Aris Rising: The Court of Vampires: AN INFINITY DIARIES NOVEL (24 page)

“It won’t happen again. We’re wiser. It’s a different time. No one can tear us apart. I’ll be here waiting for you to share whatever we have for as long as we can share it.”

“Please, Aris, at least allow Sebastian to see you, to speak with you.” Richard spoke out.

“Sebastian? Here? In Chicago?”

“Yes, he returned with me. He waits at the hotel for your answer.”

The room was silent except for the sound of distant thunder and rain beating down on the patio.

“Alright. I will see him.”

“Shall we go now? He waits impatiently to see his brother once again.”

“I will stay here with Sarah.” Gabriela rose from her seat to stand behind her roommate.

“I want to go along.” Sarah reached for his hand.

“No. You wait here. I may be there for many hours. You and Gabriela stay home. Have dinner. You must sleep. I will return at the end of the evening.”

“No matter what time it is?”

“No matter the time.” He kissed her gently. “Now rest.”

The two Immortal men left her apartment and she had never felt smaller or more insignificant in her human world than she did in that moment.

“I
still don’t get it Sarah. What’s Carlos doing going to London?”

“I told you, C, John Marshall is trying to set up a showing for him over there. He paints English history. John thinks the timing is great. The article just came out about him and there’s huge interest in his work right now. This could be an enormous break for him.” She ached to tell her best friend the truth about her secret life, but she knew she would never be able to do it. Colleen could never believe her.

“Yeah?” Colleen peeled back the white paper on her hot dog as the two women sat on a park bench, the shade of a huge green maple tree sheltering them from the sun. “So, why aren’t you going with him?”

Sarah asked herself that same question time and again. After his meeting with Sebastian, the decision was made. He must return. It seemed he was the only hope the Immortals had against an army; not one of them had his expertise in weaponry and hand-to-hand combat. The only way to kill a vampire was by a stake in the heart and the only way to extinguish them forever was with fire. A vampire war in the streets of London was unthinkable. It must
be waged in the wilds. The Immortals had never known war. They had no weapons, no training. Every day his kind sat underground in seclusion and did nothing was a day closer to destruction.

Sebastian brought news from their spies. Their self-proclaimed enemy outnumbered them. De Flores and Mariska had first tamed them with fear and were now training them for battle. It was only a matter of time before they arrived in London; only a matter of time before the human population knew of their existence. They must ready themselves and go to Spain. It was their only chance at keeping their lives as they were.

Aris promised her he would return after his meeting with Akira. He would have to go before the Council for a formal trial but Sebastian assured him, under the current circumstances, forgiveness was the only plausible verdict. So he readied himself to leave even as Sarah sat eating a quiet lunch in Lincoln Park.

“I’m sorry, C. I spaced out for a minute. He won’t be gone very long. This is just a preliminary meeting.”

“Oh, by the way, Bob is really excited about Carlos’ idea to bring art into the streets. He told Bob he wanted to give something back to the kids in the barrio. I don’t quite know what he means by that, but I think it’s great. These kids have no idea what it is to have someone who cares if they live or die. It can make all the difference in the world to them.”

“Yeah, I know. He told me he was going to talk to Bob.” Sarah didn’t tell Colleen the real reason the Immortal wanted to develop a mentoring system. It was Aris’ way of paying Carlos back for his great sacrifice, mentoring young men who had no one who cared. Just like Colleen, he wanted to pay it forward. The vampire’s innate goodness made up for any of the wicked things he had done when he was first changed. Love for him welled inside her. In her eyes he was more than a man, more than an Immortal. In that moment she recognized him for what he truly was, exactly what he had been
telling her all along. Her soul-mate.

She longed to explain herself to Colleen. To have her friend know what was really going on in her life, but she knew she would never, ever be able to. It was painful for her. It put a wall between them that Colleen didn’t even know existed.

“When he comes home, you two will have to come to dinner and we’ll figure out how to get the whole thing started.”

“Yeah, I’m sure he’ll want to start as soon as possible.” Sarah’s words, just like her life, had a double meaning.

#

“Are you busy? Is this a good time to talk?” Sarah’s heart beat faster when she heard Aris’ voice on the other end of the telephone.

“A perfect time. I just crawled into bed. How are you?”

“As well as can be expected being on the other side of the planet. And you, how is it with you?”

“It’s good. Gabriela is doing her best to make up for you being gone.” Sarah laughed. “She’s constantly trying to get me to go places and do things.”

“Keeping busy is very good and I will return in just a few days. Sarah, I have news; I was able to meet with Akira today.”

Completely alert, Sarah sat upright in her bed. “What happened?”

“It brought me great peace to find her forgiving. I was so concerned for Sebastian and what the consequences would be for him for allowing me to continue my existence after the Council had declared me doomed. But she was so kind. She says she feels no human emotion yet sometimes it appears she is more humane than most human beings I have encountered.”

“So,” impatience rang in her voice, “did she forgive both of you?”

“She appeared to be joyful to see me once again. She is grateful that Sebastian saved me and knowing I lived disembodied for
hundreds of years, she feels I have done penance. She knows the Catacombs is in need of me right now. She welcomed me and will stand for me at the trial.”

“There is to be a trial?” Her fear for him was clear in her tone of voice. “If there is a trial, can’t they choose to extinguish you?”

“Yes, however Akira believes the Council realizes the enormity of the uprising in Spain. She believes they will exonerate me and allow me to return in exchange for training and leading an army.”

“When will this trial take place?”

“Soon, but first I must return to the states to meet with John Marshal. Tomorrow I meet with the owner of the gallery here in London and we begin making plans for the art showing. I must coordinate the showing with the trial. Akira has given her permission for me to continue with my human life for the time being. So the art show is the next step. It will be the perfect reason for my absence from Chicago. I found a small flat today in London so I have a place to live above ground while I am here.”

