Dark

by Erika Phillips

  Tears fell down her cheeks. She glanced over and could still see Christian's chest rise and fall as he struggled to breathe. "Please," she begged Thane. Thane glanced over at Christian's body on the ground. He knew he had won.

  "I'll let him live if you promise that you will come with me," he looked at her, searching her face for any hint of deception.

  "Yes," was all she replied. Thane smiled to himself and kissed her on the lips. Jazmine could taste the sweetness of Christian's blood on Thane's lips.

  Thane turned back to Christian, "I’ll give you mercy, today. But if you try to come find her, I’ll not be so generous a second time."

  Christian lay on the ground, his vision blurry. The words Thane spoke were clear. He tried to say something, to tell Jazmine no. He needed her. The way Jazmine looked at Christian told him she still loved him and wanted to be with him. Christian could hear her in his thoughts.

  Please, Christian, do what he asks. I need you to live. I’ll be okay and I’ll always love you. You need to forget me, she told him in her mind.

  Thane held out his hand for Jazmine's. "Shall we, my dear?" he asked.

  Jazmine looked back one more time at Christian, pain deep in her eyes. "Yes," she replied defeated.

  Thane smiled wickedly and they flew off together into the night.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Shane ran to Christian's side and placed a hand firmly on the cut in his neck to stop the bleeding. Christian tried to speak, but he could not make a sound. He could feel the life draining from his body. If Shane did not act quickly, he would die there on the battlefield.

  Shane knew that Christian had lost a lot of blood and he only had one option to save his life. He had no time to ask Christian if this was what he wanted. All Shane knew was he needed Christian alive or the prophecy would be unfulfilled. He made a split second decision that he knew was going to change the course of all of their lives.

  Shane threw his cloak over Christian's body and they disappeared.

  ********

  Shane lay Christian's body on the table in the library, all the warlocks surrounded him. Christian's breath became shallower as the seconds ticked by. "Do you have the boy?" Shane asked the warlock to his right.

  "Yes," the warlock replied. He turned around to the boy who stood behind him. "Come," was all he said as his long-outstretched finger beckoned him.

  The boy looked frightened as he slowly followed the command. His whole body shook as the warlocks folded around him.

  "He is a young one," Shane mentioned.

  "Yes, but he will be able to supply the blood Christian needs to live."

  "Will the boy survive?" Shane asked not really caring whether or not he did.

  "We shall see," the other warlock announced as he pushed the boy in front of Christian's almost lifeless body.

  Shane produced a dagger from his cloak and grabbed the boy’s wrist. With one quick, fluid movement, he slashed a long line down the length of his arm and placed the boy's wrist directly on Christian's mouth. Blood dripped onto his lips.

  Christian instantly tasted the warm blood in his mouth. The smell was musky and intoxicating to his senses. He knew he needed to drink to live. Part of him battled with the thought that the moment he drank this boy's blood he could never go back. He knew what it meant and what he would become. He struggled with that thought as he had never wanted to become a vampire. But if he chose not to, he would die, and Jazmine would be lost to him for eternity.

  Now he knew what he needed to do. Something primal took over and his hands reached up and held onto the boy's wrist as his mouth sucked the blood that trickled onto his lips. He drank with vigorous enthusiasm. A feeling like nothing he had ever known took ahold of him. He could not stop himself, even if he wanted to.

  As he drank, he could feel the boy’s life draining away as his own was restored. He was on the verge of killing this child when the boy’s wrist was ripped from his mouth. Christian looked up to see who had taken away this gift; his eyes were red with anger.

  All the warlocks took a step back, frightened of him. Christian’s body started to convulse as he could feel it start to die, yet he was alive. It was a strange feeling. Then his world went black. When he awoke again, he was in his own bed. Everything was dark around him and he felt different. It took him a moment, but everything came flooding back to him. He remembered the fight, the look in Jazmine's eyes as Thane took her away. And, lastly, he remembered lying there as his body died.

