"Don’t," Kira said, fighting the urge to smack Pavia across the cheek. The vampire was here to help, she tried to remind herself, here because they had a friendship of sorts.
"I'm just trying to make you understand," Pavia said, stepping back.
"I know." Kira turned to Pavia, ready with an apology.
Pavia held her hand up and shrugged. "As far as I'm concerned, we're good as long as those flames in your hands don't come shooting in my direction. I came back to help you, hard as it may be to believe."
"Because I saved you from Aldrich?"
"Because you gave me some hope," Pavia said, trailing off.
Kira looked at her, really took the time to take in the vampire standing in front of her. Aside from Tristan, Pavia was the only vampire she had met who seemed to want something more, who was tired of the shadow of immortality.
"Let's not hug this out, okay?" Pavia grinned, teasing.
"Deal." Kira smiled. "But can I ask you one more thing?"
Pavia nodded.
"What would you want, if you were Tristan?"
"I," Pavia started, but at that exact moment, Tristan reappeared, holding a mud-crusted box in his arms.
"I can't believe I found this!" he exclaimed, excitement coloring his words. Kira turned toward him, lighting her features with a mock enthusiasm.
"What is it?" she asked, looking away from Pavia, whose mouth was still hanging open, offering the answer Kira either dreaded or wanted to hear. There would be time to find out which later.
"A box I buried before the war." He knelt down in the grass and gently lifted the lid. "These were my prized possessions."
Lifting a small canvas bag, Tristan flipped it over in his hands and a handful of glass marbles dropped out. He rolled them around his palm, laughter dancing across his features.
"Marbles?" Kira asked.
"Glass marbles," Tristan corrected. "The best gift my father ever gave me."
"What else?" Kira asked, kneeling next to him. Why had Tristan never shown her these things before?
He took a cloth out and slowly unwrapped it like a present. A giant golden amulet gleamed in the sun, and Tristan picked it up by its gold-link chain. As it spun with the wind, Kira realized it was a pocket watch, still preserved incredibly well despite the passage of time.
Tristan put the device against his ear, slacking when he failed to hear it tick.
"Don't worry," Kira said and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure we can get it fixed somewhere."
He shook his head. "It stopped working the day my brother died, the day I joined the army. I did not really expect to hear anything."
"Your brother died before you joined?" Kira asked. "I thought you joined together."
"No," Tristan said softly. "I did not start fighting until his death gave me cause to go to war. I enlisted with him out of duty, but eventually joined the war for him, despite all of our differences."
He set the watch back down and pulled out a third pouch. Kira sat back, stunned. Who was this man in front of her?
"My mother," Tristan said, revealing his final trinket, which was an elegant cameo of a woman's profile cut into rose quartz. "I'm surprised this is still here, I thought I would have come back for it."
"That's beautiful," Pavia said, leaning over Tristan's shoulder, running a finger over the pendant. "Before I turned, I used to dream of having jewelry like that."
"It was her wedding present from my father." Tristan folded the cloth back over the jewel, covering it up again. "It was meant to be passed down to my bride and to our children after that."
Kira tried to fight the sting of those words. Was she being an idiot? Tristan loved her, more than she knew a person could love someone else, but why had he kept these things from her? Why had his human life remained so far apart from the stories he told her?
"What's in the last pouch?" she asked, indicating the last unwrapped box.
"My paints," he said sadly, "but I doubt they've passed the test of time. I will open them later."
He closed the lid, shutting his personal side off. Standing, Tristan brushed the dirt from his clothes and swallowed deeply.
"I've seen everything I needed to see."
"Let's find Luke then," Kira said while stretching her body back upright, "he's probably back by now."
"Let's go," Pavia chirped and started walking. Tristan followed, and Kira brought up the rear.
As they reached the river, Kira took one look back. She would never be here again, and that was a promise. It had been a mistake to come, Kira realized. Whereas before, this had been their place, their oasis, Kira now felt like an intruder. It was Tristan's spot and it had been for years—Kira was just a blip on the radar, drifting farther away, getting quieter and quieter.
