Bloodlines 02: Torment

by Lindsey Anne Kendal

  “Yes you did, but that’s not the reason.”

  “Why then?”

  “Because I was getting too close to you,” he said, moving away from me. “I can’t allow myself to do that.”

  “I don't mind,” I said, walking after him.

  “You would, believe me you would.”

  “No I wouldn’t! I hate it when you leave me, and I miss you like crazy…”

  “Keira, don't! I’m doing my best to fight this. Don't make it any harder for me.”

  “Is this why you used to just turn up, because you wanted to be near me?”

  “Yes,” he said, looking at me again. “But I can’t…”

  “You can.”

  “I need to go.”

  “Take me with you, Eligos…just for a little while, please.”

  “No, your friends will worry about you.”

  “So I’ll call them and tell them I’m with you.”

  “No, not now.”

  He stared at me for a moment before disappearing.

  Chapter Twelve

  Surprise

  When I got home I jumped in the shower and then flopped down on the sofa in the living room. I didn’t move until I heard Lily and Jake come in from work. I said hi and then went outside and sat on my swing, staring at my grave that still hadn't been moved. My mind was completely clear now.

  “I’m sick of seeing that miserable face,” Eligos said as he appeared next to me. “It doesn’t suit you.”

  “So make me smile then.”

  “Get your car keys,” he told me, standing up.

  “Why?”

  “More bloody questions! For once just do as you’re told!”

  He grabbed my arm and dragged me towards the house. We walked in and I got my keys out of the kitchen.

  “Hey,” Lily said, rather shocked when she saw him.

  “Hi, Lily, how are you today?” he asked her.

  “I’m great, thank you.”

  “Glad to hear it. Now I hope you don't mind but I’m stealing your friend for an hour or so.”

  “Oh, OK, well at least I know she’ll be safe, or at least she will be if you don't end up fighting again.”

  “We won’t fight and I won’t keep her too long,” he told her.

  We walked through the hall, out the front door and towards the car.

  He wouldn’t tell me where we were going; he just told me to head into the countryside. He wound the window down and sat back with his eyes closed, letting the breeze blow on his face and through his hair. I had to fight with myself to keep my eyes on the road. He was so amazingly gorgeous; I could happily sit there and stare at him all day, every day.

  “We’ve been driving over half an hour – where are we going?” I asked.

  “You can stop anywhere you like, it doesn’t really matter; I was just enjoying the breeze too much to stop you driving.”

  I slammed my foot on the break and we screeched to a stop.

  “What was that for?” he asked.

  “Oh look at you asking questions,” I said nastily, getting out of the car.

  “What’s wrong with you?”

  “You’re what’s wrong…You infuriate me!”

  “OK,” he said carelessly.

  He got out of the car and leaned against the bonnet.

  “You know sometimes I wonder why I speak to you; I wonder why I don't just let you quit,” I said coldly.

  “Because you know you can tell me anything; you can talk to me about things your friends don't understand. Oh and because I know that some part of you, no matter how small, actually likes me. Why else would you have gotten so pissed when I said I was quitting?”

  “You keep telling yourself that.”

  He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. He held it in the palm of his hand and then a few seconds later, it burst into flames. I watched as he let the ashes fall to the ground. Then he spoke.

  “See how pissed she is,” he said, looking up at the sky “I need you, mate; besides, you owe me.”

  “Who are you talking to?”

  “An angel.”

  “Oh now I’ve heard it all.”

  “She doesn’t believe me. I don't like being made out to be a liar,” he added, this time looking at me.

  “You’re not amusing,” I told him, heading back to the car. “Just go home.”

  “Keira?” I heard a man say.

  I stopped dead in my tracks; my whole body started shaking badly. I turned around slowly, frightened in case this was some sick joke. But when I saw him I knew it wasn’t.

  “Dad!” I choked.

  “Hello, princess,” he smiled, holding his arms open.

  I ran over to him and threw my arms around him. He picked me up and spun me around a few times before putting me back on the ground.

  “How did you get here?” I asked.

  “It seems someone owed your friend over there a favor,” he said, looking at Eligos.

  “How long are you here for?”

  “Not long, sweetheart; we’re not supposed to do this; you’re not supposed to be able to see me.”

  “Oh,” I sobbed as a tear ran down my face.

  “You’ve grown into a beautiful young woman. I always knew you would.”

  “Well, I had a good-looking dad,” I told him.

  We both laughed for a moment.

  “I know what you did for your friend, and I know what’s inside you.”

  “Oh.”

  “I’m proud of you,” he smiled. “You’re an amazing young woman.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Don't ever change; follow your heart like you always have; it won’t lead you astray.”

  “Dad, I know who did this to you.”

  “I thought you might,” he said seriously.

  “I swear I’ll get her.”

  “She’s very dangerous, Keira; please don't do anything stupid.”

  “I won’t, I promise. God, it’s so good to see you,” I said, hugging him again.

  “I wish I didn’t have to leave you again,” he sighed, kissing my forehead. “But my time’s up.”

