Free Arielle Immortal Quickening by Lilian Roberts Page B

noon,” Troy added.
    “I believe that telling Arielle first will be the best way to go about it. It’s so scary and so exciting at the same time,” Ian murmured, with a faint smile.
    “Ian, do you remember in St. Jean de Luz when you told us that you wished you were an immortal?” Sebastian asked.
    “Yes, I do remember.” Ian stared at Sebastian.
    “Well, here you are. Your wish has come true.” Troy and Sebastian were happy to see a faint smile touch Ian’s lips. He was still pretty scared, as his voice was breaking every time he spoke.
    “What else do I need to know?”
    “Ian, we are going to be by your side and support you and Eva every step of the way. There are gifts, and there are drawbacks,” Troy said.
    “What kind of drawbacks?” Ian asked alarmed.
    Troy paused and ran his tongue over his dry lips a couple of times. Standing up, he turned to face the ocean. He pursed his lips and looked back at Ian. “Your heart will stop beating, and you’ll not be able to cry or dream any longer. You’ll have to watch people you love around you get older and die while you remain unchanged for centuries to come,” Troy admitted. He stopped talking and gazed over at Sebastian. Sebastian held a soft smile on his face.
    “What will the gifts be?” They heard Ian ask eagerly.
    “Besides all the things we already told you, you’ll be able to learn things much faster than any human. You’ll retain every little bit of information you receive just as if your mind was a hard drive. You’ll need to understand your strength so you don’t hurt your human friends.”
    “Oh…God… What about my parents?” Ian now looked anxious.
    “Statistically speaking, you don’t need to worry about your parents. They’ll never realize the change in you. Based on the path of human life, they’ll pass away way before they notice that you are not getting any older.”
    “What about my sister? Oh…God!” Ian’s voice was trembling. “I don’t mind telling you that I’m scared out of my mind.”
    “Ian, we do understand,” Troy said. “Sebastian and I had to deal with the exact same difficulty a long time ago. We had to do it on our own, but eventually we found friends that showed us how to adapt to our new life. We are here for you and Eva. And as time goes by, you’ll find a way to tell your sister the truth. She loves you; therefore she won’t stop loving you when she finds out that you’re an immortal.” Ian stared back at Troy, a million questions, whirling in his mind.
    “Humans would give anything to be able to achieve immortality, and you now have it,” Sebastian added.
    Ian was looking down at his hands again, going through the turmoil that Sebastian and Troy were very familiar with.
    “Ian, are we good?” Troy asked wanting to make sure that Ian was okay.
    “Yes, I think I’m fine,” Ian replied with his voice trembling, hands shaking, body quivering.
    “I’m obviously scared of the unknown, but I’m more scared when I think of the alternative.” Nervousness had spread across his face, and a half a smile appeared on his dry lips.
    “I should thank you for giving us both the gift of life,” Ian said, looking at Troy. “I’m worried about Eva, but I’m happy she will be with me for eternity. I would never want any of this without her.”
    They stood up and shook hands, fully committing themselves to support one another. Sebastian and Troy said something to each other that was not transparent to Ian, at least not today. Tomorrow he would be one of the immortals, and there would be no secrets left between them.
    Sebastian and Troy were surprised as to how receptive Ian was, terrified but receptive. They were ready to walk back to the car when they heard Ian’s voice.
    “I do have one more questions.”
    “What is it?” asked Troy, turning back to look at Ian.
    “Where should we go? I don’t have a vacation place or anywhere I can go that people wouldn’t know Eva or me.” He glanced