My eyes widened. This couldn’t be true. “What are you talking about?”
Julian chuckled. “My sister. I am the one who turned her. Therefore, she has my eyes, not Dorian’s.”
“You turned her?”
“Yes.” He took another sip of that stupid drink, and I wanted to choke him.
“Why would you turn your sister?”
“It was either that or watch her die. I love my sister, and I couldn’t imagine life without her. I couldn’t let her die. We’re not even a year apart in age. We’ve always been close.”
A part of me was pissed that he’d done that to his sister, but then another part of me was grateful. Grateful on two counts: one, that he’d saved her from death; and the other, that Dorian wasn’t her maker and she was never actually devoted to him, but to Julian.
“What happened?”
“Dorian drained her of too much blood while I was in transition. He was going to let her die. But then he realized that I would hate him for that, so he allowed me to turn her.”
“The bastard.” The hatred building up inside me for Dorian was growing by the hour.
“I would have turned her anyway. If Dorian hadn’t bitten her, I would have. I didn’t want to live an eternity without my sister.”
I nodded because, on some level, I understood. I also understood the influence Dorian could have on someone.
“Did you let Dorian turn you, or did he force himself on you?” I had to ask because it made a world of difference to me.
“A little of both, I suppose. He seduced me. He was very charming, and I fell instantly in lust with him. Then, during the heat of the moment, he bit me. At first, it frightened me, but the longer he sucked, and the longer he fucked me, it turned into the most blissful experience I’d ever had. Granted, I was young and didn’t have a lot of experience. Any, in fact. I was a virgin.” He laughed and finished his scotch, then wiped his mouth with the napkin. “But force wouldn’t be the term I’d use. After he’d had his fill and we both climaxed, I wanted more. I asked for him to turn me and promised to be his lover.”
I was no one to judge Julian. But Lily hadn’t asked for any of this.
“This is not the same story your sister tells.”
“Don’t blame her. She has a somewhat . . . distorted memory of it all. She was under Dorian’s compulsion the entire time and was left to sit in the other room reading while we were . . . engaged. Julian paused for a few seconds to glance out the window as we passed through a blanket of clouds, and the plane rocked a bit with turbulence before settling down once more.
“When Dorian approached me,” he continued, “I was instantly attracted to him. As I said. The lie he’d told me about why he—a stranger—was even in our house seemed believable at the time. He’d claimed to be a friend of our father’s. I had no reason to not believe him. He never needed to use his compulsion on me, and I hadn’t given a thought to Lily’s whereabouts. I was barely nineteen and very sexually curious.”
I grabbed my glass and drank down the remainder of my scotch. Though I’d been the same age as Julian when Dorian turned me, I hadn’t thought much about sex back then. Perhaps if I’d been a normal teenager, I might have given in to the lure. But being a cripple, no woman had ever looked at me twice. And I was never attracted to men. The promise I’d made to Dorian to be his lover if he cured me had been done simply because I couldn’t stand myself any longer. I hadn’t realized the impact of it all at the time. Back then, I’d been too enamored with the idea of living life without sickness, and I didn’t care what I had to do to achieve that. Once I’d been made whole and grew into my body as a strong, virile male, my new muscles infused with their vampire strength, women paid more attention to me, and I liked it.
The plane landed with a jolt, and it startled me since I’d paid little to no attention to the captain’s announcement that we would be landing soon.
We piled out of the plane and then into two separate taxis. There were seven of us as Maggie had insisted on coming along as well, though no one expected her to fight. She was small but strong and could certainly hold her own if ever accosted by a human, but not against a seven or eight-hundred-year-old vampire. Hell, none of us except Gage were even in the same league as Dorian.
I sat in the backseat of the taxi, Gage on one side of me, and Julian on the other.
“How old are you anyway?” I asked Gage.
He shrugged. “Lost count.”
“Take a guess.” Julian prodded, sounding very curious.
