Dark Secret

by Emily Kimelman Gilvey

  Senil turned away and walked back toward the couches, sitting down and crossing her legs before continuing. "Your mother was waiting outside of a bar for a shifter she was traveling with—he was a young thing, bold and strong, fun and lively, but a passing fascination. I approached her.” Senil leaned back into the couch and closed her eyes, the ghost of a smile on her lips.

  “This was before humans knew of our existence. But your mother knew what I was immediately. I could tell—she knew I was dead. And when I looked at her, I knew it too." Senil's voice dropped almost to a whisper. “A thousand years of this magical life, and it was the first time I realized how dead I was." She opened her eyes and looked at me. I crossed the room, drawn to her story. "Your mother—"

  "What was her name?" I asked, sitting down next to Senil.

  Senil's brows furrowed. "You don't even know her name?”

  "My father never wanted to talk about her. All he ever said was that she died in childbirth. And that she named me."

  Senil smiled. "Yes, I bet she did. Darling. That is the name she would give to her death.” I frowned. “Don't worry, Darling, you're far from maturity. You won't become pregnant for centuries, perhaps even longer."

  "What was her name?"

  "Love."

  "That's almost as strange as Darling," I said.

  Senil smiled. "I thought it was perfect."

  "Why are your eyes two different colors?"

  "Love brought it out in me. My humanity, you could say. Or life. She brought life back to me. That spark which we lose when we transition to night creatures. Ironic, isn't it? To live forever and yet be dead in all the most important ways?"

  "Like music."

  "And art."

  "And love."

  "That's right."

  "But she made you feel love again?"

  "Very deeply."

  "Do you still feel it?"

  "Sometimes." Senil looked past me at the windows. "At dawn, when the sun is not dangerous yet, when it's just a pink haze over the world, when there is that gauze covering the planet, I feel a spark, a little something, an occasional heartbeat. A happiness at being alive. At the beauty of the earth."

  "You must miss her."

  Senil shrugged, the movement falsely casual somehow. "Yes, sometimes. I had not thought of her in some time before Loras told me what happened to him. I knew what you were immediately. I knew you had to be the daughter that she bore."

  "Were you still in contact when she became pregnant?"

  "No, I was here. I amassed great wealth and power, using technology to my advantage. Catering to the needs of the modern Superior. We eventually had to go public.” She waved her hand at the past. “With cameras everywhere, the human justice system becoming more sophisticated, it became too difficult to hide.” She sighed. “It made the transition during the Walker Rising easier, though. We didn't have to explain ourselves and offer salvation in the same breath. Humans were used to us."

  "In my world, we'd never heard of any of this stuff. Vampires, zombies…it was all new. I didn't even know about shifters until this afternoon."

  "Your father hid so much from you." Senil clucked her tongue.

  "He died when I was a kid."

  "Where were you?" Senil asked, leaning toward me slightly.

  "Did you look for me?"

  She sat back and smiled, but there was something in her aura, a flash of deception. "I'm just curious. Your mother and I lost touch when she left this world."

  A knock at the door drew our attention. "Come in," Senil called. "I think you'll like Hannibal," she said, turning to me. "He's three hundred, so old enough to survive, but young enough for you to control." Her eyes narrowed. "Then again, maybe you prefer your partners to have control. Your mother enjoyed both."

  “I appreciate it.” She smiled at my evasion.

  A vampire entered. Well over six feet tall, his skin wasn't the pale white I expected on a vampire; there was a warmth to it, almost like he was tan. His hair was short and honey colored.

  Those pale blue eyes shone out of his sculpted face. They landed on me and he smiled. "Well, hello there," he said. Hannibal’s shirt was tight across his broad chest, and his jeans hung on his hips like they wanted to slip off.

  Senil stood. "Hannibal, you are going to be thanking me for decades to come."

  "She smells incredible." His nostrils flared.

  "Yes, but you're not going to be doing the drinking tonight." Senil walked toward him.

