His response catches me off guard, and I’m not sure what to think, what to say. I open my mouth and shut it again. “A year? You have a year?”
“Yes, a whole year.”
Tired of being angry about lost time, I focus on the possibility of us being together. “Do you have any form of identification, a driver’s license? Or know how to drive? What about money? I doubt that your Creator is bankrolling a vacation with a soulless vampire.”
Wings spring from his back. “I can fly. I don’t need a car. I can make a human believe whatever suits me. Did you just call yourself soulless? Since when do you care about souls?”
“That is still the popular belief.”
He wraps his arms around my waist. “Say you will meet me tomorrow. Just give me one day to prove to you that this can work.”
I may regret it for the rest of my life, but I want to see him. “Yes.”
As soon as the word leaves my lips, he disappears. I look to the sky, but there’s no trace of him save the warm breeze that rushes over me.
Jogging back to the parking lot, I meet up with Will halfway.
“Where have you been? I got worried. Where did Lucas go?”
“I have no idea.”
“I don’t like you being alone. He shouldn’t have left you.”
“I’m sure he knew you would find me soon.” I roll my eyes, thinking there’s no way I’ll be able to sneak off to meet Lucas with Will being so paranoid.
“What did he want?” Will asks as we make our way to the vehicle.
My brain works fast as I slide into the passenger’s seat. “To warn us about Sonia. I’m not sure he understands modern technology.”
“Well, that’s not news. I mean the Sonia thing. We’ve every safeguard in place. Our surveillance is the best in the world. We have eyes everywhere.” Starting the vehicle, Will backs out.
Yes, I think, our security is the best. So good, in fact, that I can’t make a move without him knowing. My plan of meeting up with Lucas seems unattainable. Then, I wonder if I really need to hide. Won’t Elizabeth, Jacob, Orm, and Will, want me to be happy?
“Are you cold?” Will reaches over and turns up the heat. He rattles on about how strange it is that Lucas showed up to warn us about Sonia, and I stare out the window, watching headlights streaming by. “I mean, can’t he see everything? Doesn’t he know what we’re up to? And what was with the he-can’t-die thing?”
“I don’t know.” I shrug and return to my study of the oncoming cars.
“What’s up with you? Where are you? Was there something else he said? What aren’t you telling me?”
“I’m just processing.” I lean my head against the window. “I’m tired.”
At the condo, I’m grateful Elizabeth, Orm, and Jacob have turned in. Will retires to his quarters, and I pad down the hall to my suite. With a corner room, windows line the space, and I cross to the glass and look out over the city to the beach. I brush my fingers along my lips, the memory of Lucas’s skin on mine zinging through my body.
As I rest, I develop a plan for sneaking away to see Lucas. The next afternoon I tell Will that Jacob and I are going out running, and then I tell Jacob I am meeting Will downstairs to go to the beach.
The desk attendant stands as I exit the elevator in the lobby. “Miss Scott are you waiting for Jacob or Will to bring your car to the front door?”
“No.” I smile as Lucas waves at me from across the street. ‘“I’m meeting a friend.”
The sense of exhilaration I feel as I step onto the sidewalk alone rivals that of jumping from a sea cliff. Waiting for the light, I cross the street to Lucas.
“Good afternoon, love.” He kisses me and motions to a waiting white SUV.
I slide in the passenger’s seat beside him. “You know how to drive, right?”
“I got here with a vehicle, didn’t I? There are many surprises, so hold on.”
“I’m not taking any chances.” I pull my seatbelt across my chest.
He drives north and west to the coast and turns off the highway onto a private drive. At the end of a lane is a white house fixed atop a cliff overlooking the ocean. When he stops, I jump from the car.
“How did you find this place?”
“I told you, people love me.”
I glare at him but follow up the steps. Unlocking the door, he stands back to allow me to enter.
Seeing the ocean out the windows, I zip to the back deck. When I turn around, he’s still in the front room.
Joining me, a minute later, he wraps his arms around me. “You move really fast.”
“Sorry, habits and all.” I circle the space, running my hand over the railing. The waves crash upon the white sand below. A gull calls from the sky. The breeze catches my hair. “This is amazing.”
“Come, see the rest of the house.” He offers his hand, and I place mine in it.
Upstairs, a king-sized bed, made with white sheets sits in the middle of a large space. Double doors lead to another deck. A staircase winds down to the kitchen.
“Are you hungry? I wasn’t sure what you ate.” He motions to the professional-sized refrigerator.
“Hmmm, well if you bought food, then I’m sure there’s something. I’m fine right now. Do you eat?”
“Living, breathing human.”
“For now.”
“Are you always so negative?”
“No, sorry.”
We take chairs down to the beach, sip wine, swim, talk, kiss, and then kiss some more. With the sky lightening before sunset, I tell him I must go.
“I never want this to end,” he notes as we make our way up the path to the house.
“But all things do.” His eyes focus on the skyline, and I link my fingers in his. “Did I say something wrong?”
“I do not end, I will never be any different than I am now. I am eternal.”
“Can we talk about that? When I was young it was hard for me to imagine centuries going by. I have only just begun to accept it.”