Gage frowned and glanced at me. “I’ve never told you?” He picked at a frayed edge of the fabric bench seat we sat on in the back of the taxi.
“Not that I can remember.”
“I’m sure I told you.”
“Just tell me now. I want to know if you’re older than Dorian.”
“How old is he?”
“I’m not sure. Seven or eight hundred years, I think.” I kept my voice low so the driver couldn’t hear and gave Julian a glance as he nodded in agreement.
“You don’t have anything to worry about,” Gage grinned.
We pulled off the main highway onto a dirt road, and I instructed the taxi driver to let us out along the shoulder. We made sure that both drivers were compensated for their time and bid them on their way, their minds gently altered just in case. My memory of the area was returning, though so many things were different now. I could only guess that we were about a mile out from the house. A part of me dreaded returning there. The thought of seeing the place, the memories I knew would surface, I didn’t want to think about them.
The group separated, and I traced my way to the side of the house while the others hung back, including Julian. I was surprised the original brick still appeared intact, though the building looked much smaller than I remembered. I flashed to one of the side walls, and Gage materialized a few feet away to my left on the other side of another window. I peeked inside. It was the main front room of the house and gave way to the open kitchen on the other side. The room where I’d been given eternal life. I closed my eyes as the memory of that day flooded my mind, swamping me with all sorts of emotions I didn’t need right then. I blinked and rubbed my eyes. Gage gave me a silent what’s wrong look, and I shook my head. Then he pointed at the window he stood by. It was the bedroom, and he nodded with a smile, mouthing Lily’s name. A river of relief flowed into my heart with the knowledge that she was still alive.
I heard a crash from inside and glanced in through the window. I saw Dorian standing by the kitchen counter. A pile of broken glasses mingled with broken dishes lay scattered on the floor in front of him. He lashed out as more dishes went flying and he cursed. His anger was building about something. Did he somehow sense we were there?
We hadn’t been able to take any weapons on the plane, and I hoped I’d be able to find a blade inside that would be sharp and large enough to do the deed. I motioned to Gage that I was going in, and he nodded. This was the plan. I’d go in first and act as if I’d come alone.
I materialized on the other side of the kitchen counter from where Dorian stood.
Sensing me, he turned and glared at me. His eyebrows pinched closely together.
“Preston.”
“Dorian,” I returned.
Glad to have the brief exchange of pleasantries out of the way, I asked, though I already knew the answer, “Where’s Lily?”
He ignored my question. “I knew you’d find me here eventually if I gave you time. I’m impressed you got here so soon.”
“Where is she?” I asked again.
“She’s in the bedroom. She’s fine.” He waved his hand in the direction of the room, and I took a couple of steps that way, only to find Dorian in my path. “No. You can’t go in there.”
“Why are you doing this, Dorian?”
“I’m sorry you had to get mixed up in this, Preston. I’ve never stopped loving you, you know. It breaks my heart that you became involved with any of this.”
&nbs
p; “With this? That’s my woman you have in there.”
Dorian’s eyebrows rose. “One fuck and now she’s your woman?” He laughed. “Preston, I’m surprised. I gave you more credit than that. You can’t seriously be in love with Lily after only spending one night with her.” He sighed a heavy breath. “And I’m so sorry about that, but she belongs to me. At least until her brother comes. Then, of course, she belongs to him since he is her true sire. You did bring him, didn’t you?”
“I’m right here,” Julian’s voice arrived two seconds before his body did, and I turned with a curse.
“Fuck. I told you to wait!”
“Too late.” He spared me a quick glance then returned his glare to Dorian.
“Darling,” Dorian took a step toward Julian, and I grabbed his arm. Dorian stopped and looked at my hand with consideration. I didn’t release him, and he didn’t take another step. “Julian, I knew you’d come.”
“Don’t, Dorian. We are over.”
“You don’t mean that.”
Hoping their little lover’s quarrel would be enough of a distraction, I released Dorian’s arm and took a step toward the bedroom and Lily. However, Dorian was too quick and much too smart.
