Infinitas 1 - Warriors of Faith

by Andrea Wölk

  »I’m studying Art History and I paint.«

  »Ah, an artist! We could use you. So, about your payment, which blood type do you have?«

  »AB positive, why? What does that have to do with my payment?«

  Castaway stood up and walked towards Sunny who was still standing at the window looking out at the dance floor.

  »Hey, O negative, we need you. Take him to the estate and pay him. And keep an eye on him, he could be very useful to us.«

  »Why me?« Sunny looked him uncooperatively in the eyes.

  »There isn’t anyone else here with his blood type. I don’t want to lose him. With O negative, you’re compatible with everyone. I don’t have to tell you that. Just do it!«

  His tone of voice left no room for contradiction and one look at his protruding teeth told her that she’d be better of following his orders. Slinking her hips, she walked over to Philippe and held out her hand.

  »Come on, sweetheart, I’ll pay you accordingly!«

  Trapped

  Chapter 13

  Her head was resting heavily on her hand, which was resting on Channing’s bare chest. His eyes were closed, but he wasn’t sleeping. She could tell by the uneven way he was breathing. Sara lazily observed his features.

  »What are you thinking?« she asked softly. A slight smile appeared on his lips, but he kept his eyes close.

  »I’m thinking about how nice it is, not to fight with you for a change.« He was gently playing with the hair cascading down her back. »I thought you were sleeping.« She shook her head. »Vampires don’t need a lot of sleep.«

  Channing opened his eyes and looked at her.

  »Sara, I have to talk some things over with you. I don’t want to fight with you, but if I’m going to be one of you, then I need some answers so that I can understand things better.« »I don’t understand why you think I only want to fight with you.«

  »Experience?« »Okay, I admit that I don’t understand why you don’t believe our legends. I only hope that I can teach you otherwise.« »I’m a historian and I need proof, not presumptions. I feel something for you because you’ve ignited emotions in me that I’ve never known. Sara, you’re the one who triggers all that and I’ll prove to you that I can have the same affect on you.«

  »You still don’t believe in our destiny, do you? Then please explain to me why, of all people, you and I met on the internet and swapped apartments. And what about the tattoos? It can’t all just be a coincidence!« »Some things just can’t be explained; you’re right about that. But there’s an answer, I’m sure. I’d like to see the sacred book. Maybe I can find some clues in there. I know that I can’t remember anything from my previous life, but when I think about the Diarium, I can feel something stir inside of me.«

  Sara sat up and leaned back on the headboard. »That’s exactly the problem. « She looked up at the bright crescent moon in the sky. »We don’t have it!«

  Shia started the engine of the Q7, which gave off a soft, low hum.

  »Let’s go. Nothing else is going to happen tonight. Jôrek and the others will report back to us later. You have to go back to work tomorrow and you need some rest.« Eva nodded her approval. It had been a long day and it was already after 2 am. Although she was exhausted, she didn’t want to leave Shia. She looked at his profile in the darkness. Eva still wasn’t sure how she could have possibly fallen in love with a vampire. The past two days had changed her life so dramatically. It was absolutely crazy and wonderful at the same time. There had never been a man in Eva’s life, who had taken so much care of her, worried about her, infuriated her and whom she loved in return. She had married Jim because she thought it was a good idea to have a partner who was also on the police force. Problems like working hours and overtime were never an issue. However, she’d never expected that she’d miss something in the relationship. Yes, he’d respected her and taken care of her, but she’d never really loved Jim. She’d never had the intense feeling of being safe and being able to let go with him. There was no tenderness. How she’d longed to be caressed and held, just like Shia was always doing. After sleeping with Jim, she’d felt like he was going to put a twenty-dollar bill down on the bedside table. She didn’t know exactly when things had started to change or maybe it had never really been different. She’d somehow been content with what Jim was able to give her, but her feelings for Shia were on a completely different level. When she looked at him, she saw a young man, but his voice and the way he treated her, belonged to an experienced man. His tenderness was beyond anything Eva had ever known in her life. She was knocked over by his emotions, which were so new and beautiful that they frightened her. She wanted to return the emotion, but what came after that? When he told her that he loved her, she believed him. It was too crazy to explain and so beautiful that she never wanted to be without it. And she couldn’t be. Her life had changed from one second to the other. The emptiness disappeared and everything seemed to make sense.

