Darlings of Darkness: A Vampire Anthology Part 86

He sat on the quaint porch swing instead of knocking on the door like a regular human being. The swing creaked beneath his weight. A cold breeze blew his bangs to the left. He stared at the door, knowing he wouldn't have to knock. Somehow she would know he was there. She would sense his presence the way he'd sensed she was behind him after the werewolf attack on the night they met.

The door opened and he held his breath, waiting for a pet.i.te girl with silky hair and sparkling eyes to appear.

Vanessa Reign stepped out instead. She slid her arms into the sleeves of a dark blue sweater and pulled it tight around her willowy frame. The belt hung loose, untied. She set her jaw, trying to still her chattering teeth. The woman didn't appear surprised to see him, almost as if she'd been expecting him.

"May I join you?" She sat next to him without waiting for an answer. Her eyes went to the star-filled sky. "Beautiful night. Peaceful. I'd like to keep it that way." Her gaze drifted to him. "You're lucky my husband had to go out."

Luck had nothing to do with it. Jack had waited in his brother's car across the street until he saw Andrew leave. The last thing he wanted to do tonight was tangle with Silver's father.

"What brings you here?" she asked. "I hope you won't get in the habit of dropping by unannounced. It's late, and Silver is asleep."

Was she? Her mom didn't know about Silver's habit of sneaking out to hunt on her own. He considered telling her. That would really p.i.s.s Silver off. He wouldn't have to make a decision about her then. She'd do it for him.

"My old vampire clan returned tonight." Vanessa stiffened beside him, and he added, "They're threatening my brother. If they find out about Silver, they'll want to use her to hurt me. I wanted to give you a heads-up."

"Thank you." Her eyes narrowed on him. "You're debating on whether you should continue to spend time with her? My husband would say you need to hit the floor running."

"What do you say?"

"It isn't my call. If you're the one we've been waiting for, you don't have a choice. You and Silver will be linked together like it or not."

"I could warn her about the danger, tell her she needs to avoid me for her own good."

"Those are fighting words to my daughter. She's stubborn like her daddy. If you tell her you're breaking up with her for her own good, she'll stick to you like glue. She won't let you walk unless you hurt her."

He'd rather die than hurt her.

Vanessa insisted. "If you mean it, if you truly want to put distance between the two of you, then be cruel. You'll have to say some pretty nasty things to dissuade her to forget about your budding relationship. I don't want to see my daughter hurt, but I don't want to see her dead either. The choice is yours. To be honest with you, I've never seen her like this before. She's head over heels in love with you."

He tried to swallow and failed.

Seeing the expression on his face, Vanessa said, "Oh, she may not realize she loves you. Maybe it isn't even you she loves, but the idea of you. Silver knew you were coming for years. She read about you in the diary, don't forget. It's possible she fell in love with Lovely's romantic description of you."

"Is there something more in the diary about me? Something else I don't know?" He wished she would let him read it, but he knew better than to ask. She wouldn't go against her husband.

"There's more."

"How much more?"

"Lovely expressed the feeling the two of you, you and Silver, were destined to be together. She made it out to be a modern-day fairy tale. Problem is we both know there's no such thing as happily ever after, especially not with werewolves and vampires running around.

"Most likely you'll be killed before the war begins. You have no idea how many vamps and werewolves want Lovely's legendary hero to die." She eyed him suspiciously. "Have you experienced any returning powers yet? Can you move fast? Have you noticed your superhuman strength returning?"

He shook his head. "Nothing."

Which wasn't exactly true, but he didn't think she would be impressed that he could growl. Of course she might be interested in his ability to see inside Silver's head. He sure wasn't going to tell her about that. She might not like the fact he could see someone's memories. Plus, she would tell Silver, and he knew Silver wouldn't like it. It was a huge invasion of privacy.

He wondered if his new power would work on someone other than Silver.

Jack considered touching Vanessa to try it out. It was tempting. He decided not to risk it. She was a seasoned hunter. By the time he returned to reality, he would probably find he didn't have any fingers left. She might even take the whole arm.

Silver stepped outside in the cutest pink pajamas. She almost looked like a little girl waiting to be tucked in, sweet and innocent. Her eyes were wide, confused. "What are you doing here? Why are you two talking? You can't stand each other."

Vanessa gave him a poignant look to remind him that he had to be cruel and break Silver's heart in order to save her life. She stifled a yawn. "Mmm. Sorry. I'm beat. I'll leave you alone to talk, but don't stay out here for too long. It's late. Besides your father will be coming home soon. You don't want him to catch Jack here."

With that grim announcement floating in the air, she went inside and closed the door. Once her mother was gone, Silver grew a huge smile. She sat next to him on the porch swing and gave him a hug.

