A Shade of Halloween

  With one final scream of rage, Ryan plunged a sharp silver stake straight through Ros’s heart.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Selena’s POV

  I woke up on a soft bed with pillows tucked nicely under my head. For the first few seconds, I was lost. I remembered the events that happened before everything went blank and it was strange that I wasn’t feeling any pain. Everything else around me felt strange. I could tell that I was in an unfamiliar bedroom. I turned my head around to see if I could recognize anything in the room that would let me know where I was, when my eyes caught sight of Ros sitting in the corner. My blood froze within my veins. Adrenalin immediately pumped into my bloodstream, springing my muscles into action. I let out a loud shriek filled with terror as I dashed off the bed and raced towards the only door I could see.

  The monster was in front of me before I reached the door, holding me and stopping me from leaving. I closed my eyes and screamed at the top of my lungs, banging repeatedly on his chest with all my might.

  “Selena... Calm down, my Selena. Please. It’s me. It’s Ryan.”

  I heard the words come out of his mouth and stopped screaming. I wanted to believe it was really Ryan but I couldn’t. Not after I’d been so masterfully deceived by Ros. It could very well be him again, trying to get me to believe him so he’ll put me through that horrific experience again. I couldn’t let that happen. Not for a second time in the same lifetime. Ryan pulled my head towards his chest and tried to cuddle me but I pulled back.

  “If you’re Ryan, prove it!” I demanded.

  I didn’t know how he was going to prove it but he had to do it somehow. If he didn’t, I was going to run, scream and fight until he either killed me or let me go.

  “Do you know how compulsion works with vampires?” He asked softly.

  “No. But what…”

  I was going to ask what his question had to do with proving he was really Ryan Soille when he began speaking again.

  “When a vampire compels you to either do something or forget something, only that vampire can uncompel you.” He replied. “There are memories you had that I compelled you to forget. I did it because it was required by the reincarnation spell your mother cast several decades ago. You might not know anything about that right now and I promise to explain everything later, but what I’m saying is that I can uncompel you to remember something only you and I know about. Will that prove I’m really me?” He asked.

  I gave him a curious look and thought about what he said. Maybe he was right. When Ros was pretending to be Ryan, he told me about some things that happened in the past. I didn’t remember any of them, including marrying him. Maybe Ros couldn’t uncompel me to remember because he didn’t compel me to forget them in the first place.

  “Make me remember everything about our wedding.” I demanded.

  “You know about that?” Ryan looked at me, slightly surprised.

  “Just do it if you’re Ryan!” I snapped, not bothering to answer his question.

  I knew I was being really mean to him but I couldn’t stop myself. I was hurt and confused. I was sick of being deceived and I just wanted to know the truth. Ryan grabbed my hand and pulled me close to himself. Then he looked into my eyes in a way that stopped them from blinking.

  “Remember our wedding.” He said.

  It felt like I woke up from a deep sleep I didn’t know I was having. The memory of our wedding came crashing down on me, getting me so emotional. Tears immediately gathered in my eyes and I crumbled to the ground in front of him. Ryan caught me before my body hit the ground. He pulled me up and hugged me really tight.

  “I know... and I’m sorry. I’m just so happy I got you this time.” He said, kissing the top of my head. “Please don’t cry, my love.”

  I continued crying as I remembered everything about our wedding day. The memory was bitter sweet at the moment, but it was special nonetheless. It was a secret wedding at the Cathedral of St. Ives. On the night when Ryan and I promised ourselves to each other against all odds, he suggested we made our promise binding...

  “Do you really mean get married?” I asked him.

  I looked at the face of the man I loved with curiosity. His eyes were so brightly green from happiness that they looked like someone illuminated them from within. He smiled at me and nodded. He was so convinced he wanted to spend eternity with me.

  “How are we going to do that? No priest will join us. I’m engaged to their leader.” I argued, regardless of the fact that everything within me wanted to scream ‘I do’ and live happily ever after with him.

  “I already found a priest. He’s from the Robald clan. They are a very small clan of night-walkers that believe more in liberty than the Serafino clan. He agreed to join us because he too believes in true love.” He replied.

  “You’re being serious, right?” I was doing my best to suppress the glee that was already going wild inside me. “If this is one of your one of your jokes, Ryan I’m going to...”

  He pulled me into his arms and kissed me.

  “So what do you say about being Mrs. Soille tonight?” He grinned.

  “I was always going to be Mrs. Soille.” I teased, pretending not to be excited out of my mind.

  “Well, Mrs. THE OTHER Soille.” He winked.

  “Are you being serious? I’m bursting with excitement right now!” I rushed into his arms and locked my lips with his.

  It was one of the things I loved most about Ryan Soille. He was so different from his brother. He found humor in pretty much everything. If I had pulled that Mrs. Soille joke on Ros, I might have earned myself a growl on a good day and a smack across my face on a bad day.

  “Meet me at our secret place in the garden tonight by eleven. As you know, vampires from the Robald clan aren’t day-walkers so the priest will have to get back to shelter before dawn. Besides, I can’t wait to make you mine under the law.”