  He had made a choice in that one split second and now he knew what he must do next. He was going after Jazmine!

  PART TWO

  Chapter One

  A dark shadow engulfed Jazmine as she ran towards the bright white light glowing off in the distance. She could feel her lungs screaming for air as she tried to outrun the figure that loomed over her. The pain in her chest was searing, but she could not stop. Her mind forced her onwards even when her body wanted to stop. Some small part of her knew that if her legs quit moving, she would die.

  Jazmine glanced back over her shoulder to see where the shadow was; her feet stumbled over a crack in the pavement and her body flung forward crashing down on the hard surface. She threw out her arms to help brace for the impact and only managed to twist her wrist. As she lay on the ground, she turned back around and looked up to see the dark shadow directly above her. She could feel the coldness wrap around her, squeezing every last ounce of breath from her body. Jazmine opened her mouth to scream. When she jerked her body awake and opened her eyes, a blood curdling scream escaped her lips.

  Jazmine looked around the room, her breath was fast and shallow, sweat dripped down her back. It took her eyes a few minutes to adjust to the darkness in the room before she could make out that she was safe. It was only a dream, the third one this week though. Jazmine placed her hand on her chest and slowly started to calm herself. She counted slowly in her head from one to four, taking a breath in, then releasing for four seconds.

  Slowly her breathing became more relaxed and her body calmed down. Jazmine grabbed the notebook that was on the dresser next to her bed and wrote down everything she could remember...which, unfortunately, was not much. She had started doing this two months ago after having the same nightmare for three weeks. Every time she woke up at the exact same part, just after she fell and right before the blackness consumed her.

  Jazmine jotted down a few notes, then placed the notebook back in the dresser drawer, making sure to hide it under her shirts. She had spoken nothing of this to Thane or anyone else in the Lamia for that matter. For the last three months, she had felt like something was different and she could not explain what it was, but she felt like someone was hiding something from her.

  Jazmine’s recent memories were fuzzy and almost did not feel like her own. Thane filled in pieces when she had questions. When she asked about Luciana and some of the other missing vampires, he quickly explained that they decided to take off on their own and that they no longer wanted to follow Thane’s rule. Jazmine was not disappointed in the least to hear about Luciana leaving. But when she asked about John leaving, Thane could never give her a clear answer.

  For John to pick up and leave with not even a word, broke her heart. Jazmine had loved him, and she had thought that he loved her too. So, when Thane stated he just left one day, it made no sense to her. Yet, she had no memories to tell her otherwise, so she eventually stopped questioning him.

  Jazmine glanced at the clock and saw that it was just about 9 p.m. Soon vampires from around the country would be arriving to celebrate. Thane had finally managed to unite several of the clans that had been fighting for years. His dream of becoming the reigning supreme vampire was close to reality and tonight he wanted to celebrate his latest victory. He was never one for modesty, everything he did was for show.

  Tonight, would be no different and Jazmine knew he expected her to be at his side as he greeted the newest clan to his home. This group had been his toughest opponents yet. Once they s
aw their leader die by Thane’s hand, they knew they could either follow the same fate or they could live; they just needed to surrender and acknowledge him as their new leader. So tonight, the ones who chose to follow would come to pay their allegiance.

  Jazmine got out of bed and quickly began to ready herself for the evening. In her closet she found a long, sleek red dress. Thane had picked it out for her specifically for tonight. He wanted her to look like a queen and in this dress, she looked every bit like royalty. Jazmine slipped into the gown and slid her hands down the sides of her dress, past the two slits running thigh-high up either side. She could feel the dress hug her body, accentuating her curves.

  Jazmine picked out a pair of silver, strappy stilettos to wear. She completed the look with a pair of single stud diamond earrings and a matching diamond bracelet. Her hair hung down to her waist, stick straight. She applied a dark shade of red lipstick to her lips and headed out to join the celebration already in full swing.

