These Eternal Bones: A Dark Vampire Romance, page 18
Eight.
Wow…
I wait for some kind of crushing sadness, some kind of overwhelming snapping of my mind like the other night, but an unsettling resignation fills my chest instead.
“Soulmate magic is a tricky one. Especially when it’s perverted by an outsider, it can be shattering. My kind, the fae, have mates as well, you know? To a lesser degree than what the gods hold, but it is…in concept, the same.”
“You have a mate?” I ask, ignoring the rest of what she said, the way my gut pitched in my stomach.
“No…” The wash of sadness that takes over her bright eyes hits me hard. I don’t fight the desire to comfort her. Gripping her hand in mine, the sand stuck between our palms. “I found myself here instead, now such a thought is silly.”
“Why not go home? Find someone to help you spend your days?”
"My soul is content, mistress, so I wouldn't leave if I could.”
“I am not who you think I am, Péal.” I don’t know why I say it; the words taste like a lie on my tongue. Denial seems more comfortable than acceptance. I’ll grant myself a few more moments of it.
“Why, of course not. You are always someone entirely different, but the same.”
A sudden, loud laugh bursts from me as I release her hand, slamming my forehead against my raised knees as I blink away the sudden rush of tears that fill my eyes. “Is everyone here ill of the mind?”
Am I to believe it all?
“Excellent question, mistress. I hadn’t considered it, but very possibly. It has been a great many years wandering the same halls. Even so, you are certainly you. You smell the same, you see, and you make the master smile. The master does not smile when your soul rests.”
“Why don’t you all just… leave?” It’s a simple question, one with an answer that hopefully won’t lead to a spiral.
“We cannot, but master said I mustn’t speak about such things.” She snaps to a stand, her constant energy enviable as she dusts off her skirts.
“There are more who cannot leave?”
“Supernatural's, yes. The humans go as they please.” Before I can respond, she cuts me off. “There was a creature here once who had the gift of foresight.”
I shake my head in disbelief as she helps me to my feet. “They could see the future, truly?”
“Oh yes, it was excessively uncomfortable.” She giggles at the look on my face as she tugs us toward the water.
“Where are they?” She glances up at me from behind pale, thick lashes as she edges her boots into the water. No doubt soaking them. “Péal?”
If my mind wasn’t on fire, I’d laugh at the obvious internal battle she fought trying to keep quiet. Her lips pulled between her teeth as she kicks at the waves.
“I just want to understand.” The words leave me in a whisper. “I feel as if I’ve been dropped in the middle of a bizarre planet with little to no information on how to survive. Everyone knows everything about me, except me. I’m the only one left in the dark.”
Her eyes meet mine, and I can tell the moment she decides to tell me. “You mustn’t tell him I said anything to you, mistress. The Nephilim would do a terrible job of cleaning the mess if he removed my head. Tien despises cleaning as well, it puts him in a horrid mood.”
My lips part in shock, so much so that I only faintly realize she’s pulled my boots into the lapping waves with her, the icy chill working its way past my socks. “Master ripped her spine from her. It was a ghastly sight, staining the carpet something terrible.”
“My god, why?”
She chuckles as if this is a perfectly normal conversation, pulling us deeper into the water. “She foresaw something he did not like.”
“What?” I gasp as the icy water slaps at my shins.
“Your death. A true one.”
There is a long pause as she lets go of my hand, taking several steps back, her brow furrowed. Nothing makes a sound aside from the waves as I stare at her in shock.
“Oh! And she said something about a witch, but I’m quite certain your mate killed them off.”
That does it. The snap I’d been waiting for hits like a ton of bricks as I stumble in the water. Tears crest in my eyes as I turn heading toward the shore.
What I wasn’t ready for was a blast of frigid water. A yelp leaves my throat, the sound setting off a flash of orange against the coast up high on the cliffs. My heart warms for a moment at the sight of the fox, his tail swooshing as he sits on his haunches, simply watching us. I get the sense he’s more standing guard. Another gush hits me as I pivot, my eyes incensed as they land on Péal. Her hand clasps over her mouth to stop her giggles.
