Stolen-Kindle1 (10 page)

He stood and walked over to face his large office window. The weather looked bleak. The days were getting bitterly cold and the thick gray clouds seemed to have finally matched his tenor. With the crisp November cold, he hoped Ally was somewhere warm and safe.

He turned his back to the elements and regarded Arina, as she made neat, orderly stacks on his desk. These proceedings were tying him down, he thought. They left him no room to advance his search for Ally. He had heard no news of Gabriel and was starting to wonder if his secretary, Beatrice, was forwarding his messages. Furthermore, to complicate matters, he had less than 12 hours before his wedding with Moira.

Incidentally, Moira was currently on hiatus. She had not returned any of his phone calls since he last talked to her. It was rather futile of him to hope that she could somehow convince Vincent of delaying their wedding for another week, just so he could find Ally. Despite, having found and bonded with another woman, Vincent would still force him to uphold to his side of the bargain. No, he could not postpone the wedding any further. It was truly a done deal. Ally needed to be present.

God, he was a fool for signing that contract! Hadn’t Gabe warned him? If he were to give up his relics, he could no longer conjure magic. Magic inherited from his household. Magic that was unknown to anyone outside of his family. No vampire ever gave up his or her relics. On the other hand, he needed extra time to find Ally, and looking back, he did not regret risking everything to find her. She was worth it. Yet, here he was working on these useless documents. Were these papers more important than she was? Was he really wasting precious time signing off documents that in all honesty, could wait a few more days?

He shook his head. How stupid was he? To hell with his duties, Benedict had pressing matters to solve. As he gathered his coat and keys, he stopped and apologized once again to Arina for his harsh tone and behavior. Next, he started heading towards the door.

Arina gasped. “Where do you think
you’re
going? You have to finish your work here.”

Benedict froze mid-step. Was she giving him orders? Arina had never spoken back to him. “I must step out for a bit, Arina. I’ll be back shortly.”

“When?  As an executive, you have responsibilities, Mr. Voss.”

Ben was amused and he knew she was right, but to hell with it all. He wasted too much time already. With less than a day left, he needed to find Ally, get their union officiated, and annul his marriage with Moira.

“These documents can wait or miss their deadlines, Arina. I must find… Moira.”

At her name, Arina lightened up. It was completely understandable for Benedict to want to sneak out early from work to be with his fiancée.

Arina beamed a bright smile. “You, two, will be the most
perfect
couple on our realm. Is everything ready for tomorrow?”

“Um, you know, Moira, she probably has everything planned to the hilt.”

“Everyone’s talking about the ceremony, you know? I’m looking forward to it.”

“As am I.” He lied.

Benedict’s suspicions over the Verdons implications with the amount of paperwork he was receiving were confirmed. Arina, beyond any shadow of doubt, would have prevented him from leaving his office for any excuse. She was only lenient because she believed he was trying to find Moira.

He noticed that her stance visibly relax at her name. Did Arina know about Ally? Was she aware that he bonded with another and was hoping to annul his wedding? Everything was getting overly complex now. He no longer knew whom to trust. Was Gabriel right? Were the Verdons involved in this sordid mess? If they were, God helped them all.

At the spur of the moment, he wondered where exactly Moira was. He had tried getting in contact with her for almost three days now. Yet, he was to wed with her tomorrow? Something was not adding up. He wondered if Arina would know anything about her whereabouts.

“Arina, I have been trying really hard to get in contact with Moira. Do you happen to know where she is?”

Arina looked away. “It’s a secret, Mr. Voss. She fears you might see her dress or you might overhear some of the surprises she has planned for the wedding. She really wants her day to be special.”

Benedict’s eyes narrowed, with one brow raised. He knew Moira was not much into surprises. Also, even if it were true, he did not plan staying with her for long. He just wanted some information about her father.

“Ah, I see,” Benedict smiled softly at his assistant. “The problem is that I have an heirloom to give to her. I want Moira to wear a pearl necklace that has been passed down to each new wife who is to become a Voss.”

“R-really?” She breathed, mesmerized by romantic ideals.

“Yes. I very much hope to see it around her neck tomorrow. It would mean a lot to me.”

Arina considered Benedict’s words. It was all so romantic and lovely. The tale of two household joined by love and devotion. An heirloom signifying an immortal bond between husband and wife. It was so perfect, so wonderful, such a grand fairy tale!

Arina smiled at Benedict with sparkly green eyes. She was not going to prevent Moira from getting the necklace. She was delighted that she would be part of the wedding, helping both Houses to perfect their day.

“Ms. Verdon should be heading to Helena’s Bog.”

“Helena’s Bog? Wait, why?”

“She has a cottage there. I overheard her telling Mr. Verdon that she was going to the bog to settle a few matters before her big day.”

“She was here?! When?”

“Oh, well, she wasn’t here per say, but I heard her message on Mr. Verdon’s voicemail.”

Benedict nodded slowly. “Anything else?”

Arina frowned. “Well, to be honest with you, Mr. Voss, I’m not sure why she decided to spend her last days at the bog. It’s isolated, and the cottage is completely run down. Plus,” she whispered, “She’s bringing goons with her.”

