The Pentagram Child: Part 1 (Afterlife Saga Book 5)

by Stephanie Hudson

  “I know of your pain Brother, you know I do but what you don’t know is the full depth of hers.” On hearing this I laughed without a shred of humour. I was just about to deny this ridiculous statement when he held up a hand to stop me.

  “You are not listening to me…just stop for a second and calm yourself, I can see your Demon breaking through.” I frowned and then looked down at myself to see he was right. Even my wings had erupted and I had not even felt it. I shook my head to try and bring forth the lock and key I kept that part of me controlled under.

  “Now hear me Brother, for what I say now should have been said a long time ago but you were never ready…I had feared until recently you would never be ready..”

  “And what makes you so sure I am now?” I growled.

  “Because for the simple fact is you are here…you came all this way to see her the second you thought she was in trouble but more importantly…you stayed.” I knew he had a point as soon as he started. I had spent all this time wallowing in my own Hell and self-pity convincing myself and others that I would never see her again when it was all in vain. The second I found that not only was there another man in her life but a damned Nephilim at that and I was back at her mercy.

  “Fine! You made your point so speak and get it over with!” If my brother had smiled like I knew he wanted to at that moment he would have been the next thing my fist encountered.

  “It is not so much what I need to tell you but more what you need to find.” As soon as he said this I watched as he released the full magnificence that were his heavenly wings. They were different to mine, not just in colour as his were a startling brilliant white but also in shape. They were larger at the top but curled round thinner at the bottom and that came past his ankles. They also skimmed the floor when they were relaxed which I always teased him about, asking if they annoyed him. His reaction was always the same as he rolled his eyes and as usual I would fend off a punch heading my way.

  “What are you up to?” I asked as he stretched out readying himself to take flight.

  “You know where we are going?” I nodded as I knew these woods as I knew my own vessel and what I would find opposite the cliff’s edge at the end of this track.

  “Then you will find out when we get there.” This was the last thing he said before he launched himself into the air and I watched a brilliant flash of white disappear envying his speed. I took a moment to breathe deep readying myself for the blow I knew was coming. When I finally opened my eyes I too launched my body into the sky to catch up with my brother.

  “You were always the faster one.” I said as I landed on the ledge to my cave to find Vincent there waiting. He never took a step inside and I let the level of my love and appreciation for my Brother flow freely from my mind. He gave me a sad smile and then walked up to me to place his hand at my shoulder.

  “Just remember, this was her only way,” he said lowering his head in a sign of deep respect. He then gave my shoulder a squeeze before he left the only space that had never been tainted by another soul other than that of two people who loved each other enough to give their lives in the name of that love.

  I waited until I heard him land in the distance then I lifted my eyes from the floor. I pushed all my hair back with one hand and held it to the base of my neck as I took in her lingering presence. To feel how faint it was brought me back to earlier and being in her bedroom once more.

  I first felt confused as to why nothing had been touched in so long and then the pain I saw in her eyes when she tried to explain. She didn’t notice my reaction as she turned away but if she hadn’t been trying to mask her own suffering then she would have seen my own.

  I took in the space and was instantly transported back to that first time I brought her here. Ever since I had found out about her becoming the Maiden needed as her part in the Triple Goddess I had always known I would claim her here. In this space which was the only place that truly was my own. It had become a bit of an obsession once I knew and I couldn’t help but smile when thinking back to her obvious frustrations at making her wait.

  But for me, it was the last part of perfection that should have always been mine to take, to possess and to own. I had her heart that was as clear as her holding my own captive.

  But then to be given the chance at being the first and last man to take her body, well something primal snapped within me and the thought was now making me murderous! I hadn’t truly let myself think about it before now but what if this cretin of the earth had touched her? What if he had tasted that purity and in doing so trying to sully it with his own unworthy hands?!

  “اجازه دهید که خدایان او را لعنت به جهنم!” ( ‘Let the Gods damn him back to Hell!’) I screamed out at the ceiling in my vessel’s native tongue with enough rage to cause the rock to shake. I quickly had to get control enough to stop my private space from caving in on itself. It took me back to every other time this had happened and every one of them included my Keira.

  This was the place I flew off to after setting her down safely in her home after first meeting her in the meadow. The same was said after making the decision to distance myself from her and lying about Celina in order to save her from another attack from Layla. Even now the name of that vile bottom feeder made me want to destroy something.

  “Get a handle on it!” I shouted at myself trying not to let my emotions manifest the only way they knew how…into rage. But there were other times too. Like when I had Ava searching the skies for where Sammael had taken her. I had stood on the edge waiting until finally hearing Keira’s call. In that instance I don’t think Vincent had anything on that type of speed that spoke of only desperation.

  But the one distinct difference between all those times and now was back then I still had her heart but now…well now I had not only trampled that heart but I had practically threw it back in her face and walked away. So no matter what Vincent thought I needed to find it wouldn’t have made any difference. The Fates had decided and I could never take that chance…ever.

