Christmas in Vampire Valley (6 page)

He chuckled, tightening his hold on me. "A few gashes
on my arms and a deeper one on my thigh. It's nothing that won't heal."

He tugged me forward, rounding the statue that kept us
hidden from the bulk of the cemetery.

He froze.

Kendrick lay on the ground unmoving with his neck slashed
open.

His girlfriend, Shirley, stood above him. An inch under
six-foot, the vampire was rumored to be two-thousand years old. It was an age
not unheard of among the long-lived Sídhí. Hands tapping against jean-clad
legs, the tall blonde smiled at me.

"Well, it seems you've done most of the hard work for
me."

A series of things clicked in place. "You wanted the
gem, not Kendrick."

She chuckled nastily. "Good guess, but not true. I
wanted you. Kendrick and the gem will help muddy the trail."

She let the words settle into me. I wanted to wait her out,
but didn't have the patience for it. "Meaning?"

She touched a small headstone, reverently caressing its
rough top. When she spoke, her voice was rough with emotion. "A hundred
years ago, while visiting South America, I found my mate, a human by the name
of Pedro Galdora. I didn't even have time to bond with him. Your filthy
grandmother showed up and had him beheaded, while I was in a healing
coma."

I sucked in a sick gulp of air. No wonder the name on the
headstone seemed familiar. I knew part of the story. A sick, perverted rancher
had made his living by capturing teenage girls and selling them into slavery.
Pedro kidnapped the wrong girl, a young merchant fairy. When the girl finally
escaped, she ran to the Fairy High Council. My grandmother hunted Pedro down,
finding him in the arms of a vampire.

She fought the vampire and killed Pedro.

"Grandmother thought you died."

"The council woman's siren shriek cracked my skull in a
dozen places, but it didn't kill me." Shirley snarled, baring lengthened
fangs. "This is the first chance I've had to revenge my beloved."

"You'll never get away with it," Brandon said,
snarling so harshly I could barely understand him.

She laughed a high-pitched sound of insanity. "Of
course I will. High Councilwoman Beatrice thinks I'm dead. When she receives
Megan's head in a box, she'll never consider a dead woman."

Fear rippled up my spine, but my resolve hardened. If she
planned to kill me then she would kill Brandon as well.

I touched the synth crystal in my blood, pulling strength
into me, building my power. I held the power in as it grew.

Shirley was old, fast, and powerful. I had a single chance
to stop her.

My mind skimmed the area, seeking the living objects around
me. I settled on the old willow tree. Its fluffy branches touched the ground. I
wrapped my mind around the molecular structure of the tree, shoving every ounce
of power into my command.

Feathery branches shot forward, wrapping around Shirley. Her
wild eyes hardened into stone, and she cackled like a Disney movie witch.
Grabbing the branches, she ripped them in half as fast as I could wrap them
around her.

Brandon chunked a rock at her.

She cried out as a heavy stone hit her. She screamed at him,
promising him a painful death as she shredded his body into tiny pieces.

Furious, I screamed in denial. No one, not anyone, would
ever hurt my mate.

I reached for more power and sunk into what grandmother called
my Sweet Spot, an area within every fairy that reflected their true power.

I shuddered as power flowed through me, highlighting every
living thing, grass or human, within a mile.

Shirley was a living creature. I focused my mind around her vital
organs and squeezed, until I felt a sharp pop of power. I felt blood drip from
my nose.

She shrieked in agony, dropping to her knees. Blood poured
from her mouth and nose. Willow branches wrapped around her body, staking her
to the ground.

I shuddered as the ebb and flow of power coursed through my
body. My nose started bleeding faster.

Brandon cupped my chin, gently wiping the blood from my
face.

I looked up. His frightened face was the last thing I
remembered as my young mind shut down from power overload.

A dozen voices shouted around me, waking me up from a
pleasant dream of Brandon on a sandy beach in ultra-tight swim trunks.

"Hey," Brandon said softly, rubbing his cheek
across the top of my head.

I lay curled in his arms, safe. A dozen guardians roamed
through the cemetery, leaving us alone for the moment.