  He cupped my face and wiped my tears away with his thumbs.

  “I love you, darling,” he said as he started to fade away. “I’ll always be watching over you.”

  “I love you, Dad.”

  I watched as he faded away completely with a smile on my face.

  “Do I still infuriate you?” Eligos asked sarcastically.

  I turned round to see him smiling at me.

  “I can’t believe you did that,” I said.

  “It put a smile on your face, didn’t it? And isn’t that what you told me to do?”

  “You know sometimes, just sometimes…you amaze me.”

  “Hmmm, only sometimes; well, I suppose I can live with that.”

  I walked over and stood in front of him.

  “Are you going to pass me to someone else or not?” I asked.

  “No.”

  “Good, I swear I will never attack you again,” I said, letting out a sigh of relief.

  “Keira, it wasn’t the attack that pissed me; it was the fact that you could have been killed. You didn’t call for me when you knew he was strong. I know you’re strong, but you haven’t mastered even a quarter of your power yet and until you master it all you’re going to need help.”

  “I know I was a bloody idiot and acting cocky; I was just so annoyed…Eligos, do you only see me as a job and Lilith’s daughter?”

  “I wish I did.”

  I couldn’t help but smile, but he didn’t smile back. I reached up and kissed him on his cheek. His eyes went wide, showing just how big they actually were.

  “That was for bringing my dad here,” I told him. Then I reached up and kissed his other cheek. “That was just because I wanted to.”

  “You wouldn’t do that if you knew the real me.”

  That took me by surprise and I stood there looking at him with a frown on my face. I’d spent
the best part of three months with him…how could I not know the real him?

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked him.

  “It means, what you see isn’t what you get.”

  As soon as he finished his sentence he disappeared.

  All the way back to my house I was wondering what he could have meant. I knew he wasn’t a horrible person; I knew him well enough to know that. I knew he cared about me and that he wouldn’t hurt me, so it couldn’t have been anything to do with that. ‘What you see isn’t what you get.’ Those words went through my head over and over, repeating themselves like a broken record.

  When I walked in the house I found Lily and Jake in the living room. They told me the others had decided to give us some peace that night and had stayed at home with their families. I was relieved really; I didn’t want to have to put a smile on my face to stop them from worrying. I walked into the living room and stood in front of them both.

  “I need to ask you something,” I said.

  “Fire away,” Jake said.

  “Would you mind if I went away for a few days.”

  “Do you mean back to Hell?” Lily asked.

  “Yeah,” I answered.

  “Keira, we know you’re not dead; that makes a big difference,” Jake said. “If it’s something you either need or want to do, then you must do it. We’re not your keepers, no matter how badly some of us wished we were.”

  “Thanks, guys.”

  “Just let us know when you go, so we don't worry and wonder where you are.”

  “I will.”

  I walked up to my room, smiling to myself for a moment. Then I shut the door and sat on my bed.

  “Eligos,” I said.

  “You know sometimes I wish you didn’t know my name,” I heard him say from behind me.

  “Tough!” I giggled. “You could always ignore me.”

  “I might try that next time.”

  I turned around to see him lying back on my bed with his hands underneath the back of his head.

  “Comfy?” I asked.

  “Quite, thank you.”

  “I want you to tell me what you meant before.”

  “Keira, just forget it.”

  “I don't want to?”

  “Tough!”

  “Please, it’s driving me mad,” I said, moving so I was lying on my side next to him.

  He got off the bed quickly and stood next to it instead.

  “Why do you do that? When I was in Hell with you, you wouldn’t stay close to me for long. You never seem to want to come near me; you won’t catch anything you know.”

  “I know.”

  “So what's the problem?”

  “Like I said before, I can’t get close to you.”

  “You say you can’t, but do you want to?” I asked him.

  “It doesn’t matter whether I do or not.”

  “What if I want to get close to you?”

  “Look, I’m not arguing with you,” he said walking away from me. “Let’s just leave it there, OK.”

  “But…”

  “Please!” he almost pleaded. “Don't do this to me.”

  “I don't understand you. You want to be close to me, but when I try you push me away. What about how I feel? Doesn’t that matter?”

  “Yes, of course it does, but it doesn’t change anything, you live here, I don't. I’m older than you, and you have people here who love you and who you could be with.”

  “How can I be with them? I’m not like them anymore, and what if it’s not them I want to be with?”

  “This needs to stop.”

  “Or what? You’ll decide to get someone else to watch over me?” I asked.

  “If I have to I will, whether I want to or not.”

  “I can’t believe you,” I said, turning away from him.

  “Hate me if you want, I would rather you hate me than get close to me. One day you would find out about me, and you would leave me…Keira…I couldn’t handle that.”

  When I turned to look at him again, he had gone.

  There was a knock on my door and Lily walked in.

  “Hey,” she said, closing the door behind her. “I take it you and Eligos are OK now.”

  “I don't know what we are and what we’re not.”

  “Where did he take you?”

  “To see my dad.”

  “What?” She almost choked.

  “Yep, it seems an angel owed him a favor, so he claimed it and brought my dad here for a few minutes.”