“That’s not going to work. I’m disappointed in you for thinking I could be so easily distracted, Preston.”
“As usual, you’re acting like a spoiled brat, Dorian. You think just because you want something you can have it without concern for anyone else’s feelings. My sister won’t be your pawn any longer. No matter what you do, whom you harm or kill, I cannot, will not return the love you desire. I’d rather die than allow you to keep Lily as your slave any longer . . .” Julian’s voice cracked as if he were on the verge of tears.
I glanced at him. Don’t fold on me now, man.
He swallowed, and his Adam’s apple bobbed. “And me.” He shook his head. “You locked me up and fed me drugs.”
“It was for your own good, darling.”
“How was that good for me?” Julian asked, and Dorian looked down at the floor as though he were pondering that question. “You can’t make me love you, Dorian. But you know there are a ton of other guys out there who could love you. It’s a new, modern world. Men like you and me are everywhere. You don’t need to hide behind my sister any longer. Just let us go. It’s been a fun ride.” Julian rubbed his temples at his blunder. “Well, up until the last few decades. But, Dorian, it’s over. I can’t be your lover any longer. My sister doesn’t deserve to live a life pretending to be your wife just so society will think you’re the perfect family man.”
“There are plenty of gay men in the city,” I added. “Plenty. Let Lily and us go, and we won’t cause you any problems. We can all just move on with our lives.”
Just then, a sudden burst of commotion came from outside, and Dorian smiled. “Ah, Malik is finally here.” And as if he hadn’t heard a word either Julian or I had said, and without warning, he swung his arm out, slamming it into the side of my head. I flew backwards from the force of the blow.
Julian took three steps, closing the gap, his fists ready to pummel. He took a swing, clipping Dorian right in the jaw. Dorian rubbed at it then hit Julian in the chest, sending him across the room.
“It pains me to no end to have to do that to either of you. But you didn’t really think I would just stand here and let you beat me to death or take away what’s mine, did you? And I truly don’t believe that you and your group outside are just going to allow me to walk away from this. The minute I let my guard down, you’ll have me beheaded.”
I glanced at the empty wall where the sword had been years ago, wishing it still hung there.
“Dorian, you found love after me, didn’t you?” I yelled to him as he turned to walk back to where Lily was. I got to my feet and lunged at his back. My arms were around his neck, squeezing in an instant, but he threw me off as if I were no more than a young human boy. Gage appeared in the room and tackled Dorian to the floor. Finally.
“What took you so long?” I asked.
“Goons outside,” he croaked as Dorian shoved him off and they both scrambled to their feet. Gage walloped Dorian in the stomach, and Dorian hunched over in pain but regained his stance almost immediately, hurtling his body right back at Gage.
The two wrestled on the ground, and I glanced around to see where Julian was, only to see him heading toward the bedroom. I wanted to go with him. I wanted to be the one to rescue my love, but I had to let him go save her while he had the chance. I opened drawer after drawer, searching for something sharp. I opened the cupboard next to the oven, and there it was, a wooden block full of all sorts of knives. I grabbed the largest one in the block and hurried back to the two wrestling on the floor. They were pretty evenly matched, and I didn’t think Gage was going to be able to take Dorian, until I saw his hands grip Dorian’s throat and squeeze. Dorian fought, clawing at Gage’s arms. I knew Gage would never kill him that way, but it gave me the opportunity to do what needed to be done. I stood over my maker with the knife raised and ready to slice at his throat and sever his head from his body when his eyes found mine and held my gaze. I froze. My mind became overwrought with emotions that had no business being there. Dorian had given me a new life and now I was about to end his.
“Do it!” Gage shouted, still squeezing. “Do it now, dammit! What are you waiting for?”
But I stood, frozen, hurtled back to a time when Dorian had been a gentle soul, eager to please me and attend to my every whim. Though I’d never loved him the way he wanted me to, I couldn’t deny the affection I’d had for him and . . . I couldn’t bring myself to lower that knife and end his life. Dorian recognized my dilemma and grinned at me, even with Gage’s hands around this throat. Then he gazed into my eyes and forced out, “I cannot deny you. I release them to you.”
