“So you never saw your family again?” She asked, sad for him.
“No.” he said softly, but not truthfully.
There was one family member that he continued to see after his mortal death, but Cain wanted to keep this person a secret from Shayna as long as he could. He knew and feared, that it was only a matter of time before she found out.
“Will it be that way with me?” Shayna asked him. It made her sad to think of not seeing her family. She had thought about it a lot, since she found out she would be a vampire.
“It doesn’t have to be,” he said, “But, they would know you were different, and you would constantly have to battle your instincts not to kill them,” he looked at her knowing this was all very hard for her, “It’s best that you at least leave here, until you know how to control yourself.”
“Will you go with me?” she asked him.
He looked into her eyes and said, “Nothing would make me happier Princess,” he knew how hard things would be for her, and he wanted to be there for her to make everything as easy as possible for her, “You know Shayna, I didn’t ask for this life, and if I had been given a choice that night, I would have chose to die.” Cain became quiet, he was lost in thought, thinking about the past, and thinking about the night he changed. Finally he said, “Shayna up until I saw you for the very first time, I had always wished that I had died that night. But now, I believe you were my reason for carrying on. No one has ever made me feel, the way that I feel when I am with you,” Cain couldn’t believe that he was revealing his soul to her, he couldn’t help it. He knew he could tell her this, and definitely not ruin her day.
They had come down another hill, and Shayna had decided she was officially lost. She had lost track of what direction they were heading in, after the horses crossed the highway. She knew then, that they were heading east, but she stopped paying attention after that.
“Why did you want to die?” she asked, as they followed a creek into a gully. She didn’t understand. She would be lying to herself if she said the thought of living forever, didn’t excite her a little.
“I never wanted this Shayna,” he said. She saw him wince as if in pain, “Up until this moment, I believed that this was not my true fate, and that I should have died that night,” he drew in a deep breath, although breathing was unnecessary for him. He was breathing her in. “But seeing you sitting on that horse right now, I know that you are my fate.”
The horses had been making their way up a hill, and before Shayna could respond to Cain, they reached the top, and came out onto a bluff that looked out over, what Shayna knew, was the Manistee River.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” Cain asked her.
Shayna knew of this place well, she had heard about it all her life, but had never came in person until he brought her.
“It’s called the High Rollaway,” she said, staring down at the river, which looked like a horse shoe, from the top of the bluff. It rolled in, around a bend and rolled back out, and disappearing from veiw, “I hear it’s absolutely beautiful in the fall.”
Noah pulled up to Shayna’s house around noon, and parked his purple El Camino at the curb. She better be here! He thought, as he walked up to the door. The Prelude was parked in the driveway, but that never meant Shayna was home, Melina always had it. Shayna preferred to walk whenever she could.
After two knocks, Melina answered the door.
“What’s up Noah?” She asked him, and leaned against the door frame, fidgiting with her straight blonde hair.
“Hey kiddo,” he said, and winked at her. “Where’s Shayna?”
“Seriously?” Melina said, “You don’t know?”
“No,” Noah said, shaking his head in confusion.
“She’s with Cain.”
“What?!” Noah was flabergasted. He knew Shayna liked this new kid, but he couldn’t believe that she was already out with him. “Already?” he asked. “I thought she would at least take her time.”
“Yeah right!” Melina laughed, “Are you kidding? They’ve been inseparable since Wednesday, or at least it seems that way,” she told him, “It’s kinda weird.”
“No wonder,” Noah said under his breath.
“What?”
“She hasn’t answered my calls, or called me back, or anything,” Noah said, and sat down on the porch swing the twin’s father had put up, the year he ‘died’. “I thought she was upset with me, but now I see she has traded me in for a better model,” Noah said with a pout.
Noah valued his friendship with Shayna dearly. He thought of her as a sister. He thought she was attractive, very attractive. But he knew he wasn’t the one she needed, and he accepted that, and settled for being her best friend.
“Nah,” Melina said and, came outside to sit next to him on the swing, “You’re a classic, she would never trade you in,” she smiled at him, he was always upbeat, and funny, and cared about his friendship with her sister. Melina could see why Shayna would rather be around Noah, over anyone else. Until she had met Cain, “So what brings you by?” Melina asked Noah.
Noah leaned back against the red pinstriped swing cushion, feeling a little frustrated, “Well, Shayna was supposed to go to Traverse City with me today,” he said, “To help me pick out a tux for the Winter Formal.” Noah looked at Melina with an idea, he was going to Traverse City regardless, but he wanted a females opinion, “Do you want to go?” he asked Melina.
“To help you pick out a tux?”
Noah nodded his head and smiled.
Melina wasn’t sure what to say, normally she didn’t hang out with Noah, or anyone else besides her ‘Girls’, but she thought it might be fun, and said “Sure let’s go.”
“Cool,” Noah said. He was a little surprised, but glad nonetheless.
“Let me grab my bag, and put on my shoes,” Melina stood up.
“I’ll be in my car,” Noah said, and also stood up, and headed toward his El Camino.
When Melina climbed into the El Camino after getting her things, she immediately filled the small cab of the car with the aroma of what could only be Calvin Klein.
