Vermilion Kiss (13 page)

He held a finger to his lips, the cue to keep being quiet, and exhaled a breath as two people budged their way through the line of people still scrambling to find seats and stopping right beside him.

I sniffed deeply and found that the stomach-grinding odor was coming from these two people; a young man and woman with skin that looked like paper and wearing matching black trench coats. They both had long hair that fell in thin white wisps around their heart-shaped faces and murky eyes that reminded me of muddy water.

The man was closest to Darius and he peered at him like a vulture would a corpse on the roadside. He whispered fiercely, “Give the woman to us and no harm will come to you and your company.”

A wicked smile crossed the woman’s lips as she back-stepped to where Sang and Caen were seated. I wanted to say stop but no sound would come from my throat besides a helpless, fruitless moan, and I realized then that Darius had purposefully cut off my ability to speak.

Darius closed his eyes, fished inside his brown paper bag, brought out a French baguette and bit the end off.

The young man with the horrible stench growled in anger, swiped Darius’ baguette from his hands, and threw it onto the floor.

Darius slit his eyes as he stared disdainfully at his stolen bread. “I must admit, I was going to ignore you before you so wretchedly took my food from my grasp and smashed it onto the filthy floor.” His deep, rich voice was more like a hiss as he continued, “Now, please enlighten me as to why you are here and asking for my precious Lily? Surely you must know who I am?”

The man chuckled and stomped on the soiled bread mockingly. “Know who you are? You’re Sang, aren’t you? The author vampire from Annabelle’s line.”

Darius laughed, long and throaty, a deep melody to my ears. I felt like I was going to vomit the longer the young man and woman stood motionless in the aisle of the train. People were muttering about them, curious as to what they were doing standing calmly in aisle while the train tooted its horn in preparation to leave the station.

I heard Sang snicker from the seat behind me as Caen shushed him to be quiet. The young man halted his smashing of the bread and then his eyes flashed crimson. In less than a second he had elongated his fingernails into claws and was swiping at Darius’s face. My jaw dropped in shock as Darius took the hit, claws digging into his right cheek and thin rivulets of blood dripping from the wound.

The young man grinned confidently. “I can do so much more than that. Now, will you give us the woman or not?”

Darius touched a finger to the jagged lines on his face and licked at the blood. The scratches soon closed up as if by an invisible zipper. A grin formed at the ends of his mouth. “I’m terribly sorry but I,” he began to laugh crazily, “I cannot do as you wish. You see, she belongs to me and I don’t give away my belongings so easily.”

Darius’s laughter went out of control and the people on the train began whispering to each other earnestly about the man who’d suddenly lost it. I swallowed hard and slid my eyes to the woman who was levering a knife to Caen’s throat with a face vacant of emotion.

The man growled, “You think this is funny? Really?” He reached into his pants pocket, took out a curved dagger, and in a blurred movement, had sunk it deep into Darius’s shoulder. Darius didn’t even flinch; rather he sat there calmly, gaze trained on me rather than his abuser.

“Do not worry, my dear. I can handle them,” he assured, and with a scream, the woman suddenly collapsed to the floor, blood spewing from her eyes, her mouth, her nose, and ears.

The man hurriedly knelt by her side and screamed, “Kathy!” but it was too late. I watched as a glowing orb departed from her body and vanished into nothing.

Could that have been her soul?

The enraged man stood to his feet and shrieked as he stabbed the dagger into Darius’s chest ten, fifteen, twenty more times, before crashing to his knees and weeping.

“Look at me,” Darius commanded and his head jerked up so that he was staring directly at him.

Darius cleared his throat. “Tell me,
why
are you interested in Lily?”

The other man’s body was trembling like an overheated teapot. “We were ordered by our master to capture and bring her with us.”

“Oh?” Darius sighed heavily. “And who is your master, may I ask?”

The man’s lips quivered as he fought against the urge to speak, but eventually gave in with tears streaking his cheeks. “My master is Wolf. She desires the woman with you for her powers.”

Darius raised a finger and curled it, and the man sauntered toward him and became so close I literally thought I was going to vomit for real this time but held it back.

“Why does your Wolf desire, my Lily?”

