by C. J. Pinard
A short, older clergyman in his official dress was standing between them. He asked everyone to be seated and quiet down, and then began the ceremony.
“Do ye, Jonathan Murphy, take Emma Augustine to have and to hold, from this day further, ‘til death do ye part?”
“I do,” he said with a smile on his lips, staring at his beautiful bride.
The priest repeated the same for Emma and she answered, “I do.”
Jonathan bent down, put his hand on Emma’s cheek, and kissed her tastefully but softly as she closed her eyes. The dozen or so in attendance erupted into applause and cheers.
After a small reception at Jonathan’s home, which he had just recently completed renovating to accommodate his newly-growing family, the couple changed clothes and prepared for their trip.
It was agreed that Emma’s extended family would care for the Murphy children while Jonathan and Emma went on honeymoon in France. The couple said their goodbyes, and was taken by horse and carriage to the shore. There, they boarded the old ship, heading for France.
The boat ride lasted several days, and after landing in France, they found a sweet little inn where they spent many days and nights, not doing much but making love and getting to know one another better. Emma decided it was time to finally break the news to him about what she was. Like any smart woman, she picked the time right after a particularly raucous lovemaking session. As they lay in their satisfied bliss, she leaned up on one elbow and kissed him softly on the mouth.
He smiled and said, “What ever was that for, my love?”
“Just because,” she answered. She stared deep into his gray eyes and as she did, a confused expression passed over his eyes.
“What’s the matter with your eyes?” he asked, sitting up, obviously concerned. He was sure he saw what looked like a lightning flash pass over her pupils. It couldn’t be the candles as it was morning now and pure sunlight was streaming in through the windows.
Now in a sitting position, she had her hand on his leg and said, “Jonathan, that’s what I need to talk to you about, and it’s imperative that you not get upset and that you wait until I am done speaking before you respond.”
He grabbed her hand, and said, “What it is, my wife? You are scaring me.”
She bit her bottom lip and brushed some of her thick red hair behind her ear. “It’s just that, well, I am not exactly… human.” She looked sideways at him to register the expression on his face.
Jonathan let out a hearty laugh. “Is this some sort of honeymoon game you want to play? Okay. I’ll play along. Tell me, Emma Augustine Murphy, if you aren’t human, then what are you?” He was still chuckling.
“I am not jesting, and now is not the time for playful banter, my love. I am a sylph. I am indeed twenty-eight years old, but there is a reason I only look eighteen.”
He raised an eyebrow at her but said nothing. His expression went serious.
“My three sisters, did you notice how young they looked?” she asked seriously.
He eyed her speculatively and said, “Well, to be honest, yes. I thought it odd they all looked like teens, yet they are older than you. Your mother is also very beautiful, but appears to be the appropriate age.”
“Yes, as a sylph, we are born when a human man and a female sylph have children. We will not age as long as we do not give birth. Once we do, we begin to age as normal humans. And this is partially what I needed to speak to you about.”
Jonathan let out a small chuckle, still not believing her but part of him beginning to worry he had married an escaped mental patient. “Okay, go on, Emma.”
“Well, I was so happy when I met you. You already had children, which means you do not want any more, correct?” She had a concerned expression on her face.
He smiled. “I love my children. I was hoping to have more with you. You are already a wonderful mother to them. I would love to try for another son.”
“See, that’s the thing, Jonathan. I do not want any children. Yours are enough for me, and I wish to remain young forever. Which is a problem for both of us, as you are human and will continue to age. One day I will lose you, and that is not something I can bear.”
“Emma, your crazy talk is starting to scare me a little. Would you like some brandy wine?” He thought some alcohol may calm her down or get her to speak more truthfully, even though it was barely eight in the morning.
“Jonathan, get dressed. I need to show you something,” she commanded.
He smiled at her. “Care to have a bath with me first?”
That she couldn’t say no to. They lounged in the hot bath for a while, but she was still so nervous he thought she may be crazy.
