Quest for Immortality

by Celeste Raye

  They agreed at the restaurant to talk about going against the Steins, but Dahlia was still convinced that it was a horrible idea. She knew what they were up against, even if Justin did not. He was convinced that he could make a difference, but she was worried that something would happen to him if she couldn’t persuade him otherwise.

  Dahlia also had her own duties. She had to keep the bottle safe. Her mind was ever-present on that detail.

  When they got back to his house, she felt like something was different. Everything inside of her told her that something was wrong.

  She took Justin by the hand and stopped him. “I don't know if this is a good idea or not, Justin.”

  “Why not? What's the matter?”

  Dahlia didn't know how to answer that question. All she knew was she had a feeling that she couldn't shake.

  “I don't know what's going on, Justin, but we need to get out of here. Right now.”

  Dahlia knew that she wasn’t going to have time to go back into the house. She had left the potion inside, but someone was there, someone powerful, and she didn’t want to see who that someone was.

  As they backed out of the door, she heard a twig snap in the woods, and she looked behind them.

  “Damn it, Justin. Go! This is going to be bad.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Justin didn’t hear her for a moment, or rather, he wasn’t paying too much attention. All he heard was her say to go, and he moved forward.

  “They’re upstairs. We have to go out the side door and go somewhere. There are more coming through the woods.”

  He agreed with her plan, but Justin wished that he could feel what she felt. He didn’t have the instincts that she did, and though he never saw anyone, Justin trusted her to know what was going.

  “So, let’s get out of here.”

  “I need to get that bottle. I left it upstairs.”

  “We’re just going to have to come back for it later when it’s daylight. I take it that they won’t creep around in the daylight, right?”

  “Well, I mean, it’s not like they are vampires or something, but yes, they usually like to do their dirty deeds in the middle of the night. That, or they won’t leave anyone alive to say anything.”

  “Or they wipe your memory.”

  “That’s if you’re lucky.”

  He’d had that very thing happen to him countless times, and Justin certainly didn’t feel like he was lucky for it. If Dahlia was right though, he was far luckier than he imagined.

  He took her hand so that she wouldn’t be tempted to try to go up the stairs and get her bottle. He knew that she was attached to it and all, but that didn’t mean that Justin thought it was worth her life. Dahlia didn’t feel the same, and he had to hold her hand a little harder so that she wouldn’t pull away.

  “Come on, Dahlia. We will come back and get it. I promise.”

  “You don’t know how important this is to me, Justin.”

  “I may not, but I know that I don’t want anything to happen to you and I know that whatever is in that bottle, it isn’t worth your life.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  He pulled her close and kissed her for just a moment. “I know that I love you, and I won’t let anything happen to you. I am going to protect you and keep you safe. I don’t care who I have to go through to do it either.”

  Dahlia finally relented, and they made it back around to the car. Dahlia seemed to be very nervous, looking around, but he ignored it. He couldn’t let himself get spooked, even though he was pretty much already there.

  Justin started to breathe a little easier when he realized that they were driving away. He hadn’t seen the first witch, but he did as he turned the headlights on and pulled out.

  They were two witches that he recognized, and he hated that he was found so quickly. Something had told him that they would come for him, though. He just hadn't thought that it would be so soon.

  Now, after he had met a woman like Dahlia, all he wanted to do was keep her safe. He couldn't believe that witches were really after him. What he did know, though, was he was never going to let Dahlia get hurt because of his past. One way or another, he was going to have to figure out a way to keep her safe.

  “Those were the Stein witches, weren't they?”

  “It was a few of them yes. So, they're looking for you?”

  She seemed a little relieved, but he didn't feel the relief himself. “Yes, I guess they were here for me.”

  “As bad as that sounds, I'm kind of happy that they're here for you and not me. If they were here for me, then they would know what I have.”

  “Do you think that they want it?”

  “I guarantee that they do. They will do anything to get it. Trust me when I say this.”

  Justin asked again what it was, but she would not tell him. It was starting to drive him a little crazy because now they were both in danger. He could handle danger. But he couldn’t handle all of the secrets and wondering what was going on. She turned his insides into knots.

  “How do you think they found us?”

  “They might just have a spell on you, to keep up with you. Considering what they had you doing, it wouldn't be all that surprising.”

  “If they hate my kind so much, it doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Why would they go through all this trouble to get me back?”

  “It is probably because your memories are coming back. You must know something about them, that they don't want anybody else to know. Most likely, it’s about the kids.”

  When she asked him if he had had any more dreams, he didn't want to answer her. The problem was that every dream he had had was with her. He had seen his mother again once or twice, but it was dreaming about Dahlia, that kept him up at night. He had no idea what any of it meant.

  “I've had a few.”

  “Have you learned anything from them?”