  So with this dejection in mind I slumped down back on the bed letting my wings cushion my landing on the black sheets. I let my mind take me back to that night. The most precious night of my life other than the first time I felt my body join with hers. The moment our souls connected and fused together in an everlasting union that even death could not part.

  My entire body shivered as the memory took hold, staring into her eyes as she found her pleasure of release from the feel of me stroking that deeper part within her. They would glaze over and go out of focus and then that would be the end of me. Seeing that was like flipping a switch to my control, rendering me utterly spellbound and powerless. Yet my goddess had no clue to the power she held in just her eyes alone.

  The thought made me groan and bang my head back against the pillows.

  “What’s this?” My voice felt foreign due to the thundering in my chest. I turned my head and the first thing I could sense was like a kick to the gut!

  “You cried for me little one.” I said running my fingertips over the place I knew her tears had landed all that time ago. Was this what I was supposed to find…the evidence of what I did to her? Well if so then it was all in vain just like I knew it would be. I didn’t need to scent her tears to know she had shed them!

  I got up angry with myself for letting Vincent bring me here. I knew this was all I would find and what did it accomplish exactly, only more cracks to add to an unclaimed heart?

  “Foolish old man!” I cursed as I heaved myself up from the floor ready to leave this place and never return! I stretched out my wings and walked to the edge to take in this sight, hopefully for the last time. No, I could never come back here. So with this in mind I turned one last time as something inside me told me just one last look. I needed to see it as it was that morning.

  I had got up and stood right here as the sun rising filled the cave with the softest glow. I remember being transfixed on her skin, the way it shone like an
Angel’s would but somehow seeing it on a human was one of the most beautiful sights I had ever witnessed. She lay so still and so peaceful I remembered smiling knowing how I had tired her out. Her leg was tangled in the black covers and her hand held in a loose fist at her lips. And then there was her hair, like a rope of gold where she had plaited it at some point in the night so it wouldn’t…

  “Wait!” I shouted suddenly as I was seeing the impossible.

  “It couldn’t be…” I whispered as my footsteps caught jarring me forward.

  “No…no…oh, Keira my darling no!” I spoke to no one as my knees hit the bed and I pulled out the golden plait I found sticking out from under the pillow. I must have disturbed its resting place for now I sat back on my haunches holding in my hands the softest most beautiful hair in the world. I couldn’t believe it as much as I could. Was there ever any end to the level of love that girl had for me?

  Even as I asked myself this in my mind I quickly thought to what I knew about her…about how she did things and if Keira had to say goodbye what else would she have done. This thought had me throwing the pillows wildly away until I found I was right. As there I found a small white envelope with my name written across. Only this time it wasn’t Draven, it was…

  Dominic.

  Dominic,

  I thought for a long time how to start this letter. I mean how does a letter like this even start, as I have no clue, for I only know how this letter should end.

  Reading your own letters felt like hearing your voice for the very last time, which was as much beautiful as it was soul crushing. Because that’s what it feels like without you. It feels like someone has taken a piece of me away and left an empty shell in which no heart needs to beat to keep alive.

  The pain is unlike anything I have ever known and I think we both know I have known my fair share of pain. But this? I guess the simplest way to put it is that it fills my days with moments that are hard to breathe.

  I don’t know whether or not it’s easier that I don’t have a body to bury or even a way to say goodbye, so this was the only way I could think of. But I wanted you to know that I can no longer wait for a normal life I don’t ever want to happen to come and find me. I can’t choose that path to walk down because I already know my destination is you. And whether it be in this life or the next, I will stop at nothing until I join with you again. Because, my Dominic, I would give my life for you and would brave going against the Fates at every turn.

  And do you know why? Because you are my fate and that is all that matters. That and my everlasting love for you that I believe with every beat of my heart, that our love is the most powerful force in my world and yours. I believe our love can silence the Fates and defeat any Gods that stand in our way. And I leave on my quest to find you and prove this to you.

  I am coming to save you and I know I will succeed because all I need is my love for you.

  For I will never stop and I can only pray you feel the same. That you never give up in the only truth that matters and that is us being together Fates be damned.

  So I say not goodbye in this letter but only that I will see you again soon and to trust in your love as I do mine.

  The greatest love I possess is forever yours as am I.

  Your Keira.

  P.s I left you a gift that only you deserve for the happiness I saw in your eyes whenever you held it meant the world to me as did you. Keep a piece of me safe and with you always.

  “So know you finally see.” Vincent’s voice filled the void and I looked up completely unashamed as my tears ran freely.

  “Now I see.” I finally managed to say as I stood up gripping both pieces of my girl in my hands. I walked over to him and looked out seeing the view in a completely different light to before.