“So, let me ask you something. First off, what’s a sylph?” Jonathan asked.
“It’s a faerie. We are the Fae of the air. We control the elements and try to keep vampyres and shapeshifters from exposing themselves to and harming humans.”
Jonathan sat up straight. It had been quite a few months since he had heard the V-word. “I have been trying to convince myself that what happened to you was really just a dream…”
“It was not, my love. Please don’t ever forget, for they are very real and live amongst us. Anyhow, if it weren’t for that filthy demon, we never would have met.” She smiled and pulled her dripping hand out of the warm bathwater to stroke his stubbly cheek.
“I know,” he replied, grinning.
“So you believe me then, that I am a sylph? A faerie?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I am still thinking maybe you have been reading too many Shakespeare books,” he smiled.
“Come, my sweet. Get dressed and I will prove it to you.”
They climbed out of the now-tepid water, towel-dried each other off, and put on their clothes. When they were both standing in the middle of the small inn’s rented room, he looked at her and said, “Now what?”
She grabbed his hand with her right hand, and raised her left in the air and her shimmering portal appeared. Jonathan’s eyes widened and his mouth dropped open as he gasped.
Emma looked at him and said, “Are you ready to meet my queens?” And with that, she stepped through her airy portal, dragging the lumbering Jonathan behind her.
CHAPTER 6
∞∞∞
Portland, Oregon – Present Day
Night Crawlers, the biggest nightclub in Portland, was packed. Pascal, the club’s owner, was sitting in the VIP balcony, surveying his guests. He was surrounded by his now second, Mike, a few foot-soldiers, and his mate, Angel. Mike had a young woman on his lap, his mouth was at her neck, his large muscular arms wrapped protectively around her shoulders, his hand on the back of her head. He lifted his face away from her neck and blood dripped down his mouth and over his goatee. Joshua looked at him and shook his head.
A young human man was sitting on a nearby chair, and Angel was straddling him with her mouth at his neck. Her black leather pants were gleaming off the flashing strobe lights of the club. The young blonde man had his head lolled back onto his plush chair, his eyes rolling back in his head.
“Love, you’re going to kill the bloke if you keep feeding like that,” Pascal said to Angel, who got up off the young man and came to sit on Pascal’s lap. He was a bit jealous of the position, but would never openly admit it. He smacked her leather-clad tush before she sat down. She giggled as she wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth with her finger, then stuck it in Pascal’s mouth. He sucked on it a bit too long before she slowly slid it out of his mouth. She could feel his arousal against her.
Mike approached Pascal after he was done with his meal and said, “Boss, when are we heading out?”
“Joshua, go fetch the car, will you please? Meet us round back,” Pascal said, looking at Joshua.
Joshua simply said, “Yes, sir,” without taking his eyes off the beautiful brunette he was talking to. “I’ll call you,” he mouthed to her, putting his thumb and pinky in the shape of a phone to his ear. She smiled at him and de
scended the spiral staircase.
The Lincoln Towncar bumped and lurched over hilly roads that led to the Oregon Vortex. The drive had been quiet, as all the vampires were nervous about returning to the place they had experienced so much trauma.
Two different humans, both men in their early twenties, accompanied the vampires. They were aware of the existence of vampires and were told they would have to prove themselves worthy if they wished to receive the privilege of joining the world of bloodsucking immortals.
“So where are we going?” asked the first one. He was a nice-looking guy with light brown hair and brown eyes. He was average build but was in very good shape, and was very proud of his daily gym routine.
“What is your name, young man?” Pascal asked.
“Smith,” he answered.
“Really, that’s your first name?” asked Mike.
“No, it’s John so I just go by Smith. Got tired of the Pocahontas jokes.”
Pascal was confused by this but did not bother to ask. “Well, Smith, to answer your question, we are heading to a remote touristy campground in the southern part of the state.”
“Why’s that?” Smith asked. “Hey, by the way, are you from England? I love your accent, man. It’s wicked!”
