Loss, Murder, Love - Chapters 15 and 16
Eventually the story continues.
Chapter 15
***Leandro's POV***
I ran into the kitchen trying to save whatever was left of the scorched breakfast, when I heard Michelle laughing behind me.
The sound of her laugh made me completely forget about the ruined breakfast. Each time I try to cook Michelle food, something happens, preventing her from tasting my studied techniques. I sigh and pull her closer to me. "Ah well," I think to myself... "Another time."
Michelle is still laughing when I place a kiss on her lips. She could not stop laughing.
"I said, what is so funny..." I started tickling her sides.
She tried to break away from me and I noticed that she was finding it difficult to breathe with me tickling her, so I allowed her to run away. Giving her a few seconds I followed her. We only reached just past the door when Michelle stopped dead in her tracks. I could not stop and bumped into her. She fell hard onto the ground and as I was about to stop her fall I realized why she stopped.
"So Leandro... I see you found her..." Stephan smiled and looked at Michelle lying on the ground. Michelle tried to get to her feet, but I pushed her down again and stood in front of her. Protecting her with my body.
"Stephan... how... but..." I was looking for the right words. I could not understand, how did he remember his quest for me so soon, and how did he get past the monster in the woods. Nothing made sense.
He pointed his gun towards me and then back to Michelle. It felt like the few seconds when I saw him starting to pull the trigger continued for hours. His finger was on the trigger, but not moving. He was not even breathing. What was going on? Then I noticed it... Michelle was moving, but no-one else was!
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***Michelle's POV***
As Leandro came running out of the door he bumped into me. Initially he did not notice the men standing around us with their weapons pointing in our direction. I could however not take my eyes of them. I have never in my entire life been so afraid of a situation. I had no idea how to react. My instinct was to get to my feet and defend myself, but Leandro pushed me back down to the ground. He moved in front of me, protecting me from the line of fire.
Leandro was just as shocked as I was. All he could say was the man's name. "Stephan." So this was Stephan. I looked at his face. He was attractive and well build. But unlike Leandro he was not a super natural attractive. He looked rugged and tired. He had brown hair and his beard was at least 5 days old.
He pointed his gun towards Leandro and I thought he was going to shoot Leandro.
"Stop!" I jumped up. He turned the gun to me. I could see his finger squeezing on the trigger, but he stood absolutely still. I looked at Leandro expecting a reaction from him, but he was standing completely still as well. That is when I realized that I have just used my power of controlling time. I was the only one free to move. Everyone around me was frozen in time.
I took a few minutes to calm my breathing down and to think about what I could do about this situation. I could not leave them like this forever. I looked at Leandro and noticed that he was fully aware of what was happening around him. His eyes followed my every move. I looked at all the other men and noticed that they were not aware of their surroundings.
I wished I knew how I could release Leandro from the time freeze without releasing everyone else.
"Michelle listen to me. You did good. Now take the gun from Stephan's hand and place it in mine. Take the other men's weapons and throw them into the bushes."
Leandro could still communicate mentally with me! What a relief! "Oh Leandro! Thank goodness!" I hugged him and placed a kiss on his cheek.
"Now!" He yelled at me mentally. The power of his voice pushed me back a few steps. I took the gun from Stephan and did exactly as Leandro said. Throwing the last gun into the bushes I went back to Leandro.
"What now?" I wish I could think for myself in this tense moment. That I did not have to depend on Leandro to give me instructions.
"Go inside and close the door. Then I want you to start time again."
I went inside and closed the door. I sat for a few seconds listening, trying to find out if time has started moving on again. I peeked through the window to only see them still standing still. "Oh come on time. Start."
As I finished my words I saw Leandro jump at Stephan. He shouted a few words in Latin and with a lightning bolt I saw Stephan and his men flying in the air. Going further and further from the estate.
He then started shouting at the woods. "How did he get past you?! Come here now!" There was complete silence.
Leandro paced up and down in front of the tomb. "Jake!" He yelled. I have never seen Leandro this upset. "Jake I said come here, this instant..." There was still no "Jake" I wondered who Jake was?
Just as Leandro was about to shout again a timid man came walking towards Leandro. His head bowed down, as if ashamed.
Jake reached Leandro and just stood in front of him. His head still bowed down. "Look at me!" Leandro's voice echoed into the open grassland and into the woods. Jake slowly raised his head. For a second he looked towards the window where I was standing. I felt a cold shiver down my spine as I realized who "Jake" was. His Ice-cold eyes stared at me, as if he was digging into my soul. He smiled at me and I could see his teeth, near canine teeth.
