Eternal War Rising to the South: The Beynok Vampire Series (21 page)

I took it, all the pain, suffering, envy, hatred, and greed that rushed through my body like rapids on steroids from the thousands of beings surrounding me. Then the pride, love, and joy came seeping slowly in. How much more could I take? I gripped my swords even harder, driving them deeper into the sand. I felt Sorin coming. His hands were about to wrap around me, but I was able to whisper the word, “No!”

I had to file, shuffle, and fold the emotions. My mind was in overdrive, evaluating and eliminating each one. I slowly opened my eyes to a view of a purple shadows surrounding me. My swords were not only filling my body with their power, but they were doing their magic show, too. The shocked sounds the audience made trickled into my ears. I pushed off the ground with my swords and pulled them out of the sand. With one long deep breath, I stood straight up and met the eyes of Rosette. She had stopped quite a few feet away. I gripped my swords tighter than ever, tapped the blades together, took my fighting stance, and watched as the mysterious shadow disappeared back into my swords, returning the embedded clear stones back to their original opaque purple colors.

My senses were on high alert. My eyes felt truly open for the first time. It felt good to release myself from the hold I had and fully open up and adapt to my surroundings. I was determined to show no reaction. I waited for her to make her move. As I watched, I was able to decipher her through the others. Honor and pride came at me. She was on my side. Thankfully, she would have been a tough one to fight. I released myself from my fighting stance and walked in her direction.

She was even taller and more beautiful up close. Her voice echoed once again through the pavilion, “Beynok warrior, do you believe you are the one that thousands want to follow and thousands want to kill for your quest for balance and peace?”

No one has asked me that question. They had all just told me I was. Did I believe? I may be written to be the future Beynok leader and inked on an ancient scroll to overcome evil and bring peace, but was that what I believed was my purpose? Did I believe there was a right and wrong, a good versus evil, and that life and death was worth fighting for? Yes. If that meant fighting beside beings I once wanted to destroy, then yes. “Yes, I believe I am the one who rises and falls and carries her enemy in her hand. Yes, I believe I am the one.”

I chanced a glance at Sorin, who was standing behind me as I lifted my swords in the air high above my head so as to showcase them. “I want to be the one to lead the war to peace.” My voice, too, echoed from wall to wall in the pavilion. I sounded strong and confident. For the first time, I truly believed deep down in my soul I was a leader, and it felt right. It was like another piece of the puzzle fell in place and the picture got a little clearer.
The crowd yelled, cheered, and chanted in languages I have heard and some I had not heard before. The new emotions rushing out of the spectators hit my body like a crashing wave. I was feeling joy, excitement, eagerness, and mostly, the thirst for blood. They were all ready for a war, no matter the side. It struck me as strange that war had to come before peace but that part too was in the prophecy.

Rosette took my wrist, with sword still in hand, raised it high over my head again, and we turned in all directions as the crowd cheered, some in joy and some in hate.

As we turned, my view began to blur. First, I was able to see defined faces in the bleachers. I could see defined faces of Vendennares, Lacevertos, werewolves, witches, vampires, and others. Then the details of the faces blurred and the rough, sandy ground started to spin from under me.

“Close, Anya.” It was Galloway in my head. “Don’t show weakness, or you’ll never get out of here alive.” I zipped myself closed, sealing in the energy I had left. Suddenly I felt Sorin grab my other wrist and raise it above my head, offering some much-needed, support. The crowd settled but did not sit down.

Rosette said, “Come take your rightful seat amongst the Keepers.” Two werewolves brought out a chair built for a queen; it was my throne. It looked like it weighed a ton. Carvings of Scriptures in many languages and embedded stones covered it like a blanket. I watched the werewolves place the throne between Galloway and Abadden. Rosette gestured for me to take my place. As I began to sit, all at the round table stood, and heads began to bow, along with some of the creatures in the stands. The chair swallowed me. The back was extremely tall, though I was unusually short, the arms and seat were wide, and the embedded stones beneath me were hard, of course, but comfortable. I scanned the pavilion in amazement as faces came into view. I thought,
someone here might be the one to possibly kill me on this rise.
I ended my scan with a smiling Drago smiling back at me. Once I was seated and in place, the spectators and the others around the table sat.

Rosette’s voice once again echoed in the pavilion. “The Keepers have only one ruling to make tonight for our followers. Will we fight tonight or another?” She looked around the table, “All wanting blood tonight, please stand.” There were two beings that stood, neither of whom I recognized. One was a vampire and the other a demon.

With a strong voice again, Rosette said, “Those in favor of fighting another night, please stand.” The rest of us stood, including myself. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to take part, but I did.