  He got a little annoyed for a moment, and she asked him why.

  “All I dream about is you, Dahlia. What does that mean?”

  Dahlia got a little red-faced and told him that she wasn't quite sure. Nothing that was going on between them made any sense. She believed in fate, in magic, but this was more than she’d personally experienced in those departments.

  “I don't know what to think, Justin. All I know for certain, is we need to go back and get that potion.”

  Justin just shook his head in disbelief. It was like she was only focused on that, and he couldn't understand why. There had to be a reason, but Dahlia wasn't going to share it. Maybe she didn't trust him as much as he was trusting her. Maybe that was his first mistake.

  “Well, at least we should agree on the fact that we can't go back tonight.”

  “I agree. It'll probably be too much. Do you think they will sit there and wait for me?”

  “I do. The best thing we can do is rent a room for the night and then go back in the morning.”

  Dahlia suggested it, but Justin could she didn’t want to. If only he knew why it was so important, maybe he could decide, but all he could think about was keeping her safe. Unless she had a damn good reason…

  “Fine, we will go back in the morning. Let's get a room.”

  She smiled at his answer, and he was sure that it was not at all right, even though he wanted it to be. He worried that she had a different idea than that. As much as she had fought to keep that potion in her possession, she was letting go too quickly.

  Dahlia knew that he would not agree with going back immediately, so she was more than happy to deceive him. He did not need supersonic senses to know that.

  Dahlia was up to something and once they got a room for the night, he immediately started to act like he was tired. The truth was that he wanted to see what Dahlia was going to do. He was convinced that he knew, but he had to find out for himself.

  It didn't take long for Justin's theory to come to fruition. Before long, he felt movement next to him in the bed, and he could see Dahlia moving quietly in the darknes
s. While Justin wanted to be upset, he knew better. Just like he was drawn to protecting her for a reason he didn't quite understand, he imagined that Dahlia felt a similar draw to the potion. He just wished that she trusted him a little bit more. Then he could have helped her right off the bat, instead of having to wait around and wait for her to deceive him.

  Justin gave her a minute to get ahead of him before he got out of the bed and put some pants on.

  Justin was driven to keep Dahlia safe. No matter what. He had to protect her, even if she was running towards danger in the middle of the night. Danger that she had insisted they run from in the first place.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Dahlia didn't want to leave in the middle of the night, but she felt like she had to. There was a lot to be said about the plan that Justin had come up with. It made sense. She knew that the best thing that she could do was to go along with it. It would make her life easier.

  But at the same time, she could not let that potion get into the hands of one of her enemies. Her family had spent much of their life keeping it safe, and it seemed rather silly to let it go now, after being tortured for over a year over it. She had to do what her family had put in her power to do.

  Dahlia felt a little jumpy because of who she was going after. Even though she wasn't one hundred percent certain that the witches were there for Justin, she was hopeful that it was the case. Of all the covens that could get ahold of the potion, Dahlia could think of nobody worse than them.

  Then she thought about it in another way. If they had the potion, maybe they would not need to attack the children of the community anymore. Then again, Dahlia was sure that they would find another way to make the lives of humans and supernatural beings miserable. It was something that they were very good at.

  Dahlia thought about taking the car, but she was afraid that it might wake him up. Even though he didn't understand his powers yet, it didn’t mean that he couldn’t gain some senses that would make it difficult to contend with. The car wasn’t loud, but he would hear it start up. That meant that she was going to have to take the long trip on foot, in the dark.

  But she didn’t have a choice. If the Stein witches were, in fact, looking for him, the last thing that Dahlia wanted was for him to get caught because of her. Dahlia was convinced that all she had to do was quickly get it, and then everything would be fine. Then she would be able to focus on something else. Then maybe they could focus on what it was that they were doing. She just had to get the potion in her grasps, safe and sound.

  She didn’t get far before she got feeling that she wasn’t alone. At first, she thought it was the witches, but then she realized that it wasn’t a witch behind her. Her knee-jerk reaction was to be worried about it. She steadied herself for an attack, but then she heard her name and didn't know what to say.

  “What are you doing out here, Justin?”

  “I could ask you the same question. I thought we were going to go in the morning. That’s what we had agreed on.”

  “It was a good idea, but I think that we should get it done now.”

  “Why did you leave in the middle of the night like that?”

  “I didn't want you to get involved. If they are looking for you, I don't want them to find you because of me. I just thought it would be better if I went and took care of it while you slept. Then you won't have to worry about it, and I won't have to worry about you.”

  “Did you really think that I would let you go by yourself?”

  “I was hoping that you would actually. I know that what they did to you was horrible, and I don't want you to have to go back. I want you to be safe.”

  “I am the one that’s supposed to keep you safe, Dahlia.”

  She sighed out loud. “No, actually, you’re not. You don't owe me anything. We just met.”

