by E. A. Abel
“But that doesn’t explain how Devin is a sunvamp and you are a vampire,” Alivia said.
Devin crossed one leg over the other and said, “To answer your question, my mother Dahlia was a human right up until the night my father Danzanelli went away on a business trip to Italy. Constantine the vampire and a very old friend of my fathers’ was supposed to watch over our mother because she was pregnant with the two of us, but Constantine left our mother alone and went to hunt in the woods. A vampire clan that made its way from New Orleans happened to be searching for a trader of theirs. When the clan of vampires broke into the Casa De Luca, they went crazy and destroyed almost everything in the house searching for the trader. One of them opened my mothers’ bedroom door and saw her in her bed sleeping. They thought that because she was human they could kill her and no one would care. When Constantine came back from his hunt, our mother was dying. Constantine was afraid of what our father would do to him if Dahlia had died so he offered her his blood hoping to heal her. But it was too late. Dahlia was all ready dead. Minutes later, Constantine delivered us by cutting open our mothers’ stomach. Danzanelli was enraged when he came home to find his wife was a transitioning vampire. He went psycho when he found out that Chace was born a vampire and I was born a sunvamp. He ripped out Constantines’ heart and hunted and killed every single member of the clan that broke into the house.”
Chace then spoke. “That’s around the same time Vamprincessa and Vamprinceton discovered our parents had stolen the Sollecular.”
“Who are the Vamprincessa and the Vamprinceton?” Alivia asked.
Chace eyed Devin and Devin said, “They’re teenage clan rulers. Orion created Vamprincessa and Vamprinceton, after Demeetrie. They have ruled vampires since the beginning of time as per Orions’ orders. They’re wild and unpredictable. They’re savage killers.”
Alivia thought for a moment and then asked, “So where is Demeetrie?”
“Demeetrie is asleep forever in an ebony coffin below Tarantino ruins. Devin and I discovered that tidbit of information from Mercy not too long ago. We’re working on a plan to free him because Mercys’ family sealed the coffin with a spell and we can’t open it.” Chace took a sip of his drink and continued. “Mercy’s ancestors sealed the coffin because of the curse from Apollo that made these sunvamps’ extremely powerful. Right up until this day, no one has found a way to kill the sunvamps’ once they mature into a full pledged sunvamp at the age of nineteen.”
“And where are your parents?” Alivia asked.
“Orion became involved and permitted Vamprincessa to exile our parents to Hellsgrave for stealing the Sollecular. No one was able to stop the vampire clan because Demeetrie was all ready trapped in the coffin.” Devin said.
“Hellsgrave? I had a dream about Hellsgrave. You, Devin and Lawson were talking about someone named Vanstrauss,” Alivia said.
“That’s right. Vanstrauss is a vampdiamones,” Chace said and narrowed his eyes.
“So is Vanstrauss still in Hellsgrave?” Alivia asked.
“From the looks of it,” Devin said waving his hand in Lawsons’ direction. “If Lawson is in his human form, then that means Vanstrauss is here in Newgrave. The Shayvan is activated when someone comes through the door to the physical world.”
“But not just Vanstrauss has escaped, Evony the witch has escaped as well,” Lawson added.
Alivia stared at Lawson. “Explain to me how Lawson is the Shayvan.
From what I remember from my dream you and Devin said that I was the Shayvan.”
Alivia shifted her gaze to Chace.
“That’s what we thought. But it turns out that Lawsons’ half soul found yours and for a good reason,” Devin explained.
“Half-soul?” Alivia asked.
“Twins share one soul. It begins before the time of conception in the realm of God. The soul splits in half. Because of the shared soul, twins have a unique bond that unites them for eternity. In the case of death, where one-half of the soul lives and one half of the soul dies, the missing half begins to search for the soul until it becomes one again. In the case of you and Lawson, Lawson had a higher purpose. Instead of your souls becoming one again and Lawson moving on, Lawson used your body to host his soul until the Shayvan was awakened.”“But how is Lawsons’ physical body here?” asked Erica.
“He died.”
