Born to Darkness Book 1 in the Immortal Destiny Series: Vampire Romance Paranormal (10 page)

She couldn’t help but wonder how many vampires roamed the streets at night - without the human inhabitants even realizing it. What would they think if they knew the world was full of these creatures?

“Down that way.” The vampire pointed to the end of the alley-like street.

Alec started walking again. “Well at least we know he’s here.”

“My father … we’ve come here looking for my father?”

Alec nodded. “Your father would be in a much better position than we are to back down Omar. He’s not someone Omar’s followers will want to tangle with.”

Soon they come to a gray stone structure - much larger than the rest of them. There were even steps leading to the double doors.

“This is incredible!” Nicole exclaimed.

Alec knocked on the door - a moment later it opened. “A woman with long blond hair stood there - glaring at them.

“I want to speak with Donavan,” Alec told her.

“And you are who?”

“Alec Norwood. Tell him it’s about his daughter.”

“Wait here,” she said, before closing the door on them. Nicole didn’t miss the hateful look the woman cast in her direction.

When the door opened again, it wasn’t the woman, but the dark man from the park. He looked exactly the same as he had all those years ago.

“Come in,’ Donavan told them, stepping aside.

Nicole was again surprised by the interior of the structure. There appeared to be a few different rooms to it. The room they entered was lavishly furnished with antique pieces. The walls were even adorned with fine art.

Nicole looked around for the woman who’d answered the door, but she was nowhere in sight.

“Alec … it’s been a very long time.”

Alec nodded and then pointed to Nicole. “Your daughter.”

Donavan stared at Nicole - a smile touching his lips. “Nicole … you’ve grown even more beautiful than I imagined.”

A storm of emotion raged through her. Here was the man who had abandoned her and her mother - the dark man who never returned like he promised. “You never came back,” she accused.

A sadness entered Donavan’s eyes. He looked toward Alec and Dash. “Can I have a few moments with my daughter?”

Alec hesitated.

“She is my daughter. I will not harm her,” Donavan assured them.

Alec nodded, and he and Dash left through the same door from which they’d entered.

When they had gone, her father reached out and touched her cheek lightly. “Nicole … you are truly a rose of the night.”

“Why did you leave? Didn’t you care about us?”

“I left precisely for that reason … because I did care about you and your mother,” he told her.

Nicole shook her head, unable to accept what he was saying.

“A little girl needs to grow up in the light … not the darkness.” He motioned with his hand to the structure he lived in. “When I saw you playing in the park, all I could think about was how I should have been able to watch you playing beneath the sunshine.”

“So you left for selfish reasons,” she spit out.

“A born vampire is forbidden. If the others had found out about you, it wouldn’t have been safe,” he explained.

“But I am not a vampire.”

“But you are Nicole. You are a vampire that can live in the light … but a vampire nonetheless.”

“I’ve never …” Her words trailed off.

“You’ve never consumed blood,” he finished for her.

She nodded.

Donavan smiled. “You are a half vampire. You will not turn … unless you are infected by the poison, but it would take very little to do that.”

“What do you mean?”

“With most mortals, they must be bitten and drained. They have to drink the vampire’s blood and experience death. Even then, they must carry some type of DNA from the original vampires before they will turn. A born vampire will turn quickly, if they are even given a drop of the vampire’s blood. They do not have to be bitten.”

“Omar knows about me,” she blurted out.

Instantly, a look of apprehension entered his eyes. “You must go into hiding,” he stated.

“What good is it for me to remain mortal, if I must hide in the dark?”

Donavan seemed to be wrestling with some internal demon. Finally he spoke. “Omar will use you for his own ends, if he gets his hands on you.”

“What is this Place of Light? What is he hiding?” Nicole asked.

“Yes …what about that?” Dash stuck his head inside the door.

Donavan motioned for them to come in.

“The Place of Light is not myth. This is a common story circulated by the oldest vampires, but only because they don’t want others searching for this place. This is the realm of the vampire,” he said with a sweep of his arm, “but … the Place of Light is the realm of the wolf. We have never inhabited that place.”