  They drove up the narrow coastal road. Shia didn’t stop at her house, but kept on driving. Without responding to her questioning glance, he said, »I want you to sleep at my place.« »But I’ve got my own place.«

  »You don’t need it anymore. You should get rid of it and live with me.« »Yeah right, in a house full of vampires,« mumbled Eva quietly, knowing that Shia had understood her perfectly.

  He parked the car in the garage next to Sara’s Audi.

  »Eva, you know what I said and this is the last time I’m going to say it. You belong to me and I’m not going to leave you alone again, no matter where or when, so you better get used to that as quickly as you can. You also know that you are safe with my warriors. No one will touch you. All of them would give their life for you, so don’t be afraid.« He’d been starring out the front window of the car the whole time, but turned towards her then to look her in the eyes.

  »We’ve only known each other for three days. Don’t you think it’s a little too fast?« responded Eva. Shia shook his head deliberately.

  »No, I’ve already been waiting my entire life for you and I feel that one hundred and forty years of waiting is enough. I love you and I can’t repeat that often enough. I’m not ashamed of my feelings for you. So come on, let’s go.«

  As Maroush was walking past the door marked ›Private – No Entry‹, it was thrown open and someone small collided into him almost falling to the floor. Using his instinctive predatory speed, he reached out and caught hold of the person before it could fall to the ground. He was looking into the darkest eyes he’d ever seen. At first he wasn’t sure if he was dealing with a man or a woman, but before he could figure it out himself, he heard a loud hissing in his ear.

  »Take your dirty fucking fingers off my tits! « she whispered into his ear flashing her fangs at him. It was definitely the voice of a woman. The jet-black hair covering most of her face fell back revealing Sunny’s face. Without hesitating, Maroush let go and she landed softly on her butt. »Are you crazy?« she barked at him crossly. »What are you doing here anyway? No unauthorized entry.«

  »And you’re authorized?« Maroush’s deep soothing voice filled the room and left no doubt about who and what he was. He bent over close to Sunny’s neck with his fangs extended. She stared back at him and knew right away that she wasn’t dealing with an ordinary vampire. She swallowed hard breathing in a scent of musk and adventure. He smelled so different from anything she’d noticed since her transformation. She closed her eyes for a second and took another deep breath. His scent was so clean and pure, the absolute opposite of all the vampires she knew, the most of which stunk of blood and filth. When he bent down towards her, his long black curls fell over his shoulders. Sunny had never seen a man with such beautiful hair. It curled down to the middle of his back and was shiny black in the club’s the neon glow. His olive skin fit to his almond shaped eyed which seemed to allude to his roots in the orient. He had thick black eye lashes, which gave him a certain gentleness and a beautifully curved mouth. All Sunny could do
was stare at his lips. Two rows of even white teeth smiled at her teasingly, his fangs already tucked back. He reached for her shoulder and pulled her to her feet with one hand as if she were as light as a feather.

  »What did you ask me?« stuttered Sunny embarrassed. »If you are authorized here?« repeated Maroush. He ran his hand slowly down Sunny’s shoulder to her arm. Annoyed by the touch, she watched his hand and then looked up into his eyes. Unable to answer, she only nodded. »Watch out who you bump into next time!« His voice was calm and quiet and covered her senses like a cloud of think fog. Then he was gone. In the blink of an eye Maroush was out of sight, as if he’d never even been there. As if he’d only been a product of Sunny’s wild imagination. Philippe, who’d been leaning against the wall the entire time, pushed himself off and pulled Sunny along with him. »Come on, let’s go. I want to find a place to sleep.« »Sleep?« said Sunny scornfully. »You really are a loser!«