  The moment she stepped out from her room the stench of sex filled the air. She knew tonight would be an evening of vampires coming together to share their passion for life and each other. The sounds that resonated throughout the hallways confirmed that tonight would be a long one. Once upon a time, Jazmine would have enthusiastically partaken in many of the evening’s sexual pleasures. But she had lost the taste for this the last few months and she could not put a finger on why. Just that she had no desire to be intimate with the other vampires.

  The only person that she had any desire for was Thane, and even with him there had been times when she did not find herself enjoying the pleasures of the flesh like she once had. She kept this secret to herself, fearful that if Thane ever found out her passion for him had waned he would be upset. It was not like he was displeasing to look at, on the contrary he was like a god amongst vampires. But she found herself holding back when they were together. The connection they had always had was off, or different somehow and she could not get it back.

  Jazmine rounded the corner of the hall from her room and walked into the main living space. That was when she spotted Thane. He was seated on his throne, as he liked to call it. He looked sexier than ever tonight in his black leather pants and a purple silk shirt that hugged his arms and chest. The top four buttons of his shirt were undone, exposing his hard, smooth chest to the world. His eyes locked on hers the moment she stepped into the doorway.

  A lazy grin spread across his face as he lifted a finger to beckon her to sit next to him. Jazmine glided across the room as if in a trance as her eyes stayed firmly locked with his. A smile spread across her lips, her fangs faintly showing.

  “Good evening, my Queen,” Thane’s voice dripped with lust. “I’ve been awaiting your arrival and I see it has been well worth it.”

  Thane reached his hand out and Jazmine smoothly placed hers within his grasp. He gently helped guide her to the seat next to him. Jazmine sat down and Thane pulled her hand up to his lips, placing a soft kiss on the back of it.

  “Hopefully, you rested well, my dear?” Thane continued to stare into her eyes as he spoke.

  Jazmine felt like his eyes could reach her soul with how intense his gaze was this evening. She smiled sweetly back, “I did, thank you. It was just what I needed to give me the energy to last throughout the night’s festivities.”

  Chapter Two

  The evening droned on and alliances were made with no problems. The old and new vampires in the group seemed to melt into one as Jazmine walked from room to room not really paying attention to anyone in particular. She was ready to go back to her room, to be alone. Yet, Thane had other plans in store for her.

  As the evening began to wind down, Thane found Jazmine sitting in his office by herself. She liked the strong smell of leather in this room from all the ancient books he collected. Jazmine was humming to herself and walking past a row of very old manuscripts when the door to the office squeaked open. Jazmine did not need to look over to know that Thane had just entered.

  “You found me,” she started, a smirk spread across her lips.

  “Yes, I have. Are you hiding?” he questioned. “If so, you need to pick a better place next time. This one is rather obvious,” Thane replied, no emotion to his tone.

  “I will try harder next time,” she retorted back.

  Thane did not reply immediately, but rather walked over to the couch located across the room and sat down. Jazmine continued to browse through the many titles as he sat and studied her every move.

  “What has you troubled, my Queen?” Thane decided he needed to address the questions he knew she was starting to have over the last few months. She was getting restless not being able to remember things and he knew he would need to tell her more eventually. He decided it was better if he brought up the subject before she did, that way he could direct the conversation better.

  Jazmine knew he was not going to give her all the answers she sought, that was why she kept finding herself seeking out this place so often. But she was not going to waste this opportunity to ask the questions she needed answers to. She knew he would not be fully truthful, so it was her job to determine what parts were real and what was not.

  She decided to start with the thing that troubled her the most. “Where is John? No more telling me he ran off; I know that’s not true. You owe me the truth,” she turned to face him, her eyes burrowing into his.

  Thane knew he needed to give her something more than he ran away. So, he decided to give her some of the truth, but just enough to get her to stop searching for him. “He died,” he stated matter-of-factly.

