Sacrifice of the Septimus: Part 1 (Afterlife saga Book 7)

  “Are you saying I run away all the time?”

  “Keira, not long ago you ran from a room full of people for reasons you would prefer to keep to yourself.” I hated that he was right and could hold that over me.

  “I am no fool and it is not hard to spot the difference,” he added and I looked away, hating that what started out a perfect moment was turning into this and all for what? Because of Ranka’s return or because of a fleeting moment I was human enough to wish for a child by the man I loved? I was unsure what exactly had started this but I could take no more, so I snapped.

  “Draven just tell me!”

  “I am sorry Keira but the Oracle told me…”

  “AAAHHHH!” I screamed as the door burst from its hinges and I turned just as it flew through the air, smashing through the room and destroying anything in its path. Suddenly I was behind Draven, being protected by his large frame, ready for the fight he obviously was expecting.

  “HOW DARE YOU!” Draven roared as a figure emerged through the broken door frame, stepping over the broken stone he caused.

  “Seth?” I uttered his name in astonishment as soon as he came into view.

  “Where is she!?”

  “Pure Blood.” Draven’s demon snarled.

  “Christ, not this again.” I said not fully understanding why…or did I? I was quickly being overwhelmed by the strangest sense of Déjà vu again, as it was like this exact scene had already played out before. Only it wasn’t here, it was somewhere bigger…much bigger…

  “Afterlife” I whispered to myself and before I could think about what I was doing I found myself standing in between them.

  “STOP!” I shouted and Seth took one look at me and did as I told him, stopping dead in his tracks. I felt Draven’s hand clasp my arm to hold me back, which grated on me more that it probably should considering he was only trying to keep me safe.

  “That was for you as well!” I told him through gritted teeth before yanking my arm away from him. Okay so it was safe to say that I was still pissed off with him, but instead of adding more fuel to an inferno, I decided to focus my attention on the skeletal demon that obviously had a hard on for breaking down doors!

  “Now before I have to deal with your demon bullshit like last time, you will explain why you think it acceptable to come into my home and break down my fucking door…again!” I said in a voice I hardly recognised as I let the anger surge through my veins like my blood was so hot it scorched my insides. Actually I wouldn’t have been surprised if someone had told me I was glowing crimson right now, especially with the way Seth was taking a step back from me.

  Surprising myself with the realisation that I sounded like Draven, should have been enough to calm me down but no such luck. Even Draven tried his best to control the situation, no doubt fearing what happened last time,

  “Calm yourself love, he is no threat…are you Pure Blood?” Draven said in what I should have found a soothing voice behind me.

  “I wouldn’t touch me, Draven!” I snapped, warning him just before his hands met my shoulders. In the back of my mind I was wondering how I even knew what he was doing behind my back when I couldn’t see him. It just seemed like my senses were over sensitised and I became completely aware of everything around me. I could have heard someone whispering down the hall if I wanted to or smell the metallic scent coming from a single drop of blood in the next room. But I didn’t understand any of it. I didn’t understand how I got to this point with my powers, as if they had been given a kick start from someone.

  “Alright, Keira,” he whispered in defeat and another side of me, that seemed locked away started to feel bad for what I had said.

  “The King is right. I mean you no harm, child.” Seth said peacefully and I actually growled.

  “Child?”

  “I mean no disrespect.”

  “And what about when you are charging in here ready to fight my husband again? How about then, Seth?” I asked taking a step forward and this was when Draven thought it best he intervened.

  “Alright my little warrior, that’s quite enough,” he said sternly holding me back this time, despite my warnings. I whipped round to face him, something inside me biting at the heels to accept his challenge but the second I saw his eyes flash purple, something in me gave way and let go. All the negative energy around me evaporated, sinking away into some dark place in my mind I couldn’t touch, leaving me whole again. My tensed muscles relaxed and I would have slumped to the floor if it hadn’t been for Draven holding me upright.

  “Are you alright?” he whispered as if he understood the affect he would have on me and I nodded feeling ashamed of losing it that way.

  “RJ is missing again.” Seth blurted out.

  “What?!”

  “When?” Draven and I both asked our own questions at the same time but only one of us sounded calm and it wasn’t me.

  “I left in search of her brother but found nothing. So upon my return I went to her home and found her gone.”

  “Jesus.” I muttered and received dirty looks from both of them.

  “Really, you’re going to scold me now?” I said giving them both back their dirty looks.

  “What did her mother say?” I asked knowing they didn’t particularly have a great relationship at the best of times and now Jack wasn’t there to stick up for her, I could only imagine what she must be going through. I had tried to ring RJ to talk a few times only to receive her voice mail. Even then I hadn’t really known what I was going to say but needed to check that she was at least okay. Well now I was wishing I had tried harder.

  “That waste of a Vessel told me nothing useful, just that she came home to find her daughter missing along with her stuff. Then she mistakenly told me good riddance.” He snarled, his face flashing into a translucent skull, flickering just above his handsome face. I had a feeling this wasn’t the only thing her mother said as she probably finished by pleading for her life.

