The Pentagram Child: Part 2 (Afterlife Saga Book 5) (30 page)

Chapter 73 

I Give You My Wings

“Is that a giant inflatable twister game, only with paint?” I asked Draven and he laughed. We were both still at the same place Draven had brought me to but at least now I had the chance to look around. Once Draven had punished me in the most perfect way a girl could be tortured and that was with Draven’s talented mouth between my legs, I finally came up for air…and the first thing I did was giggle.

“I did have something more romantic planned.” He said shrugging his shoulders when I sat up and looked at the beautiful setting he had created. We were on top of the roof and at just the right point to overlook the beautiful central fountain of lovers Perseus and Andromeda. But that wasn’t the most beautiful part about it.

Draven had laid down thick white blankets and pillows scattered in a space framed by candles of all sizes and flowers covered the floor until the stone couldn’t be seen. A bottle of champagne was sitting in a chilled ice bucket made of clear glass and fresh fruit was piled high, peeled and cut ready for the eating.

“Are those chocolates?” I asked homing in to the good stuff. He laughed and said,

“Couldn’t have left them out.” Then he picked me up and carried my half naked self over to the most perfect setting for the rest of whatever the night held in store for us both. I looked down at my torn dress and said,

“I think it’s ruined, poor Pip.”

“She can bill me.” He said before grabbing the rest of it and ripping it clean down the middle.

“Draven!” I shouted but he just shut me up very easily…with a kiss. And this time it was very sweet. And it was very soft but it was still just as perfect. We both undressed each other until we lay under the stars naked and nothing had ever felt more right than lying with Draven this way. It felt pure and natural, almost as though we were being blessed by the Gods.

I don’t know where that thought came from so I turned to look at him and he grinned back at me as if he felt it too.

“Draven?” I said his name as a question I didn’t have the words to.

“You feel it don’t you?” Draven asked and I nodded not understanding exactly what I was feeling but it just felt that in this precise moment in time we needed to be like this because it was expected of us…

Because the time had come.

“What’s happening?” I asked but then he pushed his body weight into me until I was under him and then he whispered,

“Just let it happen.”
 

He kissed me and for long moments we just let ourselves become lost in the moment. He ran his fingertips down my side and I felt the sparks ignite my blood. I reached up with both my hands and ran my fingers through his hair, holding it back so it wouldn’t fall forward.

“I want to see you.” I told him and he closed his eyes for a second taking my words into his heart and holding them there.

“Do you know how much I love you?” I asked him and he looked back at me with such heat, I felt it warm me from the inside out.

“Keira you went to Hell and back…trust me, I know how much you love me.” On hearing this I cried. I took my bottom lip in between my teeth and let my emotions fall down my cheeks. He leant down, placed his forehead to mine and whispered,

“It is an unbreakable strength in your love for me Keira and until this day I never knew it had strength enough to match my own.”

“Oh Dominic!” I said and sobbed into his neck as he held me naked in his arms and then just as I said the three words out loud he thrust into me. So these words were at this very moment immortalised in a memory we would never forget. Because these words were said after all we had been through and survived. 

And they were the only ones that mattered and the only ones that held enough strength to beat back fallen Gods, to defeat armies against us. To discover those who betrayed us but most importantly, words backed up by selfless acts of love and sacrifice that were strong enough to bring the other back to life.

“I love you Keira, by the Gods I love you!” Draven said as held me close and brought me even closer to that blissful place, cementing me there with his arms around me and himself buried deep at my core.

We came undone and passed out together.

When I finally came to I was surprised to find I was the first to wake. I don’t know how long we had been asleep but at some point Draven must have woken long enough to cover us. I was thankful for it as there was a definite chill in the air. I could still hear music in the distance as the party continued but from the look of the sky it wouldn’t be that long until sunrise.

I was glad in a way as it gave me chance to look at Draven and take in every detail. His beautiful skin was back and once more had that healthy glow to it that not long ago had been pasty white. His dark hair fell around his face like a man deep in sleep and I smoothed it back making him stir.

“Are you staring at me again, love?” He asked me still with his eyes closed.

“Big head much?” I teased back pulling the covers up to cover my breasts.

“I rather prefer them on show and ready for my personal use.” He said opening one eye and I giggled after failing miserably at trying to growl.

“And here I was thinking you couldn’t get any more adorable than with that little red nose.”

“Ha ha, laugh it up Mr Darcy, I had to improvise.” At this Draven threw his head back and laughed like I had never heard before. It was almost uncontrollable and I couldn’t help but join in although I had no clue as to what he found so funny.

“Are you laughing at me?” I asked for the second time and again I had to wait for him to try and control himself.

“Oh my lovely girl, I don’t think if I lived for another thousand years I would ever get that image out of my head.”

“What do you mean?” And again I had to wait as this brought on another round of laughter.

“The sight of you with that ridiculous wig on, a biker jacket and a red nose with a giant penis held high and ready to use as a weapon is not how I imagined seeing you again for the first time after I woke, but I can’t say I was disappointed…amused yes but not disappointed, especially given your reaction to seeing me again.” He was of course referring to me dropping everything and running into his arms in my obviously desperate act to be there.

I guess that was certainly an image that would stay with you but it would stay with me for very different reasons. Oh the times I thought about bashing Aurora around the head with something…ok so a giant penis piñata wasn’t the iron spiked mace I had always envisioned but as I had told Draven, I had to improvise.