Leandro noticed Jakes expression and turned to look what was captivating Jake.
With a loud smack Leandro hit Jake across the face. "Don't you ever!" Jake looked at Leandro, completely puzzled.
I on the other hand felt like a mountain has just been lifted off my chest. I noticed that my heart was racing and my breathing was very heavy. The control Jake had over me was intense. It felt like he was pressing every bit of oxygen from my lungs.
"Now Jake answer me. How did they get past you?" Leandro grabbed Jake by the collar. I thought that Leandro would kill Jake at that very moment. If it wasn't that I was completely petrified of Jake and what he could do to me I would stop Leandro.
Leandro let go of Jake and pushed him to the ground. At that moment I decided I did not want to see what Leandro was going to do to Jake. I closed the window and sat down on the couch. I was still trembling from what happened.
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***Leandro's POV***
"Jake you better tell me or else you will never capture a single soul again!* I moved closer to Jake. He crawled away from me.
"Master... I ... I... " He stood up from the ground. I noticed how he started to grow. Jakes natural form was a timid man. He looked to be in his late 30s' but he was actually much older. He was even older than me. Not even Jake knew how old he was. He has mouse brown hair and Ice-cold blue eyes. His eyes are so blue that they actually look white.
He stretched himself out until he was tall enough to look me in the eyes. If I did not know Jake, I would have been intimidated and even scared of the well-built man standing in front of me. He smiled... "I let them past... Master." The way he said "master" told me that he betrayed me.
I was completely shocked. Here was a man, when I found him he was hiding in the streets of London, grabbing people as they walked by. Living off the scum of the earth! That was over 100 years ago. I gave him his life back. Showed him that he could be and do so much better! And now he has turned on me.
"I looked around and noticed a rock. I sat down on the rock. Completely flabbergasted. I felt like every drop of energy was just drained from my body.
"Why?" I looked at Jake. His form returned to the timid man.
"Leandro I am sorry, but Stephan made me an offer I could not refuse." Jake sat down on the grass in front of me. Crossing his legs, he looked like a young child who was about to tell his father something exciting that happened.
I knew he was about to tell me the reason for his betrayal. So I sat and listened.
"You know how when you found me over 100 years ago I was living off the scum of the earth. And I was addicted to the souls I was capturing." I nodded my head. "Well that addiction controlled my life. I thought that in order for me to survive I needed the souls. I needed my daily fix, just like a drug addict needs their fix."
He shifted uncomfortably. "I do not understand. What does your addiction of 100 years have to do with you betraying me?" None of this made sense. It felt like I did not know the man sitting in front of me.
"Now with any addiction if you are provided with your drug ever again, you succumb to it and it takes control of your life." He stood up and started pacing up and down. I could sense he was getting uncomfortable.
"About two months ago the number of people trying to cross the woods increased. They were all depressed and easy to consume. At one stage there were at least ten to fifteen people coming by. Then one day it stopped!" His pace increased and his hands started sweating.
"Do you know what it does to you to have your addiction fed for two months then all of a sudden nothing? I was going mad. I needed a fix so bad!" He came to stand in front of me. And then I realized what happened. He was tricked.
"Two days went past and no-one came. I was at the point of insanity when I heard a knock on my door. I was so startled that I did not notice the person coming closer to my house. No-one has ever been there except you. And even then I knew you were coming."
He sat down again. Holding his head between his hands. "It was Stephan. He was the one that send all the souls to me to feed my addiction. He then promised me that I could have all the souls I wanted if I did one small favor for him." Jake lifted his head and I could see he was crying. "I am sorry Leandro. I did not know who he was and that he wanted to harm you or your loved one."
"There were about ten people delivered right to my front door today. All I had to do was let him and his men pass through the woods."
I got up and walked to the front door of the tomb. I turned around and noticed that Jake was still sitting in the same position.
"Jake you know I can never trust you again. So please pack your stuff. You need to be off my property by sundown."
I turned again and went into the tomb where Michelle was.
That was the last conversation I ever had with Jake.
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Chapter 16
It has been seven months for Michelle already.
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***Michelle's POV***
Today I found out that I have been with Leandro for seven months already. The last five months we have been staying in the tomb that Leandro renovated to be a little cottage. It has been a few weeks after the incident where Stephan showed up and Leandro was still uneasy about my safety.
Although I too am now immortal he is still concerned.
It is 2 AM in the morning and I cannot sleep. I might as well go get me a glass of water. As I get up from bed Leandro grabs my hand.
