by Dawn Gray
`“Hello, Michael.” Justin said, lowly.
“Justin?” He whispered, as the shock slowly disappeared and he smiled. “It’s been a long time.”
“Yes, it has.” Justin replied. I felt the oddness between the two of them, and I walked over to Justin and took his hand. He looked down at me and sighed. I could see all the different things that he was feeling when I looked into his eyes. I knew he wanted to say something, as he squeezed my hand, but he just held it and looked back at Michael. “Sage asked me to come and see you. She has been very persistent about it. I decided that she was right and I had to grow up and get over my avoidance.”
“It has been two hundred years, Justin.” Michael said and smiled. “I’m just glad you came.”
“I hear that you’re having a problem.” Justin said softly. “Do you know who it is?”
“No, my contacts haven’t figured out exactly who it is, but they have told me that whoever it is wants to destroy everyone tied to me. When they told me this, my thoughts were only of you three. Ashley is here with me. I knew where Cristian was and that Sage was with her cousin, but I didn’t know where you were.”
“I’ve been close by for almost two years.” Justin sighed. He looked down at me, quickly, and then leaned down close to my ear. “Are you all right?”
“I’m just tired.” I smiled and looked at the two of them. “If you both promise to behave, I’ll go to bed.”
“We’ll be fine.” Michael whispered. He kissed me on the forehead and stepped back. I looked at Justin and smiled.
Come see me later.” I whispered to him. He nodded and watched me walk away. I smiled at the fact that the two of them were talking, and, as I made my way upstairs, I wondered about the people threatening them and exactly who they were.
I’m sure I fell asleep as soon as I hit the bed, but it wasn’t an easy sleep. The voices whispered to me, telling me things, most of it seemed like one giant jumble of words, but there was one word that seemed to stick out at me.
Prophecy.
* * * * *
Michael looked at Justin and sat down in the chair, he gestured to the chair across from him and Justin sat down. The two of them looked at each other, then, finally, Justin broke the silence.
“Why did you leave?” He asked. Michael shook his head. “Charles nearly died when he found you were missing.”
“I did it for you.”
“For me? What did I do to deserve such loyalty?” Justin questioned.
“I knew that something happened during the transformation. After what happened with Jescinda, I decided to leave rather than bring out that rage again. It was best that way.” Michael sighed.
“You never confronted me.” Justin told him. “If you had just come to me, Michael, none of this would have happened.”
“What happened to Cristian?”
“He left to find you.”
“Why?”
“He saw the change in me too. Even though I tried to stop it, it didn’t work. Even Charles couldn’t help me.” Justin sighed, “After his death, it got worse. I couldn’t help but kill, and I was so angry that I couldn’t control it, that Cristian ended up seeing it when I killed. I was connected to him. He was closer to my location or I’m sure you would have seen it too.”
“It must be why Cristian thinks you’re so dangerous.”
“I don’t think he is; I know he is.” Cristian interrupted. Justin and Michael stood up and looked at Cristian, who walked into the room. He looked at the two brothers and crossed his arms. “And if you were smart, Michael, you’d put an end to whatever relationship there is between Justin and your daughter.”
“I’m getting sick of your interference in my life, Cristian!” Justin snarled. Cristian walked in and stood only about a foot away from Justin. “You need to start thinking about yourself and leave Sage and I alone.”
“He’s dangerous, Michael, and Sage is just someone he’s using.” Cristian insisted.
“You don’t know how I feel about her, Cristian!” Justin said getting angry. “I won’t hurt her, she’s in no danger.”
“Stop it, both of you!” Michael said and stepped between them, pushing them away from each other. “How long has this been going on, Justin, between you and Sage?”
“Since January.” Justin replied. He looked at Cristian. “And, he’s done everything in his power to try and keep us apart.”
“You’ve never hurt her?” Michael asked. Justin looked at Cristian, then at Michael, and walked over to the window. He stood looking out at the yard. “Justin?”