“Do you know how angry I was at you when I woke?” Draven asked me and my shoulders tensed knowing the time had come for my official telling off.

“I have an idea. Actually no I take that back and say yes I definitely had a good idea considering I felt the same way about you when you yourself went into Tartarus with the sole purpose to save me.” Ha! His face said he hadn’t been expecting this part of the argument.

“But Keira you could have…”

“NO! If you want to tell me how stupid a decision it was then that’s fine, I might even agree with you considering how things turned out but my decision only affected you and me, not the rest of mankind like your decision did.” I said snapping and folding my arms as this would help back up my claim.

“I know you see it like that but I had a plan in place.”

“Lucius?” I asked and for a moment pain flashed in his eyes in a purple flicker.

“That was the main part of my plan, yes.”

“Then it was lucky you had me to back up the part you didn’t expect would happen because like it or not Draven we are a team and that means trusting the other to do what is right when the shit hits the fan! I refused to let you die just as you refused to do the same.” I said and for once instead of looking angry he just looked thoughtful, as if it was finally sinking in.

“We are a team.” He repeated and I was shocked as I had been all ready with another ‘team’ speech.

“And I did trust you, along with those around me when they told me they had found you and were bringing you back. Do you know how hard it was not to snap her neck when hearing her lies? I think if I hadn’t read your letter first and then been assured of your survival then I would have. But I trusted you and you were right, we needed to know what she was up to.”

“Uh…I…” I struggled for words and was so shocked I wanted to take a page out of Jared’s book and say, ‘Ok who are you and what have you done with Draven?’

“Did your demon get some anger management whilst on its forced holiday?” I asked and once again Draven burst out laughing.

“Do you want to ask him?” He teased by winking at me with blood red fire in his eyes.

“Uh…I think I will pass.”

“The truth of it is that after waking I was ready to storm the gates of Hell beating back beasts I met there and demanding you be brought to me unharmed. Then I would have called forth my own legions and brought a war to all the princes of Hell, including my own father if need be.” Draven said all this tensing his muscles and clenching his fists, so I picked one up and placed it in my lap and began prying open his hand so I could entwine my fingers with his. I was surprised at how quickly this worked.

“But then Vincent told me how well you handled yourself in my place. He told me how proud I would have been to see the strength in your decision and how everyone looked up to you. But more importantly he made me realise I had no right to take that away from you. He explained that I represented a balance but not for mortal mankind. And that you were a mortal that had just as much right to free will than any other and if you chose to save me with that will, well then I had no right to stop you…and he was right.” I think my shock was more than clear on my face because he laughed once and then tapped my chin as my jaw had dropped.

“See, there is hope for you yet.” He joked and this time when he winked at me it was all Draven, dark eyed and dreamy.

“So we are good?” I asked thinking this conversation would have gone a hell of a lot differently when we first met. He nodded and said,

“We are but I intend on making it better.” I frowned not understanding where he was going with this, so I groaned,

“I knew there was a catch.” To which he chuckled. 

“Come, stand with me and let’s meet the new day together.” He said standing up and wrapping one of the sheets around his waist. I did as I was asked and wrapped my own cover around me and I had to giggle as we looked ready for a toga party.

“We’d better not let Pip see us like this or we will be wearing this at her next party.” I joked. I walked over to where Draven had his hand held out for me and stepped over the candles that long ago became extinguished. We stepped up to the balustrades that were spaced by massive stone urns and I took in the beautiful view of dawn rising.

The sky was a rich midnight blue colour casting the land in dark shadow and a faint glow came from the horizon. There were clouds in the sky that were darker in colour and played with the upcoming light. I leant forward and rested my arms on the stone wall and Draven did the same.

“I never thought I would find you.” He said suddenly looking out to the view ahead as if he was almost talking to himself.

“I often looked out at this view when I was here and many others all around the world but no matter the difference in landscape I would always wonder the same thing.” I bit my lip before forcing the question through my quivering lips,

“What did you wonder?” He finally turned to look at me and said,

“I always wondered if that day would be the day I finally found you.”

“Oh Draven.”
I whispered putting a hand to my mouth as I listened to the most important words I would ever hear.

“I did so when I woke after finding out you were destined for me and I walked to my window back when my view was the rolling sands of Persia and went as far as the eye could see. I did what I did now and met that new day wondering how long I would have to wait. And even after I lost you I still met the day the same way and now here we are…”

“Here we are.”
I agreed looking back out to the sun starting to cast its colour to the day.

“I never realised what it would mean, even back then I had no clue what it would mean to be in love. I was so arrogant to such things, thinking you would be just another person to obey me...” He laughed at himself at the thought, before continuing,

“How wrong I was.”

“You certainly were, I bet you wouldn’t have believed anyone if they had told you what it would really be like, having a wilful Northerner on your hands to deal with.”

“No, you’re right, I wouldn’t have believed them, but I want you to know Keira, that I wouldn’t have it any other way. I don’t want just another subject to obey me and agree with what they feel is wrong. I never fully understood it until I read your letter. The last thing you actually said to me, about how our souls are entwined, our hearts combined and our minds are one team that work together fuelled by our love for each other…” He said quoting back what I actually said to him in my letter.