“Can a vampire live in the light there?” Alec asked him.

Donavan nodded. “Yes … but we are forbidden entrance to that world because we prey on the living.” He reached into his shirt and pulled out a medallion that hung from a gold chain. It was the same as Omar wore.

“Only with this can you gain entrance to that world … but the wolves would kill you as soon as you crossed. That is if you even knew where the entrances were?”

“Do you know where they are?” Dash asked.

Donavan shook his head. “That knowledge has been lost.”

Alec spoke up, “One of them talked to me - he was following me.”

Donavan appeared shocked. “What was the reason?”

“He claimed that Omar was a danger to his granddaughter, and that the only way to stop him, was to bring the secrets into the open.”

“His granddaughter … the granddaughter of a wolf?” Donavan seemed to be in deep thought.

“Do you know what secrets he is hiding?” Alec wanted to know.

Now Alec had Donavan’s full attention. “I do,” he said.

“Well?” Dash threw his hands in the air. “What are these secrets … what are we?”

“We are more ancient than man himself. What we are … is not a curse, but a species.”

“How can we live in the light?” Alec asked.

“We can’t … not on this side of the veil, but not because of some curse.”

“But technically, if we could find this portal, we could get through with that medallion?” Nicole asked.

“Why are you so interested in this place daughter?”

Nicole wanted to tell him about Jay, but what could she say? That Ethan had told her the Place of Light might lead her to her brother. Even vampires may not believe in such nonsense.

“It is to soothe your pain, that you seek the Place of Light?” He had read her thoughts. So far, he’d been the only Immortal with the ability to read her.

“You can see into this place … with this medallion,” he told her.

Taking it from his neck, he placed it in her hands. Immediately, everything around her changed and she was somewhere else. She was in a land - the same as the earth, but yet different. Everything was so brilliant and colorful. The land was unspoiled, unlike in her world.

There was a small village, with people milling around. All types of people - and there was a lake.

From a distance, she could hear her father’s voice. “As long as you hold the medallion, you can look through to that world. Go ahead and explore it.”

She did, walking along a small road toward the lake. For some reason, she was drawn to the lake.

“What do you see Nicole?” her father asked.

“A lake,” she told him.

“Go to the lake Nicole. The lake is a window to what you seek.”

Nicole kept walking until she was at the shore of the lake. She nearly stopped breathing. “It’s Jay,” she cried.

Jay sat on the sand with his knees drawn up to his chest. He was watching Nicole.

She wept freely, not caring who would see. “Jay … are you okay?” she sobbed.

He nodded and smiled. “Why do you cry so much Nicki? I’m okay.”

He was calling her Nicki. Jay was the only one in the world that had ever called her by that name. “I’m so sorry baby! I swear … I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

He shrugged his shoulders. “It was just time to go Nicki … that’s all.” Then he faded away and was gone.

“Don’t go Jay,” she cried.

She felt her father’s hands on hers. He gently pulled the medallion from her grasp and she was back. The three in the room looked on her with pity, and some confusion. They had obviously not shared her vision.

“This Place of Light … is it the afterlife?” Nicole asked when she had composed herself.

Donavan shook his head. “It is only known as the Place of Light to the Immortals. To others it is known as
Outerlands
. This place exists on the fringe of reality, in a different dimension … a higher vibration.”

“It must be heaven,” she insisted. “I saw Jay.”

“No, it is as real and solid as where you are now, but it’s a magical place. From
Outerlands
, there are windows into the afterlife, but the place the soul goes exists at a much higher vibration, than even
Outerlands
.”

“How is it you know so much about this place, if you’ve never been there?” Dash asked him, entranced by what he’d just witnessed.

“I am very old,” he told them.

“How old?” Nicole asked. “When did you turn? Who were you before?”

Donavan smiled. “I have always been what I am … I am a born vampire.”

