Stolen Secret

by Emily Kimelman Gilvey

  "How dare you return here." Emmanuel's voice boomed through the forest. Birds screeched—in fear or encouragement, I couldn’t tell.

  Seventh gurgled as Emmanuel compressed her throat. Mist rolled through the trees, cold and wet, thickening the air. The earth, trees, and mist vibrated with Emmanuel’s strength. My diamond of chi turned to liquid heat and panting need. I stepped forward, my booted foot meeting the stream. The water lapped at the leather.

  That flowery scent from the pink liquid Seventh offered earlier filled my senses once again. I had an urge to bend down and drink from the stream. "Emmanuel," I called his name. His gaze shifted to me—the warm brown and fantastical amethyst softening even as his mouth remained in a hard, angry line. He returned his gaze to Seventh dangling in his grip.

  His rage was alluring in its power.

  A sword appeared in Emmanuel’s free hand, and I sucked in a breath of surprise. The hilt shone half black and half white. The blade reflected the orange and yellow flames of the fire.

  Emmanuel dropped Seventh and stepped back into a fighting stance, bringing both hands to the hilt of the sword and raising it.

  Issa began to chant. I glanced back at him. He struggled off his knees, raising his voice as he slowly stood. Seventh bent into a crouch and hissed over her shoulder at him. Issa’s voice manifested into a physical form—a net of power—and drifted toward the Force.

  She blinked. Her pupils now ran from top to bottom, like a snake. The color transformed into an iridescent green, not so different from my own.

  Dimitri struggled to his feet, the mist around us seeming to slow him, but he pressed his influence against Issa's, lending him power. A bolt of light shot out of the new vampire and struck Seventh.

  It looked like lightning striking water, hitting one place and splintering throughout it. Her image rippled as the net Issa had formed dropped onto her.

  Emmanuel plunged his sword into the creature’s chest, spearing it to the ground. "You will never come back to my world," Emmanuel boomed. "I forbid you from returning to this dimension."

  Seventh writhed at the end of the sword, her legs scaling and body elongating into a tail. The mist thickened and the light of the sun turned it gold. We didn't have much time.

  Issa’s chant echoed through the forest as Emmanuel twisted the sword. A shock of light traveled down it, exploding into Seventh, bursting her into particles that looked like scales. They floated to the ground, light as ash. Still leaning on the sword, its tip now embedded in the earth, Emmanuel looked up at the vampires. "Go," he said, his voice hoarse but still commanding.

  The three vampires blurred away, the mist swirling in their wake. Emmanuel's eyes met mine, softening in that way they did whenever he looked at me. He loves me. My throat tightened with emotion.

  "Come to me," he commanded. I stepped into the liquid of the stream, the cold water soaking through my boots. Emmanuel straightened, keeping one hand on the sword.

  Water reached my calves, and I shivered. His sword grew roots and twined into the earth. The handle bloomed into a flower beneath his palm. Emmanuel released it and the plant swayed. The water reached my knees, and I glanced down. The universe reflected in the dark liquid. I looked up at the sky but could see only the mist. I looked down again. My legs disappeared into eternity.

  “Don’t stop,” Emmanuel warned.

  I took a step, the water rippled, and the universe shuddered. I felt my own power as a physical thing, as a living, growing entity. I am just a seed. I power the plant that will grow from me. A butterfly in its cocoon.

  I looked up at Emmanuel, and he held out his hand. His eyes glittered with hints of the same purple that swirled through the universe.

  My hunger drew me forward. I needed him. I emerged on the far side of the stream, the water dripping off me, the mist curling around me. "Emmanuel," I said, my voice breathy. He stepped toward me. We met as equals. But how could that be possible? He was a deity. I was a... I was me.

  Emmanuel’s fingers griped my jaw, his strength bruising and comforting. He’d never let me go.

  The anger swirling around Emmanuel wrapped me up. Passion the antidote to rage. His hand on my hip moved my body as if it was his own to cherish or punish.

  Pleasure radiated from his touch as his fingers trailed down my neck.

  Reverential touch.