  “Did you hurt the mortal?” Draven asked obviously thinking the same thing.

  “I left her alive if that is what you mean.” He gritted out in defiance.

  “Pure Blood.” Draven said in warning, causing Seth’s demon to flicker once more.

  “I have a name, Royal Blood.”

  “Alright kids, let’s reel in the egos and focus. Seth did she leave you a note or anything?” He shook his head to indicate no, so I asked another question.

  “And her mother gave you nothing…even after…” I rolled my hand up and down trying to think of how to say it.

  “You mean after I showed her what nightmares are made of?” Draven growled but we both ignored him and after swallowing hard I said,

  “Yes…umm… after that?” He took a deep breath as if something was calming him and I had to wonder if it was the fact that instead of being berserker happy and bat shit psycho, breaking down doors, I was trying to be productive and find her.

  “All she mentioned was a name I didn’t know.”

  “What was the name?” Draven asked just before I could.

  “Izzy Carter.”

  “Fuck!” Draven swore, turning away from us both as he obviously knew more than me or Seth.

  “You know her?” I asked just as Seth took a step forward only seeing me he deliberately gave me a wide berth. Had our last encounter affected him that much?

  “It’s not a her, it’s a he and a degenerate one at that.”

  “Who is he?” Seth demanded standing in front of Draven in his usual challenging way that thankfully Draven chose to ignore.

  “He’s a well-known dealer.” I gasped in shock and shook my head in disbelief.

  “No…”

  “Keira it is possible that…”

  “No, I am telling you she wouldn’t do that.” I was adamant I was right but really how could I be so sure. She had been kept as a prisoner, nearly died in a fire and then found out her brother could be dead. We hadn’t told her that, saying he was only missing but she must suspect tha
t it could be the case. And I had no clue what was going on between her and Seth but all that aside and just dealing with what she now knew about the hidden world around her and the war she had been unknowingly dropped into, was enough to drive the strongest of us over that dangerous edge. I knew this more than most and it seemed I had been groomed for such a thing since I was seven.

  “I have never heard of him,” I said, not that it made much difference.

  “And I should hope not. He was kicked out of my club a few years ago for trying to sell his product, with a warning.” Oh I’ll bet I thought, knowing the exact type of warning Draven was talking about.

  “The warning wasn’t just for your club was it?”

  “No. I threatened that if he wasn’t out of my town by the time the sun came up then he would never see the sun again.” Well that should have done it but what can I say, after time some people just grow more foolish than wiser.

  “Well he’s obviously back now. Do you know where else he used to deal?” I asked walking over to my jacket and fishing out my phone.

  “There was a bar near the campus that he was associated with.”

  “Wait, not…'Willy’s One Eyed Joe'?”

  “Yes. I believe Joe is his uncle and became sole owner after his brother Willy died.” Draven said being very informative and surprising me with what he knew outside of his club. I must have said all this with a look because he said,

  “It’s my town Keira and I keep a watchful eye over it.” No wonder the crime rate was near none existent then. I would be surprised if the cops did anything other than rearrange filing cabinets, clean empty cells or play Candy Crush Saga…Pip had introduced me to that one and it wasn’t something I thanked her for, not when Draven ended up having to confiscate my phone after finding me swearing at it about how it was F word impossible and there was just too much jelly!

  The look I received off him was priceless and when he lifted my drink off the table to sniff it, Sophia, Pip and I had all burst out laughing. In the end he just patted me on the head and told me he knew ways of taking my mind off it with another game he’d like to play. This turned out to be strip poker without the poker…

  I didn’t mind losing at that one.

  “Okay, well either way I think that solves the question how RJ met him as we used to go in that bar after college,” I said getting my head back where it needed to be.

  “Yes, I recall.” Draven muttered dryly no doubt remembering back to when he had been keeping an eye on me, or more likely poor Jack, at the time. It was strange how long ago that seemed and how much simpler my life was back then. When the only thing to worry about was things like finals and working a full shift up at the VIP without getting stabbed or worse, speaking to Draven with food stuck in my teeth.

  “Right well let’s get going then,” I said snapping my phone shut after checking to see if RJ would pick up. Not surprisingly she didn’t.

  “What do you mean ‘we’?” Draven asked me folding his arms across his chest. But if he thought that’s all it took then he didn’t know me at all.

  “Oh no, if you think for one minute I am staying here like a good little pet human then you are sorely mistaken!” He was about to argue even further when I held up my hand and said,

  “I knew RJ before any of you and she is one of my best friends. So if either of you think for one minute that I am not doing everything I can to find her and just sitting here until one of you knuckle heads deems it important enough to tell me anything, then you have another thing coming!” I said pointing between the two of them. Seth held his hands up and replied,

  “I have no issue with you joining us and am only grateful for your help.”

  “And you?” I said now pointing back to Draven.

  “Sweetheart, has anything I’ve ever said before stopped you from doing as you please?”

  “No but just think of it this way, now I can kick ass it’s doubtful I will get kidnapped again.” I finished my point with a wink, one he growled at.

  “Let’s go.” I ordered as I grabbed my jacket and started to walk out the crumbled doorway hearing Seth’s question spoken quietly behind me,

  “What’s a knuckle head?”

