Yuri nodded.
"Lennox said he began interacting with the ring soon after it was given to him."
"I have another question. When you told me Caspian removed Lennox, what did that mean, exactly?" I had to know. I got that he wasn't in the picture, but no one had clarified it to date.
Yuri didn't answer, but stared at me, a strange smile coming over his face. His eyes held something that left me weirded out.
"When a vampire is removed, they are taken out of existence. They aren't dead, they simply... aren't. It's as if they never did exist. It's the final act for breaking a significant rule within the sect and rarely happens."
"So Lennox doesn't exist?"
His smile got bigger. "Yes, he does. Lennox is in the ring."
I nearly fell off my chair.
"How? You said the ring held the energy of the vampires who've tried to take it by force. Lennox already had the ring."
"The ring can also hold the energy of a noble vampire, if it chooses. When Caspian destroyed Lennox, the ring took him in. Lennox is in the ring."
I jumped, shaking my hand as if the ring were infected.
"You can't take it off, not until you have the word of the one who agrees to change you."
"What if Nix or Rein agrees, but changes their mind after I've taken off the ring?"
Yuri's gaze broke with mine. "The ring will destroy him. For a vampire to pledge to change you and renege would result in the ring taking their energy."
Could it get any more complicated?
"Are there notes prepared with all this information—to refer back to in case I get lost along the way?" Sarcasm—my first choice for a defense mechanism.
"It is rather overwhelming, I agree, but I needed to tell you everything and now I have." Yuri smiled, but it was filled with sadness.
"Am I going to get out of this alive?" The fatigue was closing in on me faster than the terror of what Yuri had presented. I needed to sleep.
"To bed with you, I'll be here, guarding until there is a resolution to the bell-ringing." He indicated for me to go back into the room, but I noted he hadn't answered my question.
I did and without argument. I slid under the covers, fully dressed, but unable to keep my eyes open a moment longer. The dark void of sleep met me and finally, the longest day of my life was over.
Chapter Six
I woke to the sound of voices drifting in from the balcony. I sat up, getting my bearings, before shuffling to the side of the bed.
"Good morning and Merry Christmas, Rachel." Suddenly Nix stood not a foot from me, his eyes brimming with sorry and concern.
"Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday, Rachel." Yuri winked and I caught just a hint of triumph that he'd remembered my birthday and Nix hadn't.
"Yes, Happy Birthday, Rachel," Nix recovered. "The night was uneventful. My staff searched and watched, but nothing came of our efforts. Please wash and dress and come to the great room. I believe there is something there for you..." He delivered a too-handsome mysterious smile before the two of them exited.
A silver tray with a cup of coffee and a strudel was on the bedside table. Nice. Wolfram had managed to get it here without waking me.
The first thing I did was go out onto the balcony. I loved the view and the feel of the morning air. I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to untangle its slept-in mess. Nothing would dampen my mood—today was Christmas and I was eighteen!
"Happy Birthday, Rachel Owens. You've made it to another year." The rest of my hopes I thought rather than said aloud. I wished not to be alone any more, to be able to live in a wonderful home and to be loved and not have to worry about money or to struggle trying to manage to survive. I wanted to have a normal, happy life. Was that too much to ask for?
The feeling in the pit of my stomach told me it was. I needed to get down to the shore and be by the water, but it was Christmas morning and they were expecting me. For once, the thought of a stocking filled with goodies wasn't high on my list. Ironic or was it that I'd gone past it with Yuri's information dump?
I stole one last glance out to the ocean, pining for those azure waters and the feel of sand between my toes. It would happen; it was my birthday present to me.
After a quick shower, I applied a light make-up and dressed for the day. The light blue floral sleeveless blouse would be good for the beach. I paired it with Capri's and a pair of slide sandals, finding they fit nicely. Back in Lonsdale it was winter and the sun here called to me.
Wolfram was standing outside my room when I left. The servant hadn't made a sound, and I wondered how long he'd been waiting.
"Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday, Miss Owens, please allow me to escort you to the great room."
The smile, the overly bright eyes, his too-formal manner...yeah, I had to mess with him.
"Wolfram, do you have a bell I could ring?" I kept my face serious, hoping to tip him.
"What?" Terror, sheer terror came over the poor guy.
"I'm joking." I squeezed his shoulder.
"Oh, yes, of course, Miss Owens. Good thing, we could have faced a very unpleasant scenario last night."
He indicated for me to go ahead and I did. Nothing seemed unusual or different in the castle today. The heat was already building, each time we passed a window I felt it pushing in from outside. I wanted to be on the beach, but duty called.
"Are you excited to see what Santa left for you?" Wolfram chirped.
Santa? Was that what Nix was calling himself these days.
"I'm sure it will be beyond anything I could imagine." There, polite, but I'd managed to slide in a jibe, not that Wolfram would get it.
He nodded enthusiastically. "I can hardly wait to see what Count Vicar has put in my stocking this year."
Unbelievable—a minion excited about Christmas. What does one gift their minion with? Notepads to keep lists? A shiny new silver tray to carry things on? A book about exceeding all expectations?
I bit down on my lower lip, trying to compose myself before we reached the great room. Finally that arched entrance came up and I went through.
Nix and Yuri were standing by the tree. Boxes and packages, all wrapped in festive paper were stacked high around the Christmas tree, dwarfing it. No bells. All the bells had been removed from the tree. What, didn't he trust me?
As I neared the tree, a thought hit me—I hadn't got gifts for anyone. I felt like a heel. Here I'd been consumed with Christmas, but hadn't thought of getting Nix or Yuri anything.
"Merry Christmas, boys." They weren't boys, but it was my term of affection for the two creatures that'd played such significant roles in my life.
"Are you feeling older?" Yuri teased.
"Ancient. Perhaps I should drink my own blood and revive me." Ouch. Nix shot me a hurt look.
"Everyone has a stocking and presents under the tree. I thought we'd have our coffee and pastries while we open them." Nix indicated for Wolfram to pour the coffee.
"I want to apologize that I didn't get gifts."
"Having you here with us is a gift." Nix came close, trailing his finger along my cheek. "We'll have cake and birthday celebrations this evening. I've had Wolfram do up the patio that faces the ocean."
And so we opened present after present, and I was amazed at how extravagant my vampire was. Even Yuri looked overwhelmed by the Count's generosity. The stockings had been stuffed to overflowing. There were chocolates and oranges, a set of drawing pencils, and a heart-shaped rock with the word forever etched into it.
"What, no bell?" I complained, making a face at Nix.
He balked, but quickly recovered, realizing I'd put him on.
"You are trouble, Rachel Owens."
But I sensed a smile under that scowl. We laughed and relaxed, and I found myself having far too many of the pastries. Yuri and Nix exchanged gifts, but they were light-hearted, meant as jokes. Yuri gave Nix a list of the blood banks within a 100-mile radius of Lonsdale. Nix gave Yuri a list of plastic surgery clinics. Neith
er seemed offended by the other's gift. Both had been around for centuries, and would have accumulated wealth, so didn't want for much. From what I'd seen of this castle and what he had, Nix wasn't hurting.
I glanced up, feeling his gaze on me. It was then I remembered asking the ring to prevent Nix and the others from reading my thoughts. I blew him a kiss, pleased that he'd been unbalanced by the recent change and as yet, hadn't confronted me about it.
But the ocean was calling and I needed to go.
"I want to thank you both for a wonderful Christmas morning. As you know, I'm eighteen today and I'd like to spend the day at the beach. I need to be alone and think."
Yuri nodded. "Go and enjoy the day. You deserve to."
Nix had that worried look and I wondered if he'd be lurking in a bush like some mother hen.
"Would you like me to accompany you?" Nix asked.
