Resisting Darkness

by Kate Wendley

  So why did that name come to mind for this woman he’d never even met before? She looked nothing like Sonya, who’d been a little on the thin side with dishwater blonde hair and an ever present look of wisdom in her timelessly young face. The woman upstairs had silky, caramel brown hair pulled back in a ponytail, and an alert and energetic expression on her face as she unwillingly emptied her pockets for Zach and the guards. She also had quite becoming curves fitted inside her snug sweater, jeans, jacket, and knee high boots.

  And she was vampire. He didn’t usually date vampires, partly because he wasn’t sure he wanted to fall for one again, but mostly because he hadn’t met one that intrigued him the way Sonya had with her smart and sassy ways.

  “You want to play?” Cory pointed to the pool tables.

  Ethan spotted Anthony in the restaurant and his mood took an ugly turn. He looked away in disgust. “Maybe later. Go ahead and get yourself something to eat.”

  Cory nodded and headed for the restaurant while Ethan stormed to the back of the club and sat down at a bar top table. He kept his eye on the door they’d just come through, battling with himself over whether or not he wanted to see the woman upstairs again in order to settle his discomforting confusion over why he’d called her the love his life’s pet name.

  His wandering mind sharpened at a stir in that foreign connection he was slowly getting used to. He glared at Anthony, then focused his power on his link to Isaiah. He lashed out at the man as he locked eyes with his lookalike son, then yanked on that link, beckoning Isaiah home yet again.

  And yet again he felt Isaiah’s resistance to his summons. He was waiting for something, but only reluctantly. He would come home. Ethan could feel it as if he were the monster himself. And when he arrived, Ethan would be ready to return the favor of having to endure centuries of heartache and pain. He’d take someone equally important away from Isaiah.

  His beloved son… Anthony.

  Chapter 3

  Harmony slunk back down to the club hoping she hadn’t already sealed her fate and blown her whole, barely there plan with her stupid comment to Ethan. Crap. And she still needed to talk to Anthony, too. Sheesh, did it have to be double duty tonight? Couldn’t she take on one Master at a time? She’d gotten this far on her own chutzpah, though, so she decided to see this night through, no matter what happened.

  She got to the bottom of the stairs and slowly started towards the restaurant. That same man who stared at her earlier when Zach was harassing her was still there. He had long dark hair and a big scar on his face, and she couldn’t get a good fix on whether he was vampire, shifter, or human, but the woman with him was definitely human. The man had to be the Master of Atlanta, then, so with gut turning nerves, she took a step closer.

  Before she got very far, he turned and looked sharply at her. She nearly crawled out of her skin when a voice in her head said, ‘I’m currently occupied. Come see me at midnight.’

  She gawked in shock as he turned his attention back to the blonde woman he was seated with. Harmony had heard of the rare ability to speak in people’s minds, but she’d never experienced it before. She wondered what other exotic powers he might have, and when to expect the backlash of his temper. Most Masters didn’t like her attitude, and she’d obviously been throwing it around a little too much tonight.

  When nothing bad immediately happened, she quietly said, “Thank you Master Anthony.” He didn’t look at her, but he inclined his head and she assumed it was meant for her.

  She took a deep breath and looked around as she tried to decide what to do now. Maybe hang out here and get a feel for the place? There was nothing to her right except a few lounge tables and chairs, and beyond that a brick wall with tacky paintings, looking like a rotation for local artists. In front of her was the restaurant and a small, gleaming, Cherrywood bar. A hallway leading straight back was to the left of that.

  Continuing around the room to her left were more lounge tables, couches, chairs, televisions, a small stage and dance floor, and further back were bar tables and stools mixed around some pool tables… and Ethan sitting back there, frowning hard at her.

  Shit. She’d learned enough about Atlanta to know she needed to make nice with either or both Masters here. God she hoped she hadn’t already blown it. She had the stupidest big mouth when she was nervous.