  “You know that isn't true.”

  “I don't know, Justin, but I have to get that potion back. It might be hard for you to understand, but there are some things that are worth risking your life for.”

  “I totally agree, Dahlia. Although I don't think that it is a thing that is worth that, but there are people I would do anything for. Anything.”

  Dahlia tried not to blush at his words. It was obvious what he was talking about, and it made her feel good inside, but at the same time, it made everything a little bit more complicated.

  “Well, if we're going to go, then you need to learn to use your powers. I don't want to walk all the way there if I don't have to.”

  He looked confused, and Dahlia smacked him hard across the face.

  There was an instant anger that came to his eyes, and he quickly turned it off, but she told him not to.

  “The only way that this is going to work is if you get mad. At first, at least, until you learn how to control it. This is the best way to handle the situation. It will help you turn, and you can give me a ride. We will be there in a lot less time.”

  Before he could answer her one way or another, she slapped him across the face again, and he growled at her. It wasn't something that he could control, and it made her smile.

  “This is not going to work, Dahlia.”

  “I'll be the judge of that.”

  Before he could stop her, she had slapped him again, and this time he felt himself changing. It was quite painful, and he would have given anything to make it stop. Before long, he was fully shifted, and he didn't know how to feel about it.

  “I didn't believe you. I thought I would be able to control it.”

  She grinned at him and told him that it would be okay. When he was fully shifted, Justin realized that he couldn't speak. But that didn't seem to matter because he didn't have to. She could somehow hear the words that he was thinking, and he quickly realized that he was going to have to watch the thoughts brewing in his mind.

  “Are you ready for me to get on?”

  He agreed, not with words, but by bending down and letting her on.

  She slid her leg over him, straddling the back of the bear, and he groaned. She was hot, and now that he was in his true form, all of his abilities were coming in strong, taking his breath away. The need that he had for the woman was hard to fathom. They had a mission to attend to, but all Justin was thinking about was the hot need that was taking over.

  “Maybe I didn’t think this through, Justin. Maybe this isn’t such a good idea.”

  Justin didn’t listen to her. He couldn’t with the amount of desire that was running through his veins. His heart was beating so hard that he couldn’t hear anything over the pounding. She was warm everywhere that they touched, but for a moment, he was focused on the hottest spot on her. It was sort of hard to pull his mind from it, and he had to be urged to move forward.

  Justin set off, and each step made it harder for him to focus. He could feel the worry lifting off of him and soon, all he was thinking about was how badly he wanted to be alone with her again.

  Chapter Sixteen

  After she got over the initial shock of riding on Justin’s back and what that did to her body, Dahlia was able to catch her breath. She was worried about the potion. It was the only thing that her mother had asked her to do, and no matter what, Dahlia wasn’t going to be able to let her down.

  They got close to Justin’s house that was her old one. The feeling that they weren’t alone was gone. Justin stopped to let her off, and she was thankful for the break. He certainly had a way of affecting her, and her body was throbbing in all the wrong places. It wasn’t the time for that.

  “I think that I like it better when we are in a car.”

  Justin smiled and pulled her in for a kiss. “I think I am getting the hang of these senses, Dahlia, so I know that you’re lying. I would say that you liked riding me a whole lot.”

  Dahlia ignored his crude words. She wanted him right then and there, even knowing what they were up against, but there was work to be done.

  It was Justin that pulled her out of it and reminded her that they didn’t have time for such things,
no matter how much she wanted there to be.

  “We have to get your bottle of mystery juice, and then we have to get out of here.”

  “Where are we going to go?”

  Justin looked like he wasn’t sure and then, a thought hit him. “I can think of someone local that might be able to help.”

  “Who?”

  They were walking towards the quiet house, though some of the lights were still on and the front door was closed.

  “I don’t remember everything about him, but the police chief may be able to help us.”

  She looked at him like he had lost his mind. “You think that bringing in a cop, a human cop, is a good idea? Did you hit your head or something?”

  He smiled, and she tried to pull herself together. Dahlia wasn’t okay with his idea at all. He must not be thinking clearly.

  “Look, I know that most of my memories of Davey have been wiped, but he thinks there is something going on. He tried to get me to leave the witches many times, but I told him that everything was okay. He knew that it wasn’t okay and maybe I will be able to get some information on my family. I know what the witches told me, but something makes me think that they were leaving a bit of it out.”

  Dahlia was impressed and agreed because it sounded better than anything she could come up with at the time. Her attention was on the house, though. The front door wasn’t locked, and she just pushed it in. What if there were witches there, lying in wait, and they were just walking into a trap?

  What if they got ahold of the bottle?

  She was worried about everything at the moment. Walking into a police chief’s house and spilling her guts didn’t seem all that hard to fathom at this point.