Dangerous Lovers (9 page)

I was seeing red. All red. Red-hot lies. Red blood spilled as a result of those lies. And Nelly’s red face as she admitted to those lies. I slammed my eyes shut, trying desperately to envision the color blue. Seeing only red, darkening and darkening into a near black—

Something warm and soft touched my cheek. A beautiful, glorious rainbow exploded behind my lids. So exquisite and lacking in only one color. I almost raised a hand in attempt to capture it. But as the colors settled over me, so did my right mind. Peeling my eyes open, I looked down to see that Akira was resting her hand on my face. I’d forgotten I was holding her. The possibilities of this fact horrified me so greatly I was almost afraid to draw in air.

Where her hand touched my face, I felt a seeping cold sensation, much like medication through an IV, and all red thoughts disappeared. Incredible calmness washed over me. Finally deciding I could move without risk of breaking her, I brought my hand up to cover hers with my own.

“Akira,” Olivia chastised, “don’t—”

“She needs it, Gram,” Akira interrupted, then looked back at me. “Let me take some of it away.”

I was still staring in stupefied wonder at the strange girl in my lap, but I assumed Olivia agreed to whatever Akira was going to do because she didn’t remove her hand from my face.

Let it go, Alexa.
It was Akira’s voice in my head, and my mind felt too muddled to truly consider it. My eyes seemed involuntarily locked with hers
.
Let me take it. Let it go and let me take it.

I felt a cold, pulling sensation on my mind that seemed to reach all the way down to my core, like exhaling, exhaling all the way through to my soul.

I clasped her hand and removed it from my cheek. She gave me a look that said she didn’t approve, but didn’t fight me.

“No.” My voice was much stronger than I’d expected.

She smiled that adorable smile and tugged my hair so that my ear was close to her lips. “Sometimes you have to allow others to hold onto that for you,” she whispered. “You’ll be no good to anyone if you refuse to let it out when it comes so close to breaking you.”

Akira hopped off my lap and walked stiff-backed over to where a small vase of flowers rested on the window sill. She grabbed the vase and spun around in a circle, launching it at the wall. The vase shattered into pieces. Marching over to the remains, she stomped and stomped and stomped on the helpless plant until it was beyond revival or recognition. Then she returned to her toys.

I turned to look at Olivia, hoping she wouldn’t punish the little girl. As weird as it was, I felt like I understood why she’d thrown the vase. Hell, a few seconds ago, smashing a vase wouldn’t have seemed like a bad idea.

Olivia looked as if she’d been expecting this. “Feeling better?” she asked.

I nodded. “Akira?” She jerked her head up, an angry expression on her face. Then, she took a deep breath and relaxed her face.

“Yes?”

“What—what did you do? What are you?”

She giggled. “I’m a Searcher, and I took it away from you. There was too much for you… too much for even a Warrior to carry alone.”

I didn’t have to ask what
it
was. I knew. She’d taken away the effects that the events of the last couple of days had had upon me. She’d taken away the hurt and pain and anger I always worked so hard to keep hidden. She’d seen into my soul. I felt oddly vulnerable and… grateful.

“Thank you.”

She winked at me and returned her attention to her toys. I was starting to fall in love with this child.

Beside me, Nelly and Jackson were silent. No doubt they were confused, and I felt no need to explain things. It was petty, but I felt smug about the fact that, for once, I wasn’t the one in the dark.

Olivia was waiting for me to continue, so I took a deep breath, deciding to ask the only question that really mattered. “Okay, so the Lamia found us. They’re probably still hunting us… What do we do now?”

“Now, you rest. You look like you haven’t slept for days and you will need your strength for what is to come. Tomorrow, you head for New Jersey,” said Olivia.

“What’s in New Jersey?”

It was Jackson who answered me, the first time he’d spoken since our arrival.

“Two Rivers… Two Rivers is in New Jersey.”