"And where do you think you are going?" He places a soft kiss on my hand. I smile and lie back down next to him.
"I can't sleep so I wanted to get a glass of water. I did not mean to wake you." He pulled me closer to him and stroked my face with his finger. His tender touch sends lightning through my body.
"I have been awake for a while. I could tell from your breathing that you were too, but I did not want to interrupt you. It was clear to me that you were deep in your thoughts."
As promised Leandro no longer listened to my thoughts.. Well except for the time when Stephan showed up. It is a relief to be able to think what I want and not have it intruded on.
"Yes... I have been thinking a lot." I raised myself slightly on my elbow so I could look at Leandro when talking to him.
A strand of hair fell across my face and Leandro tenderly placed it back behind my ear. "And..."
He knew that I had something on my mind and that I needed to discuss it with him. "We have been staying here for five months. Can we not move back to the mansion, seeing that it is fully renovated now? Or if you do not want to move in there can we not look for something else. The reason we moved in here was so you could take care of me when I was ill and because it was safe. We both now know that it is no longer safer than what the mansion would be."
He smiled at me and pulled me closer for a kiss. "So you want to stay in the mansion?" He got up from the bed and went to the linen cupboard. He came back with another blanket. After putting the blanket on the bed he got back in. "was a bit cold... you know with winter coming this place will get freezing cold..." He pulled me into his arms... "Come here... I am cold."
I moved closer to him and lay my head on his chest. I could hear his heart beating. "Ok when do you want to move to the mansion? I will have to let the staff know to get everything ready. I will also have to have a look at the security in and around the mansion."
The idea of leaving the tomb was so exciting that I completely forgot about his statement of being cold. I sat up straight, pulling the blankets from his exposed chest.
"Really? Oh that is fantastic. Can we go there later today to see what it looks like?"
"Hey what are you doing? It is cold." He pulled me back to him and pulled the blanket over us.
"Sure we can go. Now that you have told me what is on your mind, do you think we can sleep for a bit? All this excitement has now tired me out..." He smiled and pulled me closer.
I was so excited. I lifted my head and kissed him.
That morning we made love for the last time in the tomb.
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***Leandro's POV***
I woke up with the sun's rays trying their best to come through the curtains. I looked down at my beautiful Michelle sleeping in my arms. I was the luckiest man on earth. After hundreds of years of looking for someone to replace my Mich in my heart I eventually stopped looking.
I have loveless relationships, one after the other. Each of the women I dated had something about them that could not live up to Mich's standards. Then fate changed my life. Michelle came to town... My coastal town of all coastal towns. Ah I still had to ask her why she decided to come here of all places. Not many people come here for a destination. It is usually just a place they pass by when going to the bigger attractions nearby.
I gently lifted Michelle's head from my arm and got out of bed. If Michelle wanted to go to the mansion today I had to make sure that the necessary arrangements were made for our visit. In the time we have been down here in the tomb, I have not once been to the mansion and therefore I myself do not know what is going on there. I only had the occasional staff member updating me on what was happening at the mansion.
I went into the kitchen to make us some coffee. I did not notice that Michelle woke up and nearly threw the cups in the air when I turned around. Michelle was standing a few inches away from me. Watching me.
"Oh my. Did I give you a fright?" She giggled as she took her coffee from me. We sat outside on the luscious green grass drinking our coffee.
I looked towards the mansion wondering if moving into the mansion would be the right thing to do.
Michelle finished her coffee and lay on her back looking at the clouds passing above our heads. "Do you think we will be doing the right thing by moving into the mansion?"
I started laughing... I could not sit up straight from laughing so much I had to lie down as my stomach cramped from laughing so much.
Michelle sat up looking at me as if I have now completely lost my mind. After getting my breath back I was able to tell her why I was laughing so much. "Those exact words you just said is what I was thinking... are you now reading my mind?"
Michelle just smiled. She did not find it as funny. It was at that exact moment that I decided that the mansion is not for us.
"What about we look for a new place. A new beginning for both of us." Michelle thought about it for a minute and then I saw her face light up.
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***Michelle's POV***
"How about a complete new town. I came here to..." I remembered why I actually came to this little town. "I came here to scatter my mom's ashes..." I started crying. It has been seven months since my arrival here. I do not even know if my belongings are still at the guest house where I booked in. All my affairs were left unattended. My camera, my laptop, clothes and mom's ashes were still at the guest house.
"Leandro, can we please go to the guest house I need to collect my things and mom's ashes." Leandro moved closer and placed his arms around me. Once my head was buried in his shoulder I started crying.
