by L. C White
“How far?” I ask Adrien.
Without looking at me, he says, “Not far.”
Asshole. The more time I spend with this dick, the more I’m realising how useless he is.
Our destination is Vancouver Island. Mr Prick has colleagues there that owe him big time apparently. Another coven who disowned The Order, and went underground. Basically, Adrien threatened them. Told them he’d make a call and take away their freedom. Of course he was bluffing. Contacting The Order now, would get us all killed.
I watch Liz. Her hair is all ratty, her skin white, and now she looks sick. No movement. Not even a breath she takes. She’s hungry and we need to stop.
“Pull over,” I say.
“We keep moving,” Ben answers me.
“I said pull over.” I glare at the back of Adrien’s head.
Adrien peers in the rear-view mirror at Liz. “Elizabeth?” he queries.
She doesn’t answer. She remains like a lifeless waxwork, staring straight ahead.
Adrien pulls the truck up onto a verge before the trees. I reach out and prod Liz’s arm. She makes no response.
“Liz, look at me… Liz!”
Her head whips around to face me, her eyes flashing anger, pupils pulsing black. She’s not hungry. She’s lost to something dark. I don’t say a word as her view burns on me, like she wants to rip my throat out.
Adrien opens the door and holds a bag in front of her face. Her head turns to him slowly. Suddenly, she snatches the bag as she leaps out of the truck, growling.
“Shit,” Ben utters, thrusting open his door.
Liz tears the bag open so blood seeps through her hands. She tosses it into the woods as I quickly scramble around the truck to get to her. Adrien grabs her arms and shakes.
“What is wrong with you?” Adrien yells. “Elizabeth, you have to accept what is happening to you. Fighting it, will not work.”
Both Ben and I stand behind Liz as she thrusts Adrien back. He stands still, absorbing the force of her blow.
“Elizabeth, please, we have to keep moving,” he pleads.
She takes a step toward him, bringing up her hand to lie on his cheek. This is awkward, standing here watching her affectionately stroking his face.
“We should have never left,” she says. “Now our son is in danger.”
“What are you talking about?” he asks.
I move closer. If Daniel is in danger, then so is Sara. I fuckin knew I shouldn’t have left them.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers.
Liz slides her hand away from Adrien’s face, and a gust of wind knocks both Ben and I backward. She’s flitted into the dense woodland, out of sight.
My jaw pulses as I quickly give chase. She’s fast. Faster than the average vampire. Shit, I’ve never seen anything like her. She’s strong, powerful, and psychically connected to everything around her. Such a force, should be contained and feared.
My body propels forward, as I try to pick up on any vibrating residue she leaves behind. But all I’m getting is the sound of nature; the beat of bird wings, and water. I know where she’ll be. She said we should have never left, so she has to be back at the house.
I make it, and my eyes land on the car Sara left in. Anger messes up my speed and my flitting glitches. I fly through the air and fall, my body tumbling across the ground.
I close my eyes, shaking off the buzz in my head. The first thing I see when I focus are Sara’s legs. I clamber up to my feet to see she is being held captive by Vincent.
I race forward as Adrien and Ben appear in my peripheral vision, but stop dead in my tracks when I hear Daniel cooing. Sara nods a warning look at me. I slowly turn around. Liz is standing before Selene, who is holding Daniel. There are new bloods lurking in the trees. Dom is tied up, battered and bruised, bleeding out, and barely conscious. Then I see Gerrard. The fucking traitor, standing with several other Vigore. I knew he was playing Leanna. I go to run at him.
“Stop!” Selene calls. “Or this little man will suffer the consequences.”
I freeze on the spot, panting. I have to. I can’t let Daniel come to harm because I want to kill Gerrard. I look at Sara with anxious eyes.
“Selene, give me back my son,” Liz says.
“I will.” Selene peers down at an unfazed Daniel. “When I have said my peace.”
“Selene, you think long and hard about this. I will find a way to destroy you if you hurt my family,” Adrien cautions.
