Darkness Fades (Darkness Falls Series, Book 3) (2 page)

Holding onto my hand, he leads me to the
right and we run as the footsteps chase after us. The lights above
our heads flicker on and off, shadows dancing along the walls as we
race towards the hole in the wall that was once the red door. As
we’re about to reach it, an eruption of shouts echo from behind
us.

I risk a quick glance over my shoulder while
I keep moving forward. Gabrielle stands by the entrance of the cell
that I was locked in only minutes before. He takes in the sight of
the empty room then his gaze jerks in our direction.

“Go get them!” he yells, the anger in his
voice reverberating down the hallway.

The Watchers stay frozen in place, filling
up the hallway, with masks covering their faces. They refuse to
move and finally, Gabrielle shoves one of them in our
direction.

“Get moving,” he shouts, however the Watcher
simply trips, regains his balance and then stands motionless,
watching Aiden and I run without chasing us.

Gabrielle’s pale eyes burn with rage as he
reaches over and snatches hold of one of the Watcher’s arms,
jerking them close to him. His fangs descend and then he plunges
the tips into the Watcher, who grows limp as Gabrielle drinks from
his body, slurping the blood like it’s a drink until finally he
releases the Watcher and the body slumps to the floor. A look of
satisfaction arises on Gabrielle’s face as he stares down at the
dead Watcher. Then he reaches up and wipes the blood off his face
with the back of his hand before he raises his eyes back up to me.
Our gazes lock and a silent exchange takes place; he’ll come after
me. I know it, feel it, see it.

Suddenly, a blur of white moves up behind
Gabrielle and his head snaps in the direction of the object. I
stumble over my feet as I struggle to see what it is, but it’s too
blurry, too dark. Wait a minute… Monarch.

He steps out from behind Gabrielle at the
same time his eyes lock on Aiden and I as we bend down to dive
through the hole in the wall. As he disappears out of my sight, a
slightly satisfied grin rises on his face.

“Kayla, come on!” Aiden’s voice jerks me
back to reality as he tugs my arm, hauling me the rest of the way
through the hole.

We scramble all the way through and dive
headfirst into a dark room, landing on our knees. Aiden quickly
pulls me to my feet. I blink several times as my eyes gradually
adjust to the inadequate light.

“How do we get out of here?” I ask Aiden,
glancing at the four walls, floor and ceiling. The only noticeable
way out is the hole we just dove through.

“Just a second.” Aiden scans the darkness,
tensing when the vampires cry out from just outside of the walls;
hungry and ready to feed or infect. Just like that hybrid beast did
with Sylas. God, I feel icky… guilty maybe…

Aiden walks over to the corner of the room
with his hand out in front of him until his fingers brush a piece
of plastic. He lifts it up and on the other side of it is a vacant
road.

“What the hell?” I mutter, hurrying over to
him.

He sticks his head out after taking a
cautious glance outside. Then he steps out, holding up the piece of
plastic, motioning for me to follow.

I hesitate, glancing over my shoulder, torn
on what do to. “Where are we going?”

“To the only place we have left to go,” he
says and I look back at him. “Back to the cave where I left
everyone.”

I dither a few seconds longer, struggling
with my morals, and then irrevocably step out into the street. The
sky is dark; covered with grey clouds and smoke. Debris litters the
ground and fires burn in the distance, reminding me that there are
still problems and dangers to face.

Aiden and I begin to run towards the park
where we used to play when we were kids. The ground is a sheet of
ash and the remaining trees are charred. Vampire cries echo all
around us, but I can’t seem to spot a damn one. It’s like we’re
running for hours and, although I don’t grow tired, I start to get
impatient.

Aiden is the complete opposite; he seems
content as he easily runs while taking even strides. He’s also more
confident and less afraid of the world. It makes me question if
he’s glad he chose not to stay human, even after all his negativity
directed towards the choice. Maybe now that he’s tasted what it’s
like, he’s glad he did it and regrets that he didn’t do it sooner.
Or maybe it merely changed him enough that he lost who he was
before he became a Day Taker.

