Arielle Immortal Passion (16 page)

He had agreed to meet Troy and Ian that morning, so it was time for him to get up and get in the shower. Leaving Arielle in bed without waking her up was something he had promised he would never do, but today was not like any other day. Today was the day he would face Annabel, his ghastly nightmare, and possibly others who seemed to have gained access to his home without his approval.

They were going to meet downstairs at nine o’clock in the library to discuss a plan. He knew they would need to call for additional immortal power to assist with this terrible situation. He had no idea how many accomplices Annabel had, how many might be hiding in this very house. Whatever the number, he was familiar with the amazing powers they possessed, and that knowledge filled him with dread.

Troy had invited his three best friends to help; they were flying in from Italy. Sebastian had asked three of his best friends to come as well. Two were flying in from Germany and one was driving from Paris. They were all immortals, and they all possessed enormous strengths and abilities that Sebastian needed badly right now.

Annabel was governed by an evil beyond belief. With her immortal powers, she was lethal. That she had tried three times to bring harm to Arielle confirmed Sebastian’s suspicion that she was more than willing to bring devastation in his life by hurting his fianceé. In fact, she seemed determined to do so. He had no idea what she had planned, but he was determined to expose her, and to destroy her and her accomplices forever.

The belongings Eva and Arielle had discovered in the room in the west wing belonged to a woman that Troy told them he knew very well. Sebastian had never heard of her, but she had invaded his home without his approval. He was sure that Annabel was using her somehow to carry out her malicious plan.
Annabel is the center of evil, and everything she is doing is for her own personal gain,
he thought, as he walked into the shower.
She is trying to inflict extreme pain or horrible death on Arielle to keep me from being happy. I can’t allow this to happen.

His jaw clenched. He cursed inwardly as his thoughts turned back to the intruder in his house.
I just can’t understand how this woman is getting into the house without anyone knowing that she is here,
he thought. All of the secret passages in the east wing had been sealed for hundreds of years. The west wing, however, was the part of the house that had been used for storage throughout the years and it had never been checked for secret passages. He had forbidden Annabel to enter his house centuries ago, but she kept showing up. And now he was sure that she and her accomplices were entering the house through some secret passage. What exactly was she planning to do? The question was tormenting him.

Troy had told him that the intruder was evil, and that she had absolutely no reason to be in his house. When they had left the room the day before, they had put everything back the way it was. They wanted to make sure that no evidence was left behind, so that the mysterious intruder wouldn’t know they had been there. They wanted the advantage of surprise Careful preparation and planning would be the most important things for them right now. The house would have to be sealed completely from any unwanted visitors. This was the last thought he had before he walked out of the shower and reached for a towel.

He walked into the library right on time. Both Troy and Ian were standing there waiting for him.

“Good morning,” he said with a voice that sounded more confident than he felt.

“Hey, Sebastian.”

“Troy, can you tell me who is coming today to help us?”

“Sure, they are three of my very best friends. Girard Castonious is my oldest friend. We go back five centuries. He comes from a very affluent family and he became immortal at age thirty-two. Antonius Vercelius came along a few years later. He is twenty-nine. He’s a great guy. The last one I met three centuries ago when I lived in Spain. His name is Giani Acerbus. His family is Italian, however they made their money in Spain. He became immortal at age twenty-seven, the same age as you,” he said to Sebastian.

He paused for a moment, and then continued, “You know how hard it is for immortals to find faithful friends. The four of us became very close and we have kept in touch all these years as if we lived next door to each other. We all lived in various places through the centuries, enduring a lot of bad things and enjoying good ones. These guys are very reliable and I would trust them with my life. We have actually roamed the earth together, and I’m surprised we have survived as well as we have, thinking of all the dumb situations we managed to get ourselves into.” He chuckled once again, as if he were thinking of a private joke.

“They can’t wait to meet Gabrielle,” he added. “They know very well how hard it has been for me to find the right girl.”

“Oh, I know that feeling very well,” Sebastian snorted, as his thoughts turned to Arielle.

“Finding the right girl is pretty complicated for humans, as well,” Ian added, with a grin.