“So I have to tell you something Noah,” she said closing the door, “I love your car.” This was something that Melina would never admit to anyone again. If Noah told anyone, she would say he was lying.
The purple car had black, gold trimmed, lightening bolts on the sides, and the inside was all black leather, with a fuzzy black dash, and two Purple dice hanging from the rearview mirror.
“Why, thank you Melina,” Noah said, and pulled away from the curb, “I like it too,” he reached up, and stroked the dash, petting it.
Melina laughed at this, but thought of Shayna, “Noah,” she said, changing the subject, “I am a little worried about Shay.”
“Wait what?” he was fumbling through radio stations, and she had caught him off guard. He had never heard the words Shayna and worried in the same sentence before. “Why?” he asked.
“What do you mean, why?” Melina had never really paid much attention to what Shayna was doing until now, and she thought Shayna was definitely stepping out of her normal comfort zone when it came to this boy Cain. Melina didn’t understand what was so special about him to Shayna, besides his good looks, and obvious money, which Melina knew wouldn’t attract Shayna. “Has she ever stood you up before?” she asked Noah.
Noah looked at Melina sitting on the other side of the car, he knew she had a point.
“No,” he answered.
“She hasn’t even known him a week,” Melina said, “And she leaves for a walk, and he brings her home. This morning when I got home, the neighbor asked me if we were getting a new car. When I said no, he said he didn’t think us girls would be getting a brand new Beemer anyway. He said it was at our house all night.”
“Wait what?!” Noah couldn’t believe what he was hearing, “He stayed the night with her? Where was your mom?”
“Mom said Shayna drove his car home,” Melina told him.
Noah s
cratched his head. This was odd behavior for Shayna, he thought. Do you think he has her brainwashed or something?” he asked, turning on to US 131.
“Is that even possible Noah?” she said looking at him with raised eyebrows, “Really?”
Shayna didn’t want the day to end, but she knew eventually, they would have to make the long ride, back to Interlochen. Cain had not only brought her somewhere, she had never been to before, but while they walked around the area they had found a hotspring that Shayna was sure no one knew was there. If they did, they weren’t telling.
She had learned so much about Cain. Places he had been, people he had met, like Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King Jr. He told her about things he had seen in his many years. She learned a lot, but she got the feeling that he was holding back something. She felt that if he was holding back something, that he must have a good reason. She didn’t want to push it, so she let it go.
They sat in the hot spring directly across from each other. Shayna couldn’t belieave that the place existed, and no one in the area knew about it. It was so beautiful. Cain had come prepared, with towels, and something for Shayna to eat, and water to drink, in Glytter’s saddle bag. He reached across the pool for Shayna’s hand, when she took his, he pulled her to him through the water. They had taken off their clothes and were using their underwear as bathing suits. When Shayna was close enough to him, he wrapped his arms around her, and held her close to his body. Shayna couldn’t help but notice, that even in the hot spring, his body was ice cold.
He looked deep into her eyes, so that she would see how serious he was, and said, "Shayna, I want to spend the rest of eternity with you. I want to live for you, or at least exist, for you. I am a very determined soul, and I won’t be happy, unless you are happy,” he gently held her face in his hands, and cautiously placed his lips to hers, preparing for what would come.
The instant their lips touched the electrical sensation infused them together. Cain pressed his lips harder to hers. The pool began to bubble more rapidly around them, and the birds that were in the trees, flew off in a frenzied flock. The only thing either of them could do, was hold each other tighter, kiss each other harder, and ride out the euphora of their kiss.When the bubbles in the hot spring subsided, and returned to normal, they were finally able to break the spell that bound them together.
Again breathless, and gasping for air, Shayna asked, “Is that going to happen every time we kiss?”
“I hope so,” Cain answered holding her still. “That is the most amazing feeling I’ve ever had in three hundred years.” He stroked her hair, and said softly, “I’m guessing that it’s not a coincedence, and that there is something behind it.”
They stayed in the hot spring, in each others arms. Talking, holding each other, and kissing for the rest of the afternoon. Each time they kissed the sensation grew stronger, and their feelings for each other more passionate. They packed up their horses and headed west in the direction of Interlochen, in a world of ecstacy and more in love with each other, than both thought was possible.
Chapter 8
Shayna walked through the cemetary gates, and anxiety swept through her. She began to tremble. When she had fallen asleep, she was lost in the most amazing day she had ever had, but when she awoke, she had a feeling and a sense of change, something new. Something big.
She walked past some headstones and she saw a vision of someone waiting for her. She couldn’t see a face, only a dark figure. The closer she got to her father’s memorial, the more she was sure there was someone waiting for her. She could feel it. A flood of emotions flowed through her body at once, happiness, sadness, terror, and worry.
She took a deep breath and walked behind a large tomb, toward the memorial garden. Reaching the entrance, she closed her eyes, and said a quiet, short prayer. She opened her eyes, and stepped into the garden. Immediately her eyes focused on the figure leaning against the dark angel. Her father’s bloodstone swinging back and forth from it’s chain in his hand. Shayna gasped in wonderment. A new wave of emotions flooded her, and she did not know whether to be happy or scared.
