The Wanderers Beginning: The Wanderers, Reborn, & Unforgiven (54 page)

Reborn

Jessica Miller

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used factiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is extremely coincidental.

Copyright © 2013 Jessica Miller

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

ISBN: 10 1492886564

ISBN-13:978142886563

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to my Dad and my Mom. We may not always agree on things, but I wouldn’t be where I am if it weren’t for the both of you.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

First and foremost I would to thank my friends and family for their ongoing support. Thank you to Tiffany for always being the first one to buy my books the second they’re released.  Thank you to Jenny D, Carrie, Jill, Missi, Shanna, Tara and Rose for your encouragement and endless excitement when I talk about a new book. Your kind words and support are forever in my heart. You give me the strength to keep going and never stop reaching for the stars.

Reborn

A Wanderers novel

2013

Chapter one

The sun was hot. It glistened off the beads of sweat that trickled down my skin. I sat up, staring out into the vast ocean before me. My skin was tingling. I basked in the glory of it all, soaking up as much of the scenery as I could.

   
              I reached into my beach bag and pulled out suntan lotion. I gradually applied the lotion to my legs, face, and arms. “Want some help with that?” he asked, flashing me his cocky smile. I smiled back and handed him the bottle. He sat behind me and very delicately applied the cream to my shoulders and back. I relaxed, enjoying the feel of his hands on me. His touch was something that I never got tired of.

  
              When he stopped, I had a feeling of disappointment. That quickly changed when he wrapped his arms around my waist. I leaned back into him and rested my head on his chest, feeling content. “I wish we could stay here forever,” I said as I dug my toes in the sand.

   
              “I know, but we can't,” Tristan said solemnly.

   
              “Why not? Why can't we?” I asked, desperate to stay here forever. I turned to him, my eyes pleading for an explanation as to why he would want to leave this paradise.

   
              He rubbed his thumb over my pouty lip before he replaced it with a gentle kiss. “Because we can't,” he sighed, knowing how soon this would end. I moved in closer, wanting to feel his soft lips again. “I love you,” he whispered. I pulled back and smiled, looking into his beautiful blue eyes. I opened my mouth to tell him I loved him too, but before I had the chance, everything disappeared. My whole world went dark and all I could see was black. I blinked a few times trying to adjust my eyes to my current surroundings. When I opened them, the only thing I saw was a plain, white ceiling above me. The same plain, white ceiling I've been staring at for the past month and a half.

  
                            I sighed, kicking off the covers. Ginger grumbled, not happy about being buried by the blanket. “Sorry girl,” I said, patting her head. I looked at the clock on my night stand. It was nine a.m.  My eyes moved over to the pictures sitting next to my alarm clock. Pictures of friends I would never see again. Loved ones that were taken away from me because of who I was. I hastily wiped away the tears from my cheek and took down all the pictures, stuffing them in a drawer. I crawled back in to bed and pulled the covers up over my head. 

             
Ginger nudged me with her nose, whimpering in my ear. I drew the covers back to glare at her. She crooked her head to the side, staring at me with her big brown eyes. I tried tugging the covers back up over my head but she just pawed at them and kept whimpering. “What do you want?” I snapped. Ginger lied back down, laying her head on her paws, giving me an,
'I'm sorry'
look. The look on her face was enough to make me feel bad for snapping. All she wanted was a little attention.

  
              I exhaled, patting the spot next to me. She slowly scooted her way closer. I scratched behind her ears, which caused her to roll over so I could scratch her belly. “I'm sorry for snapping. You're probably hungry, aren't you?” Ginger jumped up and licked my face. “I'll take that as a yes.”

  
              I forced myself out of bed and headed down stairs to the kitchen where I found Danni and my mom. The room grew silent the moment I stepped foot onto the cold tile floor. “Good morning sweetheart, you hungry?” my mom asked as she quickly swiped a sponge over the counter, trying to appear busy.

  
              “No. I just came down to feed Ginger,” I replied. She nodded and went back to pretending to clean. It would have been more believable if our maid wasn't standing right next to her. I was too tired to care. So I let her continue with her act. My mom could pretend all she wanted.  It wasn't going to change the pain I felt inside, eating away at my chest. She's been like this since they brought me home. It's not just her. Everyone's been walking on eggshells around me ever since I’ve returned. I assumed they were afraid if they said or did anything that would upset me I’d fall into a deep state of depression. It didn't matter what they said or did. I was already gone. I guess you could say I was thankful for the peace and quiet. No one bothered me and I didn't bother them. Everyone just left me alone to wallow in my own misery.

   
              I fed Ginger, and then I dragged my feet back up the stairs to my room.

   
              Returning home was hard. I knew once I came back that meant what happened was real. I would have to accept that Josie and Tristan really were gone and were never coming back. They were now just two more names on a list of people I loved that Jack had taken away from me. Jack, the rogue vampire who killed people I cared about just to get my powers. Powers that I never knew existed until my parents were forced to tell me the truth of what I was, a half-human half-vampire princess. I had to admit the part about being a half-vampire was pretty cool, but when you add a tiara on top of that, no thank you.

   
              I didn't want any of this. If I could take it all back and just be human I would. The worst part of it all is that I remember that night back in Vermont as if it were yesterday. The fight between Cadence and Tristan that caused her to lose her life. The fight between Jack and Tristan and then Jack and I. All these memories were permanently planted in my head and stuck on instant replay.

             
I spent the first few weeks blaming my parents. I argued that if they would have told me who I was from the beginning, all of this could have been prevented. I would have known Cadence and Jack were rogues. I would have never befriended him or joined that stupid sorority. I would have done a lot of things differently and I would have known how to protect myself. They swore to me up and down that knowing the truth wouldn't have mattered. It would have just put me in potential risk of more danger. The only thing they managed to convince me of was that this was all my fault. It was my own stupidity for being naive. If I hadn't been so closed off, Tristan and I could have had something more. He would still be here and I would still be with him.

