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

fallen leaves
as I walked. Beth and Connie had been arguing over my welfare, and
in an uncommon event they both agreed that telling our foster
parents about my relationship with Julian would be the best for me.
After hearing that, my only response to them was to turn and walk
out the door.
    As I moved on, closer to where the trees
formed a thick covering, hiding the small wishing well that sat
there, I caught movement in the darkness they created, just below
the vine-covered length of the gazebo ahead of me. I stopped,
unafraid at that moment, feeling too much anger and disappointment
in myself and Connie, for I thought she knew just how I felt about
Julian, to be afraid.
    “Hello?” I yelled, tapping my foot
impatiently as I received no response. “Look, I know there is
someone there, so just stop bullshitting around and come out where
I can see you.” I watched as nothing moved.
    Feeling aggravated from the whole day, I made
my way down the wet, slippery leaves and stepped close to the
darkness, then stopped and listened before stepping into the
darkness. I could almost feel the eyes on me and felt the fear
growing in the pit of my stomach.
    I turned, quickly, to my right, making
whatever was there, jump, but couldn't see it; I was almost blind
in the darkness. My heart began to beat faster, and I knew then, as
my instincts took over that I was in trouble. My legs began to move
as I ran away from the feeling, down towards the large, hidden door
beneath the pagoda.
    Suddenly, the door swung open and I fell
backwards into the darkness that seemed to swallow me. I had
scurried back into the room before making note of where the door
was and sat there in the perpetual darkness for several minutes
before hearing the sounds begin around me. I stood and began to
back up, hoping to find only a sturdy wall behind me, but the
further I moved back, the colder I got, and finally, I bumped into
something.
    I tried to control my breathing as I thought
about how odd the wall felt behind me, and with shaky limbs, I
extended my arms and tried to press them against the wall on either
side, a wall that wasn’t there. I closed my eyes, turned and stood
there for a moment before opening them wide enough to see the two,
bright, red points of light that stared down at me. I opened my
mouth to scream, but a hand pressed against my mouth and I suddenly
found myself against the hardness of the damp concrete wall, the
one I was originally looking for.
    His hand moved from my mouth and stroked my
cheek, as if he could see every bit of my face, where I could only
see his eyes then moved his hand to the back of my head and gripped
my hair, softly, with his fingers, tangling them into it.
    Gently, as if he was trying not to hurt me,
he moved my head to the side, with only the slightest amount of
pressure to tell me what to do, exposing my neck. His body pressed
against mine as he lowered his head towards my skin.
    I felt him open his mouth and place his lips
against my skin, making my body shiver, as goose bumps ran over me,
and my grip on his shirt tightened. As he ran his sharp teeth
across my skin, trying to locate the vein that held the power that
he wanted, I felt my fear, suddenly, rise, and he stopped for a
moment. I could hear him breath in, smelling the hair that rested
on my shoulder next to him, then I could feel him sniffing against
my neck, smelling my skin, and he drew back a bit, trying to
decided what to do with me, no doubt, for it seemed that he
couldn't decided which way he wanted me, for lunch or to give into
the lusty feelings that I felt pouring off from him.
    What was he waiting for? I asked myself, for
I had never met a vampire that took so long to bite. I felt his
teeth move across my skin, gently, as if he were my lover instead
of my killer. I exhaled a long breath that trembled as it released,
despite my efforts to remain calm, and found the muscle control to
reach up and place my hands against his chest. He tensed up, but