Leif (Existence) (10 page)

“What can I do to prove to you that I do love you? Anything except letting you
go
; because I can’t. I’ll do whatever else you ask of me. I want you to accept this. Us. Just tell me.”

She stared back at me without saying anything for a few moments. Then finally she replied.
“Release Wyatt to a transporter. Don’t keep him here.”

Could this be the way to win her heart?
“If I can convince my father to release Wyatt to a transporter then you will believe I love you and you’ll let this work between us?”

“Yes, if you hand Wyatt’s soul over to a transporter and I get to see this happen. Once I know it has happened and that his soul is where it belongs then I will stay with you. I’ll do whatever I can to make you happy. To make… us… happy.”

We could be happy. I’d make this happen. No matter what I had to do, I’d make this happen.
“You have a deal. Get some rest Pagan. Tomorrow is a new day and I can’t wait to start eternity with you.”

12.
“I can get you both out of here… alive.”
- Leif

             
Father wasn’t go
ing to be easy to convince when
it came to letting Wyatt’s soul go to
Dankmar
. He hated the power
Dankmar
held over him. In
Vilokan
, Father held the power. However,
Dankmar
held the power over the souls of creation. But I needed Pagan’s forgiveness. My future had been planned out with her from the time I was a boy. I couldn’t let that go. I didn’t want to watch her hate for me grow each day.

             
“Excuse me but I need to find
someone and I am completely lost. Do you know Rosella, red hair… and hopefully still alive? I thought maybe that might stand out here,
ya
know.”

             
Stopping I turned to find an attractive petite girl around my age coming from the main entrance. First thing I noticed other than the fact she had really big brown eyes and incredibly long eyelashes was the fact she was wearing clothes.
N
ormal clothes. Her jeans were worn and faded but hugged her thin hips nicely. The black tee shirt she was wearing had “Don’t make me go Cajun on your ass,” written across it in white block letters. Nothing about this girl looked Cajun. Her pale skin and coppery colored hair screamed Irish.

             
“Hey, are you like alive too? Becaus
e you look like it but then it’
s hard to tell here,” she asked. I lifted my eyes from her shirt and met her gaze. The pink in her cheeks and beat of her heart told me she was in fact a human. What was my father thinking? Was he collecting a whole hord
e
of humans? Then the thought of why he would have collected another human washed over me. Oh, fuck no. She was my age!

             
“Who are you and how did you get here?” I asked studying her for any sign of
a lie.

             
Her posture straightened and the openly curious expression she’d been aiming at me darkened. Great, I’d pissed off yet another female. “I’m Sabine Monroe. I’m looking for
my sister. Rosella Monroe. She’
s older than me. Same hair,” she paused and pressed her lips together firmly. Something was upsetting her and I was positive it wasn’t my rude behavior. “Hopefully, still alive.”

             
“You’re alive,” I stated.

             
Sabine nodded slowly like maybe she needed to find someone else with a little more sense.

             
“How did you get here? This is the Voodoo
afterlife
. It isn’t normal to see a living breathing human walking the halls. Typically it’s the souls of those who served
Ghede
who enter
Vilokan
.”

             
Sabine put her hands on her hips and sighed. I noticed her nails were neatly filed and each white tip had a black Fleur De
Lis
on the end. “I’m aware of where I am. Obviously the living and breathing can enter the walls of
V
ilokan
if they know what they’r
e doing. Trust me, I don’t want to be here. I just need someone to tell me where I can find my sister so that I can take her home. Back to the surface where we can continue living and breathing and st
a
ying the
hell away from my
Mame’
s
Voodoo crap
.”

             
“Okay, wait. Your sister is here and you are looking for her. Both of you are alive? You’re not a Voodoo queen heir or a witch but you are here. Where only those
Ghede
allows to enter may walk.”

