Betrayal: The Awakening

by Kira Hillins

  Tristan loosened his hold then let her go. “You must understand that I am trying to protect you. I do not wish to keep secrets from you, but—.”

  “—then don’t.” After a short pause, she sighed. “Just…please, tell me what’s going on. I have a right to know.”

  “You do not know what you are asking.”

  She cupped his face. “Trust me enough to know that I won’t be upset. I won’t run away from you ever again.”

  “Anna.” He peeled her hands from his face. “You will fear me again. I do not want to lose you.”

  “You won’t lose me.” She slid her arms around his neck. “I love you. And I know you love me too.”

  She kissed him. For a long while, he returned it, but then he took a step back. He paced the yard as if searching for the right thing to do. Then he shook his head and sighed.

  “You will pester me until I tell you everything. But you are right. You deserve to know.” With a glazed look, he stuck his hands in his pockets. His stance shifted to his heel as he readied himself to tell her the truth. “You will not like what I have to say.”

  She clasped her fingers through his. “I promise I’ll listen with an open mind.”

  ****

  He bowed his head. Though he’d practiced this speech many times, he was still unsure how to begin. Delicacy was the key, so that Anna would not be afraid of him when he finished. However, he saw no way around that. After the few times he’d lost control, he’d proved he was unpredictable. The only way to do this was to be up front with her.

  “Madeline claimed there was an antidote for this disease. Her father had told her that it ran through her sister’s blood and any female born of that bloodline.”

  Anna squeezed his hand and shuddered. “That’s why she was so obsessed with her sister. She wanted her blood to cure her illness.”

  “Yes. But Anna passed away before Madeline could do anything about it. Her sons became fathers to sons and so on.” He eyed her to see her reaction. By her furrowed brow, the truth had not connected yet. “I tracked this family for generations, as did Madeline, but only males were born. When the final bloodline did not reproduce with his wife before she died, Madeline killed him.”

  Tristan let go of her hand. He gazed at the radiant moon. It cast its full glow, somewhat reminding him of the views from the balcony on the coast. “When this man’s life was destroyed, I accepted my fate. I took residence in his house, ready to live my eternity in darkness. I despised it. I was desperate to end my pain through light. But then...” He looked at her. “One rainy night, his mistress came looking for him. She was pregnant. Her heart ached for her lover who was lost to the heavens. She found some comfort with me before she died giving birth to her daughter…who just happens to be the only female born in that bloodline.”

  Anna’s face was the color of moonlight. Her lips were just as pale. But her eyes, widened in realization, glossy from tears, were as blue as the sky. She now understood why he wanted to keep this from her.

  “Oh my god.” She covered her mouth with her hand. “I knew our destinies were tied somehow, but not like this. Oh please, no. Not like this.”

  “I have held you in my arms many times.” As he walked toward her, she backed away. “Your blood will make me whole again. And all I need to do is take it from you— every last drop.”

  Just as he suspected she’d do, she stumbled up the stairs and through the sliding glass doors. With a quick step, he caught up to her in the living room. He grabbed her wrists. His eyes burned. He gnashed his daggers as he jerked her close to his face.

  She whimpered. “After everything we’ve been through, you would kill me?”

  He retracted his canines and cooled his eyes. “You should know the answer to that.”

  She moaned and her body fell limp in his arms. He scooped her up and carried her to the bedroom. As he laid her down, he sighed. The confession was all he’d needed to scare her. Why had he brought out his demon side? Was he that much of a monster? He used to love it when people ran from him. But Anna—he never wanted to hurt her.

  * * * *

  “Anna.” Tristan’s voice was a soothing whisper.

  “Am I dead?” The nightmare faded in. She was the cure. This was the secret he’d been hiding from her all this time. Like flying out of a thick fog into a clear black sky, she awoke. “Tristan?” Her voice was muffled in her ears. She sat up on the bed and held her hand to her temple.

  “You fainted.”

