Falling From Eternity (A Paranormal Love Story) (17 page)

“
She is more than a human
to me! Please, Ming! I’ll do anything, anything.” I dropped to my
knees off the chair and resorted to begging, having no
shame.

“
You sicken me,” he spat,
flicking the ashes of his cigar in my face. I didn’t flinch as they
landed on my cheek, searing into my flesh.

“
Please, Ming. In all the
long years you’ve know me, have I ever asked you for anything? Even
once?”

“
You ask me to put up with
your escapades, turning a blind eye to your traitorous acts. Acts
that have landed us in this very situation, have they
not?”

“
I didn’t ask you to do
those things. I left on my own; it was you who did not allow me my
freedom.”

“
And what would you have
done with that freedom then? Travel the world, pretending you’re
human? Playing with your food? What’s the matter with you,
William?”

“
You know what’s wrong
with me!” I growled; losing the hold on the anger I’d restrained
for so long. “I am a vampire without a maker. There is a chasm
inside me where that bond should be. I had to find purpose. I had
to find something to fill that void. I need answers! I need
forgiveness!”

“
I am your maker.
I
saved you that
night.”

“
Yes, you did, and I will
forever be in your debt. Please understand, Ming, you know what
that bond feels like, you
have
a maker. A maker that was your parent, your
friend, your guide and your mentor. You’re tethered to them across
space and time, feeling them like a shadow in your mind; do you
not?”

“
I do.”

“
And though you were all
those things to me, I do not feel you,” I said, tapping my head.
“There is just an emptiness; a hole, or a wall, as if my true maker
has blocked me from bonding to them. My maker didn’t want me, Ming.
I was a mistake! I was never meant to exist in this world! I am a
poison that does nothing but extinguish the lights of thousands of
lives and banish them to an endless void.”

“
No vampire is ever a
mistake! We were meant to rule this world.”

“
Stop it, Ming, just stop
it,” I pleaded him. I didn’t want to hear another word about what a
perfect species we were.

“
For one second, just one
second, imagine if I took that away. Imagine if you could never
feel them again. Try to visualize what it felt like to be a vampire
with no bond. An orphan.”

The hint of a wicked grin
twisted his features and he turned away from me, glancing through
his office window at the factory below. After a long pause he
looked at me as if he were considering it, trying to imagine what
damage such a sever could create. I knew no vampire could ever
understand. We were truly hypocritical creatures. We were connected
through powerful bonds, an unfathomable network of makers and all
their offspring. Vampires were social beings that would only
socialize with other vampires in their transformation tree, forming
clans between the different families.
Every
vampire was connected, except
me. I was alone in every sense of the word. I wasn’t human, but I
wasn’t quite fully vampire. I had all the physical characteristics,
and hungers that made me vampire, but I couldn’t connect with any
of them on a cerebral level. I looked human, but I could never live
like one again. I didn’t belong anywhere, yet I yearned for
purpose.

“
I still don’t see what
this has to do with you wanting to help a human,” Ming said,
obviously giving up on trying to understand me. A prime example of
the absent bond. If we were linked as a true maker and progeny
were, he’d know exactly how I felt.

“
If you ever truly cared
for me as your progeny, please do this one thing for me. I promise
I’ll never ask for anything ever again. I’ll leave you alone
forever, and you won’t have to worry about me disgracing our
clan.”

“
No.”

“
No?” My heart began to
hammer in my chest as panic set in.

“
You will never disgrace
this clan, or me, again.” I looked away trying to prepare myself
for what I knew was coming. He was going to punish me. Ming was
going to make an example of me so that no other vampire would ever
consider leaving, so that my poisonous mind wouldn’t infect
them.

“
If I do this for you; you
will do something for me.”

“
What?” I bounded up from
the floor, excitement burning through me. “Anything! I’ll do
anything you ask!”

“
Good.” He took a long
puff of his cigar before dropping it into his ash tray. “You’re
going to give this charade up.”

“
Charade? What
charade?”

“
If you want me to save
this…human of yours, then you’re going to give up this ridiculous
search of yours and live as a vampire should.”

“
But…”

“
Those are the conditions,
William, they cannot be negotiated. You want to save your human;
then you’ve got to come back to this clan. Forever. No more looking
for purpose. Your purpose is with me. Do you
understand?”

All I could do was nod. I knew there
was no changing his mind. I had expected him to want me to
disappear forever, but I never thought he’d demand I turn toward
the one thing I was running away from.

Hadn’t I gotten what I wanted though?
Autumn was going to get the help she needed, and I said I’d do
anything to make that happen. Sure, I wanted to be with her, but
her needs had to come first. It was time I held to my word and
followed through. Ming’s doctors would save her life, and then I
would leave it. She’d be better off anyway. How long would I really
be able to keep up this facade? Eventually she’d notice I wasn’t
aging, that I never ate and that sunlight was something I tried to
avoid. Autumn deserved to be with someone who could truly enjoy
life with her; someone who could have children and grow old with
her.

That someone wasn’t me.

~

11

Save Her

Suddenly, time was flying at an
overwhelming pace. Ming had asked for a week to get everything
prepared. I’d sent over all of Autumn’s medical information to help
his team of doctors get caught up on her condition. They appeared
confident that they’d be successful, and if everything went
smoothly, she’d be back on her feet in a matter of
months.

Everything was going according to
plan, Ming was holding up his end of the bargain; providing the
very best staff to care for her, top of the line medicines and even
a secured location for the surgery to take place. Yes, Ming had
kept his promise, and I would have to keep mine. I wasn’t sure how
I’d be able to leave Autumn, and I didn’t know how I was going to
tell her.