“You forget Adrien, you are mine and always will be,” Selene replies. “If I require anything, you provide it, which includes your Red.” Adrien strides forward, but Liz holds out her arm to stop him. “Now, can we have a family meeting without fighting,” Selene chirps, running her white finger over Daniel’s cheek.
“Does your father know you are doing this?” Adrien yells. “Going against everything The Order have created. What is your plan here Selene; to start a war?”
“I’m afraid it’s a lot less complicated than that my dear Adrien.”
Selene moves deeper into the shade of a tree, this is her downfall, daylight. But as I run each rescue plan through my head, each one results in a negative. While she has Daniel in her arms, there is nothing we can do.
“All I want is a family,” Selene says. “A powerhouse we all deserve. We have been hiding in the dark for too long now, and the ways of Lilith have been wiped out by a democracy my father thought good for our kind. He was wrong. The Order, the Nemuritori, all of it is killing off our kind.”
“You’re off your damn rocker, Selene,” Ben yells.
“Elizabeth… Adrien,” Selene says calmly. “I have no interest in your child. I have been searching a long time for you, Elizabeth. The Reds lost are many. But you, you are very special.”
Both Adrien and I move forward a step.
“You won’t touch her,” Adrien threatens.
I watch Liz. She’s so quiet and composed, her eyes on Daniel always.
“That is not your decision, Adrien.” Selene walks to the edge of the shade. “Her body has been blessed with fertility. She is chosen for greater things.”
“What the fuck for?” I yell.
“This child, this Dhampir, was a test for her,” Selene says. “She will provide a family for me.” She looks at Vincent and my cold blood fizzes. “Elizabeth’s eggs and Vincent’s seed, will create a better world for us all.”
Adrien flits toward Selene, but again Liz stops him. So I pick up the gauntlet, only to have Gerrard leap before me.
“Get out of my way,” I growl in his face.
“You’re playing for the wrong team.” He bends his knees with his arms out, ready to tackle me if I move.
“I said stop!” Selene’s chilling voice echoes loud.
A cry sounds in the air. It’s something I’ve not heard once from him, Daniel releasing a tiny whimper. Selene is squeezing him, hard.
“Okay,” I yell, backing off, begging with my hands. “I’ll stop.” She stares at me, loosening her hold on Daniel.
Liz bends over, her eyes black, snarling at Selene.
“Like I said, this is simple.” Selene wipes a tear from Daniel’s cheek.
“Please give me the child,” Adrien begs as the new bloods and Vigore begin to close the circle around us.
“In return for Elizabeth,” Selene says. “It’s a simple procedure. All I need are her eggs harvested.”
“Okay,” Liz says loud and clear.
I go to run, but Gerrard’s fat face is there. He grabs and spins me as I fight against his grip. I won’t allow this to happen. Not to my Liz.
Chapter 28: The Exchange
Liz
This force inside me has been growing, but I haven’t told a soul. It gave me the ability to find my son. To know he was in danger. Everything around me is so alive, full of a veracious earthly energy that soaks through every pour on my skin. Each new blood here. Each conspirator. Each evil traitor who goes against The Order, I sense. I look through the darkness
to see my son in Selene’s arms, like my dream, but different. I know this is the only way to help him.
I am not Sang, nor Vigore. I’ve been created for this purpose only, to wield Selene’s plan. It’s as though I’m fading away, becoming an object. An incubator for a weapon of war. My mind is made. My existence in exchange for Daniel’s is the only thing that matters.
“Elizabeth,” Adrien steps in front of me. “Please.” He takes my hand in his, and a flare of emotions wash over me. “You can’t do this. I won’t let you.”
I close my eyes then look at Selene. “Give me my son. I swear, I’ll come with you.”
“Boys,” Selene calls out in a mothering tone.
I look around to see Vigore and New bloods surrounding us. There are many, and Adrien and the coven are outnumbered at least five-to-one. He can’t fight his way out of this. He can’t save me. All I want is for him and Daniel to be safe. He’s given me the most unusual soul-filled love I could have ever wished for. Now it’s my turn to call the shots.
