Within The Shadows Read online

  My heart broke.

  “You know, I can take all your pain away.” Alex spoke softly, almost mesmerizing.

  “I don’t think even you can do that.”

  “Giselle, I can safely say I can change the course your life takes.”

  “Alex . . .”

  He grabbed a hold of my hands, and looked hard into my face as an odd sensation pulsated through my head. “If you come willingly, then yes, all the pain and heartache will go. In its place, you will have peace,” he sighed, looking down at his feet. “I have waited so long for you. You do not know how many times I wanted to tell you the truth, to come clean about who I am.”

  “What . . . ? What do you mean? Alex, this is all a bit too dramatic, even for you.” I looked into his face. It was hard and serious.

  From behind, I heard whispers and movement. I looked around, and saw three men I’d never seen before. They wore black, and each had a mark tattooed on his face.

  “What’s going on, Alex?” There was panic in my voice, and for the first time ever, I was afraid of my best friend.

  “It is time, Master,” the tallest of the men said as his eyes blazed red.

  Alex smiled down at me. His eyes gleamed in the light of the moon, and the peculiar feeling increased, leaving me dizzy and light-headed.

  “Please, Giselle, come quietly, and it will be over quickly.”

  “The moon, Master. It will enter the second phase, and you will have failed.”

  I had to be dreaming. Jesus, I mean, after all I had been through, it was possibly my mind playing tricks on me. There was no other explanation.

  “Quiet!” Alex raised his voice. “Giselle, I have chosen you to be by my side. It is you who will redeem my bloodline, but you must come willingly. I cannot force you, but if you decide against me, I will have to destroy you. We have only a few minutes until the moon changes, and our window of opportunity will have passed. Please, I implore you, oblige, and you will feel no pain. I do not want to harm you.”

  “Oh, my God, you’re all crazy!” I shouted as I tried to fight the inebriating feeling overcoming me.

  Trying to back away from the edge of the trees, I made a run for it. It seemed impossible, but Alex moved with stellar speed. I was seriously no match for him, but I gave it my best shot. I hit him hard in the face. He did not move, and in a blink of an eye, he was behind me with his warm, strong hands around my waist, holding me close to him.

  “Why are you doing this?”

  “Because I must awaken you. Giselle, you do not have a choice.” His breath was warm on my neck.

  “I don’t understand!” I whimpered.

  “Say yes, and all will be revealed. I promise you, there will be no pain.”

  “But . . . I can’t. I don’t want to die.”

  “You will not die. You will be reborn.”

  “But . . . Alex, you’re scaring me!”

  “Giselle, please. I am running out of time, and it is you who must join me.” His voice became harder.

  Not wanting to give in, I tried my best to block out his voice, to fight the urge to give in, but the power of his grip, and the three men standing before me told me I would lose whichever fate I chose.

  “Okay . . . No, I don’t know . . . Okay,” I whispered, nodding my head in defeat as tears streamed down my cheeks.

  What was I doing? I screamed inside my head.

  No . . . no . . . no . . . please! It was pointless, because soon enough, my thoughts became lost in a daze of smouldering heat.

  His breath was warm and velvety as he brushed his lips along my neck. He gently kissed and caressed my throat with his tongue, and the sensation sent my skin into overdrive. I was completely spellbound. I found it hard to concentrate. Before long, I was lost in the warmth of his touch. Moving his mouth over mine, I kissed him back. I never imagined his mouth would be so electrifying. His breath was sweet, and intoxicated every inch of my body.

  His lips left mine, and found their way down my neck. He opened his mouth wide, and bit down. At first, the pain of the bite burned, but I soon found myself lost in its burning pleasure. It was my first experience of ecstasy, and then there was nothing, just complete blackness.

  * * *

  I could hear voices with unfamiliar soft accents all around me. I was aware of my own faint heartbeat. Its weak pulse throbbed and echoed in my head. I felt different. The heat within me burned like a fire in a furnace. I ached all over, and not one inch of my body was spared the torture. I tried to will my eyes to open, but nothing happened. Frustrated, I wanted to scream, but my voice was unheard.

