In Darkness We Must Abide: The Complete First Season: Episodes 1-5 (21 page)

“C’mon, Alisha. Let go. Embrace life. Come with me to L.A.”

Opening her eyes, Alisha gently brushed her fingertips over his lips. A crazy piece of her wanted to say
yes
. It was as if a part of her was utterly insane and wanted to believe that all he said was possible. Yet, the growing, gnawing hunger inside her was the truth of the situation.

“I know you love me,” Sin said, grinning. “Admit it. You want to go with me.”

“More than anything,” she confessed.

“Then we’ll do it! We’ll move in June.”

Sitting up, she felt vulnerable in her nudity. The pleasant soreness of their lovemaking made her sigh.

Sin’s fingers were warm against her back as he slowly drew them up and down the length of her spin. Tangling them in her hair, he drew her into his arms, his lips soft and sensuous against hers.

Tears in her eyes, Alisha kissed him back, ignoring the growing hollow feeling inside of her.

Roman slouched further on the sofa, his brow furrowed, his hand tapping the armrest. He was watching the Astros on the DVR and he was annoyed by how the game was turning out. He was tempted to fast forward, or check the internet to see what the final score had been, but he only sank deeper into the leather sofa and grumbled.

Clad in his pajama bottoms and a t-shirt, he looked nothing like the leader the local vampires virtually worshipped, but he didn’t appear exactly human either. His dark hair was mussed from him constantly running his hands through it as the Astros marched toward defeat. On the table was a wine glass that was a mixture of red wine and pig’s blood, a far departure from the beer and snack food he had once enjoyed. Since it was the weekend, he was determined to relax and enjoy the silence of the house. While Alisha had been out with Sin, he’d spent time with Vanora playing video games and watching cheesy horror movies. Now his youngest sister was asleep and he was growing increasingly concerned by his other sister’s absence.

It was an hour until dawn.

Sipping his wine, he sighed, cradling it against his lips.

The sound of the side door opening and closing brought his frayed nerves relief and he tilted his head so he could see over the back of the sofa. Alisha strode down the hallway, dragging her feet. Her boots left scuff marks that he knew would bring down the ire of Miss Robbins.

“You’re late,” he said.

Alisha tossed her purse onto the coffee table and collapsed onto the sofa with a loud sigh. “Yeah.”

“You okay?”

“No.” Shucking off her boots, she tucked her bare feet onto the leather cushions and stared over her knees at him.

“What happened?” Roman immediately paused the game and leaned toward her.

Grabbing his drink, Alisha swallowed it in one gulp. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she stared at the bottom of the glass. “Sin wants me to move to L.A. with him and start a life together.”

“I see.” Roman wasn’t exactly sure what the strange sound in her voice meant. He knew there was no way that Alisha could leave with Sin, but he wondered if she realized it.

“By the way, he thinks you’re dead and that I was pretending you didn’t like him so I could give myself an out of the relationship. Also, he’s pretty sure I have a thyroid issue and that I’m bulimic. But all that doesn’t matter because he
loves
me.”

Lifting his thick brows, Roman said, “He knows I’m dead?”

“Yep. So you should feel really relieved that I didn’t blow your cover.” Alisha’s voice rose, becoming increasingly strident. “So, Sin has no fuckin’ clue I’m a vampire who has to fight the urge to bite his luscious meaty neck every time I’m around him!”

Roman shifted on the sofa to take his sister’s hands. “Alisha, you know you can’t go with him.”

“I know!” Tears that Roman hadn’t realized were on the verge of spilling rolled along the curve of his sister’s cheeks. “I know that!”

“Alisha…”

“I broke up with him!” Alisha sobbed. “I broke up with him!”

Roman closed his eyes, unable to see the pain in hers. “I’m so sorry.”

“I love him, Roman. I do!”

“I know.”

“You might hate him, but I love him and I can’t be with him.”