I smiled. Leaning forward I kissed his chin.

His eyes found mine. The stark emotion I saw in them knocked
the air right out of my lungs.

"Mia Cara, my heart, my mate, please bond with
me,"
he said softly in my mind, calling me his beloved in the old
tongue. Without waiting for my answer, which would've been yes, he opened his
lifeBud.

A lifeBud was a tiny organ nestled in the middle of every
Sídhí brain, allowing us the ability to bond with a single person, our true
soul mate.

His lifeBud cried for mine, calling to me. The silent sound
wrapped around me, begging me to open my lifeBud.

Once opened, a lifeBud remained in bloom for less than a
minute, calling for its true mate. After that single minute, the bloom
shriveled and died never to bloom again.

I couldn't refuse him even if I didn't know him as well as I
wanted too. He was my mate, my perfect other half. I loved him. As the thought
raced through my mind, I knew it was true. I had loved him forever.

I opened my lifeBud.

Instantly, the two ends wrapped together, binding us
together heart and soul for eternity.

His love flooded my senses, shattering what little doubt I
had as intense emotions curled through me. I gasped at the depth of his love.

His gaze held mine, reflecting how much he adored me.

I blinked back tears, wishing I'd never doubted him.

He curled his body around mine, offering me comfort, a place
beside him that would be mine forever.

I rubbed my head against his shoulder. Taking a deep breath,
I mentally knocked at his mind, requesting entrance.

His joy burst through me an instant before our thoughts
blended. Words murmured on the edge of my mind, I could either listen or ignore
his thoughts. He could do the same with mine.

I heard a small commotion among the guardians.

Narlene stood, towering over several of the guardians.
"I demand to know where my uncle is!"

My joy didn't diminish, but my eyes narrowed as I remembered
her callously refusing to help me.

Brandon growled, obviously following my memories as I replayed
them. "She should be shot. She knew they planned to kill you."

"She's a minor and a MuskLeke. They might not even
question her."

His growl grew deeper.

Her blonde hair glowed in the moonbeams, reminding me of her
snarky remark about preferring blue hair to red.

I chuckled intentionally making the sound wicked.

I felt his surprise, quickly followed by his absolute
agreement.

I gathered power to me. The surge came much quicker than
normally. Manipulating a living creature could be accomplished in several ways.
By wrapping power around the living entity or throwing a pre-defined chunk of
power at something.

I curled the power into a ball, wrapping my anger tightly
around the seething sphere of synth energy. Without hesitating, I threw the
whammy at her.

Without warning, Hannah appeared between Narlene and me,
shoving the bigger girl backward three feet with a hard right hook.

The whammy hit my best friend in the back of her head.

Oh, crap!

I saw her shudder and raise a slender hand to the back of
her head. She glanced around. Her eyes grew wide as she looked at me.

The whammy settled into her body.

Her glorious pale blonde hair slowly turned a brilliant
blue.

The End

Dear Reader,

Thank you for choosing to read
Christmas in Vampire
Valley.

I hope you enjoyed reading Brandon and Megan's story as
much as I enjoyed writing it!

Jodie B

Website:
http://www.jodiebcooper.com
- snippets for most books

Sídhí World News Blog:
http://sidhinews.blogspot.com
-
Character POV flash fiction, deleted scenes, and Sídhí gossip/news.

_____________

(Condensed version)

Dragon
– 1.) Dragon shifters are a race of people
originally from Sídhí. They have the ability to change their shape to that of a
specific animal/dragon. Each sub-race (Clan) has various strengths provided by
the synth crystal in their blood. A person’s first shift into dragon can take
place before or after puberty. A shifter in human form smells human. They
consider the term
shapeshifter
a slur, as they are dragon. 2.) Dragons
are a very intelligent, and highly dangerous, Sídhí animal.

