Book One: The Girl (The Sanctum) (8 page)

Wyatt took the
steps of Darby’s townhouse two at a time, pressed her buzzer and waited. When no one answered, he pressed again, this time with a bit of urgency. Darby had promised to text him if she needed to leave so Wyatt started scrolling through his phone to see if she left any messages. Finding nothing, Wyatt glamoured himself and began scaling the face of the townhouse, seeking an unlocked window or door.

He had left Dev sleeping on the uppermost floor of the home, in the back room, one that was rarely used but had a large balcony and let in plenty of light. Wyatt inched his way to the back and pulled himself onto the balcony, brushed himself off and started checking the doors, hoping to find one unlocked. The last thing he wanted to do was break one of Darby's huge, picture windows, but glancing inside the room, he quickly realized had little choice: Darby wasn’t answering her door because she could not. And she could not answer her door because Dev had her by the neck, apparently intending to snap the vampire's head off.

Wyatt pulled out his Raven blade, knowing it would slice through the triple-pane, bulletproof glass Darby installed throughout her home. He carved out the window in a flash and kicked it away with his boot. Flying into the room, he charged at Dev with enough force to knock Darby from the girl’s vice-like grip and send the vampire flying across the floor, safely out of Dev’s reach.

The Darby gasped in pain as her fingers examined her neck for any damage.

"That freaking hybrid," Darby hissed at Wyatt as he knelt by her side, "is a nasty piece of work."

Wyatt took Darby's cold hands in his and helped her sit up.

"Jesus, Darb. I can't leave you for a second, can I?"

Darby grinned, despite the pain coursing through her neck.

"Now you know I wouldn’t mind that one bit, Mr. Clayworth."

Wyatt smiled apologetically as he placed his hands gently on her neck, trying to rub away some of her discomfort. He knew Darby would be fine, but that didn’t make seeing her attacked and uncomfortable any easier. Especially when he knew he was indirectly responsible.

“I am so sorry, Darb,” Wyatt continued rubbing Darby’s neck, massaging away any lingering aches, “this is all my fault. I should have never brought her over here.”

Darby covered Wyatt’s large hands with her small ones and ever so slowly removed them, placing them by his side.

“Honey, you have nothing to apologize for. It’s my own damn fault, getting so close to her,” Darby stood up and sat on a couch opposite Dev, somewhat wary of the hybrid, “it’s just that smell. She is absolute heaven. I went in for a little whiff and she snapped me up before I even knew what hit me.”

Dev listened to Darby’s description of their interaction and could not help but smile, remembering the vampire’s skinny little neck in her hands. Wyatt watched her intently, experiencing the beauty that was her smile and then just like that, it was gone. In its place, the scowl he knew so well. And something else. Strength perhaps. Dev looked incredibly intimidating, sitting up tall, looking angry.

Wyatt walked towards her, looming over Dev momentarily, his arms crossed and brow furrowed, deep in thought. Dev glared up at him, daring him to touch her, knowing she had angered him, disappointed she hadn't succeeded in killing the vampire. Had she accomplished that simple task, she knew Wyatt would hate her. And then she would be free.

“Good lord, watching y’all watch each other is getting me all hot and bothered, I’m sweatin’ like a whore in church,” Darby stood up to leave, “I’m just gonna scoot out of here and give you some alone time.”

Wyatt turned to follow Darby downstairs, “no thanks. The last time I was alone with her, she tried to kill me.”

Wyatt caught sight of Dev watching him leave, a strange look on her face, but he didn’t care. For one, her expression probably meant nothing and two, their short time together had already exhausted him.

“Oh sweetheart, the last thing she’s gonna do is kill you. Trust me.”

Darby caught a glimpse of what she thought was Wyatt looking hopeful, like maybe that girl wasn’t going to crush his soul to dust after all. And she was worried for her lonely warrior. She didn’t want to see him hurt, she wanted to do everything in her power to protect him, but she knew that wasn’t her job.

“Don’t get me wrong, she hates you, sweetheart. But she is yours. I have no idea what that’s gonna do to you, but she belongs to you and only you.”

