She realized she must have taken just a bit longer than he did to get cleaned up because he had already gone downstairs to grab a bottle of wine and some glasses. All the lights were off in his bedroom; illuminated only by the soft glow of the fireplace. She could hear soft music playing in the background, but she couldn’t tell exactly what song it was.
“Come on in,” he invited. “This is how I usually like to unwind after a long day; the fireplace, a glass of wine, some music, and good company.”
She loved the ambience, but hoped he wasn’t expecting more than good conversation and a glass of wine. She wasn’t the kind of girl that allowed her hormones to make bad decisions for her. Not saying that it wouldn’t be difficult for her; he was kind, gorgeous, and famous—somewhat of a triple threat. Not to mention that his English accent drove her wild!
They took a seat on the couch in front of the fire, Kelly curling her legs underneath her as she got comfortable. Todd uncorked a bottle of Moscato, hoping that she was into sweet wine. He poured them each a glass and handed her one, raising his in a silent toast before taking a sip. He leaned back and spread his arms across the back of the couch, closing his eyes and relishing in the sweet peacefulness after such an awful day.
“So, tell me about you,” Kelly started their night of good conversation.
“Well, I’m an actor…” Todd joked as if she didn’t know. “I grew up in London, I’m an only child, and my parents still live there. I began acting when I was a small child in a community theater and was always fascinated with performing. Before I could finish university, I decided that I wanted acting to be my career and pursued it before graduating. What about you?”
Kelly took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling as she tried to think of what to say that didn’t make her sound like a complete bore. “I’m originally from Canistota, which is a small town in South Dakota. We ended up moving out here when I was thirteen to be closer to family. We have lived in Mount Prospect ever since, which is about an hour south of here near O’Hare airport. I work at a small office in Lombard where we design small business marketing projects. And…that’s pretty much me.”
“Brothers? Sisters?” Todd asked, pressing for more information about her.
Kelly had completely forgotten about that part. “Yes! I have a younger sister who is a senior in high school. I still live with my folks, mostly because it allows me to save money. I had been thinking about moving out on my own, but never really got around to it. What about you?”
Todd told her about his previous girlfriend, Shannon and how they had lived together in a flat in London. He explained that she had left him shortly before he came to film at the Manor, which was the best thing and quite possibly the worst thing that had ever happened to him. Meeting Emma changed his life completely and it would never be the same.
“Tell me about you and Emma,” Kelly said as she glanced in the direction of the pictures on the wall; those that gave her a glimpse into their history.
Todd hesitated for a moment, not wanting to create an awkward conversation. However, it was bound to come out sooner or later and he wanted to be honest. “Emma and I…well, I’m sure you know we have a history together. I won’t elaborate on the details, but in the end we both came to the conclusion that there was no future for us…more so for me rather than her. She has forever to live her life and I don’t. I’d like to eventually get married and have a couple of kids, both things that she can’t give me. But honestly, she will always hold a very big spot in my heart. It’s not every day a guy gets to say that he has dated a beautiful vampire. I’ll always love her.”
Kelly felt a bit awkward discussing Emma when she was just a few rooms away. But, she wanted to hear it from Todd himself. “I understand,” she responded. “There are some people you date that you will always hold dear, even when it doesn’t work out. I am friends with a few of my ex-boyfriends; it took a little bit of time to get over being in love with them, but now they are just great friends of mine and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Kelly and Todd continued talking into the night, openly sharing their life stories with each other. They made each other laugh heartily on several occasions with playful banter, which Emma could hear from Daniel’s room. She tried her best not to eavesdrop on their conversation and remain focused on chatting with Zachariah and Daniel. She was saved by her phone, which was the guard shack calling to tell her that Allison was there to deliver the caskets.
She excused herself from the room and went downstairs to let Aidan know that Allison would be coming up the road soon. He was still sitting next to Mackenzie’s body and taking mental pictures of her for the last time. He had cleaned the blood off of her mouth and now she looked as though she was in a deep slumber.
Emma waited outside and saw the headlights of Allison’s car emerging from the forest. As she pulled up, Allison flashed a friendly smile and a short wave before stopping the van. Emma walked around to her side of the car and gave her an embrace after she stepped out. Just like the last time Emma had ordered a casket, Allison had a slight look of worry on her face.
“Is everyone okay?” Allison asked even though she was afraid to. She noticed Emma looked a bit worse for the wear, which was something she had never seen before.
“Not this time,” Emma replied solemnly. “Mackenzie, the second-in-command of Europe was unfortunately killed tonight. We are going to give her a proper burial in our cemetery.”
“Oh my gosh,” Allison gasped with wide eyes and putting her hand over her mouth. “What happened?”
