Midnight Blood (Born Immortal) (19 page)

     Shayna felt bad for Aiden, but it had happened so long ago, and she knew  Cain didn’t mean to kill Roslyn.

     “When I found that necklace and picked it up, and touched the stone,” Aiden said, watching Shayna hold her beloved Cain’s necklace, she touched the stone, and he spoke again. “I touched it, and my mind filled with all sorts of visions. Visions of your fathers face, visions of Roslyn helping Cain when he appeared ill, visions of him draining every bit of life out of her, and visions of places that he must have traveled after his change, places I never knew he had been before anyway. I think his memories were being implanted in the emerald.”

     “I don’t see anything.” Shayna said still holding the necklace.

     “They faded away many years ago,” Aiden said, getting up. He sat on the bed next to Shayna. He wasn’t done, “I immediately went back to your father, and told him what had happened to Roslyn and told him to finish what he had began in the first place.” Aiden gave a little chuckle, “He refused, of course. He told me then, about Changelings, and that’s how I found out what Cain is. I hate my brother. He killed the only girl I have ever loved.” Aiden tightened his hands into fists, hidden next to his legs on the bed, it pained him to talk of what happened.

     Before Aiden could go any further, Shayna interjected, “They had made a deal, and he got carried away.” Shayna was getting annoyed with always having to defend Cain to his own brother.

     “I don’t care Shayna,” Aiden said abruptly, “That’s not my point anyway. I vowed at that time to never let him touch another Halfling Princess again. I’ve only failed one time.” Aiden said refering to the poor girl in the slums.

     Aiden stood up and walked to the window, and Shayna wondered if he was ever going to get to his point.

     “Aiden.” Shayna said quietly.

     Aiden ignored her, and started talking again. “I stayed in contact with you father through out the years, he had taught me how to be a vampire, frankly speaking, he took me under his wing,” he said, “I had followed Cain to a small place in Northern California, Eureka, I think it was called.” Shayna watched Aiden pace silenlty in front of the window, she let him go on, thankful he was being quiet. “I followed Cain for a couple nights, in this place, before I realized that
he
was following someone too.” Aiden stopped pacing, and stared out the window.

     Shayna wondered if he was going to continue, Aiden stood in front of the window, speechless, with his back to her. Then it hit her. She realized what Aiden was getting at, how Cain knew about her, who Cain was following. What Aiden was trying to convey to her, was becoming clear.

     “He was following my dad,” she said. It wasn’t a question, it was a realization.

     Aiden turned and looked at her, giving her a nod.

     “You’re lying,” Shayna accused him.

     “I didn’t say it,” Aiden said.

     “You’re going to, but don’t,” Shayna stood up walked to the window too, and opened it, “Not only do I not want to hear it, I don’t believe you.” She gestured to the window, “Please leave.”

     “What am I trying to say Shayna?” Aiden asked.

     “Stop!” she demanded.

     “That Cain ki--,” Shayna slapped Aiden across the face before he could finish. She knew she hadn’t phased him, he didn’t even move a muscle, but she just wanted him to stop, she didn’t want to hear it, even if it was true.”

     “Just leave., she said to him.

     “Fine,” he whispered.

     He wasn’t going to stand there and torture her anymore. He moved towards the window and looked at her while putting one leg out.

“I’m sorry I had to be the one to tell you Shayna.”

     Shayna turned away from him. She was glad he was leaving.

     Aiden left knowing what he had told Shayna would soon sink in. He would come back for her at a different time.

     Shayna closed the window, when Aiden was out, and went back to her bed. She had a feeling that Cain was still holding something back from her, she never dreamed it could be something this horrible, and she knew deep in her heart that Aiden was telling the truth. She buried her face into her pillow and cried, her world had suddenly crashed down around her. Then the pain came, her heart hurt, it started as a burning, then turned into a deep throbbing ache. Her heart was breaking. She couldn’t believe he had done it. Even in the short period of time that Shayna had known Cain she had truly loved him, and he lied to her and betrayed her, the whole time. She sobbed hard into her pillow.

