Soon he parked in the same gravel parking lot that overlooked the virgin stretch of beach Sam and I always visited. My excitement dwindled.
Why was he taking me here?
I tried to hide my disappointment. Granted, his main concern was privacy, but that could be accomplished with his heavily tinted car windows. I had assumed that he had somewhere more secluded in mind. Somewhere new. Some place I could hold as special. Our place. I felt annoyed he wanted to use the same place I enjoyed with my best friend. I pursed my lips.
Nicholas ignored my expression, wordlessly getting out of the car. I crossed my arms, rooted in my spot. I wasn’t going anywhere without an explanation. But his dark hair shimmered in the sunlight as he rounded the front of the car and suddenly my anger melted. I couldn’t stand to be away from him another second and eagerly stepped out when he opened the car door for me.
Together, we walked over to the edge of the cliff.
“Wow,” I said, peering over the side, feeling a little woozy. “I wonder if anyone ever gets to go down there.”
“I wonder…” he said, as he pivoted his body towards me, circling me in his arms.
His touch made me hold my breath. I looked at him nervously, but gladly wrapped my arms around his waist in response. The last thing I expected to happen next was for him to jump over the cliff, carrying me with him in the process.
I squealed and grabbed his torso tighter. We soared through the air, out over the cliff and floated towards the sand 1000 feet below. Within seconds we touched down and he made sure I had my balance before letting go.
“Feel familiar?” he asked, emerald eyes twinkling, searching my expression.
“Oh. My. Gosh,” I said, remembering the cliff. “Is this how you were able to catch me?”
I would have never believed it if I hadn’t seen it in the daylight. Nicholas laughed and nodded his head. I laughed too, marveling how insane that night had been.
“So you can fly too?” I asked in amazement.
“Well… not really. Just jump far distances.
“…. not all vampires can fly?”
“No,” he said and his smile faded from his face.
“I’m confused.”
Nicholas looked back at me tenderly.
“Phil’s acquired the gift to fly – a very rare ability – something a very powerful vampire wouldn’t want to share freely. I suspect they never intended for you to come along and take him to the hospital of all places. The transfusion sustained his life and the venom changed his body. He was never supposed to become a vampire.”
His explanation didn’t help explain things and I inadvertently reached up and held the base of my neck, wondering if I’d naively just missed a vampire feeding frenzy. What could’ve happened if I was a little bit sooner? I shuttered even considering it.
Nicholas continued to gaze deeply into my eyes and I lost my train of thought. I looked away and felt my cheeks grow hot.
“Come on,” he said in a happier tone and motioned for me to follow.
We walked next to each other towards the water. Every once in a while, I’d watch him. His intrinsic beauty overwhelmed me, I couldn’t help it. Today he wore a woolen sweater that contoured his strong rippling arm muscles. I really wanted to reach out and lock my arm in his.
He caught me stealing a glance and gave me an inquisitive look. I looked away embarrassed, but could see his smile from the corner of my eye.
Once we reached the waterline, I discovered hundreds of perfect sea shells and sand dollars on the abandoned beach.
“Wow!” I said while picking up a cantaloupe sized conch shell, putting it up to my ear. “I guess the shells wash up and sit here since nobody can comb the beach.”
Nicholas watched in amusement as I started to make little piles of treasures.
I giggled and wondered how I would take the shells home with me.
“I forgot to bring a bag,” I said in disappointment.
“Hold on.”
Nicholas sprinted across the sand, nimbly climbed up the cliffs edge where the car was parked, disappeared for a minute and then returned with a beach bag all in a matter of seconds.
My mouth fell open.
“Would this work to hold your shells?” he asked smugly, playing off his immortal talents, holding out the bag.
“Um, sure,” I said after closing my mouth but still staring at him, taking a second before retrieving it. “How did you do that?”
“It comes with the territory,” he said quietly. “It’s no big deal.”
“You can run, jump, climb and see at night. How is that no big deal?”
“Now flying would be something,” he said playfully, but I knew he really would like that gift.
“I don’t understand the power thing.”
“Well… it’s like with humans. Some people can do things others cannot. Vampires are gifted with special abilities too, passed from the one that creates them.”
“Like what?” I asked.
“Well, the ones I know of are the ability to read minds, turn into animals, understand and speak different languages, plant thoughts, invoke feelings, hypnotize, just to name a few. Whatever is helpful for a vampire to lure its prey besides being stealthy and incredibly beautiful.”
Lure its prey?
His comment gave me chills as I remembered all the vampires I’d encountered already – in particular the ones that wanted to bite me.
“Do you have any special abilities?”
“Me?” He grinned widely, flashing his pearly teeth. “Just the ability to walk in the sunlight, something no other vampire can do but I think that’s because I’m half-human. I’d be a force to be reckoned with, if I was bent towards evil,” he said with a chuckle. “But I don’t think I have anything extra special.”
Yeah, right.
I hid my smile. It was nice to be with someone so humble.
We headed towards a huge sea cave worn away by the waves over time.
“Want to check it out?”
I nodded.