“Lucky me,” Wyatt replied sardonically as he dropped to the nearest couch in exhaustion. Darby came and lay down next to him, listening to his heart beat, curling into him as he wrapped his arms around her. Wyatt closed his eyes and played with Darby’s hair, too tired to speak, but needing to before he lost himself to sleep.

“Darb,” Wyatt forced the words out through his exhaustion-riddled brain, “promise me you won’t tell Ryker about any of this.”

She had often wondered what, if anything, would separate the boys, an assignment, a kill, an order. She never thought it would be a girl. Not that the being sitting upstairs was a girl in the typical sense of the word, but in Darby’s world, Dev wasn’t so unique. In fact, Darby could not quite get her head around what was so threatening about Dev that she needed to be exterminated. Sure, she was otherworldly strong, but so were vampires and werewolves. She was intensely beautiful, as were fairies and angels. And she was full of magic, magic on a level Darby had rarely encountered, but many beings shared this power. Something just wasn’t adding up, a piece of vital information was not being shared.

And now Wyatt didn’t want Darby telling anyone about Dev, but most of all Ryker. She looked up at Wyatt, his eyes closed, his body relaxed, everything about him seemed so peaceful. Even his features softened when he slept, making him seem almost vulnerable. He was perfect and she loved him, but that was not always enough. Darby knew that all too well. She was centuries-old for goodness sake! At some point, it was time to stop loving the unattainable.

She sat up and gave herself a few more minutes to admire him, caressing Wyatt’s cheek and softly kissing his lips, suspecting this would be one of the last moments she would ever have with him like this. It would never again be so intimate between them, but then again, it probably never should have been in the first place.

Darby padded softly out of the room and the house, locking the door behind her, eager for a distraction. The morning light blinded her momentarily and she regretted not grabbing her sunglasses. But it also warmed her deathly cold skin and for that she was thankful. Even all these years later, she still felt a thrill every time the sun kissed her skin. And although it had been decades since she crossed paths with the witch who took pity on her and changed her life forever, she never quite got over the newness of it all.

Darby met Maya years ago as she was ripping through India, killing scores of men and women without mercy. Maya called herself a healer; Darby considered her a witch. Both were one with nature but Darby knew Maya was capable of more than just healing damaged souls and bodies. She could give life and when pushed, take it away as well.

The latter is what Darby expected her to do when Maya came upon her, feeding on her innocent victim in a Bombay slum. Darby had tortured the man, both mentally and physically, and was finishing her kill when Maya appeared.

“Must you be so gruesome, child?”

Darby looked up, anger at being interrupted roaring through her veins, blood dripping from her fangs. She tossed the dead body aside and flew at the woman standing before her, all done up in red and gold, obviously an emissary of The Sanctum. Maya prepared for the attack, bending Darby to her will, stopping the vampire dead in her tracks.

Darby knew better than to fight the magic paralyzing her. Instead, she gave into it, hoping it would overcome her and put an end to her madness.

Maya approached Darby, cautious but also concerned. How was it that something so tiny and fragile-seeming could indulge in such vulgar displays of power and brutality? Why would a child of darkness, so full of wisdom and beauty, engage in such disgusting behavior?

“Do you know what I am, witch?” Darby hissed, displaying her fangs.

“Yes, child,” said Maya, completely unmoved by Darby’s display. “The better question is do you know what I am?”

Darby felt Maya’s magic flooding her body, flowing through her veins and overtaking her mind. She hoped this was the end. If the last face she looked upon was Maya’s, full of peace and kindness, she would know she had died a death she did not deserve.

She crumpled to the ground, unable to keep herself upright any longer. Darby looked to the midnight sky, full of stars, wondering if she would see Claude on the other side. And then her world faded to black. When she woke, Darby was lying in a field of tall, gently blowing grass, kissed by the soft tendrils lapping at her face, warmed by the sun on her cold skin. Realizing she was lying in the sun, Darby fled to a copse of nearby trees, staring at her bare arms in amazement, touching her face in wonder.

Maya chuckled quietly, watching Darby from nearby.

Darby turned her head in the direction of the laughter, eyeing the woman suspiciously.

“What have you done to me, witch?”

Maya slowly approached Darby, keeping her magic in check, wanting the vampire to understand she meant no harm.