I did not cry when mom passed away. I knew she was dying and she did not want me to cry about her death. She said she wanted me to laugh and remember her life. It was the first time I cried for my mom. The sadness and pain I felt was immense. It felt like a big part of my life was ripped away from me in an instant. I have no idea how long I was crying, for the comfort of Leandro's shoulder and him shhhing me made me fall asleep.
I woke up in bed with Leandro sitting next to me. Holding my hand. As I opened my eyes I saw him smiling down at me.
"You ok?" He caressed my hand lovingly and passed me a glass of water. As I sat up straight it felt like my head would explode. I grabbed hold of my head. Trying to push the pain away.
Leandro passed me a headache tablet. "Here, I thought that with all that crying that you would wake up with a headache." I took the water and the tablet. After drinking it I lay back down on the bed.
"How long did I sleep for?" I was still holding my head, although lying down the pain was not that bad.
"Long enough. Now come, get dressed, I want to take you somewhere." Leandro got up and left before I could question where we were going.
After getting dressed I noticed him sitting outside on the grass. "Are we going or are you going to sit on the grass here all day?" He looked up at me and smiled. I extended my hand to him and he accepted. I helped him up from the grass. Although he did not accept the help, he just accepted the hand. The thought made me smile.
"Come here beautiful," he pulled me closer and gave me a passionate kiss. "Now I know why you were crying and I understand. It is good that you got it out of your system now. Please promise me something." He was still holding me in his arms. He placed a kiss on my forehead. I looked up at him. "What do you want me to promise?"
He pulled back a bit. "Promise me that you will never be that sad again. It broke my heart seeing you like that. I did not know what to say or do to cheer you up." I saw his eyes starting to tear. "I promise. Now please do you not cry now." I kissed him and then took his hand.
"Where did you want to take me." He squeezed my hand and went back inside. He was still holding my hand, so I had to follow him inside.
"You make me get dressed just to take me back inside?" I was completely puzzled.
He reached up to get something from the top of the kitchen cupboard. Then he gave me a box. I opened the box and my tears started flowing again. In the box was the urn with my mom's ashes.
He wiped a lone tear running down my face. "I had your stuff brought here quite a while ago. I just did not want to remind you of it. I felt that you had to do it when you were ready. And after this morning I think you will be ready. Now come, I want to show you something."
He took my hand again and led me outside. We walked for a while through the woods. I noticed the slope decreasing a bit, so I knew we were heading towards the beach.
After about half an hour we reached the end of the woods. In front of us was the most serene sight I have ever seen. White sand stretched as far as I could see to my left and right. And the blue ocean stretched all the way ahead of us.
If there was ever a place my mom would have loved, it would have been this place. Leandro pushed me forward a bit. Indicating that it is time.
I took off my shoes and walked towards the water. I expected the water to be cold, but as the water touched me feet I was surprised. The water was nice and warm and the small waves were rolling in and out around my feet. I walked deeper into the ocean and opened the urn with mom's ashes.
I was knee-high in the water when I decided this was where I wanted to do it. I looked at the ashes, once again tears started rolling down my cheeks.
"Mom, I am sorry it took me so long to bring you here. I know you understand. Oh mom how I miss you!" I looked up towards the heavens. Tears now streaming down my face. "Mom I know you are looking down at me and smiling. I have met someone I love with all my heart. I wish you could have met him mom. You would have loved him just as much as I love him."
I looked back down to the ashes. "Mom. You wanted to come to the coast all your life..." I slowly lowered the urn into the ocean. "...now mom live your eternity in this beautiful place." I stood watching as the waves drew my mom's ashes out into the wide blue ocean, bit by bit. Until there were no more ashes coming from the urn. I watched as mom's ashes were blended with the blue of the ocean. I stood there for a while as I said a silent prayer for mom's soul.
I turned around and started walking back to the beach. When I reached the beach I saw Leandro standing with a shovel.
He handed me a black marker. He did not have to tell me what to do. I wrote today's date on the bottom of the urn with a message. "Love you always mom, Michelle" Leandro started digging a hole with the shovel and when it was big enough for the urn, I placed a kiss on the urn and lay it down in the shallow hole. Leandro then slowly started placing sand on top of it. Once he covered the urn completely he walked to me and folded his arms around me.
That was the day I realized that the immortality he gave me was a precious gift to never be taken for granted.
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Author Comment:
Dear readers,
I know I have probably lost many of you in the long time that I have not written.
I cannot explain why I stopped writing, but what I want to tell you is that I have started again. I will continue with this story. So please enjoy and let me know if I could improve on anything in the story.