“Right, I read about this in the Sollecular. The reason Lawsons' physical body was resurrected was because someone came through the door to the physical realm. Now Lawson has no choice but to remain in the physical world until the spirits or souls go back through.” Devin said.
“But Vanstrauss is a vampire and Evony is a witch. They are not spirits or souls,” Erica said and looked puzzled.
“You do have a valid point but nonetheless the door to the physical realm has been opened. The physical realm door is what the Shayvan protects. It’s not important who or what goes in or comes out,” Devin said.
Erica nodded.
Lawson stood up from the sofa lounge and walked to where Alivia sat on the leather love-seat holding Chaces’ hand.
He knelt down and stared into her eyes. “Are you still afraid of me?” he asked and reached for her free hand.
Alivia shook her head.
“I’m so sorry that this happened. I know how hard it’s been these last few months for you. I know how much you’ve missed having mom around,” he said
Alivia lowered her head and stared at her mothers’ moonstone ring that Lawson was now wearing on his right hand. When Lawson lifted her face up to meet his gaze, she was crying.
CHAPTER TEN
Chace suddenly felt strange.
He watched Alivia and Lawson embrace. He couldn’t shake the feeling. He wanted to be the one she held onto, he needed Alivia to feel that connection with him and not Lawson. He couldn’t take it any longer and rose from the love-seat. He stepped behind her and placed his hands on either side of her hips.
Seconds later, she turned to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He held her tight.
“Please don’t cry Alivia,” Chace said and lifted her face to meet his. He wiped the tears away from her cheeks. When she stared at him with that familiar glossed over look in her eyes, he knew she was his and not even Lawson could compete with that.
Chace held each side of her face with his hands and pressed his lips to hers. She responded eagerly. He deepened his kiss. Chace could feel the room and the people in it begin to slip away.
Suddenly, the two of them were alone and floating inches off the floor. Chace lost all sense of time. It was as if time itself stood still and existed only for the two of them. He brushed his lips gently over her neck. He wanted her. He wanted her more than anything or anyone else in the world. He never felt a woman as soft as Alivia. Her skin was as silky-smooth as her hair. Her love for him was genuine and not forced. The electric shock of her touch surged through him and awakened parts of him he never imagined he could feel.
When her tongue traced over his sharp fangs, he suddenly snapped back to reality and pulled away from her.
Everyone in the room was staring at them.
“Chace are you all right?” Devin asked.
Chace raced to the fireplace and gripped the mantle with such force that the marble crumbled down around his feet. Her flowery scent, the sweet taste of her moist tongue seducing him as she outlined his fangs caused his senses to heighten and spiral out of control.
“Now Chace, my darling angel. We mustn’t destroy the place and all its beauty simply because we cannot control our emotions,” an unfamiliar voice said softly from behind him.
Chace turned to connect the voice to the person. He eyed the woman not realizing at first who she was. Her long dark, wavy hair and angelic turquoise eyes, he had seen before but only in pictures. When he finally realized who she was his jaw practically hit the floor.
☼
“Boys,” Zio Sandino said. “Is that any way to greet your mother and father?�
�
“But how is this even possible?” Devin asked.
Zio Sandino motioned for Danzanelli and Dahlia to sit down.
Danzanelli sat beside his wife on the sofa lounge next to Devin and Erica. He eyed Alivia and Chace as they sat down in the love-seat. He then glanced at Lawson who sat in the armchair beside him. Then he shifted his gaze to Zio Sandino who sat in the chair beside Lawson. Danzanelli nodded and crossed one leg over the other.
“As you are all well aware, your mother and I were condemned to live in Hellsgrave. Hellsgrave is a torture realm where immortals are sent for crimes they commit against the vampire clan.” Danzanelli laughed and then continued.