Elves
- Race of people originally from Sídhí. The have
a rigidly strict code of honor. They give an oath of fealty to whomever they
choose. First, they always give a blood oath of fealty to the unknown
Chi’Kehra, second oath goes to their house, and third oath may go to their
valley or their liege lord. Due to synth crystal, they have increased sense of
smell, sight, strength and mental capabilities. They have pointed ears,
approximately a half inch to one inch taller than a mundane human’s ear. The
pupil (black center) and the iris (colored portion of their eye) are larger
than a mundane human’s eye.

Enchanter
- An enchanter is a sub-race of fairy.
Enchanters are split into two caste, merchant and warrior. Enchanters have the
ability to manipulate the molecular structure of an item. Some enchanters can
manipulate living things, such as flowers and a person's hair color. Other
enchanters can manipulate inanimate objects such as silver or computers.

Fairy
- Race of people originally from Sídhí. Each
fairy has various strengths provided by the synth crystal in their blood. Very
secretive race. Most live in Atlantis Valley, which covers large swaths of land
and all of the North and South Atlantic Oceans. Five castes: Royal, warrior,
merchant, common, and servant. The five castes (aka class) contain hundreds of
sub-races, such as siren, pixie, nymphs, changelings, dwarves, leprechaun,
brownie, banshee, harpy, phoenix, enchanter, mermaid, mystic… Physical and
paranormal attributes vary widely between sub-races.

Foresight
– The ability to see glimpses of the
future that may or may not change. Several races have a touch of foresight.

Gateway
(aka portal)
-
A gateway is a permanent
‘doorway’ that allows people or inanimate objects to travel instantly between
Earth and valley (see valley) or between valleys. A mundane human cannot see a
gateway, but they can go through a gateway if touching a Sídhí or holding a
piece of synth crystal.

Halfling
– A halfling is an individual who is half one
race and half another.

LifeMate
– When a person is drawn toward another person
by the synth crystal in their blood. Two people who are perfect soul mates. Two
people who fall in love and bond. LifeMates are miserable when apart from each
other.

LifeBond
- The lifeBond is a permanent mental bond
between two lifeMates. The bond allows them to feel each other’s emotions. The
bond cannot be broken once formed.

LifeBud
- The LifeBud is a physical organ in a Sídhí
brain that allows a lifeBond to be created between two lifeMates. The bud can
be destroyed before a bond is created, but not afterward.

Mia
Cara
- Literal translation: my beloved.

Mundane
(human) – A mundane is a normal human with no
synth crystal in their blood, normally born on Earth. Some valleys have a few
mundane settlements. The Dhark Valleys keep mundane humans as servants/slaves
and a source of blood for their large vampire population.

Phoenix –
1. A race of winged people originally from
Sídhí; they have not been seen or heard from in four thousand years. They are
the strongest of fairy within the warrior caste. The wings of a phoenix cover a
spectrum of colors, but are primarily mixtures of red, black and/or white. The
eyes of a phoenix turn silver when emotional, a reaction that can turn deadly
to others.

2. A bird that drips fire off brilliant red wings. Unlike the
Earth myth, they are not reborn.

Port –
See teleport.

Pre-pub
- A Sídhí young person before or during
puberty.

Puberty
- The developmental period every teenage Sídhí
goes through. In a twenty-one day period, a Sídhí youth will start out
stick-thin and develop into their adult body and abilities. The youth is always
hungry during this time.

The Second Dimensional Balloon Theory
- During the
Great War, Chi’Kehra (see Chi’Kehra) gathered tremendous amounts of raw synth
crystal and began pushing the raw energy into the gateways connecting Earth and
Sídhí. Before he could finish - whatever he planned - he died. The energy had
no guidance. The gateways overloaded and all the energy exploded outward toward
Earth. The explosion created massive valleys, teleporting all living creatures
from Sídhí to Earth, and permanently sealing the gateways between Sídhí and
Earth.

Sídhí
(aka Immortal or home world) - 1. A Sídhí is a
person that originally lived (or descended from people who lived) on the home
world of Sídhí. 2. A formally mundane human who has been injected with pure
synth crystal or received a venomous bite from a vampire. 3. Sídhí is the
original home world of non-mundane humans.