“
Yeah, but I think I must be close.”
“
I think you give Neleh too much credit.” He clicked his tongue to get the horse moving again.
“
I know you don’t like her Nickolas, but maybe she’s a victim to. She is trying to help — to make things right.” His disagreement sounded in a low grunt. “What is your theory then?”
He didn’t answer right away, but then he started talking in quick low sentences. “Do you remember the night the Waltzes were killed?”
“
The Waltzes?” I shook my head.
“
The older couple?”
“
With no kids.”
“
That were killed by wolves?”
“
Yes, I remember.”
“
They had a nephew who was sleeping in the stable that night.”
“
They made him sleep in the barn?”
“
He saw everything that night.”
“
What did he see?”
“
There was a man with dark hair that came before the wolves. He bit them and then left. When the wolves came, a few minutes later, they killed them both.”
“
They smelled the blood? Instincts?”
“
Maybe, but…”
“
But what?”
“
They may have thought that the two would turn to vampires.”
“
Would they have?’
“
No. But the wolves may not have known that.”
“
That just offers proof to my theory.”
“
Maybe, or maybe not.”
Nickolas kept me pressed tight to his chest the entire day. We were walking along the river and the path was rough, littered with deep ruts and rocks. Every time the horse stumbled, he would hold me tighter. At first I was comforted by his concern but as the day wore on I feared that he would crush me to death. His hand was a constant pressure against the small of my back.
By the time the sun was high in the sky, I was jumpy. “Nickolas, let me walk,” I pleaded for the second time. I knew that I would feel better walking to the colony rather than be crushed on the way there.
“
The water is too high.” He wasn’t budging.
“
I think I can handle it,” I told him, trying to turn my face so he would see how serious I was.
He frowned deeply and turned me back around. “No, Eva,” he said roughly and then he added more gently, “I don’t want to have to jump into the freezing water to save you.”
“
No one asked you to be my hero.” I folded my arms across my chest but the movement unbalanced me and I swayed dangerously. He let go of the saddle and wrapped both arms around me. I looked up sheepishly into his face, which was now less than an inch from mine. He pulled the horse to a stop so he could steady me. Nickolas was agitated, but then our eyes met.
The atmosphere around us changed drastically. My breathing came out in uneven gasps and I was sure that he could hear my heart hammering in my chest. I reached my hand up slowly to touch his face. This time he let me. My fingers traced his jaw line and his cheek and finally his hard lips, which were parted just slightly from his own haggard breathing.
Ever so painfully slow he brought his face closer to me. I closed my eyes and tilted my chin in anticipation of his lips against mine. Seconds ticked by and nothing happened. I opened my eyes in disappointment and he was staring at me. He had moved further back in the saddle to allow some distance between us.
“
What’s wrong?” I breathed.
“
I want to kiss you,” he growled.
“
So?” I leaned forward eagerly, but his strong hands stopped me.
“
I can’t kiss you, Eva.”
“
Why not?” My face felt hot.
“
It’s against my rules.”
“
What rules?” I was confused.
“
I can’t let myself fall for someone,” he paused — trying to find the right words — but finally he just finished, “like you.”
“
What am I?” I felt my eyes sting with tears.
He groaned loudly and buried his face against my hair. He inhaled deeply and then abruptly pulled my face up to meet his again.
His kiss was sudden and unexpected but not unpleasant. As I responded to him, he deepened the kiss and I soon found myself melted into his chest. I entwined my arms around his neck to hold him to me. He made small noises with his mouth that sent a thrill of pleasure down my spine.
After an infinite amount of time that was too short he broke the kiss off, but his hands still eagerly stroked my face and my hair and my neck. He kissed me again and again until I was dizzy from the effect. I would have surely fallen off the saddle if Nickolas hadn’t been holding onto me so tight.
“
Oh Eva,” he whispered roughly in my hair, “who are you?”
I understood the hidden meaning beyond the words but there was nothing I could say. I didn’t know who I was. But I was absolutely positive at that point I would have told him if I knew. I just buried my face deeper into his chest and held onto him tighter, as if my life depended on it.
Chapter Twenty
The water felt good to my parched throat. I scooped it up eagerly and let it wash away the worries I had. The dreams I had been having were just a result of an overactive imagination. That had to be it. There was no other explanation. I wanted to laugh out loud with relief.
“
Are you finished yet?” Nickolas called, ruining my happy moment.
“
No.”
I could almost hear his shoulders slumping in aggravation. I bit back a smile and scooped up another handful of water.
“
Eva, we have to go.”
“
I’m sure your lady Neleh can wait just a few minutes,” I called over my shoulder. With a sigh if disappointment I got up and turned towards him.
His expression made me freeze where I was standing. He was still sitting on the horse, but his body was tense. His face was alert and his eyes were wide. He was searching for something.
“
What’s wrong?” I called weakly. He held up his hand to silence me and I obeyed at once.
“
Don’t move,” he half growled. Even if he had told me to run, I probably wouldn’t have been able too. In a movement so fast it defied the law of nature, he was beside me. He crouched low in front of me. With a sickening feeling in my stomach, I recognized the defensive position.
“
Should we run?” I whispered.
“
Too late.”
