Immortal Embrace (11 page)

Chapter Twenty Five

Released

I believe enough time has passed, and it is now safe for me to return to the hospital.

I stop at the convenience store to pick up some snacks for Nathanial and drag out a little more time, so as to not arrive back so soon. I finally get back to the hospital, and it seems like I have been gone all day. As I walk in the room, I notice some of Nathanial’s friends from school are here.

Ben is there, and just like that day in photo shop, he insists on teasing us again.

“Sophia, look at what you are doing to our man here. He is completely head over heels for you. Dude, what happened last night? Did you forget how to play defense?” Ben jokes.

“Hey, bro, shut your pie hole. You’re embarrassing me.” Nathanial says, glaring at him.

We visit with them for a little while, and then Nathanial and I spend the remainder of the day and night watching the movies I downloaded earlier. His parents allow me to spend the night again. I have to wonder why they trust me so much, especially since I know I could end it all in an instant. It is nice, although trying to push away from him was no longer an issue because we are becoming closer that I have ever wanted, and there is no turning back now.

I can’t push him away anymore; instead I vow to protect not only him but his entire family. I will do anything for them. He is now the reason for my existence. I want the world for him, and I want him to experience everything I never could. This is my goal, regardless of what Constance said last night. I am determined to ensure that every single one of Nathanial’s dreams come true.

“Sweetie, what is it? Are you okay?” Nathanial sounds concerned.

“Sorry. I’m fine. I was just daydreaming about you.” I smile.

“I see. Well, I hope it is about our future, because I know you’re in all of my dreams.”

“It is about our future and all your goals. I want everything for you. My dream is to see all your dreams come true,” I add.

“Sophia, all of my dreams include you now, so as long as I have you in my life, my dreams have already come true,” Nathanial confesses.

For a guy everyone says, cares only about school and football, his priorities have sure changed. I don’t ever want him to change his dreams because of me. He is so sweet and caring, and he has no idea about me. Here I am beginning to doubt my decision to be with Nathanial again. I can’t turn back now. I love him too much. I will just have to keep him on the proper path and protect him in the process.

“I want nothing more than to have you in my life. I just don’t want you to give anything up for me. We haven’t known each other that long, and your feelings may change once we get to know one another better,” I suggest.

“Sophia that will never happen. I have never been interested in any girl until that day you ran me down in the hall,” he jokes. “But seriously, since the day we met, I haven’t been able to get you out of my head, not even for a second. You are the most amazing girl I have ever met.”

How can I argue with him? I understand exactly what he means, what he feels. I feel it as well. We’re soul mates, meant to be together. The only problem is that he doesn’t know why we have no future together.

With that thought, I decide to stop worrying so much and just enjoy spending time with Nathanial while I can. I crawl up on the hospital bed next to him and cuddle.

While the movie is good, we talk the whole time. We enjoy leaning as much about one another as possible.

Nathanial likes to tell me about his older brother Luke, who will be coming home this weekend for Christmas vacation. “I really look up to Luke. He worked really hard to get into Harvard. I hope I can make my parents just as proud,” Nathanial expresses.

“Nate, can’t you see that you mean everything to your parents and that they are already proud of you? They just want you to be happy. You put way too much pressure on yourself. You are so lucky to have a family that loves you for who you are,” I say with complete conviction.

“Sweetie, I’m sure your family feels the same about you. They want nothing more than for you to be happy. I just have not figured out why you fight it so much.”

“I do, Nate, but I also know what it is like to not be appreciated and accepted. You are so blessed to have such an amazing family. I hope you realize what you have.” I want him to understand, but I worry it is turning in to a lecture.

“I also know how lucky I am to have you,” he responds and seals it with a kiss.

Lucky to have me? I wonder if he would still feel that way if he knew the truth.

***

Nathanial gets discharged from the hospital today, Sunday morning. His parents are here and ready to take him home. I will go home and give his family some time together. I feel guilty for spending so much time with him. I am sure Mrs. McCord wanted to be with her son in his time of need. She was so gracious to allow me to be with him. As we are leaving and I say goodbye, I thank the McCords once again for allowing me to stay with Nate. I decide to offer my apologies for staying so much. His mother insists that she had to work anyway and was just happy to know he’s been in good hands. That’s a relief to me.