“You see, he must have harmed her.” Cristian said sternly. “Or he would have answered you.”
“Justin?” Michael asked looking from Cristian to him. “Answer the question.”
“There was only one time that I hurt her.” Justin said softly. Michael face was blank as Justin turned and looked at him sternly. His face had drained of color, and Justin looked quickly at Cristian then back at him. “I hurt her by thinking that I could live without her.”
“That’s it?” Michael asked, breathing in deeply. Justin nodded and looked away. The color slowly returned to Michael’s face and he sighed. “You haven’t harmed her any other way?”
“I told her I wouldn’t. I made a promise to her not too, but I did, not physically, but for nine months I tried to deny the feelings in my veins that raced through me when she touched me.” Justin sighed. He looked at Cristian. “For your sake, brother, I tried my hardest not to let the love that I felt for her show. I denied her that closeness because it was easier for her to deal with you and her friends if you thought we were apart.”
“I was trying to protect her.” Cristian argued. “I was doing my best to keep her safe.”
“Enough!” Michael yelled. The two of them looked at him quickly. Michael sighed and shook his head. “What’s done is done.”
“Michael, you’re not going to let this continue, are you?” Cristian asked. Justin looked at his blood brother in disbelief.
“He hasn’t harmed her, Cristian, and she’s told me, herself, how she feels about him.” Michael replied. Michael looked at Justin and crossed his arms. “I will allow this to continue.” He replied. Justin smiled, slightly, and looked at Cristian in triumph. “On one condition,” Justin looked at him quickly. Michael looked at him seriously and sighed. “There is to be no blood exchange, ever.”
“I wouldn’t do that, Michael.” Justin said softly. He looked at Cristian, who shook his head. “Despite what some people think, I’m not that much of a monster.”
Michael looked at Justin, as he smiled to himself, while he turned his head away from the other two. He saw that the years must not have been good to Justin, but if it were true, what Sage had told him about the darkness fading, then it was because of some special magic between them.
Michael watched Justin, who stood, smiling, as he looked out the window. He stepped up behind Justin and put a hand on his shoulder. Justin jumped at his touch.
“Go upstairs, to the left. Her room is the second door on the right.” Michael whispered. Justin turned and looked at him, then, slowly, left the room. Cristian looked at Michael and shook his head. Michael put a hand up. “Before you say anything, hear me out.”
“Michael, this is insane.” Cristian snapped. “You know Justin.”
“She’s right though.” Michael replied.
“About what?”
“The darkness,” Michael turned and looked at Cristian. “They need each other, Cris, and no matter how much you or I disagree with them being together, there’s something that ties them to one another. Something more powerful than you or I or a span of two hundred years, and we’re not going to stop them, no matter how hard we try.”
Chapter 9
His eyes were bright red and he was coming closer to me. I could almost feel the hatred and anger that flared off him.
"Death." He said sternly, although, his mouth never moved. "Death is upon you, child, and nothing you or
your three men do can stop it."
I watched him, as he seemed to walk around me. I stood motionless in one spot, unable to move any of my limbs. He laughed as I struggled then stopped in front of me once again.
"A child of magic and three vampires. I would have never thought of that combination." He smiled and touched my cheek. "You look like you want to say something."
"Who are you?" I whispered. He smiled and tipped my chin up with his fingers, to look into my eyes. "What do you want from me?"
"Why, my dear child, I want nothing more than to show you what you're up against." I looked at those red lips and caught just a glimpse of his sharp teeth. "To show you what your end will come in the form of."
"But, what are you?" I questioned, again. He stepped back and I felt the motion return to my feet and I physically turned with him as he walked around the empty room again. "Who are you to me?"
"I would be nothing to you, but, somewhat of a brother to your three friends. You see, their sire was also mine." He smiled. I looked at his long black hair, which fell in waves over his shoulders. He was dressed in black; which is what I would expect him to be dressed in, but, he almost looked good in it. He watched me look him over, his bright silver eyes looking straight at my face and he stopped. "How old are you, child?"
