Cherishing Destiny (A Dangerous Destiny)

  Cherishing Destiny

  By Noelle Blakely

  © Copyright 2012 by Noelle Blakely

  Cover Art Design by Dani Emerson

  Photographs by Coka and SerG La Krushe

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to actual places, people, groups, or events are used only to enhance the fictional storyline and do not have any basis in fact. All Characters and settings are a product of the Author’s imagination and should not be construed as real.

  All Rights Reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, copied or distributed in any form, including but not limited to electronic forms, without express permission.

  For Richard, Danielle & Stacey,

  Whose support, assistance and encouragement made it possible for me to pursue this crazy profession. Geez! Thanks a lot, guys.

  Just kidding! You all are the best!

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty-one

  Twenty-two

  Twenty-three

  Twenty-four

  Twenty-five

  Twenty-six

  Twenty-seven

  Twenty-eight

  Twenty-nine

  Thirty

  Thirty-one

  Thirty-two

  Thirty-three

  Thirty-four

  Thirty-five

  Thirty-six

  Thirty-seven

  Thirty-eight

  Thirty-nine

  Forty

  Forty-one

  Epilogue

  One

  She awoke with her cheek pressed into the gritty sand that coated the floor of the dark cave. She was almost too disoriented to be truly considered awake but, little by little, she started to become aware of her surroundings.

  Her breath, which seemed to be coming out in quick, labored puffs, was stirring up clouds of silt and dust in front of her nose and mouth. It made her want to cough and sneeze all at once. She gagged and tried to turn her head further from the rough, dirty floor.

  She only managed to pull her own hair, and she realized she was lying on her braid. The slight head movement set her ears ringing in a deafening roar that echoed. There was a bright spot of white hot pain centered behind her eyes. She could, almost, see the light exploding in little white spots on the back of her eyelids when she squeezed them shut again. She waited for the pain to subside to a more tolerable level before opening her eyes again.

  She could see the mouth of a cave, clearly outlined by an area of summer stars and reflected moonlight that was visible within a dark rim of rock. She heard the faint sound of water slowly dripping somewhere behind her, much deeper in the cool darkness. She could feel her pupils dilating fully, pushing the brilliant green of her eyes into the thinnest of borders around the deep pools of darkness at their center. Her vision was ultra sensitive, and she used the tiny amount of moonlight to bring the cave into bright focus, searching as far as her eyes could move without turning her head. She was not ready to face that pain again so soon.

  The cave, as far as she could see, was empty and relatively featureless. The walls were gray rock and the ceiling was neither high nor low, maybe ten feet, and made of the same unremarkable rock as the walls. As her hearing, had detected the faint sound of the water, so was she able to scent a moldy dampness, but knew it had to be very distant into the deeper parts of the cavern. The area where she lay was dry and dirty, and when she started to choke on the dust again, she knew that she would have to try to move again.

  The coughing had given her some idea of her injuries. She knew that, beyond the throbbing that settled in her head (most certainly a concussion); she also felt the severe pain of a shattered collarbone. At least two, maybe three, ribs were broken and grating together. She was sure that there were further injuries, and she rolled extremely carefully, biting her tongue in an effort not to cry out before she could determine if she was truly alone. When she finished rolling onto her back, she was able to scan the rest of the cave and saw that it continued on into the darkness. She also observed a shaft running directly above her up into the rock. As she changed positions, she added a broken wrist and ankle to her list of injuries.

  Using her heightened senses, she determined that she was alone, and she felt safe enough to close her eyes and try to remember what happened that left her in this state. She remembered the feeling of falling and her body striking against the rock walls as she half fell and half slid down the steep, narrow shaft that opened above where she found herself broken and bleeding.

  Tasting her own blood on her tongue, where she had bitten it, and smelling the strong scent of blood from her many wounds, reminded her that she was already healing, a benefit of the Vampire blood in her veins. She knew that she was extremely lucky to be alive because while Vampire blood flowed in her, she was not a Vampire and, therefore, not immortal or immune from death. Not that the true Vampires were immortal any longer either, she reminded herself, but that was a fleeting thought she did not pursue.

  The Vampire council had named her and her kind Vampyrum. She learned that the Vampyrum was actually a species of bat known as the False Vampire. Yes, even after all that they had lost, the Vampires still firmly believed in their own superiority.

  To herself and most others, she was known as a Vamphyr, mortal but with the gift of strength, extraordinary senses and the ability to heal quickly from all but the most mortal of wounds, among other things.

  Maybe I was even the first of my kind. It was difficult to say as so many of us came into the world so quickly after the day the world changed.

  She realized that she had been left for dead and knew that if no one returned to disturb her, she would probably be entirely healed in three or four days. A Vamphyr of her strength did not need food or water to sustain herself for that short period of time. She resigned herself to the discomfort of the rock floor and decided to try sleeping through the pain to allow herself to recover as quickly as possible.

