Everlasting Embrace (Embrace Series) (38 page)

“
You ready to go sweetie?
”
Nathanial asks.

“
You don
’
t know how ready I am
.
”
I grab my purse
and
the diaper bag
,
and Nate takes the infant carrier
,
with my new son buckled as
‘
snug as a bug
’
, or whatever that saying is.


  

  


After getting the adoption papers, passport and tickets
,
we head back to the house. It
’
s time to start packing. Walking through the front door
,
we are bombarded
by
cheers and screams
,
“
Surprise!
”

Everyone is here
; t
he Pierces, Eliza, Luke,
and
all the students
,
ready to congratulate us on the adoption of Nik. I can
’
t contain my emotions
,
and
happy
tears fall from my eyes. I have my own family, a husband and now a son
. W
ho could ask for more?

Nathanial puts his arm around my shoulder as I hold Nik close to me
.
“
Thank you so much
,
everyone. I can
’
t explain what this means to Sophia and I. Each one of you is like family to us
,
and even though we
’
ve all experienced tragedy
,
I am happy to have you all in my family. Thank you.
”

The evening is filled with friends, family, food and fun times. Almost everyone has a gift for us
and Nik. Some are just toys and clothes
; others
are amazing keepsakes
, like
the
adorable pewter frame set
;
one for his adoption certificate
,
and another for a picture of the three of us. Ben takes a picture of us standing in front of the fireplace to put in the frame. What a great gift to display the memory of this day. Before long
,
Nik is ready for bed
.
Nathanial takes his new son and tucks him in for the night. We party on until the wee hours of the morning. In a week we leave for Transylvania
,
and need to finish packing and confirm
ing
all our arrangements.


  

  


As the long flight comes to an end and the plane begins its de
s
cent I peer out the small rectangular window of the 747 aircraft. The luscious green hills that roll over the land showcase the beauty of the area. Amazing stone castles can be seen in the distance. Nik pulls at the window trying to see the amazement for himself
—
I can
’
t help but giggle.

“
Are you excited
,
little man?
”
I ask
,
and Nik pats his hands together in a clapping motion.

“
I hope we get to take in some of the sites while we
’
re here,
”
Nathanial admits.

“
I think we can take a few days for sightseeing before we approach the Renata.
”

“
Great
! Well,
once we check into our room,
let
’
s
go check out the city.
”

The plane has a smooth landing and we wait for our turn to disembark the plane. The other passengers are rummaging through their overhead compartments and carry-ons
,
ready to race of
f
the plane. We have plenty of time
,
so just remain seated waiting for the others to clear the aisle. Once the masses have left we collect all our items and head to the customs area before collec
ting the rest of our luggage.

Waiting at the luggage
carousel,
I notice Cato walking towards us.
“
Cato, what are you doing here?
”

“
Hello Sophia, it is great to see you again. I heard you would be arriving today and thought it would be nice to meet you here.
”

“
Well thank you
;
we thought we would go to the hotel and the
n
do some sightseeing.
”
Nathanial confirms our plans.

“
There is no need for hotels; you are in the home land
,
son. The Renata is aware of you
r
presence
,
and we have a suite at the castle for you. Please do us the
honor
of staying with us
;
after all we are all family
,
so to speak.
”
Cato insists
,
and we know there
’
s no way to refuse his offer.

“
Thank you for your hospitality
,
Cato
;
we are looking forward to meeting the others and the leaders.
”

“
They are aware of you
r
intentions
,
and hope to assist you in your time of need.
”

Nathanial and Cato take
our
luggage to the black stretch limo waiting outside for us. The sun has just set and I can feel something changing in the atmosphere. This is vampire land and night is upon us
;
is it safe for mortals to be out
,
or do the Renata follow their own laws
?
I guess I will find out sooner than I had expected.

We take the forty-five minute drive to the Renata
’
s residence
, driving
through the lush green hills and down spiral like roads. A crystal blue stream runs alongside of the road, welcoming all to jump in the fresh water and play chicken with the jagged rocks that hide beneath the surface. Romania is a beautiful
country
, at least what I
’
ve seen of it. I hope we
’
ll get to see even more in the days to come. Before I know it the driver pulls up to a large stone castle, and just like the castles you read about in fairy tales
,
a large wooden drawbridge folds down over the moat before us. The limo proceeds over the bridge and it closes behind us. Behind the stone walls surrounding the castle are stunning gardens that have hundreds of flowers flourishing
;
it almost looks like heaven.

The car slows and stops before the front entrance. Opening the car door, Cato exits the vehicle first
,
followed by Nathanial.
I move to the edge of the car seat and pass Nik to Nathanial before I climb out. As the four of us stand before the majestic castle
,
the front doors open and seven male and female vampires stand before us. I gasp
;
I
know I am now in the presence of the Renata, the grandchild
ren
of Cain
,
the original vampire. We all wait with baited breath to be invited in
to
begin learning how to destroy their brother
,
Cyrus
,
and nephew
,
Drake
,
once and for all.

I would like to send a special thanks to
a
uthor Mary Ting
of The Crossroads Saga, for allowing me to use some of her characters and
for
writing Chapter 23
,
Michael`s Adventures. To learn more about Michael, the Twelve
,
and Claudia
,
please check out Mary`s first two books of the Crossroads Saga
,
Crossroads
and
Between
,
today
to see angels like you never imagined and a love story for the ages.

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