Authors: Maya DeLeina
Steffan paused. His memory was filled with the images of darkness, death, and destruction. His eyes welled at the recollection of the pain and suffering. He took a deep, long sip of the wine.
Anya reached for his arm to console him. “Steffan, it’s okay, you don’t have to go on.”
Steffan sniffled and wiped away his tears. “No, I want you to know what happened to me.” He put his wine down, reached for Anya’s hand, and held it tightly.
“Our entire area was hit with the gas. There was nothing I could do. My skin was on fire. It blistered and started falling off of my body where it was concentrated. I was coughing. I couldn’t get air. My lungs felt constricted. My eyelids swelled. I couldn’t see. I tried to blink through the burning, but the pain was excruciating. Suddenly, there was a sharp blow against my body and my ears were ringing. I was completely numb. I didn’t even know I was hit by an explosive shell and was sinking rapidly into the mud until two large hands grabbed a hold of my uniform and dragged me onto scattered pieces of the duckboard. I couldn’t see anything. My ears stopped ringing, but the sounds around me were indiscernible, as if I was still underwater, except for the voice that spoke to me.”
“Who, Eilian?”
“No, it was our maker, Idris. He said,
Wait right here and try not to die while I am gone.
” Steffan shook his head. “Really, where was I going to go?
The numbness started to wear off as I lay there waiting as he instructed. I felt an indescribable pain in my stomach, and I moved my hands to assess the damage only to find that I had a gaping hole in my body. I panicked when I felt soft tissue protruding from my body and tried feverishly to tuck it back into place.”
Anya gulped and pushed her plate of pasta noodles in marinara sauce away.
“Right at that moment, I could make out a dark shadow coming toward me, and I felt a wet body slump next to me. The voice spoke again.
Men, I will give you a choice. You will die in a matter of minutes with the extent of your injuries. You both have been severely injured by an explosive shell. I can leave you as nature intended…”
Steffan shook his head.
“
After he said those three words,
you will die
, Arianell was the only thing I could think about. I would never get to say good-bye to her. I would never get to meet my child. Idris continued talking while my mind wandered. Then, I caught the last part of what he said …
or I can rid you of your pain and restore you to walk on this earth again, but not as nature intended.
I had no idea what he was offering, all I blurted out was Arianell’s name and how I longed to see her, hold her, and be a father to a child I had yet to meet. Another man lying near me spoke, but I couldn’t understand what he was saying. Idris silenced us both. I remember him saying,
Gentlemen, I believe you made your choice.
Then he did it. He leaned over the man lying next to me and I heard him scream out in agony. His body flopped around like a fish. Then it was my turn.”
“What happened next?” Anya asked.
“I don’t remember much of the turning itself. All I remember is waking up in darkness, in an abandoned stone structure that had been devastated by heavy artillery fighting. Rain was pouring down on me. I looked around with my new vampiric eyes and that’s when I saw Eilian next to me. He hadn’t woken yet. I spent the time observing everything my eyes could take in. Everything around me was more defined. I could see for miles. I could make out the most minuscule details in something. I could see things before it was humanly possible.” Steffan picked up his fork and twirled the pasta. “After the internet came about, I did
research on the war and soldiers that I remembered. I don’t even know if Eilian and I were listed among the perished in the records. We couldn’t recall our names. But I did happen across an article on a lieutenant who fought in the war. I didn’t know him, but I came to know his writings he published after the war. He wrote about Passchendaele, how the light faded in the bottomless mud, being a man’s death in hell.
For me, I was born in hell, in Passchendaele. And up until the day I found our connection, I, too, had lost the light.”
* * * *
Steffan helped collect the dishes and gather them in the sink as Anya worked on filling the dishwasher.
“I’ll clean up in the dining room and blow out the candles. Shall we meet upstairs for dessert?” Steffan whispered in Anya’s ear as he stood behind her at the sink, wrapping his hands around her waist.
“I’ll be waiting,” Anya said in response.
“By the way, you may want to check the top drawer of your vanity. You’ll have to thank Brynne for picking it out once you meet the family,” Steffan hinted as he slipped into the dining room.
Steffan watched as Anya hurried through her chores to get ready upstairs.
In the dining room, Steffan leaned over to blow out the candles on the table just as the China cabinet wall transformed and receded. Startled at the uninvited entry, Steffan turned around in alarm.
His fangs descended. His eyes burned. He could feel the crimson-red fire in his eyes.
Steffan was ready to attack.
* * * *
“Steffan, I…I didn’t know you would be up!” Ryan gasped.
Shit
.
He imagined they would be in bed already so he could watch Anya on display and imagine himself in Steffan’s place.
“Ryan, what the hell are you doing here? Don’t you know it’s not safe to be here right now? I’m in my mate claim. You could’ve gotten yourself killed!”
“Sorry, Steffan. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
Ryan watched as Steffan peeked into the kitchen, breathing a sigh of relief. He took a look in the kitchen for himself but couldn’t tell what Steffan was looking at.
