Immortal Hearts (The Hearts Series, #3)

by Muffy Wilson

“I am terrified, Damien. I can’t...”

  “You can, and you will. We cannot fight him blindly. Go find out why he is here.”

  I shored myself up with a false steely reserve. When I got to the door, I yelled through.

  “Who is it, please?” I looked through the peep-hole. The detective stood holding his leather wallet with his gold badge on display.

  “Detective French, Ms... Lisbet. May I speak with you a moment? Inside?”

  “What is it you want, Detective? It’s early. I’ve not had my morning coffee, yet.”

  “Let me in, please, Ms. Baylord. It’s official business. Do you want your neighbors to hear?”

  “No, of course not, Detective. One moment.” Uncertain of his agenda, nefarious or otherwise, I didn’t want anyone to know he was here at all. I threw the deadbolts, drew a deep breath and slid the chain off of the channel. I opened the door and stepped back.

  “What can I help you with, Detective?” My heart hammered in my breast.

  “I know your husband is alive, Lisbet. I know a lot of things.”

  “Do you, Dick? What is it you think you know about me, my husband and my life?” I thought I sounded scared out of my wits. I tried very hard to steady my knees by spreading my stance. I slid my hands into my pockets to hide their trembling.

  “Well, for one thing, I know your husband is still alive. I also know he has been here.” He sniffed the air and leaned in the direction of the master suite.

  I moved to block his view into the hallway and down to our bedroom, although I didn’t know if that is where Damien was hidden.

  “Furthermore, I know he is here right now. I can smell him on you—in you, filthy cunt.”

  I felt the heat rise in waves to my brow as my face surely flushed. His insinuations scared and infuriated me.

  “Jumped right to it, did you, Dick? How dare you. What makes you think Damien is here? What makes you think you are right? He lived here, you pompous ass. Of course it would smell like him. I have been sleeping with his clothes to keep him close, you son of a bitch. Now, get out of my house.”

  I took an involuntary step towards the detective and pointed again to the door.

  He ignored my demand and walked past me to the window.

  “Nice view. Bet you can see all manner of things flying by—night or day.”

  “What do you want, Dick, if that’s your real name?”

  Oh, fuck, I tipped my hand. Now he knows that I know, and he knows who told me.

  I moved like a chess piece to the dining room, just off the hallway to our ensuite. I braced myself against the buffet table.

  “Ahhh, jumped right to it, did you, Lisbet? Where is he?”

  Mocking me only heightened my fury and my fear.

  “He’s not here, Dick. I keep telling you that.”

  “Don’t fuck with me, Miss Lisbet. I have traveled a very long distance to find your husband. My patience is wearing thin, and I am weary. So, let me ask you again, where is he?

  With a bravado I did not feel, I squared my shoulders and narrowed my eyes.

  “He isn’t here.”

  In one swift and smooth motion, he was at my side, breathing down my collar. His breath was hot and foul. His strong fingers gripped my hair, tearing at the strands until my scalp prickled with pain.

  “I am not going to ask you again, my dear. Where the fuck is Damien? Why do you protect him when he’s a blood-thirsty killer? Do you want your child to grow up under that kind of influence? To grow up like a man such as him, whose scruples are that of the undead?”

  His brow had furrowed and his eyes turned black. A cold, dark aura came over him. I shivered in response as he released my hair and caressed his fingertips over my shoulder to my breast, down my waist to my belly. But, it was not a loving gesture. I felt threatened and scared for my baby.

  “Take your hands off of me, you black-hearted bastard!”

  “I tremble under your threats. Damien certainly picked a feisty one. Maybe I should see just how feisty you are—in bed, perhaps?—and find out what it is Damien loves so much that he would risk eternity to keep you safe from me.”

  This man, this evil entity, dragged his hand up from my belly and cupped my breast in his palm. He tweaked my nipple painfully. I tried to bat his hand away, but he was inhumanly strong. He held hard and fast to my breast, squeezing it painfully.

  “Stop, you’re hurting me.”

  “Where is he?”

  “I don’t know. Please stop!”

  “Where is he?”

  He dropped his left hand to my crotch and grabbed a handful of flesh through my jeans.

  “Where is he?”

  “I don’t know, please stop. You’re really hurting me.”

  “You have no idea what I am capable of, but you will find out if you don’t tell me where he is.”

  Silent but swiftly, Damien appeared out of nowhere. I pushed the detective’s hand away from my breast, still aching in pain. But, I smiled proudly at him with Damien’s appearance.

  “Taken to picking on weaker, smaller, people—even women—now, Braekoff?”

  “Braekoff?” Their familiarity was unnerving.

  “I would hardly say she is weaker, Damien. You chose beautifully. She will give you strong sons, if I allow her to live.”

  “Take your hands off of her, Braekoff. You don’t want to make me angry.”

