Ariana turned to gawp at him, too. “Excuse me?”
Abe looked up at Ariana and a tear rolled down his face. “I’ll do it. Which bridge would you like me to jump off? I would do anything for you to stay, just long enough to hear the whole story. If you still want to go after that… I won’t stop you. And you can still choose the bridge, although the sun will actually get the job done faster.”
Abe looked at Rainey with tears in his eyes. “If you take her back, be prepared to name Max the new High Vampire when you return. I won’t have a reason to be here anymore.”
Jonah walked forward from the shadows and put his arm around Rainey’s shoulders. He must have followed them out. Becky gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.
Abe’s gaze shifted to Becky. “I guess I have you to thank for the education Ariana got on my life story. It’s okay, I’m not mad at you, I deserve all of it. I just wish I knew then what I know now, and we wouldn’t be having this problem, any of it.” Abe moved his eyes back to Ariana. “Will you let me explain everything to you, or am I going to meet the sun at dawn?”
Ariana’s eyes darted from Becky’s stunned expression to Rainey’s tear-streaked cheeks, to Jonah’s mask of sorrow and back to Abe’s piercing eyes.
“I… I don’t understand any of this. What the hell is going on? And why on Earth would you want to do that?” Ariana cried.
Ariana turned to Rainey. “Rainey? Is this it? Is this what you were hiding from me? You really weren’t after him yourself, but just trying to get us together?” Rainey nodded, but kept her eyes down. “Why?” There was no answer.
Ariana looked back to Abe and lowered her voice. “We went shopping today. The shoes, the make-up, dresses… That was you, paying for it all, right?”
“I couldn’t let you know it was me. There is a very good explanation for all of this.”
“And I would like to hear it,” Julia said as she stepped out from behind Abe’s Hummer, laughing, wickedly amused to see Abe on his knees. Abe flashed in front of Ariana, hiding her from Julia’s view, arms splayed out protectively. “My, you are pitiful, Abe. I’ve never seen you on your knees for anyone before. Well, except for that one time in my bed chambers, but we won’t get into that, will we? Let me guess: Rainey here had a vision of this girl? And you, for the first time ever, fell head over heels in love? Why would you keep that from me? I am ecstatic. I am so glad that in almost a thousand years, you have finally managed to find love. Though I am a little surprised that you’ve managed to work out what love is. Ha-ha-ha.”
Julia focused her attention on Ariana who was peeking around Abe’s arm. “My name is Julia, dear. I’m sure you’ve heard all about me. I’m really not as bad as your friends here make me out to be.” Julia moved closer to Ariana and Abe’s fangs elongated. Julia laughed. “For God’s sake, Abe, I’m not going to hurt her. I thought I felt a lot of energy the other day, down by Rainey’s lair, and now I come face to face with it. You are quite a piece of work, aren’t you, dear? And I bet you don’t know half of what you can do, do you?”
“Rainey said I’m a Pure Natural Witch, or something like that. I can move things just by thinking about them. And I can’t turn my mind off; I hear everyone’s thoughts, all the time.”
“I can help you with your problem, if you like.”
“No!” Abe and Rainey both shouted at the same time.
Julia sighed theatrically. “Fine. If it gets to be too much to handle, sweetie, you know where to find me. Now, I’ve come to drink and dance, so if you’ll excuse me…” Julia said as she walked into the club.
Ariana was the first to break the silence. “She didn’t seem all that bad.”
Rainey hooked her arm through Jonah’s and walked to Becky, grabbed her hand, and started towing them toward the club. “Come on, you guys. I think Abe has some explaining to do.”
CHAPTER 20
Ariana couldn’t believe all that had happened in the last few days. She had to be dreaming still; there was no other logical explanation. No way could there be witches and vampires and an island that only they could see.
And there was no way in Hell that she could be the most powerful witch of them all.