“Are you insane? It's freezing out here!”
She giggles again, and I can’t backtrack fast enough as she reaches out, sending another gust of… what? Air? It slams the water, pushing so much on me that I splutter like a fish.
“Péal, stop it!” I screech, only to be hit again. This one so strong it knocks me on my butt as a wave crashes over me, the icy water stealing my breath. “What is wrong with you?!” I push the water back at her, splashing her with my measly wave, which only seems to delight her. She laughs wildly, spinning gracefully away.
My teeth chatter loudly in my head as she lifts her palm, spinning her wrist until a small tornado of water erupts. My shock and my anger momentarily forgotten as I stare at it in wonder.
That is, before she sends it straight at me.
The mini twister blasts me in the face, making me cough. I stumble, struggling to get to my feet, wiping the salt water from my burning eyes. The shocked look on her face tells me she didn’t mean to hit me there.
“It went a bit high, mistress.”
The suddenly sheepish woman looks perfectly comfortable in the frigid water while I all but shake to death. Something about it is frustratingly hilarious. My laughter bursts free from my chest, and God, I take a breath…a real one for the first time in days.
Her answering smile is contagious, and soon enough, we’re laughing like madwomen. I suppose that’s fitting as we trade splashes in the freezing water on a snowy beach. Dodging. Dancing and falling in the ocean waves. Our giggles hit the cliffs, bouncing off and tunneling back to us as the cold gets too much for me, making me flee from the water with a breathless squeal. My muscles ache from the sheer force of my shaking as I hit the shore. I’m lightheaded, positive my lips are blue when she slams into me, wrapping me in a tight hug and knocking us backward into the sand. My eyes widen when the air around us crackles with energy, a burst of warmth filling me and sinking into my very bones. Her head rests on my chest before she looks up, smiling widely. “Let’s get you home, yes?”
Another breathless laugh leaves me as I hug her harder. “Yes.”
My eyes dart back to the cliff, steam rolling off my soaked clothes, like being wrapped in a hot towel. The only trace of the fox is the bare, tanned back of a man slipping back between the trees.
A few flurries of snow mottle our path as she winds up the rocky trail that leads over and down the cliffs. Our horse is navigating it with ease. My hands snap out, the pokey needles of what Tien told me were evergreen trees brushing over my palm. A rush of emotion and longing hits me, making my chest ache as I realize how badly I wish to be near Elric. How brutally I miss him, even after such a short while away.
Heavens, is this what he’s felt all these years?
I clear my throat, blinking away the sudden rush of tears from my already puffy and swollen eyes before I steel myself. It’s no grand show of strength. I just sit a little straighter, stretching after days hunched in on myself, my chin resting higher than it has…it's then I decide how silly I’ve been to waste even a moment with him sulking over the past. Albeit, that’s easy to say when you remember nothing of it. My lip trembles despite the magical warmth swathing me as I vow to make him smile as much as possible before I’m gone.
I vow to change this.
I decide to stay. Fate be damned.
28
Books with Bronze Pictures
Molly
I’m soaked, having refused Péal’s help in getting dry as my reddened toes slap the marble stairs. A gasp rips from my lungs when her magic hits the end of its range, leaving me frigid. I barely have a second to regain my breath when Elric blurs in front of me. “Molly, you’re soaked!” his voice is incensed, but I don’t give him time to say more. My hands are trembling as they slap on either side of his face, my lips slamming his in a blinding kiss.
The kind you don’t come back from.
The type of kiss that pulls you under.
I can feel it the moment he floods me, his touch lingering in my veins. It makes so much more sense now that the icy water has cleared my mind. He’s a god, his dominion over blood. I am in love with a god, loved by a god for hundreds of years. The thought itself is mind rattling, but I giggle, forcing myself as close to him as possible when he lifts me into his arms, blurring us toward his bedroom. My dresses don’t stand a chance as he rips through them like they're no more than paper, all but tethering me in front of the fireplace as he gathers blankets. I just smile, watching the immortal man fret over me until I’m wrapped up like a baby sitting in front of roaring flames.
