Stolen Portrait Stolen Soul: A Shadow Slayers Story (Shadow Slayers Stories Book 2)

by Nellie H. Steele

  “I realize that. We’ve not found a solution and nothing I’ve tried has panned out. That only leaves us with the option of keeping him away from her.”

  “Is there anywhere far enough away to stop his hysteria?” Gray asked.

  “How about 1791?”

  “What?” Gray questioned.

  “We’re going back to 1791 to find the painting!” Damien announced.

  “Is the painting that important right now? Is this the best option? It’s rather dangerous,” Gray commented.

  “No more dangerous than him staying here near Celeste,” Celine retorted.

  “We can find a solution,” Gray said.

  “Isn’t Celeste around in 1791?” Damien questioned.

  “She is, but she’s normal. She’d have no effect on him and he will have no desire to be with her,” Celine answered Damien first, then continued, “the painting is an issue even if it isn’t the danger making me sick, this kills two birds with one stone. We don’t have a solution in sight for Celeste. We’re running out of options. My last idea failed. Miserably, I might add. I have no ideas, I see no other options. It would be safest for him to be away from this situation until we solve it. Then we can concentrate on solving Celeste’s issue and not babysitting Michael.”

  “Your last idea? Which was what?” Gray questioned. Celine was quiet for a moment, biting her lower lip. “Well?” Gray prompted.

  “I went to the adjudicator,” Celine admitted.

  Gray’s eyes grew wide and his eyebrows raised. “You did what? Celine, what the hell were you thinking?”

  “We had no other solutions! I tried it as a last-ditch effort!”

  Gray was incredulous. “Alone? You went alone to do this; you didn’t even bother to tell me?!”

  “Well, I was there,” Damien interjected.

  Celine sighed, closing her eyes. “Not great timing, D,” she mumbled under her breath.

  Gray threw his hands in the air. “You took HIM?” he shouted. “A human?”

  “Hey!” Damien objected.

  “No, I didn’t take him. He followed me; I wasn’t aware.”

  “I hope the adjudicator was none the wiser,” Gray commented.

  “Well…” Celine began.

  “Oh, please don’t tell me, Celine,” Gray chided.

  “It sensed him,” Celine said.

  Gray covered his face with his hands before speaking. “Do you realize how irresponsible you both were? You,” he said, pointing to Damien, “are lucky to be alive.”

  “Yeah, I gathered that. This is all on me, though. It was my fault,” Damien said. “She didn’t know I followed her, and she saved my life.”

  “You’re lucky, Celine, that the creature didn’t press the issue with your cousin. For not being blood relatives, you two are alike. Headstrong, the both of you.”

  A new voice entered the conversation. “What is going on down here? What are you shouting about? Is something wrong?” Alexander asked, descending the stairs.

  “Nothing,” Celine began.

  “Well, unless you count the fact that Celine considers sending Damien and Michael to 1791 to find Mina’s painting to be the best solution to the current situation since her meeting with the adjudicator failed,” Gray explained.

  “Celine,” Alexander said, shock plain on his face, “you called on the adjudicator?”

  “Yes, she did. And no, she didn’t tell me,” Gray shouted. “Oh, but she told the human,” he said, pointing to Damien. “who also went to meet the adjudicator.” Gray threw his hands in the air, turning away from them in frustration.

  “You’re lucky to be alive!” Alexander said to Damien. “Celine, what were you thinking?”

  Celine sighed. “I didn’t take him, he followed me. He realizes now what a terrible idea following me was after encountering the adjudicator. But we had no options! I had to try!”

  “Well, I gather this idea did not pan out,” Alexander said.

  “That’s putting it mildly,” Gray said, rejoining the conversation.

  “My point is, perhaps we should make a decision on the situation with Michael. Charlotte, Millie and Avery are with him, but I am not keen on leaving them alone for long with him,” Alexander answered.

  “Yes, thank you,” Celine said. “Let’s please deal with something that we can control.”

  “Fine,” Gray acquiesced, “but we’re not finished with this conversation, Celine.”