"I'm glad you're here," she said, head resting on his chest. "It's good to see you and my mom talking. I told you they would warm up to you eventually. Sooo..." She sat up and her eyes went to the door. "...what did my mom say to you?"

Vanessa's words replayed in his head. He needed to say nasty things to Silver, hurt her. Fortunately he'd come prepared. Just in case he decided to break up with her, he'd written a note. Even before Vanessa's advice on being cruel, he'd done it. Maybe it was true what they said: Great minds think alike.

"I can't get over how cute you look in those pajamas," he said.

She blushed. "Thanks. They're new."

"Even though I'd lost a lot of blood that first night, I was right about you. You are beautiful." He caressed the apple of her cheek. He leaned closer, and his voice lowered. "You smell good, too."

Her gaze dropped to his mouth.

He pulled her closer.

She tilted her head and awkwardly b.u.mped noses with him. A short-lived giggle burst through her parted lips. He cupped her face between his hands to keep her still. His eyes closed. Their mouths briefly touched.

They both moved at once, mouths meeting in tempting exploration. His fingers dove into her hair. Her hands grabbed at his shoulders, pulling at him. They kissed like two lovers reunited after years of forced separation. Because he had more experience than her, he let her control the situation. Attuned to the smallest of sounds coming from her and the feel of her hands, he waited for her to decide when it had gone far enough.

Silver didn't know it was a good-bye kiss.

He had made the decision to keep her safe at the expense of his own heart. He distracted her with a melt-you-on-the-spot kiss while removing the letter from his back pocket. Carefully, he slipped it into her robe's side pocket. She didn't put a stop to their make-out session, so he did.

Jack tore his mouth from hers and put as much distance between them as he could without leaving the zip code. He stood on the other side of the porch while she straightened her pajama top. One of the b.u.t.tons had slid free. Jack tried not to look. He couldn't afford to lose the tenuous grip he had on his self-control.

"You'd better get inside before your mom comes out to see what's taking so long."

"Well, you'd better go before my father comes home. He may have respected your parents, but he has five loaded guns in the house."

Jack smiled despite himself. Silver seemed to be able to read his mind with ease. He was going to miss her almost as much as he missed his vampire friends. "Goodnight then."

On reluctant feet, she went to the door and opened it. She touched him with a lingering glance. Her expression turned hopeful. "You want a ride to school tomorrow?"

He was dying to say yes. "No. Billy's letting me use his car."

"Oh." Her eyes lost some of their sparkle. "I'll see you at school then."

As soon as the door shut behind her Jack ran around the side of the house and climbed the huge tree outside her bedroom window. He waited in a tangle of branches for her to find the note. He purposely sat in the darkest part of the tree. Without vampire vision she wouldn't be able to see him. She entered the room with a huge smile on her face. He hadn't seen this particular smile before. The secret smile of someone who'd glimpsed heaven. It ripped a hole in his gut.

Her hands went into the pockets of her robe, and her expression changed. She withdrew the note and carefully unfolded the piece of paper. Her smile withered and died as she read his carefully planned words.

I really like you, but more than anything else in the world I want to be normal. I can't be normal if I'm hanging out with 'the' werewolf hunter. I don't want anything to do with your so-called destiny. I need to hang out with normal kids and live my life without interference. Please don't talk to me at school. Don't make this harder than it already is.

Jack She couldn't have looked more stunned if he'd punched her in the face after kissing her. She crumbled the piece of paper in one hand and threw it across the room before dropping on the bed and burying her face in the pillow. Her shoulders shook as she cried.

Without thinking about it Jack stepped off the branch. He fell to the ground, landing gracefully on both feet. Stunned, Jack realized some of his powers had returned after all. His gaze went to Silver's window. He hated seeing her sad. Hopefully she would find someone else to take care of her.

Imagining her in another guy's arms nearly killed him. He reminded himself she would be better off, but knowing that didn't help ease his pain or hers.

She deserved someone who could do more than pretend to be normal.

He dreamed about her that night.

They met in the forest, thick with lush foliage and high trees. The tops of the trees bowed together, touching to form a great canopy that blocked direct sunlight. The place seemed familiar to him. Silver waited for him in the middle of a clearing. He could feel her grief. It pulled him like a magnet.

Jack weaved through a clump of trees, his eyes focused on her the whole time. He placed a hand on a tree trunk and felt the rough bark beneath his palm. The air exploded with sound. About fifty birds abandoned their hiding places around him, disturbed by something he hadn't noticed. Something had scared them. Their wings beat against the wind. They temporarily captured his attention.

The dream seemed more real than any waking moment he'd experienced in his entire life. By the time he looked for Silver again she was standing in front of him, still dressed in pink pajamas.

"Why did you do it?" she asked. "Why did you write those mean things?"

"I had to."

"Why?"

