Frailty: The Darkshine (5 page)

“I can’t believe you just asked me that.” He chuckled softly and she knitted her eyebrows in confusion.

“Why was that funny?”

“I’m sorry. The question itself is not funny, but the fact that you actually asked me was. No one has ever spoken to me the way you have just done. It’s quite refreshing actually.”

“I should be frightened of you.”

“Why do you say that, Helina?”

She picked up a dead leaf and started crushing it up in her fingers. “Well, I know how fast you are, and I’m sure you’re just as strong. It’s clear those sharp teeth of yours aren’t just for looks, and well, you just seem scary is all.”

“I would never hurt you.”

“I know that. How I know that I’m not quite sure, but I feel in my heart that you wouldn’t intentionally hurt me.”

“I wouldn’t unintentionally hurt you either.”

She crushed the rest of the leaf in her hand, the sound like the Rice Krispies that used to sit in her cereal bowl and crackle in the milk.

“Tell me about yourself, Helina.”

“Why?”

“What do you mean, why?”

“Why do you want to know about me?”

He chuckled again and the sound speared through her in an intimate way. “You are stubborn, aren’t you?”

It was her turn to laugh. The sound escaped her and she glanced up at him, seeing a strange look cross his face. Helina instantly sobered and looked down at the ground.

“No, please, I enjoyed the sound. It was very beautiful.”

Her cheeks heated with embarrassment.

“I’m sorry. I’ve embarrassed you, haven’t I?”

“No. Well, yes, but that’s all right. I laughed because my sister used to say the same thing. About me being stubborn and all.”

“Well, I’m glad I could make you smile. It makes you more beautiful.”

Helina blushed again, her face feeling like it had been set on fire. Clearing her throat, she glanced at the creek. “So, um, what about you?”

“You want to know about me?”

She nodded and looked back at him, smiling when she saw his big grin.

“Well, you know my name and my title. Let’s see.” He tapped his chin with his finger, as if he were thinking really hard about her question.

Helina couldn’t help the smile that seemed to stay on her face, or the small laugh that came out when he gave her a devilish grin, fangs showing and all. Her face sobered at the sight and he didn’t miss the fact.

“I’m sorry. Do they bother you?”

“A little.” She wasn’t going to lie, and she wasn’t going to tell him that she had already seen a set before, a pair that dripped with her sister’s blood.

“I’d take them away if I could, but you see, they’re kind of attached to me.”

It took her a minute to realize he was making a joke, and when she finally did, her mouth broke into a smile.

“Let’s see, where to start. Well, I am fairly old, but still young at heart. My kind comes from a country that humans have no knowledge of. In regards to my fangs, well I am sure you know why I have those.”

“You drink blood then?”

“It is a necessity, I’m afraid. Although my kind does enjoy ‘normal’ food, we don’t need it to survive.”

“How old are you?”

“Don’t you know you’re never supposed to ask a person’s age?”

She smiled at his sense of humor, but his joking nature didn’t deter her from her questions. “Then again, you really aren’t a person, are you?”

He was quiet for some time as he stared at her.

“I guess I’m not, at least not in the sense that you are. In regards to your earlier question, I am over three thousand years old.”

Her mouth fell open in surprise and she felt her eyes grow wide. She couldn’t speak for several minutes, shock resonating within her. “Huh.” She really couldn’t say any more than that, her mind not grasping the idea that she was speaking with a creature that old. “You must have seen a lot.”

“Oh, most definitely. Some things were good, other horrendous. Maybe one of these days you would like to hear about it? The memorable ones, that is.” He smiled down at her and went down on his haunches so that he was eye level with her. “How old are you, Helina?”

“Not as old as you.” She smiled at him, her sense of humor seeming out of place at the moment. She still didn’t know if he was playing with her, just biding his time until he could rip out her throat and drink her blood. Although the thought was foremost in her mind, she knew the odds of that actually happening were unlikely. For one thing, he could have done that countless times already and besides, he seemed genuinely interested in her. Not interested in mauling her and lapping at her blood, but interested in the person she was. Maybe she was just hoping for a positive light in a world that had gone dark.

“Twenty-two.”

He smiled at her, his gaze skimming over her body with hooded lids. “So young. Maybe one of these days I can tell you a tale or two. Would you like that?”

Nodding, Helina was actually intrigued by what this vampire had to say. She needed to remind herself that he was a blood-drinking creature, the same kind of monster that took from her someone very special. Her stomach picked that moment to growl so loudly that her face heated with embarrassment and she wrapped her arms around her middle. “Sorry,” she mumbled as she looked at the ground.

“You are hungry?”

He stood up so fast that she gasped and pressed herself more firmly against the tree. He held his hand out to her and she looked at it for a moment before slipping her much smaller one into it. He led her back to the cave, stopping and turning toward her with a small smile on his face.

“I will bring you nourishment. Please stay in the cave until I come back. It isn’t safe for you to be out alone. Do you promise you will stay inside until I return?”

Helina was surprised by the look of concern that crossed his face and nodded as she let him help her into the opening. She didn’t know why she was listening to him, but in her heart she felt like it was the right thing to do. As she crawled through, Helina could feel his gaze on her but didn’t look back. Moving toward the darkest corner of the cave, his words replayed in her mind about “it isn’t safe for you to be out alone.” She knew as much, but hearing him say it made her involuntarily shiver with fear.

