A Kiss of Ashen Twilight (Ashen Twilight Series #1) (13 page)

“Well, I don’t know if I believe all of this. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that you exist.”

Ariya smiled. “That makes two of us. I still don’t know what you are.”

Jace stared ahead with her words echoing in his mind. Very rarely did he have to explain himself to anyone. In the centuries when he would feed upon unsuspecting humans, he never gave a hint of what he was, rather used it as his way of charming them. Now he felt as if he was being challenged to look at himself and define the being he had become. Finally he turned and faced Ariya’s curious, waiting eyes. “I’m a Nightwalker.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning I can only walk around freely during the night or else I’ll be destroyed by the sun. And I need blood to sustain my existence or else I’ll die.”

“Wait a minute. If you aren’t an Asiman creature then—

“The Western civilization calls us Vampires and that’s the closest description of us. We’re not blood drinking spirit creatures that inhabit other people’s bodies. “

“You mean, you really exist? So you couldn’t have known about the elemental. There has been no recorded history to link the two.”

“Apparently not. None that I’ve seen firsthand anyway.”

Ariya froze and looked up. “Wait, I thought you were just a part of mortal legends and scary stories told for entertainment. The mortals seem to have a strange fixation on you. Garlic, crucifixes, holy water and nights of skulking around for innocent mortals as their prey. At least that’s what I read in my studies.”

“That’s basically what we’ve been reduced to thanks to a crazy Irishmen who never visited
Wallachia
. And Angel’s father, but that’s neither here nor there. One person in a battle saw a feed break out amongst our army and mistakes one of the bloodiest murdering conquerors in history as a Nightwalker. The massive depths to which, our history has yet to recover.”

Ariya shook her head. “I don’t understand. Dracula was fiction.”

Jace tilted his head in thought. “Ah yes, but the true history was not fiction. Like I said, I was there in the battle against the real demon. Thankfully the depictions of us are so varied across the world or else we’d be in big trouble.” He stretched and relaxed his muscles with a heavy exhale. “Vampires wouldn’t even be an accurate term for us. We predate the origin of the word by three or four centuries.”

He tossed around the history of his family and the birth of the Nightwalkers in his mind. Maybe one day he’d share the details, but not everything. No one but the Patriarchs of the house knew everything and he wanted to keep that way. He swung his legs over the bed and stood. “Besides, I’m not really one to divulge too much of my life to anyone. Especially an outsider I don’t know too much about.”

“You know you can trust me.”

“I can, huh?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ariya walked to the bed and leaned forward, resting on her hands. She gave him a half smile. “Or else you would have killed me by now.”

Jace cleared his throat and Ariya stifled a smile at the effect she had on him. “Well, you are correct there,” he said smoothly. “Mortal definition of the vampire term is pretty narrow to describe our kind. We need blood to live. Just like they do. The old mythology of holy water, garlic and all that jazz is just that—fiction.”

“And how do you get the blood to nourish you?”

“From humans and animals.”

“And each other?”

Jace nodded. “At times.”

Ariya remembered how the display heated the room. The exchange was pleasurable for both of them and part of her wondered if she would ever share such an experience with him. She gently shook her head to rid her mind of the thought.
Why would I want to share it with him anyway?
If the legends about his kind were true, this creature
didn’t
die. Instead he was but a trapped spirit defying the very laws of life and death.
What kind of abomination of mankind did I run into?

“Mankind.” Jace shook his head. “We are hardly a part of mortals anymore than we belong to the family of wolves. Some of us anyway.”

“But it is the very nature of life to die so that your spirit may live on in another. To cheat death by taking the blood of another life it’s—

“Surviving.”

Ariya scoffed. “
Defiance
of life’s very nature to maintain itself. A stolen life.”

“Your rules are very different than here. The exchange of blood sustains the body and life, yes. But to continue to feed off that blood—”

“Is sacrilegious.”

Jace’s gaze narrowed on her. “Is likened to the predatory animals I’m sure you’ve come across. For them it’s survival, for us…it is an intimate feeling. A close exchange of one’s very essence. With the right person, it is highly pleasurable, but potentially deadly. It’s hard to put into words the heights of bliss one rises to as they are pushed to the edge of death. Unless they share the experience with me, apparently. Then they don’t survive at all.”

Ariya folded her arms. “Well if you wish to read my mind and prove yourself, answer this question. Would you ever bite me? Push me to the edge of death?”

Jace stood and walked to her.

He lifted his head to sniff her skin, blood and essence. It was like nothing he ever sensed before. The temptation rippled through his body like water beneath his skin. He tingled with a sense of desire for her. With one bite, he could take her and see just how far his tendency to kill would reach. Then again, maybe she would live after the act. Maybe
she
would be the one exception to his blood filled rule.

“If I so desired,” Jace said without blinking.

Ariya shivered as she looked deep into his eyes. Lust was in those deep pools of blue and she knew this man was capable of intense passion—and a quick kill. She hoped she hadn’t made a mistake running here and falling into a more sinister threat.