  He tore his eyes away from me and looked at her, a question in his gaze. "This is Darling, and she is going to take you."

  "Take me?” he sounded amused.

  “Yes, she will take your energy and leave you weak.” Senil rested a hand on his shoulder. “You’ll love every second.”

  "Weak?” The muscles in his arms and chest tensed, as if to show his strength.

  "She's a succubus.” Senil rolled the word around on her tongue.

  "A what?"

  "Oh, you young thing." She trailed a hand across his shoulders as she circled him. Her influence caressed him, slipping under his shirt. "You don't need to worry about anything except letting Darling do what she wants. She is my most very special guest."

  "Yes," Hannibal said, his voice soft and obedient.

  I stood, my skin prickling with desire.

  "Would you like a bed?" Senil asked me. A most attentive hostess. "Come with me.” Senil turned to the door.

  Hannibal waited for me to pass, his eyes hooded.

  He followed close behind me, his influence running up my back, stirring my hair, and trying to see inside. His intrusion was artless, and I deflected him easily.

  My own powers stretched as I became more aroused. I engulfed him, feeling the movement of his legs as he walked, the thickening against his jeans. He wasn't wearing any underwear.

  I was hardly dressed myself. I'd tied the ends of my shirt together so that my breasts were covered, but that it still gapped widely.

  Hannibal closed the distance between us, and his hands met my waist. I pushed him back, liking the power I had over him. I could play with him.

  Stop it. He is not a toy.

  Senil opened a bedroom door and motioned for us to enter.

  A large bed with a wooden headboard, white sheets, and lots of pillows sat at the center of the room. A fur blanket was folded at the foot of the bed, adding a layer of luxury and texture to the simple decor.

  Senil closed the door behind us without further comment. I turned to Hannibal.

  Thick arms wrapped around me.

  His lips were hot because I made them that way, burning him with the wanting inside of me. He moaned into my mouth as I pulled his influence out of him, filling my veins with it, filling my body with it, powering every part of me.

  I untied my shirt and let it fall to the ground. He followed my actions, removing his own. His body was incredible, but I barely had time to admire it before we were kissing again, walking backward toward the bed.

  This was not a love affair, nor was it the awkward fumbling of a one-night stand. It was something different. A feast.

  I moved his hands to my breasts, feeling the electric shock of pleasure, mine and his, mingling and landing, giving me the strength that I needed.

  I dropped my hands to his waist and unbuttoned his jeans, pushing them down. We hit the bed, and I fell back onto it. He kicked his jeans away while I wriggled out of mine.

  He came at me, but I paused him, held him in front of me, suspended before me. I could control him. My aura felt like an extension of my own limbs. Hannibal didn't fight me, just gave me a cocky smile as I admired him, all of him on display for me.

  Hard lines and flat planes glistened in the lamp light. I took a deep breath, my gaze traveling from his swollen lips, down his strong throat, to the sculpted perfection of his chest and rippling edifice of his abdominals… to… oh my, oh my.

  I released him, and he fell onto me, his mouth worshiping my lips, neck, kissi
ng down my body. I used my influence to move him faster, impatient for his touch, knowing the power I’d gain. I was beginning to understand what I could do with all that strength.

  The energy rolled from him straight to the center of me, tantalizing and exhilarating. He rose up, standing at the edge of the bed, and pulled me forward by the ankle. "How are you controlling me?” he asked, his blue eyes wide with awe. I didn’t answer, just licked my lips. He grinned. "You might want to give me some rein," he said. "I'm actually quite good at this."

  I raised one brow and loosened the hold I had on him. "Let's see what you've got."

  He smiled. "Your wish is my command."

  An hour later we were on the floor, the fur blanket under us, pillows tossed about. He was right. He was good at it. My whole body was humming. He rested next to me—not sleeping, but not moving either. The vampire was exhausted.

  I pulled on what was left of my clothing. A rumble started from the windows, and I looked up to see shades rolling down. They covered the glass with a light-tight panel, protecting any creature indoors who needed it. Darkness, rich as velvet, enveloped the room.