“We had a war here tonight,” Emma answered. She figured the news would get out to the vampire world soon enough. “Declan Fitzgerald tried to overtake all of the Royals with a living weapon, but we defeated him. Unfortunately, he is dead as well.” Emma looked away with a pained look on her face; still troubled by the fact that her dear friend tried to kill her, but still felt a bit sad over his loss. Her emotions were in a confused, twisted mess.
Allison was rendered speechless by the news. She wondered what they would tell the media since Declan was such a huge celebrity. She opened the back doors to the van and pulled out the two caskets, laying them on the ground side-by-side. Emma handed her the cash for the cost of the caskets with a little extra for both her and Patricia.
They bid each other farewell and Allison drove off down the dark, quiet gravel road. Emma went back inside and called upstairs to Zachariah asking him to come down. Aidan picked up Mackenzie and brought her outside to her awaiting casket, gently placing her inside and taking one final look at her before shutting the lid. Zachariah carried out Declan and placed him in his casket. He rested his hand for a moment on the open lid, taking one last look at his best friend and shaking his head in disappointment. He closed the lid and lightly pounded the top with his fist with a silent sadness.
The three of them carried the caskets to the cemetery and placed them on the grass in the chosen burial sites. They had planned to dig the graves the following day; their bodies weren’t tired, but they were too mentally exhausted to do the task that night. They walked back to the house in silence, each of them mourning their friends. After they got back inside, Emma and Zachariah went back upstairs to Daniel’s room to see how he was doing.
“Did your headache go away?” Emma asked as she sat down on the bed and gently placed her hand on his shin.
“No, if anything I feel a little weirder,” Daniel lazily responded.
Emma’s brow furrowed and concern and she looked to Zachariah hoping he would have an answer. He had his arms crossed in front of him, staring at Daniel with concern.
“What do you mean ‘weirder’?” Zachariah asked with worry.
“I don’t know,” Daniel breathed, throwing his arm over his eyes. “I just feel kind of foggy and off…” His voice trailed off as he slowly began to sit up with alarm. His face distorted with immense pain and he grabbed his head with both hands.
“What is it?” Emma panicked.
Daniel began to yell, experiencing the worst headache he had ever had. It felt as though something had popped in his brain and unleashed a throbbing wave of agony. He continued screaming as Zachariah and Emma scrambled around him, not knowing what to do. Todd and Kelly heard his cries and ran to his room to see what was happening.
“What’s going on?” Todd asked anxiously.
Emma had begun to cry, not knowing what was happening to Daniel. He tried to speak, but his words wouldn’t come out right and they began slurring.
Zachariah ran to the phone and dialed 911, explaining to the dispatcher that he thought Daniel was having a stroke. He stayed on the phone with them and described his symptoms while hovering over him. Zachariah tossed Todd his cell phone and told him to call the guard shack to let them know that an ambulance would be coming.
In a vain attempt to help Daniel, Emma bit her wrist and stuck it to his mouth, hoping her blood would cure his pain. He managed to drink a little bit, but it did absolutely nothing to alleviate the feeling of his head exploding.
“It’s not doing anything for him,” Emma sobbed as she wrapped her arms around him, coming to the realization that it was not due to injury, but a physical ailment.
Through his torture, Daniel managed to look up and lock eyes with Emma one more time before losing consciousness in her arms.
Davenport Manor Series
http://DavenportManor.net
Twitter: @DavenportManor
Facebook:www.facebook.com/DavenportManor
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/DavenportManor1
Melissa Zaroski – Author& Columnist
http://MelissaZaroski.com
Twitter: @MelissaZaroski
Facebook:www.facebook.com/MelissaZaroski
Melissa Zaroski was bitten by the writing bug as a child when she began to write short stories about fantasy lands and her own experiences. She always loved to escape real life and immerse herself in imaginary stories. As a teenager, she would write short stories and poems, mostly to express her teenage angst!
In 2009 she gained an opportunity to write for Examiner.com. She writes columns on Alexander Skarsgard (True Blood), Joe Manganiello (True Blood), Tom Wisdom (300, Dominion), and Kevin Alejandro (True Blood). She has conducted a phone interview with Joe Manganiello and several interviews with Tom Wisdom.
Melissa likes to read in her spare time; mostly Charlaine Harris, J. K. Rowling, and Sophie Kinsella. Being an animal-lover, she volunteers with Grassroots Animal Rescue in Chicago and fosters homeless kittens; most come to her sick and she nurses them back to health. She likes to go ballroom dancing with her husband and catch up on their favorite TV shows, True Blood, The Vampire Diaries, Downton Abbey, Mr. Selfridge, Orange is the New Black, and Mad Men.
The Living Weapon (Davenport Manor Book 2) Page 20