“Please be seated.” Rosette commanded. “Soon enough, the blood will shed, and many of us will die.” She paused and looked over at me, “Tonight we will all celebrate in the rise of our princess and the battles to come. We, the Keepers, have spoken, and our words are final rule.” She gave a stronger and much louder vibrating voice to her command. “There will be no fighting tonight.” Whispering conversation broke out all around the pavilion.

She gently nodded to me with respect and waved to Sorin to escort me out of the pavilion. I looked over at Abadden to let him know I wanted him with me but he was already making his way to me. The others at the round table stood as well. I caught a glimpse of Gallagher and Drago. They both looked hungry for my death and a bloody painful one at that.

As I left the pavilion with Abadden and Sorin by my sides and Corbin, Serenity, and Yuri behind me, I watched the other Keepers exit through a door on the opposite side. I felt Galloway in my head, “You did good Anya, Beynok Princess.”

We made it back to the room where I had waited before the show and tell. The room was quiet as it was before, even with the six of us in there. I stood in the middle of the room, waiting for someone to tell me what to do. Abadden was softly speaking to Sorin in a language I couldn’t understand. Man, I thought I knew more languages than I needed to know, but I guess I was wrong. Yuri was standing silently by my side. He was a true friend, someone who had left his life and all that he knew behind for me. Who else would do that?

Then I saw it another way and asked myself, Who
would
do that? I grabbed his hand and squeezed. I didn’t bother looking at him for fear of what I would see in his face. I pushed deep, deeper into his soul, and there I found what I feared. I found betrayal. Something happened back at the pavilion, my gift of sense is unlocked and sharper than before.

I kept my head down and my hand continued to squeeze his. The tears were forming behind my eyelids. I wanted to hold them back. What were the others going to think? Sorin would kill him. What was I to do?

“Anya, don’t cry. Please don’t cry.” Yuri had to have smelled the salt in my tears to know I was on the verge of crying.

I whispered, “What would you have me do then, Yuri? You are my closest friend. Someone I trust with my life.” Our voices were low so no one could hear us. He knew I knew because regret ran into my hands from his. I still couldn’t bear to look at him. What had he done? Why would he do this to me?

“Anya, please, I had no choice. You don’t understand, they forced me.” His voice was cracking as if he were about to fall apart, too.

“Everyone has choices in life, Yuri and you have made a very wrong choice.” I was able to look up at him. “There is a price to pay for every wrong choice. I should know.” I released his hands. “We’ll deal with this after we get out of here.”

Yuri bowed his head, “Anya, I had no choice, please try to understand.”

“We need to get the fuck out of here and now,” I said to Abadden. “How can we safely leave here?”

“Princess, you got our attention. Are we in danger?” Corbin was up and on high alert.

“Yes, we are,” was all I was able to get out.

“Do we need to wait for Galloway?” Corbin asked Sorin.

“No, he is an ancient and can take of himself. We’ll travel back to the New Mexico Mansion and meet him there. Sorin turned to Abadden, “Can you get us out of here safely?”

Abadden agreed to Sorin’s request and turned to me, “Princess, I cannot go with you now. I have another realm to deal with since your exposure. I promise to be by your side as soon as my world allows me to.” He touched my face, and his scale-covered hand turned the same color as my skin, a pale, creamy white. “You’re a brave warrior. I’m proud to be fighting by your side.” He gave me one last nod and said, “Follow me.”

We silently followed Abadden through underground tunnels, hidden doors, and checkpoints with guards from our side. Finally, I could tell we were moving in an upward direction out of the underground city. Abadden stopped at a locked door that he opened with the wave of his hand, a touch of magic, revealing a cave, but I could barely see the moonlight ahead. Abadden squeezed my shoulder as I passed by him.

“Corbin, the parking garage where the Hummers are should be about five miles west once you are out of the cave.” With that, Abadden shut the door. “Serenity, come with me to pick up a Hummer. Sorin, I’ll send the exact pick up location to your phone.”

Sorin said, “Take Yuri with you.”

Corbin crossed his eyes at us and said, “Fine, but no Fuckin around you two! We’re in the middle of a war.”

20 – Taken

Sorin and I were alone, but for how long? I felt the tension between us grow. His hand reached out and stroked my arm as if he were testing the waters first. The stroke was simple but showed so much affection. With each step he took toward me, I took one back until I met the end of my escape with the cave wall. My breathing increased, my palms started to sweat, and my neck tightened.

Looking up at my beautiful vampire, I was able to see the softness in his face and the flicker of his amethyst eyes in the dim moonlit cave. His body moved sternly up against mine, so I could feel all of him.

“Touch me,” he said.

I hesitated as if I hadn’t touched him before. There was a small sigh of release by both of us upon contact. I started my voyage by running my hands through his hair. I ran my fingers down his face and my thumbs over his eyebrows and then over his lips. I hovered right over his extended fangs to show there was no fear of this side of him. My hands moved down his square jaw line, and I could feel him gritting his teeth together. Then down his wide, muscular shoulders and chest to the rippling muscles at his waistline. A soft, low growl rumbled from his throat.