"I'll be fine. Nothing happened last night, so there's a good chance no one came through into this dimension. Don't worry, Count, I'm going to walk along past the rocks and go to that powdery silver sand. I just wish I had my sketch pad."
"It's on the dresser in your room. I had Wolfram retrieve it from your place, along with all your belongings."
Even Yuri stood blinking in surprise.
"What? Why?" I had to set my coffee down.
"I can't allow you to return there, Rachel, it's too dangerous. Before you leave here, we'll need to come up with a new place for you to live, the Hall's place isn't secure. Caspian, Rein and Alistair will all be after you and that is only the beginning."
"All my things are here? What about the Halls and my worker?" I wanted to run to my room, but we needed to have this conversation.
"Yes. I took care of everything. The worker was contacted to let her know a relative was found. I had Wolfram present as your uncle from Europe. The Halls have been notified and Wolfram dropped off a nice big check to them to soften the blow of losing their tenant. You've been taken out of the system and don't have to answer to anyone." Nix eyed me. "Happy birthday, Rachel, this is my gift to you."
But it was Christmas Day and nothing was open and the Halls were away...
"How could you do this today? Everything is shut."
A smug smile came over the count. "Is it, really? Perhaps it's Christmas magic, but you don't believe in that, do you?"
Floored. Shocked. He couldn't have unseated me more if he'd pushed me off a chair. It was what I'd gone on about the other evening. He'd given me everything I'd asked for.
"What is the price?" I waited, hoping he wasn't going to say I had to live in the dimension and give up school.
"The price is Yuri and I being on guard and making certain nothing happens to you. You do realize vampires will come after you, Rachel. That ring protects you, but they can still try to break you. It will be an on-going battle, but I'll do it. I want you to be happy."
"You know what I think." Yuri smiled, all mischievous. "Why don't you go and have the day at the beach and I'll fill Nix in with some of what we spoke about. I'm sure he has some questions."
Nix nodded silently, but I could see he was clearly annoyed that he'd been left out of the loop.
"I'll be walking along the shore." I left them, going right back to my room. True to his word, all my things were neatly boxed and sitting along the back wall of the bedroom. My sketchpad and a bottle of water were sitting on the desk. It was done; there was no place to go back to. Everything from this point would be what I chose.
I collected the sketchpad and water, and went on my way.
∞
As I navigated the rocks on the peninsula I was able to get a better idea of the layout of the castle. Nix must have had security in mind when he'd planned the location, having it perched on the end, the ocean providing protection and a watch point. Exploring the grounds, I passed through the gardened area with the flowering trees I'd seen from my balcony viewpoint. Beyond this was a long stretch of shoreline with pristine silvery sand. That was where I wanted to be.
I stopped on the edge of the path, taking a moment to breathe in and absorb the splendor of this magical place. The sky above a blue canopy and below, the ocean dancing with a trillion diamonds as the sun hit the rolling waves. Even the stretch of beach lay like exotic fabric composed of the finest silvery sand. I slipped off my sandals, stepping in the soft, warm welcome of the sand's embrace.
This was what I'd been waiting for. The beach was empty, not even the usual crow or gull lurking for food. I did a circle, cupping my hands to my eyes to see without the sunlight blinding me. No Nix, no Yuri, no one I could pick out in the vicinity. I was alone.
I walked further away from the castle until I found a log I could sit and sketch on. After placing my things down, I went onto an undisturbed patch of sand and drew a huge 18 in it using a piece of drift wood.
"Eighteen," I whispered. I crouched, staring at the number in the sand. It didn't seem that old, but it felt like it. I'd survived the horror that had been my family, a house fire and being hunted by vampires. I thought of Lizzie and my mother—my mother who'd grown old from her own inner poison and Lizzie's sickness. I remembered Lizzie's pinched face, the illness that made her cruel, seeping through her eyes, draining away what little kindness she'd had. For the first time, I didn't feel anger at them for the harm they'd caused; I felt a real sadness for them.
At eighteen, I was changed. I'd learned to value me and to know it was okay to want a good life.
