Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology) (125 page)

“
By way of the river,” he
said finally.

“
Yes, but where are we?” I
questioned, remembering he had yanked me under the water. “How did
we get here exactly?” I repeated.

Vincent stood up quickly, almost
dumping me out of the hammock onto the wooden pier. “It doesn’t
really matter,” he muttered. “I wonder where they are.”

“
Who?” I
snapped. I felt abandoned at his hasty exit.
He should always be by my side.

“
Michel and the others. We
usually meet here.” His voice drifted off. He had changed into a
long-sleeve blue shirt, same as I had worn before, and a pair of
gray pants. For some reason, I wore a flowing mint green linen
dress that I assumed he had clothed me with. That realization made
my cheeks redden.

“
Vincent?” I added an
authoritative tone to my voice, letting the last syllable drop with
a hint of seriousness. “I wanted some answers.”

“
This…” he announced,
raising his arms to the sky, “is the Lunar world. But it doesn’t
matter, does it?” he growled. “You’ll be on your way home soon and
out of my father’s clutches. He won’t take you as well, but I’ll
lose you forever.” He pumped his fist into the palm of his other
hand.

When I realized Vincent was referring
to my relatives, a flood of wild grief ripped through me and I
gasped.

He whirled around. Oh god, Emily. I
didn’t want to tell you. I’m sorry!”

I covered my mouth in anguish
preventing myself from saying anything because I immediately
understood his meaning the same time he did. My eyes widened and a
large lump formed in my throat.

Our eyes locked. The passion in his
eyes died and they became flat, almost as unreadable as stone. He
shifted his gaze to the water beyond us, refusing to look at
me.

“
Who. Is. Your. Father?” I
uttered the words very slowly when I finally recovered my
voice.

“
I can explain.”

“
Who is your father?” I
screamed, brining my feet down hard on the wood as I attempted to
stand without any luck. The wood of the pier beneath me
cracked.

“
Let me
explain.”

“
Tell me,” I
growled.

“
Lord Alichino. The demon
that probably killed your relatives. He’s my father.”

“
No!” Not wanting to hear
Vincent confess to a death sentence by association, I covered my
ears and shook my head. “No, don’t say that.”

Smothering back a sob, I fell into the hammock, defeated.
Tears streamed down my face and I hid my face from Vincent who was
standing over me.
I’d lose him too. Death
would take the one chance I may have at love, real love and I’d be
powerless to stop it.

“
Please Emily. I can
explain.” Vincent knelt beside me in the hammock.

“
No, no. You don’t have to.
You’re not your father’s son. I can see that. You wouldn’t have
helped me otherwise.” I swallowed down the sobs threatening to
spill over into my voice. I rested my head on Vincent’s shoulder
for a long time, trying to regain my composure. My mind raced and I
struggled to keep control of the situation before the Wolf
intervened.

“
After you drank my blood,
I could hear some of your thoughts, especially if we were touching.
I heard you speak of avenging your relatives’ deaths. That came out
when we jumped into the river and I grabbed you. But it’s more than
that. I knew when I saw the new skulls on my father’s wall and he
told me he had kidnapped the Princess of the Golden Kingdom. I knew
he was likely hunting your family. I’m so sorry, Emily. Don’t you
see? Don’t you see now why we have to get you out of here? What if
you or your father is next?”

He wrapped his arms around my legs as
he knelt beside me. “I’ll keep you safe. I’ll die for you if it
means you can escape. I won’t let him have you, Emily.”

I stared
down at Vincent as he stroked the outer curve of my calf. A warm
golden glow of comfort flowed up from my soul and wrapped around my
heart. Already he had been by my side more times than I could
expect my father or mother to be. My family was gone with the death
of my brother and aunt. It was my reality and I knew it. I rubbed
my fingers through Vincent’s hair for a long time, watching the
sunrays catch the reflections in his onyx highlights. He sat curled
up at my feet, holding me close amid my knees and legs. He rested
his head in my lap as I casually played with his hair. The bluish
black lights glimmered and mesmerized me.
My heart will never mend if I have to leave this man. There
must be a way out of this ordeal.

Attempting to change the mood because
my legs were falling asleep, I whispered to Vincent. “I hate this
hammock. Can we find a better place to sit?”

He looked up at me. His mouth quirked
with humor. “The hammock is a bad sitting spot, isn’t it?” he
chuckled. “Let’s go to the beach and sit under the palm trees,
okay?”

I
returned a weak smile as I let him lead me off the pier. He took my
hand in his and I choked back another wave of grief as it hit me.
It was like every ounce of despair I had tried to hold back after
losing my aunt and brother in the recent months surfaced in that
one moment. Tears blinded my vision and I was thankful I had
Vincent there to help me find my way.
What
if you or your father is next?
The impact
of his words slammed into my heart. I could be next if this
Alichino demon, this father of Vincent’s found
me.

Chapter 5 – Vincent’s
Confession

This chapter is told from Vincent, the hero’s point of
view.

Once we made it to the shoreline, I
used my vampire speed and strength to create a place for Emily that
would be more comfortable than the hammock she had been scrunched
in. My large height of 6’2” and weight of a muscular 220 lbs didn’t
leave much room for her to be in the hammock with me. I did my best
to bury my thoughts of wanting her to sit in my lap or, more
accurately, straddle my lap because I knew now was not the time to
have such urgings. She needed my mind, not my body.

I couldn’t help but remember what we
had already experienced together. It had been incredible. She was
incredible, breathtaking. The silkiness of her buttocks. Her dusty
pink nipples. The divine warmth of her sex. The sheer power of her
werewolf form. Whether she knew it or not, Emily was indeed a rare
werewolf. But was she a Livonian wolf? That I had to find out. It
made the urgency to protect her even greater.