She had been standing there staring at the club door that Rainey, Jonah and Becky had entered through moments before, unmoving, afraid of what was still to come. None of the rest made sense, either. The Vampire King – in love with her? Surreal. And impossible. The need to pee was almost overwhelming.
She finally turned to look at Abe. Man, was he a sight for sore eyes! There was no denying they had some kind of connection; she’d felt it whenever she’d been close to him. But something was holding her back. She didn’t know who to trust or what to believe.
Abe was looking at her the way no one had ever looked at her before, not even Michael. Abe’s gaze told her that he meant every word he’d said, reinforcing the message from his thoughts – he would do anything for her, all she had to do was ask. She knew Michael had loved her, but it hadn’t been a deep, romantic kind of thing. Michael worked, she worked and there were never any flowers sent to her or surprise gifts; there wasn’t any spare money for that kind of stuff, and even if there had been, it would have never occurred to Michael to get her the little things that mattered. Michael would have taken a bullet for her, but only if he could have lived through it.
This man in front of her, Abe, who she had spoken to only three times in her life, was ready to lose everything, walk out into the sun, take a stake through the heart, or whatever it took… She could tell he was in pain, really suffering, but the look of pure adoration was still in his eyes, still swathing her in love. This man’s world could not exist without her in it. He stood there, looking at her, waiting for her to make up her mind and tell him if he was going to live another day or watch the sun rise for the first and last time in over nine hundred years. She held this man’s destiny in her hands.
“Abe, I…”
“Take a ride with me. Please.”
He held out his hand to her; she hesitated and then took it. He opened the passenger door of the Hummer and helped her inside. The ground clearance and huge tires made it difficult for most people to climb into. It was no challenge for Abe. His six foot four didn’t have a problem with reaching elevated spots.
He climbed in the driver’s seat, closed the door and started the engine. He looked at Ariana, who was staring out the passenger window, and then backed out of the parking spot. Abe was so nervous sitting this close to her that he was shaking. Where did all these emotions come from? And would he ever learn to control them? For a fleeting moment he wished he was a smoker, so he could use a cigarette to take the edge off his anxiety.
Ariana never made life easy. She obviously wasn’t going to talk first, and why would she? This world was all so new to her, her head had probably not stopped spinning since the day she arrived. She must still have a million questions to ask. And he would have to keep in mind that her life before Eternal Island had not exactly been a bed of roses, either. With all her newly discovered pure witch power, this girl was much more fragile than she looked. Abe vowed to treat her with as much care and tenderness as he was capable of.
He turned the Hummer down an unpaved road that led to the ocean. A full moon came into view through the trees. Abe kept going until they reached the sand, a few hundred feet from the water.
He opened her door, helped her down gently and then fought with the urge to pull her into a tight embrace. He felt as though he was losing it, and being this close to her was only making it worse. She was like a positive magnet to his negative, consistently pulling him in closer.
Ariana stood there, unsmiling, with her arms folded over her chest as if she were cold.
“Are you chilled? I have a jacket in the back.”
“No, I’m fine. Let’s just get this over with.”
The statement hit Abe like a ton of bricks; this was going to be harder than he’d thought. He took a few steps toward the water, t
hen turned and looked at her.
“I won’t hurt you, Ariana.”
Ariana glared at him, but she must have read the sincerity of his thoughts because she fell into step beside him.
“I am so deeply sorry that Rainey or myself didn’t inform you right away of why you were brought here in the first place.”
She stopped walking. “So tell me now, because that part of the conversation is still too cloudy to make any sense. Hell, none of it makes sense. I have been lied to, my questions avoided, and I’ve been told to keep out of conversations ever since I arrived here. You’d better have a damn good explanation for all of it or… or a really good reason for me to stay. I’m not joking, Abe. I’m this close to checking myself out of this… this freak show.” Ariana held out her finger and thumb, almost touching.
Abe looked at her hand, then up at her pleading eyes, ignoring her pun entirely. She was angry and all she was asking for was to be told the truth. Well, that much he could give her, that much was in his power. She may not like it and he might lose her love forever, but that was a risk he had to take; the truth was the least he owed this sweet girl with clear eyes who’d stolen his heart.
