I turned around in a search of a waiter and more alcohol. I needed to get a drink fast before I accidentally caused something to explode.
"Oh, there you are, darling. I was just telling Kim that we shouldn’t have come here. Our new apartment in Geneva is set in Asian style and—"
I waved to the waiter who was walking towards the woman who was still bragging about this unfortunate trip when a powerful wave of energy hit me so hard I thought I was having a heart attack.
"We just got back to London and we aren’t here hunting for your next treasure. It’s a night out, Meredith,” another voice said. I instantly recognized it straight away. A cold chill passed through my entire body electrifying all my senses. Then the waiter who was carrying a stack of champagne glasses stopped abruptly. My heart gave me a giant smack in my chest then suddenly, all the glasses exploded, and the waiter went down on the floor. Someone screamed, people started rushing towards the poor caterer.
Nathaniel La Caz was standing a few meters away from me by two mermaids who looked like supermodels straight from the cat walk. My heart was pounding, and my usual, crazy and unpredictable magic was back, swaying me away back into the darkness. I had no idea what to do.
For a long moment I felt like time had stopped. People around me became transparent—stuck—and no one was moving when Nathaniel and I were staring at each other. The air changed consistency, growing heavy and thick in waves of hot energy.
"I told you so, there’s too many paranormals here. Magic gets out of control, and people go crazy," a woman ranted directly to Nathaniel. He wasn't paying the slightest bit of attention to her, because he was looking directly at me and my insides were slowly melting. Lust curled my toes and I was completely numb and breathless.
I needed to do something, react or run away, otherwise I was going to make an absolute fool of myself.
My heart was dangerously close to cardiac arrest territory when I approached him.
"Julia, how nice to see you here," he said before I had a chance to open my mouth. "Darling, let me introduce you to an old friend of mine."
My energy was driving my oversensitive body into another seizure-like episode. All of a sudden, I thought I was going to collapse again, not because I was afraid or scared, because all those emotions that I’d buried in the past year were out in the open, ready to crush me down. I wanted to die because I realised that Nathaniel La Caz was back in London.
Chapter 6
The prefect girlfriend.
I couldn't make a sound. My skin crawled, and I drifted towards him; his signature scent was all over me, tossing my hyper-active heart all over my body. New, rebellious energy jetted through my core, pulling me apart. Nathaniel was supposed to be a thousand miles away from London, but he here he was, standing in front of me, looking more handsome than ever before.
"Julia, oh, there you are; we were just loo—"
Kate stopped talking mid-sentence, following my gaze noticing the enigmatic Dhampir in front of me. Her green eyes widened taking him in slowly, like she wasn't quite sure if she was seeing him right in front of her. All of a sudden, my overactive magic zipped down my spine, zooming throughout my entire body, igniting a fire in my chest.
After the initial shock, I darted my eyes to the woman who he’d just introduced me to. I thought this unexpected meeting couldn't get any more intimidating, but the paranormal who stood in front of me looked like she was taken straight off the cover of Vogue magazine. She was breathtakingly beautiful, and she was a pure-blooded mermaid. I wasn't just exaggerating, but to me she was the most incredible looking creature that I’d ever laid eyes on. Even Kelsie didn't stand up to that prefect flawless, radiant skin and glossy long straight hair. As I stood in front of my ex and presumably his new girlfriend, it felt like someone was continuously punching me in the stomach and I wanted to puke my guts out.
I didn't want to look at Nathaniel and Miss. Perfect, so I became interested in my feet ignoring the mess that I made with the glasses a few meters away. My palms were beaming with bright light, and I gritted my teeth imagining that I was somewhere else, away from all the anguish and pain that he’d suddenly brought back.
"Hi, Kate, how are you?" Nathaniel asked, as if I didn't exist. The sound of his voice brought a wave of heat straight to my core.
"Fine, great actually," she replied moving her hand over my arm. I lifted my eyes avoiding those hazel eyes of his with every bit of self-control that I had.
