Wrenching Fate (8 page)

“Silas is a vampire.” Akasha surprised herself at the glib way in which the words rolled off her tongue.

It made sense given his nocturnal schedule.
Financial advisor, my ass!
A bubble of laughter escaped her lips.

A vampire
… she lived with a vampire. She couldn’t help but wonder why he took her from the group home. There were never any odd marks on her neck in the morning, or anything. Furthermore, why did he let her live?

He’d had ample opportunities to kill her, especially just now, but he didn’t. Instead, he’d kissed her. She pressed two shaky fingers to lips that still tingled. A rush of heat flooded her body at the memory of the kiss. Akasha shook her head in a futile attempt to clear it.

Well, at least I’m not the only abnormal being on the planet.
Sighing, she dragged herself up from the floor and hurried to the kitchen for a beer.

Akasha pounded down the beer so fast it made her dizzy— or maybe she was in shock. The walls seemed to be closing in on her, heightening her confusion.
I gotta get out of here for awhile. I need to think.
That decided, she paused at the door, debating on whether to leave a note.

“Dear Silas, finding out that you’re a vampire kinda unnerved me, so I went for a walk to think about it, be back later. Love, Akasha.” Again came the helpless giggle.

“Yeah, right,” she muttered, grabbing her coat and heading out the door.

Akasha walked aimlessly for nearly an hour. She could see families through the windows of the houses on 15
th
street, eating dinner, watching TV, laughing and talking. Normal people…
If any of them knew a vampire lived up on Cherry Hill, they’d shit a brick.
She walked further, trying to quell her racing thoughts, until she reached Xochitl’s neighborhood. It would be nice to have someone to talk to.
Should I tell her?
A chord of foreboding leveled the thought.
No!
Silas might kill anyone who knew his secret.

Bill, Xochitl’s foster father answered the door and called for Xochitl in a voice thick with irritation.

“What’s wrong, ‘Kash?” Xochitl asked when Bill went back to watching football.

“Uh, nothing.” she lied.
Damn, is it that obvious?

Her friend rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. C’mon, let’s go to my room.”

Akasha followed Xochitl down the stairs to the basement.
Maybe I shouldn’t have come. Xochitl’s too fucking perceptive.

“So, what happened?” she demanded once they were settled on the bed.

Akasha sighed. The best way to lie was to tell as much truth as possible. Besides, she did want to tell Xochitl part of what happened. “He kissed me.”

“Who?” Xochitl began, then her eyes widened. “
Silas!”

“Yeah.” The room felt warmer.

Still gaping, Xochitl seized Akasha’s shoulders. “Well, what happened? Why’d he do it? Did you like it?”

“I don’t know why he did it.” Akasha stared at the floor. “I, um… was going to ask him about the concert… and uh… he just kissed me and left.”

“Hmmm….” Xochitl opened the window and turned on the fan, lighting a cigarette. “That’s odd.”

“Yeah, odd. I know.” Akasha murmured as she lit up.

It was obvious Xochitl didn’t completely buy the story. Yet her brown eyes gleamed in impish fascination. “Well did you like it?”

“Yes.” The word was torn from her.

“I
knew
it!” Xochitl smirked. “I knew you liked him. That’s why you hate it when anyone calls him your dad.”

“Uh…Yeah.” Akasha wanted to die from embarrassment, though she was relieved that Xochitl hadn’t guessed the truth.

Xochitl wasn’t finished. “Well, he
is
hot. And he can’t be that old. Do you even know how old he is yet?”

“No.”
He could be centuries old!

“Well, what are you going to do about it?” Xochitl leaned forward, fascination written all over her face.

Images of a shirtless Silas holding and kissing her… of running her fingers across those hard muscles haunted Akasha’s mind, making her knees weak as her lower half tingled.

“I have no idea,” she said finally. After an endless uncomfortable silence, Akasha asked, “What is sex like?”

It was an odd question since she was technically not a virgin, but Akasha was becoming certain that sex between two willing parties was completely different.

Xochitl blinked. “I don’t know. I’ve never done it.”

“But you talk about hot guys a lot,” Akasha protested, “And the way you sing certain songs…I thought…” she trailed off in embarrassment.

