Revisited (Redemption Series) (7 page)

“Liam, let me introduce you to Valentina Pavel.”

Liam stepped forward, took her hand, and lifted it to his lips. “Pleasure,” he whispered before placing a kiss upon her delicate knuckles.

“Yes, it is. I’ve heard much about you, my Liam.”

“Ah, staking your claim already.” Liam laughed. “I thought that was my job.”

Valentina curled her lips up into a devilish smile as she realized Liam was still oblivious to her importance. “I see my friends have not let you in on our . . . relationship.” She caught Filipp’s gaze.

“I thought it best to be presented in person. You see . . .” Filipp brought his arm around Liam’s shoulders. “Valentina has been helping us for many years. Her family has worked alongside vampires for centuries. I found Valentina when she was just a girl coming into her powers.”

“Her powers?” Liam questioned.

Valentina lifted her right hand and began to circle her middle finger clockwise. The crystal goblet Liam had sipped from earlier floated through the air until it hovered in front of him. He took it into his grasp and attempted to rein in his astonishment.

“Ah, yes of course. We’re in Romania. She’s a witch.” Liam took a large gulp to sedate the unease creeping up his spine.

“Very perceptive; I knew you would be.” Valentina winked.

“Not just any witch. She’s been very helpful in certain recent endeavors no white witch would be able to perform.” Filipp cracked a devious smile while he looked up and down Valentina’s body.

Liam realized his feelings of unease weren’t unwarranted. If one did not practice white magic, they practiced black magic. They were no shades of gray in the country where witchcraft was recognized as a legal profession.

Valentina linked arms with Liam. “Boys, you will excuse us.”

“Of course.” Debir waved his arm with an offer for them to retreat into the main bedroom.

With the door shut behind them, Valentina licked her lips and wandered over to where Liam stood in front of the window. She trailed her fingers up his shirt’s buttons before moving in to kiss him. Even with his vampiric senses, he was taken a bit off guard.

“What . . .” Liam attempted to talk through her warm kisses. “Are you . . .”

“Not much time. Strip,” Valentina demanded in a seductive whisper.

“What?” he asked, as she undid the buttons of his shirt one by one.

“You and me, my Liam.” She kissed him again with hungry fire while placing his hands on her chest.

Although he was confused beyond belief, and didn’t know her from Eve, he could certainly take a hint. Her dress was in shreds within a second, followed by her bra and lace panties.

“That’s right.” Valentina tugged on his pants and he tore them off. She led him over to the bed and he followed without thought. He fell back on the bed and she lay on top of him, clad only in her heels.

“What are we doing?” Liam asked as she kissed a trail from his chest to his chin.

“I know you don’t know what’s going on here, but you feel it.”

“Yes, what is it?” The connection he felt to her had nothing to do with what flowed through her veins, but he had no idea what the hell it meant.

Valentina sat up, her bare pelvis sweeping against his, and she groaned softly. “This.” She took his hand and placed it on her stomach. The action confused him more. “Filipp took your seed so the Ahbmonites would never die out. Three months ago, some of it was implanted in me.”

Liam yanked his hand back as if he’d been burned. He knew what Filipp had intended to do with his sperm, but he never imagined he would have anything to do with the child.

She took his hand back and returned it to where their baby was growing. “This is the last link to your humanity.”

“I don’t want my humanity.” Liam moved her off him and stood. He walked over to the balcony doors in a haze.

Valentina tiptoed behind him and wrapped her arms around his torso. “I know Filipp has tried to brainwash you. He’s been doing it to me for years.” She kissed between his shoulder blades as he nodded and placed his hand over her own. “A vampire army is not our destiny. This child is our future. It will hold us together for eternity, and after I have given birth, you’ll change me.”

“No.” Liam turned to face her. He swept his palm up her arm, and across her shoulder to cup her cheek. “This child cannot have two blood sucking parents.”

“It’s what is meant to be. I think we are meant to save the race, not corrupt and destroy it as Filipp demands.” Valentina placed a soft, warm kiss upon his lips.

“How do you know?” 

“I feel it.” She placed his hand on her stomach once again. “I believed in Filipp’s plan for so long. It was all I knew. But when they placed a part of you inside me, it was as if I had finally awakened after all these years.”

Liam smiled before he gave her lips a delicate kiss. “Then why all of this?”

“I’m pregnant and horny. I didn’t think you would mind.”

He laughed, a full-bodied, spirit-soaring laugh. “A little explanation would have been nice.”

“I wanted to have a little fun before getting into it all. Plus, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on these.” She strummed her fingers across his rippled abs.

“Who am I to deny you, then?” He swept her into his arms and was on top of her on the bed within a second.

She smiled as she caught her breath. “That was a bit of a head rush.” 

“You haven’t seen anything yet.” He spread her legs open with the nudge of his knee, and feeling she was ready for him, entered her.

They both sighed as they felt their connection strengthen. Nothing, and no one, could separate them now.

Valentina lay in bed with Liam after they came together for the first time. Even vampires could become exhausted as evidenced by Liam’s soft snores.

She knew there was so much going on around her. So many people were involved in the singular fight of good vs. evil. She had been on the wrong side for so long, for well over ten years. She now knew without a doubt what her grandmother had told her was true: Above all things, trust in God. 