  What was happening to me?

  Hurried footsteps came to a stop beside me. The gentle touch of a hand rubbed softly against my cheek. All of my senses came rushing back to me like a ball of heat. I yearned for that touch. The desire for it engulfed me, but still my eyes remained closed.

  “She’s burning up,” he said softly.

  “The third day is always the worst. She will be whole by moonlight,” a hoarse voice reassured him.

  “Of course. You are right.”

  “You are aware that the thirst will be unbearable when she wakes. Are you sure you are ready for the responsibility that comes with awakening a mortal?”

  “She is mine. I am ready for whatever comes my way.” He was confident, but his voice was sharp with anger.

  Oh, my God!

  As quickly as he came, he was gone from my side, leaving me alone and afraid.

  Terrified, I tried to fight the pain, but it overwhelmed me, and I succumbed to the burning in my throat. The flames engulfed every vein within my body, and my skin felt like it had melted from the heat. I could feel the warm blood ooze from every cavity. I wanted to die.

  I prayed for death.

  * * *

  I awoke to the light of the moon shining bright into my eyes. Voices hushed, and I could hear the anticipation in their whispered voices.

  “She is seeking us out. This is truly a night for the Goddess!” one of them gleefully remarked.

  My natural instinct had me on the defensive. I backed away from them. Every cell in my body told me they were dangerous. They were strange, and did not look like anything I had seen before. Yet, the back of my throat burned, my chest ached, and dizziness filled my head with so much uncertainty.

  Was this all a dream?

  “Giselle.” A name, my name, was called.

  I turned my head, ready to pounce. I thought I knew him. He seemed familiar, but I still could not trust him. Something in his voice did not seem right.

  “Who are you?” I prodded, but my voice was not my own any more. Coughing, I tried to clear my throat, failing to get rid of the deep burning.

  He stood beside me. Reaching out his hand, he waited for me to respond. I retreated. I did not trust this stranger. His eyes seemed sad, yet he brushed the hair from my face, leaving my burning eyes vulnerable to the moonlight.

  “Giselle, my love, you must feed in order to complete the transition.” His eyes were fixed on mine, and for a moment, I thought I felt a connection.

  “I want to go. I do not belong here,” I angrily snapped, squinting hard as I tried to shield my eyes from the light.

  He tried to touch my arm, but I caught him within my grip, and instinct had me ready to kill him. Yet something about his smell stopped me. I knew that sweet scent, but could not place it.

  I looked deep within his eyes, staring intently until some kind of memory came to me. He paused, too, touching my lips with his fingertips. I knew that touch, that soft skin against my feverishly hot flesh, and he calmed something within me. I did know him. It was becoming clearer to me now.

  Oh, God, it was him, I remembered. It was Alex.

  “You did this to me!” I wailed, pulling back from him.

  “You chose.”

  “No. You forced me into this! I never had a choice,” I hissed at him, and stared at those around me.

  I became more aware of my surroundings. I wa
s in a room, built with marble, and at the far left stood a monument of an ancient queen. Around her feet were fresh flowers entwined with ivy, thorns, and fresh orchids. A large oak table stood dead centre in the room. On top of it, books and scrolls were scattered. On the walls hung giant portraits of people and scary looking shadows, and a familiar face stood out from the rest – Alex.

  “You must drink.”

  “Oh, no! There is no way on this earth I am going to do that.” I rejected him even as the thirst burned inside me.

  “Giselle, you have to drink. If you do, you will start to heal.” He used his most persuasive voice.

  I shook my head in protest. “I can’t. I’m not like you! I want to go. Please, let me go home. Please!” I begged.

  He used a sharp dagger, and cut deep into his wrist. The sweet smell instantly caught my attention, and a burning desire rose within me. I found myself moving my mouth closer to his wrist. With one last try at abstaining, I gave in, and let the blood fill my mouth.