“I guess dealing with women is pretty complicated, period.” Troy agreed, and they all laughed.

“What about your friends?” Troy asked, turning his gaze to Sebastian.

“Pretty much the same story. Two of them are now living in Germany, Jon Lacroix and Pier De Zrozi. They’re both thirty-three, and they both became immortals after they lost their parents during the same influenza epidemic that took my parents. Jacques Louvser lives in Paris. He is twenty-eight. They have been my friends for more than three and a half centuries. They all work for my company, so we’re in touch almost daily. We have attended many colleges together out of boredom, created a lot of trouble for some people, and enjoyed the company of others. I must say we got ourselves into trouble quite a few times, but we always helped each other out and came out of each situation untouched. I trust these guys with my life, and I hope that with all of us working together, including Ian, we will be able to resolve most of the issues I am facing. I have to tell you, I really do appreciate your help. Taking care of this situation is essential for my happiness with Arielle. I’m prepared to do whatever I have to do to make sure she is safe. I’m just so frustrated about the whole situation.” Sebastian sighed, then shook his head and continued. “The flight from Germany is coming in around two this afternoon. The drive from Paris is around six hours, and Jacques left Paris at eight this morning, so he should be arriving around two as well. What about your friends, Troy?”

“They will arrive around 1:30.”

“So, we should leave for the airport around one, and take two cars.”

“Sebastian, have you thought about exactly what you are going to do?”

“Well, my first thought was to sweep the west wing carefully, to find the way Annabel and her accomplices are entering the house. There has to be a secret passage somewhere, or maybe more than one. Anyway, I need to find them and get them sealed. Ian, you can help with that. However, you’ll have to stay close to one of us at all times. The intruders possess powers a thousand times more powerful than any human. We wouldn’t want to see you hurt.”

“I sure wish I had your powers,” Ian murmured, shaking his head in wonderment. He then added with a grin, “But since I don’t, don’t worry, I will stay close. I want to help in any way I can, but if I create any problems for you, just let me know and I’ll stay behind.”

Troy’s mind was drifting in several directions. He was looking down at his feet, mentally pondering his thoughts. His lips twisted and finally he looked up.

“Sebastian why is Annabel so adamant about hurting Arielle? She knows you’ll never go back to her. So what’s the point? Why doesn’t she just let go?”

“She’s vicious,” Sebastian said simply. “And she has vowed to kill anyone that I want to be with. She made me that promise when the annulment came through, and she knew then that there was not a chance that we would ever be together. I’ve hated her with all the passion I possess ever since our wedding day. It was a marriage arranged by my father and I had no say in his decision. I’ve prayed for her annihilation, but as you know time can’t kill her, so it will have to be something else, or someone else.” He paused again, sighed and said. “My hate for her is not a temporary emotional state, Troy, it’s a disposition that consumes my whole existence every time her name comes up. The more she hates Arielle, the more I detest her. I think her extreme dislike for Arielle is simply because Arielle is a human being—something she would give her own life to be. She’s jealous. I carry a deep sense of repugnance and intense antipathy for her every day of my life. I want to kill her. I want her to disappear from our lives.”

Ian felt a cold chill move down his spine as he listened to the hardness in Sebastian’s voice. He kept looking from Troy to Sebastian. He wanted so badly to help, but he felt fairly helpless in the face of such a challenge.

“Where would a secret passage be leading to?” Ian asked. “Could it be going out to that cemetery we passed when we went horseback riding? I read about how cemetery vaults sometimes had access to castles, during medieval times.”

“I don’t know, Ian, but that will be one of the places we will investigate, as well as others I have in mind,” Sebastian said. “We’ve all lived in places that have been built with secret passages, so we have some notion about where to look and what to look for.”

“What are you looking for? What would make you think there is a secret passage at a particular place?”

“We’ll look for secret doors that are designed to blend in with the surroundings, as if they were part of the walls. We are going to look behind fireplaces and bookcases for some small mechanism on the walls that may be the key to opening a secret door. We’ll go to the vaults at the cemetery and check behind the monuments and statues for access doors that lead to this house. We are not going to leave a single stone unturned until we find them all and seal them up. We are going to trap Annabel, or whoever is with her, in one location and then kill them. That is the whole purpose.”