  I sat in the blackness, listening to my own breath. Now was the perfect time to try to leave.

  But I wanted to stay and talk to Senil about my mother.

  Worry for Megan and Dimitri hummed in my body, along with the energy that Hannibal lent me. Would Suki let them stay? Let them live? Would Emmanuel protect them? I couldn't stay here, just to gather information about my mother, when it could cost my friends their lives. I'd already lost Megan once; I wasn't willing to do it again.

  I sat cross-legged on the floor and gathered my energy. Bright red and thick as a cloud, I controlled it easily. Thank you, Hannibal.

  Hands resting on my jeans-clad legs, the weave of the fabric distracted me. Cool air brushed against my skin. Satisfaction relaxed all my muscles. Get out of your body. Find the vacuum.

  I focused on the point of energy, searching. There! My spike of excitement jolted it away.

  "Dammit." I shook out my hands and took a deep breath before regathering my energy.

  My aura vibrated with strength. Hannibal had given to me freely, and he was powerful. It wasn't like after Emmanuel or Dimitri—their faces flashed behind my closed eyelids. Dimitri’s predatory smile, Emmanuel’s hair falling over his face to create a world just for us…

  Stop. Concentrate.

  I took another deep breath, centering my mind on that single point, that one part of my influence. Nothing else could matter now.

  There…shhh…stay calm. Nothingness and everything all in one sensation. I relaxed into it, spinning my energy, digging into that vacuum. The twisting pulled me slowly into the void.

  Then I was in it.

  Alone yet one with everything.

  Emmanuel… There!

  A ball of fire blew me back, and I hurtled into my body, crashing into the bed so hard it cracked under my impact. Hannibal loomed over me in the darkness—his aura weak and pulsing with alarm. "Are you okay?" He touched my face gently. "What happened?"

  Pain radiated in my back and head. "Shit!" I reached up and felt warm blood. Hannibal's aura brightened at the scent.

  He must be starving after all I'd taken from him. Before I knew what was happening, his body was covering mine, his mouth at my neck, piercing through the thin skin, sinking into me.

  I groaned.

  The pain and pleasure made me spread my legs, wrapping them around his waist and pulling his naked form hard against my clothed one. I felt the energy draining from me, and I didn't care. It felt so good, to be taken, to be treated like this. What was it? This urge to give up everything to another?

  He reached between us and ripped my jeans in half, giving himself access to me. His hand under me, he lifted my pelvis, entering me hard and fast. I clung to him, rocking with him, feeling the power he was giving and taking with each thrust, each suck.

  I threw my head back, giving him even better access to my vein, to the blood my heart sent his way. And it was by giving him that power I gained even more. He moaned against my neck, thrusting harder, faster, so that we moved across the bed until my head was hanging off the end.

  He broke from my neck. "What are you?" His voice came out in a gasp. Hannibal was breathing. His heart thudded in his chest.

  I didn't answer, just reached up and kissed him, feeling the steady rhythm of his heart joining with mine, thudding together as we rocked.

  "You tried to go back." Senil stood above me. I lay twisted in the sheets.

  I blinked up at her. Jessica waited behind her, holding a tray with food on it. My stomach growled. Right, there are other things to feed.

  Senil turned and took the tray. "Leave us.” Hannibal climbed out of the bed, naked and a little wobbly. He found his jeans on the floor and pulled them on before following Jessica out to the door.

  He turned back and looked at me for a moment. His eyes glimmered green in the light from the chandelier hanging from the ceiling. He smiled, and there was a sweetness and a shyness to it that belied his status as a dead, blood-sucking creature.

  He blew me a kiss and then left, closing the door behind him.

  Senil sat down on the edge of the bed, and I pushed myself up into a sitting position, pulling the sheets with me. "I'll have clothing brought for you," she said, placing the tray on my lap. A bowl of soup with buttered toast and a cup of coffee. Yes, please.