Her friend giggled. “I would if I had the chance, but no hot guys seem willing to oblige me.” Her gaze turned serious for a moment. “They’re all too scared of me.”

Akasha nodded. At school, the kids parted like the Red Sea in the halls for Xochitl. It was strange that a five foot tall girl could incite such fear.

“So, what are you going to do about Silas?” Xochitl repeated.

Akasha shook her head and took a deep drag of her cigarette, mind racing as she watched the smoke get sucked into the fan. “I don’t know. I need some time to digest this. Why don’t you play me that song you just wrote?”

***

Silas paced the house, cursing in regret for how badly he handled the situation. If only he hadn’t been so hungry, he could have stopped Akasha from leaving. Now she knew what he was and he had frightened her away. He could only imagine how monstrous he must have looked to her with his eyes glowing and his fangs bared.

If only he’d hidden the entrance to his lair better. Silas shook his head in self recrimination. He’d underestimated Akasha’s intelligence badly. Had she suspected what he was and went looking for the secret passageway on purpose? Or did she find it by accident? Either situation was entirely possible. One thing was certain: she was lucky.

When Silas awoke that night, the hunger was at its strongest. To have a warm fresh source of blood right at his fingertips… It was amazing that he didn’t crush her to him and feast upon her right away. He almost did, but when he caught her, the strangest thing happened.

Akasha didn’t scream or struggle. She didn’t try to fight him. She stood proud, staring up at him, practically daring him to take her. She looked so beautiful then, so tender, and so brave. His eyes drank in her sweetness. She roused his hunger even as she stirred his heart.

Her glittering eyes had darkened to a purple so deep that he could drown in it. Her lush cupid’s-bow lips looked soft as rose petals. How many times had he looked at those lips and been nearly driven to madness? Yet he’d never been as mad as he was then. Unable to stop himself anymore than he could stop the sun from rising, he gripped her shoulders tighter, drew her to him and captured those lips with his own. They were softer than his richest imagining, and warm… so warm.

He’d held her tighter, feeling the delicious heat wash over him. He could hear her heart beating; a tantalizing melody that reawakened the hunger within him, but for now it was his passion that was more aroused. He relished the pleasure of this kiss, wrong as it was, with the rapture of a man who’d been starved for centuries.

The scent of her blood rose up, growing more tempting by the second. When he became torn between the desire to either take her to bed or sink his teeth in her neck, some semblance of sanity struck him like a whiplash, making him realize what he was doing.

Suddenly he was back in England, ravaging the countryside on his bloody quest for vengeance against the people who’d savaged his clan. A comely lass had fled from him, and with preternatural speed, he’d caught her. Silas tore her gown, ready to do what the English soldiers had done to good Scots women.

But when he heard the maiden scream and saw the terror in her eyes, bile rose in his throat. Silas had released her and vomited immediately.

Returned to the present, Silas had felt Akasha tremble in his arms. The old self-disgust rose up within at the thought of those amethyst eyes filling with terror. Despite the protests of his body, he tore away from her, knowing that until he fed, the farther he was from her, the safer she would be.

After his hunger for blood had been slaked on a hapless pedestrian, the desire to hold Akasha, kiss her, to merely be in her company rose up stronger than ever. Silas headed back to the house, his mind tormenting him with vile images of what he would find there.

Would she be on the floor, sobbing in a pitiful ball of misery and terror? Or would she be swathed in garlic, a cross around her neck and armed with a wooden stake? Not that these things would cause him any physical harm, but the gesture would hurt all the same.

A thought struck him, chilling him worse than the November air. What if his vision was about to come true?
What if I am the one to make Akasha cry?

When Silas returned home, his worst fears were realized. Akasha was gone. The realization beat at him, relentless. She knew what he was… she
knew
. Things would change irrevocably for them now. The Elders would be furious. It was frowned upon for a mortal to know of his kind and live, but he couldn’t kill her, and thanks to Delgarias’s command, he couldn’t Change her. The thought of letting her go refused to cross his mind. Akasha was his and would remain his forever. No, he wouldn’t let her go, couldn’t let her go. He… loved her.