Pascal was again confused by him but answered, “Yes, I am from London but I’ve lived here in the U.S. for about one-hundred and fifty years.”
Smith laughed. “Wow that is wicked cool!”
Pascal shook his head and looked at the other man. “And what’s your name?”
The other man was a bit less confident than Smith. He was Smith’s wing-man, so to speak, always hung out with him, but was usually hidden in his shadow. Smith was better at sports, working out, and getting women. Sometimes he wondered if Smith just hung out with him because he was too annoying to get any other friends. “My name is Bryan.”
“Well, Bryan, why do you want to be a vampire?” Angel asked, smiling.
“Um, I’m not sure. I’m just here with Smith. He said we were just going to hang out with you guys. But, I do have a question.”
“And what’s that?” Mike asked.
“It’s just that… well, I work construction, and I was wondering if the myth about sunlight was true? ‘Cause I really can’t be losing my job.”
The whole back of the Towncar erupted into laughter. Bryan was alarmed and then embarrassed by this but said nothing.
A grin twisted on Pascal’s lips. “Yes, the myth is true, and if you become a vampire, you will not be working your construction job any longer.”
“Um okay. Well how am I supposed to make a living then?”
Pascal said, “You’ll be working for me. You will also live with us in our house. You have to die to the humans.”
Bryan looked worried but was quiet. Bryan didn’t really have any family so the ‘dying to humans’ part isn’t what scared him. The thought of living in a nest of vampires did, even though he would supposedly be becoming one.
“Boss, we’re here,” Joshua said, parking the car in front of the Oregon Vortex’s outpost.
The four vampires and two humans exited the car. It was pitch-black outside, aside from a slight bit of moonlight that cut its way through the misty clouds surrounding the half-moon. It had recently rained, and the ground was wet, the air thick. As they sloshed their way through the foliage toward the fencing that surrounded the park, Pascal put his hand out and said, “Stop!”
He then turned toward Smith, and with lightning speed, he grabbed him by the hair and yanked his head back. He then violently bit into his neck and drank for about sixty seconds. Smith at first resisted, trying to punch and kick the vampire, but was quickly subdued and fell slack in Pascal’s arms. Pascal lifted his head and bit into his own wrist, drizzling his own blood into Smith’s mouth. Smith lazily drank the dripping blood, then grabbed Pascal’s wrist and pulled it toward his mouth and drank greedily for a few seconds. Pascal pulled his wrist away and laid the man on the ground.
“Joshua, take him to the car and stay with him. When he wakes up, find him someone to eat.”
Joshua was more than happy to avoid going onto the Vortex’s property.
“Boss, there’s no one around. How long will he be out?” Joshua asked, glancing around nervously. Aside from his own turning, he had never witnessed another.
“A few hours, but we won’t be that long. Just keep an eye on him.”
Bryan was growing increasingly anxious but felt too intimidated to ask why he was being taken into the Vortex.
∞∞∞
Kathryn was feeling stronger, her advanced healing ability was kicking in. She sat up in the back of the van and instinctively reached for her phone in her pocket, cursing when she realized it was still in the front seat. She then eyed the van’s doors. She was still weak from Seth’s wolf bite but decided she’d rather risk getting some road rash from the moving van than wait and see what Sheena had in store for her.
She slid her way toward the back of the van and began kicking violently at the doors. What she didn’t know was that Jonathan had locked them from the outside when he had gone into the Murphy Architecture building to drop the shifters into the cells.
As she began to kick, the van came to a stop. She crawled to the front and looked through the caging. It was almost dark but she could see they were stopped at the entrance to a lake.
“Crap!” she mumbled under her breath.
Just then, the back van doors flew open and as Kathryn went to exit, Sheena grabbed her and wrestled her to the ground. She placed an odd-looking collar around Kathryn’s neck.
“What is your problem?” Kathryn asked, yanking on the collar. Her hand then exploded with pain as an electric shock bolted through it. “Ow!”