Chapter Fifteen

Olivia gave me and Nelly the spare bedroom and provided Jackson with a pillow and blankets to sleep on the couch. I got to take a shower, and it was the best thing I had felt in days. Returning to the bedroom, I found Nelly waiting for me. I was hoping that she would have fallen asleep already. It was part of the reason I’d taken so long with my shower.

I pulled the towel off my head, grabbed a hairbrush from my overnight bag and began running it through my hair, pretending not to notice Nelly staring at me.

“Can… Can we talk?” she asked after a few moments.

I blew out my breath and went to sit by her on the bed. “Yes. I mean, I’m still mad at you, but I think we should talk.”

“I’m sorry, Lex.” I raised an eyebrow at this. “Really, I’m really, really sorry,” said Nelly.

Looking into her beautiful hazel eyes, I could tell she meant it. I wasn’t sure if I could completely forgive her yet, but I could recognize the fact that she needed me right now. She had been right about one thing: we were all we had left, and we needed to stick together. Honestly, I probably needed her just as much as she needed me. Besides, holding a grudge against people I love has never been something I was good at.

I should’ve known she wouldn’t go to sleep if she thought I was mad at her. I pulled her into a hug and felt her relax against me. “Just don’t lie to me again, okay? I guess I kind of understand why you did, but I have to know you’ll be truthful with me from here on out,” I told her.

She sat back and looked me straight in the eyes. “I promise. I promise I will never lie to you again.”

I gave her a skeptical look and smiled when she looked alarmed. “Okay, I believe you. Now, I have a few questions I need you to answer, and remember, you promised you’d be honest with me.” I had learned the big stuff from Olivia, but after a couple more attempts to learn it all, she’d insisted that we needed our rest. I hadn’t argued because, truth be told, I felt like I could keel over at any second.

Nelly looked like she didn’t really want to agree, but I knew she would keep to her word. She gave a small nod and I took that as my go-ahead.

“What are you, Nell?” I seemed to be asking that a lot lately.

She hesitated, then said, “I’m what’s called a Searcher. Similar to what Olivia and Akira are. I can see into people’s heads. I can touch them and know what they truly are, what they feel in their heart. That’s why we are called Searchers. We search souls.” She paused before adding, “And I can make people do things. I can force my will upon them.”

I gave a low whistle. “Oookay, well, that’s… good to know. What did you mean when you said
similar
to Olivia and Akira? What’s different about you?”

She looked away and I waited for an answer. When it didn’t come, I took her hand and gave it a small squeeze. “Look, Nelly, look at me. I don’t care what you are. As far as I’m concerned, you’re my little sister and there is nothing,
nothing
that will ever change that. Nothing you or anyone else can tell me will ever take away my love for you. Search me… or whatever, if you have to. You know I mean it.”

She drew a deep breath, and then her words seemed to tumble out of her mouth. “I don’t have to Search you. I know you’re telling the truth. Just don’t judge me, okay?” I nodded and she continued. “There are three different types of vampires, and each race has its own set of abilities. The Searchers you already know about. Then there are the Brocken Vampires. They are the soldiers of our kind, strong and fast and excellent fighters. The last kind you also already know about: the Lamias. What makes the Lamias different from the others is that they are part demon—condemned souls that chose to stay on Earth to do as much damage as they can until they meet their second and final death.” I picked my jaw up off the floor and raised my eyebrows so she would continue.

This time, she closed her eyes when she spoke. “What makes me different is that I’m half and half. Half Searcher… and half Lamia.”

This had to be some kind of joke, but as I stared at her, waiting for the punch-line, I realized she was serious. “You’re serious?” I had to ask. “How is that even possible? How can you have half of a condemned soul?”

She peeled her eyes open and looked at me as if she was surprised I hadn’t grabbed my sword and cut her head off. “I’m not entirely sure,” she said, slowly. “The closest I can figure is that my real mother was a Searcher and she died and turned Lamia while she was pregnant with me.”