She knew what she had to do.
Tristan could never remember.
The first time they had met—five seconds before English class began, a moment Kira would remember forever—she had seen it then. The weight of time in his eyes, the heaviness over his heart. The more she grew to love him, the more she had seen why.
Life with Aldrich, watching everyone he had ever met die, feeding off of humans to survive—it had been a burden on his soul. And she wouldn't be the one to bring that shadow back around him.
A few days ago, Kira had been ready to say goodbye to the vampire, but now she was ready to say goodbye to the man that had been inside of Tristan all along.
But there was one thing left to do.
One more burden to overcome before Kira could let him go.
Aldrich.
When the three of them finally reached the clearing, Luke was there waiting, as he always had been. He looked up over the rim of the sandwich he was biting into, and his eyes instantly traveled to the berth of space between Kira and Tristan. His shoulder slackened, the worry eased from his body.
But that wasn't what Kira wanted either. She didn’t want Luke to feel like the leftovers. For once, Kira wished he could step inside of her head, to feel the way her pulse was quickening at the sight of him, to feel the peace that settled in her body just by thinking about him.
He wasn't second place.
He was the grand prize—the one hiding in plain sight this entire time.
So Kira opened the door and gripped the hand resting in his lap, holding on securely and letting warmth funnel through their bond.
"How'd it go?" he asked and rubbed his thumb along the sensitive skin of her palm.
"I know what to do," Kira said, looking into his eyes.
"And the rest of us are starving," Pavia sighed from the backseat. "Got any blood in that shopping bag?"
"Sorry." He grinned. "I'm a human-only lunch service. Tristan, turkey or ham? Take your pick." He tossed the bag of sandwiches into Tristan's lap.
Perplexed, Tristan pulled a ball of paper from the bag and began to unwrap it.
"Don't worry. It tastes really great." Kira smiled at him.
"Especially if you put some of those hot peppers on it," Luke suggested, eyeing the peppers spilling from his own concoction. "If there are any left."
"There better be some left!" Kira grabbed the bag. "I'm the one who introduced you to those things."
"And then the student became the master," Luke teased and took a huge bite from his sandwich, barely able to close his mouth without letting breadcrumbs slip out.
"Ah," Kira gave a satisfied sigh as she pulled a hidden plastic cup full of peppers from the bag. She opened the bread roll and dropped some on top of the ham and cheese before taking her own huge bite.
"So where to?" Luke asked when he was finally able to swallow.
Kira tried to respond, but ended up spewing bits of her sandwich in the process.
"You are bringing it right now," Luke joked, wiping a breadcrumb from her cheek. He kept his palm there for a moment, cupping her face long enough to run his thumb along her skin. Disbelief channeled through Kira's mind, a satisfied disbelief. And Kira could read what it me
ant in his emerald green eyes, now alive with swirling flames.
Mine, Luke was thinking, finally she's all mine.
And Kira didn't look away.
The heat in his palm warmed more than just her cheek.
"I need to meet up with my gang," Pavia said from the back, blowing her bangs from her face in the process, "and I need to find a meal."
"Good, we'll drop you off downtown," Luke said, turning his attention back to the car and revving it to life.
"And then we'll meet up tonight," Kira demanded. There was no give in her voice. "You, me, Luke, and the vampires. If we're bringing Aldrich down, there's no time to waste."
"Agreed," Luke said.
"Done," Pavia confirmed.
Kira turned on the radio and leaned back, putting her feet up on the dashboard before taking another satisfying bite of her sandwich.
Aldrich was going down, and there was no way she would let him escape again—no way.
And, Kira thought, taking a look at Tristan in her peripheral vision, maybe he wouldn't have to be alone. If some of these vampires wanted to turn, wanted to reawaken to a new world and experience it with him, Kira would find a way.
No shadow in her heart, black as it was, would stop her.
