Redemption: My Vampire Lover Part #2 (A Dark Realm Novella Series) (8 page)

Quickly he sat upright, glancing away. His
mood had again changed, but he did not move from my side.

Letting the silence between us grow, I
marveled at the blue water, trying to forget it was the same color
as Raphael’s eyes. A few waves rolled in and splashed against the
platform where we lounged in a large hammock made for two. I let my
eyes trace the covered pier where we sat overlooking the beach on
one side and the water on the other. The platform extended out some
sixty or seventy feet from a cove surrounded by palm trees. It was
breathtaking. Even in the Golden realm, I had never seen anything
like it. Our rivers were green and calm, and wound around
mountains. This body of water must be an ocean, I surmised,
recalling what my aunt had told me.

When I glanced over at Raphael again, he was
staring at me. A rush of warmth rolled over me and my mouth began
to water.
Claim me
, I thought.

He pulled me toward him, cradling my head in
his large hands. Gently he stroked my cheeks with his thumbs. “I
was dead inside until I met you.”

I merely stared at him, tongue-tied.
This
was real
.

“You feel it too, don’t you?”

“Yes,” I breathed.

He kissed the pulsing hollow at the base of
my throat. A low moan left my lips. Then he brushed a gentle kiss
across my forehead, teasing me, tempting me to respond. Raising my
mouth to his, I licked my tongue along his bottom lip. The
electricity sparked between both of us and I closed my eyes as his
mouth covered mine.
Yes, take me.
His tongue sent shivers of
desire racing through me and I returned his passion. I was shocked
at my own eager response to his lips.

***

“How did we get here?” I asked as he cradled
me in his arms.

He remained quiet for a very long time. My
question seemed to float along the air, threatening to fall into
the water. Lightly I touched my fingers to my lips and felt the
wetness from his embrace. My lips were still radiating and warm.
His kiss had sent new spirals of ecstasy through me.
I want you
deep inside me,
I thought. As I settled back in Raphael’s arms,
I relived our recent kiss over and over again in my head. I relived
our lovemaking by the rock. I smiled up towards the white canopy
and enjoyed the feel of his arms around me.
Life with him would
be Heaven.

“By way of the river,” he said finally.

“Yes, but where are we?” I questioned,
remembering he had yanked me under the water. “How did we get here
exactly?” I repeated.

Raphael stood up quickly, almost dumping me
out of the hammock onto the wooden pier. “It doesn’t really
matter,” he muttered. “I wonder where they are.”

“Who?” I snapped. I felt abandoned at his
hasty exit.
He should always be by my side.

“Orlando and the others. We usually meet
here.” His voice drifted off. He had changed into a long-sleeve
blue shirt, same as I had worn before, and a pair of gray pants.
For some reason, I wore a flowing mint green linen dress that I
assumed he had clothed me with. That realization made my cheeks
redden.

“Raphael?” I added an authoritative tone to
my voice, letting the last syllable drop with a hint of
seriousness. “I want some answers.”

“This…” he announced, raising his arms to the
sky, “is the Fanged world. But it doesn’t matter, does it?” he
growled. “You’ll be on your way home soon and out of my father’s
clutches. He won’t take you as well, but I’ll lose you forever.” He
pumped his fist into the palm of his other hand.

When I realized Raphael was referring to my
brother and aunt, a flood of wild grief ripped through me and I
gasped.

He whirled around. Oh god, Caroline. I didn’t
want to tell you. I’m sorry!”

I covered my mouth in anguish preventing
myself from saying anything because I immediately understood his
meaning the same time he did. My eyes widened and a large lump
formed in my throat.

Our eyes locked. The passion in his eyes died
and they became flat, almost as unreadable as stone. He shifted his
gaze to the water beyond us, refusing to look at me.

“Who. Is. Your. Father?” I uttered the words
very slowly when I finally recovered my voice.

“I can explain.”

“Who is your father?” I screamed, brining my
feet down hard on the wood as I attempted to stand without any
luck. The wood of the pier beneath me cracked.

“Let me explain.”

“Tell me,” I growled.

“Lord Asmodeus. The demon that probably
killed your relatives. He’s my father.”

