Rise of the Fallen Page 12

  Soul drove above the speed limit once again, but, as an immortal being, human crimes seem trivial in comparison to everything else. I should know, I live outside the restraints of being a human. Until now, that is. Right now I find myself wishing that I wasn’t caught up in this world. A world of dishonesty and fear, all thanks to the demons. If there was no fear to hold me back, I could be capable of anything. It’s the same with Lilith and Samael. Who knows what would happen if they were free to do whatever their hearts desired? They were already so close to becoming untouchable, and I didn’t want that to happen.

  “What’s wrong?” Soul asked.

  “How can I help you?” I watched him, waiting for his reaction. “You know, help to overthrow Lilith and Samael?”

  He turned to me, “You really want to help?”

  “Yes,” I replied.

  “That’s great, Emilie! Wow!” he tapped the horn playfully. “You’re already helping, I’ll explain as soon as we get to Markos’.”

  I looked out at the road; it was pretty much a dirt track, with trees towering overhead on each side. They blocked out the sunlight, casting an eerie light over the undergrowth. Soul kept his speed at about 40 km/h, and when I asked him why, he told me that he didn’t want to seem threatening to “them”. I was confused. There was nobody out there … it was too dark to see anything in the shadows. Soul took a sharp left turn, spraying mud behind the car. It took another ten minutes before I saw it.

  The house was probably the only one for kilometres. It was a larger house than Soul’s, with a dark porch in front. The windows were boarded up from the inside with what appeared to be good quality timber; the obvious reason was to keep something out, but what? There were no cars in sight. The entire house appeared lifeless.

  “I don’t understand …” I whispered to Soul, as he helped me out.

  He smiled hesitantly, “Just stay close to me; they’re watching.”

  I reached out and grabbed Soul’s hand.

  He turned and smiled. Holding my hand tightly, he pulled me towards the porch. As we knocked on the door I felt eyes on my back. I instinctively turned around but I saw nothing in the surrounding trees. I heard movement inside and turned back around. Soul’s eyes were glued to the door as it opened inward, providing a small entrance into the dark house. We walked in and the door instantly shut behind us. I reeled back in horror.

  A tall, pale man stood in front of us; he was wearing a black, long-sleeved shirt unbuttoned at the top. On the side of his neck were two bite marks, similar to snake bites but slightly larger. His skin was so pale that his blue veins were clearly visible beneath it. His paleness made his messy hair seem almost black and his hazel eyes pronounced. He looked as though he was in his early thirties, but youthfulness seemed to radiate from him.

  “Markos, nice to see you again,” Soul said cheerfully.

  “Nice to see you, too,” Markos replied, staring at me, “Who’s this?”

  “Emilie, the pyro I told you about.”

  I said nothing, but he smiled. His teeth were bright white and from a distance seemed abnormally sharp.

  “If you’ll excuse me for a moment, I’ll get Savine,” Markos said, turning around and disappearing into another room.

  “What is he?” I whispered.

  Soul looked at me in disbelief, “A vampyre … Honestly, Emilie, I thought you would have caught on to that quicker.”

  I blushed and looked down. Today was full of surprises. He was a vampyre, obviously. Soul’s overprotectiveness seemed justified now.

  “But I thought the sunlight thing was just a myth,” I responded, trying to keep my voice as low as possible as I looked towards the boarded-up windows.

  “Just dramatised for the most part,” Markos spoke loudly from the other side of the room.

  Beside him was a red-haired woman with startling blue eyes. Her skin matched the unnatural paleness of Markos’, and she too had bite marks on her neck. She was wearing a low-cut, long-sleeved black dress. The dress was so long that it pooled around her on the floor. As a couple they were heartbreakingly beautiful, though I couldn’t tell if they were a couple or not. They certainly didn’t act like a couple; no outward signs of affection or hints that would suggest anything more than a platonic relationship.

  “So the sun doesn’t kill you then?” I asked in confusion.

