Within The Shadows (7 page)

Alex did not
give me a chance to breathe. He moved his mouth closer to my neck,
biting down sharply, leaving me gasping from the mixture of pain
and pleasure. The rush that soon followed was more intense than the
first time he bit me. This was pure joy. I could feel him grinding
hard against me, and soon I reached a climax that left my entire
body shaking. I was completely exhilarated, and definitely on a
high.

***

The next few
hours, I slept contently dreaming about Alex
, and how he made me feel. I never thought it possible to
feel so much lust and anger for someone. I could not think of one
other time I had let desire take over. I always had so much control
when I was alone with Marc. I did not know if the new me was
something I would learn to love or hate, the latter being the
obvious choice.

Guilt built
up, and soon I was awake, staring at the ceiling, and thinking of
Marc. I felt as though I’d betrayed him, as if I was the one who’d
done the dirty deed, and cheated on him. I envied my innocence, and
longed for my old life.

They say
that when we take revenge against another, we lose some of our
innocence. Maybe this was my retribution, and if it was, then God
had a very sick way of making me pay.

* * *

Feeling
restless, I found it hard to sleep, so I got up, and decided to
make myself a little decent, something which had not occurred since
prom. I was not expecting my reflection to startle me. I looked
like me, but there was certainly some kind of change going on. My
once olive complexion was gone, and in its place was a subtler
glow, a luminescence.

The colour
of my dark brown eyes remained the same. My lips were a little
plumper, but it was the dark circle in the hollow of my chest that
frightened me. I rubbed hard to remove the stain, but it refused to
shift, and remained there; a darkness between my
breasts.

I cried.

This change
wasn’t what I wanted. I wanted to remain the same. If Alex was
right about my soul, then why did things have to change? Why did I
have to leave everything behind me for some crazy vampire
war?

Why had I not been given a
choice?

I pulled on
the nearest sweater and jeans combo I could find
, and rushed out. The late afternoon sun hit me hard in the
face, and the gentle heat flowed over my body. I craved it. I loved
being out in the light of day, and nothing was happening. Content
that I was not about to burst into flames or turn to dust, I headed
in the direction of the valley.

The steep
walk down was harder than I had expected. I fell a few times,
losing my feet in the hidden potholes. I passed a series of paths
up to the left of the slopes, but as far as I could see they led
nowhere. Shuffling on, I soon came to a picturesque stone bridge
spanning the width of the stream below. I stopped, and rested,
taking in the wonderful beauty that surrounded me. I felt at peace
as I sat in the silence. No demands, just me and nature.

I sat back,
and watched the rays of the sun dance among the branches of the
willow trees, looking at the large, overgrown roots that were home
to a nest of ants. After a while, I considered heading back to the
house, but it was so pleasant and so comfortable, I decided to sit
there quietly for a while longer.

The evening
sun began to dim, and the birds hurried home to their nests with
food in their mouths for the young. My stomach rumbled. Food was
definitely a good idea.

I got to my
feet, and headed back toward the slopes. The water in the stream
followed me as I made my way across the bridge. For the first time
in what seemed like forever, my mind was clear of drama, no Alex,
no Marc – bliss!

Sunset
happened a lot quicker than I thought it would. With the looming
darkness at my back, I rushed back up the hill. Momentarily, I
forgot my way, and stumbled over the root of a tree.

“
Crap!” I
spat as I fell.

I had only
grazed the tip of my elbow, but it stung like hell. Wasting no more
time, I picked up my pace, and scrambled back up the steep slope,
trying hard not to fall victim to any more heather covered holes. I
was close to the top when a blast of wind hit me, knocking me flat
on my back.

Trying hard
to regain my composure, I became increasingly aware of the shadows
surrounding me, not one
, but six of them.
With glowing eyes, their black silhouettes moved closer to me with
their arms stretched out trying to grab a hold of me. I could feel
their hatred, their anger, and most of all, I sensed their desire
to harm me. One leapt on top of me, using its nails to dig at the
centre of my chest. It drew blood, and I screamed, my voice echoing
as my heart thumped hard.

This was it.
This was
how I was going to die!

Chapter
Six

OUT OF
NOWHERE
, Leonid landed heavily on the
ground. Pulling me within his arms, he leapt through the rest of
the clearing, not stopping until we reached the boundaries of the
house.

He
set me down gently. His strong arms were smooth,
his skin radiant. For a moment, his eyes were not dark and cold.
They were full of concern and worry.

“
You must
never leave the boundaries of the estate again.”

“
I didn’t
know I was under house arrest,” I snapped like a child.

“
Must you be
so insubordinate?”

“
Well, I didn’t know it was like some big deal to go for a
walk. Next time, I’ll check in with the warden,” I
muttered.

“
Dare you mock me?” He towered over me. His eyes were mean
and angry. I swear I could hear his fists clench. “Those shadow
creatures lurk around these boundaries. They are aware of the
changes, and they do not like the thought of a mortal at work
within the lair. Tempt them again, and you will be done
for.”

“
Why would they want me? I’m just an ordinary girl, or I
was.”

“
You bear the mark of darkness. It surrounds you. Your soul
is tainted, and, in time, the darkness will want its
reward.”

“
Meaning
what?”

He walked
past me without responding, and disappeared into the
night.

I shouted
after him, yelling into the night sky, “Meaning what? I want
answers, do you hear me? I want answers!”

Nothing.

