Born to Darkness Book 1 in the Immortal Destiny Series: Vampire Romance Paranormal (13 page)

When she inhaled, the heat scorched the tender flesh of her throat and lungs. Flames leaped at the thick fabric of her skirt. Soon her clothes would catch fire and sear the flesh beneath the fabric. She could already feel the heat, but she refused to cry out. Staring out at the crowd gathered around her, she mentally cursed all that were present. Their bloodthirsty eyes gazed in her direction, waiting for the instant that she would take her last breath.

He stood apart from the crowd, hidden in the shadows. She did not need to see him, she knew who he was. Even now, she could hear his dark whispers promising her immortality, if she would accept his poisonous kiss.

Her skirt caught fire. The flesh of her legs sizzled and blistered - the excruciating pain quickly chasing away her will to live.

“Burn witch … burn!” The crowd chanted over and over.

“May God have mercy on your soul.” The clergyman’s voice was weak, drowned out by the angry - unforgiving crowd.

Gasping for air, Sarah’s eyes flew open. The blankets were tangled around her legs, and for a brief moment she panicked, believing that she was still tied to the wooden stake. She frantically tore away the blankets so that she could examine her legs for burns, but there was no evidence of the blisters that had been there in her nightmare.

Taking a deep breath, she fell back into her pillow and closed her eyes.

It was stress.

She had been under too much stress. The last week of spring semester had been hell and now the stress was catching up with her.

With that thought in mind, Sarah tried to drift off to sleep. Just as she started to relax, the double windows burst open and a strong wind blew through the room. She sat up and stared in the direction of the windows. The wind tore at the lavender curtains, shredding one panel and nearly pulling it off the curtain rod.

Slipping out from beneath the covers, Sarah went to the window. The full moon was obscured by the storm clouds that had gathered over the sea.

“Saraaah,” a faint voice called out to her from the dark.

Sarah held her breath, waiting to see if she would hear the voice again.

Had it been her imagination?

“Saraaah.” The soft male voice seemed to drift on the wind.

Leaning out the window, she peered into the darkness below, but could see no one. Nothing seemed out of place in her aunt’s perfectly manicured gardens. Another burst of wind drove her back from the window.

Pushing against the gale, Sarah forced the window closed. Giving up on sleep she slipped on her robe. Maybe if she did some reading, she could relax enough to fall asleep.

Just as she came to the conclusion that she hadn’t really heard anything at all, the windows again flew open.

“Saraaah.” The whispering voice seemed to be one with the wind.

Stepping to the window, Sarah was startled when she saw a figure lurking in the shadows. The man stood near the hedge maze, not in full sight, but was not exactly hidden either. He stared up at her - a strange light burning in his eyes.

He was beautiful, but dark. Even from where she stood at the window she could feel the danger. A sense of foreboding settled around her like a heavy cloak. Sarah’s first thought was that it was her time and the angel of death had come for her. Then she thought that he might be a dark specter - a lost soul searching for the light.

Even before the thought had completely formed, she could feel his amusement at what she was thinking. He was not an angel of any kind, but he was there for her. Sarah’s sixth sense picked this up so strongly that it took her breath away. She tried to back away from the window, but her legs had a will of their own and she could not get them to move.

Then she was no longer seeing the garden. She was seeing his face, staring at her - angry, but yet he seemed to be pleading with her. She was lying on a bed, wrapped in his arms. He was pleading with her for something - something that she could not bring herself to do. The vision was more like a memory that she just could not completely grasp. For a brief instant, she felt compelled to go to him - to touch him.

As soon as the thought entered her mind, she banished it - slamming the door on it as if the very idea was too terrifying to contemplate. The dark figure bowed to her and then disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

Darrien walked away.

It would have been easy to rise upon the winds and take her from the window - to steal away her last breath and extract the life force that flowed through her veins, but he couldn’t do it. Not yet.

Vampires 101

Starlight

Crimson Rush

Book 1 – Bad Moon Rising

Book 2. Witching the Wolf

Book 3. Song of Wolves

Book 1 - Born to Darkness

Book 2 - Night Breed

Book 3 -Wolves and Black Roses

Book 4 -Tears of the Vampire

Book 5. The Light Seekers

Moon Dance

Moon Kissed

Burning Tears

Indian Outlaw

Seducing the Wolf

Lorraine Kennedy is the author of the Immortal Destiny and Realm of the Wolf Series, as well as several novellas and short stories. Ms. Kennedy was born and raised in Utah but has lived in several different states. She attended Weber State University, majoring in Criminal Justice and at one point studied Anthropology.  Lorraine Kennedy and her family now make their home in Utah. You can get Lorraine Kennedy news by visiting her on the web at www.lorrainekennedy.com