***Leandro's POV***
I ran into the kitchen trying to save whatever was left of the scorched breakfast, when I heard Michelle laughing behind me.
The sound of her laugh made me completely forget about the ruined breakfast. Each time I try to cook Michelle food, something happens, preventing her from tasting my studied techniques. I sigh and pull her closer to me. "Ah well," I think to myself... "Another time."
Michelle is still laughing when I place a kiss on her lips. She could not stop laughing.
"I said, what is so funny..." I started tickling her sides.
She tried to break away from me and I noticed that she was finding it difficult to breathe with me tickling her, so I allowed her to run away. Giving her a few seconds I followed her. We only reached just past the door when Michelle stopped dead in her tracks. I could not stop and bumped into her. She fell hard onto the ground and as I was about to stop her fall I realized why she stopped.
"So Leandro... I see you found her..." Stephan smiled and looked at Michelle lying on the ground. Michelle tried to get to her feet, but I pushed her down again and stood in front of her. Protecting her with my body.
"Stephan... how... but..." I was looking for the right words. I could not understand, how did he remember his quest for me so soon, and how did he get past the monster in the woods. Nothing made sense.
He pointed his gun towards me and then back to Michelle. It felt like the few seconds when I saw him starting to pull the trigger continued for hours. His finger was on the trigger, but not moving. He was not even breathing. What was going on? Then I noticed it... Michelle was moving, but no-one else was!
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***Michelle's POV***
As Leandro came running out of the door he bumped into me. Initially he did not notice the men standing around us with their weapons pointing in our direction. I could however not take my eyes of them. I have never in my entire life been so afraid of a situation. I had no idea how to react. My instinct was to get to my feet and defend myself, but Leandro pushed me back down to the ground. He moved in front of me, protecting me from the line of fire.
Leandro was just as shocked as I was. All he could say was the man's name. "Stephan." So this was Stephan. I looked at his face. He was attractive and well build. But unlike Leandro he was not a super natural attractive. He looked rugged and tired. He had brown hair and his beard was at least 5 days old.
He pointed his gun towards Leandro and I thought he was going to shoot Leandro.
"Stop!" I jumped up. He turned the gun to me. I could see his finger squeezing on the trigger, but he stood absolutely still. I looked at Leandro expecting a reaction from him, but he was standing completely still as well. That is when I realized that I have just used my power of controlling time. I was the only one free to move. Everyone around me was frozen in time.
I took a few minutes to calm my breathing down and to think about what I could do about this situation. I could not leave them like this forever. I looked at Leandro and noticed that he was fully aware of what was happening around him. His eyes followed my every move. I looked at all the other men and noticed that they were not aware of their surroundings.
I wished I knew how I could release Leandro from the time freeze without releasing everyone else.
"Michelle listen to me. You did good. Now take the gun from Stephan's hand and place it in mine. Take the other men's weapons and throw them into the bushes."
Leandro could still communicate mentally with me! What a relief! "Oh Leandro! Thank goodness!" I hugged him and placed a kiss on his cheek.
"Now!" He yelled at me mentally. The power of his voice pushed me back a few steps. I took the gun from Stephan and did exactly as Leandro said. Throwing the last gun into the bushes I went back to Leandro.
"What now?" I wish I could think for myself in this tense moment. That I did not have to depend on Leandro to give me instructions.
"Go inside and close the door. Then I want you to start time again."
I went inside and closed the door. I sat for a few seconds listening, trying to find out if time has started moving on again. I peeked through the window to only see them still standing still. "Oh come on time. Start."
As I finished my words I saw Leandro jump at Stephan. He shouted a few words in Latin and with a lightning bolt I saw Stephan and his men flying in the air. Going further and further from the estate.
He then started shouting at the woods. "How did he get past you?! Come here now!" There was complete silence.
Leandro paced up and down in front of the tomb. "Jake!" He yelled. I have never seen Leandro this upset. "Jake I said come here, this instant..." There was still no "Jake" I wondered who Jake was?
Just as Leandro was about to shout again a timid man came walking towards Leandro. His head bowed down, as if ashamed.
Jake reached Leandro and just stood in front of him. His head still bowed down. "Look at me!" Leandro's voice echoed into the open grassland and into the woods. Jake slowly raised his head. For a second he looked towards the window where I was standing. I felt a cold shiver down my spine as I realized who "Jake" was. His Ice-cold eyes stared at me, as if he was digging into my soul. He smiled at me and I could see his teeth, near canine teeth.
