Matt groaned, stretched, then mumbled, “What, honey? Did you say something?”

  I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, “No, darling, I didn’t say anything. Good morning, my love.”

  He turned and smiled at me, “Good morning to you, too. I’ll bet you’re pretty hungry.”

  “Famished.”

  “Well, let’s let vain boy get his beauty rest, cause God knows he needs it.”

  “I heard that,” Carlos mumbled before he rolled over. “This face couldn’t possibly get any more beautiful,” he said, grinning.

  Matt and I both rolled our eyes before we climbed out of bed. The three of us headed downstairs to eat. “Ummm, maybe you should wait here while one of us checks on Jason and Aquila,” Carlos said. I nodded and Carlos pushed out his chair and stood up. “I’ll go,” he said. I watched as he tensely headed out the door.

  “Don’t worry, Sarah. He won’t do anything stupid,” Matt whispered.

  “He’s still angry over the whole “forcing me to have a baby against my will” thing, isn’t he?”

  “Well, shouldn’t he be? I am too, if you want to know the truth. But I’m dealing because you asked me to. And so is he. But it doesn’t mean we’ll ever be best friends with Aquila.”

  “I know. And I would never ask you to be. But it turned out he was right. I was yearning to have another child. But I would never have had one by my own choice. I never would have said yes if he had asked me. He had to make that decision for me.”

  “I know. I just wish it could have been me,” Matt whispered as he stared at his hands.

  “So do I, sweetheart. More than anything I wish it could have been you. I would give anything to have your child. And I’d love to somehow have Carlos’ baby too.”

  ‘Sarah. Jason thinks it safe for you to come over now.’ Carlos thought.

  “We can go over to the house now,” I said to Matt.

  I took a few hesitant steps in the front door of the main house. Aquila was sitting on the couch with his back to me. “You are safe now, female. And I’m sorry for what happened out there.”

  “It’s okay, Aquila. And I’m sorry that Sekhmet took you. That was my fault.”

  “Jason has been telling me a bit about that too. She’s summoned the two of you to her tomb for this test? What are you planning on doing about this? I cannot lose my son.”

  “I know. And neither can I. But we can’t fight her, she’s too strong. But I am really good at puzzles. I’m fairly certain that I can figure out and pass her tests.”

  “You have to, female, for you will be holding my life in your hands. I will not survive if my son dies,” he said.

  “I know. And I will do my best to protect him. I will die if it will save him.”

  “I hope it doesn’t come to that, because, if it does, I better not be around your mates. They are just as protective of you as I am of my son.”

  “They are. But they would never blame you. They know who to blame, which is why I need to return to the fortress as soon as possible to begin my studying.”

  “Studying?”

  “Yes. She told me that I need to become highly knowledgeable in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.”

  “Hmmmm. Perhaps Latin might help too. I could teach you.”

  “Thank you very much. Yes, that might help. I’ll make sure I work that into my schedule.”

  “I also know where my creator, the priest, hid ancient texts about vampires and Seraphim’s. I could retrieve them if you think that they might help.”

  “I definitely think they would. Thank you. How far do you have to go to get them?”

  “Not far from the fortress at all. They are at the church in Mexico where he lived for many years.”

  “Oh yes. I’ve been there. We could land in Mexico first, drive to the church then fly to Peru.”

  “Thank you,” he said.

  Matt walked in through the front door, hesitated a moment when he saw me sitting there talking to

  Aquila, then smiled, “Boat’s ready, Sarah.”

  My heart flip-flopped in my chest. Too long, I thought, yes, it’s been way too long. The excitement of what I was planning began dancing in my eyes as I walked over to him. “What?” he whispered. I smiled and kissed him on the cheek, “Nothing that you won’t know about soon enough, my love.”

  We packed as much blood as we could into the fridge on the boat, then we ate one more time before locking up the house. As we walked onto the porch I turned to Carlos and handed him my bag, “Can you take this to the boat for me, please? I want to go say goodbye to Jonas. I’ll catch up to you in a minute.” He nodded then kissed my templ
e. I watched briefly as the four of them headed down onto the path, marveling once again at Aquila’s size – the sweats that Carlos had loaned him looked like shorts on him and they were so tight that they left nothing to the imagination. Of course, with him being naked most of the time, imagination wasn’t really necessary. I was grateful to him that I wasn’t conscious when he put that enormous thing inside of me. There is such a thing as too big.

