The Vampire Destiny 3: Awakening

by Alexandra Anthony

"What's that?"

  "Dammit, Nikolaus. It's a letter, not a grenade. Just read it." I fought to keep the exasperation out of my voice. I couldn't help remembering my own reluctance to read this very piece of paper and had to fight the smile. We were definitely related.

  He snatched the letter from my hands, unfolding it carefully. His green eyes scanned the length of the paper, finishing quickly. He refolded it, balancing it on his leg. His eyes appeared to be out of focus, trained on a spot on the wall.

  "Our uncle wrote this letter to you 15 years ago, even though he'd been threatened not to tell you anything. Not to mention he had our asshole of a father figured out," Nikolaus muttered more to himself than me. "Exactly how and when did he die?"

  The bluntness of his question was shocking. I found myself instantly being transported back in time to when my adoptive parents died: a frantic late night phone call, a unclear memory of a car ride to the hospital. Watching their caskets being lowered into the ground and the overwhelming knowledge that I was totally alone rushed over me like it was yesterday. When I spoke, I sounded far away and haunted. "Four years ago. Our aunt and uncle died in a car accident. My dad, I mean Garrett, ran off the road and hit a tree. They were both killed instantly."

  An uneasy stillness hung between us. Nikolaus eyes burned like green fire, his mouth tightening into a frown. "You know it was no accident, right? This has Kian written all over it. Jesus, I hate that fucking bastard. First he killed our mother, then our uncle. No one is safe."

  Sinking deeper into the couch, I was shocked into a stunned silence. Kian wouldn't sink that low, would he? Surely he didn't kill Garrett and Meredith. He wouldn't.

  He clicked his tongue against his teeth. "Don’t be naïve. Hell yes he would, Josie. I'd be fucking shocked if he wasn't behind it. You'd be much easier to approach without a parental figure around that you trusted and that hated him out of the way. Our father just didn't bank on Stefan finding you so soon.”

  "First, the same rules apply. Don't pick through my head. Second, why wouldn't Stefan find me? He'd been close before. He told me he only missed me by two days once before."

  "Kian has kept Stefan occupied on a revolving door of 'assignments', most of them involving the recently departed douche bag Derek. Anytime Stefan would come close to finding you, he'd send Stefan off to do some manufactured dirty work. If it wasn't so evil, his plan would be fucking beautiful." Nikolaus stood and walked to the windows. He stared into the distance, shoving his hands into the back pockets of his jeans. “It’s just a matter of time until we’re next. We know too much.”

  My brow creased in disbelief. Obviously I’d misunderstood what he said. "Manufactured dirty work? You don't mean..."

  Nikolaus laughed dryly. "That Kian brought false charges on vampires so Stefan would be preoccupied in carrying out his assigned job versus finding you? Yes, that's exactly what I mean."

  "But how do you know?" I asked reluctantly. Part of me didn't want to know.

  "Let's just say I went on a fishing expedition while you were gone, spending my time picking through various vampire brains. It was informative. Disgustingly slimy, but surprisingly informative."

  Rubbing my forehead with the heel of my palm, I rehashed out our conversation. Fear, anger and outrage all fought for dominance as the pieces slid into place. "He sent Derek to Bali, didn't he? Derek said he was sent to retrieve me. Anna just happened to be in the wrong place."

  Nikolaus shrugged and turned his head to glance at me. "Probably. I don't know for sure. I haven't seen Kian since you left for Bali."

  So Kian had secluded himself for at least a week. As slithery and sneaky as a snake, I had vivid mental pictures of what he could be planning. I’m sure he was regrouping, finding another willing lackey to come after me next.

  "Shit." The full extent of Kian's evilness was overwhelming. The truth of the matter is there wasn't much he wouldn't do.

  My brother swiveled to face me. His stubble covered face was just similar enough to mine to still surprise me. "No, there's nothing he wouldn't do. But here are the positives. You know the facts and understand better what he's capable of doing. That’s better than going into this blind."

  Smiling weakly, I hugged my arms around myself tightly. "That doesn't make me feel better."

  "It's not supposed to make you feel better, Josie. It's supposed to give you the power to control who fucks with you and how you can obtain the upper hand."