  The urge to close her eyes was strong, but she fought it. Then she remembered. This unbelievable man who she loved more than anyone had become her enemy.

  He reached out to touch her, but she backed against the headboard. “Get away from me!”

  “Please.” He sat beside her. “You know I would never hurt you. I never had intentions to take your life. Do you not think I would have done that by now if it is what I wished? I am the same man you made love to this morning.”

  She glanced up through tears unsure whether she should trust him or not. All this time he’d kept this secret from her. Mac had kept this from her, and he’d sent her to find him knowing what she meant for him.

  “How could he do this to me?” she whispered through clenched teeth. “I was his daughter and he sent me to find you.” She looked into his eyes. “That’s why you left me all those years ago. And why you were starving yourself to death in your home. You were protecting me from you.”

  “Yes.” He gave a short nod. “I made a promise to keep you safe. And I will forever uphold that promise.”

  She drew in a deep breath then let it out in a quick exhale. “Madeline’s out there too.”

  “Yes.” He spoke in a low tone. “By giving you my heart, I have put your life in danger. That is why I must return to England alone.”

  “No. I feel safe when I’m with you.”

  “You are safer here, far away from me.”

  “How do you know she’s not already here?” Her stomach churned with anxiety. “What if she’s outside my house waiting for you to leave?”

  He slid his hands up her arms. “Madeline summoned this darkness inside me. I sense her emotions, as she experiences mine. She has not come out of her crypt. This is why I must go now. Alone.”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and held tight. “I’m scared if you leave, I’ll never see you again.”

  “I cannot make promises to you.” He spoke in her ear as he laid her back on the bed. “It is my fault for letting my feelings get in the way of reason.”

  “I don’t know how to be without you now.”

  “I thought we could stay together, that we could run and hide. But that is no way for you to live, and she would eventually catch up to us. If I do not leave, then I have failed to protect you.” He cradled her beneath him. “This has been a long time coming. I must find her and end her life so you may live yours.”

  “Promise you’ll come back to me.”

  “I love you, Anna.” He held his gaze to hers. “You are all that I am and will ever be. You are my strength, but you are also my weakness. So I must take your heart and lead her away, for I could not bear it if I lost you.”

  ****

  Tristan breathed in deeply as she cried. Unable to withstand it any longer, he kissed her long—passionately. The salt from her tears made him want her all the more. With no secrets left to keep from her, he could offer her his human soul. His heart beat again. Warmth returned to his veins as he took off her clothes. And when he joined with her, he shed a tear for the first time since he’d become this monster.

  As much as he loved her, he’d never return to her. For once he was rid of the evil that threatened her life; he would walk into the light of day and die for her.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  The Forgotten

  The hole in the middle of her chest—where her heart was supposed to beat—was what he left, and it hurt like hell. He had left for England on Thursday night. She’d spent the entire weekend cu
rled up in bed with his wool blanket, ignoring all sounds of life outside, and the constant ringing of her home phone. She’d shut that annoyance off. It got in the way of crying tear after tear into the pillow where he’d laid his head.

  His scent was like the woods of a forest, so wonderful, masculine. She wanted to breathe him in, to taste his tongue, and make love to him. She wanted his arms around her, and those cool fingers to slide over her skin.

  She moaned. How would she get through this separation? How could she get up and go to back to work when she couldn’t focus on anything else?

  It was Monday morning, and the alarm clock went off at the usual 3 a.m. She rose from the bed then turned on the light. She put on her scrubs and thought about Jack. At least she could go in to face him. He deserved to know she’d fallen in love with a centuries-old man who carried an unexplainable darkness inside him. That sounded insane. Jack might have her committed if she told him her blood would run Tristan’s demon out like an exorcism, flushing his black essence and leave him human again.

  She looked at her reflection in the full-length mirror on the bedroom door. Swollen eyes and a red nose gazed back at her. Cartoon characters stuck in laughter on her medical uniform taunted her. With white leather shoes on her feet, and a stethoscope around her neck—this was reality.

