A Kiss of Ashen Twilight (Ashen Twilight Series #1) (17 page)

“Ariya, tell me what do you see?”

She released the confines around her mind to allow the memories to wash over her once again…

* * * *

Julian awoke with a burning sensation on his arm. On instinct, he ducked back into the sheltering shadows of the trees overhead. The sun dipped behind the trees to welcome the darkness of the night. He looked at his arm. The sun’s bright rays had charred it to a near black, flaky crisp.

“No,” he gently touched the broken skin. “What devilry is this?”

“It’s no devilry.”

A figure stepped into his view. Julian spotted the loose robes he wore. The man looked like an outsider to him. He was thankful it wasn’t the other abomination that had sprung from the grounds no matter how many times he cut him down. Perhaps now with his head removed from his body he would stay down for good. Then where had this one come from?

“It matters not from where I came
, Julian.” The stranger said with a smile. “But I am here to help.”

Julian pressed his back against the ragged tree trunk curved against his body, no care for the line of ants marching back and forth along the wood. “You’ve done something to me. Burrowed into my thought, have ye? How?”

“It wasn’t I who changed you. “The man spoke with a slight accent proving his foreign status. One Julian had never heard before. I must apologize for your change. It was not to be given lightly. The man who changed you has suffered greatly from what I saw left of him.”

“He attacked me.”

“I know. It was an unjust but an understandable move. Many of our kind have no leaders and no teachers to watch over us. Even now there is a tormentor of sorts, using our kind to empower himself.”

“That’s what that soldier said after he attacked me.”

The man nodded. “It is true.”

“But why me? Why did he choose me?”

“I suppose the same reason your men chose to follow you into battle. You run your lands with a stern, just hand. Men such as him figure you can rule an entire nation that needs your instincts to survive at any cost. Perhaps he was correct.”

“An entire nation?” Julian’s head still rushed from the nights’ trek across the lands. He didn’t know whether or not he was close to home or not.

“You are quite close.” He reached his hand out and helped Julian to his feet.

“How can you read my thoughts?”

The man smiled. “You have the same ability if you let it reach the surface. Just like your healing abilities,” he said, moving his hand over Julian
’s
arm.

Julian felt a shiver, but not from the cool air. His arm was completely healed with no trace of the injury. He looked up. “How d’ye—”

His breath was taken away as he laid eyes on the creature before him. An illuminating figure stood before him with
strong, features and bright, glowing eyes that bored into Julian. A sleek mane of ebony cascaded down his back, setting off the pale, yellow tones of his skin.

“What are ye?” Julian breathed.

The man led Julian over the vast green meadows ignoring his question. They walked after the night began to take over the day and the skies warned of the black velvet night ahead. The man remained silent as he led Julian through the brush and meadows, part of the surrounding
Highlands
.

Julian caught a glimpse of the tall grey pillars amidst the evergreen. The flag of white saltire on a blue field sitting amidst the blue background caught his eye. Relief spread throughout his soul, as he realized he’d made it.

He started to run when he felt the man’s grip pull him back.

“No!”

“This is my home!”

“But you are not the same ruler, my friend. You have to heed my warnings for what you can and cannot do as a walker of the night.”

“
Walker
of the night?” Julian shook his head, laughing. “What madness is this?”

“The blood you drank
from the soldier changed you. You are a man who lives within the darkness of night. I am afraid there is no other path for you to take.” The pale man leaned in to whisper in Julian’s ear. “Sunlight must not touch your skin or it will end you. The mortals thrive upon its need for their life. You now thrive upon the night. Each of us has a burden to bear in our new lives. They call us the cursed, but we are the chosen ones to carry the legacy of this world. We have the ability to live and to save those who c
an not save themselves. Blood is our survival as it is theirs and you must choose carefully who you wish to bring into our world.”

“Our world?” Julian’s mind raced with all the information he was receiving. He had heard of creatures wandering the night to suck the life from the living to feed their undead souls. Many have been hung, beaten and tortured on suspicion alone.

“Make no mistake,” the man interjected in Julian’s thoughts. “We are very much alive in this afterlife as we live and breathe each day. How long that life continues is your choice. There are many of us out there that need shelter from the dark hearts of mortals. There are some like yourself who have been changed without knowing what they’ve become. Changed, perhaps against their will, like you. Unlike you they do not have anyone to teach them how to live. They need a leader, Julian. You can be that leader for them. And I will be right beside you, guiding you. It’s up to you to make that choice. However, you must remember that you will have t
o leave your life as it was behind. The shadows are your new dwelling. Mortals fear what they do not understand and they put you and your family’s life in danger if they find out what you’ve become.”