We stood at the edge of the cliff in awe as the water ebbed in and out of the immense mouth of the cave down below us.
“Wanna closer look?” he said, with a gleam in his eye.
I started to recognize the twinkle and knew he was going to do some kind of phenomenal act that would blow my mind again.
“Okay?”
“I need you to trust me and climb on my back.”
I blinked. “What?”
“Just do it.”
“Okay,” I said and crawled on.
He held my legs tightly and jumped. I instinctively wrapped my arms around his muscular neck and held on for dear life. For a second we hovered over the water just inside the mouth of the cave. The spray of the waves lightly rained over us and I squealed in delight.
Then like a bird, he gingerly landed on a protruding rock inside the monstrous cavern. I looked up at the wet walls teaming with sea life and reeled back feeling like I was going to lose my balance when I felt him reach around and carefully lift me off. He placed me so I could stand on the rock in front of him. His strong arms wrapped tightly around me so I wouldn’t fall. We stood in astonishment deafened by the noise of the waves hitting the reef all around us. The warmth of his chest radiated against me. I molded my body up against his, my heart erupting in a flutter that caused my legs to weaken.
“What do you think?” he whispered into my ear. I felt his hot breath against the side of my neck, which caused me to be light-headed as my heart raced even harder.
“Awesome,” I whispered, which was all I could get out as I slinked into his chest a little bit more. A seal popped his head out of the water next to us and I nudged Nicholas to alert him.
Its little black eyes gawked at us curiously then he swam around the rock as if to wonder how we entered his domain. I giggled uncontrollably at the sight.
After a few minutes my teeth started to chatter from the continuous cold salty sprays. Even though I didn�
��t want to leave, I didn’t know how much longer I could stand the wind blowing against my damp skin.
“I think it’s time to go. Put your arms around my neck,” he instructed as he gently helped me turn around.
I reached up, but feeling shy kept my head down for fear that he’d meet my gaze with a kiss. Within a second, I felt him hug me tight, crouch his legs down and spring off the rock into the air. We were flying again, headed for the sandy beach.
When we landed, I laughed at our dripping attire. He removed his sweater to reveal a white tee-shirt that outlined every muscle of his powerful chest. Again, I saw the emerald medallion around his neck under his shirt and stared at it. He followed my gaze and fanned the shirt off his skin to release the extra moisture. I looked away still shivering, not willing to take off my sweatshirt knowing my wet tee-shirt underneath would be too revealing.
“Maybe that wasn’t a good idea,” he said while looking around. “Come on.”
He led me over to a place out of view of the cliff and started a bonfire in the sand. Within minutes, a roaring fire burned and I finally felt warm again. When he broke the driftwood into smaller pieces against his leg, I noticed a tattoo of a cross on the outer side of his bicep. The intricate ornate design was different than anything I’d ever seen. I couldn’t stop staring at it.
“Are you feeling warmer now?” he asked as he sat next to me.
His damp dark hair and his olive skin shimmered in the light from the small droplets of water that clung to him. The sight made it hard for me to concentrate.
“Yes, actually,” I said while holding my hands out, feeling the heat on my fingertips. “Thank you.”
I wondered how long he’d planned on being here today. From the looks of it, it didn’t seem like he was in a hurry to leave and I didn’t mind.
“Um… I have a question,” I finally asked.
“Okay.”
I took a deep breath and held it. I wanted to ask without offending him. Could I just say it? I watched his innocent expression as he patiently waited.
“H-h-how did you know to bring me here? I mean, this isn’t… um… just any beach.”
I watched his countenance change from curiosity to sheepishness.
“How do I make this sound right?” He hesitated. “I just know you… I’ve been watching you for so long, I know your habits, your likes, your dislikes, your friends, your favorite hang outs and I have exceptional hearing. So I’ve known ever since you’ve found this place that you’ve always wanted to come here. I figured it would be fun to give you your wish.”
I hadn’t realized my life was such an open book. His confession should have bothered me, but I was actually flattered instead.
“Oh,” I said while playing with the drawstring on my sweatshirt. “Thank you.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his eyes light up as he watched me. It truly was a magical place; far better than I’d imagined. I’d never been anywhere so pure; I felt honored to be one of its only inhabitants. As far as I was concerned, this was the closest to heaven on earth I could imagine. All we needed was lunch. I was starving.
“I was wondering…” not really wanting to leave, “do you have plans for lunch today?” I sheepishly asked.
“Why? Are you hungry?”
“No, not yet, I was just thinking…” I lied.
“Actually I packed a lunch,” he said, matter-of-factly.
“Oh… you did?”
“Well, I didn’t know how long we’d be out here and it’s not like we can go out to eat.”
“Why not?” I asked.
“Because you can never be too careful, the less people know about us the better,” he said with a very serious tone. “That’s why this beach is perfect. There’s no way anyone could find us here.”
I felt a wave of pain from him. What had happened to make him be so cautious? I could understand not wanting to be seen at night, but why did I matter in the daytime? Vampires were sleeping, or hiding, or whatever they did during the day. But I’d learned my lesson in the past about prying, so I didn’t ask. I figured when he wanted to share, he would.