Gage let go of him with one hand to take the blade from me, and in that instant, Dorian disappeared from beneath him.
Gage got to his feet just as the others piled into the room. “Fuck, man! What were you waiting for?”
I shook my head in total disbelief at my lack of courage and the shock of what Dorian said to me. Then I hung my head and let the knife fall to the floor. “I couldn’t do it.”
Gage nodded. “It’s okay. I get it,” he said in a soft voice and then picked up the blade I’d dropped.
When I looked up, I watched Julian walk out of the bedroom, carrying Lily in his arms. She was draped in a blanket. She didn’t look well. I ran to them, and he handed her over to me. I sank to the floor and cradled her in my arms, so happy to have her back. She was unconscious, and her breathing was labored.
“Where is he?” Lane asked.
“Gone,” Gage said, shaking his head. “Just gone.”
“I don’t sense him anywhere,” Julian added, and I closed my eyes, already knowing without using any sensory abilities that Dorian was long gone, far from any of our abilities to sense him. No one gave me any flack for not going through with killing him. I suspected they all knew how difficult it was to kill one’s maker. Lane and Cian hadn’t killed theirs, though they had managed to secure her and stop her from wreaking any more havoc in their lives.
Dorian was gone. Who knew when or if he would return? Could I be certain that Lily and Julian would be safe from him or was this just another tactic to catch us off guard? Was he truly gone? Would he end all the prostitution drug peddling? One thing I was certain of was that someday, Dorian would return. He was in my blood. The Dorian I’d known had always been a man of his word, especially when it was a promise given to me. Dorian may love Julian, but he’d loved me first, and I wanted to believe that, because of that love, that strong bond we’d share forever, he would always put me before his own happiness.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Lily
A blissful, peaceful, floating-in-nothing darkness enveloped me. The pain I’d experienced from the silver had been unbearable. Never before had I experienced something so powerful and agonizing. But
the agony of that pain was gone now, leaving me with this heavenly euphoria. Except there was no white light encouraging me to embrace it or head toward it. That story of people heading toward the light on their way to heaven must have been a myth, unless . . .
Wait.
Was I in hell?
I had done nothing to deserve an eternity in hell. I’d never asked to be turned into a vampire. I’d never killed anyone. I did take blood from unsuspecting humans, but not one had ever died because of me. No. This peaceful, serene state soaring through my spirit couldn’t be coming from hell. Plus, I was sure hell had to be a lot worse than this. Because this was too peaceful.
My spirit lived.
I sighed with relief. Even in my vampiric state, I had kept my spirit. I glanced down at myself. I was naked. The gown I’d worn had been ripped from my body by Dorian leaving me with nothing on. Could I enter heaven naked? I placed my hand over my privates and my arm across my breasts to shield them. But maybe this was how everyone entered heaven. After all, we come into this world naked, shouldn’t we leave it that way, as well? I wished I could have said goodbye to Preston and Julian before I passed on to the next life.
But I didn’t feel as though I was in heaven or hell.
Just a tranquil nothingness.
So this was death? I’d always wondered if it would be as soothing as this. With no concerns, no worries, just a spirit floating through space without a care.
Except . . . I had thoughts.
My brain still functioned. Surely one’s brain would cease all earthly activity once they were dead, or at least transform into something else, join a collective of related souls or become a star in the universe or something. Did a star have thoughts?
A foreign sound invaded my subconscious mind, interrupting my tranquility—and my mental rambling.
I heard voices.
My tongue tasted blood. My eyes slowly opened and then closed. The light was too bright. I blinked. And blinked again. The third time, I kept my lids open to see beautiful dark eyes staring down at me as my taste buds soared with delight when I realized I suckled at Preston’s wrist. His blood tasted so good.
Possessed by a Vampire Page 17