  "Feeling woozy?"

  “A little.” I reached up and touched my head. The cut had healed, but a tenderness remained.

  “Inter-dimensional travel, especially when forced, is very hard on the body."

  "You've traveled between the dimensions?"

  "With your mother. I told you we were very close." She gestured at the soup, and I picked up the spoon. “I'll go find you some clothing. And then I want to take you to see a friend of mine. A warlock who can help you get back to Suki's world."

  She smiled, patted my knee maternally and then rose, leaving me alone. I finished my meal and then stared at the window—the protective shade was up. I must have slept all day.

  What was Emmanuel doing?

  A sharp pain radiated in my chest. How could I miss him this much when I barely knew him. It wasn’t the sex…though that was great. There was something in the way he touched me, the way he moved. My heart thudded. Just looking at him gave me pleasure.

  And there must be some ego in this affection—a Lord thought I was his destiny. That was a compliment.

  This wasn’t the way I’d missed Megan—I didn’t feel empty without him. Or lost. Even though I most certainly was lost at the moment. No…he made me stronger. And again, I’m not just talking about the sex here. He expected me to be strong.

  Megan always said I was amazing. She’d promised that we’d be together always. And I’d expected her protection for a human lifetime. Now…I was beginning to expect Emmanuel’s for an eternity.

  He must know that Suki threw me out. Couldn't he find me? Why hadn't he come to this world to gather me up and keep me safe?

  He didn’t want to rapture the vampires here and therefore leave the humans to the zombies. Suki knew what she was doing when she threw me here…did she expect me to meet Senil?

  Maybe Suki didn’t really want me dead. Maybe she was just messing with me. A hazing of sorts. I dropped my head into my hands. Wishful thinking. Emmanuel and Suki were married. And even though he claimed there was nothing between them now, she still wanted him. Who wouldn’t?

  Senil returned carrying a pile of clothing. “Dress, and when you're ready come down, we'll head over to the Warlock Society together.” She left me.

  I made my way to the bathroom. After cleaning up, I dressed in a pair of black leather pants, a white tank top, and a black sweater. They all fit me perfectly—almost like she'd been expecting me. The hint of suspicion that had started earlier began to morph into a full-on conspiracy theory. Could Suki and Senil be working together?


  The moon twinkled through the window. The courtyard, bathed in silver blue, was once again filled with happy-looking humans. A few vampires were scattered among the crowd. No one looked afraid of them. It seemed to be a peaceful and well-run community. But glances from above never told you much about a society.

  Chapter Nine

  Senil waited for me on one of the couches in the lobby. She sat perfectly still, her eyes closed, looking like a statue. Creepy. Her eyes opened as I approached and she stood, smiling.

  "Ratulna will be so excited to meet you," she said.

  "Ratulna?"

  "Yes, the head of our local Warlock Society."

  "So you get along with the warlocks? In Crescent City, there was a major rift between the warlocks and the vampires."

  "Well—" Senil looped her arm through mine, leading me toward the exit. "We didn't get along until after all this." She waved her free hand to encompass the zombie apocalypse. "But, when it was clear that they needed us to keep the humans safe, we began to work together."

  “How so?”

  Senil didn't answer as we stepped into the vestibule. The first door closed behind us, and then we passed through into the alley with the fences at either end. Senil’s influence pooled at our feet, and we lifted off the ground.

  Floating up the side of the building, we soon passed over it. The courtyard below looked like a diorama: humans at play in moonlight.

  We flew over city streets, where zombies stumbled along abandoned blocks. All the windows in the buildings were dark. "Are they attracted to light?" I asked.

  Senil glanced down at a roving mass of the creatures. They moved down the block listlessly, their arms loose in their sockets, heads swiveling. Searching, always searching. Tireless and yet exhausted.

  "Yes," Senil answered. "That's why we keep the exterior of our buildings dark. Why attract attention?"

  "The shifters did the same thing."

  "They are resourceful."