“You Immortals are so stupid. Don’t you know you’re supposed to use shock collars on animals to keep them in line?” Sheena asked, laughing.
“What is this place?” Kathryn asked, looking at the body of water on the shoreline. The sun was just beginning to dip down into the still sheet of water that lay in the distance.
“It’s Winchester Bay, isn’t it beautiful?” Sheena asked.
Kathryn looked out over the still water. Her neck still hurt and while it was healing, she knew she was in a lot of trouble. “Why did you bring me here?”
Sheena threw the cell phone at Kathryn, which she caught. “Call Jonathan, tell him I will release you once he releases Seth and Malachi,” she said.
Kathryn scoffed. “Yeah… um, no. I’m definitely not going to be doing that, you stupid bitch.”
Sheena grabbed a fistful of Kathryn’s blonde hair. Her eyes bore into Kathryn’s, and she said in a low, threatening voice, “Oh yes, you will. Call him now.”
Kathryn was immediately taken. She quickly found that her will was not her own and she was mesmerized by Sheena’s beautiful green irises. She whispered, “Okay.” Looking down at the phone, she robotically found Jonathan’s contact information and hit “send.”
“Jonathan Murphy,” a worried voice answered on the other end of the line.
“It’s Kathryn…” she started.
“Oh, my God, are you okay?” he asked.
She let out a small laugh. “Yes, I’m here with the Black Panther. She’s been quite nice to me,” she said, still laughing.
“What the hell? Kat, are you okay?” he asked, pulling the phone away from his ear and looking at the display.
Jonathan was in his car. He looked over at Thomas, who could hear every word of the conversation. Thomas looked worried and upset. He knew Kathryn would never go willingly and he was confused by her aloof and casual demeanor over the phone.
“Kat, are you okay? Just answer yes or no to my questions,” Jonathan commanded. “Are you hurt?”
“No,” she said.
“Is Sheena with you?” he asked.
“Yes,” she suppressed a giggle. “I’m supposed to tell you to release Seth and Malachi, then I can go freeeee!” she giggled.
&
nbsp; “Shit,” Jonathan mumbled under his breath. “I think Sheena drugged her.” He looked at Thomas.
“Get her to tell you her location,” Thomas said.
“Kat, honey, where are you? Tell me what you see,” Jonathan said soothingly into the phone.
Then came cackles of Sheena’s laughter. “That’s enough conversation for now, Johnny.”
“You animals just never learn, do you, Sheena? Seth and Malachi are already on their way to the island for what they’ve done, and I promise you, if I have any say, they will not be seeing the light of day for a very long time. And when I find you – and I will – I am going to rip your miserable head from your body!” He then threw the phone into the backseat and slammed his fist into the steering wheel.
“What are we going to do now?” Thomas asked.
“Well we certainly aren’t negotiating with animals,” Jonathan spat.
∞∞∞
The Island of Nymph, Gulf of Mexico – 1809
The group of colorful sylphs let out a collective gasp as Emma and Jonathan stepped into the meeting room. The look on Jonathan’s face was pure bewilderment. For the second time in the past few months, he had been witness to a supernatural occurrence and he again wondered if he might be dreaming. The warm climate of the room, the almost blinding sun’s reflection off the glistening sea, and the strong smell of salt in the air told him he wasn’t in England any longer. His disbelieving eyes took in the ten sylph queens dressed in bright colors. He then dragged his eyes back to Emma.
“What is this place, Emma?”
She smiled up at him. “My love, this is the Island of Nymph, and these are my queens.” She bowed her head slightly to the ladies.
He looked down at her, then at the queens and awkwardly mimicked her bow. The queens giggled slightly.
“Please sit,” Elizabeth said, the sleeve of her purple dress, blowing in the breeze as she indicated two wooden chairs in the middle of the room. “Mr. Murphy, my name is Elizabeth; I am chairing today’s meeting.” She nodded her head but did not extend her hand.