The Kingdom of the Nine; The Vampire Legacy IV (21 page)

“What are you getting at, Cait?” He asked, as
he seemed to get a bit annoyed with me.

“Was it you that interfered?” I questioned
him. That was when I saw his eyes become dark, almost a normal
color and he turned away from me.

“Leave.” He whispered.

“What?” I said, almost laughing.

“I asked you to leave.” Creolas moved further
away from me and looked out the window. “Next time, I won't be so
pleasant about it.”

“Why are you avoiding my question?” I
asked.

“Caitlyn, drop it.” His voice snarled, but I
couldn't see his face.

“What aren't you telling me, Creolas?” I
stepped closer to him, and then reached out to touch his shoulder,
but he turned quickly and grabbed my wrist, holding it tightly. His
eyes shone a bright red color and it took my breath away. “I'm not
afraid of you.”

“You really should be.” He replied, drawing
me closer to him. “I'm not a nice man.”

“I've seen your other side.” I replied,
placing my other hand on his chest, a gestured he tried to back
away from, but soon found out he was trapped, between me, and a
wall. “On the beach, when you told me about Klamara, you let down
your guard and I saw right through this act.”

“It's not an act, and if you keep talking,
you're liable to get hurt.”

“Was it you that stopped him?”

“Why are you doing this?” He questioned,
looking down into my eyes. “Do you want me to hurt you? Do you get
a kick from it?”

“You wouldn't hurt me, not like this.” I
replied, confident that I knew his motives.

“What makes you so sure?” He asked.

“Well, think about it, you've never done it
before without a purpose.” I stepped back to give him some space
but his arm wrapped around my waist and he pulled me back. “You
weren't trying to hurt me before, when you did those things; you
were trying to get them to take me away, just like now.”

“What am I doing now?” He said, smiling.

“Why are you always asking me to explain
everything?” I questioned him, but watched as he came closer to my
face. I reached my hands up and put them against his chest, holding
him back. “You're trying to get to Julian, through me, by holding
me like this, to make him mad at you, mad enough to take me out of
this house.”

“Do you think if he saw us like this, he
would?”

“I don't think so.” Julian's voice spoke up.
I felt Creolas let me go and I backed away from him, quickly, then
stood there looking between the two of them. Creolas smiled, slyly,
as he put his hands in the pockets of his black pants, and then he
glanced at me. “I thought I told you to leave.”

“I couldn't go without saying goodbye to
Caitlyn.” He replied and casually looked out the window. “I wanted
to plead with her one last time to confess to you what special kind
of bond the two of us share.”

“Save your stories for the road, Creolas. I
don't believe a word of it, in fact, I was standing in the doorway
the whole time.” Julian replied then looked me dead in the eyes.
“Come on Caitlyn, Creolas needs his space to start packing. He's
leaving tonight.”

“Take my advice, Julian.” Creolas spoke up as
the two of us turned to leave the room. “If you want her to live,
you'll take her far away from this place, and those rings. They
only bring death with them when they appear.”

“Duly noted, but Creolas, I don't hold much
worth in what you say, so don't count on it.” Julian moved from the
doorway, taking my hand as he began to walk away, pulling me with
him.

I stopped him in the hallway, just before we
reached the door to my room and turned to face him. His eyes told
me that he really wasn't sure what he had seen in that room.

“You lied to him.” I told him, making him
look at me in disbelief that I would even say that to him. “You
weren't standing in the doorway, and you have no idea what was
going on in there.”

“You're right, I don't, so, why don't you
explain to me why he was holding you like that, and why it's the
second time I've found you that way.” He answered; the anger in his
voice was obvious.

“I will explain everything after you tell me
exactly what happened the day that Klamara came for me.” I replied,
crossing my arms. Julian closed his eyes, and then shook his head
as he turned away from me. “You can't keep it a secret forever,
Julian. Someday, I will find out what happened; I just hope it
doesn't hurt whatever it is that we have together.”

“What do we have, Caitlyn? It's obviously
something less important to you if you're off in the arms of
another man.”