  In seconds it began. Braekoff was in front of Damien. I didn’t see him move nor feel him release his grasp from my crotch. The two opponents were nose to nose. I feared for my husband. Damien’s face turned feral, eyes narrowed and saliva formed in the corners of his mouth. When I saw the detective’s face, he had changed and darkened similarly. It looked as though the men were well matched, and I was at a complete loss as to what I should do. They crouched, knees bent in fighter’s poses, and circled one another, waiting for the other to make a move.

  I gasped in fear which, unfortunately, drew Damien’s attention. It was then the detective struck, knocking Damien backwards.

  “Damien!”

  The two fought ruthlessly, back and forth throughout the apartment, toppling lamps, breaking furniture, slamming against the floor to ceiling panels of glass overlooking the jeweled lights that ignited the city below.

  The detective let loose a maniacal laugh. I couldn’t help myself, and cried out.

  “Damien. Damien!”

  The men moved with lightning speed, arms and legs flew. I could barely discern who was who, or what belonged to either man. Damien hit the detective with such strength that he fell against one of the large glass panes, breaking it into a thousand glimmering shards reflecting the jeweled colors of the city below, and tumbled out of the window.

  I did not see anything more of him and exhaled a breath that had been trapped in my throat as the men fought. Moments later, a winged black entity swept in through the window. It landed on the sill, wings folded back into its body and transformed, bolting in front of Damien. The men resumed their fight, and fell. Damien was well-matched with the black being.

  I held my breath and fell back against the buffet, keeping myself well away from the skirmish. The battle was fierce. The room smelled of burning flesh, blood, sweat and determination. The sudden glint of a silver spike appeared out of thin air, and I froze.

  It was not Damien’s hand holding the spear but the detective’s.

  I looked for something to hit him with to give Damien a short advantage, but found nothing.

  Then I remembered... I yanked open the buffet drawer and shoved items out of the way until I found my mother’s carving set. I grabbed the silver knife and, without a plan or further thought, screamed as I threw myself on the man threatening my husband. I was crazed, desperate to save him now that he was returned to me.

  My unexpected attack threw the detective off guard for long enough to stop the decent of the spike. Damien pushed upwards, grabbed the hand with the silver shaft and held fast. As I fell on the bastardly intrude
r, I plunged the silver carving knife into his heart. I screamed nonsensical gibberish all the while.

  He seemed suspended in time: unmoving and without resistance.

  The black shadow shrouding the detective’s face lightened gradually as color returned to his cheeks. His black eyes resumed their sky blue color. The fierce scowl across his brow released its hold, and the furrows softened. His lips, pulled back over the snarling teeth and dried gums of a rabid animal, dropped to a soft smile of acceptance. I recognized the silent surrender as life took flight from his human body.

  Blood covered everything.

  I screamed for Damien, fearful for his life.

  “Here, Lissie.” You rolled the detective off your belly and crawled from beneath him. I saw you were bleeding and panicked.

  “You’re bleeding, Dam. Where are you bleeding? Let me help you.”

  “I am alright, Lissie, but I might not have been if not for your actions.”

  “But, where—where are you bleeding from?”

  You felt your body quickly, lingering at your left arm and right side, near your waist.

  “Don’t worry, my love. I’m not going to die. It’s just a few scratches here and I think over here. He was never strong enough to take me on, even as children. But, he always he tried, I’ll give him that.”

  “Come, let me help you sit on the couch.”

  I helped you get comfortable and started to examine your injuries and stop the bleeding. There were several that oozed in a steady stream. I got up, and ran to the bathroom for the first aid kit. When I returned, you were reclined against the back, recuperating.

  “Let me see those. What are we going to do now, Damien?” I examined your wounds and, to my surprise, they had stopped bleeding. I watched closely as the skin knit and healed, right before my eyes. “Does that always happen? Do you always heal yourself?”

  “Yes, I always heal right away.”

  “Is he going to heal himself?”

  “No, Lissie. He isn’t coming back. You have nothing to worry about.”

  A small curl in the corner of your mouth hid the smile that lingered beneath your lips.

  “Oh... now what shall we do?”

  “Well, I need to consider, but my first thought is that nothing we spoke about earlier will work. Clearly, the noise, the damage, the detective’s body will be tied to you. There is no way to explain this to the authorities. Can you think of any? I can’t.”

  “No, I am at a loss. But, he attacked me first.”

  “Yes, but why? How can we explain that? How can we explain me?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “There is one way, and one only, but there is no turning back if we take this route.”

  “Tell me. Whatever it is, at least we have an option. We can do it. We can do anything as long as we are together. There is no turning back now. Look around us. Our home is a disaster and there is blood everywhere. The authorities will never believe whatever I tell them. And he...” I gestured towards the detective laying in a pool of his own blood. “...is still a detective to them, even if he was something else to you and I.”

  I slid against the backrest of the couch, weary to the bone and trembling from the adrenalin rush of the attack. I felt frozen, locked in place, until we had a feasible plan to save ourselves.

