True Faces

by Banks, Catherine

  “I can’t really explain…” I said as I fidgeted nervously. How does one explain that vampires and werewolves and everything that we are told are metaphors actually exist?

  Eric set the food down and picked up one of the stakes. “Do you have any crosses?”

  I shook my head then frowned. “Wait…you know about vampires?”

  Eric smiled. “I know quite a bit.”

  I started to concentrate to open my eye, but Eric pulled me against him. “I won’t let anyone hurt you. You know that right?”

  I frowned. “Yeah, but…”

  He shook his head. “Ciara, you’re fired.”

  I stared at him in shock. “You’re firing me? But I tried to quit and you wouldn’t let me. Why are you firing me?”

  He put his hand behind my neck and kissed my lips softly. “Because I can’t date my secretary when she has an issue with dating her boss and I can’t resist you anymore.” I looked down, but he tilted my head back up. “Or was me being your boss just an easier excuse then telling me you aren’t interested?”

  I saw his guarded face and knew he expected me to hurt him. To deny my feelings for him and I couldn’t do it. I pulled his head down and kissed him on the lips. He moaned as my tongue slipped across his lips. He kissed me back as if I was air and he was suffocating. He picked me up and carried me to the couch. I kissed him back as though he were the only thing keeping me alive. He laid us down on the couch and ran his hand up and down the sides of my body as he kissed me. I tugged at his shirt and he pulled back and took it off. I stared at his muscular upper chest and eight pack of abdominals. He was even sexier than I had imagined. I leaned up and kissed his ear and nibbled his neck. He moaned and nibbled my neck back. He pulled my shirt off and kissed down my chest and down my stomach. I gasped as he licked along my waistband. He sat back and stared at me smiling. I frowned. “What? What is it?”

  He shook his head and lay down on top of me so that his eyes were level with mine. “I love you Ciara.”

  I stared at him in shock then realized that as crazy as it was I felt the same. “I love you too.”

  He smiled the most perfect smile I had ever seen and kissed me. He sat me up and was reaching around to unsnap my bra when the door splintered and broke open. Eric jumped up and stared at the door, “You do not have permission to enter this house.”

  I put my shirt back on and looked at the door. I opened my eye and stared in shock at the four men standing at my door, two of which were vampires and the other two werewolves. I whispered to Eric still watching the men. “Eric, two of them are werewolves. They don’t need an invitation.”

  Eric growled beside me sounding like an animal. “I have claimed this woman as mine. You have no right to enter this house.”

  The vampires smiled. “You have not claimed her. She does not smell of you.”

  Eric sighed sadly. “Because you interrupted me. Come back in twenty minutes and let me finish.”

  I turned to look at Eric, shocked at what he said, and gasped as I saw a black furred wolf face with golden eyes overlapping Eric’s human face. “You’re…you’re not human.” I walked slowly back from him and he started to follow me.

  “Ciara, I never lied to you.”

  I grabbed one of the stakes and shook my head. “No! Omission is as bad as lying! You should have told me.”

  He frowned and asked, “Would it have made a difference? Would you care any less for me?”

  I shook my head and continued backing toward the side door. “You should have let me decide.”

  Eric groaned and threw his hands up into the air. “I thought you knew. You didn’t tell me you weren’t using your Sight. You are a Seer, so I thought you could See what I am. I thought you were just trying to get me to say it so you could refuse to see me.”

  I snarled. “It doesn’t matter what I would have done you should have told me.” The four at the door laughed and I glared at them. “What the hell do you want anyways?”

  One of the vampires put his hand against the invisible barrier on the doorway. “If you let us in we could talk about it in a more civilized manner with you.”

  Eric growled. “No.”

  I glared at him. “My house.” I turned to the vampire. “No. Tell me what you want.”

  The vampire said, “We are here to take you back to our Master. The Council wishes to start a force to find criminals who are in hiding and they feel that your particular talent would be most useful.”

  I folded my arms across my chest. “And what would I get to help them?”

  Eric stared at me in complete shock. “You can’t honestly be thinking about going with them? They’ll just kill you as soon as you have worn out your use.”

  “I’m currently unemployed if you recall. And they’ll just kill me if I refuse.”

  The vampire smiled. “She’s very smart Eric. I can see why you want her.”

  Eric started toward them and I stepped between them and said, “Answer me vampire.”

  The vampire smiled. “You will be paid twice what you would make here, be provided with food and shelter and any thing else you require.”

  Eric shook his head. “Don’t do it Ciara.”