Benedict went rigid with that announcement. What the hell was Moira doing at Helena’s Bog? Along with goons? He did not like this one bit.

“Thanks Arina. You’ve made my day.” He said as he rushed out of the room.

CHAPTER
ELEVEN

November 4th

1:14 AM

A
lly could not have thought of things getting any worst. Truly, this had to be the ultimate low point. Here she was, in the middle of the woods, being dragged by two goons.  She could only hope they were not yanking her and her friends’ towards their death.

The larger one, who was 8 feet tall, maintained a steady grip on Ally’s shoulders as he guided her across the muddy grass. They were ugly beings: Gray, elephant-skinned monsters that were strong and massively built. She didn’t know the proper name of their kind, and did not care to learn it one bit.

The other one, smaller at 7 feet, held both Pam and Trish’s elbows firmly, as they, too, were dragged on. Geez! Where were they going? Why had they had to leave Moira’s estate? Was she really that spooked by Gabriel? Could it be possible to escape to wherever they were heading? Instantly, Ally dismissed that notion. Fleeing was out of the question; she did not have the strength. She barely was able to keep up with the goon. Yet, perhaps her friends could find a way…

As they reached a clearing, the goon released and pushed her away.  Ally whirled around to face a smiling Moira. That cold smile sent chills up Ally’s spine. More than anything, she hated seeing that grin on her face. It could only mean that her plans were going exactly as she intended. And, if things were going her as she intended, that was really, really bad news for Ally.

Moira looked radiant. She knew this was the safest place to be. Anticipating the weather, she changed back into her hiking boots, a black hoodie and tight black jeans. A thick fog was rapidly engulfing the clearing while a light drizzle began to fall, dampening Pam, Trish and Ally’s spirits. She shrugged at the thought of their discomfort. Soon it will be all over and really, they could suck it up in the meantime. Today was all that mattered to her. It was going to be her big day, and she was now sure that nothing and no one was going to sabotage it.

“We will be staying here.” She announced sweetly, still smiling.

Pam looked around, bewildered. “W-what?! We’re staying
here
? Why? Why did we have to leave our cells?” Pam asked, shivering almost uncontrollably.

Despite giving each of the girls a warm sweater, gloves and scarves, Pam and Trish’s teeth chattered. The bone-chilling November’s wind descended upon them, causing them to tremble and whimper.

Moira tilted her head at Pam. “Aw, were you getting comfortable in your little cells?” She asked mockingly.

Pam shrugged. “It was warmer.”

Moira tossed her curls back and continued to smile. Surprisingly, it, too, was a bit warmer this time. “I sensed an intruder at home, in the dungeon, and I’m not going to risk staying put. Therefore, I decided that we should all temporarily relocate.” She responded casually.

“We’ll freeze if we’re exposed any longer to the elements.” Trish pointed out.

“Yeah, Trish and I are humans, you know.” Pam added.

“As if I would forget. Obviously, I cannot have you perish on my watch that is why you won’t be staying outdoors.” She motioned, to the right, at an abandoned cottage that was heavily camouflage with overgrown grass. “You will be tied up in there and after tomorrow, I will set you free. The finish line is within my reach, ladies. This will all be over soon.”

Pam sighed. At least this horror show will soon end. She wanted to go home. She needed to get back to reality; her reality! Where no vampires were rampant and on the loose! God, she ached to put some normalcy back into her life.

She turned slightly to Ally who remained silent throughout this conversation. Pam caught her breath. Her friend was so pale and looked so weak. Leaning heavily on the goon who dragged her, Pam noticed that she was barely able to stand. Her exhausted and practically crippled state angered Pam. That bastard did this to her. The asshole, Benedict, transformed her into this monster and freaking abandoned her. Where the hell was he? She gave up her life for him, and now she could never come back home with them. This, whatever it was, was her home. God! It was so unfair.

If Benedict loved Ally, as she constantly claimed, then why had he not checked Moira’s estate? This point absolutely baffled Pam. He should have already been here. He should have saved her by now before Moira even had the chance to bring them here.

What would become of Ally after this whole sordid mess? She was a vampire now. She could never be just a normal human girl, hanging out with her friends. No more shopping trips, no more cheesy romantic movies to giggle at… Geez, no more late night chats with a bucket of ice cream. Their happy days as the three musketeers were outnumbered. Hell, Pam was already getting uncomfortable with Ally. She caught Ally staring at her numerous times. Pam knew that the vamp inside of Ally was unceasingly demanding her to devour her friends. Ally needed blood. When Pam returned her gaze, Ally would hastily turn away, blatantly, pushing her thoughts aside.

Gosh, this was a mess! Pam blew a few golden strands from her face and caught a glimpse of something moving a dozen of yards away.  If she did not know any better, she could have sworn that a man, camouflaged by the dense foliage of the woods, was staring at their group. She immediately closed her eyes. Maybe she was imagining things. She re-opened them and saw nothing. Although, she knew that she now nothing was visible, she definitely still felt a presence. Damn it, someone was there, over by those bushes. She hoped fervently that it would not be any more vampires. She swore that if she ever lived to tell about this, she would never scoff at another fairy tale for the rest of her life.