Valentina spent very little time with her grandmother as a child, but all her memories were preserved in the fabric of her mind. Her mother had not approved of her grandmother’s profession of witchcraft and did everything she could to remove herself from the ever present culture in Romania. When her parents were killed in a car accident, and her grandmother had long since passed, she was all alone, and her faith had dwindled. 

When Filipp and Debir found her wandering the streets of Bucharest in an attempt to stay out of the government’s hands, she was a bitter and dangerous young woman. She did not understand the powers developing inside her ̶ ̶ the rage that had fortified the presence of darkness in her soul. The vampires used this to their advantage as they took her under their care and taught her the ancient black arts. Complete euphoria filled her being from the very first black spell she cast. The power was as addictive as any drug she could imagine. She craved it and the acceptance of the men who led her to it.

When Filipp let her in on his plans to recreate the Ahbmonite race, she agreed to be the vessel without thought. It was only when she felt the magic of the life growing inside her, that her mission changed and became clear: to save her child. Something bright and precious took hold of her soul and she fought the darkness she’d harbored for so long. Spells became harder to cast, and things she had done a thousand times had not produced the expected results. The spell she had cast over the warehouse where Liam taunted Lily while he held Becca’s life in his hands was the most powerful she had ever created. The next spell she had cast at Filipp’s request almost killed her and her unborn child. It sickened her to believe Filipp would put her in so much danger. But when she first set eyes on Liam, she felt their child bind them together for eternity.

The things she had learned throughout her time under the vampires’ watch would become very useful in the coming days. She knew Gideon had taken over Lily’s former lover, Ian. She knew Gideon would use his position in Ian’s body to get Becca and collect information on Manchester to report back to Filipp. She knew what all their plans were, thanks to a small spell that had worked on Filipp. Now to use that knowledge to escape with Liam would be a difficult task, yet one she knew had to be done to save them all.

Valentina turned over and brushed her fingertips through some strands of Liam’s hair that fell across his forehead. She dared to imagine what their future could bring: the promise of a beautiful forever. She draped her arm across him and placed her cheek on his chest. His soft breaths filtered through her hair as she believed their eternity together began on that very day.

Where do we go from here?” Becca sighed. She picked up the quilt lying over Lily’s legs and placed it off to the side of the couch.

    Lily shook her head and took Becca’s hand in hers. “For the first time in a long time, I honestly don’t know.”

“I wish I was able to be a bigger part of the investigation.” Becca moved to sit by Lily’s side, their fingers intertwined. “When I saw Gideon in that hallway, it all clicked. Who else would use me to get to you? They both had a goal in mind. Liam wanted you, and Gideon wanted me.” She took a deep breath. “Why is he still coming after me?”

“Oh, Becca.” Lily wrapped her arms around Becca and rested her chin on top of Becca’s head. “That demon is more than a little screwy, but you are his weakness. We can use that to bring about his downfall. I promise with everything I have in me, we will stop him this time.”

“And Ian?” Becca asked with a sniffle.

“I’m sure we will find him soon. If I know anything about Liam, he’ll be true to his word and return Ian.” Lily prayed she was right. She had connected with Liam in those moments of his change in a way she had never felt with any other being. She felt his soul as her venom filled his veins. She knew there was purity there, not a true devotion to evil as she had once thought.

They heard footsteps in the foyer and saw Jefferson open the front door.

Sam walked in and shook the rain from his hair and coat. The man who followed him brought Becca to her feet with a gasp.

“So, I figured three years was too long to be cooped up. I hopped on a plane and here I am. What’s new with the two of you?”

Becca teared up at the sight of her quasi brother. Nathaniel wore a wide smile as she rushed over to him, jumped into his arms, and hugged him tight. “I’ve missed you, Nathaniel.” Becca’s tears dampened his shirt as they continued to fall.

“Ditto, Bec.” He lowered her to her feet and cupped her face. “I’m here to help, and I won’t rest until my two favorite girls are safe again.”

“Now that you’re here and not wallowing in that huge house of yours, I think we just might be.” Lily wrapped her arm around Nathaniel as Becca stayed by his side.

“Okay, enough of the family bonding. It’s time we let you two in on a few developments.” Nathaniel laughed.

The three sat on the couch while Sam took a chair beside them next to the end where Becca sat.

“Good news first?” Sam asked as both Lily and Becca nodded. “We’ve found Ian.”

“What?” Becca sobbed.

Lily closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths while Nathaniel slipped his arm around her shoulders.

“I won’t lie; he’s in pretty bad shape, but we are working on him. His father has requested minimal extra care,” Sam said.

“He won’t let you heal him?” Becca didn’t think Bradford was a man who would like to see his son in pain.

“It’s not that. A video of Ian being loaded into the ambulance was leaked. His injuries were rather obvious. It would be difficult to explain a speedy recovery, so he’s resting comfortably in a suite at Manchester in London.”

“He’s conscious then?” Lily asked.

“In and out. He was badly beaten. A few broken ribs, a lot of bruises and scrapes, a case of mild dehydration, but other than that, he should be getting back to his old self in a few days.”

“When can we see him?” Becca asked, clasping Sam’s hand in her own.

“You’re still on lockdown, Lily, so it might be a few days. If he’s feeling up to it, I can arrange for a phone call.”