“
I still can’t believe you
found a doctor willing to handle my case,” she said, popping a
grape into her mouth.

“
I told you I wasn’t going
to give up.” I smiled at her, strolling around her room doing
everything I could to keep my mind off of what was troubling me. No
matter what the outcome, Autumn wouldn’t be a part of my life after
tomorrow.

“
Thank you,” her eyes
filled with tears, as she peeled the thick quilt off her legs.
She’d been spending most of her time in bed the last week, and I
could tell it was hard for her to sit still. She wanted so badly to
do all the things she used to, but her body just wouldn’t allow
it.

“
Let me help you.” I
rushed to her side, scooping her up in my arms. In spite of my
strength, I couldn’t help but notice how disturbingly light she
was. The majority of her weight was attributed to the thick winter
clothing she wore. I carried her to the chair in front of her
easel, her secret painting covered with a sheet. “So when are you
going to let me see it?”

“
When it’s done,” she
said, poking me in the ribs playfully. I tugged on a strand of her
hair, making her giggle wildly. I pushed open her curtains, giving
her the warm light of a sunset to work on her artwork. She liked to
look out the window while she painted, and on really clear days she
could see glimpses of the lake through the trees.

“
Alright beautiful, what
would you like to do today?” I asked, taking my usual seat across
the room. The book I’d been reading was sitting atop a nearby
table, a makeshift bookmark jutting out of the middle.

“
Well…” She tapped the end
of her paintbrush against her bottom lip as she thought about it.
“You could take me to your place?” She averted her eyes, an
embarrassed shade of pink blossoming on her cheeks as she squirted
paint onto her tray.

“
My place?” I sat up
straight, surprise tweaking my normally deep voice.

“
Yeah, I mean, I’ve never
seen it before and who knows what will happen tomorrow…”

“
You’re going to be fine,
Autumn. I promise. Didn’t I tell you I found the best doctors to
help you?” She nodded. “Okay then, stop talking like you don’t
believe me when you know I’m right.” I clapped my book shut,
setting it back on the table as I rested my back against the
chair.

“
If I promise, then will
you take me to your apartment?” she asked, mixing together a blue
and green paint.

“
I will, but not tonight.”
My eyes raked up and down her body, finding she was just as
beautiful as always. The idea of having her alone in my apartment
drove me wild, setting a tingling of desire burning through me. As
if she could feel the heat emanating from me, Autumn winked at me
as she brought the brush to her canvas.

I wanted her, and I knew she wanted
me, but bringing her to my place would cause both of us great pain.
I’d be taking advantage of her, and I couldn’t live with myself if
I did that. Plus, it would make the sting of my leaving her, hurt
that much more. I didn’t want her to remember me like that. Since I
couldn’t stay with her, I wanted her remember me as the man who did
everything he could to save her.

“
Fine, if you won’t take
me to your place then will you at least get me some ice
cream?”

“
Ice cream?” I asked,
laughing. “It’s like, forty degrees outside!”

“
So?” She smirked; then
bit her lip as she concentrated on her brushstroke.

“
Ice cream it is, then.
Spumoni, right?”

“
Yes,” she replied,
pleased that I remembered her favorite flavor. “With chocolate
syrup.”

“
I’d never forget the
chocolate syrup,” I answered, blowing a kiss at her while I made my
way to the door. “Anything else?”

“
Whipped
cream!”

“
You got it.” I winked at
her before stepping out of the room with an ear to ear grin. I
cared for her more than I cared for anyone, ever. And even though I
was sad that I’d have to leave her, it filled my heart to know that
she would get the help she needed. She’d be healthy, and be able to
live the long life that she deserved. I couldn’t ask for
more.

I stopped at every grocery
store in Denton trying to find Autumn’s favorite flavor of ice
cream, but failed miserably. I wanted tonight to be special, so I
made the hour drive to a slightly larger town that had a store
I
knew
carried
it. I loaded my basket as quickly as I could with a gallon of ice
cream, two containers of whipped cream and chocolate syrup. A small
floral area within the store caught my attention on the way to the
register and I browsed through the flowers until I decided on an
assorted bouquet of daisies. With my haul paid for, I walked out
the automatic doors and made my way to the SUV. I tossed the
grocery bags on the passenger seat, but as I walked around to the
driver’s seat I got an idea. The video store was right next to the
grocery store, and I recalled a movie Autumn had mentioned she
wanted to see. I thought a movie night in would be a nice, relaxing
evening for her so I trotted over there knowing I was already
running late.

Twenty minutes later I was running out
of the video store with the new flick in hand. When I looked at my
watch I prayed that Autumn wouldn’t be too upset with me for taking
so long, but I’d gotten everything on her list so hopefully that
would give me a free pass. I jumped in my SUV tossing the video
beside the groceries and was grateful it was still cold otherwise
the ice cream would have melted.

Racing down the highway I wove through
traffic trying to make up time when a familiar sound caught my
attention. A barely audible beep sounded through the hum of the
radio. I turned the volume down, waiting to see if I’d hear it
again and I did. It was my phone indicating I had a voicemail. I
hardly used the thing, and kept it around for emergencies only.
There were only two people who knew that number.

Holding onto the steering wheel with
one hand, I dug in my coat pockets for my cell. I searched all my
pockets twice and still couldn’t find the darn thing until I heard
it beep again and then begin to ring. The music sounded like it was
right next to me so I shoved my hand between the seat and the
center console. The tips of my fingers grazed the edge of the phone
just enough to push it fully beneath my seat.