   
              Tristan.

  
              My heart wept every time I thought of him. There wasn’t a single day when he didn’t cross my mind. I'm not going to lie, in the beginning, our relationship was pretty rocky. I guess the best way to describe it would be that our relationship was a one way street and I was running the wrong way. I loved him. I loved him more than I ever loved anyone. Now he was gone, ripped from this world way too soon.

   
              I was told his memorial service was private, family only, which I was happy to hear. I didn't think I would have been able to handle it. Josie's funeral was hard enough. I couldn't recall much from that day, but the little bits and pieces I did remember I wanted to forget.

  
              I remember standing by her grave thinking,
“today is the day I bury my best friend and today is the day I watch Josie’s little brother say goodbye to his sister.”

             
After the service, her parents invited everyone to come by the house. I hid in the shadows, away from everyone. I spent very little time engaging with people. The rare moments when I wasn't numb, I would wander around aimlessly. At one point, I wandered all the way down to the end of the hall to Jake's bedroom. I found him alone, on his bed, with his head hung low.

  
              I had slowly made my way into his room and sat down next to him on his bed. “You know Josie loved you very much,” I said, hoping in some way that that might comfort him. He nodded, almost robotic. “Here, I have something for you.” I reached behind me, in my purse, where I was holding Jake's favorite stuffed penguin that he let Josie borrow.

  
              “I don't want him. You can have him,” he said with tears in his eyes, making my heart break.

  
              “Why not,” I asked. “I thought he was your favorite?”

  
              “He was...but not anymore.”

  
              “How come?”

  
              “He was supposed to keep Josie safe, but he didn't,” he said, bowing his head. It took everything I had not to break down and cry.

  
              I couldn't bear to see him so upset. So I came up with a small white lie to make him feel better. “Well, you see Jake, he did keep her safe. When they were together. But a friend was looking after him for Josie that night so he was keeping someone else safe,” I said, holding my breath and hoping he bought it.

             
“Really?” he sat up.

  
              “Really,” I said, holding the penguin out to him.

  
              He hesitated for a minute, then took the penguin, and held him tightly in his arms. I wrapped my arms around both of them. “Ella?”

 
              “Yes Jake?”

  
              “Will you still come over and see me?”

  
              “Of course I will,” I said, giving him a kiss on top of his head. After that we both just sat there for a while, taking comfort in each other, in silence.

When I reached my room I climbed back into bed only to discover I had a few texts. One of them was from Dixon telling me he would be in the area and we should get together. I ignored it not wanting to see anybody. The other text was from Billy, Tristan's best friend.

 
 
              In Scotland. Nothing yet.

  
              I deleted the texts and turned off my phone, not wanting to be disturbed. I lied back down and stared up at the plain, white ceiling. Reading Billy's text took me back to when I was still in Vermont. I had to stay until my dad finished cleaning up the mess Cadence and Jack left behind. It was a rough couple of weeks, but I lasted by concentrating on helping Billy get better.

   
              Billy had survived the attack against Jack leaving him hospitalized for a few weeks. I visited him every day I could until I had to return home. And every day he swore to me that as soon as he was well he was going to seek revenge on Jack for what he did to Tristan and Josie. He told me he would not rest until he killed him. I begged him not to, but there was no convincing him otherwise.

  
              On the last day, before I had to return home, I went to visit Billy one more time. When I got to his room, I was too late. He was already gone. I saw him at Josie's funeral. He was standing in the back of the crowd, but by the time I got the chance to go talk to him, he disappeared. That was the last I saw him. I would get letters or a text every now and then letting me know of his progress. From what I could tell he wasn't any closer to finding Jack than my father and his crew was. 

             
I haven't seen or talked to anyone since Josie's funeral. The McNaughton's decided to take some time off and get away. My dad told them to take all the time they needed and not to worry. Xander would help him with the business until Mr. McNaughton was ready to come back to work.

  
              Since returning, I basically spent every day in my room. I closed myself off from the world outside. My parents tried to get me to go to counseling again, but I refused. No amount of talking was going to change what happened. In less than a year I had lost my boyfriend, Kyle, my best friend, and the first guy I ever truly loved to a crazy vampire who was still on the loose. I find out I’m half-human half-vampire with powers that I didn't even know how to use. My family was part of the vampire royal court and I'm supposed to take over for my dad in just a few years.

  
              Yes, today was just another day in the life of Ella McCallister.

  
              I was starting to believe I was a curse, doomed to have anyone in my presence harmed. I thought about leaving and getting away for a while, but I couldn't even if I wanted to. I was on house arrest according to my dad. I wasn't allowed to go anywhere without at least five guardians. He claimed it was just a precaution until they caught Jack. I had a feeling this wasn't something that was going to change, even if they caught Jack.

  
              All these memories were making my chest hurt. I closed my eyes tight, hoping to fall back asleep so I could dream of Tristan. Seeing him in my dreams was better than nothing at all. It helped the days go by a little easier knowing that when I closed my eyes I might see him. Unfortunately, right when I was about to fall back asleep there was a knock on my door.

  
              “Ella?” It was Jasa.

  
              I sat up, cursing to myself. “Come in,” I said, trying to be polite.

  
              Jasa was my brother, Xander's, girlfriend. We met briefly before I left for school. After everything that had happened, my dad asked Xander to move back in temporarily. He said having him nearby would be easier for the business, but a part of me knew it was because of me. The doctors told them having family around would be the best thing for me, but clearly they didn't know my family very well. It wasn't long after Xander moved back that Jasa started hanging around more. More than I cared for, but Xander seemed to really like her so I thought I'd be nice.