Luke is coming home from Harvard today. With his busy schedule he decided to live in the dorms on campus, coming home for Sunday dinners every chance he got. I thought it will be best if I stay away and allow his family to heal from the traumatic events of the weekend, so that’s exactly what I do.

Chapter Twenty Six

Learning

My family had plans to go skiing today, but those plans change when Constance had a vision that we should stay home. She does not always share her visions, but we trust her to do what is in the best interests of the family. We learned early on not to question her or her motives. She always tells us what we need to know. It is best this way, and Constance has never done us wrong, so we trust her completely.

Instead of skiing, Ms. Edwina and the girls join us at our place today to work on their power control. We are the perfect candidates for them to practice on. Between the eleven of us, the skills and powers in the house are almost unfathomable.

“So what exactly are your powers?” Eliza asks.

“I can heal, Alexander is telepathic, Constance has premonitions, Matilda sees souls, and Florence controls memories. That is only the beginning. Isaac can control the elements, and Elijah can borrow powers of those around him,” I respond.

“What about Danika?” questions Ebony.

“Funny you ask that, as we don’t know yet. We’re hoping we can find out with your help,” Alexander suggests.

Eliza smiles. “So who has the strongest power?”

“Elijah’s power is truly amazing. We try to keep it hidden, because this is a power many would love to possess. When one vampire kills another vampire, they acquire the power of the destroyed vampire, so it would be very dangerous for other vampires to learn of Elijah’s power. They would want to destroy him for it. He is remarkable, and he only absorbs power when doing so is necessary.” Florence beams with pride for her mate.

Now that we have disclosed our powers, we begin to discuss the powers of the witches. Ms. Edwina senses truth and lies, she has even acquired new powers of the years, but this is something we already knew. Ebony is telekinetic, so she can move things with her mind, as we saw at school. That leaves Eliza, and we have not yet seen what she can do.

“You must be wondering what I can do,” she says. “I know you have witnessed both Grams’ and Ebony’s powers.” Eliza raises her right hand.

We all look around to see what it is she can do, but we can’t figure it out. Then, one by one, we notice all three of our witch friends are in different places than they were when she first raised her hand.

“You can move people?” I assume.

“No. Rather, she can control time. She can freeze time, and once she learns to control it a little better, she will be able to slow time and travel through it as well,” Ms. Edwina explains.

“Why is it you were all in different places?” Danika inquires.

“Because her power does not affect Salem witches,” Ebony answers.

As we learn about each other’s powers, we also learn the major differences in our powers. Witches like Ebony and her sisters can learn new powers, and all the powers of their ancestors are somewhere within them. Vampires can only acquire new powers from the destruction of another vampire, except for what we bring in from our human lives, if anything–that is, with the exception of normal vampire powers such as super strength, speed, increased senses, and so on.

Elijah tries to explain a little more to our witch friends. “Because of the lifestyle my family and I have chosen, we rarely destroy another vampire unless they directly threaten us, like the other night. During the last Cerberus war, we fought, but we left the final destruction to others. We believe in the fight, but we have made a vow not to kill anyone, including the immortal. If we absolutely need to destroy a vampire, we will, when cases like protecting our own or those we are close to warrant such actions in our minds. In all our years, it rarely comes to that, and we are grateful.”

“Will Isaac or Alexander receive any powers for the one they destroyed the other night?” Ebony asks.

“Actually, it appears as though he did not have any extra powers to gain. Not all vampires have extra powers. The Cerberus cult creates just for gaining numbers, whereas most vampires that follow Renata law only create if they can improve the clan with the addition of one and their power,” Isaac explains.

“Renata law and Cerberus cult? Wow. There is a lot more to vampire history than I ever thought,” Eliza admits.

“Yes. It is quite complex, and we will explain more as time goes on, but for now, let’s work on your powers.” Elijah diverts attention, and we all get to work.

Elijah starts working with us to teach us power protection, how to protect our powers so others like him cannot use our powers. He also explains the great emotional sense he received when around Nathanial. He believes Nathanial has a gift to extract emotional information from others, but because Nathanial is mortal, he does not understand this or how to use it. It just makes him easy to talk to, and that is why I have such a hard time keeping things from him.

***

Everyone is having fun. Eliza’s having fun surprising most of us, although she is getting frustrated that she cannot surprise Alexander and Constance. Ebony is doing really well too; she has been practicing moving items away from those who possess them. This may come in handy for extracting weapons from others. We continue working hard like this for a few days, and I lose track of time.

