room fell dead silent with all eyes on Cristian, Sage, and Pedro. “Everyone did a good job with getting the police off our
scent,” Cody said awkwardly as Pedro walked over to Lisa while
still glancing at Cristian and his bandaged wrist.
“They have nothing to go on,” Daniel said. “The only matter
now is Pearson.” “Yes Pearson,” Sage replied.
“That reminds me—I have something I need to do,” Cristian
said as Sage excused herself and went with him to escort him to
the door, feeling Pedro’s eyes following them intensely like a laser.
“I’m going to go inform my parents of what’s happening,” he said,
giving her a smile. “This may take some time. What are you going
to do about Pedro?” he asked.
“I’m going to wait first,” she said. They leaned in and kissed. “So much happened tonight,” he said as they nuzzled together. “Things that can’t be undone,” she said.
“Are you sorry for what happened between us?” he asked. “No. I’m not sorry,” she said. “You saved my life—in more
ways than one.”
They kissed again. “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he said. She
watched him leave and disappear around the corner. Cristian hailed
a taxi and took out his cell phone. “Mom, Dad, there’s something I
need to talk to you about,” he said into the voicemail. “I’m on my
way there. This can’t wait.” He hung up the cell phone. “I hope this
works,” he thought.
Rafael dialed a number from his cell phone. “You said you
would help me when I asked for it,” he said. “Well, I need your help
now. I need supplies. I need a new crossbow, arrows, stakes, and
more holy water. You gave me your word,” he said. “Remember
what’s at stake here, and besides, this will bring you more money
and recognition than you ever dreamed of. Isn’t this why you do
what you do for a living?” he asked. “We’ll both be legends when
this is all over. I thought you’d see it my way,” he laughed. John, after being scared by Billy who wanted to give him styling
tips, walked into a room adjacent to the living room dressed in a
black shirt and black jeans. Without his glasses, he didn’t appear to
be so geeky. He was actually quite handsome.
“Are you hungry?” Lisa asked, startling him.
“Yes, I am,” he replied meekly. She smiled at him. Stepping
aside, she revealed a tray on the table spread with cloth. The tray
had an array of fruits from bananas to apples, to pears, to peaches
and salads and sandwiches. He sat down on the black velvet loveseat
and began to eat as Lisa sat beside him, watching him. He lifted up
a peach to his lips and bit down as some of the juice spilled down
his chin; he licked his lips slowly as he ate.
Lisa found herself aroused watching him take his fingers and
lick them. She licked her lips tantalizingly. He looked over at her,
swallowing hard. “I’d join you,” she said grinning. “But I’m on a
protein diet.” He looked into her eyes and felt his heart begin to
beat rapidly. He felt his face flush as she continued to stare at him
as if she was undressing him.
“Why would vampires have food if you don’t eat?” he asked,
perplexed.
“We have it in case we dine…with humans,” she grinned. He
nodded his head nervously.
Sage, having changed into a crimson gown, entered the room.
“Thank you for your hospitality,” John said.
“And here you thought vampires are malevolent creatures,” she
said with a tinge of sarcasm.
“Rafael said that all vampires are evil,” he said, feeling his skin
prickle with goose bumps at the resonance of her voice. He picked
up a pear with shaky hands and began to bite down into it. “What else did Rafael tell you?” she asked.
Lisa stood up. “I’ll excuse myself,” she said looking at John. “Talk to you later,” he said, watching her walk out the door. Sage smiled slightly at the obvious attraction she could sense
brewing between them.
“What did Rafael tell me?” he said getting back to the topic.
“He told me it was important for him to maintain the family dignity
of the Pearson name—” he said. “that the name was nearly tainted
due to some scandal that happened before he was even born. It
was referred to as the fate of Amerie and Lance,” he said, taking
another bite from the pear.
Sage’s ears perked up, having heard those names before when
her father mentioned it. It was whispered amongst the family, but
no one spoke openly of what happened. “What do you know of
the story?” she asked intrigued.
“This is all hearsay,” John said. “But Rafael told me that in
his family, there was a hunter named Lance Pearson, and he
was obsessed with killing the vampire queen Amerie.” “She had
supposedly turned the crown over to her son when he became a father and sent him and his family into hiding when hunters felled her husband, the king. That wasn’t good enough for Lance. He was
determined to kill the vampire queen as well.”
“Sounds familiar,” Sage thought, arching her eyebrows. “So he waited and waited until he tracked down the queen.”
“Finally, he found her, and when he tried to kill her, he couldn’t.”
He stared at Sage. “Rumor is that Amerie was very beautiful, and
those who gazed upon her would fall under her spell.
Lance couldn’t bring himself to kill her. Instead, they fell
in love and decided to run away together.” Sage was amazed
at the similarities between Amerie and Lance and herself and
Cristian.
“But Amerie was a vampire and Lance was human. It was
doomed to fail,” John said. “Lance’s brother Lawrence found them
in Vienna and forced Lance to watch as he drove the stake into
Amerie’s heart and cut off her head, destroying her. He was driven
from the family in disgrace and was never heard from again, with
speculation that he ended his life.”
“That was the fate of Amerie and Lance.”
Sage was horrified at the tale, having never understood why her
family members spoke in hushed tones about Amerie. Now she
understood why her father tried to keep her away from Cristian,
because he was scared that she would share the same fate as her
great-grandmother, and she nearly did.
“Rafael warned me about you,” John said as she stared at him.
“He said that you are also very stunningly beautiful and would
draw people into a trancelike state.” He stared at her. “And you
are beautiful,” he said. “He wants to kill you because you are
the last of the royal line. And you are the most powerful.” Sage
understood that Rafael would not wait until the next successor
came along to end her reign. He would continue with his quest until he succeeded.
Cristian sat in the taxi parked on the ferry crossing over to Long Island thinking of how he was going to explain to his parents all that had happened since the night of the presentation. As the taxi drove up the long driveway to his parents’ waterfront property, he could see the white stately house that had gray blinders and two pillars with stairs leading to the massive chestnut door with brass door handles. The door opened as Cristian stepped out the taxi. “What’s going on, Son?” his father asked, looking as if he hadn’t slept for days. “We went to the gallery and you weren’t there, and Robert had no idea where you were. Why are you acting so strangely?”
Cristian walked up the stairs and inside the house, taking a breath. “Not only that,” his mother added, “we saw all of those drawings in your room of the woman in your portrait.” She stared at his bandaged wrist. “What happened to your wrist? What’s going on, Cristian?” she asked. “I’ll explain everything the best way I can,” Cristian replied. “You’d better have a seat,” he said. “Where do I begin…,” he started.