Leandro noticed Jakes expression and turned to look what was captivating Jake.
With a loud smack Leandro hit Jake across the face. "Don't you ever!" Jake looked at Leandro, completely puzzled.
I on the other hand felt like a mountain has just been lifted off my chest. I noticed that my heart was racing and my breathing was very heavy. The control Jake had over me was intense. It felt like he was pressing every bit of oxygen from my lungs.
"Now Jake answer me. How did they get past you?" Leandro grabbed Jake by the collar. I thought that Leandro would kill Jake at that very moment. If it wasn't that I was completely petrified of Jake and what he could do to me I would stop Leandro.
Leandro let go of Jake and pushed him to the ground. At that moment I decided I did not want to see what Leandro was going to do to Jake. I closed the window and sat down on the couch. I was still trembling from what happened.
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***Leandro's POV***
"Jake you better tell me or else you will never capture a single soul again!* I moved closer to Jake. He crawled away from me.
"Master... I ... I... " He stood up from the ground. I noticed how he started to grow. Jakes natural form was a timid man. He looked to be in his late 30s' but he was actually much older. He was even older than me. Not even Jake knew how old he was. He has mouse brown hair and Ice-cold blue eyes. His eyes are so blue that they actually look white.
He stretched himself out until he was tall enough to look me in the eyes. If I did not know Jake, I would have been intimidated and even scared of the well-built man standing in front of me. He smiled... "I let them past... Master." The way he said "master" told me that he betrayed me.
I was completely shocked. Here was a man, when I found him he was hiding in the streets of London, grabbing people as they walked by. Living off the scum of the earth! That was over 100 years ago. I gave him his life back. Showed him that he could be and do so much better! And now he has turned on me.
"I looked around and noticed a rock. I sat down on the rock. Completely flabbergasted. I felt like every drop of energy was just drained from my body.
"Why?" I looked at Jake. His form returned to the timid man.
"Leandro I am sorry, but Stephan made me an offer I could not refuse." Jake sat down on the grass in front of me. Crossing his legs, he looked like a young child who was about to tell his father something exciting that happened.
I knew he was about to tell me the reason for his betrayal. So I sat and listened.
"You know how when you found me over 100 years ago I was living off the scum of the earth. And I was addicted to the souls I was capturing." I nodded my head. "Well that addiction controlled my life. I thought that in order for me to survive I needed the souls. I needed my daily fix, just like a drug addict needs their fix."
He shifted uncomfortably. "I do not understand. What does your addiction of 100 years have to do with you betraying me?" None of this made sense. It felt like I did not know the man sitting in front of me.
"Now with any addiction if you are provided with your drug ever again, you succumb to it and it takes control of your life." He stood up and started pacing up and down. I could sense he was getting uncomfortable.
"About two months ago the number of people trying to cross the woods increased. They were all depressed and easy to consume. At one stage there were at least ten to fifteen people coming by. Then one day it stopped!" His pace increased and his hands started sweating.
"Do you know what it does to you to have your addiction fed for two months then all of a sudden nothing? I was going mad. I needed a fix so bad!" He came to stand in front of me. And then I realized what happened. He was tricked.
"Two days went past and no-one came. I was at the point of insanity when I heard a knock on my door. I was so startled that I did not notice the person coming closer to my house. No-one has ever been there except you. And even then I knew you were coming."
He sat down again. Holding his head between his hands. "It was Stephan. He was the one that send all the souls to me to feed my addiction. He then promised me that I could have all the souls I wanted if I did one small favor for him." Jake lifted his head and I could see he was crying. "I am sorry Leandro. I did not know who he was and that he wanted to harm you or your loved one."
"There were about ten people delivered right to my front door today. All I had to do was let him and his men pass through the woods."
I got up and walked to the front door of the tomb. I turned around and noticed that Jake was still sitting in the same position.
"Jake you know I can never trust you again. So please pack your stuff. You need to be off my property by sundown."
I turned again and went into the tomb where Michelle was.
That was the last conversation I ever had with Jake.
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Chapter 16
It has been seven months for Michelle already.
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***Michelle's POV***
Today I found out that I have been with Leandro for seven months already. The last five months we have been staying in the tomb that Leandro renovated to be a little cottage. It has been a few weeks after the incident where Stephan showed up and Leandro was still uneasy about my safety.
Although I too am now immortal he is still concerned.
It is 2 AM in the morning and I cannot sleep. I might as well go get me a glass of water. As I get up from bed Leandro grabs my hand.
"And where do you think you are going?" He places a soft kiss on my hand. I smile and lie back down next to him.