  She tied her hair back with her favorite black tie and strode down the hall. She picked up her purse off the kitchen counter then made her way to the front door just as the bell rang.

  Who would be visiting at 4 a.m.? If she didn’t leave now, she wouldn’t have time to stop at the café. She needed coffee in a terrible way. Whoever stood on her front porch better be carrying one in their hand or else she was going to scream.

  She turned the knob then opened the door. She’d expected to see Jack’s eyes light up and the crooked grin on his tan face. She’d welcome him in with misery, and then he’d bombard her with questions about her trip, one after the other until she couldn’t take it anymore. Instead of finding her blond suitor, there were two strangers, a man and woman in matching black suits, not holding her latte, but identification.

  “Miss Holden?” the woman said in a deep throaty voice. “Agents Claire and Sowards. We’re with the FBI. Sorry to barge in on you so early, but may we have a word with you?”

  Shit. Goosebumps spread over her skin. Why in the world was the FBI at her door? “I’m on my way to work. What’s going on?”

  Sowards was a monster compared to his partner. He had to be over six and a half feet tall. He scowled and his jawline tightened like a boxer about to take the ring for a fight. “We won’t take up much of your time.”

  “OK.” Anna opened the door then stepped aside. “Come on in.”

  “Thanks.” Claire cast a pleasant grin as she stepped into to the foyer. Sowards had to duck a little to fit through the doorway as he followed her into the kitchen. Claire tucked her short black hair behind her ear. “Like I said, I’m sorry to bother you so early in the morning, but we just flew in from…Washington State about an hour ago.”

  Anna cocked her head to the side. “What’s this about?”

  “We’ve been investigating a string of disappearances for quite some time now. Most of these missing persons reports are from the Northwest region, but they spread throughout the United States and even internationally.”

  A chill swept over Anna as she thought of the body in the basement. Mason had told her about the list of missing people. He’d also told her not to leave town, and she’d done just that in hopes of returning before anyone ever found out. Now, three weeks later, the FBI was in her living room. He must have sent them here.

  Anna swallowed the lump in her throat. “So what does it have to do with me?”

  “Well…” Claire tossed her partner a fleeting glance and then turned to Anna with a more serious look. “The sheriff in Manzanita went missing about two and a half weeks ago. His deputy told us that he flew to London to retrieve a murder suspect. That suspect was you, Miss Holden.”

  The hole in her chest, the one already carved out from sorrow, grew about twenty more inches. It wasn’t depression digging into her this time. She felt like she’d been punched in the gut several times.

  “Mason’s missing?” She dropped her purse on the breakfast bar counter then sat on the barstool.

  “As if you didn’t know,” Sowards said in a surly voice, one that sent more chills through her. “Where have you been for the past three weeks?”

  Anna couldn’t answer. How could she tell them she’d been in a castle on top of a mountain somewhere in England, with a diseased man? Jack would have her committed, but the FBI would lock her up and throw away the key.

  Claire took a step forward. “If you don’t mind, we’d like you to come with us to our office and answer a few questions.”

  “I didn’t abduct Mason, if that’s what you’re implying.” Anna spoke without thinking how guilty it might make her look. She wasn’t guilty, and she’d do anything to prove to them she had nothing to do with the sheriff’s disappearance.

  “We’re not accusing anyone. Yet. It’s just procedure.” Claire placed her cold hand on Anna’s arm. “According to Sheriff Hershel’s report, you found a dead body in the house above Devil’s Cauldron. He questioned you, and you were told not to leave town. You directly disobeyed the order, which is cause for jail time. But, we’re willing to overlook it with your cooperation.”

  “I may have found the body, but I didn’t kill her. I didn’t hurt anyone. I haven’t even visited Manzanita in years.”

  “We know you weren’t anywhere around Manzanita when the murder happened. We also know Hershel didn’t go with you to England, but followed you on his own accord.”