The beach and the day were mine. No doubt Nix would have a cake and celebration planned out for later, but the next couple of hours belonged to me. Too soon January would land, forcing my hand about continuing at Abby's Road and finding a place to live.
Crap. Finding a place would be the worst part. Yes, I was now free of the system I'd been trapped in, but now what? I chose a rock, throwing it as far out as I could into the water. I thought of Rein and how he'd proposed to me.
Would we have married? So many variables to that question. Would we have stayed together if Rein hadn't been ill? After seeing his home and how he'd lived, it was apparent how different our worlds had been. Had Rein proposed knowing full well he didn't have to honor the promise because legally it was out of reach and he knew Marion would never go for it?
People who say anything to get what they want. My life had been full of them, liars and con-artists, but of the worst kind.
It was over between us and the thought of Rein making the choice to become a vampire and not telling me...it made my blood boil. If he'd known about the ring, things would have unfolded differently, much differently. Now I had it and he knew what I was.
I almost panicked, thinking that Nix could read my thoughts, but he couldn't. Yuri had seen to that. It was a relief, knowing I could work things out in my head without someone eavesdropping on my inner conversation.
And Nix...
We shared an attraction, but was it love? He kept professing his love, but had it been for him to become more powerful? Now I wore the ring and everything had become more complicated. He hadn't been able to stop feeding and could have drained me. After Yuri's information session, I wasn't about to take the ring off. I didn't want to have to live the rest of my life depending on a vampire to protect me. And I didn't want to live being hunted by them. The ring could protect me, or harm me.
The answer was clear. I needed to become a vampire and by doing so, I'd have to take the role of the Dark Queen.
It spooked me. What the hell was a Dark Queen and what would it mean for me?
The water looked so enticing, I was about to go off wading when my finger began tingling. I stared down at the ring, seeing the diamonds sparking out.
Lennox!
I'd forgotten what Yuri had said about him being in the ring. I still had many questions for Yuri. Could Lennox be taken out of the ring? Could he be restored to his life? Was he actually gone?
But under the ring, my skin grew hot. A warning?
Suddenly I spied a figure walking towar
d me. I waited, unclear as to why Nix or Yuri would be coming from that direction, but as the figure got closer it was apparent it wasn't either of my boys.
He was tall and dressed in casual shorts and a loose-fitting cotton shirt. Anywhere else, and I could have mistaken him for another beach-goer, but not here, not in this dimension.
"Hello Rachel Owens. I've been waiting to meet you in person." His sickly green eyes reached with a hate that left my skin burning and my stomach churning.
"And you are?"
"Caspian, I am Caspian, the leader of the sect and you have something that belongs to me." The smile conveyed a real malice.
"So, someone did get in. I'm sure Nix will be along soon." My threat was empty considering how powerful I'd been led to believe this creature was.
"Want to ring any more bells, Rachel? I couldn't have been more pleased to hear your call."
Sarcasm.
I didn't know what he could do here in this dimension, but I was happy he couldn't read my mind.
"You seem to have learned a few things about the ring. Asked it to prevent us from getting at your thoughts, did you? That is fine; I'll still get the ring and you. You're going to do your duty and make Rein the most powerful, and then wither up and die. That is your role, Rachel. While Rein uses you to get stronger, you will be treated fairly. You should be grateful for my mercy, it isn't often I have any."
"Your mercy? You must be mistaken; I'm not here to serve you." Fury bubbled up from deep inside. I wanted to thrash him, cause him pain.
Then he said something that put me over the edge.
"Face it, Rachel, you aren't complete without Rein, you loved him and still do. Rein still loves you. He's trying to hide his feelings, but the love lives on. Think of the good times you shared. Don't you want that back? You aren't complete without Rein."
I didn't know how or when, but I'd find a way to destroy Caspian and rid the universe of his poison. The idea of Rein making me complete was too much. The new Rachel emerged, and she wasn't going to take it.
Abby's Road Part 1 Page 14