Out of nowhere, the phone rings. Constance and Alexander both turn and look at me, a telltale sign that the phone is for me.

“Good afternoon. This is the Pierce residence,” I answer.

“Sophia, I have missed having you around the past few days. I think the doctor has called for my daily dose of beautiful,” Nathanial says excitedly.

“I missed seeing you too. I just didn’t want to intrude, with Luke coming home and you just getting home from the hospital a few days ago,” I explain.

“Sweetie, Luke can’t wait to meet the girl I won’t stop talking about,” he confesses.

“So would I. I could pick her up on my way over,” I joke.

“Don’t you be coy. You know you’re the only girl for me.”

“How are you feeling? Better, I hope.”

“Yes, much, thank you. I get my stitches out in just a few days. That will be nice because they are feeling very tight and itching.” He grumbles a little and asks, “So are you coming over?”

“If it is okay with your family, I could be there shortly,” I offer.

“Of course it is. They are so excited that I finally found a girl I am interested in. I think they were starting to wonder if I’m gay.” He chuckles.

“Sorry, but I refuse to share you with anyone, guy or girl.”

“No worries there. You are the only person for me. See you soon. Drive safe, though, because the roads are getting slick,” he cautions.

“I always do,” I reply, leaving out that with my reflexes, nothing could ever happen.

The only person for him? But I am not a person–at least not anymore. I am a Vampire a
monster.
But I do know what he means and cannot analyze his comment as I always do.

I really hate how analytical I am after so many years. You think I would learn let the chips fall where they may, but when it comes to this, I can’t. He believes I am human, and I want him to continue believing it. I just know I will lose him if he finds out the truth.

Chapter Twenty Seven

Predicament

The roads are pretty icy, but they are no match for my quick reflexes. I make it to Nathanial’s house in less than twenty minutes. I made myself presentable before leaving and took my time not to raise any questions regarding how fast I’ve arrived. It has been a few days since Nathanial got home from the hospital. I miss him and can’t stop thinking about him, but I kept busy. I’m excited to see him and don’t even have the chance to ring the doorbell, before he comes flying out the door to greet me. He gives me a big hug and then leans down to kiss me. One small peck, and then his soft lips began to move passionately with mine. It is amazing how every time we kiss, it sends electric shocks through my entire body.

I hear a man clear his throat near the doorway.

“Sorry to interrupt, little brother.” Luke taps Nathanial’s shoulder.

“Oh, sorry, man. Allow me to introduce you to the most beautiful woman in the world. This is Sophia. Sophia, this is my big brother Luke.” Nathanial introduces us while holding his arm around the small of my back.

“It is nice to finally meet you.” Luke greets me by extending his right hand out to shake mine.

“And you as well.” I shake his hand and smile.

He tries to pull me in to him and lift me to spin me around in excitement. For a short moment, I am surprised and resist, but then I realize what I am doing and release myself into his arms. I can see the puzzled looks on the brothers’ faces.

“You’re a tough one, aren’t you? My God! You are freezing. Nate, let’s get this poor girl in the house to warm up,” Luke insists.

“Sophia, we have missed you. It is wonderful to see you again. Please make yourself at home.” Mrs. McCord welcomes me with open arms.

“It is lovely to see you again. Thank you for having me over,” I reply.

“You will join us for dinner, won’t you?” With her striking wide eyes, she looks at me as she invites.

“Thank you. That would be nice.”

I’m glad to have my day crystal so I can eat human food without getting those awful stomach cramps and indigestion, a normal and very painful reaction for a vampire. I begin to realize just how thirsty I am, because I have not eaten much since Friday after Nathanial’s attack. I am going to have to watch myself and be very careful. I am sure Florence will have a nice blood meal ready when I return home. I got too caught up in training with the witches. I have only snacked a little. “May I help you with anything?”

I offer, as Florence has always made sure we keep our manners.

“No thank you. Please enjoy your time with the boys. I think Nate has missed you a little and I’m sure Luke would like to get to know you,” Mrs. McCord informs.

I am excited to get to know him as well. Luke means so much to Nathanial, and I cannot wait to get to know the man he idolizes so much. I am actually kinda nervous. I normally don’t care much for what others think of me, but tonight I care more than I could ever expect to.