  The red-haired woman raised an eyebrow at me and snorted. She turned to Markos who ignored her and answered me with a smile.

  “It certainly isn’t beneficial to our health, but only prolonged exposure is lethal. Say … a couple of hours would do it. Crucifixes and garlic are useless as well, if you were going to ask,” he chuckled.

  “Oh …” I replied quietly.

  I felt stupid, but I had never met vampyres before and everything seemed unusual. The only things I knew about vampyres were what I had read in books and seen in horror movies. The romanticised concept was no doubt fictitious, and I wanted to know the truth.

  “It’s lovely to see you, Savine,” Soul said walking in front of me.

  The woman smiled and walked towards Soul, embracing him. “Soul … How are you?”

  “Just fine,” he said, letting her go and smiling slightly.

  Markos moved forward to stand closer to them, though he had moved too quickly for me to see.

  “I actually have to go and see Vashel. Savine, I would enjoy your company. Emilie will stay with you, Markos,” Soul spoke quickly, reaching out for Savine’s hand and walking towards the front door.

  “Take your time, we’ll be fine,” Markos said, smiling down at me.

  Soul said nothing as he shut the door behind Savine. Markos didn’t move until he heard Soul’s car leave.

  “Come this way, if you will,” Markos said, having moved to the far left corner of the empty hallway.

  He was holding open a dark wooden door and was gesturing for me to enter the next room. As I walked towards him I noticed the immaculate condition of the inside of the house. The wooden floors were a perfect dark walnut colour, and the crisp white walls looked almost grey in the darkness of the house. I walked into the room first and I was met with the fiery light of a candle placed on a wide, antique desk that was cluttered with unmarked, leather-bound, hardcover notebooks. Behind the desk was a large black leather chair, and on the opposite side of the desk was a smaller black chair. I heard the door close behind me and I had barely turned to look back when I noticed Markos was already sitting behind the desk.

  “Please sit, Emilie,” Markos said cheerfully, gesturing to the chair opposite him.

  I sat down as quickly as I could and stared at him. I have to admit I have always had a fascination with vampyres. They had always seemed so powerful and irresistible, though obviously my image was influenced by the romanticised Hollywood version. Markos, however, had surpassed every expectation I had, based on everything I had known about vampyres. He was something else; there was something about him that seemed so powerful and graceful.

  “You look deep in thought,” Markos noted, reaching for a book.

  “Sorry,” I said quietly.

  “Don’t be. If you don’t mind me saying, you are quite beautiful,” he smiled.

  Beautiful? Me? Ha. Oh that is very amusing, what was he crawling for?

  “May I ask you a question?” Markos asked me while looking down at the book, leafing through the pages.

  “Yes,” I whispered, looking at the book. The writing was in another language, and my curiosity was piqued.

  “Have you ever seen the sky on fire?” His voice was calm as he settled on a blank page of the notebook.

  I shook my head. To be honest I didn’t even understand the question, was it even possible for the sky to catch fire? Or maybe it was a metaphor; either way I was completely lost.

  “Hmm … I have, and I believe that I will again very soon.”

  I looked up at him but he didn’t notice. He was leaning over the book and writing quickly with a black pen. My curi
osity overwhelmed me. I had to ask him what he was writing.

  “Memories,” he replied, looking up and smiling.

  Markos shut the book and leaned back in his chair to stare at me.

  “So you forget things then?” I asked. My confidence was returning.

  He smiled but didn’t move. “Not exactly, I actually have a fairly good memory for my age. I simply prefer to have things written down in case I want to revisit them in detail.”

  The second he stopped talking I knew the next question I wanted to ask.

  “How old are you?” I blurted out.

  He laughed loudly and shook his head, “Older than you.” I smiled and leaned forward a little. “How old?”

  He continued smiling. “I’ve been alive for more than three millennia.”

  “Wow,” I whispered.

  “Indeed,” he smiled, “Do you have any other questions, Emilie? I don’t mind, honestly.”