"Hi, Julia, it’s nice to meet you," Meredith said with a radiant smile, finally aware that Nathaniel introduced me. I didn't know what how to respond, but I knew I had to say something. I couldn't just stand in there like a total moron and pretend that I didn't understand English.
"So, you’re back to London I see?" I choked, ignoring Meredith. My voice was barely audible, and I felt when Kate squeezed my arm tighter. I didn't plan to ask him that, but my mind was blank, and I couldn't think straight.
Nathaniel’s eyes never left me, and when I looked at him again long waves of electricity moved over my entire body, erupting tiny sparks of energy through my clothes. I savoured his ambiance, like an addict absorbed opiates, always craving more. In a matter of seconds, I was high on him, inhaling lime zests and lemons. The erotic images of us together were rapidly moving in front of my eyes, taking away the last shreds of my self-respect. It was as if we’d never broken up, like we were still together, swirled with passion and desire.
"I heard about the murder from Lucinda, and I thought it was time to get back," Nathaniel said, looking at me intensely. I was aware that Kate had been shooting me hard looks to start moving, but my body was completely numb. I had no idea how to get out of his sight.
"Oh, darling, you’re so modest," Meredith interrupted laughing. Nathaniel shifted opening his mouth to interrupt her, but she lifted her hand quickly, letting him know that she wasn’t finished yet. "We’re here because Nathaniel wanted to get married in the UK, you see."
"A wedding? Who’s getting married?" I asked before I thought about the question.
"Oh, silly, we are of course. Nathaniel proposed to me last month and we’re having a lavish wedding in Canterbury."
Blackness obscured my vision straight after that statement left her mouth. I didn't quite remember what happened to me after that. I was falling into oblivion, not seeing the light. The world around me shifted into gloom and despair. Kate must have wrapped the conversation up because I remembered being in the bathroom, puking my guts out in the toilet. Someone was holding my hair and although my stomach was empty I couldn't stop heaving.
"Julia, let me use my magic. You’re going to pass out," Kate kept saying. There was someone else behind her, but I couldn't stop throwing up. My stomach kept revolting, heaving with water. I felt like someone was cutting my heart out piece by piece while I was lying on the table tied up, aware of every time the knife pierced through my skin.
"We need to take her home right now before Quentin starts looking for her," another voice said.
"Okay, I’ll take her. You have to take care of him. Make something up about an emergency!" Kate hissed before her voice faded.
I wasn’t consciously aware what happened to me after that. Someone must have carried me away, because when I woke up, I was in my own bed snuggled with nice, warm sheets. I blinked a few times getting used to the darkness. My head hurt, and I flinched seeing Kate and Kelsie next to my bed. I rubbed my eyes remembering the pain in my chest, remembering Nathaniel. I searched for confirmation or denial, looking at my friends and hoping that I just had a bad dream, praying that Nathaniel hadn’t just gotten engaged to the most perfect woman on earth.
"Julia, how are you feeling?" Kate asked, touching my hand gently. She was using her magic to slow my heart rate; she didn't need to say anything, I could feel as the energy was pouring out of her magic wand. She could do anything if she really tried; the pain consumed me, digging right through me, pouring into my bones, splitting my cells apart.
&n
bsp; "Just tell me, Kate; please tell me that I was dreaming."
Kelsie moved around Kate and got into my bed wrapping her arms around my waist. She looked at me for a really long time, and her eyes began to glow with bright yellow light.
"He’s getting married to someone else, Julia. I know it hurts, and I know your heart is broken, but you’re the strongest woman I’ve ever met. You need to pull yourself together and carry on living—"
"Kelsie, I don’t think you should—"
"Kate, shut up for a moment," Kelsie cut her off. "Julia’s going to be all right. She doesn’t want to be pitied."
