Immortalis - Book 1 (The Keeper's Immortals)

by Marisa DeMaris

  “I will and I think I’ll start in your room.” I said before storming out.

  “You stay the hell out of my room!” I heard him yell but I didn’t care. I hurried up there stairs and headed straight to his room, not being scared of him at that moment. There were moments were his look alone would make my breath stop but not this time. My anger had gotten the better of me - so much for bottling it up. I was known for being level headed most of the time and then there were the other times where I blew up.

  “Jaryn, stop her.” Blake said to him younger brother. Jaryn stood there, trying not to laugh.

  “I’m not doin’ anything. You don’t want her in your room than you can stop her yourself.” He said finally bursting into a laugh. Blake was becoming flustered not only with Nora but also with everyone else. He ran up the stairs while everyone else remained where they were, finding Blake’s games childish. He stopped at his bedroom door when he didn’t hear anything on the other side. Finally he opened the large, heavy wooden door finding someone in his bed that wasn’t supposed to be there.

  I looked over and smiled.

  “Get the hell out of my bed.” He yelled. I sat up, bracing myself on my hands and stared him down. I saw him look at me before answering, staring at me. For a second he softened only to harden himself back up, closing himself off from the mortal world.

  “Or what?” I asked.

  “Or I’ll get your out myself and you don’t want that to happen.” I only laughed at his words which only angered him more.

  “I’m not afraid of you.” I replied through my chuckles.

  “Well you should be.” He said through gritted teeth. I jumped up from the position I was on the bed and was now face to face, I was close enough to him to smell the musk coming off of his body. He smelt good. I watched as he licked his lips as if he was hungry. He was making me hungry to but I wasn’t sure for what – it was as if he could put a spell on me and I forgot about Reid whenever he was close.

  “You’re both acting like children at moment.” Sebastian yelled at us from the doorway. We both turned to him, neither of us saying a word.

  “My apologizes.” I said as I got down from the bed with Blake’s help.

  “Blake if what you said is true then we have to leave now so that we can get to The Keepers as soon as possible. The plane is ready and Nora you will come with us but you will stay on the plane. I don’t feel safe with you being here alone, not because of you but because of the current situation.’ I nodded. ‘I’ll meet you both down stairs in a moment. I’ll allow you some time to calm yourselves.”

  “I’m sorry…again. You just know how to push my buttons so well that I hate you for it.” I explained. He smiled kindly. It was almost as if Blake was two separate people in one body at times.

  “I guess you know how to push mine as well. I’m sorry for bein’ such a prick.”

  “No you’re not.” I said with a chuckle. He licked his lips and smiled wickedly.

  “You’re right, I enjoy it thoroughly.” He said with a cocky tone. For a moment there was an awkward silence between the two of us then slowly he moved towards me, his lips near mine until I stopped him, putting my hands on his firm chest. “Blake?”

  My words had stopped him but I wasn’t sure that I wanted him to stop. Being so close to him, touching him, it was making my heart flutter – it felt like it was beating a mile a minute, hard enough to burst through my chest. It scared me because I had never felt like this with anyone else. Not Adam, not Reid and that made me feel horrible. He looked at me for a moment. I then I watched his eyes moved towards my hand that was still firmly planted on his chest. He was strong, well built. I was almost afraid that he was going to get onto me for touching him – a mortal touching an immortal seemed like it was forbidden in his world, or at least to him, but he didn’t. If anything he looked bashful, like a child but he still had that hunger growing inside of him. I didn’t understand where this was coming from, from either of us. He tolerated me, hating the fact that I was a mortal and I was known to go back and forth with him.

  “Umm…come on, let’s go and see if we can stop our deaths.” He said as he took my hand. His hand was rougher than I thought it would be. He always put off that he never worked a day in his life; at least not in this lifetime.

  Blake would continue to surprise me.

