Knowledge Revealed

by D. S. Williams

  “What's up?” Nick questioned, following my gaze towards where Lucas and Alison stood.

  Without thinking about my decision, I dipped into the box in my head. Mom appeared beside Alison, perfectly formed on the dance floor and she looked at me with a broad smile. I relayed a message to her and she smiled even wider and nodded. I wasn't sure if what I'd requested was even possible, but it was worth a try.

  Mom turned as a waiter walked passed, carrying a tray filled with champagne flutes. Mom kicked her foot out delicately and to my amusement, the young man tripped over her outstretched foot. The tray and its contents tipped and Alison bore the brunt of the spillage, champagne pouring over her head and clothes.

  With a delighted grin, I watched the sheer fury on Alison's face as Mom slipped back into the box in my mind. Alison berated the waiter and stormed away from Lucas, completely humiliated in front of everyone.

  “What just happened?” Nick inquired. He lowered his gaze to mine, searching my face for answers.

  Lucas glanced around and caught my triumphant smile. He spoke briefly to Ben before he turned and headed straight towards me.

  “Excuse me,” I murmured softly to Nick, breaking free of his grasp and I went to meet Lucas. It was clear from the expression on his face that he was none-too-pleased with me.

  Without preamble, Lucas caught my arm and walked me to the side of the marquee, finding a quiet spot away from everyone. “What just happened?” he demanded quietly. There was anger in his voice and I couldn't understand why.

  “Nothing.”

  Lucas frowned, his eyes flashing angrily. “I know you did something, Charlotte. I can see it in your eyes.” He caught my face between the palms of his hands. “Tell me the truth, please.”

  “Alright,” I agreed, my temper over Alison's audacity swamping me abruptly. “I saw Alison parading around you like a Playboy bunny, all boobs, and big smiles and I got Mom to help me out. She tripped the waiter.”

  Lucas looked utterly dumbfounded for a second and his eyes searched mine until he was satisfied I was telling the truth. “Your Mom?” he repeated blankly.

  I nodded, knowing my green eyes flashed with temper. I saw Ben striding towards us with Katie in his arms and he and Lucas conversed for a minute, too rapidly for me to understand what they were saying.

  Ben looked at me and surprised me by smiling tenderly. “It seems you continue to surprise us with your abilities, Charlotte.”

  “I'm sorry – Alison Whitehead just made me so mad!” As quickly as it had blown up, my temper diffused and my shoulders sagged a little at the thought of annoying Lucas.

  Ben raised a questioning eyebrow and glanced at Lucas, who shrugged. “Jealousy issue.”

  My temper rose again, annoyed by Lucas's casual reaction. “I had a right to be jealous; she was all over you like a rash!”

  Ben managed to keep his smile minimal, although his eyes twinkled with amusement. “I will admit she was making her intentions crystal clear.” His expression became serious when he looked down to me again. “I can understand why you were angry, but Charlotte – what you can do… it's something we need to keep very quiet. It wouldn't do for our guests, particularly our very good friends from Egypt and New York to understand the true nature of your abilities.”

  With a frown, I glanced from Ben to Lucas, not understanding why it was such a big deal. I'd opened my mouth to ask when Lucas and Ben simultaneously arched their necks and sniffed the air. Lucas had displayed the same reaction when he discovered my scent at the river.

  Confusion and a chill of fear trickled down my spine when I realized it wasn't only them. To my right I saw three of Nick's pack doing exactly the same thing and on the left I saw William, his movements mirroring theirs. I had no idea what it meant, but it certainly couldn't be anything good.

  Chapter 33: Danger

  The events of the next few minutes made my head spin as I struggled to understand what was happening. Lucas took Katie from Ben's arms and captured my arm in a firm grip, striding towards where the three members of Nick's pack were standing, transfixed as they honed in on whatever they could smell.

  “Rafe, find Nick—”

  “I'm already here.” Nick appeared by my side and there was an edgy note in his voice. “Did you catch that scent?”

  Lucas nodded and his expression was hard. “I'm asking you to do me a huge favor.” He passed little Katie to Nick and pushed me towards him as well, speaking quickly. “Take Charlotte and Katie. Get them both out into the woods, as far as possible from here. I know you will keep them safe while we sort this out.”

  To give Nick his due, he didn't even argue with Lucas, instead nodding solemnly. “You can handle things here?”

