Authors: Karen Michelle Nutt

Autumn Moon (13 page)

BOOK: Autumn Moon

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“No, I won’t accept it.” She stood and stormed out of the room only to return a moment later.

His gaze caught the glitter of the blade. Her grandparents followed her in.

“Stop, Autumn,” Chin demanded.

“No, don’t do it,” Jairec pleaded.

“Maybe my blood is the elixir.”

“No, it isn’t.”

She sliced her wrist anyway. The tangy smell of blood filled his nostrils. His teeth lengthened and his eyes dilated. “No!”

She didn’t listen, shoving her wrist over his mouth. He held his breath, clamped his mouth shut, but a small amount of blood seeped in anyway. He couldn’t hold back. He grabbed her wrist and drew in the essence of life. He could hear her heart beat, stronger vibrating in his head, in his chest. He had to stop or he’d drain her, but the taste was so… He pulled away, turning his head in disgust over his lack of control. Autumn wisely backed away giving him space. He thought he would be all right. He felt stronger more vibrant, but something pulled at him, taking him away.

Autumn screamed. “Don’t go!”

It hurt him to see her beautiful face so ravaged with emotion. He reached for her. “I love you.”

What’s happening?” She watched in horror as he faded away as if he had never been there.

She fell to her knees, a retched sob vibrating from her chest. “You can’t take him. You can’t,” she wailed to the heavens. “Not him too. You’ve taken everyone.”

“Not everyone.” Chin gripped her shoulder and she let him bring her to her feet, folding his arms around her.

Chapter Twenty-Five

It was time to clean up. The Autumn Moon Festival was over, the people of Chinatown would return to their businesses and their way of life like they always did. For Autumn, everything had changed. She didn’t want to open her shop so she left the closed sign in the window. No one would understand that she mourned a man who had been dead when she met him.

She needed to pay bills, check her e-mail. She logged into her computer. She frowned. She had mail from Jairec. He must have sent it to her before they took their stand against Heng. Her heart pounded against her chest as she opened it.

Dear Autumn,

The time draws near that we will have to fight Heng. I can never repay you for your unselfish kindness, your gentle heart. I would love to be with you always, but I fear it is not meant to be, but perhaps you’ll think of me once in a while when you look at your website I’ve designed for you. Click on the link below. I hope you like it.

She clicked on the link and the page opened to Moon’s Acupuncture. A beautiful Moon in the background, her bio and information about what she offered. The site was beautiful, but it was the Chinese symbol in the right corner of the page that made her eyes mist.

Soul mate. They were only granted a short time together, but she knew he had been the one for her. He had felt it, too.

A knock at the door broke into her thoughts. She took a deep breath and wiped away the tears. Couldn’t they read the sign? She marched to the door and swung it open. “We’re clo …” the words lodged in her throat.

“I’m sorry to be troubling you miss, but I was drawn to this place.” His sea-smoked eyes gazed at her and he had hair the color of the devil’s black velvet. He stood in the sun’s rays and did not flinch or burst into flames.

“Jairec?”

“Aye.” His brows furrowed over the bridge of his nose. “You know me then. This will sound a bit peculiar, but I don’t know why I’m here and yet …” His gaze slid over her, confusion lighting his features.

“You’re two souls united. You’re not dead.” She touched him to make sure he was solid.

He chuckled. “No, I’m not dead. Though, the doctors said I should have been.” He touched the back of his head. “Someone hit me from behind. You’ll have to pardon my behavior my memory is a bit fuzzy.”

“You found your way here.”

“Aye.” He turned a shade of red and his gaze wavered before he looked at her again. “I dreamt of you.” He cleared his throat, seeming embarrassed over his confession.

She tilted her head and smiled. “Good dreams, I hope.”

“Um … uh …”

She stepped toward him and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Perhaps I can jog your memory.” She kissed him. He stood stiff and unyielding for a half a second then his arms came up around her, crushing her to him.

They came up for air and he moved a strand of hair away from her face. His gaze locked with hers. “I’ve kissed you before.”

She nodded.

He frowned, trying to remember but only fragments flitted across his mind and he wanted all of it. He looked at her again.

“Do you want to come in?” She stepped away from him, allowing him room.

“Aye, I believe I do.” He walked in and closed the door behind him. He didn’t know how he knew her, but some part of him sensed he belonged here. “What’s your name?”

“Autumn Moon.”