  Heavenly honey scent.

  We pressed against each other, trying to melt our two forms into one.

  We’d hungered for eternity and would never have enough.

  Satiation did not seem possible, and yet already bliss bounded through me… just to be near him.

  The dreams that haunted me after Megan left—the reverential touch of a lover and the fear of an unknown foe—roared to life in my memory. I still couldn’t remember anything but the feelings… I pulled back from Emmanuel. His eyes opened and he met my gaze. “I think I dreamed of you,” I said.

  “And I of you.” He went to lean in for another kiss, but I backed out of his reach.

  “No, I mean, after Megan disappeared. I started having these dreams.” I chewed on my lip, trying to recall details but they remained elusive. “Was it you?” I cupped his cheek.

  His hands roamed up and down my back. “I’ve told you we were destined for each other.”

  “Ophelia said she was my destiny. My death.”

  His eyes heated with anger. “I shall destroy her. Do not worry.”

  “I don’t need you to fight my battles for me.” Since when?

  He sighed. “Let’s not fight.” He went for my lips again, but I put a hand against his chest, stopping him. He closed his eyes and bit his lip.

  “I just… I’m sorry.”

  His eyes opened. “Apology accepted. Now, can we…”

  Who am I to deny him?

  His power swirled around us, picking up fallen leaves and spinning them through the air. The sensation of the void crept over my skin. I opened my mouth to warn him, but we entered it, entered nothing and everything.

  Emmanuel guided my essence, and we emerged, still wrapped in each other’s arms. But instead of standing in an ancient forest, we stood in a large room, our feet on a stone floor. “What?” I gasped.

  “This is one of my palaces.” One? As in he owns multiple palaces?

  Emmanuel pulled me toward a bed covered in pale linen sheets and fur skins. “What world are we in?”

  “This is a dimension long devoid of zombies. It’s a wonderful place. You’ll like it. They call it Telescopo.”

  “Dimitri, Megan—” He cut me off with a kiss. My mind hazed as power poured into me.

  A whimper escaped, and Emmanuel chuckled against my lips. “I’ve missed that sound.”

  I opened my mouth to continue my protest—I didn’t have time for a vacation! But he ran a thumb over my parted lips, stopping me. “We will be back before nightfall. Darling, you need to feed.”

  He made a very valid point.

  Emmanuel nuzzled my neck, tenderly kissing my pulse point. Colors floated behind my closed eyes—blue, green, orange, silver—power drifting in all its ranges.

  “I need a shower,” I said. He laughed and bit my lip before stepping back and leading me to a door. Inside, a white enamel tub with clawed feet sat in a bay of stained glass windows. Very nice if you like that sort of thing. Which I did.

  He turned on the tap. Hot water steamed as it filled the deep tub. Emmanuel undressed me, his fingers straying over my body, finding every pain point and soothing it away.

  We got into the tub together and laughed as we washed each other clean. Then I nestled between his legs, my back against his chest, so strong and hard, yet supple.

  “You’re the only one I ever loved,” I said.

  He stilled, one hand on my waist, one twined with my fingers. Sunlight poured in through the stained glass windows, casting a kaleidoscope of colors across the water. Just like the power behind my eyes when we kissed.

  “I love you,” he said, brushin
g his lips against my ear.

  “Suki… Seventh Force….” I tilted my head to look back at him.

  “They are the same now.” Pain tightened the skin around his eyes.

  “She loved you.”

  “Yes. And it destroyed her.” Would his love destroy me? No. I wasn’t mortal. But what would I give up to have him always? “You’re afraid?” he asked.

  I nodded. He brought the hand at my waist up to brush a strand of hair away from my face. His body stretched the length of mine, his touch a comfort. Hold me always.

  “You are my equal,” he said. “My love will strengthen you, as yours strengthens me.”

  “Does it?”

  A smile lit his eyes. “Yes, Darling, of course.”

  “All I do is take from you, drive you crazy.” His eyes darkened. “And my sister wants to turn into me and apparently use you to destroy all of humanity.” Way to bury the lead, Darling.