  “How many do you think?” Lucas demanded.

  Nick took a second to think. “Not certain. Maybe ten, perhaps more.”

  I'd heard about all I wanted and edged back towards Lucas. Around us the wedding celebration continued, nobody had noticed anything unusual beside the vampires and shape shifters. A chilling dread crept over my skin, what did they sense that I couldn't? Why was Lucas determined to make me leave? I didn't want to be apart from him and I said so.

  “I don't have time to argue this out with you, my love.” He pushed me towards Nick again, who caught me around my waist in a firm grip and led me towards the opening of the marquee despite my anxious protests.

  We had nearly reached the marquee entrance when a number of people stepped in from outside and Nick stopped abruptly, pulling me tighter against him and adjusting his grip on Katie. He took a step backwards and I stumbled with him.

  These newcomers weren't people I recognized as being amongst the wedding guests and there was something distinctly ominous about them. Four men stopped in a menacing row in front of Nick and I, while another half dozen men dressed in dark suits passed us and strode swiftly into the marquee. They stationed themselves along the edges of the huge tent, silently watching the crowds of revelers who were dancing and talking and completely unaware of what was happening at the entrance.

  Two more men stepped into the marquee and I recognized one of them with a sense of doom. It was the wedding planner from this morning. With a sinking heart, I remembered I hadn't mentioned him to Lucas and knew with sudden clarity that I should have done so. Even more frightening, I stared at his eyes and realized they glittered with flecks of gold and he was most certainly a vampire. I'd been fooled by him carrying around those bags of ice, convinced he was human and I was mistaken.

  He pointed to me and spoke to the man standing next to him. “That's the girl.”

  Two men stepped forward and seized me, shoving Nick out of the way. He stumbled, but managed to stay upright and keep Katie from being hurt. When they dragged me towards their group, I tripped over the train of my dress and by the time I had righted myself, I found myself standing opposite Lucas, Ben and Nick and some of his group. They were rapidly joined by Ripley, William, Marianne, and Rowena who stood in a semi-circle, facing our position.

  The tall man stopped in front of me, his gaze hard and menacing. His black hair was slicked back and there was heavy stubble on his chin. His eyes were pitch black, his thin features sallow in the candlelight. “We won't harm you, but you are coming with us.”

  “No!” Lucas roared and the man turned to glare at him insolently.

  “Keep your mouth shut, vampire, or my men will shut it for you. We don't want any trouble. We'll just take the girl and leave.”

  Ripley glanced at the crowd of partying guests, who so far, seemed unaware of the drama that was taking place just a few feet away from them. His forehead was creased with worry and I knew they would all be concerned for the safety of everyone in the marquee. “May we take this outside?” he suggested to the tall man.

  “As you wish, but we are taking the girl. My men will remain in here and if you attempt to stop us, I'll order them to attack.” He nodded his head towards the entrance and I was dragged painfully by the two goons unt
il we reached the grass outside.

  Lucas regained some of his composure and spoke first. “Why do you want her?”

  “None of your fucking business, vampire,” the leader snarled. “Suffice to say, we want something she's got.”

  “She just a human. What possible use could she be to you?” Lucas questioned. He said it with deep contempt in his voice and if I hadn't been so frightened, I would have been hurt. What Lucas and Ben had been telling me only minutes ago filtered through my terror. Was it my psychic ability they were after? Did they somehow know about the voices in my head? What possible use could I be to them?

  I stared at the wedding planner, Gerard DuBonet. Or at least, the vampire who'd pretended to be a wedding planner. It seemed he'd been here this morning to investigate me and I wondered if he somehow knew about my ability. After what I'd seen and heard in the past few months, it wouldn't be a surprise if he did.

  “What we want is our business. We will take our leave now, with the girl.”

  “Wait!” Lucas shouted.

  The black-haired man turned and stared at Lucas, his expression scathing.

  “She is my… mate,” Lucas said quietly. His eyes never left mine and anguish clearly burned in his.

  This meant something to the man, because he hesitated for a moment, and then studied me with a suggestive leer. “I don't believe you, vampire. But if what you say is true, it should be easy to prove.”

  The group around Lucas grew steadily larger, joined by Acenith, the rest of Nick's pack and the vampires from Egypt and New York. Every one of them looked lethal, despite keeping their emotions tightly in check with the throng of humans behind them.