  Chapter 18

  The group ascended the stairs, traversing the halls to Michael’s room. They reached his room, hurrying inside as raised voices wafted into the hall. They walked into an argument between Michael, Avery and Charlotte.

  “… just asking you to check on where they are,” Michael argued.

  “You want us to leave, that’s all. And I told you, they’ll be here when they’re here,” Avery answered.

  “Oh, thank heavens!” Charlotte exclaimed. “Here they are. Now you can relax.” She patted Michael’s arm, smiling at him.

  “It’s about time,” Michael responded, aggravation clear in his voice.

  Celine approached Michael, perching on the edge of the bed.

  “Don’t touch me,” Michael warned. “You will not put me into your special sleep, Celine.”

  “We’ll let you talk,” Charlotte said, steering Avery from the room.

  “You need to settle down, this is nonsense,” Gray said, wagging his finger at Michael.

  “You need to let me loose and let me help Celeste,” Michael retorted, pulling at the restraint tethering him to the bed.

  “Enough, both of you!” Celine shouted.

  “It’s not enough…” Michael began.

  “Stop this!” Alexander shouted. “Nothing is being settled with this bickering. We must discuss this matter in a sensible way.”

  “Yeah, besides, there’s a new plan in place. And it means you’ll be out of those handcuffs in no time!” Damien promised.

  “Finally!” Michael declared. “Tell me quick so we can get moving. Celeste needs me!”

  “Wait, wait, before we discuss this, are you sure, Celine?” Gray asked.

  “I’m sure,” Celine said, nodding. “This is the best option we have.”

  “All right, I trust you. Let’s do it,” Gray agreed.

  “I need…” Celine began.

  “She needs us to go back to the past and get the painting back!” Damien blurted out, grinning from ear to ear.

  “What? I can’t do that. I’ve got to be here to help Celeste!” Michael argued.

  “You cannot help Celeste. She insists nothing is wrong and you cannot be too near to her, it’s too much of a temptation. Michael, if she bites you again, you could die. You could become what she is,” Celine explained.

  “I don’t care!” Michael began.

  “No one cares if you care,” Gray said, exasperation in his voice. “You’ll do what she tells you and that’s it.”

  Celine stood from the bed, pacing around the room. “Come on, buddy!” Damien pleaded. “It’ll be fun! The two of us back in action. Time traveling!”

  “How about the two of us back in action right here where we’re needed!” Michael countered.

  “What if you hear it straight from Celeste that she is fine? Would you go then?” Celine asked.

  “Celine, are you crazy?” Gray questioned. “You can’t put the two of them together.”

  Celine ignored him, focusing on Michael, awaiting his response. He considered the question. “I suppose if she insisted that she didn’t need me, I could go,” he answered after a moment.

  “Fine. I’ll see that she’s here as soon as the sun sets. Then you can hear it for yourself. After that, I’ll send the two of you back to 1791.”

  “Deal,” Michael agreed.

  “Celine, I will ask again… are you crazy? You can’t put them together. It’s a disaster waiting to happen,” Gray contended.

  “I trust Celeste, she won’t harm him.”

  “
Well that’s a first,” Gray answered.

  Celine checked her watch. “Only a few more hours to wait. We need to prepare a few items before they travel back. Let’s work on that,” she said, ignoring Gray’s last comment.

  “I’ll help!” Damien offered, excitement in his voice.

  “Great! Then I can fill you in on some details before you travel back. Would you mind waiting with Michael until Celeste is here?” Celine asked Gray and Alexander.

  Gray glanced to Celine. “Before you leave, I’d like to have a word with you first, Celine.”

  “I’ll stay,” Alexander offered. “If Millie will stay with me, we should be fine.”

  “Of course,” Millie accepted.

  Celine sighed. “Okay,” she said, shrugging her shoulders.

  Damien, Celine and Gray exited the room into the hallway. Gray guided Celine toward their suite. Damien followed them, glancing between the two of them. When they reached the double doors leading to their suite, Gray said, “Did you need something, Damien?”