  Of course I had more questions, but the answer to the age question had stunned me into silence. The only thing I could think of involved Savine, an extremely personal question.

  “It’s a personal question,” I said looking into his eyes. His gaze was intense – something I’d never really experienced before – and I had to break contact.

  “I don’t mind,” he replied.

  “Are you in a relationship with Savine?” I asked and looked away. Markos chuckled, but refrained from laughing loudly. “That wasn’t that personal, and no, I’m not.”

  “Oh …” I said with a nervous smile.

  “Don’t be afraid of me, please. I thought Soul would have told you that I’m on his side,” he said, leaning forward and placing his hands on the edge of the desk.

  “He did tell me, but I’m not scared.”

  He chuckled again. “Au contraire, Emilie. Your scent and heartbeat say otherwise.”

  I hadn’t even noticed my quickening heartbeat until he mentioned it. I suppose the scent was a vampyre thing.

  “I don’t know what to say,” I said honestly.

  He walked around the desk to sit on the edge in front of me.

  “Perhaps you should exchange your fear for something else.”

  I leaned back in the chair. Markos stopped smiling and leaned forward, his face only inches away from mine.

  “Something wrong?” He moved a little closer.

  “No. No, nothing’s wrong.” I shivered, my heart beating faster.

  I was tempted to close the gap between us but I knew that probably wasn’t the best idea. My willpower was weak, but it was strong enough to think “no”.

  Didn’t quite work out though. He had moved too quickly for me to stop him, and he leaned forward and kissed me more passionately than I could possibly have imagined.

  I could feel myself losing control. I pulled back. When the kiss was broken he looked at me with a playful grin on his face.

  “You can’t say you didn’t want that.”

  I laughed in disbelief and shook my head. I couldn’t speak. This was wrong, so very, very wrong. Markos leaned forward and kissed me again, holding my face to his. His hands dropped to the back of my neck, pulling me closer and deepening the kiss. His hands were warmer than I had expected, though I’m sure they were still fairly cool by human standards. Lucky I’m not a human then.

  He dropped his hand from my neck and picked me up in a swift movement, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. I almost forgot that I needed to breathe, and we broke the kiss; both of us taking a gasping breath. He smirked at me as I kissed his neck, just above the bite marks. I heard him push the books from the desktop just as he threw me off him and on top of the desk. I laughed loudly, and reached out for him. He was above me in seconds and once again we were kissing.

  I wasn’t one bit scared. I guess he was right; all I needed to do was exchange my fear for something else. If this was it then I was fine with it. Whatever this was, it probably wasn’t normal. I didn’t mind though, and I’m sure that Markos didn’t either. I reached out to his shirt and pulled slightly, he immediately took it off. I smiled up at him for a second before his lips went to my throat. I should have been afraid, a vampyre so close to my throat. He could have killed me in an instant, but I knew his thoughts were elsewhere. His kisses on my neck continued, deeper than before. I pushed him away slightly and he looked at me in confusion. I leaned up and kissed him on the lips, and once again he understood.

  His hands were at the bottom of my shirt when we heard the voices of Soul and Savine in the next room. We stopped kissing immediately and both stared at the office door. I was a little concerned about what would happen if they walked in, but it seemed to only excite Markos more. He turned back to me and kissed my neck, reaching for my shirt once more. I continued staring at the door, listening to their voices as they moved around the house.

  “It was far too easy to take care of Vashel,” Savine was saying to Soul.

  “Where’s Emilie? I need to talk to her …” I heard Soul’s voice, it was quieter than Savine’s.

  Markos gently nipped at my jaw, slowly pulling up my shirt.

  “I doubt you’d really want to see her right now anyway. I know Markos. He was just waiting for you to leave so he’d get his chance, if you know what I mean.” Savine’s voice was playful but also getting harder to hear. She was obviously moving further away.

  “But she wouldn’t …” Soul said, his voice also getting lower.