I made a low whimpering sound in my throat. Too late? What was out there? Fear paralyzed me. I watched in horror as three large wolves stepped into the clearing.
The wolves were unlike anything I had ever seen outside of my nightmares. Their coats were in varying shades of grey and black. They were huge. They were the height of a normal wolf but their frames were bulky and low to the ground. I could see the muscles rippling across their backs and chests. I shuddered.
The large black wolf took two steps closer to us and growled deeply. I was both stunned and horrified in equal parts when I heard Nickolas growl back at the monster.
I counted my heartbeats as I watched the wolf. I only got to three before the wolf’s muscles tensed in its legs. I reacted on impulse rather than conscious thought. I couldn’t let the wolf hurt Nickolas. I sprang to life.
In less than half a second I placed myself between Nickolas and the wolf. Nickolas, taken completely by surprise, was knocked off his feet. The wolf’s steps faltered for a moment but then it lunged.
Its teeth were three inches long, razor sharp and coming straight for us. I shot my hands out in front of me and from some forgotten part of my memory a shield formed around us. My confidence grew when the wolf yelped and fell to the ground. It stayed down, its breathing labored. The other two came to investigate but didn’t lunge. They paced back and forth where the shield ended.
My memories came back at an assaulting speed then, sending me to my knees. I clutched my stomach and gasped for air. The wolves watched warily, not sure if it was safe to attack.
“
No,” I choked, frightened of all the images swirling in my head.
David.
The time machine.
The testing
The comet
The warriors
My cell
Fighting
Blood
Pain
David’s betrayal
Dominick Letrell
The Angel
Neleh
Kill Dominick Letrell
My eyes opened wide and I got to my feet. I felt my waist for my knife but of course it wasn’t there. I turned to look down at Nickolas, who was staring at me open-mouthed. For a second I was ashamed at what he must have seen in my eyes. That I was a murderer. But I didn’t have much time for that train of thought, my shield made me weak, I would have to store those thoughts away for later.
I bent down and took Nickolas’s knife from his belt. I turned back to the wolves and confidently pulled my shield back. One of the wolves attacked at once but in a movement just like David showed me I brought the knife up into his throat. The wolf jumped back in shock and when its brother came to its rescue I kicked him hard enough to break his jaw. With sure movements I took his giant head in my hands and twisted hard. The wolf convulsed twice and then changed to the form of a man. I quickly finished the other two wolves and they turned to men. It took me less than two minutes to kill the three werewolves.
Nickolas still hadn’t gotten up from the ground, although he was sitting up. I couldn’t tell if he was shocked or disgusted by me.
“
Who are you?” he asked.
“
I am Eva. I was created for one purpose,” I recited in a flat voice.
“
What purpose?”
“
To kill Dominick Letrell.”
He looked shocked for a moment and flinched back. “Why?”
I regarded him curiously. He had asked why, not who. He knew him. “You know Dominick Letrell.”
He didn’t say anything but his eyes betrayed him. “Why?” he asked again.
“
Use caution Eva,”
I heard David’s voice in my head. Nickolas had known Dominick Letrell in a time when he was not well known. Were they friends? My mind quickly discarded the thought. Dominick Letrell is a friend to no one. “It is my purpose,” I said simply.
“
Who created you?” He stood up.
I took a step back, clutching the knife instinctively. He inhaled sharply. Shame and indecision came over my senses.
“Trust no one,”
David’s voice warned. This was Nickolas. I loved him and he loved me. I opened my hand that held the knife and heard the clank of the metal against the rocks.
I was in his arms in less than a heartbeat. I don’t know which of us moved first, but it didn’t matter. None of it mattered. He was kissing my hair, my eyes, my cheeks, and finally my lips. I didn’t cry, but I did cling to him as tight as he clung to me.
What did this mean? My memory coming back. I had broken the rules. I wasn’t even supposed to talk to anyone else, unless it was absolutely necessary. I closed my eyes in defeat. I couldn’t change anything now. Things had changed. I loved Nickolas. What would happen now?
“
Will you tell me?” he asked quietly. We were sitting on the rocks by the stream. He was holding my hand and I was tracing the lines on his fingers.
I grimaced at his request. “What do you want to know?”
“
Who created you?”
I regarded him warily from the corner of my eye. “Next.”
“
You won’t tell me who created you?”
“
It won’t make a difference. You won’t know them.”
“
How do you know?” he challenged.
I sighed and shook my head. “Next.”
“
What year are you from?”
“
Nope, I can’t tell you that either.”
“
Why not?” he asked impatiently.
“
Nickolas, I am not even supposed to talk to anyone.”
“
I think it’s a little late for that.”
I dramatically clamped my lips together.
“
So let me get this straight,” he let go of my hand to run his own hand through his hair, “you’re from the future. You were sent back to the past to carry out a mission, but the mission was compromised. You can’t tell me who created you nor can you tell me what year you are from. All you can say is that your sole purpose is to kill Dominick Letrell.”
I winced at his words. I had already told him too much. “Yep, sounds about right.”
“
So what will you do now?”
His question played havoc with my senses. Hadn’t I just been asking myself that same question? I shrugged. “I don’t know,” I admitted, “I suppose I’ll have to find Dominick, finish my mission, and then return to my own time.”