“
What an ass!” I mumbled as I walked through the courtyard.
Sometimes, my mouth got the best of me. At the best of times,
trying to control the verbal diarrhoea was not a pretty
sight.

“
You friggin’ loser
!” I bellowed
into the darkness.

Control, Giselle.
Think control.

Easier said
than done when you have no idea of what is
happening
, and your stomach is crying out
for food, ‘real’ food.

The old
Gothic style building that stood before me was, without a doubt,
incredible, but it gave me the creeps. Pointed arches and vaults
were visible on the windows and doors with steeply pitched gables
and balanced thrusts in some of the stone masonry. Stone gargoyles
sat on each corner of the roof, their eyes staring down as if they
were watching me. Not having noticed it before made me feel very
out of the loop.

There
I was,
wherever that might be
, alone,
with no friends, no crazy mother, and certainly no adoring
boyfriend to take that sense of danger away from me.

The
shadow
creatures still hung in my head as
I walked into the front hall. My skin crawled from the fright, and
the wound on my chest stung. My mind was in another place when I
bumped into a woman reading some sort of old book, sending it
crashing to the floor.

I casually blurted out, “Sorry
about that,” as I picked it up.

Unable to
the read the strange language of the writing in the book, I handed
it back to her. She was old. Her hair was black with silver
strands, her eyes were of the darkest black, and the left one was
lazy. Her face was a mass of lines, and her teeth gleamed in the
light as she smiled at me.

Without
giving her time to say anything, I rushed past her down the hall,
and went through the first door I could find. Old ladies gave me
the heebie-jeebies at the best of times, especially ones with
fangs, and right then, I did not fancy talking rubbish with another
vamp.

“
Giselle, what a surprise!” Turning around, I saw Afanas
sitting at a large table.

“
Yep, that’s
me, full of surprises,” I awkwardly responded.

He got up
from his chair, and walked over to me. His freakish looks did not
make me feel any safer, and I wanted to run back out the way I
came.

“
Don’t be frightened. Please, sit with me a while.” He
pointed to a large, comfortable looking couch, and I sat down
obediently.

“
I was looking for the kitchen. I didn’t mean to
intrude.”

He laughed the same sinister
laugh I had heard from him before, making my skin crawl.

“
The kitchen?” He looked at me as though I was
mad.

“
Yeah, I’m kinda starving. You know, a stomach ache from
hunger.”

There it was
again, that horrid laugh. “But, of course, you are hungry. It has
been a long four days. Come, we shall find you lots of nice things
to eat.”

As
surprises go, it was a good one. I could not
believe the amount of food I saw in the refrigerator. Meats,
cheeses, fresh fruit, bread, chocolate éclairs, (my personal
favourite), and, of course, cans of soda. I got stuck into one of
the best sandwiches ever. Afanas spread the mustard on thickly, not
leaving much bread to show. The ham was delicious, and the tomatoes
were mouth-wateringly juicy. All of it was washed down with a gulp
of Coke.

Heaven
!

Afanas watched me intently.

“
What?” I
asked, feeling quite uncomfortable.

He
smirked.
“It gives me great satisfaction
watching you eat.”

I was
totally weirded out by this. Was he some kind of old letch who got
off on young girls eating?

Gross.

“
I was
hungry.”

“
Yes, I’m aware of that. My Lord was right about your
appetite. However, I didn’t quite believe you would need all of
this after feeding from him last evening.”

Urgh, the
blood thing. Why did he have to remind me?

“
Yeah, about that. Can we have a conversation where the
subject doesn’t involve the red stuff?”

“
Absolutely. What would you like to talk about?”

Sitting beside me, he observed
me as I swallowed the last mouthful.

“
Where am
I?”

“
Ah, well, that is an easy one. We’re in the mountains of
Utmish Ato-tem.”

“
Right, and
that is where, exactly?”

“
Armenia.”

Jesus
Christ, I was on the other side of the world. Not good, not good at
all. Of all the places in the world to be stuck in, Alex had chosen
Armenia. I guess I was not too surprised he’d flown me halfway
around the world, unconscious, and without any ramifications. How
the hell he’d done it, I did not know, but I promised myself that
one day I would get the answers I wanted.

Maybe.

My head
ached from all the thinking I was doing.
I wanted to call home so badly, but was scared of hearing
my mother. I did not know what to expect, so I pushed the longing
to the back of my mind, and thought of one person only.

Alex.

I had not
seen him since last night, and I was feeling kind of ashamed of
myself. I enjoyed every bit of our encounter, but something made me
feel very uneasy about it. It made me feel cheap and whore-like,
but it was hard trying to ignore the craving inside.

Afanas did
not make it any easier. He was trying his best to give me the
answers I wanted, but I got the impression he was holding back on
me, and I hate liars.

“
Ok, why here? Why Armenia?

He shuffled
uneasily upon the stool. “Because Armenia is our home, our safe
haven away from the dangers of more sinister lairs. Here, we are
free from harm.”

“
I still don’t get why other vampires would want to harm
you. Besides, Alex . . . I mean, Alexander, survived quite well
back home. No one ever tried anything on him, did they?”

I could not
help but to push on.

“
Yes, Alexander survived, but that was because of the great
lengths his father took to protect him. And there was the odd
occasion that his life was put in jeopardy.”

“
Oh, okay. I suppose you are trying your best here, but
could you at least elaborate a little more?” I was becoming
irritated with the short answers. I wanted more. I needed
more.

“
Well, hasn’t it become quite obvious we aren’t the monsters
folklore portrays us to be?”