Julian turned back to the castle among the trees. With m
ore questions in his mind, he turned to face the man once again, but he was gone.

A soft cry caught his attention toward the castle. Inside, he saw Marie cradling her swollen belly as she cried. She was beautiful, exuding a glow befit for an expectant lady
of the lands.

He wanted to run to her and tell her that he was fine. Everything would be all right now that he was here. They could continue with their plans to raise a family like they always wanted. Yet as he sat there with each passing moment, he felt the time slip away. The man’s words repeated in his head.

“You are not the same man you were before.”

Julian tried to stifle his angry tears as he saw one of his guards make his way to Marie.

“M’lady—”

They had to be more than a hundred feet away but he could hear them so clear as if they were standing right in front of him.

“News of the patrol has arrived. There were no survivors of the battle from here to
Anjou
.”

“And my Julian?” she said, peering down, caressing her swollen stomach. It was only a little bit of time—a few weeks at most— to go until she was due. Julian felt his heart sink at the realization that he wouldn’t see the birth of his child.

He moved closer to see his guard standing next to Marie. It was the leader of his castle guard and the first-in-command, Liam. The guard kept one hand on his sheathed sword and his eyes on Marie.

Julian tried to push away the lingering gaze of his first-in-command. He knew that look. It was the same expression he had whenever he himself looked at his own wife.

“There was no sign of him.”

Marie nodded slowly, wrapping her arms around her body. Julian remembered his wife’s look as well: the trembling lip, her red eyes that signaled her fight not to cry. But she couldn’t fight it no matter how much she tried. The tears began to flow even as she turned to cry on Liam’s chest. He held her as she sobbed; releasing all of the rage, hurt and pain she suffered.

“Come m’lady.” Liam wrapped his arms around her and led her from the castle bailey to the interior.

Julian’s heart was torn. Part of him wanted to run to them and tell them it was all a lie. The other part warned to stay in the shadows or else he would put them all in danger. A thirst for blood made its way to his body. What would become of his family if the thirst overtook his senses? Would they survive? Would his new animalistic nature lead him to attack those he loved if the thirst overtook him?

Knowing the answer, Julian slowly backed away from the castle ground. He couldn’t afford to find out. Liam was a good ma
n and Marie would be safe under his watch. If he cared for her and loved her as Julian suspected, then she would be well cared for. He prayed for the safety of his unborn child and told himself this would be best for all of them.

Night had fallen over the grounds although Julian could see clear as day. He looked around and estimated how many days it would take to reach his brother’s castle on foot. The only family he had left now was Gerard and his son Jacinus. Perhaps they would know what to do once they hid him within their home. Maybe then he could figure out a way to get back to Marie safely. Surely they would take him in, he reassured himself.

Either way, he had no choice.

* * * *

“I’ve never heard the history of my Uncle before he came to us. This was the first time experiencing it.” Jace said with sadness in his dark blue eyes. He stood with his hands stuffed in his pockets. For the first time, she noticed his posture was slightly sagging.

“I’m sorry.” Ariya felt the sadness as his voice changed. Deep down she wished there was something she could do to mend his and Julian’s broken time.

Jace smiled. “Julian was always a private man. I’m surprised he didn’t notice you reading him.”

“The other person doesn’t know when I read them sometimes. I think Julian did know.” She folded her arms and shifted her weight. She opened her mouth and quickly asked the question in her mind before Jace had a chance to read it.

“Would you tell me about how you became a—Nightwalker?”

Jace walked to her and sat down next to her, all the while holding her gaze. He leaned in toward her, reaching out to caress her cheek with the back of his hand.
My, are you a beautiful vision, gradh.

Ariya’s eyes widened. If she deciphered correctly, she believed he called her love. “I—thank you,” she said, shifting her position.

“So you can read even me now.”

She nodded. “I tried to stop it, but it’s too late now. The elemental that haunts me will eventually find me.”

“But how?”

Ariya swung her legs over to the side of the bed and leaned over. “I don’t know much about it. My father may have known something about the legend and the severity of damage it could cause but he died before I could find out where it’s from or what it will do.” Screams echoed within her memory. In her mind’s eye, she saw her parents hauled into the night air. She quickly replaced the thought of something more pleasant. The creature could now be feeding off her memories and fear if she wasn’t too careful. She felt Jace’s strong, muscled arm wrap around her and a sense of relief washed over her body.