"Does it matter?" I asked him. He crossed his arms and laughed. "If you're so sure you're going to destroy me, does it matter if I live to see my next birthday?"
"You're very confident for a mortal." He smiled.
"It might be my down fall."
"Does anything scare you, child?"
"Nothing rational scares me." I smiled at him. "Of course, my life has been anything but." I stepped closer to him. "Who are you?"
"Why?"
"So, when I have to explain this dream to my friends, I know who I'm talking about." I smiled back. He looked at me, oddly, then turned and walked into the darkness.
I slowly brought myself to consciousness and opened my eyes. It took me a few moments to focus on the black shape that stood next to the window, in my room, but once I did, it made me smile to realize who it was.
"Hey." I called out to him.
Justin turned, smiled as he looked at me, then walked over and sat on the bed. "Hey, yourself." He replied and touched my cheek. "Did you sleep well?"
"I had a very odd dream." I replied then sat up and pushed my hair back from my face. I looked up at him as he stared me down and I saw an emotion there that hadn't really shown itself before. I had seen it briefly, when he let his guard down, over the last nine months, but now, at this moment, it was the only emotion on his face. "What is it, Justin?"
"You're very beautiful." He whispered.
"Okay." I said, taken back a bit I leaned forward and stared him in the eyes. "Thank you, but," he looked at me oddly, "just what have you done with my Justin?" He laughed and then looked at me, took my hand and played with my fingers. "So, what made you change your mind?"
"What do you mean?" He questioned, looking into my eyes. I smiled.
"What made you come here?" I asked again.
"You." He replied. His smile faded and I watched his eyes turn light brown. "I realized something tonight, after you left." He touched my cheek and gave me a weak smile. "I realized that I couldn't live without you, that the darkness came back to me, the dark urges, the bloodlust, when I wasn't near you. You were the light in my heart, the reason the darkness was fading, and I thought of all this and came to only one conclusion."
"And, what was that?" I asked and laughed. "That I must be insane for waiting for you?"
"No." He said seriously. "That I love you." This made me stop; I stopped smiling, stopped moving, I almost stopped breathing, but struggled to keep that going. He stroked my skin and leaned down to me, placing his forehead against mine. "I love you more than anything in the last two hundred years. How could I deny something that strong or try to deny it." He smiled at this and closed his eyes. "I'm very sorry."
"You don't need to be, Justin." I smiled and put my hand on the back of his neck. "You've been in my life for the last nine months, loving me, being there for me, even if you couldn't give into it."
"The other night, we parted on a bad note." He whispered as his lips came closer to mine. "It wasn't a one night thing, Sage, it's a forever thing."
He suddenly kissed me, hard and passionately, on the lips. Fire raced through my body and I pulled him closer to me. Justin sat back and breathed in deeply.
"Maybe it wouldn't be such a good idea to do this in your father's house." He said softly. I smiled at him and kissed him quickly. "Then again, there's this problem with kissing you. I'm not sure how much longer I could resist you before I have to go with it."
"You're a strange man." I smiled at him. I watched him back away, then, as he stood at the end of the bed, looking at me, he smiled. "Don't disappear from this place completely."
"I'm not going anywhere, Sage." He replied and walked over to the door. I watched him turn, look at me quickly, and then he left the room. I smiled to myself as I lay on the bed.
My eyes drifted closed, but didn't want to completely shut. They seemed to open moments afterward. I knew I wasn't going to get any more sleep.
"Awe; that was awful sweet." An unfamiliar voice whispered. I sat up, looked into a darkened corner and watched a figure walked out. I pulled the covers up to me and watched him.
"Who are you and what are you doing in my room?" I asked this man quickly.
"My name is David Tarrot, and this use to be my room." He smiled. I could see his vampire teeth as he moved slowly over to me. "So, this would mean that anything in this room would be mine."
He held me paralyzed on the bed and he sat next to me. He reached out and grabbed the back of my head, his hands tangling in my hair, and he brought me to him. I began to tremble as I realized what he intended to do.