  Alex closed his eyes, and gently smiled as I drank. I gulped down his sweet blood. Its syrupy texture slid along my throat, electrifying every corner of my body. I had never imagined anything like it. I wanted to continue, only to be disturbed by someone pulling my head away.

  “Enough. You will weaken him if you do not stop,” a man’s voice echoed in my ear.

  “Enough!”

  I pulled away, gasping sharply. I felt disgusted with myself for drinking from him. The thought of his blood running through me made me shake violently. Alex’s eyes were closed tight as his breathing laboured. He did not notice me practically convulsing next to him. An eerie silence filled the room as I sat, and watched him smile.

  “The first drink is always the ice-breaker,” Alex laughed as he closed his eyes again.

  “The first?” I asked, stunned. “Do I have to do this more than once?”

  An old woman interrupted. She ushered me out of the way, and tended to Alex’s wound. One lick with the tip of her tongue, and the cut sealed itself. All signs of my feeding from him were gone.

  “You are blood bound. You must drink from your regnant on three separate nights to fulfil your bond,” she said calmly as she walked towards the door.

  “I don’t understand,” I complained. “This is all too much. Why me?”

  “Giselle, you were chosen for me by my elders,” he said softly as his eyes remained closed.

  I sighed, and sat beside him. “Am I dead?” I asked innocently.

  “No, I merely bit and awakened you. Your heart still beats, and your blood still runs warm and red. Only your basic instincts have changed. You will feed from me and me alone. You will not have to kill for your food. In return, I will feed from you, and our blood bond will grow. Good things will happen because of you.” He sounded so confident.

  He took a deep breath, and silently rested.

  I could not answer. Everything was happening too fast, and my mind found it hard to accept what I was hearing. I mean, how could I? I did not even know what I had become. I sunk my head into my knees, unable to cry. I craved the normality of a high school betrayal.

  I wanted to run. I wanted to escape this craziness, and did not want to hear any of it. This was not my Alex talking. It was some impostor playing a cruel joke on me.

  I watched the men at work around me, trying hard to ignore their strange features. Their purplish dark skin stretched tight against their bodies, and their long tangled hair was worn loose around their shoulders. Their deep red eyes were the most startling of all. They seemed to be devoid of life, cold, and hollow. They wore the same black clothing, each resembling the other, except for the emblem on each cheek. The symbol was unique, each one slightly different to the other. A black dagger with an oval head shaded in crimson sat upon the right cheek, the centre of the dagger engraved with tiny letters. I could not make out the wording, but the intrinsic art was beautiful.

  I was caught staring, and hid my face. In the blink of an eye, he stood there in front of me with eyes that were wide and frightening.

  “What is it you seek, child?” He brushed his hand across my face.

  I refused to respond. His breath was sharp and enticing. I found myself becoming weaker, unable to resist looking into his eyes. The red pools rippled seductively. I wanted to swim deep within him, and for a moment, I lost my senses and aimed forward.

  He laughed.

  “You have a lot to learn, dearest Giselle. My blood is not for your taking.” He cackled as he pushed me hard against the wall.

  I was paralysed. My body was rigid. I couldn’t move an inch. I was trapped.

  Alex, wake up! I mouthed, but no words left my mouth.

  “Do not be frightened. I merely feel that you have been left uneducated.” He turned his back on me, and reached for something on the table.

  Every eye in the room was on me now. Alex was slowly coming around, and becoming aware of what was happening. He rose to his feet, and walked over to me.

  “Afanas, what is the meaning of this? Release her at once!”

  Afanas sighed. “The girl has been ill-informed. I believe she must fully understand what is expected of her. Alexander, I apologize.” He bowed his head.

  Released, I fell to the ground in a heap, and looked up at Alex as he offered me his hand. I took it, and he helped me to my feet. He exhaled, and gestured for me to follow him.

  Outside, the air was thin and icy. I felt the cold, but did not shiver. We walked in silence until we stopped at an old fountain. The water flowed with brilliance as the moonlight sparkled brightly on my reflection.