“No!” Not wanting to hear Raphael confess to
a death sentence by association, I covered my ears and shook my
head. “No, don’t say that.” I prayed the Wolf had not heard
him.

He’ll have to die too, Caroline.

“
No, I won’t let you
,” I replied
inwardly to the Wolf.

To extinguish the darkness in your father
and mother, all demons will have to die.

“I will kill the son-of-a-bitch myself, Wolf.
This is not your fight!” I screamed, realizing Raphael had no idea
what I was talking about. Smothering back a sob, I fell into the
hammock, defeated. Tears streamed down my face and I hid my face
from Raphael who was standing over me.
I’d lose him too. Death
would take the one chance I may have at love, real love and I’d be
powerless to stop it.

“Please Caroline. I can explain.” Raphael
knelt beside me in the hammock.

“No, no. You don’t have to. You’re not your
father’s son. I can see that. You wouldn’t have helped me
otherwise.” I swallowed down the sobs threatening to spill over
into my voice. I rested my head on Raphael’s shoulder for a long
time, trying to regain my composure. My mind raced and I struggled
to keep control of the situation before the Wolf intervened.

“After you drank my blood, I could hear some
of your thoughts, especially if we were touching. I heard you speak
of avenging your brother and aunt’s deaths. That came out when we
jumped into the river and I grabbed you. But it’s more than that. I
knew when I saw the new skulls on my father’s wall and he told me
he had kidnapped the Princess of the Golden realm. I knew he was
likely hunting your family. I’m so sorry, Caroline. Don’t you see?
Don’t you see now why we have to get you out of here? What if you
or your father is next?”

He wrapped his arms around my legs as he
knelt beside me. “I’ll keep you safe. I’ll die for you if it means
you can escape. I won’t let him have you, Caroline.”

I stared down at Raphael as he stroked the
outer curve of my calf. A warm golden glow of comfort flowed up
from my soul and wrapped around my heart. Already he had been by my
side more times than I could expect my father or mother to be. My
family was gone with the death of my brother and aunt. It was my
reality and I knew it. I rubbed my fingers through Raphael’s hair
for a long time, watching the sun rays catch the reflections in his
onyx highlights. He sat curled up at my feet, holding me close amid
my knees and legs. He rested his head in my lap as I casually
played with his hair. The bluish black lights glimmered and
mesmerized me.
My heart will never mend if I have to leave this
man. There must be a way out of this ordeal.

Attempting to change the mood because my legs
were falling asleep, I whispered to Raphael. “I hate this hammock.
Can we find a better place to sit?”

He looked up at me. His mouth quirked with
humor. “The hammock is a bad sitting spot, isn’t it?” he chuckled.
“I’ll have to tell Orlando about that. Dragons don’t understand
pleasantries such as furniture. Let’s go to the beach and sit under
the palm trees, okay?”

I returned a weak smile as I let him lead me
off the pier. He took my hand in his and I choked back another wave
of grief as it hit me. It was like every ounce of despair I had
tried to hold back after losing my aunt and brother in the recent
months surfaced in that one moment. Tears blinded my vision and I
was thankful I had Raphael there to help me find my way.
What if
you or your father is next?
The impact of his words slammed
into my heart. I could be next if this Asmodeus demon, this father
of Raphael’s found me.

Chapter 5 – Raphael’s Proposal

Author’s
Note: This chapter is told from Raphael, the hero’s point of
view.

Once we made it to the shoreline, I used my
vampire speed and strength to create a place for Caroline that
would be more comfortable than the hammock she had been scrunched
in. My large height of 6’2” and weight of a muscular 220 lbs didn’t
leave much room for her to be in the hammock with me. I did my best
to bury my thoughts of wanting her to sit in my lap or, more
accurately, straddle my lap because I knew now was not the time to
have such urgings. She needed my mind, not my body.

I couldn’t help but remember what we had
already experienced together. It had been incredible. She was
incredible, breathtaking. The silkiness of her buttocks. Her dusty
pink nipples. The divine warmth of her sex. The sheer power of her
werewolf form. Whether she knew it or not, Caroline was indeed a
rare werewolf. But was she a Livonian wolf? That I had to find out.
It made the urgency to protect her even greater.