“I thought they were forbidden,” Nicole said.

“I am one of the original Immortals. It is a long story, and not one that any of you are ready to hear,” he told them. “Trust that I have always been what I am, but I have not always been banished to the darkness. That is something that happened to our species a very long time ago.”

“All of this is what Omar doesn’t want others to know?” Alec put in. He had been quiet through most of the ordeal, but now he wanted clarity.

“It is. He feeds off the hatred of the Immortal. They believe they are cursed, but it’s not that simple. He doesn’t want his followers to believe in the Place of Light for fear he will lose control over them. He will have no power there.”

“But if we are forbidden, its existence makes no difference,” Alec shrugged. “What does it matter if they know?”

“There may be a way,” Donavan said. “But first, we must change as a species.”

“Impossible,” Alec scoffed. “We are predators … it is in our nature to hunt.”

“Well there is my recipe,” Dash reminded them, but no one was listening.

“There are three born vampires,’ he told them. “Three sisters … all three sisters must come together to face Omar and destroy his nest. They can then seek an audience with the Gatekeeper of
Outerlands
.” Donavan motioned to Nicole. “You are one of those sisters.”

“I have sisters?” she asked.

“You have two sisters. You must find the other two, and then you will be strong enough to destroy Omar.”

“Why can’t you do this?” Nicole asked.

“I cannot … Omar is my brother. I am forbidden to kill him.”

“Why do you know this stuff?” Alec was still skeptical.

“You could say I have some inside information. What I know is that as long as Omar lives, the darkness will prevail.”

Nicole lay in bed, tossing and turning every few minutes. Her nerves were too fried to sleep. She was still trying to absorb everything she’d learned about her father and who she was.

She had sisters!

Her father hadn’t contacted her sisters at all. Though he’d kept track of her whereabouts, he’d lost her sisters. He’d felt the less he knew himself, the safer they would be.

How could she possibly find two sisters she knew absolutely nothing about?

Donavan had offered them his home to sleep. He had other places to go in the City of the Dead.

Despite being bone weary, she just could not forget the fact she was surrounded by vampires.

If she fell asleep, who knew what would happen. Nicole did find some comfort in knowing Alec was just in the other room. He would sense an intruder and wakeup.

She’d wanted to ask Alec to sleep in the same room with her, but Nicole wasn’t sure how her father would like the idea. It was true that he hadn’t been there while she was growing up, but he still seemed to harbor some protective instincts when it came to her.

They brought water - filling a large tub so that she could bathe. The city had electricity, but lacked running water. They apparently brought water into their city via a valve in the subway.

For dinner, her father ordered someone to bring her food from a takeout above ground. The whole ordeal still had a dreamlike quality to it. Nicole half expected to wakeup at home, to find the past week had been no more than a strange dream.

Closing her eyes, she tried to relax. The atmosphere in the room changed and she sensed another presence. Nicole’s eyes flew open, and she saw him standing there - staring down at her, as if he wished he could eat her up.

Alec wore no clothing. Even in the dark, Nicole could make out the scrumptious contours of his body, and his thick erection. He pulled the covers back and slid in beside her.

“I cannot rest knowing you are close,” he whispered in her ear.

“I can’t sleep either,” she told him.

“Then we better make love so we can both get some rest.” Alec was already kissing her neck, his hands exploring the most intimate parts of her body.

“Yes … that is a good idea,” she breathed.

“Promise me that if I hurt you at all … you’ll stop me. Don’t let me get out of control.”

“I love it when you lose control,” she said, her hand squeezing his hard shaft.

Alec groaned, and kissed her hungrily as he tore her nightclothes away from her body. Nicole didn’t care what he did with her clothes, as long as they were out of the way. Caught up in her hunger, Nicole rolled Alec onto his back and mounted him so quickly - it was almost painful.

Alec growled loudly. Her impatience to join with him escalated his own desire. Nicole rode him - her rhythm picking up as her lust erupted. At that moment, she cared nothing about the dangers. She was running on pure instinct, and her need to put out the fire burning within her.