"I can't sleep so I wanted to get a glass of water. I did not mean to wake you." He pulled me closer to him and stroked my face with his finger. His tender touch sends lightning through my body.
"I have been awake for a while. I could tell from your breathing that you were too, but I did not want to interrupt you. It was clear to me that you were deep in your thoughts."
As promised Leandro no longer listened to my thoughts.. Well except for the time when Stephan showed up. It is a relief to be able to think what I want and not have it intruded on.
"Yes... I have been thinking a lot." I raised myself slightly on my elbow so I could look at Leandro when talking to him.
A strand of hair fell across my face and Leandro tenderly placed it back behind my ear. "And..."
He knew that I had something on my mind and that I needed to discuss it with him. "We have been staying here for five months. Can we not move back to the mansion, seeing that it is fully renovated now? Or if you do not want to move in there can we not look for something else. The reason we moved in here was so you could take care of me when I was ill and because it was safe. We both now know that it is no longer safer than what the mansion would be."
He smiled at me and pulled me closer for a kiss. "So you want to stay in the mansion?" He got up from the bed and went to the linen cupboard. He came back with another blanket. After putting the blanket on the bed he got back in. "was a bit cold... you know with winter coming this place will get freezing cold..." He pulled me into his arms... "Come here... I am cold."
I moved closer to him and lay my head on his chest. I could hear his heart beating. "Ok when do you want to move to the mansion? I will have to let the staff know to get everything ready. I will also have to have a look at the security in and around the mansion."
The idea of leaving the tomb was so exciting that I completely forgot about his statement of being cold. I sat up straight, pulling the blankets from his exposed chest.
"Really? Oh that is fantastic. Can we go there later today to see what it looks like?"
"Hey what are you doing? It is cold." He pulled me back to him and pulled the blanket over us.
"Sure we can go. Now that you have told me what is on your mind, do you think we can sleep for a bit? All this excitement has now tired me out..." He smiled and pulled me closer.
I was so excited. I lifted my head and kissed him.
That morning we made love for the last time in the tomb.
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***Leandro's POV***
I woke up with the sun's rays trying their best to come through the curtains. I looked down at my beautiful Michelle sleeping in my arms. I was the luckiest man on earth. After hundreds of years of looking for someone to replace my Mich in my heart I eventually stopped looking.
I have loveless relationships, one after the other. Each of the women I dated had something about them that could not live up to Mich's standards. Then fate changed my life. Michelle came to town... My coastal town of all coastal towns. Ah I still had to ask her why she decided to come here of all places. Not many people come here for a destination. It is usually just a place they pass by when going to the bigger attractions nearby.
I gently lifted Michelle's head from my arm and got out of bed. If Michelle wanted to go to the mansion today I had to make sure that the necessary arrangements were made for our visit. In the time we have been down here in the tomb, I have not once been to the mansion and therefore I myself do not know what is going on there. I only had the occasional staff member updating me on what was happening at the mansion.
I went into the kitchen to make us some coffee. I did not notice that Michelle woke up and nearly threw the cups in the air when I turned around. Michelle was standing a few inches away from me. Watching me.
"Oh my. Did I give you a fright?" She giggled as she took her coffee from me. We sat outside on the luscious green grass drinking our coffee.
I looked towards the mansion wondering if moving into the mansion would be the right thing to do.
Michelle finished her coffee and lay on her back looking at the clouds passing above our heads. "Do you think we will be doing the right thing by moving into the mansion?"
I started laughing... I could not sit up straight from laughing so much I had to lie down as my stomach cramped from laughing so much.
Michelle sat up looking at me as if I have now completely lost my mind. After getting my breath back I was able to tell her why I was laughing so much. "Those exact words you just said is what I was thinking... are you now reading my mind?"
Michelle just smiled. She did not find it as funny. It was at that exact moment that I decided that the mansion is not for us.
"What about we look for a new place. A new beginning for both of us." Michelle thought about it for a minute and then I saw her face light up.
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***Michelle's POV***
"How about a complete new town. I came here to..." I remembered why I actually came to this little town. "I came here to scatter my mom's ashes..." I started crying. It has been seven months since my arrival here. I do not even know if my belongings are still at the guest house where I booked in. All my affairs were left unattended. My camera, my laptop, clothes and mom's ashes were still at the guest house.
"Leandro, can we please go to the guest house I need to collect my things and mom's ashes." Leandro moved closer and placed his arms around me. Once my head was buried in his shoulder I started crying.