  I walked around the side of the house and into the garden, to Jonas’ grave. I sat on the small bench underneath the tree.

  “Thank you, Jonas” I whispered, not really expecting a response. I jumped when I got one. His voice popped into my head, ‘Well, you still owe me for that information I gave you, you know.’

  “I do? Didn’t I already thank you for it?”

  ‘Really, Sarah. Did you think that a ‘Thank you’ would be enough? How many days were you here this time on the island? And no sex? No sex at all? I’m very disappointed.’

  I smiled, “Well, I see that even death hasn’t changed you, has it? Still the same leering pervert.”

  ‘At your service, madam.’

  ‘What’s it like, Jonas? Being dead. Is it lonely?’

  ‘Not really. I can enter any creature I want, so I can move around the world, which is neat. My favorites for getting around are birds, big birds, like seagulls, albatross and eagles.’

  “Can you feel anything?”

  ‘Absolutely. Why do you think I travel around the world? I can enter into any man as he’s having sex and it’s exactly as if I’m doing it myself. I’ve even entered into some women, just to see what it feels like from your end.’

  I blushed and looked down at my feet. “Always back to the sex, huh Jonas?”

  ‘Always, Sarah. Death hasn’t changed that. But to what you’re thinking, no, I haven’t joined with you yet. This is a new skill that I’ve just recently acquired. Besides, you would feel it. Humans don’t, mainly because I wait until they’ve got a few drinks in them before I enter. And I haven’t had a chance to make it back to Peru since I’ve figured this out. Which is why I was so disappointed that you didn’t do anything when you were here. You know how much I wanted you when I was alive. That desire hasn’t gone away at all, Sarah. But do I detect not only embarrassment from you but also a bit of excitement too? You want me to do this, don’t you? You’re excited by it.’

  I quickly stood up, “I have to go now Jonas. We have to get back home. Thanks again for helping us.”

  ‘You, Sarah. I helped you. And I’ll be around. Believe me, I’ll be seeing you soon,’ he chuckled as he left my head. I quickly made my way down to the dock, but maybe it was a little too quickly. I forgot to try to calm myself down first. I was still a little flustered from what Jonas had said and my heart was still racing a bit, because, truth be told, there was a part of me that was a little curious, intrigued, and, yes, even a bit excited by the idea of Jonas being able to feel what I feel during sex. Matt looked at me with questioning eyes as I jumped onto the boat at the stern. I smiled, shrugged my shoulders then quickly tossed off the stern lines. I tried to avoid his gaze as I slinked up behind him, but I couldn’t avoid his question. “Everything okay, honey?”

  “Everything’s fine. Just a little over-tired from the last few days. Haven’t made up for the lack of sleep.”

  “And the hunger?” Carlos said as he slid his hand in mine and squeezed.

  “Manageable for now. Okay, who’s driving first and who’s coming below with me to nap for a bit?”

  Matt and Carlos glanced at each other. I didn’t miss the look that passed between them. I rolled my eyes and tried to look offended, when in reality I was trying not to smile, “Guys, it’s a boat full of creatures with exceptional hearing. Do you really think we, or I should say I, could get away with something?”

  “Well, maybe not, but it sure would be fun to try,” Carlos mumbled with his grin firmly planted as he stepped up to the wheel, “I’ll drive first. Relieve me in three hours, okay?”

  “Got it. Thanks man. I really am exhausted. I feel like I could sleep for a week,” Matt said as he took my hand in his and led me downstairs. ‘God, I hope not,’ I thought as I quietly followed behind. The moment we were in the bedroom with the door closed, I spun around and locked my mouth on his and linked with his mind. “Sarah,” he mumbled as he tried to pull away, but I kept my grip firmly behind his neck and held him tight. ‘Be quiet, Matthew Pearl. Don’t speak. Don’t moan. Don’t gasp. Don’t make a fucking sound. Just love me.’ I thought as my hunger filled every corner of my being.

  ‘Sweet Jesus,’ he thought, then he grimaced as he clamped off the first moan that tried to escape him. We threw off our clothes and fell to the floor, a mass of entwined limbs, interlaced fingers, coupled lips pressed tightly together, and, finally, the joining that I yearned for as he easily found his way inside my more-than-ready body.

  I dozed, much later, with my head on his chest and my fingers lightly caressing his beautiful, naked body. “Do I still do it for you, Sarah? Satisfy you, I mean.”

  I lifted my head and just stared for a moment. “Are you serious? You mean, you can’t tell?”