“Oh, please, Julian. Would you listen to
yourself? The arms of another man, Creolas, please.” I sighed and
walked over to my door, which I opened and gestured for him to
enter. Julian looked at me, then crossed his arms and looked away
briefly. “This is it then? This is how it's going to end? With us
fighting over something that doesn't exist.”

“You were with Creolas, twice in as many
days, what am I suppose to believe?” Julian asked.

“Me, you're supposed to believe me, because I
want to tell you the truth, because I love you and you love me.” I
replied then shook my head as I looked into my room. “Fine, believe
what you want, but if you actually want an explanation, then the
door is open, if not...well...”

I left it at that and walked into my room,
where I got comfortable on the chair and stared out at the window.
It was only about ten minutes later that the door opened slowly,
and Julian walked in. He looked at me, quietly, as I glanced over
his way and watched him close the door.

“I'm sorry.” He whispered and sat down on the
bed across from me. “I walked in on something that I couldn't
explain, that I thought I would never see someone I love with
Creolas, demon of the underworld.”

“He's not that bad.” I replied and looked
back out the window, trying to avoid that look he had in his eyes.
“In fact, I think he had other motives, every time he tried to
seduce me, or bite me, which ever you want to call it.”

“I still don't understand why you're
defending him.” He said and shook his head, and then he looked at
me, at the expression of aggravation on my face. “But, if you think
there's something more to him, I'll listen to what you have to
say.”

I moved from the chair to the bed and sat
sideways to look at Julian, and then I licked my lips and sighed,
getting comfortable. I wasn't sure how to start, so I stumbled a
bit getting my words together, when Julian took my hand. It was at
that touch that everything fell into place.

“Creolas never meant to hurt me, I know he
didn't, which is why he stopped each time, except that night when I
thought he was you. I believe that time he saw me as something to
claim, but the others, to me, seemed to have been a way to get your
attention.” I shook my head, as I closed my eyes, then slowly
opened them and looked at Julian.

“Well, it worked.” He sighed and looked up at
the ceiling. “So, what do you think we should do about him?”

“It's your house, Julian.” I replied and
stood up. “That's up to you, but this, or at least most of it, ends
tonight.” I looked back at him, as I stood against the wall and
crossed my arms. “Your turn, could you tell me what happened the
night Klamara came for me?”

“Would you like to know everything that
happened that day or just the end of it?” He asked, looking up at
me, through his hair as he bent his head downwards. He folded his
fingers together and then stood up, lifting his head up to look
fully at me.

“Is there more there than in my memory?
Should I know more than I can see?” I questioned him.

“It depends on how much you can handle.” I
smiled at him as he stood there, looking down at me.

“So, where do we start?” I watched that smile
cross his lips, the one that told me I was about to find out every
dirty little secret that this family has been holding and it was
all going to come down to the one that's been haunting me since I
arrived, the one that would tell me where the three missing years
of my life went.

17

Julian and I stepped into the sitting room
together. The feeling in the room seemed to be as if the King and
Queen themselves had entered, everyone in the room, seemed to stand
or turn in our direction and stare.

I stood there, scanning the room with my
eyes, taking in the expressions of the men who occupied it, as
Julian stepped away from me and made his way towards the four large
chairs that were set around the fireplace, and then he turned and
looked at me.

“Please, come in and sit down.” He asked me,
softly. I moved towards him, passing the eyes that watched me, and
then I stopped in front of one of the chairs, facing Julian and
waited. There were FOUR chairs and I knew it meant we were having
company.

I turned back towards the door and watched
Nick's dark clothed figure walk through and towards us. The fire
seemed to bring out the darkness, the anger, in his eyes. He
stopped in front of me, raised one eyebrow and glared at me. It was
as if I were looking at a floating head, for Nick was dressed in a
heavy black turtleneck and black pants. His hands were stuck into
the pockets and he seemed quite uptight.

“Relax, this isn't a firing squad.” I told
him, and looked over at Julian, who gave a little shake of his
head.

“It might as well be.” Nick said and walked
over to the seat furthest away from Julian, but closest to the
fire.

