Free The Kingdom of the Nine; The Vampire Legacy IV by Dawn Gray

as if disconnected from myself, as he stepped closer to
me. It wasn't instinct that told me to run, but a strong male voice
I didn't quite recognize.
    It wasn't Quinn's, though it had the same
growl in its tone, the same predator sound that he had when he was
interrupted, and I knew positively that it wasn't Julian's, but I
swore I heard the protectiveness of it under its harsh words. It
was an order that I couldn't refuse.
    Get out now! It spoke to me; making me
jump and the ferociousness of it made me tuck tail and run away
from the vampire with the fiery eyes.
    Where I ended up was on the patio, staring at
the ocean, trying to catch my breath, and not wanting to look back
to see if the red haired creature had followed. It was then that I
spotted him, standing off to my left, not more than five feet away.
His head was down; his arms were crossed over his chest, and his
legs were crossed at the ankles, as he leaned back against the
short wall for support.
    This was Nick, the man Connie had been
telling me about, but I didn't believe existed. He picked his head
up, and looked at me out of the corners of his eyes.
    “Julian should keep a better eye on you.” He
snorted, and then straightened, as I felt the danger coming closer.
He moved from the wall, placing himself right next to me, and I
felt the wave of protectiveness as he touched my arm with his hand.
“Hide in the East Garden, by the statue of the Cherubs. I'll send
Julian to get you.”
    “What's going on?” I whispered.
    “There's a hunger in his eyes that I've never
seen before.” Nick whispered then glanced down at me. “And, it's
for you, O'Neal.”
    “Who is he?” I asked, but, as I turned to the
side to head for the garden, I caught a quick glimpse of the man
with the red eyes, and watched Nick's dark form leap in his general
direction, placing his body between us, giving me the opportunity
to move, and I did, swiftly.
    “This dark house is no place for a woman to
be walking around alone, especially one in only a bathrobe.” His
voice interrupted my thoughts and I turned to see the dark form
stepping out of the shadows. He hadn't changed; Nick was still as
dark as he had been so long ago, but then he stopped and looked at
me, as if he had suddenly realized who was standing there in front
of him. “O'Neal?”
    “Nicholas.” I whispered, acknowledging that
he was right to assume who I was, and then I recalled his lack of
fondness for my first name, insisting on calling me by my last.
    “You know better than this.” He said as he
crossed his arms over his chest. “Assuming that you remember
anything.”
    “I remember some.” I shrugged. “No doubt
you're first memory was of your sickening romance with Julian?” He
snarled. I smiled. Why did I know he was going to be the sarcastic
one?
    “Actually, it was the night you and I met,
except you weren't in it.” I replied and turned to walk out of the
room. He stepped up next to me. “What are you doing?”
    “Walking you to your room, something that
imbecilic cousin of mine should be doing.” He answered then walked
with me, in silence, to my room, where he turned, after nodding,
and disappeared back into the darkness.

5
    The day was bright, lighting up this gloomy
place as I made my way down the stairs to get something to eat. I
was concentrating on a button, that didn't seem to want to hold, as
I walked past the sitting room, on the way to the kitchen, when I
heard my name.
    “Did she ask you about Nick?” Julian's voice
asked, and I stood by the doorway, looking in on him and his
brother at the two stood talking by the windows. Michael and David
sat in the large recliners by the fire, reading or watching
television, completely unaware of the brother's conversation.
    “Yes, she did, and I didn't tell her a
thing.” Quinn replied, putting his hands on his hips. “Why? Is she
asking about him?”
    “She remembered him last night as she told me
about a dream that she had been having.”