Endless Days (The Firsts) (10 page)

And even though her cinnamon buns were not eaten by huge vampires with extraordinarily high calorie requirements, she made them just as large.  And they flew out of here, too, first thing every morning. 
Because they were Eugene’s recipe, and superb.  Every time she made them, she sent him a heartfelt thank you.  There would never be a moment she would forget her dear friend and how he was lost in the vampire battle last year.  It was one of the things that drove her here…away from that life.  Toward the peace and serenity of this mountain village.

Yet here she was, ready to bond with a vampire and give her life and love to him. 
Mon Dieu
, if you had told her last year…well, she would have told you that you were crazy and
absolutely, intensely wrong
.  Best laid plans, though…

By tonight, she was afraid he would be inextricably intertwined with her own spirit and soul.  As she closed the door to the display cabinet holding a luscious stack of the cinnamon buns, she realized her hands were shaking.  Yeah, it terrified her. 
About as much as the idea of him leaving, and her never seeing him again. 

She loved the shop like this, pristine and smelling incredible…quiet with just a soft glow of lights, just before the customers came.  It was the perfect moment she had sought after all the slaughter and blood last year.

Cherise dropped down into a chair and laid her head back, let herself breathe deeply, her eyes closed, her body still.  Yes, this was heaven.  She knew she’d better enjoy this moment…it might not come again for a long, long time. 

Kav was uncertain…which was quite unusual for a first vampire.  He could feel his own essence…his life force…now, and it was strong and decisive.  He knew he never hesitated to take care of his own needs.  And yet…   He could not decide whether to stay or go.  She wanted him, he knew this now…he hoped she
needed
him.  And he would be able to make love to her as he had wanted to do for so long.   He needed to be
in
her…he already knew he was inside her.  But was it the best thing for her?  Letting her suffer for helping him…

NO.  He knew the right path. 
Time to go.  She would know that, but he’d be gone before she could do anything about it.  And he knew that as long as he went far enough…she couldn’t find him even if she
did
look.  He was already packed with the few items he would need…there was no point in delay.

Kav vampire-moved out the door and down the road.
  He did not know where he was going, but he knew a direction, for some reason…north.  He didn’t stop until he reached a busy road, found a young man to compel, and had him steer his old beater car toward Canada.  It was time to go home.  Well, to
try
to go home…

The Rowley twins were taking forever tonight to choose their pastry.  Although they still looked and dressed alike at their current age of sixty-nine, they had highly diverse tastes and a limited wallet. 
Which is why they waited until just before the
patisserie
closed to get end of day prices.   They came in every other evening like clockwork to choose a treat.  Tonight it was a good natured argument in which neither was winning.  Cherise just smiled patiently…when it hit her.   She knew instantly he was gone.  His life force, which she could completely sense, weakened and then it was gone.  All she could feel was the emptiness of where he belonged.  He’d done it, the bastard.  He’d left.

She fell back against the counter and closed her eyes, searched for him.  No.  He was out of range.  Unless he wanted her to find him, she would have no way to do so.

Well.  Didn’t she just tell herself this morning to enjoy the serenity while it lasted.  Margaret came back from serving a late meal to a table by the window.

She grabbed Cherise’s sleeve.  “Oh, honey, you’re even whiter than usual.  Are you okay?”

“Um…I’m feeling a little faint…could you take over for me?  I need to…”

“Of course, you go lie down or take something if you need to. I’ve got this.”

Cherise murmured a thanks and went out the back door, trying to catch her breath.  He was gone.  She began to pace back and forth.  Yeah, she’d been right.  Instead of relief, she was panicked, worried for him, terrified he would never come back, would never let her help him heal.  Would never feel him lying against her again.  God.  She didn’t want to…but she
needed
the vampire like she needed air.  She knew two things for certain…he’d left because he thought he was doing the right thing for her.  And she knew it was the
wrong
thing. She would suffer for it the rest of her life.  Which wasn’t vampire long, but longer than a normal human.

She dropped on the cold grass that was busy going dormant for the coming wi
nter.  

When she saw small feet in
front of her, she glanced up.

“
He left,” Leo said, then he, too, dropped onto the grass beside her.  “I could feel his tumultuous emotions.  He didn’t know how to deal with this.”

“I know.  You have any idea where he might have gone?”

“No, I’m sorry.  I really don’t.  He never recovered any recognizable memories while I was with him. You were his best chance.”   They both went silent.

“He’s still broken,” Leo said suddenly.

Cherise nodded.  “Yeah, I know.  He’s going to stay that way unless he comes back or I can find him.”

“We’ll help.  The elf community crosses the world you know.  I’ll put out bulletins.”

Cherise looked at him warmly, aware her eyes were moist.  “I appreciate it.  Maybe…maybe we’ll get some luck.”

“He found
you
.  That might be luck enough.”  Leo pushed upright.  “I’ll make the calls.  And I’ll let you know if I find anything or hear from him.”

“I’m grateful
.  Thanks, Leo.”

Then he was gone.

There was little left to do now, but go about her life.  She may or may not ever see him again, and either way it didn’t change the fact that she had her
patisserie
to run.

Lauren continued on with the rest of the team of fourteen people, ten of which were security only.  Big guys whose jobs were strictly to protect the scientists and researchers…to intervene if it became necessary with the subject or subjects.   Patric had been out in the world now for over ninety days…he had to be getting stronger.  And if he’d hooked up with the empath, which the mission portfolio told her they thought he had, it was over.  He would no longer be controllable by mere humans.  She’d been told it had taken a mammoth effort and hundreds of man hours to find a way to secure a first vampire to begin with.  They’d never pull it off again.