The vampire leaned against the wall and slowly sank down to the floor, overcome with the realization. The Akasha from his visions had been a phantom, sweet and biddable in his imagination, yet distant and safe.

Akasha the woman, however, was gruff and coarse with limitless courage and a will of steel. Stoically, she bore the humiliation of being treated like a child by the authorities and the indignity of going to school with younger peers. She’d even put up with Silas ripping her from all that was familiar and thrusting her into his world. Throughout all this, she held to her goals for a stable future with a tenacity that was beyond admirable.

Silas closed his eyes, pride rushing through him at her strength. He must get her back. And somehow, some way, he would ensure that Akasha succeeded in whatever she desired. Somehow, he would make her happy.

Once he got hold of himself, Silas checked the garage and was relieved to see that his Barracuda was still there. She had gone on foot. Not only would that make her easier to find, he didn’t like the idea of her driving in the tumultuous emotional state she had to be in.

He got in his car and drove slowly down the road with the windows down, tracing her presence through the Mark. He caught it to the west, towards Xochitl’s house. His hands gripped the steering wheel so tight that he had to fight not to damage it. In moments he would learn how Akasha felt about living with a monster.

“Xochitl, Mr. McNaught is here to pick up your friend,” Bill yelled down the stairs.

A ball of panic dropped in Akasha’s stomach.
He came after me! What is he going to do?

“’Kash, you gonna be okay?” Xochitl compassionate gaze was like warm honey.

She nodded. “I’m sure he just wants to talk.”
Does he?

Her legs were as heavy as lead, but she managed to get to her feet. As if she could sense Akasha’s foreboding, Xochitl put a comforting hand on her shoulder before leading the way up the stairs as if she would protect her.

When they got to the kitchen, they glanced at each other, wide-eyed in confusion. Bill, Susan and Silas were sitting at the table, talking as if they were the best of friends.

“Ever since Xochitl’s been around, I’ve seen vast improvement in Akasha’s schoolwork… and her behavior, for the most part anyway. But you know teenagers.” Silas sounded like a character from an old sitcom. “I look forward to having her over again soon.”

Bill and Susan nodded vigorously in agreement.

“I thought they didn’t like Silas,” Akasha whispered even as she wondered if she’d put her friend in danger.

Xochitl frowned. “They don’t. This looks really fucked up.”

Had he hypnotized them?
Silas’s eyes fell upon her and Akasha’s breath left her body. Those emerald irises were no longer glowing but the intensity of his gaze was no less fiery.
Vampire… Undead.
She tried to feel fear and revulsion but all that came was apprehension coupled with a morbid sense of exhilaration. She wasn’t the only freak in this house. She wasn’t alone.

“Hello Mr. McNaught.” Xochitl broke the silence tentatively.

“Xochitl, hello.” Silas inclined his head, but studied her inquisitively. “Did Akasha tell you she is grounded?”

Grounded? What the hell is he pulling?
Does he even know what the word means?
Akasha’s mind darted around.

“Um… no.” Xochitl gave her a questioning look.

Play along, Akasha, if you know what’s good for you.
Akasha heard the vampire’s voice in her head, but his lips weren’t moving. She suppressed a shudder at the intimacy of Silas speaking in her mind alone and did what she was told.

“Uh, sorry. I guess I forgot.” She hung her head in what she hoped was a gesture of shame.

Silas stood. His voice rang with universal authority. “Come along, Akasha.”

Bill and Susan beamed their approval of his “parental” skills and Akasha choked on bitter laughter. If only they knew.

“See ya later, Xoch’.” She bit her lip.
At least I hope so.

Once they were outside, tension charged the air between them. Silas turned to her, eyes inquisitive yet still rife with command. “You didn’t tell her about me, did you?”

She shook her head vigorously as her boots crunched on frosty leaves. “Hell, no! Do you think I’m a moron?”

His expression was one of such profound relief that a stab of fear struck her. What would have happened if she had told Xochitl his secret?

The vampire gave a curt nod and opened the passenger door of the Barracuda. He avoided her gaze as she got in. Her heart pounded with trepidation. As the car roared down the road, crackling on newly installed studded tires, Akasha studied his profile, trying to figure out what he was feeling. Silas’s face remained blank as a statue as he watched the road. She hoped he wasn’t angry with her. At least he probably wouldn’t kill her. After all, he hadn’t when he caught her.