I did not cry when mom passed away. I knew she was dying and she did not want me to cry about her death. She said she wanted me to laugh and remember her life. It was the first time I cried for my mom. The sadness and pain I felt was immense. It felt like a big part of my life was ripped away from me in an instant. I have no idea how long I was crying, for the comfort of Leandro's shoulder and him shhhing me made me fall asleep.
I woke up in bed with Leandro sitting next to me. Holding my hand. As I opened my eyes I saw him smiling down at me.
"You ok?" He caressed my hand lovingly and passed me a glass of water. As I sat up straight it felt like my head would explode. I grabbed hold of my head. Trying to push the pain away.
Leandro passed me a headache tablet. "Here, I thought that with all that crying that you would wake up with a headache." I took the water and the tablet. After drinking it I lay back down on the bed.
"How long did I sleep for?" I was still holding my head, although lying down the pain was not that bad.
"Long enough. Now come, get dressed, I want to take you somewhere." Leandro got up and left before I could question where we were going.
After getting dressed I noticed him sitting outside on the grass. "Are we going or are you going to sit on the grass here all day?" He looked up at me and smiled. I extended my hand to him and he accepted. I helped him up from the grass. Although he did not accept the help, he just accepted the hand. The thought made me smile.
"Come here beautiful," he pulled me closer and gave me a passionate kiss. "Now I know why you were crying and I understand. It is good that you got it out of your system now. Please promise me something." He was still holding me in his arms. He placed a kiss on my forehead. I looked up at him. "What do you want me to promise?"
He pulled back a bit. "Promise me that you will never be that sad again. It broke my heart seeing you like that. I did not know what to say or do to cheer you up." I saw his eyes starting to tear. "I promise. Now please do you not cry now." I kissed him and then took his hand.
"Where did you want to take me." He squeezed my hand and went back inside. He was still holding my hand, so I had to follow him inside.
"You make me get dressed just to take me back inside?" I was completely puzzled.
He reached up to get something from the top of the kitchen cupboard. Then he gave me a box. I opened the box and my tears started flowing again. In the box was the urn with my mom's ashes.
He wiped a lone tear running down my face. "I had your stuff brought here quite a while ago. I just did not want to remind you of it. I felt that you had to do it when you were ready. And after this morning I think you will be ready. Now come, I want to show you something."
He took my hand again and led me outside. We walked for a while through the woods. I noticed the slope decreasing a bit, so I knew we were heading towards the beach.
After about half an hour we reached the end of the woods. In front of us was the most serene sight I have ever seen. White sand stretched as far as I could see to my left and right. And the blue ocean stretched all the way ahead of us.
If there was ever a place my mom would have loved, it would have been this place. Leandro pushed me forward a bit. Indicating that it is time.
I took off my shoes and walked towards the water. I expected the water to be cold, but as the water touched me feet I was surprised. The water was nice and warm and the small waves were rolling in and out around my feet. I walked deeper into the ocean and opened the urn with mom's ashes.
I was knee-high in the water when I decided this was where I wanted to do it. I looked at the ashes, once again tears started rolling down my cheeks.
"Mom, I am sorry it took me so long to bring you here. I know you understand. Oh mom how I miss you!" I looked up towards the heavens. Tears now streaming down my face. "Mom I know you are looking down at me and smiling. I have met someone I love with all my heart. I wish you could have met him mom. You would have loved him just as much as I love him."
I looked back down to the ashes. "Mom. You wanted to come to the coast all your life..." I slowly lowered the urn into the ocean. "...now mom live your eternity in this beautiful place." I stood watching as the waves drew my mom's ashes out into the wide blue ocean, bit by bit. Until there were no more ashes coming from the urn. I watched as mom's ashes were blended with the blue of the ocean. I stood there for a while as I said a silent prayer for mom's soul.
I turned around and started walking back to the beach. When I reached the beach I saw Leandro standing with a shovel.
He handed me a black marker. He did not have to tell me what to do. I wrote today's date on the bottom of the urn with a message. "Love you always mom, Michelle" Leandro started digging a hole with the shovel and when it was big enough for the urn, I placed a kiss on the urn and lay it down in the shallow hole. Leandro then slowly started placing sand on top of it. Once he covered the urn completely he walked to me and folded his arms around me.
That was the day I realized that the immortality he gave me was a precious gift to never be taken for granted.
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Author Comment:
Dear readers,
I know I have probably lost many of you in the long time that I have not written.
I cannot explain why I stopped writing, but what I want to tell you is that I have started again. I will continue with this story. So please enjoy and let me know if I could improve on anything in the story.
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