The moon was shining on her face and he could see they were the prettiest green eyes he had ever seen. He held her gaze as he began.
“I have been on this earth for nine-hundred-fifty-four years. For most of that time I was wild and reckless. I was almost to the point of watching the sun come up one morning when a vampire friend of mine told me about this island. I thought… why not? That was about one hundred and fifty years ago.
“When I got here, everyone already knew who I was. Only the High Vampire here was older than me. In those days, many didn’t make their first century. Anyway, he took me under his wing and made me a man.” Abe’s eyes crinkled at the fond memory. “It took him ten years to achieve what I hadn’t been able to do by myself in my first eight hundred years of life: finally grow up. Calsonic was the founder of the island and he was very old and extremely wise. What I didn’t know was that he was bored with life and he was planning to retire. He was getting me ready to take his place as High Vampire.”
A longer pause followed, while Abe swallowed hard and collected his thoughts. Ariana felt he was editing some details out of the story, for her benefit. But his determination to keep telling the truth was still clear, so she waited patiently for him to continue.
“After he met the sun I felt empty inside, like there was nothing to look forward to anymore. No reason to live. I became ruthless; I couldn’t even stand myself. I had never been in love and told myself I didn’t ever want to be. I took many women to my bed only to turn them away after I was finished with them. Not when they were finished – I didn’t care how they felt. Unforgivable, I know.
“I turned Julia four hundred years ago. I thought she would be an asset to me, but she turned out to be the exact opposite. I released her from our bond not long after I turned her, but she chose to stay close to me. She followed me here. I tried flaunting other women in front of her, to make her mad enough to leave, but it seemed to only make her want to stay that much more. She kept telling everyone she will be Queen, but I have no feelings for her. Perhaps she plans to kill me and take my place. I do not know. Plotting, riling people against each other is one of her many talents.
“I became High Vampire almost a hundred and forty years ago and I can’t really say that I’ve been a good one. I try to be a fair, yet strict ruler; I make decisions and bed a lot of women. There is no crime on the island, not any that needs my attention, so I guess I’ve done alright there.
“Seventeen years ago I got Rainey. She found her powers at a young age. She had a vision of the island being attacked by a gang of rogue vampires and no one believed her, not even me. But the threat turned out to be real, and ultimate proof of her abilities. After the raid I moved her into the palace and made her my personal psychic. I swore to never doubt her again.”
Abe looked at Ariana, who had lost that irritated look and now looked at him with yearning. It pleased him that she seemed to be totally absorbed, really interested in his story. Telling the truth was the best avenue – why hadn’t he thought of that before?
“I did doubt Rainey one more time,” Abe confessed. “A few days ago, when she told me of her vision that I would fall in love with a human girl. I laughed at her, so she showed me an image of you. You were just a picture in her crystal ball, but I cannot even begin to describe the whirl of emotion I felt when I saw you. I knew then that my life was going to change completely. No longer did I want to be what I was. All of a sudden my existence started to make sense, and I wanted you, I needed you, Ariana.
“I ordered Rainey to get you here, and I didn’t care how she went about achieving that. I wanted you to come willingly, of course, but I was so blinded by lust, it wouldn’t have mattered if you were kicking and screaming. I told myself I would be able to change your mind if you wanted to go back home. Which was so stupid of me, I can see that now. I’m sorry,” he begged forgiveness again. Ariana smiled.
“The longer the hours ticked by, the more emotions I discovered I had. All new, all confusing as Hell. And, to tell you the truth, I didn’t like them at all. And then Rainey called on the way back, saying she’d had another vision…”
“Yeah, I know. She left me in charge of the plane. I was terrified.”
Abe smiled and took her hand softly, hesitantly. There was a small tingling between their interlaced fingers, but he just assumed it was her newly acquired magic. He could only imagine what she must be going through, but for now he needed to stay on topic: truth. She would talk about the overwhelming news of her new abilities when she was ready. He hoped. “If you stay, I’ll teach you how to fly that plane.”