“A flat? How long are you planning on being away?”

“As long as is necessary. After the showing, I will say I am staying to absorb more of the countryside and prepare for the next exhibit. It will give the Council time to reach their verdict and give me time to choose and train my commanders. Akira is calling as many Immortals to the Catacombs as the Keeper of Records can locate.”

“I’m frightened for you, for all of you.”

“Do not fear. We are superior in intellect and strength. Their numbers are greater than ours, but our strength is in our abilities and in our ties to one another. They have no such ties. They war among themselves and kill each other daily.”

“Yes and that’s what scares me. Murder means nothing to them. How will you teach your Immortals to kill when they are so against taking life?”

“Sarah, we are peaceful, but we are not cowards. This is a war of
defense. We will do all we need to do to protect our coven and our way of life. And to protect the humans that live on the earth above us.”

“They don’t even know you exist.”

“Yes, and we intend to keep it exactly like that. Now, sleep well.”

Whispering into the receiver, she spoke. “Aris, my life feels so empty without you.”

There was a moment of silence before he spoke. “Your words touch me deeply, Sarah.”

“I’ve begun to realize that until now, I have seen you as a combination of two beings, Carlos and Aris. It was painful to lose Carlos, and frightening to know you were now alive. I could not imagine being anything more than your friend. I thought the price was too high to pay for more, but being away from you and having time alone to think, I have come to a different conclusion.”

He waited in silence.

“You are Aris, an Immortal soul. And I love you.”

His voice was soft, warm, when he spoke. “I will hold you in my arms before the week is out.”

“Good night.” She hung up the telephone and for the first time in months, felt complete.

“S
o Gorgeous is setting the world on fire.” Maggie placed the steaming cup of morning coffee on Sarah’s desk then sat in the chair across from her.

“I don’t know if he’s doing that, but he’s had a wonderful reception in London.”

“He’d have a wonderful reception any place he goes as long as the women have eyes.”

“Maggie, give him a break. He’s more than a pretty face.” Sarah laughed as she tasted the coffee, stopped, and poured two more sugar packets into the cup.

“Yeah, I know, but it sure helps to break the ice. When is he coming home?”

“Tomorrow afternoon. He has a meeting with John Marshal on Friday and they’ll decide all the logistics. John has really taken a liking to him.”

“Yeah, well Carlos is a definite commodity for business, isn’t he? He’s talented, good looking, has a sordid past and has become incredibly articulate. What’s not to like? He’s changed so much since he started coming here,” Maggie shook her head as she spoke. “It’s hard to believe he’s the same guy.”

“A near-death experience would change anybody, don’t you think?” Sarah always became uneasy when anyone spoke of the changes in Aris. He managed to appear to evolve gradually for her friends, however, the difference in his personality, even his appearance, was noticeable. He looked older, wiser, more worldly.

“Yeah, I guess it would. I mean he always seemed to be a good guy. There’s just something so much more about him now.”

Sarah pulled a file from her drawer. Opening it she laid it on her desk, signifying the end of the conversation. “Well Maggie, there is so much more now.”

Maggie began to speak,then thought better of it as Sarah shuffled through the file, beginning to make notes for her next session.

#

Back in Chicago, Aris toyed with a curl in Sarah’s hair as he spoke. “There are Immortals arriving at the Catacombs daily. They come from all over the globe to stand for their brothers and sisters. We are a fearless breed, but I worry for them. They have never felt the stake or experienced premeditated killing. They are innocents.” The couple sat on her sofa, her head on his shoulder, the evening summer breeze blowing gently through the open sliding glass door.

“Can you teach them?” Her concern for him and his family was apparent in her tone.

“I can teach them the use of weapons and the strategies of war, but to teach a peaceful people to kill is something I have yet to do.”

She sat up, looking in his eyes. “But you’ve been a soldier, a warrior both as human and as Immortal. You’ve taught battle strategies before.”

“Yes, but only to humans. Humans are driven by fear. They can kill one another because of an innate foreboding of death. Our kind has no fear; we have always lived in peace and can never die if we abide by the law. They have no understanding of suspicion
and doubt. I despise that I must be the one to teach them such ugly concepts and yet I must. They must understand that they can be touched by the evil of the world.”

“The more facts I learn about the Immortals and knowing Richard and Gabriela, I am so drawn to enter the Catacombs and really understand your way of life.”

“No human may enter the Catacombs unless it is for the mating ritual. It has never been done in all of our history.”

“I understand, I just meant I wouldn’t be afraid. I want to know more about you, that’s all.”

“Just know I love you.” He kissed her gently drawing her head back onto his shoulder. He hadn’t mentioned her declaration of love since his return from London. She wondered if he ever would. “Now tell me, what has been happening with our human friends while I have been away.

She snuggled into his arms and began to share the day-to-day life of the long two weeks without him.

#

Richard had returned from London with Aris. He and Gabriela had gone away for the weekend while Aris was in Chicago and able to keep watch over Sarah. There had been no further visitation from the unknown intruder, but the Immortals were not ready to give up their vigilance in caring for their human friend. She was always within the sight or voice range of one of them, never without their protection.

She wondered if they left the city to feed. It was something they never discussed. Her relationship with the vampires felt so normal to her, she forgot they drank blood. She wondered where they found the animals that supplied their need then immediately put the thought from her mind. Knowing them, she was sure they took animals from the wild. Their gentle souls would never steal someone’s pet. How would Aris ever be able to teach these beings
to kill? Knowing he had been a great warrior in battle made her rest more easily, but she still worried about him and his Immortal family.