His hands were stroking her breasts - squeezing her taut nipples until they tingled and burned. He lifted his hips to get into her deeper as she rotated on him - savoring every inch of him.

Nicole’s moans turned to screams as she felt her flesh tighten around him - milking him as her world shattered into a million points of fiery pleasure. In the midst of orgasm, Alec threw his head back and she could feel his release throbbing inside her. Taking a deep breath, Nicole collapsed on his chest. His hand came up and he ran his fingers through her hair.

“Do you think we were tame enough?” she asked, still gasping for air.

“Hmm … tamer anyway.”

Nicole lifted her head and placed a kiss on his lips. She wanted so badly to say the words, to profess her love for him, but she was afraid he’d withdraw from her, like he had last time. Instead, she slid off him and let him wrap his arm around her waist. The last thing she was aware of before falling asleep, was Alec’s kiss.

* * *

Nicole squinted her eyes against the glare of the overhead light. She sat up - making sure to cover herself with the sheet. Her father stood in the doorway - glowering at them.

“I see that you have not taken my warning to heart,” he reprimanded.

Alec sat up and stared at her father, but said nothing.

Nicole wasn’t sure how to respond. If what Alec and her father told her were true, then having sex with a vampire was extremely risky. But how could she tell her father that she would rather die, than be away from Alec - that she was in love with a vampire.

“We’ll be out in a minute,” she told him.

Donavan left, shutting the door behind him.

“Well he took that better than I thought he would,” Alec commented.

“Really! I thought he seemed a little upset.”

“Like I said … better than I thought he would. I’m surprised he didn’t tear me to pieces,” Alec chuckled.

“I’ll talk with him about it,” Nicole promised.

Alec arched one brow. “Do you think that will work?”

Nicole shrugged. It didn’t really matter. She would not let anyone stand in her way of being with Alec.

* * *

When they came out of the bedroom, they saw Dash sitting in one of the chairs. He looked at them and lifted his hands in a gesture of helplessness. Donavan stood in the middle of the room, daggers flying from his cold - dark eyes.

“Nicole … will you wait in the room while Alec and I talk?” he asked.

“Father …” she started to protest, but he cut her off.

“Only for a moment Nicole, and then you are welcome to return and plead your case for your vampire lover.”

With a sigh, Nicole left the room. She was surprised by her father’s anger. After all, she was old enough to take a lover if she wanted - even a vampire lover. Closing the door, Nicole tried to hear what was being said, but the door was heavy - she could only make out murmurs. Giving up, she sat on the bed and waited for them to finish.

* * *

Donavan’s black eyes bore a hole through Alec, and though he’d never feared anyone - vampire or mortal, he found it made him edgy. Alec had lost his mortal daughter to the blade of a Scot. He knew what it was to want to protect a child, and the fury you could feel against someone that had harmed that child.

Though Donavan’s eyes were a storm of anger, when he spoke he was calm and cool. “Do you realize whose daughter you’ve just taken as a lover? I thought I detected something like this when I first saw her look at you,” Donavan told him. “But I’d hoped I was wrong.”

“We were already lovers,” Alec told him.

“But you did not turn her … and you did not intend to make her your feeder?”

Alec shook his head. “Never my Lord.”

“Why!” Donavan hissed. “Because you care about her and not the pleasure she can give you … or the yearning you have to feed on her? You are a killer Alec! Make no mistake about it!”

“I would never harm Nicole,” Alec vowed. “I love her,” he added softly.

Donavan’s eyes seemed to soften slightly. “If you truly love my daughter, I think you know what you must do.”

“Yes,” Alec replied.

“Her destiny does not include you. It’s something much larger than any of us.”

Alec nodded. He would have let Nicole go, even if Donavan had blessed their union. She deserved so much more than what he could give her.

