Dark Hunger (Immortal Legacy Book 5) Page 4

  Chapter Twelve

  Sarah

  As I stared at my reflection in the mirror, I focused on the purple bruising around the bite marks on my neck and cursed the heat that prevented me from wearing a turtleneck sweater that would help to hide the marks.

  There was nothing I could do but position my long hair around my neck so that it would hide the bite. It wasn’t so much that I was afraid of Donovan, at least not for myself. I just wasn’t sure what might happen to Darrien if my father saw the marks.

  Glancing at the digital alarm clock on my bedside table, I saw that it was nearly time to go downstairs. Ethan had called a meeting and asked that we all be there.

  Though I was still getting to know everyone, I found them all likable, in different ways. Ethan was amusing, trying too hard to be human. Dash was fun to be with. No matter how down you were feeling, he could always find some way to make you smile. Then there was Nicole. My sister was everything I’d imagined she would be and more. I almost didn’t know how to react to having a big sister around.

  From the murmur of voices I could hear as I descended the stairs, it sounded as if everyone had arrived. When I stepped into the parlor, I scanned the room looking for Darrien. I saw Dash, Alec, my sister, and the priest. Aunt Jeanie had even come. It looked like everyone but Darrien.

  This wasn’t too surprising. His interest in the Light Seekers was limited. He didn’t really believe they would ever be successful. Although he’d never said this to me, I could feel it whenever I talked about the Place of Light or the secrets the ancients were hiding. He didn’t believe.

  When everyone found a place to sit, Ethan stood up and faced those gathered. “We have a few different things we need to discuss tonight.”

  I felt a twinge of alarm when Ethan scanned the crowd, but his eyes quickly skipped over me. He seemed different somehow. Ethan’s face actually had some color to it. He was nowhere near as pale as usual.

  “First, I’m sure everyone is aware that Omar and his vamps are gone. It appears as if they have disappeared from the face of the earth, but don’t be fooled. This doesn’t mean that he’s hightailed it. What it means is that something very serious is getting ready to go down, so we better be ready for it.

  “I know this is basically a vampire problem and not everyone here is a vampire, but we all have something in common. We are all targets of these renegade vamps,” he continued.

  “How are we suppose to be ready for something, if we don’t know what that something is?” Jeanie spoke up.

  Ethan shook his head. “I don’t know. Just keep an eye open at all times.”

  “What else is going on?” Nicole asked. “I know you, Ethan. You wouldn’t call everyone together just to tell us about something we already know.”

  Nicole was sitting on the couch next to Alec and had her dislocated shoulder in a sling to keep her arm stationary. Nicole also had a blanket wrapped around her. Even in the stifling heat of the day, she complained of being cold. I was still afraid there was a chance she might turn.

  “Dash and I have been talking, and we decided it was time that we tried to cross into this other dimension,” he told us.

  “How are you going to do this when you don’t even know how to get to this place?” Alec scoffed at the idea.

  “I’ve been doing a lot of research on the subject and I think I have a general idea of where the gateways are,” Ethan said. “What I’ve found matches closely to what Dash experienced. I think that maybe we could send someone through. They could check it out.”

  “Who is going to do this?” Nicole asked.

  Dash stood up and smiled. “That would be me. I would be an ambassador of sorts. You know, I would kind of just slip over there and have a bit of a talk with whoever’s in charge.”

  Nicole shook her head. “No way.”

  Father Rovati cleared his throat to get our attention. “To tell you the truth, I can’t even believe I’m sitting here, listening to all of this. I’ve spent my life hunting vampires, and now I’m at some kind of a vampire meeting. To top that off, I’m listening to some strange idea about going to a place that very likely doesn’t exist, except for in legends.”

  “It does exist,” Donovan interceded. “But it’s foolish to think that any of us would go there and live to return. It is the realm of the wolf.”

  “I don’t know. The wolves don’t seem like such a bad sort,” Dash said, cocking his head to one side.