“Child, you continue to spit that word at me like it is a bad thing. I call myself a healer, you call me a witch, someone else will call me a sorcerer. These are all one in the same. The names mean nothing. The titles are irrelevant. What matters is that I am one with nature, my power is the life force of all beings, flowing through me, using me as a vessel. It is as simple as that.”

Maya stopped in front of Darby, towering over the slight vampire, and gently touched her long, blonde curls, letting them wrap around her fingers and tickle her arms.

“One day, I would love to have a child like you. Powerful, beautiful, smart. Aware of herself, in touch with her deadliest nature and in control of her surroundings. That is you, little vampire. And now I’ve just made you a bit more special than you already are.”

“Why?”

Maya slowly shook her head.

“That is not the correct question, child. What you should really ask yourself is what do I do with myself now? How do I go forth from this chance meeting?”

Darby studied Maya, not quite knowing what to make of the powerful being standing before her.

“I thought you were Sanctum.”

“And you are correct. I wear the red and gold of the Emissary of The Sanctum.”

“So why aren’t you killing me?” Darby asked, demanding a direct answer.

“Child, I do not kill anyone. I am the Sole Healer for The Sanctum. My job is to help lost souls, cure the ailing, assist those in need.”

Darby shook her head in disagreement.

“All due respect but I have been alive a very, very long time. Maybe not as long as you, which I can only assume is why you insist on calling me a child, but let me tell you something, Miss. I know magic when I see it and I ain’t never seen any kind of magic like the kind you’ve got flowing through that body of yours. So don’t you stand here in front of me, all tall and pretty and majestic and tell me you ain’t killing folks. Damn straight I know you can kill someone.”

Maya smiled, amused by and attracted to Darby’s spark.

“I never said I cannot kill, I said I do not kill. Two very distinct realities.”

Darby chuckled.

“And now you help vampires walk in the sun?” Darby asked, “You, Miss Maya, are the strangest member of The Sanctum I have ever met.”

“I see you have a few tricks up your sleeve, as well.”

“If by that you mean I know who you are, then yes, I have a few tricks as well.”

Darby slowly walked into the sun, all the while watching Maya, half expecting her to blink her eyes or wave her hands and send Darby up in flames.

“Everyone knows who you are, Miss Maya. I believe the phrase is “right hand to Ava Breslin”.”

Darby came to a stop next to Maya, noticing the woman flinch when Darby described her.

“Ah, yes,” Maya sighed, “Ava Breslin. I suppose we all have our cross to bear.”

“You will have much more than that to bear when word gets back about what you’ve done,” Darby stated the obvious as she stretched her arms in the golden-hued heat, luxuriating in the warmth on her skin, thrilled at being kissed by the sun again after so many decades of darkness.

"Well, I can only hope
this
encounter remains our little secret," Maya suggested as she smiled down at Darby.

"My lips are sealed," Darby promised.

Maya stared down at Darby, the witch's face a pool of longing and sadness. She gently caressed Darby's beautiful face, a tear escaping her eye and slowly rolling down her cheek. Darby felt Maya's pain, her fear
, her longing. The vampire sensed the witch was at a crossroads and whatever her decision, it was going to be final and profound. Darby reached up and returned Maya’s caress and then turned on her heel and walked away.

"So long, then, my pretty vampire,” Maya called to Darby, “and welcome, my lovely
child of the sun and moon
, for you are now reborn, wholly unique and absolutely wonderful."

Darby turned back to smile at Maya and then continued on her way, enjoying the warmth of the earth under her bare feet, trailing her fingers along the high grass, relishing the sun on her arms. When she reached the edge of the field, Darby turned back one final time to see Maya, standing stock still near the trees, watching her leave. Darby lifted her tiny hand and gave a short wave, knowing she could never thank the witch for the gift bestowed upon her, hoping she could one day live up to it. And then, without another thought Darby fled, appearing as a mere blur on the horizon.

That was almost forty years ago. For humans, a lifetime but for the immortal, a mere blink. Darby had always hoped she would one day have the chance to repay Maya for her kindness and last night, when she caught Dev’s scent, Darby believed their paths had come full circle. Only one other time in her life had she smelled another being quite so intoxicating and truth be told, Darby never expected to do so again. But there was Dev, lying on her couch, evoking memories of years gone by of a witch full of power and majesty, a most unique being.