  Ryan kissed me again before disappearing with vampire speed. He did that when he was very excited or very upset. I knew the former was the case this time, and I was doing everything in my power to contain myself. My body was threatening to burst with happiness but I knew I couldn’t give it off. If Ros sensed what we were planning, things were sure to get ugly.

  I met Ryan at our secret garden spot as planned, and we were in the cathedral in less than the time it took me to blink. He took me into an empty office and pulled out a bag.

  “I brought you a dress.” He said, smiling at me pleasantly. “... and a wedding present.”

  I was both happy and embarrassed. In my excitement, I had completely forgotten to get him anything. I didn’t even think of a wedding dress because everything was so secret. Ryan pulled out the most beautiful white dress I had ever seen. It looked nothing like the dresses of the time. It was different, but in a good way. The front was sheer and embellished with transparent precious stones. It exposed my midriff in the most scandalous but appealing way, and flowed to the ground effortlessly. There was a single red bow at the waist, providing a pop of color to the already breathtaking gown.

  “My goodness!” I gasped. “It’s so beautiful.”

  “Certainly not as beautiful as you, my lady.” Ryan smiled, bowing his head.

  I felt my cheeks heat up and knew they were surely turning red. Ryan was a very sweet lover and he never failed to shower me with compliments. He pulled something else out of the bag. It was a gold bracelet with the letters ‘RS’ inscribed in black at the front. I stretched out my hand and let him strap it on my wrist. It was so beautiful and when combined with everything else that was going on, it got me so emotional. A few tear drops fell down my cheeks as I rubbed the bracelet on my wrist.

  “Ryan and Selena. I’ll wear this forever.” I smiled between my tears.

  “... and I’ll love you forever.” He said, wiping my tears off my cheeks and kissing me softly on the lips.

  He dashed off and was back in a second. This time, he was wearing a red jacket over his white shirt and b
lack trousers.

  “Shall we begin forever?” He asked.

  I interlocked my arm with his and walked down the aisle at St. Ives, the happiest I had ever been in my life.

  Ryan lifted me into his arms and placed me back on the bed.

  “What happened to my injuries?” I asked.

  I couldn’t find any cuts or bruises on my body. I also couldn’t feel any pain and there was no way they could have disappeared in such a short time after my horrible encounter with Ros.

  “I healed them. I couldn’t bear seeing you in that much pain.” Ryan replied.

  “Just rest now, my Selena. We have all the time to catch up.” He said, kissing the top of my head.

  I snuggled closer to him and heaved a sigh of relief. It felt good to know that the horror was over - but then my mind went back to the night before Halloween. The night when I gave myself to the monster who pretended to be Ryan. A tear drop fell out of my eye as the memory came back to me. I suppressed the resultant sob that threatened to make its way out of my mouth. I wasn’t sure I was ready to tell Ryan about it yet, especially since he was being so sweet to me and I could tell he was genuinely happy to be with me again.

  “Will I ever be able to tell him?”

  The thought danced around in my head as I closed my eyes and tried to get some sleep.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Omniscient POV

  Ryan got off the bed in the middle of the night and turned to look at Selena. She was fast asleep. He took in a deep breath and exhaled with a sigh. It felt surreal to have her with him again and he was so happy he was able to save her this time. He had waited lifetime after lifetime, just to be with her again. Every time he failed to save her, it felt like a part of his heart got ripped out from his chest and he had to live with the horrible feeling until the next lifetime when the feeling got replaced with his determination to save her. He smiled softly to himself and kissed her on her forehead before walking out of the room. He had to check on Trina, who he had laid to rest in the other room. Ros had dealt Trina a fatal blow at the cathedral and while he had fed both her and Selena his blood to heal them, he knew there was a difference with her.

  Trina had been too badly injured by a vampire with the intent to kill. As a result, his blood had served a different purpose than what it did in Selena’s case. It had served to awaken her – but no longer as the human girl she was before. Her mortal body had died from the Ros’s attack and as a result of having Ryan’s blood in her system, Trina was going to awaken as a vampire. Ryan felt bad about the fact that he had to turn her without her consent but he had no choice. If he hadn’t fed her his blood at the time he did, she would have been dead for good and he couldn’t let that happen. Not after the sacrifice she made for Selena. If Trina hadn’t been there with him, chances are he might not have been able to save Selena. The least he could do to show her his gratitude was to give her a form of life when she needed it... at least he believed so.

  He entered the room Trina was, and saw her sleeping on the bed. Her body was still dead but he knew she would wake up any moment now. It had been fifteen hours since the incident at the cathedral - which was long enough for a new vampire to wake up from the sleep of death.

  Ryan got a blood bag ready and took a seat beside Trina’s bed. She was going to need it. New vampires always felt terribly hungry, with an uncontrollable need for blood when they woke up. The hunger was usually numbing because their bodies had not adjusted to the heightened feelings of becoming vampires yet. Ryan had barely been there five minutes when Trina gasped and jolted up in her bed. She looked so enraged at first but when her eyes settled on Ryan, her facial features relaxed into a smile.

  “Hey there, buddy.” Ryan smiled back at her.

  “Hey there.” She whispered. “Did we save her?”