  I spun on him and pushed him in the chest making him stumble. “Go in the kitchen. Let me talk to them.”

  He stared at me in shock. “If I am not here they will send the wolves in to take you.”

  I growled in frustration. “I already have a wolf in here. Two more wouldn’t make a difference.”

  Eric shook his head angrily. “You don’t understand! I want to protect you. I wasn’t lying about what I said.”

  “Just give me two minutes. If they try anything you can come try to kill them,” I said with a smile.

  He glared at the vampires and wolves and said, “If any of you touches a hair on her head I will kill you.”

  The wolves started to look nervous and nodded their heads and the vampires made an “X” over their hearts. Eric kissed me on the lips before I could pull away and stomped to the kitchen. I walked closer to the vampires and asked, “What’s the real deal? What aren’t you telling me?”

  The other vampire smiled, “I can see that tou are very smart and will be very helpful.” His smile faded and he turned serious, “If you refuse our offer we have been authorized to kill Eric and take you by force. A Seer like you cannot be without the protection of the Council or you will be killed by criminal preternaturals.”

  I stared at them in shock. “You’ll kill Eric if I don’t agree to come with you?”

  The vampire nodded his head. “We do not want to, but our Master was very specific that we use any negotiation technique necessary to get you to come with us.”

  I groaned. “Will you give me your word that if I join this force and help you that I will not be forced to change?”

  The vampire smiled. “We would not try to change you anyways. You might lose your gift.”

  I looked toward the kitchen where I could hear Eric breaking plates. “You must promise not to hurt him. If you hurt him or kill him I’ll kill myself.”

  The werewolves stared at me in shock. The one on the right who looked to be the youngest asked, “You would give your life for his even though you shunned him for being a wolf?”

  I sighed in frustration. “I didn’t shun him because he is a wolf. I am angry with him because he didn’t tell me. Plus, I love him and I don’t want him hurt.”

  The first vampire said, “We need your answer.”

  I looked toward the kitchen and felt my longing for Eric. I did love him and I couldn’t let him die. “I will join your force if none harm Eric, pay me what you said, feed me, give me housing and any other reasonable desire.”

  The two vampires nodded their heads and spoke in unison, “You have our word.”

  Eric walked out of the kitchen and dropped to his knees in front of me, “Ciara, I’m begging you to stay with me. I can defeat them!”

  I felt the tears threatening to break
free and shook my head, “I’m sorry Eric. I have to accept their offer.”

  Eric jumped to his feet and grabbed my arms, “You don’t know what you’re saying! You can’t trust them.”

  I looked up in to his eyes and saw his pain and his anger, “I love you and always will, but I must go with them. It’s the only way.”

  He growled, “It’s not. I can protect you.”

  I kissed his lips then quickly took off the ring handing it to him, “Move on Eric. Find another mate.”

  He shook his head and hugged me tight, “You’re my mate. I only want you.”

  I shook my head and pulled out of his arms, “I’m sorry. You’ll find another mate. I’m sorry.” I backed up until I was outside the door and one of the vampires held out his hand.

  Eric’s body started shaking as he began the change, “I won’t let them take you. You’re mine! We belong together.”

  The two werewolves started moving toward him and I yelled, “You promised!”

  The vampires hissed at the werewolves and they stopped. The vampire holding my hand picked me up in his arms and they ran. I could hear Eric’s heartbroken howl behind us and cried in to the vampire’s shirt. One of the werewolves barked and the vampire holding me sighed, “Just distract him until we are far enough away, but do not harm him. If you harm him I will let Ciara kill you.”

  The werewolf barked again then disappeared. The vampire sighed and rubbed my cheek, “It will be alright. You will adapt to your new life and will be treated as royalty.”

  I stopped listening to his voice and focused instead on the sound of the wind rushing around us as we ran. The vampires climbed in to a black limousine and we drove away from Luna Villa. I hadn’t even gotten to say goodbye to Akio. I knew Eric would find him and Akio would disown me. I would not be allowed to return and I would never be allowed to see Eric again.

  I needed to focus on my new life and most importantly keeping myself alive. I didn’t want to be ruled by vampires, but if I worked for them and kept my head down then maybe I could adapt and live a life as normal as a Seer like me could have.

  I curled up in to as small of a ball as I could in the limo and cried myself to sleep. I had a new life ahead of me and I would only allow this one cry over my former life and my one love. I would never love another man again. Never.

  ###

  BOOK TWO OF THE CIARA STEELE NOVELLA SERIES WILL BE RELEASED IN JUNE 2012.

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