To Roman’s surprise, his sister curled up beside him, her head resting on his shoulder. Gently, he embraced her, trying to comfort her. Their relationship was difficult. Not only were they siblings, but their age difference also imbued their relationship with a father/daughter dynamic. It had been a long time since his sister needed him a fatherly role, but it was obvious she did now.

“Alisha, I am sorry. It hurts me to know you’re in pain,” he said in a tender tone.

Sobbing, his sister pressed her hand to her lips.

“If I could find a way to spare you from this, I would.”

“I know! I know!” Alisha wailed. “I want to be mad at you because you told me this would happen, but I can’t be, you know,
because
you were right. It was stupid of me to get involved with a mortal.”

Roman sighed, not answering, his hand gently rubbing her arm.

“A part of me was dying to run off with him. I felt a little crazy. It was like a piece of my brain was still mortal and I could even imagine it all working out wonderfully. And then there was the other part of my brain that told me I was getting hungry and that Sin would be a great meal!” Alisha wiped at her face with the cuff of her long-sleeved t-shirt. “I was such a moron to think I could have a real life.”

“Alisha, don’t say that.”

“What hope is there, Roman? I mean, really?”

The question bothered Roman. It was one he had asked himself when he had made the choice to not contact Norma after his resurrection. Even though he was now surrounded by vampires, there was a part of him that yearned for love. He would do anything for his sisters and he had sacrificed a lot to raise both of them instead of establishing a family of his own. Now that he was faced with immortality, he yearned to connect with someone. He couldn’t fault Alisha for desiring the same.

“There’s hope because we’re not alone,” Roman said at last. “There are others like us and maybe one day we will both find someone among our own kind.”

Alisha sniffled loudly.

“Which is probably what you don’t want to hear.”

“Not really,” Alisha admitted. “If this hadn’t happened to us, he would have been my forever, Roman.”

Gently brushing her hair with his fingers, Roman sighed. “I know. I felt the same way about Norma.”

“And I had this insane idea, for just an instant, that I should turn him into what I am. But I can’t risk it. I know how much he loves his life. I used to love the way I could smell the sun on him after he’d been working all day on his artwork out on his patio.” She gestured toward the wine glass stained with the remains of the wine-blood mix. “I would never wish this on anyone.”

“You’re not a selfish person,” Roman agreed. “You have a giving heart. You always have.”

“Sometimes it’s so hard living this way. The hunger…the madness…it’s always there in the back of my head wanting out.”

“I know, Alisha.” Roman wished he could soothe her broken heart, but knew he couldn’t. A lecture lingered on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed it down. She didn’t need his advice on how to pick up the pieces of her shattered heart and focus on her career. She didn’t need him to tell her that she should concentrate on being a surrogate mother to Vanora during the last year of her childhood. He had learned long ago that his natural inclination to solve his sisters’ problems was not appreciated. It was best to just hold them and listen to their woes. Later, he could stealthily help them out without bringing down their ire.

“If I didn’t have you and Snow Pea,” Alisha said, “I would walk into the sun. You know that, right? I couldn’t do this alone. You’re what keeps me grounded and feeling safe. I’m just like the rest of your fan club.”

That brought a slow grin to Roman’s lips. “Does that mean you’ll listen to your dear older brother?”

Alisha snorted, her sobbing and laughter working against each other. “When it suits me.”

Roman wiped her tears away carefully with the edge of his shirt. With her blond hair in messy waves around her face and her eyes swollen, she looked quite pathetic. Frozen eternally at twenty-two, she still had a softness to her face that sometimes made her look like the annoying little sister he had used to pick on without mercy.

“Alisha, I’m here for you. I will always be here for you. I promise it.”

Rubbing her nose, Alisha nodded. “I know, Roman. As much as I sometimes resent your bossiness, in the end I know you’re the best big brother a girl could want.”

“We’ll make it through this. I promise.”

Alisha curled into his side, resting her head on his shoulder. “I’m just going to miss him so much.”