     The hawk landed on an small island, that was in the middle of a lake near Shayna’s house. He was pleased with himself, for accomplishing one of his goals. Get Cain out of the picture. Her father would definatly
not
approve! He thought, laughing to himself. The hawk took human form, and Aiden, walked along the beach, anticipating the events that were about to unfold. He smiled smugly to himself. He would
not
allow Cain to have Shayna’s blood.

Chapter 14

     Cain could see the look on Shayna’s face, when he parked his BMW at the curb, and knew something was horribly wrong. He got out, and walked cautiously to the porch, where she was sitting on the swing, wondering if she already knew.

     “Damn you Aiden,” he muttered under his breath, and walked up the stoop towards Shayna. He should have been the one to tell her, he should not have let it been Aiden.

     Shayna stared out towards the yard, and didn’t  even so much as blink when Cain sat down beside her.

     “Shayna, I need to talk to you,” he said, hoping one last time that she didn’t already know.

     Shayna turned and glared at him, coldly. He had hoped she would never look at him with such anger, and hurt. It killed him inside to see the hurt in her eyes. She did know.

     “I don’t want to hear anything you have to say Cain,” she said coldly, “Did you think I would never find out? How could you look me in the eyes every day, and let me fall in love with, knowing you took the one person, that I needed the most in life?” tears began falling from Shayna’s eyes.

     Cain wanted to hold her, and sooth her. He didn’t want to be the one hurting her.

     “How was I supposeed to know?” he said quietly, “He was the one that attacked me that night, he was the one person I hated in this world most, besides myself,” Cain tried to take Shayna’s hand, but she pulled it away and used it to wipe the tears from her face. Cain continued talking, not sure if Shayna would listen, “I didn’t want to come here, but Aunt Mill told me I had to. She kept telling me not to worry about anything, and to come here,” Cain said, then paused briefly. “I understand now, you are the one she has been talking about since I met her.”

     Shayna looked at Cain furiously with tear filled eyes. “The one what? The one who would change you?” she asked, furious.

     “No,” Cain said, he didn’t want her blood at all. “I am so sorry this is happening,” he shook his head,  “I should have never came here.”

     Shayna didn’t respond, she slowly stood up and walked into the house, leaving Cain sitting on the porch swing alone. She wanted him to leave, she never wanted to see him again, and she agreed, that he should have never came. She went upstairs, to her room and threw herself one the bed, and buried her face into the pillow, and cried.

     When Shayna didn’t come down for dinner, Sarah went to her room to to check on her. The room was dark, Sarah turned on the lamp and could see Shayna fast asleep on top of the covers, on the bed. Her face was swollen, in away that Sarah knew, tears could have only done. Sarah ached for her daughter’s pain, whatever it was. She kissed her lightly on her forehead, and covered her with the blanket that was at the foot of the bed.

     She turned the lamp back off, and left the room. She wished she knew what had made Shayna cry hard enough to make her face swell in that way, she did know however, that Shayna would probably never tell her what it is, and that it probably had to do with Cain.

     “Why are you so stubborn?” she said out loud, and shook her head as she walked down the hall to the staris.

     Shayna always liked when her dreams were at the waterfall. It usually meant her father would be there. She wondered if he ever visited Melina’s dreams.

     “Sometimes,” she heard a familiar voice say from behind her, in response to her thought.

     Shayna whirled around to face him, and to throw her arms around him. “Daddy!” she cried.

     Marcus Verona held his daughter while she cried into his chest, “Everything will be okay Shayna,” he told her, stroking her hair. “But you have to listen to me, he took her face in his hands and looked at her, “Go to him Shayna, he is the one for you. You have to forgive him for what he did.”

     “No,” Shayna said, “He killed you,” she was crying uncontrollably.

     Her father wiped the tears from her face, “I killed him Shayna. I left him for dead and took his natural life. You shouldn’t blame him, I don’t,” he pulled her close to him, her head resting on his chest again, and continued stroking her hair.,“But I gave him you, and he loves you. His love for you, is as pure as love gets. You two can do great things together,” he squeezed her tiny body tightly, “Go to him Shayna. He needs you. Go.”