  “Well, I mean, it seems like I do. But sometimes, with a woman, it’s hard to tell what they are really thinking and feeling. You’d tell me if you needed me to do something different, right? You’d tell me if you were bored?”

  “Where is this insecurity coming from, honey? Have I done something to make you think that I was at all unhappy, because, if I did I assure you it wasn’t intentional. Quite the opposite, in fact. You excite me more now than you did before we ever slept together, because now I know what’s coming. Now I know what you’re capable of, and that excites me more and more every day,” I said as a shiver rocked my body. He smiled and leaned in to kiss me. “It’s not insecurity, honey, it’s more that I just want to check in with you every once in a while, because, God knows, you do have a tendency to keep things from me to spare my feelings.”

  I opened my mouth to protest but he quickly pressed his finger to my lips, “Don’t even try missy, you know that I’m right. Now, I’ve got to go relieve Carlos, now. I’ll see you later, baby,” he said as he gave my pouting lips a quick kiss. As he pulled his clothes on, I grumbled, “I hate it when you do that.”

  “What? Get dressed?”

  “Yes.”

  He laughed as he headed out the door, then turned back with a twinkle in his eye and said, “Good luck keeping the goofball quiet, baby.”

  I was still chuckling when Carlos poked his head in the door, “What’s so funny?”

  “You. Trying to be quiet,” I giggled.

  “About what?”

  “About this,” I said as I threw off the covers and revealed my nakedness to him.

  “Oh shit,” he mumbled, “Sarah, I don’t know if I can.”

  “That’s my line,” I whispered as I walked toward him and swallowed him into my arms.

  I giggled into his chest. I couldn’t help it. “Dear God, Sarah. Now is not the time to laugh,” he said as he lay there gasping.

  “I’m sorry. It’s just that they have to being hearing your heartbeat. It’s pounding in your chest. I can’t believe how loud it is.”

  “Oh, well, that’s the one thing I can’t keep quiet. Every time I look at you, it starts pounding in

  my chest.”

  I shook my head and smiled, “How do you do that?” I said.

  “Do what?”

  “Always make me feel so incredibly special.”

  “Oh, that’s easy. You are incredibly special, Sarah.”

  “Stop it.”

  “Never,” he grinned.

  We grabbed breakfast and headed topside so Carlos could relieve Matt at the wheel.

  Aquila and Jason were both up there too. Aquila looked tense and Jason looked worried. After we ate, Jason pulled me aside. “Can you please stop, Sarah?”

  “Stop? Stop what?”

  “Even if he can’t he
ar you, he can still smell what you’re doing. He’s not yet back to full strength and you’re making it difficult for him.”

  I blushed three shades of vampire blue, “I’m so embarrassed and I’m so sorry too. Yes, we’ll stop. Of course we’ll stop.”

  Jason went back to his father’s side, while I sulked back to Carlos and Matt, who weren’t helping at all, based on the devilish smirks plastered on their faces. I looked from one devious set of eyes to the other then finally blurted out, “That’s it. I’m sleeping alone the rest of this trip. You two can fight over the couch.”

  “Sarah, don’t you think that’s being a little extreme. I’m sure you can control yourself, and I know we can too,” Carlos said.

  I crossed my arms and stared at him, waiting. Finally, he said, “Fine. We can try to control ourselves. Come on, Sarah. We’ll be fine.”

  “Okay. We’ll give it a try. Let’s just get home. I have studying to do. A lot of studying.” I said.

  “And I do too. I have to figure out a way to keep you out of there, or get you out if you do go in,” Carlos whispered.

  I smiled and patted his arm, “Of course you do,” I whispered. But you could see it in both of our eyes. We both knew, deep down, that he wouldn’t succeed. Not this time. This time, the only one who could save me was me.

  Chapter Eight

  I stared out the window of the limo and smiled as Matt squeezed my hand. It was calm in the car. Too calm. Did this mean that we had all given up? That we were all resigned to fate? To my fate? To Jason’s fate? As soon as his name popped into my head, I remembered the one question that I wanted to ask him but hadn’t yet, “Aquila? Can I ask why you chose the name Jason?”

  Aquila, still struggling through his recovery, looked up at me. His eyes softened. “I chose it because it means ‘to heal’. He healed you. He healed me. He healed things between our species. It felt appropriate. Why do you ask?”

  I smiled, “That was my son’s middle name. It just doesn’t feel like a coincidence that you chose it, you know? It feels inevitable.”