He couldn't look at her anymore. The power of those beautiful blue eyes was too hard to resist. It would be safer to gaze at his shoes, but she wouldn't let him. She stood close and placed her face within an inch of his. Their wary gazes met.

"You hurt me," she said.

"I didn't mean to."

"What did you mean to do then?"

He sighed. "It's better if I don't tell you."

"Better for me or better for you?"

A strange new feeling entered him, a burning sensation in his veins. It grew stronger with each pa.s.sing second until he didn't think his body could contain it. If he didn't know better, he would think sunlight had entered him and was killing him from the inside out.

With a loud cry he fell to his knees.

"Jack!" Silver joined him on the ground. "What is it?"

He shook his head. A million invisible bells rang in his ears. Silver placed a hand on his forehead. She shouted, "You're burning up!"

Another jolt of pain hit him hard.

No. Pain wasn't the right word for it. It was pure agony, like a hundred knives cutting into him from every direction. He fell on his back and writhed on the ground, shaking and twisting in the dirt like someone exposed to a large amount of electricity. His eyes went to her pajama top. He looked for the glow of the silver dagger beneath the material, but he didn't see a sign of it.

She wasn't the one hurting him this time.

More pain radiated through his body. He gritted his teeth to keep from crying out. A burst of steam blinded him for a moment. Silver gasped. She immediately put distance between them. She was afraid of him. He wanted to rea.s.sure her that he wouldn't hurt her, but he'd been robbed of speech.

The pain subsided. He climbed to his feet and held a hand out. Silver shook her head, taking another step away from him. Why was she moving further away? Why didn't she trust him?

Uncontrollable anger surged to the surface.

She screamed.

He lunged, swiping at her with invisible metallic claws. They cut through her arm. Blood seeped through the pink material. She tried to get away, but he chased her. She circled a tree; he was faster. He caught her and a vicious growl erupted from his throat. He wanted to kill her.

Silver locked eyes with him. A weird sensation gripped him hard. It was an uncomfortable feeling, not exactly painful but bad. He wanted to finish her off. Why couldn't he move? Every muscle in his body froze. He couldn't even move his lips to ask her what was happening, not that he needed to. A horrible revelation sparked to life in the back of his mind. He knew exactly what was happening to him.

Silver was sucking his soul out.

Jack woke covered in sweat, pulse racing, throat closed so he couldn't scream. It took him a moment to remember how to breathe. He sat up in bed and looked around the lamp-lit room. Scattered remnants of white material caught his eye. He'd ripped his sheets to shreds. He didn't have to wonder what sort of werewolf power he was going to get anymore. The invisible claws had become part of his anatomy.

Silver talked in her sleep, and he turned into a werewolf in his. They made quite a pair. He grabbed his cell before remembering the note he'd written her. He couldn't call and tell her about his dream. He couldn't ask her what she thought about him tearing his sheets apart. The last voice in the world she wanted to hear belonged to him.

Blanca hissed at him from a far corner in the room. No wonder she didn't like him anymore. She probably smelled the part of him that was changing into a werewolf. Vampires kept cats for one reason, to warn them when werewolves were nearby. Poor thing was probably more confused than he was.

"It's okay, Blanca." He leaned off the bed, rubbed his fingers together to attract her attention. "Come here. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Jack?" Billy tried to twist the doork.n.o.b, but it didn't budge. He banged on the door. "Jack, why is this locked? Are you okay? Let me in."

Jack got out of bed and headed for the door. His hand touched the k.n.o.b before he remembered the sheets. If Billy saw them, they were going to have a problem. Billy wouldn't wait for an explanation. His kid brother would run a stake through him or shoot him before he could utter a single syllable in his own defense.

"Jack, what is going on in there?"

"I'm trying to sleep," he mumbled. "What do you want?"

"I heard you yelling and thought you were being killed. Let me in."

"Just a second." Jack raced to the bed, gathered the tattered fragments with both arms. He wadded them into a loose ball and shoved them into the closet. Billy kept knocking, demanding immediate entrance. A white corner peeked out from under the closet door. Jack opened it again and kicked at the sheets until he got them completely inside.

He hurried to his bedroom door and opened it with a tired sigh. "I had a nightmare. Okay? I'm sorry if I woke you, but everything is fine in here."

"Woke me? I thought you were getting killed in here. A normal person might hear screams and think someone is having a nightmare, but in this family a scream usually means that person is getting his throat torn out."

Jack couldn't argue with the logic of it.

Billy put a hand on his shoulder. "You sure you're okay, kid? Your face is pale and sweaty."

Jack shoved the damp bangs off his forehead. He desperately wanted to confide in his brother. If Billy wasn't a hunter, maybe he would be able to trust him with the truth.

"When did you get home?" Jack asked. He leaned back against the door, arms folded. "Did you catch anything tonight?"

Catch or kill? Whatever.