Evan: Book Two of the Destine Series

by Laurie D'Ghent

  Not really thinking, Integrity began to scoot forward, toward the group. No one was paying any attention to her, and she had to actually touch the nearest guard. He glanced down at her, then almost jumped off the floor. He pulled back, allowing her access just as he had done for the king. He nudged the guy in front of him, and more of the guards moved. They were all watching Integrity intensely, but she wasn't aware of their scrutiny. She forced her protesting muscles to move her forward. She was thankful the room was so small, that Evan could not be very far away. She was in pain by the time she reached him, blood stabbing through her veins. The nearest guards still held him pinned to the floor, and she could see that he was struggling to break free, though there was very little movement. He stood no chance against so many. She reached toward him.

  “My lady?” one of the guards said, concerned. Evan continued to strain against the force pressing against him.

  “He won't hurt me.”

  Evan's head snapped up at the sound of Integrity's voice, and the guards promptly shoved it back down, holding it firmly against the floor. Integrity looked up, but the guard was focused on restraining Evan. She reached out one hand, and placed it atop the guard's own. She could feel the man tense. He was looking at her now, and she stared back at him as she prodded his hand away. She had no hope of succeeding, no strength left in her body, but the guard removed his hand, slowly. She glanced around at the other men and, one by one, they released their grip on Evan, as well. He sprang to his feet instantly, looking around. When his eyes locked on Integrity once more, he dropped back to her level. The guards flinched toward him, but did not actively restrain him once more. None of them looked happy.

  “Integrity, are you all right?” Evan smoothed back the tendrils of hair that had fallen from the twist on the back of her head. He wiped some dirt from one of her cheeks, then held the hair back from her face, his hands on either side of her head. He was pressing firmly, and it made Integrity's vision swim.

  “They didn't do a very good job cementing my hair in place, did they?” she asked.

  Evan laughed, though concern still covered his features. “You can't ever be serious, can you?”

  She was being serious, but she didn't have the words to tell him that. “Your head's bleeding,” she said, instead.

  Evan wiped the back of one hand against his forehead, looked at the abnormally thick blood that was smeared there. “I didn't even feel it.” He swiped at his forehead once again, dropped his other hand to her shoulder. It was hard for her to bear the extra weight. “Seriously, are you okay?” Glancing over her, he barked, “Her lips are blue. Give me a jacket.” He was still looking at her, and it took a moment for the girl to realize he was speaking to those surrounding them. Several jackets rained down around them, and Evan grabbed one. He wrapped it around her carefully, taking the time to settle it smoothly. He held it tightly closed in front of her. “Is that better?”

  “I'm okay,” Integrity said, amazed that her teeth had begun to chatter, belying her words. She tried to control it, but found she couldn't. At least I'm thinking more clearly.

  Evan laughed again, a little strangely, but she was glad to see that he was a bit relieved, though not much. “What happened?” he asked intently.

  “I went outside, like you told me to,” she answered, around her chattering. “I hid in a tree. The king found me, and he brought me back here.”

  “That's it?” There seemed to be an unusual weight behind his words, and Integrity looked at him, trying to clarify his meaning. “They didn't hurt you?”

  Integrity started to move her hand to her throat, but dropped it back in her lap. Probably not the best idea to tell him his dad choked me, she decided. Besides, it doesn't even hurt. She was glad Evan had taken the time to turn up the collar on the jacket, covering any marks that might have appeared in the interim. Misunderstanding her interrupted movement, Evan cinched the coat tighter around her.

  “I'm okay, Evan.” She crossed her arms tightly against her body, her fingers tingling as warmth returned. She was glad that jacket was too big for her, that it covered her hands so easily. She tucked the ends of the sleeves in on themselves to lock in the warmth.

  Evan studied her for a moment, a torn expression on his face. Abruptly, he crushed her to him, her face mashing into his shoulder. She felt herself relax marginally, though he was not warm at all. After a moment, he pulled back. “Sorry,” he apologized, not really looking at her. “I had to make sure you were real.”

  Integrity laughed at his comment. “Yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm real,” she said, waving her arms through the air, the cuffs of the jacket flapping. She tucked her arms back close to her body, chill creeping in on her.

  “Did I make you colder?”

  Integrity shook her head. “I don't think anything could make me much colder right now.”

  Evan scooped up another jacket, laid it over her shoulders. The extra weight was welcome. Evan glanced at the forest of legs around them, then leaned toward her slightly. His voice painfully honest, he dropped his eyes from hers and murmured, “I'm so sorry.”

  Impulsively, Integrity reached forward and placed one encased hand over his where it rested on the floor. “Hey, you tried,” she said, trying to help. “It's not your fault I can't hide any better.”

  Staring at the sleeve of the jacket where it lay over his own, Evan shook his head. “No, I never even made it out of the hallway. I don't know what made me think I would.” He looked up at her again, his forehead creased. “You would have frozen to death in that tree, thanks to me.”

  “But I didn't,” Integrity returned, earnestly.

  “No thanks to me.” He made an impatient gesture. “I'm just a royal screw up.”

  “Maybe a royal pain in the neck, but not a royal screw up.” Integrity was relieved to glimpse a smile on his face, although it was rather bitter. She pulled her arm back to her ribs as a painful shiver wracked her frame. “Ooh,” she said, “I think I'd rather be numb right now.”