Nathanial holds my hand and leads me to the family room, with Luke in tow. “Are you feeling okay?” Nathanial asks with concern.

“I am fine. Why do you ask?”

“You just seem a little pale, and your eyes are darker. Are you getting sick?”

“Probably just a lack of sleep and too much shopping.” I know that is not the real reason, but I cannot tell him the truth.

He gives me a little kiss on my cheek. “Promise me you will take care of yourself.”

“I promise.” I give him a little smile.

Luke begins telling us all about his classes at Harvard. “I am majoring in history.”

He starts explaining about the section on the Salem witch trials. He is particularly enjoying it because of how close to home it all happened. He decided to do a report on Sara Good, the woman from Wenham that was hanged in 1692 for being a witch and how she was wrongly convicted. We continue to discuss the topic for a while. Luke looks impressed by my knowledge of history.

“I did a little research when my family decided to move here,” I explain.

“Did you know the civilians of Salem tried to persecute even more women in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s?” Luke adds.

“I read a little about that.” I do not admit I was there.

He pulls out some of his textbooks. “You may enjoy this then.” Luke offers the book to me.

Nathanial quickly grabs one of the texts for a closer look. “What the…?” Nathanial gasps.

“What’s wrong?” Luke questions, and I await a response.

“This picture! The woman looks just like you!” He stares at the book in shock.

Luke takes the book for a better look. “Holy crap! She sure does.”

When I look at the picture, I am shocked. It is me, along with my family. I try to cover my surprise. “Wow, it sort of does. That’s so cool and a little creepy.” I say casually, trying to brush it off.

“How is it possible? I know this picture was taken after the witch trials, but it is still from the nineteenth century. Do you have ancestors who lived in Salem?” Luke questions.

“Uh...um...well, I’m really not sure. I don’t think so. The Pierce family adopted me years ago in Italy, which is where I was born,” I try to explain.

“Adopted you and your twin brother Alexander?” Nathanial asks with surprise.

“Yeah, that’s right. They came to Italy and found us, which is when Alexander and I became part of the Pierce family,” I confirm stiffly. I start to panic, knowing everything can come crashing down any minute now.

“That’s cool. Maybe I can help you find out about your birth relatives,” Luke offers.

“I don’t know. The Pierce family is the only one that matters to me now.” I try to detour him. I never expected this. Who would have expected when we saved Constance all those years ago that the picture of us, claiming her body would end up in a history book. I can only hope I explained it well enough. I need to change the subject. Maybe I should ask Luke about basketball or about Nathanial as a child. I need something to distract everyone. I pretend to flip through the remainder of the book.

Just then, a scream comes from the kitchen. I can already smell the blood. Mrs.

McCord cut herself, and Luke and Nathanial rush to her aide.

With my hand covering my mouth, I announce, “Sorry, but please excuse me. I can’t handle the blood after everything that happened on Friday night.”

I hurry outside to get some air. I feel the hunger taking over, burning inside of me, and I sense my eyes turning black. My head begins to spin and then pounds and I become dizzy. My throat and chest burn with hunger, and I know I need to calm myself. My jaw is aching, I can feel the teeth in my mouth enlarging and sharpening as my fangs start to protrude.

I look up and see Alexander there, ready to talk me down. I can still smell the blood.

It is the only thing I can smell. I am sometimes grateful Alexander likes to spy on me so much. He is just what I need, and he calms my insecurities easily. He holds my head, forcing me to stare him straight in his eyes as he connects our minds and slowly calms me.

Luke and Nathanial finish bandaging their mother, and Nathanial comes out to check on me. Alexander hurries off into the bushes so he won’t be seen. It is a close call, but because of his gift and our super hearing and speed, he is able to leave just as Nathanial reaches the door, assuring me he will stay close and connected.

As Nathanial steps outside, I glance up at him and become even calmer. He has such a powerful influence over me. I keep my head slightly lowered, as I do not want him to see my eyes, but through my peripheral vision I watch him walking over to me, his head slightly bent downwards, trying to see my face.

“Are you alright, sweetie?” Nathanial wraps a jacket over my shoulders and sits on the porch swing next to me.