“Stealing the Sollecular should not have resulted in such a heinous punishment. However Minos, who I swear was conspiring with Hades, decided to pass judgment quickly. I believe that Artemis convinced Hades to imprison us because she was enraged when she discovered that Dahlia had a vampire baby.” Danzanelli eyed Chace. Then he shifted his gaze to Dahlia. “Your mother and I were to spend an eternity watching each other being tortured from our cells across from one another. Your poor mother suffered terribly. She hung from the ceiling in her cell shackled in chains while a two-headed skeleton wolf ate the flesh from her hands until he reached the bone. Each time her flesh grew back, the awful animal ate away at them again,” Danzanelli said.
Devin looked at Chace who looked right back.
“It was painful yes, but nothing compared to the pain that they inflicted on you my handsome husband.” Dahlias’ eyes filled with sadness as she continued. “Your father had blood sucking vampire bats eat away at his flesh while he was nailed to a wooden wheel. The bloodthirsty bats dug into his flesh wildly. They devoured the flesh from his eyes, his head, everywhere and anywhere those beasts could feast on to get at his blood. I can still hear your father scream. It was awful.”
“There there my sweet, it’s all over now.” Danzanelli wrapped a loving arm around his wife and kissed the top of her forehead.
“But all of this doesn’t explain how you got here,” Devin said.
Devins’ voice was full of callous, but he didn’t care. He felt no pity for them.
Danzanelli stared at him questioningly for several moments before he said. “Once a year, Hades would order the release of the prisoners to attend a festival. This festival was in the honor of Persephones’ return to the underworld. Hades provided all the prisoners and staff with a bountiful feast. The festival consisted of mostly eating and dancing and lasted for three consecutive days. It was at this festival that Evony entered Hellsgrave with a ceramic jar of green gas releasing it on Cerberus the three-headed dog. While Cerberus slept, Evony grabbed Vanstrauss and headed toward the door that leads to the stairway. Your mother and I followed them. Once we passed through the realm door, we found ourselves on a winding white staircase surrounded by beautiful clouds.”
Dahlia interrupted, by waving her hand gracefully in the air. “We continued to follow them. That’s’ when Vanstrauss and Evony went through another door on the stairway of clouds. Once we passed through the same door to the other side, an angel had greeted us. Daemon, he said his name was, guided us to the physical realm.”
“It’s night time how did you come out of the realm if you’re a sunvamp?” Chace asked.
“I’m protected from the moonlight,” Danzanelli said.
“After shifting into a hawk, your father received the ability to protect himself from the moonlight.” Dahlia said and smiled sweetly at her husband. “Your father can also protect sunvamps temporarily from the moonlight and vampires’ temporarily from the sunlight.”
There was a long silence before Danzanelli spoke. “I am assuming that these are guests of yours?” He waved a hand around the room at the others, but eyed only Alivia.
Dahlia followed her husbands’ gaze. “I agree my love she seems to have the sweetest aroma.”
“I’m famished my sweet,” Danzanelli said getting up and strolled gracefully toward Alivia.
Both Devin and Chace stood up and intercepted him.
“Don’t you dare touch her,” Chace warned.
“Oh, I see,” Dahlia said as she stood up and stepped toward Erica. “Well this one will suffice just nicely then.”
Devin moved quickly and stood between Erica and his mother. “You cannot have her either,” Devin said crossing his arms against his chest.
“Well then that just puts a damper on things now doesn’t it?” Dahlia glanced at Danzanelli and he smiled.
“They must be the ladies they are in love with my sweet. Besides, I highly doubt that the boys have gatherings with the humans to feast on their blood. It is not as it once was when we invited the humans to the Casa De Luca back in our day,” Danzanelli said and shook his head.
Zio Sandino left the room and returned seconds later with blood bags. He handed one to each of them.
“Well from the looks of it, I suppose hunting for our prey is out of the question as well,” Dahlia said and gulped the entire bag within seconds.
“This bag was just a mere tease. Four-hundred years in Hellsgrave with very little blood rations, have left me wanting more. A full replenishment is highly required,” Danzanelli said.
“Come with me to the freezer in the cellar. There’s much more where that came from. I promise you, you will be satisfied in no time at all.” Zio Sandino gestured for them to follow him.
When they had left the room, Devin stared at Chace.