“You are mine.” I meant it in every possessive, passionate, crazy, and dominating way. This vampire was mine and would forever be mine.

“And you are mine,” he said before he stole my space, my breath, my soul, and my love with his lips.

I’m nothing without him. It’s hard to image that I was able to function in daily life before I found him. He is my spirit and purpose for life. Sorin engulfed me with the power of his lips and tongue. I became helpless against him and fell into the spell of his motion and out of any coherent thought. His hands pulled me closer to him. I heard his jacket fall to the ground and then felt tugging on mine until it, too, was on the ground. Sorin pulled away long enough to lift me up and place my legs around his waist. He was grabbing at my chest and butt. I felt the pulling of my hair then the sharpness of his fangs on my neck. He lapped at my bonding holes, and my breathing increased. I wanted so badly for him to take me in that cave, right then.

The loud growl of anger coming from his chest and throat brought me right out of my spell and back to reality. He released my waist, and my legs slid to the ground. I was frustrated, and I could tell he was, as well, by the lines on his face and the black flicker in his eyes. “Let’s go. We’ll continue this as soon as we get back to New Mexico,” he said. We were both reaching for our coats when the sense of blood lust hit me. Many were coming for us and fast.

“Sorin, we need to get out of here now!” We put on our jackets and ran.

It was dark and quiet outside the cave. If I hadn’t had my sense, there would have been no way to know we were about to be attacked. I could feel them, but they were still far enough away that we couldn’t hear them. It was close to sunrise and the fog settled in thick around the trees, and the night air was heavy on my body. A light mist was falling. Slight crunching of the twigs and leaves beneath our feet was all I could hear. We walked slowly and took every step with precaution. I looked back at Sorin, and the fog made it hard to see the details of his face. Then it hit me that I had seen this in my dream.

I pulled my two protectors out and felt the energy surging into my palms. Sorin followed suit. I almost couldn’t bear to look at him. I knew he could tell, too. He knew I could feel the end coming. The vampire that held the balance to my soul didn’t falter. His body stood strong, and his face showed no fear. He exuded nothing but cold hard power. We had not had enough time. I was pleading with myself, pleading for more time. Then we could hear them coming. We only had seconds left before they would be on us.

“Ten, there are ten of them,” I said. I didn’t need my gift of sense to tell me that because I had seen it in my dream. I tried quickly to remember anything else that I could tell Sorin, but all I could get out was, “There’re strong.”

Sorin pulled me close, wrapped my body into his arms, and kissed me for the last time, as he had in my dream. “We’ll be together again,” he said. When he released me, the battle began.

They were the same ten ugly bastards I remembered. The grizzly barbarian creatures came at us, seeming slightly larger and stronger than I had remembered fighting, and one picked me up and flung me through the air. I fought to remember the movements my opponents were going to make before they made them. I needed to kill my five as fast as I could so I could help Sorin. The beasts surrounded me in a stab-and-jab beating circle. Their arms and legs came at me quicker than I could block them. It was more difficult than I thought it would be to kill them, but the circle of attack became smaller as I managed to kill a couple. Standing on the two I had killed, defending myself, just as I had in my dream, I began to lose hope and weaken.

I glanced over to see Sorin about thirty yards away. He was on schedule just as I was with my dream. His circle was getting smaller as well with only two left. I continued to rack my brain, forcing myself to try to change something so the outcome would be different. I told myself to move faster, kill faster. The power of my swords willed my body to move. I delivered a deadly slice to the throat of one of them, leaving me with only two beasts left to kill. One managed to slice my stomach with its claw. Right on cue, the burning, cold sensation ripped across my flesh. My efforts were not speeding things up at all. I knew the outcome would be the same if I couldn’t change something along the way. This was by far the worst battle I had ever been in. It was pointless. I was going to lose and lose big. As I swung and fought, I wondered,
Why couldn’t they kill me instead of Sorin?
The injury to my stomach took me to my knees, so I held my swords high above my head, protecting myself from the relentless swinging attacks. I threw my body between the legs of an opponent and slid my swords into its back as I willed myself to stand. The creature turned to face me quickly, whipping the swords out of my hands, with them staying plunged into its back. A kick to the face took it down, and it landed hard on my swords. The creature was down for good, leaving access to my swords impossible. This was a painful replay in slow motion.

With no time to waste, I was on to the last one. It came at me aggressively, swinging its rusty sword, as I ducked and jumped throwing my own punches and kicks when possible. The moment came when the beast’s sword cut through my shoulder, and there was nothing I could do to change it, despite my efforts. An explosion of victory seeped out of the beast’s face as its blade sliced through the air in the direction of my head as I knelt on the ground before it. Catching the blade with my hands midair was not as a big a surprise to me as it was to the beast. Its body jerked back with surprise but the effort to push the sword forward soon resumed.