“I suppose all of your friends are immortals,” Ian said. It was more of a statement than a question.

“Yes, they are,” Sebastian and Troy replied in unison.

Ian blinked, assessing the two of them swiftly. He paused for a moment, and then he briefly frowned.

Sebastian and Troy raised their brows quizzically. “What is it, Ian?”

“Well, let me ask a stupid question then,” Ian finally managed to say, a baffled look still on his face. “If your friends are all immortals, why do they bother flying or driving to get here?”

Troy and Sebastian understood their friend’s curiosity, and Sebastian smiled gently before answering. “We use our immortal abilities only when it is absolutely necessary. Otherwise, we live our lives just like any other person.”

“Well,” Ian said. “I want to help, and I will help. And don’t worry about me, I’m a big boy.”

Troy and Sebastian chuckled. They loved Ian, but they knew that he had no idea of what kind of power they were going to be fighting.

“Thanks, Ian, that will be great,” Sebastian said.

Chapter 13

W
hen Arielle awoke, she realized she was alone. The clock showed 10:00, but the room was still quite dark. A soft gold band of light slipped in through the corner of the window where the curtain was not completely shut.

The room was absolutely silent.

She sat up and shook her hair out of her eyes, then raked her fingers through it. The sweet scent of Sebastian mixed with the smell of fresh blossoms hit her nostrils, making her smile. She could see that he had taken a shower and was already gone. She slammed back down onto the bed and, throwing her arm over her eyes, sighed deeply. How strange was that? She was missing him already. She closed her eyes and savored the thought of him, and the thrill that was surging through her in rushing waves of heat.
This is crazy,
she thought.
How can he be having this type of effect on me, when he’s not even here, when he is not even touching me?
She still found it hard to believe, but then everything about Sebastian was hard to believe.

This was a dream,
her
dream, and she was going to drown in the elation it provided. He always managed to reduce her to a shuddering state of gratification each and every time she was in his arms. She closed her eyes and drew a deep breath. Then, she sat up again and scooted to the edge of the bed. She felt a headache coming on, and shut her eyes, trying to make it go away. Legs dangling over the side, she brought both hands up to her thrumming temples and pressed hard. She needed a pain reliever.

Jumping off the bed she strode, to the bathroom and rummaged through the medicine cabinet in nervous anticipation. She was sure that she wasn’t going to find anything in Sebastian’s bathroom since he never had the need of pain relievers, but it was worth trying. To her complete amazement, she found a bottle of aspirin. Her eyes flashed in delight and taking a couple of pills, she went back to bed to lie down until the pain went away. A while later, headache gone, she got into the shower and took her time getting ready. She decided to call Gabrielle, who picked up on the first ring.

“What are you doing?” Arielle asked. “You sound sleepy.”

“I’m still in bed. What are we going to do while the guys are meeting their friends at the airport?”

“Have you talked to Eva this morning?”

“Yes, she is waiting to hear what you want to do.”

“Do you want to go to the beach?”

“I would love to do that. Maybe we can have lunch at that great little place we all had lunch the other day.”

“That’ll be fine. Do you want to call Eva, or do you want me to do it? All I have to do is dry my hair and put my bathing suit on.”

“Give me about a half hour. I will call Eva and let her know,” Gabby said.

“Fine,” Arielle replied, and ended the call. She finished drying her hair, put her bathing suit on, took a beach towel, and walked out the door. Gabrielle was almost ready when Arielle knocked on her door, and Eva showed up a couple of minutes later. They hugged each other and left Gabby’s room, chatting blissfully.

They were almost at the end of the long hallway when Gabby suddenly gave out a quiet chuckle.

“What is it?” Arielle asked, turning in Gabby’s direction.

Gabby snorted, and after a short moment, she said, “Oh, I was just remembering a funny incident involving Eva a long time ago,” she said.