  Eight

  By the time we were to the landing strip the plane was already running and ready to go. The six of us piled into the jet, buckled up and once again I braced myself before it took off. On my left sat Reid who didn’t seem to notice, but on my right was Jaryn who remembered. He gently took my hand within his and held it tightly. I opened my eyes and gave him a smile; silently thanking him.

  “What’s that about?” Reid asked Ashwin.

  “Nora apparently has a fear of flying, I helped her calm down in the way over here.” She explained to him and the next thing I knew I felt my other hand be grabbed, upon turning around I saw my hand within Reid’s. I felt the plane take off but it didn’t matter because I had my mind on something else. I didn’t know if I was on cloud nine because Reid had my hand on because I felt Blake watching me again. After we were in the air we were able to move around, which was a good thing because I needed to use the restroom only to check to see how red I was from embarrassment. I didn’t want Reid to see me in such a way; no girl wants to look stupid in front of a guy that she likes. Problem was I wasn’t sure if I was red because of Reid or his brother? Pushing the thoughts out of my head I splashed cool water on my warm face and ran my fingers through my hair and I thought that I was ready to face everyone again but when I stepped out of the small room I was stopped by Blake.

  “Are you alright?” he asked.

  “Yeah why?” I asked him, puzzled to why he was asking and why did he care.

  “You ran off to the lavatory so fast…I was just checkin’ on you.” He admitted almost bashfully. I couldn’t help but to feel something at that moment, like maybe he finally didn’t think that I was so bad even though I was a mere mortal but I was probably wrong. I looked up and into his eyes, getting lost in them but inside I was telling myself not to. I quickly looked down to my hands, acting as if I was still drying them.

  “Yeah, I’m fine. Thank you for checking on me Blake.”

  “Anytime. Would you like drink? Help calm ya a bit.” He asked me and I agreed just as Reid popped up beside his younger brother’s side, startling me slightly. For some reason I was felt guilty of something although I didn’t think that there was any reason for those feelings. Blake looked at his brother snidely, almost as if he was growling internally at him. “Don’t do that, I hate that and you’re still on my shit list so if you would kindly move out of my way.”

  “Oh am I…well I will as soon as you stop flirting with my date.” Reid stated firmly. Blake smiled wickedly then popped his bottom lip out while he shrugged his shoulders slightly.

  “You don’t control me Reid, you never have and you don’t control her either but I’ll stop as soon as she does.’ He turned to face me; giving me a wink then turned back to face Reid. ‘But until then I’m going to make us a drink. You seem like a whiskey lass, yeah?”

  For some reason I was torn on what to do at that moment - stay with Reid or walk away with Blake showing Reid that I couldn’t be controlled. I wasn’t a puppet nor was a silly mortal who would walk into one of Blake’s tricks so rather than answer his question or remain with Reid I walked past them both and returned to my chair. Reid looked up at Blake, seemingly threatening towards him without actually using any words then left for the back of the plane where he was to close the door on Sebastian so that they could talk in private. Ashwin was oblivious to what was happening but Jaryn wasn’t. He had watched everything that had happened and noticed my reaction when I had plopped down in the tan covered seat. He looked over at me, one eyebrow raised with question. I turned to him. “What?” I snapped.

  “Someone sounds wee but guilty of something.
” He said with a snickering smile.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I saw what I saw and I know you saw it to. You’re a smart lass.” He said. I didn’t understand what he was talking about – did I? “Blake fancy’s ya.”

  “You’ve got to kidding right? He doesn’t like me. He hates me…sometimes.’ I thought about it but I just pushed the thought out of my mind. ‘Besides I’m just a stupid mortal remember. It was just one of his stupid, cruel jokes.” I said as I curled up in the chair not wanting to think about what Jaryn was talking about or what I was feeling at the moment. I looked up as I saw Blake walk back from the bar with two drinks in hand. One he sat on the table next to me and the other he kept for himself.