  She almost shook she was so freaked out, and felt completely naked without her weapons, but she needed to present herself like all good vampires did when they entered someone else’s territory. If only she could figure out whose territory it was. Maybe they shared it.

  She headed towards Ethan and his frown deepened. Crap. He was pissed at her. Great, just great. Forget the friendly introductions she’d hoped for. She’d be happy to make it out of here alive, so she bowed her head in submission as she approached his table.

  “Master Ethan.” She nervously glanced up at him and wasn’t sure what to do when he sighed and looked away in frustration. “I apologize for snapping at you upstairs. I−”

  He waved it away. “It doesn’t matter. What’s your name?”

  “Harmony, sir.”

  His frown was less severe now, but still there. She got the feeling she was irritating him. “I, uh, present myself to you as someone new to this territory. I−”

  He sharply snapped, “This isn’t my territory. It’s Anthony’s. You don’t need to present yourself to me.”

  She blinked stupidly at him and patiently waited for who knew what. He seemed pensive as she stood there. Should she stay? Should she go? His gaze on her was unnerving as he made no move to say or do anything.

  “It was nice to meet you, sir.”

  She waited a moment longer to see if he’d stop her, and when she slowly turned to leave, he said, “Call me Ethan.” His frown nearly disappeared as he inclined his head and more quietly said, “Please.”

  **

  Ethan’s hands started shaking as soon as Harmony walked away. He balled them into fists, but it didn’t stop his tremors, so he clasped them together in his lap as he tried to figure out what was wrong with himself.

  And he still had no idea why he’d called Harmony Sonya’s pet name. Their brief conversation didn’t shed any light on it, either. It just added more confusion because a strong sense of longing came over him while Harmony stood cautiously in front of him. His feelings made no sense, and his confusion over it all made him furious once again at having Sonya so brutally ripped from his life.

  The scent of a familiar perfume announced he had more company. He mentally sighed when an attractive werewolf he’d occasionally bedded ran her hand across the back of his shoulders. She came to a stop beside him at his table.

  “Hi Ethan.”

  He dispassionately said, “Good evening Lydia.” She was a no strings attached plaything to him, and she’d always seemed fine with that arrangement.

  She flinched ever so slightly at his less than eager tone, but leaned closer and stroked his arm as if they’d pick up where they left off last time. “Interested in a little fun tonight?”

  “No thank you.”

  She nearly molded herself to him as she prettily pouted, “Are you sure? I could make it worth your while.”

  He barked out, “Leave.”

  He wasn’t sure who was more startled by his anger… him or her. She seemed mortified, though, so he quickly tried to salvage her dignity, skewed as it was.

  He gave her a weak smile. “I’m sorry, beautiful. I don’t know what got into me. I’m just not in the mood for company tonight. Perhaps another night.”

  She warily nodded before slinking off in her sexy heels and expensive dress that accentuated all her best assets.

  He closed his eyes and ran his hand over his face while he tried to calm down. He wasn’t shaking quite as bad anymore, but his temper was right on the edge. He had the urge to leave and go take out his rage by beating on something, but he stayed put because this was where he needed to be when Isaiah returned. It was time for hi
m to get this three centuries long torment over with, no matter how crazy it made him in the process.

  **

  Anthony watched the new vampire woman leave the club after talking briefly to Ethan, then turned his attention back to Kaia while she ate her dinner. He had an uneasy sensation growing in his gut, feeling like trouble was in the air, but he didn’t know why or what it was all about.

  Maybe he was just overreacting to feeling his connection to his father again after nearly seventy five years of sensing nothing, never sure if he was alive or dead. Was he returning to Atlanta finally, or just traveling closer?

  For years he’d alternated between fearing his father had died, and then deciding he was probably still alive and just didn’t want to be bothered with contacting Anthony, his only son. His irritation at that idea, which was the more probable of the two, prompted him to try to put him out of mind over the years. Now that he felt their connection growing, his father’s lack of communication deeply annoyed him.