  Once she began to remember what happened, it was difficult for her to remain calm. She wanted so much to get back to her task, and she was frustrated that she would be out of commission for the time she would need to heal. She was angry and wanted to taste the blood of her attackers, the ones who threw her down the shaft and left her for dead.

  She closed her eyes, and she no longer saw the stars. She saw only the red of her own fury, and she dreamed of vengeance. She coldly mused that if she were a true Vampire as the Vampires had been before she was born, as her own mother had been, those mercenaries would never have been able to overpower her, cracking her skull, and leaving her to die.

  She breathed in and out as deeply as her broken ribs would allow and used some of the energy she had stored away to dull the worst of the pain and enter into a quiet meditation that would aid her knitting bones.

  The healing process was tiring, and sent her into a deep sleep where the old Vampires stirred in her dreams. Her mother, the beautiful and infamous Aurora Lake, was there too even though she had been gone for several years.

  She had all of Aurora’s memories stored inside of her. Aurora had passed them to her through the blood before she died the final death of a true Vampire. She passed to her the entire fourteen hundred years of her life and experienc
e.

  She had only been fifteen. In the years since Aurora died, she learned to sift through the memories without being overwhelmed by the wealth of experience and knowledge she carried.

  While she drifted in her healing sleep, she dreamed her mother’s memories, not the older memories, but the ones that showed her how the world had changed and how she and the other Vampyrum came to be.

  She thought about the last time she saw her mother. She possessed the memory from each of them.

  She remembered them running, running through the town, running through the forest, running along the shore of a lake. She could not say how long they ran that day, but eventually Aurora had collapsed. She had lost so much blood. She was covered in it. Her beautiful hair had been shorn haphazardly and stuck out wildly, sticky and crusted with blood. Her clothes were nothing more than filthy rags, and her bloody skin showed through every tear in the cloth. It made her think of what her mother had surely endured, and she shuddered.

  Aurora wasn’t having any of her pity. She forced herself to a sitting position and smiled at her daughter. She held her hand out in a shaft of sunlight and said, “I truly love the sunshine. I missed it for so long.” Her throat was so parched that her voice cracked at the end.

  Her mother needed blood badly, but her blood would not help. She needed human blood.

  Aurora looked at her as if she could read her mind. “Blood will not help me now. I am no longer immortal, and I am beyond my ability to heal.”

  “No, mama, you just need to rest for a bit. You’re going to be okay. You’re safe now.” She sounded as if she were trying to convince herself, not her mother.

  “I am definitely okay, my love, but I can’t stay with you any longer.” She smiled and gently touched the face of her beloved daughter.

  “I want to pass my life to you,” she said. “It is something Vampires can do, and I am not sure if it will work for a Vamphyr, but I want to try.” Her eyes were pleading. “Will you help me, my love?”

  “No, mama, you just need to--”

  “Please.” She looked so tired just then, but she still tried to smile.

  “What do I need to do?” she asked, steeling herself and roughly brushing away the tears that were rolling down her cheeks.

  “You must drink from me. I will do the rest.”

  When she had passed her blood to the girl and her memories with it, she pulled her close and whispered in her ear. “Destiny, I love you so much. I wanted to be with you forever, and I am sorry I haven’t been there for you. If you think of this moment, you will know how grateful I have been to be your mother and to have experienced this gift. No matter what the other Vampires say, I would not have changed anything that happened because it gave you to me. When I named you, it was because I always believed that you were my destiny.”

  My mother’s destiny? “Mother, if you can hear me, I believe that I have a destiny too.”

  two

  Aurora Lake lifted the wine glass to her lips and listened to the conversations swirling around her. She did not actually drink from it, but allowed the fragrant pinot noir to touch her perfectly formed mouth in the pretense of enjoying the vintage. She thought the charade silly and pointless. Everyone knew that Vampires did not drink wine despite the care that the hostess had taken to choose the deepest reds.

  The color, of course, was supposed to represent the favored choice of the honored guests that circulated among the humans. It would not be polite for her to shun the wine that was offered, but she did not wish to have to purge the liquid later when her body refused to absorb it. It made her feel uncomfortable and undignified to bring up the contents of her stomach no matter how lovely the color. So, she allowed the pretty beverage to wet her perfect lips and raised her glass to the hostess, giving the woman a measured smile and a nod of approval.

  This had the desired effect as the hostess, Mrs. Somebody with money and influence, beamed from across the room and continued to mingle with her guests. Aurora was sure that she could produce the name of the woman if she chose to, but she did not bother herself to try.