  “Oh,” Damien said, realization dawning on him, “you meant you wanted to talk alone.”

  “If you wouldn’t mind, yes,” Gray answered.

  “Can you give us a few minutes, D?” Celine asked. “I’ll meet you in your room as soon as I’m ready.”

  “Sure. I want to review all my notes anyway,” Damien agreed, wandering back down the hall to disappear into his room.

  Celine and Gray entered the confines of their room. “I have a lot to do…” Celine began before being cut off by Gray.

  “Yes, it seems so. Would you mind including me on all those plans? Perhaps you could try it before you decide to do something and then just do it.”

  “You’re angry,” Celine answered.

  Gray sighed. “I’m frustrated, Celine. You’re making some questionable choices and I do not understand why. I don’t even have any idea you’re making them until they’re already executed.”

  “I don’t think Celeste seeing Michael will be a problem. I have every faith she won’t be that stupid this time around.”

  “To reiterate, faith in your sister is a novel concept for you. That is beside the point. While I don’t trust Celeste as much as you seem to, her visit with Michael can be managed.”

  “So, what’s the issue?” Celine asked.

  “Celine, you went to the adjudicator. You said nothing, you took it upon yourself to do that. That doesn’t sit well with me.”

  Celine did not answer for a moment. “What do you want me to say, Gray?” she finally managed.

  “Why, Celine?”

  “We didn’t have any viable options, and it seemed worth a try.”

  “I mean why didn’t you tell me?” Gray clarified.

  “Because I knew you wouldn’t agree.”

  Gray shut his eyes for a moment, sighing. “So, you deliberately did something you knew I wouldn’t agree with and instead of being honest about it, you did it behind my back.”

  “I did it because you wouldn’t have agreed for a unfair reason, not because you wouldn’t consider it a viable option.”

  “Unfair reason?”

  “We haven’t had a pleasant experience with adjudicators. The very mention of the word would have set you off, and I realized that. It wasn’t worth discussing and arguing about when I knew how you’d react.”

  “Why? Because the last time you visited the adjudicator without my knowledge I lost you for almost twenty-five years?”

  “Exactly,” Celine agreed. Gray sighed again. “There’s no danger of that happening again, Gray. But I didn’t want to venture to convince you of that.”

  Gray eyed her. “All right, it’s over. I’m not happy about it, but it’s over. Please let’s discuss things together from this point forward. Celine, I don’t want to lose you again and I’m not accusing you of anything but…” He paused. “Anything could have happened.”

  Celine considered his words for a moment. “I’m sorry,” she admitted. “I won’t do it again. I’ll come to you first.”

  “Good,” he said, pulling her into an embrace.

  “Then at least you’ll know what I’m doing when I ignore your warnings,” she said, giggling.

  He shook his head at her. “Oh, Celine, you’re too bull-headed for your own good.”

  She grinned at him. “Now, what are your real thoughts about sending them back for the painting?”

  “It’s not the worst idea,” Gray admitted. “Michael needs to be away from Celeste. Far away. And 1791 is pretty far. Albeit, the Duke is there, so it’s an unsafe time. But I guess we’re also there to protect them. So, I guess I’m on board with sending Frick and Frack back for the painting.”

  Celine rolled her eyes at his last statement. “There’s no good solution. Michael is in grave danger here. Sending them back places them in danger too, but they can be discreet. Maybe they won’t even run into Marcus. Come on, we have a lot to do,” she urged, starting to leave.

  “Wait, wait, wait,” he said, pulling her back. “We still have to discuss that you had another attack. The worst of them from what I understand. You collapsed?”

  “I’m fine, we can deal with it later,” she said, attempting to sweep it under the rug.

  “We’ll deal with it now, Celine,” Gray insisted.

  “Yes, I had another attack. Yes, it was the worst of them. It was intense. I plan to talk to Millie about it again. This is happening for a reason, I just don’t understand what it could be. Damien suggested perhaps a residual effect from being human a second time. I don’t know.” She shrugged.

  “Glad you got his expert opinion,” Gray joked. “Why don’t I get Millie now. Let’s discuss this before we do anything else.”