  Maroush moved so quickly towards the emergency exit that he was invisible to the human eye. When he reached the back through the rear exit, he hid in the shadows of a gnarly old oak tree, crouching on one of the lower branches. Puzzled, he watched the exit. He’d never seen such a small vampire. She had to have only been about 5 feet tall, maybe even smaller. Even if he hadn’t seen her teeth, he would have recognized her by her smell. He’d noticed a subtle note of cinnamon, like a Christmas cookie. A slight smile formed on his lips. It had been ages since he’d thought about Christmas cookies. Still the smell of her wafted through his nose. Her blue-black hair made her look like a boy and her attitude was more like that from the street. But when he’d caught her and held her with his hand, there was something else. She’d deeply inhaled his scent and the first thing he’d noticed about her were her eyes. As black as the night, brave and headstrong. What was her name? Who was she?

  The back exit door was thrown open abruptly and slammed back against the wall. Maroush watched her exit the club with Philippe behind her. »Hey Sunny, wait. I left my backpack inside. Let me get it.« »We can get it later. Come on, we have to hurry. The sun will be coming up soon and then we’re fucked.« They ran towards the street quickly. »Sunny!« murmured Maroush quietly to himself, watching the two of them disappear around the corner.

  Sara pulled the blanket up over her and Channing. »Shia’s here. I can feel him.« He threw the blanket to the side wanting to get up, but she held him back. »Do you really think he doesn’t know what’s happening between us? He transformed you. You’ll always be a part of his consciousness, sometimes more, sometimes less, just as he wants. You must be able to sense him too, can’t you?«

  Channing nodded and sat up in bed. »Yes, I feel him, not very strong, but the sensation is there.« They heard steps outside the door. »Don’t come in. Channing isn’t wearing anything,« yelled Sara before he could even react. You could hear Shia laugh softly on the other side of the door. »That’s what I figured. Eva needs some sleep. She has to work tomorrow. The boys should be back after the club closes. I’ll see you guys later.« Then the footsteps echoed from the other end of the hallway. Channing put on his boxers and walked over to the window to look out at the ocean. »What do you mean, you don’t have the sacred book?« Sara was starring at Channing’s back, watching his muscles tense up and although he wasn’t showing any emotion, she recognized his concern. She’d been waiting for this question and still didn’t know what she was going to tell Channing without somehow questioning their entire existence.

  »We know it exists« she answered succinctly. »How?« »Shia’s seen it. He was able to take some pages before it disappeared. That’s how we know about our soulmates, and that we, the warriors of faith exist, and that we needn’t fear daylight. We also found out that we’d meet you, and that you’d guide us to the destiny written on our bodies.«

  Channing turned around to face Sara but stayed back at the window. »Where did it go? It just didn’t disappear into thin air, did it?« Sara shook her head. »No, it’s missing. The old keeper hid it and then he was killed before Shia could find out where. He only left a few parchment pages, but we’re looking for the rest. You could help us.« And after a few seconds she added, »if you want to.« »Where are the pages you found?« »Shia has them hidden and for safety reasons, he’s the only one who knows where.« Channing nodded. Thousands of thoughts were running through his head, but he couldn’t come to any logical conclusion. »We need you. You know so much about history. We have to find the book before the hunters of darkness do. If they find it, that would be the end of all of us.« Sara got up off the bed and put on one of Channing’s shirts. It was way too big for her, but she rolled up the sleeves and walked over to him.

  »Channing, please. What do you think? Will you help us?« She wrapped her arms around him from behind and pulled herself close to him. She could feel his heartbeat and the blood hissing through his veins. He turned around to face Sara and took her tenderly into his arms, as if he were afraid of hurting her. »Do I have a choice? How could I let humanity fall into the hands of the hunters of darkness? How could I let you down?« »But you don’t believe in our legends.« »Maybe I don’t now, but if you know better, I’m open to it. If I’m supposed to be a warrior of faith, I better start believing fast, right?« He gently raised her chin with his finger and whispered to her, »Plus, there’s this half-blood I know with very headstrong arguments, who’s shaken all my beliefs. So what choice do I have?« He didn’t wait for her to answer, only pressed his lips to hers stifling any attempt to protest.