The outcome could change if I just let the sword slip through my hands and onto my face. It would all be over. I wouldn’t have the chance to feel the pain of losing Sorin. I wouldn’t have to lead a war of blood and hate. I could start over not knowing any of this. What if I just let the sword slip between my hands? I could do it…I could let it happen.

As a replay, I saw Sorin’s dagger blaze through the fog right into the beast’s forehead. My chance to start over had escaped, and I was left with the same playback move.

I turned to see Sorin the way he was when I first saw him in the field. He was once again the black outline of a male with no face. A silhouette with a tall square structure stood deep within the fog and shadowed by the trees from the moonlight. The flicker in his amethyst eyes reassured me it was him.

In my dream, I had been able to see his face and, right at this moment, he was supposed to smile at me. Had something changed? The moment I started to feel hope was the moment the mist turned to rain and brought what I feared the most with it. I didn’t have to look up to know my once Beynok family was descending upon us.

“Sorin, run!” I screamed. It was too late. They had already reached him. I saw a black outline of a sword sweep across Sorin’s neck. A nightmare was before me as I watched Sorin’s swords drop to the ground and his massive body fell to its knees. A blade from the back pushed through Sorin’s torso as I heard his echoing scream. The shock didn’t hold me back as it did in my dream. I ran to Sorin, thinking I might be able to save him. Branches and twigs cut my hands and face as I pushed through the forest. Friendly fire shot past me in the direction of the Beynoks. I tried to push faster, but they were escaping me as they had in the dream, stealing Sorin from me. The Beynoks pulled him by his arms like a piece of lifeless meat. They had no respect for their former Beynok family member. They saw him as the enemy because they had never been told the truth. They were blinded by their false world, created by rules and lies. These Beynok warriors thought taking Sorin from me would contribute to bettering the world, and they had no idea that they had just sealed the death of one of the most loyal, honorable, and devoted beings that had ever walked this earth. I could see the dreaded clearing beyond the forest getting closer, and hear the roar of the helicopter engine getting louder. I felt the release of staggering pain from Sorin fill my body. I raced hard but not hard enough. I reached the edge of the forest where the clearing began, and my fight to save Sorin ended. I watched as my own kind slung Sorin’s body into the helicopter and lifted away.

I screamed as I did in my dream, and I didn’t stop. I dropped to my knees, weeping, and I didn’t care who saw me. The helicopter escaped my view and my nightmare took me to a realm I never thought would become reality. The choices I had made had led me to this point. Everything was my fault and my responsibility. How was I going to continue on my journey without Sorin? Paused in time, my body filled with staggering pain and sorrow. My world was closing in around me and I truly wanted to die because the pain was unbearable.

The arms that wrapped around me, were those of Abadden’s. He cradled me tightly, and he carried me back into the forest, where the trees blocked the moonlight and shaded the view of the stars. The darkness brought Abadden’s eyes to life and my mind wondered into the depths of his eyes, seeking sanctuary. I wanted to feel nothing, but it was impossible. Rosette’s words echoed in my head, “There will be no fighting tonight.” It’s more clear to me now than ever, Beynoks live by their own rules and they will never join us in the war against evil. They are our strongest enemy. The struggle between my heart and mind began against one another in determining the purpose and direction of this war. My mind was being pushed to a lost empty place and my concurring heart was turning black with the desire for revenge. I want to kill all of them.

About The Author

I had the worst time in school. I never could finish a book, read fast enough with understanding, or spell anything for that matter. But I loved to write when I was young. As I grew older, I started to read fantasy and actually finished the books. At that point, I knew I was on to something and I loved it. I couldn’t stop reading. A good book about something that couldn’t feasibly be real and a glass of wine would take my mind to its playground. Reading made me remember just how much I used to love to write. One night I sat down at my computer as my husband watched football and started to write about Anya and Sorin. I quickly knew I had reclaimed a passion that had slipped through the cracks of life.

Since starting the journey of Anya and Sorin, between my job as a kitchen designer and having a wonderful little girl, there have been many breaks and many rewrites along the almost six years it has taken to publish this love story.

My family and I have started a new adventure in Raleigh N.C. With this move and my daughter now a little older, I hope to have more time to write about Anya and Sorin. Hopefully, I will complete my next book in the Beynok Vampire Series in a more timely fashion than six years!

Thank you for reading about Anya and Sorin. I hope you loved reading about them as much as I love writing about them. Please visit me at my website at
www.erikareneebradshaw.com
where you can join my mailing list, hear the latest news, and see additional images. Also, like me on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/erikareneebradshaw.com

Publishing Soon

Eternal Revenge, Falling to The West

Book Two of the Beynok Vampire Series