“I am so sorry. I don’t know what came over me.” I refuse to look him in the face, for I do not want him to see my eyes. “I guess I am more upset over your attack than I let on,” I try to explain. “You mean so much to me. I never want any harm to come to you,” I continue, waiting for him to stop me.

“I understand. I was so worried that the man would hurt you, and I wanted to keep you safe, but I got hurt, and that hurt you. I want to protect you forever,” he confesses.

“Nathanial, that is so sweet, but really I am okay. There is nothing to protect me from,” I insist.

“Even if it is just protecting you from pain, I feel things for you that I have never felt before, and I never want to see you hurt or sad. If there is anything at all I can do to make things easier or happier for you, I will.”

“I understand. I want to protect you as well, and that is something I have already failed at. You were hurt because I wanted to go for a walk.”

“Our attack was not your fault. We should be grateful. If it was anyone else, they would probably be dead. Alexander is very protective of you, and his spying on us is what saved us.”

I cannot disagree with him, because as he knows the story, that is all true. If any other student had gone out, they would probably be dead, killed by the rogue vampire.

I may not have protected Nathanial, but some other poor soul was saved that night, and I can be grateful for that. Nathanial is only okay because of me and my family.

“Sophia, you have brought out feelings in me that I never thought existed. Some of the things you told my brother tonight were new to me. I never knew you were adopted or born in Italy. My point is, I want you to feel comfortable enough to tell me anything.

I want to know everything about you, every inch of your being.”

“I never think about being adopted or from Italy. I have been in North America for what seems like forever. It is just a part of the past and is not important to me any longer. I want to tell you everything, but some things are just so difficult to explain,” I begin to confide a little.

“You can tell me anything. Nothing you say will ever change how I feel about you, and I will never leave you. I don’t know if I could live without you now that I found you.” He sighs and holds my hand gently. He lifts my chin with his finger to look into my eyes and continues. “I know we have so much more to learn about each other, and I want to know it all. I hope we can have a lifetime together to learn it, but why not start now?”

“I want to learn everything about you too.” I smile ever so softly, slightly turning up the corners of my mouth.

“Sophia, I know it has only been fourteen weeks since we first met, but I knew from that first moment that you were the one.” He takes a deep breath. “Sophia Pierce, I love you, and I always will. You have shown me what it means to live. Now I want you to share your life with me, and I want to share mine with you.” He looks so incredibly nervous and, the way his hair is blowing in the light breeze pulls at my heart, he is so vulnerable and doesn’t even know it.

Even though Matilda, Alexander, and Constance have all told me Nathanial and I belong together, this surprises me. I know how I feel, but I just never expected him to love me. I stand up, turn in front of him, and drop to my knees. He is completely still, not sure of what I am doing. I lean in toward him, resting my head on his chest over his heart. I listen to the rapid beating of it, a beautiful sound. All the hunger I felt has now left me and the only thing I feel now is love. “Nate...” I look up at him, running my fingers through his beautiful hair. “I am completely and utterly head-over-heels in love with you. I too, have loved you from the moment we met. You have shown me what love is and what it means to live with love. I have never met anyone like you, and I never thought I would. I did not believe I could ever deserve anyone like you, but now that I found you, I do not want to let you go.”

He places his hands on either side of my face. “We were made for each other, sweetie.” he says softly as he pulls me closer to him until our lips meet. They fit perfectly together, like two missing puzzle pieces.

Luke peaks his head out the door. “Hey there, lovebirds. Mom’s okay, but we are going to go out for dinner instead.”

Nathanial gets up and helps me up. He leads me inside. “Mom, Dad, I was wondering if the two of you would mind if Sophia and I just stay here? We can order some pizza and talk.”

“Not at all, son. Just mind your manners and be the gentleman we raised you to be,”

Mr. McCord answers. He then helps his wife with her coat and prepares to leave.

“Mrs. McCord?” I squeak.

“Yes, dear?”

“I hope you are okay. I am extremely sorry about my reaction to your injury,” I say, ashamed.

“No need to worry yourself. I am fine. Nothing a Band-aid couldn’t fix. I understand. I hope you are doing okay, and please know we are always here for you if you need to talk...or anything. You and Nate have both been through a lot this past week, and I am sure it will take a while to heal emotionally. I just want you to know we understand what you have gone through and that we are here for you.” The woman who–in any other life–might be my future mother-in-law hugs me before leaving for dinner.