“When you were young, you thought you would be with your love Alec forever, am I right?”
“Yes,” I admit. “But what of you? How many loves have you had?"
He wraps his hand around the back of my neck. “You’re my second. My first was human. We met when she was sixteen. She died giving birth to our second child.”
I find my eyes filling with tears, and I turn away from him. “I’m sorry.”
He wraps an arm around me and kisses my temple. “Don’t ever hide from me. And bring your dinner next time. I don’t want you starving.”
“How long did you know her?”
His eyes cut to the floor. “Four years. This was before we were cursed. Back then, we could slip in and out of this form whenever we pleased. But four of us made the mistake of loving a human.”
“The four lines of witches sired by the four—”
“Yes, the four lines.”
I cup my hand on his cheek. “Again, I’m sorry for your loss.”
“We’re much the same in this manner, being confined by our stations.”
“Is that why you chose me?”
“It wasn’t like that. The first time I saw you was when you lost your parents. Seeing you clinging to the earth, crying into the dirt, my heart broke for you. But your spirit persevered. You took your heartache, the loss of your family, of Alec, and made it something. Your grief, the hardships, could’ve turned you into something bitter, but you didn’t let it. How you made peace with the witches, proved your species to be cousins to the humans using genomic sequencing, brilliant. You’re the most courageous woman I’ve ever witnessed.”
“Brave or stupid enough to love you, I guess.” As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I wish I’d never spoken them.
His eyes bear into mine. “You love me?”
I look to the ocean and back to him. “I believe I do. It killed me to witness the battle so many years ago and have no power to help you. Then when you didn’t return my heart br
oke again and again. You were always in my thoughts and forever will be, no matter what happens.”
“And I love you with all my soul.” He drops to one knee. “Marry me, tonight, today, here. Invite your family to witness.”
My heart thumps in my chest. He wishes to marry me? I want to say yes, to experience the oneness from belonging completely to another. My mind jumps to the position I hold, people I lead. If it were discovered I was here with him, I could be accused of conspiring to sire illegal beings and be stripped of my title. “This is not something I can enter into lightly. I have my people to think about. Unions such as these are not looked on with favor.”
“Change that. If anyone has the power, you do.” He clutches my hand.
Heart racing, I snatch it from his grip. “I must go.”
Before he can protest, I dash away, swiping my bag and his keys from the front table and racing to the SUV. Turning it around, I speed down the drive to the highway. My mind reels with thoughts of Lucas, our night together, the possibility of being loved as he seems to love me.
My phone rings, and I dig it out of my bag and flip it open.
“You took my vehicle.” Lucas’s voice sounds through the speaker.
“I know. I’m sorry. I’ll have Will bring it back.”
“When will I see you again?”
“Tonight. I’ll come tonight.”
“Do you promise?”
My mind reels. Can I promise that? “Yes, I promise.”
The highway and streets are nearly empty, and I take the long way back to my condo. Parking in the lot, I take the elevator up to the top floor. I tip toe across the marble to the entrance and lay my hand on the key pad. The door clicks open, and I hold my breath.
As soon as my toes cross the threshold, a huge burst of air hits my face and Elizabeth, Jacob, and Will appear in front of me. Closing the door, I press my back to the wood. “Hi.”
“Hi?” Elizabeth screams. “Where have you been? We were worried sick.”
“You figured it out, eh?” I tuck my hair behind my ears.
“You never rest for eight hours straight. Do you think we’re morons?” Jacob yells.
“You couldn’t have been that worried. I didn’t see any helicopters. Okay, so, that was that, I’m going to take a shower and get dressed for the day.” I start to walk away.
“Why would you do that?” Will grabs my arm. “You were with Lucas, weren’t you? You could be thrown in jail, or worse, entombed with Sonia, just for being seen with him, especially this year.”
I snatch my bicep from his grip. “Aren’t you being a bit dramatic? I have the right to a bit of privacy, a life.”
Orm pads down the hall towards us. “She’s back. Told you she would be.”
“See, look at Orm, he’s not worried, all is well. Everything is fine.” I start towards my room.
“Why would you sneak out? Rig the cameras to deceive us?” Elizabeth asks.
“Look at how you’re reacting. This is why I didn’t tell you before I went. Would you have let me go?” I insist.
“Absolutely not. And I’m not letting you out of my sight for the rest of the year.” Jacob crosses his arms over his chest.
“It’s sweet that you’re so worried. But I have it under control.” I take a sideways step down the hall.
Will blocks my path. “Where were you? What did you do?”
“Let’s see.” I roll my eyes to the ceiling for effect. “We were at Lucas’s house on the ocean. It’s a very big house, white, with a long boardwalk over the dunes to a private beach. We made a campfire, had some wine, swam in the ocean. It was very lovely. He’s a wonderful host.”
“He drove you? It was lovely?” Will’s eyebrow shoots up. “He has a house? How does he even know how to use a vehicle?”
“Oh, yes, he has a mobile phone too. Very up to speed with technology, for a, you know, really old being.” I shrug and push up on my heels, starting to take another step.
“I don’t think so, missy.” Elizabeth grabs my elbow. “What are you thinking? What is going on in your head?”