  Anna shook her head. This was unbelievable. “Then what’s the problem? Why do you need my cooperation when you know everything I do?”

  “Your fiancé, Jack Monroe was reported missing two weeks ago. He was seen leaving your hotel in England with Hershel. Nobody’s seen or heard from both men since.”

  The punch in the gut was more like a knife twisting and turning into Anna’s stomach. When she stood, the barstool wobbled then tipped over to the floor. She stepped toward the couch, catching the back before she too fell over.

  The dizziness wouldn’t go away. It only grew worse with each passing thought that Jack was missing. So wrapped up in her own world, she’d never even checked to make sure he’d come home.

  “Oh, Jack,” she whispered between clenched teeth. “I need to find him.”

  “So you do know where he is.” Soward glared.

  There was no doubt in her mind who played good agent/bad agent here. It didn’t matter anymore. Even if she told them everything, all that mattered now was finding Jack.

  “Please, Miss Holden.” Claire spoke in a low, friendly voice. “If you know something, anything at all, then talk to us. I promise. We’re here to help.”

  Anna slumped down into her couch. “My father’s dying wish was for me to find an old family friend who went missing about twelve years ago. He lived in the house near Devil’s Cauldron. So I went there. I didn’t expect to find him.”

  Claire took her cellphone from her pocket then touched the screen. “Tristan Ashfield,” she read aloud, and then looked at her. “He’s the one you told Mason about. But according to Mason’s files, the house belonged to a James Wallace, your real father, who was found murdered near the Columbia River Gorge. Mason believed Ashfield killed Mr. Wallace and took over his house. James’s mistress, Sia Hart, went to visit him but found Mr. Ashfield instead. He kept her prisoner until she gave birth. He killed her, buried her down the hill from the house, and then gave the child illegally to MacDonald and Betty Holden.”

  Anna shivered. These agents headed down the same path she’d treaded on before finding out the truth. If they ever found Tristan, they’d lock him away. He’d become a science experiment.

  “You found a body in the basement of that house.” Sowards gruff voice was d
ifficult to listen to, like nails down a chalkboard. He folded his arms over his chest. “That woman was thirty-eight, a night nurse for ten years at the general hospital. She was an important person there.”

  “I had nothing to do with that,” Anna snapped defensively. If only she could show him the nightmares that haunted her every night, he wouldn’t be so condemning.

  “We’re getting off track here.” Claire placed her hand on Sowards’s huge arm. “Miss Holden. We believe all of these cases are connected. We think Mr. Ashfield might have the answers. If you know where he is, then I suggest you tell us. It could be a matter of life and death.”

  A matter of life and death. Those words were glued to Anna’s brain. Life and death was exactly right. Jack and Mason had disappeared. Her parents were dead. Some mysterious woman lost her life in the house on the hill. Maybe Tristan knew about all of this, but he had his reasons. If that were the case, then she’d have to go to him and confront him.

  “You said Jack and Mason left the hotel together. Do you know where they were going?”

  Claire shook her head. “We’re not at liberty to give that information.”

  “Scotland,” Sowards blurted out.

  Claire’s brown eyes narrowed. Maybe she was angry at her partner for divulging information meant only for the agents. Why would Sowards offer it so easily?

  “Why would they go to Scotland?” Anna asked, hoping to get more top secret details, planning her trip already. As soon as they finished here, she was hopping on the plane. That is, if they let her go.

  “I feel that, when we find Mr. Ashfield, we’ll find Mason and Jack. So if you know of his whereabouts, I suggest you tell us.”

  “As far as I know, Tristan went to the Cauldron.” Her heart ached for him again. “He’s at the house on the coast.”

  Her skin rose with a chill, as if she were playing a dangerous game with Tristan’s life. What if she was wrong? What if he lied about going back to England and went to Manzanita instead? No—she couldn’t think that way now, not when Jack’s life was in danger.