After running for what seems like an
eternity, we finally slow down when it feels like we’re a safe
distance away from the hideout and cells., just outside of the city
limits where abandoned buildings stretch toward the smoky sky. As I
turn and look at the building, which looks like a little dot now in
the distance, my eyes scan the terrain and I relax when I don’t see
any movement. We’re not being followed. Good. But why?

I look away back to Aiden. He still hasn’t
answered my question either, like what the hell happened that he
deiced to become one of us.

“What?” he asks, his eyes locked on the
terrain where fires crackle and smoke rises to the sky. “Why are
you staring at me?”

“Because you never answered my question,” I
say, crossing my arms. “Why did you change?”

He’s silent for forever, either avoiding my
question or considering it; it’s hard to tell because his new
demeanor is hard to read. Finally, he sighs. “Do you really not
know the answer to that already?” He slants his head to the side
and our gazes meet. His expression is intense. His eyes are burning
with passion. It kind of throws me off a little, enough that I step
back. “It was for you, Juniper.”

“That doesn’t make any sense. You hated that
I chose to become a Day Taker myself. You said that I wasn’t me
anymore—wasn’t even human,” I remind him. “Why would you want to
throw all your beliefs away because of me?”

“Because of Maci.” Maci is the little girl
who was throw out of The Colony with me during The Gathering and
she just happens to be able to see the future, although she never
gives specific details just hints, which can get frustrating.

He hesitates then moves to the side, getting
close to me, and then he reaches for my hand, lacing our fingers
together. Despite my initial reaction to jerk back, I just stand
there, confused.

“When Tristan told us that you were
captured, Maci said you were going to die, and so would the world.
I told you earlier that I’d always be there for you. And I meant
it. Whatever it takes, I’ll be there for you; even if it means
turning into my own worst enemy.”

I can tell that he wants to kiss me, and
before I can do anything about it, he pulls me into him. As he
leans in, I battle with my confliction. Part of me wants to kiss
him, for reasons I can’t even process at the moment; however, the
other part of me knows it’s wrong. I’m about to lean away,
listening to my final thought, when the other side of me pushes
through.

I want to kiss him. I want him more than
anything else in the world. I want him more than Sylas. We belong
together.

I blink, wondering where the thought came
from.

Aiden reaches down and fixes a finger under
my chin. He gently tilts my head up towards his with his
fingertips, his eyes shutting as his lips inch towards mine. He's
breathing raggedly, his chest colliding with mine. If I had a
heartbeat, I’d bet it’d be racing.

My eyes remain open as I cup the back of
Aiden’s neck, about to kiss him, but then I picture Sylas. His
eyes, his cocky attitude that makes him annoying, yet at the same
time, I can’t seem to stay away from him. Deep down, I know I want
to be kissing him.
What am I doing? What am I thinking? Why am I
ready to kiss Aiden?

No, I want to kiss Aiden.

No Sylas.

Aiden.

Shit. I’m so confused.

It clicks what’s going on. Shaking my head,
I remove my hand from Aiden’s neck and push him away. He jumps
back, startled, and then stumbles ungracefully over his feet a
little, clutching onto my hand for support. His eyelids lift open
and confusion masks his expression. “What’s wrong Juniper?”

“Why did you just do that?” I ask, slipping
my hand from his hold.

“What? Try to kiss you?” he asks, gaping at
me like I’ve lost my mind. “Because I wanted to.”

“Well, don’t do that,” I tell him,
swallowing hard.

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t want you to. And stay out
of my head.”

Shaking his head, he turns his back to me.
“It would have been a great kiss if you wouldn’t have lost your
damn mind and shoved me away.” He starts to stalk away, but I jump
in front of him.

“Lost my mind? You were in my mind… you were
manipulating my thoughts.” I push him, but this time he doesn’t
stumble. “I could feel you inside my head. You were making me feel
those things… like I
wanted
to kiss you—
wanted
to be
with you.”

I shove him again, this time much harder,
and the force launches him in the air much harder than I intended.
I fold my arms across my chest and cringe as he crashes into a
vehicle just behind us. Metal bends and concaves under his weight
then ashes scatter and float in the air.