  “Wow!”

  “Yeah, I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was amazing, Lily. I hugged him and talked to him, and he knows what I am and what's happened recently.”

  “What did he say?”

  “He said he was proud of me,” I smiled.

  “I knew he would be, and I told you Eligos liked you. Doesn’t that prove it?”

  “I know he does.”

  “What!” she gasped, getting excited. “Tell me more?”

  “There’s nothing to tell, he won’t get close to me. He said if I was to see the real him I would leave him. He said he wouldn’t be able to handle that.”

  “What did he mean?”

  “I don't know, he wouldn’t tell me.”

  “If he said he couldn’t handle you leaving him, then it sounds to me that he likes you more than he’s letting on.”

  “It doesn’t matter though, does it? I can’t have him.”

  She didn’t know what to say to me so she sat there cuddling me instead.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Warning

  It had been three days since my conversation with Eligos. I hadn't called out to him and he hadn't appeared. Lily hadn't mentioned his name and I hadn't spoken about him with anyone. I told them I’d changed my mind about going back to Hell for a while; after all, what was the point in going when your reason for going in the first place wouldn’t be close to you. I was sitting with Danny and Lucian at one of the tables on the deck beside my house.

  “Right, Keira, it’s Friday, so how do you fancy a night out to Heaven and Hell?” Danny asked.

  “Yeah, I’m up for that,” I told him.

  “I’ll call the others and let them know,” Lucian said, pulling his phone out and walking away from us.

  “Tyler told me what happened the other week,” Danny whispered. “Don't worry; I haven’t said anything to anyone.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Why can’t you two be together?”

  “Danny, I don't want to talk about it right now.”

  “OK, no problem,” he said sweetly.

  “Right, the others are up for it,” Lucian said, joining us again. “I said we’d all meet there about nine.”

  It was four o’clock now, so they decided to go home and have their dinner and get ready. I had two hours to myself now before Lily and Jake got back. I don't know why Jake hadn't just moved in; he spent all his time round here anyway. I ran a nice hot bath and stayed in there for over an hour just trying to relax. My mind had been working overtime these last few days. All I could think about was Eligos. I think Lily was right; in fact I knew she was. I was in love with him, desperately! I kept thinking what it would be like if we were together, to be able to hold him and kiss him, to have him hold me and hear him say he loved me. It didn’t matter how many times I told myself I couldn’t have him; I knew I would never stop wishing and hoping.

  By the time Lily and Jake came home I was out of the bath and picking my outfit out. I chose my little black dress that came halfway down my thighs. It was low cut and had an open back. It looked really nice with my black leather boots and jacket. At eight we were all downstairs ready to go, and decided to leave; at least if we got there early we would get a good table. We called a taxi and set off.

  “Well, I tell you, there are a lot of guys who would love to be in my position at the moment,” Jake smiled.

  “What do you mean?” Lily asked.

  “Sitting between two beautiful women.”
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  Both of us smiled at him.

  When we arrived at the club Jake went to get the drinks while me and Lily went to get a table. We chose a table next to the dance floor. It was quite busy considering how early it was. Jake brought the drinks over and sat next to Lily.

  “I’ve missed this place,” I told them.

  “I know; so have I,” Jake said. “I love it here; you can be yourself.”

  “Hey, guys,” Tyler smiled as he sat next to me. “You’re here early.”

  “So are you!” I said.

  “I got fed up and thought I’d come and wait for you all.”

  “Are the others with you?” Lily asked him.

  “No, but they should be here soon.” He took his jacket off and put it under the table. “You look very nice,” he said to me.

  “Thank you.”

  He looked me up and down a few times then looked me in the eyes and smirked.

  “Behave!” I told him, giggling and giving him a playful slap on his arm.

  “Keira, come and dance with me,” Lily said, grabbing my hand.

  “Do I have a choice?” I asked as she dragged me over to the dance floor.

  We ended up staying on the dance floor until Lucian and Danny arrived. Then we went back to the table for a while. Tyler went to the bar to get us both a drink, so Lucian pinched his seat next to me.

  “He’ll kill you when he gets back,” Jake told Lucian.

  “Oh well,” he said, turning to me and smiling.

  “You two drive me crazy,” I told him. “It’s not a competition.”

  “I know it’s not, but he hogs you; the rest of us would like to spend time with you too.”

  “I don't want any nastiness.”

  “Come and dance with me,” he said.

  “Oh, I’ve only just sat down,” I moaned jokingly.

  “Well, just get back up.”

  “We’re coming too,” Lily said, grabbing Jake’s arm.

  “Where are you all going?” Tyler asked as he put the drinks on the table.

  “To dance,” Lucian told him with a smirk.

  The look on Tyler’s face was a picture.

  “OK that’s enough,” I said, pushing Lucian towards the dance floor. “Stop winding him up.”

  Suddenly Lily grabbed my arm.

  “Keira, look!” she said, pointing towards one of the fire exits.

  I looked over and saw Eligos watching me. My stomach did a somersault. The guys looked over and saw him.