As I set to my task and began carving a
sizeable bench out of the trunk of a fallen palm tree, I hoped
Caroline and I would have time to talk before Orlando and the
others arrived. I had expected to see my friend pop his dragon head
up out of the water right by Caroline’s feet, but he had not shown.
None of the dragons were in their usual dwelling spots by the cove
or the pier, and that had me a little more than concern.

Caroline still seemed upset and dealing with
her grief, so I shared the story of how I discovered the Fanged
world when I was a boy.

She wandered around the grove of palm trees
picking up small pieces of wood for an evening fire as I stole a
few glances at her. She was a vision that would rival the gods.

***

“My father and I used to get along,” I began.
“You wouldn’t expect me to say that, but it’s true. I idolized him
when he and my mother were together. She brought out the best in
him. Unfortunately, my inaccuracy with a bow and arrow damaged our
relationship.”

“Why’s that?” Caroline asked. She strolled
along behind me like she was in a sort of a daze, only
half-heartedly listening, but I continued as I worked.

“One day my father and I went hunting. Tigers
were the big…” I paused and corrected my language to be more
sensitive to Caroline’s situation. “We were hunting for tigers
across the wasteland. I wasn’t that good with a bow and arrow, so I
missed the kill-shot for the cat. The tiger escaped into the
water.”

“Tigers like water?”

“They do when they are running for their
lives, but yes, to answer your question, tigers are fond of water.”
I laughed at her sudden curiosity.

“When the tiger plunged into the water and
disappeared, my father insisted I jump in and wrestle the animal
out of the water. I hadn’t learned to swim at that time, so I
refused.”

“There’s no time like the present,” he had
replied. “And he threw me in the water. He refused to let me get
out of the water until I came out with the tiger in a bear hug.” I
paused as I finished fashioning one side of the bench to match the
other side, waiting to see if she’d get my joke. She didn’t seem to
notice. I continued.

“I struggled for the longest time to stay
afloat, but after I grew tired I began to drown. My father stood
there and watched me, not once helping me.”

Caroline interrupted me. “Your father is an
asshole.”

“I totally agree.” I smiled to myself,
sighing as my heart swelled. This is a moment I’ll always cherish,
I thought. I continued. “Once I fell beneath the water and assumed
I had drowned, some force dragged me to the bottom of the sea. I
woke up on this beach here with two dragons peering intently over
me. I thought they were going to eat me, but I soon discovered that
they were more fearful of me because they had never seen a creature
that could walk on two legs.”

“You were the first human they had ever
seen?”

I nodded, glancing her way. She was leaning
against one of the palm trees, braiding her hair. I sighed again,
exhaling slowly and resumed my work. After a few moments, I
announced, “I’m almost done here.” I rested my hands on my hips.
“Anyways, that’s how I learned about the Fanged world. Orlando was
the one who saved me. I’d say he’s as close as any brother I could
ever hope to have. He and I are army friends. We go into battle
together when any issues arise and we have to make peace with the
other realms.”

“What about the other dragons?”

“The others are older and more reserved, but
they are very nice once you get to know them. They’ll be very nice
to you. Don’t worry. I’m hoping you get to meet them.”

“You expect them before nightfall?”

“They usually know when I’m on my way, so it
doesn’t make sense that they wouldn’t be here now.”

Caroline spoke up, interrupting my train of
thought. “The ceiling painting above your bed. You said Orlando
made that for you, to remind you?” She paused, her tawny eyes
gleaming, as she searched for the right word.

“Here,” I motioned for her to join me on the
newly carved bench. “Sit with me.”

“This is beautiful, Raphael. Thank you. Look
we can see out across the water. I can’t get over this view.” She
cuddled up close to me and patted me on the knee. “That design. I
understand now. It reminds you of who you are - a member of the
Fanged army - not a demon like your father.” Glancing up at me with
a satisfied expression, she asked, “That’s correct? Isn’t it?”

I nodded, brushing her braids over her
shoulder. “Precisely. Now you understand. I’m not a demon. And just
because I’m a vampire in the Dark realm does not mean I’m evil. I’m
not. There’s a small group of us who fight for justice and that’s
what I do.”