  Donovan’s smile was chilling. “Need I remind you that we are not talking about a lone vampire going into a den of wolves, but an entire kingdom of wolves? We are talking about a species that has been our enemy since the dawn of time.”

  “I have to agree with Dash. They don’t seem so bad,” I told them.

  “And now my daughter is an expert on the wolves,” Donovan glowered.

  “Well no, but I know a little about them,” I came back, throwing a glare his way.

  “As do I.” Nicole pushed the blanket from her shoulders and got to her feet. At first she swayed a little, but Alec was there to steady her.

  “It would be foolish for you to go there. Lex told me that only one vampire has ever gone to this place and survived. I don’t want you to go, Dash, especially not alone,” she added.

  “It doesn’t make sense for everyone to risk their lives,” Dash told her. “And besides, I’m so tired of living only at night, it doesn’t really matter to me anymore.”

  “No Dash,” Nicole shook her head. “We need you here. There’s still a lot to do. We have to find my youngest sister.”

  Dash gave her a sad smile. “You don’t need me for that. Ethan’s your man for those kinds of things.”

  My sister was ready to fling more objections when Ethan held up his hand. “We will go with him, at least to the gateway.”

  Nicole searched the faces of the people that were gathered. “Where’s Lex? Why isn’t he here? He would tell you how foolish this is.”

  “Lex had some urgent business to attend to. He sends his regards and regrets that he couldn’t stay,” Ethan said.

  I didn’t miss the frown on Aunt Jeanie’s face at the news that Lex was gone. If I didn’t know better, I would think my aunt was actually falling for the wolf.

  “So, if there are no more objections, we’ll make plans to leave for Wyoming in the next couple weeks. We should leave as soon as Nicole is ready to travel,” Ethan said.

  Nicole turned away, saying no more.

  Suddenly, my stomach twisted into knots when Ethan’s eyes came to rest on me. My sixth sense had known from the moment I walked into the room that something was wrong - something was terribly wrong.

  Donovan jumped in before Ethan could say anything. “Sarah, will you come out to the garden so that we may speak with you in private?”

  A lump was forming in my throat. All of the sudden, I didn’t want to know. As long as I didn’t know, I could pretend everything was okay. I wanted to scream at them to leave me alone - to keep whatever they wanted to say to themselves. Instead, I nodded and followed my father and Ethan into the garden.

  “When was the last time you saw Darrien?” Donovan asked.

  “Last night, why?”

  “Did the two of you fight or have a falling out, maybe?”

  “No not at all,” I said, shaking my head.

  Donovan placed a hand on my shoulder and led me to the marble bench. “Sit Sarah,” he told me.

  I did as he asked, but my eyes never left his face. I tried to read his expression, but he was too good at hiding his feelings.

  “This morning he brought this letter to Ethan and asked that it be given to you.” Donovan held out an envelope.

  “And as the sun came up,” Donovan continued. “Darrien walked into it.”

  Shaking my head, I cried, “I don’t understand. What are you saying?”

  “Darrien destroyed himself,” he said.

  Everything went black. For a fraction of a moment, I couldn’t see or hear nothing. So
meone’s hands grabbed grasped my shoulders to hold me up.

  “Sarah!” Donovan called my name, pulling me back from the dark tunnel I was falling into. Finally, my father’s face came into focus.

  “No! I don’t believe it. He just came to me last night,” I cried.

  “I’m sorry. I know he was someone you cared about deeply,” Donovan tried to comfort me.

  Shaking my head frantically, I cried, “You did something to him,” I accused. “You didn’t want us together so you had him destroyed!”

  “This is not true,” Donovan denied.

  “I saw what he did with my own eyes,” Ethan told me. “He just walked outside as the sun was coming up.”

  “And … and you did nothing to stop him?” I was sobbing so hard it was difficult to talk.

  “Of course I did. I went out after him.” Ethan removed his jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. There were blisters up and down his arms and on his hands.