“Can a person have one moment to herself? I’m starving. I haven’t eaten in over twelve hours.”
“Food?” Elizabeth tugs me towards the kitchen. “We can get you food.”
Will takes a position on the other side of me, and Jacob and Orm follow.
“Sit,” Elizabeth orders and pushes me towards the table.
Stumbling, I catch myself on the back of a chair. “I’m not twelve.”
“Well, you’re acting like a teenager.” Elizabeth tosses me a bottle of deer’s blood. “Drink and talk.”
They all take seats around the table. I look to each of them. “There’s really nothing to talk about. We had a fun night together.”
“You had fun? I think I’m going to be sick.” Jacob fakes a cough.
“What? He’s a nice man.” I take a gulp of the blood.
“A nice man? What if he’s luring you there to bewitch you? Have you sire a hybrid child?” Will asks.
“You’re talking crazy.” I rub drops of blood from my lips and lick my fingers. I point at my now ancient friend. “Orm, tell them. You’ve witnessed who he is. His intentions are pure.”
“How do you know? Oh my goodness, he has you completely brainwashed.” Jacob slaps his forehead.
“Stop.” I slam my hand on the table. “He loves me, and I love him. He asked me to marry him.”
There’s dead silence for a full second, and then pandemonium breaks out with each of them trying to speak over the other, yelling accusations at me.
Orm fits his fingers in his mouth and whistles. We cup our hands over our ears.
“Thank you.” He sighs. His eyes land on me. “Yes, I have seen who he is and what he has experienced, and aye, even how he feels for you. He does love you. His intentions are pure. He would never let harm come to you.”
“See.” I motion to Orm.
He lifts his index finger. “But think very carefully. Every decision sets in motion a path for which there is no return. You know the consequences if something goes wrong. You have to be willing to lose everything.”
I open and shut my mouth. He’s spoken out loud my biggest fear—my reputation, my legacy, my kingdom, all could spiral and implode with one infraction of the law.
Tears fill my eyes. Leaving the bottle half empty on the table, I pad to the door. “I have to get dressed for work.”
Hearing their voices as I walk to the foyer, grab my bag and phone, and enter my suite, I try and tune them out. Now that I’ve remembered how it feels to be loved by another, can I live without it? Walk away? The thought of severing ties with Lucas, ending that part of my life, feels like the prospect of chopping off my arm or ripping my heart from my chest. Starting the shower, I let the hot water stream over my body, tears pouring from my eyes until I can cry no more.
When I’m done, I dress in my skirt and blouse, slide on my heels, order breakfast to be delivered to my office, and march down the hall to my command room.
“Anne.” Elizabeth’s eyes are wide with compassion as she sets my food tray in front of me.
“Thank you, Elizabeth, that will be all for now.” I pick up the egg white and fruit shake and take a sip, praying they haven’t decided to drug me. I push the speaker on my phone. “Will, can you come here please?”
The next second, he’s before me. “Yes?”
I hold out Lucas’s keys. “I took his car. Can you take it back to Lucas? I’ll text you the address.”
“Does this mean you’ve decided to be smart? Not see him again?” His eyes pierce mine.
“I’m working.” I hold his stare for a second and look back to my computer screen.
As I am briefed on the night’s activity, rogue vampires we apprehended, and incidences of vampire on human violence, I try to process how my relationship with Lucas might work. Maybe it’s irrational, but now that I know he wants me, I long to be with him almost above all else.
I love my job, my people, and the thought of giving that up pains me almost as much as the idea of walking away from Lucas. But, how does one make that decision? I press my palms to the soft wood of my desk. I know the answer. Unless I have the support of my family, there’s no way I can wed Lucas and keep my position.
I gather everyone in the dining room for the evening meal. Sitting tall, I start my proposal. “I love Lucas.”
“Anne, you can’t—” Will starts.
I raise a finger. “Let me finish.” I lay out my whole plan, how I can have a relationship with Lucas and keep things running here. “And it’s only for a year. So, there’s that.”
“Well, I think we need to commit her to a mental institution.” Jacob rises from his seat and lays his napkin on the table.
“Think about how you felt about Mambi,” I start. “Once you knew you loved her, you would have done anything for her.” I face Elizabeth. “What of Finn? He was human. You risked punishment for exposing yourself as vampire to be with him. I wed a human.”
Will stands. “This is completely different. Lucas is—”
Orm’s arm shoots up. His eyes pan between us. “Do not speak it. It shall not be spoken. Not one of you knows who he really is, is this correct?”
We each nod. To us, Lucas is a being who may shift from a winged form to human for one year a century, who may not kill, but has the power to block the use of magic. If he has another name, I don’t know it. I could guess, but I will not.
“Child.” Orm’s eyes land on me. “You have endured so much in your life. I give my blessing and pledge loyalty, always.”
Elizabeth throws her napkin on the table and paces around the room. “Orm, what are you saying, old man?”
Will approaches. “If Orm is with you, so will I stand by your side.”
Jacob’s mouth turns down, and he rolls his eyes. “As will I.”
Kingdom of the Damned: Provocation (KIngdom Journals) Page 31