Within The Shadows (16 page)

It worked.

I had been
in the dark, but now my eyes were opened. Now, I would do anything
to pay him back for the pain and torment he had caused me. He had
clouded my thoughts long enough, and now it was time to wake up and
take action.

Marc and I
looked at each other. We had shared so many firsts together, and
the one thing that was important had been taken from us. There was
nothing we could do to replace that lost innocence, but if we
tried, perhaps our relationship could find some
salvation.

I secretly hoped.

Marc walked
up close to me. The familiar smell of his cologne floated around
me. He was delicious, and I wanted him to touch me. I wanted to
feel his warm skin against mine.

To
have
him hold me, love me, and maybe, in
time, we could share something more than this. At that moment, I
had already forgiven him. I think he could sense that, because what
happened next was the single most beautiful moment of my life. He
gently pressed his lips against mine, and kissed me. His sweet
breath flew into me. I held onto him, refusing to let him go. I did
not want to lose him again. I could have stayed in that brief
embrace forever.

I really was
home!

We never
noticed my mother standing at the door. She cleared her throat,
gaining our attention. She looked thinner than usual, but I put
that down to the stress of my leaving. She smiled at us, her
obvious approval written all over her face.

“
Giselle, honey, I hate to interrupt, but you have another
visitor, a man. He said he met you while you were on your travels,”
my mother said with a hint of irony in her voice.

“
Oh, okay, um, I’ll be down in a minute. I . . . need to
change.”

“
Okay, Sweetie. I’ll tell him you won’t be long. Come along,
Marc. Giselle needs her privacy.”

They left
the room, closing the door behind them. I rummaged through my
wardrobe, and chose a pair of denim shorts and my favourite Sponge
Bob t-shirt. I brushed my hair into a loose ponytail, and made no
effort at putting on make-up. What was the point?

I shifted down the stairs at
record speed, coming to a halt when I saw the neatly dressed man
sitting in our living room, drinking tea from one of my mother’s
finest cups and saucers.

Leonid.

I placed my
hand over the charm, and prayed for protection, even if I did not
believe.

Goddess, be by my side
.

He smiled at
me.
His eyes were an odd shade of green,
but I stayed my distance, and reluctantly replied when he spoke to
me.

“
Giselle, you
never told me how enchanting your mother is,” he mused.

My poor
mother loved the praise. She smiled, and gushed, “Oh, Mr. Baranski,
it is nothing really.”

“
Yeah, my mother kinda has that affect on people. She’s got
a good heart.”

“
Well, you have obviously followed in her footsteps. You
have taught your daughter well, Mrs. Bergman.”

My father
piped in, the contempt in his voice only just under control. “What
exactly do you want with our daughter?”

Marc stood
in the background. His posture was straight and rigid. He was
uncomfortable, and he stared hard at Leonid.

“
Mr. and Mrs. Bergman, I’ll jump to the chase here. Giselle,
whom I met a few months back, has an ability that my company is
keen to explore. You could look at it as a form of medical
research, for the greater good of man. She would be an invaluable
asset if she were to participate in a trial we are doing back in
Baltimore. With your permission, we would love for her to consent.”
He was so confident.

I could not
believe it. He was actually trying to sweet talk my parents. Holy
shit, I could not let them get dragged into this whole
mess.

“
Baltimore? Oh, Lord, that’s nearly a thousand miles away!”
my mother gasped as she panicked.

“
Um, can we discuss this in private?” I addressed him. “Is
that okay with you guys?”

My father
was reluctant to leave, but my mother, who had her powers of
persuasion down to a fine art, finally got him to join her in the
day room. “Come along, Geoff. Give her some space, just this
once.”

Once they
had left, I flung myself at Leonid, thumping him hard in the chest.
“Okay, cut the bullshit. What do you want?” I hissed.

“
Giselle, is that any way to speak to someone who has your
best interests at heart?”

“
Oh, my frigging God! Do you even have a heart? Did he put
you up to this? Huh?”

“
On the contrary. He has no idea where you are. Alexander is
frantically searching the mountains. I think Antoine did a very
fine job of binding your charm, but of course, Antoine is no match
for me.”

He stood up,
and walked closer to me. His distinct smell hit me straight away,
its odour luring me in. “It has come to my attention that things
have taken a turn for the worse. I did always believe that Atarah
was drawn to the darkness a little too much for my liking, but
again, that was what first attracted me to her. She willingly took
on the role of mother to my son, but I was blinded by her beauty,
and her devious plans.”

I cut him
off. “Right, so where do I fit in all this? I won’t be a surrogate
or whatever it is your friend, Vadim, foresaw. I
refuse!”

“
I am not asking you to be a vessel for Alexander. I am
asking you to allow me to father your child. My intentions are
pure. They are not perverse and dark like Atarah’s. Our child would
be for the greater good of man as well as the Nelapsi.”

“
You are so out of your mind. I couldn’t do that with you.
It would be like having sex with my father . . . ugh. God, no.” I
could not believe what I was hearing.

“
I promise you, our union would be with good intention. It
would not be clouded with deception. You would have full knowledge
of everything that would happen.”

“
I can’t. I’m finally having the chance to get my life back
on track. Marc and I could actually make a go of things. I don’t
want to. I want to forget everything that has happened. You and
your twisted family have screwed with me long enough. I want my
life back, and now that I’m home, I’m staying.”