“I love you.” It’s a simple, effortless thing to say. Nothing at all as it leaves my lips.
But to him, it’s everything.
His veins lighten as he gently places his forehead against mine. “I love you more, syringa. Thank you, thank you for coming back to me.”
Tears well in my eyes as I struggle to keep them dry. “I’m sorry it took so long.”
“An eternity, my love. I would wait an eternity.”
After the next few days of being all but restrained to his bed and sequestered to our bedroom, my body aches in all the most wonderful places as I wince my way into the library. My heart feels both burdened and light at the same time, a new sense of urgency rushing my steps. Had business not called Elric to his duties today, I’m sure I would still be face down in silk sheets, my body supported by his tendrils as he takes me from–
“Cartiel,” I gasp, the man startling me as I burst into the library. He frowns, nodding in greeting before shutting his book. I rush forward as he goes to stand from where he was reading, leaning against the shelves. “Please don’t leave on my behalf.”
“It is fine, I have chores to–”
I cut him off, peeking at the book he was holding, only for him to tuck it behind his back. “What are you reading? You seem to spend a lot of time in here.” That is, until I show up and he bolts like I’ve set the room ablaze. “Is there a library in town, too? You visit a lot.”
The questions vomit from my mouth with little in the form of charisma. Being raised in a gated community entirely cut off from the outside world doesn’t do much to teach that.
“Was there something you needed, mistress?”
“Oh, you can call me Molly.”
“Rather not.” He deadpans, and irritation pricks my chest before I offer another smile.
“Actually, yes. I need help finding a few books.”
“I have not found any with pictures.”
Deep breath.
“I can read.” I grit out. Well enough.
He simply raises his eyebrows, nodding, a hint of amusement in his eyes. He places his book in the waistband of his loose-fitting pants. “I’m not sure I could be of any more help than the master. It is his library, after all.”
I shrug, attempting to seem casual. Judging by the look in his eyes, it fails.
Perhaps Elric told me in no uncertain terms to let it go, that nothing could be done, and he simply wished to enjoy our time together. Perhaps Elric has no clue how difficult that is when you have less than half of the information regarding your own life, er- lives, I suppose. Perhaps I’ve decided to ignore his request, tactfully, of course.
“And what is it you’re not supposed to be looking into?”
My head snaps toward him, my mouth gaping. “I can do whatever I please.”
“Except read certain books, or explore the upper halls, or ask too many questions deemed too messy to answer, yes?”
“Are you going to help me or not?” My pleasant tone slips, my eyes cutting daggers into his soul.
He has the mind to at least look a little guilty. “Why do you want to know so badly?”
I pause for a moment, again questioning the sanity of everyone in this castle. “Wouldn’t you? If there was even the slightest chance you could stop this, would you?”
His eyes widen, and I almost scream as his eyes flash with light as he steps forward. Gone is the casual, off-putting snide man, traded for someone…troubled…uneasy. “You would choose to end it, if you could?”
“Of course.” Why wouldn’t I?
I almost ask him what’s wrong, what happened to put that look in his eyes, to take the chip off his shoulder as he nods, swallowing hard. “I can’t help you.” He works his jaw, and I can tell there’s more he wants to say.
He simply holds out a hand as I go to speak. It's then that Tien blips into the library. If what I did was stare daggers into Cartiel, he stares bombs at the man. My brows furrow as he adjusts his shirt, hiding the book tucked into his pants as he passes me. “Oh, but mistress, please be careful of the ladder. It has a weak step toward the top.”
My eyes dart to the library ladder, its golden wheels tarnished with time, where it sits toward the back of the library. Irritation floods through me as he leaves, making me huff. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
I should tell Tien about the stolen book. If nothing else, then just to spite the jerk.