As I set to my task and began carving
a sizeable bench out of the trunk of a fallen palm tree, I hoped
Emily and I would have time to talk before Michel and the others
arrived. I had expected to see my friend pop his dragon head up out
of the water right by Emily’s feet, but he had not shown. None of
the dragons were in their usual dwelling spots by the cove or the
pier, and that had me a little more than concern.

Emily still seemed upset and dealing
with her grief, so I shared the story of how I discovered the Lunar
world when I was a boy.

She wandered around the grove of palm
trees picking up small pieces of wood for an evening fire as I
stole a few glances at her. She was a vision that would rival the
gods.

***

“
My father and I used to
get along,” I began. “You wouldn’t expect me to say that, but it’s
true. I idolized him when he and my mother were together. She
brought out the best in him. Unfortunately, my inaccuracy with a
bow and arrow damaged our relationship.”

“
Why’s that?” Emily asked.
She strolled along behind me like she was in a sort of a daze, only
half-heartedly listening, but I continued as I worked.

“
One day my father and I
went hunting. Tigers were the big…” I paused and corrected my
language to be more sensitive to Emily’s situation. “We were
hunting for tigers across the wasteland. I wasn’t that good with a
bow and arrow, so I missed the kill-shot for the cat. The tiger
escaped into the water.”

“
Tigers like
water?”

“
They do when they are
running for their lives, but yes, to answer your question, tigers
are fond of water.” I laughed at her sudden curiosity.

“
When the tiger plunged
into the water and disappeared, my father insisted I jump in and
wrestle the animal out of the water. I hadn’t learned to swim at
that time, so I refused.”

“
There’s no time like the
present,” he had replied. “And he threw me in the water. He refused
to let me get out of the water until I came out with the tiger in a
bear hug.” I paused as I finished fashioning one side of the bench
to match the other side, waiting to see if she’d get my joke. She
didn’t seem to notice. I continued.

“
I struggled for the
longest time to stay afloat, but after I grew tired I began to
drown. My father stood there and watched me, not once helping
me.”

Emily interrupted me. “Your father is
an asshole.”

“
I totally agree.” I smiled
to myself, sighing as my heart swelled. This is a moment I’ll
always cherish, I thought. I continued. “Once I fell beneath the
water and assumed I had drowned, some force dragged me to the
bottom of the sea. I woke up on this beach here with two dragons
peering intently over me. I thought they were going to eat me, but
I soon discovered that they were more fearful of me because they
had never seen a creature that could walk on two legs.”

“
You were the first human
they had ever seen?”

I nodded, glancing her way. She was
leaning against one of the palm trees, braiding her hair. I sighed
again, exhaling slowly and resumed my work. After a few moments, I
announced, “I’m almost done here.” I rested my hands on my hips.
“Anyways, that’s how I learned about the Lunar world. Michel was
the one who saved me. I’d say he’s as close as any brother I could
ever hope to have. He and I are army friends. We go into battle
together when any issues arise and we have to make peace with the
other realms.”

“
What about the other
dragons?”

“
The others are older and
more reserved, but they are very nice once you get to know them.
They’ll be very nice to you. Don’t worry. I’m hoping you get to
meet them.”

“
You expect them before
nightfall?”

“
They usually know when I’m
on my way, so it doesn’t make sense that they wouldn’t be here now.
Here,” I motioned for her to join me on the newly carved bench.
“Sit with me.”

“
This is beautiful,
Vincent. Thank you. Look we can see out across the water. I can’t
get over this view.” She cuddled up close to me and patted me on
the knee. “That design. I understand now. It reminds you of who you
are - a member of the Lunar army - not a demon like your father.”
Glancing up at me with a satisfied expression, she asked, “That’s
correct? Isn’t it?”

I nodded, brushing her braids over her
shoulder. “Precisely. Now you understand. I’m not a demon. And just
because I’m a vampire in the Dark Place does not mean I’m evil. I’m
not. There’s a small group of us who fight for justice and that’s
what I do.”

“
You hear that, Wolf,” she
announced.

I laughed out loud, then wondered if
she meant something by that.

“
I’ve met a vampire warrior
who wants to save me,” she whispered as she gently ran her finger
down the cleft in my chin. “I think your mother would be very
proud. What happened to her? Did she leave your father?”

Taking her hand in mind, I lightly
kissed her palm. “Parting from you will certainly drive me
insane.”

“
I don’t want to leave
you,” Emily replied. Her eyes brimmed with fresh tears. “Couldn’t
you go with me?”

“
If it was that simple, I
would. Yes.” I stood up to put a little distance between the two of
us. I struggled to think as a sense of foreboding lodged in my
stomach. Being next to Emily overloaded every nerve in my body. I
wanted to make love to her beneath the palm trees. Immediately I
redirected my thoughts. A wind gusted past me and a chill settled
on my shoulders. Something was certainly wrong. I decided to
continue my story. “Are you cold?” I asked.

“
A little. Did you want to
start a fire?”

“
It’s almost sunset. I’ll
make a small one, so we can watch the sun go down and I’ll finish
my story. Okay?”

She nodded. “If you promise to sit
with me.” Emily rubbed a place on the bench next to her a time or
two with her hand.”

“
You drive a hard bargain,
my princess.”

I heard the soft chuckle of laughter
floated along the breeze towards me. The sound was that of an
angel.

“
When my mother learned
what my father had done, what he had allowed to have happen, she
demanded that he apologize to me. I had managed to find my way home
after being gone for several months and my mother thought I was
dead. My father had refused to apologize to me or even act like
anything had happened, and this made my mother very angry. She cast
a spell on him and turned his skin red. She said he should be the
color of blood to remind him of the blood he almost spilled, his
son’s blood. For her defiance, my father banished her to the
Beyond.”