Chace wasn’t paying attention. His eyes were wide and from the expression on his face, Devin could tell that something was terribly wrong. When Devin turned to see what Chace was staring at, he couldn’t believe his eyes.
Lawson was floating in the air. His eyes were a bright blue with sparks of light flickering inside of them. What was surprising was that Lawson was completely white and had wings as blue as his eyes. Suddenly, a door appeared above the ring that slipped off Lawsons’ finger. The hazy clouds inside of the door were dazzling and hypnotic.
Seconds later, a powerful wind blew out from the door and formed a long looping tornado. The tornado stretched out through the archway of the grand living room and down the hall.
“Alivia run!” Chace shouted above the howling wind. Devin shifted his gaze to Alivia and watched her grab Ericas’ hand as she pulled her with great difficulty toward the dining room doors. Once they were inside, Alivia and Erica pushed the doors closed using their bodies.
Then Devin heard Dahlia cry out for help. Before Devin or Chace had a chance to react, Dahlia was twisting around and around in the tornado. Devin tried to reach for her hand, but its powerful force sent him flying back. Devin crashed through the large bay window and landed outside in the courtyard covered in shattered glass. Devin stood up just in time to see Chace try to reach for their mother. Just as he was about to grab onto her, the tornado sucked her up through the door and she disappeared.
The tornado then came out through the door again. This time it stretched toward their father who was standing in the archway with Zio Sandino.
His fathers’ eyes were wide with fear and Devin could sense his fear. Chace reacted quickly. He dashed to where his father was standing with such incredible speed that in one second flat Chace had disappeared with their father through the front door.
Devin watched as Lawson picked up the ring and slid it back onto his finger.
☼
“What the hell did you do?” Devin yelled.
“I don’t know.” Alivia heard Lawson reply.
“Give me that damn ring or I’ll rip your finger off with it!”
Devin said angrily.
Alivia opened the door to the dining room and couldn’t believe her eyes. Devin was kicking Lawson in the ribs while Lawson was curled up on the floor moaning in pain.
“Get the hell away from my brother!” Alivia yelled.
She raced quickly across the room and leaped up onto Devins’ back wrapping her legs around his waist.
She cla
wed and scratched at Devins’ face as he stood up. He spun around wildly. Alivia wrapped her arms around his neck and held on for dear life. When Devin gripped her wrists and unclasped her arms, he began to spin around faster and faster. Alivia was flying around the room at top speed with her body soaring through the air. Devin let go. She flew and landed against the brick fireplace.
Alivias’ head was spinning. She felt sick. Finally, after the dizziness had subsided, her forehead began to throb. A large gush of blood dripped down her face and into her eyes. Alivia closed her eyes and tried to stand. She slipped on something that was on the floor and fell back. Someone caught her before she hit the ground. Alivia couldn’t see who caught her and she began to slap away at the person.
“Alivia its okay babe, it’s me Chace.”
Alivia stopped struggling and fell against him.
“Here, press this handkerchief to her head to control the bleeding.” It was Zio Sandinos’ voice.
Chace held it to her head, pressing down hard and Alivia flinched.
“What happened?” Chace asked Alivia.
“Devin attacked my brother and I jumped onto his back to stop him. But that didn’t work out so well.”
“Erica come over here will you? Hold this to her head and apply as much pressure as possible,”
Chace said as he gently placed her on the floor.
Alivia heard the anger in his voice.
“It’s okay Alivia it’s me,” Erica said sitting down beside her.
Alivia took a free piece of the handkerchief, wiped the blood away from her eyes, and then opened them just as Zio Sandino offered her his blood.
☼
Chace stood eyeing Devin angrily.
“I have had about all I’m willing to take from you brother. First, you trick me and try to rescue Alivia so that you could be her hero. Now you send her half way across the room and hurt her.”
He glared at Devin.
“I swear I was so angry with Lawson that I didn’t realize it was Alivia.”
Devin looked apologetic.
“I’m not buying any of it. Everyone believes you are the good twin and that I am the evil spawn from hell, but when it comes to Alivia I don’t believe you are capable of telling the truth.”