“How does someone ‘turn’ Lamia?”

She looked startled that this would be my next question, but answered anyway. “Only women can turn, and it usually occurs when a young woman dies an untimely death or her soul can’t find peace. It is said that the soul then chooses to stay, reanimating the corpse. At least, that’s what the texts say. No one is really sure.”

“How did they find us? I mean, I doubt they just suddenly thought, ‘Hey, I bet they’re staying in a little podunk town in Missouri.’”

She looked ashamed and I couldn’t really figure out why. “Because Lamias are drawn to their own kind. They hunt in packs. And because even humans can become Lamia, their numbers grow much faster than that of any other supernatural race, and apparently, the blood of a supernatural is much more powerful, so naturally, we are their prey of choice. It was only a matter of time before they found us, and now that they have, they won’t stop hunting us.”

I fell back on the bed and draped an arm over my head. “Oh, okay, so just imminent death from demon-possessed bloodsuckers, an evergrowing population of the bastards, and some kind of beacon that you subconsciously put out to drawn them in. Anything else I should know?”

She shut off the light and plopped down beside me. “Oh, yeah, did I mention that Warrior blood is their favorite?”

I laughed out loud, though there was no humor in it. “No, I don’t believe you did.”

Chapter Sixteen

I fell asleep almost immediately after that, my body’s need winning out over my mind’s urge to stay up. And, much to my delight, I awoke feeling fresh and rested. I also awoke in a pretty good mood, considering the circumstances.

I took another quick shower because I was unsure as to when I would be able to again. Jackson, Nelly and I loaded our things back into the SUV as we were getting ready to leave. Olivia and Akira stepped out onto the porch, and we thanked them for their help. As I headed back to the car, Akira jumped off the porch and ran toward me. I scooped her up in my arms and gave her a hug.

“I’m going to miss you, Alexa,” she whispered.

“I’m going to miss you, too,” I replied, because I really would.

She pulled back and looked at me with those big, brown eyes. “Remember what I said, okay?” I nodded. “Will you come back and visit us sometime?” she asked.

Looking at her little face, I wasn’t sure if I could refuse this child anything. At the same time, I didn’t want to lie to her.

“I’ll try,” I told her truthfully.

She kissed my cheek and I thanked her again, then we hit the road. It would take us about nine hours to get to New Jersey from Ohio, and once again, I was anxious to get there before the sun set. The location Olivia gave us could only be found by using coordinates of longitude and latitude. Thank goodness for the GPS.

“Does anyone know what we’re walking into?” I asked, once we were on the highway.

“I’ve only ever heard stories,” Jackson said. “But don’t worry, darling. I’ll protect you.”

I laughed. I really was in a better mood. “Oh, good, now we have nothing to fear.”

In hindsight, we may have been better off facing the Lamia.

Chapter Seventeen

We reached a point where we had to turn off the main roads and follow a road that was little more than a dirt path deep into the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. We’d left Olivia’s at about nine a.m., and it was now six in the evening. We followed the road for what seemed like forever and then, it just ended.

I grabbed the GPS off the dashboard. “I guess we go on foot from here,” I said. “By the way the sun is looking, I would say we have about an hour before nightfall.”

My companions looked uneasy at this thought, but no one argued. We each filled a backpack with our essentials and headed into the trees. I kept my sword clutched in my hand, just in case.

Walking through the forest was not as simple as it sounded. More like we
stumbled
through the forest; the trees were dense and the ground sandy and uneven. I found out just how sharp my sword was and used it as a makeshift machete.

The terrain wasn’t the part that presented the issue, though. The greenhead flies were the problem. The little bastards seemed to swarm us like a family of angry bees. I’ve never seen so many flies in my life. They were relentless—biting, and biting, and
biting
. If someone had told me yesterday the most painful thing I would encounter today would be fly bites, I would have laughed. Today it was not funny. Today it sucked.