  “In case you want it.” He said before turning around and sitting in the seat across from myself. Jaryn slyly looked over to me but I only stuck my tongue out at him then closed my eyes. Jaryn smiled then sat back and pulled his face into a magazine. I opened my eyes once more and saw him engulfed in a car magazine then looked towards Blake who was looking straight at me. Suddenly he bent his neck, silently asking for me to go into another part of the plane so that we could talk without Jaryn’s judgmental eyes. Noticing Jaryn also has his headphones on I stood up and walked towards the restroom and Blake soon followed. We walked to a small room that served as a kitchen on the plane. While Ashwin was in the back, most likely resting, while Reid and Sebastian were still in the office.

  “What is it?” I asked in whisper as I leant against the mini fridge.

  “Why did you do that? Why have you done all of it?” Blake asked me.

  “Done all of what?” I asked, wondering what he was talking about because I was honestly clueless.

  “You know what. I wasn’t lying when I told Reid that you were flirting with me to.” He told me as he moved closer to me. I felt my heart start to beat faster than.

  “I…I wasn’t, I was just being nice.” I explained. I felt like I couldn’t breathe while he inched closer to my face.

  “You don’t feel anything between us? When we were in my room alone or even now?” His body moved even closer to mine and I felt my heart begin to pound harder than before. He was close enough to feel his breath on my hair, my skin. I didn’t understand what was wrong with me? Why was I feeling this way about Blake - someone who despised me so much just because I was mortal, I was alive. What were the feelings I was having about Blake? Were they more than they should be?

  “You’re my friend Blake, that’s it.’ I paused for some reason. ‘That’s all and sometimes that’s even hard.” He looked down at me and placed his hand on my chin pulling my face up so that I could face him. His eyes were dark blue, like the Atlantic that I saw from outside the bedroom window that afternoon. I licked my dry lips as I looked deep into his eyes - it was like he had a spell over me.

  “You paused, why did you pause?” He asked me.

  “Because sometimes I don’t even know if we’re friends because you go back and forth with me so much, I’m not a yo-yo Blake. You can’t pull me around like that just because you want to get under Reid’s skin.” I barked. He was taken back for a moment with my words.

  “What?”

  “I know that’s all you’re doing, wanting everything to go bad between myself and Reid so whether he comes back to you or not he’ll be hurt. I won’t be a part of this.” I told him before leaving him and his glaring eyes as I returned to my seat where I remained until we arrived in Spain. Just before we landed Reid and Sebastian had both came out of the back office. Reid took the seat beside me and buckled up.

  When I heard the engine stop and I unbuckled myself, stood and took Reid’s hand that was offered to me. He looked down at me, asking me if I was okay because he could feel my body shake. I lied and told him that I was but really I was upset about the issues with Blake. I hated that he could make me feel in such a way and it didn’t seem to bother him. He tugged at my emotions about him and our friendship, it was making me flustered. Blake in general made me fluster and I couldn’t wait to make sure that everything with The Keepers were fine so that we could go home. I wouldn’t miss Blake at all and I didn’t see any reason that he would miss me other than to play mind games with me.

  As we stepped out of the plane into the early morning air I shivered. Reid wrapped his arm around me as he walked me to the car that was already waiting for us. We stopped outside of the limonene and waited for the others to catch up. I watched Blake step out of the plane; the last one and stare straight at Reid and myself. Wanting to keep warm and show Blake that nothing was going to come between us, I snuggled as close as I could to Reid. Feeling his hand stroke my shoulder only made shivers run through my body more but I felt safe in his arms.

  “So what part of Spain are we in?” I asked as the other walked up.

  “We’re just outside the city of Medina. It’s on the southern part of the country.” Sebastian said as he opened the door to allow us to start filling the car that was waiting for us at the landing strip.

  “The Keepers are in a cave just off the coast, it’s a secret location that you can only find if you can see beyond what the normal mortal can, the people who can see are normally near death or immortal themselves.” Ashwin explained.

  “Which means you probably won’t be able to see it lass.” Blake said in his typical snide tone as he walked up to the car. He smiled once then jumped into the back of the car after Jaryn gave him a slight push. As Jaryn himself got in he gave my shoulder a squeeze and I followed him, then Reid and lastly Sebastian who closed the door. The driver set course for the coastline where the cave was located while everyone in the back was oddly quiet.