  I leaned forward and cradled my head in my hands. My head was swimming from all the information I'd gleaned from Nikolaus. I’d been hoping for a pleasant conversation. Instead it was all about planning, scheming and power struggles.

  "It's probably a good thing I'm with a master at getting the upper hand." I looked up to see Nikolaus grin widely. He clapped his hands together, rubbing them together animatedly.

  "I like the way you think. Stefan will do anything to protect you. If Kian comes after you, he’s a dead man." He snorted at his own play on words. "Well, he'll be really dead."

  "Nikolaus, Kian will come after Stefan. If he follows his usual MO, he'll try to eliminate the biggest threat first," I said in a rush. "And that would be Stefan. I won't put him at risk."

  "He's almost 1,000 years old, Josie. I doubt Kian scares him too badly." Nikolaus rolled his eyes and paced the length of the room.

  Watching him wearily, my voice was nearly a whisper. "You've never been in love. If you had been, you wouldn't be so blasé about it."

  My cutting words made his pacing come to an abrupt halt. His green eyes slid to mine. "Love? Love is a waste of time."

  I stood and walked to face him, grasping his shoulders with my hands. Our eyes locked. "You sound like the old me from a few months ago. I'd given up, written the idea of love off because of what we can do. But you're here because of something you saw in a vision. Not only do you want love, you deserve it."

  His face took on a look of panic and he didn't do as much as blink. Out of respect, I didn't try to intentionally read his thoughts, but they spilled out to me in a rush. He wanted to be desired, to love someone as desperately as I loved Stefan. He sounded defeated, caught off guard when he spoke. "Maybe. I don't want to, you know...love."

  "Don't lie to me, Nikolaus. You can't bullshit mind-to-mind."

  He roughly exhaled. "I came to see you. But your friend..."

  "Anna," I supplied.

  "Anna. I saw her. With me. Together." His words came out strangled and disjointed. I didn't loosen my grip on his shoulders. “Fuck, this is embarrassing. I saw Anna and myself together in a sexual way.”

  "You saw Anna the same way Stefan saw me. I dreamed of him too," I reminded him, finally letting him go. "It's ok to hope for it."

  "I'm fucking scared shitless,” Nikolaus divulged. His hands went to his hair, pulling frantically at the tousled stands.

  "Join the club. We're accepting new members," I quipped. "You and me. We're so much alike that it's scary."

  Nikolaus and I were both so scared of being hurt, of letting ourselves feel. Or least I had been in the past. Stefan had broken through the barrier that had kept my heart closed off.

  "So I'm discovering." He rubbed his chin nervously. "Can I meet her?"

  "I haven't spoken to Anna since she woke up. We'll have to ask Stefan to see if she can handle it.

  Closing my eyes, I let my mind seek out his. I could feel his presence, pulsing gently in the back of my mind. I imagined myself tugging on him, pulling him to me.

  "Aren't you going to call him?" Nikolaus asked curiously.

  Placing my finger on his lips, I murmured softly. "Shhh. Wait a second and watch."

  Within moments, Stefan was at the door. My eyes opened and I turned to greet him.

  "It works!"

  Stefan muttered something under his breath. Mentally, he spoke to me. "Obviously. You rang?"

  "Holy fucking hell! No wonder Kian tried to keep you apart," Nikolaus murmured. His lips were parted in amazement as he looked between
us both.

  "Vackra?"

  "I'll fill you in later. Can Nikolaus meet Anna?"

  His mouth curled in one of his trademark smug smiles. "I figured as much. Anna?"

  Anna pushed the door open slightly. She walked into the room, her brown eyes large. She looked at Stefan, who motioned for her to approach us.

  She faced me first. Her tiny frame looked even more delicate than before. In a blur, she wrapped her arms around me, almost crushing me with her burst of strength. "Thank you, Josie. You never gave up on me. If not for you, I'd be in a body bag."

  I didn't even try to stop the tears that fell from my eyes. She'd lifted a 100 pound weight from my shoulders with her statement.

  "Anna. I'm so sorry," I sobbed. "He came after me and you were in the wrong place at the wrong time."

  "Don't be sorry." Anna patted me on the back. She lowered her voice to whisper in my ear. "You could have told a girl what was going on."