“Lose something?” he asked. His beautiful face forming a smile. “I thought you might be back for it.”
“It’s you,” she was able to say, “How is it you?” Shayna thought she was dreaming, he was so perfect. Everything about him was the same as she remembered, even his voice. She was frozen. She wanted to run to him, but something in her mind kept her where she was. “How?”
“I told you,” he said, taking a step toward her. Warily she took a step back. “I’m getting closer, and now I’m close enough, I’m here.”
Shayna’s mind was racing, a feeling she was beginning to get used to. Before even realizing she was thinking it, she said, “My father sent you, didn’t he?”
A little surprise that she knew, he answered, “As a matter of fact he did. He thought I could be of assistance to you.”
“You’re a little late,” she told him, daring to take a step further into the enclosure of the memorial. She laughed a little at what she was about to say, “I’ve met someone else.”
“So it appears,” he laughed a her joke. They stood face to face. “Your father sent me to protect you from creeps like him.”
He placed the necklace in the palm of Shayna’s hand, and closed his hand around hers.
“He’s not a creep,” she said defensivly, “He would never hurt me.”
The mysteriuos boy let out a rumbling laugh, “Shayna, Shayna, Shayna,” he said. “You are so naïve, you know nothing of Cain.”
“How do you know his name?” she asked, “And what is yours?”
He touched her cheek lightly and whispered, “Shayna, I know more about him, than you ever will,” he traced his fingers down her neck, and across her collarbone. “My, you truly are a lovely creature,” he stood back examining her.
In the three years that Shayna had dreamed about this boy, and fallen in love with him, he had only spoken once, and now that he stood in front of her, she was both a little intimidated, and excited by how cocky he seemed to be. He circled around her, looking her up and down. She saw him lick his lips and she knew at that moment, that he too, was a vampire.
“Your name,” she demanded again. She had many questions, but at that moment and for the last three years, she only wanted a name.
He took in a deep breath, and she knew that he was breathing in her scent. He looked down and when she saw his eyes again, there was a familiar red ring around his pupils.
“Aiden,” he whispered to her, “Aiden Luca.”
He took her hand again and kissed it gently with soft cold lips. He released her hand and began walking backwards, until he was about ten feet away from her.
“And I will show you why he is such a creep.”
Before he had finished speaking, he leapt into the air, and with an explosion of feathers the hawk appeared and soared into the sky. Shayna watched him fly until he was out of sight. She plopped down on the marble bench, dumbfounded.
“Luca,” she said quietly to herself, “Is he Cain’s…brother?”
The first thing Shayna saw, when she walked through the front door was Melina sitting on the couch, with a large grin on her face. Shayna had managed to avoid her for most of the weekend, but knew she would have to face her eventually.
“Sup, Shay?” Melina asked.
“Sup, Mel?”
“Why don’t you tell me Miss Beemer?” Melina teased.
Melina wanted as much information from Shayna as possible, but she knew that Shayna would tell her very little, if anything. She would accept anything she could get.
“Mom said she wouldn’t tell!” Shayna accused.
Melina didn’t want to out her mother for only verifying, what she already suspected.
“She didn’t,” Melina tried to smile convincingly at Shayna.
“Alright Mel,” Shayna sighed, and plopped down in her favorite chair in the livingroom, across from Melina, “Let’s
get this over with. What do you want to know.”
“Really?!” Melina beemed. She couldn’t believe that Shayna was caving so easily. “Anything?”
“No,” Shayna said, “Of course not anything.”
“Hmm,” Melina thought hard, “Okay. How did he get you so wrapped around his finger?” she asked.
“What?” Shayna knew having this conversation with Melina was a bad idea. “I am not wrapped around his finger,” Shayna defended herself.
“Oh, puhlease,” Melina said, with a snickered. “For the last week you have spent every spare second with him. I know you Shayna, this isn’t normal for you.”
Shayna rolled her eyes.
“Oh by the way,” Melina added, “I went with Noah to get his tuxedo yesterday.”
Shayna jumped up from her seat, “Oh crap!” she said, “Noah.”
And without another word she ran up the stairs, leaving Melina sitting on the couch confused. She grabbed her phone off of her dresser, where she had disobediently left it, went to her favorites list in the menu, and touched Noah’s name, it rang twice, before he answered.
“Hey,” she heard him say, “Somebody does know how to us a phone afterall.”
“Noah, I am so sorry about yesterday,” she plead. “Can I ever make it up to you?”
“Kiss my feet in front of the whole school,” he said.
“Gross!” Shayna laughed, “What else do you got?”
There was silence on the other end of the phone, and then she heard Noah say, “Seriously Shayan,” The tone of his voice changed to concern, “What’s going on with you?”
Shayna sighed loudly in frustration, “Not you to,” she said.
“Well, what do you expect? This guy shows up, and suddenly, he’s taking all of your time and you’re ignoring your friends.” Noah didn’t want to sound jealous, but he was genuinlly concerned.
Midnight Blood (Born Immortal) Page 9