  No matter what he felt towards his father, though, something was definitely going on with Ethan. He’d been going out of his way to glare daggers at Anthony every night the last couple weeks, but he was used to Ethan’s moodiness after all these years. What alarmed Anthony more was that Ethan’s vampires were starting to hang out at the club.

  All supernaturals were allowed and welcome here, no matter whose family they belonged to, or even if they were loners, but it was usually shifters that took advantage of this safe place. It was common to see Anthony’s vampires leaving after rising for the night, their rooms in the sub floor below the club. It was less common to see Ethan’s vampires spending time here, even though Ethan himself was no stranger to the club. It was outright unheard of for his vampires to show up every night for a solid week. Something had to be going on, but no one caused any trouble despite Ethan being obviously upset about something.

  He almost asked Kaia if she knew what was wrong with him, but he stopped himself. Kaia was Ethan’s good friend and lived in his family home, at Wild Woods, in the apartment next to his. Anthony still didn’t understand why Ethan had chosen her as the only human to live there. That was a mystery for another day that he’d already fought with Kaia about and resolved with a truce of sorts.

  He’d dropped the subject with her since it didn’t seem like she was the one who sought out the friendship. Ethan had. But it still ate at Anthony that maybe Ethan had unrequited feelings for her, yet he never acted on them except to constantly antagonize Anthony. To be fair, though, Ethan’s hatred of him started way before Kaia had even been born.

  Either way, Anthony didn’t like to involve Kaia in vampire business, or any business having to do with their world, so he didn’t talk to her about what was worrying him lately. It wasn’t that he kept things from her, he did, but he tried not to lie to her. He’d answer any questions she asked him, he just didn’t volunteer details she didn’t need to know about.

  He loved her, but he was Master, besides just being vampire. His life could be harsh, something she wasn’t used to as a human who’d only recently learned about the supernatural world all around her. He desperately didn’t want to scare her away with the sometimes brutal details of his life, so he reluctantly kept her in the dark about many things, even though he’d love to be able to share everything with her. He’d love to feel like he had a true partner in life, though what he had with Kaia was so close to perfect, he really had nothing to complain about.

  Tonight he talked with her about whatever she wanted to talk about, enjoying their shared time before she’d need to get some sleep for work tomorrow. Her routine made it easy for him to spend a few hours with her before putting her to bed each night, and then take care of his own work. She’d been staying here more and more lately, too, and he wondered if that’s what was upsetting Ethan. But would so many of Ethan’s family come out here just for that?

  Kaia finished her dinner and said her throat hurt. She’d been accidentally bitten by Sebastian last month, but too much time had passed for her to be turning werewolf… he hoped. He never told her what could’ve happened from the bite, and he felt guilty every time he thought about it. He also thought more and more about asking her to be vampire with him, but that seemed like wishful thinking. He let the thought go and spent the rest of her night with her before she couldn’t stop yawning. He then lovingly tucked her into his bed in his apartment below the club.

  Chapter 4

  Harmony sprung for three nights at the luxurious Mandarin Oriental Hotel. It was a little closer to Brookhaven than she’d like, but if Anthony wanted to seriously hurt her, he’d have his chance when she met him later tonight anyway. If he really was a powerful Master, he’d find her no matter where she stayed in the city, and three nights gave her time to figure out if she was staying or moving along.

  She took the elevator up to her floor, then meticulously cased out her room. She’d chosen one of the smaller suites, which was still the size of a roomy one bedroom apartment, but this particular one had no windows in the bathroom. The bedroom was giant and had two floor to ceiling windows, but the bathroom was secluded with an enormous free standing tub the perfect size to sleep the day away in.

  It seemed a waste to pay for such a large, expensive room when she wouldn’t be using most of it, but because it was a luxury hotel, she had less chance of being bothered during the day. She had a little magic in her and could put a spell on the door, nudging others to avoid her room, but it helped to be able to pay for her privacy, too.

