call of night: beyond the dark (7 page)

She would need him; he couldn’t tell her how it would devastate her.

He had to tell her soon just what she had been chosen for because of her compassion for others and the strength he had never seen any other woman. He knew how she felt about her job, maybe it was the reason why their relationship didn’t reach the point he wished it had; many times the words almost left his lips but she was always called in. It was better that she never knew.

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              Evan slightly brushed the hair away from her eyes as she looked at him with a deep longing. Although it was only in her dreams she could see him, feel him no one else in the world existed; the outside was silent and the only sound that remained was her heart beating. The love they shared was unbreakable, something her father never understood. Her mother left her and her father at the hospital after she was born and the wedding ring he had given her. It was then he gave up on love except the love he would give to his daughter, he cherished every day with her and wasn’t angry with her mother quite the opposite, he was thankful. Everyone knew about Maggie’s mother but never mentioned it not even a whisper because they saw how happy she was and how much she was loved.

Evan still couldn’t help, but wonder if she was really ready for what she was needed for.

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Letting Alex go was more for Lily than him, it wasn’t knowing the life she could have taken from him and would have; it was knowing she would have had the same life. The thought of her sister entered in her mind and anger was harder to get rid of as a vampire.

She thought by letting him go he could live his dreams not knowing that would never happen. Xavier was on a hunt, he needed to feed. The hunger was gnawing at his insides. It became more than that when he came across Alex, he could smell Lily all over him. She disappeared the night she was turned; he knew Alex would take him to her.

It was more satisfaction than he planned on getting.

Maggie didn’t expect to stay at work longer than usual especially when her and her father were supposed to have dinner, she didn’t even have time to call him and cancel with a new body on the table. She removed the sheet revealing Alex’s face, believing he was dead. He had no heart beat and he wasn’t breathing what else was she supposed to think?

Her father entered the back room, his daughter never stopped even for a moment just to relax and clear her mind not at work.

“I’m sorry Dad he came in last minute.” The Sheriff didn’t really need an apology, he understood. Before he could speak, the telephone rang and Maggie had to run out.

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              The Sheriff had his backed turned from the body even as a man it wasn’t easy to look at a corpse. If he had, he would have seen the body rise before he was bitten. Maggie tossed the phone after hearing her father’s scream, the body was gone and there was blood everywhere. As he lay on the ground, Maggie grabbed the first thing she could use to stop it.

“He was a freaking vampire.” The Sheriff managed to say.

“You’re going to be okay.” Maggie assured him.

He wasn’t, he closed his eyes; never to open them again. She never thought she would be the one to bury her father and not alone. It would have been hard to explain to the residents what happened to him, it wasn’t something she wanted to do right away and when she was ready it would have been a flat out lie because that was how it had to be.

In her home she sat by the fireplace and the record player on, she stayed that way for hours. Evan stood in silence; he knew he wouldn’t be able to console her.

It wasn’t a night for him to be seen, he just watched her sleep. It was important for her to be filled with the energy she would need with the days coming, surely promising more death.

The small town brought a peaceful feel which was the reason why so many who had come with thought of only a few days or even a week visit never left. For those who had spent their entire lives it was more of the comfort they knew they would never feel anywhere else and Maggie wasn’t going to let evil take that from them. They were not going to live in fear; their children were going to grow old with a love that would show them what it meant to be really happy.

There would be no pain. They would not have to feel the loss she was going through.

She had healing hands and saw a future for those who didn’t see one for themselves.

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As it was, it would never be again.

             
For Dana and Christopher, their family had always been ready for the biggest threat. The minute they closed the door, the shifters surrounded the house. They were going to get in one way or another, Dana and Christopher were not afraid to face the challenge. Their grandmother had a special gun made with as many silver bullets as possible.

It was Eve they most of all, she thought she could protect them. They shouldn’t have risked their lives for her own.

“Why aren’t they coming in?” Christopher asked holding the gun steady.

Dana turned and looked for Eve, “Because she’s gone.”

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              It became clear no one was going to get out of Thornton Lake, not alive. No matter how many times Frank tried to convince himself. George handed Frank a file he grabbed from Ty’s house he had already looked through it. Ty had been following Lily and Katya a lot longer than any other hunters who were looking out for their father. He had to keep it a secret; he didn’t know how long it would have taken Frank to accept the monsters his daughters truly were. There were photographs of Katya from a young age with Julius. Photographs of her going in and out of the clubs Julius had owned.

The last photograph was of Julius’ club in flames which was all Frank needed to know why his good friend died. Frank knew it wasn’t just in Thornton Lake that had to survive this nightmare; he had seen it and he knew he wasn’t the only one who had to suffer the loss of children. His daughters did not belong to him anymore; it was in darkness they forever remained.

The hunters did have an army and they would come together when needed.

It was mid-afternoon when they made it into town, Frank saw through the passenger side window a mother holding her baby and her six year old son tugging at her shirt for her attention. George always kept his eyes on the road, he wasn’t going to lie to himself or anyone else and say life was normal or perfect; he could never do that.

There was one stop Frank had to make, in his apartment he lit a fire and threw in the photo albums he and his family had created.

Memories burned into ashes.

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“That needed to be done.” George knew there were absolutely no words that could comfort his brother, not at that moment.

George couldn’t do anything to heal his brother’s pain; all he could really do was remind him of the fight fast approaching, a fight the hunters intended to win and the focus they needed to keep.

Frank didn’t need much reminding, it was all he could think about.

For Lily, a spell wasn’t strong enough for her in her mind if none of them were meant to survive why should she? She had an amulet that could help her break through any spell and she had planned to get to Katya first.

The amulet held within the magic of their ancestors, the strongest anyone had ever known. Their family’s history wasn’t a secret not from the immortals, Julius hadn’t just chosen Katya out of spite as his brother continued to believe.

The amulet had too much power for Xavier and Julius had set his sights out on it for centuries with no idea it was right under his nose, only it was in the possession of the wrong sister.

As the mansion’s gates opened and Lily stepped foot on to the grounds, a great force of wind blew; she could hear the voices of the ancestors, it wasn’t enough.

She was determined to finish what was started; Katya ended the life Lily loved. Lily would end Katya’s world.

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For the first time in years, Maggie had taken a vacation from work and wasn’t expecting visitors. There were three women standing before her when she opened the door. 

“Maggie Arnold?” The younger woman asked even though she didn’t need to.

Maggie nodded, “Yes and you are?”

The woman handed Maggie a letter that had been sent by her father before his death, explaining to her the situation and how he needed her help. Maggie reluctantly let them in and they gathered in the living room.

“I’m Raven; your father got my name from a hunter friend of mine who once lived here. “ She began. 

“A hunter?” Maggie asked with
a look of confusion on her face.

“A vampire hunter. My brother was also a hunter unfortunately his life was take
n by one of those things.” Raven hardly ever cried not even at her brother’s funeral.

“I’m sorry for your loss, but how can you help me.” Maggie knew she should just trust them, her father did.

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“We can help you win.” Raven answered. The two friends with her smiled.

By Maggie’s expression she still didn’t understand.

“We are everywhere, hunters that is for as long as vampires have been upon this earth so have we except vampires are a little sloppy.” Raven continued.

Raven looked tough enough to handle any vampire. She wore black leather jeans, black floral top with boots to match and had long dark hair although the tattoos were what told the kind of person she really was.