  “You will have to come away with me, into my world—join me in the Darkness. We will return to my ancestral home in Ruthenia. There, we can live comfortably. The estate is expansive and you will want for nothing. My family has taken care of the residents in the area, so we are kindly regarded.”

  “How would I join you? I have seen movies, but how is it done? And our son...?”

  “It is not painful, if that is what you are worried about. I’ll kiss your neck while we make love, and puncture your carotid artery to drink your blood. It sounds crude and painful, but it is not. It is a very sensuous experience. You will grow light-headed; the sensation will be more like an out of body experience; then you will fall asleep in my arms. When you wake, we will be in my—our—home in Ruthenia.”

  “And the baby?”

  “It depends upon how strong the baby is, but I suspect it will be fine. I was.”

  “Your father and your mother were...?”

  “My father was a vampire, but my mother was like you. She chose to spend her life, her eternity with him just as you must decide. They had no trouble with me. I was born into the Darkness, as was my father. But, the decision is yours. I will understand if you choose to stay.”

  “But, why can’t we stay? He’s dead now. We have the time to figure out our course of action. We have our home and our business. Doesn’t it make more sense to stay, clean up and get back to normal? Isn’t that a consideration?”

  “It could be, Lissie, but you forget one thing.”

  “What have I overlooked?”

  “If we do nothing, you will grow old and I will stay like this for a very, very long time. It will be centuries before I age. I will have to leave when you would need me the most—when you are old. If you come with me now, none of this matters, our son most probably will be fine as will all our future children, and I will never have to leave you. Is not that preferred?”

  “Well, when you put it that way... Do we just walk out and leave everything, even him?”

  “Yes, that is precisely what I mean. But, we won’t walk.”

  I couldn’t imagine what you meant and the lack of understanding must have shown on my face.

  “I fly everywhere, Lisbet. I fly quickly and in the velveteen darkness. You will fly in my arms.”

  “So, when you left earlier, when he returned for his cell phone, you had flown away?”

  “Well, sort of. It is similar to being vaporized, and yet flying, too. When he returned the second time, I was there, above the bookcase, watching. He knew I was here, which is why he kept shifting around the room. I thought I needed to be here in case he turned nasty with you and got rough. I was right.”

  “I’m not sorry he is gone, but I wish he didn’t have to die.”

  “You were spectacular, a real warrior, Lisbet. He was right about one thing. I did choose well. I can think of nothing I would want more than to spend an eternity with you.”

  “And I with you. I love you, Damien. I want to be yours forever, darling.”

  “Are you sure, my love?”

  “Yes, I am sure. I will die just as surely without you anyway, and be so unhappy I may even take my own life to join you. If not now, then when? There are no other answers as clear to me as this one.”

  You rose and scooped me in your arms. I put my head on your shoulder, my arms around your neck, and you walked us to the broken window. The city slumbered quietly and peacefully beneath us. A slight breeze blew my hair across my face. You ran your finger from my hairline, down my temple to my cheek, and brushed my unruly hair back from my face.

  “Are you sure, my darling?”

  “Kiss me, my love. Take us home, darling, to our sanctuary. We three will be safe then.”

  I am one with the night.

  I am one with my love.

  The platinum orb rose slowly above the burning, flaming horizon.

  Like the moon, I am refreshed, now, in the shadows,

  adorned by diamonds and surrounded by

  glittering, shooting madness.

  The sun so loves the moon that it dies each sunset that the moon

  may rise another night to honor the darkness.

  I blossom as the day withers and fades into the black satin folds of the moon’s embrace.

  My joy ignites as the stars unveil their jewel-like splendor.

  Inevitably, a midnight tear bids a love so light in darkness adieu with the fall of the morning moon to welcome her fiery radiance anew.

  And I am born to the night with, and by, my love.

  Adieu ~

  ~ The End ~

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  ABOUT THE AUTH
OR

  Muffy, likened in style to one of the Bronte sisters and Anne Rice, is an award winning bestselling author of provocative romance about love, sex, hope and passion. An American author of the popular Shadow Seduction Series (a paranormal love story), Ribbons of Moonlight Series (a contemporary romance), Memories of Us Series and The Hearts Series, she has penned a dozen other books and anthology collections.

  Muffy was born in Texas to traditional parents. With two older brothers, she was the youngest, the family "princess," indulged and pampered. Her father was a career Colonel and pilot in the U.S. Air Force which required the family to travel extensively. Muffy spent her formative years in Europe and 'came of age' in France which forged her joie de vivre and love for books and writing. Married and living in the tropical paradise of SW Florida along the Gulf Coast, Muffy writes and enjoys life in the sun with her husband and wee Havanese pup, Burt.

  Join Muffy's mailing list to get the scoop on her new releases, sales and special promotions at www.MuffyWilson.com. Follow her on Facebook and on Twitter at @SexyMuffyWilson. You can find her latest on her website MuffyWilson.com also. Muffy also blogs daily here: http://muffywilson.blogspot.com ~ Contact Muffy at Muffy@MuffyWilson.com. ~ Live, Laugh, Love with Passion