“Oh, really?” Eva said, tilting her head to look into Gabby’s face, her eyes wide open. “Go ahead, do tell,” she added, giving Gabby a nod of approval. Still chuckling, Gabby said, “Remember that time in Brighton when a big wave hit Eva while she was bodysurfing, and pulled the bottom of her bathing suit off, then slammed her onto the sand?”

Arielle laughed, and turning, she gazed at Eva, waiting for her reaction. Eva gave a self-conscious laugh, and glanced back between Arielle and Gabby, unable to hide her amusement. She hadn’t found it very funny at the time, but it had been hilarious to Arielle and Gabby as they watched her chase after that small little scrap of fabric for a long way before she was finally able to come out of the water. Infectious laughter overtook the three of them as they descended the main staircase. The vivid vision of Eva on that beach was enough to have tears running down their faces. As they came to the bottom of the stairs, Ian, Troy and Sebastian stepped outside the library to see what all the commotion was about.

The sight of the three girls doubled over with laughter, brought them to a stand still. “What’s so funny?” Sebastian asked.

Gabrielle made a dismissive gesture with her hand. “Oh, it’s a long story, you probably wouldn’t understand, but it’s very funny and we just can’t stop laughing,” she said, in answer to their puzzled looks. But she couldn’t even really get the words out of her mouth. She bent over helplessly in the middle of what she was saying, and they all three laughed even harder.

Sebastian pulled Arielle against him and bending down, he pressed his mouth to hers and kissed her thoroughly. “I missed you this morning,” she said, trying to fake a frown on her face but unable to do so, still seeing the image of Eva chasing her bikini bottom down the beach in her head.

“You don’t sound like it.”

“I love you so much, and I
really
missed you,” she insisted, pressing her lips to his at the same time she was trying to hold back laughter.

“What’s so funny?”

“Oh, just like Gabby said, it’s just a very funny story about Eva on the beach a long time ago. You know we have a lot of those stories that just make us laugh, and this one came up again this morning. We are going to the beach and we’ll have lunch at that little place we all went the other day.”

“I’ll miss you,” he said, longing in his eyes.

“You didn’t wake me up this morning,” she said, giving him a meaningful look. He gathered her in his arms again and their gaze locked.

“I’ll make it up to you tonight,” he whispered, his lips brushing her ear.

“Do you want us to stay and help you?” Arielle said, gaining control of her voice at last.

“No!” he said forcefully, and then added more gently, “I’d rather you are not here while we’re trying to work this out. I’m not sure how long it will take or what we are going to find.” The hardness in his voice startled Arielle, but she didn’t say anything.

“Stay away from strange guys,” he said, pulling her closer, arms locking tightly about her. “I love you,” he whispered. She looked up smiling and reaching up, she drew his lips to hers.

“Be careful,” Troy was saying to Gabrielle.

They were halfway to the door when they heard Ian’s voice call out innocently. “Make sure you keep your bathing suits on.” That was enough to send the three girls into uncontrollable laughter all over again. Eva bent over laughing and Arielle and Gabby were in tears.

They waved and walked out still laughing, leaving the guys shaking their heads in puzzlement. And they got into the car and drove away still laughing.

But as they moved farther away from the house a heavy silence dropped inside the car like a gloomy screen, reminding them that something serious was going to take place back at the house, and that their loved ones might be in danger.

“I don’t know what a fight between immortals will be like, but the thought makes me very anxious,” Arielle said. She looked over at Gabrielle and Eva and saw uneasiness on their faces as well.

“I’m worried about Ian,” Eva said. “He doesn’t possess the powers that Troy and Sebastian have.”

“Don’t worry, Eva, there will be eight guys there to protect Ian. I wouldn’t worry about him at all,” Gabrielle said.

“I did ask them if we could stay and they were very adamant about us staying away from the house. I think they know what they are doing,” Arielle added. “Let’s just go and try not to worry about them.”