  “All right,” Celine agreed.

  “Good,” Gray said, rubbing her cheek.

  “See, I’m not impossible,” Celine joked. “Ask Damien to sit with Michael. I’ll wait here.”

  “Okay, I’ll be right back,” Gray said, excusing himself from the room.

  Celine sunk into an armchair. Countless things crowded into her mind, however she was glad to be facing this one. The last episode she experienced was by far the worst. Something was amiss. She hoped it turned out to be something as simple as what Damien suggested, but concern grew within her it was not that simple.

  Within minutes, the door opened and Gray ushered Millie into the room.

  “We’re keeping you busy of late,” Celine said.

  Millie laughed. “It keeps me out of trouble,” she said, opening her medical bag. “I will perform another physical exam and then we’ll proceed as usual. Another hypnosis session.”

  “Do you suspect there is a physical cause?” Celine asked.

  “No, I don’t, but I’d like to check once again to determine if there are any physical changes.” Millie ran the standard battery of physical checks. “Nothing different, nothing of any concern. All right, Celine, let’s try the hypnosis again. Relax into the chair, get comfortable. And Gray, this time, no interjecting, please.”

  Gray rolled his eyes at Millie but agreed. Millie began her pendulum swaying, instructing Celine to concentrate on only the movement of the object and Millie’s voice. Within moments, Celine was under the effect of Millie’s hypnosis.

  “All right, Celine. Now that you are fully relaxed, I’d like to learn more about the incident you experienced earlier today in the woods with Damien. Okay?” Celine nodded. “Good. Can you describe the events leading up to your episode?”

  “We were returning from the beach. We took the path through the woods. As we entered a clump of pine trees a sense of danger overcame me. A memory passed through my mind, but it brought pain. I could not stand; I was so overwhelmed by the sensation.”

  “What was the memory, Celine?” Millie inquired.

  Celine’s brows pinched together. “That night in the caves.”

  “The night you became what you are?”

  “Yes. I remember calling out to Celeste, but she did not
respond.”

  “Celine, is there anything else that you can tell me about this incident in particular?” Celine shook her head. Her brow crinkled and she pinched her forehead. Her breath increased. She gripped the chair, digging her feet into the floor. “Celine, what is it?” Celine moaned, wincing. “Celine, tell us what is happening,” Millie insisted.

  Celine’s nostrils flared. “That scent… something about it…” Celine’s breath became more ragged. “Someone is watching…”

  “Who is watching, Celine?”

  Celine shook her head, moaning. “My head… my heart…” she muttered, breathless.

  “What’s wrong with her?” Gray asked. “Is she okay? Physically? Why is she complaining about her heart?”

  Millie continued, ignoring Gray. “Celine, what’s wrong with your heart.”

  “My heart… my heart… someone is watching,” Celine continued.

  “Who, Celine? And why does it affect your heart?”

  Celine moaned again, louder. Her eyes pinched tighter. Perspiration formed as she thrashed in the chair. “I can’t… I can’t…”

  “Celine, calm down, you’re safe. Tell us what is happening, what you feel.”

  “Blood… darkness… cold… who is there? Who are you?” Celine grimaced. “Get away… get away…”

  “Something’s wrong,” Gray said, “bring her out of it.”

  Millie nodded, agreeing as the session spiraled out of control for Celine. “Celine, I will bring you back now. I will count backward from ten and when I reach one, you will awaken.” Millie counted backward until she reached one and awoke Celine.

  Celine’s eyes opened. She peered around as she took a deep breath. “Well?” she asked.

  Gray rushed to her. “Celine, thank God. Are you all right?”

  Confused, Celine responded, “Yes, I’m fine, why?”

  Millie approached, stethoscope in hand. “You were complaining about your head and your heart. I’d like to listen to your heart again if you don’t mind.” She placed the diaphragm of her stethoscope against Celine’s chest, listening for a few moments. Celine squeezed Gray’s hand. After a moment, Millie pulled it away, hanging it around her neck.

  “Well?” Gray demanded, impatiently.