The name stirred him. “Autumn.” He whirled the name on his tongue. He looked at her again and recognized the longing in her eyes. She walked over to the counter that stood below the shelves that held bottles of herbs and other concoctions. He stepped closer, having the urge to run his fingers through her hair to find out if it was as soft as it looked, but before he could reach her, she thrust a plate of pastries at him.

“Would you like a moon cake?”

“What?” He frowned, staring at the lotus seed cakes.

“It’s how we met.”

He didn’t want pastries. He wanted … He took the plate from her, setting it on the counter. He drew her into his arms and kissed her, tasting her. Flashes of a life, his life flew at him until he felt dizzy. He teetered and she grabbed a hold of him.

“Jairec, are you okay?”

He placed his hands on the side of her face. “Aye, I’m brilliant.” He kissed her again, only this time, everything fell into place.

She pulled away. “You remember.”

“Aye. I remember much more, too. It seems you did have my cure after all.”

“The elixir of life?” She shook her head. “We didn’t figure it out.”

“Ah, but you both did.”

They turned around at the sound of the voice behind them.

“Grandfather, what do you mean?”

“Autumn gave you her life essence freely and you, Jairec didn’t selfishly take all of it. Life is all about balance. The curse was then broken, joining Jairec’s two souls once again.” He gave him a long sizing up moment before he nodded. “He is a remarkable young man, Autumn. You’ve chosen well.”

Jairec drew Autumn close. He never wanted anything more than to have her at his side. “I’m the one who is grateful.”

“And well you should be.” Her grandfather agreed. “Make sure you cherish her.”

Jairec looked at her, meeting her gaze. God, she had eyes that made him forget to breathe—clear green and trusting. “I’ll treasure her forever.”

###

Author’s Note:

A few of San Francisco landmarks are the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, and Chinatown. There are cable cars and steep rolling hills with a mix of Victorian as well as modern architecture. The city is surrounded on three sides with water and it is common for fog to roll in like a filmy white blanket, especially during the summer months.

San Francisco’s Chinatown is the oldest in the United States. The town draws in more tourists than the Golden Gate Bridge.

The Moon Festival is held in late August or early September. The festival is like a Chinese Thanksgiving with the spirit of gratitude. There is plenty of food and of course, the popular moon cake I mentioned in the story. The holiday is also about the bounty of the summer harvest, the legend of the moon, the immortal gods and the elixir of life.

The Chinese vampire is called the chiang-shih. As legend states they may appear to look human. There are others that are a green color with long gray hair. This is why I used the contrast for the creatures in this tale. The evil vampires looking more like the hideous creature of nightmares. If only all monsters could be so obvious.

The Chinese believe a person has two souls. The superior soul can leave a sleeping body, appear as the body’s double and walk the earth. However if the two souls remain separated for long there can be dire consequences.

A chiang-shih is created if the body has suffered a violent death, improper burial or by an incantation. The transformation is thought to take place prior to burial.

People would protect themselves from the chiang-shih by using salt and of course, like most vampire legends, they used garlic to ward off the living dead. A chiang-shih could be chased away by loud noise and it was believed they could be killed with thunder. If the chiang-shih matured to the white-haired stage and could fly, the creature could only be killed by a bullet or thunder. The body could also be cremated.

About the Author:

Karen Michelle Nutt resides in California with her husband, three fascinating children, and houseful of demanding pets. Jack, her Chihuahua/Yorkshire terrier is her writing buddy and sits long hours with her at the computer.

Her Book, Lost in the Mist of Time, was nominated for New Books Review Spotlight Best Fantasy Book of the Year Award 2006. A Twist of Fate was a nominee for Best Time Travel P.E.A.R.L. Award for 2008. Creighton Manor won Honorable Mention P.E.A.R.L. Award 2009.

Her new passion is creating book covers for
Western Trail Blazers
and
Rebecca J. Vickery Publishing
. In her spare time, she reviews books for PNR-Paranormal Romance Reviews.

Whether your reading fancy is paranormal, historical or time travel, all her stories capture the rich array of emotions that accompany the m
ost fabulous human phenomena—
falling in love.

Visit the author at:
http://www.kmnbooks.com

Stop by her blog for Monday interviews, chats and contests at:

http://kmnbooks.blogspot.com

Time Travel and Otherworldly Romances

Also by Karen Michelle Nutt:

Time Travels

Lost in the Mist of Time

At the Stroke of Midnight

Creighton Manor

A Twist of Fate

Storm Riders

Otherworldly Romance