             
A small shiver ran over her and she shook her head, “No, I’m none of those things. My
Mame
` however needs a good lesson in messing with the Voodoo junk she buys from the shop on B
o
urbon. I’ve told her that mess wasn’t something to
screw
around with. But no one listens to the eighteen year old. So, here I am.”

             
The red headed female who I’d seen with my father months ago. Surely that wasn’t who this girl was after.
But who else?
The red hair was similar. Maybe. I hadn’t paid eno
ugh attention to the girl with F
ather. I’d been worried about
Dankmar
taking Pagan from me. This girl did not need to meet my father. His taste in females could be disturbing. The idea of him using this girl
sickened me. She was too young, too innocent
, t
oo…
beautiful.  Not to mention
,
I needed to get Father to agree to
letting
Wyatt’s soul go back to
Dankmar
.

             
“Listen, I have some stuff I have to deal with tonight. I can find your sister. B
ut you’
re in a dangerous place.
Ghede
, he is the—”

             
“Voodoo lord of the dead. Yeah, I know. My
Mame
` explained all that before she sent me to the old voodoo witch who in return sent me here.”

             
“Right. Okay, well he isn’t exactly a nice understanding guy. If you could give me a day to work some things out and let me find your sister, I’ll bring her to you then I’ll get you both out of here.”

             
Sabine cocked one eyebrow, “Yeah, you? And how will you do that? With your good looks because God knows you
aren’t a Voodoo
spirit
.
You look as human as I do.”

             
I had to bite back a laugh, which was surprising. I hadn’t been much in the mood for laughter earlier. “Listen, Sabine. I can promise you I’ve got connections. Just pleas
e do as I say and wait on me. I’m the only one who
has a chance at
get
ting
you both out of here…
alive
.”

13
.
“Let her go.”
- Leif

I knocked once then opened the door, “It’s time,” I announced as I made my way into the bedroom. Pagan had been given a chance to say her goodbyes to Wyatt. A transporter had been alerted of Wyatt’s return. Everything was set in place. Soon, I’d have the eternity I’d always imagined with Pagan.

She pulled on the short length of the black dress Father had supplied for her to wear. It was his way of showing
Dankmar
just who Pagan belonged to now. I knew she hated the flimsiness of the dress but I’d managed to get Father to agree to so much already I wasn’t about to argue with him on this one.

“Let’s do this,” she replied making her way to the door. Thankful that she wasn’t going to put up a fight I held out my warm to escort her but she backed away and shook her head, “No, it’s not over yet. You get Wyatt safely in a transporter’s hands and out of this place, then I’ll hold up my end of the deal.”

           
She was stubborn but I wasn’t going to argue. Instead, I nodded my head.

           
“You lead the way,” she said once we were in the hallway.

           
“You know that
Dankmar
will probably be here, Pagan.”

           
“I figure he would be.”

“
You understand the implications if you go to him.”


      
“Yes Leif, I know you’ll kill off everyone I love and suck their souls down here to
live in f
ornication for all eternity. Got it.”

       I
love
d
her so fiercely
but
she could make me so angry
. “Pagan, this isn’t about me. I’ve told
y
ou this is my father. It’s how he operates. I can’t control him. You have no idea how much cajoling I had to do in order for him to give Wyatt’s soul back. And to be honest the only reason I think he agreed is because he sees entertainment value in you refusing to go to
Dankmar
and that he will be the one controlling you.”

             
I notice
d the door across the hall.
It opened slightly and two large
brown eyes peered out. The wide-eyed
expression on Sabine’s face told me she had heard quite a bit of the argument Pagan and I were having. I had to focus on my problem at hand. I’d deal with Sabine and her sister later.

“Now please understand, no pain you have suffered is because I wanted it. I never wanted you to hurt. I always thought you’d want me.
That your soul would want me.
Hell when I get anywhere near you your eyes look like they’ve caught on fire. You’re supposed to want me. But you don’t. Instead you want him. And you can’t have him, Pagan. It was never meant to be.”

“Okay,
”

was her simple reply.

“Okay?”