“I assure you, though. You are safe with me.” Jace gently brushed his fingertips along the length of her bare arms. “Looks like you’re stuck with me anyway. At least until this whole thing blows over, and our names are cleared once we get to the bottom of Shelly’s murder.”

Ariya tried to ignore the chill running along her skin behind each touch. There were more pressing matters to attend to at the moment but she had a hard time focusing as her heart raced whenever he was near.

                                                                  
* * * *
              

Rich veered his bike around a corner and across the quiet streets of downtown
Tempe
later that morning. The sun rose in the sky across the horizon as a new day was welcomed once again. His body and muscles were still tense from the previous encounter with Jace and the mysterious girl. Questions cornered his mind about her whereabouts and even more, he wanted to know what happened with Shelly.

Like the mortals, the act of taking the life of their own within the Ashen Twilight House was against all laws. Only the patriarchs had that authority and even then it was under special circumstance that required much discussion over lethal offenses. During his years as regent, he had seen many deaths in the years before the houses were united under a common rule. The Nightwalkers, the Lycan pack and the Shifter Elves all had a common threat with the mortals and decided the only way to survive was to band together.

Still, the renegades who didn’t agree with the houses proved a danger to their hidden solidarity from the world. Still, as long as they remained quiet and out of their way, the immortals remained safe.

Rich noted the red light up ahead and gently pushed on the brake pedal. The motorcycle came to a slow stop, the motor still revved beneath him as his mind raced with equal passion.

He usually didn’t go off on Jace like that, but this was a distraction he couldn’t afford with the upcoming union on his tail. It was time to settle down and find a mate. After a long search, he may have just found the perfect counterpart to run the house alongside him as co-regent in the House of Lycans. She was beautiful, strong and she shared an interest in him since the time they met. First he would have to prove himself worthy of taking care of the pack. That was another thing he had to plan. It had been awhile since he received a final answer from the patriarchs in the east. Even if he did hear an answer, the ceremonies would have to be put on hold now with this situation concerning Shelly rearing its ugly head.

Could it have been a renegade who killed Shelly?

If it was, it would make this whole thing much easier to solve and they would kill that right before it gets any uglier.

The light turned green and Rich stepped on the gas pedal. He was close to the bridge amongst the calm lakefront. From here, he spotted a large, towering figure standing on the hill overlooking the shore. Rich turned off to the side on the shore and parked his bike. The bright yellow light reflected off the dark, still waters giving the area a cool, tranquil feel. He hoped it would remain quiet like this for at least another few hours.

The motor died down and Rich climbed off. By now he recognized Vex’s thick muscled silhouette as he rested his weight on one leg. The brawny Lycan didn’t move or look over his shoulder despite Rich’s quiet steps behind him.

“You know how deadly it is to sneak up to a Lycan while he’s deep in thought?” Vex asked, keeping his gaze on the water.

“Remember who you’re posing the question to, Vex. A Lycan who nearly tore into a guy in a fit of hormonal rage.”

Vex sighed and shook his head.

“How you holding up?” Rich asked.

Vex shrugged. “I know it won’t bring her back, but I just want to find the scum that did this to her and make him pay.”

“We’ll find him, man.” Rich gently patted Vex’s shoulder in assurance. “I promise you that.”

In his promise, Rich hoped it wasn’t Jace. Their encounter earlier was still on his mind. Although he and Jace had their differences from time to time, the youthful vampire never kept things from him until now. He couldn’t help wondering if the girl really was a threat to them. Either way, he had to remain by his brethren’s side until all of this blows over.

“Tell me Rich,” Vex said folding his arms over his chest. “Was Shelly really with Jace that night?”

Yes, Shelly was here tonight. We— we were in the midst of sharing the pleasure of one another’s company—

Jace’s voice ran loudly in Rich’s mind.

Vex turned to him with his eyebrows raised. “Rich? Was she? I mean, you’d tell me right? As a brother?”

“Yeah Vex, I would. But I can’t say for sure. How did you hear anyway?”

“After you left, Theo told me he saw them leave together. If I find out they were together—” Vex bit his lip to calm down. His thick hands formed into fists at his sides. “When the sun falls to moonlight and the House of Blood has awakened, Jace Archane will be put on trial. Whether by Lycan law, Nightwalker or Shifter Elves, he will be judged for his crime. And I hope he pays.”

“But you have no proof other than your passion to bring Shelly’s killer to justice,” Rich said a little stronger than he anticipated. “Not to mention besides Theo’s third rate assumptions, we can’t be sure. Calm down for now and give yourself some time to think this over.”

“No!” Vex turned to Rich, passion burning in his eyes. “I have thought of nothing but Shelly since she died. For all of our sakes, especially mine and Shelly’s, let her murderers come to trial and pay.”

Rich turned to the city ahead as the sunset rose into full view. He could already tell it was going to be a long day into night.

Chapter 4