  Markos growled softly, “Can I have your attention, please?”

  I wasn’t ignoring him on purpose; I was just not ready for the conversation that would follow if we were caught together.

  “How do you know? Markos can be very persuasive,” she laughed. Oh, she had no idea.

  I heard nothing else from Soul but a door closing in the distance. With Markos’ lips upon my neck I fought for control. I pushed him away, standing upright and making my way quickly to the door. I looked back into his shocked eyes and smiled ruefully.

  “I guess I do have some self control left.”

  CHAPTER 14

  It was still quite light outside. I walked out onto the dark grass and stared up at the almost-setting sun. It was beautiful. I couldn’t imagine living without light, for fear of death.

  The trees were close together, casting shadows on the forest floor. It was growing darker and I could sense Markos beside me. A beautiful orange light lit up the entire sky, bathing all the trees in the same stunning glow. After the sun had fully disappeared from sight we stood in silence.

  I turned and looked up at Markos. He didn’t look down to meet my gaze, he just continued staring out at the sky. He had been able to walk out in the dim light of the sun, and as far as I could see there was no damage done. He turned to me in confusion as I took a step back.

  “What is it?” he asked, his expression tender.

  “Nothing, none of this should have happened. You know that, right?” My regret was beginning to show. “Because Soul is …”

  “Soul is the one you want. That’s obvious, and I doubt this almost indiscretion will come between you; it’s not like you’re together just yet. Come on, Emilie, stop feeling guilty all the time.”

  Was that it? The feeling I get in the pit of my stomach that almost makes me nauseous when I think about Soul and what I almost did with Markos? It was as though Markos was reading my mind … or my emotions, but I knew he was just taking wild guesses.

  “He’s right, you know.” Soul’s voice startled me.

  I turned around and saw him leaning against the stone frame of the door, with Savine only slightly visible in the dim light of the hall. She was smiling slightly, looking from Soul to me and then to Markos. There was nothing in particular to say to that, so I remained quiet. At my age I am more than aware of people’s tendencies to tell you what you want to hear, especially if it’s beneficial to them. We were now engulfed in darkness, with crickets and cicadas chirping around us, joined with the ever-so-quiet rustle of leaves. The only thing I could see
of Markos was the slight glow that radiated from his smooth skin. It was captivating, but strangely off-putting. It was unnatural, but I’m not one to talk.

  “Perhaps we should get our meeting started, Markos?” Soul spoke, breaking our silence.

  Markos nodded and gestured for me to go ahead. I walked quickly past Soul and Savine, trying to keep my gaze from theirs. Savine had a playful grin on her face, joined by a knowing look in her eyes. I could tell that she would sell her soul just to say something … If she had a soul, that is.

  Markos and Soul walked past me and I followed. After Soul shot Markos a look of irritation when he suggested his office, they settled on the dining room. The table seemed to stretch on forever and was set with fine china and wine glasses at each seat. There were enough place settings to sit at least two dozen people, which seemed oddly extravagant for two vampyres. I suppose, long ago when Markos and Savine were humans, they would have had a great deal of friends and hosted dinner parties. I wondered why they wouldn’t remove the place settings when they were not in use. Markos sat at the head of the table and gestured for Soul to sit on his left, and for Savine and myself to sit on the right. The chairs were elegant and obviously antique. Nothing was said until a few minutes after we were seated and settled.

  “Lilith is overstepping the boundaries and we should act soon,” Soul began, staring directly at me, though he was clearly talking to Markos.

  “I agree, but we should decide how to go about this first. Going in half-cocked will only get more of us killed,” Markos warned.

  Soul’s glance hadn’t moved from me. He spoke again, “Of course, which is why I’m here. Do you have any ideas?”

  Soul’s eyes were gentle and he smiled at me, mouthing the word ‘relax’. I smiled slightly and shook my head, focusing on the empty end of the table.

  “Is there something you’d like to ask, Emilie?” Markos said loudly with a grin.