It’s then that Tien speaks up. “Miss Molly, perhaps some afternoon tea in the solarium.”
I sigh. “Yes, please. I’d love to spend my time surrounded by dead plants.”
He chuckles at that, washing away a bit of my grumpy mood. “Who wouldn’t?”
I bite my inner cheek, hiding my smile as he follows me out of the room, locking the door behind us.
29
Ladders with Weak Steps
Molly
It is unsurprisingly difficult, convincing an immortal vampire to do something that he does not wish to do, especially when that vampire has tendrils that cling, pull, and truss you up at his mercy at a moment’s notice. I drag my brush along the canvas that he has some unfortunate soul stretch and prepare for me since I have long depleted the town's stores. Where one unicorn painting once graced his office, my art now lines the walkways and walls, replacing art I cannot fathom the value of. It's that which makes me steel myself, leaning into the patient resilience I built up around myself over my twenty-three years of frustration and silence. Because, where I am still finding my place along the walls, he never doubted my value.
I dip my brush, dragging it down in soft wisps, mimicking the hair long fallen into his face as he watches me intently. There's no work today, no pacing or tugging at his silky, midnight colored hair. He just watches, and despite the press of urgency and the trickle of annoyance, I am loath to stop him. Especially when he catches me looking, especially when his lips quirk- like that. A hint of sharpened canine promising pleasure.
I let loose another breath in a long, strategically timed sigh, pretending to fret at the canvas, making sure to look terribly troubled. My three hours’ worth of hard work finally pays off as he shifts, ever so slightly, his tendrils unraveling from their lazy place wrapped around my ankle to nudge and bop playfully at my nose. I stifle a giggle; frustrated people do not giggle.
“Is something the matter, utsukushii onnanoko?” Beautiful girl. He’d told me not too long ago.
“It’s just the lighting in here…” It’s a ridiculous statement; the windowed walls and clear dome ceiling of the solarium are the perfect place to paint. “It’s too bright.”
His eyes narrow, dark veins ebbing and flowing underneath his skin, every bit as sentient as the man sporting them.
Please, let me go to the library.
After Tien and Cartiel’s odd standoff, where the older man no doubt listened in on our conversation, the doors have remained closed. I haven’t checked to see if they’re still locked; the message is as clear as the tapestry door upstairs.
Don’t ask.
And for the most part, I haven’t. Only because questions regarding my supposed past lives, the door, and what he did to cause this only seemed to madden the man. For all my longing for answers, for a solution to stop this…I cannot bear to see him this way.
The most I’ve gleaned was unintentionally from Péal. There is a bond formed between gods-sworn mates, one that he refuses to solidify, which explains to constant discomfort and hollowness in my chest. Where for me it is a nuance, for him it is agony, to ignore a soul deep imperative. According to the selkie, I had described it in my diary before. Apparently, I was once an avid writer. I found that particularly funny considering that in this life, while my reading is coming along well enough, my writing is still…lacking. Although I get close enough to usually somewhat understand, I can’t seem to string the correct letters together; it is definitely not my calling. I have mostly given up.
Point being, if the bond is formed, I die. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but the longest I’ve lasted is a handful of years.
It’s odd how long that would seem in any other circumstances.
I choke back on the despair that threatens to overpower my resolve, the tiny nagging voice that tells me to let it go, to curl up with him and never surface.
But I have diaries, detailed ones…ones I know he wouldn’t dare throw away.
Perhaps even diaries with answers…perhaps ones in the library. Seems a reasonable place to put something like that, although she said she hadn’t seen them in years. The library is as good a place as any to start.
“Elric–”
“No.”
“Why not?” I challenge, anger making my lip wobble.
“I do not–”
“Want me to waste our time fretting over something that cannot be changed. Yes, you’ve recited that line quite a lot. Which would make sense if I were interested in hunting down information you’ve denied me. I simply wish to paint in lighting that isn’t utterly and entirely foul.” I snap, the words leaving me with more venom than I meant.