  “You don’t want to know.” Draven replied curtly.

  Driving there I knew Draven was feeling guilty. For starters he hadn’t really put up much of a fight against me coming along with them, even though in my mind it was more like they were coming with me. The other way I knew was that we were currently heading into town in my Ford Bronco, with me sat behind the wheel driving.

  He hadn’t put up any argument when I automatically walked down the corridor and out of the club to the parking lot. I even saw him give Seth a silent shake of his head as if to tell him not to ask. I think one look at my shattered nerves and he knew that the only reason I was hanging on to sanity was with this small level of control. I needed to have a plan or else I would just be a sobbing mess wondering what had happened to my friend.

  Back in the room I had been okay, not allowing myself to fear the worst but now the cogs of doubt were turning and I began to fear that RJ was not in her right mind at the moment. I also knew that in life sometimes your own self was the biggest threat, especially if in a dark place. I knew this better than most as memories could often be as torturous as the point in time they were created. Trying to find a window from the dark space you keep yourself locked in isn’t always that easy to see…unless someone shows you where to look. And for RJ I was going to be that somebody.

  We remained silent all the way there, which meant when my phone rang I jumped, swerving the car slightly.

  “Careful.” Draven warned and I shot him a look.

  “I didn’t do it on purpose,” I grumbled as I started to fumble with my pockets.

  “Is it her?” Seth asked from the back seat and I looked down at the screen to see a missed call from Libby.

  “No, it’s my sister.” I decided to call her back once I got there as I didn’t need her continuing on the chain of worry by me also becoming AWOL. Shortly after this we arrived at Willy’s one eyed Joes and I couldn’t help think back to what seemed like a lifetime ago. We pulled up in the same space as the chauffeur driven car had back when I worked at the club and when Draven was obsessed with keeping a firm eye on me. I looked over the hood at him now after getting out the car and when I saw his intense gaze was already on me, I knew not a lot had changed.

  “Keira, I want you to stay by the truck, Seth stay with her,” he ordered me walking ahead and I sighed, saying,

  “Yep, nothing changes.” But this time I listened and held back, knowing that I wanted to ring my sister before trying RJ again. I looked to Seth who didn’t have any issues with being asked to do this and looking at him now, arms crossed and leaning his back against my Bronco, I knew he was starting to trust us. Well it was about bloody time all things considered.

  “We act this way to protect what we hold dear,” he told me, surprising me with a glimpse of his softer side. I wanted to remind him about the time he used to scare the shit out of me with invading my dreams and all that cryptic bullshit back in the gallery but in the end I didn’t need to.

  “I have never been given the opportunity to explain,” he said and now it suddenly clicked why he had seemed so compliant, staying with me by the car. That and I can imagine he knew that whatever was inside Draven could handle on his own.

  “And you never needed one.” I told him but he wouldn’t take the hint.

  “I didn’t fully trust you.”

  “Wow you don’t mince your words do you?” I commented sarcastically.

  “I don’t see the point,” he replied shrugging his shoulders.

  “Then you obviously don’t know much about women.” Finally, with this I got a reaction. He pushed off the side of my Bronco and came to face me. He was so strikingly handsome that I could easily see what RJ had fallen for. And this combined with his style, well it was obvious just looking at him he was RJ’s typ
e and beat the drummer from the Acid Criminals hands down.

  Just looking at him now in his tight black jeans tucked into worn army boots, one covered at the toes in grey and white paint, obviously from the shaded Demon he had last painted. They were even only half laced so he could no doubt just kick his feet into them. I almost giggled thinking we had a love of comfy footwear in common. To finish the look, he wore a loose faded black t shirt and an old fashioned biker jacket that also had speckles of paint dotted here and there.

  But it wasn’t just the way he looked. Like most supernatural men there was an arrogance there that you often saw in their world, no doubt due to their age and power.

  “I know enough,” he said and I knew just the right thing to say to get my point across.

  “Ever been in love?” As soon as I asked the question I knew the answer, so his quiet words only confirmed what I already knew,

  “Not until now.”

  It was in this moment that I realised how difficult it must be for Draven, Vincent and Seth, to all have found their chosen ones. Because no matter how old they really were or how many women they’d had in their beds, what they were experiencing now was like throwing yourself in the deep end of an ocean before even dipping your toe in the water. They had no clue and from the looks of Seth now, he was only just realising it.

  Love wasn’t about telling it what to do, how to act and then trying to bend it to your will when it doesn’t fit your mould. It was all about freedom. That’s what made it pure and sweet. It was knowing that every second of precious time spent together was given by choice and nothing else. That was the gift of Love and it was something this supernatural alternative hunk was going to have to learn, especially if he wanted to be with RJ, who no doubt ate wallflowers for breakfast.

  I would have given him some friendly womanly advice if it hadn’t have been for my phone ringing. I pulled it from my pocket and saw it was my Libby. Seth looked hopeful for a moment until I told him who it was. Seeing first-hand what Draven must have gone through so many times before was certainly an eye opener.