As she wondered what he
was
going to do, a thousand other questions swam in her mind. Akasha couldn’t bring herself to voice a single one. All she could think was:
Silas is a vampire... I’m riding in a car with a vampire… I’m going home with a vampire… I live with a vampire…I was kissed by a vampire!
On the heels of the thought was:
holy shit! That was my first kiss!

They got to the house and she wordlessly followed him in. She shot a glance at Xochitl’s Datsun in the garage and bit her lip.
Will I get to finish working on it?

When they entered the living room, the vampire bade her to sit down.

“I’m going to get you a beer.” His voice was just as cordial…and cautious as it had the night before.

Akasha’s hands shook as she struggled to unzip her jacket. A low impatient sound escaped from her throat. Silas returned from the kitchen, set down the can of Coors and reached for her. His long, elegant fingers grasped the zipper of her jacket and pulled it down. Gently, he gripped the leather by the lapels and pulled as she shrugged it off her shoulders. Goosebumps rose up all over at his light touch.

Before Silas hung up her jacket, he reached into the pocket, retrieved her cigarettes and lit one for her. The cigarette looked weird between his lips. She wondered if he could read her mind. She also wondered why he was still being so nice. Surely the gloves were off now.

Silas turned on the gas fireplace then sat down on the couch next to her, folding his hands in a steeple under his chin. His gaze deepened in intensity as he stared at the fire. Akasha tried not to squirm. He’d never sat next to her before. He always sat in his recliner.

Finally, he spoke. “Now Akasha, we must talk.”

Her throat went painfully dry as her eyes met his. Silas’s close proximity made her shiver, though it had little to do with what he was. She took a deep drink of her beer, for once wishing for something harder.

“Well,” he began. “Now you know what I am. Before I decide what to do with you, I wish to know your thoughts on the situation.”

Akasha blinked in surprise at his inquiry. She chugged the rest of the beer for courage, grateful for the warm tingle it sent to her head. He handed her another from the mini-fridge.

“Well… actually…um …I guess it’s okay.” She froze, shocked at her own boldness and the strange yet irrefutable logic in her statement.

Silas gave her a bemused look, brow arched. “It’s
okay
?”

Something about his expression made her belly flutter. Maybe it was because he seemed so solemn most of the time. Akasha struggled to regain her thoughts. “Well, yeah. I mean, all my friends have fantasized about encountering vampires. And to think, I’ve been living with one for the past month.” Akasha choked back nervous laughter. “What I want to know is why.”

“Why?” the vampire inquired.

He looks just as tense
as I am.
Akasha shook her head at the thought. “Yeah, what does an immortal all-powerful being like you want with me? What the hell possessed you to bring me here?”

She sucked in a breath as the obvious again occurred to her.
Just because there were no marks…
Unconsciously, her hand crept up to the side of her neck.

“Not that, Akasha,” Silas said with aching gentleness. “I have never fed from you.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Why should I believe you?”

He sighed. “I do not blame you for your suspicion. However, I beg you to consider this: Have I ever done anything to harm you? And, more important, have I ever lied to you?”

“You told me you were a financial advisor,” she accused.

Silas laughed, and for once didn’t cover his mouth. She saw his fangs glisten in the firelight.
That’s why he covered his mouth.
“Oh, but I am, Akasha. It’s just that most of my clients are other vampires.”

Vampires in finance…
Akasha shook her head to clear the muddled thought away and guzzled her second beer. “If you didn’t take me to be a snack, why did you bring me here?”

“As I told you in the first place, I was lonely and desired a companion.” His voice was level, yet it still seemed he was hiding something.

“But why
me
?” She couldn’t prevent the hysterical note creeping into her voice. The empty beer can was crushed in her grip. “How did you find me in the first place, and what did you know of me?”

Silas’s expression turned so serious that she had an urge to scoot away from him. “Fine, I’ll tell you. I have had visions of you for centuries. When I found you at last, I wasn’t about to let you stay in that miserable group home.”