  Aurora allowed her gaze to sweep over the large company of influential people, both human and Vampire. Her sensitive hearing picked up snippets of conversations about politics, business and world affairs, but she also heard just as much chatter about weddings, fashion and society events. Everybody appeared so polished and mannered. It was a very proper gathering, and she almost laughed out loud when she heard the son of the hostess whispering to one of the caterer’s girls with an invitation to slip away to the tennis courts and get high. She knew it was likely that every Vampire in the room heard the teenager.

  Her amusement must have been evident in her face or manner. Had she actually snickered or made another sound? She could not recall, but she noticed that the group of older ladies that she was standing with had quieted, and a few were looking at her expectantly.

  One such lady, a widow of about seventy five had stopped in the act of pulling a photograph from an old fashioned drawstring bag that she wore tied at her wrist. The silk bag was very small, and the photo looked a little worse for wear. It had obviously been removed and returned to the bag with some frequency.

  Aurora quickly sifted her thoughts with perfect recall to find the topic of conversation. The lady had been receiving the sympathies and attentions of the group for her widowed condition that Aurora seemed to remember had occurred nearly ten years prior. The widow was speaking of her “precious baby” a Pomeranian she had acquired to be her solace after the passing of her husband. She had been about to show everyone the photo of the wonderful creature.

  Aurora tilted her head to get a quick look at the picture and said “How lovely. Please, excuse me.” She smiled prettily and walked away from the group, a picture of grace and elegance.

  The ladies gazed after her with something akin to longing before they came to themselves and continued their chatter as if there had been no pause.

  Aurora moved through the crowded ballroom toward the rear wall that was entirely made up of divided glass panes and French doors that led to a stone terrace. The terrace was enclosed by a low wall, just more than waist high, that overlooked perfectly landscaped grounds. Many of the doors were wide open to the outside. The mild evening air was welcome in the room full of guests.

  As she walked, people shifted subtly, moving out of her way while she cut a swath, as straight as an arrow, toward the terrace. They were not even aware that they had done it. Just a tiny step to the left or right, forward or back, that left Aurora’s path clear. Then, once she was past, they moved back to where they had been, just as subtly closing the way behind her.

  She moved out onto the terrace, opening her senses to the night around her. There were a handful of couples and small groups of guests spaced widely across the stones, but the mood was quiet and they spoke softly. Their voices did not disturb her, and she did not bother to listen to their conversations.

  Music drifted out to the patio. She had scarcely noticed that there was a string quartet playing in the ballroom. It was impossible to appreciate over the din of voices inside. She saw the musicians situated on a slightly raised platform just inside of the last set of open doors and the music was easily heard from any vantage outside on the terrace. She stopped and listened attentively for a moment to the melody, and a slightly sad smile appeared briefly on her face as the music painted a picture of a pleasant time, long gone. She released the memory and moved to the wide stone wall that served as a rail around the edge of the terrace.

  She set her glass on the top of the rail, spreading her hands flat on the cool stone surface and leaning out a little over the edge. The terrace was no more than fifteen feet above the ground, and she could see a wide stair case leading down to the grounds at one end.

  She lifted her gaze to the night sky. Lights were blazing all around the home making it difficult to see the stars. Only her Vampire eyes allowed her to make out the pinpoints she knew so well after fourteen centuri
es.

  Her mind automatically drew the constellations that were visible as she stared up at the sky. The night sky seemed to have dimmed after artificial light was introduced into the world.

  It was a trade off, she thought. She loved the lamps and chandeliers, wall sconces and ceiling fixtures that illuminated the world she lived in. She spent centuries in the dark with no sunlight, only fire and candles to push back the darkness.

  Aurora dearly loved the light, and as she gazed up into the sky on this night, she tried to remember what it had been like to watch the sun rise in the morning and set in the evening.

  Aurora was pulled from her melancholy musings when she saw a brief flash of light in the sky. She had only seen it from the corner of her eye, but was positive it had been a flash. She scanned the nightscape and turned quickly when she thought she saw it again in her peripheral vision.

  She watched for some minutes more without seeing it again until her husband, Alexander Lake, silently moved up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

  She was not startled. He could move silently when he chose to but, being a Vampire, he could not hide the intoxicating scent of his blood from another of his kind. She had loved him for something like twenty lifetimes, and he would never be concealed from her.

  She forgot all about stargazing when he nuzzled her ear and invited her to leave the party and return home with him.

  ∞∞∞

  Alex had sensed the movement of his wife as she headed for the French doors. He looked around and saw the ripple of movement she casually created when she walked through the room. He smiled and shook his head a little.

  I’ll bet she doesn’t even know that she did that, he thought.

  She wore a silver backless gown that only accentuated her perfect pale skin. Her burgundy hair was piled a little recklessly on top of her head with just a few delicate strands freeing themselves to drape down the beautiful bare skin of her back, nearly reaching her hips. He watched those hips that weren’t too narrow or too wide, moving smoothly underneath her gown that he suddenly noticed was decidedly slinky.