"Don't be frightened, Sage." He said softly, as he looked over my face. He touched the tip of his nose to mine and then touched my lips softly with his. "That is what he called you, isn't it?" He asked against my lips. I couldn't move to reply, feeling oddly aroused by the way he was talking, and his lips being so close to mine. "This won't hurt much."
He moved from my mouth down to my neck and I felt his teeth brush my skin. I closed my eyes, knowing that I couldn't do anything about it. He pushed his teeth to my skin, almost puncturing it, but then he stopped. I opened my eyes quickly, as I heard him inhale deeply through his nose, as if he were taking in my scent. His teeth left my skin, and he backed away to look into my eyes.
He looked over my face, moving from my eyes to my lips and back, and then he released me, stood up and left the room in a hurry. I shook my head, not quite sure of what had made him stop, but at the same time not caring. I lay down on the bed, curled up in a ball and closed my eyes, as I hid under the covers. I didn't sleep, after that. I knew, no matter what I tried, that I wouldn't.
* * * * *
He watched her walk through the east garden. The sun was up, the sky was blue, free of any clouds, and as he looked at her, he couldn't help but wonder about her. Something last night had stopped him in his tracks, keeping him from feeding on her, but, even though Michael had explained to him, after the fact, that she was part of him, there was still something else there that seemed to have stopped him.
He stood at the window in the dining room. It was a full twelve foot by five-foot window, and he stood in the middle of it, looking out at her. She glanced up suddenly, as she turned and looked right into his eyes, her blue ones staring him down. David shook inside, as their eyes connected, and then he turned and walked away.
David stopped at the doorway of the sitting room, and looked at Julian, who was sitting on the couch, and a young man with black hair, who was standing by the window with his hands in his pockets.
"I don't know how to make them see that I've changed." The man at the window sighed.
"It shouldn't matter to you what they feel, Justin, only what
she feels." Julian replied as he sat with his eyes closed. "Besides, what do they know anyhow? You've been apart for two centuries, people change."
"That doesn't seem to matter to Cristian." Justin sighed. Julian shook his head, opened his eyes and looked at Justin.
"Cristian has his own opinions, nothing, no matter what you do or say, is going to change it, Justin." He stood up and stretched then he turned and looked at David. He lowered his arms and smiled. "David." Justin turned and looked at the new arrival. "When did you get home?"
"Last night." David said softly and looked at Justin, realizing that he was the one in Sage's room last night. "I seemed to have arrived to a full house."
"Yes, you have, haven't you?" Julian smiled and looked at Justin. "David, this is Justin Tudorian, one of Michael's blood brothers. Justin, this is David Tarrot, our missing resident." Justin nodded a hello and David replied with the same, the Julian shook his head. "What brought you home?"
"We can talk about that later, if you'd like to continue your discussion." David replied. Justin shook his head.
"It's quite all right." Justin spoke up. "I've got someone to check on, excuse me."
David watched as Justin left the room then he walked over and sat near Julian, who had sat back down.
"So?" Julian asked. David shook his head.
"It was a dream, I guess." David sighed.
"A dream brought you home?"
"It was about Victor." He answered. Julian sat back. "It gave me this awful feeling that he wasn't dead, that, somehow, he was coming back."
"Ashley killed him, David; I don't believe he's coming back." Julian assured him. David shook his head. "Is there something else?"
"That girl." He said softly.
"Sage?" Julian asked. David nodded. "What about her?"
"She was in my dreams." David said softly and looked down at his feet. "I came home to get away from the image of her in my mind, only to find her in my bed last night."
"You were in her room?"
"Only because I thought that it was unoccupied, and then, once I found out there was someone there, all I did was sit and watch her." David said and stood up. He shook his head and clenched his fists, and then he turned and looked at Julian, from where he now stood by the windows. "I know that Michael is her "father" and that she's emotionally involved with Justin, but who is she?"