Discovery: Altera Realm Trilogy (43 page)

Syney stared at the table in front of her, her mind completely blank. The effects of Gabe's venom had worn off by time she awoke the next day, but before they had, she had felt at least semi-normal again. She had gone down to dinner and even had a full conversation with Noelle. But then the next morning the pain was back, and nothing felt normal again. She knew something was wrong with her, but she didn't know what and couldn't get the energy together to find out. She knew how horrible that sounded, but those were the thoughts that ran through her head all the time now, and she couldn't stop it. She barely got herself to her lesson with Helen, and now that she was here, she couldn't concentrate on anything. Helen had tried to talk to her about asking for the seated queen position when they had started. Syney had agreed to do it just to get her to stop talking. She was OK with the idea of it, so why not just ask? Helen had eyed her suspiciously but let it drop. She then tried to discuss some random laws in the Village. Helen must have guessed that Syney wasn't listening because she decided that Syney should do an independent study for the day. That, however led to Syney staring into space or down at the table, mostly because she didn't feel like going to get a book off the shelf across the room.

Finally, after a while, Helen got up and brought back a large red book. "Here. Try this. It's a complete history and encyclopedia of Vampires. I thought it might be interesting for you since one of them healed you. It should explain how it was done."

Syney frowned down at the book and opened it. There were so many words that she almost gave up after a few minutes, but she pushed herself a little. She was curious about the whole blood thing, giving and receiving it. She flipped through it until she found the entries on both. The healing was just as Gabe had described it the first time he had used it. It was her own body that had healed her; his blood had just supercharged it to do so. The book talked about the idea of life forces and how the Vampire's blood is their life force.

"Do we have a life force?" Syney asked, looking up from the book.

"Of course. Everyone does. It's what makes us alive. Like our souls. Some believe that a Magic User's life force is tied into their magic as well. But now that our magics are so limited, I don't know if that's really true," Helen said.

"Huh," Syney said, looking back at the book. The taking of blood by a Vampire was in there as well. A Magic User must have written the book, because it talked about the process in a very negative light. All of the things Gabe had told her were there, along with some warnings about the addictive power of Vampire bites. But the addiction was the only negative side effect, which meant that Gabe had lied to her. She didn't have to question why as she read further.

The Vampire venom released through the fangs provides a euphoric feeling that lasts for hours afterward. The euphoria is a result of endorphins and pheromones pushing into the body. These chemicals can cause a pleasurable feeling and encourage sexual contact. The euphoric feeling is increased during sexual intercourse, causing many to seek out Vampires to achieve this feeling. This can be more addicting than most drugs and alcohol
.

Syney bit her lip. This whole process wasn't something to be messed with, but after having had that feeling of euphoria, she couldn't imagine how it could be increased. She curled her hands into fists and the stretched them out. She was getting antsy just thinking about it. Being intimate with Gabe would be crossing a line, though. She adored him as a friend. He had saved her life at least four times, so he cared for her. He was also flirty all the time, but he was like that with most women. Syney was pretty sure he was attracted to her, although she didn't really know why. She was a mess in more ways than one. She sighed. If she threw herself at him, they wouldn't be friends anymore. And if Hunter found out, she probably wouldn't have him anymore either. But looking at her life at the moment, she realized she didn't have much to lose. A couple of times over the past few days, she had thought about killing herself, but she couldn't muster the energy to go through with it. Gabe had promised it would pass, but it hadn't. This was the only thing she could think of.

After her lesson she returned to her room. She thought about it for a while; she wasn't sure she was that person, that girl who could use sex as a means to get something and not as an act of love. She thought about how good she had felt the other day and decided she had to go through with it. It was the only way to
feel something other than pain and nothingness. She was sitting on the couch when he came in. He was alone, which made it easier for her.

"Princess," Gabe said, lazily sitting down next to her.

"You know I hate that," she said, her nerves getting the best of her as she sat up straighter. "Is Hunter outside?"

"No, Reed is."

Syney nodded, debating how to go about this. She could just strip, but being sexy wasn't her strong suit, so she settled on being honest. "I read a book on Vampires today. Well, I didn't read the whole thing, just a few pages." She turned to face him. "You lied to me."

He stared at her. "If you really read them, you would know why."

"I'm guessing it's the addiction thing."

"That's part of it."

"And the sex thing."

"That's the other part."

She took a deep breath. "Am I not good enough for you?"

Gabe shook his head and stood up. He paced in front of her bed. "Stop whatever you are doing or are planning to do." He looked at her. "It would be wrong."

"But if it's my own choice, it isn't wrong."

"You're not in a position to make a rational decision. You're not that woman, Syney. You're strong and independent. And in love with someone else."

"Someone I can't be with," she said, tears coming to her eyes. She walked over to him. "It wouldn't mean anything. Just sex and biting. That sounds horrible, but I don't care."

"You shouldn't have a relationship just based on sex."

"And I shouldn't be a secret either. You know, I'm sick of you guys deciding what I can and can't be." She walked to within inches of him. "I want you. It doesn't matter what my reasons are."