Chapter Seven
"Spill," Kira said, eyeing Luke from the passenger seat of the car. Ever since they had left his house, Luke had been silent—never a good sign.
"Nothing." He shrugged. Kira rolled her eyes.
Tristan was safe back in Luke's home, and Pavia was waiting for them at the meeting place, so Kira wasn't about to let Luke hide from her—not when it was just the two of them, alone for what seemed like the first time in ages.
"Luke?"
"Yes…"
"Luke," she pressed further.
He hesitated for a second before letting a huge exhale slump his shoulders. "Fine, fine."
Kira waited while he thought then poked him when she got impatient.
"It's just, we've done some crazy things—facing Diana, hiding out at the Red Rose Ball, taking Aldrich on at his home turf—but this seems a little insane. We're walking into a meeting with vampires, one where they'll definitely outnumber us and have the advantage."
"Is that it?" Kira asked.
"Well, yeah, mortal peril seems like a good reason to be a little wary."
"Mortal peril, really? I didn't know you were so chicken." Kira grinned, chiding him.
"Chicken?" He raised his eyebrows. "I'm best friends with you, that alone makes me braver than the little toaster, and he had the word brave in his name."
"Braver than a kitchen appliance…definitely something to be proud of."
"Did you ever see that movie?" He turned to her in disbelief. Kira shook her head. He tsked, "I'm disappointed."
"Ooh." Kira held a hand over her heart pretending to be wounded. "But really, back to topic, why are you nervous?"
"I guess…" He sighed. "Well, the only person who told us it would be safe is Pavia, and I just don't trust her. If you set this thing up, no questions asked, but something about her… I don't know, I don't like it."
"I trust her, isn't that enough?"
"But why? Why are you so sure?"
"You weren't there, but," Kira said, thinking back to the dungeon, to the hungry look for freedom in Pavia's eyes and the earnestness in her expression when she promised to show Kira more of her birth mother's memories. "It's hard to explain, I just trust her. She didn't have to come back, she could have run away from me and from Aldrich, leaving everything behind, but she didn't. She kept her promise. That's worth something, isn't it?"
Luke shrugged. "I just don't trust vampires."
"But you trust me."
"Always."
"Enemy of your enemy is your friend—these vampires want to get rid of Aldrich, we want to get rid of Aldrich. Everything will be fine."
"I hope you're right."
"Am I ever wrong?"
"Do you really want me to answer that?" Luke grinned, looking away from the road to meet her gaze for a quick instant. Kira shoved him gently.
"Just drive," she chided, but a giddy excitement stirred in her stomach.
"Where are we going anyway? This place is in the heart of Charleston."
Kira shrugged. "Pavia just gave me an address. She didn't say what it was."
"That's reassuring," Luke said wryly.
One hundred twelve North Market Street, Kira read quietly to herself. It was right in the historic district—what could it be? Someone's house?
Whatever it was, they would be there soon. Luke exited the main highway as they crossed over a large bridge into Charleston City. A few minutes later, he pulled to a stop next to a meter and stepped out of the car.
"Follow me," Luke said, turning toward the left and walking quickly down the street.
People were everywhere, relaxing outside of the ice cream shop and walking through the market place even though the street vendors had closed their stores. Couples held hands while they approached restaurants, and little kids ran around, ignoring the calls of their parents.
Where are we going? Kira wondered. This seemed like the least vampire-y place in the entire city.
Luke stopped.
"The Peninsula Grill?"
"What?" Kira asked, not understanding. Luke pointed to the sign hanging from a wrought iron fence. "Oh, it's the name of the restaurant. I get the hint, we can eat here sometime, but let's get to the meeting place."
"Kira, this is the meeting place. One hundred twelve North Market, right?"
She nodded and looked closer.
The entrance to the restaurant was a wrought iron fence that opened to a brick courtyard. The bushes lining the walkway were lit up with white Christmas lights, even though it was summer time.