“I know, Alisha,” Roman whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “I know.”

March 2007

The banging on the door did not relent no matter how long he ignored the noise. Finally, Armando abandoned his desk to find Carlotta on his doorstep garbed in a short, sassy black and red outfit. It reminded him of a Flamenco dress.

“I’m working on my new novel,” he said shortly. “Lose yourself.”

Carlotta laughed and shoved the disheveled writer aside. “It is only three in the morning. The sun won’t be up for such a long time.” Singing to herself in Spanish, she sashayed across the floor toward Armando’s computer.

“I don’t think you want to--”

She bent over to peer at the screen. “A book about South America.” Carlotta curled her lip in disgust. “Why do you always waste yourself writing about the bastard children of Spain?”

“I’m writing about the Spanish colonization of South America and comparing its influence to that of other countries. People of South and Central America are just as diverse in their bloodlines as Americans,” Armando responded wearily. Taking hold of her arm, he pulled her away from his computer. He didn’t want her fouling up his hard work.

“Americans are the bastard children of the entire world. So what?” Carlotta responded. “Why don’t you write about the gypsies? My great people the gitanos!”

Armando smirked in response as he moved her away from his computer. “You know when I was mortal, the gitanos were considered trash.”

Carlotta’s face darkened with anger. “You high-brow Spanish aristocratic pig, whose genes are so inbred you’re lucky your genitals aren’t growing out of your forehead, how dare you attempt to put down my great family!”

“My genitals are in the right place, as you well know,” Armando responded with a sarcastic smile.

Carlotta yanked her arm out of his grasp and danced away from him. She purposely kicked off her high heels in his direction. Armando caught them and tossed them over his shoulder.

“You’re lucky I’m in a good mood,” Carlotta asserted                         

“You are?”

Carlotta picked up a vase and hurled it across the room at him. “Yes!”

Armando ducked. The vase exploded against the wall. He glanced over at the fragments, then at her. “Please forgive me for misreading my dear lady’s mood.”

Carlotta scoffed at him and began to yank hairpins from her chignon.

“Do you want anything to drink?” Armando asked as he wandered into his kitchen.

“No, I drank enough tonight. Two lovely French exchange students. I’m going to enjoy having them around for a while.”

Armando whirled about. “You brought them home?”

Carlotta smirked, her fingers playfully tracing under her full bottom lip. “You know that I have others besides you.”

“I’ve never been to your house. I don’t know who you have stashed in there.” Armando shrugged. He felt a slight pang of jealousy, but ignored it. “I assumed you had others.”

Carlotta just smiled coyly. “And you don’t?”

Armando again shrugged. “Why don’t you ever let me go to your home, Carlotta?” For as long as he’d known her, Carlotta was secretive about her haven. It was a point of contention in their relationship. Annoyed with her intrusion, he felt like needling her about her staunch refusal to allow him intrude on her closely guarded home.

Silky tendrils of dark hair clung to her neck as she paused in taking down her updo. “Are you jealous? Do you just adore me, my darling? Am I your one and only?”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“I know I’m irresistible.” She batted her long, thick eyelashes.

“You are avoiding answering my question.” Armando glowered.

Carlotta prowled seductively toward him, a dangerous glint in her dark eyes. “You lust me, I lust you. This is all we have together, no more. Who or what is in my house is
my
business. You may like spending your time with weak, pale women who gorge themselves on animal blood, but I am a true vampire! I drink the blood of those beneath me. I will bring over who I wish!”

Armando scoffed at her, pouring himself a drink of wine mixed with cow’s blood.

Carlotta continued, her voice thick with disdain. “I am not some stupid, lost, bastard following blindly after a vampire who has no idea of the great legacy of our vampire history! If your wonderful Roman Socoli ever met me, he would soon discover what it truly means to be a vampire!” Carlotta hissed at Armando, revealing her long fangs, pale and white next to her blood red lips.