The fact that someone or something was out there with her, something she could never defeat, made her start to perspire with nervousness. Curled into herself, Helina waited for Gaijryc, the vampire that made her feel safe in a world where she was anything but.

Impossible feelings

H
elina sat in
her cave several days later, waiting for Gaijryc to arrive. He brought her food every day, food so delicious and exquisite it made her forget that she was living in a hole with a dirt floor. He came to her several times a day, urging her, almost pleading with her not leave the cave without him. Helina listened to him, only sitting by the opening to get some fresh air and a little vitamin D.

They didn’t talk much during his visits. He mainly sat across from her, watching as she ate the food—always urging her to eat more. After eating she always ended up falling asleep whether Gaijryc was there or not. When she would wake up, he would be gone, a blanket placed over her body.

She couldn’t explain why she trusted him so much. Maybe it was the fact that he was so kind, so understanding and made sure she was well fed and warm? She would have starved if not for him, would have died in the cave where no one would have found her. She wanted to be strong, knew that Lizzy would have not wanted her to give up.

Hearing the sound of leaves crunching by the cave entrance, Helina felt the familiar tingling sensation that traveled through her body whenever Gaijryc was near.

He stood once he passed the tunnel’s entrance, a large bag in his hands. “Hello, Helina. You look more beautiful every time I see you.”

Smiling, she stood, brushing at her wrinkled clothes and running a hand through her hair, which was haphazardly pulled into a ponytail. He wasn’t even human, yet she felt so wonderful around him, like they had known each other their whole lives. “Thank you.”

The words were spoken softly and she smiled at him once more. He didn’t smile back, just gave her a look that made her heart skip a beat. He had been giving her that “look” more frequently—the expression of desire and want that made her feel warm and wet in her most private of places.

He watched her for another second before pulling out a thick blanket from the bag he carried. He set the bag on the floor and covered the ground with the material. He went to his knees and started to pull a feast out of the bag. He urged her to join him and her stomach growled in approval.

Looking at the blanket, she instantly sank into the plush material. She crossed her legs and watched as he pulled out silver bowls and platters that shone even in the shadowed cave—the same dinnerware he always brought with him. “You always bring the prettiest plates and cups.” He gave her a half smile that melted her heart. It was strange how such a big, muscled man could make her feel something that she had never felt before.

Gaijryc laid out
the feast in front of Helina. He’d had the softest blanket made for her, something that she could lay on and not feel the hard, cold ground. He would prefer for her to sleep in a warm, soft bed, but there was no way he could bring her to his parents’ mansion. Every DarkShine within smelling distance would be able to sense her and he couldn’t risk any harm coming to her.

He normally didn’t eat the food he brought for her. He would like for her to eat it all, put some more weight on her too-slender body. She was delicate with everything she did, whether it was running her hand through her hair or picking up a piece of fruit with her petite fingers. He couldn’t stand to think about her sleeping in this cave all by herself. Since he had first seen her, he had stayed in the shadows and watched the cave, making sure no one bothered her. He was confused by the strong feelings that she caused inside of him. He’d had plenty of lovers during his lifetime, countless females that he had been with, although none of them compared to her.

He watched her more intently than he had ever watched anyone before. He memorized every strand of her long dark hair, the mixture of green and brown in her big hazel eyes, and the soft curves of her petite body. She was so small and fragile compared to him, so little that he feared he would hurt her by just holding her hand.

“I don’t like you out here. You should be in a warm home, silks and a feast before you.” He smiled as she sputtered on her drink. He could hear her little heart beating fast, could see the pulse in her neck pounding against her skin. He wondered what it would be like to taste her, to allow himself to sample what pumped through her body. He had tasted human blood many times, but he knew that drinking hers would be the sweetest of all.

His fangs ached as he watched the pulse at her neck. His cock was hard and throbbing as it pressed against his pants. His desire for her was instantaneous—indescribable since the first moment he had smelled her, seen her. He couldn’t have her living here any longer. He needed to acquire a house for her, far away from his kind, but close enough that he could protect her. He
needed
to protect her, to make sure she was safe and cared for.

He should just stay away from her—that would have been the safest thing for both of them, but his feelings were so rampant and like nothing he had ever felt before that he couldn’t. He would need to find a home for her soon, before he slipped up and she was discovered by his kind. He rose to leave and saw her eyes grow big again.

“You’re leaving? So soon?”

He was pleased that she cared enough to wonder, and as much as he hated leaving her, he needed to find a place for her. “I will come back at dusk. I have something I have to take care of most urgently.” He bent down once again and ran his hand down her cheek. He felt her body stiffen, would have thought it was from fear if he hadn’t been able to smell her arousal. He clenched his other hand by his side, hoping she didn’t notice the massive erection that was demanding to be let free.

He made his way out of the too-small cave and into the morning sun. He started off at a slow pace, gradually picking up speed as he raced through the woods, away from his parents’ mansion—away from Helina. It only took him minutes to reach the road. He stayed within the tree line as he ran parallel with them, looking for anything that could be used as a home. He slowed his pace as he saw a small dirt road with overgrown trees and shrubs covering it.