"Yes, Kate she’s right. I don’t need this," I said quietly. "Nathaniel never promised me anything. I was the one who broke things off between us. It shouldn't surprise me that he’s with someone else."
I knew I was lying to myself and to them. I was furious that the man who I’d fallen for, the man who’d turned my life upside down was now marrying someone else: a foreign beautiful woman who wasn't even a vampire. When he was around me he acted as if he couldn't love, he couldn't commit and now he was getting married.
"Quentin called. He’s really worried about you and he’s going to come over," Kate said.
"What did you guys tell him?"
"I told him that you had a family emergency. You were already in the taxi when I found him. Quentin wanted to get to you as soon as I told him. He was really pissed when I told him you’d already left."
"Thank you, Kelsie. I really appreciate it."
"Don’t mention it."
"Come on, Kel. I think Julia wants to be alone. We should to leave," Kate muttered. I lifted myself up and thanked Kate with a smile. My head felt heavy and I didn't want to use my brain to analyse anything, but I was prepared for more humiliation in a couple of days. The news would spread, and people were going to talk about me. Kelsie took her bag and left my bedroom. Kate stopped at the door.
"Julia, if you need anything—"
"Kate, don’t worry," I said. "I'm not planning to kill myself. I know that Nathaniel and I, well, we’re over, so please go. I’ll deal with this."
Kate nodded and vanished. A moment later I heard the door. I stared into the darkness trying to think about something positive. Minutes passed, and I kept asking myself why I was so upset. Then the tears came later hours after I woke up.
I knew that I was supposed to be a strong and independent woman. Break ups normally didn't affect me, but I couldn't hold my grief any longer. I wanted to be sad, because I still loved him, and I couldn't believe that he’d forgotten about me so easily.
Last night, I became a girl with a shredded heart because the love of my life was marrying someone else.
When Sunday came, I had to compose myself and at least try to act normal by putting on a brave happy face. Quentin arrived in the morning and if I wanted to be in a relationship with him then I needed to act as if last night didn't happen.
When Quentin was around, my life was in control. Our conversation last night was brief. He understood why I had to leave, and I kept lying, saying that my grandmother had a small accident with magic. Lies came easy, but Quentin didn't need to know about Nathaniel. Now just wasn't the right time.
It was hard to pretend that I was fine, that I didn't care that the love of my life had just gotten engaged to the most beautiful woman on the planet.
When I walked into the office on Monday morning I felt like I had to work with a flu virus. My muscles were aching, and my excess magic was driving me insane. Since Saturday I felt like the blackouts weren’t a problem anymore. My energy was back, inflaming my fingertips, burning my clothes, pushing my hormones to the limit. It was as if the past few events never occurred.
"We have a busy day. Lucinda has been calling since ten o’clock. She’s back at work and wants fifty paranormals by Wednesday!" Kate shouted. She wanted to make sure that I didn't have time to think about Nathaniel even before I sat down at my desk. Sara was busy with candidates and I knew that I couldn't start my day without coffee.
"All right, I get it, I need to speak to her," I said pushing the idea of having a hot beverage away. My body still felt like it didn't belong to me, but I needed to just get on with everything. The girls were right. I was too strong to be depressed. I’d already passed the stage where I grieved over Nathaniel, now I had to worry about myself.
It was easier to deal with intensive thoughts when I was busy. Straight after ten o’clock the day was hectic, and I didn't have time to mess around. I had a million CV’s to go through, arranged interviews and payroll. Hours passed quickly. Kate was fast with placing the adverts, even Sara was doing all that she could to stay on top of everything. By the end of the day we were all knackered, but happy with the results.
"I'm proud of you. I wasn’t sure if you were going to show up today," Kate whispered, handing me a cup of hot coffee. Her purple hair was all over the place, but she was glowing, and I felt good that my best friend had a man she could rely on.
"Yeah. I decided to stop thinking about him. I have Quentin and he’s a good guy."
"Of course. Quentin doesn’t have problems with commitment. It’s for the best that La Caz found someone else."