  Ryan pursed his lips as he choked back the urge to cry. Yes, they saved Selena but he couldn’t save her... at least not in the way she would have wanted.

  “Yes... Yes, we did.” He replied.

  “Really? Where is she?” Trina asked.

  Ryan could see the excitement in her eyes but she couldn’t react physically because her body was still too weak. She needed to feed to gain the strength level required for most activities.

  “She’s sleeping in the other room.” He replied.

  “So what’s with the sad smile?” She asked. “... and why am I so tired? and so hungry?”

  “Um... Trina?” Ryan started.

  “What? Can I get something to eat? I feel like my stomach is going to melt in on itself.” She cut him off.

  “Yeah... about that. Something happened at the cathedral...”

  “Ros got to me. I know. He sank those sharp fangs of his into my neck and I felt like I was going to die. I passed out from the pain, right?” She asked.

  “Um... you actually died.” He replied.

  “Ha-ha! You’re on with the jokes again.” Trina laughed.

  “No, Trina. It’s not a joke.”

  “So, how am I here talking to you? Can vampires see ghosts?” She asked, giving him a quizzical look.

  “You’re not a ghost, Trina. I tried to heal you with my blood but you were too badly injured.” He replied.

  “So what does that mean?”

  “You turned.”

  “Like turned into a vampire?” She asked.

  “Yeah.” He replied.

  “No!” Trina snapped. “No! No! No! No! No!... I can’t be a vampire.”

  She was going to get up from the bed but realized her body was too weak to stand. She collapsed back on the bed and looked at Ryan with wide eyes.

  “I’m really sorry, Trina. There was nothing else I could do.” He apologized

  “Then you should have let me die.” She shook her head as tears started to well up in her eyes.

  “I couldn’t do that. I’m sorry... but I couldn’t just let you die. Not after what you did for Selena.”

  Ryan wanted to hug and console her when she jerked up in bed. Her tears had streamed out of her eyes and fallen on the exposed skin of her hand, completely shocking her.

  “It’s blood!” She exclaimed. “I’m crying blood tears!”

  “Trina, please calm down. Your emotions are heightened right now, which is why you’re feeling as bad as you are. We’ll get through this. I promise. You won’t always feel this way.” Ryan consoled her.

  Trina looked up at him in shock but the growl in her stomach caused her to clutch her midsection.

  “I’m so freaking hungry!” She screamed.

  “Here, drink this.” Ryan said, passing her a blood bag.

  “Hell no!” She pushed his hand away from her.

  “Trina, please. You need to feed. I could give you regular food but it won’t do anything to help the way you’re feeling. You need to drink this. Trust me.” He passed her the blood bag again and this time she took it.

  Trina tasted just a little drop of the blood at first and was shocked at how delicious the liquid felt in her mouth. She pushed a gulp down her throat... and another... and another. She couldn’t stop and she didn’t bother to. She closed her eyes and squeezed the blood bag with both hands until it was completely drained. Then, she opened her eyes and tossed the crumpled bag aside. Her eyes turned bloodshot red for a moment, before clearing out and assuming their normal blue color again.

  “That was... amazing!” She exclaimed.

  Ryan smiled.

  “I told you!”

  “Can you be any less proud to be right?” She asked with a pout, turning her body suggestively towards him.

  Ryan understood what was going on with her but needed to explain it to her subtly. He got off the chair he was sitting and sat beside her on the bed.

  “You remember what I told you about your emotions being heightened?” He asked.

  “Yeah.” She replied, looking straight into his eyes.

  They were so green and so deep she could hardly keep herself from drowning in them.

/>   “Well, it’s not just with hunger. It’s everything. Try not to act on anything you feel right now, at least until you learn how to control the intensity. I’ll be here to help, so you’ll get a hang of things soon. I promise.” He said.

  “You don’t understand. How can I keep it in control?” She asked, placing her palm on his face. “I’m crazy about you.”

  Ryan placed his palm over hers but only because he wanted to take it off his face subtly. He was going to explain that she was only feeling that way because of her unresolved feelings from when she was alive - but he didn’t get a chance to do so.

  He sensed someone at the door and turned to face it, with his hand still holding Trina’s on his face. A clearly upset Selena stood at the doorway, looking at them in shock.

  “Selena!” He called out to her but she turned around and stormed off.

  He dashed out after her, leaving Trina alone in the room, feeling confused and remorseful.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Selena’s POV

  My body jolted awake in the middle of the night, a direct result of the terrifying nightmare I was having. I kept seeing Ros hurting me in despicable ways and I was too powerless to stop him. When I opened my eyes, I was relieved to be back to reality but I noticed the space on the bed beside me was empty.

  Ryan wasn’t in bed.

  “Where could he have gone?” I thought to myself. “Maybe to feed?”

  I could no longer go back to sleep, so I sat up in bed and just stared at the wall opposite me. After about five minutes of doing nothing, I decided to walk around. It was better than boring myself to death in the bedroom. As soon as I stepped out of the bedroom, I noticed light rays in the hallway. The light was coming from an open bedroom door not far from the one I just exited.

  “It could be Ryan in there.”