"Here?" Kira asked.
Luke shrugged and stepped forward warily. They walked down the well-lit path for about fifteen feet before reaching the door to the restaurant. Luke stepped in first and Kira followed, but they were immediately stopped by a hostess.
"Good evening," she said, taking in their relaxed attire. "Do you have a reservation?"
"Um," Kira said, looking around for Pavia.
"Yes, Pavia? There should be a party waiting," Luke chimed in.
"Ah yes, in the private room. Follow me, please."
She stepped out from behind the podium, and Kira fought to keep up with her speedy steps. The entire restaurant was low-lit with candlelight, and crisp white linens topped the tables. Paintings hung from the cream walls and almost every diner sparkled with diamonds.
Kira thought of her jeans. Yeah, she and Luke weren't exactly the right clientele.
"Right in here," the hostess said and slipped a hidden door open, leading to a long table completely full aside from two empty seats on the opposite side of the room.
"Kira, Luke," Pavia said, standing and shooing the hostess away, "so glad you made it."
Kira was too distracted by the pale faces around her to answer. Maybe Luke had been right…they were completely outnumbered.
"Sit, sit," Pavia continued, pointing toward the two open seats. Kira noticed that two plates of food were waiting for them—the only two plates of food on the entire table. In fact, the only other things on the table were ten glasses of red wine, or what Kira was pretending was red wine. But when she sat down and smelled what had to be filet mignon on top of a bed of rosemary mashed potatoes, she tried to calm down.
Luke, however, eagerly grabbed his fork, completely ready to dig in. So much for his concern.
"So, thank you all for coming." Pavia was still standing at the head of the table, looking around at all of her guests. Her formality was making Kira slightly uncomfortable—what was she nervous about? "You all know why we're here, because of her." Pavia pointed at Kira, and every head turned. "Because Kira has restored a vampire's humanity, and she says she can do it again."
"For the price of one war," the hawk-nose male vampire three seats away fro
m Kira said.
"Alessandro, really." Pavia brushed him off, her blasé attitude returning. "It'll be one battle that we'll win without breaking a sweat. I've heard Aldrich's looking a little crispy lately, if you know what I mean."
The vampires snickered. Kira and Luke looked at each other and shrugged. Crispy?
"His power was of the mind, not the body," Hawk-Nose pressed again.
"Before we get to that part, I want to see some proof," a female vampire spoke from opposite Hawk-Nose.
"I would as well," another vampire farther away from Kira seconded. "Was she not supposed to bring Tristan?"
"Change of plans," Pavia said, moving back to her seat on the other side of Kira. "Will everyone join hands so I can share the memory with all of you at the same time? And before you ask, no, I can't see into multiple minds at once so you'll all block each other out."
Kira grabbed Luke's outstretched hand, watching as he winced and took the strong grip of the female vampire sitting next to him. She braced herself. This wasn't the first time Kira had seen a memory from Pavia and getting sucked into someone's mind wasn't exactly a pleasant experience.
Turning to her left, Kira looked Pavia in the eye. There was something fragile in her stare, something vulnerable that she probably didn't want Kira to see.
"This is a memory of my own," Pavia said, stopping her hand an inch above Kira's, "from the night that Tristan turned."
Opening her eyes in surprise, Kira tried to speak, but it was too late. Pavia's fingers touched Kira, and she was falling. Her chair tipped backward, sending her into a spinning vortex, an endless hole. Her feet seemed to flip over her head, colors swirled in her mind, noises racked her ears, but none of it was decipherable. Until the pull of gravity nudged her and she slammed back to earth in a body not her own…
She was running, faster than she had run in fifty years, farther than the tiny space that horrible glass shell had allowed. She felt free, freer than she maybe ever had before. Captivity was soul crushing, and the weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She felt as though she could fly, as though her feet, already pumping at an inhuman speed, would eventually lift free of the ground and propel her forward based on will alone.
The Complete Midnight Fire Series Page 66