He grunted as if in pain. “She wants her…she wants her badly. It’s all she speaks about. That Lily holds the power to tip the balance of this world.”

“Enough.” Darius’s arm shot out and impaled the man in the chest. “I don’t wish to hear your ramblings anymore.”

Blood spurted from the man’s mouth; he, too, dropped to the floor, and his body dissipated until there was nothing left. A shining yellow orb rose from where his body had been and then floated upwards until it disappeared.

What in the hell was I seeing?

Darius settled into a comfortable position in his seat and closed his eyes. “My dear, do you know what those people were?”

I slowly responded, joyful that my voice was back. “No, I don’t. But I saw their, um, souls go out and then disappear.”

He nodded. “Yes, what you saw were their souls. But what were they? Why don’t you ask your goldfish?”

My body became rigid. My goldfish? Or rather, my “ghoulfish,” Mr. G. He had died by the time I had gotten home and in my distress I’d given him some of my blood and he’d revived as a ghoul, an undead specimen brought back to life that can only survive on raw meat.

“They were ghouls?” I asked.

Darius crossed his legs. “Yes, they were ghouls. Dead bodies reanimated by the promise of vampire blood.” He smoothed his fingers through his mane of hair. “Ghouls can be created in two ways. One is the simplest, when a vampire gives their blood to an already deceased creature. The other is if someone drinks vampire blood to become a vampire but dies before the transition is complete. Now, I am very curious as to who this ‘Wolf’ is. She has attacked you twice now; once at the movie theatre and now here on this train.”

I thought about that horrible time at the movie theatre when Sang had fought a man named Ty that was desperate to bring me with him to his master; a vampire named Wolf. I’d gotten shot and Sang injured, and in the end, it was Darius who helped me find my inner strength to defeat Ty.

I shivered and Darius wrapped his hand around mine and suddenly a great fire ignited inside me.

You love him, don’t you? After all the hell he’s put you through, you still love him, him? You freak!
A familiar but strange voice inside my mind echoed.

“Darius.” I tightened my grip on his cold hand.

“Yes, my dear?”

“Is there a chance…a chance that I could’ve ended up like those people?”

His gaze softened. “There is always a chance, Lily. I knew inside that it wouldn’t have happened to you. Trust me. I just knew. You are here now and that is all that matters.”

Sang chirped. “Dari, can you please give us some bread? I really want that sourdough roll!”

Darius rolled his eyes and replied, “Sorry, Sang, but this bread is for Lily and I.”

Sang pleaded “Oh, just a piece? Please?”

“All right. Here.” Darius threw a thin torn piece of a roll behind him and Sang was quick to catch it.

“Thank you, Dari.”

I looked out of the window at the miles and miles of grape vineyards passing by, the rolling fields of lavender, and the various tiny villages. It was beautiful with the full sun beaming down on everything like some ethereal golden cascade washing brilliantly over the land.

“My dear, would you please put the blinds to the window up?”

“Yeah,” I said and did what I was asked. Soon, I felt a great drowsiness settle onto me and I rested my head onto Darius’s shoulder before spiraling into the depths of sleep.

He’s mine! Mine! Mine! Not yours! Not yours at all!

A raspy, high-pitched voice yelled furiously in the infinite darkness. I blinked a couple times—eyes adjusting to the permanent black—and still I could see nothing, only a vast expanse of bleak darkness crawling on forever and forever into the distance. I wasn’t standing, but rather floating in a bottomless space, and in an instant, what felt like a cold hand shot out and curled around my neck, slammed me against an invisible wall, and dragged me across the nonexistent floor.

I tried to pry the hands off me but they were locked tightly onto my flesh and I could feel my energy seeping quickly from my body.

Mine! Mine! Mine!
The voice gurgled and I let out a voiceless scream before I was plunged inside a pool of murky water, my breath leaving me swiftly as I was pushed lower and lower, bubbles forming from my silent panicked shrieks.

Mine! Mine! He belongs to me! Me!

I reached upward and another pair of hands grasped me and pulled me up from the dark depths. I got onto my hands and knees and coughed and hacked, and when I peered straight ahead a glowing yellow light was before me and inside it was Rosalie, a fluttery white gown hugging her pallid body.