Aiden lands on the ground hard, asphalt
debris shattering under his weight. He quickly gets to his feet,
and with three long strides, he closes the distance between us. He
leans into my face, anger burning in his eyes as he balls his
fists. For a second, I think he is going to attack me, but I just
stare at him, refusing to back away. Although, when he raises his
fist, making me think he’s going to hit me, I turn to leave, not
wanting to fight. Not right now. Not here. Not when there are other
things I need to take care of.

He captures me by the elbow as I start to
storm away, stopping me in my tracks. I turn my head and try to
shrug him off. “Let go of me.”

Aiden’s eyes widen in shock. “Juniper, I’m
not going to hurt you.”

I shake my head in disbelief as I glance at
his hand on my arm, his fingertips digging into my skin. “You’re
not?” I question with doubt.

He releases my arm and then rakes his
fingers through his hair. “I would never hurt you. You have to
believe me that I wouldn’t.”

I sigh because I can actually feel that he’s
telling the truth. “I believe…” I trail off, my eyes wandering to
my left at something heading towards us… something large.

Aiden follows my gaze and his eyes snap wide
as the creature weaves in a fast pattern between the cars in the
road. We take off at the same time, sprinting in the opposite
direction as fast as our legs will carry us. Yet, I can hear the
panting of the creature getting closer at the same time the ground
cracks beneath its feet as it runs on all fours.

When I glance over my shoulder, I realize
just how big of a problem we have. There’s not just one, there are
many creatures chasing after us in a herd. Their fleshless bodies
are a repulsive sight to behold, their fangs out, nipping as saliva
drips from their mouths. It makes my guilt arise again because
they’re the same creatures that bit Sylas. Or as Dominic called
them, vampire abominations. It reminds me that Sylas could very
easily be one of them.

Chapter 3

I speed up, my arms pumping, my feet moving
so fast that they’re nearly gliding across the ground. Aiden stays
right behind me, whether on purpose or not, I’m not sure.

The mutilated monsters howl and nip at our
heels; the sound forces my legs to move quicker than I ever thought
was possible. I nearly fly as I race towards a wide trench in the
distance. Approaching it, I glance over my shoulder as I leap into
the air, relieved to see Aiden is right behind me, flying over the
trench as if it’s the easiest thing to do in the world. I’m glad he
can keep up. Although I hate to admit it, it drove me a little bit
crazy when he was human and slowed me down.

When my feet gracefully land on the ground,
I hurry to my left and head for the desert land that stretches
towards the caves. Aiden gets his footing and moves quickly with
me, motioning at me to go faster. So I do. My legs and arms drive
my body past its breaking point until I feel like I’m going to
crack apart. Even then, I go faster.

The monsters begin to fade into the
distance, however their howls and cries still pierce the air, so I
keep moving; going forward, racing through the sand, around bushes,
cacti, my eyes fixed ahead of me. I could probably go on for days,
but I eventually slow my pace down to a jog then conclusively to a
walk when I feel we’re safe enough away and the howls have finally
dissipated.

Aiden slows down with me, walking at my side
while looking content and sort of happy, which is strange.

He’s not panting, nor am I. Our hearts
aren’t beating, but our skin is damp with sweat. We’re both
unnaturally calm and it starts to click in my head that maybe we’re
abominations, too.

“So are you going to tell me what those
things are?” Aiden finally asks, peering up at the dark sky.

“I’m not one-hundred percent sure.” I shrug
as I sidestep around a bush. “All I know is that’s what Dominic
turned into—and he said he was an abomination. Half vampire, half
human... some sort of mutated hybrid.”

Aiden slams to a stop. “Wait, isn’t that
what we are? A mutated hybrid?”

I halt and turn to face him. “Well, Dominic
said we weren’t. He said we’re something different, although he
never said exactly what, but the abominations are more vampire than
human. These gross beasts with no sense of pain, fear or mercy that
will kill anything.
We
still have our will left—our sense of
humanity—for the most part.” I breathe in quietly and gaze out at
the land. “I probably could have learned more, but I ended up
having to kill Dominic when he attacked... Sylas and me.”