I reach up to his face and run my fingers over his tensing jawline. His head dips as desperate deep grunts exit his mouth. He drops down onto his knees and gazes up with this rare distraught glaze over his pupils.
“We’ll find another way.” His hand squeezes mine.
I drop down to the same level, getting as close to him as I can on my knees. I can hear the coven grappling against those holding them back. I peer around as Adrien’s head falls into my chest. Nathan yanks his arms, hissing and spitting to get free. I swallow down and faintly smile at him, silently telling him that I have to do this.
“Are you crazy Liz?” he yells. “Don’t you fuckin dare look at me like that!”
I have to look away before he changes my mind with those angry puppy eyes of his. I’m doing this for my family. For Adrien.
I sweep my hands down Adrien’s neck and pull his eyes up to mine. I now realise I’m no normal vampire, as a tear trickles down over my cheek. Real vampire eyes will glass over with sadness, but true tears are so rare, they are precious. Adrien wipes it away with his thumb.
“I won’t go on without you,” he says.
“Adrien, she’s making the right decision,” Selene says. “You will have her back when I have what I need.”
“I can hear your lies, Selene,” Adrien yells. “You’re full of bullshit.”
Even I can sense the falsehood of her words. What is inside me, will kill me eventually. I’m a vessel, and if my vessel is empty, then I’m not needed. So if I am to die, I’m going to make damn sure I go, knowing what I leave behind is protected.
Another tear rolls over my eyelid as I rest my head on Adrien’s. “I’m sorry,” I whisper.
“No,” Adrien’s voice tremors. “No sorry. No goodbye. Nothing.” His fingers fondle the back of my neck firmly. “Because you’re not going anywhere, Elizabeth.”
“Bossy as always,” I smile and sniff. “Look at our son.” I manipulate his head to face Daniel. “He’s perfect, and he needs you.”
Selene comes to stand at our side. She lowers Daniel into Adrien’s arms. He looks down with loving eyes as Daniel grips his collar, gurgling. I smile weakly, placing my hand on Daniel’s soft, warm, baby skin.
“Elizabeth,” Selene says. “It’s time.”
“No,” Adrien snaps, his eyes turning dark with rage.
With one hand on Adrien, and the other on Daniel, I shuffle closer to them both.
“Selene said I’ll be back.” I gaze at my beautiful boys, knowing I’m giving him false hope. “I love you… Always.”
I lean and softly lie my salty tear coated lips on Adrien’s, then rise to my feet, listening to Nathan screaming at the back of me. Selene takes my arm and leads me toward a black Hummer with tinted windows.
“Wait!” Adrien gives Daniel to Ben, and races over to me.
He takes my face in his hands with a firm affectionate grip. He’s staring deep down into what soul I have left, with that ruthless look in his eyes. He has his forehead against mine, and it’s as though he has created a shield around us.
“I’m coming for you. Remember Elizabeth, you are mine, every inch of you, and I will never, not even if this earth implodes, let you come to harm.” His words cause a torrent of tears to fall. “I love you. I loved you before I met you. I love you right now where we stand. I will love you, even when all time ends.” He kisses me for the final time. A kiss that breaks my dying heart.
Selene opens the back door of the Hummer.
“Elizabeth,” she hurries me.
I quickly rip my eyes and body away from Adrien, and step inside the Hummer. Selene slams the door as I listen to Nathan yelling. I reluctantly look outside to see Adrien, my love, standing lost. Selene gets into the back with me and the Hummer rolls over the dirt track. I watch the new bloods swiftly vanish into the trees, as Nathan tries to break free of Gerrard. I turn to the front, unable to look anymore.
“You’re doing the right thing,” Selene says.
My eyes land on hers. I’m not frightened of her. I hate her. I hate what she has done to Adrien, using him all those years. Turning men into her pet project, calling them Executives.
“Why?” I ask.
She smiles at me. A superior grin I want to wipe off her face.