“Visions?” A chill skittered across her flesh as she remembered his words the first night they met.
“Would you believe me if I told you I was psychic?”
Then the next day he’d said,
“You better wear a coat tomorrow. It’s going to rain.”

Masking her unease, she grabbed
a third beer from the mini fridge.

“Yes,” Silas answered the unspoken thought with a slight nod. “I am something of a clairvoyant. I was in my mortal years and my powers have multiplied since I was Changed.”

Akasha frowned as she struggled to digest this new phenomenon. “You had visions of me… what were they like?” The chill intensified.
Had he seen my past? Does he know what I have done?

Silas shifted on the couch, his discomfort apparent. “I really did not see much besides your face.” He paused and looked away. “You were crying.”

“I never cry.” She loathed the defensive tone of her voice.

Silas nodded. “I know that now.”

She studied his face, willing him to say more. It was obvious he was still hiding things. But nothing in his attitude showed disgust so she was willing to let it go …for now. Whatever it was, he didn’t know her worst secret.

“So, what
are you going to do with me?” She sipped her beer, feigning nonchalance.

Silas studied her. “You
will
agree to stay here with me, won’t you?”

“Of course,” Akasha replied, not having to think about it. After all, he treated her better than anyone had in her entire life. She wasn’t about to walk out on h
im just because he was a nocturnal bloodsucker.

“That is good.” He nodded with satisfaction, then looked away. “I really did not want to force you. I’m not about to let you go. I cannot, in fact, because you know what I am and also because I Marked you. It would not bode well for my reputation as a Lord of this city.”

“What is a Lord, and what do you mean, you ‘Marked’ me?” Another tremor of fear trickled down her spine. The word could not mean anything good.

Silas avoided her gaze again. “The mini-fridge is empty. Why don’t you go get another beer from the kitchen and I will explain.”

When Akasha returned, she sat back down next to him on the couch to show him she wasn’t afraid. If only her hands would stop shaking.

“A Lord is a vampire who is older and more powerful than others,” Silas began. “We usually take charge of a territory and either bar it from all other vampires or keep some in our employ to secure the power base.”

Her eyes widened in fascination. “So it’s a political thing?”

Silas nodded. “For the most part. I myself have no interest in politics or power struggles. That is why I chose Coeur d’ Alene as my city. Very few vampires live here.”

“And what about this ‘Marking’ thing you mentioned?” It was hard to keep her voice steady. “What does that mean?”

“I have given you a few drops of my blood.” Again, he looked away. “All of my kind will detect it. To them it means you are my property and to harm you is to incur my wrath.”

Anger flared at his explanation. “So what, you fucking own me now?” she growled.

Silas continued to avoid her gaze. “According to the laws of my kind, yes.”

Akasha glared at him. Vampire laws or no, she was pissed. “What gave you the right to do that? This is my fucking life you’re talking about. I oughtta kick your ass—”

He held up a hand, cutting off her rant. “I did it for your safety, Akasha.” His voice took on a hard edge as his piercing gaze once more locked on her. “Would you rather be a meal to any vampire who encounters you? Or perhaps have another vampire Mark you?” His brow rose in challenge. “One who would not be as kind as I?”

She let out a shuddering sigh as a measure of her pent up rage dissipated. “No,” she said sullenly and punched the arm of the couch. He
owned
her. “Fuck.”

The vampire sighed and looked at his watch. “Is there anything else you would like to know…about me?”

Grudgingly, Akasha let go of her anger and complied with the subject change. It seemed there was nothing she could do about it anyway. “How long have you been a vampire?”

Silas’s gaze turned distant. “Since 1513. I was defending my clan and country from the English. The battle was lost; all of my family and clan were slain. I had taken a mortal wound in the gut. The pain was agonizing. I was still alive come nightfall when a vampire found me. He offered me immortality and I accepted it eagerly, vowing to avenge my people.” A look of tortured shame crossed his beautiful face. “I will tell you the whole story another time.”

Akasha digested this all silently as she finished her beer and lit another cigarette. “Do you regret it?”

Silas sighed, long and tired. “Sometimes when dawn is about to come and I am tired and alone. For the most part, I do not regret my choice. This is the path I chose and I shall tread it with as much honor as possible.”