* * *

Her father accompanied them back to New Orleans to help rescue Ethan from Omar. When her father had summonsed her from the room, she’d tried to speak to him about Alec, but he’d waved her concerns away - telling her all was settled. This made her nervous, along with how distant Alec had been since Donavan discovered their relationship.

Donavan had promised to visit her mother after he’d dealt with Omar, but for now, she was to keep his presence in the city a secret. Nicole was dying to tell her mother about him, but she realized it could be dangerous, especially for Ethan.

Nicole sat in the garden of Alec’s home - savoring the feeling of the sun on her skin. She’d been in the dark so much lately - she’d almost forgotten how good the sun felt. It was late afternoon, and as the day cooled - the aroma of flowers grew strong. Nicole inhaled deeply. She loved the scent of flowers - especially the jasmine.

Her father and Alec were sleeping in the other room – a room specially designed to keep the sunlight out, but they were still in coffins. Dash was also with them.

They’d decided that until their business was done, it was best if they all stayed together. Nicole was slightly amused at how these vampires really seemed like regular people a lot of the time. Of course, not so much when they fed or slept.

The thought of sleeping in a coffin gave her the creeps. Now she could see why some preferred to go underground. At least there, they could sleep in beds.

Nicole kept running the events of the last few days through her mind, trying to digest everything. Connecting with her brother had been heartbreaking, but uplifting at the same time.

After she’d had time to think about it, Nicole began to wonder if she’d imagined the whole thing. Could she have really talked with Jay, or was it an illusion created by her father’s powerful mind?

The only way she would ever know for sure, was to find this Place of Light. This thought led to her sisters. Having sisters seemed exciting, that was until she remembered that they too, were sired by a vampire.

What would they be like?

The swimming pool she was sitting next to beaconed her, but just as she was considering another swim, her phone beeped with a text message. Nicole grabbed it from the side table next to her chair and looked at the screen.

It was from her mother.

I’m on Rampart and my car won’t start. Can you give me a ride home?

Nicole looked up at the sky. It would be dark soon.

Did she dare go out?

Mulling the problem over in her mind, she sighed and got up from the lounge chair. She didn’t have a lot of choice - she couldn’t leave her mother stranded.

Nicole sent a text back, telling her mother she would be there soon.

She decided to throw a sundress over her swimsuit, instead of getting dressed. It would save time. Nicole searched around the kitchen for a piece of paper and a pencil. She wanted to leave Alec a note - telling him where she went, but couldn’t find a pen. The kitchen appeared as if it hadn’t been used at all, and it probably hadn’t.

Nicole considered not leaving a note. Alec seemed to be able to find her whenever he wanted, but she thought better of it. She didn’t want him out looking for her when he had more important things to do. Finally she found a piece of paper and a pen in her purse. She quickly scribbled a note and left it on the kitchen table for him to find.

* * *

It was dark by the time she got to Rampart. She drove up the street, but didn’t see her mother’s car. Finally, she pulled over to the side of the road and sent another text to her mother, asking her location.

After waiting several minutes and getting no reply, she dialed Vicky’s number. It rang several times and then the voice mail picked up.

“Mom, where are you? I’m here but I don’t see your car.” Nicole left the message, though she didn’t really believe her mother would get it. This was just too odd. Mom’s car always ran good. She’d never had a problem before with her car breaking down.

They’d gotten to her mother!

Nicole felt ice-cold fear grip her heart. She had lost her brother, and didn’t want to lose her mom too. A scream tore from her throat when she heard something crash into the roof of the car. She quickly hit the lock button for the doors, to make sure whatever was out there, wouldn’t get in.

It had been a trap!

They’d used her mom’s phone to lure her away from the others. Now she was alone and defenseless.

The back window shattered and she saw one of the creatures crawling in after her. His eyes were red, and his face seemed twisted and deformed.

Nicole quickly unlocked the door and scrambled out of the car. When she turned to run, she was confronted by a woman with long black hair and eyes as red as the blood she consumed. Before she had a chance to react, something was placed over her face. There was only time enough for her brain to register the scent of chloroform, before she blacked out.