  “What?” His voice was low and simmered with rage.

  “Yeah, apparently that’s why she wants to kill me. To get to you.”

  He sat up, the water splashing at the sides of the tub. He ran a wet hand through his hair, taming some of it. Why didn’t I bring all this up after getting laid. Dumbass.

  Emmanuel stared at the wall, his jaw clenched. Anger radiated from him, again. I shifted to face him and laid a hand on his shoulder. It felt good. Soft flesh over hard muscle. Delicious. I suppressed a moan.

  Leaning forward, I kissed his neck, breathing in the honey scent of him. He turned to me, capturing my mouth. He nipped at my lip hard enough to make me wince. But I liked it.

  I straddled him, held his jaw and kissed him.

  Emmanuel’s hands ran up and down my back, leaving trails of heat and pools of power. The energy followed the path of his touch along my spine, forming a circle.

  His mouth burned.

  My body arched, and I dropped my head back. Emmanuel worshiped my throat. I needed him.

  “I need you,” he spoke my thoughts aloud, his lips brushing my skin. “I need all of you.”

  “You have me,” I promised. Because it was true. No matter how far I traveled, no matter who else I fed from, Emmanuel owned my heart, my soul... I couldn’t deny it. Didn’t even want to anymore. All I wanted was to give to him. Give him everything I had.

  “I want you in the bed,” he said. I groaned my approval of the plan. He tipped forward, splashing water over the edge of the tub. Emmanuel gripped my thighs and stood. I gasped a laugh and locked my legs tightly around him.

  He stepped out of the tub. The water on our skin slipped between us as he carried me into the bedroom.

  The sheets stuck to my skin. Emmanuel rested his weight on me, and I wrapped myself around him, closing my eyes and breathing him in. “I love you,” I said, my lips sliding over his shoulder.

  He nipped my neck, sending bolts of electricity through me. My body arched into his, knowing what it needed, no longer interested in any thoughts my brain might want to share.

  He found me and paused. I didn’t squirm, didn’t try to hurry him, just met his gaze. The connection made my chest hurt. Loss and need and joy and power all pressed against me. How could I ever get enough of him?

  Emmanuel’s shoulders tensed as he moved into me, as if he held himself back. He dropped his head, looking down our joined bodies to watch the connection and groaned. The sound vibrated through me, and I shuddered in response. My eyes slipped closed, and I fell into pure sensation.

  Sparkles of color sizzled between us, my diamond center throbbing. Emmanuel’s hand fisted in my hair, and his mouth took mine, another connection point. I opened to him, let him in.

  I could refuse him nothing. He owned me now. I am mine. But I am his.

  An atom can be a particle and a wave, both at the same time.

  “I’ll never let you go,” he promised. I answered with my body, melting for him, giving him all of me.

  We fell together through space and time, became nothingness—and through that surrender, became everything to each other.

  Emmanuel lay on his back, a pillow under his head. The sheet pooled at his waist, his eyes were closed and fingers laced across his chest, face slack in sleep.

  I stood in the doorway of the bathroom for a moment just watching him, watching his chest rise and fall. He had lived so many lives. What had they been like? I padded barefoot on the stone floor toward the bed.

  Sunlight painted the floor in bright colors from the stained glass windows. I hopped from orange to blue, then into a triangle of green.

  Emmanuel cracked an eye open, looking at me and smiling. He lifted his arm, and I climbed onto the bed and cuddled into him. His hand landed on my hip.

  "What is it like?" I asked. "To live... and die?” He sighed heavily, my head rising and falling with his breath. I tilted my face so that I could see him. Emmanuel's gaze focused on the ceiling, and he didn't answer. I walked my fingers up his side, and his eyes flicked down to me. I gave him a shy smile.

  He blinked and sighed again. "It hurts," he answered, his voice tight. Emmanuel’s eyes returned to the ceiling, and he wet his lips. "Physical pain is one thing. Obviously, being bitten by a zombie hurts. You know from personal experience.” His fingers squeezed my hip.

  "Yes," I agreed, "it hurts."