He looked down at her for a moment before grabbing the back of her neck and kissing her hard.

She didn't like the roughness of it and pushed back on his chest.

He stepped back. "I thought you wanted me."

She narrowed her eyes. "You're an ass, you know that?"

"I do actually." He gave her the most frustrated look.

She stepped back to him and kissed him softly on the lips. "Stop trying to scare me."

Gabe stared down at her for a while. She could almost see the internal battle he was fighting. Finally he walked over to the door, placed his hand on it, and whispered something.

"What are you doing?"

He turned around and pulled off his shirt while kicking off his shoes. "Locking the door."

Syney smiled as he walked over to her and kissed her again, this time softer and more sensually. It wasn't like it had been with Hunter. Things were moving much more quickly. Gabe also seemed more experienced, which made sense, considering he had to be hundreds of years old. Syney was feeling things she never had before, and then he kissed his way down her neck and stopped over what she assumed was her main vein.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

The question seemed funny to Syney, and she nearly laughed at him. "Yes," she breathed, and closed her eyes as the most amazing feeling in the world enveloped her. When everything was over, she lay back in bed and sighed. She felt tingly all over, but there was no pain or darkness. "I could get used to this," she said with a smile.

"Don't. It doesn't last, and I won't do it again," Gabe said, getting out of bed and sliding into his black pants.

Syney sat up. "What? Why?"

He gave her an exasperated look. "Because I shouldn't have done it now." He grabbed his shirt.

"Wait! Come here," she said, patting the bed next to her.

Gabe shook his head but walked over to her and sat down. He placed a hand on either side of her face. "When whatever this thing is passes, you're going to regret this and hate me for it."

"I won't hate you. You're helping me. I'm not sure what I'm going through. Maybe everything is just hitting me now. I don't know. What I do know is that you're the best friend I could ask for right now. And I love you."

He stared at her for a moment before kissing her.

Syney felt something deep inside her turn around. She really did mean it when she said she loved him. It wasn't the way she loved Hunter, though. She was pretty sure nothing could be like that. But she could see herself romantically with Gabe, and it wasn't just for what he offered her bite wise. Suddenly the image of a woman entered her mind. She had seen her before she had woken up after the attack. She was connected to Gabe somehow; she knew it. "Who... the woman with the black hair... Who is she?"

Gabe let his hands drop. "What?"

"I saw her in my head—and you were there too—after you healed me. She had really long black hair, pin straight."

Gabe seemed to withdraw. He looked off into thin air. "You saw her?"

"Yes."

The muscles in his jaw twitched as he closed his eyes. "That was Faye."

"You loved her."

He nodded. "She was my wife," he said, looking back at her.

"She died?"

He didn't need to say anything. The answer was written on his face.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It was a very, very long time ago."

"But she's still in your mind," Syney said. "Just like Hunter's in mine."

"What are you getting at?"

Syney intertwined her fingers with his. "We'll forget about them together." She leaned forward and kissed him.

Gabe finally relaxed into her kiss and touch. That's when Syney knew she had him.

Grass

Two hours had passed, and their search hadn't produced anything of value. Grass tossed clothes out of the drawer of a Guard and sighed. He didn't want to return to the queen empty handed. He had to find something, if only for his sake. He hadn't become her Protector by sitting around and not getting results. He needed to remain as her Protector if he wanted her to give him the gift of immortality. He wasn't sure how she would do it, but he had learned a long time ago that Mellisandrianna always delivered on her promises.

The monthly service would be getting out soon, and he needed to find something fast. He left the room and went to the next, where he started to pulled things out of drawers and closets. Nothing. He got frustrated and pulled out his sword. Most Guards didn't have swords, preferring small knives that were easy to hide and maneuver, but Grass didn't particularly like hand-to-hand combat and preferred the distance the sword gave. He swung the blade through the air with frustration and hit one of the walls. One of the stones moved as he hit it, which was odd. All of the walls in the palace were very sturdy. They were made to withstand an attack much more powerful than the strike of a single sword. He stepped closer. The stone was loose in the wall and not from his strike. He pulled it out and looked into the small hiding place. He smiled. Here were his results. He would be rewarded for this; he just knew it.

Helen

"Due to the numerous attacks, I want to make a change to protocol for the master alarm," Leaf said sitting in his chair at the Council table.

Helen stared at him, feeling a little lost. She was following everything he was saying. It was his eyes she was getting lost in, which wasn't a good thing. But it felt good. She found herself smiling and immediately stopped. She looked around the rest of the council table but didn't think anyone saw her. She looked to the empty chair next to her. Cass had been so distracted lately that Helen wasn't very surprised by her absence. Their mother was upset about it; Helen could tell. But lately everything seemed to upset her mother. She sighed and returned her attention to Leaf.

"I propose we designate a few rooms in the basements, in the unused sections of the palace, as safe rooms. When the master alarm is raised, all Protectors should get to their charges and bring them to a designated room. That way they will be doubly protected by the extra guards, and there will be a better system to verify that all royals are safe."