  The tall man approached me, his black eyes sparkling with amusement. He dropped to his knee beside me and plunged a hand underneath my dress. I struggled against my captors and squeezed my eyes shut in horror as I felt him groping at the thong.

  He pushed a finger roughly past the fine material and shoved it inside of me and I couldn't stop the sharp cry that left my lips. Tears squeezed past my closed eyelids as I suffered the indignity and humiliation of what he was doing. I opened my eyes when he withdrew his hand and stood up, running his finger crudely beneath his nose. “She's not your mate. She's a virgin,” he announced bluntly.

  Ben and William gripped Lucas, stopping him from rushing my captors. The look in his eyes was terrifying; he was beyond anything but white-hot rage. “You bastard,” Lucas growled, his teeth clenched in fury. “I'll kill you for this!”

  The man leered at me suggestively, his eyes tracing a path across my breasts. “Such a pretty little thing. For bringing you to my master, I sincerely hope he may reward me with the job of deflowering you,” he stated quietly against my ear.

  My arms were pinned fast, but my feet were free, thankfully. With all my strength, I kicked him in the groin with my plastered foot.

  He yowled in agony, doubling over and nearly dropping to his knees. Staggering a little, I was dismayed when pain spread through my foot. He regained control after a minute and straightened up, although I was pleased to see he couldn't straighten completely. The look he gave me was filled with fury. “She's got spirit, this little bitch. I'll have to break her of that.”

  He hit me. It was an openhanded slap, but enough to have me seeing stars. I tasted blood on my lip and fretted about bleeding around the vampires. The man leaned towards me and whispered against my ear, making me cringe in disgust. “I will have my men kill every single person here, if you don't come with me peacefully. And I will take great pleasure in personally killing the one who tries to protect you. Your choice.”

  I thought of the innocent people enjoying the wedding, unaware of the drama unfolding just outside, then I looked at the faces of the people I loved. Lastly, I met Lucas's eyes and for a second or two we stared at one another, the agony mutual. Lucas's eyes were lethal, still being held back by Ben and William, his face was contorted with fury.

  I turned to Ripley, wondering if he could access my thoughts, if he could hear me when there was so much tension and noise surrounding us. I had only one message I could give him, the only thing I could think of which might help. “Gerard DuBonet, Gerard DuBonet, Gerard DuBonet.” His face remained impassive, his expression giving no indication of whether he was aware of what I was trying to tell him – and his gaze remained on the leader of this group.

  I stared up at my captor, wanting him to see every ounce of hatred I felt reflected in my eyes. “Alright, I'll come with you. But you have to give me your word that nobody here will be hurt.”

  “I give you my word.”

  I didn't know if I could believe him, but I had run out of choices. The only way I could help my friends and keep this from becoming a massacre was to leave with them and pray I could be rescued later. I nodded my agreement.

  He nodded curtly at the men holding me and they hauled me away from the marquee. The last thing I saw as I turned back was Lucas staring after me – rage, frustration, and desolation clearly visible in his blue eyes.

  About the Author

  Wife and mother to four demanding young adults, D.S. Williams started writing at the age of five, when life was simpler and her stories really didn't need to make sense. When you're five, 'happily ever after' always ends the story and how you got there? Well, that didn't matter so much.

  An extreme introvert, D.S. Williams has created her own worlds to exist in, found friends among her characters and traveled the Earth from the safety of her laptop keyboard.

  D.S. Williams enjoys writing (obviously), reading (voraciously) and making lists (obsessively). She's enjoyed a lifelong addiction to foods starting with 'ch' - cheesecake, chocolate and chips - and when it comes to books, she loves a multitude of genres and authors.

  She shares her life with her beloved husband of twenty nine years, the Gang of Four and the current furry residents, Tuppence the Groodle and Angus the Bull Mastiff.

  Dear reader,

  We hope you enjoyed reading Knowledge Revealed. If you have a moment, please leave us a review - even if it's a short one. We want to hear from you.

  The story continues in Knowledge Quickening.

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  Best regards,

  D.S. Williams and the Creativia Team

  Also by D.S. Williams

  Knowledge Quickening (The Nememiah Chronicles Book 2)

  Knowledge Hurts (The Nememiah Chronicles Book 3)

  The Knowledge of Love (The Nememiah Chronicles Book 4)

  Protective Hearts