     Standing atop of a huge sand dune looking out over Lake Michigan Cain wondered, if he jumped to the rocky shore below, if he would actually die. He had no purpose, no reason to go on without Shayna.

     “I should have never came here,” he said and kicked at the sand.

     He hated that he was making her hurt so much. A branch snapped behind him. Someone had snuck up on him. But how? He wondered. He turned around to face the intruder. A dark figure with blood red eyes stood in the darkness, red eyes fixed on Cain.

     “Who are you?” Cain asked. “What do you want?”

     The creature stared at Cain, with striking eyes, growling under his breath.

     “Answer me dammit!” Cain yelled at it.

     “I want you,” the creature of the night snarled. A deep rumble came from the hooded figures chest, and it moved it’s, human like arm, to the side exposing an ancient looking dagger.

     Cain’s eyes widened. He had only seen a dagger like it one time in his existance, and it had been in a book. The dagger was designed to kill Changelings, and he knew it. The design had been created and discovered by the father of a Halfling Princess, hundreds of years earlier. No one was quite sure what made the dagger work so effectivly, but the  pure platinum daggers, if blessed by a Roman priest, killed Changelings without fail, everytime.

     “You’re time on this Earth is over Cain De Luca,” the dark creature growled.

     Cain stood motionless, and the creature stalked forward, pulling the dagger out of it’s sheath. The moon relfected off the shiny platinum blade, and Cain stared at it in amazment. It was a beautiful ornate piece of weaponry.

     “Are you going to run?” the snarly voice asked Cain. The creature held up the dagger and came closer.

     “No,” Cain answered. “I’m not. This is what I want. My time here
is
over.”

     The creature stood, before Cain and raised the dagger. Cain stood proud, waiting for his death. He didn’t want to hurt Shayna anymore. With a quick movement, and a flash of the blade, the creature plunged the dagger into Cain’s chest, piercing his unbeating heart. The hooded face was only inches away from Cain’s, and Cain was able to look into his blood red eyes. He could feel the poison of the cold blade entering his blood. He could see the creatures face clearly.

     “You!” Hh sputtered as a fire erupted in his chest.

     “Ahh.” the creature hissed, “And, now
you
will die for love.”

     In  an instant the devil like creature, thrust Cain’s body over the bluff and watched him fall, and hit the rocks below, with a hard thud. The dagger remained in Cain’s chest, right where the creature wanted it. It hissed in delight.

     “Good ridiance Cain De Luca,” the creature snarled, and turned, leaving the bluff.

     The last thing Cain felt, was the waters of Lake Michigan seaping into his wound. It was a cold numbing feeling, that he somewhat enjoyed. He could hear the water splashing on the rocks around him, and then everything turned red, and he couldn’t see or hear anything.

     The red faded to black, and the Changling was gone, his existance was over. Only an empty dead body remained lying on the jagged rocks, at the bottom od the dunes bluff.

Chapter 15

     Shayna woke up thinking about what her father had said. But, she wasn’t sure that she was quite ready to forgive Cain for what he had done. She hated feeling alone, with no one to talk to about it. Maybe she could talk to Aiden. Tell him what her father said. He probabaly wouldn’t care. She thought. He hated Cain for his own reasons.

     Shayna didn’t hate Cain, she still loved him very much. And, she realized she did forgive him. She knew her dad was right. He was the one for her., but she wasn’t ready to look him in the eyes yet. He had killed her father, she would need more time.

     She opened the closet door, to get some clothes, and immediately saw the garment bag, which held Aunt Mill’s dress. Her eyes began to tear up. She would always remember the evening on the island with Cain, no matter what happened.

     She grabbed a pair of jeans, and a light pink hooded pullover cardigan, and closed the closet door. She was not looking forward to going to school, she wanted to crawl into her bed in a fetal position, and stay there forever. But as Sarah had assumed, she had been neglecting her responsibilities. She had to go.