She would settle in, let them think she was there to work, and then quietly slip away a day or two from arrival and disappear.  Her team was to replace the first one that had been onsite for th
e past three months.

Team one was packed and ready to get out of there.  Team one leader,
Pietro Chemue, pitched a folder at her when they arrived at base.

“Here,” he said in French.  “He is gone.  Project is perhaps finished here.  She does not know where he went.  And the tracker we installed…it stopped working last night.  So, I believe he went back toward his home, north to Iceland.  You will need to prepare teams to observe him remotely once you find him again. 
He is no longer contained.  His skills are nearly fully intact now.”   He looked Lauren directly in the eyes and then said in perfect English.  “Good fucking luck.  If he finds you guys now, he’ll tear you apart.”

Lauren caught the folder, watching team one
disappear into the van they’d rented at the airport.  She knew that.   Knew that if he found out who tortured him all these years, nothing would save them.  Another good reason to be gone from here ASAP.  Team one wasn’t sticking around.  Smart. 

Well, in a way, this was good news.  Another team would be assigned to search for him while her team would be expected to evaluate the empath, much easier and safer.  Perhaps she would stay just to make sure Cherise Devereaux was okay.  Nothing about the last year was right…nothing about it was clean.  There was no way to justify what they had done, even for the sake of science.  There was no threat here.  Vampires had been here longer than humans, and had rarely posed a danger except in isolated circumstance.  Well, so had humans.

At the very least, she may be able to help Cherise.  After they were settled in, she wanted to visit the little pastry shop and meet the woman she had only seen in video and photos.

Kav left the nice young man in New York City.  He still wasn’t sure where he was heading, but the imperative to go north had gotten stronger.  He knew now.  He
was
going home.  

Flashes of a harsh, stunning landscape guided him.  And although his destination was still vague, he was certain, as he got closer, he would know.  Already, his mind was clearer, his breathing calmer.  And he could drink from anyone now.    The spirit amulet Cherise freed gave him back a lot of his power.  He didn’t know who he was yet, that hovered just beyond his reach, but it wouldn’t always.  Someday, it would come.  If it did, and if he was well, and if he turned out to be an honorable man, he would return for her.  She held his heart.  His happiness lay behind a lot of ifs.

His body had filled out a little more, so here in this grand city, he compelled a new wardrobe.  Things that fit a large man with large muscles.   He’d just stepped out of a high end men’s store when an impeccably dressed man pulled up to the curb in a dark green jag.  Nice.  He thought about it for a moment.  Did he drive?  Yes.  Yes, he did.  And this was his style of car.  He compelled the man to take anything out of the car he might want or need, and then told him that the car was gone, wrecked, and that he needed to buy a new one.  The man nodded and reached for his cell, walking away down the street.

Kav smiled.  He’d load it up with his new clothes, a lot of food, and then continue across the border.  Crystal clear waters and dancing skies were waiting for him somewhere up there.  Once he got clear of the big city, it was almost as if the tires against the road were sounding out “going home, going home,
going home.”  He found a radio station that played music he liked and settled in until the sun drove him off the road.

Well, it didn’t matter if the big vampire was gone or not…pastries still had to be made.  Lunches served, tables cleaned, and cakes decorated.  Cherise buried herself in her work, baking too much, cleaning too hard, and sleeping too little.  If she found enough to keep her busy, it hurt less and she
’d even  have long moments when she didn’t think of him at all.  Leo checked in daily these past three days since he left to let her know…no sightings yet.  She wasn’t naïve enough to think there would be.    Vampires could hide.   First vampires could do just about anything they wanted, they had so many abilities to manipulate the world.  She’d unlocked that, so he was well and truly free of her if he wanted to be.  And obviously he did.

She knew that was unfair, too.  He’d left to protect her…she’d made it clear enough to him how their involvement would hurt her.  It had all been true.  But he hadn’t taken into account…it was already too late.  He was already a part of her…
living with his absence was a torture in itself.   Unless he returned.  Anything could happen, but she couldn’t count on it.  So, life would return to normal, and she would try to manage her feelings as well as possible
.  Le temps guerit toutes les
blessures. 
Well, no one knew better than an empath, time really couldn’t heal
all
wounds.

Chelsea was closing tonight since Margaret was out of town visiting her friends in Colorado Springs.  After the dinner
rush and inevitable orders for parties and celebrations, the shop would be quiet for the rest of the night.  Cherise had her heart set on spending the cool night outside under the stars.  She could find peace there, balance, the calmness she had achieved when she first came here a year ago.  This would be her second winter at the foot of these lovely gentle mountains and she was ready to embrace it once again.

There was
a simpleness in winter, where creature comforts are basic…warmth, good food, and the silence of a snow covered land.  It could be found in the stillness of a dark, star-covered night sky, a meditation in seeking that which matters in the world.  People could slow down and breathe deeper. An empath felt everything around them, which is why they tended to seek isolation.  Which is why her little home sat alone some distance from the village.  She loved the people here, but there were times she needed aloneness and solitude to control her gifts.  Tonight, there was a bite in the air…the first snowfall would come, late, eclipse her starry sky.  They would awaken to diamond-dazzled streets and sharp-edged air.  Winter was here and she welcomed it with open arms.