He laughed
at me. His eyes glistened amber, and then returned back to their
previous shade. “Then tell me, wise one. How will you feed your
hunger? Will your boyfriend allow you to feed from him? Is he
willing to let you drink from his soul? Bear in mind that each time
he would lose years from his life. You are no longer a complete
human. You are one of us, and that is something which can not be
denied.”

“
What will
you do if I don’t agree?”

“
You will agree.” He was confident.

“
How can you
be so sure?” I tested him.

“
Because if
you love your family and all those you hold close to your heart,
you will leave with me tonight.”

Chapter Thirteen

IT WAS
HAPPENING
again. I was being forced into
an impossible situation, one where I had no control over my future.
I hated being so defenceless. I felt I was going insane, and there
was nothing I could do to prevent the inevitable happening. I
wanted the ground to open up, and swallow me whole. If I was going
to Hell, why not just take me, then and there?

Leonid stood
before me. He was strong, and I was no match for him. Even the
charm held no resistance against him.

“
I will give you until sunset to make your mind up.
Remember, Giselle, I do not make threats
lightly, and as much as it pains me, I will do as I say.” He left
the room, passing my parents as he walked out of the
house.

Inside my
head, I was a mess. I wanted to protect those I loved, but how
could I put a price on my own head? I did not know if I could go
through with Leonid’s demands. How could I do what he wanted, and
still remain true to myself? A child born from us would be doomed.
The outcome was no longer the ‘rosy’ happily-ever-after I was first
made to believe. Either way, I was screwed.

My mother
came in, her smile weary. “Honey, is everything all
right?”

“
Depends on what you define all right.”

My father
decided it was his turn, and boy, when he wanted to say something,
he made sure everyone listened, neighbours included. “Young lady, I
do not appreciate some stranger coming into my home, and telling us
things about our daughter, things that even we as parents have no
knowledge of. It is high time you gave us reasons for your running
away, and putting us through hell.

“
Do you have any idea how hard this has been on us? We
anticipated the phone ringing, asking us to come and identify your
body. Can you even begin to imagine what that was like for us? As
if we didn’t have enough to deal with. Your poor mother has been
back and forth from the doctors for weeks now. Test after test, and
her only concern has been you. Unlike you, she is not selfish. She
was thinking about you, putting you before her own
health.”

“
What?” I
asked, stunned.

“
Geoff, stop it, please!” My mother tried not to
cry.

“
She needs to know. If anything, she has pushed you further
over the edge. She has to take some responsibility for this whole
damned mess,” he pleaded with her.

“
Dad! What’s wrong with mom?”

“
I have Leukaemia,” she blurted out, her face
expressionless.

The room
spun as I tried to comprehend what I was hearing. My mother was
sick, and this whole time I was busy thinking about my own selfish
needs. I looked at her. She was thin and pale. The dark rings under
her eyes were lightly hidden by make-up, and I could not help but
to notice her hands shaking. I ran into her arms, and sobbed. I did
not want her to die. I wanted her to have a long and healthy life.
This was my fault. We had no one else to blame but me.

“
I’m so sorry. Please, tell me you’ll be okay.”

“
I . . . can’t do that. I have to have more tests and
treatment. We don’t know if the treatment will be any use. It’s
progressive,” she cried.

I wiped my
own tears from my face. “No! This cannot be happening. Daddy,
please tell her you can fix this. Please!” I begged my
father.

“
I’m afraid this is one thing I have no control over. We
have the best doctors, but we just cannot guarantee the outcome.”
For the first time, I saw my father looking defeated, something I
had never witnessed before.

“
Did I do this? Did I make you ill?” I inquired
angrily.

“
This was happening long before you left. It is out of our
control. I’ll just continue to take my meds, and hope for the best,
but maybe you should prepare yourself for the worst,” she
muttered.

“
No!” I refused to accept what she was saying. “That is
something I will not do!”

I ran from
the room, past Marc, and out into the evening sun. Tears burned in
my eyes as my throat ached from holding back my screams. I ran down
to the shore of the lake.

Families
were out together, laughing and enjoying each other. Their innocent
faces mirrored memories from my past. I was once like them,
completely caught up in my own world, thinking the world revolved
around me. I, like many others, thought I was invincible. Bad
things only happened to others, not to me or my family.

Boy, was I wrong.

It was
shortly after six
, and I had until around
nine that night to make up my mind. It felt as though I was taking
part in a game of Russian roulette, and I was getting closer to
pulling the trigger with the gun pointed at my own head. I did not
want to leave, especially now with my knowing that my mother was
sick. Yet if I stayed, I knew Leonid would not think twice about
killing my family. I could not live with those
consequences.

Marc had
followed me down to the lake. He did not speak. Instead, he watched
me, trying to figure out what I was going to do next.

“
I suppose you heard all that. Did you know she was sick?” I
asked.

“
My mom told me. I think your mom confided in her a month or
so ago. I’m sorry.”

“
What’s to be sorry about? People get sick all the
time.”

“
Yeah, but
your mom is in a bad way.”

“
How can you be so sure, huh? She won’t give up without a
fight. You know her. She is Marilyn Bergman, for Christ sake! She
is a force to be reckoned with,” I choked.

“
Giselle,
there are some things even your mom can’t control.”

“
I have to leave, you know.” It came out without me
realising it.

Surprised,
he shoved me round to face him. “Are you crazy? You’ve only just
got back. You can’t just disappear again!”

“
Who said anything about disappearing? I’ll just be out of
town for a while. I’m going to go with Leo – Mr. Baranski, and let
them do their tests. I’m kinda obliged to.”