  Jazmine reached her hand out, steading herself against the bookshelf as she felt her legs about to give out beneath her. She had prepared herself for the worst, but when he actually said those words, she felt like throwing up. “How?”

  “He was never really one of us, putting strange notions in your head. I feared for you and needed to have him out of your life, so I ordered my men to kill him. You’re mine and I needed to do what I thought was best for you and our group.”

  The way he stated it so proudly like he had every right to take John’s life, chilled her to the core. She knew him to be a killer, but this was going too far. To kill one of his own, someone who swore to follow him. Jazmine’s world was spinning, and she wanted to get off this ride. But there was no getting off or out. The only way out was death and she wanted to live.

  Jazmine swallowed back the bile that was threatening to come up her throat. She did not speak, but simply stared at his cold expression. Thane continued, “You can hate me all you want, but you are and will always be mine. No one else will ever have you. That is my promise to you.”

  In that moment, Jazmine had a sense that it was not John he was worried about. He had never been this possessive, this forceful. She knew he meant every word and that she was never going to be able to leave him, no matter how much every part of her screamed to run and never look back. She could feel something was different these last few months and now his words confirmed her fears.

  He was hiding something, like he had lost her once and he would never let that happen again. Jazmine knew her thoughts were crazy. She had no recollection of being anywhere but here. She only had her nightmares. Now she wondered if that was truly the nightmare or if her reality was.

  Jazmine smiled at him, trying to conceal her thoughts. She had time to figure things out still and she needed Thane to trust her. If he grew suspicious, she would be locked up and watched, never having the freedom to search for the answers she sought.

  “It must have been for the best then. I trust you completely, Thane, and I know that John could be rather persuasive. I’m so glad that you are here to protect me from myself and I feel no ill will against you, or for the choice you had to make,” Jazmine spoke as she walked over to the couch to sit next to Thane.

  Jazmine sat down and placed her hand upon his hard thigh. The muscles moving underneath her cold palm. He was beautiful to watch she thought as she placed
a soft kiss upon his lips. Jazmine’s fingers slid inwards towards his crotch as she continued to assault him with her mouth. Her tongue snaked in between his lips, tasting the nutty flavor of the wine he had been sipping on earlier.

  Thane’s hand reached up to her face, stroking her cheek softly as their tongue’s danced in and out of each other’s mouths. Jazmine knew how to work Thane and something deep inside told her she needed to play this dance with him tonight. Her senses were heightened, and she was not sure if it was because of the wine or the feeling that something was about to change.

  Jazmine flung her leg over Thane’s waist, her mouth never leaving his as she straddled him on the couch. She rocked her pelvis back and forth over his bulging manhood. She could feel her own excitement building as her warm juices began to flow. Jazmine’s fingers reached up to touch his already exposed smooth chest. Her fingers tingled with electricity as she slid them downwards over the hard, rippled muscles. When she reached the button at the top of his sleek black pants, she gave one yank and they popped open. Her hand reached in, the tip of her fingers grazing over the tip of his swollen penis. A wet drop already formed on top, letting her know how turned on he was.

  Jazmine wrapped her hand around the shaft and pulled it gently out of its confinement. Thane’s body stiffened the moment her hand wrapped around him. Then began to relax as Jazmine began her ministration of his swollen sword. She slid her hand up and down the long shaft in slow, fluid movements. Jazmine released her mouth from his as she sat up fully, her gaze watching the expressions playing on his face as he enjoyed the sensations of the building orgasm.

  Jazmine could tell he was getting close to his release as his breathing became quicker and shorter. Not wanting to miss out on her own pleasure, she released him from her grip, her hand slippery from the cum he had already released. She rolled off of him and laid herself down on the couch and hiked up her dress. Jazmine’s fingers reached down to rub the wet spot on her silk underwear, her index finger slipping underneath to rub the swollen nub. Jazmine watched Thane sit back so he could plainly see her wet pussy within his appreciative view. He enjoyed the show she was putting on for him.