  The drive was a long, awkward and although I didn’t know what to expect one we got where we were going this was, by far the worst part of the trip to me so far. Everyone was silent which meant that everyone was thinking. I was personally thinking about Blake’s eyes that wouldn’t shift away from me. After being in the car just under an hour we finally stopped. When we stepped out of the car I looked over the cliffs with nothing the vast ocean in front of me and at the bottom of the cliffs I heard waves crashing. The air smelt salty and amazing; so much different than home or even than Ireland. When I heard the car door slam I turned around to face the Hollings children. Sebastian seemed confident because he was the oldest, Reid, Blake and Jaryn both put on brave faces but wasn’t as confident as their older brother while Ashwin seemed to be trembling slightly. Jaryn wrapped his arm around his sister and told her that it would be alright, no matter what happened they would be fine.

  “Are The Keepers that intimidating?” I asked.

  “They can be, yes. That is why when we go in to speak to them I want you to stay in car, besides the fact that you’re not supposed to know about us in the first place which just makes you more of a threat to them and us. Do you understand?” Sebastian advised me. Doing what he said I started towards the car but stopped and turned back.

  “Hey is that the opening to The Keepers chambers?” I asked, seeing an opening in the jagged rocks. They all looked more than shocked when I asked, especially Blake who didn’t think that I could find it.

  “How can you see that?” Reid asked who was just as stunned as the rest of them. I turned to look back at the opening and didn’t understand what they were talking about.

  “What are you talking about? I mean I see it clear as day…its right there.” I pointed out.

  “Sebastian?” Reid asked his older and always wiser brother but he didn’t even have an answer to this question. As far as anyone knew I wasn’t knocking on death’s door but I didn’t seem to be different from any other mortal. He instead said that they would discuss it later because they still had a task at hand; talking to The Keepers and it wasn’t going to be an easy thing to do. I jumped into the car and placed Jaryn’s ear buds in my own ear and blasted music in order to help the time pass by while they faced their possible doom.

  The five Hollings sibling slowly but sure
ly walked into the mouth of the cave together, Sebastian in the front as if he was leading them all into a war. Once inside they had a good walk a head of them before they would reach the actual chambers but once they did they were met by a large set of oak doors. Sebastian knock and was met by a young, dark skinned Italian woman. Her hair was jet black, matching her skin tight dress that hugged her curves. “Can I help you?” she asked as she opened the door.

  “Ella, my dear, please do let our guest in.” Someone told her from behind her. Without looking back to respond she opened the doors, allowing the five of them to enter. After entering they were surrounded by simple décor, natural looking. In the middle of the grand hall sat three large chairs and sitting within each of the chair was a man.

  To the left sat Lieka, a tall olive skinned man with dark hair that was pulled back tightly. To the right sat the youngest of the three Keepers; Cade. He was pale with short blond hair while in the middle sat the oldest and wisest of the three; Ozlem. He was pale with jet black hair that was folded over his shoulders. The one feature that all of The Keepers shared was their jet black eyes. Their movements were almost alien like, shifty and strange. They were a terrifying sight to behold for more than one reason. They were powerful beings and could be ill tempered if they were pushed the wrong way.

  “Ah Sebastian what a pleasant surprise to see you and your family here, how can we help you?” Ozlem said as he tapped his fingers together; looking into at each of the siblings with a wicked smiled forming across his face. His movements were that of an older man who had trouble moving without being in great pain.

  “Ozlem, Lieka, Cade. As always it’s an honor to see you.” Sebastian said.

  “Why have you and your family come Sebastian?” Lieka asked snidely. His voice was slightly deeper than Ozlem’s.

  “We came because of me.’ Blake said stepping forward. ‘I had a vision, a powerful one.”

  “Powerful eh?” Lieka said not believing anything that was coming out of Blake’s mouth just because they knew Blake’s reputation.