At the airport Sebastian, Troy, and Ian pulled up in front of the door nearest the baggage claim ten minutes before the first flight arrived. They didn’t have to wait long. Troy’s friends walked out through the sliding doors as several people turned to stare in their direction, stunned by their amazing looks and flawless features. Used to that kind of reaction, they didn’t pay any attention, but walked toward Troy, who was standing by the cars. They exchanged warm handshakes, and Troy introduced his friends to Sebastian and Ian.

Sebastian let the greetings wash over him and, glancing between the three men, he seized the moment to express his appreciation. “Thank you for coming,” he said sincerely. “I have found myself in a bit of a tight spot, and I need all the help I can get.”

“Oh, don’t mention it. We’re happy to help,” Gerard said. “Besides, this is a great place to get a little holiday at the same time,” he added, grinning.

“Life can get awfully boring in our infinite time span. I’m sure that the three of us are ready for some action,” Antonius added, laughing. They exchanged small talk and news from Italy with Troy, and before long Sebastian’s friends had also arrived. Once again, bystanders gawked as the immortals came out of the terminal, and once again the immortals ignored the attention. New introductions, new smiles, and new warm handshakes ensued. Pretty soon they all climbed into the waiting cars and left for the house. It was evident to the people at the airport that they must be looking at a group of male models heading for a convention. What else could they possibly think while staring at gorgeous guys who looked as if they belonged on a painter’s canvas rather than at the airport arrivals platform?

The house was quiet as they all climbed the huge front staircase and entered the foyer carrying their luggage.

“Troy, can you take the guys upstairs? Let them choose any bedroom that’s not occupied,” Sebastian said. Turning his attention to his guests, he added, “Please take your time, freshen up, and let’s meet down here in the library at 3:30. Jacques should be here shortly; Ian and I will wait down here for him. When we are all together, we can discuss details of the situation and figure out what we need to do and how to go about it. Any suggestions you have at that time will be most welcome,” Sebastian chuckled.

They all thanked Sebastian and quickly climbed the stairs to the upper level. Sebastian and Ian stayed downstairs in the library to wait for Jacques. Walking into the library, Sebastian waved at Ian to take a seat at one of the large leather loungers, and he moved to take the one across from him.

Sebastian gazed at Ian. He could clearly see confusion muddling Ian’s thoughts. His brows furrowed as he sensed the questions Ian was pondering in his mind about the newcomers, and what was going to happen now that they were here. “What’s wrong, Ian?” he asked, feigning ignorance.

Ian frowned for a quick moment and then his lips twisted into a wry smile. “Have you ever noticed how much you and your immortal friends favor each other?” he said.

Sebastian seemed to consider his question for a long moment, and then he asked. “How so?”

“Well, I’m not saying that you all have the same color hair and or eyes, but your facial features and body build, like your broad shoulders and muscular thighs, are very similar. As a matter of fact, the similarities are staggering.”

Sebastian snorted in reply. “I was hoping that I looked a bit better than those ugly guys, but that is part of being an immortal,” he said, trying hard to hold back laughter. Sebastian was well aware that immortals had many similarities. It was common knowledge in their world. Their amazing looks were obvious and hard to ignore.

Ian grinned and stretching out his legs, he folded his arms on his chest. Then he said, “Ever since you told us about your immortality I’ve wondered, what it would feel like to be you?”

Sebastian rose to his feet and started to pace back and forth. When he finally stopped pacing, he sank back into his chair and very carefully, he tried to use the right words for his reply.

“Ian, being a human is an immortal’s dream—
my dream
—but we are who we are. Don’t wish for things that may end up being your biggest regret. My personal opinion is that trying to find your own way through life is what will make your journey interesting and worthwhile. I had no choice about my journey as a human being cut short,” he said, tapping the handrest of his chair tensely. “Before I met Arielle, I used to look back quite often and wish that I had died along with the rest of my family. I hated this endless life. It was like a dreadful nightmare. You’re moving, but you’re going nowhere,” he said bitterly. “All these centuries past, I watched the world around me evolving, but I was standing still. Even after I met Arielle, I never stopped wishing, only this time I was wishing for something different.” He stopped talking as he gazed out the window, thinking about the unexpected turn of events that his life had taken.