“Is anything wrong? Are you hurt? Is someone else hurt in the family?” Steffan asked suddenly, turning his attention back to Ryan.
“No. I’m fine. Everyone is fine. I just wanted to get a bottle.” Ryan swiftly came up with a basis for his visit.
“Why? You know how to feed from humans now. The bottles are emergency reserves only.”
“I fed earlier, but I’m still hungry. I think it was all the excitement of going back to work today. Besides, I don’t want to harm her with another feeding,” Ryan said with a wink.
Steffan chuckled as he moved to the kitchen. Ryan followed close behind. “You brought another woman home? You have a new woman every night it seems.” Steffan reached into the fridge and handed a bottle to Ryan. He leaned against the kitchen island and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “I was like you once. Sometimes, I didn’t even bother with getting their names. But I can tell you, it’ll get old after awhile.”
Ryan shook his head in disagreement. “Not for me. Not by a long shot.”
“Well, when you get this out of your system—”
“Ahh!” Ryan interrupted Steffan.
“All right,
if
you get this out of your system, try to focus your energy and concentration in finding your mate. Compatibility in every aspect—friendship, intellect, talent, conversation and yes…
fucking
, can sustain you through your existence more than any of the barrage of women that traipses through your bedroom.” Steffan put his arm around Ryan as they made their way back to the dining room. “How did everything go today? Did you like what I had designed for your office?”
“Yes, thank you. Everything went smoothly.” Ryan’s stomach twitched. Steffan’s care and generosity made him uncomfortable.
“And no one emerged that we didn’t know about?”
“No, looks like you had everyone accounted for. Thank you,” Ryan said as he made his way to the entrance of the tunnel.
“Ryan, you’re family now and are like a brother to me. Soon, you may come and go as you please and as I always allowed. But I would ask that you respect my time with my mate and for your safety, not enter my home without my prior consent until after the claim is completed.”
“Understood,” Ryan said coldly.
“And Ryan?”
“Yes?”
“I believe you’ll have a nice surprise when you return to your office.”
“Huh?” Ryan was taken aback.
“Just make sure to open the top drawer of your desk. And thank Rita for helping us get you approved.” Steffan smiled. “I’m hoping this will somehow make up for my absence while you were going through your transformation. I’m your maker. I am responsible for you. But I have also found my mate, and she has taken precedence over everything for the moment.”
What in the hell did the man get me
?
The last thing he wanted was any distractions in his plan to claim Anya for himself.
Anya would someday be his.
Chapter Seventeen
Anya hurried up the stairs to the bedroom. Her feet could barely keep up with her excitement. She waltzed into the room, closing the double doors and securing them in the locked position.
“As if that would stop a vampire.” She laughed out loud to herself.
She sat at the vanity and opened the top drawer. She immediately recognized the name on the box. It was a shop that specialized in stripper attire and erotic club wear.
Is that his fantasy, for me to perform a private strip show for him?
Her heart sank.
She couldn’t dance. She was graceful with the cello. She could feel music and let it flow through her, but when it came to a dance, it was something of an enigma for her body. Even Michelle confirmed her awkwardness, once branding her movements as dry heaves to music.
She tore open the box and lifted the garment from the delicately folded tissue. There was definitely no way out of this piece of lingerie with any sort of ease, so stripping was not his plan. Attached with a piece of string hooked through the lace was a note from Steffan.
Please open the middle left drawer of your bureau, followed by the 3
rd
pullout drawer of your shoe rack in the closet to complete your outfit. I will be with you shortly my love. ~S
Anya ran to the bureau and the closet to find black crotchless panties and black stilettos.
Anya lathered her body with lotion in a gentle white tea and jasmine scent. She slipped the lingerie on as if putting on pantyhose. She pulled the stocking all the way up and let the thin ruffled-lace trim sit off her shoulders as it was designed. She looked at herself in the mirror and delighted in the sensuality her body reflected back at her.
“Hair up,” she said out loud.
She reached for the chopstick-like hair accessory and wrapped her hair up in a loose bun, allowing the piece to pierce through her hair close to her scalp, securing it in place. Her curling iron took less than a minute to heat up, and she curled the few strands of hair that she allowed to dangle around her face for a more romantic updo. She sprayed a hint of perfume on her wrist as she did one last check in the mirror.
She walked across the room, dimmed the lights, and turned on the wall and ceiling speakers. The satellite station was already set to their favorite Zen spa channel.
Steffan still hadn’t made it up to the bedroom.
What’s taking him so long?
The anticipation made her fidgety and anxious.
She took a seat on the bed and rolled her head from side to side, stretching her neck. She opened her eyes as she leaned back in a deep stretch and caught her reflection staring back at her.
“When did he do this?” She laughed out loud.
A large mirror suspended from the ceiling. Long strands of the white material cascaded around the mirror to the floor. Anya grabbed the fabric and collected it in her hand. It was a thick and smooth.