  Now that I thought about it, I realized that I hadn’t seen Ethan’s hands while he was talking in the parlor. He’d kept them in the pockets of his jacket.

  “Your face isn’t burned,” I stated.

  “I keep a ski mask nearby, just in case I need to go out quickly, but I did burn some anyway.”

  Burying my face in my hands, I let the tears come. How could he have done this? How could he have left me just when we were beginning to find happiness?

  “Where is he? Darrien deserves a proper burial,” I cried.

  “I don’t know,” Ethan said. “I contacted the police and asked the people I usually work with if they would keep an eye out for a body, but so far there hasn’t been one. I also asked Lex if he would look for him. That’s why he isn’t here tonight.”

  “Well, Darrien has to be somewhere. He couldn’t just disappear, could he?”

  “He will turn up sooner or later,” Donovan reassured me. “Once a vampire dies, the burning stops. We don’t turn to ash. Someone will find him and then we will do what you believe to be right.”

  “I don’t just believe it to be right, I know it is the right thing to do,” I responded, my emotion making it impossible to think straight. “I knew him as a child. His family believed in heaven and in God. Darrien did too … once.”

  Both Donovan and Ethan were bewilderment. “What do you mean, you knew him as a child?”

  I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter. It never really did, I guess.”

  “Why don’t you go lie down?” Donovan urged. “This has been draining for you.”

  Looking down at the envelope in my hand, I needed no more encouragement. I wanted to be alone so that I could read the letter. It would be my last moments with Darrien and it was all I had left of him.

  Nodding, I left the garden and ran up to my room. Shutting the door behind me, I fell onto my bed and let the tears come. I kept seeing him on his horse, beneath the sunshine. The way he’d smiled at me, so tenderly but so full of mischief; that’s the way I wanted to remember him. That was back when he was human and could be in the light. It was when I was Caroline, instead of Sarah.

  My body shook uncontrollably as I wept.

  Now he would be in the light - that light that so many of the Immortals craved. But I was in a place of darkness that I may never emerge from. There hadn’t been a hint of what was to come from the spirit world.

  But that wasn’t really true. Gina had warned me about the pain of death, but I’d assumed the ghost was referring to her own death, the process of death, not Darrien’s death.

  Finally my tears slowed. I left my bed to go to the bathroom that was adjoined to my room. Splashing cold water on my tear-swollen eyes, I took a deep breath and tried to think.

  It was still several minutes before I was calm enough to confront the letter that he’d left for me. Finally, I picked it up from the bed carefully opened the envelope, pulling out the single piece of paper.

  Sarah My Love

  Yes, I am calling you Sarah and not Caroline. You are Sarah now, and I love Sarah. Maybe one day you will forgive me for what I’m about to do. Please believe me when I tell you that what I do, I’m doing for you. No, maybe it isn’t just for you. I just cannot live without you. Not again. For over two hundred years, I’ve lived in darkness, wanting to feel your warmth and see the light in your eyes. I don’t think I am strong enough to go through an eternity without you.

  I brought you death once. I will not do so again. I know you don’t believe that this would happen or that I would be responsible for your death again, but even if this is true, eventually you will die. You must. It is inevitable for all mortals. This time when you die, I will be waiting for you on the other side. Even though I am gone, my love for you will live on forever. Always remember that.

  I love you Forever

  Darrien

  The tears started again, but this time they weren’t just tears of grief, but also tears of anger. How could he have been so selfish and so thoughtless?

  He’d released himself from pain, only to bring it to me.

  There was a knock at her door.

  “Sarah!” Aunt Jeanie called to me from the hall.

  The door opened and Jeanie came in the room. She walked to the bed and sat next to me. There were tears in my aunt’s eyes.