  She pulled out her light blocker curtains and some duct tape and got to work making sure she had enough of everything to cover the gaps around the bathroom door once she was inside for the day. When she was satisfied she’d be as safe here as she could figure out how to be, she packed up her things and headed out.

  When she traveled, she preferred to keep her belongings with her, even if she had a place to stay for a short time. Never knew when a girl might have to make a run for it, usually at the most inconvenient of times. Choosing whether or not she could possibly retrieve her things when a mean and nasty was after her really sucked. Another lesson learned the hard way.

  As she drove back to Brookhaven, though, she knew she’d have to leave her most comforting accessories in her car while she met with Anthony. Since Zach already called her out for trying to sneak weapons into the club, she had no doubt he’d be watching when she came back in. So… no more protection. Just her wits and what power she possessed as a supernatural creature of the night.

  She considered leaving her car parked on the street outside the buildings in case she needed to make a quick getaway. But she hated leaving her baby exposed like that, especially since she knew there was little chance she’d escape if the Master of the territory didn’t want her to.

  She parked in the ramp, then sat for a few minutes longingly eyeing all the spots she’d hidden her weapons around the interior of her most prized possession. Her blood red 1986 Porsche 911 Turbo S. It took some skill to drive this car fast without crashing it, and if she stayed in town long enough, Road Atlanta racetrack was definitely going to get her business.

  It was almost midnight, so she reluctantly left everything behind and made her way inside. The same guards were inside the upstairs foyer as before, and this time they both inspected her much more carefully. For the wolf, that meant he sniffed at her more, which was creepy. For the vampire, it meant he used his power to feel her out, which was also creepy, but felt more familiar to her.

  She held back any scathing, sarcastic remarks about their extreme attention because after all, she’d probably gotten them in trouble for missing everything she’d had on her. That didn’t necessarily make her their friend now, and she didn’t want to push it, just in case.

  Benicio didn’t seem all that upset with her, though, as he stifled a smirk and gestured towards the door that led down to the club.

  “Welcome back, Miss Harmony.”

  She figured it didn’t hurt to be nice
, so she said, “Thanks Benicio.”

  Downstairs, she felt calmer than the last time as she looked around and paid attention to her surroundings. The room seemed bigger than earlier, maybe because there were less people here. And the high ceiling and lack of any windows gave the club a cavernous feel. Dark and spacious… What could be homier for a vampire?

  Zach appeared by her side and derailed her zen moment. At least he was a little more discreet than the shifter guard upstairs as he sniffed the air around her.

  “Did you leave all your weapons upstairs this time?” His gaze was intense, though he had a challenging smile on his face.

  “I didn’t bring any with me so there was nothing to leave.”

  Zach’s nostrils flared, but he quickly nodded. “If you’re looking for Anthony, he’s in his office.”

  She couldn’t tell by his expression if he was just being helpful or if he was excited to see Master Anthony smack her around and put her in her place. Irritation and reluctant fear warred inside her about what might happen when she finally talked to the Master. She hated giving in to fear, so she fanned the flames of her irritation told him thanks with as much sarcasm as she could.

  Her march across the club to the door Zach pointed to made her anxious, though she felt a little better that she only saw mild curiosity in the eyes of those watching her. The mood in here felt like a normal crowd vibe… lots of talking, some laughing, some eating, but nothing too crazy. Actually, for a room full of supernaturals, that was pretty strange.

  She warily knocked on Anthony’s office door but didn’t sense anyone on the other side. Was Zach screwing with her? She scowled and turned to look for the wise cracking turkey, only to tense and freeze in place when she very clearly heard, “You may enter, Harmony.”

  She swallowed past a lump in her throat. The Master was in there and already knew her name. She reached for the door handle, bracing herself for this unwanted conversation.