  Laughing, I swiped at my eyes with the back of my hand. "Uh, no. I couldn't have told you. You would have thought I was crazy."

  "True," Anna nodded. Her attention focused on Nikolaus. "You must be Nikolaus, right? You're Josie's brother."

  "Yeah." He shoved his hands in his pockets nervously. The muscles under his tattoos flexed and contracted.

  She almost floated to his side, placing her hand on his arm. "You're like Josie, right? You're a psychic too."

  He had a surge of confidence as he straightened his back and puffed out his chest. His devilish smile made his face even more handsome. "Yeah. Among other things."

  "Josie told me about you before we left Bali." Her eyebrows narrowed and her brown eyes suddenly gleamed brightly as a memory came to her. "I know your game. Don't even pull that swagger shit with me."

  Nikolaus seemed taken aback by Anna's comment. A frown pulled at the corners of his mouth and he crossed his arms in a defensive pose.

  "And exactly what is my type?" He shot back. His green eyes flashed angrily as he glanced quickly to me and back to Anna. “Since you obviously know me so well, I’d love to hear your thoughts on who and what I am.”

  "You're good looking and you know it. You’re also more than your obvious attempt at trying way too hard. If you're anything like Josie, you'll be smart enough not to know you can’t play me with your charm." Anna stepped closer to him and stared up into his eyes. "Other than that, I think I'm going to like you, Nikolaus."

  I watched their exchange with growing interest. My brother was more intrigued with her than before. He relaxed slightly, pushing his hands back in his pockets.

  As if on queue, Lukas entered the apartment, His ice blue eyes ran over Nikolaus in obvious appreciation. "I wondered where everyone disappeared to. Who's the guy?"

  "This is Josie 's brother, Lukas. Nikolaus is not gay so you’ll need to find another man to mentally undress and sexually harass," Anna shot to Lukas snarkily.

  Lukas pursed his lips and rolled his eyes. "The straight ones are always so pretty. And always taken. It’s such a pity."

  "Isn't that what woman say about gay men?" Anna said, placing her hands on her hips.

  “Bitch,” Lukas beamed affectionately at Anna.

  Anna’s laughter pealed loudly. “And this is news?”

  Poor Nikolaus stood between them like a deer caught in the headlights. He'd lived much like me and all of this attention and intimate interaction made him obviously uncomfortable. He was in for a huge adjustment if he was planning on spending time with me or Anna. There was no such thing as privacy or calm around Lukas.

  With the stress of the last few days over, I'd had enough for one night. There were too many people in the apartment and it was imperative that I talk to Stefan alone. Nikolaus’ admission to me was twisting my stomach in knots. As much as I dreaded telling him, Stefan had to know what Kian had done.

  "Stefan, can we get out of here for a while? Or do you need to stay with Anna?" I asked him. Stefan had also been following Anna, Nikolaus and Lukas with rapt attention.

  "Yes. Lukas, you can watch after Anna?"

  "Jesus, I'm right here. I'm fine and I promise to not run into the street, killing and maiming innocent people," Anna grumbled. She flipped her brown curls over her shoulder. She looked between Lukas and Stefan. "I know I'm new to this. Please don't treat me like a child while I learn."

  Stefan's lips twitched in amusement at Anna's reply. "Agreed. Josephine, where do you want to go?"

  "Let’s go for a walk. I need to stretch my legs."

  My mind was bombarded with a dozen ways Stefan wanted to stretch my legs. Not one of them involved walking or being clothed while doing it. Normally, his mental images would make me second guess my original plans and do delicious things to my libido. My nervousness and anxiousness kept my arousal at bay.

  "Very well." He noticed my lack of response and reached for my hand, inclining his head to Lukas. "We will be back."

  We'd reached the door when Nikolaus sidled up to us. He grabbed Stefan’arm, stopping us. "You're gonna have to decide after you listen to what my sister has to say. We'll talk sooner than later. She has my number."

  Stefan regarded Nikolaus with reserved curiosity, glancing down at his hand with annoyance "Please remove your hand, Nikolaus. I think you know my stance."

  "I know what you said before. This information may sway your stance," Nikolaus replied matter-of-factly. He dropped his hand from Stefan’s arm to pull me into a one-armed hug. "I'll see you later."