“You think I live in a cave, sleep upside-down hanging from the roof, or better still, in a coffin?” she asks. “No, I’m in charge of regenerating new ideas to make us better in this society. The Order is old-school… lost. When they see what I’ve done, then they’ll reap the rewards. The Voax will one day replace The Order.”
“So, you want to make babies so you can feed from them. You’re sick in the head,” I snap.
She laughs. “Oh my-my-my. Temper-temper.” Her laugh stops, sharply. “No Elizabeth, I have better things to do than drink the blood of children.”
I frown, deep. “Then why?”
“My father and his precious order are quite happy to walk this world for eternity under the radar. The fake names. The false appearances. The darkness. But I am not,” she says. “Dhampir children are special, powerful, yet more human than Pure, Sang, and Vigore. I want the same as any human, equality. Your love for Adrien is the key. Human and vampire in love. Both equals. Both accepting each other for who they are. We have as much right as any living creature, and you should understand that most of all.”
I smirk. “Living creature.”
“We have been here longer than you. So why do you believe my actions to create a freer world, are wrong?” She tilts her view on me. “You have a multi-cultural society, so why can’t we. The infertility we suffered was a sickness, and you are the cure.”
I stare undaunted, right into her sinister eyes. “First human rule: don’t fix what is not broken. You want to come out of the closet, but doing that will start a war.”
“That’s why it will be done gradually. Imagine Dhampir children brought up by real families. Walking in the sun. Going to school. Being successful. A better species, one that we vampire can walk beside.”
“So you used voodoo to turn my insides into an incubator for your project,” I snarl.
“It’s just science, Elizabeth.” She glances out of her window for a second. “Trial and error. It seems love was the key to cracking the code. I have allowed my Executives the pleasure of taking a human Red. But each Red has failed, until you came along. Your blood and body are the most fertile things on this planet right now.”
I fall into silence, watching as woodland turns into urban concrete buildings and roads. My stomach burns with a nausea. I’m disgusted she has used women in her evil scheme. God knows how many she has murdered, or those like Sara, who have been turned.
“Duncan, when we arrive at the lab, I want Vincent’s seed ready,” she says to the driver.
I whip my head around to face her, snapping my jaw shut. “Lab… Vincent’s seed. What the hell?”
“Oh Elizabeth, the couples out there willing to go to the very ends of t
he earth for a child are many.” She smiles, a screwed up evil bitch kind of smile. “You have been blessed, so has Adrien. But I need a more compliant Executive as my seed, and Vincent has the perfect attributes for the role, now he’s fertile from your blood.”
“What, so you’re going to implant my eggs into human women?” I anger, a rage that takes a hold of my senses. “You’re going to kill them!”
“Some may die for the cause,” she says, unconcerned.
An icy feeling zips through my veins. It’s anger, not hot, but a cutting chill. I feel my body turning, twisting toward the darkness.
“I’ll. Kill. You,” I wheeze out.
“Calm down Elizabeth. You must control your awakening,” she warns. “You may have been gifted, but it is only temporary. The love you feel for your son is strong isn’t it? You work with me, or he will pay.”
Panting, I slump my back into the seat, digging my fingernails so hard into my thighs, blood seeps through my jeans.
“Here, put this on Elizabeth.” I turn to see Selene holding out a black cloth bag. “Over your head,” she adds.
A chemical reaction, rather similar to adrenalin, but blacker, whizzes around inside my skull. I can’t allow this evil bitch near what’s inside me. I’ve been trying to use this force to read her. But she’s Pure. Powerful. More powerful than I.
I feel the change come across my eyes. It’s like a heat and x-ray vision. I focus on the driver, Duncan’s blue aura, and spring out of my seat to claw at his throat. The Hummer swerves, as cool runny blood pours over my hands.
“Elizabeth!” Selene’s strong grip rips me away from Duncan.
Her eyes are piercing white, striking me with a fear. Her skin is greying, and her fangs are displayed.
“You have given me no choice.”
She swings her hand toward me. In it is a syringe. She plunges the needle hard into the side of my neck, just below my ear. I cringe as a burning sensation travels down my spine, replacing that cold in me.