Kate, Sara and I left the office just after eight. Quentin was busy with another auction tonight. My vampire co-workers were going to have a busy evening and I was looking forward to an early night with a bottle of wine.
When I got home my magic was absent again, and that sorrowful feeling filled my chest, reminding me of Nathaniel. I knew that I needed something to distract me, so I went straight to the kitchen. It was time for the moment of truth. I had to know if the knife in Jennifer’s body belonged to me.
It was better to be certain, better to believe that I wasn’t capable of killing someone. During that night in the alley when I saved Kelsie, I became someone else. I was drunk with power when I attacked that wizard who’d tried to rape Kelsie. My darkness took over, hurling through me fast and I remembered what Grandpa used to say about my power.
I opened the draw quickly wanting to get this over with. My pupils dilated, and my heart stared to pump more blood through my veins. The knife wasn’t there, it was missing. For a moment I thought that I was having a heart attack. My breath came short and I hissed and hissed. Cold sweat surged over my body as I tried to breathe. Maybe I was a killer after all, maybe I wanted to go after Jennifer. Vicious and violent thoughts rolled through my mind. Jennifer nearly cost me my life and I hated her, but I never wanted to hurt her. Then my whizzed breaths must have been interrupted by the ringtone from my mobile. I lifted myself up, my legs were like a jelly when I got to my phone.
"Hello?"
"Julia, it’s time for your training," the familiar creepy voice said on the other end of the line. An icy shiver passed over my spine.
"Torn, is that you?"
"Julia, you sound stressed. Is everything all right?" he asked. An odd peaceful feeling came to me unexpectedly easing the wound in my heart for a brief moment.
"I don’t think I want to talk about this over the phone," I said shrugging. More silence and more ease. Maybe Torn could put my heart together, maybe there was a still hope for me.
"You’re right," he replied in his usual creepy voice. "Go outside. There is a car waiting for you. Just wear something comfortable."
"Fine, I’ll be ready in five."
I sounded like someone else and I wasn't being rational, but I was prepared to risk my own skin and protect the people I cared about. Ten minutes later after a quick change, I was driving into an unknown place in a brand-new Mercedes. London seemed asleep and I had no idea where I was going; it was nearly ten o’clock and my brain was working fast. I kept thinking about the knife, wondering if Tron was really going to sort out my magic.
An hour later the driver parked outside a large old Victorian house. My stomach growled, and I peered outside seeing that we’d arrived in one of those pricey, famous neighbourhoods, filled with luxurious homes, expensive cars and
people who were most definitely not human. Torn struck me as the kind of guy who would live here. He was like a rich gothic lord from Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula, except he was an elf.
"Mr. Rubenstain is waiting for you," the driver informed me after he rolled the black tinted window down in front. In the front mirror I could see his dark fairy eyes. I nodded and got out of the car. As soon as my feet stepped out on the perfect pavement, his creepy voice surrounded me.
"Come inside; we have a lot to discuss."
Tron, well, Mr. Rubenstain, stood in the doorway wearing a gold dressing robe, holding a cigar in his right hand.
"Tron, wow, I don’t understand. Is… Is this where you live?" I asked trying to hide my high-pitched tone of voice.
"Yes, it’s my home," he replied sounding amused. "I know you were probably thinking I would summon you to some old warehouse, but no, we’re going to practise magic in style, like a true legend."
I smiled because that’s exactly what I had been thinking.
Chapter 7
The test
This house looked like an old aristocratic home, and for a second, I was ready to leave. The furniture, floors and even art—everything looked as if it were from the Victorian era. Only vampires were immortal but now I was having doubts about this theory.
By the fire, sitting on a Chesterfield sofa, there was another man, maybe a bit younger than Tron. He was a pure-blooded fairy, although he wasn’t particularly handsome, his aura was striking.
Elf's Affection: The Witching Hour Series Book 3 Page 5