Quinn walked over next, and smiled,
childishly at me before he, without a single word, grabbed the
chair opposite of Nick. I sat down with Nick on my left and looked
at Julian, who stood by the fire, then at the empty seat three feet
away to my right.

“Are we expecting company?' Nick inquired.
Julian glanced at him, then back at the empty chair.

“We may be.” He replied. “I've invited
Creolas, but I'm not sure if he's going to show himself.”

“Why would you want to have him here?” Quinn
asked. There wasn't any anger or disapproval in his voice, but
there was a bit of genuine curiosity in it, as if he wanted to know
what his brother was up too.

“Caitlyn would like to know what happened to
her the day that Klamara came for her.” Julian replied as he looked
down at the floor. “I believe Creolas knows more than he's saying.”
He looked up at Quinn, his green eyes, which were usually bright,
seemed dark. “But, if he's not here, we should get on with it.”

“I have other questions.” I spoke up, which
made Julian turn those green eyes on me. His face was questioning
but his posture didn't change. He stood there, like the prince they
claimed he was, sturdy and unwavering, staring as if he wanted to
make me lower my eyes. “There are some things I think you should
tell me.”

“Do they have to do with that day?” He
questioned.

“They may, I mean, I don't know if they will
have a direct connection but I think it will definitely give me
insight into what I still don't remember.” I answered.

“Start from the end and work your way back to
the beginning, huh?” Nick asked.

“No, if I had my choice, I'd start where I
was suppose too, but it seems I don't and, if I'm right, I have
very little time to find things out.”

“And, this is what you chose to know?” He
looked at me oddly.

“It's my last day on Earth, Jules; I can ask
what I want.” I replied and watched his guard break down and he
shrugged, giving me the feeling that if that's what I wanted then
whatever. “Good, then whenever you're ready, just let me know.”

Julian paced for a moment, back and forth in
front of the fireplace before Nick sat up, apparently disturbed by
his pacing and looked at his cousin.

“Do you have something to hide?” He
questioned. Julian stopped and whipped around to look at Nick,
through squinted eyes with fire burning in them, and then he
regained his posture and shook his head. “Then, what are you
waiting for. Let her ask her questions.”

Julian looked over at me, that fire still
burning in his eyes and I suddenly noticed that he had changed.
Within the last hour, I had noticed the distance in his eyes. He
nodded at me, and then looked away quickly, turning towards the
fireplace.

“Most of the legends that I know of say that
vampires can't walk in the daylight, that the sun burns them.” I
said, softly, then glanced from Quinn, to Nick, and finally set my
eyes on Julian. “Why is your family different?”

“It's not just our family,” Julian said,
quietly. He turned to look at me, the flames from the fire gave his
face a haunting look, one that enticed me to reach out and touch
him. “There were nine kings, remember.”

“That doesn't explain much to me.” I
replied.

“You didn't let me finish.” He smiled, but it
was a sarcastic smile, almost menacing. I shrugged and waved at him
to continue. “One of the kings, Tabora, sought out a sorceress,
after learning that Imar and the other two brothers had defeated
the evil that they had been fighting, unaware that they had been
granted the gift of children, he asked for the curse of darkness to
be lifted from them, so they could walk in the day light. The woman
agreed but only on one condition. When the first mortal son was
born; the mother would give the child to her. This was how Tabora
learned of the children.”

“But, I thought the original nine kings all
died before the first generation was born.” I whispered.

“They did, but since they knew all of the
children would be boys, it was just a matter of time before the
witch would get her hands on the child. Tabora had told the other
kings what he had done and asked them to stand with him, agree with
the woman's terms, and they all would walk in the light, but they
said no, and warned the mothers about what Tabora had done.

“Most of them left to have the children in a
protected place, but one woman, who was not Tabora's “wife”,
despite what you might think, strayed from the group on the way
there. The witch captured her and waited until she went into labor
before she took the baby, forcefully, from the mother. The witch
named him Timmorack and used her magic to grant that child
immortality in the light when he changed into a vampire.” Julian
sat down on the floor, near the fireplace, and looked into the
flame. “From him came one of the next generation, and that child
had another, but it was Timmorack's offspring that carried the gift
with it.”