  As he had done with the first jacket, Evan grabbed the outer one and held it tightly closed around her, looking at her in concern. She forced herself to smile, trying to reassure him. “It's not that bad. I'm going to be cold all the time, after all. I may as well get used to it.”

  Evan's hands clenched on the lapels. “I wish I'd never met you,” he said, his voice reeking of poison. Integrity flinched, and he looked up at her immediately. The look on her face made him quickly retract his words. “No, no, it's not what you think.”

  Integrity pulled away from him, and he dropped his hands from the jacket. “No, Evan, it's okay,” she said, forcing herself to hide the hurt deep inside her. “I know you hate me.” She couldn't help but add, “You've never made a secret of that.”

  Evan's clamped his hands on each side of her face, along her jawline. He raised her chin with surprising gentleness, though he was unrelenting, not allowing her to pull away. She kept her eyes down, not willing to look at him, knowing her true hurt would show in her eyes. She could feel the pressure behind her eyes of unshed tears fighting to break through. Evan hunched over until she was forced to look at him. He straightened, and her eyes stayed with his. Speaking clearly, as though he wanted to make sure she fully understood his words, he said, “I'm a monster, Teg. There's nothing good in me.”

  She tried to pull out of his grasp, but he wouldn't let her. Looking to the side, she muttered, petulantly, “I beg to differ.”

  He pressed lightly on her face, and she looked at him again. She just wanted him to let go so she could leave. His gaze dropped from her eyes to her mouth, and Integrity felt as though a giant was clutching her in its massive hand. He moved toward her, slowly. She froze in place, unable to pull away, though she sensed he would have let her. Glancing to the sea of legs around them, she hissed, “What are you doing?”

  Ignoring the group that was pressing in on them, Evan replied, “Something I wanted to do months ago.”

  His lips connected with her
s, lightly. She was so shocked, she couldn't respond at all. He pulled back slightly, then kissed her once more when she made no move to pull away. Of its own volition, one of her hands rose to touch Evan's cheek, tentatively.

  One of the guards cleared his throat, and Integrity jerked back. She felt as though she had been scalded. The reality of her situation rushed back, and she found herself suddenly caring a great deal whether or not she became a vampire. Fear gripped her so solidly that she could not have trembled if her life depended on it. “Evan, they're going to come back for me,” she said, in a rush. She clutched at the sleeves of his shirt. “Evan, don't let them take me!”

  Evan, his face coated in sorrow, brushed the tips of his fingers along her cheekbone. “I can't stop them, Teg.” His voice was gentle, while his words stung like the tip of a whip. “I would if I could.”

  Integrity looked around at the men surrounding them, an impenetrable wall blocking out all hope. “I know, I know,” she said, her voice sounding wild. She clenched his shirt tighter and cowered while an image of the older man walking through that door, coming toward her, his face draining of all life... She felt a whimper building in her chest, forced it back down. “He's going to hurt me, Evan,” she said, flashing her eyes to his. “You've gotta do it.”

  Evan recoiled, but Integrity's hands felt like they'd been dipped in cement and she did not let go of his sleeves. “No,” he said, firmly, “I won't.”

  “Evan, please,” she begged, leaning toward him earnestly. She glanced toward the door, although all she could see was the dark-suited guards that stood between it and her. “I can't get away. It's going to happen.” She looked at him desperately. “That man's not going to be nice about it.”

  “I'm not going to turn you into...that,” Evan spat. “You can't ask that of me.”

  “Then protect me,” she countered, pulling herself nearer still. He moved to negate her statement, but she interrupted him. She steeled herself, hurling the words from herself. “Kill me. End this.”

  Evan looked as though she had slapped him across the face. Furious, he pulled out of her grip. “You can't ask me to do that.”

  “Why not, Evan? My choices are pretty limited here—either you take care of this, or that man is going to...” Her words trailed off, unwilling to speak the horrors that she knew awaited her. “Prove you're more than a monster, Evan. Take control of the situation, for my sake. Show me some mercy.”

  For the first time, Integrity saw a vampire on the edge of being sick. She felt as though she had just stabbed him in the gut, without provocation, but she knew it had to be done. She couldn't go back with that man, she just couldn't.

  One of the guards broke the silence. His words were unintelligible, but Integrity knew he was receiving word that someone was coming for her, that someone would take her away to that room, to that man...

  “Evan, please!” she cried, on the precipice of losing control. She glanced in fear toward the door. “They're coming,” she whispered, barely audible, her voice absorbed by the bodies around her. Her breaths were coming in short gasps. She looked to Evan, once more.

  Pity mixed with anger crossed his features, and he gently pulled her to him. She buried her face in his shoulder, trembling sporadically. She felt him press a soft kiss to her hair. His lips brushing against her ear, he murmured, “I'll take care of it, Teg. All of this will go away.” He pressed a firmer kiss to her temple, pushed her away a few inches. She could not see through her own veil of tears, but Evan's eyes were moist, as well. Fighting to control her shuddering breath, she allowed Evan to tilt her head to the side. He hesitated for a moment, closed his eyes tightly, then looked to her once more.

  He fell on her neck, and everything changed.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Laurie D’Ghent describes herself as “abnormal.” Her claim to fame is that she’s been sneezed on by an elephant (a very messy and traumatic experience at the ripe age of 7). She loves to laugh with her family and adores her bestie. Playlists for each of her novels can be found on YouTube.