  Kilian Castaway hit Stavro’s chin so hard with his fist that he broke his jaw. He staggered, but didn’t fall to the floor. Only after the vampire had grabbed him by the throat and lifted him a good foot off the ground, did the life drain out of his body. Then he let the lifeless body fall to the ground.

  »Mortals!« he uttered contemptuously. »You can’t give them anything difficult to do. They’re good for nothing. How could this fool have actually hired two warriors? He might as well have invited them directly to the estate. What an idiot!«

  The words hissed out of Castaway’s mouth at the top of his lungs. Gibson, his head of security, had his eyes fixed on the security monitor directed at the entrance of the club.

  »Master, take a look at this. I could swear he’s one of them too. I saw him earlier tonight talking to that Sara and the guy she was with.« Castaway stepped closer to the screen and then patted him on the back. »Good job. I can always count on a vampire. Give the order to get him in here. Let’s see what he’s got to tell us.« Gibson nodded and passed the order on to the security team inside the club using his headset. Castaway held up his hand to get his attention again.

  »Get some back up. He’s a warrior and that means he’s faster and stronger than everyone else. Don’t underestimate him!«

  Aragón didn’t know what hit him until it was too late and so he couldn’t get any help from either Maroush or his other two brothers. They circled him on four sides, moving in until six powerful vampires had him surrounded, the deafening techno music drowning out the screaming and shouting. They grabbed his weapon he had hidden under his shirt and also found the sharp dagger he had stuffed in his boot.

  »We’re taking you to the boss« one of them shouted. Without attracting any attention, Aragón let himself be taken away, but before they reached the door to the private area, they shot a few hundred thousand volts into him with a stun gun and he slipped to the floor unconscious.

  Laurelhurst on Union Bay was one of the best addresses in Seattle. Kilian Castaway’s estate was right in the middle of a fenced in property bordering directly on the ocean. The gate was being watched by two vampires who belonged to the security team. They had already recognized Sunny from a distance, due to her small size and short hair. They let her pass without question, but kept Philippe from continuing on.

  »Hey, he’s cool. Kilian gave me the order to bring him to the house.« A vampire with massively broad shoulders continued to stand in the way »So, Castaway said that. He di
dn’t say anything to me about it, so he’s not going in.«

  Sunny rolled her eyes annoyed. »Dude, the sun will be up soon. I don’t want to fucking take root here. Call Kilian and get you’re okay.« she said angrily. It was about time they got themselves into the dark. The sunrise was slowly pushing away the night.

  With his eyes half closed, Philippe watched the huge guy grab his cell phone and hit speed dial. After a few seconds he was connected, then spoke quietly into the phone and hung up.

  »Okay, he can go.« He motioned his bald head towards the big estate. Sunny pulled Philippe hurriedly along with her because it was still about a half mile up to the house. They walked and when the building finally came into view, Philippe could hardly hide his amazement. An imposing white mansion rose up against the backdrop of the rising sun. He noticed that it had very few windows for its size. The almost 4000 square foot, one story building was u-shaped. The entry was in the middle of the widest side and there were only two windows on the entire length, which were now covered by blinds. Sunny stumbled up the three steps and pushed open the unlocked door. Another vampire from security was standing in the front entryway.

  »Sam already called you in.« He pointed to his headset with his finger.

  »Hi Jackson, this is Philippe. He’s going to be staying with us for awhile.« She rolled her eyes. He inhaled Philippe’s scent. »Human,« he murmured softly. »Not for long!« answered Sunny throwing Jackson a revealing glance which he understood exactly.

  The corridor divided into a right and left wing. »The guest rooms are in the left wing. The right wing is for Kilian. No on is allowed to enter that area. The living room is straight ahead. Come on, I’ll show you your room.« She pulled him along the corridor to the second to last door. Philippe counted at least two dozen more rooms, which were probably also guest rooms. Sunny pushed him hastily into the room and closed the door. There weren’t any windows. Only a bed and a dresser, a little like in a military barracks. Philippe exhaled, finally a mattress. He had no idea how long he’d been awake. Without paying any attention to Sunny, he fell down onto the bed and closed his eyes. She was already sitting on top of him licking his neck when he noticed her bending over him.