  “The actual dying," Emmanuel continued, "is the least painful part. The releasing of this physical form doesn't hurt. The end is never painful.” He quieted for a moment before clearing his throat. “Then after my body is gone, that hurts a lot."

  "What comes after death?" I held my breath.

  He ran his hand along my hip, up to my waist and back down again. He swallowed. "It's different for me than anyone else. I die for the sins of all undead, Darling, for every person turned into a zombie or vampire. Every sin they ever committed, I must forgive with my death."

  "How do you do that?" I asked.

  Emmanuel sighed again, turning and kissing my forehead. "I don't really want to talk about it." Tension vibrated in his body as if just the memories caused physical pain.

  "Share just a little bit more with me?" I asked. “Please.”

  He turned fully onto his side, facing me, and ran his thumb along my cheekbone. Emmanuel’s eyes sparkled dark purple in the low light.

  He gave me a gentle kiss. Power tangled between our open mouths. I breathed him in. Emmanuel rested his forehead against mine. "I have forgiven horrible things. The worst humanity has to offer. I forgive." His eyes closed, and his breath fell gently on my face.

  "It hurts to forgive?” I asked.

  He shook his head. "The forgiveness doesn't hurt. Forgiving is difficult but not painful. But before I can forgive, I must bear witness." He took another deep breath. "The witnessing hurts."

  I closed my eyes. The witnessing hurts. Seeing the world where I spent my adolescence descend into madness, watching zombies rise and tear humanity apart, left a painful wound. "What happens to the people you forgive?” I asked. “I mean, why do they have to be forgiven?”

  His thumb made small circles just below my ear, and he didn't answer me.

  "When we make love, I hear a song,” I said. Emmanuel pulled back a little so he could look into my eyes. "A song that the whole universe sings—it's all the same. Every single thing is made of the same basic particles, just put together differently."

  Emmanuel nodded. "Yes, we manifest in different ways, but we are all the same."

  "So what would happen if their sins were not forgiven? Is a sin a thing?”

  "I don't know."

  "How can you not know? You never asked?"

  Emmanuel gave me a half smile. "Who would I ask?"

  "Your dad?” Is this not obvious?

  Emmanuel smiled fully. "You can't ask him questions."

  “I know I can't. But what about you? You're his son."

  “That's not how it works, Darling."

  “Not how it works? How does it work? Tell me how it fucking works." Anger tighte
ned my throat and sharpened my tongue.

  Emmanuel's smile waned. "I can't tell you how it works because I don't know. I don't think anybody knows." He looked down to my lips. Something crossed his features, a hint of sadness.

  "What?" I asked.

  He took a deep breath. "It's happening again.”

  "What is?"

  "Zombies will rise in a new world. I sense it approaching. I'll have to go there soon."

  "Where?"

  "I don't know what they call it. I won't know until I get there."

  "How do you get there?"

  “I am born there and live a lifetime in that world. I grow up to be a man. When I reach maturity, the zombies come and I die. I bear witness to the sins of that world's undead, and I forgive them." His voice stayed low. He had no power over his life.

  My heart sank, a heavy sadness bearing down on me. "How many times have you done that?" How many more times would he have to? Emmanuel was caught in an unbreakable cycle. Suki had said that zombism gave him a purpose, but to me it looked a lot like a prison.

  "Will you come with me?" he asked.

  "Come with you?"

  "Join me. Maybe if you come to a world where the zombies are rising, you can figure out what's causing it. Maybe it'll help you in your quest.” I wish people would stop calling it a quest.

  “Do you want to stop?” I asked.

  He shrugged. "It's all I know, Darling. I believe it is all there is for me, but I will still support you. We don’t have to believe the same things to love and help each other.”

  Tears pressed at my eyes, and I buried my head in his chest. A sob racked through me. What a beautiful love he offered me. What a wondrous gift. How could I repay him?

  Free him.

  Chapter Four

  Emmanuel and I returned to his world. He materialized us to the center of the village square. “How do you do that?” I asked. “Move us in the world? I can only go from one place to another in the same spot on the planet. I can’t get to a new location in a new world.”