  “Giselle, I do not pretend to think that any of this is easy. To be honest, I didn’t think I would pull it off.” Stopping, he looked at me. He pushed the hair back from my ear, and smiled. “I’ve known you for almost six years, and not once have I been totally honest with you.” His voice changed.

  “Alex, you’re scaring me. You have no idea how frightened I am.”

  “My birth name is Alexander Baranski, not Alex Burns like you thought. I am the son of Prince Leonid Baranski.” He paused.

  I shook my head. “No, this doesn’t make sense. I’ve known you since we were twelve-years-old. Surely, I would have noticed something different in you.” I tried hard not to cry.

  “My family is a descendent of the Nelapsi. We are not gluttons like them, as we can survive quite well on small amounts of blood, but we need to add to our bloodline for the sake of our future. A future that involves you.”

  I could not take much more. I did not want to believe any of this. It was nonsense, yet he seemed so sincere.

  “I want to go home right now. Take me home, Alex, please,” I begged him. Tears welled up in my eyes, burning as I held them back.

  “Don’t you understand what I’m telling you? You can never go back, not until the prophecy has been fulfilled.” His voice was tense. “Giselle, what you knew as life has changed. You will become one of us. It’s something that has already begun, and there is no way of reversing it. You must accept this as your fate. Don’t fight it.”

  “What God-damned prophecy? What the hell have I become, Alex, huh? What am I, if I’m not dead?” I screamed into his face.

  “A nightwalker; a vampire.”

  Chapter Four

  THE WORDS STUNNED me, and I was rendered speechless. I looked around, reeling from the word used to describe my newfound fate. This had to be some sick and cruel joke.

  Vampire.

  Holy mother of hell! Alex was much more messed up than I thought. I mean, in this day and age, we’ve all heard the same old stories over and over again, but that did not mean I had to believe it. Vampires did not exist, and that was something I was sure of.

  He stopped my train of thought, and hesitated before he spoke. “Giselle, say something, anything.”

  “You are so out of your frigging mind,” I said as I moved away from him.

  He forced me to stand still, his hands clasped tight upon my shoulders. “Loo
k at me, Giselle. Really look at me. What do you see?”

  I stared at him, looking at his beautiful green eyes, and the loose blond curls that fell around them. He was a stunning sight to behold. His high chiselled cheekbones would make any guy jealous, and his body was rippled, yet so soft. Yet it was his eyes that held me, the green turning a reddish-brown. Slowly, a crimson red overflowed from them. I saw the same blood I had seen within Afanas’s eyes.

  I stepped back from him. “You . . . Your eyes!”

  “I’m sorry,” he choked, turning his back on me as he walked further away.

  I could not believe what I was seeing. The guy who had saved me from every pitfall, who helped wipe my tears whenever Marc let me down, this same guy was a monster. I could not comprehend what I was seeing or hearing.

  At that precise moment, I felt something inside me. It wasn’t my emotions. I could feel someone else’s torment. The shame at what he had done mixed with a profound sense of guilt. I sensed something deeper, something that frightened me, something that was both hate and disgust. I tried my best to forget I’d felt it. I looked at Alex as he slowly faced me, and it was then I knew the so-called bond had begun.

  Suddenly, the urge to hold him overcame me. I couldn’t fight the repulsion at what he had done to me, and I found myself embracing him instead. I had no control over my actions. It was as though something had taken over my body, but I knew deep down inside, I wanted to hold him. Or that was how I thought I felt.

  His eyes held the truth. They were cold and distant. It was not the Alex I had known or come to love. I wanted him to be sorry. I wanted the old Alex back, not this thing I felt compelled to hold.

  “Am I really a vampire?” I muttered in his ear.

  “Yes, but a new breed.”

  “I don’t understand. What makes me different?” I asked, feeling completely crushed.

  “You will remain mortal. Well, almost.”

  “Err, I just don’t get it!”

  “Giselle, your soul never left your body. You remain alive. Only your humanity is slightly altered.”