He stretched back on the sand and put his head in his hands while closing his eyes, his thoughts someplace else.
“Yeah, but wouldn’t someone see your car parked on the cliff?” I asked just remembering his car could tip off our location.
“I moved it.”
“You what? You did?” I said a little mystified.
“Like I said, I’m careful.”
I knew his actions were all tied to what happened with my mother. Feeling his guilt resurface confirmed my suspicion. I searched his face and wondered why he held onto the past so tightly when her death was an accident.
I recalled what he told me. He had no family besides his dad and he never spoke of anyone else. I wondered if he had friends or if he kept everyone at a distance like he did me. Was his secret preventing him from living a normal life?
More than anything I wanted to console him, touch him, run my fingers through his hair and gently caress his face. Make his pain go away. But I knew he didn’t want that type of relationship, so I refrained.
“You know, if it wasn’t for your super vampire powers, I’d have no idea that you were different. I mean, you’ve even got a cross tattoo. Isn’t that like vampire voodoo or something?” I blurted out and then wished I didn’t say after I finished.
“Oh, you noticed that,” he said looking up at me from the sand.
“Yes,” I admitted timidly, not meeting his gaze.
“I got that a long time ago, when I thought I could actually pick a side. I struggle to know where the human in me ends and the evil begins.”
He laughed at his own sadistic statement, but I didn’t get it. I never felt any evil coming from him.
“I don’t think that. You’ve been nothing but heroic to me.”
“I’m honored that you’re so understanding, but I have a very dark side to me…” he turned and grimaced. “…and it doesn’t like that I don’t appease its wants.”
Again, he astounded me. He constantly had to remind me he had a demon inside wanting to come out and he suppressed it.
“My life is complicated,” he murmured.
“How so?” I said softly.
“If it was easy, I could just explain it.”
“Funny,” I said sarcastically. “Try me.”
“Actually, it’s no big deal really. I guess when I first started my path of vengeance it was exciting and I felt like I’d found my calling. But night after night after night of hunting down the leeches…” He stopped and drifted off into thought.
“And?”
“It’s just not what I thought it would be. I want something different now.”
“And what do you want?” I asked as my heart sped up in anticipation of his response.
He thought hard for a minute, his face pensive and finally said, “I want to be normal.”
I looked down and closed my eyes for a second. I couldn’t agree with him more, but that’s not what I wanted to hear. What I wanted him to say was that he wanted to be with me, but I knew he wouldn’t. He’d never allow himself to. He was too noble.
“I’m sorry,” I said with a lump in my throat.
“No need for you to be sorry. It’s what I am and I’ve accepted it.”
He looked speculatively into the fire and his face became luminous. More than ever I wanted to wrap my arms around his neck and make the loneliness go away.
“That doesn’t mean that it’s not hard,” I said softly.
“You’re right. It doesn’t.”
I watched his jaw flex, as I felt him keep his emotions to a dull roar. We sat in silence for a minute, with just the fire crackling and the waves crashing for ambiance. I watched him with tender eyes, but he didn’t give me eye contact.
“Do you have any other friends?” I asked quietly, still trying to be respectful.
“I can’t.”
I wanted to ask
what had happened, to understand this pain he felt, but I refrained.
“They always end badly,” he said, again feeling guilty. “Like I’ve said, I’ve tried to have that normal life before. It doesn’t work for me. It’s not my destiny.” He turned to me, his expression pained. “Julia, no one can know about today. It must be kept a secret. I couldn’t live with myself if anything happened to you.”
“Okay,” I said, beginning to feel afraid, hoping we weren’t taking unnecessary chances since I’d already mentioned it to my dad.
It was then I realized a normal relationship would be impossible. We’d always have to hide from everyone for fear of retaliation and because of that, there was no chance for a real future for us and he knew it.
Nicholas closed his eyes again and relaxed in the sand. I needed to change the subject, because if I didn’t, I was going to start crying.
“So, what did you do last night?” I asked while gulping down the tears.
“I went looking for Phil and the rest of them,” he said while letting out a gust of air.
“Having trouble?” I asked, secretly grateful Phil eluded him.
I felt his disdain and knew he’d have zero tolerance or patience for Phil once he found him again.
“They are harder to track than the vampires I’m used to,” he said in frustration “I combed the city all night and came up with nothing.”
“You were up all night?” I asked in surprise.
“I normally am. It’s fine. I don’t require much sleep.”
I studied his face and watched him breath. He looked so perfect next to the fire, almost like he’d been airbrushed. I ached to reach over, touch his hand, but my mind warned me not too. This was someone I could never have, or ever be with and it made my heart sad.
Nicholas’ breathing deepened as he drifted off to sleep. I sat and drank in the peace he finally exuded while the fog rolled in. I didn’t want to disturb him after knowing what little serenity he did have and after his busy night. I was content to just be close to him and enjoy the small simple moment together.
Talisman 1 - The Emerald Talisman Page 17