Ariana didn’t comment, but she didn’t take her hand back, either. A good sign. Encouraged, Abe went on. “This last vision wasn’t clear, but Rainey did see Jonah, Max – whom you haven’t met yet – herself, Julia and me… and she saw me crying and Julia laughing. She didn’t see you, but she sensed you were somewhere there and in trouble. So the reason I couldn’t talk to you when you got here is because we were trying to understand Rainey’s vision and prevent anything bad from happening, if we could work out what that was. Rainey was convinced that if you knew of all this, and especially with Julia being able to read our thoughts, well… I suppose she knew I wouldn’t want to risk losing you. Don’t be mad at Rainey; she only means well.”
“I’m not mad at Rainey,” Ariana said flatly.
Abe cleared his throat. He had thought the whole truth thing was turning everything around, but evidently he still had a lot of explaining left to do. “Then Julia visited Rainey— just before we came to the club, actually, and ferreted around in her mind until she found out about you. Or it could have been my mind; we’ll never know for sure. Rainey swore she was doing all she could to keep you out of her thoughts, but I showed up to tell Rainey about my latest theory at the wrong time. Julia isn’t stupid. I’m sure she could have put together what was in my mind and fragments of Rainey’s thoughts, too, and arrived at the right conclusion.
“I can’t help it,” Abe’s eyes smoldered in the moonlight. “You are always on my mind.” Ariana pulled her hand out of Abe’s and he let out a muted groan, like he’d been stabbed. He made no attempt to touch her again as he continued. “I’ve just been avoiding Julia. I knew she was going to come to Code Red tonight and introduce herself to you; Rainey told me about her visit on the way here. That is why Rainey rode with me, Ariana, to warn me about Julia and not because we are together. You are the only one for me and it will always be that way. I don’t see any other women. No one else matters to me, but you.”
She fidgeted, clearly uncomfortable with his bluntness. She wasn’t at all used to being worshipped.
“Tell me something. Please.” Abe fixed Ariana with his gaze, his eyes cautious as he asked the most important question yet. “When you said to Rainey ‘You really don’t lik
e him, you were trying to get us together?’…” Ariana covered her mouth with her hand, as if she could take her words back. Abe smiled, but soldiered on. He needed a little truth from her in return. “Those words made me realize that you were jealous. You honestly thought that me and Rainey were a couple, that she rode with me because we are together. So… does that mean that, maybe, you do like me? Just a little?”
“I–I don’t know. I… All of this is moving too fast… I don’t know what I think or want anymore.”
Abe closed the distance between them and cupped Ariana’s face in his hands. “I don’t want you to leave,” he whispered. “I love you. It scares me to death to think that I could wake up later tonight and you might be gone. I will give you time and space, if that’s what you need. It’ll be torture, but I will wait for you forever. Just, please, don’t leave. I would rather live with your rejection and watch you be happy with someone else, than never see your face again. I cannot live without you in my life, Ariana. Please, just tell me you will stay.”
Abe let his hands drop to his sides before he did something stupid, like kiss her senseless; he was certain that would scare her off.
A million things were running through Ariana’s mind. Everyone’s thoughts had dimmed and shifted to the background; it was Abe’s inner voice that she heard loud and clear, and she could sense that everything he’d told her was the truth. She didn’t know what tomorrow, next week or even next year would bring, and Rainey’s visions were scaring her a little, but she did know at that moment that she wanted to stay.
“I will stay…” Abe let out the breath he’d been holding, his eyes closing in relief. “But I do need time to figure all of this out. I’m not promising anything. If you do care about me the way you say you do, then you will give me the time and space I need. Right now I’m not sure if I ever want to be with anyone again. I miss my friends and I’m still grieving for my husband.”
Eternal Island (Book 1 in the Eternal Series) Page 11