  “I am so sorry, baby girl,” Jeanie said as she gathered me into her arms.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Lex

  In the fading light of dusk, the headlights barely illuminate the road. Even with the keen sight of the wolf, the dirt road could be hazardous and difficult to navigate. Though there was still some light in the sky, the woods were dark and ominous. My aging eyes were not what they once were.

  Spotting my destination up ahead, I pulled to the side of the road and switched the ignition off, but left the headlights on. When I opened the car door to get out, I was surprised at how cool it was. Though it was only late summer, the night air already had a chill to it.

  With the spare set of keys I kept in my pocket, I opened the trunk and pulled out a flashlight. I directed the beam of light toward what at first might appear to be a pile of green wool blankets, but on closer inspection, it was obvious the blankets were wrapped around something.

  Leaning over, pulled the form from the trunk, flinging it over my shoulder. At least I could be thankful that my strength hadn’t yet faded like my eyesight. With the light directed in front of me, I made my way along the steep path that would take me further up the mountain.

  After several minutes of climbing, I finally came to a gaping black hole in the side of the mountain. It was one of many caves that could be found along the Wind River mountain range. Though I pointed the flashlight into the opening, it hardly penetrated the darkness in the cave. Regardless, I stepped inside. If there were a bear hiding in the cave, I would deal with it. Right now, I wanted to unload my burden.

  I didn’t stop in the main cavern, but took another tunnel to a smaller cavern, deeper within the cave. Only then did I place the wrapped body on the earthen floor. For a long time, I stood there, staring at the heap I’d deposited on the ground. Finally, I kneeled down and started unwrapping the form hidden within the blankets.

  The body was burned badly. Wherever the flesh had been was exposed, there was nothing but a mass of oozing blisters. The skin on one side of his face almost looked like melted plastic.

  I left the cave but returned shortly, my arms laden with supplies. Taking some scissors from one of the bags I’d been carrying I started cutting the clothes away from Darrien’s body. When the clothes were cut away from the burned flesh, I then took a jug of water and began pouring it over Darrien’s burns.

  “You foolish boy,” I muttered, shaking my head.

  I next opened a cooler and grabbed a plastic IV bag full of blood. Attaching a tube to the bag, I placed the other end of the tube in Darrien’s mouth so that the blood would slowly drip.

  Stepping back from the body, I couldn’t believe what I was doing. Helping the
vampires was one thing, but this was really going above and beyond the call of duty.

  Why was I doing it?’

  It was for Sarah. She was important to the big picture and Darrien was important to her.

  Getting the blood hadn’t been easy. I had to steal it from a blood bank and was nearly caught.

  Keeping Darrien out of the sun was essential, but there was no way to do that in New Orleans. Not without putting him in some filthy crypt. I decided to take him away from New Orleans, away from the threat of other vampires and the prying eyes of the humans.

  The boy had problems. Even if he lived, he may decide to find another way to end his life.

  Shaking my head again, I said. “If you ever try something like this again, I’ll let you die.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Sarah

  Eying the black vehicle in front of Donovan’s Garden District house, I wondered what on earth Ethan could be thinking. It was definitely out of place in this neighborhood. Truthfully, it would be out of place just about anywhere.

  The vehicle was a large van that had been converted into something else. What that something else was, I wasn’t sure. The front windows were darkly tinted and it had no other windows. Although it might have passed for a delivery van, it still looked odd.

  “So much for blending in,” I commented, dryly.

  “It’s exactly what we need,” Ethan said as the others were gathering at the curb to see it. “With this, we won’t be limited to only traveling at night. With this piece of machinery, we can travel whenever we want. During the day, those of us that can’t be in the light will remain in the back. One of you girls can drive.”

  “How do you keep the light out of the back?” Alec was unconvinced.

  Ethan walked around to the back of the van and opened the doors. A light came on so that we could see inside. On one side of the van, there was a couch, on the other side there was a flat screen computer monitor was hanging from the wall of the van. There was a small refrigerator on the floor. A sliding metal door completely closed off the front of the van from the back.