“Rosalie!’ I said in excitement and clung to the hem of her dress. “I’m so glad to see you! Thank you so much for saving me! I don’t—I don’t know how to repay you.”

She smirked and grabbed onto my arms. The moment she touched me, my body went limp as a doll and she carried me a few steps before halting.

“I’m glad to see you, too, Lily. So glad it makes me want to cry.” Warm tears began to flow from her rich blue eyes. “Unfortunately for you, though, for me, it’d be better if you’d just…disappear.”

She suddenly let go of me and I screamed as I plummeted down, down inside that dark abyss, the water choking me quietly.

My eyes cracked open and Darius was looking at me with a faint grin curving his lips. I yawned and stretched my arms before settling my head back on his shoulder and swiping my tongue across dry lips.

“It has only been seven minutes and you’re already awake, my dear?” He set his book onto his lap and twirled a strand of my hair around his index finger.

I spoke but it wasn’t me. My voice was alien, distant. No, it was someone else. Someone inside me.

My eyes widened as I peered down at myself and noticed that I was fully naked and bound to a cold brick wall, my body wrapped in metal chains, a gag pressed inside my mouth. I was spread-eagle, deeply humiliated, dazed and confused as to what in the hell was going on. Where was I and why did it seem like I was here but not here at the same time?

I intertwined my fingers within Darius’s and smiled brightly. “I’ve missed you, Darius. I’ve missed you so much! Please don’t leave me. Not ever. Not ever again.” I spoke the words but it wasn’t me talking. The gag prevented me from saying anything. And how was I moving when I was tied securely to this wall?

Darius’s grip tightened on my hand and he released my hair slowly from his finger. “I will never leave you, my dear. Why would you say such a thing?”

My voice was wracked by grief. “You left me before, didn’t you? Don’t you remember? Don’t you remember anything?”

Darius shook his head. “I’ve no idea what you’re implying, Lily. I have always been with you.”

Before Rosalie could speak anymore; I thrashed against my bonds, broke free one link at a time and grabbed her around the neck, pulling her back inside and chaining her to the wall before giving her a wicked grin and resuming my place in my body.

Her angry shrieks echoed in my ears as I nuzzled my head into the crook of Darius’s neck and inhaled the scent of roses.

“How much longer until we get to Paris?” I asked.
Me
. Not someone else.
Me
.

“About ten minutes, my dear.” He replied rubbing his chin.

I glanced behind us and saw Sang and Caen were holding hands, each one’s head nestled on the other’s shoulder as they slept. I sighed and gazed at Darius, straight into his molten amber eyes.

“I think…I think I was just possessed by Rosalie.”

He pursed his lips. “It seems so. I knew it wasn’t you but I did not wish to alarm her. So she is already trying to take full possession of you…”

“Full possession? What do you mean? She’s dead, isn’t she? I mean, I don’t wanna hurt your feelings, but she’s long gone…how was she able to take over my body?”

Darius cupped my cheeks with his palms and stroked my skin tenderly. “You both have the same soul, so it is likely that somehow she was able to resurrect a piece of herself and possess you.”

My jaw dropped in awe. “But—but how is that possible? How is any of this possible?”

“I do not fully understand, my dear. For now though, fight her off. Fight her off as much as you can.”

I could feel the tears forming in my eyes. “But…isn’t it better this way? For you, I mean. This way you can be reunited with her and live happily ever after…”

His lips pressed against mine and the breath was literally sucked out of me. He broke away and hugged me tightly. “How dare you say such a thing, Lily! I am over Rosalie. She has been gone for over a thousand years. Can’t you see? It is you that I love now; you that I want.” He pecked my forehead and continued to hold me. “I love you, Lily. I love you as I have loved no other. Including Rosalie.”

“But…but I thought—”

The train screeched to a stop and the words were knocked from my throat as it rolled back a bit and then completely halted.

“We will discuss this tonight.” Darius stood.

I followed him off the train with Sang and Caen behind us, my mind still caught in a bog of puzzlement.

When everyone had filed off the train, I glanced around in excitement in hopes of seeing the beautiful city of Paris…only to be welcomed by fields of golden wheat surrounding us in all directions.