by Ashley Nemer
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Alec watched as they drove off. How could he feel so much for her after such a short amount of time? They barely even spoke to one another. Maybe it was because she was in control of fire like him, and that was the rarest of gifts. Maybe it was the fact that she had his blood in her and he could feel her emotions. She was scared. Unsure of what was going to happen. If he could only tell her how brave she was and how wonderful she looked after taking the blood. He stopped and thought about that, his blood. He thought about what it would be like to have her long white fangs dig into his skin, penetrating the barrier and sucking on him. He could feel himself growing hard thinking about it. His body automatically reacted to the thought of her possessing him in the most carnal of ways. He had to see her again. He would find a way. Alec moved out of his living room and into his bedroom to clean up the items he’d used to help Nikole heal. Seeing his pillow with her form still indented on it, he lay in his bed and could smell her, her sweetness, her essence.
He closed his eyes and brought her image to his mind’s eye. He could feel her warmth in his bed and her whole body against him. Needing to feel this pleasure he started to dream of what it would be like to be with her. He was pretty sure the royal Princess would never go for someone like him, broken, hurt, and unstable. Alec opened his eyes and let out a sigh as he rolled over on his side and saw the picture on his night stand on the other side of the bed.
His wife, how could he even think of another woman when his had only been gone a few hundred years? He got out of bed and headed to the kitchen where he looked through the cabinets and pulled out a bottle of whiskey. Pouring himself three fingers worth into a glass, he went outside to sit on the porch. His hand was on the knob when he realized that he had lost his mind. Why would Nikole even want him? Shaking his head in disgust, he moved out to the bench swing in the yard to sit and look up at the stars.
Alec nursed his drink while watching the stars in the sky shine down on him. They looked so similar to that fatal night in 1777. The city’s fires had been uncontrollable. He remembered the sound of his family burning and being unable to reach them. His bent’s voice crying out for him was still vivid in his memory. Taking another drink, he thought about how everything had changed since he moved away from the homeland and set out on his own. Would they be proud of him? Would they think him a coward for running away and leaving their home in ashes?
What could he have done, really? Haydar and his generals destroyed everything. He’d had to escape. He finished the drink in one final gulp then threw the glass at the tree trunk. Breaking down in tears, he fell to his knees and started to pray to the Gods that no one believed in anymore. As if answering his prayers, Mother Nature let out a loud roar of thunder, shaking the trees causing leaves to fall to his side. He took that as a sign that he could seek redemption.
He rose from the kneeling pose and made his way back into his house and then into his room. He shed his clothes and headed straight for the bathroom. Running the hot water, he stepped in the shower and let the stream of water pound against his skin, washing away his cowardly filth. Maybe one day he could be loved by another. Maybe one day he would have earned his manhood back. Alec realized that the best way to feel useful and worthy was to help keep the Princess safe. Only way to do that was to catch whoever was causing all of the deaths the news was reporting on every night.
Finishing his shower he started to head toward the bed. He stopped and realized he was about to lie in Nikole’s spot. Walking around to the other side of the bed, he lowered himself and stared at her pillow. Holding it to him didn’t make him weak, did it? He took the pillow and cuddled it. He would find a way to stop anyone from hurting her. First thing in the morning he was going back to the compound to figure out who they were.
On the drive back home, she sat in the car and just stared at the back of Nasir’s head while they drove in silence. She didn’t know what was going on in her mind. She had her family back. That should be all that mattered, but something felt wrong, something felt off. She was unsure of what it was; surely it was because of everything she went through. No reason for it to be anything else. But there was this unknown feeling inside of her. Where could it be coming from?
“Zayn, can I borrow your phone please?” He looked back at her from the front seat and nodded, slipping his phone into her hands. She held the light weight cell for a moment trying to gather her thoughts. Dialing Adara, she waited for her to pick up.
“Hello, Zayn, oh Gods I need you so bad!”
Nikole paused a moment and looked at her akh then shook her head, focusing back on the phone. “No, Adara, it’s me. I wanted you to know I’m on my way home. Can you meet me at the house? I think I am going to need a little TLC and I could really use my best friend.”
Zayn listened to his okht speak. Oh gods, he didn’t tell her about Adara. Feeling his stomach start to knot, he heard her keep talking. “You’re at the house already? Um, okay. Well, what? You want to talk to Zayn? Yeah… here he is.” Annoyed with things, she handed her akh the phone and sat back in the seat. What the hell was going on? She was only gone a few days and now they were best friends, such bullshit.
“A dead body? What? Adara you cannot go back there! NO! We will be home in an hour. Do not leave. Just stay in my room till I get there. Things are going to be alright.”
“Zayn, it was so terrible, the body, the blood everywhere. I don’t know how they got into my home but they did. How can I ever go back there again? After seeing the Ghul like that, I don’t know that I can stomach it even for a moment or two.”
“Adara, calm down sweetheart, it’s okay… I will be home soon.” Nikole watched Zayn hang the phone up and slip it back into his pocket.
“Something you need to tell me?”
Nasir cleared his throat; he could feel the tension building between his two pseudo children. “Nikole, there is nothing you need to worry about. Everything is okay; Adara just had a problem at her home.”
Nikole couldn’t decide what was going on, but something was different. “Why did she want to talk to you? Since when did you and her become friends? And what dead body were you talking about?”
Zayn turned to look at his okht. “Nikole, a lot happened while you were gone; a lot of people have been killed. Someone killed a man in Adara’s home. Please don’t worry about it. We just need to get you taken care of first. She is going to be staying with us to ensure she is safe.”
Nikole looked out of her window and just stared. What was she supposed to do with this information? Her gut was telling her something else was going on, and her akh was keeping it from her. Why would he have Adara wait in his room? Why not her room or the living room? None of this made any sense to Nikole. The three of them traveled the rest of the way in silence, no one wanting to speak and the tension was building.