  “And?” He prompted making me turn to look at him. I felt as though my heart was going to burst as these new feelings coursed around my vessel making me feel human for the first time in all my long life. I momentarily looked down at her hair wrapped around my fist and then to her words I held in the other.

  The decision was made and there would never be any going back…not this time.

  “Dom?”

  “We go to Italy.” I said looking at him and seeing the first real smile light his eyes since this all began.

  “And the Fates?” I knew he had to ask and he knew he had to ask but now as I looked back at the sky and the sun starting to set on this day, I knew now there was a mighty difference…

  “Fuck the Fates!”

  Keira

  Chapter 19

  And it Begins.

  “What do you mean there is a problem?” Alex snapped at the poor receptionist who had repeated herself twice now. I placed a hand on Alex’s forearm and for a second I wasn’t sure he wouldn’t shrug it off in anger. Thankfully he must have thought better of it because he took my hand in his and squeezed it before continuing on in a calmer tone.

  “Please, if you could explain it to us again.”

  “I am sorry Sir, but we must have had a problem in the bookings department as it seems on the system your room has already been allocated to another guest.” She looked about ready to get her head bitten off again and before this could happen I started speaking.

  “Okay, so we understand that these things happen but can you help us in any way or even recommend another hotel?” I asked in a kind manner even when Alex scoffed when I said ‘we understand’ which clearly he didn’t. I was happy to say she smiled at me and seemed more than pleased she was no longer dealing with my irate boyfriend.

  “Well, we do have a sister hotel I could check for you, however it is…how do I put this…?”

  “More expensive” I finished for her, obviously guessing right when she blushed.

  “Yes Signora.”

  “Great!” Alex said with frustration making the poor girl jump.

  “If you could call that would be great.” I said choosing to ignore Alex and his abrupt ways. I mean yes, this was the hotel’s fault but that didn’t mean that this particular girl was to blame. I felt like pointing this out but I could tell it would fall on deaf ears at the moment. I was just happy when she nodded and picked up the phone.

  We stood there waiting as other lucky guests came and went with their key cards in hand ready to start their holiday. I can’t say I didn’t envy them and not just because we were seemingly stuck in Italy with nowhere to stay. No, for me it started when I walked into the airport like a zombie thanks to Draven’s abrupt dismissal. I never thought on closing my eyes I would then open them again to find Draven walking away without one word of goodbye. That was when my world went dark. It was as if someone had taken my sun and pushed me forward saying, ‘now time to get on with it girl!’

  So that is what I did. I turned around and walked straight into the nearest bathroom and cried for twenty minutes. It then took me a further ten minutes to sort myself out thus making me half an hour late. Needless to say Alex wasn’t impressed. To be honest at the time I hadn’t given a wet welly for his mood and was more than tempted to just wheel my suitcase out of there and go home. But after sensing my own mood he quickly changed his tune and was once more my sweet and attentive Alex. Now though…not so much.

  “I have some good news.” The receptionist brought me out of my dark place and I turned to see she looked slightly shocked at the outcome.

  “Our sister hotel has agreed to give you both rooms for no extra charge and as a way of apology is sending a car over to take you there personally.” My eyes widened in surprise and just as I stepped forward to thank her Alex put an arm around me and said,

  “Now that’s better” I couldn’t help frown at his tone and hissed,

  “Alex.” This was something he ignored of course.

  “Thank you so much for sorting that out for us and it’s very kind of them to send a car.” I said making the woman smile at me.

  “You’re welcome and once again we apologise for any inconvenience. If you would like to wait
over there in that seating area a car will be with you both shortly.” I smiled again at her and gripped my suitcase to wheel over to the plush chairs I was getting desperate to sit in.

  It had been a long flight and one made even longer thanks to the past few days. That’s the problem with flights. It gave you no other excuse than to face your problems. You can’t pass the time with work or hanging out with friends. Or even throw yourself into course work and studying for exams like I had done. No, it gave you a cage the size of a seat and forced you to sit there and reflect on all the things you really didn’t want to think about.

  Well for me it was always the same thing and those thoughts didn’t include the man who had sat next to me snoozing most of the way across the pond. It had only included one face. One perfectly handsome face that had long ago become painful to look at. It was like every time I saw him it would then throw me stumbling back in the rabbit hole of wonders. It would transport me back to all those times I had touched that face, kissed those lips and simply marvelled at the sight of his smile.

  Of course by the time we landed all those visions of splendour had manifested into only one sight and that was his back as he walked away. I vowed from that moment that on that the sight of him leaving was going to be the very last time. I simply couldn’t do it anymore. He had broken me for the last time and I knew deep down that a man who could do that didn’t love me like I had once thought. From this I then concluded that no man deserved your love when they themselves couldn’t ever love you back. So that was it…

  Draven and I were done. Finished. Dead.

  “Well I am glad that got sorted.” Alex said sitting down in the chair next to mine. I wanted to roll my eyes at his tone but managed to hold back enough of my foul mood to refrain.