  "Bye," I kissed his cheek and motioned for the door, drawing Stefan along with me. "Let's go."

  Stefan ushered me out of the apartment. Blocking my thoughts from him, we walked down the hallway. He remained quiet until we reached the elevator.

  "I am not going to like what you have to say. Anytime you shield yourself so strongly there is a reason."

  Pushing the elevator down arrow, I avoided his eyes. "No, you aren’t going to like it. You have to know what’s going on."

  The bond between us filled with apprehension. It mirrored my own feelings. How do you break the news to someone that they were a puppet in a madman's scheming ways for the last decade?

  ***

  We walked along the Highline hand in hand. It was early evening and we did our best to blend in with the passing people, turning more than a few heads in the process. Stefan looked particularly sexy, his blond hair and pale skin contrasting with the dark sweater that succeeded in clinging to the broad muscles of his chest. His long legs were sheathed in dark denim, making them look a mile long.

  "Say what you need to say, Josephine. Mentally eye-fucking me is not helping," Stefan advised as we walked along. The bond came in handy. I didn’t need to look at him to know that he was upset, the tension emanating from him.

  "I showed Nikolaus my uncle's letter and caught him up to date on what happened while we were in Bali," I hedged, slowing our gait. "Nikolaus caught me up on what happened here while we were gone."

  Stefan pulled me to a bench, tugging me along with him. We sat and his handsome face became grim in the early evening light. The darkness he tried to conceal was threatening to break free. "Continue."

  I drew in a small breath. "He thinks that Kian is behind Derek's attempt on my life. After reading the letter and my explanation of what happened to them, he strongly suspects my aunt and uncle's death wasn't an accident."

  His head snapped to look at me sharply. His eyes took on that cold reptilian quality I'd glimpsed only once before. It had been so fleeting the first time that I thought I'd imagined it.

  I hadn't.

  "He and I agree on both of those points then. There is more, yes? What else do you know?"

  Frowning, I ran my hand over his muscled thigh. I looked up at him with pleading eyes. "Promise me you won't act impulsively."

  He laughed dryly, running a hand through his blond hair. “I will make no such promise. If this involves your safety..."

  Cutting him off, I squeezed his leg. "It doesn't. It invo
lves you and the Board." I flicked a loose strand of hair away from my face nervously. "Maybe I should rephrase. It actually involves you and my father."

  Stefan simply stared at me. His glacial blue eyes waited for me to continue.

  "Nikolaus took it upon himself to fish through vampire minds. He came across interesting information in the process."

  His hand came to rest on top of mine. "Such as?"

  "Kian knew of your search for me. He did his best to keep us apart for at least the last 10 years. Part of his way to keep you occupied and away from me was sending you on your missions." I let my words sink in before I finished. "If you came close to finding me, suddenly you'd have a vampire to punish and a job to do."

  He carefully took my hand in his, as if holding on to me would keep his anger tethered tightly inside of him. His turbulent emotions were barely being held in check as he waited for more.

  "Kian brought false charges on innocent vampires to keep you occupied," I blurted out. "He used them to keep us apart."

  His sudden rage blasted me, the force almost knocking me off the bench. "You are telling me that he had me murder innocent vampires because he wanted to keep us apart? He fucking used me and my appointed position to kill for his own needs?"

  Flinching, I could only shake my head in agreement. His anger and rage had rendered me speechless.

  "He also deceived the entire Board and Council. However that is not what bothers me the most. He kept us apart. I spent many years searching for you. It was wasted time..." Stefan's voice thinned. He brought my hand to his lips, brushing his mouth against my skin. "I want to rip him apart like the innocents I murdered for his agenda. I want him to pay for what he has done to us."

  Shivering at the hatred and resolve of his words, I knew he was capable of doing it. I’d watched him rip Derek limb from limb. His only remorse was that I witnessed his vengeful wrath.

  "I hate him, Stefan. I hate that he kept us apart. He killed my mother, my aunt and my uncle. We can't do anything without a plan."

  A wicked smile broke through the grimness of his face. "That is exactly what I will do. His death will be mine. I need as much evidence as I can gather. The question is will you help me?”